Big Weekend!

Major Headlines from this past weekend:

1. J. Frog took a bottle - On Friday morning Abra attempted to give him another bottle of expressed breast milk and, lo-and-behold, he took it! 2 whole oz! We experimented with a little sugar water in the afternoon and he drank a little of that as well. On Saturday he took some formula and on Sunday he took 4 more oz. from the bottle. We're all so thrilled, but no more than me. I thought I was going to have to breast feed him until he was a year old. I wouldn't mind doing it, but not having a choice makes it a little less appealing. This means much more simplicity for Abra and freedom for me. Hooray!
2. Missy rolled over from back to front - On Saturday Missy surprised Daddy by rolling from back to front while playing on her play mat. We expected J. Frog would be the first, and although he's showing signs of being close, he has not done it yet. Missy did it over and over again on Saturday. The only problem is that when she rolls over, she has her hands down by her hips and then is stuck. Hopefully she won't do it at night in the crib!
3. LR is getting closer to being potty trained - After multiple accidents on Saturday, he went all day in underwear on Sunday. We even made a run to Costco without an accident. I bought him a seat that fits on top of the regular toilet at home and he seemed to like using the same one we do. This morning, however, he decided he likes his little one in the living room better. I think it has to do with its proximity to his toys.
   

No Bottles for J. Frog

J. Frog still isn't taking a bottle. We've resorted to introducing rice cereal and giving him formula with a medicine syringe. It doesn't work very well, but at least he's getting something during the 5 hours I'm gone every day now. He tends to talk/complain the whole time we're spoon feeding him cereal. Otherwise, he is a happy smiling baby. He's longer than Missy, but also skinnier. I know he's getting enough to eat, but it breaks my heart after having 2 hefty babies. I keep thinking he's starving. You have to understand the crazy that comes with being a mom. Sleep loss + high stress = CRAZY.

I realized yesterday that I equate the twins with having a second child instead of as a second and third child. As I read posts from other parents dealing with a second child and talk to friends with their new additions, I compare their experiences to mine. I wonder why they are having an easier time or how they have time to read to their 3 month old while tending to a rambunctious toddler. In one of my books on having multiples, I read that I should be wary of "unit bonding" which was thinking about the two of them as a single unit. Sure signs included dressing them in matching outfits all the time. Does it count if the outfits are really cute? Fine. Do you hear that, family? No more matching outfits. I can't handle the pressure of knowing that I'm potentially screwing with their identity development by dressing them the same. See? Crazy. (I'm kidding... send the matching outfits. I love them.)

Potty Training and Jumping

LR is doing a pretty great job on the potty training front. He's successfully made it to the potty 4 days in a row when he needed to poop. Each time I gave him a new Hotwheels car. We leave him naked most mornings. Every time we put underwear on him, he seems to forget and wets through. We have more success when he's diaper and underwear-less.Rather than show you pictures of LR potty training, I will show you these awesome shots of him jumping off his table with his friend R. R has been into jumping off things recently and LR just loves to imitate him. The only problem is that LR increases the distance and height after R goes home. The other day he cleared the bottom 3 steps of the stairs and landed loudly at Daddy's feet just as Daddy was saying, "no, no, no!" The day before that he jumped from his bed and easily cleared the steps at the foot of his bed. Next post: Our Sunday out with Thomas the Train! We took over 200 photos, so it's going to take me a little while to pick my favorites.

My Own Cabbage Patch Kid

When I was 6, the Cabbage Patch Kids craze struck. I was no different than the other girls in my class. I was hoping for a special doll with its own birth certificate which would verify that this doll, indeed, miraculously sprouted from a cabbage with an "Xavier Roberts" stamp on its foot. My grandma turned into what I imagined was a warrior, fighting off attackers as she scooped up a doll for me at her local Toys R Us - not once, but 3 times. Within a year I had a boy, a girl, and a preemie boy. If it was a predictor of my future, it wasn't far off. Today I have my very own, live cabbage patch kid. Recently, a friend said that Missy's mouth was squished by her very large cheeks. I took a look, and sure enough, just like a cabbage patch kid. Luckily, there's no stamp on her foot. When she smiles though, the grin takes over her whole face!

A friend of mine came over on Thursday so that we could finally introduce our kids... all of them. We met when we were searching for our au pair. She and her husband live a few streets away. They have a son who is 6 months older than LR and they were due with boy/girl fraternal twins a month after us. We were shocked at the similarities and became fast friends. With the craziness that is our lives today, it's no wonder that it took us this long to get them all together. We tried to get all 6 in the picture, but the older boys were busy playing trains. We didn't plan it, but both girls were in green and both boys in blue. The older boys had matching shorts and t-shirts on as well. It was a little odd. Her au pair is holding J. Frog in the picture while Abra holds her son. I didn't notice until now, but all the babies are looking at Missy in the picture. She's trying to play it cool though.

The Best Present of All

*WARNING* Due to the graphic nature of this post, reader discretion is advised.

I turned 32 today! I did what I set out to do years ago, which was to finish having kids by the time I was 32. At least that was the goal my doctors set out for me back when I was in my mid-twenties. It seemed like such a huge hurdle, but here we are, 3 kids later, and my body is just beginning to recover... well, as much as it can on so little sleep.

We celebrated both Father's Day and my birthday this past weekend by taking the zoo out to eat at our favorite old date spot for lunch. We gorged on Chinese food and fruity rum drinks. It went pretty well. J. Frog slept through much of it keeping the ratio of adults to kids reasonable. Last week was my first week back at work part-time (thus the lack of posts last week) and I was ready for a little down time. I didn't get any, but I was sure ready for some. Maybe next week.

As for my favorite present this year, it was from LR. For the very first time, he pooped on the potty this morning. Unfortunately, Daddy was on a conference call, but Abra and I celebrated with him and I gave him a shiny new Hotwheels truck. Hopefully he won't feel the need to hide behind the couch every time he needs to poop now. *fingers crossed*

Month Old Movie

This movie is a month old. It shows the babies sitting up on the couch and LR skidding around the house on his stroller. It also shows my amazing video editing skills. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvmSFiBN3E8

Bumbo Seat

Missy rolled over yesterday! I walked out of the room for 2 seconds. By the time I got back, she was on her back with Abra cheering. I put her back on her tummy, but she didn't want to do it again.

It's amazing how many people have twins in their family or have a twins (or super twins - higher order multiples) story. Daddy was one of four people from his company who went to the conference last week. 2 of them had a set of twin siblings. Daddy obviously has Missy and J. Frog. Only Daddy's boss didn't have twins in the family.

Gigi and I braved the mall on Sunday. In Victoria Secret, we ran into 2 people who told us they had twins. People were being friendly because both the babies started to scream at the same time while Gigi was out chasing our newly speedy LR. He's getting wheels! So, after lots of staring, a nice woman finally offered to help me by holding J. Frog while I calmed Missy. When Gigi returned a little out of breath, we headed over to Baby Style where both the woman in front of me and the cashier admitted to having twins. Small, small world.

I broke down and got a Bumbo seat (pictured) from craigslist. I had to jump on it because they go fast. I told the woman I had twins and needed to put one down. She took pity and when I arrived to pick it up, she told me she had twins as well. I asked her how old and she said 4. I asked if it got easier and she said she didn't know because one died at 16 months. My heart jumped and I tried to figure out how many insensitive things I might have said in the 5 minutes that we'd been talking. Count that as my fourth tragic twin tale since I've had Missy and J. Frog. One mom I've been working with lost one inutero. One lost her girl at the age of 3 thanks to an unsecured bookcase. One whom I bought a bouncy seat from lost her first son when he was 1 and then had twins. I imagine it has nothing to do with having twins as the grief must be equally intense for a parent regardless.

On the lighter side, LR is starting to enjoy interacting with his siblings. He sings to them whenever they cry. He tells them "it's okay baby," if I can't get to one of them fast enough. He even shares his toys. He's going top love their company as soon as they can reciprocate a bit.

Visit From Gigi

Gigi was kind enough to arrive last Wed and stay through today while Daddy was at a Ruby on Rails conference in Portland, OR. Papa also attended the conference while Grandma Nese toured the area. Gigi got to experience first hand the craziness that is our house. Abra left on Friday morning for a weekend in Chicago, so Gigi and I were on our own for 3 whole days.

Of course, the first night after a week of good sleep, the babies had a rotten night. The second night was worse, so I finally decided it was time to Ferberize them. I read a couple of blogs on twins that recounted their adventures in Ferberizing. Sounded relatively simple, and it worked for LR, so on the third night I put Missy down and listened to her cry for half and hour. J. Frog was awake from a long afternoon nap, so I didn't try to put him down during that. I finally picked her up, soothed her, and put her in the crib. She cried for another minute and then fell asleep. I put J. Frog in with her later and they slept decently, but not amazingly well.

The fourth night I put them down together in the crib. J. Frog slept through the first 40 minutes of her screaming and then joined in for 5 minutes before Gigi and I went and got them. It took another hour to get them back to sleep. I figured that would be my last try until they were 6 months old, but miraculously, they slept through the night.

The fifth night was the night Daddy came home and he and Gigi took apart and reassembled the second crib. With each child in their own crib for the first time, I put them down the way I normally do and they were up and down ALL night. It was awful. So, tonight I let them scream together for a half hour, soothed them for another half hour, and finally put them in bed unswaddled for the first time. I know I keep switching up tactics, but something is bound to work. My hope is that Missy finds her hands to suck on when she wakes up and J. Frog stopped freaking out when he breaks out of the swaddling ~ which he's done every night for the last 3. Since I go back to work next Monday, I really hope something works soon.

I think Ferber might work for J. Frog on his own, but I'm afraid Missy is one of those kids that it just won't work for. She showed no signs of slowing on any of the nights. That will make it hard for J. Frog. Gigi was a champ and helped talk me through all the screaming. Not sure what I would have done without her. (Thank you, Gigi!) Maybe they'll continue to be decent sleepers with occasional hiccups.