Christmas shenanigans

When people tell you time flies, it really does when you have kids. I always say I am going to start my Christmas shopping early, be ahead of the game, and done in no time. Of course, the procrastinator in me didn't allow that to happen, again. Gets me every time. I did try though this year, but things blur by and the next thing you know Christmas is here. In fact, this year was a bit embarrassing I must admit. I knew I was a bit behind, but I thought I still had time.

I had gone on Pinterest and came up with cute ideas for gifts this year. I know most people just buy what they want anyways at my age, so I thought they would like something a little more special this year. Well, as we all know, Pinterest ideas can go one of two ways, a fabulous idea that will likely be repeated, or lets not try that EVER again. I chose to do ornaments with the girls hand prints on them. Cute idea right? I'm sure it could have been cute. I mean they did turn out okay, but I would definitely make some changes before I recommend it to anyone else. You see, we got a little gutsy and decided to use kid friendly glue for the handprint and glitter over it. Having one little hand print on an ornament would be difficult I'm sure. Trying to get your little tot to open their hand, not smear it on the ornament, themselves, or you can be a bit tricky. With twins it's even harder. I may have gotten one twins hand on the ornament perfectly, but then to get the other to cooperate on that same ornament? Not likely. We made a bit of a production of it. We did all hand prints of one childs, let them dry and went back later and did the other childs. If I had to do it again, I would have went with paint. Or as my husband suggested, traced their hands and then replicated it ourselves on the bulbs. That would take the fun out of it though right? Let's just say Adam and I finally completed this project about an hour before we had to be at our families Christmas Eve party.

Somehow I had been off a week. I thought Christmas was the following week. Up until the weekend before, when my Dad who was going out of town mentioned his flight. "What do you mean? I thought you left next week." I had said. "Katie, Christmas is this weekend." Eeee welp I certainly screwed that one up (I can't be the only one who has done this right?) Adams present was ordered the following day (thank you Amazon Prime) as were a few others. Thankfully I had actually been done with the girls shopping and just had to wrap it up.

Even with all the chaos that last week, flying around trying to get everything finished up for Christmas, it was a great one. The girls were just old enough to realize they got new toys to play with. Maybe not the entire Christmas idea, but they had a blast. We got them a little kitchen and a princess tent with some other smaller things. Most of it they will share anyways at this age. Personally I think they would be happy with just about anything. Don't stress Christmas shopping especially when they are young. They would be just as happy playing with the boxes.

Katies Low Cal BBQ Chicken Pizza

I'm sure you are thinking, low calorie pizza? No way Katie! Tell me more! The entire crust of this pizza is only 435 calories! That's about the same as ONE SLICE of a normal pizza! So here it is. The dough is made out of cauliflower. I know that sounds strange, but I promise it's actually really delicious. I've even had friends ask me just to make the dough for a snack because it tastes so good. You would never think it was cauliflower. Trust me on this. I will list out all the ingredients you will need for the dough and toppings. You can always alter it later on with whatever toppings and sauces you like, but this is one of my favorites.

1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg
1 clove fresh chopped garlic
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp olive oil
2 bonless skinless chicken breasts (approx 6 oz)
3/4 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce (I am partial to a mix of KC Masterpiece and Sweet Baby Rays)
1 sliced yellow bell pepper
1 sliced red bell pepper
1 c fresh sliced mushrooms
1 can chopped, pitted black olives
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 1/2 tsp chopped parsley


To rice the cauliflower take 1 large fresh head of cauliflower, remove stems and leaves and chop (by cheese grater or food processor, DO NOT make into a paste). Place in a medium sized bowl and microwave 1 cup for 8 minutes into the microwave (the rest of the cauliflower, one head makes about 3 cups, can be saved for future crusts). Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Use a pizza or cookie pan and spray with olive oil or non stick cooking spray. Use this time to take your boneless skinless chicken and cut into small bite sized pieces. Place in a sauté pan at medium heat and cover (stir periodically to keep from burning). When the cauliflower is done cooking use the same bowl and add 1 egg and mix together thoroughly. Add 1 cup mozzarella cheese, garlic, garlic salt, oregano, and olive oil. Mix well. Scoop the mixture onto you pre-sprayed cookie sheet. Using your hands flatten the "dough" into about a 9inch area (should be pretty thin). Place in the oven for 13-15 minutes depending on how crispy you like it. While this is cooking remove lid from your chicken and cook off extra water in the pan (should be only a minute or so). Once the water has evaporated add 1/2 a bottle of your BBQ sauce and re-cover. Slice mushrooms and peppers, and chop olives. When your crust has finished cooking add the remainder of BBQ sauce (use your judgment on how much sauce you prefer) and spread over crust. Add cooked chicken, olives, peppers, and mushrooms over your pizza. Spread sharp cheddar cheese and the remainder of the mozzarella on the top and place back in the oven for approx 3 minutes or until cheese has melted. When it has finished in the oven sprinkle the chopped parsley over the pizza and you are done!
 The picture here is the first one I ever made, and unfortunately not the prettiest so I will have to take a better one for you all to see with step by step instructions when I have more time. For now this will have to do.

Happy Halloween!!

Just as I suspected, Halloween came by in a flash. I had started thinking of costume ideas back in the early summer months. I mentioned a few ideas to Adam and I remember laughing with him about how it was only summer and I was already trying to figure out Halloween costumes. I knew the time would fly by and soon Halloween would be upon us. Sure enough, it came and I still didn't have their costumes together. As most of you know, being parents is a blast and time passes in a blur. The last week before Halloween we flew around getting everything together for their outfits. The nice thing about their costumes this year, is that most of it is reusable items. That way most of what we spent the girls will still get use out of later on.

As you can see below. we dressed them as little old ladies. We took them to the old people home to visit their great grandpa and trick or treat at the assisted living center. We thought it was ironic and they all loved their costumes. Adam had to make their sweet little old lady walkers, but the rest of it was just picking the right pieces of clothing.

 

 

Their walkers were pretty simple, some pvc pipe, spray paint, and tennis balls.





We had their NICU reunion earlier in the month and they went as cabbage patch dolls, which I think were super cute!

What did your kiddos go as? Post your pictures below.

Sleep deprivation

They say the first year is the hardest, and in some ways they are right. Oh I thought I knew. People told me how hard it would be. But until you have two babies at once (premies at that), going through the same stages together, you just can't completely understand it. I thought I had been tired before in the past. I had no idea the meaning of the word. Being that my girlies were so small, I had to make sure they were fed every 3 hours (from the time they started feeding). I couldn't feed them together as they were so little I had to feed them a particular way and keep a close eye. It took about half hour each to feed them, they'd have to be changed, and held upright for at least 15 minutes each because of their reflux issues. Then we'd hope they didn't get their clothes all wet (due to the reflux issues) because then we'd have to carefully change them without upsetting their stomachs more.

Even with Adams help it was quite the task. It was a bit of a blur, by the time I finished with the second baby, it would be almost time to start again with the first. I was lucky to get an hour or two of sleep total the entire night. My body has never felt that way before. Every joint and muscle protested. It hurt to walk, even when I did try to sleep my joints would hurt. I felt like an old woman hobbling around. I would fall asleep on the floor in their bedroom because I would be too tired to walk to the room over. Poor Adam and I both were a hot mess. He would wake up frantic in the middle of the night thinking our pillow was one of the babies and he'd have to get the pillow cases off our "babies". I'd find pillows strewn about in the morning all stripped of their pillow cases. Even I'd wake up holding the pillow thinking I was holding one of the babies.

Even now that my girls are older, I still have my moments. They still have some sleepless nights from not feeling well, or when they are teething. More then once, I have found halfway through the day, that my underwear were indeed inside out. Just yesterday I went out with the pup on a rare morning alone, thinking I had my act all together like a boss. About halfway through my run, I realized that no, I in fact do not have my act together. You see, my shirt was on inside out.

It does get easier over time and eventually you get somewhat used to having less sleep. Also, having a good support group helps a lot. We have fun stories to tell looking back of all the crazy things that happened in our sleep deprived state. I can now see why they have used sleep deprivation in war, although I doubt that would work on any of us MoM's! We are strong women!

Adam and I are lucky that we have such good people in our lives. For ex: our parents would come over and help us with vacuuming or laundry, try to let us catch a nap, some people would bring by dinners for us. It is a lot of work, especially in the beginning, so don't be afraid to ask for a little help.

Now our girls are active little ones, always chattering, laughing, and all over the place. It was nice when they were so little and slept and snuggled. I am enjoying this stage they are in now too. They are exploring the world around them and it is awesome to watch. We got them some little baby chicks. I already can see the girls are very interested in them. I am looking forward to see them interacting with them as they get older.

We made it a year, and I've finally written my birth story.

As the birth of my girls approaches, it brings back many memories. Some of which are hard to share. I have been thinking about everything that happened a lot the last few weeks and am so glad I am here with my girls. I remember my doctor telling me the girls probably wouldn't go full term and wondering how on earth I would know when I was in labor. I remember that being one of my big questions, you hear so many different stories, ohhhh you'll know and you'll have plenty of time, but then someone else says how they delivered on the way to the hospital in the back of a car. With having twins, I was worried if I didn't make it to the hospital, what would happen? People were right though, you know your body better then you realize. When something isn't right, you will know.

Now whether or not you listen to what your body is telling you may be a different story. You see, I am a little stubborn sometimes. When someone else gets hurt I make sure they are all taken care of, insist on them going to the doctor or whatever is needed. If it is me, I usually say, nah I'm good, really. I never feel like what is wrong is a good enough reason to go to the doctor. I don't want to be one of those people that go for every little thing. Heck I cut off the hole outside of my finger and was bleeding excessively and wouldn't go to the doctor until the next day when my momma came over and made me.

The day before I had my girls I had been feeling horrid. I was at work and couldn't take it anymore, told them I felt like poop and was heading home. Of course my mom and husband mentioned maybe I should go to the doctor and I just knew they would tell me I was over reacting and was fine. To appease them when later that night, I still wasn't feeling better after resting, I called the on call doctor. As I assumed they told me I was probably fine, just a virus "keep your feet elevated and stay hydrated" they'd told me. I knew I wasn't sick. As a 28 year old woman I know my body well enough to know when I am getting a cold. This wasn't that. I'd felt like I had been run over by a semi multiple times. I took the on call docs advice and relaxed.

The next morning I woke up to my work alarm. I tried my best to get out of bed and get the move on to the bathroom to start getting ready. I could barely walk and make it in there. I woke Adam up and remember asking him if he thought I should still go to work. Smart man that he was said call your mom and see if she can come keep an eye on you (he had to go to work), have her take you to the hospital. I told him I'd see if she could come over, but didn't need to go to the hospital. I would wait until the doctors office opened and call to get an appointment for later in the day. He was very adamant that I not wait that long and just go to the hospital. I told him if nothing was wrong they would think I was silly and was still undecided. Stubborn woman that I am. After he left and my mom was on the way, my mind was very quickly decided.

God knowing me the way he does must have known I needed a little persuasion. Never in my life had I heard anything so clearly. I know about miracles, and have seen them in my life. But I've never been spoken to or gotten such a clear direct message from God before. He spoke to me. I physically heard him, it was not a feeling I got. I heard his voice and he told me I was going to the hospital the minute my mom got there. Not to wait. Not to go to the doctors office. I was going to the hospital. There was no doubt about the message, it was very clear and precise, and I knew it was God speaking to me.

On the way to the hospital I told my mom, "they are just going to tell me I am sick or have a virus, but I'm not sick, I know my body and something is wrong." I knew the time was here and the hospital was going to have to intervene. Something was wrong.

I got to the hospital around 8 and told the front desk something was wrong, I didn't know what but felt like I'd been run over. They sent me to a room, ran some tests, and found blood in my urine. "Ahhh so she must have a kidney stone" they'd said. They pounded me on the back a few times and realized that no, I did not have a kidney stone.  They strapped some heart rate monitors to each of the babies and that's when I found out I had been in labor. I was in shock, couldn't be, but there it was on the monitor showing the contractions. They shot me up with some medicines that would prepare the babies lungs if they came (which unfortunately it was too late at this point) and another to stop the labor. My doctor just happened to be at the hospital. She stopped in to tell me they were keeping me overnight so they could monitor me, everything should be fine, and she was on her way.

They rolled me in a wheel chair to my overnight room and started hooking me up to the monitors in that room. I had called Adam and told him how they were keeping me overnight. He was going to come by after work and bring me anything I needed. I hadn't had time to pack anything that morning. Heck I was still in my sweats, sports bra and a T. All I had with me was my purse and phone.

Now you should know all of this happened in a very quick time frame. Once I was hooked up I remember the nurses watching the screens. I'll never forget these words. The nurse very randomly and strangely asked me "How far is your husband?" "Well he's at work, so maybe 15 minutes away?" and the only response I got was a strange look and "Ohhhhh" I called Adam and didn't know how to say it but asked if he could come to the hospital, "Sure" he'd said, "let me just finish up here and I'll head that way in a bit.

I didn't know what to make of her comment. Should I be worried? By the look on her face, most definitely. My mom, noticing the chaos, had called Adam again, and told him to get down there as fast as he could. Meanwhile, my specialist shows up, practically out of thin air. Next thing I know her and the nurses were running me as fast as they could down the halls on the hospital bed. It was something out of a movie. They rammed me into several walls, not caring about anything but getting me into that emergency room. I am panicked, what is going on? What is wrong? Obviously when I arrived in the surgery room I put two and two together.

There I laid, with a crowded room full of nurses, anesthesiologists, my specialist, etc. Everyone was yelling, bright lights were shining down on me. They were rolling me here and their poking and prodding at me. I remember someone saying "I'm sorry, normally we would explain what is going on, but we just don't have time." My doctor didn't arrive until a few minutes later. Finally I recognized someone in the room. I lay there on that table all alone, not knowing what was going on as chaos had erupted. My doctors were shouting over the nurses scrambling around, do we put her under? Do we let her stay awake? Should we let her husband or mom in? The arguments ensued.

At this point I had no idea where my mother was, or if my husband had even known what was going on. I didn't know my mother had called him. I didn't know he was flying down the highway to get there; That the front desk girl had waited for him and ran him down the halls as fast as they could go. I didn't know any of that. My mom was in a gown outside in case he couldn't make it, but that didn't matter because they hadn't decided if anyone could come in yet anyways.

As the team around me quickly discussed their plan, and rushed around in preparation, I realized I was dying. I knew it in my heart. I was only 29 weeks and everything around me pointed to that conclusion. I was going to die on that table surrounded by strangers, all alone, while my loved ones were out there somewhere with no idea what was happening other then my mom. So as I laid there I did the only thing I could. I prayed that Jesus would save my babies. That he would get them out safely and that they would be okay. I knew they would have a rough start and journey ahead, but I prayed that his angels would be there to protect them, to keep them safe, and help them to grow healthy. That's all I wanted. I made peace with the fact I was dying, just as long as my babies would be okay.

As the process continued they kept asking if I knew who I was, what my name was, can you feel us poking you? - yes. How about now? Do you feel sick? Are you going to throw up? Do you know a real tall guy with a beard and can he come in? Adam had finally arrived. Thankfully they kept me awake during the surgery, and had allowed him entrance. Unbeknownst to me, he had arrived just after they cut me open, and got a full view of what was taking place. They had put up a curtain if you will so I couldn't see the details. They placed the tiniest stool I'd seen for Adam and told him not to move. He sat next to me as I squeezed his hand. Thankful to finally have him there.

Up until that point the anesthesiologist had tried to calm me down, and I'll always be grateful for how kind he was to me. After a bit, I started to look around and Adam quickly stopped me. Knowing me the way he does, he warned me not to look to focus on him. Looking back, I realized shortly after the anesthesiologist had moved to my left side blocking my view. That was where my buckets of blood, tissue, and all the unpleasantries were on full display. Unfortunately, I had already looked up and seen my blood on the lights above. My doctor later told me that I was a bleeder. She had a bit of trouble getting some of it to stop.

It took them a full two extra minutes to get "Baby B" out. My uterus had decided to clamp down on her and wasn't letting go. She  had to cut vertically up my uterus to get to her and pull her out. She was pretty bruised after all of it and had lost a lot of blood. You see, my placenta had torn away and I was bleeding to death internally. That is why the blood had been in my urine. Where it tore away was next to her and she was the one losing the blood with me the quickest. Her heart rate had started to drop on the monitor and that is what alerted my medical team. Had I waited, and went to the doctors office later in the day, had I done anything different and not went right in, I am certain I wouldn't be here today. I went to the hospital at 8am, and the girls were out just after 10am. My mom later told me as she waited outside of the surgery room, a chaplain had came up to her and asked to pray with her. That was when it hit her the most how very serious this was.

Was it a miracle that there just happened to be a team of NICU nurses in from Children's Hospital that day? One for each of my babies? Was it a miracle that my specialist happened to be there, and my doctor was already at the hospital for another reason? For such chaos, and an emergency, I couldn't have asked for things to be so perfect, and just as it needed to be under those conditions. So if you ask me, Yes, it was a miracle, and I can see God's hand in it all.

I am so thankful I listened and went in. We had a rough start, but my girls are now big and healthy. They are in the middle to upper range on the growth chart, even though they were so small. They have mostly caught up, chattering non-stop and attempting to walk. No one would guess now that these two spent 10 weeks in the NICU fighting to be here. But they are my FIGHTERS, they are STRONG, and I am blessed to have their smiling, sweet faces here with me. When something so traumatic happens in life, one is never the same. I have a different view on the world now, and know every day, and every minute is a precious gift from God. Never take it for granted. Don't sweat the small things. Stay positive and don't waste time arguing and fighting over the stupid stuff. You never know what tomorrow holds.

-Katie

Diaper Rashes

Well it certainly has been a while since I have last posted. My two littles have been keeping me busy along with working. Recently one of my babes had a double ear infection. The doctor prescribed the typical antibiotic and on our way we went. Luckily for us I caught it very early. She never runs a fever so when she was over 100 degrees I knew something wasn't right and took her in. My sweet girl is such a trooper. The medicine has been a little hard on her stomach and even though we diligently checked her diapers just to be safe, she still started getting a little red.  As diaper rashes are so common and people are always searching for the best product to help their kiddos, I will share this magical concoction with you all. It is really quite simple. I was suspicious about the mix when the doctors office suggested it, but let me tell you, it worked wonders and very quickly. I saw a major improvement by the next morning.
First, get a small rubbermaid/food container with a lid to mix and store it in.
Aquaphor healing diaper rash ointment

Maalox/antacid (I used the generic/off-brand which worked just fine)

Mix these two at equal parts. Start with the Aquaphor which will be more of a gel consistency and mix with the Maalox, which is a liquid. You will need to slowly stir in the Maalox to get the two to mix properly. Once you are done, store it in a refrigerator to help hold consistency. Use after every diaper change.

 

UPDATE:

 

I had to make some more of this magic potion recently and have taken step by step pictures for you to follow.

 

Start with a medium small Rubbermaid with a lid to store it in.

 

 

I got the off brand of Maalox but it works just as good (and yes they only had mint haha)

 

Pop the cap off the Aquaphor, it makes it quicker to get out. I had my husband get the last of it out for me. As you can see I got the 3oz Aquaphor which means you use approx. 6 tablespoons of Maalox.

As you can see there really isn't as much as you'd think in the tube, but it's plenty for what we need.

I added about half of the Maalox mix (as pictured below)

and started mixing,

 

and mixing, annnnd mixing. This can take awhile.

add the last of the Maalox and finish mixing it together.

It will still be a little runny but that's okay.

 

I took a picture of my last batch below. That is what it looks like after it has time to set up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Years, New Me blah

Ahh, it is time again for all this new year, new me nonsense. We all know the story too well. Our newsfeeds are filled with all the excitement of how our lives will be different this year. Anyone who is a regular at the gym will see the machines swamped and fresh faces about. Give it a few months and all will be back to normal. Personally I'm not much for making new years resolutions. You shouldn't need a date to change to want to better yourself. We should always be setting new goals and finding new ways to better ourselves. If you do make a resolution, make it something attainable. Most people start the year out with these lofty goals and then fade back to their routines as a little time passes. Don't go on a crazy diet. Yo-yoing is hard on your organs. From what I've seen, typically when someone wants to lose weight, they think they have to completely cut out everything unhealthy all at once. Ideally that is where you should aim to get, eventually, but it doesn't have to be all at once today. When you go from eating whatever you want, to a super strict diet people tend to go a little crazy. It becomes all they think about which makes them stressed (which can add weight) and when you are only thinking about food, you only want to eat even more.  Make simple lifestyle changes to eat healthier and do a little more then the day before. Maybe today you'll take a few extra steps then yesterday, take the stairs instead of the elevator. Instead of ordering that hamburger, get a salad. Take one day at a time and over a period of time it will become habit. I've been watching as a weight loss challenge is going on around me. From what I have noticed, those who are just taking it one day at a time, staying disciplined, and are just aiming to live better  are doing better then the ones "dieting." My husband for instance has lost 15lbs this month from cutting out soda and making healthier food choices. He isn't doing any crazy workouts, just trying to take a few more steps each day then sitting in front of the TV. Make health your priority by living a healthy life, not by trying the newest fad. You want these changes to last a lifetime.