Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Tanning beds and bottle feeds...

Wow has life become busy. I had no idea how difficult it would be to recover from a major-league c-section and months of limited activity and bedrest. It has been A LOT harder than I ever expected. Funny enough, I never really considered the recovery process, I just figured I would bounce back no problem... Think again! But, one week down and I'm definitely feeling better. One thing is for certain...can't keep me away from those beautiful babies! I spend about 3 hours in the morning with them, come home to eat and sleep, and go back with Brian for a few hours in the evening. And it still isn't enough time with them. And it still isn't enough sleep... Not to mention a rigorous "pumping" schedule every three hours...Who knew my life would ever be so crazy?

The babies are doing GREAT! Their little personalities are really coming out. So crazy, you wouldn't think something so small could be so expressive, but they are. The boys are still working through jaundice issues. They've been in and out of phototherapy. They are not so fond of it. Babies loved to be cuddled up and swaddled and the phototherapy requires that their bodies be uncovered so the light will hit as much skin as possible and that their little eyes be covered. The discomfort is evident by their squirming, whining, and wiggling. It's pretty sad to see... Here's baby Ben kickin' it in the lights...

Here's big Jack pondering life under the sun....

Our other big goal is bottle feeding, and it's going pretty well. All of the babies feeding amounts have been increased to 25 ml for 8 feeds a day. They get to bottle feed for 2 of those meals. I usually do one feed in the morning and we then do another in the evening. You will notice they have small feeding tubes down their noses and they are given the rest of their feeds through those tubes. We've had good feeds and not so good. They almost always finish their bottles, but sometimes it takes quite a while or they sleep through it! Today Lily finished her bottle in less than 15 minutes! She was definitely the big winner this morning. As you can see below...our little guys have the FUNNIEST expressions on their faces while feeding. They don't look so thrilled, that's for sure...

Little Ben one-eyeing is morning bottle followed by Jack and his look of enthusiasm... Followed by sweet little Lily!


I do have one funny story to share. Yesterday morning I was so excited that I got to give Ben a bath. I was really looking forward to this. UNTIL I started and he began screaming and looking at me like I was the devil. It broke my heart! I mean he REALLY looked at me like I was the worst person in the whole world. My little Ben. It was HORRIBLE! I almost cried. If I wasn't in such a hurry to get it over with I probably would have. So, I wanted to leave you with a pic of how happy he was after his bath and the look he continued to give me even after we were through...

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

They are absolutely precious! I can't wait to meet them. Love you all!

Carole said...

they're so cute, stef! I'll pray for a quick recovery for you!

Jeni said...

Trust me, girlfriend. Those moments where they give you a devil look are only beginning. My boys have shot darts at me so many times, I look like swiss cheese. Oh, the joys of motherhood. =)

Lisa said...

Wow! Congratulations Stefanie!!! They are beautiful! I can't wait to hear about their homecoming!!!
Love, Lisa Johnson

Anonymous said...

That last pic of Ben is priceless! I love that expression...like Gee Mom, why'd you have to do that? They look great.