Jim and I have been working to come up with a schedule that works for us. This week was the first test. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday the boys and I have things to do during the day. Then on Tuesday and Thursday we would go out in the evening. That way the boys get their out-and-about time but things are kept in moderation. We also got them two new toys to keep them from getting bored: Jumperoo and a walker.
The Jumperoo has been a big hit with Zach. It took him a day or so to get the hang of jumping, but now he just bounces and bounces. His legs were a little short so I put a blanket underneath. Even when he's tired of being in it and complaining. he still doesn't stop jumping. It's rather funny to watch. I have to stand there, waiting to pick him up, until he holds still long enough for me to grab him.
Alex likes it well enough but seems to prefer the Exersaucer. He's happier much longer in it than the Jumperoo, which is just fine with Zach. Alex has been getting into shouting matches with the purple toy on the Exersaucer, though. I can't identify exactly what animal it's supposed to be - a purple hippo with leopard spots and a rhino horn? Either way, Alex wants to chew on it. Unfortunately it won't reach. So after getting frustrated, he started yelling at the top of his lungs, right in its face. He's done it a few times now and I have to hide in the kitchen so he doesn't see me laughing. Even Zach will stop jumping and stare at the spectacle.
The walker hasn't been an instant new favorite because our boys are too short to reach the ground. hehe
Jim got us a book about what it's like to grow up as an identical twin. It's a compilation of interviews by an author that's an identical twin herself. I'm about three-quarters through and it's not what I expected. It's much more of a cautionary tale than an optimistic take on things. I knew we had a challenge ahead of us, being sure to treat them as individuals, but I didn't realize the details.
One thing that has already rang true is to resist the urge to label them. Labels, like stereotypes, mean you feel like you know someone without actually getting to know them. We get it all the time from strangers. Zach is very social, so he tends to smile and coo a lot when getting attention. Alex does the same thing with us, but not with people he doesn't know. So we get "Oh he's the happy one and he's the serious one." I don't want either of them growing up trying to live up to a label, or trying to disprove it.
There's also an emphasis on doing things separately with the boys, be it one-on-one with a parent, or two-on-one while one boy stays with others. We need to get to know them as individuals, basically. We've done a little of that, but mostly we travel in packs. I think once they're a little older and can do things, it'll be easier. Right now I'm not sure they'd know the difference if we had one or both with us.
The boys played on their first playground on Friday. We went to a park that had little kid swings. Here's a picture of the extreme cuteness:
Jim and I got the H1N1 vaccine Saturday at the health department. Since the boys are under 6 months, we qualified for the nasal spray. That saved us about 2hrs of standing in line for the shot. The slight downside is the nasal spray contains a weakened live virus, instead of a dead version. Jim and I both ended up with "The Nose Flu", which is just a runny nose. I also got a mild headache and a bit of a sore throat, neither of which lasted long.
We arrived at the health department around 11am and people that had gotten there at 7:30am were just getting their shots. The line wrapped around the building and around the rear parking lot. Some people brought lawn chairs. Kids were climbing all over the decorative trees planted around the perimeter. We were given numbers 1005 and 1006 for the shot, but when we switched to the nasal spray line, our numbers were in the 245 range.
We mounted our megatron tv to the living room wall on Sunday. This is our first major step towards kid-proofing our house. We ended up doing the installation ourselves, saving about $400. It wasn't particularly difficult, just time consuming to be sure everything was done correctly.
In developmental news, the boys have started hugging around the neck. They also like to cup your face in their hands and plant kisses on your cheeks. We're all quite wet and slobbery by the time we're through.
They're going through a phase (I hope!) where they don't want to sleep as much. Naps this weekend were a struggle and even then they were only down for about 30min at a time. They're also getting up every 1.5hrs to eat during the night, and ready to start their day at 5:30am. It's been hard and a little discouraging since this obviously isn't the direction I was hoping we'd go in. I was really hoping by now they would only be getting up once or twice during the night.
Alex has decided that he still likes the playmats but Zach doesn't want much to do with them. They've ogtten really good at playing with Jacques and Freddie (the firefly version) in the car. I'll hear "Crinkle, crinkle crinkle." until they fall asleep - usually holding onto their toy. They have little difficulty grabbing things and sticking them in their mouths.
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