Growing up fast

Hey guys, Mom here. Just wanted to let you all know how the boys are doing. Well they are growing up so fast. Today they have been crawling forward more and more. Also Logan has been trying to lift himself up already. He tried to do that a couple of times on the couch. He also fell over but luckily he didn't. Anyways, the boys experienced their first Halloween. They were Thing One and Thing Two for Halloween. They looked so cute in their costumes. Unfortunately they kept pulling the feathers out so we just used blue beanies the rest of the night. LOL. Anyways, other updates, the boys are starting to eat table food. They tried bread and some fruit and vegetables. Of course, they had cookies, thanks to Joey's mom. LOL. :) Hopefully by this Thanksgiving they will be eating more table foods so that they can have their first Thanksgiving dinner. LOL Anyways, that's pretty much it for the updates. Hopefully, we will have more in the near future. Until then, here are some pictures from their First Halloween.

With Love,
Mom, Joey, Logan and Tristan

Small Update

So it's been a few months since the last post. We're happy to report that the boys are doing great, and they're dang near crawling at this point! I wish I had some pictures on this computer to upload, but I don't, so I'll look to getting them posted sometime soon. We hope everyone's doing well, and if we haven't talked recently, drop us a line!

Much Love,

Joey, Randi, Logan, and Tristan

4 months old!!!!

Hey everyone, Mom here. I just wanted to give you all an update on the boys. It has been three months now since we have been home from Loma Linda and the boys are growing so fast. Logan and Tristan are holding their heads more steady each day and now Tristan started teething. YAY!!! LOL I can't believe how fast time has gone. It feels like only yesterday that we found out that we were even having a baby. Anyways, Logan is now 12 lbs and 4 oz and Tristan is 10 lbs and 12 oz. They have doubled their weight since we got home. Crazy!!!! They are beginning to roll onto their backs when they are placed on their bellies and Logan has even tried rolling back onto his belly. They respond to our voices and they smile all the time. They are even smiling at their reflections in the mirror. I have also gone back to work full time and Joey stays home with the boys. LOL!!! We are still facing some rough patches in our life right now but I know that in the end, it will all work out!!! In the mean time, love each other and embrace all aspects of life.

Mom!!

Please Pray for the Freeman Family

It's been a while since our last post, but we will have a new post with pictures soon. I just wanted to take a minute to ask all of you to pray for the Freeman family. Our blog features a link to the Freeman blog,"Pray for Kayleigh," which outlines the 11 month struggle they had with the health of their baby, Kayleigh, who passed away Monday night. It is absolutely heartbreaking to think about the pain they must be experiencing right now. Kayleigh was born 3 months early and weighed only 1 lb. 1 oz. For about 10 months, she persevered, even surviving open heart surgery, but a recent operation apparently resulted in a tragic downturn an in an instant, their battle was lost. My heart goes out to the Freemans, and I hope yours will too.

We love you.

Take care of each other.

New Pictures

Hey mom here, sorry that we haven't posted anything new.. the boys have been keeping us busy especially now that i have returned to work last week. anyways, here are some new pictures of the boys.. taken from easter and some that i have done on photostudio.. i dont know when joey will post a new update but hopefully soon.

4 weeks old; one week home

Well we've been home for a week now, and it's been a busy one! Aside from trying to get the home in order again, we've had a couple of appointments, and have just been trying to adjust. The nights are getting easier, though - I'm not sure if they're sleeping better or if we're just getting used to it. A little of both, I expect.

At any rate, it's getting better, they're getting bigger, and it's just awesome to be here with our babies! Here are a few pictures we've taken since coming home.

We love you.

Take good care of each other.

Go Ahead and Laugh

So yeah, it's 3:26 a.m. and I'm still awake. Go ahead and laugh, all of you who've been telling me to give up sleep; you're being proven right, even as we speak.

I don't begrudge you being right, though. I mean that. I'm just happy to be HOME.

The awesomeness that has resulted in my lack of sleep is simply that the boys are finally home! :) We got in somewhere around 9 p.m. on Thursday, so they're still settling in, but the important part is that we're here.

Logan's a little fussy tonight, and doesn't seem to want to sleep in the crib, although he's apparently liking the bassinet. Tristan, by comparison, is conked out in the crib. For my part, I'm going to wait till Mom gets up to pump and feed Tristan and I'm going to try to catch a little nap.

Other than that, pics to come sometime soon! (I'd say tomorrow for sure, but you never know.)

Love you all..Take care of each other.

I love it when a plan comes together

So, after the seamless execution of a brilliant plan involving the use of elaborate decoy versions of themselves and tunnels dug over the course of the past three weeks with nothing but sporks, Thing 1 has escaped Loma Linda Medical University, and a very reliable source informs me that Thing 2's escape is imminent. That's right. My kids are ninjas.

Basically, Logan has been discharged as of this afternoon, and Tristan's on course to be discharged tomorrow, which could have us home in the evening. This is pretty amazing, as the twins' due date was originally April 5 - two weeks from next Sunday! Logan and Tristan have truly exceeded everybody's expectations and are doing beautifully.

In other news, Logan exacted a measure of revenge for yesterday's circumcision when, earlier today, he gleefully pee'd on the doctor who performed the procedure.

Mom is over seeing Tristan now, since we have to go one at a time. It's worth it though, to have our little buddy with us! Anyway, God willing, we will be back home tomorrow night, sleeping in our own beds.

That's all I've got for now.

We'll see you when we see you.

Take good care of each other.

could be a dream come true

hey everyone, mom here. I just wanted to let you all know that there is a possibility that the boys will be released this week. The nurses told us that they are doing Logan's circumcision tomorrow and that he would be released on Wednesday and then they are going to do Tristan's circumcision on Wednesday and he would be released on Thursday. Finally we will be able to go home BUT we are not going to celebrate just yet because things could change by then. anyways, the boys will also be meeting their grammy and grandpa chuck tomorrow. Joey's mom and stepdad will be with us this week. this could be an exciting week for all us. but until then, its still a wait and see!! i will or joey will let you all know if anything changes. and thank you for all your love and support through all of this.

Love,
Randi

Big Pic Post

^^Mom and Tristan^^


^^Tristan's tiny hands^^


^^Logan's checking it out^^


^^Mom and Logan^^


^^Big Yawn!!^^


^^Logan's Sleepy^^


^^Logan with his Binky^^


^^Tristan chewing on his cute Lil' fingers Pinkies up! (That mean's you're Classy)^^


^^Sleepy Little Boy^^


^^You can't see me!!^



^^Logan^^

So we went and saw the boys tonight and both are still doing spifftacular. Logan's 6 pounds 8 ounces and Tristan's 5 pounds 13.5 ounces. pretty darn impressive if you ask me. Anyway, I think I lied about the pics today...or at least not right this minute. I'm too tired. Pics to come later today. Love you guys.

Take good care of each other

Feeder-growers

Our boys are feeder-growers. Or, they will be soon. Sounds like hunter-gatherers. Do you remember that from school? I do.

Anyway.

Logan's weighing 6 pounds 5 ounces today. That's a mad jump of 5 ounces from yesterday. Holy crap, right? Tristan's doing well too, weighing 5 pounds 10.5 ounces.

Both are nippling well, and have been promoted to nippling ad lib, rather than twice a shift. What that means is they can feed them whenever the babies seem hungry and try to nipple them. Pretty darn cool. I mean, we can eat any time we want here, but we have to sit in the dining room with the uber-loud refrigerators and nobody offers US a nipple! I think the boys have a better deal.

In other news, the doctor tonight told us that they will possibly nip the tips this weekend, which is promising because they generally like to leave the post-circumcision wiener care to parents, and as such tend to do the circumcisions close to discharge. Since nobody actually said they'll be discharged this weekend, this could be wishful thinking, but we can hope, right?

In anticipation of potentially being discharged, we're trying to get everything prepped on our end, like the car seats and discharge class today and watching the videos tomorrow. On a side note, during that discharge class, they basically told us to put our kids in plastic bubbles and beware the ninjas. hmm....that may be good advice. I wonder if I can get adult-sized bubbles....

But I digress. The bottom line is that things are going well, and we have high hopes of bringing Thing 1 and Chocolate Thunda home soon.

So, new pics to come tomorrow, and hopefully their incredible progress continues. Much love to you all.

Take good care of each other.

Another Evening with the boys

We just got back from hanging out with our boys for a couple of hours. They're still going strong. They're on "basic care" status, which means they just hang out and eat, and only occasionally get tested for this or that. This is a comforting thought, but we really want to bring them home.

Oh, also, their belly buttons are normal, so that's one less thing to worry about when diapering and bathing them. woohoo! lol I know, it's such a minor thing, but it's pretty darn cool when you think about it.

Anyway, we're trying to get to bed a little early, cuz our day starts a lot early tomorrow.

Goodnight all. Take good care of each other.

updates

Hey sorry I haven't posted in a couple of days. Randi and I are both really tired, and sometimes it's hard to get anything done. But here we are, nonetheless, learning and growing, just like our boys. As you can see, I got the slideshow working, so now i just need to get a buttload of pics onto flickr so you can have some variety. You may have noticed that there is a link to another blog to the right of ours. That blog belongs to the Freeman family. Their daughter, Kayleigh, was born way early and weighed only a pound! She's truly a miracle baby, as she has proven time and again that she wants to live and continue to bless her family. I encourage all of you to give some of your time to the Freemans, as they definitely need all of our prayers and support. Now, on to the stars of our blog, Da Boys.

I think it's safe to say that Thing 1 and Thing 2 are both doing very well. As of tonight, they're both continuing to improve in the arena of nippling, and gaining weight. Logan weighed in at 5 pounds 14 ounces - just two ounces shy of 6 pounds! Not to be outdone, Tristan weighed in at 5 pounds 7 ounces, up 3.4 ounces from yesterday.

It's crazy how quickly their faces are developing character and becoming more distinctive. I can't wait to see their individual personalities take shape and develop.

In anticipation of their discharge, which could still be a couple of weeks away, Randi and I have signed up for the "Caring for your baby at home" discharge class, and are getting our carseats safety checked this week. There are also a couple of videos that we are expected to watch, so we'll have to arrange that, but otherwise, it's a whole lot of hurry up and wait, so keep watching for more updates, and take good care of each other.

slideshow

I'm having trouble with the slideshow gadget. I'll have a slideshow up as soon as I can figure out the dang utility. I need a nap.

9 Days Old

^^Tristan^^


^^Logan^^


^^Mom with Tristan^^


^^Dad holding Logan^^

The boys continue to do well, giving us high hopes for discharge prior to the official due date of April 5.

Logan weighs 5 lbs. 8 oz. and Tristan is 5 lbs. 2 oz. This is great news for us, because their weight gain is trending upward, rather than the 3 steps forward 2 steps back that we have been seeing with the feedings. Basically, they get more and more tired as the day progresses, until they're just too sleepy to nipple the whole feeding. When they reach the point where they're not trying anymore, it's time for the feeding tube, but that doesn't seem to bother the boys much at all.

Last night I got to bathe Logan, which was pretty darn cool, and tonight it was Mom's turn. He was not amused, but once he got warm again, I think he forgave us.

Tomorrow we're going to try to talk to the day team about scheduling circumcision, which apparently is not such a cut and dry issue anymore (pardon the pun). I guess they don't just do it anymore. Things are all insurancey now. Not to marginalize the importance of payment for services rendered, but I just can't agree with the idea that circumcision is primarily cosmetic in nature. Any procedure that reduces smegma should be mandatory! (click here for definition)

But anyway, things just keep getting better, and hopefully we'll be home before too long. We love you all and take good care of each other.

Just say no to smegma!

Just some pictures/videos

Will have an update later on tonight but here are some pictures and videos from yesterday (3-4-09) and today. They are growing and getting stronger everyday!!! (first two videos dated: 3-5-09)

Keep on Keepin' on

Here we are with Thing 1 and Thing 2.

Well, the boys continue to do well. They're feeders and growers, so that's what they spend their days doing, aside from being poked, prodded, moved, bathed, and changed. Both are eating pretty well, but need to get better at nippling. Hopefully today I'll find out what milestones they need to hit in order to go home.

We got big boy beds!

Hey all – Last night's update is a short one.

The boys have graduated from their baby cookers to real live beds! Okay, so maybe not like they’ll have at home, but they’re in these neat little mini-cribs and doing great.

Logan’s off of the wallaby(neon billi blanket), and even though his billirubin levels are higher than they like, they’re trending down, which is super sweet.

Also, Logan’s eating more than Tristan at each feeding, but is not as good at the nippling. He seems to trail off and forget what he’s supposed to be doing at the moment, until we nudge his chin or turn the bottle a little in his mouth. After about 25 minutes of that back and forth, the nurse will usually give him the rest through the feeding tube. But hey, at least he’s getting his food!

Tristan, however, will usually nipple most of his daytime feedings, but at night, after getting bathed, and weighed, and changed, the poor boy’s beat and won’t feel like doing the work. I don’t blame him! It’s tough being a baby!

On an almost entirely unrelated note, I received word today that one of my college professors lost an unwinnable battle with cancer last Tuesday, the day our twins were born. It’s kind of saddening to think that a day which was so exciting and happy for our family had to be devastating to his. I hope that any of you who are so inclined will take the time to pray for the family of Prof. Myles Ellis, as I know they’ll be needing all of the help they can get. I’m certain that he was relieved to be done with such a painful struggle, but his gain is most definitely our loss.

Well, that’s it for this post. Hopefully we’ll get more info soon, and with a little luck, and a lot of hard work on the part of the Loma Linda Medical Center staff, Thing 1 and Thing 2 (Logan and Tristan) will be home before too long.

Take good care of each other.

Quick update: I just got back from seeing the boys for a bit tonight and the official weight on them is............drumroll please..................Logan weighs 5 pounds 2 ounces and Tristan weighs 4 pounds 11 ounces.

Lets see..what's going on...Tristan's up to 30 ml per feeding, and still has the TPN drip (Total Parenteral Nutrition - an I.V. drip to give him all the vitamins and nutrients he needs. Last night, Logan had to take a break from eating cuz his stomach was acting up, and was back on the TPN, but tonight he's back to normal. That's a good thing, since he really seems to like eating, and was angry about not being allowed.

Well, tomorrow I'll be going back to R/C for a few hours, and there's not much to report at the moment, so I'm going to bed. I'll get to see them when I get back, and hopefully we'll have more updates then.

Where do we start?

Well, the twins were born on Tuesday, February 24, 2009. Born first, at 5:46 AM, was Logan Carter Blanton, weighing in at approximately 5 lbs. 6 oz. and 16.75 inches long. Then, at 5:47 AM, came Tristan Skylar Blanton, weighing in at approximately 5 lbs. and 18 inches long. Miranda went into labor at 34 weeks 2 days, so we took a trip to Loma Linda University Medical Center. That's where we are now, visiting our little men every day and giving them all the love and affection we can. The deal is simple. We give them lots of love and wait patiently, while they grow healthy and figure out all those crazy things babies do without being taught, like eating and breathing and pooping and all sorts of other things that don't need to be listed.

For their part, the boys are doing very well so far. When we first saw them, they were on CPAP to keep their airways open, were being fed through an I.V., and had all sorts of tubes coming out of all sorts of places. It was scary, to say the least. Now, 5 days later, they're breathing on their own, and actually eating, and though they're not able to nipple the whole meal 100% of the time, they're doing better every day.