Dueling Banjos?

No- those aren't banjos- those are my kids lungs!

For the past 2 nights the girls have not been happy between the 10 and 12 o'clock hours- let the good times begin. So, I figured they needed to be up for one more 3 hour 'shift' (the kids eat every 3 hours). Last night we finished our 9:00 pm feeding and then the fun began! The girls did not want to sleep at all and made that very clear with the 'songs' they were singing- their lungs are healthy that is for sure!

As the kids were crying, I was laughing because Kaylee would be quiet then Alex would cry, then they would cry in unison, and then back to one crying- that lasted a good long while and Zoe was really confused and tried to help, but nothing she did really helped :)

Good news- by the time the 12 o'clock feeding came along the girls were happy to go to bed afterwards! let's hope this gets a little easier night by night.

Our First Outing!

And we have another success!

I was worried this morning since the forecast was 80% chance of rain- I was just picturing myself trying to go to the dr.'s office in the pouring rain pushing my super stroller; kids screaming...in my head it wasn't a pretty picture. Luckily, it didn't rain on our parade and the girls were awesome!

We made it to the office on time and all together- I was slightly impressed b/c as I was about to get the last kid in the car seat I got a splinter in my foot..awesome!

So, our outing was for Kaylee's NICU discharge/2 week appointment and she was an excellent patient! Our little girl now weights 5lbs 13oz (when she was discharged from the NICU on Thursday she weighed 5lbs 9oz), so we have done a good job putting some ounces on her! Every thing else checks out well and the Dr. was very pleased that the only instructions we were given to follow from the NICU was to give Kaylee vitamins- we are a lucky and happy family!

Just a few pictures from Life

Little Miss Alexandra

In both pics- Alex is on the left and Kaylee is on the right

Kaylee is Home!

She made it! We were able to pick up Kaylee from the NICU on Thursday afternoon, a exactly 2 weeks old. We are so happy to have her home and so thankful to all who provided such excellent care for our girl- Life is good.

We have survived 2 nights so far...and no one has gotten hurt- success!

We shall call this Doctor Day

My mom came over to drive me to the appointments since I hadn't been cleared to drive yet..so our journey on Doctor Day started around 9:40 this morning.

I went for my 2 week check-up (round 2..went on Monday but the dr. was called out for a delivery) All went well- my blood pressure is still higher than normal, but that is to be expected for the next little while. The doc couldn't see my incision and I've lost an amazing amount of weight- I started at 175, Monday I was 134, and today I am 128; Postpartum makes for a great weight loss plan. I go back to the doc in 2 weeks just to check on my blood pressure.

After my appointment, mom and I went to see Kaylee- and she was just happy sleeping during the whole visit- that is okay b/c soon we will have plenty of time at home with her :)

And now at 11:50 it is Alex's time to shine at the doctor's office. She was running a low temp again, but we quickly got her temp up, so no worries. She currently weighs 5 lbs 13.6 oz-so she is right on track with her weight gain- woo hoo! So we are all happy and healthy, it is amazing what a difference a week or two can make.

Kaylee Update

So much has been going on with our little girl- I'm sorry to not keep everyone in the loop.

Kaylee has been progressing so well these past few days:

1. IV in her forehead- gone

2. Feeding tube-gone

3. Jaundice- gone

4. Oxygen hood- gone

5. Breathing tube- gone

6. IV anywhere else- gone

7. Sleeping in a well baby nursery bed- CHECK

8. Feeding from a bottle- CHECK

What a difference a week makes! Greg will be bringing a car seat to the hospital today so that Kaylee can partake in the necessary "Car seat Challenge"--a 'test' to make sure she doesn't stop breathing, have a slow heart rate, or low oxygen levels. Pre-Term babies need to go through this challenge which Alex passed just fine- let's hope Kaylee is a rockstar like her sister!

Hoping for Wednesday as our take home day- but would rather have her say in the hospital longer to make sure she is 100% in the clear!

Good Monday to all!

Alex had quite the appetite yesterday and last night- wanting to eat every 2 hours rather than her scheduled every 3 hour feedings. It worked out, she slept well during the night :)

Some of you may have heard that the recovery process for me at the hospital wasn't picture perfect..but good news is my swelling has been going down a little each day and this morning I was able to see what appears to be the normal size of my legs (at least my knees)! It was truly and exciting and surprising sight because when I went to bed last night my knees were still the size of my swollen thigh aka. HUGE.

Today I have a Dr. appointment to check on my incision and make sure my blood pressure is heading back to normal and all that jazz. We think all will go well- I'm pretty sure my blood pressure dropped as soon as I was discharged from the hospital and was able to take one of my babies home.

She might be getting bigger!

Greg got Alex ready this morning, as I was sound asleep, and he couldn't fit her legs into a few of the preemie outfits she was wearing just a day or two ago! Our neighbor gave us a few matching outfits, Alex is wearing one of the sleep sacks given to us in the picture. I am so hoping that Kaylee will be able to wear the sack when she gets home! Until then little miss Alex will be looking cute!

Hypo what?

So Thursday started just like any other day- Happy baby, happy mom and dad! We called the pediatrician the day before to make an appointment so we just waited to hear back form them.

9:31 ish Greg heads to take a shower

9:35 ish Morgan is changing Alex's diaper

9:38 Phone call from the Pediatrician calls

Me- Hello

P- Hi, how far away do you live?

Me- about 5 minutes

P- Great- can you come in now for an appointment?

Me- Umm...sure- I need to get ready and I can head on over

P- Oh. Well please be here by 10:00

9:40 ish Run to Greg to tell him to finish the shower quickly b/c we have to go.

I change from my lounge around clothes to something slightly more presentable- and I felt somewhat human putting on real clothes. It is amazing what the right clothes will do to improve your self image. I throw on a little color under my eyes so I don't look too drained and pale and mascara.

9:45 ish- No diaper bag set up and ready! Quick grab....ugh...change of clothes, a few diapers, wipes, paperwork...and well that is all I could think of and get quickly.

9:47ish- Alex gets changed into a super cute outfit with purple polka dotted mary jane shoes :)

9:48ish- Get Alex into her car seat (sounds easy, but this little girl is so small- there is prep work involved and about 4 towels/blankets

9:53ish- Get into the car and drive off

9:56ish- Arrive at the parking lot of the dr.'s office...and the search for a spot begins.

9:58ish- Parked and "walking" to the office

We made it! How? not really sure...but I will take it!

So we are at the office and little miss Alex is doing really well...until the time to take her temperature. 95.7 degrees. So for the next hour we work on warming her up. Warm blankets, skin on skin with dad, skin on skin and twice the warm blankets with mom- Finally we were able to get her about 97 degrees.

The Dr. said she has hypothermia so now 2 options:

Go to the hospital to stay the night to get warmed up or go home and try it ourselves.

We went with option 2- go home and microwave some blankets to keep the kiddo warm. 2hours went by and the temp was still up so we were able to keep Alex at home! I never knew a kid could have hypothermia..but apparently they can.

Here is to warm nights ahead!

12 am feeding

In order to feed Alex at night we have to wake her most of the time, no problem there. This morning was no different- We wake up, collect Alex from her crib and work on waking her up for the next few minutes.

Feeding went well and now it is time for the diaper change. I have her lay in the 2nd crib we have while I make sure i have all the supplies needed and I hear bubbles (success!)-perfect timing. It is much nicer changing one full diaper rather than changing a diaper and then changing another one 2 minutes later b/c little miss wasn't finished (Alex is a fan of the get changed, destroy diaper, get changed again method of diapering). Well I think Alex has a sense of humor b/c as I was unlocking the diaper and grabbing a wipe she seized the opportunity to finish her #2 business. Lucky for me it wasn't a grande finale, but she managed to create a splatter zone which included my shirt, the crib sheet, and the bumper, which took most of the damage. I stood there in shock and she just looked at me wide eyed and cute, acting like nothing had happened. Sweet girl but slightly mischievous perhaps.

Happy Week Birthday!

It's been quite a week!

While most of the week was spent at the hospital and it seemed as though time stood still- now that 75% of the Kruck family is home time has sped up!

Most noticeable difference in our house (besides having an amazing daughter to love) is the mess! Poor Greg has done at least 7 loads of laundry and most of it seems to settle on the couch since that is where I can do some work and fold the darn stuff.

There has been no honeymoon period with Alex and her diapers :) The first night at home she peed through her two swaddles, footie outfit, and crib sheet. Awesome. She peed on Greg while she was on his lap. I was about to change her when as I was taking off her diaper she started to pee *thank goodness for little girls*

All in all it has been a pretty good week. Here is to another fun week!

Guest Post #3

Morgan and Alex have come home!

Kaylee is still in the ICU, but Dad got to hold her for about 10 minutes this evening. Looks like things are turning around for her.

More pictures to follow once Morgan gets a few free moments.

Initial Pictures

Guest Post #2--Mom hit a bump in the road to recovery and isn't ready to get back to normal yet. Kaylee is still in the ICU with breathing problems. Alex is still a rockstar.

Pictures are from yesterday's events.

Two (Fairly) Healthy Girls!

Guest post!

Alexandra Jane - 18", 5lbs7oz
Kaylee Harper - 19.25", 5lbs11oz

Alex is doing great, Mom is recovering nicely, and Kaylee is spending at least the night and maybe a few days in the ICU. She's got some leftovers in her lungs that need to be worked out, but she's breathing on her own and just needs a little extra oxygen.

All in all, a great showing for twins at exactly 37 weeks. Mom will be back to posting soon, and pictures will get loaded in some tomorrow when we're not falling asleep sitting up.

Soon to be...

broadcasting live from L&D.

No food or drink since midnight doesn't seem that bad- but it is. We'll keep you updated!

Babies aren't here...but the pain is...

So- it isn't as if sleep time was a pleasure the past few weeks, we now have to throw in some Braxton Hicks contractions to the mix. Last night they decided to start right about 8:00 as normal, however this time they continued through the night. This girl is less than pleased, I mean let's face it- it is time. My legs are swollen, huge, my body belongs to these 2 little parasites who don't even want me to eat and they have been incubating long enough if you ask me (or my poor husband).

Good news though, the eviction notice has been written and come hell or high water we are having some babies on April 8th!!! 3 more nights of wretched sleep :)

And the back pain starts...

we'll see how this goes tonight, right now not feeling so great. I blame it on my dad :) he was expecting April Fools babies!