Twins -- One Month

The twins are one month old... or they were about two weeks ago.  So I have to do this post quickly before they're suddenly two months and these facts are obsolete.

Weight: 

Unofficially, my estimation is that

Howard is about 7 and a half pounds, and

Caroline is almost 7 pounds

Length:  

Howard was 20.25 inches at birth... and he's on the verge of growing out of newborn sleepers... so he's probably longer now

Caroline was 18.5 inches at birth, and she is definitely longer now too, although she still has a little room to grow in her newborn sleepers, so she's not quite as tall as Howard.

Clothing size: 

Howard and Caroline are in newborn sleepers, but depending on the sleeper, Howard has grown out of a few.  Caroline is still in newborn sleepers, but she is filling them out more every day, which is wonderful to see.

 

Eating:  

Both babies have eaten nothing but my breastmilk... but they eat both at the breast and through bottles -- which, I've got to say, is a little complicated, but the most important thing is that both twins are eating only breastmilk... it is less important how they get it so long as that is all they're eating.  Sometimes they eat every three hours... sometimes more often.

For the first month, the pattern of feeding from my perspective was as follows:

One baby nurses for 20 minutes

The second baby nurses for 20 minutes

Mama pumps breastmilk for 20 minutes

The pattern of feeding from the perspective of a baby was:

20 minutes of nursing with Mama

Being burped by Grammie, Papa or Daddy

Eating another 10-30 ccs (mls) via bottle given by Grammie, Papa or Daddy

Another round of being burped by Grammie, Papa, or Daddy

Diaper change

... by the time the first baby was done with his/her bottle, the second baby was done nursing and ready to be burped and bottled.

Feedings generally take about 75-90 minutes at minimum.

Sleeping:  

 Howard and Caroline sleep in a double bassinet in our bedroom and are usually swaddled, and wearing a hats.  Following a feeding, they usually sleep about two hours.

 

New things/discoveries: 

• Howard and Caroline are doing more every day -- trying to keep their pacifiers in their mouths
• Tracking better with their eyes
• Cuddling up next to one another when we lay them near each other
• Nuzzling up to my cheek when they're letting me know that they are hungry
• Howard was circumcised this month
• They have had quite a few baths... more then their messy diapers do not stay in their messy diapers (we have had this much more often with both Howard and Caroline than we ever did with Tracey Ann)
• Going with Mama and Grammie to drop Tracey Ann off at preschool
• Both were dedicated at church when they were 9 days old because both sets of grandparents were in town that weekend

  New Accomplishments: 

• Wrapping Mama, Daddy, and their grandparents around their baby fingers
• It was a big accomplishment for them both to be gaining weight and for me to establish and maintain a milk supply enough to nourish both twins
• Howard had a high bilirubin level before we left the hospital, which necessitated our staying in the hospital two additional days... it was a huge accomplishment to have those levels back in a safe zone and stay down thereafter

 

Likes: 

• Being held
• Being burped
• Pacifiers
• Nursing
• Bottles
• Being held cheek-to-cheek while I say "Shhhhh" right in their ear

 

 

Dislikes:

• Being hungry
• Spitting up
• Cold diaper wipes
• Howard did not like the 24 hours following his circumcision -- he was very sore

 

  Places They Went:

•  Carbondale
• Grand Junction
• Church
• Doctors' offices

Special Memories:

• Honestly... they're being born is a really special memory that I will be trying to recount from my perspective soon... born New Year's Day, before the Michigan game, unmedicted labor and delivery... and two healthy babies
• 3am feedings with Grammie and Papa
• Daddy and grandparents being able to give bottles and participate in feedings
• Tracey Ann adjusting to life as a big sister and responding whenever one is crying.  She will say, "He's Crying" and run over to the crib where the baby is
• Learning how to treat a circumcision in the immediate aftermath
• Seeing Caroline in Tracey Ann's hand-me-down sleepers
• Getting to buy little boy clothes for Howard
• Watching the two of them nestle together while they're sleeping
• Getting newborn and family pictures taken when they were one week old

Nicknames:

• Howard
• Baby Howard
• Mister
• Buddy
• Doc
  

• Caroline
• Sweet Caroline
• Sweetheart