The McMillan Clan: October 2008

Yesterday was a big day for the McMillan Clan. We ALL went to the doctor's office. Maggie had her 3 year check up and the twins had their 4 month well baby visit. I knew the twins were going to get more immunizations and Maggie too, so I made Matt go with me. And since the appointments were 8, 8:30 and 9am, there was no way to drop Mason off at school until after the doctors. So all 6 of us were up by 6:30 in order to get out of the door by 7:15. So here is what we found out:

Maggie -
-weighs 34 pounds
-is 38" tall
-she was able to do all the things the doctor was looking for to check her development; hopping, counting, touching her toes, stacks blocks, plays independently and imaginatively, dresses herself, is potty trained. (Oh yeah, we finally got to that. Well, her teacher said we needed to do it since the other 4 girls in Maggie's class were potty trained and Maggie was asking to pee in the potty. I was afraid I didn't have the time to stay on top of it. Maggie's teacher said she would keep asking Maggie throughout the day and was willing to work with her. So really, the school played a HUGE part in potty training Maggie. I knew she was ready, but I was not. Come on, like I'm not busy, right?)
-the next things she should be doing is drawing people; so watch for some in the next coming weeks
-And the big one - her speech has caught up to her age (woo hoo!)
***@ Maggie's 2 year check up, she was only speaking/communicating at an 18 month level. There were only very few single words and a lot of general sounds. Mostly she just did what she wanted because she wasn't able to tell someone what she wanted. We also did a lot of pointing back then too. She was delayed due to her hearing. We have spent the last year working with a speech therapist and also had some surgery done (ear tubes put in, adenoids and tonsils removed). Since the surgery (March '08) Maggie has been able to hear better and as a result speak better. Since school started in September, she is learning the alphabet, singing songs and counting. the doctor today said that 95% of what Maggie says is intelligible.

Megan -
-weighs just under 15 pounds
-is 25" long
-is at a 4 month level developmentally (which is good since she was 1 month premature)
-and the biggie for Megan - she is rolling over! She rolls from back to stomach and started this on the 12th.

Morgan -
-weighs about 12 pounds
-is 23" long
-developmentally at 4 months
-is not rolling, but doc said that rolling is typically done by the 5th month, so they do not consider this a delay.
I also read in my Raising Multiples book that we as parents should not expect the twins to do the same thing at the same time.Especially if they are fraternal twins (which we think the girls are) since fraternal twins are basically just 2 babies born at the same time. There is nothing more in common between the twins than any other pair of siblings.
-Morgan is doing better since being on the Prevacid (she has reflux). As she starts moving around (rolling) and sitting up, the reflux should go away. So until then, we'll keep her on it. However, being on the Prevacid makes Morgan have a super hard time going poo. So the doc has given us the okay to add a teaspoon of juice to her bottle once a day. We did it yesterday, and wouldn't you know, it worked. Her poo was softer and she didn't scream and cry while she was passing it.

We were also given the okay to start feeding both babies rice cereal. And if they like it and keep it down, the okay to move on to baby food. WOW! Already? Yeah!

The other thing that happened was we all got the flu shot. Well, everyone except the twins since they cannot have it before they are 6 months old. I had told Mason that he wasn't getting anything done at the doctors, that we were only going for the girls. Well, I had to get a shot, Dad got a shot, Maggie got an additional one and Mason had to get one. Man was he mad! He tried hiding under a table and then under a chair. When I went to pick him up, he tried to run away from me. Then I had to pin him down - I swear that's one of the most painful parts of parenting. Anyway, we all got the flu shot to protect the twins from getting it. I explained that to Mason, but he was still upset.

All in all the doctor's visit went well. Everyone is doing good and the baby girls are growing.