Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Busy Boys

Here's the picture link.  We've added a May album.


A couple of weekends ago, we went to a lake house with the boys. They LOVED being outdoors for so long. They were so good!


Their cousin, Hawthorne, continues to love on these boys! She adores them!




Jessie is continuing to do a great job with the boys! Her boyfriend, Albert, flew in from NYC for a long weekend. It was his birthday weekend and Jessie took him out and about in Dallas.  And of course, he got to spend some quality time with the boys! 




It was also Mother's day recently. Let me tell you. If you are thinking of having kids....DO IT! Mother's Day is awesome. In my opinion, there are few things better than feeling appreciated. My day began with babies waking before I wanted to get out of bed, so they joined me there. We snuggled for a while and they were in such great moods! Brad came in later with yellow Tulips and a card with the sweetest note! Tears! The words "good job" go such a long way. Then he fixed a yummy breakfast while the boys and I lounged. Albert and Jessie were so incredibly nice to surprise both Brad and I with a couples massage that afternoon. They sent us out with directions to an unknown place.  It was WONDERFUL!  That evening, we grilled out and enjoyed s'mores over the fire pit.  It was an absolutely perfect day.


Recently, some of my college friends finally got to meet the boys! Thanks for having the brunch, Kristin!  We had a fun afternoon and the boys definitely loved all the spoiling!  It was also great to meet Alice, Hilary's daughter, only 3 weeks older than the boys.


On a sour note, what is up with all the spit up lately?  Sometimes, it is just a little...comes up with the burp. But then sometimes, just after they finish a bottle, they decide they don't want to keep it all down and out comes a couple of ounces! Gross! It has gotten in my hair, down my shirt, on the floor. We go through so many burp clothes it is ridiculous! I'm over it now and just put on my junk clothes as soon as I come home.


But it will always be fun to dress the boys and take pictures! 


It is so exciting when we catch the boys becoming aware of each other! They are FINALLY looking at each other and taking some interest.


They boys are absolutely joyful in the mornings! They eat lots and lots during the day and Jessie plays with them lots and teaches them lots! In the evenings, they can be fussy. There are some good nights, but usually when 6:30pm hits, they become quite needy. Nolan LOVES bedtime. You set him down in his crib and he turns his head and falls right to sleep. Carter screams for about 3 minutes (Nolan doesn't budge) then he passes out, too. I think overall, they are good with bedtime and we are pretty lucky.


Both boys have a great time on the tummy mat. They have gotten lucky a few times and actually grabbed on to one of the awesome toys hanging over them. So cute. They'll then hang on to it like their life depends on it!
They still hate tummy time, though!  We continue to work on it! They can lift their heads pretty well on the boppy now and when on your chest. And they can sit up in their bumbo seats. But, when lying flat on their tummies, they just don't want to lift their heads! We'll get there!


Recently, we did a video chat with my mom, my granny and my cousin, John! It was so fun! It was so wonderful for my Granny to get to see my house and see the boys in real time!  I can't wait for her to really meet them. 

We had some outdoor time for a photo shoot with their new bumbo seats. They don't realize it yet, but they are really loving the bumbos!  It looks like Carter is pouting while Nolan lectures him about his lack of drool control during photo shoots. 


And can you believe it.....They are sleeping from 8:30 pm to anywhere from 5 to 7 am! CRAZY! We feed them then put them back to bed and they'll sleep until 8:30 or 9am! I really do feel like myself again. Thank you babies! But now that we can typically count on them to sleep longer, we are going to bed later.  We are pushing it!


I am seriously looking forward to the next three weekends!  We are busy and these boys are traveling!  Austin, then Nashville, then Kentucky! They'll get to meet so many more friends and family. I cannot wait!

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

3 months old on May 3!

Time is absolutely flying!
Here's the link to the picture website.  I've added more pictures to the April album.


We don't go to the pediatrician again until they are 4 months old so I'm guessing on their weights. I think Carter is around 13 lbs. and Nolan around 11 lbs.


They continue to surprise us every day and every night.  =)


Each of them have had 9 hours of straight sleep at night; they are just not consistent with it.  Brad and I did discover that if they wake up before 3am, we can give them a passie and get them to sleep another 1-3 hours! Carter still battles bedtime, but usually after 10 minutes of serious "I don't want to go to bed" screaming, he does pass out and sleep well!  Here is a pic of Brad reading to the boys. Looks so pleasant!....if only every night was like this. I don't think this has happened again since!
Nolan is becoming a better eater so I think the acid-reflux (if that's what it was) is finally settling.


The boys did great at daycare...or maybe I should say Carla did great taking care of them! It can be tough when they both are crying at the same time!


April 24th, my sister, Jessie got here. She has completed over one week of being the best nanny ever!  She said she was so nervous Sunday night that she could hardly sleep. She'd only held the babies as newborns, when all they did was sleep and look around silently!


By this point, she really knows their behaviors and is working on getting them on a twice-a day nap schedule so they aren't just taking cat naps all day.  She is doing a great job feeding them at the same time, giving them tummy time, soothing them, changing them and entertaining them! Go Jessie!


Today it was clear that the boys love her...Carter, at least. He was on my lap and she leaned in and he just smiled like crazy!


Speaking of smiles, they are smiling much more now and cooing in delight when they like something! It is so wonderful! It makes us completely forget their fussy times!  Brad seems to have the skills though because he captured them on camera in the morning.  Here's Carter, followed by Nolan.


Now we are totally working on getting these boys to lift up their heads and chests when they are on their tummies. Carter is really strong with his head and legs and loves standing. Nolan is a kicker and in the last week has gotten much stronger with his head, too.  These are some big heads on little bodies! Baby proportions are crazy! No wonder is is so tough for them to learn that strength.
You can really see Carter's herniated belly button here. Both of them had it for a while but Nolan's has completely gone down. Carter's has gotten a little smaller. It is common in premie babies and in twins but is not a big deal and typically goes away near 4 months.


This past Saturday, Jessie, myself and the boys completed the Heels and Hills 5K. No, we did not jog the whole time. We walked some and jogged some. Seriously after mile one, I already felt my thighs tightening up. My muscles are still not even close to what they were before bed rest!  Well, I could barely jog a mile before anyway.   But we are on our way! 
I was so glad to have a double jogging stroller to use! It was an early mother's day gift from Brad, Jessie, Albert and the boys. Perfect!


A few nights ago, we went out for mexican food. I ate so much....I mean it was a little ridiculous. Anyway, we learned a good lesson the next day. Babies and Mexican food do not go well together. Each of them filled their diapers like it was their job and both overflowed a couple of times. Once while we were in Old Navy the next day. Awesome!  Brad was a champ and changed them both in the restroom there. We had thrown out 3 long sleeve white onesies so far this day so we went ahead and replaced those with some new Old Navy ones!  We haven't had much luck getting poo stains out of their clothes!


And what is up with these boys and the TV!  They are just fascinated by it. I guess it is the flashing lights and changing colors.  We have to limit the TV time!  Here they are in Daddy's green chair!
Carter looks sooooo much bigger than Nolan here. I really don't think they are that far apart in size....it is a little distorted from the way they are sitting and because Carter can hold his head up so well.


I can't lie...I LOVE going out with the babies and showing them off! So many people just love to see babies...especially two of them at once...and twins! But the timing still has to be just right so they are happy when they are out and about!