One Month!

Aidan and Jordan are one month old today! It does not seem like a month ago that all that craziness happened that ended in two beautiful babies. And I can't believe I haven't posted since the two week mark - Sorry!

So here's the updates:

I spoke with a La Leche League Leader after the doctor told me to supplement with formula. We decided against the formula supplementing. Instead, I pumped before every feeding for just a few minutes - just long enough to get the foremilk out. That way, the babies got only hindmilk which is where all the fat and calories are. We went back to the doctor the next week and it worked! Aidan was up 8 ounces and Jordan was up 10 ounces!! The doctor seemed surprised, but was pleased. So we're still breastfeeding and it's going really well.

I never got any 2 week portraits done. But they still looked like premies then, with all their saggy skin and wrinkly elephant knees. So we did one month portraits yesterday and today. I have a few more I want to get done, too, but I will post them as I get them edited. And that may very well take a week. Just in the last week or so, both babies have started to look and act less like newborns. They stay awake a little longer after nursing, they make eye contact, and they are a little less jerky in their movements. We weighed them today at David and Sheila's house on their scales (so this isn't totally acurate), and we think Aidan is up to 7.5 lbs and Jordan may be up to 8 lbs! They are really good little eaters and they have filled out a lot. They don't feel so tiny and fragile any more! Last Saturday, we had our first family outing to the Farmers Market in Mt. Laurel - they did really well and lasted 3 hours while we shopped and ate lunch.

On Tuesday, I decided to read up on preeclampsia. I've been gathering all the things everyone's told me about what happened and trying to make sense out of it. I've also been realizing how scary the whole thing was. The Preeclampsia Foundation's website helped me understand what the condition is and how common it is. I also realized just exactly how much of a miracle it is that my babies and I are here and healthy today. I've decided to become an advocate for this cause and try to share the knowledge that I've gained with any who will listen. "Preeclampsia effects 5-8% of all pregnancies. Globally, preeclampsia and other hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are a leading cause of maternal and infant illness and death. By conservative estimates, these disorders are responsible for 76,000 maternal and 500,000 infant deaths each year." http://www.preeclampsia.org And the biggest reason for this is lack of knowledge on the part of the expectant mothers and their families. As we now know, it is not only possible, but also probable that doctors will miss it in some cases. A condition that deadly needs a lot of research and a cure.