The FLU

So, the flu has struck our home! Mitch is currently quarantined to the back of the house. I've been vaccinated (while I was pregnant w/ the twins) and supposedly they should be somewhat protected by the antibodies in my breastmilk. I'm not quite as worried about us catching it as I am about Maddex. She interacted w/ Mitch a lot yesterday, so was very exposed. I'm going to go ahead and say it would be impossible for me to take care of a toddler w/ the flu & the baby twins. If you're reading this, please pray for protection from illness for our family!!!!!! This is not great timing either since I'm headed back to work on Thursday! Lord, help us!

In other news...

The babies have been angels today. They were pretty fussy this morning starting around 4:30 & basically until we all left to take Maddex to Mrs. Vickie's. They calmed down on the ride and have been amazing since then. I'm trying to nap some so that I can stay rested & well. It seems like their reflux is getting under control and the zantac is working. They love sleeping in the rock & plays and occasionally nap in their swings. I am pretty sure they have some type of milk protein intolerance. I cut obvious dairy (milk, cheese, ice cream, yogurt) from my diet about a week and a half ago and we had some really good days. On Saturday Mitch and I had a day of dating! We went to a wedding for one of my long-time friends & a party with the worship team from church. I ate several things that had cheese in or on them & the babies did some screaming yesterday evening/night & a little this morning. I really attribute that to the dairy I ate getting into their system. Looks like no cheese for me the next year or so :/ I plan to reintroduce it at times in HOPES that they grow out of this! I can do without milk and yogurt and would be sad without ice cream, but the cheese is the hardest!

Babies seem to be growing great! They are filling out their clothes & swaddlers and moved up to size one diapers this week. The last few nights they've given me a great, restful time from around 10 - 4:30. And by restful, I mean they eat late & go right down. They wake up again about 3 hours later & eat quickly & go right back down. Then they wake up again around the 4:00 hour and that's when they've started to get fussy & more awake. I keep hoping that they'll start to settle at that time! They will usually be awake/fussy for the next few hours. Late morning they tend to settle again and sleep well throughout the day. It seems like their fussiest times are in the evening night (like maybe between 7:00 & 10:00) and those early morning hours.

I go back to work this Thursday. I'm so thankful it's just two days before I have 2 more weeks with the babies. I'm feeling OK about going back to work, but am just anxious about my lack of sleep. I've managed to stay well so far, but I'm afraid even less sleep would make me more likely to get sick. I'm hoping the babies will be sleeping a little longer by the time I go back in January. I'm looking forward to adult interaction & putting on real clothes & make-up daily :)

I'm very thankful for our moms this week. Mitch's mom & grandma kept the kids for our day of dating on Saturday! It was SO incredibly nice to get out with my man! My mom kept the twins yesterday for me to take Maddex to a cookie swap with friends from school. She had a great time & loooooved all the cookies. It's been really special to me to have time with just my biggest girl. She was definitely on a sugar high when she was running circles around our host's living room. :) And they are both helping me with Maddex this week while Mitch is out of commission. I'm going to try to keep M out of the house as much as possible even though I've lysoled everything. Despite my efforts, I still think it'll be a miracle if she doesn't get the flu :(

If you want to see the latest pictures, check my facebook album ;) I'll put up some pictures next post!