The Hoff Twins: Sunday, 15/2/2009 The Boys Come Home!!

Hormones honestly! I can tell u I bawled my eyes out when the doctor told me Saturday night that the twins could leave the hospital and come home the following day:)

Although it was WONDERFUL up at the neonatal unit (I had 24/7 babysitters right - so I could even go out for dinner or sleep ENTIRE nights without having to get up and change/feed the boys - DELUXE!), it was like a major weight had been lifted. We could PLAN to have our whole family together under one roof. Up until that moment we dared not even IMAGINE this eventuality. It was so important psychologically simply to take each day one at a time and to be thankful for every little improvement that the boys made.

So when the big news came, we were a little unprepared! As in, we had to do a makeshift bed for the boys last night because we have yet to get their cot sorted (we have got one coming....we just haven't picked it up yet). But must say that the last few weeks have helped to put a lot of things into perspective. And frankly, whether the boys sleep on a good bed or baby cot for their first night home is not such a big deal:) (It might have been one if I had to sleep them in a drawer however;)

SO!!!! Dear, DEAR friends from this weekend onwards (21 Feb onwards), we will be very happy to receive you here at home to celebrate the extension to the Hoff-Nielsen clan!!! Feel free to call me and we'll try to find a good time together.

Lots of love and thanks again to all of you for being so supportive and lovely:)

The Hoff Twins: Wednesday, 11/2/2009 "A Day in the Life of..."

I've received quite a few requests from some of you who would like to hear about what our daily schedule looks like. The first time I got this question, I had to ask myself "Crikey, when does my day start actually??" and "Does it ever stop?!" ;) But then I realised that this could be useful information particularly for friends who would like to know the best times to call etc. So here goes:

00:00 crawl into bed (BLISS!)
02:00-02:30 first machine milking session (target 2x60mL)
05:00-05:30 second machine milking session
07:00-07:45 wake, shower, get Nikita and Jojo up for breakfast. Chris gets them dressed and to school by 08:30
08:00-08:30 drive to hospital
08:30-09:00 wake, bath (or massage), weigh Louie.
09:00-09:30 feed and reweigh Louie (then can see how much he's eaten - not usually enough:/) Change bed, put Louie back to bed for more sleep.
09:30-10:00 wake, bath (or massage), weigh Jules.
10:00-10:30 feed and reweigh Jules (he's a big eater this boy, so Mummy very happy:) Change bed, put Jules back down for sleep
10:30-11:00 milking session nr 3
11:00-12:00 should try to nap in this time, but use it to do all the evil administration stuff that comes with having babies in Belgium - aargh)
12:00-12:30 quick sandwich before boys start to wake
12:30-13:00 wake, change nappy, weigh Louie
13:00-13:30 feed and reweigh Louie. Put him back down for another! sleep
13:30-14:00 wake, change nappy, weigh Jules
14:00-14:30 feed and reweigh Jules. Put him back down for another! sleep
14:30-15:00 milking session nr 4
15:00-15:30 drive home to pick up Nikita and Joakim from school
15:30-19:30 Home time! get dinners, check stuff for school, wash baby clothes, read and play with Nikita and Jojo. Try to get 30mins shut-eye
19:30-20:00 drive back to hospital
20:00-20:30 wake, change nappy, weigh Louie
20:30-21:00 feed and reweigh Louie. Put him back down for another! sleep
21:00-21:30 wake, change nappy, weigh Jules
21:30-22:00 feed and reweigh Jules. Put him back down for another! sleep
22:00-22:30 milking session nr 5
22:30-23:00 drive home
23:00-00:00 prepare late night supper, sterilise milking gear, prepare stuff for next day, blog

As you probably guessed, most of my day is about generating enough milk to feed the boys. Thankfully, I have a great little electric milking machine that I can use to pull off any milk that the twins aren't taking directly during their breastfeeding sessions. Have to admit that I feel (and probably look like!) like a cow most of the time LOL!

So my schedule is not too bad actually. We have many deviations too, it's not always running to schedule. For example, Jules will decide that he's hungry at same time as Louie and I have to do a 'double whammy' feed, ie., I got two boobs right? Works very well actually:)

Oh yes, during the night when I'm at home, the boys are fed (my milk that I have been fastidiously pumping with my electric milker all blessed day) by the neonatal nurses.

I will be very glad tho' when the boys come home and I can use that travel time to try and catch some much-needed sleep. Which is due about now actually. Am even slightly AHEAD of schedule! WOO HOO!!!! Nighty night all:)

The Hoff Twins: Sunday, 8/2/2009 The Hoff Quartet

Another day and another big milestone:)

Joakim and Nikita came to visit their little brothers today for only the second time since their birth (they visited first during the twins cyborg phase). So, this visit was much more relaxed and more funny for our two eldest who got to hold and cuddle their little brothers. While Joakim was a little apprehensive (tho' u couldn't tell from these photos - such a performer!), big sister Nikita proved to be completely at ease and indeed serene.

(In photo: Joakim & Louie; Nikita & Jules)

Thursday, 5/2/2009: 'Brothers in Arms'

Louie and Jules are doing SOOOOO great that they've both been downgraded from intensive care part of the neonatal unit and got to take their first bath today!!!!

As with all newborns and their first baths, the first few seconds are pretty freaky (for the baby, I mean;) But very quickly they adapt and recognise a familiar environment and start to have fun:) It was nonetheless surprising when the boys suddenly linked arms and clung onto each other. Really one of life's very special moments.


All that remains now is that they feed properly (60mL my milk every 4 hours) and they'll be allowed home. It gets harder not to get excited, I must say:) 'One day at a time Darleen!'

For the moment, we seem to be managing the home<->hospital shuttle OK so that I can be up at the hospital for most of the feeding sessions and then be home to pick up Nikita and Jojo from maternelle (preschool) and spend a few precious hours with them. Thank goodness for my Mum who is here with us momentarily to help prepare meals, look after grandkids, and be an all-round ace Mum! It will certainly be a lot easier once the boys are home and we are altogether in one place.

And once that happens then we'll really be in celebration mode and be looking forward to welcoming friends to our home to meet the wee fellas. So continue to watch this space!!!!

The Hoff Twins: Monday, 2/2/2009 Introducing Louie and Jules!

Yes it is OFFICIAL (as in Belgian administration official - which means REALLY set in concrete now;) Christian, myself, Nikita, Joakim, and Chilli the dog are very pleased to introduce to family and friends our latest additions to the Hoff-Nielsen clan:

Louie Pekama & Jules Te Arahi Hoff-Nielsen

Thanks to all of you who voted (it is actually pure coincidence that these two names were also the most popular among you in our online survey. Great to know that we are so like minded!) Big thanks also to those of you who came back with 'other' suggestions. Here's a few that came close and a couple who made us giggle so much we could forget the serious-ness of the first few days: Jim & Jules, Davy & Tom, Ced(ric) and Thomas, Max & Phil, Wallace & Grommet, Dubel & Trubel. You lot, honestly:)

The boys are Danish since Christian made an honest woman of me back in 2006 and we shall be applying for New Zealand citizenship in addition.

What's behind the names?

Why Louie with an 'e'? Don't know really LOL! I guess we just wanted to take a slightly different twist on an otherwise classic name. We can imagine calling him Lou-lou as a nickname (at least while he's such a wee fella. Perhaps when he's 6ft s'thing weighing in at 100kgs muscle, then 'Lou-lou' might seem less appropriate)

Pekama is a family name (Maori) which seems to come originally from a great-uncle who died here in Belgium during the Great War. The latter is now a permanent resident at Khandahar War Cemetary in Nieuwkirke, West Belgium. It's kind of nice to know that his descendant, being born in Belgium will be taking his name back to New Zealand eventually.

We just loved the name 'Jules'. As the french-speaking Belgians would say, 'it is so mi-mi' which means cute. Again, 'Jules' is not entirely conventional and for our Danish family members it might seem downright bizarre since the pronunciation will seem one is talking about Christmas! We know also that we risk ridicule from our Kiwi mates, eg., "isn't that a girls' name?" or "LOL! ju-ju lips!!!" (you'll only get that last if u are a Kiwi so don't worry about it). But again, it will be a different story when our little 47cm/2.46kg grows into a 6ft/100kg muscle specimen of a man;)

We finally wanted a second maori name that would convey the concept of someone who was capable to move anywhere in the world, amongst all levels or classes of society, and be at 'one' with the people irrespective of their race, culture, religion, etc . You know we were so proud that Nikita and Joakim were both born without nationality (because Chris and I were not married at the time, and I came from the wrong hemisphere). They were for us TRUE international citizens. We're not out to save the world - please don't get me wrong! But Chris and I truly believe that we can learn so much from each other and that there is incredible beauty and richness in all cultures, all over the world. Hence finally, our youngest son's Maori name: 'Te Arahi'.