Poor Pitiful Lexyn

Today I took Lexyn to the doctor. After running high fever all weekend, she started having loose stools on Sunday. Yesterday it got so bad she probably had 15 - 20 bad diapers. Last night she even had blood in her diapers. The doctor is pretty sure she has Salmonella; he said all her symptoms lead to that diagnosis. He ran a test and we should know for sure on Friday. He said that in infants and toddlers they choose not to treat Salmonella with antibiotics. They like for it to run it's course. I was in such shock when he told me that's what she has, that I forgot to ask how long the course is. I will be checking on that tomorrow. I am not sure how much longer her or I can take this! Bless her heart she is sooooooo miserable!

We aren't real sure where she picked it up from but after doing research on-line their is a likely chance it came from a dogs rawhide bone. There are dogs everywhere she goes. We don't leave raw hides on the floor but there is a chance she picked one up somewhere. He said it wasn't contagious other than through her stool. So far Brittyn is showing no sign of having it.


And because I have to show of my cute little girlies in the Gap overall dresses from their Aunt Kelly, here are a few pictures taken yesterday. You can tell Lexyn is not feeling herself.

Lexyn

Brittyn

The girls reading with Gamma (my mom). The girls are really big into reading, especially Brittyn. She will get a book and bring it to you.

Brittyn reading a book.

Our Weekend

We have spent our weekend doing a lot of this.

Well, at least Lexyn has.

Friday night we had company come in from Tennessee. There were 15 of us that met at Chili's for dinner. Our friends were coming to stay the weekend at our house, and on Saturday we were meeting up with some more friends to go the lake. We were all so excited.......Until Lexyn started screaming at our dinner and wouldn't stop. As long as we were inside and sitting down she was crying. Ben and I spent our dinner trading off walking her around outside. Once we left and got to my in-laws for some family and friend visiting we checked her temperature to find she was running 102.6 fever an hour after Tylenol. About an hour and a half later we got home and checked it again before giving her Motrin and she was running 104.1. My poor baby was so lethargic, and starring into space. Needless to say, we spent our Friday night getting up and down and up and down with her. We were praying she would wake up Saturday morning fever free so we could go to the lake. I know, we were just hoping even though we knew it was very unlikely! Instead she woke up throwing up and still running a high fever. I took her into the doctor at 9:50 and she still had 103.7 degree fever even after rotating Tylenol and Motrin every 2 hours. The doctor ran tests and checked her all over and left us screaming crying off and on in an exam room, to come in an hour and a half later and say it must be a fever virus. My poor baby was so ill, she spent most of Saturday laying around. We couldn't really find anything to help her. Our friends layed around with us. I guess Lexyn had a change of plans and she forgot to tell us! Saturday afternoon her fever got up to 104.5 degrees. Ben got in the shower with her and held her in the water for about 15 minutes. We were told not to put her in a cold shower because that could throw her into shock and cause her to have seizures. The water had to be between 90 and 93 degrees. Once she got out her fever was down to 103.2 not good, but much better than 104.5. That gets really scary! Today she woke up with 103.4. So we had another day of it. This afternoon she screamed for an hour straight. She started pulling at her ears, so I assumed she must have started an ear infection today. I put numbing ear drops in but they gave her no relief, so maybe there isn't an ear infection. But if she is still doing this tomorrow we are going into the clinic again. Also today Brittyn started running fever. Luckily, she hasn't acted sick at all. She has been playing and talking all day. When we put them down for the night, Lexyn had a 100.9 and Brittyn had 100.7 fever. So far that is the highest Brittyn's has gotten. I am praying again that they both wake up fever free tomorrow!

Brittyn's Tubes

This morning we got up bright and early and got to the Surgical Center at 6:30. They pulled Brittyn and I back to pre-op pretty quickly. I answered a few questions, signed a few forms and then we waited a few more minutes. About 5 or 10 minutes before 7:00am the nurse came over and introduced herself and then took Brittyn from me. Wow, what a weird feeling to be handing over my baby to a complete stranger and watch her walk away. I handled it all ok though. I went back into the waiting room to be with Lexyn and my mom. About 5 to 7 minutes later the doctor came out to get me, asked that I bring a bottle and come to post-op. There, I could hear Brittyn screaming as soon as I walked in. The nurse was holding her and trying to calm her but it wasn't working. They handed her over to me and I gave her the bottle. She immediately started drinking it, she wasn't allowed to eat or drink past midnight, and then her eyes started rolling to the back of her head. My stomach got in knots watching her act while she was drugged. She calmed down and finished her bottle. The doctor told me she did great, that there was some drainage he had to suction out from behind her eardrum in both ears, but that she should be fine this afternoon. He said loud noises will probably scare her or startle her for a while today because her ears are opened up and she can hear better. We left the Clinic by 7:15am; and after her 3 and half hour nap once we got home, she has been fine and showing no sign of being alarmed by loud noises. Thanks for thinking of us.

Tubes

Tomorrow morning bright and early, and I mean early, at 6:30am Brittyn will be going into the Surgery Center in Little Rock to have tubes put in her ears. After fighting 5 double ear infections in 6 months and keeping one for over a month long, we have decided to hopefully help her out and give her some relief. Please keep her, as well as me - the nervous one, in your prayers. Sister and Gamma will be going with us to support.

Look Who's Walking!

Little Miss Brittyn

She started fully toddling on Saturday July, 11. She looks too big walking all over the place. When she falls, so far it has always been backwards to her butt, then she stands right back up and takes off again.

Little Miss Lexyn isn't far behind.

Lexyn started taking a few steps here and there. But when sister started walking everywhere she quit trying. I guess she decided it was better to just be carried everywhere. Yesterday July 16th she started taking steps again, and today she took 10 at one time. She isn't going to let Brittyn get too far ahead! Friday July 10th, Lexyn finally cut her 2nd tooth. It is on the top in the center, next to the first one. She looks so funny with 2 little teeth poking through when she smiles.

The girls love to sit on the fireplace bricks. It is the perfect height for them to walk up to and sit down.

Wednesday July 15th, the girls went to the clinic and got weighed.

Lexyn weighs 15 pounds and 9.2 ounces and is 29 1/4 inches tall.

Brittyn weighs 15 pounds and 4 ounces and is the same height as sister, 29 1/4 inches.

Finally Brittyn has decided to put on a few ounces and break the big 15! They both started Pediasure after that appointment. We'll see if that gets us up to the weight that the doctor is wanting. So far they are taking it great. But going from soy based formulas to milk based Pediasure we have had some bad diapers. Hopefully that will slow down and they will adjust well.

What a difference...

a Year Makes!!!!!


Today, July 12th is one year since we brought our miracle babies home from the NICU.

Lexyn came home weighing 5 pounds exactly
Brittyn came home weighing 4 pounds and 13 ounces





A year later...
Lexyn weighs 15 pounds and 8 ounces
Brittyn weighs 15 pounds and 1 ounce



The girls have come a long way in their first year of life. They have gained 5 times their birth weight, outgrown apnea and bradycardia, outgrown dysphagia (swallow problems), and outgrown retinopathy stage 1. They are now crawling all over the place, taking steps, babbling up a storm, and sleeping 13 or more hours a night. There is never a dull moment in our house, but we can't remember life without them. It does get crazy and sometimes stressful, but we are loving life with our healthy twin girls.



Brittyn


July 12, 2008 ...................July 12, 2009

Brittyn left, Lexyn right - July 12, 2008



Lexyn left, Brittyn right - July 12, 2009




July 12, 2008
Daddy and Brinlee, our niece, feeding Brittyn a 2 ounce bottle

July 12, 2009
Daddy holding Brittyn while she feeds herself a 5 ounce bottle

July 12, 2009
Me holding Lexyn while she feeds herself a 5 ounce bottle.

I can't wait to see how much growing and what accomplishements they achieve this next year.

Big Girl Carseats

On Friday July 3rd, my girls finally moved into big girl car seats! I know most babies can't stay in their baby carriers until they are 13 months old, but we fit and actually still do. They were getting a little long though. We do miss the convenience of taking them into a restaurant after church asleep in their carrier. Oh well, they like their new car seats a lot more. They get in and immediately look over at the other one, and then grab at the DVD screen in front of them. To cute.

Happy 4th!!!!

Daddy and his girls

an attempt for two smiling faces, of course not an easy task!!!

another attempt, again I didn't succeed

Brittyn

Lexyn - look close you can see her top tooth.

Lexyn having a fun time swimming

Brittyn chewing on her blue ducky that sister better not try to steal!

We have had a pretty fun relaxing day, and we will finish the night off with grilling out with some friends and then shooting fireworks.

Hope everyone has enjoyed their day.