The boys have been hard at work on honing new skills. Zach is now a master at pulling up and doing his leg/behind scoot maneuver. He can go from sitting to standing using just about anything - my leg, the wagon, the couch, etc. His scooting might not be the most efficient way to get around but he doesn't have a problem going from the play room to the living room and back again after a ball.
Alex is getting really good at cruising. He'll take my hands and we'll go for walks around the house. When he reaches where he wants to go, he'll plop down and start playing. He prefers to be in near constant motion when standing, so he'll cruise on me or Zach to get around any obstacle. With both boys I've been playing Up and Down, where they'll crouch down and I'll say "Down!" and when they stand back up I'll say "Up!" They think it's hilarious. They've gotten to the point where I can say "Down!" and they'll crouch.
Zach has started trying to mimic what we say. The first time I noticed was after I said "Ut oh!" and he replied "Uh Oh!" We've been working on "Mommy" and I get "Nomma" in response. I tried the same thing with Alex but instead of "Mommy" I got "Dada!" nearly shouted back. hehe
Zach has all 8 teeth poked through (4 top/4 bottom), while Alex has been working on his top ones. He has numbers 8, 7, and 10 in and you can see the beginning of number 9. So, his pattern of not following the rules has continued. He has this gap on the top because he hasn't gotten his front left tooth in.
Also this week the boys have discovered their nose and that they can put their finger in it. They're not actually picking it but seem to thing it's something fun to do. The boys have learned that pictures in books look like real things. They have a book of animals that I read to them some times. They don't show any interest in the pictures until we get to the one of the orange cat. They'll both reach out to pat it and they don't want to leave the page. We also have a grey cat down the street that will come out to meet them when we take walks in the evening. Both boys have managed to grab his ears and tail but he doesn't seem to care.
I took the boys over to our friend J's house this week and they played with her 10mo daughter, Ana. We ate lunch then went swimming in their kiddie pool. Both Zach and Alex went to town splashing, while Ana concentrated more on the toys. They live on a farm, so the horses and dogs watched the kids play. The boys had SO much fun cruising around on all of their furniture. At one point Zach started running his hands down their air return grate. It made this washboard-type noise that Zach loved. Alex joined in with some bells. All we need to do is teach Ana to blow on a jug and we'd have a nice country band going.
Another development this week is Zach is scared of anyone that isn't me or Jim. It started when our house cleaners came before we were ready to head out. We normally leave since the boys are scared of the vacuum. Well, the cleaners came in and Zach was so scared he couldn't move. He just cried and cried, with his little body shaking. I had to peel him off the train table and hold him. A few days later J and Ana came by. Now, we see them about twice to three times a week. Both boys will go to J and normally get excited to see them. Well, this time Zach was petrified. I picked him up and held him until he realized J wasn't going to do anything to him. Then he was back to his normal self, laughing and playing.
I'm not sure what this is going to mean for their birthday party coming up. We witnessed sort of thing about 3 more times during the week, so I don't think it's a fluke. The worst was when a former co-worker came over with her little girl, Amy. Zach burst into tears, which startled Amy and made her cry. Alex then got upset that Amy was upset. In a matter of a few seconds we had three babies bawling uncontrollably. This was Amy's first play date ever, so I felt kind of bad that we started out on a bad foot.
It hasn't helped their moods any that I'm trying to reduce the amount of breast feeding they're doing. I would like them to stop altogether within the next month, but they've shown no signs of stopping on their own. In fact, it's been quite the opposite. They were getting pushier and wanting more than they used to. They expected milk before, during, and after every nap, plus about 3 other times during the day, before bed, and about 5 times during the night. If I didn't move fast enough, they would help themselves. I was getting Alex into position when Zach pulled himself over, lifted up my shirt, and latched on. Talk about making me feel like a dairy cow...
So we're down to 2 milk sessions during the day, one before each nap, and about 3 during the night. They seem to be adjusting well. Neither even asked for milk during their naps today (day 3). The first day I tried it, they wouldn't go back to sleep after they wanted milk during their naps, so they only slept 30min instead of 1.5hrs. Their eating at breakfast, lunch, and dinner has really picked up, too. They're actually eating, instead of nibbling and throwing most of it on the floor. We've been giving them water whenever they want it, and whole milk with meals. Zach likes milk but Alex doesn't, so he gets water most of the time. If they start getting a little cranky in the afternoon I'll give them a snack.
Both boys are getting pretty good at drinking out of straws. I think I'm going to get them some straw sippy cups so they can have a drink whenever they want it. I'm most worried about dehydration as we wean them off breast milk since they're not used to relying on water or cows milk.
We tried some new foods this week - baked beans, fruit smoothies, cheese crackers with peanut butter, tomato and cheese sandwiches, and some new fruit/veggie pouches. We're going through a phase where Zach will eat just about anything but Alex is acting picky. Usually if I make him try something a couple of times he'll eat it, though. He still doesn't know how to spit things out, so I use that to my advantage.
I'm looking forward to their birthday party. I hope the boys have fun. Jim's worried about them not diving into their little cakes, but I would be surprised if they didn't. It seems like their hands are into just about everything now.
5.30.2010
5.18.2010
0
Month 11, Week 1 & 2
I'm tired. The boys are working on teeth and trying to get over some bad colds. They've had fevers, run-down-your-face noses, sinus pressure, and congestion. They spend most of the night coughing (as does Jim), and just want to be held. During the day they're cranky from the lack of sleep, and don't want to eat since they can't taste anything. At one point the three of us just climbed into the green chair and rocked while a Thomas and Friends episode played on the tv. They didn't have the energy to do much else.
Right now Zach has 6 teeth that have poked through - 3 top and 3 bottom - and a top and bottom one on the way. If you go by the dental numbers for teeth, he's gotten them in this order: 25, 24, 9, 8, 23, and 10. Numbers 26 and 7 are about to come through. Alex, on the other hand, likes to concentrate on the bottoms first. He has 4 teeth: 24, 25, 26, and 23. Number 8 is just about to come in, though.
I find the order they get their teeth to be interesting. Zach is pretty much a text book case, while Alex is bucking the norm. But neither of them have gotten the same tooth in at the same time. Not a single one! I guess genes don't play a big part in it.
You wouldn't know from the teeth count, but Alex has pulled ahead as our biter. He wants to chomp anything that gets close enough. I don't know how many times a day I have to keep him from biting Zach. He bit me this morning when he got mad that I made him stop rolling and go to sleep.
I've mentioned before that Alex likes to talk in a falsetto sometimes. Zach has developed his "Donald Duck" voice, which is kind of like a hoarse whisper. He'll just chat away, switching from normal to DD. It's pretty funny.
Beyond being tired from the teething an colds, I've been having trouble sleeping. On Mother's Day we found out that friends from college lost their B/G twins at 22wks due to an incompetent cervix. They did everything right and just couldn't stop them from arriving. It's really shaken me up. That could have easily been me, and honestly I can't tell you why it wasn't. We were so close to loosing the boys so many times, but for some reason it didn't happen. I had just sent my friends all of our old twins-related equipment, too, which probably makes it worse, sitting around, being a reminder. I've been worried that even just talking to me would make things worse for them. No one should have to go through what they are. I feel terrible and there's nothing I can do to fix it.
Ok, back to the boys. Alex has developed a willful side. He'll arch his back and just about throw himself on the ground when he's not getting his way. Diaper changes have become screaming and kicking matches. I have to physically bend him to get him in his high chair sometimes. He also gets frustrated when I can't figure out what he wants. He grabbed and yanked the cat's tail the other night, causing Frodo to yelp. When he's cruising, he wants to be in constant motion and gets irritated at Zach for standing and playing. He'll try to remove his hands, or push him out of the way. Mostly, though, he'll grab onto Zach's shoulders and cruise on him to get around to the other side.
Alex gets very jealous of whatever toy Zach has, even if he has a duplicate of his own. He'll try to grab the toy from Zach. And if Zach wants his toy, Alex will hold it out of reach, even rotating his body around so his back is to him.
Alex is easy to make laugh. When he wakes up from his nap, he'll roll onto his belly, pop his head up to look at me, and just grin from ear to ear. I can touch my nose to his for lots of giggles. He's very curious about my nose, mouth, and teeth. He thinks it's funny when I gently blow in his eyes and loves it when I stroke his face. He likes to sleep on his side and back.
Zach also has a touch of willfulness, mainly when it comes to changing his diaper. He wants to kick his legs and gets mad when I hold them. Otherwise he's pretty laid back. I've been letting him pick out his shirt in the morning. I hold up two and he grabs the one he wants. Lately he's been choosing what are normally Alex's shirts. This has been causing Jim and I a lot of mix-ups. hehe
He's starting to realize that Alex wants his toys, and will cry when he reaches for them. I spend a lot of time extracting his toys from Alex and giving them back. Zach is getting pretty good at taking walks with me holding his hands. He likes to cruise the couch and hold onto my knees. When he's trying to figure something out, he'll tilt his head to the side. Zach has started to play peek-a-boo with blankets and was experimenting with drinking from a cup by himself in the bath. He knows what "Sit!" means and will sit down in the tub. He likes to try to pull up on the sides a lot.
At lunch Zach has started to spit out things without even tasting them. He also likes to drop food over the side of his high chair, hoping the cats will come sniff it. He chews really fast and doesn't spill much when he drinks. Zach likes to break his cheese puffs in half before eating them.
Zach is obsessed with our alarm clocks and tries everything he can to look at them when it's time for a nap. I'm constantly rolling him back over and pulling him closer to me so he doesn't go off the side of the bed. If given the chance, he'll pull my hair. He likes to have his forehead and cheeks kissed before going taking a nap. Zach likes to sleep on his side or belly.
I find the order they get their teeth to be interesting. Zach is pretty much a text book case, while Alex is bucking the norm. But neither of them have gotten the same tooth in at the same time. Not a single one! I guess genes don't play a big part in it.
You wouldn't know from the teeth count, but Alex has pulled ahead as our biter. He wants to chomp anything that gets close enough. I don't know how many times a day I have to keep him from biting Zach. He bit me this morning when he got mad that I made him stop rolling and go to sleep.
I've mentioned before that Alex likes to talk in a falsetto sometimes. Zach has developed his "Donald Duck" voice, which is kind of like a hoarse whisper. He'll just chat away, switching from normal to DD. It's pretty funny.
Beyond being tired from the teething an colds, I've been having trouble sleeping. On Mother's Day we found out that friends from college lost their B/G twins at 22wks due to an incompetent cervix. They did everything right and just couldn't stop them from arriving. It's really shaken me up. That could have easily been me, and honestly I can't tell you why it wasn't. We were so close to loosing the boys so many times, but for some reason it didn't happen. I had just sent my friends all of our old twins-related equipment, too, which probably makes it worse, sitting around, being a reminder. I've been worried that even just talking to me would make things worse for them. No one should have to go through what they are. I feel terrible and there's nothing I can do to fix it.
Ok, back to the boys. Alex has developed a willful side. He'll arch his back and just about throw himself on the ground when he's not getting his way. Diaper changes have become screaming and kicking matches. I have to physically bend him to get him in his high chair sometimes. He also gets frustrated when I can't figure out what he wants. He grabbed and yanked the cat's tail the other night, causing Frodo to yelp. When he's cruising, he wants to be in constant motion and gets irritated at Zach for standing and playing. He'll try to remove his hands, or push him out of the way. Mostly, though, he'll grab onto Zach's shoulders and cruise on him to get around to the other side.
Alex gets very jealous of whatever toy Zach has, even if he has a duplicate of his own. He'll try to grab the toy from Zach. And if Zach wants his toy, Alex will hold it out of reach, even rotating his body around so his back is to him.
Alex is easy to make laugh. When he wakes up from his nap, he'll roll onto his belly, pop his head up to look at me, and just grin from ear to ear. I can touch my nose to his for lots of giggles. He's very curious about my nose, mouth, and teeth. He thinks it's funny when I gently blow in his eyes and loves it when I stroke his face. He likes to sleep on his side and back.
Zach also has a touch of willfulness, mainly when it comes to changing his diaper. He wants to kick his legs and gets mad when I hold them. Otherwise he's pretty laid back. I've been letting him pick out his shirt in the morning. I hold up two and he grabs the one he wants. Lately he's been choosing what are normally Alex's shirts. This has been causing Jim and I a lot of mix-ups. hehe
He's starting to realize that Alex wants his toys, and will cry when he reaches for them. I spend a lot of time extracting his toys from Alex and giving them back. Zach is getting pretty good at taking walks with me holding his hands. He likes to cruise the couch and hold onto my knees. When he's trying to figure something out, he'll tilt his head to the side. Zach has started to play peek-a-boo with blankets and was experimenting with drinking from a cup by himself in the bath. He knows what "Sit!" means and will sit down in the tub. He likes to try to pull up on the sides a lot.
At lunch Zach has started to spit out things without even tasting them. He also likes to drop food over the side of his high chair, hoping the cats will come sniff it. He chews really fast and doesn't spill much when he drinks. Zach likes to break his cheese puffs in half before eating them.
Zach is obsessed with our alarm clocks and tries everything he can to look at them when it's time for a nap. I'm constantly rolling him back over and pulling him closer to me so he doesn't go off the side of the bed. If given the chance, he'll pull my hair. He likes to have his forehead and cheeks kissed before going taking a nap. Zach likes to sleep on his side or belly.
5.05.2010
0
Month 11!!! (Only one more to go!)
First, how can it already be Wednesday? You'd think with more daylight I'd have more time, but I don't. If anything, we've been trying to jam in extra fun stuff.
Our big event this past week was getting a train table. While the boys are too little to play with trains, the table is ideal for cruising. It's just the right height and has a lip they can grab onto. Best of all, we can cover it with their toys for playtime fun (or throw-it-on-the-floor-then-cry-until-someone-gets-it-for-you-then-throw-it-back-on-the-floor fun).
Since train tables can be pricy and it's not like a spoon or anything they would put in their mouth, I searched Craigslist for a few days trying to find a deal. I found one "like new with just a little tear in the corner" for $45. I called the lady and we went over to her house to get it. Now, I hate haggling. If I think the price is fair, that's what I'll pay. If it's unfair, I don't even bother. I could kid myself that I will talk someone down, but I know I won't. I just didn't get that gene from my dad.
We get there and everything looks fine, although the table is a bit shaky. Jim goes to load it into the van and it totally falls apart. He's left holding one board while the rest is in pieces on the ground. We look at each other. Well, this isn't good. We get the pieces home and I do a closer inspection of the table. A lot of the screws are stripped out and some are missing altogether. I replace the missing ones and move the brackets so we can use new screws. Everything seems fine and Zach goes to town "dancing" with the table.
Fast forward 4 days. I go to move the table so it's better centered on the carpet and one end falls off. The new screws I put in were starting to come out. Three were laying on the floor already. I put it back together for the short term (and keep an eye on it) but I've officially written it off. This table is going in the trash and we're getting the boys a new one.
At lunch we met Jim at Toys R Us and bought the boys a new table. It's held together by bolts and nuts, not tiny wood screws. Plus it seems to be made of wood, not particle board. The lip on it is better for holding and it comes with a drawer. Zach "dances" with it to his heart's content and it doesn't budge.
Alex is able to cruise both directions now but strongly prefers counter-clockwise. Zach doesn't like to turn corners but will when he runs out of toys on his side. The boys have tried to go double wide so Alex can pass Zach, but it ended with one boy on his rear end and the other with a bonked head. Alex sort of knows to wait on me to move him around Zach, but that doesn't keep him from trying to push his brother out of the way.
I was in the kitchen this morning, trying to get their breakfast ready when I hear a "Uhh uhhh... waaaa!" I look into the living room and only see one boy, and he's not the one making noise. Alex, who was cruising the train table, is missing. I walk around the table and see two little feet sticking out. Somehow he managed to fall and land under the table on his back. He wasn't hurt, just didn't want to e under there.
Couch time is officially over. Zach was playing with my phone and dropped it over the side. Before I could get to him, he went over the end of the couch after it. He landed on his head/face and cried for a long time. You can barely see the bruise two days later and he doesn't act like it hurts, but it pretty much freaked me out. I held him for a long time, until he was pushing me away so he could go play.
The boys have been eating anything and everything. I'll make them some food for dinner but most of the time they end up mostly eating what we are. The hardest thing right now is to be sure they get enough veggies. I got these potato and spinach cakes from the store and they seem to like them. They're expensive, though, so I'm going to try making my own. That way I can control the salt and which veggies are in there.
If I offer the boys something new that they like better than what's in the mouth, they'll try to spit it out to make room for the new food. I have to be careful to keep them focused on one thing at a time or they end up not eating much.
I've been working a little with them and straws. They're not very good at them and really just like chewing on them. One day I was drinking some punch out of a to-go cup and the boys were going crazy for it. I told them they could have some if they used the straw. Of course, Zach immediately sucks up a whole mouthful of punch. Red liquid is running everywhere. I can't not let Alex try and he does the same thing. Red is all over their shirts. I dump out the punch and replace it with water. They could care less about it now and go back to just chewing the straw.
We've been working this week to move our computer stuff to the front room and convert our office into a playroom. I think that's the best option because that room can be quarantined with a gate and it is sunny in the afternoons. It's been slow going due to the tons of junk we've been storing in there. Plus we need to have a tech come out and move the DSL line to the living room. I see an Ikea trip in our near future to get a couple of rugs for in there.
The boys birthday is coming up in a month and it's bittersweet for me. I can't believe how fast they've been growing! It seems like yesterday when we brought them home, although if you ask me at 4am when they're crying for milk, it feels like years since we did. hehe They're getting really good at walking while holding onto someone's hands, and they don't fall much when cruising. I don't think it'll be too long before they're trying to walk.
Our big event this past week was getting a train table. While the boys are too little to play with trains, the table is ideal for cruising. It's just the right height and has a lip they can grab onto. Best of all, we can cover it with their toys for playtime fun (or throw-it-on-the-floor-then-cry-until-someone-gets-it-for-you-then-throw-it-back-on-the-floor fun).
Since train tables can be pricy and it's not like a spoon or anything they would put in their mouth, I searched Craigslist for a few days trying to find a deal. I found one "like new with just a little tear in the corner" for $45. I called the lady and we went over to her house to get it. Now, I hate haggling. If I think the price is fair, that's what I'll pay. If it's unfair, I don't even bother. I could kid myself that I will talk someone down, but I know I won't. I just didn't get that gene from my dad.
We get there and everything looks fine, although the table is a bit shaky. Jim goes to load it into the van and it totally falls apart. He's left holding one board while the rest is in pieces on the ground. We look at each other. Well, this isn't good. We get the pieces home and I do a closer inspection of the table. A lot of the screws are stripped out and some are missing altogether. I replace the missing ones and move the brackets so we can use new screws. Everything seems fine and Zach goes to town "dancing" with the table.
Fast forward 4 days. I go to move the table so it's better centered on the carpet and one end falls off. The new screws I put in were starting to come out. Three were laying on the floor already. I put it back together for the short term (and keep an eye on it) but I've officially written it off. This table is going in the trash and we're getting the boys a new one.
At lunch we met Jim at Toys R Us and bought the boys a new table. It's held together by bolts and nuts, not tiny wood screws. Plus it seems to be made of wood, not particle board. The lip on it is better for holding and it comes with a drawer. Zach "dances" with it to his heart's content and it doesn't budge.
Alex is able to cruise both directions now but strongly prefers counter-clockwise. Zach doesn't like to turn corners but will when he runs out of toys on his side. The boys have tried to go double wide so Alex can pass Zach, but it ended with one boy on his rear end and the other with a bonked head. Alex sort of knows to wait on me to move him around Zach, but that doesn't keep him from trying to push his brother out of the way.
I was in the kitchen this morning, trying to get their breakfast ready when I hear a "Uhh uhhh... waaaa!" I look into the living room and only see one boy, and he's not the one making noise. Alex, who was cruising the train table, is missing. I walk around the table and see two little feet sticking out. Somehow he managed to fall and land under the table on his back. He wasn't hurt, just didn't want to e under there.
Couch time is officially over. Zach was playing with my phone and dropped it over the side. Before I could get to him, he went over the end of the couch after it. He landed on his head/face and cried for a long time. You can barely see the bruise two days later and he doesn't act like it hurts, but it pretty much freaked me out. I held him for a long time, until he was pushing me away so he could go play.
The boys have been eating anything and everything. I'll make them some food for dinner but most of the time they end up mostly eating what we are. The hardest thing right now is to be sure they get enough veggies. I got these potato and spinach cakes from the store and they seem to like them. They're expensive, though, so I'm going to try making my own. That way I can control the salt and which veggies are in there.
If I offer the boys something new that they like better than what's in the mouth, they'll try to spit it out to make room for the new food. I have to be careful to keep them focused on one thing at a time or they end up not eating much.
I've been working a little with them and straws. They're not very good at them and really just like chewing on them. One day I was drinking some punch out of a to-go cup and the boys were going crazy for it. I told them they could have some if they used the straw. Of course, Zach immediately sucks up a whole mouthful of punch. Red liquid is running everywhere. I can't not let Alex try and he does the same thing. Red is all over their shirts. I dump out the punch and replace it with water. They could care less about it now and go back to just chewing the straw.
We've been working this week to move our computer stuff to the front room and convert our office into a playroom. I think that's the best option because that room can be quarantined with a gate and it is sunny in the afternoons. It's been slow going due to the tons of junk we've been storing in there. Plus we need to have a tech come out and move the DSL line to the living room. I see an Ikea trip in our near future to get a couple of rugs for in there.
The boys birthday is coming up in a month and it's bittersweet for me. I can't believe how fast they've been growing! It seems like yesterday when we brought them home, although if you ask me at 4am when they're crying for milk, it feels like years since we did. hehe They're getting really good at walking while holding onto someone's hands, and they don't fall much when cruising. I don't think it'll be too long before they're trying to walk.
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