Eye can see clearly now

Greetings.

Yesterday Jonas and Elsa had eye exams in Tacoma to monitor how they were doing.

Jonas was being watched to see if his eye blood vessels continued to develop normally. Pre-term babies that receive lots of oxygen sometimes have retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). On his last visit the doctor indicated that he had level 2 ROP and that he would need to have another checkup to see if it progressed. The great news is that the doctor determined that Jonas's eyes are looking good and that he will not need another check-up for a year. We forgot to ask what color his eyes were (this is a hot topic for debate currently).

We noticed that Elsa had a white spot on each of her pupils and asked the doctor to take a look. It was so reassuring when he immediately saw them and knew what they were. Elsa has two Congenital Anterior Polar Cataracts. They won't impact her vision and will be wonderful talking points to whomever stares deeply into her eyes. We were so relieved!

During a 3am feeding this morning, I caught a clip on the local Nbc news about the parent apartments at Tacoma General. While we were there they were preparing to open a new 40+ apartment complex across the street for families that have babies and kids at Tacoma General and Mary Bridge. The story interviewed a family that was in the ICN around the same time as us. It was great to see this new facility finally opening as we met many parents that had several hour commutes to see their kids. I think the link to the story is: http://www.king5.com/video/featured-index.html?nvid=374446&shu=1

Photos: I broke the age requirements of 6months to 3 years and placed Jonas and Elsa into a play toy. Both kids were highly supervised the entire time they were in it.

God Bless,

Mari & Dan & Elsa & Jonas

Happy Fathers Day!

Greetings,

It is comical how many pictures I went through trying to get the kiddos to smile. Without the camera, they were smiling away. As soon as the camera was in front of them it was all business and big eyes. Oh well. They still love their daddy anyway (thanks Colleen and Eddie!).
It is wonderful to be able to celebrate a Fathers Day.

God bless,

Mari, Dan, Elsa and Jonas

Learning and Growing

Greetings,

I am holding a sleeping Elsa as I type this, so I think it will be brief. It is so fun to see the babies learn and grow. They are both holding their heads up better all the time when they are on their tummies and are enjoying books more and more. They are even reaching out for things such as fuzzy pages in books and their new music table toy. Both are getting to the "everything in the mouth" stage starting with their hands. We are happy to make it to the end of this week as we had four doctor's appointments in a row--I think we all needed a little extra rest this weekend. Pulmonary wants Jonas on oxygen at least a month longer. The dietitian wants both kids on more calories to hopefully boost their weight gaining. Jonas's most recent surgery incision was a bit red and puffy--the doctor sent away a sample to be cultured and put him on antibiotics. We are praying it all comes back okay early this coming week. The GI doctor upped Jonas's reflux meds and wants him to do a swallow study to make sure he is not aspirating while he is eating (this can cause lung problems and make it hard for him to get off oxygen). And we capped the week with the pediatrician saying they are doing great (music to our ears) and each of them getting two shots. Good times. Here are some pictures and videos of what has been going on lately. Jonas really loves to jump and "march". This was not his best performance as he had just awakened from a nap, but kind of funny none the less. (If you are not sure which twin is which, look for the oxygen on Jonas.) We are so thankful to have Dan home for the summer and look forward to walks, feeding, sleeping, changing diapers, playing, repeat.

Love,

Mari, Dan, Elsa and Jonas

Doctors appointments, walks, and baby showers

Greetings.

Another great week with Jonas and Elsa. They were super stars and put up with all of our amateur parent attempts at keeping them just the right temperature, knowing precisely (or rather imprecisely) when their diapers needed changes, and heating their milk just perfectly. Elsa was also a champ because this past week just happened to be her doctor appointment week. She had two appointments that went well...she was a bit upset...but overall the appointments went fine.

Both kids are gaining weight, not at a real fast rate, but gaining none the less. We couldn't be prouder. Our amazing co-workers in our school district and school threw us two wonderful baby showers over the past couple of weeks. We are blessed to have such a thoughtful work community supporting our family during this journey.

Pictures speak louder...so without further ado...(in these pictures...twin tummy time, our good friend Jen (and Ron) and another December 12th baby--Joshua, hats for walks, and one of the four swings on our first floor).

God Bless,

Jonas, Elsa, Mari, & Dan

Everything is just a little bit sweeter...

Greetings.

The weekend has flown by and Jonas and Elsa did great. Just having them around makes everything a little bit sweeter. A walk around the neighborhood, a walk around the house, cooking dinner, crawling on the floor, even going to work are all just a little bit sweeter knowing that Jonas and Elsa are here and home.

No real news to report...lots of midnight snacks, spit-ups, eye-contact (Yes!), crying (no!), etc. We have discovered that both babies love swings...instant nap machines (YES!). Wonderful times!

God Bless,

Dan & Mari & Elsa & Jonas

Rock stars and two month checkups

Greetings.

Jonas and Elsa went to their two month (adjusted age) check-up yesterday. The check-up is actually a series of appointmetns with various doctors, nurses, etc that evaluate the babies on their development. We set up camp in one room and the various people rotate in to see Jonas and Elsa. A rather efficient but long process to get some of the many appointments we have take care of.

Elsa did well considering she was pretty upset the entire day. We are keeping an eye on her reflux because it seems to cause her to arch her back and it was suggested that this may hinder muscle development. We were given some specific strategies to try with her and we feel really positive about her development.

Jonas. Jonas was a little rock star yesterday. One of the tests given was to see if the babies would track with their eyes and grab a rattle. Jonas, smiled, watched the rattle and grabbed it. The occupational therapist was impressed and labeled him a rock star.

All in all, both kids were rock stars yesterday. We found it very helpful to meet with the various doctors, therapists, and nurses to discuss their progress. Overall, both are making wonderful progress and we couldn't be happier!

God Bless,

Dan & Mari & Elsa & Jonas

Two weeks!

Greetings! The time is starting to fly by! Jonas and Elsa have been home together for two weeks now. We have quickly discovered that time management is key with the addition of Jonas. Bottles, diapers, crying, smiling, you name it and the babies are each partaking in a different activity. :)

We are averaging two to three follow up doctor appointments a week so far. Everything has been going good. We are also noticing that the babies are starting to show more of their personality the longer they are home. Both are making a lot more eye contact and following activity in the room. Jonas is a champ with the smiles and Elsa slyly distributes her smiles.

Go Bless,
Mari & Dan & Elsa & Jonas