MSPI Day 1

Abby and Feebee are chasing eachother around the house. Abby has an orange ball that Feebee wants and they take turns playing. It's pretty cute to watch, though a little hectic. I had been thinking about getting Feebee a new home because I thought she would just be too much work. This probably won't happen now, her and Abby entertain each other too well. Abs likes to be chased... and I don't always have time to be the chaser.

We are on day 1 of the MSPI diet.

Breakfast: Quaker Oatmeal with frozen blueberries and a tsp of brown sugar; rice milk
Lunch: Fish Fillets and a cup of applesauce
Snack: Apples, Carrots & Fritos (had to have at least ONE good junk food) oh... and of course my coffee with a little rice milk and sugar.
Supper: Sweet Scrumptious Skillet Chicken , Rice and Peaches.

I attempted to make some home made, bread machine ... bread... but I'm not sure if my yeast was old... or if the recipe I used just wasn't good... but it didn't really rise as well as it should. It has been awhile since I made fresh bread so it's possible I just 'messed it up'... it couldn't possibly be because I was taking care of 2 infants & a toddler... while getting supper ready...

My mom came and watched the girls this afternoon while I went and got my oil changed. My brother works at a local shop and he did it for me. It was nice, we were able to have a decent, uninterrupted conversation for 20 minuets. I haven't had such a nice chat in a long time. Guess I should get my oil changed more often!

When I came home I went to get the mail and GASP! New mailbox! Tom hadn't told me that he bought & installed a new mailbox. I literally did a double take and had to check to make sure I was looking in the correct mailbox! The mailman was probably equally pleased. Our old one had a nasty habit of opening up and blowing in rain, snow and other things into it. I once found my CPR recertification card a block away... eep.

***Drumroll***................ I got my Beco!!!!! I haven't been excited about something I've purchased in so long! I hope it gets here soon! I managed to find one on sale for 100 dollars (shipping included in that price) ... a whopping 50 bucks cheaper then  the original price. (if you don't know what a Beco is... it's an infant/toddler carrier) It will help me feel closer to each baby, and the best part is that we can use it with Abby too if needed! It can hold up to 45 pounds and is a back and front carrier. The print below is what I got. As soon as it comes I will take a picture of us using it so that you can get a better look.

Well babies cry... as Abby says. I might have to continue this little entry after Tom gets home. I think Kara is done eating and wants to go to sleep now.

Peek!

For a moment I thought to myself "If only there were more hours in the day"... wait... am I crazy? I'm tired enough as it is already! Things around here these last few days have been a little tough and though I came on here to write I just couldn't seem to put a few thoughts together. I know there will be hard times with this journey, and I guess that is how we appreciate the good times.

We have a new garbage disposal and programmable thermostat! (How is that for rough transitions...) No more leaking nasty, stinky water into a bucket under the sink! Tom installed both of them last night and he did a great job. Abby kept bringing him tools so that she could 'help.'

My mom and I had taken the girls shopping yesterday afternoon. I didn't get much but oh was it nice to just browse around the mall, show off my twins... spend 20ish minuets in a dressing room trying to get the babies fed. You can about imagine how funny it was to see me shove a double stroller in a tiny dressing room. But I got the door closed! (victory) The small victories are important. We also stopped for a quick snack in the mall food court and we enjoyed Moolattes while Abby munched on a hotdog. I tried to enjoy mine as it will be my last one in awhile.

Yeah .... I admit it. I went on a bit of a dairy favorite food binge. I had 2 cups of coffee, several glasses of milk, cheese... butter on my pancakes... you get the picture. Tomorrow I start the dreaded diet.

Well K&K are crying and it's after 11. I should get to bed so I can get some sleep. They've been sleeping with us the last few nights which can get quite crowded. It's allowed me a little more sleep though which made for a better day today for me. But... it's bedtime...

Abby was playing peek a boo in the car with me on the way home...she was so cute... and even with how tough things have been at times. Being a mom is the greatest job ever.

Feeling Trapped

I wish I were stronger.

It's just hard right now.

Badgers Badgers Badgers

Well here is the 2nd go around on this update thing. Yesterday I was just so exhausted from lugging around two 10 pounders around in their car seats and not getting a good night's rest.

I'm working hard on trying to get myself excited about this MSPI diet thing. I found two great blogs where other moms have posted recipes without soy, dairy and even options for other food allergy mommas. Right now I'm making a list of Main Meals, Breakfast, Snacks... etc that I can make. Then I'm making up next weeks meals so that I can go into the grocery store with my list, grab exactly what I need and then work on making those meals on Sunday when Tom is home to help me with the kiddos. At Walmart we found some containers that Ziploc makes with separate compartments where I can put together whole meals and then put them in the freezer if there is something we like!

The positive outlook: We will be eating hardly any processed and/or junk foods.
The negative outlook: I have to be very careful that I eat enough calories to provide enough milk for the girls and so that I don't lose too much weight myself ,AND the foods that I buy will be more expensive and harder to find.

Kiley found her fist the other day :o) She was sucking away on it and had this excited look on her face that screamed "Look what I can do mom!!" They were both just completely exhausted from all of our adventures yesterday. We tried the Neocate formula bottle last night. Kiley fell asleep before she could get her chance at it and Kara only drank an ounce. They aren't as happy with the Dr. Brown bottles as they were with the Soothie ones (The Soothies are shaped like their pacifiers). I hate to throw away the extra formula because the cans cost 50 dollars a piece. Dr. D wrote me prescriptions for each girl so that if we decide to move them onto the formula our insurance will help pay for the special stuff. We would be in trouble if we had to pay for it ourselves. It could cost 200 dollars a month per girl! (How do people do it?)

I even managed to get their Prevacid down into them this morning... of course it's a tricky timing issue. They need to take it on empty stomachs, and not eat 30 minuets after they take the medication. Kiley & Kara eat every hour to 2 hours usually so finding that time gap in the morning is hard. We need to give them the Prevacid twice a day. It could take up to two weeks before we see any real results with it either. *sigh*

They are both a little more fussy today, perhaps they are getting back at me for messing up their schedules yesterday. Hopefully they won't be fussy all day! I need to get some work done around here. I have homework that is due tomorrow, baptism invites to send out, cleaning to do... plus I need to get next week's food schedule done. Phew!

Well I suppose I should get a few things done while Abby is napping. Grandma Renae brought Feebee home and I need to give her a bath and a slight trim. I think Abby will enjoy having her home to play with. If she gets to be too much she might go back to the farm again... but we'll see. Right now she is laying on a rug by the door and is being good. At least we have a backyard fence!

Cute Abby Story:  Abby has a little pink pig that walks, snorts and wags it's tail. She was playing with it like it was her best friend today. Calling to it "Here piggy piggy!" and carrying it around with her all over the house. She probably played with it for 20 minuets! (which for Abby is a loooong time)

And for some strange reason she always wants me to play this song for her... I caught a few of her dance moves... she also sings to it but wouldn't do it while I had the camera on her.

GI Appointment

Well I just got back from the GI specialist that Abby had seen when she was younger. The girls both passed their Video Swallow Studies (VSS). I'm SOOO happy with this! The Upper GI study showed reflux, which I knew it would. The girls are both 21 inches and 10lbs!! Kiley was 3 ounces heavier at 10lb 5oz. So they are growing great and we have no issues with that.

Dr. D thinks that the coughing and choking is stemming from the girls trying to drink the milk down, the reflux coming up and trying to breathe. He said that otherwise they should be ok. We are going to start them on Prevacid twice daily to see if we can cut down on the acid coming up into their throats. He also wants them on a vitamin supplement.

Annnnd.... the icky part. I need to start on the MSPI (Milk, Soy, Protein Intolerance) diet. ICK. To give you an idea of what I need to look for on labels....

Ingredients that mean contains soy:

• hydrolyzed soy protein
• miso
• shoyo sauce
• soy flour
• soy grits
• soy nuts
• soy milk
• soy sprouts
• soy protein concentrate
• soy protein isolate
• soy sauce
• tempeh
• textured vegetable protein (TVP)
• tofu
• soy lecithin
• soy oil

Other possible sources of soy or soy products:

• flavorings
• hydrolyzed plant protein
• hydrolyzed vegetable protein
• natural flavoring
• vegetable broth
• vegetable gum
• vegetable starch

(most babies will not react to soy oil or soy lecithin, but the very sensitive baby may still react)

Ingredients that mean contains dairy:

• Acidophilus Milk
• Ammonium Caseinate
• Butter
• Butter Fat
• Butter Oil
• Butter Solids
• Buttermilk
• Buttermilk Powder
• Calcium Caseinate
• Casein
• Caseinate (in general)
• Cheese (All animal-based)
• Condensed Milk
• Cottage Cheese
• Cream
• Curds
• Custard
• Delactosed Whey
• Demineralized Whey
• Dry Milk Powder
• Dry Milk Solids
• Evaporated Milk

• Ghee
• Goat Milk
• Half & Half
• Hydrolyzed Casein
• Hydrolyzed Milk Protein
• Iron Caseinate
• Lactalbumin
• Lactoferrin
• Lactoglobulin
• Lactose
• Lactulose
• Low-Fat Milk
• Magnesium Caseinate
• Malted Milk
• Milk
• Milk Derivative
• Milk Fat
• Milk Powder
• Milk Protein
• Milk Solids
• Natural Butter Flavor

• Nonfat Milk
• Nougat
• Paneer
• Potassium Caseinate
• Pudding
• Recaldent
• Rennet Casein
• Skim Milk
• Sodium Caseinate
• Sour Cream
• Sour Milk Solids
• Sweetened Condensed Milk
• Sweet Whey
• Whey
• Whey Powder
• Whey Protein Concentrate
• Whey Protein Hydrolysate
• Whipped Cream
• Whipped Topping
• Whole Milk
• Yogurt
• Zinc Caseinate

Is that enough??? Can you see why shopping might be a little exhausting? I'm going to try it for two months and see if it works. This time I'm going to be better prepared though. I'll look some good MSPI diet meals that I can make, devote one day where I will make a bunch of food and then freeze them. This way it will be taken care of and I won't need to stress about it or devote a bunch of time to the diet. I'm not going to start today, I'll probably start this weekend on Sunday so that I can start at the beginning of the week.

Well I have to go... I'll write more on this when I have a little more time.... But thats the update for now

Handprints

Hello all. I found a few moments to blog while I'm feeding Kiley (there just isn't a whole lot else to do when you're feeding babies). We finally made it home from my parent's house. We actually drove down Sunday afternoon to watch the Vikings game (heart sigh) and got snowed in. There was no warning at all about how awful the conditions were going to get. 1-3 inches of snow sure became a headache! Whiteout conditions and drifting were the real problems. Our snow drifts had sank a little but are now nice and tall again....

Still no Jeep. :( I hope we can get that back this week so that I'm not confined to these four walls. Kiley & Kara do have doctor's appointments tomorrow and the way things are going I'm really really glad we are going in. To give you an idea of what I've done today...

4am-7am: off and on feeding of Kiley, Kara, Kiley, Kara...
8am- present:  Ate breakfast, changed Kiley, changed Kara, came home... fed Kiley, fed Kara, fed Abby, fed Kiley (again), put in a roast for supper,  changed Kiley, changed Kara, changed Abby, put clothes on Abby, put new clothes on Kara, fed Abby lunch, fed Kara, fed Kiley, put Abby down for a nap, fed Kara, did homework, took a shower, ate lunch of spagettios, put a load of laundry in the wash,  feeding Kiley now... Kara is screaming again...

And I wonder why I'm so exhausted... It's 2 o'clock right now and that is just a sample of what I've done this morning. Abby is still sleeping thankfully which allowed me to get a little more homework done and a load of laundry. The shower helped... is it bad the coffee pot is calling me again?

Tom's mom is coming up to watch Abby tomorrow morning when I go to my doctor's appointment. Abby will really enjoy having another person to entertain and I will love having the extra help. An extra pair of hands is always a huge help.

Well I need to finish up some things before my break is completely over. I leave you with this poem that I try to remember as I go throughout the day...

My Handprints
 
Sometimes I might upset you
Because I am so small
And always leave my fingerprints
on furniture and walls.
 
But everyday I grow a bit
And soon I'll be so tall
That all those little fingerprints
Will be so hard to recall.
 
So here's a special handprint
Just so that you can say
This is how my fingers looked
When I placed them here today

Picture Perfect

It was still a lot of fun... even if it didn't last as long as we might have hoped...

I wanted to write more but the girls might actually be going to sleep... and I'm running incredibly low on sleep right now. So for now goodnight... (and Abby still makes a cute Viking fan)

A little of everything

Witching Hour...or hours... 7pm-12am... of crying... They are both swinging for the moment because I just need a little break. K&K are both clean, warm, fed and just got done with a nice soothing bath. I know that babies have a typical 'fussier' point but wow, none of my girls seem to do anything half way.

Oh shucks Kiley's cry is breaking my heart. One moment please. Ok I'm impressed, it was Kiley that was still crying. Sometimes it amazes me how a mother's instinct works. She's now snuggling in my lap and falling back to sleep.

I haven't heard back from Dr. D's office yet. I'll probably give them a call tomorrow just to check and make sure that they are still working on rescheduling my appointment. Or should I say appointments... I'm sure with the recent weather they are needing to reschedule a lot of appointments.

-----------

Well I ended up getting so exhausted from everything yesterday I fell asleep before I could finish the entry. There is another... yes another winter storm headed our way tonight. I asked my dad to stop by on his way home from work to pick us up if it starts to look like it might get bad. Getting stuck home with the three amigos alone might get to be a little much.

Kiley has decided that she wants more mommy time and has edged her sister out in co-sleeping time. Last night at 12:30 I decided I just couldn't keep playing the pacifier game... so I gave in and let her sleep next to me. She slept better after that and so I was able to get a little more rest.

My brother Andrew came to pick us up around 4pm yesterday ... and save me from the Abby tornado that had gotten bored and decided to destroy things. Child proof books... hah... Abby tore the SPINE off of one of those. I was so shocked I couldn't believe she did it. But when Andrew walked in the door she went nuts! She was soooo excited to see him. I slipped on the ice in Beresford while holding a carseat... ouch. Not fun. They have a good 1/2 an inch of solid ice down there and we are supposed to get more tonight. Last night my dad was helping me hold the babies and Kiley gave him a little sprinkle of love. Yep! She pee'd through her diaper and soaked through his clothes. :o)

I've discovered that Kara will smile if I give her a kiss.

Cute huh?

This is what Abby and I were up to the other day...

And this is why ... not giving the movie theater the 3D glasses back was worth it....

Finally... I leave you with this...

Abby teaching Kiley how to drive :)

What Faith Can Do Video

Because the link of the video below is a Facebook version. Those of you who would like to see it and are not my friend on Facebook will be unable to view it. This is why I finally figured out how to upload the video to Blogger. If you still cannot see it please post a comment below and I'll try to help you see it!

What Faith Can Do

Praise God!!!