The kids were especially tired when we got home from the sitter’s last evening. They both fell asleep – for a long time. So I decided that I would do bath, bottle bed earlier. Big mistake. But that’s how we learn, right? Early to bed definitely means early to rise. Not only that but they woke up twice during the night. Okay, so we will never do that again. By the way, in case you were wondering, yes, I still wake baby #2 to feed in the middle of the night after baby #1 is done. People (whoever they are) say that you aren’t supposed to wake a sleeping baby – but those “people” never had twins. If I fed one and then waited until the other one woke I would be up and down all night. I have been doing this since they were about 2 or 3 weeks old. It works for me. It is the only thing that provides me a piece of sanity. And we all know what happens to me when I lose my sanity. It gets ugly.
Okay, so I don’t have photos to show of the babies at 12 weeks. I have them, but I just cannot download them. My computer is still not working. I am suffering without it. Truly. I am praying for the computer fairy to grace me with her presence… soon.
So, as most of you know, I was lucky enough to have lost all of the pregnancy weight and then some within about 3 weeks of delivery. Nice. However, since I stopped breastfeeding, it is harder to keep it off. The area right above my c-section incision has grown. I am also a bit flabby and need to try and fit in some exercise. It’s been difficult to fit it in. I feel terrible, but even more so for Lloyd. Most nights we don’t get out until after the babies are in bed…9pm! There are nights when I look to the bed, then I look at Lloyd, I look at the bed, then at Lloyd. Lloyd wins… but not always.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
The weekend
Good Monday…
My computer is still pretty much fried, so posting has been sporadic. (I just had to look up the spelling for sporadic…I swear my brain is fried like my computer).
Andy took Friday off to spend the day with the kids since our sitter couldn’t take them that day. He took them to the office for a bit and the ladies loved them. I am sure he was looking for a break. It was really nice not to have to get them up at 5:30 am and rush to feed and dress them. So I am sure it was a relaxing day for the kids... not so much for Daddy. He was quite tired by the end of the day.
Saturday was a house day. I tried to get as much housework done as I possibly could. Andy was busy with the outside. He had to mow the front lawn twice just to get all of the leaves on the ground. He had to meet with a work associate in the afternoon; so needless to say, I never got out of the house that day.
Elinor has been having colic fits nightly around 6 to 8pm. They are quite unbearable. Andy is a lot better lately at handling it. I tried different formula for her last night and she vomited it all up… so that wasn’t it. The bath is pretty much the only thing that calms her. So, bath, bottle & bed came a wee bit early last night. They were in bed by 8:30. I was in bed by 9pm.
Kirsten knitted some Halloween hats for the kids. I think they are just the cutest. I love a handmade gift. Thanks Auntie Ag!
My computer is still pretty much fried, so posting has been sporadic. (I just had to look up the spelling for sporadic…I swear my brain is fried like my computer).
Andy took Friday off to spend the day with the kids since our sitter couldn’t take them that day. He took them to the office for a bit and the ladies loved them. I am sure he was looking for a break. It was really nice not to have to get them up at 5:30 am and rush to feed and dress them. So I am sure it was a relaxing day for the kids... not so much for Daddy. He was quite tired by the end of the day.
Saturday was a house day. I tried to get as much housework done as I possibly could. Andy was busy with the outside. He had to mow the front lawn twice just to get all of the leaves on the ground. He had to meet with a work associate in the afternoon; so needless to say, I never got out of the house that day.
Elinor has been having colic fits nightly around 6 to 8pm. They are quite unbearable. Andy is a lot better lately at handling it. I tried different formula for her last night and she vomited it all up… so that wasn’t it. The bath is pretty much the only thing that calms her. So, bath, bottle & bed came a wee bit early last night. They were in bed by 8:30. I was in bed by 9pm.
Kirsten knitted some Halloween hats for the kids. I think they are just the cutest. I love a handmade gift. Thanks Auntie Ag!
Ellie loves it. I swear.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Sleep
My laptop is still out of order, so it has been difficult to download photos and blog. I think it might be time for a new one. It’s one of those things that is hard to live without anymore.
We had a nice trip to Olean last weekend. It was a lot of running around. It gets exhausting. We had Kathleen’s surprise 40th which turned out to be a lot of fun. It was held at a local restaurant and all I have to say is “great wings”! And I don’t usually eat them.
The kids are really smiling a lot these days. Their hand-eye coordination is progressing very well. The floor activity gym has music and lights that can be activated only when it is touched. John was going to town with it yesterday. I don’t know if he was purposely aiming for it or if he kept touching it by accident. Elinor even enjoyed looking and playing on the floor.
We usually do baths starting at 8-8:30 each night. The routine is bath, bottle & bed. This all happens by 9pm. However, I have noticed that Elinor is quite ornery in the evening and I have to wonder if she is overtired. John was fighting sleep after 7pm last night. So I may try doing bath, bottle, & bed a bit early tonight. Then I may feed them a couple of ounces of formula right before I go to bed. I think they call this “dream feed”. Also, this morning it was difficult to wake them and feed them before I left for work. I hate having to wake them. Again, John couldn’t keep his eyes open. This is what they looked like after I left for the day:
We had a nice trip to Olean last weekend. It was a lot of running around. It gets exhausting. We had Kathleen’s surprise 40th which turned out to be a lot of fun. It was held at a local restaurant and all I have to say is “great wings”! And I don’t usually eat them.
The kids are really smiling a lot these days. Their hand-eye coordination is progressing very well. The floor activity gym has music and lights that can be activated only when it is touched. John was going to town with it yesterday. I don’t know if he was purposely aiming for it or if he kept touching it by accident. Elinor even enjoyed looking and playing on the floor.
We usually do baths starting at 8-8:30 each night. The routine is bath, bottle & bed. This all happens by 9pm. However, I have noticed that Elinor is quite ornery in the evening and I have to wonder if she is overtired. John was fighting sleep after 7pm last night. So I may try doing bath, bottle, & bed a bit early tonight. Then I may feed them a couple of ounces of formula right before I go to bed. I think they call this “dream feed”. Also, this morning it was difficult to wake them and feed them before I left for work. I hate having to wake them. Again, John couldn’t keep his eyes open. This is what they looked like after I left for the day:
Friday, October 16, 2009
Everyone is tired here
We went right home from the sitter’s house yesterday and Ellie continued to cry for about an hour. I had no idea what was gong on. All this time John John sat in his car seat and slept. After trying to feed her a bit, I then tried to rock her, I put her in the swing (her favorite) and still there was no relief. Finally, I swaddled her up and put her in her crib to let her cry it out. That didn’t take long, she was asleep within about 15 minutes. She was overtired. How is that possible? She took some really long naps at the sitter’s house. She has been napping a lot lately and I have to wonder if she is not feeling well or if it’s a growth spurt. How do I know?
Meanwhile, Andy came home to greet John who was full of smiles.
We ordered a pizza. It was real bath night last night which is Andy’s job. He bathed them both and dressed them and we fed them and put them to bed. Then we got mostly everything packed for our weekend in Jamestown/Olean. We will leave after work today.
The weather is crummy… rainy and cold. I would rather see snow.
Three things:
1) keeping in touch with old friends
2) good hair day
3) trips to visit family
Meanwhile, Andy came home to greet John who was full of smiles.
We ordered a pizza. It was real bath night last night which is Andy’s job. He bathed them both and dressed them and we fed them and put them to bed. Then we got mostly everything packed for our weekend in Jamestown/Olean. We will leave after work today.The weather is crummy… rainy and cold. I would rather see snow.
Three things:
1) keeping in touch with old friends
2) good hair day
3) trips to visit family
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Ditto
They did it again! 6 whole hours. Could it be that we have actually turned a corner? Everything I read indicates not to count on anything. So I am grateful for the 2 nights, but will welcome it if the pattern continues.
We have two swaddle blankets.. the kind with the pocket for the legs and then 2 flaps that velcro. John will allow me to swaddle him. He looks so cute all contained like a mummy. He is perfectly content to not have arms and hands. On the other hand, Elinor does not like it one bit. She is like a mini Houdini... she squirms and grunts until magically both arms are free, flapping away.
We have two swaddle blankets.. the kind with the pocket for the legs and then 2 flaps that velcro. John will allow me to swaddle him. He looks so cute all contained like a mummy. He is perfectly content to not have arms and hands. On the other hand, Elinor does not like it one bit. She is like a mini Houdini... she squirms and grunts until magically both arms are free, flapping away.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
10 weeks
Halleluia! The kids slept for 6 straight hours last night on their 10 week birthday. No joke! We did bath, bottle and bed by 9 p.m. and John John did not wake until 3 a.m. There was a false alarm at 1 a.m. when Ellie awoke. I got up and stuck a paci back in her mouth and I ended up having to wake to feed her at 3:30 a.m. Once they were in bed after that feeding they never woke again until I had to get everyone up at 5:45 a.m. What are the chances of this happening again? I am keeping my fingers crossed.
Three things:
1) 5 consecutive hours of sleep
2) hot coffee ready made when I arrive at work
3) my husband for getting up on his own this morning to help me
Have a great day!
Three things:
1) 5 consecutive hours of sleep
2) hot coffee ready made when I arrive at work
3) my husband for getting up on his own this morning to help me
Have a great day!
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
9 weeks old
The kids turned 9 weeks old yesterday and to celebrate we took them to get their immunizations. John is now weighing 10 lbs 14 oz and Elinor weighs 9 lbs 10 oz. They were so good in the doctor’s office. They were just lying there on the table that has the white paper all the while moving their arms and legs for the longest time. I think they liked the sound of the paper crinkling as their legs moved. 
Let me tell you that they did not know what hit them when the shots were administered. I expected Elinor to cry but John was a different story. I never heard him cry so loud before. His face got so red that when he finally calmed down he actually looked somewhat pale. Elinor cried so hard that she was not making any noise. The nurse had to tell me to blow on her to get her to breathe again. Geez! When we got home I brought them into the big bed with me and we napped for a while. They seemed to be sleepy for the rest of the night. However John started to have a meltdown around 7:30 and I wasn’t sure if it was just a plain old meltdown (so unlike John) or if the shots had bothered him. So I erred on the side of the shots and gave him a bit of Tylenol and off to sleepyland he went.
They did not wake up on their own this morning. That’s right people, John did not wake up at his usual early time between 4 am and 5 am. Nope. Today, he started his grunting at 2:30 a.m. I tried to pat him to sleep. I tried the paci… but he knew better. So, I finally picked him up and brought him into the big bed with me. He was fine after that. Imagine.
Three things for today:
1) Socks and sweater weather
2) Hot cup of tea with honey
3) Kisses from Lloyd
Let me tell you that they did not know what hit them when the shots were administered. I expected Elinor to cry but John was a different story. I never heard him cry so loud before. His face got so red that when he finally calmed down he actually looked somewhat pale. Elinor cried so hard that she was not making any noise. The nurse had to tell me to blow on her to get her to breathe again. Geez! When we got home I brought them into the big bed with me and we napped for a while. They seemed to be sleepy for the rest of the night. However John started to have a meltdown around 7:30 and I wasn’t sure if it was just a plain old meltdown (so unlike John) or if the shots had bothered him. So I erred on the side of the shots and gave him a bit of Tylenol and off to sleepyland he went.They did not wake up on their own this morning. That’s right people, John did not wake up at his usual early time between 4 am and 5 am. Nope. Today, he started his grunting at 2:30 a.m. I tried to pat him to sleep. I tried the paci… but he knew better. So, I finally picked him up and brought him into the big bed with me. He was fine after that. Imagine.
Three things for today:
1) Socks and sweater weather
2) Hot cup of tea with honey
3) Kisses from Lloyd
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Three things
I think sometimes we get caught up in a routine and we forget to look outside of the box... When I remind myself of all the good things in my daily life, I am no longer focusing on the negative.
Three things I am grateful for today:
1) Smiles in the morning from my kids
2) New comfy shoes
3) Cutting out of work early today
-----------------------------------------------------
For the past 2 weeks John has been waking up anywhere between 4 am and 5 am wanting to get up. It is not time to eat and he does not seem to want to eat at that time. He won’t go back to sleep even with a pacifier. So we, or I, created a bad habit by bringing him into bed with us – or usually Andy because I have to get up by that time. Once he is in the big bed he becomes “snuggle Joe” and goes right to sleep.
Last night we did our last feeding at 10 p.m. I actually had to wake John for that one because he had already been asleep. So we tanked up the babies thinking they may sleep for 4-5 hours. Not John though. He awoke at 1:15 for another fill up. I cannot tell if he really needs it or if it is just habit to go every 3 hours. At this point I did not wake Ellie because I wanted to see how long she could sleep. She slept until 3am. Good girl! So, I fed her and put her down. Then I woke John, because he would have been up in an hour anyways. I fed him a couple of ounces and put him back to bed… and there he was at 4:30am… grunting to be picked up and brought to the big bed.
How do I fix this problem???
Have a GREAT day everyone!
Three things I am grateful for today:
1) Smiles in the morning from my kids
2) New comfy shoes
3) Cutting out of work early today
-----------------------------------------------------
For the past 2 weeks John has been waking up anywhere between 4 am and 5 am wanting to get up. It is not time to eat and he does not seem to want to eat at that time. He won’t go back to sleep even with a pacifier. So we, or I, created a bad habit by bringing him into bed with us – or usually Andy because I have to get up by that time. Once he is in the big bed he becomes “snuggle Joe” and goes right to sleep.
Last night we did our last feeding at 10 p.m. I actually had to wake John for that one because he had already been asleep. So we tanked up the babies thinking they may sleep for 4-5 hours. Not John though. He awoke at 1:15 for another fill up. I cannot tell if he really needs it or if it is just habit to go every 3 hours. At this point I did not wake Ellie because I wanted to see how long she could sleep. She slept until 3am. Good girl! So, I fed her and put her down. Then I woke John, because he would have been up in an hour anyways. I fed him a couple of ounces and put him back to bed… and there he was at 4:30am… grunting to be picked up and brought to the big bed.
How do I fix this problem???
Have a GREAT day everyone!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Autumn
What a great Autumn weekend! I love this weather… it definitely agrees with me.
Friday did not come soon enough. But I loved picking up the kids on Friday knowing that I would have the next two whole days with them… and Lloyd too.
Andy cooked dinner on Friday night. I was truly grateful for that. As I have said before… when Andy cooks it is always something with a tortilla. We had tacos… they were quite good. He also announced that he got a babysitter for Saturday night and that we were going on a date.
On Saturday we did our usual tidying up around the house, laundry, lawn work, etc. Then we got the kids out of the house and went chair shopping in downtown Sandusky. We did not find a thing. We have been in our house for three years and we still do not have a furnished living room. People come over and we all have to pile up on the couch… not great for conversation.
After the furniture store, we strolled the kiddos around town letting them soak up as much fresh air as possible.
Friday did not come soon enough. But I loved picking up the kids on Friday knowing that I would have the next two whole days with them… and Lloyd too.
Andy cooked dinner on Friday night. I was truly grateful for that. As I have said before… when Andy cooks it is always something with a tortilla. We had tacos… they were quite good. He also announced that he got a babysitter for Saturday night and that we were going on a date.
On Saturday we did our usual tidying up around the house, laundry, lawn work, etc. Then we got the kids out of the house and went chair shopping in downtown Sandusky. We did not find a thing. We have been in our house for three years and we still do not have a furnished living room. People come over and we all have to pile up on the couch… not great for conversation.
After the furniture store, we strolled the kiddos around town letting them soak up as much fresh air as possible.
After a couple of pumpkin pie lattes we decided to get home so that we could get ready for our date.
Andy and I had a delicious meal at Zinc Brasserie. It is by far our favorite restaurant in the area. He started off with a cheese plate and then a Seafood Medley over pasta. I had a bowl of pumpkin soup with one large scallop. Yum. Then for dinner I had the Alaskan halibut on a bed of lobster ravioli and sweet pea puree. I also had two pomegranate martinis. Really wonderful night.
Sunday was a lazy day. We took our family walk in the morning and never left the house again for the rest of the day. I made Butternut Squash soup in the crockpot (I added 1/2 cup of heavy cream at the end). It was delicious. And I have enough for a couple of lunches. I will definitely make this again.
Mimi and Grandpa arrived around 6:30. Bath night for the kids and in bed by 10pm.
Happy Monday… Cannot wait until Friday!
Bonus: We caught a picture of our sweet John John smiling.
Andy and I had a delicious meal at Zinc Brasserie. It is by far our favorite restaurant in the area. He started off with a cheese plate and then a Seafood Medley over pasta. I had a bowl of pumpkin soup with one large scallop. Yum. Then for dinner I had the Alaskan halibut on a bed of lobster ravioli and sweet pea puree. I also had two pomegranate martinis. Really wonderful night.
Sunday was a lazy day. We took our family walk in the morning and never left the house again for the rest of the day. I made Butternut Squash soup in the crockpot (I added 1/2 cup of heavy cream at the end). It was delicious. And I have enough for a couple of lunches. I will definitely make this again.
Mimi and Grandpa arrived around 6:30. Bath night for the kids and in bed by 10pm.
Happy Monday… Cannot wait until Friday!
Bonus: We caught a picture of our sweet John John smiling.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Mornings
The mornings before work are really quite hectic. I get up at 5am, shower and do my hair and makeup. Then I go fix the bottles for the day unless one of the babies is already waking - which usually happens. Today I got John up and fed him then gave him to Andy in bed. Then I got Ellie up and fed her and put her in her car seat. In my haste to finish getting everyone ready for the day I did not realize that the car seat handle was not all the way up and when I picked it up, Ellie was slightly forward and catapulted out of the seat and onto the floor - face down. Oh my god! It all happened in slow motion. I felt absolutely terrible. I finally calmed her down and gave her to Andy (I still had to finish getting ready).
This is what Andy does with the kids after I leave in the morning:
This is what Andy does with the kids after I leave in the morning:
Ellie is on the left and John is on the right.
Have a great day everyone! I hope it starts out 10 times better than mine did.
Edit: Today is the first day of October. Autumn has definately arrived here in Huron, Ohio. There was ice on the car windows at 6:30am this morning. I have my fleece and flannel out for wear. Will definately need to consider one of these which I absolutely love.
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