Rollin Rollin Rollin

December was extremely busy filled with all things holiday and that includes the nightmares of travel. The month started with Brian traveling overseas only this time we planned appropriately. My good friend Cathy scheduled her visit for the exact time that Brian was out of town.

Mall Santa - We took the kids to the mall to have their photo taken with Santa and because I have twins who crank easily we decided to get there during the weekday as soon as Santa was available. We were thrilled to find no one in the Santa line and only twelve other people in the entire mall!

Travel - Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Chicago and Seattle again. Five flights for four days in Pittsburgh. We had a great time trying to visit with everyone and look forward to the next trip. Almost amazingly we kept the girls on the Seattle sleep schedule. The only glitch was TSA leaving Pittsburgh. We had six sealed bottles of baby formula that they demanded be opened before proceeding to the gate! For those who don't know the liquid formula must be refrigerated within an hour otherwise it's worthless and guess what our flights would take longer than an hour. TSA opened every bottle to find nothing and Brian "the resourceful one" was able to locate a cooler and plead for ice from a restaurant near the terminal.

Christmas Celebration - The eve of Christmas was spent downtown Seattle at the candlelighting service at Unity Church. The service was great and the music was excellent but we never heard a word! Brian had Michaela and I had Samantha. Michaela was displaying a rare act of fussiness so Brian decided to bounce her on his knee. Michaela responded with a loud burp which normally would go unnoticed however there was a pause in service so it rippled throughout the church. Outside of that it seemed as if we worked harder trying to keep them quiet as opposed to listening. Christmas morning with the girls was great, there were apparently very good girls! Christmas day was spent tag teaming to keep two infants happy and attempting to prepare for guests. I must say I think we managed pretty well.

Both girls have managed to roll from their tummy to their back, I think primarily out of frustration. They are growing and growing and gaining weight at a slow pace but nothing to be concerned about.

Michaela update - She is getting more and more hair only it's growing straight up so it's spikey. She is able to hold things in her hand and instinctively will bring it to her mouth. She is binky proud and has the thing in her mouth almost all the time, unless she is preoccupied and playing.

Samantha update - The girl is just too cute. She's not really growing a lot of hair but she sure is strong. She wants to do nothing more than stand and bobble (just like the bobble head dolls). Her vocal cords are also strong and getting stronger with each new squeal. What was once a lot of crying has evolved into a competition (with herself) of trying to squeal louder than the previous attempt. It's actually quite funny until she turns (2) and the habit hasn't stopped.

A Busy November

I can't believe November is just about over and another month has passed in a nanosecond. The good news is that a lot of things occurred this month so the time has not been wasted.

Hearing Tests - Both girls failed the hearing test that was initially completed as newborns. They passed one ear but not the other, so we were told to have their hearing tested again. This time the hearing test was completed at Children's Hospital. The good news is that they passed, so we can move on to stressing about something else (nothing in particular just....everything)!

Our Maui Vacation - Have you ever considered taking two babies less than 3 months old on a plane for approximately 5 hours. Well you should. The girls were great they had bottles or pacifiers during takeoff and landing, a couple inaudible cries here and there but otherwise stupendous. The only screaming came from the toddler seated in the next isle over!

Rock Star Treatment - as is typical when going anywhere with twins babies, we were greeted like rock stars. TSA was jumping over counter tops in security to help us with this or that. Singleton parents giving us dirty looks because they didn't receive the same treatment. People commenting (both positive and negative) as you walk by, some stopping you to catch a closer glance, others holding up foot traffic to ogle and explain exactly what personalities the girls will have as young adults after observing for a mere minute and a half. The responses were utterly amazing, one couple thought surely, we had won a trip to Maui - as if traveling with children (and no grandparents or help) would be out of the question. Another couple (parents of a 6 month old beautiful little girl named Aubrey) bought us dessert out of sympathy and appreciation.

Gobble Gobble - It was the night before turkey when we returned to Seattle. The next day we started out for the grueling 45 second walk to our neighbors for a holiday treat. The Fortner Family was gracious enough to invite Samantha and Michaela, unfortunately for the Fortner's, the parents joined in. It was a great Thanksgiving filled with yummy food, great company, good drink, more yummy food and of course Xbox - Guitar Hero! Thank you Paul, Laura, Sydney and Brynn for a memorable Thanksgiving.

Stay tuned for next month when the girls travel to Pittsburgh. Pictures from November are now online.

No More Preemie Diapers

Once a month seems like a long time to wait for updates. I'll try and post twice a month. The girls are doing well both have gained over two pounds each and they are growing so fast. We ponder the size and development of other children and can't believe that we'll eventually be at that point. A year seems so far away and on the other hand it feels so near. Both girls have outgrown the Preemie XS diapers & the regular Preemie diapers. They now wear newborn size diapers and the NICU clothing no longer fits. YEAH!

This month we are opening up and letting people cuddle and hold the girls. We are also out and about every week shopping or going to the Dr. or having lunch with friends. We've been doing so well that we allowed Brian to go to Taipei for 4 days. It was hard for him to be away but we sent pictures 20 times a day which helped (a little). The alone time with the girls was unforgettable but we were oh so happy for Brian's homecoming.

The biggest thing is that we introduced a pacifier. I hate pacifiers for a whole lot of ridiculous reasons but a wise women said it would be easier to ween them from a pacifier as opposed to their hands. After a lot of thought and consideration and a few rough days and nights with the girls, we agreed to try it. Samantha loves it and Michaela is off and on about it. Oh well whatever keeps the family happy, right?

Michaela: This girl is strong! No more frog leg cuddles for this one (unless she is tired) she can push from any surface under her feet and stretch out completely. She also likes to yell and talk or babble (whichever you choose). Michaela is starting to smile more often but mostly she keeps to the questioning facial expressions. She was a super star eater and now who knows what happened. She'll eat but not like she did last month we are lucky if she takes more than 2 ounces and last month she was easily taking 3+ ounces in 15 to 20 minutes.

Samantha: She feels so tiny but she'll surprise you. When on tummy time she can pick up and turn her head to either side and she is working hard at holding her head when she is upright. Samantha is a little more delicate on her feet, but still not a slacker. She smiles all the time and her eyes are always so bright. Brian said she laughed out loud the first week of October. Last week Samantha had her hips checked because she was delivered breech the results are good and all appears to be fine.

Photos - There are updates to the gallery titled Babies October 2007.

Halloween Candy - Plug for Larry!

If you are looking for Halloween candy for all the trick or treaters at the end of this month visit the candy website listed to the right. It's great if you like to hand out full size candy bars.

The First Month

Can you believe it's been a month. Time flies when you're watching the clock for the next feeding.

Aside from sleep exhaustion all is well in the family. The babies exceeded their birth weight and Brian & I are working to get them big and strong for their next Pediatrician visit. When we initially brought them home we were finger feeding them through a syringe but we are way beyond that now. They nurse and take bottles. It's great because their flexibility allows Brian to takeover when he gets home till about midnight while I try and sleep. We are still feeding them every three hours and it's nice when (almost every time) we wake them to eat (rather than hear them cry for food). On rare occasions they will test our ability and tag team us or either one of them may take forever to eat or burp. If we have a good feeding it will take me no less than an hour and a half assuming I make an effort to express milk for the girls.

Initially it took Brian and I about four days to get some sort of schedule worked out that would work for all of us. Now it's about trying to find time for visitors, sleep and time when I can eat and drink fluids. Not to mention the list of things we need to keep in mind to keep the babies healthy, it's enough to make any parent at least a little neurotic.

Differences: They are not identical, Michaela is larger than Samantha and she has larger facial features. Samantha has smaller eyes and her hair is a lighter color brown. Samantha's eyes are hazel and Michaela's are dark blue. Michaela's upper lip is more defined and her hair is a darker brown.

There is a new group of photos titled Babies September 2007.

WOW - Twins

We are now officially a family of four. We are proud to present Michaela Rose & Samantha Marie Bozlinski . Michaela was born at 3:00pm and Samantha at 3:01pm on Sunday, September 2nd, 2007. Michaela was 4lbs 13oz and Samantha was 4lbs 3oz.

Check out the dotphoto link to the right for updated photos.

For those who want to know - We started on Sunday rather than Saturday. LABOR was a breeze. We got things moving around 9:30am...a few pushes at the end and done. Labor was the easy part. Recovery on the other hand has been more difficult, especially after being on bedrest for way too long. Either way I feel a whole lot better than I did Sunday night.

Thank you to Dr. Easterling (the best Dr. we could have ever asked for) Nurse JB, Nurse Mary (helped me greatly during the labor process). Great job Mary! Also, thank you to the anesthesiologist (again very grateful) and everyone who helped us through delivery and our antipartum stays.

More special thanks - To our neighborhood (for all the attention, generosity and care during the entire process) to all those who have called, emailed and have sent gifts. Thank you cards are a bit delayed.

That's it for now - gotta get ready for the next feeding. We'll try to keep everything as updated as possible.

The Last Week of Pregnancy

Brian has recently gone through a nesting phase and just in time. Last week he was continuiously running around to make sure everything is perfect for the arrival of the girls.


Today we found out that the arrival is no longer a big ????. We will be induced on Saturday, September 1st. That takes us to almost 36 weeks and puts us into September. Now....unless these girls make an executive decision to abandon the plan the Dr. has laid out, we will be parents on Saturday. Brian and I are both really excited to see them and count their fingers and toes to make sure everything is really ok!

The babies are going to be pretty small and they will need to be in the NICU for a little while but we are hopeful their stay will be short. Based on the ultrasound from yesterday they may still be under 4lbs. The decision to induce was made because of their size and my blood pressure continuing to creep upward.

The two photos. The first is a photo from the ultrasound yesterday. It's a profile of each girl facing each other. The other photo which is probably a little easier to recognize is the last photo of my belly taken this past Sunday 8/26/07.

That's the update for now - the next update with be the baby arrival announcement. Stay tuned!!!

34 Weeks and 5 Days

This photo was taken in the hospital the day after we were admitted. We were admitted on 8/21/07 after a scheduled Dr. Visit. My blood pressure was running a little higher than normal and the babies are really trying to find a way out (unless you are or have ever been pregnant you don't want the details).

This photo is a belly measuring 43 weeks (we are measured as if we were having one). Let's just hope Mark my trainer can bring me back to normal after all this.

The staff believes that Brian and I will be parents within the next two weeks. That means the original plan of going full term (for twins) is not highly likely. We are still holding out for September Birthdays if at all possible.

As you can see we are not hooked up to any IV's. The babies heartbeats are monitored twice daily and I am self medicating with Terbutaline (helps to slow the contractions). We are due to have an ultrasound on Monday so we'll throw out another update then.

34 Weeks and Counting

Today marks 34 weeks of being pregnant. The original belly photo that was posted is now removed due to the humiliation I will suffer when I come to my senses. This photo is from 8/4/07 when I was playing around in the nursery. Who would have thought we could make it this far when we were first hospitalized at 27 weeks.

We are happy to make it this far, but we are really hoping for another couple weeks so the girls can come home with us rather than stay in the hospital.

To check out the latest nursery photos and a couple other albums go to http://jenalyn.dotphoto.com/

All About The Babies

This will be the site where you can get all updates to the family. Our new soon to be expected arrivals, photos and family happenings. Thank you for visiting.