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Halloween Party!

Eek. I hadn't been to a party with jello shots in a long time - I forgot how tasty those little treats are. It was a Halloween party so the girls got their first babysitter and Ryan and I put together some costumes. Ryan had planned to go as Borat, but when he tried on the wig he looked a lot more like Screech from Saved by the Bell. So he found some jams and those nice pink Converse and I have to say was very convincing in character. I went as Ellen, complete with a box of kleenex and a "Save Iggy" sign. The only problem was that people expected me to dance, and well, that's more of a scary trick than a treat. But we had a great time and the girls had fun with the sitter, too. One of Ryan's employees has twin boys so her and her husband came to watch them. They're old pros at looking after a couple of babies and did a fine job. I'll admit that after too many cups of green eyeball punch the 2am wake-up cry from Molly was a little more painful than usual, but it was worth it.

Today has been sort of a lazy day, which is fine and exactly what we needed. We had Chic-fil-A for breakfast and lounged around in our pajamas until 2pm (actually Molly and Alli are still in theirs but they look cute and don't care one bit). Then we all took turns taking naps. The girls were on opposite schedules which meant that Ryan and I couldn't take one at the same time, so I took a catnap while he watched them and now he's sleeping while I'm in charge. But I think I won that deal, because now both Molly and Alli are sleeping so I snuck in some free time. I know it's only a matter of time till someone wakes up, but I've learned to enjoy any spare minute of peace.

By the way, we moved the girls upstairs to their own cribs a couple nights ago. Ryan and I slept next door in guest room for the last few nights in case there were multiple wakings (our room in downstairs and I'm dreading the up and down trips in the middle of the night). But they did pretty well and only woke once each night so we'll move back to our own room and hope the trend continues. Anyway, here's a few pics from the party last night....

A few new pics

Lookin' at the clouds

Let me ride that donkey, donkey...

Alli slept through her first excursion to an antique shop. Guess she felt right at home in all that junk.

Molly and Nugget sharing a toy. How clean.

Alli wanted to be Willie Nelson for Halloween.

The Beach!

What a fun weekend we had! Amanda got in town on Friday night so we spent a lot of the night just catching up and laughing. Then Saturday we thought it would be entertaining to do something a little different so Ryan, Amanda, the girls and I went to Kemah, which is a tiny town about an hour south of here. It's on the coast and there's a boardwalk with amusement park rides, shops and restaurants. Mand and I rode the new roller coaster while Ryan hung out with the girls (we offered to let him have a turn, too, but he's not too fond of wooden coasters). After we had lunch we decided that since we were so close we might as well go a few more miles to the beach! So off we went to Galveston to let Molly and Allison stick their feet in the ocean. We didn't stay too long because we weren't exactly prepared or dressed for the beach (who knew it would be 89 degrees in the middle of October?), but we had a great time and got some good pics. Then today the weather was so nice again we decided to go on a picnic. We stayed a little closer to home this time but had a good time and fed the ducks for old times' sake. This afternoon we went to Market Street to walk around the shops for awhile, then out to dinner with Hilary (our niece who's a freshman at SHSU in Huntsville). So now the girls are asleep and we're flipping back and forth between baseball and the Bronco game (Red Sox and Broncos are both winning) The girls are sleeping which probably means they're resting up to be awake all night. Anyway, here's a few pics from the weekend...

Friday

We made it to Friday! This week as been an interesting one, but all in all pretty good. I went back to work for the week to finish up some things while Ryan stayed home to play Mr. Mom. We had a bit of a rocky start when I had to postpone my return on Monday because Ryan was sick (and of course I felt guilty because I gave it to him!), but Tues – Fri he was flying solo with the girls. And they loved it! Each day I came home they were happy and smiley. Yesterday Ryan had to do something at the bank so they all went on a field trip. He gave them baths, took them on walks, sang them Bob Marley - all their favorite activities. I’m glad we were able to do it this way because I knew they were in good hands, and Ryan enjoyed his time with them. Of course I missed them during the days, but I have to admit it was kind of nice to go to lunch with my friends and have some adult conversations this week (the girls are good listeners but just don’t seem to get my jokes – and they never talk back). And I’m back on duty next week, but before that we have a fun weekend in store!

My best friend Amanda, is coming in from Colorado and I can’t wait to see her. We met in the 4th grade when our teacher asked her to show the new kid around school. You guessed it – I was that new kid. She later admitted that she didn’t want to do it, but being the generous sweet girl she was (and still is) she did it anyway and twenty years later we’re still friends. In fact, we got Molly’s middle name from Amanda (she’s Amanda Caroline). So I head off to the airport to fetch her pretty soon. I can't wait!

Granny turns 80!

Granny, a very young 80, with her great-grandkids from L to R: Grayson, Kate, Payten, Marilyn, Anna, Allison, Molly and William. Not pictured are Lucas and our soon-to-be newest addition Georgia (due in about 3 weeks)!

Well we survived our first road trip and lived to tell about it. Actually the girls were little angels and slept the entire drive. Unfortunately I didn't do nearly as well. I got sick in Corsicana, then Waxahachie, then Weatherford, you get the idea - all the way to Abilene. The good news was that the virus only last 24 hours so by Saturday afternoon I was fine. The bad news was that I gave it to Ryan so he was sick all day yesterday. However, I think we've turned a corner because we're both feeling fine today. I'm just praying we didn't give it to the babies. They seem ok so far, but you never know. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

But back to the weekend - we had a great time seeing the family and celebrating Granny's big day. I got to meet my cousin Erin's new baby Payten for the first time - about 7 months old and sooo cute. My niece Kate is the same age and they were fun to watch together. I enjoyed seeing my aunts, uncles, cousins and cousins' kids (what are your cousins' kids called, anyway?). I'll post some more pics of the trip soon but for now I need to go see a man about a baby....

Wow, they did it! The girls slept through the night - a whole 8 hours! And what luck that they both did it at the same time. They slept 9pm to 5am. What champs! I hope it wasn't just a fluke.

This afternoon we're heading out on our first road trip with the girls. Off to Abilene, TX, for Granny's 80th birthday celebration. I'm looking forward to seeing the family. Granny now has nine great grandkids (with another on the way) so it will be a fun to see everyone. I'm amazed at all the stuff we had to pack for two tiny little girls. I've never been known for packing light, but this is ridiculous!

Molly is practicing for the NY Ballet in her adorable ballet socks from my friend Ceci. I hope she's more coordinated than her mom, otherwise she's in trouble.

Tummy Time

Alli is getting good at holding her head up - and she's definitely mastered the art of sticking out her tongue.

Older guys!

The girls met their first boyfriends today! Molly is hooked up with Cooper and Alli with Caleb. I think. These boys are only a week older than Molly and Allison. I hope they’ll be good influences on ours because apparently they are sleeping through the night (a good 8 hours)! We’re not even close, and in fact I think we’re going backwards. We’ve had a few good nights with 5 1/2 hour stretches but those are just teasers because the next night they’ll go three. All those books say they should be able to go 6-7 hours by now, but I’m not always a “by the book” kinda gal and I guess our girls aren’t either. Oh, well. All in good time I suppose.

Nugget was due for her annual shots so yesterday the girls and I took her to the vet. It’s tricky enough managing the double stroller and the dog, but Nugget didn’t make the outing any easier when she decided to poop in the vet lobby. She hates the vet and shakes the entire time, and I guess that was her little way of letting us all know. She got a good report except for a minor ear infection, which of course required some kind of expensive medication. So a couple hundred dollars later we were finally on our way home – I’m sure they were happy to see us leave.

TGIF

I took this video of the girls this morning after they had their breakfast. They're always happiest right after they've eaten. Come to think of it, so am I.

Last night we took a bottle of wine and a blanket to relax during the jazz concert at Market Street. It was fun and the firls seemed to enjoy their first concert even though they slept through most of it (see below - why can't they look that peaceful at 3am?)

Daddy is a Rock Star

They had one that said, "Daddy is a Banker" but it was navy blue pinstripe and not nearly as cute.

Rules #267 & #268

Rule #267: Never forget the final step of assembling a bottle - screwing on the lid. It is the most important.

Rule # 268: If you happen to forget to screw the lid on the bottle, you might want to dress your kid in a swimsuit and have plenty of towels on hand.

Wow. Last night was almost comical, except that I wasn’t laughing at 2am. Both of the girls woke up at the same time so I put them in a boppy pillow to give them their bottles. I found this to be the easiest way to feed both at the same time – they each sit in a boppy while Ryan and Nugget snore on the other side of our king size bed. Anyway, I was so impressed with Allison – she was guzzling her bottle and was almost through before her sister had even finished an ounce. It was about that time I discovered she was soaking wet (and for once it wasn’t on the bottom-it was her top half!). Apparently in my sleep deprived state I forgot to screw the bottle lid on completely, and it was so dark I hadn't noticed that poor Alli had formula all over her. It was everywhere – including all over the bed. So I had to stop to change her and clean her up, which meant I had to interrupt feeding Molly. Of course she was not pleased with that and didn’t hesitate to let me know. So Molly was screaming and Allison was soaking wet. Nice. Luckily Ryan heard the commotion and woke up to rescue us. He fed Molly while I cleaned and finished feeding Allison. Then we were too tired to change our sheets so Ryan put a towel over the wet spot for me and I went back to sleep. For another couple hours, anyway…

Pope Allison XVII

Other kids dress up like princesses or fairies. Allison dresses up like the Pope. Reenie should be so proud!


I found this great golf cart rocker at the WMOM Buy/Sell (basically a flea market full of used kids stuff - right up my alley since I love flea markets). I first said no, but Molly and Allison begged to get it and surprise Daddy. And boy, did we ever! It serves no real purpose-not to mention we don't have anywhere to put it-but it was too darn cute to pass up. Plus it came with a kids size golf club and ball. That was the clincher.







Molly wasn't quite sure to think of these sunglasses!

Here's a clip of the girl doing not much of anything - just hanging out on the floor kicking, but of course I think it's cute. At the very end you can hear Ryan open the door and yell "Nugget!" Every time I replay this back she hears it and runs to the door looking for Daddy. Poor dog. Him coming home is the highlight of her day. Well, that and the trip to the mailbox.

Actually don't feel too sorry for her- she did get to go on a run today, along with me and the girls. We went in their new jogging stroller (below). It's not the easiest thing in the world to push the giant stroller while trying to control the dog but we make it work. We went for about 5 miles today so slowly but surely I'm getting back in shape. It's fun to be able to do it with the Molly and Allison in tow, even though they usually sleep most of the way.

This week has gone by fast, even though I'm not sure what, if anything, I've actually accomplished. Washed a lot of bottles, did some laundry, gave some baths - the usual. But I did get to laugh at a lot of cute smiles so no complaints here.

Ryan clipping Alli's nails. I hate doing it but he has such steady hands.


Nana holding the girls

Molly and Alli were cheering for Duke over the weekend but unfortunately their efforts didn't pay off. Maybe they'll have better luck during basketball season? But looking at that picture I guess maybe I should comb Alli's hair one of these days...

Me, Nugget, Alli and Molly. These bows in their hair lasted all of 10 seconds.

Here's another clip of Molly smiling.

The girls and I went to another Mothers of Multiples playgroup today. Molly and Allison still can't do much playing (should I be worried about their lack of social skills?) but it was fun for me to meet with and get advice from other moms of twins. We had a good time even though they slept through most of it.

I'm not sure how he figured this out, but Alli sticks her tongue out every time Ryan blows in her face.

Eight weeks old today!

Molly and Allison are 8 weeks old today. Hard to believe that it’s been two months since those two squirmy, slimy babies made their appearance at 9:06am (Allison) and 9:07 (Molly). Don’t ask me why I remember, but Queen’s “We are the Champions” was on the radio when Dr. Rawson pulled them out. Despite my drugged state I remember every detail clearly and especially loved that the doctors and nurses serenaded them with “Happy Birthday” in the operating room as they sewed me back up. Everything with the delivery went well and I had a positive experience overall. It was fun that our parents were in town to meet their newest grandkids and offer their help and support. The hospital food was, well, hospital food but Ryan was good to go pick up Chic-fil-A or whatever else I was craving instead. And the babies "roomed-in” with us so we didn’t waste any time getting those sleepless nights started. Ryan spent three long nights hanging off the tiny foldout sofa chair and never complained once. He was a wonderful help – and still is. So although we were off to a good start we were definitely ready to come home when we finally got the okay. The discharge process seemed to take forever but we finally made it out (with several extra "borrowed" hospital blankets and tons of those handy pre-made formula bottles). And then the fun really began! Wow, that's fun to remember and I realize we've come a long way in two months.

Anyway, we took the girls for their eight week checkup this morning and they’re doing great. Molly weighed in at 9lbs 6oz and Alli a whopping 10lbs 8oz. They got their first immunizations which I hated to watch but after screaming for about 30 seconds they calmed down and fell right to sleep. And now Ryan has offered to babysit while I get my haircut so I better get going before he changes his mind...

These boots are made for walkin'

One of Ryan's customers gave Molly & Allison each their first pair of cowboy boots. I guess every Texas girl needs to have at least one pair. Here's Alli doing a boot scoot of her own (disregard my wet hair - I don't think I've used a hair dryer since the girls were born).

Actually I just realized that from far away they kind of look like shrimp boots! Perfect for our next trip to Louisiana.

Welcome back to Monday. Why do the weekends always go by so fast? Actually all my days are pretty much the same lately - most of the time I don't even know what day it is - but I look forward to Saturdays and Sundays because Ryan gets to play with us. We took the girls for Mexican food on Friday night because they were craving margaritas (too much formula will do that to you) and then we drug them to the YMCA to work them off on Saturday morning. We recently joined based on a friend's recommendation and there's a day care center were you can dump the kids while you work out. It's actually very nice inside and all the workout machines are fantastic. Who knew? Makes me want to through my hands in the air and sing. "Young man..."

We put up another swing yesterday because both Molly and Alli love the motion. Actually I think Ryan and I are bigger fans since it calms them and puts them to sleep. But now our living room is begining to look like a Babies R Us with the bouncers, vibrating seats, bumbos, boppys, Baby Einstein play gym, multiple toys and ever-present half empty bottles littering the furniture. It doesn't do much for the decor, but it's so helpful. When they get tired of one view I'll just pick them up and plop them down in something else for a change of scenery. The garage is pretty much the same - full of strollers and other misc. items. And I just added a used double jogging stroller to the mix this morning. They retail for $450 and I bought a like-new one from another mom of twins for $150.What a bargain! But now I guess I have no excuse not to go running again. Perhaps I should have thought that purchase through a little more?

Molly petting her big sister

Nugget and Alli posing -we broke out the Bumbo seat!

Pick on Someone Your Own Size!

Molly was perfectly happy until her sister started beating up on her. Alli needs to learn to pick on someone her own size...

Still workin' it off..

My sister and I took the girls to Wal-Mart last week and the cashier, a sweet little silver-haired lady, asked which one of us was the mother. I proudly replied that I was, sure that she was going to congratulate me or tell me how adorable the babies looked. Imagine my surprise when she then asked if I was "already expecting more or just hadn't worked it off yet?" Wow. I know I still have a ways to got but geez... The girls were barely six weeks old! Apparently all that pizza and ice cream I justified while I was pregnant (after all, I was eating for three) is a little more noticeable than I thought. Ah, well. Just another reason not to shop at Wal-Mart. I always liked Target better anyway. But I guess I won't pack away those elastic pregnancy pants just yet...

In other news, Allison slept a whole 5 1/2 hours in a row last night! That's a record. Of course I didn't get that much sleep since Molly still expected a snack every three hours, but at least we're making forward progress. Ryan can still sleep through their cries (and since he has to go to work and actually be productive I usually let him), but when I'm desperate I'll poke him and he'll get up to help. And many nights he gives the girls their last bottle so I can go to bed early and sneak in little more sleep. It's a good system and seems to work for us. We're both tired but not zombie-like.

Oh - we learned last week that the placenta lab tests came back showing that the girls are identical (I have no idea what they look for but I guess they know what they're doing). I was shocked because we don't think they look anything alike. But maybe when Molly grows a bit and gets a hairdo like her sister they will? Crazy.

Wonder if anyone makes shirts that say "Yep, I have my hands full." That's probably the comment I get the most when we're out and about. Along with "Uh oh. Double trouble." For now it's still fun when people stop to admire them - I just smile and say thank you. Other twin moms tell me that these comments might get annoying after a few months but I'm not so sure. How could I get tired of people noticing my babies? We'll see.

Typical Pic

This picture is typical of the girls - Alli just hanging out and Molly looking like the Boogie Man is about to get her.

We have nothing better to do...

Daddy making the girls smile.

Yep, I'll be the first to admit this is pretty pathetic. Our kids can't even sit up and we're already taking videos to amuse ourselves. I hope we're not those kinds of parents when it comes to ballet recitals and soccer games. But I can't help it. They're so darn cute. And to be perfectly honest I really don't have anything better to do.

Things to ponder...

Why does the diaper champ always fill up at 2am? There is no warning, you just suddenly can't fit even one more inside and have no choice but to change the bag. Could they invent a warning system ("you can fit 3 more diapers in-2 if they're really full"). It's never a fun chore, but it's much more tolerable during the daylight hours.

Why do babies like to wait till your mid-diaper change to finish? I think we underestimate their intelligence and sense of humor. I swear I can see Alli smirking to herself when she pulls this trick. I guess they don't have anything better to do than amuse themselves with childish games.

Miss Molly

Molly wanted a video, too.

A few new pics..

(Molly on the left and Allison on the right)

Alli loves Daddy and Molly loves Mommy. Don't worry, it will switch next time. No favorites here. Although I'm sure when they're teenagers they'll want ones that say "I hate Mommy" and "I hate Daddy." Guess we'll enjoy it while we can...

Alli Smiling!

This video shows Alli smiling - almost a laugh, actually. Makes it all worth it. I can get through the sleepless nights when I get these little expresions from the girls. Why do I keep thinking of that Bad English song, "When I see you smile?"

The girls will be 7 weeks old tomorrow - hard to believe. But they're both doing great and we're having a lot of fun.

Sunday, August 19

Well I had really great intentions of writing a little bit every day but as you can see I haven't touched this blog in over a week. Ah, well. What do they say about the road being paved with good intentions? But I've been busy doing other important things like feeding, burping, changing, and bathing the girls. Then repeat. And throw in lots of laundry and I'm not sure where the last week went?

Actually things are going really well. The girls both slept for a whole three hours in a row last night so that was nice. Ryan's parents were in town last week so we had plenty of help. But now we're flying solo. It's nice to be able to settle into a routine of our own but I know we'll miss all those extra hands. It's hardest when one is eating and the other is crying because she's hungry, too. You can't exactly put one down and get the other but it breaks my heart to hear them cry when I don't have enough hands for both. But the good news is that the only time they really do cry is when they're hungry (at least for now - knock on wood). They're pretty content otherwise. And they've been a lot more alert the past few days which is fun. We've had "tummy time" every day and they're getting good at holding up their heads.

But this lack of sleep thing - I swear, it's almost comical. The other day we took the girls to Ryan's office to introduce them and as we were walking in I looked down at my feet. Not kidding - I was wearing my slippers!!! It was so hectic trying to get both of them out the door that I didn't even put my own shoes on. Nice. But I did venture out to a "play group" last week. Obviously Molly and Allison couldn't do much playing, but it was nice for me to get out of the house. Little trips to the mall or to Target take so much effort but it's worth it for my sanity. And once we're out they both just fall asleep in their stroller.

And it really is the little things that make it all worthwhile. Yesterday I was in the living room and Ryan was changing Molly in our room. The monitor was on and I could hear him singing to her. He was making up his own song (a favorite pastime of his) and didn't realize that anyone else was listening. It was so cute to hear and I felt lucky to have such a wonderful husband that is also a great dad.

We're definitely trying to keep a sense of humor about things because sometimes that's all we can do. Like when Molly's projectile poop shot four feet (not a joke - I wouldn't have believed it myself if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes). Or when Allison was trying to nurse on her sister's head. Poor Molly had a wet spot in her hair from Alli's attempt to get lunch. And the faces they make continue to crack us up.

Uh oh. I hear someone crying. It's probably time to eat. Again.

Poor Nugget

Our dog Nugget isn't quite sure
what to think...

Allison and Molly

Allison Paige &

Molly Caroline

July 25, 2007

August 7th

Well the twins are both sleeping at the same time so I thought I'd take this opportunity to set up that blog I meant to do ages ago. Add it to the list of things I meant to do...

Molly Caroline and Allison Paige will be two weeks old tomorrow. We're settling in at home and so far so good. There isn't a lot of sleep to go around but we expected that. I'm still not sure how my husband Ryan is able to sleep when there are two crying babies in the crib right next to him, but that is definitely a skill I'd like to master. But despite the lack of sleep things are going well and we're having a wonderful time.

Allison was a pound heavier than Molly at birth and it's amazing the difference one pound makes. We go for a checkup tomorrow so hopefully they are both gaining weight. They seem to have the hang of breastfeeding (they should, they do it often enough-every 2-3 hours!). But they are just so darn adorable. They faces they make crack us up all the time and we feel very lucky to have two sweet, healthy baby girls.