lunch with the danz family...

Patrick & Henry...

Sydney really wanted to feed Sullivan...

She almost had it right....

I think she was wondering why he was being so difficult! :)

An attempt at a group shot.... ha!

I really think the girls wanted to help out with the boys... it was sweet...they would check on them, try to feed them, and offer them a toy or two...they are going to make fabulous big sisters!

Yet, another attempt!

From Left to Right... Avery, Henry, Sullivan (who is quite mad..) & Sydney!

Steve & Sullivan enjoy walkin' around...

Today we visited Steve, Danielle, Sydney & Avery for lunch at their house in Alexandria. We enjoyed an afternoon of babies, laughs and a fantastic lunch!

a very good report....

Yesterday late afternoon we went to physical therapy for Sullivan...it turns out all of our hard work is paying off FAST! His therapist was amazed at his flexibility..range of motion, neck position etc. I guess when you do a stretching routine 8 + times a day... change happens! Pretty cool. Sullivan also wanted to show off a bit and he rolled over unassisted for the first time during his session...that was fun to see!

Friday we get fitted for his DOC band.... hopefully he will make fast progress there too.

Today Patrick's mom will be visiting after she gets off from work... that will be fun... the boys are excited! We like visitors!

its been a week...

Oops... its been a week since my last post...that's a first for me...I am usually pretty good. Things have been ultra busy and I have lots to post! I just wanted to drop a quick note in case you check in and wonder if what we're up to!
Right now I am enjoying watching Henry & Sullivan jump and play in their new jumping toys.

Oh, by the way Henry rolled over yesterday unassisted.. very impressive!

a sunday in georgetown with scott!

sullivan... all ready to go!

this is how we roll!

Patrick & Sullivan enjoying the sunshine!

Scott, me & the little men...

The best cupcakes pretty much ever I think.... so good! The line only took 20 min..not so bad!

Patrick & Sullivan at Dean & Deluca

Scott & Henry (we think they look alike... :)

So Scott was in town to do some work on Capitol Hill this week so we had a chance to meet up in Georgetown... the weather was absolutely perfect and it was fantastic catching up.

Catching up with Karen...

We almost forgot to take a picture! That explains why this is taken in a parking garage... Henry was sleeping so we snuck a picture with Sullivan who decided to stay awake! We met up at Tysons II for a few hours... this girl and I could have talked for three weeks to catch up! It had been way too long!

march birthday dinner @ the dunnes...

Chris, Erin & Sullivan...

Henry & his grammy d.

a very tired Henry ... almost time to go home...

Sullivan talking to Nana (Patrick's grandma)..this was pretty funny..

physical therapy...

Today we went to our first session of physical therapy for Sullivan's neck.... it went really well. We learned several stretches that will help his torticollis...we will need to do the series of stretches at least 8 times a day in addition to weekly therapy sessions at the hospital. Our therapist's name is Jeannie...she was really good with Sullivan and let Henry join in too... we didn't want him to feel left out. Basically, I learned by watching her stretch Sullivan and practicing on Henry... lucky him! I guess it will get easier as I learn the stretches and he gets used to stretching. We had some tears today but not as many as when I stretch him at home...we learned how to stretch him so that he has some fun in the process. They predict he will need to be in therapy for 4-6 months to treat the tight muscles. If it goes untreated it can lead to some significant motor delays. We don't want that. Our neurologist appointment got moved until Friday of this week it was supposed to be Wednesday... Tomorrow we go to Cranial Technologies for our 3-D images of Sullivan's head.... these will be needed in order for them to make his DOC band. Any who... that is the update from here...
oh, if you are reading this now and wonder what all of this means you can go back and read a past post titled "perks of being baby a"... enjoy!

a week with grammy b...

my mom & henry...

my mom & sullivan

enjoying both boys @ once!

sullivan leaning back! he loves the jumping & spinning toys....

bright & early he starts playing before anyone else is awake!

poor henry is covered in drool....

and so is sullivan....should have put on a bib...oops.

here he goes again...

so tired.

a very early morning nap on g'mas lap!

sweet henry napping before he had even gotten dressed for the day... tired boy!

sweet potatoes... naked!

So, we tried sweet potatoes...they didn't cry...so I can say it went over a little better than the oatmeal and the rice cereal... we are now on day three of it so we need to decide what we will introduce next! My favorite part so far is watching sullivan have full body movements/convulsions while eating because he is filled with so much excitement... and watching henry chew the liquid food...he thinks he needs to chew...the poor guy has no teeth!

sydney & avery...two of our friends

syndey

avery

both girls (twins) were born just short of one year before the boys...

today we got to meet danielle (the mom), sydney & avery at tysons... it was nice to see them & catch up...it's been too long! danielle & I met a few years ago when she was a principal intern at parklawn elementary (where I worked as a counselor)... anyway we've been close ever sense...she is a fantastic friend and an even more amazing mom... these are two very lucky girls.

the perks of being baby A...

We've learned a lot in the last week about issues that can arise when you're lucky enough to be baby A! :) We found out Sullivan has Torticollis and Plagiocephaly. Basically, Sullivan has occipital and frontal flattening, a slight ear shift and bi-temporal flattening as a result of being baby A. Baby A (Sullivan) was head down and in my pelvis for months without the ability to move freely as Baby B (Henry) was able to do throughout their residency in utero! This position resulted in torticollis, tightening of the neck muscles so he slightly tilts his head to the left. So, based on that we will treat the muscular issues with physical therapy and to correct the "structural issues" we will purchase a DOC Band. Basically it looks like a white plastic helmet...but it isn't really a helmet of the sorts that I'm sure you are thinking. It is to help his head correct itself by encouraging growth in some areas while slowing growth in others... We want Sullivan to be as happy and healthy as possible so we have decided to go forward with this. He will wear the DOC Band 23 hours each day for approximately three months...might be shorter or longer but that is the average. In case you want to read about treatments or other cases you can visit http://www.cranialtechnologies.com/. We will keep you updated with the progress and of course more pictures of our little man as he sports his new "hat"!

Dr. Nies...we love you!

I know this pictures is from week 6 (post baby) but I wanted to include it. Dr. Nies is a very special person and an amazing Perinatologist. She performs a mean cerclage and a fantastic c-section (I'm convinced I have the world's smallest most precise scar ever)! Yes, I know all of this from personal experience. She also put up with me for two, yes, two pregnancies...one longer than the other (and with very different outcomes) she truly deserves a medal! Patrick and I attended each weekly appt. with a million questions....two million "what ifs" and she answered each one and put us as such ease with the truth...very direct medical answers...NEVER rushing us out of her office and even cheered us on as I/we hit pregnancy week milestones! She's a fabulous cheerleader too! She has a wonderful team at the office... Laura, the nurses, Dr. Bronsky, Dr. Khoury and Dr. Al-kouatly too! I actually miss them and all the drama/laughs that ensued... not that they miss me by ANY means but they were a huge part of my support system and I miss em! I think it's time for a visit...

lunch with grammy b... what a treat!

henry...

sullivan and his mouse...

We took advantage of this amazing weather and went out to lunch with my mom (who is in town from Washington state)... we found a gluten free pizza place and ate outside... YUM! The boys were on their best behavior and got to wear shorts! They were real sweeties...

a play date with ann....

henry is wearing ann's sunglasses....i think we need a pair!

lee and sullivan touring around...

sweet ann...what a good friend...

sullivan playing with a purple boa...he so thought this was funny!


we had a nice visit with lee, rob & ann this Saturday morning... we went on a nice walk with our new stroller... at one point we had three crying babies and staring neighbors but it was a memorable day - in a very good way!

playing around...

sullivan watching the excitement...

henry is always observing...

henry working hard on the jumping...

singing....

sweet little hands...i couldn't resist!

he was sitting so nicely...all grown up!

jump, jump, jump...(I promised pictures!)

Henry is taking this new activity very seriously...

now he's having a little fun!

I wish you could have heard this guy...he was squealing - so cute!

takin a breather... so funny to watch!