Weight Gain

We went to the pediatrician yesterday, and both babies are gaining weight! Sebastien is up to 5 lbs 13 oz, and Eden up to 5 lbs 12 oz. Sebastien gained 7 oz in the last 8 days, and Eden gained 5 oz. We are always concerned with whether they are eating enough, since they are still not masters of nursing. We supplement their nursing with bottle feedings, but they don't always take those either. But getting confirmation of weight gain and a doctor's "thumbs up" was very encouraging. We'll go back in two weeks to see how they're doing.

I have to remind myself that there are lots of people not on Facebook, who don't get to see the videos and pictures that we post. So this video is the same as one posted on Facebook yesterday, but this way, it can have a wider audience.

We absolutely LOVE to watch Eden and Sebastien interact with each other. I like how their Aunt Corrie put it, it's like they don't even know that they're two different people yet.

Fun with Hiccups

We have discovered that there are several things that our children do very well. Eden is a very good eater. (Most of the time.) Sebastien is a good sleeper. (Um...most of the time.) Eden almost always gives the impression that she is deep in thought about something, while Sebastien's face almost always tells you that he is in awe of the world that he lives in.

One talent that Sebastien has, that started in the womb, is he can hiccup with the best of 'em. I mean, loud, big hiccups, several times a day. While I have yet to capture the best of his hiccups, I did grab some video of Sebastien and Eden dueling it out with hiccups. Eden's are quieter, but watch for her head to jerk a little.

I guess you know you're crazy about your kids when you think their hiccups are just the best and funniest thing in the world.

Some Video and Pictures

Life is busy but so happy in our home these days. We are home from the hospital and so thrilled to be able to start our new kind of normal. There hasn't been a lot of time for....well, anything...except for doting on and getting to know Eden and Sebastien. We so appreciate the phone calls and emails that we have gotten this week, and we both feel bad that we have not been good at getting back to people. 

By the way, if you're interested in a short glimpse into the day we delivered, Adam posted a 15-minute long video of roughly how things progressed. It's not gross, don't worry. While long, there are some fun things to see, like a nice demonstration of Eden's lung capacity right after being born. The video is posted at adamnavis.blogspot.com. 

I thought I'd quick post a couple pictures and a video, especially for those of you without Facebook, since that's where we've been posting most of our stuff.

Eden and Sebastien, co-bedding in the hospital.

A rare moment when both of them had their eyes open! 

This is a short video clip - We were still in the hospital, and Sebastien was wide awake. 

Welcome Sebastien and Eden!

My last blog title was "Am I Next" and I guess now we have the answer.... Yup.

Sebastien Adam Navis was born at 7:48pm on Tuesday (July 15) and Eden Kay Navis was born at 8:14pm! Sebastien was born at 5 lbs 7 oz and Eden at 5 lbs 10 oz.

I was able to give birth vaginally, not c-section, for those of you with money on it. We've had a lot of comments from hospital personnel about how rare it is to NOT have a c-section with twins. It was a long day on the 15th, but actually went fairly smoothly. Any time a little hiccup was mentioned or warned against, it seemed to resolve itself just fine. And when it came time to push, I actually (after a day of labor) ended up only needing to push 18 minutes for Sebastien and 15 for Eden.

We ended up being induced into labor because I was showing significant signs of pre-eclampsia. I know that some people like lots of details about birth stories and some don't, so I won't go into great detail here, but feel free to ask me about it if you want more details.

I will say that it has been an amazing few days. Adam and I are convinced that we have the most fantastic two babies in the world. Eden and Sebastien have been so great, we are thoroughly enjoying getting to know them better. We are so thankful and feel so blessed, it is beyond words. And given my complete lack of sleep for the last few days, I am having a hard time expressing the complete and utter joy that we are feeling!

We are in Spectrum yet until tomorrow morning. We really appreciate all the phone calls and emails and Facebook postings. I have to apologize that I have not returned any of them, but I promise that it's only because taking care of two newborns and trying to recover from my delivery and the toxemia have been top priority for us. Give a call if you'd like to come and meet our special little ones!

Am I Next?

There is a serious baby boom going on this year. Lots o' pregnancies. You may remember that I had about 84 other pregnant people that I work with, not to mention all my other friends and family members...

Well, the boom is really booming strong now.

So far in 2008....Brooke had Teagan, Christina had Logan, Julie had Isaac. But just in the last month or so....Lindsey had Anabelle, Tena had Isla, Tracy had Ava, Meredith had Connor, Liz had Dexter, Cori had Colin. (Who am I missing?)

Maybe you don't know any of these people. The point is, I know all these people, and with the exception of Melissa (tomorrow, right? I'll add you to the list, Melis!!) I believe.... I'm next. It's a weird feeling to know all those due dates have come and gone, to see the babies arrive and watch the pictures pile up in Facebook and on blog sites. A weird feeling, and a very cool way to mark how close we are to meeting our little ones.

By the way, our c-section is only 11 days away! Anyone want to put money on whether we'll make it all the way to the 25th?

Heads Down and Growing

We had 3 doctors' appointments today: an ultrasound, an NST and an OB appointment. The ultrasound today is likely to be our last one, and it went well, except that they could not do any 3-D pictures. We were disappointed about that. But Baby Boy is weighing in at about 5 lbs 3 oz and Baby Girl at a whopping 5 lbs 11 oz! (Save for the 10% margin of error on either side.)

The other big news today was that Baby Girl has followed her brother's lead and now is in the head-down position, also. That means that if they stay in this position, we may have a choice between a c-section and vaginal delivery. We're taking a "wait and see" posture, but will likely be doing a lot of discussing between now and the 25th, which is our scheduled c-section date. I will be a full 35 weeks tomorrow, and that is such a blessing. 50% of all twins are born between 34 and 37 weeks, according to the twin book I'm reading, so we feel so thankful that we've made it this far!

I took another belly picture on Saturday, so I'll post that here. I don't have the ultrasound pictures scanned in yet, so I might end up adding those later. To be honest, they did not turn out as well this time. But still worth a look, so I will get on the ball and try to post those soon.

When Your Wife is on Bedrest

On Monday I will have been on bedrest for 11 full weeks. There have been a ton of people who have helped out during this time - family and friends have been amazing with meals, helping us move, helping us paint, visiting, driving me places, bringing gifts... I could go on for so long. It has been amazing and we could not have done these last 11 weeks (and the 3 more to come) without all of this help.

However, the one who takes the brunt of the bed rest impact is Adam. My dear husband has had to do everything without his partner for the past three months. Think of all the things that go on in your household every day - the cooking, the cleaning, the errands, the driving, the odd jobs and yard work. Adam has done all of that PLUS he has packed and unpacked our household, put together baby furniture, painted rooms, planned his own ordination service, test drove vehicles, installed carseats, assembled misc baby gear. PLUS he has gone to as many appointments as he could, attended to my many needs, helped me in and out cars, assured me that I'm not that biggest pregnant person ever, pushed me around Target in a wheelchair one day (yeah, that was a big outing for me!), read up on baby care and pregnancy, slept on the couch when my snoring suddenly took over our bedroom....

I seriously could sit here listing these things all morning.

Adam does not complain about these things. I mean, he is understandably eager to have his partner back in a few weeks. But what I am saying is, he is unbelievable. I don't think I'll ever be able to re-pay him or thank him enough for all he has done and especially not for how he has done it - unflinching, with a loving heart, a smile and a sense of humor. I have been blessed beyond words, and one little way I can say thank you to him is to post something for you all to read. This way, everyone knows how amazing I know Adam is, and you can all know he's amazing too.

Tag, I was "It" (Over a Month Ago)

My friend Deb tagged me over a month ago with this, hey, tell us about yourself thing, and I never got around to doing it. I know, you'd think being on bedrest I'd be all about it. But, I just couldn't concentrate long enough to actually do this. Well, my concentration is only getting worse. But today, I'm bored enough to try to focus on it. Please forgive me if I actually don't pass the tag along - I think most people that I would tag have already done this. We'll see.

The Rules:
Once you’ve been tagged, you have to write a blog with 10 weird, random, facts, habits or goals about yourself. At the end, choose 6 people to be tagged, list their names & why you tagged them. Don’t forget to leave them a comment saying “You’re it!” & to go read your blog. You cannot tag the person that tagged you, so since you’re not allowed to tag me back; let me know when you are done so I can go read YOUR weird/random/odd facts, habits and goals.

1. I have had the same pillow and pillowcase for as long as I can remember. I have nicer, prettier (and definitely fluffier) onces, but this particular pillow goes with me wherever I go and never gets phased out. I think it's become like a security blanket. Adam named it "Pinkie" when we got married and he discovered its bizarre place in my life.

2. My hidden talent has always been gleeking on command. What is gleeking? I'll show you some time. Or you can ask my brother or my husband, who have both always hated it when I pull it out as a defense to some sort of physical attack.

3. I grew up having dogs and really liking dogs, and I grew up thinking I hated cats. I now have a cat and am kinda afraid of dogs. I'm not afraid of all dogs, of course, because there are many dogs I still love. But I think after some years of doing in-home social work, large dogs feel unpredictable and strong. Cats are just, at worst, annoying.

4. I have not changed skin care products since early high school when I started using skin care products. I use the same face wash and moisturizer that I did when I was 15. I've tried other things, and nothing else feels right.

5. On that topic, I never wear makeup. I mean, I did wear a little for prom and my wedding. And I think when I was in other people's weddings I did, too. But day-to-day, nope. I keep thinking that as a nearly-30 year old person (whaaat? ugh!) I should probably discover some sort of concealer or foundation or something to cover up wrinkles. But at this point in my life, I really wouldn't know where to start.

6. I put sugar on my scrambled eggs. Always have. Don't knock it til you try it.

7. Adam and I were supposed to go to Israel on our honeymoon, 7 years ago, but things became too violent there and our trip was canceled. Instead we went to a great condo up north for about 5 or 6 days, and never really got a honeymoon trip.

8. I tend to volunteer for things when there's silence. My co-workers can attest to this. You know, we're all sitting around a table, and there is a need to speak somewhere, or join a committee, or organize a get-together, or take on some project or group or client, etc. When there's silence, if it lasts long enough, sure enough, up goes my hand. I'm working on this, though, so don't use it against me.

9. I really really like to bake. And I only discovered this a few years ago. I'm not claiming to be a fantastic baker, I just really like to do it.

10. I cry easily. Not in an overly-sensitive way, "you looked at me funny" way. But in a "oh, that commercial for long distance phone plans was just SO touching!" kind of way. My brother's favorite example was the time that I got all choked up over a preview for a Fresh Prince of Bel-Air episode. Yeah, if I cried over the preview, think of how I sobbed through the episode.



Whew. 10 is a lot. That was really hard. Probably doesn't make it better that I tend to ramble on when doing things like this.

I'm not officially going to tag anyone, but if you're reading this and come up with you own list, let me know cuz I'd like to read it. (Gwen? Sarah Zuidema? Anyone?)