Thursday, April 29, 2010

A DAY & NIGHT WITH GRANDMA & GRANDPA

This will be my first attempt at writting a "blog" so just bear with me.  As most of you know we had the "cubs" Friday (4/23) all day and night.  I must admit that they were little jewels for us (what else would you expect me too say!!!)

We picked them up that morning, switched cars with Carrie as she has the car seats, and home we came.  Of course Calista decided she needed to empty herself half way home and that she did.  We knew immediately what that little girl was up to when we started hearing the grunting in the back set.  Then she seemed to have this idea that we should immediately stop the car and change her; which wasn't going to happen because it was raining and cold outside.  We still had 20 minutes to go before we got home.  So we listened to her cry for 10 minutes and then she conked out.  As soon as we got into our garage grandpa hauled her into the house and grandma changed her.  Then she was a happy little girl (who wouldn't be).  In the meantime we had to put the windows down in the car to give it a good airing out.  I've got to tell you, that little girl has a set of lungs on her that would wake the dead!!!  For the rest of the day they were good as gold.  Took their bottles, burped and slept. 

G & G had bought them a couple of new playmats from the One Day Sale site and they arrived Thursday, just in time for the twins to use on Friday.  They are the cutest mats from Fisher-Price and the cubs just loved them.  Lots of little soft toys which hang above them, a couple of long toys that they can reach up and practice their coordination, a little puppy dog that plays all kinds of music and the mat has all kinds of bright colors and characters on it.  The nice thing about the little musical dog is once you turn it on it will start playing with any movements the cubs make.  Needless to say they really enjoyed that; that is until they got hunger.

Evening wasn't as quite as the day had been as Calista's teeth started bothering her.  Once she got her medicine and it took effect then she was okay.  Alex was so quite through all this with Calista.  Finally they both took their bottles, fussed a little bit and then went right to sleep.  Got them into their playpen cribs and they slept from 10 pm. till 3:45 am when they got their bottles and went right back to sleep till 6:45 am. 

Saturday morning seemed to go great until grandma gave Calista her bath.  Now the only place we have to bath them is in the deep sink in our laundry room.  Calista was fine until grandma turned on the sprayer to wash to soap out of her hair.  She did not like that one bit and like I said earlier, that girl can scream for all of England.  Then, because she was so upset she decided to pee in her "bath tub".  With grandpa's help we finally got her rinsed, towel dried and cloth.  Now Alex is another story.  He loved the sprayer and his bath.  Of course he has had experience with the sprayer at Easter when he decided to do a poopy job while his dad was holding him.

We finally got both of them ready, in their car seats, loaded up the the car with toys, diaper bag, babies and ourselves and headed down to Carrie & Eddy's home for the party.  We were only 2 hours late as we had said we would be there by 10 am.  Oh well, the party didn't start till 2 pm.

All in all we loved having them and have told the kids we would take them once a month for the day and night.  That way they get a break and get a good night's sleep.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

A Busy Monday

There were a ton of tasks to get done on Monday so we hit the road rather early.  The twins got up around 9 a.m. which allowed me to get a few more things done around the house like laundry and formula made up.  But even with them getting up at 9, it was still after 11 before I got out the door with them.  Calista had not finished her breakfast so there we all were, babies in car seats and ready to walk out the door and she is just screaming away.  So I put everything on hold and made her a quick 3 oz snack, kneeled down on the floor and fed that to her while the Alex waited patiently in his car seat.

However even in the car she was still a screamin demon, that is until the car started moving, instantly asleep!  I swear the person that could bottle the motion of a car that puts babies to sleep will be richer than Bill Gates.

Our first stop was the Post Office.  There was just not going to be an easy way to do this, so here is how our simple trip to the Post Office went.  Pull into the parking space, unload the stroller from the trunk, set the stroller up.  Get the first cub out of the car seat by undoing the two straps and buckle and then into the stroller and search for the 5, (yes count them 5) straps to tie them in.  Go around to the other side and get the second cub, again undoing all the snaps and buckles, then put second cub in stroller and again search for the 5 straps to tie that cub in.  Grab bucket of mail and walk 10 feet into the Post Office.  Shipping packages  and checking PO Box consumes approximately 5 minutes of time.  Then walk the 10 feet from the Post Office back to the car.  Undo the 5 straps that are holding the first cub in place in the stroller, place that cub into car seat and redo the 2 straps and buckles for the car seat.  Walk around to the other side of the car and repeat process for the second cub.  Lastly, do battle with the stroller to get it collapsed again and stuff it back into the trunk of car.  Total time inside Post Office, 5 minutes.  Total time required to spend 5 minutes in Post Office, 30 minutes.

Next stop was the grocery store and I certainly didn't want to repeat having to drag that stroller out again.  My plan was to put which ever baby was sleeping in their car seat inside the shopping cart and put the other baby in the baby seat of the shopping cart.  Alex was the sleepy one so he got to ride inside the cart.  Calista did pretty well in the baby seat of the cart, although she's still a bit small for it so I had to hold her throughout the store.


After this Mom deserved some Starbucks, plus they were getting a little fussy so a bit of a drive would calm them down I figured.  After Starbucks I was in desperate need of some shampoo from Aveda Ten Salon.  Again I didn't want a repeat of the stroller incident so I decided I would just carry both car seats, (or as Ed calls them, Pods), into the salon with me.  The door into the salon was a pull open and not a push so I had to put one cub down, pull the door open and hold it with my foot, then work both pods in through the door.  Once inside a girl behind the counter came over to ask me if I needed any help finding anything.  I told her no I was just getting the shampoo.  So I placed the bottle of shampoo in with Alex and then hauled the two pods over to the counter.  It's worth mentioning here that there were 3 girls behind that counter and I was the only customer in the lobby.  They rang me up and asked if I wanted a bag.  I said that actually I did if it had a handle on it since I had the two babies to carry as well.  She hands me my bag and then those 3 girls watched as I went to the door and struggled to get myself, the bag of shampoo and my two babies back out the door.  Not one of them came over to even hold the door open for me!  Suffice to say they have lost my business.

By this time it was getting to be 12:30 and I knew that Alex was probably going to want to eat by 1:30.  Since Calista had a snack before we left I figured she'd be okay for a little while longer.  Then came the question, should I press my luck and go to Carters to buy some pants for Alex.  The poor kid really needed them, all he seems to have is shorts and jeans.  I wanted something of a sweat pant material for him to wear.  I decided to go for it rather than have to pack them all up again tomorrow to complete this mission.  This time I did take the stroller as there was no way I would be able to shop and carry both pods.

I knew I had to be quick, and quick I was.  I managed to drop $60 in a matter of about 15 minutes, but at least Alex now has some comfy pants to wear.  By the time I got to check out Alex was just starting to fuss, so I timed it pretty well.  We took the screaming express home and once inside the garage I raced in and started up a bottle for him.  After a little food for both of them all was right with the world again.

By around 4 p.m. they were both pretty worn out and fell asleep on the floor.  It was perfect timing so I could get dinner started and finish some work at DJBeads.com.  Ed got home and was able to mow the lawn.  Then just as I finished up cooking dinner and we're ready to eat they both woke up.  So we fed them and had ourselves a luke warm dinner.

Calista fell asleep with her bottle in her mouth for her 8 p.m. feeding and Alex was right behind her, so we never got baths done last night.  Tonight they will get baths though.

Calista's teeth are bothering her so much right now, by 11:30 Ed brought her into bed with us.  The bad part about that is that I was having a hard time falling asleep and by 11:30 had just started to doze off.

By 2 a.m. they were both up and wanting to be fed.  I can't wait for these 2 a.m. feedings to be done!

The worst part of motherhood on Monday was how many different steps you have to take just to get a 5 minute task done.

The best part of motherhood on Monday was the cubs sleeping in the afternoon so we could get something's done around the house.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Attempting To Catch Up

The past several days have been so busy, I know I've neglected my blog so I'll do what I can here to catch everyone up.

This past Saturday we threw a party for my parents 40th anniversary.  This meant trying to get the house ready, cleaned, decorated all while taking care of the cubs.  Luckily mom and dad took them for their first overnight visit on Friday so we could accomplish this task.

Friday I ended up in a very melancholy mood.  Some of the people that came over here Friday to help decorate were friends of friends so I didn't really know them.  The woman was 5 months pregnant and her and her husband were really very helpful in decorating.  They were so helpful that I started to feel bad that they were doing all this and hadn't been invited to the party.  So I asked my folks if they would have a problem with inviting them, (since it was after all, their party).  They said no problem so I went ahead and asked them.  Almost immediately after doing so I regretted it.  This pregnant woman started to open up to me.  When the guys went outside she really opened up telling me that her husband was an alcoholic and abusive.  That she had just gone back to him and told him that if she did come back to him he had to quit drinking and smoking, and she meant smoking everything.  Foolish me I'm thinking this guy must dabble in smoking pot, but no she then tells me that he's smoking 'rock' which I believe means he's smoking crack???  She tells me that she thinks he's smoking rock again because he is hanging out with the person that brought them, (which really made me sad).  Then she goes on to tell me how she had social services breathing down her back and that she's already lost her son when social services took him away from her.  And this she tells me is because she choose to stay with her husband the crack smoking wife beater.

As I walked around my kitchen wiping counters and trying to take all of this in all I could keep repeating to her was, 'You need to think about that baby you have inside of you and do what is best for him'.

All night long all I could think about was that poor little baby boy that will be born into that mess.  What a rough way to start out life.  It also made me think of how lucky Calista and Alex are.  Their father and I may not have much of a clue most of the time, but one thing is for sure, they are so so very loved!  They have a stable home life and even though there are two of them and it's hard sometimes when I'm alone, I think I give them the attention and love they need and deserve.

So the worst part of motherhood for this blog is that more than ever I now feel for those poor little babies that are born into drug addiction, abusive homes and questionable parents.

The best part of motherhood for this blog is that I appreciate all of my family even more for how much they love and care for my children.  And because of that this unfortunate circumstance will never happen to my kids.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

A Night At Our House

Last night the cubs finally slept a decent stretch of time.  I took the cereal out of their formula to see if that would make a difference, and it did.  My instinct tells me that since they are preemies, perhaps their digestive systems just aren't ready for it yet.

We also started a new ritual at night, a nice big feeding, then a nice warm bath followed with some baby lavender lotion.  The first night we did this we did the bath first and Calista fell asleep with bottle in mouth and I could not wake that child!  Of course that was at 8:30 so she was up at 9:30 wanting to be fed.  Then she was up again at midnight and 3 a.m.  As I heard her screaming through the monitor I told Ed, 'This is where you remind me not to shake the baby'.... so he said, 'Don't shake the baby', and I didn't.  How could I?  I could barely find her with my one eye open and stumbling like a sailor on shore leave through the nursery.  When you're that tired changing a baby's diaper becomes an act of shear will.  Thank God by the time you get to this point you've changed so many that you can change them in your sleep... because that is just what you do, change them in your sleep!  If I can find the butt, I can get that diaper slid under it somewhat straight.  However getting the pj's snapped back up is like reading Braille.  I'm searching for the inny snap that goes with that outy snap and half way up find I have an extra inny snap.  Then goes the hunt for the outy snap that got snapped to the wrong inny snap, all with one eye open (and that eyeball feels like it should be taken out of your head and rinsed off in the sink).

I know I'm not the only one that has problems with this.  Come morning I've found babies with pj's snapped up all wrong from their father and sometimes I have to laugh when I find a onsie up around their chest because daddy didn't even snap that back up.  It's all very humorous in the morning, but in the middle of the night it's more mentally challenging to me than Calculus.

Tuesday Mom came over to help out and we took the cubs on a little adventure.  First to the store, then to Michael's to find some kid poster things to put on their wall.  I did find a doggy and kitty picture, but I have to say the selection was slim pickings.  After that we spotted a new Sprouts market that had opened where the old Circuit City used to be in Greeley.  Since the twins were already in the stroller we just wandered over there.  We loved the produce there!  Both of us were expecting high prices since it seemed like a specialty store.  Instead we found beautiful produce for some really good prices.  But Calista was having nothing more to do with the stroller so I had to carry her and she was happy with that.  Hard to believe how carrying just 13 pounds for a 1/2 hour to an hour can kill your arm.  What will I do when they get bigger?

Weds. me and the cubs stuck around the house for most of the day.  We had 2 new low flow toilets installed this morning so I knew we'd be home bodies for that.  This afternoon as I started to hit my 3 p.m. wall, as I call it, I packed up the kids and headed to Starbucks.  That's two days in a row I've had Starbucks now and if they don't let me get some sleep this could turn into an expensive habit.  Both yesterday and today I was so exhausted I almost looked at the barista in shock to ask, "What do you mean Venti is the biggest one you've got?"  They should have one the size of a big gulp for new moms I think.

However today Calista did do quite a bit of talking and started to really laugh.  She made a cry sound and I copied her, that made her giggle, which made me giggle and we just went back and forth laughing at each other.  Alex also had some fun today, we broke out a little play station that Mom and Dad's friend had given us.  The baby sits in the center of it and all the way around there are toys, activities and musical things.  At first he didn't like it, but then he found a plastic pig on it that made him just giggle away every time it moved.

The worst part of motherhood is trying to match up all those snaps at 3 in the morning.

The best part of motherhood is starting to interact with your babies.  The laughing at each other and babbling back and forth to one another are just precious moments.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Instituting Family Nap Time

Since we started the cereal into their diet it has somehow messed up their sleeping habits, and I use the term habit very loosely.  Lately they've been up every 3 hours and mommy and daddy are really dragging!

Sunday was Ed's day to play so he was out of here early to go play 9 holes with his friend Scott.  The cubs were pretty good for me while he was gone.  I had bought this Snail Toy by Fisher Price that they both just seem to love, so the three of us played with that.

When Ed got home we had to make a quick trip to the store and some much needed Starbucks coffee just to get through the evening.  I told Ed on the way to the store that I was going to impliment a little thing called 'Family Nap Time'.  When we got home I wanted to see if the cubs would lay down in our bed between us and everyone could get a little shut eye.  However when we did get home they were both fast asleep in their car seats.  So as quick as we could, we unloaded the perishables and took them downstairs in the car seats, placed them in their nursery, flipped on the monitor and settled in for a nap.  Ed went right to sleep, snoring away, but I had some things on my mind and just couldn't sleep.  And the more I couldn't sleep the madder I became.  These moments are such golden rare opportunities, and I was letting mine pass me by.

Sure enough, about 30 minutes into it I heard Alex start to cry.  Up I went to free him from his car seat before he woke up Calista.... too late.. she's awake now too.  I'm yelling at Ed through the monitor to come get his daughter, but he doesn't hear me, (an effect I'm sure from time spent at the 19th hole).  I finally had to go and poke at him to wake up and come help.

Once we got all babies changed and settled down we went back to the bed.  I nursed Calista for a little while and it seemed like she was falling asleep.  However, Ed decided this would be the best time to teach Alex more of his O's.  So the two of them are on the other side of the bed and all I hear is, "Oooooo Oooooo Oooooo".  Finally I suggested that the two hound dogs could practice their howling in another room where people weren't trying to sleep.

It didn't really matter after all because at this point Calista is awake and practicing her own way of talking.  So the entire family ended up back in our bed jabbering away.  Even though I was really tired, it turned out to be a fun time listening to them and talking to them.

After dinner it was time to try out our newest bath buddy.  It's a seat that hangs off the side of the tub.  It's time to face facts that they have just gotten too big to fit in the baby bath anymore.  So I took a bath with Alex and Ed took a bath with Calista, they seemed to like it although Calista wasn't too sure about it at first.

We also had a new cabinet to build for Blu Ray storage.  Before building it I wanted to vacuum the spot where it would be going.  Well I turned on that vacuum and is sucked up some kind of string and made a funny, loud noise and it looked like someone zapped my little girl with a cattle prod!  I've never seen a baby startle like Calista does.  If you sneeze or cough too loud her arms jut out and she starts screaming.  Maybe she's just used to being really calm so loud noises scare her more.  Who knows, but it took me quite a while to get her calmed down.

The night brough unsettled babies for us.  I'd get Calista calmed and put to bed and Alex would wake up.  I'd just get him settled and start to lay him down and Calista would be up again.  This went on for an hour and a half before we finally got both babies down. And after that they went to the waking up every three hours all through the night.

The worst part of Motherhood on Sunday was the absolute lack of sleep.  I swear I could've fallen asleep on the toilet!

The best part of Motherhood on Sunday was communicating with the babies in our bed.

Saturday Baby Bodily Functions

Ed had to go in to work again this Saturday, but we are giving each other a break.  This afternoon I get to go see a movie and tomorrow he gets to go play a round of golf.

The second Ed walked out the door the cubs woke up.  I got them fed, Alex's medicine given to him and figured I might as well get their baths underway.  I watched as Alex's face turned red and saw that he was 'giving birth' so I got my baby cleaning supplies all ready for his big job.  When I found a poopy diaper I wasn't surprised.  So I got him cleaned up and into his bath.  Oh what a happy baby he was to be in his bath!  He splashed water EVERYWHERE!  At least three times I wiped up the splashed water from the counter top and he just kept splashing it out until even after me wiping it up 3 times it was creating a waterfall onto the floor on my bare feet.  That's it, bath time is done.  Baby has clean hair and body so it was time to get him out.  I grabbed his clean dry towel from the rack and that little boy then pee'd on the entire bathroom.  So I grabbed the washcloth and covered the offending hose as fast as I could.  Time to scower the bathroom again.  I started to get him dressed, the diaper was on and I started for the shirt.  I got that over his head, the arms in the hole and just started pulling it down over his belly when he puked all over it.  I pulled the arms back out of the holes, back over the head and me and my naked little boy went downstairs to find new clothes for him.  This time I was smart though, once I got the shirt over his head I immediately put a bib on him!

Next up is the little girl who is starting to get really fussy in the play pen because she's all alone.  When I put Alex in the play pen I smell something, but I figured it's just residual stink from his messy diaper that I haven't emptied out of the trash yet.  As I carry Calista to the bathroom I realize that no, it's her, she's made some poopy for mommy too.  They couldn't have saved this for their father huh?  So got her all cleaned up and bathed. 

Now everyone has had a bath except for mommy who is soaked from Alex swimming in his bathtub, a little bit of poop on my jammies and pee on my sleeve.  Who needs the bath most?  Mommy does!

Saturday was also a day of firsts.  The Dr. told us it was ok to start introducing cereal into their diet and try them out with a spoon.  Calista seemed to take to the spoon right away, Alex caught on after a little while.

So to embarass them in future years I took pictures of this first spoon feeding.  Enjoy!
Alex with his messy face

Calista with her messy face.

Once Ed got home from work it was mommy's time.  I went to go see Date Night, which I thought was really funny, and then off for some shopping.  Yes I bought them MORE clothes!

While I was gone Ed told me that they were really on the move trying to crawl and Alex was rolling himself over.  The day has almost come hasn't it when no one and nothing is safe in this house.

The worst part of Motherhood on Saturday was a baby in the tub that is so happy he splashes water all over your bathroom.

The best part of Motherhood on Saturday was a baby in the tub that is so happy he splashes water all over your bathroom... but it makes you smile so big that you don't mind the mess.

Saturday, April 17, 2010

A Day with Grandma and More Firings

Thursday my Mom came over to help me out with the cubs and the DJBeads bead store.  When she got here I already had Calista bathed so it was Alex's turn for a bath.  Mom took that on so I could weigh out a huge Delica bead order.  From the sounds in the bathroom I think they both had a lot of fun.  I got over by the bathroom door just in time to see Alex let loose and pee all over the bathroom and Mom.

After bath time they were good little babies and took a nice nap for us and I was able to run out to the store really quick to get a few things.  And drop off that monstrous Delica order at FedEx to ship.  I needed to be back by 2 p.m. because as you remember I had to reschedule the Air Duct Cleaning people, American Air Duct since they were a no show on Tuesday.  This time the guy showed up a little after 2 p.m.  I'd first like to point out that I find it ironic that the company is called American Air Duct, however they are all Russians that run the company, but okay, whatever.  So I go through the house and show this little guy all our vents and registers, then we get down to the basement where the furnace is and I can't get the stupid doors open on it.  They've somehow slipped off the tracks and I'm banging my knuckles against the wall trying to get them open, to no avail.  Finally the little Russian tells me he's going to give me an estimate, however I inform him that I have a coupon for $65.  I'm not sure if he just doesn't understand me or is ignoring me, he goes on with his estimate that comes out to $245.  So I go show him the coupon and he shows me a picture of a heating system and explains that that coupon is only for one duct, we have two and intake and an outtake.  Well DUH!  Don't all houses have an intake and an outtake?  I'm not an expert, but I would assume they do.  So I tell him I only have $65 to spend and he lowers the price to $118.  I tell him we'll have to cancel the appointment because I only have $65 to spend on this.  He seems rather put off, but he's not the only one.  When I read a coupon that says entire house air duct cleaning for $65 that's what I expect to get.

So the little Russian left and not 3 minutes later his Russian wife or whoever she was called me asking if I want to reschedule the appointment and that they can do what is on the coupon for $65.  Well what is on the coupon is whole house air duct and in small print it says only 1 air duct.  Why just have them do half the job?  In the end they really screwed themselves because he came all the way out here for nothing.  If they were more honest with their coupons he would've had my business.  Instead I fired him.

Ed got home and we slammed down some dinner, then before we could blink it was time to get the kids to bed.

Sorry I didn't get any pictures taken on this day, seems like we were meeting ourselves coming and going.

The worst part of motherhood on Thursday getting to the end of the day and thinking, where did the day go?  Seems like I just woke up!

The best part of motherhood on Thursday was help from my Mom so I could get a few things done.

Friday, April 16, 2010

Oh The Dreaded Dr. Visit

Time is just flying by and it's already time for the cubs 4 month check up.  Ed met me at the Doctor's office and we hauled the twins, in their car seats along with a diaper bag and my gigantic purse up to the office.

They weighed in at 13 pounds each, roughly, and measured out to about 25" each.  Believe it or not, Alex is a 1/4" shorter than his sister.  He seems taller than her.  They are both in good health and the Dr. said you couldn't even tell they were preemie babies anymore.

We got all our questions answered and some new instructions, like putting a little bit of Rice Cereal in their food now.  Then it was time for the dreaded shots.  Oh I just hate it when my babies are hurt!  The needles they use are so big I swear you'd almost think they would go completely through their legs and come out the other side.  The each got 3 shots and one that was some kind of liquid that they had to swallow.  I think that Alex had the hardest time with his shots.  Calista let out some screams with hers but then calmed down a bit.  Alex kept screaming for a while.  That is a tough thing for a parent to have to endure, their children getting shots.  I'm sure it's a case of it hurting us more than them.

Once done at the Dr. we were off to Grandma and Grandpa Hildahl's house where they would later meet their Great Aunt Peggy and Great Uncle Jim.

Calista with her Great Uncle Jim... what a comfy shoulder huh?

They were sleeping really good, as long as there was a comfy shoulder around to rest their heads on.  All in all they were passed around quite a bit, but finally landed back in their car seats to go home at around 8:30 p.m.

It was a busy day for them, so when we got them home we fed them and they went right down to sleep.  However Calista started a new habit of waking back up after about 3 hours.  She was up at midnight and then again at 3 a.m. when she ended up in bed with us.  She's not hungry, we think it's just her teeth bothering her.  The Dr. said it's probably like an itch that you just can't scratch.  But boy does she love to eat her hand... must be made of chocolate.

The worst part of motherhood on this day was having to watch the twins get shots and knowing it would be wrong to bitch slap the nurse that gave them the shots.

The best part of motherhood on this day was finding out how much the twins have grown and how healthy they are.  Made me really happy to know they are both really healthy.

Picture Day

Tuesday was our picture day.  I had a coupon for JCPenny's Portraits so I scheduled an appointment for the cubs to get their pictures taken.  I wanted to get some professional picture of them in their Easter outfits before they outgrew them.

I made the mistake of stacking the day with too many events, so I was pretty frazzled.  They woke up, had a little food and I managed to get their baths all done so they would be clean babies for pictures.  They settled in for their morning nap while I got things ready, changes of clothes, bottles etc. just to make sure we had happy babies for pictures as well.

We were supposed to have our air ducts cleaned between 9-11 a.m. with a company called American Air Duct Cleaning.  Then I had to drop Hank off at the groomers, (it's that time of year again and he is just shedding like crazy), before noon.  And the picture appointment was at 12:40 p.m.  By 11 a.m. the air duct company still had not shown up.  So I had to call and reschedule them to Thursday between 2-4 pm so I could make it out the door on time to everything else.

I got Hank dropped off then headed out to meet Ed for pictures.  Alex just didn't want to smile at all, but Calista was her usual giggles.  In fact there were quite a few pictures with her just cracking up.  Half way through we did an outfit change and Alex turned pretty sour.  So I gave him some food and he at least stopped crying.  They did an outstanding job and we're really happy with the pictures.


It took forever to get the pictures ordered, so by the time we left it was almost 2 p.m. and I was starving for lunch.  It got to that time when you question, should I eat some lunch or just hold out for dinner?  I opted for a little chicken sandwich from Arby's for $1.49, (the price should tell you how big it was).

Now my friends that come over and craft with me know how I like to 'fire' companies for poor service.  This week was a week for firing! First company on the chopping block was the groomers, Hot Rod Dog Grooming in Windsor CO.  We've been taking our cats here for a couple of years now.  When I made this appointment I did ask if they would come out to the car to get Hank since I had the cubs with me, which they did and that was very nice of them.  However, when we got home on Tues. they left a message that Hank was ready to be picked up and just a note that they no longer accept credit or debit cards, only cash or check.  Well that would've been nice to know before we made the appointment.  Ed had to pick Hank up on his way home from work and had no check book or cash on him.  I called the groomer back and she basically told me that they could take a card from us, but they would tack on an additional 15% because of their credit card processing fee's.  Now as most of you know, I own a bead store, DJBeads.com, and I have a credit card processing bank and there is NO way it is costing them an additional 15%.  Then she tells me that their processing company wants $800 to get out of their contract.  Even Chase Bank, the worst bank in the world, only charged $250 to get out their contract.

So I have fired this company.  I don't know how you stay in busines in this day and age without taking cards.

The worst part of motherhood on this day was trying to find some place in a store that I could warm a bottle up for Alex.

The best part of motherhood on this day was getting to look at those pictures of my beautiful babies.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Calista Babble

If you're one of my Facebook friends then you've probably seen the video.  Monday morning Alex was up first and got all his 'mommy tasks' out of the way right off the bat.  He got fed, made a messy poop, (at least it was before I put him in his day clothes), pee'd on me and was crashed out again on the living room floor by 9 a.m.

Calista work up after Alex went to sleep and it's always nice when they do that for mommy.  I got her changed and dressed, gave her a morning bottle.  As I went into the kitchen to get the dishwasher loaded up I started to hear from the living room some Calista Babble.  She found her voice and it had me cracking up!  Luckily I grabbed my phone and got it on video.

By afternoon I had them both dressed in day clothes and looking oh so cute.  Isn't she just precious with her bow in her hair?

Little did I know that just moments later she would bomb me with a pooy mess. 

I was on the floor playing with them and had her in her chair and started to smell it first, then I looked over.  Oh My!  It was oozing out from her and all over the chair.  My first thought was how to get the child out of the chair and to a changing station with minimal amounts of poo on myself.  So I grabbed a burb cloth to sort of shovel under her.  Problem was that I missed and ended up with the poo all over my hands and under my fingernails.... sort of like sticking you hand into a pile of mud.

Once I had the baby in my arms the decision then came to where to go with her.  I started one way, then stopped, then started another then stopped.  I was truly the most indecisive person you ever met at that moment trying to decide whether the changing table or bathroom would be the best.  I finally chose the bathroom and put a towel under her.

Here's the thing about huge poopy messes.  It doesn't really matter how careful you are, the poopy onsie has to go over the head, which in turn leaves a poopy trail all along babies body.  Then when you get the diaper off they insist on kicking which places their feet directly into the poopy diaper.  I think they are so happy to have that smelly diaper off they just start smiling and the feet and hands start flailing about.  So she had poo from head to toe.  I got her striped down and just plopped her in the sink to clean her up.  Once I had a clean baby again I took her downstairs and got her all dressed.

Now came time to check out the damage done to the bathroom... yikes!  There was poo on the counter, the sink, the mirror, everywhere I looked there was a sign of the disaster that had just taken place.  Armed with my Clorox I managed to get my bathroom all sparkling clean.

Then worst part of Motherhood is those poopy messes where you look at the child and just don't even know where to start.

The best part of Motherhood is the first little babbling and attempts to talk.

Monday, April 12, 2010

Still Hating That Formula

Saturday Ed had to go into work for a half day so the twins and I were on our own again.  It wasn't too bad, since mornings they usually sleep and are calm, it's the evening that they get the fussies.  Well this Saturday we were still battling the remnants of that awful formula for nighttime feedings.  I finally read the label on it and apparently this stuff is suppose to expand in their tummy's so they feel more full and sleep longer.  Whatever it does it doesn't agree with Alex.  I had him all dressed for the day and that poor kid threw up chunks at least 6 times in the span of about an hour and a half.  What could I do other than just wait for it to all get out of his system.  By the second outfit change I vowed that Alex would never have one more drop of that formula given to him, EVER!  My solution for the constant outfit changes was to get a shirt on him and immediately put a bib on him to save the shirt.  It's so much easier to change out a bib than a onsie or a shirt.

In the meantime though, I was in the midst of changing Alex, got a onsie over his head and he puked again.  So I pulled it back over his head and threw that one in the wash with the other 20 million he'd gone through that morning.  Of course now is when Calista decides to wake up and is screaming bloody murder.  So I put Alex in his crib with just his diaper on him and went to get Calista.  I got her all changed and dressed, put her in her crib (which she wasn't very happy about), and went back to get Alex from his crib and put some clothes on him.  Then I discovered yet another puddle of chunky puke on his crib sheets... looks like I'm changing bedding today as well now.  I got Alex dressed and put him upstairs on a blanket in the living room and thankfully he fell asleep and Calista was a calm baby in her crib by now. 

Things were now under control, just in time for their daddy to come home.  But it's so much easier when there are two of us because Ed was able to help me get the other crib changed out while I started up the laundry and we both worked on getting the nursery in order again.

By afternoon both of them were asleep on the floor so I took this chance to get out for a little while.  I needed to go and get some party supplies for my Mom and Dad's 40th wedding anniversary party we're having here.  This ended up being a trip from one end of Loveland to the other.  The first place I went to was out of business, the second turned out to be someones home.  By this time Ed was calling me asking when I was going to come home, mind you the twins weren't awake or fussing for him, he just didn't want to be the only one there when they did wake up and started fussing.  So I did a quick stop at Target and at least got the paper plates and napkins along with a couple of large jugs to mix formula in, picked up dinner and headed home.

Saturday night went pretty smoothly once they had all that icky formula out of their systems and Sunday morning found them both in bed with us.  It doesn't seem to matter what side of the bed I'm on, the whole family migrates to me.  Ed kept pulling Calista closer to him because she was hitting her brother with her flailing arms in her sleep... but she just kept heading South.

We got them up and fed, Ed and I had our breakfast and the cubs slept in the living room on the floor.  We were under a bit of a time crunch since Ed wanted to be home in time to watch the Masters and I had to get to a party supply store in Fort Collins.  Plus they both still needed baths and to be fed.  Alex woke up first and we got him squared away and just waited for Calista to wake.  I think we made it out the door by 11:30, not too bad for babies that didn't wake up until 10 a.m.

So I got my party supply store shopping done, hit the grocery store and grabbed some lunch and made it home by 2.  The evening went really well for us, I couldn't believe how calm they both were.  Or maybe they were always this calm and I just never appreciated it as much after seeing how fussy they were on that formula.  But they were so calm that I put Calista in her crib at 9:30 and stayed up to watch Brothers and Sisters and even picked up my beading!  I stayed up until 11, which I paid for dearly at 2 a.m. when they woke up.  But those few hours alone beading at night did my mental health a world of good, so it was a good trade off.

The worst part of motherhood is changing the sheets on a crib mattress!  I think they make the sheets 3 sizes too small.  I know they have to fit snug to prevent SIDS, but some of those are ridiculous!

The best part of motherhood is Sunday morning in bed with the whole family all snuggled up together.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

If It Ain't The Kids, It's The Cats!

Thursday when Ed and I went to the store one of the items we needed to pick up was formula.  In fact it's rare we go to the store and don't pick up formula.  On this occasion I happened to spot a different can that stated it was for Night Time Feedings.  Well sign me up!!  We bought a small can of it to try and it's been a disaster ever since.  Alex has had the roughest time with this stuff and Calista has been fussy ever since.  It took us forever to get the kids to go down.  The middle of the night feeding was just as bad with Alex crying out like someone was stabbing him in the gut.  So product review on that... Don't Do It!

But before the formula nightmare we decided to try going out to eat again with the kids.  This time we asked Mom and Dad to join us at where, you guessed it, Chili's.  Chili's seems to be the only place that comes to mind when I think of a place easy to take the little ones to.  They were all dressed up and ready for their evening on the town and were relatively good, that is until the food came.  Alex was the first to start his fussing, so Ed got the waiter to bring us a nice hot container of water to warm up his bottle in while I took him to the bathroom to change his diaper.  The bathroom at Chili's was like ice and Alex was none too keen on that and pitched quite a fit in the bathroom.  Once he was back in the warmth though he calmed down and Ed fed him.  Right about that time Calista started her fussing, so I repeated this with her.  She had the same reaction to the cold bathroom and let out some screams.

Grandpa with a well behaved Alex, before our dinner came.


We got back to the table and Mom and Dad ate their food while Calista and Alex ate their food and Ed and I stared at our delicious hamburgers just sitting there waiting for us to take a bite.  Calista decided that she really didn't want to eat after all so Mom and I took turns rocking her in her car seat while we ate.  Alex calmed right down and just sat in his car seat while Ed and Dad took turns talking to him.

We had two more missions to complete before we headed home.  Go to Target to get more diapers and teething pills for Calista and then off to Carters to buy some new pajama's for Calista.  Target went well, Calista fell asleep half way through the store and Alex was quiet.  At Carters they were both really good too, until we got towards the end.  Calista had had enough of this shopping thing, so I wrapped up my shopping and we high taled it out of there.

I then took a ride home on the Screaming Express.  That little girl cried all the way home!  In fact at one point I called Ed who was driving behind me with no screaming children in his car so he could share my driving experience with me.  He didn't care to and the phone call was a short one.

The plan was once we got in the door I'd take Calista downstairs and nurse her while he got Alex set up with a bottle and we'd just unload the car later.  The plan went off smoothly and they were both down by 9:30.  We forgot about the car and just went to bed ourselves.  Good thing because they were back up again at 1 a.m. still very fussy and screaming from that awful formula we gave them.  It took us over an hour to get them settled and back into bed.  At around 2:15 I think it was we were trying to get back to sleep ourselves when the cats started in.  Lucy and Leo were scratching on boxes, doors, cabinets, anything they could find.  I think our kitties have had enough of not being the center of our universe anymore.  Mental note: Must find some time to pet a cat or two each day.

The worst part of motherhood is having a crying hungry child in your car and no way to take care of him or her until you get to your destination.  Not only is it deafening, it also makes you feel like a bad mother for having a hungry child in the first place.

The best part of motherhood is getting to dress up your children.  I'm just going to hate it when they decide what they want to wear and I can't dress up my little dolls anymore.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

It Can Be Done!

Thursday turned out to be a day full of errands to run and the question of how I would do this on my own.  I needed to go to the bank, the post office, and the grocery store.  I figured what I would do is put the stroller in the trunk and if there was no other way, I would just pull the stroller out to go into the bank and the post office.  It did seem like a huge waste of time to get that stroller out, set it up, get the twins out of their car seats, strap them into the stroller all to walk about 20 paces.  Then return and do all of that in reverse order to get going again.

So when I got to the bank I decided I would try something.  I threw my purse over my shoulder and got Calista out in her carrier.  Then I went to the other side and got Alex out in his carrier.  I think between babies and carriers it's probably around 60 - 80 pounds I had + my purse and fat butt that I hauled into that bank... but I did it!  It can be done!  What a revelation and what doors are now opened up to me that I can do this myself.

I showed the babies off to all the banker ladies, then picked them up and back out to the car we went.  Next was the post office, this one would be about 40 paces, but I felt confident that I could do it, and I did.  The doors were a little bit of a trick, but a really nice lady at the Post Office got out of line and came over to open the door for me.  We chatted a bit and she comments on how long Alex's eyelashes are, (it's so unfair).  Then getting ready to head back out the door I found it interesting that now there were two older men in the post office and neither of them batted an eye to help me with the door as I struggled to get out.  The help came from another woman on the other side of the door opening it for me.  I'm not saying all men are inconsiderate like this, I know my husband and father would've opened the door for a stranger... but some of you... well you need to have one of your 'man meetings' and reinstate the door opening protocol.
Alex with his baseball cap on, that is still pretty big on him

After that was the toughest of the tasks... how am I going to go grocery shopping with the twins?  I can't fit two car seats in one basket and I'll have a tough time pushing two carts by myself.  The only way I could figure was to get that stroller into action.  I was lucky to find a parking spot right in front, but later realized I would've been better off way in the back of the lot where there was less traffic.  I was a nervous wreck trying to get those cubs in that stroller, which was parked right up against my car, but what if someone not paying attention came screeching in?  All I could do was work fast to get them out of that parking lot.

Once inside the store I had the stroller in front of me pushing and pulling a shopping cart behind me.  Another, It Can Be Done moment for me.  We were barely in the store when a little old lady who had to be 100 if she was a day old, had to bend down (and she didn't have to bend too far, I think she was about 4ft tall), and say hi to the cubs.  My issue was that Calista has cradle cap so she's got some flaking skin on her head and this little old woman stood there picking it out of my child's head.  Yep, that bothered me a bit as well as made me wonder if this woman had washed her hands last time she went to the bathroom.  But we made our way through the store and Ed met us there about half way through the shopping experience, (as he calls it).

The night brought another round of screaming from both of them.  Although again we managed to get to bed finally with no babies in our bed.  And we did shave about an hour off of last nights bed time, so progress right?

The worst part of motherhood today is that everyone feels it's their right to touch your babies.  What is the proper edict to tell someone Hands Off!

The best part of motherhood today is finding a task that you thought to be impossible, is actually not as hard as you thought.

Friday, April 9, 2010

Up She Goes

Calista was up at 8 a.m. Tuesday, but I still managed to get a shower done, a load of laundry in the washer and the dishwasher loaded and running before then.  I felt like SuperMom!  She decided she wanted to practice her standing and was pushing herself up straight to a standing position from my legs.  I just know she's trying to hurry and grow up so she can leave us!


Alex woke up around 9 a.m. and we got the daily party started.  Both babies were fed by 9:30 and lucky me, they passed out again until noon!  Oh the work I got done in those 2 1/2 hours at the bead store.  What  a load off to know that I was getting things under control there.

By afternoon when they woke up and feedings were done I decided to take them on a small adventure.  I didn't want to mess with having to get them out of the car, so we were on a strictly drive thru adventure.  First stop was the post office to drop off some mail in the boxes.  Then the bank and finally a quick trip to King Soopers to get some gas in the car.  That was the only time I had to get out of the car which was good because it was really windy.

Weds. was mommy's day off.  Grandma and Grandpa came over around 10 a.m. to watch the cubs so I could get out and catch a movie.  I saw Ghost Writer, which was good but a pretty intense plot that I think I was just too brain dead to catch on to.  After that I headed to the used baby store for some long sleeve shirts to get Alex through the Spring and some shorts for Calista to get through the summer.  Afterwards I realized how low Calista is on pajama's and was kicking myself for not picking some up while I was there.

Then I headed off to Best Buy to buy my Sherlock Holmes movie on Blu Ray, I've wanted that since it came out.  Luckily with my handy Droid phone I was able to find the best price on it.  Best Buy wanted $30 for it, so I opened my ShopSavy app and scanned the barcode in and low and behold my phone told me where I could get it cheaper.  So right there in the middle of Best Buy I purchased my movie for $18.52 at Amazon.com.  Isn't technology great???

Then I was off to Target and Ulta where I really splurged on my favorite perfume that I've been out of for well over a year now, Spellbound by Estee Lauder

When I got home it felt like my boobs were about ready to explode so I was looking for a baby to nurse... any baby!  So I got ahold of Calista and downstairs we went.  Mom and Dad stayed on to watch Alex while I nursed her so that made it nice to not have to worry about him.

Ed had to work late so by the time he got home we both had a pretty late dinner then went downstairs to watch American Idol.  (Can you believe Michael Lynche almost left the show?  I'm just sure he's going to win the whole thing).

Anyway, bedtime brought it's own trials for us.  Neither child wanted to sleep, I don't know why...sleeping sounded really good to me and their father.  Can you remember a time when you didn't want to sleep?  Seems unfathomable now doesn't it?  But I got Alex nursed to sleep in our bed and just as he drifted off Calista started really fussing.  So as I put Alex to bed, Ed got Calista and brought her to our bed.  A footnote here, it seems that these days Ed and I just pass each other in the hall with one baby or another in our arms.  At least we don't give each other a nod as we walk past one another.

I tried and tried to nurse Calista to sleep but she just kept screaming and since Ed was already so tired from his long shift I decided to try and take her to the living room.  I got her nursing in the big blue chair where she proceeded to fall asleep after about 4 minutes.  I wanted to make sure she was good and asleep so I waited for about 15 minutes before I took her to her bed.  During that time I watched her start smiling in her sleep and then let out a giggle or two.  She did this a few times and it just tickled me, but I couldn't laugh out loud or I would've woken her up.

Finally by 10:30 the entire house was in thier own little beds, including me and Ed.

For these two days the worst part of motherhood is a changing routine.  Just when you think they'll go to sleep at a certain time, because that's what they've been doing for a few weeks now.  They up and change it on you completely blind siding you.

The best part of motherhood for these past two days was those sleepy Calista smiles and giggles.  I don't know what she's dreaming about, but it certainly does make her happy.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

A Very Poopy Easter & the Monday After

Easter morning was a busy one around here.  Ed and I had our breakfast and when the cubs woke up we switched into high gear.  It was time to get them into thier Easter outfits and ready to visit all of their grandparents.

First up was Alex in his little vest and bow tie outfit.  I searched high and low for something like this and finally found it at KMart.  Isn't he adorable?  The collar was a little tight so we only buttoned it all the way up to get a few pictures.  After that he had it unbottoned and looked like he just finished up a hard night of drinking at a wedding reception.

The next task was to get Calista into all her frilly purple duds.  Mom had bought her some tights and getting her into them was a little like getting toothpaste back into the tube!  Tights are just another name for panty hose in my book, and I HATE panty hose!  They never go on straight and have to be the most uncomfortable article of clothing a woman can wear.  I'm sure that a man invented them since no woman I know would torture another woman that way.

Anyway, we got little Miss all dressed up and she was just a beautiful little doll.  No matter what I did though I couldn't get that hair to lay down.  I fear she's gotten her Grandma Edwards hair.

Once everyone was dressed we were off to Fort Collins to visit her Grandma Edwards at the rehab center.  We stayed for about an 1/2 hour or more and then we were back in the car on our way to Berthoud to visit Grandma and Grandpa Hildahl as well as their Uncle Rick.

They got some great V Tech toys from their grandparents along with a couple of new outfits that I'm sure they are going to grow into by next week (at the rate their going!).

We had a wonderful dinner of ham, twice baked potato's, shrimp cocktail and asparagus... yum yum!  To top it off, strawberry shortcake for desert.

The rest of the afternoon we watched a movie that Mom and Dad had taped for me back in Nov. that I just hadn't been able to get to their house to watch about the Green River Killer... a fine Easter film...lol.  The kids crashed out on Grandma and Grandpa's bed.

Alex woke up first and although I didn't know it at the time, I made the best judgement call of the day by asking Ed to feed Alex.  I changed him out of his little bow tie outfit and just put him in long sleeved onsie.  Ed fed him and we all just sat in the living room chatting and watching the movie.  Then Ed says very calmly, "I think someone just took a crap and I think it's my son".  I looked over and poop was oozing out from Alex's onsie and was all over Ed's hand, his pants and his shirt.  We all started laughing pretty hard over that and I went over to help Ed then backed up again and said, "It's still coming out"... which made us all laugh harder.  Now you know I had to take a picture of this before I started to help clean Ed and Alex up... that's just how our family rolls.  So pay close attention to Ed's hand in this picture, that brown at the bottom isn't part of his shirt.
Ed took a shower at Mom and Dad's and borrowed some clothes from Dad while Mom and I changed/hosed off Alex in the laundry room sink.

That was our Easter.  And Alex if you're reading this in the future... thank you son for the good belly laughs on this day.

Monday the cubs were really good for me.  They slept for most of the afternoon and didn't have too many crying fits.  I got baths done with realative ease and all babies went to sleep in their own little beds at night.  Calista was asleep by 8 p.m. but Alex wasn't ready until after 9.  However, I was able to put him in his crib awake and he put himself to sleep.  Maybe we've turned a corner with the crying and sleeping, knock on wood.

Okay, Best and Worst Motherhood times....

The worst part of motherhood is trying to get babies dressed in fancy outfits.  People that design baby clothing with buttons instead of snaps should be forced to come over to your house and dress and undress that baby a hundred times a day.

The best part of motherhood believe it or not was that poopy mess that made us all laugh so hard.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Misbehaving Children... not my little angels of course!

Friday the cubs woke up in such a good mood I decided it was time to introduce them to a restaurant. I called Ed and offered for him to take us out to lunch and he accepted. By 11:30 we made it out the door and were on our way to pick up daddy from work, then off to Chili's for lunch. We had a nice big booth and put the cubs on the inside of the booth and they were just little angels. Nice and quiet, no fussing, Alex did a little flirting with our waitress; (it starts already!).

Now our children were very well behaved, but the clan that was sitting behind me were little monsters! Directly behind me was the mother, and little boy around 4 or so whose name was Bobby and a girl around 7 or 8 I'd say. Well Bobby just had to keep turning around and checking out Alex in his car seat hovering over my child with his snotty nose and sticky fingers. When they were hovering over Alex they must have been doing acrobatics in the booth because my seat was being jolted constantly. After about 4 times of Bobby turning around in his seat to hover over Alex the mother joined him and said with a laugh, "Sorry, he just loves babies". I gave her a look of not being amused then turned to Ed and said out loud, "I don't care what age our children are Ed, they will not behave that way in a restaurant". Later on Bobby realized that Calista was with us too and exclaimed, "Look Mom, they have two babies!”

After lunch I went into the bathroom to wash my hands and get ready to leave and there they all were. But what struck me is that the mother had Bobby, the child that looked to be about 4 years old, on the changing table and putting a diaper on him. I was wondering if the child was mentally challenged or something, but then I thought back to the comment of 'Look Mom, they have two babies'. Sorry, but I think this was just laziness on the part of the parents and potty training. So in the end I guess I feel sorry for Bobby.

Saturday brought Ed's relief day since he watched the cubs with my Dad last week so I could have a craft day. Alex decided he didn't care for what I was wearing and proceeded spit up a huge glob, which because of how I was holding him landed squarely on my crotch, thus making it look like I had pee'd myself. So I had to change myself and him. Amazingly though, he had hardly any of it on him. The cubs were pretty good for most of the day, Alex and I watched the movie Bolt on our Netflix account while Calista slept. Then I watched The Proposal with Calista while Alex slept. By the time Ed got home though my nerves were fried! Ed ended up being a little grumpy because as he put it, 'For the last two days when I walk through the door you give me a look like I killed your cat'. I had to explain to him that it's not him, my nerves are just raw. It seems like Calista has turned her screaming volume up a notch or two lately and I just don't know what to do for her. Along with that, I think most parents get a little bit of a break when their kids take a nap or fall asleep. My kids however don't ever seem to sleep at the same time, so I perpetually have a baby in my arms. This means of course that I can't get a dishwasher loaded, load of laundry done or folded, or any work done at the bead store. These are the things that make me frazzled I guess.

Time for the best and worst of motherhood.

The worst part of motherhood is trying to get the sleep timing just right with twins. On one hand you want them to sleep at the same time, but on the other hand, if they do that means they'll wake up at the same time and both will be screaming for food at the same time. It's a no win situation.

The best part of motherhood is when your babies wake up in a smiling happy mood.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Scooter

When I put that little girl down to bed she had her head resting squarely on a cloth at the top of the crib that I lay out for each of them to catch spit up.  When she woke up at 3 a.m. I went to get her and she had scooted herself almost to the top of the crib!  Then when they woke up for the day I put them on their playmats on the floor to practice their crawling.  That little girl had her butt up in the air and at one point actually did a push up.  I told Ed it won't be long now before we have to get some baby gates.  She is just in such a hurry to get up and moving.  Alex on the other hand loves to lay on his tummy, so I put him on the floot to practice his crawling and he just zonks out.

It wasn't a fantasticly warm day here, but it was warm enough to bundle the cubs up for another walk to the post office.  Mom came over to help with them today so that always makes it easier.  At least one person can hold and sooth a crying baby so the other person can get the other crying baby washed, fed, changed or whatever.

They both had their baths, had a quick meal and proceeded to doze off in our arms.  But with the weather potentially turning nasty we had to get a move on if we were going to go for our walk.  So into the strollers they went with sunglasses on...( everytime I see them in their sunglasses I can almost hear the theme to the Blues Brothers).

Our weather man wasn't out today so we don't know the actual temperature.  However I can report that on the way back the wind started picking up and it was getting a bit chilly.  By the time we made it inside and got the twins fed the wind was really starting to howl.

The afternoon found me changing Alex on the changing table and once again that little boy pee'd on his mommy that loves him so much.... and then he grins!  This time I was putting a diaper in the bin and turned around to put the new one on him, just then he started to pee which startled me.  I jumped and bumped the changing table which made that shake, which made Alex jump and then we both laughed.  So again, the changing table cover went into the wash.  It'll be bare threads by the time they are 6 months old at this rate.

Mom stayed until around 5 when Ed got home.  We actually got Calista down rather early last night.  Alex was having a difficult time though.  He is still having some issues with his reflux, poor little guy.  The Dr. finally called us back and upped his dosage though.  Hopefully that will help.

The picture today is an older one, this is of Alex the day he came home from the hospital.  I call it, 'Oh My God, My Baby Has Fred Mertz Pants On!'.  Look how little that guy is!  And those pants now fit him perfectly.  On this day though they were about ready to swollow him up.

I'd like to do a quick product review here.  They aren't cheap, but they are really good bottles, the Playtex Ventaire bottles have a great design that keeps baby from sucking in too much air along with a curved bottle that makes it pretty easy to hold.  The only problem I've found with them is that there is this little plastic ring that goes into the bottom of the bottle.  So far we've had 4 of them crack on us.  And when they crack the milk leaks out.  We had quite the nasty mess in the fridge one Saturday morning when that happened.  Mom suggested that I write to them and see if they have any suggestions on how to keep them from cracking and how to get replacements.  I'll keep you all posted on that issue.  Otherwise, these are great bottles.

Ok, time for the best and the worst of Motherhood.

The worst part of Motherhood today is dreading the day they start to move around on their own.  Looking around your house and seeing all the potential problem spots.

The best part of Motherhood today is looking forward to the day they start to move around on their own.  Where will they go first?  What object will catch their eye that they just have to get to?

It really is bittersweet, this one.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

How Could They Possibly Have Anything Left In Them?

Although they didn't sleep through the night, it still turned out to be a good morning.  I had to nurse them back to sleep as usual in our bed, but once there they slept until almost 9 a.m.  It's always a good day when I can get my shower done and breakfast eaten before they wake up.  I even managed to get some work done at the DJBeads Bead Store this morning.  Which makes me feel less stressed and better able to focus on the kids and the house.

This afternoons adventure was a trip to the grocery store.  We were almost out of formula, and frankly I don't want to live in this house if we run out of that.  The trick was how was I going to push a stroller and a shopping cart, or my other option was to push 2 shopping carts at once.  They are still too little to sit in the shopping cart seat so I have to either put them in the stroller or put their car seats in the shopping basket.  Luckily Mom and Dad had to do some shopping as well so I was able to meet them at King Soopers in Loveland and the three of us each had a shopping cart.  One with just food, one with just a baby and one with a baby and food crammed around that baby.  The trip was rather uneventful, that is until I got home.

Before I even contemplated leaving though Calista nailed me with an abundance of puke on my shoulder.  Not a drop on her though, I'm not sure how she managed that one.  Just once I'd like to make it to noon with the same shirt on.

Once home they were starting to scream for food.  Alex was first in the feed line so I took him downstairs to change him.... ack a poopy diaper.  It caught me off guard because I hadn't smelled it in the car.  Shortly I realized why I hadn't smelled it, he was still going.  Quickly I shoved the diaper back under him, but too late, it was already on the changing table cover.  Thinking he was done I pulled the diaper back and do you know what that little boy did to his mommy that loves him?  He pee'd on her!  So back went the diaper to catch the pee.  At least I hadn't changed the changing table cover yet, since I only have 3 of them I tend to run out quickly.  Besides one was already in the wash so I was down to two.  So, the little boy is now all cleaned up, new outfit on, changing table cover changed to a clean one.  Put Alex in his crib for a minute so I can start a load of laundry.  Come back to get Alex and he has blown chunks down his clean outfit.  Change the boy again... repeat.  I think that kid went through 7 outfits this afternoon.  But I finally got him upstairs and a bottle in his mouth. 

By this time Calista is waking up and starting her screaming.  So I put Alex in his car seat, (and he's not the slightest bit happy about this), put the bottle in his mouth and prop it up with a pillow to hold it in place and take his sister downstairs to change.  I took her diaper off, she smiled and giggled at me so I smiled and giggled back at her and then do you know what that little girl did to her mommy that loves her?  She pee'd too!  Change the girl, change the changing table cover, take the girl upstairs and nurse her all the while pushing the pillow that is anchoring Alex's bottle up with my foot to keep the bottle in place.  (Yes when I have to feed both of my children at once I sometimes have to use my feet... so don't tell me I didn't come from an ape...lol).

Finally both babies are fed.  Alex pukes a few more times and I change him a few more times.  Calista pukes 2 more times and we also go through an array of clothing for her.

They both passed out in their chairs for a little while, and that's when I got the Al Bundy picture of Alex.  Good Grief it's starting already!!  Check out where his hand is.

Next feeding is starting, this time since they are both in their chairs I decided to just plop down on the floor with them and hold a bottle in each hand to feed them.  About this time I'm starting to smell something.  I figured it might be Calista since she hadn't messed for the day.  At the same time I'm looking at the clock, Ed should be home any minute now.  Maybe I can hold off and hand her off to him.  (Evil of me isn't it?  But I swear my children always save the messy diapers for mommy).  They finish their bottles and I take Alex down to change him.  Dang it, he pooped again!!!  All the while he is grinning away at me, he's so happy that he's kicking his feet.  Which in turn gets the poop on his feet.  In my effort to control the kicking poopy feet, the messy diaper slips out and now I've got poop on my hand and the last changing table cover.  At this point I clean him and take a chance on picking him up naked so I can get the poopy mess removed for a clean spot to finish cleaning him up.  I put him back on the changing table on the bare pad and that little boy is still grinning.

I did dodge one at least, when Ed got home Calista had one for him.

The rest of the evening saw more outfit changes because of spit up after spit up.  All the bodily fluids my children started out with this morning are now absorbed into some sort of material in my laundry hamper.

Best and Worst, and I bet you can't guess what my worst will be today?

The worst part of motherhood today is puke, poop and pee.... on everything and everywhere.

The best part of motherhood today is a little singing bear we got at the used baby store yesterday by VTech that makes my babies smile and giggle.