Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Stats and Habits at 6 Months


Let the Shopping Begin! Posted by Picasa

Wouldn't you know that Santa arrived at the Mall 2 days before Thanksgiving this year? Just in enough time to wish Ava and Bettina a happy 6-month anniversary. Well, since the girls were already dressed up for the holidays for our monthly photograph at the Picture People, we decided to sit on Santa's lap, too.

Stats:
Ava - 12 lbs 15.5 ozs (5th percentile of her peers), 16 1/2" head circumfrance (20th percentile), 24 1/2" long (10th percentile)
Bettina - 13 lbs 15.5 ozs (20% of her peers), 16 1/2 head circumfernace (20%), 25 1/2" tall (40%)

Favorite Toys/Games:
Ava - The ladybug and the Tiny Love wind chime on her activity mat, pushing the buttons on the walker
Bettina - They finally enjoy playing with toys and not just looking at them! The Johnny Jump-Up, the Tiny Love Wind Chime on her activity mat, the mobile above the changing table, loves, loves, loves to play peek-a-boo! Almost too big for the swing. The poor swing can't push her side-to-side anymore as she's too heavy for the battery-powered arm. Her favorite toy right now is her feet!

Benchmarks:
They enjoyed their first taste of solid foods (good 'ole rice cereal) the day after Thanksgiving. Because they both have colds, however, the doctor advised that they wait until their colds are over before they continue on a daily basis.

Monday, November 21, 2005

6 Months - Time to Give Thanks

The girls reached their 6th month anniversary 3 days before Thanksgiving. In this spirit, here is a list of all the things I'm thankful for in light of all our changes:

I am thankful for daily facials, which are enjoyed while hovering over the bottle steam sterilizer. Not as glamorous as the spa, but functional on two levels: we clean pores and bottles at the same time! I am thankful for every bath or shower I get during my busy week - both of them. I am blessed with each new spit-up baptism and all the stains on my clothes. I am thankful for machine-washable fabrics. I am thankful to have lost the baby weight (yes, I'm back to pre-pregnancy weight), however, it hasn't changed my habit of wearing my maternity PJs 'cause their just so darned comfortable!

I am thankful for 20 little fingers and 20 little toes. Those two sets of bright eyes and mouths that smile and giggle, bringing sunshine into my soul; God bless them. I am thankful for the countless hours spent on my glider reading stories, singing, and feeding babies.

I can't quite say I'm thankful for the lack of sleep and the numerous night-wakings, but the girls' anticipation and faith that I will solve all their problems by simply walking into the room, makes my heart melt and proud to serve them. I am thankful that God made us so we really could live on minimal sleep for months at a time. I am more thankful, though, that those times are mostly in the past; the girls are now regularly sleeping until morning. I am still thankful, though, that when they do wake up, simply holding them for a minute or two calms them enough to brave the rest of the night on their own.

I am thankful for Baby Bjorns, Podee bottles and activity mats; washing machines and digital cameras. I am thankful for support systems like mommys' groups, twins clubs and best friends. Who could forget Grandmas and Nonnas - their last minute babysitting, cooking and cleaning are true God-sends. Their love and nuturing - to both kids and moms - proves there are angels on earth. Grandpas and Nonnos - bless your marvelment and wonder, the countless hours you hold these babies and sheepishly try to make them more comfortable. Daddies of course are particularly special, eagerly asking about any new developments that he's missed that day while at work "bringing home the bacon." Smiling at the pictures and mocking the babies as they bundle up for bed.

May your blessings and reasons for thanks be equally strong and inspiring. Happy Thankgiving!

Thursday, November 10, 2005

5 Months 4 Weeks - A Routine Day


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This comic reminds me of the sleep training we just went through. As part of the training, we went cold turkey with the binkies. I think our girls are finally on the downslope of their pacifier addition! (Yea!)

I find that I'm constantly trying to reinforce an established, consistent routine. However, despite my efforts, what I still find is that the only thing consistent thus far, is the inconsistency. "This is the week when I will see their real routine," is the thought that creeps into my head every week. Usually, I'll see glimmers and slivers which are quickly dashed by a loud, diabolic complaint that totally kills the rest of the day!

Truth is, although I know we're making progress, it's still like 2 steps forward, 1 step back. There are constant set-backs and bad days - at least with one of the twins. One has it and the other is the challenge. However, today was one of the rare times we had an exceptional day. Everything went right.

For one thing, both girls went down like angels at 6:30 pm last night. No complaints; no crying. Next, not more than a whimper from either of them until 5:15 am this morning. An uneventful feeding and diaper change followed by a good nap until 7:15 am. This is when Dad gets up and gets ready for work. The girls decide they want to start their day as well. We get dressed and have play time until 9:30 am when I decide it's time to fill them up again with milk; perfect timing - Ava just starts to get cranky at 10:00 am at the end of her feeding. They sleep from 10 to 11:30 and wake up 10 minutes apart (perfect amount of time to change and play with one and get ready for the other). We're in the car by 12 noon to run an errand at Baby Gap and by 1:00 pm we are at the Lafayette Reservoir to meet up with friends Lexi and Merrin for some walking exercise. Ava starts to get a bit fussy right on time (just before 2pm) so, as a short-term fix, I steal Tina's Podee bottle to see if Ava's ready to "learn" to use it. Remarkably, she does!! (Wonderful news! This will make outings even easier in the future). We're home at 2:30 pm and I fill them up again. 3:00 is reading and song time with all 3 of us on the glider and both kids are in bed napping at 3:30, again without complaint. I am amazed! They sleep again for another 1.5 hours and Dad comes in just as they wake up at 5pm. Let's get dinner! On go the Bjorns, in go the babies, and down the street we stroll. We're home by 6pm and I immediately draw their bath. They kick and splash until 6:15 pm and they're in their PJs finishing their final meal with heavy eyes by 6:45 pm. No complaints as they fall asleep and Mommy walks out of the room to a quiet house.... and plenty of time to reflect, celebrate, thank God, write her blog and pray that their "routine" tomorrow looks more like this.

Friday, November 04, 2005

5 Months 3 Weeks - Winterizing

I can't believe that it's November! How did it start getting so cold, dark, and late?? Well, truth is, the Holidays are coming. Better start thinking about what these little girls will need in the next couple of months and make a Christmas List.

Unfortunately, their list will comprise of a lot of necessities, largely, new car seats. Soon, they will have outgrown their infant car seats, which are portable and double as baby carriers, to the ones that stay in the car permanently and face forward instead of backwards. The downside the this benchmark: these kind of car seats are much more expensive than the newborn ones. We're talking practically double the price! (Ouch!)

I've been, again, been doing a lot of research and chatting with other moms in the same place and have learned that the best one for us is probably the Britax Roundabout. Most moms prefer the Britax Marathon, since it can accomodate kids up to 65 lbs, thus potentially lasting longer. However, my guys seem to be on the smaller side of kids their age and probably the Roundabout, which takes kids up to 45 lbs., will do the trick until the booster-chair time comes. Besides, the Roundabout is about $80 less expensive than the Marathon.

The girls will also have crib-mattresses on their Christmas Lists. I will try to find these somehow through the Twins Clubs I'm in and see if I can find them cheaper. Otherwise, those are another big-ticket item. But, they will go great with the new Natart cribs that the girls' grandfather gave them. They are great because, when they're done using them as cribs, they will convert to twin sized beds that they can use until they essentially go to college.

I've also been doing my job shopping the sales for 6-9 mo. warm clothes that we can package up under the tree and use after Christmas. I've also found some nice accessories to help winterize us. I had to get a rain shield for the impending rain, little mini sleeping bags (called bunting) for the stroller so the blankets won't get kicked to the curb in the pouring rain, and some car seat blankets called GoCozy that fit right in - again, so their not dislodged in transport. I think we're pretty ready for winter now.