9 Month Update

Well it has been a while…AGAIN. I can’t seem to find time to blog, and when I do have a free moment something happens. Since my last post we went in for our 9 month check up. Their weights were…

Aiden – 19 lbs 6 oz

Maxwell – 19 lbs 4 oz

Alexis – 17 lbs 3 oz

Carolyn – 15 lbs 9 oz

The doctor said we can take everyone off Neosure, but since the High Risk Clinic at MUSC has always controlled their diet we are not going to discontinue Neosure until we go in to their HRC appointment in July. Everyone is looking great, and gaining well. We aren’t supposed to go back until 12 months. A YEAR!!! Can you believe in 2.5 months they will be 1? I cannot it doesn’t seem like it has been a year already. An update on everyone…

Aiden is still improving on his sitting! He has even started turning himself while on his belly. He is taking Zyrtec for allergies, and pulmicort for his asthma. He is still coughing, but that is because he has asthma apparently. That is what Dr. Coons thinks at least. Not a lot we can do to stop the coughing. Every time we take him in for it we are told the same thing. He is gaining weight really well, and looks great so he isn’t concerned. He continues to be in a good mood even when he has coughing fits. He likes to spit a lot now. It is a little much when we feed him because you never know when he is going to spit a mouthful of food all over you. This evening it was all over my face. Nice. Not only has he learned to pffffttt all over us during meal time he also cut two top teeth. So Aiden has 4 teeth now!

Maxwell has started moving around the room in his own way. He rolls to get where he wants to be. Rolls from front to back and from back to front until he is across the room playing with whatever he can find. A lot of the time if he finds a toy that he can rub on his gums he will hold onto it until Alexis steals it from him. He still likes to hog all of the toys though…the more toys he has around him the better. He also likes to reach for whatever camera, phone or food is around him. If you have a plate of food Maxwell is always wanting to taste what you have. It doesn’t matter what it is he will taste it. So far we really haven’t found anything he doesn’t like. He especially likes Arby's sauce! He has stopped crying when you put him in the crib unless Carolyn starts really screaming then he will give a few sympathy cries, but then falls asleep. He is the happiest of the babies, but will start screaming ASAP if something happens he doesn’t like. Like Alexis stealing his toy.

Alexis, Alexis, Alexis (shaking head). What can one say about Alexis? She is crawling every where, and is in to everything. No matter if it is allowed or not. She steals toys, grabs wires, pounds on laptops, and is fast when she does it. She will pause when you call her name to tell her not to touch something, but that is all she does. Pause. Then it’s back on track. She likes to grab something and talk to it. She also likes to become so focused on whatever she wants that she takes a lot of falls. She most of the time will just sit up or get back up and keep going. She is banned from some things around the house because she likes to try and get out of stuff. She is the main reason we no longer do two babies at a time during baths. She likes to flip over and put her face under the water. Not cool. She is no longer allowed to sit in the toddler chairs because I had her strapped in, but when I went in the kitchen I heard her crying and I came back to only a foot wrapped in the harness and her on the floor. CRAZY! She twisted and turned until she had enough room to slide out. She loves to clap, and giggles a lot! She and Max gravitate more towards each other. While Carolyn and Aiden seem to enjoy playing together more.

Carolyn. The screaming terror. She is on prevacid on a trial basis to see if she is screaming at night because of reflux. She LOVES books. She will sit and look at the same book for hours at a time. Today she played with a book while everyone napped. Three hours after everyone else laid down she finally fell asleep holding the book. She doesn’t really nap unless she is in the swing. She will sleep for about 20-30 minutes before waking up crying. She played today in the crib while everyone else slept, but she did have a book in the crib with her. She is still scooting backward instead of forward, but she does well going forward with help with the physical therapist. She is chewing on her fingers more, and I have seen her more than a few times with her thumb in her mouth. So not sure if she will suck her thumb, or if she is just chewing on her thumb because she is teething. She gets very excited when we go pick her up, and her laugh when she gets really excited is still crazy.

Counting To Ten and Back To Zero

Aiden, Alexis, Maxwell & Carolyn 8.5 months

With every new stage the babies have gone through there is what I consider a learning curve. They test the waters and learn what works and what doesn't, and we learn what works and what doesn't.

Alexis is now crawling. It is a low crawl, but still she gets from point A to point B by any means necessary. Take for example the day Maxwell was playing with Mr. Crinkles. Alexis saw the toy, wanted it, and pulled herself up using Maxwell's clothes and took the toy from him. She rolls from front to back, and back to front. She pushes up on her tiptoes with her face buried in the floor trying to figure out how to crawl. She knows she can move, but she isn't really sure how to get there yet. She rolls over during feedings, diaper changes, and baths. While she learns how to get away we're learning how to keep her safe. Tonight she crawled over to one of the toddler seats they sit in to watch Baby Signing Times and tried to pull herself up. We.Are.Terrified.





Maxwell is continuing his nightly screams, and even has started screaming during the day. We're trying to figure out how to not encourage the screaming, but give him the comfort he needs. The hardest is when he cries because I leave, and it happens more and more when I drop them off for daycare. Sometimes he is just frustrated, and wants to be sitting up instead of on his tummy, but sometimes he is just frustrated because he doesn't want to be put down. Part of it is his not feeling good due to teething. We are learning to count to ten and then back down to zero when he starts screaming because it is really loud! He has started trying to get his knees up under him. I'm not sure if he is just trying to crawl or if he is learning it from Alexis. Hopefully a little bit of both. :)





Aiden has started coughing AGAIN! I'm going to take him into the doctor's and ask to see a specialist to maybe find out if anything else is going on. I don't honestly know what could be the problem. He has asthma, but when I looked I learned it really won't cause a reoccurring cough. It's hard to see him coughing and not have anyway to help him. He gets a breathing treatment before daycare and one before night. If he is having retractions then we give him a different kind of breathing treatment, but he hasn't been retracting since starting the two treatments a day. That means the two treatments a day are working! YAY! More good news is that Aiden sat unassisted for the physical therapist for 50 seconds!





Carolyn is still crying herself to sleep. We go in to check on her to make sure she doesn't need anything, but if she is just crying because she doesn't want to be in her crib we let her cry it out. Sunday it was almost an hour, Monday it was 30 minutes, and then it was 20 minutes last night. It is a long painful process especially since it is lasting longer than when she kicked the pacifier habit. She is scooting backwards, but we're hoping soon she'll realize she can go forward. She is still the smallest and still has the most attitude. :D

Waking Up Tired

Aiden has been hit the hardest since going back to daycare. He seems to get sick first, and always gets hit with the same violent cough. So after many visits to the doctor's office without any answers as far as what is causing his cough we went back Thursday. The doctor thinks he has asthma, but we will return to him in a month to do a follow up. If the medicine in his breathing treatments doesn't help him then we'll go from there. He has had so many nights where he wakes up coughing so bad we let him sleep in the swing where it is more upright and he can breathe better. We're hoping we can get our sweet little guy feeling better soon!

What is new with Aiden:
--starting to push up more on his hands than just his arms during tummy time
--babbles with a lot of dadadadadas
--is grabbing for more toys rather than just watching everyone
--trying to cut some teeth so he chews on his fingers A LOT!
--often watches the others and laughs at what they're doing

During physical therapy we're working on:
--Putting two hands on items in front of him at the same time
--Bicycle motion with his legs to break up the tightness
--Alternating arm raises also to help break up the tightness
--Leg stretches
--Turning his body
--Rolling

Aiden

Maxwell is starting to really show his temper more and more. He tends to scream when what he wants isn't done right when he wants it. He also screams if you try to do physical therapy with him when he doesn't feel he needs it. He is still his smiling giggling self most of the time, but sometimes he just gets mad!
What is new with Maxwell:
--Sits for about a minute without assistance
--Rolls
--Babbles saying a lot of dadadad and a few mamamas
--Reaches for the pups when they come near and laughs when one licks him
--jumps in the exersaucer even though it isn't meant for jumping
--loves making noises with his mouth
--slaps the top of the highchair for his next bite

What we're working on with Max:
--Grabbing for toys on the side instead of rolling over to get them
--Reaching to the side for toys while sitting
--Balance

Maxwell

Alexis is a firecracker. She never EVER sits still. She is also our most giggling baby. She enjoys being held and will grab both sides of your face and give you a huge smile. She is the only one so far that has tried to give us kisses. They are open mouthed slobbery kisses that gross you out and make you laugh at the same time.
What is new with Alexis:
--she has her first tooth!
--reaches to be picked up
--scoots around during tummy time
--takes toys away from everyone else
--is sitting a lot better unassisted
--loves the jumperoo and will jump as high as she can get it
--eating solids much better
--babbles dadadadada a lot

What we're working on with Alexis:
--sitting
--standing
--balance
--putting two hands on toys in front of her

Alexis

Carolyn is starting to laugh a lot more, but it sounds more like a scream. On a daily basis I hear Andy say "Baby girl you really need to work on your vocal skills!". She is sleeping much better at night. She sometimes laughs when the others are crying. She is eating solids much better, but still hasn't gotten down how to keep her food in her mouth. I'm not sure if she spits it out on purpose, but she tries to wear half her meal. It is amazing how her mouth holds more fruit than vegetables. :-\

What is new with Carolyn:
--laughing more
--babbling with a lot of dadadadas
--sitting unassisted for over a minute at a time
--reaches to be picked up

What we're working on with Carolyn:
--Bicycle motion with legs to break up tone (tightness)
--standing
--balance
--reaching to the side
--rolling over

Carolyn

I leave you with some random moments from tummy time....

A sleepy Maxwell.

Alexis and her "Hank" the hedgehog
.

Aiden working on sitting up.

Carolyn doesn't mind tummy time anymore. If only the other three would jump on board!

Peek A Boo

Below is a video of Alexis playing Peek A Boo with me. Our silly girl loves peek a boo, and will usually play it with blankets or burp cloths while eating.

A little of this and a little of that

I try to come up with fun posts...ok not really. I think I need to post something on the blog, but sleep calls and I always answer! I am a serious fan of sleeping.

We went up to MUSC for the NNICU and Level 2 graduates reunion Saturday to see some friendly faces. It was our second non-appointment outing, and it was a success!!!


Anytime we go out we put sunglasses on because none of them like the sun in their faces. So they are extra cool in their shades. I recently had to get new sunglasses because their heads are so big they outgrew the other ones!

Speaking of big heads...we went back to MUSC for a developmental check up at the high risk clinic. Everyone is doing well, and right on track being around 5.5-6 months developmentally. Their motor skills are around 5-6, but their fine motor skills are lagging behind at 4.5 months. So we're starting occupational therapy. The weights at that appointment are...

Aiden -- 18.14lbs
Maxwell -- 17.8 lbs
Alexis -- 15.3lbs
Carolyn 14.0lbs

Instead of being in the 90th percentile for their heads they are now in the 95th percentile. Max and Aiden went down in their calories from 24 to 20 calories. Carolyn and Alexis are both on 27 calories. Alexis went up, but Carolyn stayed the same. Also while we were there we got to see some nurses that we missed seeing Saturday. It was all in all a great appointment.

We've changed their feeding a tiny bit since the last time I posted. Now they're eating baby food at the noon feeding as well as at the 4:30 feeding. We try to get them to eat all of the veggies before moving on to the fruit, but sometimes they just aren't fans of whatever veggie we have planned. None of them really care of peas so after it is gone we'll just eliminate that out of the menu. Sometimes they tolerate them if they are warm, but usually it's the ewww face and a few gags. They are staying awake a little more after the 4:30 feeding which is good because they seem to sleep better at night after not taking a nap, but sometimes they just need a little nap. More times than not though they'd rather play than nap.

Some random photos from the weekend....

Happy Easter

For Easter we went Saturday to Middleton Place here in Charleston. It was the first time we've gone out of the house for the fun of it! Most people didn't realize we had quadruplets because we heard a lot of comments about twins. Some people found out they were quads and wanted to come and look at them. We had a lot of fun going out and watching my niece, Kylie, participate in the Easter egg hunt. While the "hunt" was kind of lame the landscape was beautiful, and we plan on making another trip when the flowers are more in bloom!

Alexis & Carolyn hanging out in their stroller.

Aiden & Maxwell keeping their cool during the Easter egg hunt.

Arriving at Middleton Place

Andy & Maxwell

A rare shot of all of us

Maxwell, Carolyn, Alexis & Aiden all together in their Easter outfits! Thanks Nana!!!

Aiden in the door jumper

Alexis spending time in the door jumper

Carolyn catching a nap before lunch.

Maxwell playing in the ocean floor gym.

Cousin Kylie & the babies.
The beautiful Kylie. We love you!

It Ain't Easy Being Sick

Aiden is currently on 15 minute breathing treatments every six hours because he started his coughing episodes again. The doctor said if he is still pulling in below his ribcage after 5 days of the treatments then we need to take him back in. Monday is the 5th day, and he is still breathing the same. If it doesn't improve it's back to the doctor we go. Could it possibly improve in a day?

Everyone has been sick after a week out of daycare they were all feeling better, but now a week in daycare we're sick again. Building up their immune system is a slow painful process. All have coughs, but none as bad as Aiden.

Ever since starting daycare and getting sick Carolyn has woken up in the middle of the night screaming multiple times a night. We go in give put her pacifier back in and she goes right back to sleep. She never truly is awake though! Sometimes it's a full cry with screaming, but sometimes it is just her "complaining". Either way we wake up and get out of bed to give her the paci and back to bed we go. Rinse and repeat until 5am when we wake them all for daycare. After waking up six times in one night between 1:30 and 3:30 I was done fighting the pacifier war with her. So the next night we gave her the pacifier and she fell asleep only to awaken 2 hours later screaming. We checked on her and gave her the pacifier back, but when she started screaming again 30 minutes later we let her scream. For 20-25 minutes she cried and screamed until she eventually drifted off into sleep. She didn't wake up the rest of the night. The next night I didn't give her the pacifier at all, and she didn't wake up at all. The next night was the same, but she woke up once or twice, but was just soothed without the pacifier. She has done very well since taking the pacifier away. Now we know if she cries in the night it is for a reason other than her pacifier has fallen out of her mouth. We feel like we've won this battle, and perhaps the nighttime war with Carolyn.

Some pictures of the babies from yesterday eating

Alexis after being cleaned up

Max & Carolyn during the feeding


Aiden eating.

We've been trying to find a place for everything, and fed the babies in front of the island instead of on the side yesterday. We decided to go back to the side of the island so when they can turn and reach they aren't able to grab anything but each other. We'd rather be safe than sorry.