Weekly Update

As much fun as the daily pictures are, I know that they don't present a complete picture of how we are doing.  So I thought it was time for a quick weekly update.  Let's see how quick it is!

Finn:  Finn had his monthly pulmonologist visit this week and overall they're very happy with how he's doing.  One goal that the clinic has for their patients is to be in the 50th percentile for height versus length.  This is not your typical percentiles at the pediatrician but rather one that accounts for height genetics.  Since our kids are smaller, they don't have to weigh as much as a kid in the 50th weight percentile, but rather they need to weigh as much as half the kids that are their same height.  I don't know if that makes sense, but I don't know how else to explain it.  Last month, Finn was in the 56th percentile for height versus length.  This month he was only in the 11th percentile.  The nutritionist attributed this to a growth spurt--he grew 2 inches in four weeks.  His weight gain was still right on track, but now that he's taller he needs to weigh more.  We up-ed his meds so that he can absorb more food and not lose as much fat as he was losing (evidenced in his diapers) and hopefullly he'll be back up in the 50s again soon.

Other than that, it's been almost two weeks since we moved Finn out of our room and into the nursery.  I remember this being a difficult transition for Kai.  He loved his co-sleeper and did not want to sleep in the crib at all.  For Finn, it has been a very different story.  He seems to enjoy his crib much better and for the most part sleeps better there.  He still has his nights, but I have to say I've been quite pleased with his night time habits.  However, his day time naps really leave something to be desired.  He had been napping in his carseat, but lately that hasn't worked as well.  I've tried the crib, but that hasn't been doing the trick either.  So, we're taking each nap as it comes.  Sometimes he's in the car seat, sometimes the crib, and sometimes the swing.  He's been taking one good long nap every day (over 2 hours) and a couple of one hour naps.  It's not enough, but I'm not sure how else to help him when I have Kai, too.

Kai:   Speaking of Kai, man has he been a stinker lately.  His behavior is getting more and more out of hand and I have had to really offer prayers for patience and understanding.  I think that a lot of it is stemming from a desire for more attention and so I'm trying to figure out the best way to handle that need.  He's definitely getting a lot of negative attention right now, though, by fighting nap and bed time.  Tonight, for example, I spent over an hour getting him to bed.  Have you ever seen Supernanny do the bedtime routine?  Have you seen the parents that walk their children back to bed over and over again, to the point where they have a counter and a timer at the bottom of the screen???  That was me tonight.  It went on for about one hour and fifteen minutes and we must have made nearly 60 trips back to the bedroom.  Uggghhh!!  But he's in bed.  I sure hope I don't have to do this every night.  I was really worried about all of the door shutting waking Finn up.  But he seems to have slept through the whole ordeal.

That brings us to me:  Since we moved Finn to the nursery, I have been sleeping on a mattress on the floor in the nursery.  I'm worried that prolonged crying at night could lead to Finn waking up Kai.  As previously noted, getting Kai to bed is not easy and I really don't want us to have to deal with that in the middle of the night, too.  So, I camp out on the floor hoping to minimize the crying and get bottles ready as quickly as possible.  Which leads to the question of nursing, and yes, I have given up on that ideal for this baby.  Over Christmas, I made a decision to drop nursing and pumping and go exclusively to formulas and bottles.  Finn hadn't nursed in over a month by that point and wasn't interested when I tried.  He also had started to reject the breastmilk in the bottles in favor of formula.  For all of the effort and stress that went into getting the breastmilk, I wasn't happy with that reaction.  I have found that switching to formula has relieved a great deal of my stress and freed up some time for me to spend with Kai.  It also helps us to know how much Finn is eating and when he needs an adjustment to medication.  So, while I struggled with the decision, this decision was definitely one that I felt was right for our family at this time.

For now, that's our update.  Of course, there's still Reid, but he'll have to give you his update.  If he wants.  :P  He has been a great help to me and wonderful husband.  I think I would officially have to be put in an asylum if it weren't for him.  So, thank you hon!!

Hope you're all enjoying the pictures and I'll try to throw in some updates every now and then.