3 Girls' World: 1 day at a time...girls' update

So another busy week comes to a close! Here is an update on the girls!

Alyx and Luci- So these girls have gone from being the big sisters at birth to almost the little sisters (Dorothy Jo almost took her over). They got their 4 month shots and check up at the end of May. They did great and there were no effects after the shots, other than Luci being a little cranky that night. They took it like champs! We did notice that they hadn't gained much weight since the last weight check up last month (less than a pound gained). This wasn't surprising. The past month they had been extremely crabby and spitting like crazy. I am not talking normal baby spit either. I am talking puking half their bottles. No matter what we tried, burping more frequently, feeding upright, keeping upright after feeds, etc. Nothing seemed to help. This reflux was winning and it was so frustrating to see my babies in pain and not being able to help. So our pediatrician referred us to see a GI specialist. While waiting for the GI appointment we decided to make a few changes on our own. I gave up dairy in my diet to see if that was causing spit ups (I MISS MY ICE CREAM!!!), we changed nipple sizes on their bottle, and we started feeding oatmeal. The changing of the nipple and dairy seemed to help, but still waiting to see if the dairy helps but seems to be good so far. Jury is still out on the feeding oatmeal. At first the girls seemed to be interested but after a few days they just were not interested in eating oatmeal anymore. Went to the GI specialist and now we are on a new medication (that they can't spit up like the last one), we are thickening bottles with oatmeal, and will be going for an x-ray next week to make sure nothing is wrong with their upper GI tract. We also found out that the changes we have made have been doing some good, because in less than 3 weeks the girls had gained almost a whole pound! Alyx weighs 10.2 pounds and Luci weighed 10 pounds even.

Other than trouble with feeding, the girls seemed to be doing great! They are rolling all over the place and are so active it's hard to keep them still. They are full of smiles and giggles, and it has been so fun watching them grown and learn. Mark has decided to teach the girls some signs in hopes that we can teach the girls to communicate with us before they are talking. It is really sweet to watch him. He is fully committed to teaching the girls these signs. We have started with Mom, Dad, and eat. The girls have also developed a love for lights and music. They love the light up turtle that plays music. We play with it almost everyday. They also love cartoons! I try to limit the amount of time, but we do watch this youtube channel they love called Baby Bum! It has some very cute songs and nursery rhymes. I can't believe my summer vacation is almost halfway over!

Dorothy- So big changes coming for my little squirrel! WIth her oxygen needs coming down, she has been working on eating from a bottle. This has been a slow and tough process for her. She is having trouble getting the concept of swallowing while still being able to breathe. She gets very worked up thinking she can't breathe and then chokes on the bottle. Some days she will take a little bit other days she won't even let the bottle near her mouth. Because feeding is her last and large hurdle we had to decide on a more long term solution. After discussing out options we decided the best path for Dot is to have a G-tube or G-button put in. So on Tuesday Dot will have a small operation to insert a more permanent tube in her stomach so that she can eat from a pump while still learning to eat at home with a therapist. It is scary to think about my 5 month old baby undergoing surgery, but I know this will be a way for her to be home with all of us. The doctors assured us that this is a very routine and safe procedure so we will just hope and pray that all goes well. As a parent you just want the best for your baby and want to know that you are making the best decision.

So other than the big news of the surgery Dot is coming along great! She had an MRI yesterday and everything is normal. No abnormalities from being born premature. I even got a picture of my little eskimo baby before she went to the MRI. She was not happy about being swaddled up so tight. She is getting stronger with her head control and can sit up with support. She has also become such a happy baby and a social butterfly! She will coo at the nurses and giggle. My favorite time is when we sing together. Music is Dot's favorite, so when I visit I will put on music and we will sing together. Her favorite music? The oldies! Especially the beach boys. She calms and gets immediately happy when her cd is turned on.

So even with this scary time coming up, we know this means she is close to coming home. We can't wait to have us all together and hopefully within a few weeks we will be all together.