12 Week Update

I've just recently looked back at the videos of our boys their first couple of weeks. I knew our boys have grown and changed, but wow... I just really didn't realize how much until I saw the videos. Their cries are so different, they are so much bigger, and their awareness and interaction is drastically different. I am so thankful to have all the little video clips I do of our boys at each stage. You think you'll always remember, but because I am with them every day, I really haven't seen the drastic change after just 12 short weeks!

Here is what has been going on the past few weeks:

• The boys have learned they can put their hands and fingers in their mouths and have had great fun doing so all the time now! They have discovered their legs as well... They spend a lot of time kicking and stomping them intentionally now. This also keeps them widely amused. It's also made time in the bouncer even more fun for them now as they bounce themselves.




• The boys are doing great at learning to sit up these days. Wyatt LOVES to sit up and perhaps I should word it the other way saying that he hates to be reclined. So often he's not happy unless he's sitting at 90 degrees. He'll be reclined in our arms or the Boppy and won't just lay back (which makes feedings difficult these days); he's constantly doing what looks like crunches as he tries to pull himself into the sitting position. Just yesterday, he actually did pull himself up a couple of times when he was in his daddy's arms.




• Because they've been doing so great learning to sit up, the past couple of weeks we've let them play in the activity saucer which they seem to really enjoy. This past week we let them try out the jumparoos and wow... they really do love it. They jump a lot and really enjoy the movement and activity.
  
  I'm happy to announce that our boys have been sleeping very well the past few weeks! It's by no means perfect, but they are doing great. They wake up once at night for a feeding; some time between 12:30 and 2:30. They then wake up again sometime between 6 and 7. We typically don't start our morning feeding though until 7. Wyatt seems to be the early riser where as Gavin seems to be able to sleep a little later. Their naps are going well too for the most part. They usually get in at least one good nap in a day, along with other shorter naps. They are eating somewhere between every 2.5 - 4 hours and eating somewhere between 3-7.5 oz each feeding. We start our bath time at 7pm at night they are in bed by 8. I'm getting the hang of not having the hang of everything each day. I'm learning that each day will be different and to learn to adjust. I've also learned that having zero expectations helps.
  
  The boys' looks are starting to change again. Just the other day, Gavin looked just like his Daddy as I was feeding him. It was so strange (and great) to feel like you're feeding your husband from 27 years ago!
  


• They boys have learned this past week that they can 'scream' even when they aren't unhappy. I guess you can say they are discovering their voice more these days.




• The past couple of days they have discovered their hands as well. They'll extend their arms and stare at their hands for a little while; almost as if they are saying... huh... look at that!




• The boys LOVE to laugh, smile and talk when they are awake!




• Gavin and Wyatt 'noticed' each other for the first time last week. They laid there and stared at each other, smiled, talked to each other and touched each other. I just sat their and smiled and cried. It was so precious. They don't do it all the time, but they have done it more since then. It will be great fun watching them become best buddies!




• The past couple of weeks I've been able to go for walks with them without them having a complete meltdown when we get back. I've learned to go first thing in the morning after their feeding and changing. They then get to enjoy the walk a little, then fall asleep. The longer I stay out the longer nap they get in. So we are gone about an hour. They wake up as soon as we get home. We then play for about 30 min and then feed, play for a short while and then they settle into a real nap in their rooms. It seems to work pretty well. I've enjoyed being able to get out too. It's been hard to jog with our stroller though, so we just bought a jogging stroller. It comes in next week and I'm so excited to try it out!




• I just brought out the 3-6 months clothes for the boys. The other week Wyatt was 14 lbs and Gavin was 13.5 lbs. They are growing so fast it's crazy.

I know there are more great things to talk about, but I have to run and tend to mommy duties. I'll be posting more and adding photos when I get back from my trip to El Paso which we are very excited about!

2 Months Update and More

As I mentioned in my last post, I meant to have an 8 week update, but here I am at almost a 10 week update and just getting around to posting something. So much has happened this past month though; it's going to be impossible to capture everything. Gavin and Wyatt's little personalities have really started to blossom the past couple of weeks. In my usual bullet format these days (I am looking forward to the days when my mind has a chance to frolic through it's old paths of leisurely thoughts that lead to writings that sound like an educated individual older than say 4th grade, wrote them! Right now all I can seem to produce are short thoughts as seen below or run-on sentences like the one above. Boo... yes, I said boo... and that is mama talk in which I am a casual user of 24/7 now! I wouldn't trade it for anything though!) here is what has been happening:

• During the boys eighth week they started to change their cries. They now have an additional cry that I can only describe as an 'irritated cry'. They no longer think the world is ending when they don't get food the split second they realize they are hungry, but they become 'irritated' when they cannot eat right away. The additional cry was really cute at first, but now they tend to showcase their new pitches when we have to take a 'burp break', and let's remember, there are two of them, so they have to 'wait their turn' more than they want!
  
  
  


• 
  Between their 7th ad 8th week, they boys began to wrap their arm around my arm when I hold them upright against my chest. They then begin to squeeze into me and pat my arm. Oh, it melts my heart; I just love this new interaction!!
  
  These past couple of weeks, the boys have been so responsive. I love to watch them giggle, laugh, and play a whole lot more. During breakfast, the boys are always happy, and finish with lots of smiles and laughs. It often takes Gavin a while to eat in the morning because he's too busy talking and smiling! I just love this first feedings. After not 'talking' much during our night feeding(s), sharing the start of our day together is great joy. We talk, sing, laugh and begin to plan our day together.



• As I mentioned in my previous post, sleep has been all kinds of crazy lately. Some days the boys will be on a great nap schedule, some nights they will wake up only once, some days it's great altogether. Other days the boys won't sleep much at all, or they can be up every 3 hours at night. Some days the boys have similar sleeping patterns and others they are complete opposites. We put the boys down drowsy, but awake, they then either 1) fall asleep and then wake up shortly after refusing to be 'soothed back to sleep', but with very heavy eyes (spoiled) or 2) refuse to go to sleep even though they have heavy eyes. (They do sleep well also though, it's just there is no consistency or patterns to their sleep these past 6 weeks.) It makes no sense. Before delivering, I thought I had this whole 'sleep routine' figured out based on all the books I have read. It all sounds simple enough. I now realize I will never have it figured out. I realize no mother does either really. And those that say they 'do' really are just lucky and have children who love to sleep. Trust me, I'm doing all that Baby Wise and Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Twins has to say! All I can do is the best each day... for each day brings new things to the table. My boys will learn to like sleep consistently, but until then, I've realized to stop expecting the 'magical 6-8 week' mark and enjoy each stage and learn from it! The time will come on it's on; I'm just going to keep doing what I can to give them the best sleep health possible. (I'll also be saying some prayers along the way too!)



• Because the boys are beginning to play more and their sleep patterns can be pretty opposite some days, we decided to go ahead and switch them to using their own cribs upstairs. Last night was the first night, so I can't say how it is going, but I do see it being helpful when one is more awake than the other.



• The boys had their 2 month shots this week; 3 shots and 1 oral dose. Oh how my heart broke; I've never heard them cry like that before. I remembered to bring the pillow we use for feedings with me to the doctor's, so I was able to comfort both boys at the same time real well. They stopped crying as soon as they handed them to me. I wanted to take away as much pain as I could. They were running a fever for the next few days and just didn't feel very well. You could tell they wanted to be happy though because smiles kept shinning through at times. They were still on the same feeding schedule, but happened to be on opposite 'awake/sleep' schedules. This worked out great though because I was able to spend a lot of time comforting each one while the other was sleeping. No down time or chore time for me, but lots of loving which made this mama happy.



• The boys' health is great. Thank you Lord. They weigh 12 lbs 10 oz and 12 lbs 11 oz at 9 weeks. Gavin was 23 1/4 inches and Wyatt was 22 3/4 inches. They are growing fast. I keep having to retire outfits because they are becoming too short for them!
  


• They love to snuggle their 'snuggle bear' and 'wabanubs'; especially Wyatt. He just holds on tight and wraps his arms around them ever so cutely! They play with the toys on the mobile a lot now and really get a kick out of it sometimes! They also like looking at the dogs who love to give them kisses! Both boys are starting to put their hands in their mouth theses days as well as their snuggle bear or burp cloths. They are also starting to drool a lot too.



• Their feeding patterns are all over the place just like their sleep patterns (and those two aren't related either!). They tend to drink anywhere from 2-7.5 oz each feeding. Yeah, I know... huge range!
  
  The boys and I have been 'getting out' more these days by ourselves! I've made trips to the store with the boys, and have even had lunch with friends at restaurants; using the stroller and even just carrying both car seats! It's great know we can get out 'easily' when we need to or just want to! I like to know that 'I can'...
  
  
  This Mama's Thoughts
  


• This was our first Mother's Day! I kept thinking back to last Mother's Day and the sadness I felt after being hospitalized twice just a month before which delayed the transfer date. I knew then that all things would work out perfectly on God's time, but it still hurt. I was able to hold our blessings this year though, and oh what an amazing feeling I'll never be able to put into words. I won't even try to start here because I don't have enough time to really try to give it justice. Let's just say, it was a great day to celebrate our blessings and God's goodness and faithfulness!





• Jason and I had a 'date night' the Saturday before Easter. We went dancing just outside of Thorndale as his mom watched the boys for a few hours. It was great fun getting out for the first time. I had no worries about the boys either (although they were on my mind)!



• This past weekend though, Jason and I celebrated our 5th year wedding anniversary! Wow, how time flies! We drove out to the farm that morning with the boys. Jason's mom and grandma then watched the boys over night for us so we could drive out to College Station and go dancing! Let me tell you this in two stages... 1) It was sooooo hard to leave the boys overnight. I was so thankful they were in such good hands and would be loved on, but seriously... I haven't been away from my boys since the beginning of July when they were just itty bitty boys just starting to grwo in my tummy. But it was so important to the two of us to get some time to be husband and wife and enjoy one of the things we love to do together... dance... and haven't been able to do in forever. So away we went. 2) Jason and I had such a wonderful time! We spent time visiting at the hotel over some champagne. Then we headed to North Gate. Ate at FreeBirds (we didn't want to get too full before dancing) and then to The Chicken to grab a beer for ol' times sake. We then headed back to the hotel, grabbed a cab and went to Harry's! We were the first ones there which was fun. It was great 'cutting a rug' like old times sake. ... On a side note, the boys were great for their grandma and great-grandma! Mama was sooooo happy to see them the following morning too!! I am so thankful for my husband; my best friend! Happy Anniversary Babe!!



• I've learned a lot this past month about motherhood. I've realized that I will never have many of the answers to the questions parenthood throws our way. As I was on a walk with the boys one afternoon, I was talking with God and asking Him questions. It then hit me, that I'll always be asking God how to parent... each stage the boys are in will bring about new questions and challenges; all of which I will not have the answers to. Wow... this was a big eye opener for someone who likes to plan ahead and figure things out before ever crossing the bridge. I realize now that parenthood is a daily journey covered in prayer. No other way will be fruitful for me or my boys, or my marriage at that. I thank God for being with us each step of the way, even when we seem to be lost or going the wrong direction. I am thankful my boys are forgiving and learn as I learn. We'll get through this life learning together... all four of us!
  
  

I better sign off and feed the boys so they can be hungry again at their bed time... Before I go, here are a few pictures we took Mother's Day. A special thank you to Jason for capturing some special moments with our boys! (It's always hard to get the mama in the picture b/c she's normally the one taking them!) Enjoy!!

Dear Authors

It's 1in the morning and I am sitting here as my boys drift back to sleep. You see, I have started a blog post for their 8 week update, but never finished it. I was then going to write a 2 month post, which was to include the latest photo shoot. While this latter post is still coming, this one must come first!

You see, I nave a big bone to pick with all the authors out there who have written children development books. All books, magazines, etc. have talked about this 'magic' 6-8 weeks in which babies begin to sleep through the night. Perhaps it's because my boys are so gassy. Perhaps it's because there are two of them, and thus two different clocks trying to be turned into one. Perhaps it's because they are 9 weeks birth and not 'gestational' age. Whatever the 'perhaps' is, this 'magic age' should NOT be mentioned in books of any kind. A sleep deprived parent can easily get their hopes up; and when this 'magic age' doesn't happen... great sadness occurs; which if not kept an eye on, can lead to insanity!

All I am saying is there Should be zero expectation concerning sleep. False hope is not appreciated!