(Caveat: Some of the following are serious…some are not…but they are my honest takes on the world and my life these days)

Honestly…this swine flu thing has me surprisingly nervous.  I won’t say afraid, though if I let myself go there, it would become that.  I think it has to do with the twins more than anything.  I’m not worried I will catch it, but that they will.  And with that, I guess I’ve officially joined the ranks of motherhood.

Honestly…I am really annoyed at the media’s coverage of the swine flu.  Seriously!  Could we be more overdramatic and grim about the whole thing?!?  It’s not the bubonic plague, people!  Surely there is SOME other news out there to mention…

Honestly…I’m struggling not to be bitter about Eric going away this weekend.  The men in our church are having a retreat in Cincinnati, and I am glad he’s going.  He’ll enjoy the time away with the guys, and they’ll get lots of good spiritual teaching.  But really…it’s a lot left on me, who hasn’t had a break in weeks and weeks (really more like 4.5 months).  And the guys in our small group decided to take of Friday and go down early to hang out just them.  So now Eric will be gone even longer.  There’s more that I could add here, but I won’t.  Just this much gives the bitterness to good a foothold.  I need a better perspective, I think. 

Honestly…it’s amazing how much sunshine and a clean kitchen can make my whole day better.  And how much knowing it’s supposed to rain for pretty much the next week can be slightly discouraging, even though it’s April and it’s supposed to rain in April.  Oh well…I will try to be thankful that it’s warmer!

Honestly…I was wondering during last Sunday’s sermon what possible mission Christ has for me to fulfill.  They always talk about letting God lead you into ministries and service through the gifts he’s given you.  But my gifts and experiences seem particularly useless, or at least difficult to find uses for…especially these days when my primary role is mother of infants.  I mean, I can write.  I’m good at creating/critiquing arguments.  I’m a good teacher (though not necessarily for children).  I’m dramatic, and I can organize anything.  And my spiritual gifts are teaching and administration.  But where do I find a place to use those gifts/abilities?  *sigh*  I guess, since God wastes none of our lives, I’m stockpiling experiences for some future use.  I should probably just be patient and keep praying about it…

Honestly…my new favorite show during the day is the half-hour version of Deal or No Deal that plays twice in the 4:00 hour.  I never much watched the primetime version, but somehow I stumbled onto it while feeding babies recently.  Some of the contestants are a bit much, but I like the game itself. 

Honestly…I can’t think of anything else right now, though I know I had one or two other things to put on this list.  So I guess I’ll just end.  Happy Thursday!

That’s what we call it here, anyway.  Eric is taking off work on Friday, so today is like Thursday for him…thus the name!

Baby Updates:

• Alex can roll over now (belly to back).  On Monday, he did it 5 times, 4 of which I actually saw.  He hasn’t done it since, but I know he is able to, so I’m sure it will only get more common now.
• Erin hasn’t rolled yet, but she is incredibly dexterous and is “talking” all the time!
• Alex is loving his oatmeal these days.  He eats it better for Eric than for me, but he opens his mouth for it and seems to really enjoy it.  I think I’ll be starting Erin on “real” food in a couple of weeks, but she’s doing fine without it for now, so I’m not rushing it.
• Sleeping is getting better very gradually, I think.  Erin is still my champion sleeper, though she’s had trouble at bedtime a couple of times recently (very unusual!).  Alex hasn’t had a screaming fit at night since Sunday night, though he did have one yesterday afternoon.  He still wakes up in the night (so my sleep is still interrupted), but I’ve rarely had to get up with him this week.  Hopefully, the pattern continues to trend this way!

Yesterday Updates:

• We ran to Target yesterday.  I bought baby clothes for cheap and mostly in the next size up.  I realized that I did not have very many 6-9 month clothes, so I’ve been filling in that gap as I find clearance/sale items.
• The clothes I ordered from The Children’s Place came yesterday.  They were having a 40% off sale, and I had a code for an extra 15% off.   So I got about 20 items for like $80, including two jackets for chilly weather in the fall.  Nice!
• I did our laundry yesterday.  And I loaded the dishwasher.  And I held my screaming son for about an hour or more in the afternoon.  And I did a load of baby laundry.  And some other stuff, I’m sure.  But those were the big ones.

And finally, some pictures from yesterday for your enjoyment!

This will be quick.

First, because I need to get to feeding babies soon.  And second because I’m not in a good mood today, so by keeping this short, I’m hoping to keep myself from spewing my nastiness all over your days, too.

So here goes…

On Friday, we were looking forward to a weekend with no plans.  By the time last night ended, we’d run errands and had company all weekend long.  No wonder I’m tired!

We took the babies on their first hike on Saturday.  We went to a metro park here in town.  It was a fun time, and now we know how to do it better for the next time.  And yes, there will be a next time!

My brother and his family came for dinner on Saturday night after an afternoon at the zoo (which I hear was FULL of crazy people…my brother included! ).  My MIL and BIL came on Sunday afternoon.  Both were good times, and I’m glad we could have them come.  But man, by the time Eric’s family left on Sunday, I was done.  DONE.

Sadly, my grumpiness is primarily related to being tired and mostly despairing that my son will ever learn to sleep.  I won’t go into details.  You are tired of hearing about it, I’m sure, and rehearsing it won’t help me let go.  I’m trying to let go.  Really I am.  But it’s hard.  And I’m really tired.  And I dread evenings because it means it’s almost time for sleep that I won’t get.  *sigh*  It will get better.  It will get better.  It will get better. 

Okay, sorry, the crankiness slipped in there.  I really did have a very good weekend.  It was gorgeous and I got to spend it with people that I love very much.  So I will remember that God is good and He is my refuge (ps. 62:8). 

And I’m hearing baby sounds, so I’m outta here…have a marvelous day!

It would seem, since I don’t work, that this fact wouldn’t be so important to me.  But boy it is nice to anticipate two whole days when I’m not totally alone with the babies.  And it’s nice when they come, too!

Last night, we did not have a 3-hour screaming fit.  We did have a lot of crying during the 3:00 hour.  He had a burp and then thought he should be fed.  I burped him, but I disagreed about the second point.  So he finally gave up and fell back asleep and slept until 5…that was a much better time for a feeding!

Yesterday, we ran to Walmart and over to Karen’s for a bit.  It’s great to have her supplementing Alex’s wardrobe with some of Jason’s outfits from this time last year!  Yay for Karen! 

Last night, I made dinner, fed Alex some cereal (we tried oatmeal last night), and cleaned up the kitchen a bit.  Then we both relaxed for a bit and put the babies to bed.  Funny thing: Eric dressed Erin for bed last night, and he put her in one of the “boy” sleepers to see if she still looked girly.  Oddly enough, she doesn’t look nearly as girl-like when she’s not in pink!  If you don’t see the babies regularly, you might not have guessed, at first glance, which one she was!

I had weird dreams last night.  One of them involved the C-ville police showing up at my parents’ house (for some reason we were staying there) to check my mp3 player (which looked more like my Nintendo DS in the dream) for illegal downloads.  Apparently, they were going door-to-door.  Anyway, they found some and wrote me a ticket.  I was really annoyed in the dream because what they found had been emailed to me instead of downloaded.  I’d be annoyed in real life, too, I think, considering that I don’t download much of anything, especially pirated versions of things!   Anyway, I told you it was weird.  And that was just one of the dreams I remember!

Today I think I need to do laundry.  And I might run to Meijer.  But we shall see. 

I think I’m going to have to find something more exciting to blog about.  Anyone have suggestions for topics you’d like me to share my thoughts on?  I’m really good at ranting, opining, etc., so if you’ve got something for me to talk about, let me know! 

Have a marvelous weekend!!

And I’m SOOOO thankful for it.  And it’s supposed to last for days and days.  And it’s supposed to be really warm for those days and days.  *happy sigh*  I’ve needed this.

Yesterday was pretty long, as I suspected it would be.  The babies weren’t bad, just more needy than usual (sometimes a lot more needy), so I was “on” all day.  But we survived.  And I did get some good snuggle time with both babies.  And hopefully the aftereffects of the vaccinations are mostly done now, so we can all get back to normal.

In sleeping news:

• Erin slept through the night last night again.  From 9-5 (when I woke her up for my own sake), and she’s still asleep now.
• Alex…well…not so much. 
• LAST NIGHT:  He pretty much cried from bedtime (8:00) until 11:00 (off and on, of course).  The normal medicines didn’t make a difference.  I fed them both at 9:00, but he was crying again less than 10 minutes after he finished.  He calms down just long enough for us to relax and then start back up again. I tried to soothe him.  No good.  Eric finally came and held him.  He did fall asleep, but cried for another 10 minutes or so after Eric put him down (which is very unusual). 
• Then he woke up at 1:30 and 4:30.  I let him cry at 4:30, and he went back to sleep after about 10 minutes.  But then he was up again at 5:15.  So I fed them both then.
• So, I just don’t know what his beef is.  I’m hoping he is simply a stubborn little boy who doesn’t like having to put himself to sleep.  And I’m trying not to give up.  And I’m trying not to feel discouraged again.  But mostly I’m just annoyed and frustrated that he won’t sleep.  And there doesn’t seem to be any good reason for it.  So please keep praying for both of us.  And Eric.  He’s not getting good sleep these days either, and that’s hard on him at work.

So there’s my daily “Alex isn’t sleeping” whine.  I’m sorry I’m such a broken record about these things.  And sadly, other than blow-out diapers and lots of baby laundry, there isn’t much else to tell about the last 2 days.  Oh well. 

At least it’s a beautiful, sunny day…I’ll just keep being thankful for that.  And for God’s faithfulness.  And for your prayers, encouragement, and friendship.  Happy Thursday!

It’s going to be a long day, I think…

Our vaccinations from yesterday made the babies sleep all night.  And I do mean ALL night.  From 10-6 (when I had to feed them because I was starting to hurt from a night’s worth of milk!). 

Unfortunately, Erin is usually fussy the day after shots.  She’s whining in her bouncy seat right now.

And poor Alex woke up very unhappy and with a temperature of 101.5.  I called the nurse line at the pediatrician’s office to make sure that still qualifies as a “mild” fever.  And I did give him Tylenol.  He finally settled down in his swing, though he should be eating now, not sleeping.  Anyway, this is my first real foray into the world of fevers, so we’ll see how it goes.

So that’s how my morning has been so far.  I hope they settle a little bit.  Otherwise it’s going to be hard to get through this day with my sanity intact!  Anyway, I’d better go check on the babies…

I’m off to the babies’ 4-month well visit this morning in a few minutes.  I’ll update the newest info later…
EDIT (11:55) – Babies look great!  They are huge (E=13.3 lbs/24 in. and A=13.6 lbs/24 in.) and very healthy.   Anyway, the doctor was pleased, which is always nice. And of course, they also got their next vaccinations today, but they do fine with those.  A little screaming and then they settle back down.  Though I’m sure the preemptive Tylenol didn’t hurt! 

Last night, Alex screamed for an hour at bedtime.  We’d lay him down.  He’d be quiet for a few minutes and then he’d start.  Nothing helped.  We tried Tylenol, holding him to calm him down, burping him, and lastly, feeding him and giving him gas drops.  He still cried.  So finally, Eric just held him in the glider until he fell completely asleep and then laid him down in his crib.  And then he stayed asleep until 2:15.  Weird…

Unfortunately, we’re still getting fussy/awake in the wee hours of the morning.  It’s not too bad, but when I get him up, I put him in a swing where he sleeps for another hour.  So why can’t he do that in his crib?!?

Last night, I needed to run some errands, so Eric watched the babies while I did.  There was a gorgeous rainbow again…I drank in that sight the whole way into Hilliard.  Then when I got home…Eric had not only fed Alex his cereal, but he had bathed both babies and gotten them ready for bed!  He’s awesome!

Okay, I have to go give my babies some Tylenol (more shots today!) before we go…happy Tuesday!

starting Monday morning with two blow-out diapers and a whole lot of laundry to do!

I heard a noise from the nursery this morning, but it sounded like Alex’s cow rattle had fallen into the crib (it dangles above him on those plastic rings).  Nope…it was Alex’s exploding poop!

He did this on Saturday morning as well, so I washed sheets and such then.  And I am currently doing it again now!  Such fun, huh?

In other non-poopy news:

• Saturday was spent enjoying the weather.  Eric worked on yard work.  I cleaned inside.  And we got to chat with our neighbors for the first time in months.  Nice!
• In the evening, we ran to the mall to pick up our pictures.  They turned out cute!  Then we went to Noodles & Co. for dinner.  Yay for not having to cook!
• Sunday was church, and the my family came to my house for dinner.  We had a good time, I think.  Eric and I relaxed for the evening.

Sleeping is going better, but we’re still up with Alex.  It seems that he may be getting restless in the morning hours from gas and what eventually blows out his diapers.  So we’ll just keep working on it.

Anyway, I think that’s all we have to report for now.  Later! 

It’s only 11:16!?!?  Yikes…this could be a long day!

We slept okay last night.  Alex was up crying at 1:00 again, but the pacifier settled him down until 3:30. 

Unfortunately, I think we are also entering the great wide world of teething (Alex, of course).  Last night he screamed for a while when we got home with one little fist pressed against his ear.  He’s also been drooling like a madman recently, has bitten me twice while eating this week, and sucks on his hands/sleeves perpetually.  And today he’s seriously fussy.  Sounds like the beginning of teeth to me…lucky us!

Our trip to C-ville area was exhausting, but good.  We saw lots of people, lost a sock (which someone found for us!), and did not get good naps all day.  And we didn’t get home until 9:00 pm.  But it was a fun adventure for sure.

Today I think we’ll just stay home.  I have some plans to clean (we’ll see how that goes) and rearrange the baby “stuff” to make it fit better now that we’ve removed the pack ‘n’ play as a permanent fixture in our living room.  And I had to do another load of baby laundry as both Erin and Alex have blown out diapers today.  So I may not get much done other than tending to fussy babies and folding laundry. 

But as it’s sunny and warm and Friday…I still think it’s a beautiful day!

That’s pretty much life – and parenthood, huh?

Last night went much better again.  Alex didn’t eat very much cereal, and he cried a good bit when I put him in his crib.  So I was a little concerned that we might have a bad night. They were supposed to eat about 10, and he started crying at 9:20.  He cried on and off until about 9:50 when a particularly loud wail scared Erin awake.  So I fed him while Eric comforted Erin.  Then I fed her, and we all went to bed.

But then things got better.  There was some crying (10 minutes each…not at the same time) during the 1:00 hour, but everyone managed to soothe themselves.  And they slept until 3:00.  Then again until 7:00 with no crying at all.  And both are asleep right now (though I expect to hear from them soon).

So all in all, I got almost 9 hours of sleep last night…and in multi-hour blocks!  WooHoo!

In another new adventure, Alex took a 2.5 hour nap in his crib.  This NEVER happens.  Ever.  I have no idea why, so I’m just taking it as a good thing and moving on.

And finally, it’s a beautiful, sunny, warm day for the first time all week.  *Happy sigh*

Today, I’m heading to C-ville and Springfield to see people and hang out with my parents for a bit.  Eric is having dinner with his brother at Thurman Cafe.   They are intending to enjoy this monstrosity of a burger.  Yikes!

Okay, that’s all I have for today.  So happy Thursday!