4 Months Old!

Where has the time gone?! These two little miracles are 4 months old already!

Yesterday was the girl's 4 month check up at the doctor. Dr. Trumbull, as usual, was very pleased with the girl's progress. Hadley weighed 12lbs 6oz and was 24 inches long. Ava James was 10lbs 8oz and 23 1/2 inches long. It is becoming apparent that both girls will most likely be tall- just like their Mama! They are catching up MUST quicker on height than they are weight- which is fine according to Dr. Trumbull. Ava James is still, and will most likely continue to be, more petite than Hadley. Both girls had their first cold this past month which left Hadley with an ear infection. We didn't even know she had an ear infection until Dr. Trumbull checked her ears at their check up. Even though both girls haven't felt good lately, they have still been as sweet as ever. They never complained and just wanted to snuggle! Both girls eat 6oz consistently now and will most likely start solid foods in a month. Dr. Trumbull and I both agreed that we didn't feel they were quite ready yet for solid foods. The girls have a pretty solid schedule now and are doing fairly well at night time. They go to bed at about 8:00 and normally wake up at about 3:00-4:00am to eat. In about two weeks we are going to change their schedule which should help them to sleep an additional 3-4 hours (through the entire night). I think Ava James would sleep through the entire night, but Hadley wakes her up most nights! Hadley is our light sleeper. Both girls have become more aware of their sister. When they play together on their play mat they are constantly reaching for one another, looking at each other, or making noises at their sister.

Here is some more "stuff" on the girls at 4 months...

We will start with our Hadley Cakes! She is such a nut! Hadley LOVES to laugh and smile. There isn't a shy bone in her body. She is constantly smiling and laughing at strangers. Her favorite activity is being thrown around like a rag doll. She loves to be thrown (more like lifted) into the air and be bounced on your knee. If she isn't moving, she isn't happy! Naps are NOT one of her favorite activities and she fights sleep constantly by babbling or crying. Speaking of babbling, Hadley is "talking" A LOT more than she was last month. She mostly talks to her toys- specifically the toys that have faces. Her favorite toy to talk to is a small yellow stuffed animal that hangs from her car seat. You can often hear her in the back seat babbling away to her toy. Hadley continues to love to stand. She can now stand(hold her own weight) on her own as long as you prop her up against some furniture. She is also lunging towards toys during tummy time. She can hold her upper body up while on her stomach for extended periods of time. Her back and neck are very strong and she has no problem holding her head up/still. Rolling over from her stomach to her back is still easiest for her. She still hasn't quite figured out how to roll over from her back to her stomach. She can hold her bottle by herself and drink the entire 6oz, but she has to be in a certain mood. Sometimes she just wants you to feed her (cough, cough spoiled). Dr. Trumbull thinks that even though Hadley seems stronger, her "tight muscles" might get in her way and her sister might actually crawl before she does. Hadley now reaches for toys and other objects that she sees, but she seems to be more interested in her feet. She is still trying to figure out how to get them in her mouth! It appears that she is in the early stages of teething and loves to gnaw on EVERYTHING. You can see and feel her bottom two teeth now!

Ava James is still our sweet, shy girl. However, she is by far our most talkative girl! Where as Hadley talks to her toys, Ava James wants to talk to people. She will sit and talk to certain people (mostly people she is most comfortable with- me, Rusty, her Nonnie, and her Poppa) until she literally falls asleep. It is pretty funny at times- she will crack herself up and laugh at herself. Sometimes I wonder if she is trying to tell us jokes? She is fairly shy around people that she doesn't know. Ava James LOVES to sleep and sleeps solid once she falls asleep. Her hand/eye coordination is VERY good. If she sees something, she reaches out and grabs it. This is great until she tries to grab your eyes or teeth! Laying on her play mat and kicking her feet is still one of her favorite activities. She also likes to talk to herself in the mirror that is attached to her bouncy seat. There is also a hot pink flower that dangles from her bouncy seat that she thinks is HILARIOUS. Whenever AJ gets very tired, she will complain if you are holding her- she just wants to be left alone to go to sleep. We can lay her in her crib wide awake and she will fall asleep all on her own. During the night, Ava James can managed to turn herself completely around in her crib. We call it the "helicopter routine"- she gets this from her Uncle Jason! She can now roll over from her back to her stomach, and stomach to back. This has something to do with her constant movement in her crib at night. We have found her several times with her legs propped up on the side of her crib, totally upside down. She very rarely fusses and is still our most observant girl. During tummy time Ava James can hold her entire body up but gets tired fairly quickly. She can hold her head steady now and prefers to sit in your lap, not be cradled in your arms.

Both girls amaze us more and more each day!

3 Months Old!

I can't believe my baby girls are 3 months old! Time is FLYING!

The girls surprise me each and every day with how quickly they are growing and developing. Both girls have two very different personalities. I personally think they look COMPLETELY different as well, but strangers seem to think they look just alike. A big milestone for the girls recently is that they have both started sleeping in their cribs at night. Both girls sleep through the night- about 7 hours before needing to eat. Ava James is easiest to put to bed- most of the time you can put her in her crib and she will fall straight to sleep. Hadley has to be rocked and coxed to sleep most nights. Due to her EXTREME startle reflex, sometimes Hadley has to sleep in her bouncy chair which we set inside her crib. Otherwise she will startle herself awake many, many times a night (which scares her and then she cries for hours). Both girls have growing appetites! During the day, the girls still eat 4 ounces, sometimes 5. Before bed both girls eat 6 ounces. The girls don't have another doctors appointment until next month (when they are 4 months) so I am not sure on their exact weights. However, I would guess Hadley is close to 12lbs and Ava James 10lbs.Both girls can wear 3 month old clothing, however sometimes it is still a little big on Ava James. Here is a little bit more about the girls at 3 months...

Hadley is our more active girl. If she is awake, she has to be moving. We bought her a bouncy seat, which she LOVES, but only for short periods. We have added some extra toys to the already existing toys on her bouncy seat in hopes that they would keep her attention for a little longer. She gets bored very easily. She also likes the swing, but only when she is sleepy. Most days, the swing is the only place I can get her to nap. Hadley has recently decided that she doesn't need sleep. In fact, the other day, she stayed awake for 12 hours straight without a nap. If she does nap during the day, it is only for an hour or so. Like I said before, Hadley LOVES to be moving. If you are holding her, she demands that you bounce her or throw her in the air. She is a Mama's girl through and through. No matter where I am in the house, she has to be with me. She will scream if I leave the room, only to smile and giggle as soon as I return. Speaking of smiling, I would say Hadley smiles 90% of the time that she is awake. She is one happy baby! She thinks it is HILARIOUS to have her diaper changed. She also enjoys "talking" now. She likes to talk more in the mornings and at night before bed and only for short increments of time. Hadley can hold her head up on her own, for the most part, unless she is extremely tired and ready for bed. Hadley LOVES her pacifier and will absolutely freak out when it falls out of her mouth. Hadley is a pretty strong baby, especially considering she is only 3 months old and was born a preemie. She loves to stand! Now granted she needs help to keep from falling over, but she can basically hold all of her weight all on her own. Hadley's eyes are still blue! They are more of a grayish-blue, but considering everyone else in our family (except her Poppa) have brown eyes, I am sure they will change as she gets old.

Ava James is our sweet, cuddly girl. She still enjoys laying on her play mat and kicking. She will kick for HOURS. Most days I find her asleep on her play mat- she will kick until she falls asleep! While she is kicking, she will laugh and laugh at the toys hanging from her play mat. She also likes to laugh at Bailey, our family dog. AJ still likes her naps and will almost always asleep on her own. She has just begun to enjoy sitting up like her sister (with help) and looking around. She is perfectly happy sitting in your lap, surveying the room. Ava James can hold her head up on her own, for the most part, but will get tired easily. Ava James likes to talk as well. In fact, she will have more in depth "conversations" than her sister. If she is sitting in your lap, she will talk and laugh all while keeping full eye contact. She likes to "hold hands" a lot and has begun to put her pacifier back in her mouth all by herself (as long as it hasn't fallen too far away). Ava James never really has hissy fits. She will cry out once or twice if she needs something- diaper change, pacifier, she's cold, etc. If she is hungry she will definitely let you know, but even then she just scream. Ava James loves to cuddle, especially when she gets tired. Her eyes are big and brown, just like her Mama and Daddy :) Ava James was born with an "angel kiss" on her forehead between eyes (as you can see pretty well in previous blog posts). It is basically a type of birthmark. However, it isn't permanent and we have seen that over the past couple of weeks. Her angel kiss is slowing but surely disappearing. It gets lighter every day.

We are all still adjusting to having two babies in the house, but I think we are all doing pretty well. I am still so thankful and blessed for our little miracles :)

2 Months Old!

Our sweet baby girls turned 2 months old on Christmas Eve! I still can't believe time has gone by so fast. The girls are growing too fast- time needs to slow down!

 

At their 2 month check up Hadley weighed 9lbs 4oz and Ava James weighed 7lbs 10oz. That is a BIG difference from the 3 & 4 pounds that they weighed at birth. Both girls are only in the 3rd & 5th percentile, but that is normal considering they were born 4 weeks early (36 weeks). If they had been born full term at 40 weeks, they would only be a month old! Dr. Trumbull was once again very pleased with their growth and progress. Hadley is progressing a little faster than Ava James, but that is normal. After all, they are two completely different human beings. Both girls got their first round of shots at their doctor visit as well. I think the girls did a little bit better than their Mom :( I had to make Rusty help the nurse- I couldn't stand to see my baby girls so upset! But they both did good. After a short snuggle after their shots, they both calmed down and went back to sleep in their car seats. However, later that afternoon both girls seemed to be hurting pretty bad. After all, both girls still have very skinny legs where they were given their shots. Per doctors orders, I gave them both a small dose of baby Tylenol and they both felt MUCH better. Poor Hadley even ran a low grade fever, but she is good as new now.

 

In their two short months, their personalities have become very evident. They are two very different little girls! Hadley smiles, coos, and even giggles A LOT. She loves to play and demands a lot of attention. She wants to sit up, stand (with help obviously), and kick/jump (also with help) ALL DAY LONG. With so much activity, you would think she would conk out towards the middle/end of the day. However, she will do anything in her power to keep from falling asleep. She doesn't like naps very much. The majority of time we have to rock her for a while in order to get her "sleepy" enough to go in her crib. Ava James is beginning to smile and coo. She is our more observant little girl. She loves to look around at all the colors and lights! She is our most snuggly girl. She is perfectly happy laying on your chest and examining every inch of your face. Unlike her sister, Ava James has no problem taking naps and going to sleep. We can put AJ in her crib wide awake and she will go to sleep.

 

 

Merry Christmas from The Russells!

 Hadley Kate (asleep) in her new sunglasses

Ava James (also asleep) in her new shoes

 

The girls had a wonderful first Christmas (even though they slept through most of it). Both girls received a Bumbo seat, Sophie the Giraffe, sunglasses, shoes, clothes, and A LOT of new toys. Santa spoiled our baby girls :) On the 22nd we headed to Skipperville, Alabama to celebrate Christmas with their Great Granny, Great Grandpa, Great Aunts, Great Uncles, and a lot of cousins. The girls got to have Christmas with Rusty's side of the family on the 23rd at our house here in Montgomery. Their grandparents, Aunt Tara, Uncle Cliff and cousin Jake all came! Then, on the 24th we headed to Wetumpka, Alabama to celebrate Christmas with the girl's Nonnie, Poppa, Uncle Jason, Aunt Meredith, and cousin Harper. On Christmas Eve night the girls got to attend their FIRST Christmas party at The Roberson's in Montgomery. We stayed in Wetumpka for a couple days because of bad weather before heading home on the 26th. It was a very crazy busy Christmas, but we survived and had a great time!





1 Month Old

I still can't believe it- my baby girls are ONE MONTH OLD! Time is already flying by :(

We had our one month check up on Monday. I feel like I live at the pediatrician. We went to the doctor the previous Friday. Both girls had thrush on their first Thanksgiving :( This left us with two VERY fussy babies and very little sleep. For those of you who don't know what thrush is, it is a mouth infection. All babies are actually born with thrush- I was surprised when Dr. Trumbull told us this! I was scared to death that I hadn't cleaned and sterilized their bottles and pacifiers good enough. All babies pick up the infection before they are born. However, most babies have an immune system that can fight off the infection. Since both of my girls were premature, and some of their family have thrush even into their later years, the girls couldn't quite fight off the infection. Hadley Kate had the worst of it. She was VERY fussy and had trouble eating. The infection went all the way down her esophagus. Ava James wasn't quite as bad, but was still very uncomfortable. Dr. Trumbull prescribed them both a very strong antibiotic that they will take for 2 weeks. Fortunately, the antibiotic has already knocked out the infection and both girls are feeling MUCH better :)

Their one month check up went great! Dr. Trumbull is very pleased with their weight gain, growth, and over all health. Hadley weighed 6lbs 12oz (up from 4lbs 9oz at birth) and was 19 inches long. Ava James weighed 5lbs 8oz (up from 3lbs 14oz at birth) and was also 19 inches long. They are both healthy as can be (other than the thrush)!

Both girls seem very strong to be so little! Both girls like to lift their heads and look you in the face if you are trying to burp them. They have become very alert and love to be held and talked to! I am trying to my best not to spoil them too much :) Ava James is very observant and loves to look around. Hadley likes to "talk" to you...whether you are around or not. She grunts and moans all day long. Both girls are very sensitive when it comes to their twin sister. If one girls is crying, you can bet the other girl is going to start. They hate to hear their sister cry.

They are sleeping fairly good at night now, which is SUCH a blessing. We sleep in 2.5-3 hours increments throughout the night. We probably get about 5-6 hours total? I won't know what to do when I can finally get 6 hours of sleep without interruption!

The girls eat about every 3 hours during the day. The longest they have gone in between feeding is 6 hours at night- but that seems to have been a one time thing. At night they can stretch about 4 hours in between feedings fairly regularly. I attribute this to their growing appetite. To be so small, they eat quite a bit! Hadley eats 4oz regularly and has eaten up to 6oz in the past. Ava James eats 3oz regularly and has eaten up to 5oz. We are very fortunate to have both girls on the same schedule. Therefore, if one girl wakes up, the other is normally not far behind. Same goes with feedings. I have learned how to multi-task and feed/burp/play/hold/rock both girls at the same time.

I have had my crying, "I can't do this!" moments, but they seem to be dwindling away. It is getting easier and easier as time passes. Don't get me wrong, it is still VERY difficult, but it is all worth it!!! I am still in awe of these miracle babies and how much God must love me to "loan" me two of His children :)

They're Here!!!

Our little miracles have arrived!!! Hadley Kate Russell and Ava James Russell both arrived at 8:36am on Wednesday, October 24th, 2012. Hadley Kate weighed 4lbs 9oz and was 16 1/2 inches long, and Ava James weighed 3lbs 14oz and was 16 3/4 inches long. Believe it or not, even though they were so tiny, both girls were able to go to the well nursery shortly after being born- NO NICU TIME! Both girls had an APGAR score of 9.9- amazing :)

So since I never even got to give our 36 weeks update, I guess I will start there. The Monday morning before the girls were born, I had a doctors appointment. Everything looked perfect- no Braxton Hicks and both girl's heart rates looked perfect. Dr. Dupre was actually out of town, so I saw Dr. Nedham that day. Dr. Dupre joked the previous week that I better not go into labor since he would be out of town...little did we know...

The next day, Tuesday, everything seemed normal. I actually felt a little bit better than I had in previous days. I seemed to have more energy. That night we went to church for dinner and made it back home by 8 or so. Once we got home I laid on the couch to relax a little bit. Something both Rusty and I found REALLY strange was our fur baby Bailey, our 7 year old Pek-A-Poo, kept sitting next to me only to stare at me. We took her out to potty, made sure she had food and water, etc.- nothing seemed to satisfy her. All she wanted to do was stare at me! I swear that she knew something that we didn't...

So fast forward to early Wednesday morning. As usual, I was up about every 45 minutes or so to go to the bathroom. About 5:15am I got up to go to the bathroom and started to make my way back to the bed. Next thing I know...my water breaks! Since I have never been pregnant before, I wasn't quite sure that my water had really broken. Therefore, I laid back down in bed and googled "Did my water break?" Yes, I am that big of a dork! After reading several posts online, I decided that we might want to head into the hospital just to be sure. About 30 minutes later, I got up and woke Rusty up to tell him we had to go to the hospital.

To my surprise, both of us were very calm. I always assumed that both of us would be in a panic- especially since I was only 36 weeks! But we got up, I put on make up, Rusty packed the car, and by 6:30am we were on our way to the hospital.

I was immediately admitted to the hospital and taken up stairs to the labor and delivery rooms. I was SO HAPPY to see a sorority sisters face as soon as the elevators doors opened! :) I might have freaked out a little more, but knowing that Ashton was there made it all a little better! Plus I knew that another sorority sister and long time friend, Kirby, was in the NICU in case the girls weren't perfectly healthy when ever they were delivered.

I was checked to see if my water had broken, and sure enough, it had! Since Dr. Dupre was out of town, and both babies were still breech, that meant that whatever doctor was on call would perform the c-section. This happened to be Dr. Desautels. Even though I LOVED Dr. Dupre and wished he was there, I'm glad that Dr. Desautel was on call that night in comparison to some of the doctors that could have been there.

After speaking with the doctor, it was determined that they would start to prep me for the c-section. We originally planned on having a spinal block, but since I had a slight case of spina bifita as a child, the anesthesiologist decided that it would be best to completely knock me out. There was a possibility that I might bleed out with a spinal block- the general anesthesia avoided any possibility of this happening. Not being awake while the girls were being born came as a shock at first, and it honestly upset me quite a bit, but I understood why that just wasn't possible. Having general anesthesia also meant that Rusty couldn't be in the OR while the girls were being born. I know that he was pretty upset about this, but I know he would rather have me come out of surgery safely than the alternative.

About 3 hours after my water broke, the girls were born. Rusty was able to come in the OR as soon as the girls were delivered. He was actually standing outside when they were delivered and heard the girls cry for the first time. I was still knocked out! Rusty said that they were still stitching me up (creepy/gross/scary) when he came in the OR.

It is beyond amazing to me that both girls were so healthy. Nothing but a miracle! Ava James was 50 grams away from going to the NICU simply based on weight. They are both so tiny, but so perfect.

 

Hadley Kate

Ava James

 

After staying in the hospital for 3 days, all three of us were discharged on Saturday to go home. I was still sore from the c-section, but nothing like I thought it would be! The girls have adjusted well to being home. We are still working on getting them on a schedule, and it seems to be going pretty good! They had their days and nights mixed up at first, but thankfully they are starting to get everything straightened out. They eat like CRAZY! At their doctors appointments this past Friday, Hadley Kate weighed 4lbs 11oz, and Ava James weighed 3lbs 13oz. Dr. Trumbull, their pediatrician, was VERY happy with their weights. Most babies can take up to 2 weeks to get back to their birth weight...it didn't take our little girls that long! Not with how they eat :)

 

 

I still can't believe that God has blessed us to much. It has been such a journey to get these precious miracles here- it still doesn't seem real. I don't feel deserving for any of His blessings, but I am forever thankful. Becoming a parent has been the most rewarding experience/job of my life. It's definitely hard, especially with two, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I never knew that you could love someone so much. I knew I loved these little girls before they were born, but nothing compares to my love for them now. I am forever thankful for my husband as well. Rusty is an AMAZING Daddy. He is a pro at changing diapers, feeding them, and loving them the way every father should love his children. Seeing him be such a wonderful father has only made my love for him grow stronger.

 

 

More updates to come later!!!





35 Week Update

We have made it another week! I am officially 35 weeks, 1 day today. I never would have imagined that we would make it this far! I thought for sure that the girls would be here by now.

I had another doctors appointment this morning with monitoring and an ultrasound. Everything looks GREAT! Dr. Dupre seems VERY happy with the way everything is progressing. I didn't have any contractions while being monitoring- not even one Braxton Hicks! Both girls' heart rates looked fantastic.

The ultrasound showed that both girls are still growing as they should. Ava James still weighs less than Hadley, but she is still within a normal weight range. Ava James weighs about 3lbs11oz, and Hadley weighs about 4lbs5oz. Their rate of growth has slowed, but Dr. Dupre has assured us that that is perfectly normal with twins. After all, they are running out of room! Technically, I am carrying 8-10lbs of baby already. They will continue to grow, just not as quickly as a singleton baby would due to lack of space.

I always enjoy the ultrasounds. We have been VERY spoiled. Most pregnant women only have a couple ultrasounds throughout their entire pregnancy- we have one every week now. In the past we would have at least 2 ultrasounds a month. I LOVE seeing our little nuggets every week. It has been so amazing seeing them grow from a tiny peanut at 6 weeks to a full blown baby at 35 weeks. Life truly is a miracle! During this weeks ultrasound we saw Hadley sticking her tongue out (see picture below)...repeatedly. The tech was able to get a really good picture of Hadley's face. Even though she is still tiny, she has some chubby checks! And like every week, she had her hand(s) in her face. Unfortunately. Ava James was being a little more difficult. She has consistently had her back to the tech every week. Therefore, we were only able to get a good picture of the back of her head and her back. We could still see that she has a good amount of hair, though!

From here on out we go to the doctor twice a week to be monitored and have an ultrasound. Dr. Dupre is out of town next week so I am under STRICT orders to do absolutely nothing. There is no evidence to show that the girls would come any time soon, but you never know! I personally have NO PROBLEM being lazy for the next couple of weeks. I am so sore it is becoming VERY difficult to even walk. Getting in and out of bed and chairs has become quite a task. I have been told that I am so sore because I was so thin and narrow to begin with. Add that in with twins and I am bound to be miserable.

So far we are still looking at November 6th for our c-section (both babies are still breech and will most likely stay that way). Please keep praying for healthy, strong, full term babies!

34 Week Update

We have made it to 34 weeks!

Today we had our 34 week appointment. Everything went very well!

Both babies heart rates looked really good. Dr. Dupre made the comment that they must be "happy babies" based on how much they moved while they were monitoring them. I had a couple contractions while being monitored, but nothing like the contractions I was having a couple weeks ago. They were definitely nothing to be worried about- all normal. Dr. Dupre made the comment that everything looks "perfect" for having full term babies. Twins are considered full term at 38 weeks, but most twins are delivered between 34 & 36 weeks- so I am sure you can see why this excited me! If I can carry these baby girls to 38 weeks, I will be over the moon!!!

The ultrasound showed Hadley weighs about 4lbs and Ava James weighs about 3lbs4oz. Their weights are still within normal range, however Dr. Dupre wants us to start having ultrasounds every week to monitor their weights a little closer. As long as their differences in weight does not get any larger, everything should still be okay. Their fluid looks fantastic, which is good when looking at their weight. If Ava James was smaller due to lack of oxygen or nutrients, she would have less fluid. Thankfully, her fluid looks perfect- just like Hadley's!

The ultrasound also showed that both girls have HAIR! I was so tickled when the ultrasound tech showed us. Mainly because I was bald until I was about 2!

Both girls are still breech. In fact, they have turned a little more upright than they were two weeks ago. They seem pretty comfortable with their heads shoved in my ribs and feet dancing on my bladder. I would be VERY surprised if they flipped!

Since both girls are still breech and we are 34 weeks, Dr. Dupre went ahead and scheduled our c-section. Assuming that all goes well between now and then, we will be having a c-section on Tuesday, November 6th- ELECTION DAY! Thank goodness I already sent in my absentee ballot :) Now I have to search for some patriotic onesies....

Thanks for all the prayers and thoughts! Please continue to pray for big, strong, healthy babies that can make it to 38 weeks!