Two Months and Still Growing

Our little kiddies are growing like wildfires! We didn't fully realize it until we were looking back at pictures and videos of them. Bryant now weighs-in at 10 lbs. 12 oz. and Caitlyn is 10 lbs. even. They are getting pudgy faces! That makes us happy.

On a not so happy note, they both have these nasty colds with nasty little coughs that have lasted for the past week or so. Catherine and I find it so difficult to hear an obstruction rattling around when they breath. It triggers the coughing mechanism in each of us because we want to clear their throats for them. Their coughs, though really sad, are really cute too. Each time they cough, their legs flail upward.

Catherine is doing pretty well. Her hands are full with these two little ones. She has received countless comments such as, "Wow, you look great for having just had twins." I know she would never have put that in, but I just wanted to make it known she is just as beautiful as ever. She is such a great mother. The way I can tell this is by the way her facial expressions match our kiddies'. When they are laughing or smiling, she has such a big grin. When they are frowning or uncomfortable, Catherine's brow is furrowed right along with them. When they cry intensely she states, "It makes me want to cry to hear them like that!" Just barely, we put Bryant through the trauma of cleaning out his nose. After I calmed him I was going to put him down in his bouncer but Catherine asked if she could hold him first. I think it was as much of an effort to soothe herself as it was to soothe him. She is wonderful. When I asked Catherine if there was anything she wanted everyone to know, she said that she is thoroughly enjoying being a mom. I can vouch for that statement. She is so good at it, and it seems she is doing just what she was made to do.

I am hangin' on for dear life in the most awful 2 weeks of the semester. The last week of class is when all of the project deadlines are due and I have three research paper deadlines (and only one research paper mostly finished and another partially started). Needless to say, Thursday will be a grand day (even though finals are still ahead). One schooling triumph I take credit for was getting a final exam changed. My "advanced issues in development" teacher, Dr. Porter, usually assigns a big writing exam at the end of the semester. My midterm writing exam for his class ended up being 15 pages long. I was semi-joking with my classmates about how finals makes it hard to feel the Christmas mood when he walked in. I said to him (again, semi-jokingly) "We have a proposition for you. Instead of doing the writing final, we should do some volunteer work at a homeless shelter or something as a class." He laughed and we laughed, then he said, "I'm okay with something like that." The entire class was silent. Finally one of my classmates said, "I can't tell if he's being serious..." So, he has dropped our writing assignment final on the condition that we plan out some service activity and are willing to still write a little something about our experience. I was amazed. He is an excellent teacher! Very challenging, yet understanding and very empowering.

I love being a dad. I am by no means as good at being a parent as Catherine is, but I am trying to improve. I get little glimpses of insight when I realize that these little crying, sleeping, pooping and peeing things are human beings that have feelings, heartaches, and joys. They will one day grow up to be a great man and woman. I love those glimpses because it significantly takes the edge off of those things that could potentially frustrate.

Below are pictures of the last few months of our lives. I hope you enjoy!

Halloween Costumes from Aunt Lissa
Caitlyn: (Left) & Bryant: (Right)

Halloween Costumes from Aunt Alyse

Happy Barf-day Dad! (Yes, it was my birthday and he felt
he had to give me something).

This was after his post-barf bath...
We love our little turban boy
(They're really his jammies).


Meet Kanga, Roo, and Roo 2


She's been Zombified!!!


Go BYU!!!
(Bryant)


They are mad at mom because she needed dad
to get a picture of their Thanksgiving
outfits when all they wanted was to EAT!!!
Caitlyn: (Left) & Bryant: (Right)


They are both starting to smile responsively
(Bryant)


Me Happy Baby!
(Caitlyn)


She's looking at Mom


Ah, the trick that every dad tries and every
female hates.

These quilts are AMAZING. They were made by their
Great-grandma Trudy Wiltbank. I will have to
get a picture of the front side.

Smiler Boy

Hello Again!

I have so many pictures I want to upload!! But blogging with two babies has proven to be difficult. I am typing one handed and the other baby just woke up too, so this update won't be what I wanted, but at least it is something! I want to get a link on here to a slide show of tons of pictures so I can show off my sweet kids! Yesterday we blessed them and I took a bunch of pictures. Here are some of my favorites. Adam's mom made their outfits. They are SOOOO cute.

Bryant- after being fed. The family pictures he was a desperately famished boy and he let us know it! He is such a sweet boy- I melt every time I think of him, see him and especially hold him :)

Caitlyn- who posed beautifully for family pictures then fell asleep for her own :) She is such a sweetheart and absolutely beautiful.

My two little kiddies. I have fallen in love again :)

Well, both of them are telling me that they are in dire need of attention. (I put Bryant down to do this more quickly and he does not appreciate it). It is amazing how tricky trying to do anything besides get them to sleep at the same time and not fall asleep myself seems to be :) I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world though. Being their mom is the most wonderful thing in the whole world. More to come later- when dad is here to help me :)

Home Again, Home Again

We came home on Monday from the hospital, but let me back up and give more details. For those of you who don't know, Catherine had a low hematocrit (spelling?) level (not enough red blood cells to bring oxygen to the body). As such she was totally fatigued and would pass out (literally) almost every time she got out of bed. The doctor came to see how she was doing, and she was so proud of herself because she stood up for 30 seconds while holding on to the bed without passing out or falling over. The doctor wasn't so proud of that achievement. In fact it convinced him to give her a blood transfusion to get those red blood cells back up. Afterwards, she felt like a million bucks compared to before. She is a happy mama and is doing so well.

Just before going to the hospital. The darkness of the dresser makes it difficult to see how big her tummy actually is.


On the way home


Catherine and Caitlyn


Catherine admiring her "back-to-normal" feet


Mama giving Caitlyn her second-ever bath (first one for mommy)


Little Bryant had to spend one day in the NICU for low blood sugar. Poor guy had to get an IV stick so they could drip sugar water in his blood. He got out after 1 day and 2 nights in there. He has been eating wonderfully! He has high bilirubin (kidney not filtering as much as it should) which is common for newborns. It gives him his jaundiced yellow hue. To fix this, he is put in a little suit-case looking bili light. The light helps the body get rid of the bilirubin until his kidneys can catch up. He started last night, and his bili number dropped from yesterday to today. I think every new dad to a baby boy discovers quickly the joy of old faithful shooting off when a diaper is changed. He's got good aim (he hit his dad), good range (hit the wall and the crib), and good timing (started peeing the second dad unlatched his diaper tabs). It's funny in retrospect... not so funny in the line of fire.


On the day we came home 1


On the day we came home 2


At home


Fashion is everything... wanting a good tan at a young age (they're really the bili lights).


Our little lady Caitlyn also had to spend time in the NICU for low blood sugar. In fact she had to go in first but got out after 2 days and 2 nights. She is spared from the bili lights. She has been having a hard time taking anything but the bottle. Catherine fortunately discovered that her nasal cavity was all filled up. We don't think she could breath, thus making it hard to eat! She is so fun to watch because of the myriad of facial expressions she has. She will go back and forth from a little smile as she's waking up to a furrowed brow, back to a crooked smile, then a "I'm just about to burst into tears" face. She is beautiful and dainty and is very much a girl (no confusing her for a boy).


Her frequent "one eye open" face.


One of many fussy faces


Our girl's pretty eyes.


Dainty sleeper

I am doing well. I am tired. It is difficult for me to wake up to their whimpers (not that I'm not willing, just not capable without a nudge from Catherine). Hopefully that changes as time goes on. I really wish I could skip school every day and stay at home with out little ones, but on the bright side, I am learning a lot about their development in my classes. I am just worried about the 3 research papers that are due at the end of the semester :-(. I am a very proud papa and am so happy to have these little ones here, healthy and strong.


Dad feeding Bryant for the first time.


Dad burping a sleepy Caitlyn


Caitlyn Stopping the Paparazzi (she's learning young).


Dad giving an unhappy Bryant his second-ever bath (first one for dad).

Look Alikes

We think Caitlyn and her mama Catherine look a lot alike... Tell us what you think.

Catherine Louise Johnson - Born: February 12, 1983


Caitlyn Elizabeth Perkins: Born: October 3, 2008


Everyone tells me that Bryant looks like me... do you agree?


Adam Richard Perkins - Born: Novemer 8, 1983


Bryant Adam Perkins - Born: October 3, 2008


And... I guess he also looks like his Uncle McKay


McKay James Perkins - Born: November 8, 1983 +1 minute

They are here!

Here is a quick post of our little ones.

The first picture is Catherine and I in the Operating Room (just in case she needed a c-section which she didn't).


The second picture is Catherine with Bryant in her left hand (your right) and Caitlyn in her right hand (your left).


The third picture is Caitlyn in the Nursery. She was 5 lbs. 12 oz.


The 4th picture is Bryant in the Nursery. He was 6 lbs. 2 oz.


Here they are together to meet mama again after being cleaned up. Caitlyn is on the left, Bryant is on the right. He paved the way for his sister, so his head is quite a bit more oblong than hers, and he has a Jewish Kippah-shaped bruise on the back of his head (poor guy). You can't really notice that in this picture though.

It is currently 1:35 am (Saturday morning). Both Caitlyn's and Bryant's blood sugar levels were low. They both got a feeding of formula to boost it, then a booster I.V. (one dose). That booster IV brought Bryant up to normal sugar levels, but Caitlyn was still struggling. So, Caitlyn is in the NICU on a constant IV and has to stay there through the night until she can manage her blood sugar levels on her own. Bryant is currently in the Nursery, and will be brought into our room to sleep with us at about 2:30 (he has to get some routine things checked, then they'll bring them in).

Catherine is exhausted. She did a GREAT job today, and deserves plenty of rest. I am so proud of her. She is doing fine (other than medication induced exhaustion).

We are unexplainably happy to finally have these little ones here. Bring on the sleepless nights ;-)
Hope you all enjoy!

Wow it has been a long time.

I didn't realize how long it has been since I updated our blog. We have made some milestones the last month in getting ready for our babies. Unfortunately the BIG milestone has not come yet :) I can't WAIT for that to happen. Instead I have to content myself in getting ready for them to come and keeping myself occupied.

The twins are healthy and safe to come any time now- tomorrow I will be 35 weeks. (I measure what a single pregnancy measures at 40 weeks however- lovely huh.) My doctor said "Unfortunately from here on out is when twin mothers get really uncomfortable." My thought was- "So what have I been for the last month?" Ha ha- funny story to go along with that. We had to make a trip to the hospital to check some leaking that could possibly be water breaking. It ended up being my sweet sons head on the bladder creating a nice slow leak- thanks a lot Bryant :) Anyways, the nurse did the whole monitoring thing and was thoroughly entertained by how active my children are. She asked my son, "What are you doing, you crazy cabanshee?" and later said to me, "Wow. You must feel like you have an octopus inside of you with all of those arms and legs wiggling all over the place in there." It was great to be validated :)

So before I show you pictures of what I have been doing I will tell you about Adam. He ended the summer working three jobs- not his ideal for ending the last free summer he had. He quit NuSkin and his research job and now is only a mentor at TELOS- a residential treatment center for boys. Then much to Adam's dismay he had to start school again. His classes are extremely challenging this semester- we will see how that plays out with becoming a dad a few weeks into the semester too. Poor guy. I think he will do great- but I am sure it will be very hard. He is also starting the Body for Life program because he wants to be even more of a hunk than he is. That is a lot of "new" and challenging stuff to me, but he seems to be doing just great.

I spent a lot of time at my parents' home while he was gone and enjoyed my family's company as well as their new remodel. I also had two baby showers and have had fun organizing everything into the nursery afterward. It has been amazing- I really think we have everything we need. Here are some pictures of the nursery. Aside from the nursery and cleaning the house a little here and there I have gone to my mom's and helped in some canning preparations. So- enough words, here are a few pictures.


This is a fun picture at one of my showers- my sister Marci is in the middle. They were trying to see how many cotton balls they could pick up with their noses- which had Vaseline on them :)


This is "my chair" and the crib angle of the nursery. I Love my chair by the way. It will be more crowded once we put the other crib there in a few months, but I am enjoying it right now.

The changing station. I love my changing table I can't even tell you! It is great, and I think it is cute too :)


Our two little car seats- stowed away in the closet under their clothes. My grandma Johnson made those two little blankets in the car seats. This is her home by the way. She sent these with my family when they visited them in Nauvoo.

These are some fun decoration things I put up. The pictures will obviously have to get filled in when I have pictures of my sweethearts, but the little curio has some little trinkets I had or found here at Grandma's in her toy chest. The little black baby shoes were mine when I was a baby :). The white shelves and curio look really cute against the light green walls- even though you can't really see the color.

Hopefully our next entry will have lots of pictures of two new people that I can't wait to meet!!
And hopefully that post will be sooner than later. However, as tomorrow I will be 35 weeks and they will induce me at 38, we are looking at the very longest 3 weeks away!!!! Yay!

WAHOO!!

So I told Adam's mom I was going to buy a new cord for our camera and she had found a few cords at her house... and yes, one of them was ours!!! So here is a quick picture update of our lives the last couple weeks.

Adam, McKay and Jared Perkins: Notch Lake Camp-out July 30- August 2
(just so you know, these pictures are not in order, but I was not patient enough to change it :) The MEN


Jared

McKay

Adam Cliff Jumping

I love the Uintas!

Adam the mountain man

Adam again:)

and again

3 mountain men at camp- who refuse to smile for cameras unless they are being silly.

They had a really great time up in the Uintas. I was so happy for them to have some "Bro" time. I decided that I feel much less nervous when I get to go ON the camp-outs rather then stay at home and wonder if they are being smart or if a bear has attacked them. But other than jumping off the cliffs (which I will never understand the thrill of- sorry to 90% of the normal human population) they seemed to be very wise and they really had a blast. I most definitely would have either gone into labor or been exceedingly uncomfortable had I gone :) This year's trip was definitely out of the question for me. Next year we will have to go camping with our little ones- but I am thinking a backpacking trip will have to wait (at least for me and the kiddies).

24th of July Dutch Oven Cook-off with my family. WOW was it yummy!This is us posing for my mom- she wanted to show off my tummy.

This is my honey getting the butter ready for pineapple upside down cake. I had just dumped that bowl (of yummy peaches) into another dutch oven for peach cobbler. MMMmmm!!!

This is Dad and part of the work station. He pulled out the stove to have less charcoal and a more even heat for the cowboy potatoes and BBQ chicken. My sister Marci and Lauren are looking at the baked beans and the cobbler ovens on the ground.

Later that night we did fireworks at the Perkins house. Adam and his brothers had a BLAST playing with them- turning those huge ones into wands and battling each other, jumping over them, etc. I was feeling really tired and nervous, so I didn't think to get the camera out sorry.

We have such fun families! We love living so close and getting to do stuff with everyone all the time! Families make the greatest friends.