My poor little Alex still struggled over the weekend.  I did take him in to see the pediatrician on Friday, who thought it was either reflux or gas or a combination of the two (good thinking…this much I’d already figured out).  So he wanted me to start him on Zantac consistently to get ahead of any reflux issues.  And he recommended a different formula (we’ve had to start giving Alex a little more after some meals) to try.  So off we went…

But it was still a rough weekend for the little man.  Saturday night and Sunday afternoon were pretty rough.  I was so grateful that Eric was there to hold him – he tends to relax better against his daddy for some reason.  He’d jump between super-happy and really unhappy almost instantly.  He’d doze off and then wake up screaming.  Both screaming spells were clearly not hunger-related…and both ended, finally, with a huge diaper.  So the biggest culprit seems to be lower gas that he needs to (but can’t easily) release.  We did finally get him to take a 3-hour nap in his swing, and then they pretty much went straight to bed.  And he did okay last night.  So maybe (*fingers crossed*) we are starting to get ahead of this…but I won’t hold my breath.

The rest of the weekend, other than Alex’s issues, went pretty well.

• Friday night was spent setting up and enjoying Eric’s new PS3.  We watched part of Ironman (Eric watched all of it…I had to go feed babies), which looks SUPER COOL in Blue-ray format. 
• Saturday, my family came over for lunch and to love on the babies for a bit.  Karen brought Jason to enjoy some of the attention, too.  It was crazy and loud, but fun.
• Then my parents, sister and I went to the mall.  It was my first time there since a few weeks before the babies were born (I couldn’t walk very far, so it wasn’t fun to go).  I had to feed the babies there twice (my first attempts to feed in “public”), which was an adventure, but we managed.  And the twins did a fantastic job being stuck in their car seats all afternoon!
• My mom and I got a lot of nice clothes.  My mom bought them for me (my birthday present)!  It was so fun to hang out with them all while we shopped.  And I think my dad really enjoyed being the “babysitter” while Mom and I tried on clothes…he’s so cute!
• Sunday was church, then home.  We played our racing game on PS3 and watched the end of the new Indiana Jones movie (we’d started it on Saturday night, but were interrupted by Alex’s issues).  Then Alex’s issues started back up, so we just worked with him, fed babies and relaxed for the evening. 
• So now it’s Monday, and I’m on my own again.  Hopefully we have a better day.  Actually, both babies are sleeping in their cribs as I type.  Alex fell asleep on their playmat and stayed asleep when I moved him.  Erin was awake, but put herself out quickly once I moved her.  So, I should go and do some chores on my to-do list today.  No use wasting my opportunities when they show themselves, huh?

Happy Monday!

Front Page News
Headline: Alex to make first pediatrician’s visit
Synopsis:  My poor little buddy had been not feeling well for a couple of days.  He has some serious gas/intestinal issues that keep him seriously uncomfortable (though not throwing up, thankfully!).  Night before last, he screamed and cried for most of 2 hours before some Tylenol and a second feeding (an hour after the last one) finally got him relaxed enough to fall asleep.  He was fussy on and off yesterday, wouldn’t nap well, and refused to be in his swing (which he loves). On the other hand, he had a major “gas-passing” episode in the middle of the afternoon (he’s such a boy!).  Then last night, he woke up screaming again at 2:15.  I could hardly get him to nurse at all.  Finally he did and fell asleep again, but he was up at 4, 5:30, and 7.  Only nursing seemed to soothe him.  This morning, I fed him at 8, and finally got some burps out of him at 9.  But we are so going to the doctor today to see if he can help me figure out what is going on!

Headline: New Purchase excites Mommy
Synopsis:  We’ve finally purchased high chairs!  I figure it’s about time to invest in those as the babies will soon be needing them.  And I’d like to start having them join us at the table even before they can actually eat with us.  So I ordered them online from Babies R Us.  They should arrive next week some time.  The “system” approach to baby seating seems very cool, so I hope I like them. 

Life & Arts Section
Headline: Kitchen still clean
Synopsis:  Can you believe that after 3 days, my kitchen is still tidy?!?  Me neither.  Wonder how long it will last…

Headline: Weekend Plans
Synopsis:  My mom and dad are coming up tomorrow to hang out with us.  Mom is taking me shopping for my birthday (it was back in February, but now is the first chance we’ve had to go shopping) to find some clothes that I can wear.  I’m very much looking forward to it.  It also turns out that my grandparents will be joining them here for a little while.  They’re going down to C-ville to see the new baby, and I guess we’ll be having lunch here so they can see the twins before they head home. 

Electronics & Business Section

Headline: PS3 to arrive today
Synopsis:  My husband, the non-gamer, bought a PS3 on Wednesday night.  This may sound odd, but it really isn’t.  The PS3 is also a blue-ray player and a computer which can be used to surf the internet on the television.  So even though we may never own a single video game, we will have a PS3.  And I intend to use a birthday gift card to Walmart to buy our first blue-ray movie!  Should be fun!

Headline: Eric fixes his brother’s computer
Synopsis: Eric’s brother got a virus by email.  Eric has spent a number of nights in the last 10 days trying to find and eradicate it.  Sadly, he did get rid of the files, but the damage was so extensive that he had to save Alan’s files, wipe the computer clean, and reinstall the system.  But at least Alan will be able to have his computer back soon.

Okay, with that, I will close this Friday edition.  Hope you all have a marvelous weekend!

…in the right direction. (Not literal ones, of course!)

Yesterday, I decided to risk not keeping my babies on exactly the same schedule all the time.  I mean, if it went badly, it would only be one really bad day, right?  So I fed them about 8:15 last night.  Then they got their bedtime routine (and oh, how I loved hearing Eric read a bedtime story to his son!), and down they went.  They woke up to eat at 11…not bad.  Then Alex woke up at 1:00 to eat again, but I decided not to wake Erin up. 

And she slept until 4 am!!!!!  Of course, Alex didn’t.  But it’s so nice to know that one of my babies can actually sleep through the night!  Woohoo!  Hopefully, Alex won’t be too far behind…

On top of that, I discovered yesterday that both babies are 12-13 lbs. now, at least according to my bathroom scales.  Another thing to be much happy about since the more weight they gain, the sooner the sleeping should improve!

Also, Eric cleaned the kitchen yesterday when he got home from work (the babies had made it somewhat difficult to accomplish things yesterday….I did not really enjoy being a mommy yesterday ).  So he cleaned up all the dishes and the main counters.  And once the babies were settled again, I cleaned all the piles of stuff that were lying around the rest of the counters and the table.  The kitchen looks fantastic!  *happy sigh*

Today, we have an insurance guy coming to check the estimator’s estimate of the roof damage we sustained this winter.  Thankfully, the contractor guy should be coming, too, and he thinks he can convince the insurance guy we need the entire roof replaced.  I hope they can agree on it…I don’t want to use our tax return to cover what the insurance company refuses to pay!

Okay, that’s all I can think of right this minute.  Happy Wednesday!

I was thinking, yesterday, about my new niece, Abigail Grace, who was born last Friday.  And it struck me how strange it is that she is really here.  I mean, last fall, when we all started praying for her because of Deb’s aneurysm, it seemed impossible that she’d ever really be born, safe and healthy.  And yet she was.  She’s teeny-tiny, but she’s strong and healthy and here.  What a blessing!  And her name, which Chris & Deb had picked out before they even knew she was a girl, is exactly perfect.  Abigail Grace.  After all, we’ve received so much this past year, much more than we deserve (but I guess that’s what makes it grace, huh?).

So here’s some things I have to praise God for this morning:

• Debbie (my SIL) is alive, well, and totally recovered from her aneurysm.  That was six months ago…crazy!  I still remember my deep concern after my mom’s 6 a.m. phone call, asking me to pray.  And I still remember how, after I began to add thanksgiving to my prayers (Philippians 4:6-7), I felt God’s peace like I had never felt before.  And all through that day, and the following days, as we got updates, waited, and prayed, we watched God do something miraculous.  He preserved her life, yes.  But he also brought her through without mental or physical handicaps.  He returned her to us just as she had been, and we are so grateful for that grace.
• Of course, we praise God that Abby was born, strong and healthy.  It’s amazing that none of what Deb went through 6 months ago seems to have affected her negatively at all.  She has two very-excited older sisters, and we’re very thankful that they got to learn about life, not death, about God’s grace, and about miracles, because of their sister.  That, too, is simply an act of mercy, and we are so grateful that God chose to act in that way in this instance.
• My own two little miracles are sleeping (in their cribs!) in the next room down the hall from me.  Who would have ever guessed that I’d be able to carry twins to 38 weeks, to see them born full-term and healthy, and to avoid bed rest completely while pregnant!  And even more, now that their 3+ months old, they are so amazing.  No, they aren’t sleeping so well these days, and yes, it would appear that a growth spurt is causing them to eat every 2-2.5 hours instead of 3 or more, but they are bright-eyed and growing. They stare at their hands in wonder, and they reach for my face and hair when I talk to them.  They laugh and smile and coo when we blow raspberries at them.  And they are just adorable (if I do say so myself!).  Yep, God is a wonderful God, and I’m so thankful that he blessed our lives this way.
• My dad finally has new knees!  He’s still recovering from his surgery in many ways, but he’s doing phenomenally well these days.  He can walk without a cane (most of the time), he drives, his need for medication is slowly decreasing, and he’s made it back to work (at least for half-days).  And his surgery was just over 10 weeks ago.  We are praising God for his quick and (relatively) problem-free recovery!

That’s certainly not all, but I need to go.  So I will simply end with this truth: God is so good!  Happy Tuesday!

I hate when Xanga takes longer to load a page entirely…because it’s waiting on advertisements.  Grrr! 

But I should not get started on vitriolic responses to the world around me…so instead, here’s an update for you: 

Weekend update:

• Friday night was a movie night.  We watched Flawless.  A pretty good movie…I liked it.
• Saturday, Eric stayed home, read a book, napped, and watched the babies for me.  I ran to Walmart.  Then I drove to Springfield to see my new niece.  Then I went to Bob Evans to pick up dinner for us.  Then I finally stopped.
• Sunday was church.  Then vegging and watching The Two Towers (Lord of the Rings). Then a small group potluck dinner where everybody else holds the babies for us.  That’s always nice.

So far, today:

• I’ve already unloaded/loaded the dishwasher.  I will probably need to do that a second time today since I didn’t do dishes all weekend long! 
• I have a video that was due at the library today, but I renewed it this morning so that I don’t have to return it unless I really feel like taking the babies out of the house. 
• And I will need to do laundry.  The babies left me some poopy things to clean up yesterday, so we’ll need to take care of those this morning.  And Eric and I are going to need some clothes again soon as well.

Well, the babies are both sleeping (I thought they would have wanted to eat about 10, but apparently they can go longer than 3 hours during the day ), but I’m sure they’ll be up soon.  So I should end this (sorry-it’s-so-boring) post.  Happy Monday!!

To borrow Marla’s word…”swirly” is how I feel today.  My brain keeps swirling between topics, so I can’t promise any sort of coherence today.  But if you want to brave the whirlpool… here goes the frothy-ness!

Swirl #1 – No sleep
I was up at least once EVERY HOUR last night between 11 pm and 7 am.  There were feedings during the hours of midnight, three, and six.  Erin was up at 11 (turns out she needed gas drops, but it took me a few minutes to guess what I should try because she hasn’t done that in weeks!), and I had a horrible tickle in my throat at 1 that actually woke me up.  The rest of the “ups” were because of my son who cannot seem to sleep all the way between feedings anymore.  I just can’t figure out exactly what his issue is: gas? reflux?  growth spurt?  Sometimes the gas drops work (gas), sometimes the milk of magnesia works (reflux), sometimes just feeding him helps (growth spurt).  But none of them work consistently, so I have to guess every time I walk into the nursery what her really needs.  And surprisingly, my critical thinking skills are pretty dull at 2 am!

Swirl #2 – Nurse lines
I finally broke down and called the nurse line at the pediatrician’s office this morning to see if she could help me figure out what to do with Alex.  I really MUST start getting him to sleep more consistently.  I mean, bless his heart, he’s SO tired when he wakes up in the night, but he just can’t fall back asleep.  And frankly, it’s really wearing on me, too (as most of you know from experience).  So I finally called them.  I think I was putting it off, hoping some miracle would happen and Alex would just magically fall asleep and stay that way on his own.  But last night (after recognizing the every hour pattern I was dealing with), I figured we needed some expert advice.  Anyway, she thinks it’s primarily a reflux issue.  She needed to check with our pediatrician about it, and then she was going to call me back.  I hope we can fix this now!

Swirl #3 – Breastfeeding
I really don’t mind breastfeeding, but I have to admit, I’m not one of those mothers who just relishes the “bonding time” like some women seem to.  Truth is, while I’ve been surprisingly laid-back about having twins and the realities that brings, my type-A, perfectionist, overachieving self has never completely disappeared.  It attached itself to the breastfeeding stuff, it seems.  Breastfeeding is the aspect of motherhood that stresses me out the most: am I eating/drinking enough?  Are they getting enough?  Should I have fed them or not?  Do they need more?  When will the boobs not be able to support both of them all the time?  Will it be this time (9 am)?  Maybe this time (noon)?  How about this time (3 pm)?  And on and on and on.  To be honest, I’m looking forward to adding real food into their diets just so I can stop being their only source of nutrition.  I’m hoping that giving them real food will make the breastfeeding less of a pass/fail sort of mindset for me so I can enjoy it more.  We’ll see in a couple of months, I guess…hope I can last until then!

Swirl #4 – Sweaters
My husband’s grandmother crocheted us a number of baby things when the babies were born.  Two buntings.  4 pairs of baby booties.  2 afghans.  2 sweater/bonnet sets.  We use the afghans all the time (they travel in the car seats for extra warmth). We took pictures of the babies in the buntings, but we never used them because they didn’t have legs, so they didn’t work with car seats.  I’ve never used the booties at all.   But the sweater/bonnet sets have become a thorn in my flesh.  They were brought to the hospital the day after the twins were born, and they actually put the sweaters/bonnets on the babies to take pictures of them.  It was, um, interesting.  However, we’ve not used them since that day.  Now, my MIL, who is not usually like this, has been putting pressure on us to use these sets.  I have no idea if the pressure is all hers or if she’s getting it from Grandma first.  But either way, these sweaters keep coming up.  “It’d be really nice if you use those.”  “Grandma would really like it – she worked very hard on them.”  etc. etc. etc.

So what’s the problem? They are beautiful little sweaters and incredibly well-made.  She did a fantastic job on them.  Well, first of all, I’ve never been a fan of bonnets, hand-made or otherwise.  But the bigger issue is that they are incredibly girly.  I did put one on Erin last night just to see how it looked, and it was cute (especially with jeans and a white onesie).  But for Alex?  He’s a little boy, and he’ll look like a girl in that sweater (and especially the bonnet).  So I find myself balking completely, mostly because I resent the pressure to use them.  I know it’s selfish and not-at-all Christ-like to be so stubborn.  I mean, it won’t hurt the babies to wear them.  But every time it gets mentioned, I just grit my teeth.  I don’t want to hurt Grandma’s feelings, but seriously, they are my babies, and I should be able to make clothing choices for them without pressure.  Or maybe I shouldn’t.  They’re just sweaters, so what does it really matter if Alex looks like a girl for one day.  I can see the other side.  It’s just annoying, especially because it just keeps coming back up.  Anyway, that’s my vent session. 

Okay, I’m going to go exercise while the babies sleep.  Happy Thursday to you all!

I need to be in bed, so this will be in bullets so that I am encouraged to be short. 

• My babies took really good naps yesterday, and once today, Alex even put himself back to sleep when he woke up at his 45-minute nap limit.  It was marvelous.  I’m hoping the napping just gets better and better.
• Still struggling to get them to go longer at night, but I’m pretty resigned to it now.  Some nights, it’s a clockwork, perfect 3-hour schedule.  Other nights…not so much.  Last night was a not-so-much one, but I think that was the super-spicy white chicken chili we had for supper.  Oops!
• Tomorrow, my MIL is planning to stop in for a bit. Should be a nice visit.
• I actually had time to clean up my kitchen and tidy the house a bit today.  Lovely!  Unfortunately, it hardly looks as if I did anything, especially with tonight’s supper dishes still on the counter.   *sigh*
• Eric and I took a walk with the babies in this lovely, lovely weather.  I am SO ready for spring!
• Today we made a trip to Meijer.  The twins always get lots of comments, including one lady who told me her brother is expecting FOUR.  Yikes!  Glad that’s not me!!
• I did not wear green for St. Patrick’s Day.  Both Erin and Alex had some on, though.  I don’t think they cared.
• I can’t really think of anything else, so I’m off to bed.

So today is the day…Deb went to the hospital last night so they could start her induction, and Abby should be delivered sometime today.  If you don’t mind, please pray for a safe and easy delivery for both of them!  I’ll let you know when I hear that she’s arrived…

EDIT: (10:20) So there’s already an update.  It seems that someone forgot to mention that Deb needed to stop taking her baby aspirin (blood thinner) two weeks ago.  So, when it should’ve taken 9 minutes for her blood to clot, it took her 15 this morning.  That means that she can’t have an epidural.  And it means that, should a c-section become necessary, it would have to be with general anesthesia.  Then, this morning, the doctor also noticed a level of something in her blood that was very high, and she wanted to compare it with her previous blood levels and call her neurosurgeon just to make sure all was well.  So, she is currently NOT in labor.  They haven’t started any pitocin, and everything is in a holding pattern for now.   I’ll keep you updated as I know more.

And can I just say that it’s amazing to me that we’re finally to this point?  I mean, with Deb’s aneurysm last fall and all the complications and surgeries that she and the baby went through, we are all still just full of thankfulness to God that they are both still here with us.  I think it’s altogether appropriate that this little girl was going to be Abigail Grace even before they went through the fall’s health issues. 

In other news…

• There’s a man climbing around on our roof as I type.  He’s coming up with an estimate for us to get a new roof.  It’s a strange sound, though…
• Erin developed some congestion at the end of last week, and I got a major cold.  I haven’t had a cold in years.   But she’s sounding much better this morning.  I hope I start to sound better soon, too.
• Saturday was spent at my parents’ house.  We had a party for my mom’s 60th birthday (which was on Friday).  I made dinner, and we just hung out.  Except that every family unit had at least some sickness, it was a good time.  And my mom enjoyed having everyone there, I think.
• Sunday was church (in the family worship center, since the nursery was out of the question), and then a whole lot of relaxing.  I finished a book and worked around the house a bit.  But mostly it was just catching up.  Lovely!

Okay, now my babies are crying, so I’m outta here!  Happy Monday!

Front Page – above the fold
Headline: First Cold
Synopsis: Erin has gotten what appears to be our first baby illness.  She was a bit stuffy night before last, but it was better during the day.  Last night it was worse again (perhaps from laying down?), and she was wheezing quite a bit this morning.  Poor baby!  I guess I’m going to have to figure out some means of treating her.  And so far this morning she’s wanted to snuggle even more than usual.  That could get interesting…

Front Page – below the fold (left column)
Headline: Still Not Sleeping
Synopsis:  I can’t figure out what’s causing Alex to wake up 2-2.5 hours after he eats.  I tried feeding him early, but while he did eventually eat, he didn’t seem to really want that.  So this morning, when he woke up screeching at 7 a.m (he last ate at 4:30), I gave him gas drops and picked him up.  He burped 5 times.  So perhaps gas is my nighttime enemy…I really wish I could figure this out.  I’m getting frustrated.

Front Page – below fold (right column)
Headline: Major Accomplishments
Synopsis: Surprisingly, I got a lot done yesterday.  I ironed all of Eric’s clothes – only one day after washing them! I was very proud of myself!  I also folded baby clothes, cleaned the kitchen (only to see it messed up again with dinner preparations ), and did another load of laundry.  That load was necessitated by Erin spitting up on my lap after eating first thing in the morning.  I decided those pants could not be reworn without washing (sadly, this is not always true – depends on how much spit-up hits the feeding pillow vs. how much hits me!).  I also found time to be on the internet, read a little bit, and talk to Eric.  And considering that I may be dealing with much more unhappy babies today (sick (Erin) or tired (Alex) or both!), it probably was good that I got all that done yesterday!

Health Section
Headline: Best Cold Remedies for Babies
Synopsis:  A quick perusal of the What To Expect: The First Year indicates that I should stick to nasal aspiration (she hates it), saline drops (have to get some) and humidifiers (glad Karen got me one for the shower we had in February!).  I haven’t checked for a fever yet, so I haven’t done any Tylenol.  Any recommendations?  What worked for you?

Arts & Life Section
Headline: Trilogy is recommended
Synopsis: My MIL gave me 3 books by Lyn Austen for my birthday.  The series is called Refiner’s Fire, and it’s set in the Civil War.  The titles are Candle in the Darkness, Fire by Night, and A Light to my Path.  If you haven’t read them and like historical Christian Fiction, these are pretty good.

Headline: Time Change Effects Linger
Synopsis: I’m so glad I’m not the only one who’s been sucker-punched by this time change.  The dark mornings are killing me.  I don’t remember them being this hard to deal with in past years.  But maybe I just wasn’t waiting for the dawn with such eagerness (read: while trying to soothe 2 babies in the dark at once) in past years. Still, I hope I adjust soon.  And it is nice to have the light so much later in the evenings.    

Okay, this is a short edition, I realize.  But as Alex is starting to make noise, I think I’d better sign off now.  I may try to add more later.  Happy Thursday!

The Stuff:

• I really wish my babies would remember how to sleep between feedings at night again.  It would be lovely.
• Yesterday got better, after the babies took a 3-hour nap in their swings.  Every so often, one of them would make a noise, and I’d think, “Jesus, I’m still not ready to deal with them. Please keep them sleeping.”  And he did.  Thanks, Jesus.
• I did get out of the house for about 45 minutes last evening to return some books to the library.  Then Eric and I watched The Big Bang Theory while I fed the babies.  Then it was off to bed for them.  And I got to bed by 9:30.  It helped me a lot.  I think I’ll have to do that for the next few days until the babies figure out how to sleep again!
• The babies are currently napping in their cribs.  I expect about 10 more minutes before they wake up…just enough time to finish this post!

The pictures (3 months old):

Erin’s favorite toy right now is the purple kitty from their playmat.  She bats it around and talks to it.  So cute!

Alex, up close and personal.  Does anyone else (who would know) see my brother Chris in that face?

I bought a Bumbo seat at the last twin sale.  Alex does pretty well in it (the pictures were taken about a minute apart). 

Erin, well, is still working on strengthening her neck! 

And the babies are awake…ten minutes later!  Happy Tuesday!