This is our first week "getting back to normal." Mike went to work today with little incident. Rich and Lois have graciously agreed to stay for a few days this week. Unfortunately for us, this week is also spring break so my nanny help is out. We weren't sure what to do and are so happy family has stepped up to help! Rich and Lois will be here until Wednesday and then my mom will do Thursday and Friday. I'm still pretty busy with the twins all day and night. I try to get downstairs to see the older boys as much as possible. It's a bit hectic though because they are so rough and want me to play with them but I'm constantly needing to do something for the babies! It's going to be interesting once I'm all on my own...
Andrea and Chloe came to visit today. They brought the cutest little jackets and books for the kids. Henry has already taken the books and stuffed Max and Ruby toys they brought to play with until the twins "are big enough" to take them back. I'm sure by then I will have to pull up this post to remind him that the books and toys are actually the twins and not his =) They also brought little gift bags for the boys with toys and treats in them. Both boys were very excited about their gifts. They love getting surprises. Chloe has promised to come back and help me some afternoon since she loves little babies. I will never turn down free help so I will definitely take her up on that offer soon! =)
March 4
Well, our first day didn't go so bad. Mike dropped off Henry at school early in the morning and then picked him up at lunch. I know it was hectic for him, but it wasn't too bad considering. The biggest challenging is getting into a new routine with Henry. He's used to going later but luckily he's a pretty easy going kid so I think he'll adjust fast enough.
Today I had my two week check up. We took the babies in to the doctors with us so everyone at the office could see them. Toward the end of my pregnancy I was in there so much the receptionist knew me by sight. I'm doing well and healing fine. I have no concerns and feel pretty good. I think it's been my fastest recovery so far.
We tried on our new hats from Aunt Teri today. They fit perfectly =) Except Gabe decided he didn't like his hat's color as well as he liked mine so he took my hat from me. Story of my life... Gabe is constantly taking things he wants from me!
March 6
My friend Janell came to visit today. Henry was SO excited to have one of his friends come to play. He and Jayla are pretty good friends at this point. Gabe and Jayden are still in the "play by each other" stage so they like each other, but are usually more interested in what the older kids are doing. Mom and Dad were also here to help today. It was a busy day of playing and chatting. Before I knew it, the day was over and it was time to get dinner ready and the bed time routine started. This is happening a lot lately. I feel like the day is just beginning and then I blink - boom - bedtime.
March 7
Busy, busy, day. I left poor Mom and Dad with the twins and Gabe so I could do a quick shopping run. We had newborn photos set up for the twins and I wanted to get a family photo done. Henry is growing at such a rate I need to get him new clothes. I also want to get something nicer for Gabe to wear since he's hard on his clothes and most are hand-me-downs from Henry. Then of course I'm still between sizes so I needed something. Anyways, it was a big shopping trip so my family will look presentable in photos =)
Once I got home, I had the fun task of getting everyone ready before Mike came home to drive with us to the studio. Both twins had their first baths. It went well. Anna screamed through most of it and her hair was cutely standing on ends after it dried. Andrew was happier in the water and didn't seem to mind being wet. He didn't really cry until we started changing him which is never one of his favorite things. Henry was excited to have new clothes and my biggest challenge with him was getting his hair combed. He has crazy hair areas on his head where no matter how I try, I cannot get it to stay down without gel and water. Neither are Henry's favorite things. Gabe could care less about any of it. He didn't notice his new outfit and was unphased by having his hair gelled. It took quite awhile but eventually we were all ready to go on time!
The newborn photo shoot went better than expected. Both boys were well behaved and they seemed excited to have their photos done with the twins. The family photo is the worst one where we're all trying to look at the camera at the same time. I cross my fingers every time that we'll get at least one photo where we're all looking!
Friday night I had my mommy group girl friends come over for Thai and to meet the babies. They're a great group of girls and I'm mad I didn't think to take photos! It was nice to have other moms there to help out with the twins. I refer to this group a lot with my new daughter. I'm clueless on little girl things and they've been a great reference =)
March 8
Melanie and Bruco came to visit today. I was very glad they came with snacks and beers. Poor Mike is starting to get frazzled with both boys. Who knew our older kids were so much work??? =) Plus being back at work and being off two weeks is catching up with him. He's still doing a great job taking care of them and keeping up with the house. I think it was a nice break for him to talk with friends and have a beer for a few hours. The kids ran around like crazy people but we cleaned it all up at the end of the day. It was worth it!
March 9
Oh the time change... Today we were all up at about 10 with the new time change. It seems like the rest of day just flew by without that missing hour. The kids ended up going to bed at almost 10 p.m. that night. We just couldn't keep up with everything happening. Andrew has come down with a cold and been pretty clingy. He's doing just fine except for a bit of a stuffy nose. Anna seems to have missed whatever germs Andrew caught, thank goodness. Although I suppose she could still get it later. I hope not. Mike and I finally made it to bed by 1. Ugh.
March 10
The nanny is back! Hurrah! This morning was a bit slow. I let Henry skip preschool since he went to bed pretty late and I was frankly too tired to drive him to preschool. Mike had to leave early for a meeting and didn't want to take him extra early when Henry was up so late the night before. Henry ended up sleeping until 9:30 so I think he was pretty tired! Nanny Maggie is back and the kids were happy to see her. I was too since she helps with laundry and cleaning =) She did a great job getting the laundry caught up and she swept/mopped my floors. So excited.
Henry and Gabe had a fun day playing with Maggie. Gabe is still such a handful. He removed a dirty diaper from himself at nap time and made quite the mess for Maggie and me. Luckily he doesn't do this often but he really is a challenging kid to keep up with! He has only a bed in his bedroom yet he still manages to cause trouble.
I need to get Gabe a new "Mr Brown Can Moo" book. He's been using Henry's well-worn copy so much that today I noticed it is in three pieces. It's a board book so it's not hard to tape back together but honestly, it's in sad shape. I'm torn between saving it to show how well loved it is and tossing it just because it's ridiculously torn =) I try to think about these things now we're for sure done having kids. I know these little moments of seeing Gabe love a silly book so much he broke it will be short lived. Or all the toys Henry wants to "earn" with stickers and chores. They're all growing up so fast. Even the twins!
Speaking of the twins, they turn 3 weeks old tomorrow. They're both doing well. They sleep about three hours a night and it still takes me about an hour to take care of both of them. I get about two hours sleep at a time but that's not horrible considering I have so much help with the older boys and the house that I can sleep in longer if I need to. Anna is a bigger eater and has about 3 oz per meal now. Andrew isn't far behind at 2-2.5 oz per feeding. They eat every two hours during the day still. We're going through a ridiculous amount of diapers but that's not really a surprise. Anna does not like to be put down for long. She prefers to be held and around me all day. She reminds me a lot of Gabe. Both liked to be glued to me at all times. Andrew is still very laid back. He likes to be held but he's just as happy being near me. Both are starting to have more "awake" times but they're still too young to have any reactions. They just look around and try to focus on things. Anna is still a bit cross eyed but the doctor assures us that's normal and it should go away before she's three months old.
We had their check up appointment this morning. They are both growing healthy and strong. Anna is up to 9 pounds and Andrew is a whopping 7.5 pounds. Anna is 21 inches long and Andrew is 20.5 inches long. Anna fits comfortably in newborn clothes but Andrew is only now starting to fill them out. Most of his clothes are still in the "premie" category but he is getting a little bit of a belly to help hold up those newborn pants.
We're at about 80% breast milk and 20% supplementing. It's frustrating because I finally catch up to them and then they start eating more. Argh. I'm going to keep trying. Hoping I finally catch up one day. They're still pretty rough at breastfeeding. It's probably my fault too because it's difficult to feed them at the same time and feeding them one at a time is exhausting. I know in the long run it's better for both of us (less bottles, no pumping and they get whatever they need) but man, it's challenging!
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