B, Grandma and A

A, B and Grandma
Originally uploaded by arlal.

Linda and A

Linda and A
Originally uploaded by arlal.

The New Family

Babies
Originally uploaded by arlal.

Baby A and Baby B

Cyd and Dave's twin boys arrived this morning about 9:30 a.m. Baby A was first out and weighed 4 pounds, 6 ounces. Baby B soon followed with a birth weight of 5 pounds, 12 ounces. They look almost alike or at least they will when Baby A can catch up to big brother.

We have been waiting for these boys for eight years and planning for their arrival for the last 9 months but they still have no names. Cyd thought when she saw them she'd know what their names should be but so far the names have not come to her.

They both have blond, curly hair and look very pink and round. I'm sure there will be plenty of photos on this site soon. The most important thing about them is that they are healthy and strong.

They will be staying at Swedish Hospital until Sunday and then be home trying to teach grandma about how to spoil them equally. I hope we'll have some helpful visitors stopping by often.

Contacts

Miles is looking around and staring at lights. I'm not sure if he's had a good look at everyone yet but he's working on it. The contacts don't seem to bother him and he's such a good baby.

So we are ready for Christmas almost. Today Anna Marie is 40 and my gift to her is a good night's sleep. I will stay up with Miles and feed him every 90 minutes when he demands food. That's his schedule not mine. I did this routine once a few days ago and it's a piece of cake especially when I leave at 6 a.m. and go home to bed.

Cydney is scheduled for her c-section and the arrival of her twin boys at 9 a.m. on December 29th. They will be at 36 weeks on that date so they should be ready to make an appearance. Right now one boy seems to be growing faster than the other. I am on my way there on Christmas morning so we will all be ready.

We have gifts wrapped and decorations up so Santa will be here soon. I know we have received a few early gifts.

Lucas and his playground

Lucas and his playground
Originally uploaded by arlal.

Lucas and Mommy

Lucas and Mommy
Originally uploaded by arlal.

Great-Grandma and Miles

Great-Grandma and Miles
Originally uploaded by arlal.

And then there was light

Dr. Nye was the angel who swooped down and opened Miles’ eye so that light could reach the retina. She tells us the eye does appear to be functioning but until the second eye is done on Monday the first eye will remain patched. An adult size eye shield covers most of Miles’ face.

We also learned that he will receive contacts on December 22 and these will remain on both eyes for one month at a time. After the first month we can all be trained in this procedure. I’m sure there will be a few lost contacts.

Miles and mom spent the night at Sacred Heart but they will be home this morning. Mom can drive again so I think they have plans to get a Christmas tree. Lucas needs a place to put the presents you know.

Here's Miles at 1 Week

Here's Miles at 1 Week
Originally uploaded by arlal.

Against All Odds

This has been an emotional week since Miles arrived. We discovered several hours after his birth that he has bilateral congenital cataracts. Within days things began rolling toward their remediation and he is now set for surgery on December 15th when the first eye will have the cataract removed followed by the second eye one week later.

Lucas has been seen by Dr. Ney, a pediatric ophthalmologist, who happened to specialize in cataracts as a resident. She and Miles’ parents are on first name basis and besides that she’s from Montana. The fact that we have this nice, competent physician is very reassuring.

Lucas has been kind to his brother. He pops up and says, “Hi, Miles" whenever he gets a chance. We have lots of snow and ice so Lucas has been busy playing outside after his five hours of preschool.

Right now things are busy as Anna Marie won’t be able to drive until December 15th. So far there's been an appointment each day but maybe things will slow down soon.

Cyd is resting at home and though she is uncomfortable a good deal of the time, she is doing well with those growing babies. So far so good.

Miles Ellison Lewis

He was having none of that scheduled delivery stuff so he entered the world at 3:20 a.m. this morning. Anna Marie hates changes to her schedule like this but she slipped on the ice last night about 8:45 and I guess that started the whole thing. She had a concussion and was seen at the ER and given a CAT scan. She was sent home about 11:30 and then less than an hour later she discovered she needed to be back at the hospital. Lucas went with me while I dropped mom and dad there and we stayed home while all the excitement was happening. Brett reports Anna Marie and Miles are doing well. I'm sure the GU students who get to skip Anna Marie's classes today are doing well also.