Back up and Running!

After a couple weeks without our beloved computer, we have it back!!

During quite a horrendous thunderstorm the power went out for only a couple seconds. It was kind of funny because Christian and I were playing with the babies and all of a sudden it is pitch dark. Then the lights came back. During the blackout, the computer experienced a surge and would never come back on. Thanks to the computer guys at UNI Computer here in Lawrence, we have it back. Apparently (just like my brother said) it was the power supply. Plus they gave us tons of new memory and the computer works SO MUCH FASTER... I LOVE IT!!!

I have a bunch of blog posts ready to come today and the next couple of days...

- Solid Foods Part 2 (how to also)
- 7 month old post
- Tiny K and Payden
- Constipation drama with Payden
- Family Nightly walks
- Woes of Twins Teething

6 Months & the Traumatic Dr. Visit

Patrick and Payden had their 6 month check up yesterday. I can't believe they are already 1/2 a year old.

Here are the stats from their appointment yesterday:

Patrick
weight-- 16 lbs 10 oz (33 percentile)
Height--26 inches
Head Circ-- 17.75 in (84th percentile)

Payden
weight--13 lbs 10 oz (2nd percentile)
Height --25.75 inches
Head Circ-- 17.75 in (84th percentile

Patrick

• Loves to roll on his back until he's on his side. He can move around the room pretty well. One moment he's on the blanket and the next, he's not on it anymore. Most of the time when he is rolling it is to make a grab for Maddie
• Absolutely adores Maddie and will extend his hand out for her to lick, will start giggling when she licks his face and when she is chasing after toys. She also like to grab her dulap and scruffy and her ears.
• loves peaches and could each them all day long. Loves to pull his feet to his mouth and suck on them even when his mouth is full of peaches.
• found my hair in the last week and loves to grip it when he's drinking his bottle
• loves to stand in the exersauser and move around and around in the seat.
• likes to happy-scream first thing in the morning to let us know he is awake. Usually it will wake up Payden who isn't too happy his brother woke him up.

Payden

• Still kicking those feet (pistons) all the time.
• also loves Maddie and breaks into a huge smile when she licks his face
• Has the cutest giggle especially when tickled on the tummy and under the chin.
• promptly rolls over once placed on his tummy
• showing toy preference and his eyes light up and he smiles when he is given a toy he really likes.
• we think he is getting a tooth - the doctor said that his gums looks a little swollen.
• Starting to jabber more and more - it's so cute!
• LOVES cereal, although it wreaks havoc on his constipation.
• has so much more hair - we love to style it into a Mohawk.

Doctor's Appt -

I was excited about their doctor's appointment. I had questions I wanted to ask and wanted to see what they each weighed. The excitement diminished however when I realized that I would be flying solo with 2 babies as they each got their shots. Christian came with me for the appointment and helped get them undressed and weighed. Once we got back in the room he had to run across the street and go to work. It was at this point I realized that I was all alone and wondered how I was going to accomplish the task.

The doctor's visit went well; although because they were tired and fussy I didn't get a chance to ask/visit her as many things as I wanted to. Both boys are checking out well. She is a little worried with Payden as he is not showing any willingness to sit up or stand on his feet. She wants him evaluated with a program here called Tiny-k and they'll help him with his development. I called them yesterday and they actually come into the home and see you play with them and then suggest ways to help him more. I'm pretty nervous about it and know that I don't have time for a lot of things and being a new mom I'm not totally sure the exercises I need to be doing with them.

In the end, both babies were screaming due to the shots and tiredness. As I was paying the co-pay at the end of the appointment, my doctor was rocking 1 car seat and the nurse was rocking the other car seat. I guess that's when you know you picked a good doctor. She actually heard them both crying and came in the exam room and helped to calm them down. Those nurses were probably thinking to themselves about me, "that poor woman has her hands full." By the time I got home, both were asleep and stayed asleep in their car seats for 45 minutes. I wasn't about to wake them after all their crying.

The best news: NO more shots until 1 year old - 6 more months!!

More Pictures:

Belated Florida Recap

At the end of June, Christian's sister chose to get married on Anna Maria Island in Florida (about an hour south of Tampa. On Tuesday, June 30th,when Christian got off work, we drove to Kansas City so we could stay at his parents in preparation for our flight to Florida the next morning. We decided ahead of time to book the same flight so they would be there to help us when we needed it. In preparation for the trip, I had given the boys full bottles of formula for a couple of mornings in order to collect enough breast milk for the flight. I think this was the best thing I did because it was virtuously painless to get the breast milk through security and even easier to fill bottles for each feeding. I can't imagine having to carry enough water and powder formula and then mixing it while in flight.

Wednesday morning was absolutely crazy. We woke up early to feed the boys. I was stressed, hoping that they would sleep well so we could give them their next feeding AFTER we got through security. It worked wonderfully; they even had about 1/4 of their bottles left to drink while we were taking off. One bad note is that I was told it was a direct flight; the flight first flew to Chicago where we just stayed on the plane for 20 minutes while people got off and on. I guess it wasn't too bad since the boys slept the whole way and then after eating once we took off from Chicago they slept all the way to Tampa. However, because of a thunderstorm, the plane had to circle the airport for 45 min until it was safe to land. I know they needed to be fed but we kept hoping that we would land. Finally as they were getting restless, we started feeding them. Withing 5 minutes of feeding them, we landed. We stayed on the plane to finish feeding them while the rest of his family got our luggage and rental car.

The hardest part for me was that I couldn't sit next to Christian on the plane. Usually I'm ok but while we were traveling, I really wish I would have had him next to me. Thankfully, we were advised much earlier that we could only have 1 infant per row because there was only one extra oxygen mask per row. I guess that made sense. I just hated seeing him and his mom laughing about something in the row over and not being able to join in because I couldn't hear what they were talking about. On the flight home, I asked if he could sit on an aisle seat so we could at least talk to and help one another. That worked out a lot better.

His parents had rented a house with the groom's family. It had 5 rooms, 4 1/2 baths and also an elevator. We bought a bunch of food which we used for breakfast and lunch and then went out for dinner each night. The beach was only a block away. I loved how we could just walk to the beach, kick off our shoes and enjoy the warm water. Over the next few days, we explored the island and rode the free trolley that took us all over the island. Usually the boys got a good nap in the morning but the rest of the time, they usually fell asleep in the Baby Bjorn's or in our arms. Needless to say, sometimes they were pretty grumpy because of the short naps. One day while the rest of the family went out to explore, we ordered pizza and stayed in the house. The pizza was delicious and the boys each got a longer nap which they needed.

One of the funnest things that we did was to swim in the ocean. We put swim diapers (which were a little big) and swim suits on the boys and took them down to the beach. They loved the water as it was the same temperature as their bath water. :) It was short lived because as we sat in the surf, we would never know how big the waves were. It was only a matter of time before one would get them on their face. Side Note: I'd forgotten how nasty salt water is to swim in. It's not pleasant when you get it in your nose as it burns going down your throat.

We took them into the beach and both fell asleep very quickly. With each of them asleep in Grandma's or aunt's arms, Christian and I set off to enjoy the large waves with a little time to ourselves. After an hour or so, we came back and went home again and showered all the sand that had managed to get all over us. In order to get the sand off the boys, Christian stepped in the shower with one boy at a time and then would hand them to me to dry, diaper and clothe. Then we handed them to family so we could get the sand off us. Quite the task!

The wedding was absolutely beautiful. I loved seeing the ocean in the background as the wedding vows were said. And the pictures were incredible. His sister Brooke made a very beautiful bride!

All in all, it was a fun vacation. The flight home had much more crying than we had hoped for but it was ok. On the way home we made a quick stop at Costco to get diapers and formula and then his parents house to grab Maddie who was boarded at the vet while we were gone.

Some pictures:

Ready for a walk on the beach!

Brooke and Jimmy (Isn't it gorgeous? If you look closely, her bridal bouquet is made out of seashells).

A Beautiful day for a Walk

In the first of this week, I have been determined to GET OUT of the house. When I am couped up in the house with 2 little ones, I am definitely glad to get out. So far I have been able to go out with just the two babies until TODAY.

I decided to see if the boys would fit in the stoller WITHOUT their car seats. The car seats are so bulky and I can't even lift them off our stroller. So completely annoying!! There must be a trick but I don't know it. I knew as soon as they fit in the stroller without their car seats than I could maybe have a bit more freedom.

And they fit!!

Even though we went only 15 minutes (temp was about 90 with humidity) it was well worth it.

Here are some pictures of the boys on our walk....

Giggling, Growing Boys

Here is a video with some giggling and growing boys... (Don't pay attention to the woman behind the curtain that sounds like a man...)

Lastly - I've noticed lately how they are really looking at each other like "who are you?" Payden has realized that he doesn't like to be hit by Patrick's flailing arms when he's eating or Patrick's flailing feet when they are playing. Patrick has learned that if he wants the toy that Payden wants he just can roll over on his side and take it away from his brother. I didn't know this would start so soon...

Brothers forever, forever and always brothers they will always be..

Yummy Food

Patrick and Payden have really been living it up in the solid food department.

So far they have had:

Rice Cereal
Oatmeal Cereal
Sweet Potatoes
Peaches - (both the Gerber brand and pureed from a can)
Peas (5 spoonfuls each) - I tried them today but they were peas that I pureed myself and I guess I didn't do that hot of a job. Payden was acting like he might be choking and I realized that they were probably too chunky to qualify as a "first food." I guess I will work on making them smoother and just buy the Gerber brand for now.

I found while Patrick just tolerates cereal; he'll eat it but acts slightly disgusted with it. However Payden can never get enough of cereal but doesn't care all that much for the fruit. So yesterday I combined the cereal and the fruit and found that they love it. Payden loves he is getting cereal and Patrick loves that it still tastes like fruit. Definitely a fun albeit messy phase. I try to give them solids 2x a day (once for lunch) and then again before they go to bed. So far they just eat it in their bouncers as we don't have sufficient funds as this point to buy 2 high chairs. Bouncers is a bit easier in that I can sit on the floor and feed them both.

And some pictures:

Patrick

Payden

Motherhood: An Eternal Partnership with God

This morning as the boys have been put down for their morning nap; I'm wondering how I'm going to make it today. I have so many questions about raising these boys in their stage of their life right now. And after last night I'm not sure what to do. Payden has always been a champ and slept nonstop from 9:30 to 6am. He's done that for a long time. Patrick on the other hand was horrible. He woke up every hour and 1/2 lightly fussing. I would go in and give his pacifier and he'd be good for another 1.5 hours. Sometimes I would rock him back to sleep. I knew inside he didn't need food because if he did he would be screaming. He gets that way when he's hungry. I'm not sure what to do. Do I leave it be for another night and see if it was just a fluke thing? He usually wakes up a couple times but 4 times is a little much. I would understand it better if he had a fever or was teething but he's not. Maybe he's just trying to get back into the routine of things from being on vacation. I know I am.

My college roommate from BYU posted this video on her blog today. I didn't know how badly I needed to hear Elder Holland's words. As I sat at the computer watching this video and contemplating how I was going to get through the day, I was crying as I felt the Holy Ghost reassure me that I truly am doing "God's work." The very existence that I have these boys in my home to raise is evident of his trust of me and my character to bring to pass his work and glory. Wow, when you stop to think about it that way, it leaves you breathless.

My favorite quote is from the young mother in the program.

“Through the thick and the thin of this, and through the occasional tears of it all, I know deep down inside I am doing God’s work. I know that in my motherhood I am in an eternal partnership with Him.

“It is this realization,” she says, “that I try to recall on those inevitably difficult days when all of this can be a bit overwhelming. Maybe it is precisely our inability and anxiousness that urge us to reach out to Him and enhance His ability to reach back to us. Maybe He secretly hopes we will be anxious,” she said, “and will plead for His help. Then, I believe, He can teach these children directly, through us, but with no resistance offered. I like that idea,” she concludes. “It gives me hope. If I can be right before my Father in Heaven, perhaps His guidance to our children can be unimpeded. Maybe then it can be His work and His glory in a very literal sense."

Here is the video -