The Cathcarts

Monkey See, Monkey Do - Luke & Bowen are turning TWO!

2010-02-06T21:01:00.013-06:00

On this day two years ago I was pumped full of magnesium sulfate and didn't know that I would be delivering two precious little boys the next day! So glad to be in 2010 and not 2008!

Today was our family birthday party - but the boys' actual birthday is tomorrow, Feb 7th - and they don't know how special it is to fall on the very first SuperBowl for the Saints (WHO DAT!?). . . .and hopefully the first one the Saints win! . . . . And appropriate, as I went into labor on SuperBowl Sunday 2 years ago. (So will the NFL charge me for writing the words "Superbowl" and "Saints" and "Who dat"??? They need to chill . . . )

So stinkin' proud of the cake! It was banana flavored, and did not take as long to make as it looks like it may have. And the monkey is actually "holding" two helium balloons.

Uncle Shane (it's rare to get a picture of him with his face) made his fabulous famous brisket for the party.

Me & Aunt Beth.

Great Grandmamma Porter (left) and Great-Pop & Great Grammie Cathcart.

Great Grandmamma Porter, who adores her very first grandson Chris.

Papa & Nana Bowen with their four grandsons - Abel, Bowen, Brayden, Luke.

Luke was lovin' some banana punch - which was a huge hit and gone before lunch.

Daddy helps Bowen get his hat on. Bowen loves hats and thought these were pretty cool.
Even George got into the festivities!

How adorable are these shirts that my mom (Nana) made for the boys! As you can see, Bowen poured (not spilt - intentionally poured) punch down his shirt and pants. He's crazy.

Honey & Papaw Cathcart hold the boys up while we sing Happy Birthday and let them blow out their #2 candles.

The resemblance between the boys & the monkey cake is scary - I think my little boys are actually monkies! . . . And it was shortly after this photo that Luke stepped on the cake. I was asking for that by staging this photo op.

Brayden holds up Bowen's new underwear - Bowen has had one dry day at Aunt Beth's house, so we are about to hit potty training pretty hard. He would probably already be trained if I weren't so lazy! (Yes, I'm one of those moms who buys her kid underwear as a gift:)

Luke plays with his new car - he crawled all over the house with his new prize. . . .

The most decent of the family shots - it's practically impossible to get a good picture with all of us any more!

Happy Halloween. . . the many faces of Brett Favre (BF)

2009-11-02T23:14:00.005-06:00

We have a NY Jet (George-dog, BF 2008), a Minnesota Viking (Bowen, current BF), and a Green Bay Packer (Luke, 2007 & prior BF). And yes, for all the football buffs, I am aware that there was also an Atlanta Falcons BF, but Chris wouldn't wear the costume I made him :) . . . These costumes originally had helmets, but paper mache works best when created with enough advance to dry thoroughly (oops!). Okay, I'll do a better job next year. . . .

Bowen steals a leaf (a real find!) from Luke.

but then he kisses & makes up (so sweet!)

sadly, about the best picture we could get with all 3 Favres

We may be only 20 months old, but we know what chocolate is!

Neither boy was too excited to hold an orange bucket (Bowen handed it right back to me "Here you go, momma.") But they warmed up quickly when people started putting candy in them. . . .

1st hair cut - at 20+ months old

2009-11-01T15:55:00.003-06:00

Now they're little boys (sigh....)

Long-haired babies

2009-11-01T15:16:00.005-06:00

Who's never had a haircut???
Luke (above & below here)

Bowen (above and below here)

Luke below
Bowen below

Professional Family Photos

2009-08-05T21:48:00.002-05:00

We finally got our first professional family photos taken. If you are looking for a great, reasonably priced photographer in the Shreveport area, Sheree is your gal. Check out our great photos at:

http://www.shereebabersphotography.com

Click on "Enter Site"

Then click on "Clients"

the password is Cathcart

Then enjoy!

As of today, not all the photos are up yet. She is still working on our full family pics and a few of the two boys together and the two boys with me. But about 45-50 of them are up, and they are precious. . . Of course, she had some excellent baby models. . . .

Good bye, Beau dog

2009-07-16T21:02:00.002-05:00

June 16, 2000 to July 16, 2009
Wow the tears that follow this dog into the after life . . . Our original baby, brought home after we'd been married only 9 months, who went to every trip "home" for Christmas to my parents, on many outings, who had a crazy intuition (even predicting the boys' early arrival - long story). Despite his quirks, we loved him with all our hearts. We'll miss you, you crazy dog . . . .

HOLY COW! Passed my exam!!!

2009-06-25T23:39:00.002-05:00

Okay, no baby updates here (sorry) . . .

So FINALLY I got my big white envelope in the mail today, for which I drove home when I had a 1-hour opening due to a patient cancellation JUST to stop at the mailbox and keep driving right back to work. (I was tipped off by friends on the east coast who had gotten their letters the day before that I would likely get mine today.) I ripped open that envelope standing in the middle of the street, my car running and driver's side door wide open, and when I saw "Dear Ms. Cathcart, Congratulations!" I started doing a little dance in the street.

So now I'm a WCS, which means Women's Health Certified Specialist through our national physical therapy organization. Which yes (as I've been asked multiple times) does add letters to my name: Darla Cathcart, MPT, WCS, CLT. I don't know how many people passed, but we will be the very first group of Women's Health specialists (there are other certs in existence) to walk the stage at the recognition ceremony at one of our big annual conferences in San Diego next year. It will be sweet! And all my Duke buds (another 6 folks) and my professional organization buds (3 others) all passed too. So we'll have a grand reunion.

Thanks everyone for your prayers and for asking me every now and then "Have you heard anything yet?" I appreciate your thoughts. Okay, as my co-worker Tina says, Praise the Lord!

LUKE CRAWLS!!!!

2009-06-01T19:55:00.007-05:00

Fo' real! Chris and I witnessed it twice tonight - arm, arm, leg, leg for about a foot and a half.

Papa (my dad) witnessed a version of his crawling first on Saturday night (5/30). I was in Jacksonville, FL, at a conference. Chris was at an engagement party in Shreveport, and the boys were spending the night with my parents. My dad calls at 9pm that night to tell me that Luke had made his way 4 feet across the floor to a toy, and repeated it again for my mom. I asked "Did he crawl?" to which my dad answered "Well . . . " So then I continued to ask questions: "Did he roll across the floor, did he wiggle across on his belly, did he flop forward?" No, no, and no. "Okay, so tell me EXACTLY what he did." "Well," my dad answered, "he moved one leg, then one arm, then another arm, then jumped both legs forward at the same time. And then he repeated it until he got to the toy." Then I made my dad put my mom on the phone to confirm that she saw the same thing. I decided that counts as crawling. (Am I right? Well, I don't really care if anyone else thinks I'm right!)

So then Chris' parents witnessed him doing the same thing Sunday, and we finally tonight got to see an apparently more refined version of arm, arm, leg, leg, and not the double leg hop. So we are rejoicing, as another very long-awaited milestone is checked off for Luke. We are really starting to believe now that he will catch up before too long! And we are also glad that he has been so much happier now that he is mobile.

Orange Beach, Alabama (Gulf Shores)

2009-05-27T23:07:00.019-05:00

YES - That's a new photo you see! From our annual trip to Gulf Shores with the Cathcart family. (This photo was taken our last night there, but it makes a lead for the all the rest.) Okay, so settle in with your cup of coffee, because there's a ton more photos to see . . . .

The car's almost packed and we're about to hit the road. I would say for our first long road trip, but I think a 19-hour drive to Michigan trumps a 10-hour trip to Gulf Shores . . .

So for as long as I've been around this family (which has been going on 12 years now), we always stopped to eat at The Chimes, on the LSU campus, where we would meet up with Chris' brother Michael (who attended LSU then). Now, Baton Rouge is the meeting point for us, Chris' parents (all coming from Shreveport), and Michael & Sylvia (coming from Houston). Here the boys hang with Uncle Michael & Daddy outside of The Chimes.
STILL driving . . . there was so much terrible traffic this day - We had to stop for dinner (usually we would make it to the condo by dinner time). So we hit a Cracker Barrel, and the front porch rocking chairs were a big hit with the boys.
and note Bowen with not one, but TWO sippy cups (he stole brother's before leaving the table).

Ready to head to the beach for the first time!

Below is, I think, my absolute favorite picture of Luke from the beach. . . .
Luke's like "What's this grainy stuff you call sand?" This was the only day that Luke seemed to like the beach even a little. The other days he just cried and seemed to beg to go to the indoor pool or the condo. I don't think he liked the bright sun moreso than anything, and he also appeared to get some type of rash (heat rash, or sand irritation? who knows). . . .

Now Bowen, on the other hand, seemed to settle right in to the beach, only disliking when he would put a sandy hand in his mouth. . . .

Here is the Cathcart grandmother, who still has not decided on her official grandmother name. We thought it was going to be Honey (which matches her blond hair), however there was much debate over the weekend, which included "Gigi" (sp?), "G," and others. She knows she does not want to be Mamaw (we agree - does not fit). Perhaps Bowen will choose one for her soon . . . . Regardless of her name, this Grandma is the mastermind behind the annual Gulf Shores trip.
Our first day on the beach looked like this: (with the tropical depression hitting). We actually think Luke did better this day because of the clouds blocking out the sun.

First dip in the ocean . . . .
okay, technically first dip in the Gulf, but same difference . . . .
Daddy helps Bowen "play nice" and not steal Luke's shovel. (A very common occurrence around our house now.)
(These are the buckets and shovels that their Nana used for Easter baskets this year, knowing they had a trip to the beach ahead - she also gave them their cute little hats for Easter.)
Aunt Sylvia and Uncle Michael, who usually start at the pool, were enticed to the sand to witness the boys' first beach escapade.

Later that evening, Luke gets ready for the pool, when we realize that I coincidentally bought him swim trunks that almost exactly matches his Daddy's.

Even though this shot is a little blurry, it shows how much Luke loved the pool. I would set him on the ledge, do a little countdown, and let him "fall" into the water. I think that was his fave thing to do all weekend. (Bowen liked it too, but much preferred to crawl around on the top pool steps and watch all the people walking in.)

Day 2 at the beach . . . . Luke tries to sleep it off, quite unsuccessfully. He ends up back in the condo within 20 minutes.

Just chillin' in the condo - what we did the bulk of the time. And if you haven't already noticed, Luke loves to sit with his Honey, and Bowen adores his Papaw. (And the same goes for the Bowen grandparents as well - Luke loves Nana and Bowen loves Papa.)

Day 3 at the beach . . . . and my favorite picture of Bowen from the trip . . .

Papaw buys the boys their first snow cone. . . By the looks on the faces, it seems a bit sour.

Annual trip to Lambert's. We always go on Memorial Day to catch the hot, throwed rolls - if you've never heard of this place you should google it. It's good times. Guys walk through the dining area yelling "hot rolls, hot rolls!" and if you want one, you put your hands up and they throw one at you.

The whole family - from left to right: me, Papaw (Dale) and Bowen, Sylvia, Michael, Honey (??still unsure of the grandma name, Anne), and Chris with Luke.
Both boys take after their Mom & Dad, loving the apple butter on their throwed rolls - Bowen even taking cues from his beloved Papaw, and dipping his roll into apple butter to get all he can!

While on the beach the last night taking our family photo, a guy caught a stingray while fishing off the beach. (No worries, he threw him back to his watery home!)

All pooped out! The boys nap with their stuffed animals on the long drive home. Only 6 more hours to go! . . .

New Stuff (Quickie Report)

2009-04-30T05:14:00.002-05:00

I know, I know - everyone wants pictures! Now that we've gotten through a couple of rough, busy months, I should get some up soon. Still lots going on around our house . . .

Luke got AFO braces to help with the stiffness in his legs. They're really cute! I'll put up some pics soon. . . .

Bowen now consistently says "bye" and puckers up for kisses. So cute! Still no walking, but we think it's because he finds crawling and cruising to be oh-so-convenient. . . .

Both boys have had a long chronic ear infection since March. We will see an ENT next week and pray that we will move forward with tubes! Chris and I would like to consistently get full nights of sleep again . . .

Chris is graduating from Auburn next week with his MBA. Yeh!

Okay - pics to come - check back in a few days.

just a little "jumpstart" needed . . . .

2009-02-25T21:41:00.005-06:00

So, for those of you who want to know, but don't want to ask:) Spoiler alert - all good news! . . . We took the boys to the Physical Therapist, Dee, this morning. Bowen, of course, is fine. Dee said he has a little stiffness in his legs (due to being born so early, not normal stiffness), but that he is overcoming it fine on his own and does not need any help. We credit that to his strong curiosity, determination and independence. If he can't do something, he just tries harder; it's his inherent personality. No one else (probably not even most therapists) would notice this stiffness. The only thing Chris and I and Aunt Beth have noticed is that he occasionally likes to stand on his tiptoes (a sign of this abnormal stiffness, or "tone").

So we had prepared ourselves for the worst news with Luke (even though our guts say he will be fine), and got pretty great news. Dee said she sees that Luke has poor trunk control, stiffness in his legs, wants to stand on tiptoes more than not, does not like to separate one half of the body from the other (as you would do with crawling - moving one leg then the other; he wants to move both at the same time). All this we knew already. Nonetheless, she said he has good motor patterns (yeh! that's a good thing). She feels (which we already knew) that he will need motivation and tough love (he only does what he wants to do; he is just as stubborn as Bowen, but his stubbornness drives him in a different direction). He becomes quickly frustrated with a task and (as Dee says) "twits out." However, he will do the task if you put the right toy in front of him or play the right game with him, etc. I offered for her to use the boys for demo in the P.T. school pediatrics class in August, so the students could see the difference in development between premature TTS twins. Her response - "That would be great, but I don't think there will be anything to see by August." Yeh for Luke. So, Luke will start twice a week PT & OT sessions, and once a week speech sessions to get him jumpstarted. Which is what Dee said is all he needs, a little jumpstart. So we are very pleased with this prognosis.

In the meantime, we'll roll the video tape for Dee to use for her class, and maybe I'll finally get some videos up on the blog! . . .

And a personal report - I'm taking my huge board certification exam on Sat, March 14th. If you think about it, say a little prayer for me to do well!

1-year Stats

2009-02-13T21:55:00.002-06:00

After getting home from a PT conference in Las Vegas late last night . . .

Today we visited Dr. McLaren for the boys' 1-year check-up. We have fortunately had a very healthy year and have only been in for well visits. I'm sure once the boys get into the church nursery, our time will come! . . .

So here are the stats:

Luke: length 28.5 inches

weight 18 pounds 2 ounces

around the 3rd percentile (on regular growth chart, not age-adjusted)

Bowen: length 28 inches

weight 21 pounds 4 ounces

around the 25th percentile for weight, can't remember for length

Okay, I may be off on the ounces part, but close enough. And yes, Bowen's heavier and Luke's longer. Dr. McLaren says Luke on the growth chart is perfectly proportioned. Although they are low on the growth chart, they are at least registering.

So while they are continually progressing in their developmental milestones, Dr. McL wants them to get a thorough evaluation by PT/OT/Speech at a NICU follow up clinic. So we will probably be doing that in the next few weeks. He wants us to be proactive in keeping them on track. Based on the screening milestone questionnaire, Luke is delayed in all areas and Bowen is delayed in communication & fine motor skills (though I highly doubt that is accurate for Bowen). Bowen continues to pull up, crawl, jabber, and eat cheerios. Luke now rolls and gets into quadruped/rocking with ease; he's able to feed himself cheerios, but only if we're not nearby (he's very smart, that kid). Tonight, I taught him how to high-five; very cute!

We'll be back to more regular posts after I take my big specialization exam on March 14th!

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY!!!!

2009-02-07T21:09:00.006-06:00

Happy 1st Birthday, Luke & Bowen!!! We are so glad it is Feb 7th of '09, and not of '08! We celebrated with friends & family, Podnuh's BBQ and cake & ice cream (of course!). It's so hard to believe that these 2 peas in a pod have finally turned ONE-YR-OLD!

Below, Luke & Bowen get ready to blow out some candles.

First bites of cake! Luke was digging into his cake as soon as we set it down! (He inherited his mother's sweet tooth.) . . . . . First photo is Bowen, second is Luke . . .

Below, family photos (before the cake). . . You can't read them in these pictures, but Luke's T says "Birthday Boy" and Bowen's says "It's Fun to be 1!"

Below, Great Grammie & Great Pop Cathcart. (Great G'mamma Porter had to leave the party before this point).

Below, Nana Bowen holds Luke, and Papa Bowen holds Bowen.

Below, Papaw Cathcart holds Luke, and Grandma Cathcart holds Bowen.
Uncle Shane & Abel watch as Aunt Beth signs the boys' birthday scrapbook pages. Cousin Brayden tries to help.
Also above, in the center of the coffee table is the boys' CaringBook, a hardback book that CaringBridge compiled from the website we used to update friends and family during the boys' NICU stay. It's an amazing book that we are sure the boys will cherish one day, to be able to read the details of their birth.

Below, a balloon that shares our party theme (thank you, BirthdayExpress.com). I bought a helium tank from Hobby Lobby. I didn't even know you could buy those - it was fun to use!

Below, the cake area set up - on the easle is a photo board (shown close up in a photo below) with some of their early NICU photos, a reminder of how far we've come in this year!

Below, the candles on their cake:

Below, a sign I made for the yard:

Below, the photo board that was on the easle (mentioned above):

Below, a wreath I made for the front door.

Below, their cake. The two baby heads were the boys' individual cakes that we removed for them to dig into. (And in case you live in Shreveport and want to know, the cake was made by a gal from Shreveport - check out www.threebabescakes.com.)

Remember when . . .

2009-02-05T14:22:00.004-06:00

. . . our babies weighed 1.5 and 2 lbs each??? Today marks the date that one year ago we learned our boys had twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, and mommy with boys was admitted to LSU Hospital for what we thought would be a long stay. So much can change in a year . . .

Can't keep up!

2009-01-14T08:52:00.003-06:00

Forgive me for no pictures. I will be super busy until mid-March, so my blogging may be a little slow . . . But, I had shared that Bowen started crawling, and is now all over the place (loves his discovery of the dog's water bowl). Within about 4 days of that, he started pulling up on furniture. He has not yet figured out how to get DOWN after pulling up, and after tiring of one place/position, will send out his cry of distress: "Mommamommamomma. . . ." - which is now how I find him many mornings gripping the railing of his crib, and peaking through the wooden slats. He is becoming quite a funny character.

Luke is getting close to sitting on his own (can do for brief periods) and getting into all-4s by himself (can hold this position briefly also if you put him there). He has in the past week discovered this cute little chuckle - "He-he!" - which he uses to get a laugh & reaction from us. He is turning out to be our sweet, snuggly one.

Both boys have gotten two bottom teeth, front and center. We could feel and see Luke's bump in the gum for quite a while, and thought his would pop up first. And then just overnight Bowen's first tooth came in, followed the next day by Luke's, and within another day or two the second teeth followed. We think Bowen is trying to assert some firsts since he was 2nd-born.

Hope everyone's having a great new year. There will definitely be updates when the boys turn ONE YEAR OLD on Feb 7th!. . . .

Tidings of JOY!

2008-12-25T22:46:00.012-06:00

Merry, Merry Christmas to all!

This was obviously a very special one for us! It was so much fun to add babies to the mix. We allowed the babies to "help" open two of their many presents. And then we were pretty much over that, and opened all their gifts for them. After 4 family stops in 5 days, let's just say we may have all the Fisher Price and V-tech toys made for up to age 18 months.

If you didn't get a card from us, it's probably because I don't have your address written down. If you didn't get it, here it is (above). And if you got the card, you either thought Luke's upside down photo was strange, or you figured out the 3 photos spell out "JOY." Good times:)

Chris has been enjoying his most prized gift of the year, a Wii and Guitar Hero Aerosmith. I may not be able to talk to him or walk between him and the TV for months to come:)

As we celebrate the birth of Christ, I am reminded of the verse on our card from last year:

John 12:46 Jesus has come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in Him should stay in darkness.

May you all have a holiday season filled with light! God bless!

On the move!

2008-12-19T22:56:00.004-06:00

Okay, I'll add a picture or video to this post in a few days. . . . Today, for the first time, Bowen started crawling! He's been on all fours rocking since before Thanksgiving, so we've been anticipating every day this new skill. And I almost missed it! I was walking back into the living room as his crawl began. Motivated by a toy several feet away, he made his first hand-slapping, slightly uncoordinated crawl. Luke's occupational therapist, Shawna, also witnessed it. And I was quick enough to get some of it on video. He had to repeat the performance (as my friend Keri said today "Dance, Monkey, dance!") for Aunt Beth (who baby-sat for a little while) and Papa. And of course, after work, for his Daddy. I guess it's time to quit procrastinating all the child-proofing. . . .

Give Thanks!

2008-11-30T04:25:00.004-06:00

As we celebrate Luke & Bowen's first Thanksgiving, we obviously are very aware of all that we have to be thankful for this year!

There are just not words to express the gratefulness in our hearts for two healthy, happy baby boys in our home. This year's Thanksgiving causes us to reflect back on the first few trying months of their little lives, and thank our heavenly Father that the time in the NICU is all a distant (and somewhat blurry) memory.

Dear Father God - You are always good no matter what happens in our earthly lives. Thank you for your incredible grace & mercy so evident in the events of this year for us. Thank you for the blessing of these two darling boys, and for all the wonderful friends and family who share in their lives. We rejoice & praise you as our incredible Creator, and as the amazing Father who loves us unconditionally. We are full of gratitude for You, and pray that we would not take any good thing in our lives for granted. Amen.

Give Thanks! . . . with the families

2008-11-30T04:24:00.005-06:00

But first things first - FOOTBALL watching! . . . Then pass around the food and the babies . . . .
The men of the family (Uncle Shane, Chris, and Papa Bowen) catch the LSU-Arkansas game.

Too much turkey for cousin Abel. Thank heavens for Nana to help with naptime.

Chris & Bowen up close.

Luke with his Great Uncle Gary Cathcart (& Great Aunt Shirley).

Grammie & Pop Cathcart get their turn holding little boys.

Aunt Beth helps feed Bowen his very first sweet potatoes. . . .
and then wash them down with some milk. Nana jumps in for this part.

Luke cheeses for his Aunt Beth.

Bowen enjoys the exer-saucer at his grandmother's house.

Luke loves to "forehead bump" - it's one of his favorite things to do! He enjoys a bump with his Great Aunt Carol.

Brayden gives Bowen the 4-1-1 on how to crawl. (Bowen has been on all 4's rocking, so any day now!)

Bowen likes to grab face parts - here he gets his grandmother's mouth. Careful, Grandma - you might lose some skin!

Practice??? (he, he) - Uncle Mike feeds Luke after getting pointers from Chris.

Aunt Sylvia and Uncle Mike pose with Luke.

Great Grandmamma Porter enjoys a moment with Luke.

Cousin Melissa feeds Bowen.

Cousin Kelly hangs with a happy Luke. . . .
and her bro, Lee Michael, gets some laughs with Bowen.

Be sure to scroll down . . .

2008-11-02T19:41:00.000-06:00

as there are 3 new posts as of Sun night, Nov 2. . . . Enjoy!

First Football Game!

2008-11-02T19:29:00.005-06:00

Louisiana Tech U's homecoming was Saturday, Nov 1st. I tried to explain to the boys that this is where Mommy & Daddy met, but I don't think they get it quite yet. We did not get to stay for the whole game because it started at 1:30 pm and was way too hot for little babies (or anyone, for that manner). Whoever thinks mid-day football games are a good idea in the deep south is quite mistaken! . . . .

So I got some really great up close photos of their cute little rub-on tattoos and onesies that Nana monogrammed with bulldogs. Unfortunately, they are on our new video camera, and technical difficulties prevented me from uploading them yet. If I get time, I'll try to upload them again and add them to the post.

Oh yeah, and if you haven't seen me in several months - yes, I got a new 'do. Not so crazy about it at first, but now I love it as it takes me only 5 minutes to fix! And Chris loves it too - anything that helps me to get ready on time . . . .

Go Dawgs!! (PS - They beat Fresno in the very hot sun.)

Ba-a-a-aD Boys go Trick-or-Treating!

2008-11-02T18:06:00.009-06:00

You have to double-click on this first pic and see it enlarged. Totally worth the 2 seconds! . .

The boys strolled with their trick-or-treating cousins as bad biker babies, complete with spikey hair (mohawk for Bowen!), rub-on tattos, glued-on piercings, and faux leather studded jackets (thanks to Nana for making).

Luke was a bit tired as the evening started (thanks to his recent decision to not take full naps in the daytime). Note the heavy eyes . . . he's still a bad biker dude, nap or not!

Yes - this is Bowen's real hair. His sweet little curls transformed nicely with some "Big Sexy" root pump, a blow dryer, and hair spray.

Chris and I used to carve a pumpkin every year while we dated, and the tradition has been reignited with having kids.

Nana & Papa (Bowen grandparents) with the boys and their Thetford cousins (Abel front left, Brayden on the right).

And with their Cathcart granparents - all smiles!

And we stroll . . .

First stop, at our neighbors' house, the Johnsons. They admire these big growing boys.

Stopping at the Cathcart grandparents' front porch. Luke finally got his nap in!

A great up-close shot of Bowen's piercing (one 11-year-old trick-or-treater thought it was real - his comment "He must have really cried when you put that in!").

And the night catches up with Bowen. . . .

And an up-close shot of Luke's spikey do, while playing with his Nana.

Sadly, no candy for two little boys this year. We still are introducing vegetables to their palate. So maybe next year! . . . Happy late Halloween, everyone!

Puppy love!

2008-11-02T17:23:00.001-06:00

The pictures & title say it all!

Pumpkin Patch & Puppies

2008-10-25T13:31:00.003-05:00

Life has slowed a bit. Chris has settled a month into his new job. It is MUCH less stress. We are all happy about how this change has turned out.

Aunt Beth & I took the cousins to St. Luke's annual pumpkin patch. It's a very popular fall photo shoot setting here in Shreveport. I preface this photo with the fact that I had subconsciously imagined this day (or hour) to consist of propping sweet, happy smiling babies up against fat pumpkins, snapping adorable shots in the morning sun. That was not so much how it went. Instead, we caught intermittent photos in which one or both babies was not crying. Apparently sitting on scratchy hay is not a baby's idea of a good, happy time. Nonetheless, we got a few okay photos, one of which is below. Hopefully Beth got better ones!
PS - True to our word, we do not dress them the same but very rarely; I love these little onesies that one of our friends gave us, so occasionally they will wear the same outfit. (But note the different colors of fleece pants:)

The rest of the photos below were taken by Chris, trying to get a shot of the boys in their bumbos. We love these little seats for spoon feedings, until they are able to sit up a little better on their own and graduate to a high chair. In Chris' quest, the dogs apparently wanted to take the opportunity to give some sugar and inspect the area for the possibility of dropped baby food or milk. . . The dogs really do love their babies!

Note below, Beau-dog gives Luke a little sugar on the ear.

So the boys continue to grow. They have (finally, with some hopeful prayer on my part!) settled into a great routine with very predictable naps and feeding times. Bowen continues to roll like a champ, and Luke stays just a few weeks behind his bro in development. Bowen is progressing so well (and actually a little advanced in a few areas for his adjusted-age), that he has been discharged from occupational therapy for Early Steps. Luke will continue therapy for (hopefully just a little while) longer. However, Luke is definitely the champ when it comes to spoon feeding. From the first spoon feeding, he's acted as if he always knew what to do with a spoon. (Yes, that surprises us too! We thought for sure that little fat Bowen would be more aggressive with eating.)

Now that life has slowed a little, we'll hopefully have some updates about once every week or so. Take care!

New Tricks

2008-09-22T12:58:00.003-05:00

Hello All,

We are past due for sure for new photos & videos. My life should slow down a little in a few weeks and I'll get around to it. But for now just reporting that the boys had their NICU follow-up clinic appointment last week. Our little boys who are supposed to be like 4-month olds now weigh 17 lb 3oz (Bowen) and 15 lb (Luke). Both have found their feet. Bowen found his hand ~2 weeks ago. Luke is starting to roll, and Bowen is now definitely rolling from back to tummy and trying to get his knees under him. I'm getting a little scared! They are both reaching for toys and Bowen likes to reach and touch your face when close enough. They are so sweet, and it is exciting to see them develop. . . . Thanks for following, and hopefully I'll have up photos soon.

Baby Dedication

2008-09-14T18:13:00.003-05:00

(authored by Chris & Darla)

The boys made their first trip to "big church" this morning for their dedication. Pastor Chuck held all 33 pounds of babies at once. Bowen is on the left and Luke on the right. Both sets of grandparents, the Cathcart greatgrandparents, Grandmomma Porter, and Aunt Beth and cousin Brayden all watched. (This was also cousin Brayden's first time to sit through big church, and he did so great at 3.5 yrs old!) Uncle Shane was turning on people's electricity (he works for SWEPCO and was working thanks to Ike) and Uncle Michael and Aunt Sylvia are finishing up their trip to Europe, so they couldn't make it.

It was so great to reach yet another "normal" milestone. We forget how amazing our boys are. We were reminded by the collective gasp when Pastor Chuck announced for the crowd their birth weights of 2lb & 1.5lb. We continue to say that God is always good, but in the case of these boys, He was also very gracious!

BTW - Today's date (the 14th) is the day that last year we had our very first prenatal visit and discovered we were having TWINS. Little did we know how much our lives would change!

Could I be a Gerber baby?

2008-08-22T22:50:00.003-05:00

These are the pre-pea pics from Thursday night before the first trial of veggies. Our fat naked babies are so cute, I had to share . . . WHO'S CALLING ME A PREEMIE NOW???

Bowen:

Luke . . .

Well, our mommy thinks we could be Gerber babies! (Oh, and of course our grandparents and Aunt Beth . . . )

Peas, please!

2008-08-22T18:45:00.004-05:00

As of last night, we added peas to the boys' menu. We have been feeding them rice cereal by spoon for a few weeks now off & on, so it was time to move onto something new. They are pretty good with the spoon for about 5-10 minutes, and then they cry for their bottles. But it's a start!

Bowen (below) did better today with eating peas. Last night, I thought perhaps he might like peas as much as his daddy does (which, is not at all).

I'm also trying homemade baby food, which is not very difficult to make. I hear it's less expensive, and obviously cuts a lot of preservatives/additives from the wee diets. I can prepare quite a bit at one time and freeze ahead small portions in ice trays. And as my mom said, "That's all we had when you were a baby!"
Next week - on to carrots!

Papa Beau-Dog

2008-08-22T18:26:00.003-05:00

I left the boys to nap on our bed this afternoon. I returned to check on them 10 minutes later, and Beau-dog apparently decided to join the non-action. I had already shooed Beau off the bed earlier that day (when the boys weren't on the bed). But since all parties seemed content, I left well enough alone and let them enjoy their group nap.

Checking on them again later, George had also made it onto the bed. Crazy dogs.

6th month check up

2008-08-08T20:58:00.002-05:00

Yes, I know, photo updates are needed. In the meantime, the boys had their 6-month check up with Dr. McLaren today. (They are 26 weeks old, or 13 weeks adjusted age.) Just wanted to quickly share the stats:

Luke - 13 lbs, 23.5 inches long

Bowen - 14 lbs 12 oz, 23 inches long

All else is well in their world. And ours, as they consistently sleep 10p to ~5:30a.

And if you hadn't heard, Chris is very excited to be starting a new job at the end of September. He will treat outpatients at LSU Hospital. We think it will be a nice change of pace for him for the time being, as he finishes his MBA this year and as we continue to adjust to having babies in our home. No more 24/7 work cell phone, and no weekends or government holidays. (We're talking Columbus Day, Flag Day, etc. - I'm a little jealous!) His last day at Schumpert is Aug 29. He'll have a month off, during which he plans to paint the house and knock out several of the semester's classes. . . On that note, still greatly enjoying my return to work. I love what I do, have a great boss & a great work environment. I'm feeling very blessed right now in the occupational category. And Aunt Beth is getting her baby "fix." It's a win-win.

I'll try to get some photos up later this week.

Hey, Brother

2008-07-29T22:33:00.003-05:00

We really aren't playing favorites, but just happen to have caught Bowen on camera lately doing sweet things. Luke's a little harder to catch on camera, but he'll have his day! He's starting to find his voice, too. He really likes to make this little growl, for lack of a better description. Maybe I'll get it on video soon. . . . Our latest: for the first time Bowen seems genuinely aware of Luke. Chris was quick enough to catch a few of the smiles and squeals he offers his brother. Meanwhile, Luke is too preoccupied trying to stand on my lap (and being burped) to reciprocate. The distinct personalities already shining through!

Oh yeah, and being back to work has been good. I still love my job and am enjoying getting back into the groove. It will be even better when the boys are a little more consistent with sleeping to 6 am. We still get the occasional 4:30/5 am wakeup cry, but at least it's not every night!

Happy Birthday, Nana!

2008-07-26T08:06:00.004-05:00

So this past week was my Mom's 50th. Our family and some of her dear friends put together a little celebration. Her BFF from Michigan (aka our Aunt Peggy) flew down to the July LA heat (God bless her!) to join the festivities.

This photo shows Mom with her fun cake we made; I made copies of old pictures through the years and put them on painted wooden skewers to surround the "50" candle:

My sister, Beth, and I had a blast putting together this huge photo collage that included pictures of Mom's childhood, old pets, special events throughout our lives, and of course, some grandsons!

Aunt Peggy on the left, Mom (aka Wendy), and her dear friend Ginger. While I'm here - Aunt Peg has provided the boys with their very first Detroit Tigers T's. Ginger was so kind to provide us with 4 big casseroles right after the boys were born (such a blessing!)

The whole fam damily (he, he): Of course you can pick out Chris, me & the boys. Also in are my sister Beth & her hubby Shane and their two boys Brayden & Abel. Also our Mom & Dad (aka Nana & Papa, or Wendy & Billy).

Bowen's Vowels

2008-07-20T15:11:00.003-05:00

For the last 2 weeks or so, Bowen has taken to making my new most favorite sound - these throaty wide-mouth "O"'s. It has been my mission to get it on video, and I finally succeeded today! (Once the camera's on him, he is usually distracted by this strange shiny object.) Anywho, here it is for you guys to see. Of course, you could've heard a whole "conversation" if I had not gotten the camera so close to him so quickly (which distracted him, as you'll see at the end). Enjoy!

Oh, and PS - the boys have slept now 2 nights in a row from 10p to 6a. . . maybe, just maybe . . .

Will it last? . . . And the nursery (finally)

2008-07-19T13:21:00.006-05:00

So last night the boys ate at 10 pm, and did not wake up until - oh my goodness! - 6 am! Will that happen again? Could they be sleeping through the night before I return to work next week (Fri, July 25th)? That would be so wonderful. . . Which, on that subject - yes, I am looking forward to returning to work, and not to get away from my little men (whom I LOVE being with all day). But I just really love my job and am looking forward to being with my patients & program again. I'm starting back on a Friday because my personal leave of absence started on a Friday, and I figured it would give me the weekend to recover from that first day back. After that, I'll work Mon-Tues-Thurs (just 3 days!). My sister, Beth, will be our personal day-care. I think our boys will be lucky to get to grow up being so close to their cousins.

For my friend Kerry who has been asking for pics of the nursery - we have a virtual tour broken into 3 videos (for the sake of uploading). Now that we've figured out this video thing, I'll be putting up lots of photos & videos for our friends & family afar. Here it is! (Finally, like 2 months later.)

Long Time, No Post

2008-07-13T11:12:00.008-05:00

Not much going on here, so we'll just give you some photos (that's what you really want anyway:) . . . I finally figured out how to embed youtube videos onto the blog (yah me!). So We'll start with some videos, and end with photos. . .

Our first video, the boys on June 25th in their bouncy seats while I fold clothes in their room:

This video shows off their 4th of July gear.

On to photos . . .

If you remember this photo from our last days on the caring bridge site, and how the crib seemed to swallow our two tiny babies (Luke left, Bowen right):

Compared with a similar photo taken just a few days ago - you can tell they've doubled in size!

(Bowen left, Luke right.)

Here in our 4th of July gear - note the baseball tennis shoes, which were a big hit at the family gatherings:

And we're becoming more and more social, with big sweet smiles, laughs, coos & squeals. (Bowen top, Luke bottom.)

First video. . . sort of. . .

2008-06-24T14:41:00.002-05:00

Okay, so until someone can help me figure this out, I give up on trying to upload a video to the site. Instead, here is a link to you-tube, where you can see the boys swinging. Hope this works!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMYds7jcmfM

Enjoy! If folks find this okay, then I will add our virtual tour of the nursery next.

I'm not saying you're fat, but . . .

2008-06-23T17:24:00.003-05:00

So the big weigh-in was today. Bowen is (as I guessed) 11 lbs 7 oz. And Luke is (drumroll. . . .) TEN pounds even. That means he gained a half a pound (in 3 days) since his visit to Dr. Sorrells (for his hernia) last Friday. Needless to say, I've abandoned the over-the-shoulder baby carriers when I'm on double baby duty. Today was the first time to use the double stroller with a car trip. . . also from this visit: The boys are starting to leave the preemie growth curve (in a good way). They are now moved to a normal well-baby check-up schedule (less frequent visits). Dr. McLaren has cleared us to start really adding rice cereal as the boys are able to take it. And once they're up to 2 servings a day, it's onto veggies. . . All a far cry from where we were just 4 months ago!

I tried multiple times over the weekend to post a virtual tour of the nursery, but for some reason am unable to upload videos to this site. Any suggestions? It appears in the blog's q/a area that many people have this problem. I do know that the videos are the correct file type and are not too large. Not sure what else could be the problem. Hmm. . . . I also see you can do a you-Tube link. I'll have to play around with it a little more, because I also have some videos of the boys I'd love to post.

Also, I'm adding a link (see the sidebar) to our friends the Patricks. Renita was in the same room I was in at LSU, and just gave birth to ~28 1/2 week triplet boys. (And I thought I was seeing a lot of blue!) I know how much prayerful thought kept us going for the NICU experience, and now they are on the same journey. So for any of you who would like to send them warm thoughts & prayers, I know they would appreciate it.

We survived

2008-06-22T00:18:00.002-05:00

Chris returned from Amsterdam last night. His 8 days away were much less worse than I had imagined they would be. I am sure that is thanks to help from the family, friends, & neighbors. Tuesday was the only day I truly ran the show solo. We are continuing to enjoy the boys waking only once at night since adding rice cereal to nighttime bottles (do you also hear angelic choirs singing over that report???). . . So Chris confirmed the appropriateness of the pre-trip warnings he received. He describes Amsterdam as "Bourbon Street on speed." I will try to coax him into giving a further report. He brought home the boys a children's book written in Dutch, which was very entertaining to attempt to read aloud.

And I did not get around to posting nursery pics, as I forgot that Chris of course had the camera for his trip. Hopefully I'll get around to it soon.

The boys will see Dr. McLaren (their pediatrician) on Monday. I'll definitely tune in to give updated weight/growth info. Bowen has long outgrown the newborn clothes, and I'm really pushing it to put Luke in them still.

I'm amazed at the difference just in the last week in how much more aware they are of their surroundings. Bowen often smiles at his mobile and makes happy little squeals here and there. They both study everything, particularly the faces of any person talking to them (especially new people). And they both enjoy following a rattle. It is fun to watch them change into little interactive babies.

More tomorrow . . . .

So far, so good

2008-06-13T16:14:00.004-05:00

Chris left for Amsterdam yesterday, which prompted me to move forward with the boys' food intake situation. After much polling amongst the girlfriends, I decided to add rice cereal to the nighttime bottles for the first time last night. (I know, this is really exciting stuff here.) Just a few teaspoons, but WOW what a difference! They woke up only once last night. Perhaps it's just coincidence. But hopefully not. Regardless, I felt so incredibly refreshed on 3 and 4-hour stretches of sleep.

Our sweet Bowen - we think we saw some "social" smiles this week, though very fleeting. Of course, they were for Daddy & our friend Tracy, and not for the lady that takes care of him the majority of 24/7. Such is mommyhood.

Our funny Luke - one night this week I had the boys all tucked in their crib, apparently asleep. I crawled into bed and turned out the lights, just as Luke let out a loud "whaa" - so obviously a pick-me-up cry (and not hungry, wet, etc.). I waited a few minutes hoping he would fall back asleep, but he persisted. Not really sure what I was hoping for, I yelled from my bed across the hall in a very sing-song-y voice "Luuuu - uuuuke." Without missing a beat, he matched my tune with "aaaaah - aaaaah." Oi, such comic relief. We repeated this little back & forth calling a few times before I caved. . . .

For the locals - The boys stayed with Honey & Dude last weekend so we could have a date before Chris went out of town. We went to the new Robinson Film Center downtown. We give it two thumbs up - nice atmosphere, quaint & cozy, with big cushy leather seats. We watched "Forever Young," the documentary about the choir "Young at Heart." This choir consists of folks aged 73 and over who tour with concerts featuring songs by artists like Coldplay, James Brown, the Rolling Stones, etc. Imagine a group of very senior citizens belting out "I want to be sedated!" It was such a heart-warming, funny film. Go see it if you get a chance! (Must warn, you'll cry a little too.)

I must head off - the boys are getting hungry. Will try to add nursery pics this weekend.

The week in subheadings

2008-06-06T22:31:00.003-05:00

This week recounted, starting from Monday . . .

CLOSE CALL

on Monday. But the story starts on Sunday, when Chris accidentally cut a power cord with the weedeater, unknowingly tripping a breaker. That night, he commented that our $20 bathroom CD/radio combo was not working. I promptly put it in the trash (I'm in clean-it-out mode) without bothering to test it in other outlets. (You can kind of see where this is going.) The next afternoon, I was getting ready for Luke's f/u appointment for his surgery. I plugged in my rather expensive flatiron (in the same bathroom), and it would not turn on. I tried different outlets in the bathroom, no luck. Hm. I plugged in an older cheaper flatiron. No luck. Perhaps a brush & hairdryer would suffice - but my rather expensive hairdryer - you guessed - dead. Then the light bulb above my head . . . I traipsed out to the garage & sure enough, the breaker for the bathroom had been thrown. I flipped it back on, and when I did, I heard the deep freezer cut on. My heart sank. Not because of the 3-year-old deer meat (maybe I should add cleaning out the deep freeze to my list). And not because of the ready-to-eat frozen casseroles. No, it was the 3 months worth of breast milk. Three months of days & nights of being tied to that yellow machine, a permanent coffee table fixture (the Medela Symphony, for those of you familiar). I panicked! I threw open the lid and began checking bags. Fortunately, only the very top bags had begun to defrost, which was okay because we could use them that day. So thank God for Luke's hernia surgery, or I would not have been getting ready to leave the house and would not have discovered the breaker was thrown, possibly for days! (Chris does not use anything electrical in the bathroom dept - meanwhile, I don't flatiron my hair for a day spent with 2 dogs & 2 babies.) Oh, and the casseroles were okay too. And we were able to retrieve the CD/radio. And yes, Chris & I also think it is weird that the garage and our bathroom are on the same breaker - they're on opposite ends of the house. Whatever.

LUKE KEEPS IT INTERESTING

by getting a localized infection around his umbilical hernia repair. Fortunately it cropped up during the week, and not on Saturday morning. He went back to Dr. Sorrells today, who concurred with our diagnosis and handed us a prescription for antibiotics. I think Luke just likes making me take him to a Dr. appt at least once a week. Perhaps he misses the hospital. Poor kid.

AND CHRIS GETS READY TO LEAVE THE COUNTRY

for real. He leaves on the 12th for Amsterdam. 10 days. I'm bracing myself for 10 days of going it alone. It makes me really admire moms whose hubbies are off and away for long stretches when a newborn (or two, ha!) is around. . . um, military wives, trucker wives, professional athletes' wives (that's for you, Leann! - I will so feel your pain from last year!). . . Which means, he will not be home for his first Father's Day. That part really stinks. . . Oh yeah, so it's for his MBA which he is pursuing long-distance from Auburn. And no lie, his agenda says they will be discussing the use of "hashish" for medicinal purposes??. He'll have to post about that. Good, groovy times! He better bring me a really good souvenir, but not that kind:)

AND SPEAKING OF CHRIS' MBA WORK,

the photo at the top depicts Luke helping Chris with homework. It's tough, but somebody's gotta help Daddy out.

Lots of photos

2008-05-26T20:57:00.002-05:00

Just added lots of photos. Be sure to scroll down, as they were added over several posts. (It starts with the monkey bathrobes.) Enjoy!

Mother's Day with the Cathcarts & Porters

2008-05-26T20:21:00.010-05:00

We spent M's Day afternoon at Honey & Dude's (the Cathcart GPs).

So this first photo is for the Porter clan - we know the Porter cousins will get a kick out of seeing their dad (Great Uncle Mark) with little Bowen. (He seemed to enjoy it - no pressure Heather - haha!)

Next - Great Grammie (Cathcart) feeding Luke.

Then - Great Grandmamma (Porter) feeding Bowen.

Then - Honey with Bowen.

Then - Dude with Luke.

Last - Great Pop (Cathcart) with Luke.

And, some Mother's Day Photos

2008-05-26T19:47:00.004-05:00

Photos from brunch at our house. (For those of you who've been to our house but not recently - yes, we finally got some adult dining room furniture.)

Above: The Bowen family at our house having brunch. Below: Brayden loves holding his "wittle" cousins. He is particularly fascinated with tiny little Luke (who is slowly becoming less tiny!). Brayden eagerly washes up and puts on anti-bacterial hand sanitizer to spend time with them.
Below: Uncle Shane enjoys holding one of the little ones. He has claimed that he & Beth won't have any more kiddos, for fear of the twins possibility. (I am the 3rd of our cousins to have a set of twins!)
Below: Aunt Beth helps Brayden hold Luke. While Brayden likes the little ones, Abel doesn't quite understand the need for carefulness with them yet. So much of the morning was spent keeping Abel at arm's distance from his new little cousins.
Papa holds Bowen while Nana entertains cousin Abel.

Another Photo

2008-05-26T15:53:00.004-05:00

This photo answers a common question we hear: "Can you feed them both at the same time?" Yes, you can. This is Chris' favorite way to tackle a dual feed. We have a couple different methods. You can also double burp them: one baby over each shoulder, with the patting hand hitting both backs (and the supporting forearm under both rumps). It works quite well. . . . Though most often when we're both home, we each take a baby. Or feed the crying baby first, the quiet baby second. Luke is usually the first baby!

PHOTOS!

2008-05-26T15:11:00.009-05:00

So I've finally gotten a good block of sleep (thanks to Daddy being off today!) and felt up to putting some pictures on the site. In no particular order, just adding them as I find ones I like! I'll be doing this over a couple of posts (or it won't get done - too many interruptions!). PS - Happy Memorial Day! This time next year, we'll probably be beaching it.

The first photos to post are from their first couple baths at home.

You can't tell, but Bowen actually likes his bath time. He likes having his head rubbed.

And you can't tell that Luke does NOT like bath time. (This is the post-bath calm.) But they are both cute in their monkey bathrobes that Aunt Beth got them!

A brief time warp

2008-05-23T13:28:00.005-05:00

In recovering from this week's busy-ness, I just realized it's Friday, and I'm just now reporting that Luke did indeed come home Tuesday afternoon after his surgery. He handled it like a little champ, being just a bit fussy for a couple nights. His dressing was due to come off last night, and he indeed does have some "redundant skin," though not as redundant as I was prepared for. I was picturing elephant trunk. It's more like weird little flap.

Today was their 2-week follow-up with their pedia. Dr. McLaren was quite impressed with their weight gain: Bowen at a whopping 8#8oz, Luke at 6#14oz. Had they gone to term, I think I would have had about 15-16 lbs of baby in me! (There are some blessings in a preemie birth!) Luke's anemia has resolved. Meanwhile Bowen's jaundice is on a very SLOW path of resolving, leaving him with a beautiful olive complexion. In addition to his skin tone, his extra pound and a half and much thicker hair leaves us with what Chris refers to as our "nonidentical identicals."

For the dog lovers: We haven't allowed the dogs to interact too much with the boys just yet in an attempt to keep germs at bay. (Although, the pups do like to lick some baby toes when they get the chance.) So we don't know entirely how fond/un-fond/aware of the babies the dogs are. But apparently Beau is a little sweet on these kids. Yesterday both boys were crying in stereo while I was warming bottles. As I stood tapping my fingers on the counter in front of the bottle warmer (because that makes it go faster), I felt I was being watched. I looked up to see Beau-dog standing in the doorway between the kitchen & the LR (where the boys were in their bassinette), with a stance that said "Don't you hear them crying? What are you doing? Take care of them already!" Poor thing; he seemed rather distressed, until I headed to the LR with bottles in hand. (George is more concerned with seeing how many times he can get away with snatching a dirty diaper from the trash.)

Okay, I know I keep promising pictures, but lately naps trump going through photos. But I really will get to it soon!

Luke's Surgery Went Well

2008-05-19T11:55:00.002-05:00

Big weekend for the boys. They had their first away baby-sitting experience. Honey & Dude (Cathcart GPs) kept the boys Sun evening so we could go eat dinner with friends. Nana & Papa kept Bowen overnight Sunday so we could focus on Luke's surgery prep. Kudos to Nana who did 1 and 4 am feeds! (She told on you, Papa, for nudging her to get up for your crying grandson in the middle of the night - haha). They also met Uncle Wayne & Aunt Ellan, and my grad school friends Ellen & Kim.

Luke & I survived his "npo after midnight" status. I think his being stressed out over hunger bothered me more than the actual surgery. Maybe it's because I don't do well on hunger:) Thank God for the person who invented pacifiers - that person's a genius.

Luke's surgery was completed about an hour ago. We are hanging out at Schumpert now, waiting for him to return from recovery. The doc called & said he had inguinal hernias on both sides (surprise, surprise). Also, since his umbilical hernia had begun to grow extensions, he has what the doc refers to as "redundant skin" hanging from his belly button. But fortunately that should go away as he gets bigger (like age 2). In the meantime, it will make for oddly entertaining diaper changes for sitters. And a weird spot to clean during bath time. And hopefully not something to get caught in future pant zippers. . . . He & Chris will stay overnight at Schumpert tonight, and Bowen & I will be at the house. Good thing we only had twins - one adult for every kid.

So I'll try to put up some new pics later this week.

Mother's Day & Luke's Surgery

2008-05-14T23:31:00.004-05:00

Okay, so this blog stuff is kind of fun. I didn't really think folks would check it out, but apparently a few of you are! (as noted by your "comments" - I enjoy reading them!) (And PS to Tonya - I don't know if I have your correct email address. I'll try the one I think is right. Email me if you don't get it.)

So Luke apparently could not be outdone by his bro. He is scheduled to have the same exact surgery that Bowen had in LSU: repair left (and possibly right) inguinal hernia and umbilical (belly button) hernia. Chris and I have asked him why he couldn't have sprung his hernia while he was still in the hospital. So the fun parts for us: 1) He will not be able to eat after midnight on Sunday, and this kid has the highest pitched shriek I have ever heard from such a tiny little being when he is hungry. So THAT should allow us basically no sleep Sun night. 2) We have to be to the hospital by 6:30 am. That might be a good thing; we can let Schumpert's staff deal with our screaming baby. And 3) - this will mean an overnight hospital stay for Luke.

That's about it. Our lives have gotten relatively boring. We are loving boring.

So I meant to post actually on Mother's Day. But just wanted to share that it was really great. We did brunch with my family, then a late lunch with Chris'. Aunt Beth & Uncle Shane were soaking up being able to see/hold babies (since they were not legally allowed in the NICU). And my first MDay gift: the boys got me a photo book (the kind you make on Shutterfly or Kodak.com) of their NICU time. It's pretty cute. Did I mention the boys have a great Daddy?

We'll post something again after the surgery.

1st Trip to the Pedia

2008-05-09T19:04:00.002-05:00

So today was the boys' first pediatrician visit. Chris was concerned that the staff may not be prepared for all the cuteness. They seemed to handle it okay. We are using Dr. Rhett McLaren. We met him through his working at Sutton Children's as a pediatric hospitalist. He returned to the world of outpatient peds a while back. We are extremely pleased with him already. He is very thorough in his exam & explanations. He writes down everything we need to do/follow up on in a list (!).

He did confirm a discovery Chris made last night during bath time - that Luke has sprung an inguinal hernia. We both thought - man, he coudn't do that while he was in LSU? So he's probably facing a little surgery in the next few weeks. We'll learn more on Monday when we visit the ped surgeon, Dr. Sorrells.

Bowen continues his legacy from inpatient with good urine aim. He got Dr. McL today - who said he's only been hit 4 times in 13 years. Nice job, buddy.

And I almost forgot the most important part - our little piglets are growing leaps & bounds! Now that their mother controls how much they eat (which means they eat as much as they want) - both have gained almost a pound in one week. Luke's up to 5 lb, 12 oz from last Thursday's d/c weight of 4'15". He is also now 18 inches long (12.5 at birth). Bowen - our little fatty - is now 7'4" (up from 6'8" at d/c) and is 18.75 inches long (13.5 at birth). I know I don't know what normal weight gain for a newborn is, but for our little guys a pound seems like a lot in a week! We'll see how much they gain in their follow up in 2 weeks.

Happy Due Date!

2008-05-08T17:24:00.001-05:00

So today was the boys' original due date. Instead, they are 13 weeks old - adjusted age zero.

They met their cousins, Brayden & Abel for the first time yesterday. It was so sweet to see Brayden (3 y/o) so enamored with his baby cousins. He did not even mind washing up so he could hold and touch them. He first met Luke and said "He's so wittle." Abel (now ~17 mos old) was not so interested in them. Aunt Beth was also excited to finally get to hold her baby nephews. As soon as I get photos from her, I will add a few to the site. (My camera battery was dead, of course.)

Today the boys went for their first outdoor stroll in the neighborhood in their double stroller. We stopped & visited Honey & Dude (Cathcart GPs). We think the boys enjoyed their outing, except Luke was getting VERY hungry and a little ticked off about it.

1st Post Ever - Settling In

2008-05-06T09:15:00.000-05:00

Since everyone has asked how long we would keep the caring bridge site going for the boys, we decided we would start a blog. So all our friends & family can keep up with our little boys' growth. We truly loved our CB site, but felt it was time to graduate on to a site that was not for "critical illness." Unless that covers chronic lack of sleep, where we are no doubt headed. Welcome to parenthood.

If you are checking out our blog, but don't know our caring bridge story, you can check it out at www.caringbridge.org/visit/cathcarttwins. It chronicles Luke & Bowen's birth & NICU stay at LSU Hospital in Shreveport.

So we are settling into our new life. It is strange that we just overnight added two little human beings to this home. I keep having to remind myself - human beings - little souls, little people who will grow up (& up & up, I'm sure) into their own lives. It's so bizarre. I don't think you can ever fully grasp becoming a parent. Okay, so enough philosophy. As soon as I figure out how this site works, I'll add some pics.