Tag archive for "milestones"

DOC Bands and Doc Visits

The Fab Five

DOC Bands and Doc Visits

8 Comments 28 January 2010

Now that all of the festivities from the birthday party have died down a bit, I finally have a chance to update you all on the DOC Bands.  Also, the babies all went for their 12 month pedi- checkup this week and I have the newest stats to prove it!  More on the stats later, but first I have to say that we feel so incredibly blessed with the health of The Fab Five!  To think that only 12 months ago, not one of these little guys weighed more than three pounds nor could they eat or breathe on their own simply blows us away!!  Today, the hum, beeps, and nerves of the NICU have been replaced by laughs and squeals and countless smiles to brighten our days…good stuff!

So, first with the DOC Bands…all is going very well! The pictures above are of our two little head-knockers getting measured for the bands. It’s a really cool process – the stocking over their faces helps to get a very accurate, 3D picture of their scalps by pulling their hair tight against it. With that picture, they create a full sized model of their skull so they can make the bands the exact right size and shape. Pretty amazing stuff! The bands are not tight in the least bit, but they provide very gentle pressure in the areas that we are “holding back” from growth which allows the other areas to round out as they should.

Jack and Lila, from the moment they had their bands on, have not noticed them a bit. It has not affected their moods, their sleep, or anything else at all (as you can probably tell from the pictures above and below)…thank God! Every once in a while, they will pull on them and the other three like to have their fun every once in awhile, but these times are rare. I don’t have any pictures that do the decorating justice so look for that in future pictures. All in all, it has been pretty seamless, except for when Ryan first saw Lila wearing her band…she pointed at her head and started cracking up!! It was really funny and so typical of Ryan!

Stats!  Stats!  I have stats!!  The babies all made the trek to the pedi- this week, Lila and Ryan on one day, Brooklyn, Britton, and Jack a few days later.  And let me tell you, they are doing great!  They are all caught up to a full term baby in terms of their motor skills and behavior development and only Britton is still small for her age.  There is a chance that she may catch up, but she may be a tiny thing her whole life…only time will tell.  The only issue we have now is with Jack, believe it or not.  There is a heart murmur that our doctor has been hearing consistently at each of his checkups. At this point, we do not believe it is an issue, but Dr. Ma recommended that we take him to see a cardiologist and we are doing that tomorrow.  Pray a little prayer for Jack, if you can!  Here are the stats and a couple of cute pics from the doc’s office…

– Brooklyn Faith:  weight, 18 pounds 10 ounces (25%), height, 30″ (90%)

– Britton Grace:  weight, 15 pounds, 8 ounces (3%), height, 25″ (3%)

– Jack William:  weight, 22 pounds, 1 ounce (55%), height, 30″ (75%)

– Lila Addison:  weight, 18 pounds, 15 ounces (30%), height, 28″ (40%)

– Ryan Elizabeth:  weight, 18 pounds, 11 ounces (25%), height, 28″ (40%)

The Birthday Bash – A 5 for 1 Special!

Good Times

The Birthday Bash – A 5 for 1 Special!

5 Comments 20 January 2010

Well, we did it…the babies’ birthday bash went off without a hitch…hallelujah!!  The turnout was great, the mood was electric, the babies did awesome, and the hosts survived (and so did our home)!  We had all of the usual birthday fare – cakes and candles and crying and crazies – and we threw in a bounce house for the older kids who otherwise probably would have been overwhelmed by the spectacle of it all!  Thank you to everyone who helped in planning the day and making it a success, to everyone who came and brought gifts, and to everyone who could not be there, but kept us in your thoughts!  Here is a small sampling of the pics we captured of the festivities…there are more photos on the JonesLife Facebook page so become a fan and check them out!

All Eight

Britton

Ryan's Tantrum

Poor Jack

Brooklyn Loves Cake

Lila Loves Cake Too

Opening Gifts

Blowing Out the Candles

A Birthday Celebration and So Much More…

Giving Thanks

A Birthday Celebration and So Much More…

3 Comments 16 January 2010

Circle of Life

I wrote this letter to the JonesLife volunteers to thank them for all they have done over the last year, but we wanted to share it with everyone out there who has been involved in even the tiniest way in helping us to survive and thrive in this, year one of the Quintuplet Invasion…

Dear JonesLife Volunteers,

Can you believe The Fab Five is turning one tomorrow?!  We are so excited to celebrate their birthday with all of you!  I wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for what you have done for us over the past 12 months and in that regard I’d like to share a quick story with you.

As part of the filming for the documentary that is being filmed about our life with the five, I was being interviewed the other day when I was asked a question that I had not considered, only because to me, the answer was obvious.  However, in answering the question, I realized that the answer may not be as clear to others as it was so in my head and in Casey’s thoughts as well.

The question was simple:  “The birthday party…why are you guys throwing such a big party?  Why are you inviting this chaos into your home…I mean, 100 people?  Why would you do that?”  And this was my reply…

Are you kidding me?  This is a CEL-E-BRATION!  I mean, think about the history of what a birthday celebration originally meant – it was a true recognition of the fact that you had survived in this world another year.  This day and age we’ve lost the meaning of that because surviving another year, especially in America, is pretty much a given…it’s expected.  But this day is different; this birthday truly is recognition of what these babies have been through and what we have encountered as a family in the last 12 months.  Think about it, these five babies faced a life and death situation on the day of their birth.  I mean, we never really questioned whether they would live or die, but if they hadn’t been born where they were born and been under constant care for nearly three months and been given the most advanced treatments that the gift of medical science would allow, they likely would not have survived.  Truly, truly this is a birthday celebration like most families have not experienced!

On top of that, think about what this family has faced since the babies were born – the NICU days where they were strapped to every machine imaginable for their simple survival was not an easy thing to endure.  The sleepless nights, the constant feedings, the complete upheaval of every aspect of our lives, the challenge to our marriage, the challenge to Eliot’s state of mind, the strain on our close relationships, the crossover from being virtually needless to being incredibly needy…those things are not easy to overcome in a lifetime, let alone a single year on the calendar!  In spite of all of that, this family and this marriage is not merely surviving, we are thriving!

And, of course, this day is also a way of saying thank you.  We are doing this not only to celebrate the babies, but also as a way to honor the people who have helped make our family’s survival a possibility!  We have met some amazing people who have put their own lives on hold so many times and in so many ways just to help our family feel a slight sense of relief from the magnitude of all of this…change, challenge, stress, LIFE.  There is absolutely no way we would be where we are today without the help of our family and the volunteers, most of whom were complete strangers before the babies were born, others we barely knew.  This party is as much about thanking them as it is about celebrating the birth of our babies!

This party, this birthday celebration, this gathering is about so much more than cake and ice cream and a simple song.  It is about God’s blessings and God’s gifts and about God’s guiding hand on these five tiny lives, on this family’s pulse, and on the hearts of the great many people who faithfully provided sustenance and rest and relief.  Given all of that, how could we not celebrate?  How could we not give back this one small moment to recognize what this period in our lives has been and what it could not have been without?  I don’t see how it could be any other way…

So again, we say, “Thank you!” to all of the volunteers, family members, and friends who have helped us get through year one of the Quintuplet Invasion!!  It has been a challenging year, no doubt about it, but more importantly it has been a fun year and a year of incredible growth – literally and figuratively!  When we say we could not have done it without your help, you probably know better than us that we mean exactly what we say!

God Bless,

Ethan, Casey, and The Six Pack

From the Birth Day to the Birthday

The Fab Five

From the Birth Day to the Birthday

11 Comments 14 January 2010

In honor of the fast-approaching 1st birthday celebration for The Fab Five, I thought I’d share a little bit about each of the little crazies that make our world so joyfully unpredictable…emphasis on the unpredictable part!! In what will forever be unfair to Lila and Ryan, I’ll go in birth order for this little tribute… :-)

Brooklyn

Brooklyn Faith, what a beauty! If I had to choose one to be the pageant queen, it would be Brooklyn, hands down. She has the most striking features of the five – big hazel eyes, full lips, super long eyelashes, and a killer smile! She is also, without a doubt, the sweetest of the bunch.  Quick story:  my “alarm” goes off every morning around 6:15 – the sound of babies laughing, squealing, and hollering at each other and at me, signaling the day’s beginning. So I trudge upstairs and take them out of their cribs one-by-one , change them, hand them their morning bottle, then head back in for the next one in line. When I start pulling them out to get the process going, I am greeted with pained shrieks of anguish from all but one of the remaining babies left bouncing in their beds. “How could you not pick me, Daddy?!,” they seem to be saying. But Brooklyn? Nothing but smiles! And that sums up Miss Brooklyn’s persona – sweet, patient, loving, and absolutely adorable!

Britton

Britton Grace – that smile says it all, doesn’t it? What would have been as appropriate and equally telling is if I had posted a picture of Angry Britton right next to this one. Yes, the little one, the one we most commonly call Little Bit, is also the uncontested diva of the bunch. Remember that story above about pulling the babies out in the morning – Britton usually goes first! She definitely has her moods – angry, fussy, inconsolable – but she also has a delightful feistiness that more than compensates for some of her less than delightful moods! She is still so, so tiny (she wears size one diapers!), but do not underestimate the might of this little one – I am certain she will be the first to do the many “firsts” among The Five!

Jack

Jack William – my boy! My lonely, mistreated, helpless little boy! Poor Jack has the unenviable fate of having six women determine his every move in life…every.single.move…Girlfriends? Only if the six approve. Dressing himself? Not without the girls’ consent. Thinking for himself? Not a chance! Fortunately, Jack seems to be well-designed for the gauntlet that awaits him in life…laid back, content, happy-go-lucky, easy as it goes…that’s Jack. No kidding, Jack is just happy, seemingly all the time. We are literally surprised when he is upset about something as if that is something babies are not known for! While the rest of our world swirls about at the pace of a chicken on crystal meth, Jack doesn’t seem to notice, or care for that matter. He is as content as content can be…for now, at least, and we are going to enjoy it while it lasts!

Lila

Lila Addison – the one we thought was as laid back as Jack has proven herself to be quietly mischievous. When Lila is quiet, something that happens less and less these days, she is probably venturing off to explore and get herself in trouble! She is our only babbler, was the first to say ma-ma and da-da (and mean it!), and I’m pretty certain will have no trouble competing with Britton and Ryan for the personality award! She is also the one that seems to be most connected to Eliot McKenna – read more on that here: http://www.joneslife.net/2009/10/a-special-bond/.  Her tongue is always waggling like you see above and her blue eyes absolutely sparkle…what a cutie!!

Ryan

And then there was Ryan. Actually, if you are keeping up with this blog you are probably most familiar with Ryan Elizabeth, otherwise known as Ryan the Lion, as she has been the subject of many, many videos and blog updates…what can I say, she’s an easy subject for camera and keyboard alike!  She was the only one making any noise on the day of their birth and she hasn’t piped down yet! She is without a doubt the most colorful of the bunch! From her lightning quick smile to her equally ferocious roar to her collection of facial expressions and the accompanying sound effects, Ryan keeps us Smilin’…and laughing…and usually shaking our heads in bewilderment! First to crawl, first to walk, and she will probably be the first to pitch herself headfirst off of some high place, sending the whole gang of us off to the emergency room to watch her be the first to wear a cast…Ryan, Ryan, Ryan…oh my!

The Fab Five

On the News Again… :)

Comments Off on On the News Again… :) 10 August 2009

Sorry, I totally flaked this morning/last night and forgot to update everyone to let y’all know we were going to be on the news again. KXAN came by on Thursday and interviewed us for the story linked below…enjoy!

http://www.kxan.com/dpp/mobile/Catching_up_with_the_Jones_quintuplets

God Bless,
Ethan
www.JonesLife.net

The Fab Five

Six Month Doc Visit and Ryan’s Wounded Army Crawl Video

6 Comments 26 July 2009

Updates, updates! I have updates! We took the amazingly unintelligent decision to take the babies to the doctor last week…all five at the same time!! It was chaotic, stressful, crazy, but totally fun and something we’ll remember forever…though we probably won’t be pulling that stunt again any time soon! Imagine five babies and five adults in a room about the size of a master closet…for two hours, complete with two shots for each baby…aaaaggggggghhhh!!!! Imagine five little wigglers all wearing nothing but their diapers on an examination table at the same time, then imagine Ryan trying to crawl over the other four to get to who knows where while Jack keeps rolling to his tummy, steam-rolling Britton in the process! Then imagine giving them all two shots!!! At one point, they all decided it was time to eat so we had two nurses plus Dr. Ma each feeding a baby while Casey and I handled the other two…too funny! Though it was relatively normal for Casey and I, I think it was a bit stressful for the doctor and her staff. As we were leaving, she said, “I think I liked it better when you brought them three and two.” I think we’ll take that as a not-so-subtle hint as to how she would like the next visit to be structured… :)
The babies are all doing very, very well and are mostly ahead of where they should be developmentally. They are officially six months and a few days old, but their adjusted age (based on their actual due date) puts them around three months developmentally. Here are the new stats (% based on adjusted age):
– Brooklyn Faith – 24″ tall (50%), 12 pounds, 7 ounces (25%), 41 cm head circ. (50%)
– Britton Grace – 22″ tall (8%), 10 pounds, 0 ounces (3%), 41 cm head circ. (50%)
– Jack William – 24″ tall (50%), 15 pounds, 5 ounces (55%), 43-1/2 cmm head circ. (90%)
– Lila Addison – 23″ tall (25%), 11 pounds, 12 ounces (20%), 41 cm head circ. (50%)
– Ryan Elizabeth – 24″ tall (50%), 12 pounds, o ounces (25%), 39 cm head circ. (10%)
They are definitely hybrid babies – doing some of the things six monthers do (crawling, for example) and doing some of the things three monthers do (like not sleeping through the night!!!). Ryan is the most striking example of this mix as she is fully mobile now…just put a toy a few feet in front of her and watch her go! This is definitely not something most three monthers are doing by this age! Here is the link to the video of her making her way across the three activity gyms to get to some toys:
None of the babies made a peep on the drive to and from the doctor’s office so I guess they enjoyed it – it was the first time The Fab Five was all together in the car at once. And since we dropped Eliot off at school on the way, it was also the first time all eight of us together in the car. And let me tell you, we were CRAMPED!! Thank goodness none of them fussed because there would have been no getting to them!
Our next venture out as a family is on the schedule for August 16th. We are very excited for this day as it is the day we dedicate the babies to the church at Riverbend. We’ll be on stage (yes, all of us!) for both the 9:45 and 11:15 services to introduce the clan to the congregation that has been so supportive of our family since before the babies were born. What a day that will be!
I want to take a quick moment to thank Jan (one of Grandma Stevie’s good friends) for making her third trip from the Dallas area to our home for the weekend to help take care of the babies. She has been so awesome to help out and really works hard to give us a break when she comes! Because of her and Grandma Stevie taking care of the Six Pack last night, Casey and I actually got to go out on a date!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!
Thank you also to all of the volunteers for their continued support and to everyone out there praying for our family! Life continues to be in a constant state of change and mostly entrenched in chaos, but you all have helped to make it a very rewarding time for our family!!
God Bless,
Ethan

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