Pumpkin Patch

On Wednesday, we visited the pumpkin patch that a local (well, local to my mom) church puts on as a fundraiser.  I dressed the boys up in their orange gingham overalls with smocked pumpkins.  Now, baby clothing sizes are so weird.  Right now, the boys are wearing 12 months if I want something to fit perfectly (although some 12 month things are big on James) or 18 months if I want something to be slightly big (bigger on James, since he weighs three pounds less than Bobby).  I ordered these back in the summer, so having no idea how big the boys would be, but knowing they tend to run pretty true to size, I ordered two of the 12-month size.  These particular 12-month sizes are huge, though!  I can't help wondering if they've been mislabeled and are actually size 18 month, because I've never had this brand run so big.  But all this goes to explain why Jamesie's pants are rolled up and why the tops seem so big, even on Bobby.  My sister got them pumpkin-top headbands, so they're wearing (or chewing on) those in a few shots.  The ladies working there were so nice; they were very helpful in getting smiles out of Bobby!  The boys had had their 12-month shots the day before (12-month update later), and I think he was still feeling crummy.

Meanwhile, James seems to be going through some sort of phase.  Mom thinks he's discovering that he's capable of doing way more than he realized.  I don't know about that, but he's definitely doing something - he seems sometimes to have hit the terrible twos at one.  Sometimes he just screams and screams unless he's being held.  This would be hard enough with one baby and is really not feasible for one adult with twins.  So sometimes he just has to scream.  This is fun, let me tell you.  And after a couple of nights of going to bed at a reasonable hour, he's back to going to bed late - 11:15 the last two nights.  Although, he did sleep through the night until a little after 9 this morning, so that was pretty fabulous, even if he did get a late start.

One last thing - I voted early today.  It took me maybe ten minutes, start to finish!  Of course, part of this is that I live in the boonies, but it was still much, much better than voting on election day, I would guess.  And the beauty of voting early is that, if you do happen to go somewhere with a long line, you can leave and choose a better time or place - it's not like election day, when you don't have that option.  So get out there and vote!

Ride that pumpkin, Jamesie!

Bobby is unsure about the headband.

Bobby is more interested in eating grass and sticks than in the pumpkins.

Check out the size of one of our pumpkins!

Bobby samples a pumpkin stem

Jamesie loves the pumpkin patch!

Bobby's OT

Bobby has been scheduled for his OT (occupational therapy) evaluation on Friday.  This will evaluate his sensitivity issues, hopefully making it easier for him to wear his bipap machine and get help with his apnea.  Right now, he's ok playing with the machine, but any attempts to strap the mask to his head terrify him.  Of course, we tried it with James, and he doesn't care at all about having things on his head - figures!  After the evaluation appointment, we will learn exercises we can do at home, as well as make a series of appointments for him to come in and get checked out.  This may take anywhere from days to weeks to months... I'm hoping for something on the shorter side!  And now it's time for a morning bath for the boys - gotta go!

James does a little computing - which somehow involves being halfway under our bed!

 

Seaside, FL

Over a long Columbus Day weekend, Peter, Bobby, James and I, along with our friends Ross and Steffie, went to Seaside, Florida, one of our favorite beach destinations.  Peter's mom owns a house in Seaside, so we don't have to deal with hotels or condo rentals, and Seaside is such a beautiful, relaxing place.  We have a close-by beach in Houston (Galveston), but the water's pretty warm and, well, brown.  In Seaside, you can see your feet, and watch as little schools of fish swim around and nibble on your toes.  

It was the boys' first flight, and I was terrified of long lines to check luggage and get through the family line at security, so we got there about 2 1/2 hours early - way overkill, as it turned out.  There were no lines for checking bags, and we zipped through security.  James enjoyed crawling around the airport and asking strangers for food (it was lunchtime), so we headed over to Pappas' Burgers and had some lunch.

The boys enjoy puffs at lunch in the airport.









They did pretty well on the flight.  We bought them each a seat, so Peter and Ross took James, and Steffie and I had Bobby in the row behind them.  Both boys slept most of the hour-and-a-half flight, and woke up towards the end.  I don't know about James, but Bobby felt the bumpy landing with slammed-on brakes was hilarious!  Guess that little guy's going to like roller coasters!

We tried to keep the trip relaxed.  We went to the beach a couple of times.  The first time, James thought playing in the sand was just fabulous, and Bobby wanted nothing to do with anything.  The second time, James was pretty ornery (he hadn't slept well the night before), so he was not a huge fan of anything, but Bobby loved going out pretty far into the ocean and being swirled around in the sea, as well as jumping waves.  We've got ourselves a little fish!  They also enjoyed swimming in the kiddie pool with me and Steffie, and going out to eat - they love smoked tuna dip!  Well, let's be honest, they loved pretty much any grown-up food we stuck in front of them!  Ross and Steffie went home Sunday afternoon, and we headed home Tuesday.  The flight going home was super easy for Peter - James slept the entire way!  Bobby required entertaining almost the entire flight, though, and finally fell asleep as we started to descend - of course!  All in all, though, our first trip with the boys went well, and it helped teach me what we do and don't need to do for our big upcoming trip to Disney World with the boys Veterans' Day weekend.

And now for a picture overload (I apologize for the messiness of the layout)....

James heads for the ocean

Oh!  It's a little chilly!

Mom, the water keeps hitting me!

James loves the sand!

Shot of James and the sea

James builds a castle.

Both boys' first trip to the beach - Bobby (left) is not sure.

Introducing Ross and Steffie to the Shrimp Shack

Our first family shot in Seaside

Ross with James (modeling Ross's hat)

Peter and Ross teach James about the iPad

Probably my fave - Bobby passed out, so we made him a bed in the wagon.

Peter and Ross with kindles, the boys with puffs

Headed back after lunch with a passed-out Bobber

Bobby in a lounge chair on the beach

James (under the hat) passed out in Steffie's lap

Bobby with Mommy out in the sea

Bobby loves the sea!

The boys love the wagon we rented!

Updates on Bobby and General Life

Life has been a little crazy around here.  I had to have a colonoscopy and endoscopy on Monday, so I had to spend the weekend prepping for that (disgusting, not fun, thank you very much) and then spent Monday recovering and not getting nearly as much sleep as I planned on.  In the meantime, I seem to have caught a nasty virus, and I feel like I was run over by a truck.  I would seriously like to curl up in bed and sleep for the next, I don't know, two weeks?  To top it all off, we (along with our best friends Steffie and Ross) are taking the boys on their first vacation, to Seaside, Florida.  We'll be staying in Peter's mom's house (so no dealing with hotels, thankfully), but this will be the boys' first flight.  It's only an hour and a half, so I'm hoping it's survivable for all.  What I'm really worried about is the nights.  We've been having major trouble getting James to sleep.  I'll get him to fall asleep, put him down in his bed, and he immediately wakes up and starts screaming (and I mean *screaming*).  The only solution seems to be to let him play himself out until he'll take a bottle and pass out in Peter's arms, anywhere between 9 pm (not such a big deal) and 11 (rather a bigger deal).  He will then frequently have a bad dream, because he's overtired, and wake up screaming a few hours later.  I fear Ross and Steffie will get absolutely no sleep.  I also worry about getting the boys to go down (and stay down) for naps.  I figure at worst, we can put them in the car and someone will drive them around for an hour or two.  Of course, then that person doesn't get a nap, which is the sucky part for them.  Yes, I said sucky.  I'm tired, okay?

In the meantime, we met with a new sleep specialist for Bobby last week.  His neurologist wanted him to be seen for treatment immediately, once she had ruled out any brain or genetic issues, and his previous specialist couldn't see him until November 26.  Not exactly helpful.  So we met with Dr. Susarla, a sleep specialist in the neurologist's practice.  I cannot say enough good things about him!  We had to wait for about 45 minutes to see him (not super cool, but survivable), but once we saw him, I liked him so much.  He agreed that Bobby definitely needed to be treated immediately - he said that because he's getting so little sleep, there is really no way to know how much he's being affected developmentally.  Even if he hasn't been affected yet, it will be harder and harder for him to process the world and develop new skills running on so little sleep.  He prescribed a BPAP machine.  He will start the fitting process for this next week, before we leave.  Dr. Susarla said it can be a very long process; because Bobby is only 11 months old, he may really hate having it on his face.  He says we'll get him used to it by putting it on for short periods during the day while he plays, watches cartoons, or does other normal things - not at night, since he's already scared of going to sleep.  If that doesn't work, they have a behavioral/occupational therapy clinic that they use for kids such as those with Down's Syndrome (who apparently have major issues with anything touching their faces) that we can use for Bobby, and he's confident that in the end, we'll have a happy, sleeping baby.  I'm so relieved!  I know it's going to be a long road to get him comfortable with the machine, but I'm so grateful to have a treatment and an end in sight.  I just want my baby boy to be happy, healthy, and well-rested.  

11-month update will follow soon (they turned 11 months a week ago, and I still haven't gotten pictures taken!), but in the meantime, here's some general cuteness!

 Bobby models his new sunglasses for the beach

James plays in a baby-sized Poang chair at IKEA

Bobby munches on a string bean at the grocery store - we now call these "bobber beans", as James hates them!

10 Month Update

Well, the boys turned 10 months on August 21, but I've been a little slow about getting pictures up.  The pictures were taken about a week late, so I guess I'm just late all around!  In terms of updates, the boys haven't both been to the doctor recently, so I don't have numbers for both.  At the neurologist on Monday, Bobby was 22 pounds and 31.5 inches long.  James is lighter and shorter, as usual.  Bobby still has just the one tooth and is perfectly happy crawling around, although he is doing more cruising.  James is sporting five teeth at the moment and desperately wants to walk.  Both boys love to play with just about anything (including kitty toys) and enjoy watching Dinosaur Train, Caillou, Sesame Street, and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood (a new addition).  They really love anything with music.  Jamesie "sings" along with the radio in the car.  Bobby has been pretty clingy of late; I'm hoping this is a phase that will pass soon!  They both love bath time, and they love to crawl into Peter's and my bathroom and go to the tub.  Bobby then turns the water on (thankfully he can only reach the cold water) and watches it flow.  The past few days he's started turning it off, waiting a bit, and then turning it back on.  Jeremy (one of our cats) often hops up to watch this game; he finds it most entertaining!  James has also randomly bitten my toe twice today, and let me tell you, with both top and bottom teeth, that's extremely painful!

Bobby lounges

Bobby also shows off a lovely toy-induced bruise under his eye

It was very hard to keep them in one place - hence Peter's hand!

Bobby thinks this is all hilarious

But mom, I want to help!

My favorite!

Also pretty darn cute

Jamesie poses

Side-shoulder pose

 

James cruises around with his pirate ship (excuse Bobby, who is crying in the background because I'm not paying enough attention to him)

Updates of Various Sorts

I see that apparently the last time I posted was August 17....  Way too long ago!  Things have gotten a little crazy around here (so what else is new) - we bought a new bed for our room (king size, finally!), so this spurred me to paint the room before it was delivered.  Between painting, and trying to organize rooms that I've been meaning to work on since we moved in, I haven't had much time for blogging.  I've said it before, but I'm really going to try to post more often!

We met with Bobby's neurologist today and got the results of his bloodwork back.  His genetic tests were normal, and there was only one metabolic level that was a little high.  She said that it was likely because of diet, so we will repeat it this week first thing in the morning, before he eats.  She said there's no way he has whatever issue this is the metabolic marker for - apparently it causes frequent seizures and makes you eat around the clock.  Definitely not Bobby!  After getting those results back, we can check all our ENT and neurologist testing off the list and are left with unexplained central sleep apnea.  This is good, in that it means he may outgrow it (he wouldn't have outgrown a genetic issue, for example), but bad in that there is nothing specific to treat.  Dr. Jones (the neurologist) now wants us to go back to meet with Bobby's pulmonologist/sleep doctor, Dr. Jon, because she didn't feel comfortable making treatment decisions without Dr. Jon's input.  Unfortunately, our appointment with Dr. Jon isn't until November 26.  I'm trying to get it moved up, and if we can't, I'm considering switching him to a sleep specialist in Dr. Jones's practice whom we could see earlier.  We'll see.

Both boys are continuing to be super-duper mobile; James is working very hard on walking.  I think at this point, it's more of a confidence issue than anything else.  He'll take many, many steps holding on to an adult's hands, not putting any weight on the hands, so I think he's almost there.  Bobby isn't working as hard on walking; he seems much more content with crawling/scooting around, although he is doing more cruising around on furniture.  The house is finally completely baby-proofed, so they are just wandering around, and they're very happy with their freedom! James is working on his fifth tooth - three on top and two on the bottom!  Bobby still has just the one tooth poking out.  Bobby started saying "mama" yesterday directed specifically at me, although so far, he's only done it when he's upset!  

James says hi from the big cart at Central Market!

Bobby models a headdress at Ikea

The carts at Costco are perfect for twins - although James is not so sure!

James works on climbing the stairs, spotted by Peter

Bobby's MRI

So sorry for the radio silence the past couple of weeks, folks - things have been super busy around here, but I finally have a few minutes to spare, and blogging it is!  We met with Bobby's neurologist, Dr. Melissa Jones, who is absolutely fabulous!  We adore her!  She scheduled Bobby for an MRI to make sure his brain architecture is normal, and we were able to schedule it for Tuesday (neurologist appointment was the previous Friday).  The only downside was that because they were doing it under general anesthesia, he wasn't allowed to have anything to eat or drink after midnight the night before.  Soothing a crying, upset baby at 2:30 in the morning when you can't give him any milk is next to impossible - it took me 45 minutes to get him back to sleep.  I then had to get up at 4:30 to get everything ready and get James dropped off at my mom's house, because we had to be at the hospital at 6:30 in the morning.  Yuck!  He made it through the MRI just fine, although he woke up crying - apparently this is normal, though, and after some graham crackers and apple juice in the recovery room, he was right as rain.  The best part of the whole thing - the general anesthesia stuck around in his system and he slept through the night the next two nights - FABULOUS.  Of course, now we're back to normal.  We got the results the next day, and thankfully Bobby's brain architecture is 100% normal.  She then sent us for metabolic and genetic blood work, and that was absolute hell.  They took seven vials of blood.  Seven.  From my tiny boy.  I had to hold him down and they had to do two separate draws from each arm because he stopped bleeding; it took over an hour.  It was horrible.  We both left in tears.  We don't get the metabolic results for two weeks and the genetic results for four. 

In happy, un-medical-related news, Bobby has his first tooth!  It started popping through on Tuesday (August 14th) and is just peeking out.  Yay Bobby!  James is doing a great job standing all by himself, and Bobby can really motor around on his hands and knees.  James did the most darling thing the other day - I was holding him in my lap as he fell asleep, and he sang himself a little lullaby and then fell asleep!  Just darling!  I wish I could have taken a video.  

Not many pictures this week, but this one is hilarious....

James finds the kitty food (not pictured: Peter having a freakout!)