On Wednesday we went in to see Dr. Silverberg, the twins opthamologist. You may remember that he was featured during the Childrens Miracle Network telethon we were in. Our main concern during this visit was Derby’s vision. As always, when it comes to medical issues, he seems to be the one we worry about more. We had our IFSP (Individualized Family Service Plan) meeting last week to discuss what will happen with therapy once the twins turn 3. Loen will no longer be eligible as she has caught up to most of her peers. But Derby will need help for a while longer. One of the recurring concerns his therapists bring up is his vision. What does he see, what doesn’t he see and how is he processing these images. It is all a guessing game until he can tell us what is going on. Tadd and I were ready with a barrage of questions regarding our little man. What we weren’t ready for was that Derby’s eyes, anatomically speaking are fine, but his sister’s that have gotten progressively worse. She went from minor nearsightedness (common in babies) to a prescription of -7 & -9 in 2009. Anything over -6 is considered severely nearsighted.  On this visit they measured her to be -12 and -14. A huge jump. They tested her a couple of times to be sure. Without her glasses Loen is legally blind, sigh….. She is fine and will have to see the eye doctor every 6 months to be sure her vision is not worsening. We asked if there was a chance she could lose her vision. It is very rare but that would be the outcome if the retina was to detach.

I really shouldn’t get worked up but it is times like this that make we wonder what could we have done to prevent all this. If we would have hired movers when I was pregnant instead of doing it ourselves would they have gone to term? If I rested more? I know it is ridiculous to rehash this but it just comes to mind when yet another thing comes up. Again I feel bad because it is nothing life threatening just a bump in the road. But when I check on them in their cribs sleeping so soundly with their little pouty mouths hanging open, I want everything for them. I want the best. I fear for the day when some kid will make fun of their glasses or the way they walk. How am I going to protect them from everything yet let them live freely? This is motherhood huh?

On the upside she will be able to try out for Professor Trelawney in her high school production of Harry Potter.

I wouldn’t normally mind but as her hair has gotten longer I find food, snot, etc stuck in her hair. I explain that it keeps her hair clean. I don’t want to wash avocado out of her hair….again. Doesn’t matter, she has her own agenda. She had a runny nose for almost two weeks and I would find her hair stuck in the snot that she swipes across her face. D-I-S-G-U-S-T-I-N-G. I tried again to pull her hair back. It was then that I had a flashback of being a little girl and my Grandma Rose saying “Doesn’t your mom ever put barrettes in your hair?!” as she would attempt to bobby pin my long bangs back.

Perhaps it is genetic?

She is my girly girl

]]> http://thetadpoles.com/2009/09/04/center-of-attention/feed/ 5 http://thetadpoles.com/2009/09/02/updates-and-stuff/ http://thetadpoles.com/2009/09/02/updates-and-stuff/#comments Wed, 02 Sep 2009 19:20:16 +0000 Hava http://thetadpoles.com/?p=1025 I really haven’t had the energy to post more than an occasional blurb on my Facebook let alone blogging but here goes.

• Loen: Weighs 19 pounds 3 1/2 ounces and is 31 1/2 inches long. Like the scene in Miracle Worker where Helen Keller makes the collation between water and the word, Loen is picking up a ton of new words and some we would rather she not say. After I made a comment to Tadd regarding a woman’s outfit which included the word ‘sexy’ we hear a tiny voice in the back of the car say “sexy, sexy, sexy”. Of course that would be the one word she would choose to repeat. We also like to say no, me and mine. Which is kind of funny in her tiny little voice. We bought a couple of potty chairs after Loen started signing ‘change’ when needed. She wasn’t keen on sitting on it without her diaper though she really likes sitting on it when were in the bathroom. Like it is her special chair to hang out and visit. She has also learned to take her diaper off. When I went to take out the trash yesterday I put the twins into the kiddie korral so they wouldnt get into trouble while I was outside. I come back to find a naked Loen saying ‘pee pee”. I thought she had peed on the toys but no she was just pointing out her anatomy.

Loen is all about talking on the phone. The other day she grabbed my insulin pump and started saying “Dada hi” Very cute until she tried to run off with the pump and it was attached to my posterior.

• Derby weighs 17 pounds 10 ounces and is 29 inches long. I swear I feel like he is never going to grow out of his current size. I am getting tired of them and ready to break into the drawer full of the next size up! He can be a very picky eater at times. My favorite is when he will eat something at a restaurant but when I make it at home he doesn’t want it. He prefers protein to fruits or veggies, so I can get him to eat tofu, chicken and soy nuggets but a lone green bean throws his world off its axis. Thanks to Michelle for the idea of giving him ‘Green Machine’ a Trader Joe’s smoothie that has spinach and broccoli mixed in with fruit. I tried it myself and it wasn’t too bad. It is hit or miss though, some days he loves it others he wont touch it. Derby is talking much more. While Loen is very vocal Derby says things when he is good and ready, there is no performing on cue with that little boy. You think he isn’t paying attention but when the Gaylords were visiting with their kids Derby cruised up to Michelle & baby Gwen and said “baby”. He has also added the words: bubble, Costco, pool, ball, baba, and Papa to his list. I’m sure I’m missing others but he definitely is talking more.

Now on to the stuff…

Derby officially got the Cerebral Palsy diagnosis 2 weeks ago. With upcoming treatments and therapy it would pave the way for insurance if it was changed from ‘Rule Out Cerebral Palsy’ to actual ‘Cerebal Palsy”. We had been told that constraint induced therapy might be a good idea for Derby (they would cast his good arm forcing him to use his weaker arm. Intense physical therapy everyday for 3 – 4 weeks has been found to bring amazing results) In typical Tadd style he went into research overdrive and looked into other cases, read published articles and found the University that initiated the trend (not to mention speaking with the therapists at UAB). After lots of questions and pushing to have him start therapy we were given an appointment to meet with the pediatric orthopedist to talk about having him casted. The doctor walks in and watched Derby crawl and cruise around the furniture and after a minute says he wants to have a brace (specifically a DAFO) put on Derby’s left leg (his weaker side). We were a little shocked as we thought we were just going to talk about his arm. We were told that when Derby cruises he is usually walks on the balls of his left foot. In turn it is causing tightness & shortening of the leg muscles, if we did not address the problem quickly Derby might need surgery to lengthen the muscles. Tadd said he wished they would prepare us beforehand about what they are going to say. Though that doesn’t work if we are meeting a doctor for the first time and he is telling us his initial assessment of Derby. As today was the first official day of intensive therapy he looked like the Bionic kid with a cast on his right arm and a brace on his left leg. Loen better watch out because that kid is going to have weapons at the ready!

Derby having a cast made to make the leg brace. He was so good while this was going on. A clear bowl kept him entertained the whole time!

Finished mold

Let’s move on to the casting of the arm. Seeing how getting the mold for his leg was such a breeze I thought we would sail through the arm casting. Lord was I wrong! I brought Loen and we were immediately brought back to a treatment room, which I thought was a good sign. The doctor came right in and quickly casted his arm. Again Derby was pretty good, except when he had to be still for about 5 minutes to let it dry and he was wiggling all over and trying to whack me in the head with the cast.  Then a tech came in to cut off the cast. The nice thing about this therapy is we will be able to remove the cast for bathing and swimming, hence the reason the cast would be cut into two pieces.  The twins DID NOT LIKE the cast cutter. The both started screaming at the tops of their lungs. The type of screaming that causes red splotchy marks all over their foreheads and nurses to come in to be sure there wasn’t an unscheduled amputation going on. I kinda laughed and asked if they could hear us. The RN looks at me and says they can hear you in the waiting room. Did I mention we were in the back of the office? He got one side cut and after a brief respite he had to cut the other side..cue tandem screaming. The ortho tech looked like he choose the short straw when it came to taking care of us. The RN was really sweet and talked to us while she prepped the cast. Since they cut it in two all the fluff that lines a cast started coming out so she wrapped both halves in a cast sock, then they ace wrapped the whole shebang to his arm. Can you say pain in the butt?

Waiting for the cast to dry

Finshed product (it is a behemoth!)

Trying to pick up toys with his mouth

So I hate to sound like I am bemoaning everything. I definitely was feeling down and depressed earlier but then I went to take Derby to therapy and a family was leaving and another family was coming in. The family leaving I recognized as the Strong family, their daughter has a rare terminal degenerative disease called SMA. The family coming in had an older daughter with another rare disease who needs a wheelchair and has limited verbal skills. Looking at these families was like a slap in the face, what they wouldn’t give to have the same ‘problems’ we are facing. While it is a bump in the road it is not a dead end. I felt so selfish and had to remind myself once again how lucky we are.

I asked to see her teeth. It took numerous shots before I actually got one

Nope thats a pic of her tonsils

She likes to rub her tongue across the chipped edge now

There’s the winner

“You know Derby I never would have chipped my teeth if YOU weren’t in my way. Lets not do that again shall we?”

Practicing her banshee scream

Iain sent me this picture to highlight the family resemblance

Today we picked up her new glasses and she did seem to be happier. She was running around the house and getting into everything. She took off her glasses a few times but kept them on for the most part. Perhaps Derby can learn from her example! Below are some pics of them playing with their fab new water/sand table they got from Meemaw Lisa.

I can SEE you!

HA HA I’m not the only one who has to wear glasses now!

Let me help you with this Derby

I have a feeling we will be doing this a lot

She HAD to have the pink glasses

Private joke between twins

Derby threw his glasses in the water. Good thing Loen was there to rescue them

You need to wear them Derby

I love this table!

Someone got a little out of hand with splashing

Daddy’s beard is itchy

Derby decided he was over playtime

]]> http://thetadpoles.com/2009/05/20/family-of-foureyes/feed/ 4 http://thetadpoles.com/2009/04/09/it-had-to-be-done/ http://thetadpoles.com/2009/04/09/it-had-to-be-done/#comments Thu, 09 Apr 2009 22:45:04 +0000 Hava http://thetadpoles.com/?p=818 Loen’s hair has been driving me nuts. It is a cross between Incredible Hulk/Frankenstein/Chaka from Land of the Lost. It is wispy and mullet like, she will no longer tolerate ponytails or barrettes. I wanted to trim it myself but when I got near her with scissors Tadd freaked. Finally he had to concede the mullet was looking bad. This morning I took her to get her first haircut. She was so good and her hair looks adorable. Tadd sounded sad over the phone when he said she no longer looks like a baby. Derby was spared the haircut today as he is working on his mohawk. There is a movie of the haircut but alas it is 17 minutes long and Joanna, our beloved friend/babysitter, is better with children than she is with a movie camera.

Loen was enjoying the Barbie Vanity. Mama had to say “NEVER!!”

Checking out the toys they had to offer

The results. I love her little haircut, it is very 1968 Mia Farrow.

Did I mention they are really into pulling things out of boxes (ie: wipes, kleenex) this happened in a matter of seconds.