All Alone...

My Dad and his wife, MyeongHee, are leaving this morning at 10:00 to go back to Ulsan, South Korea. They arrived on May 12th and stayed with my grandma for a few days and then got to our house on May 14th. This past Sunday (the 24th) they went to go and stay with my grandpa before leaving the US today. We had a nice, long visit and to me it was really special because I got to see my Dad more these last 11 days than I have since before I was married...and especially since he moved to Ulsan a few years ago.

On Sunday we had a family get together and it was definately bitter sweet for me. I had a lot of fun that day and being with the family was great but it was definately hard to say good bye at the end. I was/am sad for me but more sad for my Dad and the babies. The girls will grow up so quickly and I know it will be difficult for him to watch it from so far away. I will be diligent on pictures and videos for sure.

MyeongHee with Jenna and Dad with Jillian on our first night together

MyeongHee and Jenna became great friends

Dad, MyeongHee and Jillian at Teri's Grad Party

I also had a great time getting to know MyeongHee. There were some challenges with communicating but it doesn't take much to see how gentle and sweet she is. She is also very giving, I think almost everyone in the family (including my brother and sister---my mom's kiddos with my stepdad) got a little something. And of course we got a lot of super cute outfits for the girls. :) She and I went out shopping alone one day last week on a quest for American made gifts...for some reason everything here is made in China. :) I took her to our Downtown Square where there are lots of neat crafty things....lots of items were still made in China but she was able to find a gift for her mom.

All in all the last week and half was a blessed time and I will enjoy the memories from the visit for years.

More to come...

Jessica

Once Upon A Time...There Lived Two Babies Who Hated to Eat

Howdy All!

I know it has been a while since I posted last and I am so sorry! It has been crazy busy with my Dad and his wife, MyeongHee, visiting. It has been really fun though. The babies are going to hate when they leave...for the last 8 days there have been 4 adults to hold them. :) The girls aren't really held a whole lot usually just because of the mechanics. Evenings are pretty much the only time Jared and I are at home together so that means during the day there are more babies than parents...it is impossible to hold them constantly. They are enjoying all of the individual attention though.

Well, Jillian and Jenna are five months old now. Can you believe it? They are getting big! I think they are at that in between stage, too. They seem to be getting tired of only bottles but they aren't crazy about cereal yet either. On Wednesday, I gave both girls (we were mostly concentrating on Jillian and giving Jenna a try after she had finished her bottle) their first try of Rice Cereal and it was pretty funny. My Dad swears Jillian would eat about half of what was put in her mouth but I am not so sure. It looked like most of it was coming right back out. See...

Jillian isn't sure what to think about her cereal experience



Jenna definitely doesn't want her bottle

Is it possible for a baby to get tired of bottles though? Jillian especially just seems to be uninterested most of the time, unless she is just starving. There is usually at least one bottle a day where she screams and cries until we quit trying to feed her.

Theoretically they should be eating better. According to their age (adjusted, not real) they should be eating between 5 and 6 ounces. According to their weight they should be eating about 22 ounces a day. We are lucky if they eat 4 ounces at their 5 sittings a day (which is 20 ounces total) and they almost never eat all 4 bottles completely. The doctor says as long as they are growing and gaining weight I shouldn't worry, but there is just something about a baby not eating that seems wrong somehow. It is like a dog who doesn't like to eat....WAIT A MINUTE...I have one of those too. :)

So I have to share something with you that I have told almost everyone I've talked with in the last few days. Last Saturday I went to the Just Between Friends Consignment Sale (http://www.jbfsale.com/home/) @ The Denton Senior Center (Civic Center). It is a hugeiferous sale with tons of baby clothes, toys, gear, furniture...you name it, they have it. Most of it is pretty nice and only gently used. Well, on Saturdays the majority of the items are half off of the asking price. Listen to this, for $77 I got:

One Play Gym/Mat with Toys

One Bouncy Seat that vibrates, lights up and plays music

An Infant-Toddler Feeding Chair

A Tummy Time Play Mat

Two Shopping Cart/High Chair Covers

Two Crib Toys

One plush toy and

Eight Outfits

Can you believe it? Isn't that great!?!

The funny thing is that when I first got pregnant (before we knew it was twins) I wasn't really into "used things." I wanted brand new everything (toys, clothes, etc). I was also going to use the most expensive diapers as well.

I am not saying that my twins don't deserve new or nice things but like most people we are on a (tight) budget. We got our first round of used clothes from Jared's boss at the County and it was then that I figured out how nice used items were. First of all they are free, second they are new to me, and third they are almost always just as nice as if they were new. I guess I am just so excited at how thrifty I have become. It is my contribution to the household since I no longer work full time. :) Speaking of which...Off Brand Diapers (I am not talking about Luvs...diapers like White Cloud and store brand like Comforts from Kroger) are terrific. They are usually pretty soft and don't leak (like Huggies!). Off Brand Wipes are just as great. Diapers were the one thing I was adamant about with buying the best brand, too. :)

Anyhoo, not that any of that was funny or interesting but I am so pumped at what a great deal I got at the consignment sale that I just had to share. :)

More to Come,

Jessie

PS: Is it true that TV is bad for babies? Jillian and Jenna are addicted. We try and turn them away from the TV so that they can't see it but they will just sit and cry until we turn them back to face it. It gets so bad that we have to turn the TV off completely!

Jenna gets cozy in the Big Brown Chair and settles in for some American Idol...she was totally crushed that Adam didn't win!!

I Wondered When I Would Type This...

Happy Mother's Day Picture!

Hello Again!

Well, it seems from the polls as if most people think Jillian and Jenna are identical. I have to say I am right there with you. :) I think we will probably end up doing the DNA test just to put our curiosity to rest (did you know that Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen--celebrity twins--are fraternal? They look exactly alike too!); but I am in the process of trying to find a reputable company. Does anyone have any friends, family, etc that has gone through DNA testing before (i.e.: paternity testing, twin testing, etc?). I would hate to choose some crazy Internet company and not get reliable results, ya know?

So these days the girls are mighty active. They are squealing but not laughing or babbling yet. Now and then we get a big noise which makes us stop and be excited for a few minutes. Both girls are really into playing under the gym set (the ones with toys handing down). They can't stand that they have to be upright for 30 minutes after they eat...they want to play right away (especially Jillian).

Also, I knew there would come a day when I would say it...but I wish the babies would sleep more! :) Ha ha! No, not really....the 4 hours schedule is very nice I must say. They eat now at 6am, 10, 2pm, 6 and 9pm. They are usually awake for about 2 hours and then take a 2 hour nap. The naps are getting a little shorter each time so I would imagine in the next month or two we would only be taking two naps a day with a short cat nap to make 2 1/2.

I have to say (and knock-on-wood) they are almost always easy to put down for naps. You can tell when they are ready for a nap because they start to cry and fuss a lot. So I take one at a time and wrap her up in her SwaddleMe (best baby product EVER for babies who like to be swaddled, the girls won't go to sleep without having these on http://www.kiddopotamus.com/p_swdl_cttnsolids.php), stick in her pacifier, and if it is a daytime nap to where I can monitor, I put their Lovies by their heads.

Which brings me to something that I find crazy and comforting all at once. I am not sure if you remember me saying, but when the girls were born they had to be transported to a different hospital because the NICU in the hospital I was at was full. The transport team from Cook Childrens came to my recovery room before taking them and tried to help me see them. Even though I wasn't able to (their incubator was too high and my bed too low...couldn't get up because I just had the C-Section and was still numb) the transporters gave me what they called "Lovies." They said to keep them next to my skin for the next few days while I was in the hospital and then once I came to visit the girls I could give them to the babies and they would have my scent...which would comfort them.

Jillian's Lovie (L) and Jenna's Lovie (R)

Now, I am not really one of those people who is into hippy, dippy, trippy stuff like that. I am just not (or wasn't)...BUT, the Lovies gave me a job to do as a mother while we were separated and I couldn't see them or be with them after they were just born. It made me feel better to have the Lovies and I was diligent in keeping them next to me. When I got down to Cooks the day I was released I gave one Lovie to each baby and the nurses were really great about putting the Lovies right up next to them.

So you know what happens next, Jillian and Jenna keep the Lovies with them at Cooks (I missed the Lovies then) and eventually the girls came home, etc, etc and the Lovies went in the closet with the other toys. Now we are up to date... Back when the girls weren't sleeping well at night I read an article that said some babies sleep better if there is an item placed in the crib that smells like Mom. At this point, I was willing to try anything since I hadn't slept through the night since before the girls were born. So, I dug out their Lovies and slept with them for 3 or 4 days. After that I gave them back to Jilly and Jenna.

I kid you not, if the girls are sleepy for a nap, putting the Lovie right next to their head (or slightly under it) helps them calm down and fall asleep. Later I go and move the Lovies, so there aren't any suffocation scares, but I just think that is the neatest thing. :)

Anyhoo...It is definitely fun having them awake but I am glad they have each other. I still have to entertain a lot because they haven't really noticed each other yet. I think they know the other is there but they haven't started looking at each other too much. I am sure that will be coming soon; I watched a video on YouTube of 4 month twin boys cracking up at each other and having the best time.Jillian and Jenna are getting good at holding rattles (if I place them in their hands) and Jillian is starting to bat at objects and try and grab them. They are also getting better at sitting up, they aren't anywhere near doing it on their own, but they don't slump over in their chairs or swings as much as they used to.

Well, that is all I can think of right now. The next few weeks are busy, busy. My sister is graduating from TWU on Friday (Woo Hoo, Tt!!) and my Dad and his wife, MyeongHee, are coming to my house tomorrow (Thursday) and they are going to be staying with us off and on while they are in town for two weeks (he lives in Ulsan, South Korea). I am super excited, especially since this will be my Dad's first time to see the babies in person. To date he has only seen the pictures and video snippets. :)

More to Come...

Jessie

Identical or Fraternal? That is the Question.

Okay, so when I first found out we were having twins I asked how they determine the zygosity (which is a word I know now that I have twins to mean whether they are identical or fraternal). During my pregnancy there was not a definite factor where the doctor could say for sure absolutely one way or the other. Jillian and Jenna were not in the same sac (which could go for either zygosity) and throughout the pregnancy and after the birth no one could determine if each baby had their own placenta ...meaning I either had one very large placenta or two that joined together. Now that they are born we know that Jilly and Jenna are both girls and they also have the same blood type.

Let's take for example if I had a girl and a boy...that would tell us definitively they were fraternal. Or if they had different blood types...automatically they would be fraternal. However, having the same blood type doesn't necessarily make them identical since lots of siblings have the same blood type.

So, I talked to my OBGYN about it again on Monday (he has the results of the placenta dissection) and we talked it over. It made me feel better to know that dissecting the placenta doesn't always tell you for sure the zygosity of your multiples, most doctors use the results as well as the other circumstances I just talked about (one sac, two, one placenta, two, blood type, sex type, etc). So my doctor doesn't know for sure, and only a DNA test would confirm (which is not routine) but he is leaning more towards the girls being identical now. The reasons being:

1. They are both girls

2. They have the same blood type (which is the reason he is leaning this way more now)

3. Both girls were almost identical in weight and height from conception to birth. Lots of times in fraternal babies one baby is lots bigger than the other. The same thing can happen with identical but it is usually because of Twin to Twin Transfusion.

My deciding factor is that they look so VERY MUCH alike. Yes, I know they are siblings...but come on! They have the same hair, parted the same way. Jilly has a tiny bit more on top but it is the same texture, color, thickness, etc. They have the same face, same eyes, same ears, same nose, same mouth, same chin. They have the same stork bite (birthmark) on the back of their head. They each have an identical raised birthmark except Jillian's is on her thigh and Jenna's is on her neck...thanks goodness! I have gotten them confused a number of times now, especially since Jenna is catching up in the weight department. Jillian's checks are still a little more puffy but really that is it...

So, you be the judge. Take the poll and give your opinion on if you think they are identical or fraternal. Here are some pictures to determine...and for fun I am not going to tell you who is who. :)

More to Come....

Jessica

Still on the Mend...

Hey All,

We are still on the mend but slowly getting better. Jared is feeling a lot better but not 100% and Jillian is the same. Jenna is still a little worse the for the ware; in fact, I took her to the doctor yesterday just because she has such an awful cough. The doctor said that she has Croup (http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_viral/croup.html ) which is from the cold and it is viral so there aren't any antibiotics they can give her. They did give her a steroid for the swelling in her throat which seems to help with the coughing and we are using the prescription strength cold medicine every 12 hours. The doctor said it could be 2-3 weeks before she is completely over it.

In the meantime the babies are getting more fun everyday. Jillian especially since she is feeling better. She loves her gym mat that she plays under and has started to be a lot more vocal and active. They are also started to get very interested in Shelby the Dog and her peculiar antics. They are staying awake for about and 1.2-2 hours after each bottle and before we got sick they were sleeping 100% through the night (with no getting up on my part to give a pacifier or pat!). We are still being challenged with both girls and their unwillingness to eat, but the doctor isn't concerned since they are still growing and gaining weight. I was able to teach Jenna a new trick the other day (before she got sick). I recorded it for everyone to see. :)

Anyhoo, not a lot else going on since we are under the weather and trying to stay out of the public as much as possible with all of this crazy swine flu going around. It is scary but it seems to me like the symptoms are much like regular flu, I am not sure what the hysteria is about yet but just to be safe we are home bound more than usual. So, on that note I will leave you with our latest pictures.

Jessica and Jenna (4/27/09)

Jessica and Jillian (4/27/09)

Jillian (L) and Jenna (R) starting at their puppy dog, Shelby

More to Come,

Jessica

Sick is Ick!

We are still sick at our house. Jillian is starting to mend but now Jenna has the cold and she seems to have it worse. Poor baby...she was so hungry this morning but just couldn't eat. I think her throat might be sore. The doctor went ahead and have us a prescription strength Dimetapp and that seems to help with the symptoms (when I can get them to swallow it!) but since it is just colds we have to wait for them to take their course.

Jared is sick now, too...hopefully by this weekend things will be looking up. As long as we don't get that crazy Swine Flu we are good. That is starting to totally freak me out!


Thanks for the continued prayers!
Love,
Jess

Prayer Request

I know a lot of you prayer daily for the girls and for that, Jared and I are very grateful. I have a specific prayer request for the first time since the girls have been home though. Jillian has her first cold. No fever yet (hopefully it will stay that way), but definitely the stuffy nose, cough, etc. She seems pretty miserable and had gotten to the point yesterday evening where she had only drunk one bottle completely out of 5 and the others she did half or less. I called the doctor and because she isn't eating she gave me the go ahead to give her the teeniest, tiniest amount of Children's Dimatapp. I gave her the first round this morning and she ate a little better (didn't finish) but better is better. The medicine mostly puts her to sleep. Anyhoo, I know the cold will pass but it is our first one and you know how that goes.
Love in Christ,
Jessica