Update from the home front

Hi everyone!
Sorry it has taken awhile to write. It is busy with the twins, not to mention Edwin enjoys his XBOX which he plays online, so sometimes I can't get online when the twins are sleeping...Edwin needs his release and I'm happy it's his XBOX and not a night out on the town.
Everything is going well...better than expected actually. Serena and Edwin are sweet babies, and they rarely fuss...Edwin a little if he is put down and wants to continue to be held...thanks primaries...haha just kidding! I LOVE holding them, in fact I get little done around the house because I have them in my arms even when they're asleep. My mom's a huge help though, washing dishes, doing laundry, and organizing EVERYTHING around the house! That's been huge.
The twins had their first pedi appointment today. Serena weighed 5 lbs 10 ounces, and Edwin was 5 lbs 14 ounces. I am so happy they gained weight!!! We will return weekly for awhile for weight checks.
I had to make a decision not to have one of the private duty nurses return. (We qualified for 84 hours a week in private duty care because of twins on O2 with extreme prematurity). I'd like to think I can easily get along with most people, but something didn't click. She didn't do anything wrong per say, minus not washing her hands enough for my liking, but it was more of an uncomfortable feeling and I guess mother's intiution. We gave up Mon-Fri worth of overnight nursing, but it was the right decision for our family. The other nurses I've met are great, and I will be meeting another Sunday night (the mom of one of the nurses I met today.) We only used 20 of our 84 hours, but that's okay.

This is in reponse to the email my mom sent out ebloggers:

As for the O2 company, I don't want people to worry that we didn't have any oxygen for Champ or Serena. We had spare tanks, it was just the delievery was confused, and it was scary to think they were unaware that we needed large "M" tanks, the tanks the twins are hooked up to on the day-to-day. I had a spare for each baby, but one of the covers was cross threaded and wouldn't come off. Serena is on a lower flow, so she was fine, so I just switched over Edwin's tank and they assured me we would have a correct delievery today, which we did. The driver couldn't get the top off the big tank either, and we made sure all the tanks he delievered today opened properly. We also had to switch out Serena's regulator because it was reading that the new tank was not filled, but it really was. Ah the joys of parenting twins on O2. The monitors are working well though, rarely any false alarms, which is good, especially since Edwin and I are doing the overnights!

I am able to care for the twins during the day, and take cat naps when they sleep. Edwin or a nurse are usually with me, and in the evenings my mom has been coming over to help out. We only have nursing 9-2, so my mom, as usual, has been a life saver. I still don't feel 100% confident being alone with Serena and Edwin. Not because I don't know what I am doing, but just with them being on O2 it is nice to feel like I am not alone in the case of an emergency with the tubing, the tanks, nasal canulas, etc. On another note, we opted to discontinue using the humidifying water attached to the O2 tubing because water droplets were moving into the tubing. We run the humidifying in the twins bedroom and that seems to be working fine.
We really don't feel too sleep deprived, although it has been a tough transition for Edwin, especially since he trains twice a day. He has been great though. I am lucky. Speaking of Edwin, he won his fight on Tuesday (an easy fight according to him, he didn't even get hit he said.) I was going to go and my mom was going to stay with the babies with the nurse who is no longer with us, but Edwin got the lottery of the first fight and his brother and I would not have made it since you find out when you are fighting only 1/2 hour before the fights start. We hadn't even left Worcester yet when Edwin called to say he got the 1st fight. It was okay though, I didn't mind being home because Serena and Edwin are home! Edwin fights again this coming Tuesday and then come the finals. I am not exactly sure when those will be, but I will let you know once I know. If you Google the Lowell Sun it brings you to the local newspaper in Lowell, which is covering the tourney; there may be more info there, I haven't checked yet. I hope maybe some can make it this Tuesday; Grammie and Grappy will be babysitting so I can go!
Well I can't find my camera as of now, so I can't upload the pics I have taken, the ones posted are from my mom's camera. I will look for it now and get the pictures out asap.
Thanks for caring so much about Serena and Champ. We are looking forward to warmer weather and healthier babies so we can have a large celebration. We are so fortunate to have both our babies, and we look forward to celebrating their miraculous young lives!
Take care,
Stephanie