Twins and a Toddler

I thought I was prepared for all the changes that would happen with the addition of two tiny babies. 

I have never been so wrong!

One major shock was that my sweet little toddler is absolutely in love with his brother and sister.  It warms my heart every time he goes to hug them when they cry, or goes to bring them their binky (pacifier).  He will stop whatever he is doing if he hears one crying to go and try to make them happy again.  It is just the sweetest thing!  He also wants to help as much as possible...taking out dirty diapers, getting new diapers, taking bottles to the person feeding a baby, helping feed the babies, and always trying to comfort them, hug them, and tell them that he loves them.  I feel like the luckiest mommy to have such a loving little boy!!  But the one drawback is that while he loves and adores his siblings, he has become a lot more clingy to me.  I know that Zachary needs a lot of attention, and we do all that we can to give it to him.  When we have the family over, someone is always playing with him.  It's still hard on him since everyone wants (or in my case, needs) to be with the babies, too.  He is having to share the limelight, which is something that he has never had to do before.  Most of the time, he does very well with it, but other times...well, he's a bit more "sensitive" than he was before the twins were born.

I have also made the discovery that I am, in fact, NOT supermom.  I know, totally unbelievable, right?? Contrary to popular belief, sleep is something that one DOES need, and there is a point where the body will shut down and basically say, "screw you, I need rest!"  Unlike in my 20s, this is a wall that is hard to recover from hitting, and I am still trying to get past.  The first 7 weeks I was the only one up with them all night, and I had them all day as well (with my mom coming to help 2-3 times a week once they were home).  It was in week 7 that I hit my wall--and at midnight I crawled upstairs to where Dan was sleeping and begged for him to watch the twins while I got a few hours of precious sleep.  From that point, we have alternated nights--that way, someone gets to sleep for the night (well, I still don't since I have to get up and pump), and I don't completely crash and burn. My sanity, I am happy to report, is mostly intact. :) I have also taken over the bedtime routine with Zachary, which has also given me some great one-on-one time with him, and has made us both happier. Turns out, we both needed the bonding time together!

Right before the twins turned 5 weeks, a fellow mom in my mommy group offered to take their newborn pictures.  She is starting her own photography business, and this was a great opportunity to practice on twins.  We were more than happy to participate!  The photos turned out AMAZING!! Totally worth baking in a warm room while she was taking them. ;)  Here are a few of my favorites:

 

 

Just melts my heart.  So, so sweet.  *sigh*

 

Even tho life has totally changed, I wouldn't have it any other way. Yes, things take longer to prepare for, the amount of gear that we have to haul just to go to the store or for a visit fills up the minivan, the fact that we even HAVE a minivan...all different, but still wonderful.  It also doesn't feel like it's been 10 weeks since the twins made their abrupt arrival...it feels like it has been longer and shorter at the same time.  Sound weird?  Maybe.  But to me it feels like it was just yesterday that I was on the OR table listening to the cries of my new babies, and at the same time, it feels like they have been here for so much longer than the two months they have been home. Either way, I can't picture life without any of my sweet babies! :) They are what makes life worth living...all the bumps, stumbles, hugs, and kisses....and the unconditional love that only a child can give. 

 

I'm looking forward to seeing what the future brings all of us! 



Tuesday Tip for Toddlers

Z has discovered paper. He absolutely loves it...the way it crinkles, how the pages turn in a book, that it pops when pulled tight. But his favorite thing about paper is that it tears. Oh, how he loves to tear paper!!

Just a few days ago, Z also figured out a new skill. He figured out how to take everything out of a container, and then to out it all back in. It started with his blocks, and then moved on to my laundry :)





So I thought about a way to combine his new love of paper with his new skill of sorting. I remembered that when I was younger we would make "mailboxes" out of shoeboxes for Valentine's Day mail in elementary school. I figured that it would work fine now, just for a play mailbox. I found an old shoebox in my closet and got to work.

First I got the box and marked the area to cut the slot.









Then I cut out the slot with scissors...I couldn't find my box cutter. I do suggest you use that instead! My scissors were a bit dull, and made the process a little more difficult.






Then just put the top back on the box, and decorate it if you wish!






Z was impatient to play with his new toy, so I didn't get to really "decorate" it much more than what you see. Oh, well! He already is having fun with his mailbox!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Monday Madness!!

I don't know about the rest of the world, but Daylight Savings Time has really screwed up all things sleep in this house.  The teething troubles continue, and are just compounding the loss of an hour.  Little guy doesn't realize that time has changed, and wants to stay on his normal nap schedule, which is now not possible.  So for the last two days he has not had his afternoon nap because he feels the time that I want him to go down is too early, and the time that he wants to go down is too late.  *sigh* At night he doesn't want to be by himself anymore, and can't seem to find a comfy spot--meaning hubby is up with him most of the night.  This is all adding up to a very tired bunch of people--and me not wanting to do any training for the 5k hubby and I are doing in two weeks.

Otherwise, I am trying to keep up with what I have on my plate.  I am trying to plan a super secret date for hubby and I, and a new format for this blog.  Each day will have a certain topic, and will follow that every week.  At least, that is the plan.  I tend to not stick to plans all the time, so just fair warning!

But for now, I need to get back to an unhappy toddler that is trying to take over my computer...