First Adventures

I promised some stories about our adventures this week. Here they are! This is a long blog but mainly due to the wealth of pictures included. With so many “firsts” this week, we had a lot to document!

Last Friday we lost power in our house as a result of a storm. We lost it around 11:30am and by 3:00pm it was too hot to keep the babies home. Sean came home early from work to help me load the kids in the car and we used the power outage as an excuse to head to my parents’ house with the babies for the first time. Their new cousin, Alyvia (only 3 weeks old) came with my brother, Mike, and sister-in-law, Sarah, as well. With all 5 grandkids there, it was definitely time for some photos!!

Grandpa kissing Abby

Meet Your Cousin! : Uncle Mike, Cousin Aly, Caleb, and Daddy

All of the Girls…and Uncle Mike??  Aunt Sarah, Aly (in coral), Abby (in white), Mommy, and Ellie (in pink)

A Bunch of Babies!—Clockwise from lower left: Ellie, Caleb, Eli, Aly, and Abby

All of the Grandbabies and their parents- Clockwise: Aly (in coral), Aunt Sarah, Abby, Mommy, Ellie, Daddy, Caleb, Eli, and Uncle Mike

One with the Quadruncles! Uncle Chris (in yellow) and Uncle Josh (in orange) with their nieces and nephews

Grandmacita with her Granddaughters: Abby, Cita, Aly, and Ellie

Grandmacita and Grandpa with Abby (check out the look on her face!), Aly, Ellie, Eli, and Caleb 

After dinner, we loaded the kids back up and headed home….to our still dark, un-air-conditioned house. Surely, we thought, they will get the power back on soon. We started our 9pm feeding and about half way through, everything came back up. We were having flashbacks to the last outage that ended up being a weekend away from home, and although it worked out, it really wasn’t something that we wanted to repeat. We were more than relieved to suddenly be able to see each again.

The only problem was that the house didn’t seem to be getting any cooler.

We could hear the air conditioner trying to kick on, but nothing cold was coming out. And, every time it tried to start up, the lights flickered. We got the kids in bed, turned on all of the ceiling fans and made a mental note to call the HVAC guy the next day. Then we lost power again in our bedroom, both bathrooms, and to the refrigerator. We only lasted until about 1am on Saturday morning, and then had to move the babies to my parents’ house because the lack of air conditioning, combined with no electricity to run the fans, and no refrigerator to keep bottles cold wasn’t working for us.

And that’s where we were for an entire week. It took a little longer to get things back in order than what we had hoped.

So happily, we are back home as of last night! Even though we had a lot of fun hanging out with my family for a week and watching the babies  experience their First Extended Family Dinner (on my side),  First Family Campout , and First Slumber Party at the Grandparents, it is wonderful to be home. But now that we are home, the babies look HUGE in their cribs!

Here are a few more pictures of our adventures at my parents’ house: 

Double Trouble! What Happens at Grandma’s…Eli and Caleb

Uncle Josh holding Abby right after her bath (she was pretty mad at mommy and much happier once Uncle Josh got her) 

Ellie and her Thumb

We were also excited to get to take the babies to visit Sean’s parents as well! Last Saturday (the day after we lost power), we loaded everybody up and took them out to Ma and Pa’s house to watch the Cardinals game. It was our second visit over there, and the kids had a great time! 

Just Arrived: Caleb, Abby, Ellie, and Eli

Abby wanted to help Daddy carry in his book

After the feeding, Ma and Abby were both tuckered out

Pa and Caleb cuddling after a feeding

Nap time! Clockwise from lower left: Eli, Caleb, Abby, and Ellie

When the game was over, we decided to have another new adventure…Sean’s parents took all of us out to dinner! Since the kids hadn’t taken much of an afternoon nap, we gambled and hoped that they would sleep through the outing. We were glad to know that in addition to Sean’s parents, Sean’s sister, Ruby, her husband Todd, and daughter Marissa, and Todd’s parents, Ann and Tom were going to be there as well. If all else failed, we had enough arms to go around. Ruby called ahead to the restaurant to let them know that six month old quads wanted to go out to dinner with their grandparents. They very kindly reserved the back part of the restaurant for us so that we could have space for all of the car seats.

Up until this point, we have been very careful not to take our kids out in public unless we are going to a doctors appointment. But, one of the quad moms that I’m friends with mentioned a few weeks ago, that going out to a restaurant with them is a relatively safe outing. Since no one actually knows us, most people will just observe from afar, and if they try to get close, we can ask them to step back and not touch without worrying about a friend’s feelings. Armed with that info, we finally decided to give it a try.

It was an AWESOME first dinner out! Both girls slept all of the way through it, Caleb was awake but quite content to observe the room from his car seat, and Elijah waited until the end to start getting cranky.

Not to mention, the place that Sean’s parents took us to was a fantastic Italian cafe that we had been wanting to try but hadn’t made it to yet (wonder why? Lol!) Jovito’s is family owned and everything tastes 100% homemade. In fact, for one of my babies’ showers, Ruby bought all of the handmade desserts from Jovito’s. I’ve tried several different types of Italian cookies along with their amazing cupcakes and all of them are amazing! My very favorite cookies in Kansas City are their lovely little Italian treats that have two pieces of a toffee type cookie sandwiched around a thin layer of chocolate. The perfect ratio of cookie to chocolate…and a total addiction! Ruby knew how much I loved those cookies at the shower, so the weekend after I ended up in the hospital waiting for babies to arrive, she showed up with two dozen cookies for me to enjoy. It was painful to pace myself; I could have scarfed them all down right then!

Unfortunately, the night we went, they were out of my favorite cookies (apparently I’m not the only person in KC to love them!) but we did try some other wonderful things. I had the Italian salad with house made ranch and Sean had the pasta trio. Served with fresh bread, and topped off with a warm brownie a la mode…yummy!

So, obviously, we thoroughly enjoyed the food aspect of our night out. The quad part of our night out was quite entertaining as well. When we were unloading all of the babies from the van, a guy who pulled up next to us in the parking lot, watched us carry them inside and finally asked, “are there anymore?” Haha! I told him that we just had four. 🙂 Once we got inside, people just stared at us. You could tell they were trying to figure out if all four belong to us or if maybe one or two belonged to Ruby and Todd. A few people finally walked over to ask us if they all went together.  We made quite the scene!

Jovito’s Italian Cafe

Checking out the babies (you can see the cork board behind everyone). Most of these people are related to the babies with one or two strangers included.

Eli and Ellie who is happily asleep!

I love this one! Caleb checking out Uncle Todd’s dad, Tom.

Abby dreaming about sweet things and Caleb (who was still keeping an eye on Tom)

First Restaurant Outing for the Quads–A Success!!!

 

The owner of Jovito’s actually called her husband to come to the restaurant and meet the quads. He came with his camera and we are now proudly displayed on the cork board by the cash register, right in the middle of it! If you happened to find yourself in Jovito’s (which is highly recommended), look for us on the board! We aren’t too hard to spot!

It isn’t too often that a restaurant welcomes infant multiples with such open arms. They were so accommodating and invited us to come back again soon. We were a bit apprehensive about taking them to a place of business like that, but we couldn’t have had a better first dinner out!

-Posted by Rebecca

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Six Months Old!

That’s how old our kids are now! On Tuesday, we were excited to realize that milestone. The babies have come so far. Earlier, I was remembering horrible morning sickness, hospitalized bed rest, 86 days in the NICU, weeks of trying to adjust to our suddenly large family, and *boom!* now they are six months old! What a happy day to make it this far!

Updates on the babies:

Over the last couple of weeks, we have brought Missouri First Steps into our home to work with the babies on their development. As preemies, they will have a unique set of challenges catching up with other kids their same age. We also had their first developmental check-up through the hospital. Generally, the kids are doing fine, but certain things will be targeted over the next six months.

Caleb will start seeing an occupational therapist once a month. He will be working on rolling, grasping toys, and sitting up with the assistance of something like a bumbo. He has been taken off of thickener because he is swallowing so much better. He is doing an awesome job scooting around on his back though! The other morning, I found him across the room from where I laid him with his arm curled around a bag of dirty diapers. Lol!

Abby will also see an occupational therapist once a month. She is already rolling from tummy to back and back to tummy, so her goals include playing with toys, sitting by herself, and *maybe* a little crawling. She was taken off of oxygen about six weeks ago, but couldn’t keep her sats up, so they put her back on it at night. We took her back for an oxygen sat check on Friday, and she was too low again, so they increase her oxygen time to include naps as well. She is now on it from 10pm-10am and then again from about 2pm-5pm. Bummer. We are really hoping that she will gain some weight and grow her lungs just a bit more so that we can lose her oxygen tanks and monitor. Other than her oxygen, Abby is really doing quite well developmentally. She rolls around, plays very well by herself, coos and smiles, and pushes up on her arms to look around.

Elijah will see an occupational therapist twice a month and a physical therapist once a month. He isn’t quite as far along as his two older siblings. He just started rolling from tummy to back this week and finally was able to push himself up enough while on his tummy to get his head off of the ground. We are proud of him for working so hard to accomplish it! He is our last baby to start doing those and definitely had a round of applause the first time he did both! Occupational therapy will work with him on gaining strength to roll and scoot. They will also work on having him sit with assistance. Physical therapy will concentrate on his neck. He favors holding his head to the right even though he can turn it to the left. We would like to see him look both ways equally and be willing to lie on the left side of his face. Happily, he came off of thickener as well. He is having to learn how to eat thin formula that isn’t the consistency of wall spackle anymore.

Ellie will see an occupational therapist every week and a physical therapist once a month. Occupational therapy will concentrate on helping Ellie to self-sooth and keep from getting over-stimulated (as you can imagine, there is quite a bit of stimulation at our house!). She will work on bringing her hands to mid-line, and grasping toys. In terms of where she is developmentally, she is coming in at the 1-2 month range instead of 3 months which is her adjusted age and the age that they use to assess her. Physical therapy will work with her legs. Ellie has some stiffness in her legs, especially in her hamstrings. She curls her feet in and doesn’t like to straighten them out. Our biggest concern with Ellie is the possibility of cerebral palsy, and we know that early intervention is the best thing that we can do if she does have it. We were told that the stiffness in her legs can be a sign of CP but that her arms seem to be doing well. However, we were also told that it is too early to know conclusively whether or not she has CP. Because of her risks, she will be monitored weekly in our home by First Steps, and then monthly or bi-monthly by the hospital. Most likely, we will have some answers when she gets to be between 9-12 months old. At the same time, she can push up on her arms and hold her head up like a champ! She’s definitely a fighter!

We have had quite a few first adventures in the last week, so the goal is to get another blog post up in a few days with LOTS of pictures and fun stories. Hopefully, I can make that happen!

–Posted by Rebecca

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Babies Have Really Short Arms

Really. Have you ever noticed how truly short babies’ arms are?? It’s kind of fascinating! And cute! 🙂

It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve had a chance to update the blog. We seem to have found a routine which works well for us, but which also causes the days to fly by before we even realize that they have begun. As I type this, I have Caleb and Elijah asleep in their bouncers, Abby is on the floor playing with her gym, and Ellie is sitting on my lap because she absolutely refuses to be quiet anywhere else and her daddy is trying to take a quick nap. I’m seizing my opportunity to blog a bit. 

A few quick SIGNIFICANT updates!!

1)      The babies are now on a 4 hour eating schedule. It’s awesome to have a little extra time in between feedings to get things done. The babies made the transition seamlessly. I feel a little saner since I can actually get to the grocery store and back without wondering if I will make it in time for the next feeding.

2)      The babies are also sleeping through the night! Sean and I are beyond happy about that! We feed them from 9pm-10pm and then again from 6am-7am. They normally wake up in the middle of the night, but a quick flip onto their stomach puts them right back to sleep. 30 seconds to flip babies is so much easier on me than 2 feedings in the middle of the night that last an hour or longer. While we still definitely need our day helpers, we’ve managed to let our overnight help go, and Sean and I are handling the evenings and nights ourselves. It was a big move for us, but we are enjoying having some privacy back. At the same time though, we miss our good friends who were willing to sleep on the couch and feed babies at 2am just to help us survive the first 2 ½ months. Thanks to those of you who sacrificed your sleep right along with us!

After about three nights of them sleeping through the night, Sean looked at me and said, “Do you feel more rested now that they’ve slept through the night a couple of nights in a row or are you still exhausted?” I said, “Well, I’m still exhausted, but not quite as much, I guess. Why?” Then my smart-aleck husband answered, “Because you aren’t doing or saying as many stupid things as you were a couple of days ago.” Encouragement in its finest form! 

3)      Ellie found her thumb! I’ve had some people tell me that I will regret her thumb sucking in the future when I have to break her of the habit. Not a chance! She is so much happier now that she is a thumb sucker. After all, no one goes to college sucking their thumbs. J

The kids had another NICU Follow-Up appointment last Friday. Everybody is progressing nicely for the most part. Abby is the only baby who is still struggling a bit. She had been taken off of oxygen, but her oxygen saturation was too low on Friday and the doctor placed her back on oxygen at night. Not exactly what we were hoping for, but we definitely want her brain and organs to develop well. She will go back in three weeks to see if she has gotten her sats up. On the other hand, Ellie was completely discharged from the NICU follow-up! She never has to go back! And the boys will be reassessed for their swallowing difficulties at the babies’ Developmental Checkup in August to see if they can be taken off of their formula thickener. If they come off of it, they will be discharged as well! 

We had our first little bout of sickness here at the house last week. Thankfully, I was the sickest with a sinus and ear infection. Ellie and Abby both had runny noses and chest congestion, and Eli had a runny nose, but it was nothing more serious than that. Caleb managed to make it through the week without any issues. We had a few brave friends who still came to help with the babies in spite of the germs over here. I am so grateful to them for showing up! I wasn’t feeling well, and desperately needed the help.

Between overnight helpers, day helpers, dinner helpers, laundry helpers, and helpers who show up even when there is sickness, we are one blessed family! I tell you what, having quadruplets is an excellent way to find out who your really good friends are! 

Evening Bottle Prep

We got into the habit of getting all of the bottles needed during the night and first thing in the morning ready before bed. Even though the babies are sleeping through the night now, it’s still a good system. Grab four, pop them in the crockpot to warm, change diapers, and they are ready to go!

 

 

Trip to the NICU Follow-Up Appointment

  

 

Ellie: “Daddy, I don’t want to talk to the doctor today. I want to hold your hand instead.”

 

First Walk

We have two double strollers. I picked a “cool” evening to go, but apparently 92 degrees is still pretty hot and humid.

 

 

 

First Night in Their Room

Now we take them upstairs and let them co-bed up there during the night. In 3-4 weeks, we will move the two cribs in our living room up there and let them each have their own crib. Why are we waiting? Because it’s really convenient during the day to have cribs in the living room.

  

Who me??

 

Girl Time: Mommy, Abby, and Ellie

  

Five Month Pictures: Abby, Ellie, Caleb, and Elijah

We tried so hard to get Abby to wake up for this photo. Sean even picked her up and blew raspberries on her tummy, but she was just completely out. This was our best photo.

 –posted by Becca

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