We are such mean parents (it was mom's idea!)
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Cate and Ben: 8 weeks old on 6/24/08!
Today is Saturday, June 28, 2008. Last weekend was a ton of fun for all of us! Dad, Barb, and Marty all came to see the babies for the first time! It was Dad’s 65th birthday on Saturday--the 21st, and Neil and I had been hoping they’d come down so we could all celebrate together. Their flights arrived within an hour of each other’s Friday morning; they rented a car and were here by about 12:30 p.m. Within a few minutes of entering the house, both Barb and Marty had babes in arms. It was precious to see their reactions to the babies!! Marty is, of course, an old pro at the baby thing, and Barb is just such a natural at snuggling.
We were without Ms. Vernita, our night nanny, for the weekend, so it was really tough on Neil. Dad and Barb slept up in the “Grandparent Suite” on the third floor; Marty slept on the twin bed in the nursery, and Neil kept the babies down in the living room. For some reason, Cate and Ben were terribly high maintenance for the weekend. Probably from too much stimulation??
We watched Old School Friday afternoon (very funny movie!) and hit Souper Salad for dinner. The twins were a big hit with some of the patrons and servers, although they were very high maintenance for some reason. One of the gals thought that Dad was the father of the babies!
Saturday morning's treat was breakfast with Uncle Dave at the Buffalo Grill. We all crammed into two small tables—the babies’ car seats took up most of the real estate—and chatted all b’fast about the work ethic of today’s young Americans (cf. with that of our parents) and what higher-priced gas means to the average worker (Shorter workweeks? A movement away from the burbs toward the city centers, and the corresponding improvement of city schools?. We love their toasted cinnamon coffee, and the gals opted for sweet (French toast and banana-strawberry pancakes) and the guys all ate savory--Tex-Mex eggs and meat.
The timing was just great for their visit here, as the boat show was in town at Reliant Center. We loaded the kids up, preparing my pump and bottles for 3 feedings, and headed over. Although we tried to keep them happy in their limousine stroller for the day, they were very restless and pretty much needed to be held for most of the outing. We fell in love with one particular Crownline boat which incidentally had been owned by Roger Clemens. He’d only had possession of it for a week before the steroid scandal hit, and he returned it to the dealership, saying that it just wasn’t the time to be making large purchases. We enjoyed seeing the demo of Twiggy, the water-skiing squirrel, although it ended up being more of a promo for Progressive Insurance than a real show.
For the birthday festivities Saturday night, Hazel came over and Neil poached salmon—Dad’s request! (Elmer wasn't able to join us, as he's on a biz trip to Scotland. ) I had ordered a cake from Whole Foods with the customary Happy Birthday “Terry” on top. We had bought Dad a digital photo frame, and Neil had loaded it up with about 50 pics.
Sunday morning, D&B picked up groceries, and we had a brunch with Sara Lee coffee cake, bacon, and fruit. One thing about having house guests in addition to two newborns: non-stop dishwashing! Fortunately, Dad, Barb, and Marty just took charge and washed what needed to be washed!
A great weekend!!!
Cate and Ben had their 8-week appointment with Dr. Zuniga this past Wednesday. Cate’s umbilical hernia has gotten bigger and Dr. Z said she’d never seen one that shape, so she referred us to a pediatric surgeon. She wasn’t overly worried, but Neil and I do wonder what the surgeon will say when we take Catherine in this next week. Ms. Maria, our new day nanny, came with us to the appointment and it was good to have the extra set of hands.
Bennett is really moving up on the growth charts. His head is at the 50th percentile; Dr. Z said that means his brain is getting bigger and bigger! He’s at 20-25th percentile weight-wise, which is wonderful, and that’s comparing him to a full-term baby. Height-wise he’s at 10th percentile; their height is the last to catch up, Dr. Z. said. Catherine is still at less than 3rd percentile across the board. I shared with Dr. Z. the concern that she was so far behind Bennett developmentally. She just doesn’t hold focus and doesn’t seem to be aware of most things like Ben. Dr. Z said not to worry, that one twin is almost always a lot further behind. Who knows?, Dr. Z. said, Catherine could be talking and walking before Bennett; we just don’t know how to predict how they’ll develop. Dr. Z. said they both are just the cutest babies! She said their head shapes are really good and can tell that we usually put Bennett on his right side. When she lay him on the exam table, it’s apparent that he’s more inclined to turn his head to the right. To help with proper muscle development, we’ve been instructed to lay him on his left side more often.
This was to have been a 6-vaccine appointment, well actually 5, since they had their Hep-B shots while they were still in the hospital. Neil and I haven’t read much about the autism/vaccination connection issue, but we thought we’d feel better if we could space out the shots. Dr. Z. said that she’d given her own children the shots all at once, but that we wouldn’t hurt her feelings if we decided to do something different. We decided to space them out and give them over a 2-appointment timeframe. One vaccine was oral and must have tasted okay, cuz both babies were licking the plastic applicator as the nurses were squirting it into their mouths. Then came the terrible shock of the first needle. I was holding Catherine on the exam table as the nurse administered the two shots to her thighs. It was just horrible. One minute, Catherine was being her happy-go-lucky no-muscle-control self, then the next she was crying like mad. I kept focus on Catherine’s face and tried to soothe her as best I could— I definitely was NOT going to look at the needles. Wow was it painful as a parent to endure this. I nearly started crying! Catherine, being Catherine, was pretty forebearing in the end and stopped crying within a couple of minutes. Bennett, on the other hand, was a little more of a wimp throughout the experience. His was almost an angry cry—Neil was holding him, and although I wasn’t watching, I knew Ben’s pattern: an initial outburst, followed by a pause as he ramped up and caught his breath, followed by blood-curdling screams and cries. Neil said one of the needles was really long—ugh! Bennett cried for much longer than his sister. Ah, and we get to do it all again in another week or two! Fortunately, neither one had any negative reactions to the shots; we gave them both a hit of Tylenol, more as a pre-emptive measure, then they were fine.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
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