Journal #1 - A Month In The Life...

A month in the life of a twin mama. 

It's funny to think that after blogging every single day this year, I still feel like I'm lacking in some of the actual journaling of my babies' lives.  But when it comes down to it, there are plenty of happenings around this house, in these lives, that I just haven't jotted down.  Whether it's from sheer exhaustion, a lack of time, or even just that I'm focusing on one facet of the day as I write- I feel like there are some of those little things that have been missed thus far. 

Last month was a great reminder of how many amazing things we experience each day. When I first started this year's blogging I was focusing in on many of those details.  I want to get back to that this month, get another in depth glimpse into our lives, into their days, into what goes on as a twin mama.  I don't want to forget these little details, the things that make this life unique from every other mom's experience.

So, whether it's my blogging about their schedule, their night time, their eating or their personalities, I really want to journal each day this month.  We'll call it the mid way check-in- what's different from those first days of this year!

I think today is the perfect day to begin.  We had a really fun day- I truly love weekends.  While they are exhausting and non-stop, it's by far the most time I get to spend with my littles and I learn so much about who they are becoming and what they are learning.  Plus, they learn more about me.

Last night was Daddy's night so I got to sleep in and I took full advantage.  Gracie woke up around 6:15 after Caleb had gone back to bed and she was up for good, so Ben took the monitor out of the room, shut the door, and left me to soak up those rare extra z's.  By the time I opened that door again it was 9am and both babies were ready for their second bottle of the day!

I wanted to take them to the grocery store today because Ben needed some time to get a little important work done without distractions.  All day I was thinking about when would be best to take them.  This same dilemma haunted me in those early months when I was home alone with them.  I'd want to go out and run errands or just take them out of the house, but with nap schedules and feeding, it's never easy to find the best time.  It all comes down to those naps, really.  Without fail, if Caleb is even remotely tired he'll fall asleep in the car.  So if I don't want a short nap, then I have to take them out of the house after he's been well rested.  But Gracie has the same problem, so best case scenario is I feed them right before a nap, then they both sleep the same amount of time at the same time, and then we hit the road for a good outing until it's time for another bottle or another nap.

Of course, these are two very individual babies who very much prefer their own nap time and nap length.  We've been working on a schedule since the day they  were born, literally, but it's nearly impossible to keep them on the same one. 

So after that second bottle, it was time for a nap. I was hoping that we'd get that perfect scenario and head out as soon as they both woke up.  Unfortunately, Grace thought it was a better plan to hang out with Daddy so she cried and cried when he tried to put her down.  Caleb fell asleep in my arms and then got pretty pissed off when I tried to put him down.  It was over 30 minutes later before they were both asleep, and Caleb passed out long before Grace did.

With the delayed start to the nap, when they both woke up it was too close to lunch time to get grocery shopping done, especially because they needed solids. I've gotten much better at giving them bottles out and about, but haven't figured out solids.  I got those little pouches of pureed foods once and gave those to them while we were shopping on Father's Day, but Grace squeezed nearly the entire thing all over herself and it ended up being more of a pain than anything.

Ben took a nap while I fed them harvest vegetables and grains- a new food we hadn't tried before.  Caleb wasn't all about it, but he wasn't acting like himself so I think he's just not feeling well. He woke up this morning with a swollen left eye again- I'm so hoping it's not pink eye. It looks different, almost like he's got a black eye. I'll be calling the doctor on that one tomorrow, oy.  Grace ate the entire jar and wanted more! I was able to get Caleb to eat some carrots before calling it quits. The three of us went into the play area and hung out until Ben woke up and joined us. 

As soon as Daddy was up, we gave them another bottle and then put them down for their second nap- around 1pm.  Caleb woke up about an hour later, then fell back asleep in my arms for another hour.  Grace slept almost two hours straight! So around 3:30 was my first chance to try and make it out of the house...definitely not best case scenario, but you gotta do what you gotta do.

I was actually pretty excited at the prospect of taking them both shopping by myself- it had been a while since I'd attempted it. I brought the baby bjorn for Grace and the grocery cart seat cover for Caleb.  I also had to plan out what to do with their car seats in the 115 degree weather and how to feed them when 4:00 rolled around and they were hungry.  So I brought two ice packs in plastic baggies and two bottles. I gave them each their bottles in the car, hoping they might get an ounce or so down on the way.  Grace tried her hardest and ate about an ounce and a half; Caleb didn't even make an attempt- he's still not really holding his own bottles.

When I pulled into the parking lot, the hunt for the perfect spot was on.  I needed a spot with shade, close to the grocery carts so I didn't have to wander to far away from the car and the babies.  I also needed one with ample space on each side to get the babies out of their car seats and into the cart/bjorn.  Luckily, I only needed to mame two ladies to find that perfect spot! ...jokes, jokes. I brought their bottles into the store and placed the ice packs in their car seats to keep the belts and buckles cool while we shopped- it worked perfectly!

I was super impressed with the shopping trip. I helped Grace take her bottle while she hung out in the bjorn and we stopped to give Caleb a bit every once in a while.  Neither of them ate much, there were too many distractions, but they had enough to avoid meltdown. Then we wandered the store for over an hour, stopping to smile at passers by and talk to people who were amazed at the woman with "her hands full".  I can't tell you how many time I've gotten that comment- usually from someone wide eyed and slightly fearful of what they're seeing.  Most people are completely enamored by the babies and I get the "you're so lucky comment" all the time.  That's my favorite one. Today a nice lady stopped and talked to us for a long time, explaining that she used to be a nanny, that she now works for the government but is thinking about giving up her hefty salary for half the money to go back to nannying for a couple of her friends, and that she lost a twin when she was four months pregnant with her now 16 year old son.  I'll say that it was more than most people share with me, but I've heard plenty of stories when I go out with both babies by myself.  There's something about twin babies that draws people in and makes them want to talk. If you know me, you know that's not a problem.  I'm always up for it.

This particular woman fell head over heels for Mr. Caleb.  He smiled at her immediately and then proceeded to play his bashful game with a huge smile followed by a shy shoulder and then a sly little half smile.  He's such a ladies man!  Grace looked on with curiosity and much caution, she's my observer.  We talked about how big Caleb is of course but how much ahead of the curve little Grace is.  She seemed really knowledgeable about twins- babies in general, of course, with her background.  I don't know if I'll ever forget that nice lady in the grocery store, the one who looked on at my babies with such warmness, maybe even a little bit of envy and sadness.  The woman who told me that she knows she'll see her angel baby again one day, and told me to hold tight to my little ones.  They grow so fast.

I took a little extra time wandering around the store after that conversation, holding Grace's hand and rubbing little Caleb's fuzzy hair.  They were amazing,  yet again.  Caleb started to get bored around 45 minutes in, but he seemed pretty pleased with the few distractions I provided for him.  By the time we got home it was after 5pm and just a little bit of playing time was had before dinner (in which Grace actually pulled up all by herself using the play area gate!!! Oh man, we're in trouble).  We fed them their remaining chicken with brown rice (Caleb loved it this time- I knew it!) and then some apples and apricots.

Bath time was right after the food, which is always good seeing as it takes a massive amount of clean up to get all of the baby food off of them otherwise.  Ben is usually the one in the tub with them now- he's better at that and I'm better at the drying, lotioning, and dressing.  It's fun for both of us, so it works out.  Tonight I took Grace for bedtime and Ben took Caleb.  Ladybug fell asleep in my arms and Caleb ate on Ben's legs before passing out as soon as he was placed on Daddy's chest.  Grace went right to sleep and Caleb only cried for a minute or so after Ben put him down.  I love when bedtime goes so smoothly (which honestly is most of the time now...if only Caleb would stop crying before and after the bath, need to figure that one out).

Phew, that was our day!  Work days will be much more succint, there isn't nearly as much that I can write about on those days.  But I'm glad that I'll have this journal of what goes on from day to day around here.  It's a wild ride, that's for sure...but oh how fun it is!

After I put them in their adorable outfits for grocery shopping I decided to try another monthly photo shoot to see if I could get some better shots.  Not exactly successful...but cute nonetheless!

She's alwasy trying to crawl away now...or in this case, toward the camera string!

Hi Grace.  Hi Caleb.

Finally a Caleb smile! Too bad Grace was doing the can-can...

Passed out with Mommy for second...or really third...nap.

Right after Grace's first successful attempt at pulling up on her own! She fell down and of course had to cry a bit, so Daddy was there to rescue her! :)