Saturday, August 27, 2011
flip flop
so...i posted earlier that jared had rolled over and i was the only one who was able to see it...
i put him down multiple times today hoping he would roll for mommy and he refused claiming he was too hungry or too sleepy or just plain old grumpy...
finally around 6:30pm i put lay him down and just as i got mommy's attention he flipped over.
fortunately he did it again with the camera rolling
this is time #4 that jared has rolled over in his whole life
3 months
as of today you are 3 months old - august 27, 2011!
this week in history:
this is the first weekend in some time that i've really just been able to hang out with you. no errands to run, no people to meet...just stay at home and snuggle time. you both continue to amaze me with how big you are. you're able to wear any where from 0-6 months clothes on top...you're barely fitting into 0-3 month bottoms ;) i guess that's what happens when you get your mommy's long torso and her tiny legs and tush!
i'm sorry that i'm not home a lot during the day to spend time with you and snuggle with you. know that each and every minute that i'm gone is all because i want to give you every opportunity in the world. i want you to know that and know that i adore you with everything that i am.
it's still hard sometimes to realize that we truly are a family - that the years we spent talking and trying and wishing finally resulted in the two most amazing, cutest boys in the world! you are loved and adored by everyone who knows you. just last week your GG had a pacemaker put in because she realized her health wasn't where she wanted it to be and she said she needed to be here to watch you grow up...that is just how much you are loved!
sleep well my little ones...
this week in history:
- libyan rebels overtook the capital of libya marking what is likely the end of months of fighting
- hurricane irene (biggest hurricane of the season so far) made landfall on the NC coast - we only experienced some rain and wind here in chapel hill
- you met your new friend Wade Allison Noble for the first time
- you have started sleeping from around 10pm until around 5-5:30am
- caleb's angelcare monitor went off around 2:30am and mommy and i both had total heart attacks...it's likely he just migrated off the monitor's sensor pad but still...not the most fun way to be woken up at 2am
- caleb tracked mommy's face for the first time (8/27/2011)
- jared rolled over for the first time and then did it again - mama was the only one that got to see this and it was the most amazing things (8/27/2011)
- jared responded to his name (or the sound of mama's voice) for the first time - we were hanging out on the couch and i said his name and he swung his head back to look at me...he did it again and again and again...(8/26/2011)
this is the first weekend in some time that i've really just been able to hang out with you. no errands to run, no people to meet...just stay at home and snuggle time. you both continue to amaze me with how big you are. you're able to wear any where from 0-6 months clothes on top...you're barely fitting into 0-3 month bottoms ;) i guess that's what happens when you get your mommy's long torso and her tiny legs and tush!
i'm sorry that i'm not home a lot during the day to spend time with you and snuggle with you. know that each and every minute that i'm gone is all because i want to give you every opportunity in the world. i want you to know that and know that i adore you with everything that i am.
it's still hard sometimes to realize that we truly are a family - that the years we spent talking and trying and wishing finally resulted in the two most amazing, cutest boys in the world! you are loved and adored by everyone who knows you. just last week your GG had a pacemaker put in because she realized her health wasn't where she wanted it to be and she said she needed to be here to watch you grow up...that is just how much you are loved!
sleep well my little ones...
Sunday, August 21, 2011
bklyn!
thanks to aunt nin and uncle c we've got these insanely cute quite fantastically awesome onesies and t-shirts. we've got our red bklyn onesies and one blue and one silver handmade batiked t's that are amazing!
after this picture was taken caleb turned his head towards jared and pulled his head back just slightly as if he had actually seen or at least noticed that jared was there...this is the first time that we have seen either boy actually notice the other...must have been the NYC t-shirt that he was enthralled by :)
a day in the life
sundays on the lawn at weaver street. must be a wonderful life :)
it was a last minute decision to head out to weaver to get something to drink and just lay on the lawn and read. we didn't get too much reading done but we did get tons of snuggles and some time to just sit and enjoy our boys. these two girls (probably about 22 years old) walked past and almost shouted and squealed - they commented on how awkward they themselves were and apologized for seeming creepy but also said that our family was quite possibly the cutest most wonderful thing they had ever seen.
it's always nice when people stop to stare because they think our family is wonderful instead of stoping to stare because they can't quite figure out our family.
as summer turns to fall (or at least i hope summer will turn to fall) we will take more time to spend outside just relaxing - we can go for hikes in duke forrest with Ty and enjoy being outside and just enjoy being a family.
there is something about the faces of these boys that is just the most incredible thing
Thursday, August 11, 2011
a little laughter
our sweet little boy laughing at his ridiculous mama
i fear this is the first of many many moments when he is laughing at me
(caleb did laugh first but his is more like a half laugh half cry - but i must give credit where credit is due...)
Saturday, August 6, 2011
kicks
CHECK OUT OUR NEW KICKS!
i was able to convince angela that the boys definitely needed these crib shoes - uhm amazingly adorable!
it does however reinforce how big they are getting - they've never been able to fit into crib shoes!
this definitely adds a new level of cuteness to these two handsome boys!
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
genetics
around 2 weeks we learned that jared is a carrier for cystic fibrosis. after a few minor panic attacks in the dr's office and a few more frantic calls to the sperm bank we came to the realization that he really could only be an asymptomatic carrier because there is no way the donor was a carrier. unfortunately this meant that the genetic mutation had to have come from angela's family which was not something they took too well. it was a bitter pill to swallow but simply put it really doesn't effect jared until he decides to procreate or get some girl knocked up...hopefully the former will precede the latter.
at birth we opted in to a genetic based research study looking into the benefits of including a screening for fragile X in the newborn screen panel. today we received the call that caleb's numbers of the CGG repeat in the FMR1 gene (fragile x mental retardation) fall within "premutation" range putting him at risk for developing Fragile X Tremor/Ataxia Syndrome which is basically adult onset (50+ years old) fragile x and once onset begins life expectancy drops to 5-25 years post diagnosis. wow...talk about hard to stomach. as a behavior analyst working with children with autism i feel hit especially hard with this because this is my profession and i see both the progress and the deficits people with developmental disabilities display. after much research i did locate one article from genome.gov that says"
"Males and females who have a fragile X premutation have normal intellect and appearance. A few individuals with a premutation have subtle intellectual or behavioral symptoms, such as learning difficulties or social anxiety. The difficulties are usually not socially debilitating, and these individuals may still marry and have children."
I think this makes us feel slightly better. angela found something that talks about the higher the number of CGG repeats the more likely he is to have problems down the road. the range is from 55-200 for carriers with a single mutation and his number was 77 which puts him at the lower end of the bracket. this means he could be in the 60% of people who have premutation but no symptoms ever. it will however likely affect his potential children.
this is where i struggle. we now have two children who will have to speak with their respective partners when the time comes about genetic issues that might hinder procreation. we never wanted our children to have any reason to resent us (other than the fact that when they're teens they'll hate our guts regardless)
i fear how they will react to this once they are older
angela now feels guilty as she has now passed genetic "mutations" on to both children.
had we been a straight couple we never would have known this and it is simply something we will address as barriers or hurdles present themselves.
i pray that caleb is fine and that he simply bears the label "asymptomatic carrier"
i sincerely hope that neither caleb nor jared hold us responsible for their genetic "abnormalities"
these things do not make us love them any less - quite the contrary - they are constant reminders that we are so very, very lucky to have two healthy boys.
and these boys are so very lucky to have been born into an incredibly loving home with two mamas who know how to help them in the event that their development strays from typical trajectories.
caleb and jared -
i want you both to know that we are sorry that this is the hand we were all dealt. but it does not change how wanted you are and how loved you are and doesn't mean that we would have done things differently.
you both are the center of my world and what keeps me going throughout my day. i wouldn't change that for the world.
i love you with all my heart and look forward to many years of learning and growing with you.
love always
- mama
at birth we opted in to a genetic based research study looking into the benefits of including a screening for fragile X in the newborn screen panel. today we received the call that caleb's numbers of the CGG repeat in the FMR1 gene (fragile x mental retardation) fall within "premutation" range putting him at risk for developing Fragile X Tremor/Ataxia Syndrome which is basically adult onset (50+ years old) fragile x and once onset begins life expectancy drops to 5-25 years post diagnosis. wow...talk about hard to stomach. as a behavior analyst working with children with autism i feel hit especially hard with this because this is my profession and i see both the progress and the deficits people with developmental disabilities display. after much research i did locate one article from genome.gov that says"
"Males and females who have a fragile X premutation have normal intellect and appearance. A few individuals with a premutation have subtle intellectual or behavioral symptoms, such as learning difficulties or social anxiety. The difficulties are usually not socially debilitating, and these individuals may still marry and have children."
I think this makes us feel slightly better. angela found something that talks about the higher the number of CGG repeats the more likely he is to have problems down the road. the range is from 55-200 for carriers with a single mutation and his number was 77 which puts him at the lower end of the bracket. this means he could be in the 60% of people who have premutation but no symptoms ever. it will however likely affect his potential children.
this is where i struggle. we now have two children who will have to speak with their respective partners when the time comes about genetic issues that might hinder procreation. we never wanted our children to have any reason to resent us (other than the fact that when they're teens they'll hate our guts regardless)
i fear how they will react to this once they are older
angela now feels guilty as she has now passed genetic "mutations" on to both children.
had we been a straight couple we never would have known this and it is simply something we will address as barriers or hurdles present themselves.
i pray that caleb is fine and that he simply bears the label "asymptomatic carrier"
i sincerely hope that neither caleb nor jared hold us responsible for their genetic "abnormalities"
these things do not make us love them any less - quite the contrary - they are constant reminders that we are so very, very lucky to have two healthy boys.
and these boys are so very lucky to have been born into an incredibly loving home with two mamas who know how to help them in the event that their development strays from typical trajectories.
caleb and jared -
i want you both to know that we are sorry that this is the hand we were all dealt. but it does not change how wanted you are and how loved you are and doesn't mean that we would have done things differently.
you both are the center of my world and what keeps me going throughout my day. i wouldn't change that for the world.
i love you with all my heart and look forward to many years of learning and growing with you.
love always
- mama
2 months
i can't believe it's been 2 months (well 9 weeks) since the boys were born.
so much has happened in the past 9 weeks - the boys have gone from being barely 5 pounds to weighing in at 9lb4oz (jared) and 9lb5oz (caleb).
over the past 2 months we have seen so many changes
- you are both sleeping for longer stretches during the day and at night
- bedtime bottles have gone from just 3ounces to 5ounces
- the spitting up comes in waves (jared you spit up more than your brother)
- we purchased uber swanky bottles to help with the spitting...they seem to help a little
- we've added vitamin D to your routine
- you have both started to hold your heads up which is super cute
and
- for the first time ever we were able to put both of you in the bumbo and you were able to sit there for a few minutes
it's amazing how much changes...mommy was just saying the other night how your feet look so much bigger from the first time we met you
these are your feet on the second day you were in the world...still purple and wrinkled.
i'll have to get a good picture of your feet now for comparison but it's amazing to see the difference 2 months makes.
so much has happened in the past 9 weeks - the boys have gone from being barely 5 pounds to weighing in at 9lb4oz (jared) and 9lb5oz (caleb).
over the past 2 months we have seen so many changes
- you are both sleeping for longer stretches during the day and at night
- bedtime bottles have gone from just 3ounces to 5ounces
- the spitting up comes in waves (jared you spit up more than your brother)
- we purchased uber swanky bottles to help with the spitting...they seem to help a little
- we've added vitamin D to your routine
- you have both started to hold your heads up which is super cute
and
- for the first time ever we were able to put both of you in the bumbo and you were able to sit there for a few minutes
it's amazing how much changes...mommy was just saying the other night how your feet look so much bigger from the first time we met you
these are your feet on the second day you were in the world...still purple and wrinkled.i'll have to get a good picture of your feet now for comparison but it's amazing to see the difference 2 months makes.
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