The Rollins Report

I gets lots of comments as a mom of twins. Stuff from stating that I have my hands full, to wondering how I carried and gave birth to them, to telling me about someone they know who is/has twins.

One question that I hear frequently is what it's like having twins. I got that one again today as we were waiting in line for story time at the library, and it got me to thinking. Since we didn't have any kids before the boys were born, we don't know any differently.

So what it is like? Well, to say the least, it is a challenge. Some days are bad, so bad that I think I'm going to go crazy! More days, however, are good days. As they get older, in some ways it's easier, in others it's more difficult. My days are a blur of pumping, preparing and washing bottles, feeding, diaper changes, as well as playing and interacting with the boys.

When they both take a good nap or when they are occupied with toys, I can do housework or take a shower. I'm finding out how much I can accomplish in five-ten minute intervals, as well as what I can do with one hand!

Some days, though, it seems like I can't get anything done! It's sometimes tough when both boys are crying and I can only comfort one. But I just have to remind myself that I'm one person and I'm doing the best that I can.

Gone are the days of spontaneously leaving the house. Getting the boys ready to go and out the door is a process. I have it down to an art, but I must do every step in the same order, lest I forget something! I was scared the first time I went somewhere with them, now it's old hat.

Also gone are the days of a quick trip anywhere. Now, wherever we go, the boys and I are sure to attract attention. People seem to gravitate to us. Life before the boys seems like such a long time ago. Having twins is a ton of work, but being rewarded with smiles and giggles from the boys reminds me of how blessed I am to be their mommy!

A few weeks ago, someone posted a Groupon deal on Facebook for the Dallas Arboretum. I thought it would be a fun outing for Mom and I. We decided it would be a good opportunity for pictures!

Yesterday, after a quick stop at McDonald's for breakfast, we headed to the Arboretum. My cousin Deanna and aunt Linda also came with us! Once we got there, it was time for the boys to eat, so we fed them their bottles in the car. After they finished, we got everything packed up and headed in. I think we looked like we were moving in!

The boys were dressed in their pumpkin rompers with matching knitted hats. (All created by Grandma Toy!) we were a sight to see, apparently. All sorts of people wanted to ask questions, take pictures, talk about twins that they knew and also point at the boys. We stopped every so often to take pictures. It was definitely an ordeal to get them positioned just so for the pictures. Then it was interesting trying to get them to look at the camera! Oh well. We had their Bumbo seats, and covered them with brown fabric to blend in with the surroundings. That at least helped them to sit up.

After we had taken a bunch of pictures, we decided to eat lunch there, which was very good. We then packed up all of our stuff and got to my parents' house in time for their next feeding. All in all, it was a great trip and I'm glad we did it!

Saturday was their baptism. I found the cutest plaid overalls for them to wear! They came with a matching green shirt, but I opted for white onesies to tone it down a bit. Add white socks and shoes, along with their white caps, and they were ready to go!

We got there early to save seats and greet family and friends who came. When it was time, we made our way to the front. I had Jack and David was holding Justin. The pastor who baptized the boys has a son who was in The Colony band with me, so that was really neat!

Throughout the baptism, I'm pretty sure I was grinning the whole time! I'd been looking forward to having my kids baptized for so long and now it was time! I loved looking out into the congregation and seeing so many of our friends and family there to support us.

After the service was over, we took some pictures, then adjourned to the foyer of the education building for some punch and cookies. It was so great to see people that I hadn't seen in awhile! After spending some time chatting with various people, it was time to clean up and head to dinner.

I had made a reservation for the family to go out to dinner at Brooklyn's, a New York style pizza place. The staff there was great! They had already set a group of tables aside with my name on it. They got our food to us pretty quickly and definitely took care of us! Overall, it was a really great night!

Friday night, we had a family wedding to attend. The boys were invited, so it was our first wedding as a family of four! This was also the first time that the extended family had seen the boys, so it was a big deal!

We put them in their red and white striped onesies and away we went! The wedding was at a venue called The Cotton Mill. It was a neat looking place. We found places to sit and gave the boys their bottles. The ceremony took place in an outdoor courtyard. Well, it did until it started raining!

We reconvened in the reception hall and started over. It was a beautiful wedding and I'm very happy for the newlyweds. Everyone was excited to meet the boys! They spent the entire evening being passed around to different relatives. Every now and then I'd look around to see who had them.

We finished the night by dancing the Grand March. The dancing portion of the reception had just started, but it was getting close to feeding time again and we were all exhausted! Since it was continuing to rain, David pulled the car up and my parents helped to load the boys and all their paraphernalia. We got home a few minutes before they needed to eat, but enough time for us to change and relax a bit. All in all, their debut to the family was a rousing success!

As of yesterday, the boys are three months old. It's so funny, their personalities are really coming through more and more these days! Justin is smiling more and more, and will sometimes laugh, too! Jack is also smiling a lot, but I haven't heard him laugh yet. They are both babbling now. In fact, yesterday as I was feeding Justin, I could hear Jack in his crib, having a babbled conversation with himself.

This past Wednesday, we met up with a friend of mine for Babies & Books at the Frisco Library. We sang songs, did some baby sign language, and of course, all read a book together. My two were the youngest ones, and they were also the only set of twins. It was a challenge to do the activities with both of them, but it was fun. They appeared to enjoy themselves. At least, they didn't fuss.

I went out to the Just Between Friends consignment sale this afternoon. They had a ton of stuff. The challenge is finding two of things, particularly clothes and pairs of shoes. I went intending to find possible Christmas gifts for the boys, and this I did. I found some toys that I think they'll enjoy!

This week is going to be a big week for us. I'll start going to Mom-to-Mom meetings on Mondays, which means the boys will be going to the nursery for the first time! I've been assured that they can give the boys their bottles and will take good care of them! I'm really looking forward to the adult conversations!

Wednesday will be Babies & Books, then Friday night, the boys will meet the extended family at a family wedding! That will definitely be exciting! Finally, on Saturday, we will celebrate their baptisms! It's going to be a great week!

The other day, we had Jack in one of the swings, and he was making some really funny faces. David got out the video camera and shot some footage of his antics. Jack was sticking out his tongue, smiling, among other things. After he finished performing for us, we were watching videos from earlier. I saw the video that we recorded the morning of their birth, where we were both talking about our feelings and not knowing what we were getting ourselves into. Then, there I was, in the triage room, waiting to be wheeled into the operating room.

A bit later, we watched the part that we filmed when Justin came home from the NICU. We had placed both boys in the bassinet and watched as they reached out to each other! It's so funny to see how much they have changed! They don't even look like the same boys. Well, that's not completely true, but they have gotten quite a bit bigger. It seems like such a long time ago, and yet it's only been twelve weeks!

They are both starting to develop their own personalities. At least, they are starting to show their personalities. While they both certainly make their complaints known, Jack is the more vocal of the two. Justin is the mover. He wiggles all around his crib, whereas Jack will typically stay in the same spot the entire time. I know that the older they get, the more that they will change. I'm excited to see what they will become!

Family Picture 6/24/2011

So anyone who knows anything about me knows how much I love music. I have been known to spontaneously burst into song and dance. It doesn't matter if there is any music playing, I do it anyway! Naturally, I sing to the boys a lot: during tummy time, in the car, while feeding, you name it! I've said before how music calms them down.

David figured out a way to get music to play from our computer to our TiVo system. The other day when the boys were particularly fussy, I cranked up the stereo (not too loud!) and Jack and I danced along to Tina Turner singing "Proud Mary." I sang along, of course! Don't worry, Justin got his turn, too! We then listened to one of Billy Joel's Greatest Hits albums. Aside from calming them down, it made me feel good, too, so that was a bonus!

Since music is such a big part of my life, I love sharing it with the boys. After all, they heard me play percussion, drumset, piano and singing throughout my pregnancy. Of course I'm going to continue to share it with them!

We went to the Frisco Community Band rehearsal last night. I'll join back up in a few months, but I wanted to visit my friends. After introducing the boys to everyone, we hung out in the percussion section. They loved looking around the band hall and got calmed down by the music. Well, Justin did anyway. Jack was fussy, but that's probably because I told him he wasn't allowed to play yet. Someday they will, though. Someday!

Saturday night, David and I attended the wedding of a friend. On Friday afternoon, some friends called to let us know they were going to be in town and wanted to meet the boys. They came over Saturday afternoon until it was time to leave for the wedding. It was wonderful to see them and we had a great visit! Once we were ready to go, we packed up the boys and took them to my parents' house.

We used our GPS to get us to the wedding site, and it took us kind of an odd way, but we got there on time, so it turned out okay. The wedding was beautiful and I really enjoyed the ceremony. The reception, which was held at the same location, was a lot of fun. We saw several faces that we hadn't seen in awhile, so that was fun, too!
The DJ was really good, played a lot of songs that got people on the dance floor. David and I had a great time!

I decided that the boys and I should make a trip to Denton to visit my campuses and special ed. At my first campus, I parked the stroller in the counselor's office and they made an announcement over the intercom that we were here. Lots of people came to see us! The boys got passed around lots and I even had two teachers volunteer to do their feeding! I'm not going to pass that up!

While they were busy with the boys, I walked around and said hi to different people. It was absolutely wonderful to see everyone! They were about to have a staff luncheon and I was encouraged to stay for that. I'm not going to pass up a free lunch, either! So they boys and I went down to the cafeteria. They were back in their stroller, and if they got fussy, I'd just jiggle their stroller. One of the teachers stayed with them while I got my plate, that was really nice.

After we left there, I called the Special Education office to see if anyone was around. The answer was in the affirmative, so we stopped there. I parked the stroller by the receptionist's desk, and she told the others that we were there. Like at my campus, everyone came to the front and ooohed and ahhed over the boys. Several of them held one or the other. Another staff member brought her little one, too! Her daughter is a couple months older than the boys.

Jack was starting to fuss, so I decided it was time to hit the road. I called my other campus to see if teachers were still there. I decided to stop there as well. We stayed in the office while people came to us. Since it was almost time to feed them again, I recruited a volunteer to feed Justin while I fed Jack.

Overall, it was a great day! It was wonderful to see everyone! We will have to pay another visit some other time, but for now, I'm exhausted!

Most people who know me know how much I love and use my Ipad. I found out about this really neat app for Iphone. I use it on my Ipad and it works great on it as well. It's the What to Expect baby tracker app. It's a handy little tool that lets me keep track of when, what and how much they eat, vaccinations, frequency and content of diaper changes, as well as how much they sleep. This tool is great, since my pediatrician always asks about these things, and sometimes it's hard to keep track between the two of them.

It also talks about developmental milestones and gives access to various message boards, which is also neat. They have a specific board for multiples, which is very nice! Hooray for technology!

A funny story from yesterday: Justin was fussing, so I went in to check on him. I got him calmed down, put his pacifier back in and turned to check on Jack. He had been laying there quietly the entire time, but the minute his eyes met mine, he immediately started screaming. Thank you, Jack.

 

It's hard to believe that the boys are two months old! They had their well-child appointments yesterday. Jack is now eleven pounds, four ounces and twenty-two inches long. Justin is eight pounds, fifteen ounces, and twenty inches long. Their pediatrician was very pleased at their growth. They also had to get some shots yesterday. They did not like that at all, but I'll say this for the nurse, she was fast! One would think that she'd done it before. Now they're good until their four month appointments, and then we'll talk about adding cereal! You think that means Grape Nuts?

So how are we doing? Great! My days are a whirlwind of feeding, pumping, bottle washing and preparing. Plus playing with them and throwing some housework in the mix. I think we have a pretty good routine going, it works well for us! Now that they've gone to the four hour schedule, it makes our lives a little bit easier! Sometimes we'll add in field trips for a change of scenery, such as the mall, Target or even just to the Starbucks drive-thru! It definitely takes some planning to go somewhere, gone are the days of just spontaneously going!

The boys are just now starting to smile, although never when I have the camera. I know that they are both huge blessings to our family and I look forward to teaching them so many things: how to read, a love for music, how to do the Kevin Bacon dance from Footloose. They both respond really well to music. Sometimes during tummy time, I'll get them situated, then turn on some music, and it's amazing how quickly it calms them down! They also love being sung to, which is good, because I sing to them a lot! (And it's almost never lullabies!)

It's funny, I was looking at pictures of the boys when they first came home. They have changed so much since then! I've had to pack up their preemie clothes, it was hard to believe that just a few weeks ago, they fit into those clothes. Someone asked the other day if I remembered life before them. The answer is yes and no. So much has happened since June 9th, and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Today I am 33! David and I were talking last night about how far we've come in a year. Little did we know a year ago how different our lives would be. I had joked with him about how my birthday was going to be somewhat anticlimatic, since the boys are the two best presents that I could have, and they came about a month ago!

It has been a great day. David bought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers the night before. This morning, I opened my presents from him, which were a beautiful strand of pearls, and cards from both he and the boys! I did notice that Jack and Justin's signatures looked a lot like David's! He also bought me some yummy cupcakes from Dimples! My parents gave me a fun pink Dooney purse, and Barbara gave me a gift card to my favorite nail salon!

My aunt Kaye came by for a visit and to see the boys. I did venture out to Starbucks for my birthday frappuccino, and yes, I wore my tiara to Starbucks. David and I did dinner at Mattito's. It had been so long since I'd been able to eat spicy food, since it gave me heartburn when I was pregnant. I enjoyed every bite of it! Afterwards, we walked around Frisco Square, then headed home. We talked about going somewhere else, but both of us were tired (I wonder why?), so we headed home. All in all, a great day!

My parents had invited David, Barbara and I over to their block's Independence Day shindig. The adjacent neighborhood puts on a great firework display, and everyone sits out in the street to watch. We came over and changed the boys into their patriotic attire, and got some great pictures!

Our friends Matt & TJ were in the area, so they stopped by and got to hang out with us! That was really awesome, too! Dad had cooked some stuff on the grill, and various people brought stuff, including us. I also tried grilled s'mores, which were every bit as good as I'd hoped. Jack and Justin were a big hit, and it was a wonderful night!

On Thursday, David called me after visiting with Justin in the NICU, and said that they were possibly going to recommend that he come home on Friday. I was really excited about this, and it was confirmed on Friday morning! David and I went up there early in the morning for his feeding, then waited for discharge papers and to receive all sorts of instructions. David was able to call the pediatrician and get Justin in during Jack's appointment time, so that was awesome.

After what seemed like forever, we got to take Justin home! (Mom came over to be with Jack, since he couldn't come back to the NICU.) It was really neat to put the two of them together, and of course, we took lots of pictures! They immediately reached out to each other! That afternoon, we all had our first outing at the pediatrician. While we were there, they gave us some samples of formula, which is greatness! She also gave us orders for their next newborn screening at the hospital.

Barbara came later that day, and the weekend was a blur of feedings, pumping, bottle preparing/washing and laundry! My parents came over Saturday night, so David and I could have a date night! We went to the Saturday service at church, where we were asked to light the Sabbath candle. Plus, they announced that Justin was home, and some of the kids from Vacation Bible Camp had made us some neat cards!

After church (and showing off more pictures!), we had dinner at a new place for us, the Frisco Dive. It was really good! Plus, it was just really awesome to be able to spend time together, just the two of us. Sunday afternoon, my grandparents on the Muse side came over and got to meet Justin! We got some great pictures of the boys with them.

Yesterday, David worked a half day, and my mom came over so Barbara and I could have lunch out, plus ran a couple of errands. Today, we had a weighing appointment for Justin. The little guy is now up to four pounds, eleven ounces! (They both got weighed on Friday, and he was four pounds, six ounces, and Jack was five pounds, six ounces!) Plus the doctor gave us more formula samples! They are great for putting in the diaper bag, in case we get stuck somewhere and it's time for the boys to eat. The more we go to the pediatrician, the more I really like their office and staff. I guess that's a good thing, since we'll be going there lots!

After Justin got weighed, we decided to see if the hospital had time to do their newborn screenings. They did, so we got that taken care of. Neither of the boys enjoyed the heel pricks, but all the nurses enjoyed seeing them! The whole time we were there, as people saw the double stroller, they would come up and ask questions about the boys. Somehow, I think that is going to happen a lot!

I had been on hospital bedrest since May 31st. Since Baby B (Justin) was measuring small, they wanted me there for daily monitoring. Aside from the not being able to be home, being in the hospital wasn't too terrible. I got to wear my own clothes, I could eat whatever I wanted, and even got to have visits from Roxie! Sure, I had to get monitored every day, plus multiple vitals checks every day, as well as lab work every few days. David had set up skype for us so that he could participate in the conversation when various doctors and nurses came to my room. That was really awesome to be able to have him "there", plus it helped us stay connected.

The morning of June 9th, the lab nurse knocked on my door at five. (Yeah, that's a fun way to wake up.) An hour and a half later, my doctor talked to me, said that my platelet count was down to 96, and that they had a slot open at noon, so he was going to recommend delivery of the twins at that time! I called David and my parents, who came up shortly after that. I showered while they started getting my room packed up. At that point, I had to change into a gown, and they started an IV.

Once a place was ready, they wheeled me into triage, where we waited until it was time to go to the operating room. They hooked me up to the fetal heart monitors, and I was getting excited about meeting the boys. One of my church's staff came to pray with us beforehand, which was really nice! We were amused that more than one nurse stuck their head in the door and exclaimed that they couldn't believe that I had two babies in there!

When it was time, they came to wheel me up to the operating room. I walked in, sat on the table as instructed, while they prepared to give me the spinal/epidural. One thing that I really liked is that everyone was great about telling me what they were doing and what to expect. As the epidural took effect, they helped me lay down on the table and then David was allowed to come in. We were joking about our 'party outfits' and I told him that at least his involved pants! I remember thinking it was an incredibly weird feeling, not being able to feel anything from the waist down.

Various people came in and introduced themselves, and then it was time to get started. I remember feeling a lot of pushing and pulling, as well as some pressure. Several of them were joking about the number of babies in me, too! After what seemed like only a few minutes, I heard the doctor say that Jack was coming and I heard him crying. They got him cleaned up, took some pictures, while the team continued to work on me.

Then they said Justin was out, and I heard him cry, too! It was a very surreal experience. Jack was five pounds, two ounces, and Justin was three pounds, thirteen ounces. They were both born at 12:22 p.m. Jack was about three seconds after the clock hit 12:22, and Justin was within the same minute! Because Justin was so small, he automatically went to the NICU after getting cleaned up and some pictures.

David went with Justin while they finished up with me. The doctor joked that he only found two babies in there, which was a good thing! I remember feeling more of a pushing sensation, then it was time to wheel me back to my triage room. Jack got to come with me, then my parents got to come in.

At some point, they took Jack and I to our room for the next few days. The rest of the time was a blur of feeding, visitors, sleeping and taking lots of pictures! It's been eleven days since their birth, and it's still mind-boggling that these two adorable boys are ours! Jack got to come home with us, and Justin is still in the NICU learning to feed, although now that he's hit the four pound mark, we're hoping he gets to come home really soon! David went back to work today, so I'm flying solo, but we've certainly had a lot of assistance!

Now it's time for me to take a nap.....

I've noticed that people say some incredibly interesting things to pregnant women, and I get a lot of comments since I'm having twins. Quite honestly, I'm okay with the comments/questions, I just think it's funny what some people comment on. Such as:

1. Horror stories about someone's neighbor's cousin's hairdresser's sister who delivered her twins at 25 weeks and all the things that happened with them. (They did turn out okay.) The person finished that story with,"I'm sure that won't happen to you! Your boys will be fine!"

2. All sorts of questions about whether we did fertility treatments to conceive twins. Some people are more subtle, others are about as subtle as a brick wall.

3. Comments as to how big my belly is getting.

4. Comments as to how small I still am.

5. A lecture on their opinion on whether we should nurse/stay home/have an epidural/have a c-section/etc.

6. Upon finding out that we are having twins, some sort of remark about how much work it's going to be. (Really? I thought having babies was a walk in the park!)

7. Upon finding out that we are having twins, commenting that they're glad it's me and not them. (I'm glad it's us, too!)

8. Telling me how having boys is so much harder than having girls.

9. Commenting on how I should be glad that I'm not having quintuplets.

10. Rubbing my belly. So far it's only been women that I know, but I'm sure that'll change as the boys grow!

Again, these things don't bother me, I take things that people say with a grain of salt. I just am amused at some of the things people do say to me!

I am officially 24 weeks pregnant today! We are both really excited about this, as 24weeks is the point of viability. The boys could be born at this point and be okay. Granted, they'd have to spend a LOT of time in the NICU, but they'd be okay. That being said, I'm in no hurry for them to get here! Just being at this point, though, means that we can breathe just a little bit easier. Stay in there awhile longer, guys!

Last Sunday, I felt really really bad. I wound up staying home from work on Monday. I called my OB and since I was already scheduled to come in, they told me to come anyway and they'd see what they could do for me. Mom came to the appointment with me, and got to meet our doctor.

The boys looked fine, and we got to hear the heartbeats again, which I always enjoy! My doctor prescribed some medicine and sent me on my way. Over the next few days, I gradually started feeling better. I was reluctant to take Monday off, but I'm glad I did, I think I really needed the rest.

Today I had a visit with my perinatologist. Mom came along with me to that visit, too. It's amazing how different the clarity is on the sonogram screen at the perinatologist. We found out that one boy is 1.4 pounds and the other is 1.1. Everything is continuing to look good. I'll go back to the OB in a couple of weeks and to the perinatologist the week after that. Having twins means a lot of doctor appoinments, but I know that I'm in good hands!

Barbara came to visit this past weekend. She and I went shopping on Friday night for some cute maternity tops for me. We had success! We also found some cute onesies for the boys.

On Saturday, David, Barbara and I headed out to tackle the baby registry. I had some idea of what I wanted for some of the stuff. Others, not so much. For almost two hours, we went around the store, scanning stuff. It was rather overwhelming. Sometimes it was hard to narrow down what exactly what we wanted. We were so tired by the end, and we'll definitely do some tweaking. However, it was good to at least get a jump on things!

I had back to back appointments with my perinatalogist and my OBGYN today. First, we had an ultrasound at the perinatalogist. He always checks out the anatomy in detail at each appointment. I really enjoy getting to see the boys, and to look at their brains, hearts, bones and everything else! They were measuring at 11 ounces and 12 ounces. They were moving around quite a bit on the ultrasound, and I have definitely been feeling that movement. David has been able to feel the kicking at times, too! It's such a crazy feeling!

After we finished there, we went upstairs to the other appointment. Everything was looking good, so we weren't there for too long. I'm at the point now where I'll go every other week. I'm glad things are continuing to look good!

Friday night, David and I met up at the hospital for our prepared childbirth class. They have a specific class for multiples, so that's where we were! Friday night, after a few icebreaker activities, we practiced some relaxation techniques and watched a birth video with triplets. Everyone in our class was having twins, and most of them were also on their first pregnancy.

Saturday, we came back for day two. We started off by discussing the different methods of childbirth, as well as the different medical interventions. We learned about what the hospital policy is on a lot of different topics. We also talked about things to bring to the hospital for the birth. In the afternoon, we had a visitor: a mom of eight month-old twin boys. She talked about her birth experience and had lots of advice for the hospital and the first few weeks at home.

We ended the day with a tour of the nursery, the labor and delivery rooms, the triage rooms (which is the pre and post room for c-sections), the operating room (we didn't go in there, but we saw where it was), as well as a standard hospital room and finally the NICU. Plano Presbyterian (where the boys will be born) has a Level III NICU, which is the highest level. It makes me feel good that if there are complications with the boys, they will be able to stay at the same hospital as me!

Afterwards, with an armful of booklets and handouts, we headed our exhausted selves out to the car. All in all, it was a good class, very informative, but doing it in one weekend was definitely a beating!

Since I know I'll need maternity clothes in the near future, I decided to try Old Navy maternity. I went online and picked a pair of pants, a pair of jeans and a cute shirt. Those came yesterday! They are still a little big, but since none of my jeans fit comfortably, it's nice to have these. I think I'll wear them on Friday!

This blog clearly has a new look! I thought it would be fun to change things up a bit.

2010 was a big year for us and 2011 is going to be even bigger! We went on a wonderful trip to Seattle, celebrated our fifth anniversary, and also found out that we are expecting twins! Needless to say, we're very excited but nervous about all of these changes! 2011 is going to be a BIG year in our house!