Month 9, Week 3 & 4

Sorry for the radio silence for a bit.  I've pretty much been in zombie mode and that colors my posts towards the grumpy end of the spectrum.  I'd rather keep things upbeat and positive than write a bunch of complaints (since that's what it was going to turn into).

Anyways, there's a TON to catch up on.  First, the boys went to the Greenville Zoo with their Grandma Pat.  While not every exhibit was baby friendly, they enjoyed watching the bigger animals like the elephants and the giraffes.  I think they even spotted a couple of monkeys in between their people watching.  They weren't too thrilled about their sun hats or riding in the stroller, and we had to do a milk stop part way through, but overall I think they had a good time.  It was like going to Publix, but outside and with less food.

The next day we had a playdate at J and Ana's.  They have this wooden activity cube thing, with the wire and beads on top.  I sat Zach in front of it, thinking he'd play with the stuff on the side.  Instead, he just reaches up, grabs the wire, and pulls himself into a standing position.  Uh...  I guess they're standing now!  Alex does the same thing but is more cavalier about it.  He'll hold on with one or even no hands.  So we went out and got our own cube, plus a crawl and cruise jungle toy.  Both boys will hold onto the monkey's ear and play with the other hand.  They'll also play this game with me where they'll turn and walk to me (I'll catch them) for hugs, then walk back to the toy.  It's only a couple of steps but they seem to be decent at it.

We haven't given up on crawling yet, though.  I have them on the floor most of the time now, with toys spread out around them.  We've had a number of belly flops when they try to reach for something and fall over.  Both boys can spin around on their rear ends, so any item within a 360 degree radius is fair game.  This includes the newspaper, a book Jim's reading, and a cat tail that got too close.  Zach has been rocking a lot while sitting and has managed to scoot a tiny bit.  When he's on his belly, Zach will push up with his arms and slide backwards.

Alex doesn't seem to have the same interest in transportation.  If he's on his belly anywhere but our bed, he'll body surf and cry until we rescue him.  If all of his toys are out of his reach, he'll just play with his hands (or the carpet), and cry when he gets bored.  He's lightning fast in the walker-exersaucer, though.  He managed to run Frodo over one day.  I think he just prefers to stand and has a bit better balance in that department.

Feeding them solids has gone from a relaxing, fun event to something akin to a food fight.  After one or two spoonfuls, Zach will no longer open his mouth unless it's fruit from a jar.  Alex wants to eat (and will chomp just about everything) but waves his hands around and smacks the spoon, sending puree flying.  Both boys feed themselves puffs and bread now.  They really, really don't like yogurt or cheese.  Orange food is good.  Green food is bad.  Fruit is worth sucking the spoon dry.  If an adult stands, it means you're available to pick up a boy from his highchair and they get very upset when they realize you're just getting a refill on your drink.  Bibs are a creation of evil and must be yanked, pulled at, and otherwise loathed.  If you think they're covered in food now, just wait until one has an itchy eye or ear.

We continue to work on their sleep habits.  We've made some progress with the "Stuff Them Full of Solids So They're Not So Hungry At Night" plan.  Now they'll sleep from about 8pm to 12:30am in one stretch.  After that, though, all bets are off.  I'm normally up at 2am, 3am, 4am, 5am, and 8am.  Why the 3hrs at the end?  Because I'm too tried to argue and I take them to bed with me.  They've also decided that 2hrs a day of naps is all they need.  I miss the iron-deficient 6hrs of naps I used to get...  Runny noses and Zach sprouting a top left front tooth haven't helped, either.

So between the lack of sleep and the frustrating mealtimes, I got pretty burnt out on the whole stay-at-home-mom gig.  I had a good cry over the whole thing, then my mom (who's been visiting us!) offered to watch the boys while Jim and I went out to dinner.  It was exactly what I needed, 2hrs away from the pulling, grabbing, and crying.  Of course, we both started missing them during dessert and I was really happy to see the boys when we got home.  I'm still not 100% back to normal but my attitude has improved some.

So, like I mentioned, my mom has been visiting.  It took a couple of days but the boys have warmed up to her.  Zach will even ask her to pick him up and will give her wet kisses.  Alex is a little more reserved but still enjoys it when she plays with him.  She's been a big help around the house and with the boys.  I can leave them to play while I get a shower, and she's there to help entertain them where ever we go.  She even rubbed their heads until they went to sleep in the van one day.

So that's kind of our lives in a nutshell right now.  I'm still trying to figure out how to get them to sleep through the night, and they're learning to stand.  And while I really want them to learn to walk, it's going to open this whole other can of worms.  hehe

Month 9, Weeks 1 & 2

The boys have been doing some pretty cute stuff the past couple of weeks.  Zach likes to say "Oh, no no no" and Alex will chime in with "Da da da dat."  They don't really know what they're saying.  They'll just as happily say "Da da" when sitting on my lap, as Jim's.

Their favorite toy has become each other.  Alex managed to grab Zach's arm and bite it before I could stop him.  Zach had two red marks for a few days, like he had a run-in with a mini vampire.  Zach's not completely innocent, though.  Should Alex fall over, he'll immediately try to lick Alex's head, pull his ears, or claw his face.  He'll also extend his arm and try to bait Alex into taking it.  More than one breast feeding session has turned into a tug of war or arm wrestling brawl.

The boys continue to love the couch.  I heard some crazy noises coming from the living room one afternoon.  I look in and see Alex sucking on his hand, making a sound that would otherwise be embarrassing to most people.  Zach is just sitting there, watching him, and laughing and laughing.

Bath time is a lot better than it used to be.  Zach has really started to enjoy himself.  He splashes more than Alex at this point, but they are both pretty energetic about it.  There's usually water running down both of there faces and the walls by the time they're done.  I have to hide behind the edge of the tub so I don't end up equally soaked.

This week Alex fell out of the inflatable tub backwards and bonk his head on the drain.  He was reaching for a toy and when he flopped back, he started kicking Zach in the chest. I tried to pull his legs away and he went over backwards.  There was lots of crying and the bath was stopped short.

Alex has become an expert puffs chomper.  He'll grab one in his palm and stuff it in his mouth.  Or, if he's feeling adventurous, he'll use his index finger and thumb to pincer one.  Sometimes he'll forget to let go and end up pulling it back out.  Occasionally once it's in, he'll decide he really wanted veggies instead and try to spit the puff out.  He'll eat just about anything happily, opening his mouth wide for each bite.

Zach, on the other hand, doesn't seem to like eating solids as much.  I'll get a couple of spoonfuls in him then he'll start blowing on the spoon, spraying food everywhere.  I have to force the food in his mouth and then hold the spoon there for when he spits it out.  Normally I wouldn't make him eat, but if he doesn't then his iron make his tummy upset.  He'll start spitting up stomach acid.  Avocado and peas are no longer favorites.  Both boys seem to want fruit like prunes and apples.

The 360 exersaucer has turned into the cats' worst nightmare.  The contraption is located near the couch, close enough to create a gauntlet they cats have to pass through on the way to the kitchen.  The boys will move into position when they see a cat approach, then run and try to catch it as it races by.  Zach managed to run into Frodo once.  Poor kitty.

The boys' 9 month pictures are up on their website (see the link in the sidebar).  I think they turned out really well this month, even though they were pretty tired.

Month 8, Week 3.5

I'm not sure what to call this week.  It's not week 4, but it's not week 3, either.  I guess when there isn't exactly 4 weeks to every month, you get hiccups like this.

On Monday we took a day trip to Ikea in Charlotte.  Our friends J and Anna went with us.  J is a stay-at-home-mom and Anna is a crazy cute 6mo old with tons of curly brown hair.  We all piled in our van for the adventure.  We arrived around 11am and proceeded to directly to the restaurant.  The boys were hungry and had peas for lunch, with some puffs for dessert.

Surprisingly we made it out of the store with only a few items - pot racks, popsicle holders, and a hippo rattle.  While we were there, we got to test out Anna's cart cover thing.  The boys seemed to like it pretty well.  It was definitely a bigger hit than the car seats ever have been.

Tuesday was my Mothers of Multiples meeting.  Jim decided to watch the boys by himself.  He got home around 5pm.  Around 6:30pm he fed them dinner and then got them ready for bed.  Since he's not so good at the breast feeding and they won't take bottles, that pretty much left him with some hugs and putting them in their cribs.  There was a lot of crying, but in the end they slept better than they have in a long while.  I think they only got up to eat maybe three times.

On Wednesday we finally made it to a music class.  The boys had a pretty good time.  I took a quilt for us to sit on and Zach didn't fall over once.  They really liked the jingle bells on sticks.  We sang songs and did some dancing (sort of).  While we were at Earth Fare I picked up some apples and veggie puffs for the boys.

Thursday we had a playdate with D and her two boys, who are 7 days older than Zach and Alex.  One of her boys is already crawling, while the other has been rocking back and forth.  I don't really see either of ours doing much like that, but I'm not too worried about it.  Once they start crawling, my life is going to get a million times harder.  I like how they stay put right now.

Friday was the boys' 9 month check-up.  Both boys weighed an even 20lb, putting them in the 45th percentile.  Alex is 28.5in (65th%) and Zach is 28in (47th%).  Both boys got a couple of booster shots and a clean bill of health.

Their infant car seats only go to 29in and 22lb.  So...  We went to Babies R Us and bought them convertible seats.  I did a bunch of research and ended up going with the Safety 1st Air Protect.  They were on sale and we ended up getting a really good deal.

So my babies are growing up.  No more car seat carrying.  No more Double Snap 'N Go stroller.  We picked up a little umbrella stroller so I can transport them around for short trips.  Otherwise it's just us and the Bob now.

The boys tried out some egg yolk this week.  I think the jury is still out on whether they like them or not. They've also been experimenting with drinking water from a straw.  Alex is really into the water and yells if I'm letting Zach have a turn.  They both like the veggie puffs, more so than the fruit ones.  Zach would probably prefer to eat them instead of anything else.

The boys had their hematologist appointment today.  Rather than the finger and heel pricks like at the pediatrician, they had to do the intravenous kind with a needle and vials.  Alex was a real trooper.  He cried initially when the tech put the rubber band thing on his arm but didn't even let out a peep when she stuck him with the needle.  Zach started screaming when she put on the arm band.  Unfortunately the tech had a hard time finding the vein.  It was sickening, watching her dig around in his arm with the needle.  I know it had to hurt because he started fighting her.  She had to call another tech over to help hold his arm.  In the end she did find the vein and fill the vials, but it was pretty terrible.  I hugged and hugged him.  Within about 5min, though, he didn't seem to care at all and just wanted to look around.

The initial diagnosis is iron deficiency anemia with underlying Beta Thalassemia Minor.  What this means is the boys did have low hemoglobin counts due to low amounts of iron, but they also have a hereditary condition where their red blood cells are smaller than normal.  According to the tests, their iron levels are right where they should be, but because of the Thalassemia, their hemoglobin levels will never go much above 10.5 (normal adult is 13-15).  This isn't a big deal.  There are no symptoms and there's no treatment.  In fact, since it's genetic Jim or I must also have the same condition.

Since their iron levels are where they need to be, the doctor reduced the supplement dosage down to 2.5ml.  We'll go back for a follow-up visit with the hematologist in June.  One thing that was funny was how many of the staff stopped by to see the boys while we were waiting.  Apparently word had spread about their cuteness.  hehe

Month 8, Week 3

Really?  This is the last week they'll be 8 month olds?  But I just wrote about their first week...  I don't want them to be 9 months yet!

For a little while now the boys have been "trading" toys.  It seems that there's no toy better than the one your brother has.  This week marked the first time that the looser in the toy fight got upset.  Alex and Zach were sitting on the couch, surrounded by toys and remotes.  Zach had the coveted satellite remote and was busy chewing on the end.  Alex, unsatisfied by the taste of the Xbox controller, reached out with both hands and procured his brother's.  Zach immediately burst into tears.  Seriously - tiny little baby tears were streaming down his face.  I gave the remote back to Zach but the damage had been done.

Which brings me to a similar topic - their love of the couch.  It has become one of their favorite places to play, even more than sitting on the floor.  I don't know if it's because they can see around the room better, or it's more comfortable, or it's the only place with a plethora of remotes, or what.  One day Jim came home from work to find Zach sitting on the couch in a diaper, while Alex and I played on the floor.  Yep, you guessed it.  That's the only way (naked and on the couch) that he was happy.

The baby babble continues.  Alex prefers "da da daddy" and Zach is all about the "mm mm ma."  In fact, they're so set in their ways, I thought I was changing Zach this morning until I heard 10 seconds of "daddy" and realized my mistake.  They don't associate what they're saying with me or Jim but it's still crazy cute.

The boys got an inflatable bathtub this week. Up until this point the boys have laid down to take their baths.  Over time some problems have developed.  For one, Alex constantly splashes Zach, or hits him while doing his full-body flailing, resulting in Zach crying more times than not.  They also can't really play or see more than the ceiling while prone.  They would get bored and the tears would start.  They LOVE the inflatable tub.  They're facing each other, have floaty toys to chew on, and seem to think splashing each other is hilarious.  What used to be 15min dunk-and-scrubs are now 30min soak fests.

They also got a second toy bar for the van.  It's nearly identical to the one we have and was purchased to stave off jealous looks.  The worst part about having twins isn't the sleepless nights, crying in stereo, or the diapers - it's having to pick one boy over the other.  They get so excited when I pull out that toy bar, I stopped using it at all because of how sad it would make the boy left with a regular toy.  I hear happy rattling, crunching, and squeals of glee from the back of the van now.

The boys had their first lunch at a restaurant.  We met up with Jim's brother and his family at Sticky Fingers in downtown Greenville.  I made them some avocado and packed it on ice.  They've also started eating cereal puffs, although I cut them into quarters because I am worried about choking.  Our nephews thought the avocado looked like green slime.  hehe  The boys ate about a half of avocado and I was impressed they managed that much with all of the distractions.  Sometimes I can barely get them to take a bite if the cat walks by at home.

Zach really likes the puffs and Alex tolerates them ok.  Right now I'm putting them in their mouths, although we scatter some on their trays so they can practice feeding themselves.  I don't think either have managed to get one in their mouth yet, though.  I held one in the palm of my hand, hoping Zach would grab it.  Instead he face planted and licked it off.  That boy is a mess.  Zach also really likes jarred prunes, while Alex likes the jarred apples.  If I switch them, I get a round of sour faces and an instant distrust of the next spoonful.

I wish I could say that we've solved all of our sleep problems but I can't.  They still wake up to eat every 2.5hrs and after about 5am they're ready to party.  On top of that, Alex doesn't want to nap beyond about 1hr, if at all.  He's been acting like his tummy is hurting, although I can't get a burp out of him.  He's been throwing up some, too.

The boys have their 9 month check-up this Friday and an appointment with a hematologist early next week.  I'm hoping their hemoglobin still looks good.  It'll also be interesting to see how much they weigh and how long they are.  Their feet are starting to hang over the end of their car seats and I think we need to bump up their exersaucers' height a notch.

Month 8, Week 2

You can check out the boys' 8th month pictures on their website (pw: jma&z).

This has been another one of those rough weeks, although I don't think it's totally the boys' fault.  On Wednesday they had their follow-up doctor's visit about their anemia.  Their hemoglobin has gone up about two points, which is a really good sign.  They have about 3 more points to go before they're out of the woods.  Their platelet count was also up, though.  It could be a symptom of the anemia, or something else.  We've been referred to a hematologist just to be sure.  There's no emergency or anything so it'll be a few weeks before we see him or her.

The boys are doing pretty well sleeping in their cribs at night, until about 5am.  At that point they'll both just cry and cry until we go in and get them.  Or, I can get them before they cry and they'll sleep with me for another 2.5hrs.  We let them CIO one morning and Alex is still hoarse.  I also tried CIO for their naps and it was a disaster.  They both cried for over 40min before I went in and got them.  It wasn't a mad cry, but a sad one.  So we're kind of stuck right now on the whole sleeping thing.

The boys have been acting goofy this week.  Both thought today it would be fun to baby babble in a falsetto.  All. Day. Long.  Sometimes Alex would try to squeal so high, nothing would come out (or maybe only dogs could hear him).  They're also still really super attached to me.  Even if I just stand to walk across the living room, one or both will start crying.  I was reading them books on the floor and every few minutes one of them would lean in towards me for a hug.

For Valentine's Day I made foot prints of the boys with red paint.  I had the heels overlap so they sort of look like hearts.  I thought it would be easy - slap some paint on their feet, stamp them, and done.  So I strip Alex down to a diaper, sit him in my lap, and paint the first foot.  He immediately grabs it with both hands and tries to eat it.  Uhh...  We're now both covered in red paint.  I take him to the kitchen sink and hose him off.  We try again.  I stick a gallon bag over the foot I'm not going to paint first.  This distracts him enough for me to paint and stamp the first foot.  I swap the plastic bag and repeat.  He manages to get the bag off and we're now both sporting some red tribal markings.  I carry him back to the sink for another ghetto bath.  Zach gets the same treatment.

On Friday we met Jim at Cracker Barrel for lunch.  On a whim, we have the waitress bring us a high chair.  We sat Alex in it and strapped him in.  He immediately burst into tears.  Luckily we had a second boy who loved the thing.  We pulled him up to the table and Zach just went to town.  He tried biting the table, eating the menus, grabbing our plates, and flirting with everyone around us.  The whole time Alex clutched Jim - a total daddy's boy.

Alex and Jim, with Zach sitting like a big boy

Sunday night after we got home from Poppa and Granny J's, the boys and I piled on the couch to watch the winter olympics while Jim took a chair nap.  I had Alex laying next to me with his head on my arm, while Zach was sitting on my stomach.  They were alternating between playing with toys/remotes, and laughing at me while I kissed them.  It was one of those moments that just melts your heart and you hate for it to end.  But they needed to take their iron and eat dinner.

Month 8

This is a late posting since we were out of town last week.  My Grandma was in the hospital where they discovered inoperable stomach cancer.  We drove down to Florida to visit one last time.  Plus, I wanted her to meet the boys.

Jim, Lucy, the boys, and I left 10pm Tuesday evening for Bradenton.  Alex and Zach slept all night, with the exception of 2 stops for food.  We checked into the hotel around 8am, unpacked, and everyone took a nap.  A little before lunchtime we went to Grandma and Don's house to visit.  Grandma was resting comfortably in bed with some oxygen.  We took the boys in and she immediately brightened up.  She's always loved little kids, so to have two there gave her something to focus on.  The boys were on their best behavior once we got the seating arrangements straightened out.  They weren't too sure about having my family hold them.

Grandma kept talking about how she had always wanted twins but never got them.  She held out her finger once and Zach tried to chomp it.  Jim pulled him back at the last minute.  Alex was enthralled with her blanket and kept trying to pull it up to his mouth.  Both boys wanted her remote SO bad.  Jim offered up his cell as a distraction.  Pretty soon I hear a faint "Hello?" and realize one of the boys had just called Jim's brother.  Oops!

The boys even ate lunch with her one day.  We took their highchairs in and put them next to her bed.  I sat between them and fed them avocado.  They were very careful not to make a mess and seemed to enjoy the attention.  It was hot in Florida so the boys ran around in t-shirt onesies.  Grandma remarked how soft their skin was and how chubby their legs were (in a good way).  She even managed to sort of hug and kiss one boy while I held him for her.  Both boys showed off their jumping skills on her bed and shared their toys with her.

The last couple of days we were there she was too tired to see them anymore.  She was sort of in a twilight where she wasn't fully asleep or awake, plus she was taking morphine for pain.  She could hear them playing in the living room, though, and at one point told my parents to stop talking so she could listen.  hehe  Typical Grandma, bossing everyone around.

Overall I think the boys had a really good time on the trip.  At the hotel they slept with me in one bed while Jim used the other.  It was just down the street from the house so we went back there for naps during the day and bedtime around 7pm.  We went to Whole Foods in Sarasota and got them avocado, bananas, and mango.  I took our little electric chopper thing with us and made them fresh food for lunches and dinners.  They tolerated the avocado and didn't really want anything to do with the rest.  We discovered that they only really like avocado when it's cold.  Room temperature apparently didn't taste as good.  Don had never had mango or avocado so we gave him a sample.  Thumbs up on the mango, not so much on the avocado.

While we were down there the boys learned some new tricks.  Alex likes to stick his tongue out now, especially when he's concentrating on a toy.  He's also taken to shaking his head from side to side.  We're going to check with the pediatrician, but Dr. Google says it's a normal developmental thing and he'll outgrow it.  Zach has started clicking his tongue on the roof of his mouth.  Both boys are becoming excellent sitters.  Alex has been rocking on his bottom a little and has fallen on his belly trying to get to toys.  Unless his arms are pinned, he can roll over on his back.  Zach expects me to retrieve him from his tummy and waits.

We have whining.  Constantly.  Without end.  Alex started first with the "mmmm  mmmm  mmmm" while he beckons me with arm flapping and hand waving.  Zach thought it looked like fun and picked it up soon after.  Initially I thought it was cute, kind of like them saying "mom" without the "om" but that was when they did it occasionally.  Now it feels like they never stop.  Today it was driving me crazy, especially since I was trying to get a couple of things done, like laundry so there aren't two naked boys running around.  Alex will even "mmmm" while I'm holing him because he wants me to walk him around.

We're going through CIO round two.  The boys are good at going to sleep in their cribs, just not staying asleep there.  They want to sleep with me and their level of anger gets pretty high around 4am-5am.  Last night I took the baby monitor into the spare bedroom with me so Jim could get some sleep.  I also closed their door, which I hated doing because it gets cold in there, but they don't just cry - Zach screams and Alex yells at the top of his lungs.

They also seem to want to eat every hour or two, which is frustrating because I KNOW they aren't hungry.  Our trip to Florida and back proved they only really need food every 3-4hrs.  On top of breaking those two bad habits, I'm going to start having them sleep in their cribs for naps.  If you see me over the next couple of weeks and I look frazzled, you know why.

I posted a few of the boys' 8th month candid shots on their website (pw: jma&z).  Alex has such a nice smile and Zach loves to make funny faces.

Month 7 Week 3

Last Friday Zach woke up feeling warm.  By Monday his fever had climbed to 103.4F and we took him to the pediatrician.  Near as they could tell, he had caught the same bug Alex had the previous week.  It was just hitting him a little harder.  Zach usually gets sicker and for longer than Alex, so we weren't surprised.  We just didn't like him having a fever for so long, and so high, without being sure.

On Wednesday we were back at the doctor's, this time for follow-up blood work.  Primarily we wanted a comparison of their reticulocyte count, to see if the iron supplements were working.  Reticulocytes are like baby red blood cells.  More iron should mean more are being produced.  Once they mature, then higher hemoglobin numbers should follow.  Alex's reticulocyte count went from 44 to 128 and the doctor was really glad to see that.

On the other hand, Zach's didn't change.  He was still at 44.  This is most likely due to his illness.  Your bone marrow makes a mix of white and red blood cells.  Since he has been sick pretty much the entire time they've been on iron supplements, his body has been using its resources to make the white variety.  There is also a visual analysis being done on their blood, and those results should rule out any blood abnormality.  We'll get those results either Friday or Monday.

Their next follow-up is in two weeks.  I'm not sure what we'll do without the twice-weekly visits to the doctor.  Maybe by then the boys will stop associating the nurses with something bad.  They've started crying when they see them enter the exam room.

In developmental news, Zach has figured out how to spit out his food.  And iron supplements.  And medicine.  Yay.  It's like he's blowing out some candles, but with his tongue sticking out, too.  Whatever is in his mouth gets sprayed all over the place, usually on my shirt or in my face.  The hardest part is making sure Jim doesn't laugh.  I don't want this to be something he starts doing to impress daddy.  It's already hard enough to get him to eat his dinner with his favorite person sitting next to him.

What brought this sudden expulsion of food?  Carrots.  If the boys had arch enemies of the vegetable world, carrots would be it.  (Peaches would be their fruit counterparts, FYI.)  Wow, do the boys hate carrots.  Alex, the boy would eats anything, turns into a steel lockbox at the first sign of anything orange on his spoon.  Zach uses them as instant high chair fodder.  I tasted them, and they taste like carrots.  I don't see what the issue is.  They've been eating peas and carrots for like two weeks with no problems.

In general, the boys aren't as thrilled with eating as they once were.  They'll get part way through a meal and just call it quits.  Half the time they won't even eat their fruit dessert.  We've been throwing a lot of food cubes away.  On a lark, I bought them some jarred baby food, to see if that would work.  It didn't.  They're going through some kind of phase (I hope).  All they want is avocado and mango.

Alex has started practicing his "B" sounds.  He also has started throwing all of his toys out of his car seat.  We were at Whole Foods today (buying more avocado and mango), and I had to strap his toy to the stroller to be sure we didn't loose the thing.  On the bright side, he doesn't seem to care once he tosses the toy aside.  He'll happily sit there with nothing to do, especially if we're in the van.  I think he likes looking out the window.

We're also still in the middle of separation anxiety, although Zach has it worse than Alex.  Jim's mom came over Tuesday night to help watch the boys while I went to the Mothers of Multiples meeting.  It was pretty embarrassing how messy our house is right now.  I don't know how many times I tried to clean up some, only to have Zach explode when I put him down.  He'll only tolerate the Jumperoo and sitting on the floor to play, and that'll last about 10min.  Both boys are also extremely scared of any vacuum, even the tiny cordless one.  They just start screaming and have this terrified look.

They're also eating every two hours at night right now, so I'm pretty much just worn out in general.  They're waking up more than that, but I'm making them go back to sleep.  I am not a vending machine, available for 24/7 snacking.  Hopefully I'll be able to catch back up on chores and sleep this weekend since I think we're all healthy for once.

The diaper rash thing seems to be under control for now.  After every messy diaper, we're washing their behinds with soap and water (via disposable washcloths).  Then they get dried and a layer of triples paste is applied.  We spent one afternoon driving all over trying to find hypoallergenic disposable washcloths.  For some reason only Publix seems to carry them, and ours was out.  Not even Babies R Us had them.

We upgraded my phone and cancelled Jim's.  I got one of those smart phones, like the iPhone but with Verizon.  It's come in pretty handy, especially having internet when we're out and about.  I used it to look up fruits while I was in Whole Foods, and I did a voice search to get the address of the park for our playdate.  It also has a built-in camera, which is good for taking pictures of the boys.

Well, I'm going to call it a night here.  Hopefully the next week will be less eventful than the previous.