2 Months Old, Oh My!!!

Again I say... Where has the time gone? I can not believe it has been 4 weeks since I last posted an update. Needless to say, it has been a bit busy around here. My mom helped me go through the entire house to deep clean, organize and get all the basics done. She also helped me run errands, kept the babies so Stuart and I could spend time with Jace, and kept all three so I could get a chance to visit with friends. God bless super Grandma!!! Stuart's parents have also been a huge help with keeping Jace so we could get more done. We had everything in good shape when Pops, Aunt Missy, and Terrick came to visit last week. Missy, Rachel, and I were able to take the boys (Terrick and Jace) to do some fun activities while Grandma and Pops loved on the babies. Sorry Auntie Jess that we made you work when you came to visit! On April 10th, the family headed back home. After having either my grandmother or mom here since November, except the weeks when they had Jace in Arizona, we were home alone. The last time Stuart and I functioned in our "normal" family structure I was 21 weeks pregnant, proud of my little belly, busy chasing Jace around, and working 2 jobs. What an amazingly different, yet blessed life this is now! When they all left, Staurt and I had to begin to figure out how our family will now function with two adorable little boys that want to be held most of the time and a very precocious and sweet 2 year old! So now I present to you....

The ABC's of Life in the Riggins Home!!!

A is for Aunties: These boys are so lucky to have wonderful aunts that have showered them with love. They have gotten to meet all of my sisters and Aunt Mendy, and we are excited to see Aunt Summer tomorrow! Their honorary aunts have also spoiled them rotten. Thank you Aunt Manda, Miranda, and Alison. We also love our Uncle Chad and Uncle Joe!!

B is for Blessings: I can't say enough how blessed we are to be surrounded by such amazing family, friends, and medical providers. The support and love that has been shown to us over the past several months means so very much to Stuart and I. These boys are a true testimony of God's work and the power of prayer. Thank you all for playing a part in our miracle story.

C is for Cow: I won't go into details, but somedays I feel like I should start to moo! Actually, I feel a bit more like a momma pig this week. Both boys have snotty noses and are so snorty when they eat, just like two little piglets. Seriously though, we have been very fortunate that they are both good eaters and can nurse at the same time. I love my mumbo jumbo nursing pillow!! We have only had one incident when Lane rolled off the side, onto the couch luckily!

D is for Down Drowsy: This is the goal of the month, to get the boys to go down drowsy and fall asleep. We have had success in the crib a few nights, but there is something magical about our bed! They will fall asleep so well in it and then we have to move them to the crib. At least they are not having to be held anymore to fall asleep!

E is for Elmo: Jace has recently become very picky about his diapers and only wants to wear the diapers starring Elmo. That kid will sort through a whole package of diapers to pick out the one he wants.

F is for Favorites: As mentioned above, Elmo is Jace's favorite diaper, but he has also developed preferences in several areas. His favorite movie is The Little Mermaid, fav color is red, fav number is 8, and fav song is Clementine. I love to hear him singing along to the song my grandmother sang to me. He lets you know what he likes and wants- "Jace no like this", "this one no", and "oh yes" are his favorite sayings.  

G is for Gowns: After several attempts at wrestling screaming, chunky boys into sleeping gowns, I finally figured out it is WAY easier to put them on from the feet up!

H is for Head Control: Stuart and I have been so impressed with how well these boys are holding their heads up. They can both lift their heads and chest up off a surface to look around!

I is for Independence: Yes, our little Jace is growing up! "Jace do it" is heard many times around here! He will even back track a task if you start it and he had wanted to do it. The scary side of this independence is catching him pushing his chair around so he can climb up to the counters/light switches, the great part is he really is quite helpful loading the dishwasher and helping with the babies. He is quick on the draw with shoving  a paci into a crying mouth (he tells the babies "eat it") and deals out diapers like the best blackjack dealer around. He also loves to dump his own potty... sometimes it makes it into the toilet. And while I am impressed by his ability to operate electronic devices, his obsession with pushing buttons often leads to time out or a little spanking.

J is for Jace: Of course! Just to brag a bit more, Jace can now count to 20, identify letters even when they are upside down and backwards and spell his own name. And he has amazing selective hearing- he got that from his dad!

K is for Klenex: I couldn't think of anything for K!! But we have been ging through a lot of Klenex lately with all of our snotty noses. We sent Terick back to Arizona with a snotty nose too.

L is for Love: I just love my snuggly, cuddly boys- all of them! If you ask Jace who grams/grandma/daddy loves, he proudly proclaims "Jace". And Jace loves his babies. He has been known to body block other kids from getting to close to the stroller, saying "my babies".

M is for Multitasking: The key to survival with 3 kids! I have learned how to feed two babies, play a game with Jace, eat lunch and catch up on a show all at the same time. I must say these two do get manhandled more than a singleton would. There is just not a real gentle way to carry around two of them and sometimes tasks like a bath have to be fast and furious. After having to carry 2 carseats in one hand, I have a new appreciation for snug fitting carseat straps. In case anyone was wondering, Bumbo seats float with babies that weigh 11 and 12 pounds. This is NOT a good way to multitask a bath.

N is for Naps: Naps that Jace needs but won't take anymore at school, naps that I try to get as often as possible when all the boys are asleep and naps that the little boys take so good when you put them on their tummies with a paci in their mouths.

O is for Outings: This week I have had to figure out how to get around with all three boys by myself. Our first trip out was to Miss Keegan's volleyball game, but we had plenty of help from the Dunns/Hicks once there. The next stop was Walmart- one boy in the Moby wrap, one in the basket in his carseat and Jace in the seat of the basket and we were set. Unfortunately this does not leave much room for groceries. When we take the stroller out Jace does a good job of holding onto the side and walking, but I have thought of attaching a leash to his belt buckle in case he gets a crazy idea to run off. Long gone are the days of just running in really quickly to grab something. I have also learned to allot time to answer the "twin questions". I don't mind people peeking at them and asking questions, I am proud of our miracles. I don't even really mind the people that want to argue with me when I tell them they are not identical, I just have had to plan for visiting time when out.

P is for Persistent/ Preparedness/ and Poop: Persistent is the best way to describe Jace these days. When he has his mind made up on something, it takes an act of God to get him to change it. He is stubborn, like his dad. Preparedness has become a life necessity. It is not good to have one baby in the tub, one in a Bumbo waiting his turn and then realize you don't have towels nearby. Just as it is not good to have to put a wet diaper back on one baby and a too small newborn diaper on the other because you didn't double check the diaper bag stash. This leads to the next P word- poop. Lately, these two are averaging one huge, blowout poop every 3-4 days. Imagine this in a full or too small diaper, you are imagining correctly if you think of a giant mess. Let's just say Oxyclean works miracles!

Q is for Quiet: What does that word mean again??

R is for Rationing: I find myself rationing diapers and wipes throughout the day, not because I am afraid of running out, but because that Diaper Champ seems to fill up every 3 days!!!

S is for Size: So basically, these boys are huge! A week ago Monday, Lane weighed 11 pounds 1 oz and Cole weighed in at 12 pounds 5 oz! They are about to outgrow 0-3 month clothes and fit well into size 1-2 diapers.

T is for Tears: Both boys now cry real tears!! It breaks this momma's heart. There are times when they just have to cry for a bit, but it is so much sadder to see tear streaked faces.

U is for Updates: For the updates I have been bad at posting, which lead to me writing a novel every 4 weeks; for Facebook updates that I check in the middle of the night, which allow me to stay current on news, weather, and what everyone is eating for dinner; for daily deal updates, which are very exciting to see in the wee early hours of morning.

V is for Visits: Last week, we all went out visiting to see our friends at our doctor's offices, antepartum, nicu, and Accolade. We plan to head to Covenant rehab tomorrow! At each of these visits I was so touched by how many people had been praying for us and following our journey. It was so wonderful to see everyone. While I love being home with these boys, I do miss seeing all of you! We will always be grateful for the amazing groups of people in our lives.

W is for Wubbanubs: I know I have said it before, but I love these paci animals! Thank you Sassy!! They stay in the boys mouths so good. You can launch them across the room to whomever is holding the crying baby. They also make it easy to identify, at a glance, who is who by which paci is near them. This goes for identifying babies in pictures too!

X is for X-Large: This is how I still feel, but I guess having more surface area makes it easier to have 2 babies draped on you!

Y is for Yippee!: I am so proud of Stuart for getting promoted to a charge nurse position in the pedi ER!! He has also been working so hard in school. Thank you Stuart, for being a great husband and father to our boys!

Z is for Zzzzzzz: This is what I should be doing now!! I am glad the boys are finally getting days and nights straight. They are so much more awake and alert during the day. They have even been cooing this week. I can't say they love their swings or bouncy chairs yet, but it is getting better. To sleep, Lane still likes the boundaries of being swaddled. We love the Miracle Blanket, aka baby straight jacket, because he can't break out of it. Cole will only sleep on his tummy, unswaddled. I know, I know- I will still medically recommend "back to sleep" but for Cole his tummy has been our saving grace. Refer back to H- head control for concerns. In fact most mornings he has turned himself 180 degrees with his legs pointing at his brother. Poor Lane has been kicked awake several times.

Well, that about sums it up!!! Please know that thank you cards are in the works for all the extremely generous gifts we have received. Thank you so much to everyone!!

Please say a prayer for 3 special families. Two of our dear friends are going through fertility issues, both have lost babies, and another family recently had to say goodbye to one of their twins so he could go be God's angel. God knows who they are, so any prayers would be helpful.

We are a month old!!

Wow, does time fly! The boys are 4 weeks and 2 days old!! Today is actually their official due date, and as big as they are now I am sure glad they are already here. I will post pics first, since I know that is what most people want to see. Just to warn you, the following post will be a bit wordy- it has been an eventful past few weeks!

Lane

Cole

Cole

Lane and Cole

Lane

Cole

Lane

Lane-- I think!

Proud Daddy!

The babies

Cole and Lane- ready for bed. In momma's bed!

Lane and Cole

Where to start! Let's see, I guess the first place to start would be with how big these boys are- We went to weigh clinic last Monday at 3 weeks and 5 days. Cole was 9 pounds 12 oz and Lane was 8 pounds 10 oz, thus the reason I am glad they are here versus being pregnant with that much baby! Lane has recovered very well after his surgery. He never acted like it bothered him and his little incision scars are already fading. We did make an extra visit to the ER at about 4am one morning because it seemed that the hernias were returning but it turned out to be just epididymitis (inflammation in the tubes). So other than a sleepless night and an ER copay, it was no big deal. So I believe all my boys now have their parts and pieces where they are supposed to be and hopefully we won't have to do this again. Of the three of them, Cole is the only one who didn't need help to get things in the right place.

These have become common occurrences around our house:

• Jace telling the boys "baby, no crying" and giving them a little swat on the hand. Of course, this is followed by a reminder to Jace that we don't hit our brothers.
• Geysers of pee. Both boys are big fans of letting loose as soon as they get naked. This has meant almost peeing on another baby at weigh clinic, streams 2 feet straight up in the air (Jace thinks this is hilarious), and several soaked friends and family members. I must say that Cole has been known to let loose from the other end too. We have all learned to take extra precautions and not look away for a second, for fear of one mess or another.
• The sleep feed. Not only can the babies sleep through a feeding, but I think my mom, Stuart and I have all been caught sleeping during a bottle feeding. Twice the babies equals twice the sleepiness!
• The double feed. My mom and I have both gotten very successful at feeding both babies at one time. I am able to nurse both on my gigantic nursing pillow and still have my hands free to be on the computer, write lists or play with Jace. My mom is wicked with a bottle in each hand, and can still entertain Jace.
• Musical beds. We have had both babies with me, both with my mom, Stuart with one and me with another, mom with one and one with me, Jace and all the babies in my bed, Stuart in bed with Jace and me with the babies, just about every combination imaginable, and the night never ends like it started. The only guarantee is that at some point at least one baby is asleep in a bed and not in their cribs. I will admit that I was NOT going to be that mom, the one that let the kids in the bed..... but the need for sleep and sanity can change one's mind quickly.
• Gassy boys. These are the tooting-est boys I know. They get that from their dad!
• The swing-shot. That's right a swing-shot, not a sling-shot. This is what I think of when Jace stands in between the boys' swings and gives them a big push. Again, poor Jace is frequently getting reminded that we do not try to launch our brothers out of their swings. Thus far, this has not actually happened.
• Doll eye syndrome. These little guys are already a tad, ok very, spoiled! Remember the dolls that have eyes that close when you lay them down, we have the opposite problem. If you lay down one of these boys after they are asleep their eyes pop open. They have turned us all in to suckers! They can be crying and as soon as they get picked up, it is as if someone hit the mute button. While it is so sweet to hold two sleeping babies, this bad habit must be stopped!
• The lost sock. I used to tease Stuart for walking around with one sock off and one on. Well, apparently, this is a family trait. Almost always can you find one boy with one sock off, if not both of them missing a sock.

Overall, Jace has still been very sweet to his brothers. He always gets them each a diaper out and will pile toys all around them.  He likes to sit by them and talk to them or read to them. He has pretty much abandoned his toys, other than Elmo. Elmo frequently gets strapped into a carseat and his diaper changed. Apparently it is much more fun to lay on the play mat with both boys than to play with a closet full of toys. He has gotten pretty good at shoving a paci into a crying mouth. He can be a bit bossy these days- calling daddy "Stuart", telling us to go night-night when he is in trouble, and getting onto the dogs. He has also been so independent. He does love to go play at Sassy and Tutu's house and they have been so good to keep him once a week. My sweet boy is getting so big!
Lane is quite the cuddler. He has several awake and alert periods throughout the day, but likes to be held whether awake or asleep. He is beginning to focus on things when awake and makes sweet smiles while asleep.
Cole's main priority in life is to eat, with sleep as a close runner up. He loves to nap on his tummy. He is also a snuggler, but he likes to scootch himself down until he gets into a comfortable place. He likes to swing more than his brother does. Both have really good head control, but Cole is a bit stronger than Lane.
It is funny how their personalities in utero have carried on into the big world. Lane was squished in utero with Cole on top of him. He was never as active as Cole. This is true now, as Lane is more content to lay still. He also loves to be swaddled tightly with snug boundaries. Cole, who would turn weekly somersaults in utero, is much more active and squirmy when awake. He does not like to have his arms swaddled down, but will wake himself up if they are not.
I am loving the muslin swaddle blankets, bath covers and paci animals we were given as gifts. These are baby must haves!
Stuart has been able to squeeze in baby time between a busy school and work schedule, as well as cleaning our garage!
I drove last week for the first time in 4 months!! It was not "like riding a bike". You might think it would be easy to jump back into it, but it took me a few days to feel comfortable driving. It was hard to concentrate on so many things moving in different directions, after living in a very low stimulating environment. I did not enjoy paying the new gas prices!!
Ok, this is starting to sound like a long Christmas letter- Sorry!
So many people followed our story and so many times I heard "it must be so hard to be in the hospital". Honestly, being in the hospital was easy, this is when the real work begins. However, I wouldn't trade it for anything, and have enjoyed every minute of this crazy life. We have been so grateful for the continued prayers, dinners, gifts, diapers, and well wishes. Thank you all!
Thank you to my wonderful husband for my beautiful necklace- I love you!

Lane

Cole

Cole and Lane

Lane and Cole

Cole

Lane

Big boy Jace

When parenting backfires...

So last night Jace was partaking in his new favorite hobby- jumping on the couch while momma tries to feed the babies. Stuart had already gotten onto him several times for this and had warned him he would get a spanking if he didn't stop. Sure enough, after the count of 3, Jace was still jumping and Stuart gave him a little spank, just enough to get his attention. Unfortunately for Jace, he had just gotten out of the bath and still had a bare hieny. He turned to his daddy, shocked, and said "ow daddy that hurt" and then chased him through the room saying "kiss it, kiss it now daddy". I must say the image of my crying 2 year old trying to get my hysterical husband to kiss his bare booty was quite comical!

Back again

Oh Covenant, how we've missed you! Actually, I really did miss my cran-apple juice cocktail, but would have rather passed it up to be at home right now. Last night, during a 3am diaper change, my wonderful man nurse hubby noticed little Lane's right testicle didn't feel right (they were undescended bilaterally since birth so we had been keeping an eye on them). This morning it had gotten worse with increased swelling. We decided to take him to the ER just to check it out. This was a totally different experience from when we took Jace to the ER 1.5 years ago. Back then, we rushed at a high rate of speed to the ER with a screaming child, making frantic calls to our pedi and urologist. I was the psycho mom who refused to let anyone touch him until they located our urologist. This time we calmly gathered our things, finished feeding the baby and stayed well within the speed limit. I am not sure if the difference was the calm baby, lack of sleep, or the benefit of being a seasoned parent who has been down this road before. Nevertheless, we ended up in the OR just as we had with Jace. Lane had an incarcerated right inguinal hernia and a small one on the left. Hopefully, this will be the only time the word incarcerated will be used to describe one of my children! Both hernias were repaired along with correcting the placement of his little boy parts. He was in surgery for 2 hours but with no complications. We are now in PICU overnight for monitoring but Lane has done so well. Just a few squeaks every now and then. He has been a real trooper! Jace is spending the night with Sassy and Tutu so he doesn't have to know we are at the hospital. I didn't want him to think we would be making a habit of this. My mom is at our house with Cole. God bless grandparents. Thank you again for all the prayers and thank you once again to all our Covenant friends for taking such good care of us. To Covenant Women's and Children's Hospital: we have enjoyed visiting almost all your floors, you have been good to us, but we would like to go home to stay now!

Lane after his IV

Poor baby

The "prison potty" in the room!

Almost 2 weeks!

It is so hard to believe that the boys will be 2 weeks old in 2 days! And what an amazing, exhausting, and wonderful 2 weeks it has been. I am proud to say that no one has asked me when my baby is due for the past few days. When we were going back and forth to NICU I got "when are you going to have that baby", "oh, you better hurry to the 4th floor" and "are you ready". I am not sure if things are shrinking or if I just haven't gone anywhere :) We spent last week trying to get adjusted to being home, as much for myself as for the boys and Jace. Jace has been so sweet to the babies. He loves to kiss on them and giggles everytime one of them squeaks. He has been a bit overprotective of them, including trying to yank Lane out of Grams' arms to give him back to momma. But overall he has been very loving to them. It has taken him a bit to get used to having me back at home, with increased use of the word "no", though that has improved drastically over the past 2 days. Stuart has to conveniently be absent at bed time to avoid the argument to sleep in "daddy's bed". He has developed quite a few new "Jace-isms" since I got admitted to the hospital. He loves to dance (especially to Beyonce's Single Ladies video- or "the girls" as he calls them). He has to take several favorite toys to bed each night- sometimes a stack of book, handfuls of cars, and his dancing monkey. I think he got his momma's OCD. He really enjoys lining up his toys and "cleaning" his car with a wipey.  The independence stage has started and Jace thinks he needs to dump his own potty, often close to dumping pee all over the floor! Thanks to his wonderful grandmas he now knows his colors, can count to ten and can identify about 75% of the alphabet. He is talking much more, and even sings or hums along to songs. I am just so glad to be back home with my sweet little boy!

As for these little boys.... they are doing really well also. It is funny how much their personalities reflect how they were in utero. Lane is very mellow and wants to be held all the time. He is happy to lay still and just study things. Cole, my little flip flopper in utero, is much more active and can turn himself bright red when he gets worked up. He has even rolled to his side so he could pop his brother in the face. Both are getting the hang of eating. Cole  is a nursing champ! Lane, being more laid back, has to be woken up to eat and needs a little more reminding about what he is doing. Twice I have even been able to nurse both of them at the same time using my mumbo jumbo feeding pillow! I felt quite accomplished with this feat. I have worked in NICU for over 7 years and have swaddled hundreds of babies, but my swaddling on these guys lasts about 5 minutes. Luckily, Stuart has become a swaddle master and the boys have been able to sleep like little burritos for up to 3 hours at night.

Today we went for a weight check and were glad both boys are gaining weight well. Lane has passed his birth weight and is now up to 7#4oz. He had been 7#1oz on Friday at the doctor's appointment. Cole is up from 7#9oz to 7#15oz. I still look at them in amazement, knowing that they were both crammed in my belly!! I don't know how they fit. With Lane closing in on Cole they are looking more and more similar. Lane has slightly more delicate features, sorry buddy I know it's not a manly term. Cole has the trademark hairy ears like Jace did and overall thicker hair. His cheeks are a bit fuller too. If all else fails, you can tell them apart by the fact that Lane has delayed descension of 2 certain anatomical parts. It also helps that we keep their little animal pacis by them and Lane is the monkey, Cole the puppy. In all my OCD-ness, we have also started color coordinating them when possible. Lane has been assigned blue and Cole green.

We got to stop by and visit our antepartum friends today after the weight check. It was so nice to get to see everyone. These babies wouldn't be here if not for all of them! Jace needed quite a bit of reassurance that momma didn't have to stay in momma's room. He was very uncertain, asking about "momma's room" before we even got to the hospital. When we did get there though, he marched straight to my old room and almost barged in.  I think he was relieved that I didn't have to stay there.

I am sorry to ramble! The past 2 weeks have gone by so quickly. We have been so blessed by friends and Stuart's parents bringing food. We are so grateful for my mom and her new full time job as bottle washer (among many, many other jobs around the house). My Grams left Saturday after being here 2 months to help with Jace. We couldn't have done it without her!!

Goodnight!! And thank you to everyone who has been following our journey!

Let the games begin....

(again, post started days ago on Monday, Feb. 21st)

Today we got to bring home Cole!!! His bilirubin levels were good and he is eating like a champ! Stuart and I took Lane to a weight check (he was up to 6# 13oz), and then went to get his brother. It was so exciting to walk out carrying our 2 amazing miracles!!!! Jace woke up from his nap to discover the baby population in our house had doubled! He couldn't stop smiling at "his" babies. Jace had been calling Lane "Lane-Cole" so  I think it finally made sense that there were 2 babies. It is so wonderful to have everyone at home. My respect for NICU parents has gone up drastically- it is hard to go back and forth and spread out your energy between children at home and a baby in NICU. But we were in the best of hands in NICU and are so blessed by the care we got. Thank you again to everyone in NICU for loving our boys so much! Please continue to pray for the boys' nicu neighbor, baby J, as he fights to get big and strong.

Going home after 100 days and 100 pounds.....

(post started 2/19/11 but added later due to sleeplessness)

Well almost! Let's just say that one was a definite and the other total was pretty close. Leaving the hospital today on Saturday, February the 19th marked 100 nights that I spent in the hospital. My first day back at home in so long brought about many "first time in 14 weeks", such as: sleeping in a flat bed without rails, standing to take a shower, and getting onto the floor. But the very best thing about being at home was one of our two little miracles got to come with us! Lane was able to be discharged from NICU, and though it was hard to leave little Cole there, we knew he was in good hands with our fabulous NICU nurse friends. Cole just needs to get the hang of eating and will need his bilirubin levels checked again over the next few days. Jace came up to meet Lane and ride home with us. He was ready for momma to come home. When we told him I would get to go home, he was practically dragging me out by the hand. He cried when I had to let go to sign my discharge papers and wouldn't let either Stuart or I out of his sight. However, he was so happy to meet Lane. He was such a proud big brother,strutting down the hall with daddy and Lane! On the way out we got to swing by antepartum to introduce Lane to our doctors and nurses. It was such a surreal experience, leaving one journey behind to begin a new one, though we will always treasure those who took such good care of us!