The Soothie is not always Soothing...

Let me tell you a little bit about my love/hate relationship with the Soothie. There are times when it is a life saver of my sanity and times when it toys with my sanity. My children like to play what we call The Pacifier Game (yes a very clever name I know). This basically consists of my children, primarily my daughter, crying for her soothie, one of us giving it to them, them waiting until we sit back down (or until our heads hit the pillow at night), spitting out their soothie, screaming for their soothie, repeat. I'm pretty sure none of us are really big fans of the Pacifier Game, but for some reason, they feel the need to play.

So I know you're probably saying, why don't you just stop giving them the pacifier then? Well, we've also found times when the pacifier is wonderful and actually owns up to it's namesake. My daughter has a bit of reflux and tends to get very worked up after her bottles. She gets so worked up that she ends up spitting up a lot of her bottle. The ONLY thing that settles her and reduces the amount of spit (because it's never fully stopped) is the soothie. There are also times when they are having trouble falling asleep and the soothie really just helps them get there.

So where do you draw the line and how do you do it? Do you stop cold turkey? Do you only give it to them after the bottle to settle their tummies? Do you only give it at night and eventually fade it out? I'd really like to hear what people did since taping it to my children's faces to keep them from spitting it out is not an option...right? ( I kid, I kid)

No, You're Not Lost...

I've been doing a little redecorating. Do you like? I felt like I needed something a little more light and airy looking. It just gives me a better feeling now. Plus, I like change and got tired of looking at my old design. Change is good!

Enjoy!

In MY Opinion...

I've seen people posts these in the past and thought I'd contribute my 2 cents. This is a tag post. Once you go through and read, leave a comment with a link to your blog post with your opinions on products you love/hate. A lot of Moms have differing opinions as to what products work for them and which ones are a waste of money. My take may be a bit different than that of a mom of one, but these are the things that work for us. I'll also let you know which items I like having multiples of. So, here we go...

What I like:

The Musical Seahorse: This is a life saver! I don't know what it is about it, but it calms the twins right down! I recommend 1 for each baby.

Boppy Pillows: These are great for feeding at the same time, tummy time, and just hanging out. Also a big help when you have a baby with reflux who needs to sit up for 20 minutes after a feeding (even at 3AM). I recommend 1 for each baby.

Bouncer: Now this is the one we have (in pink and blue) but I think any bouncer will do. These also have the same benefits as the boppy pillows, just another alternative.

Bottle Warmer: I was hesitant on this at first I'll admit, but let me tell you, when you have 2 babies screaming for food at 3AM, sitting a bottle in hot water just isn't fast enough for any of us! This heats the bottle in about 2 minutes. It's a beautiful thing. I recommend 1 for each baby, why make them wait even longer?

Large Flannel Receiving Blankets: A Must, A Must, A Must! These are great for swaddling, tummy time on the floor (who wants dirty pants?), a shield from spit up, a wipe for spit ups (can you tell my baby has reflux?), and just a light weight blanket to keep warm. We use these for everything. I do recommend getting the large ones because they are harder to escape from when you have Houdinis for children. I recommend a lot of these!

Baby Trend Jogger: Now this isn't the exact stroller we have, ours only has one wheel in front, but I think this is the newer model. Anyways, I recommend any stroller that has tires like bicycle tires. They are great for any terrain and makes it so easy to push.

Pampers Swaddlers: LOVE THEM! Enough said!

Playmat: These are great to engage their attention. We do Brother Sister time on it where they lay side by side and chat it up. They reach up for the toys that hang and kick them too. We also do tummy time on these too. I figure it gives them something nice to look at other than the floor. I'd say you only need one total.

Playtex Vent Air Bottles: These are great. Easy to clean, easy to prep, and fairly inexpensive too.

Things I have a Love/Hate Relationship with:

The Soothie: These are great to settle my babies down. The only problem is when they spit it out. My daughter likes to play the pacifier game where she will spit it out, cry, and we put it back in, repeat. Not a fun game for us...especially at 3AM. I recommend stocking up at the hospital. We have approximately 50.

The Lamb Swing: Don't get me wrong, I LOVE having a swing, what I don't love is that this swing takes batteries. If you do get a swing, get one that plugs in... TRUST me! Start with one and if both babies really like it and it's the only thing they like, then get another, otherwise, one just works for us.

Video Monitor: While it's fun to watch them when we do have it one, we rarely ever use it. Right now the twins are sleeping in our room and we only have one floor in our house. So I'd say it's not really a necessity... unless you want to see how the neighbor's baby sleeps, because I'll tell you, you pick up other monitors.

Things I Don't Like:

Playtex Drop Ins: These may be great for single babies, but when you have multiples, the liners can really add up. We went through a pack of 100 in less than a week!

Huggies: I didn't like the diapers or the wipes. My son peed out of EVERY and I mean EVERY Huggies diaper we put on him. The wipes we found to rip very easily, but somehow be way too thick. Just not a fan.

There really isn't a whole lot I don't like right now, but these were just a couple that I really just don't care for. Again these are all just my opinion and you may have completely different views on these. Use what works best for you, but these work best for me!

Now TAG, you're it! GO!

6 Week Follow Up...

So I had my 6 week follow up appointment and everything looks great. I'm healing really well. I got the clearance to start working out too which I am very excited about. This saggy pooch I call my stomach has got to go! I'm starting the P90X routine tomorrow. I'll let you know how that goes.

I was also told I have some muscle separation in my abdomen, about 3 finger width. I guess it's normal when your stomach stretches to the size of Alaska. Nothing a few crunches a day won't fix... so I'm told.

Lastly, I have made a decision to get an IUD. Since two kids are plenty right now and for a while, I think this is the best option. So I go in 6 weeks for the procedure. Other than that, it was a pretty quick appointment.

Project 365

I have started the Project 365. To see more click here or the link at the top of the blog!

The Twins Have Moved...

We had the twins sleeping in their Pack-N-Play since they came home... until last night. They were starting to get a little crowded in there so we decided to set up their crib in our room and moved them in. It was a little adjustment for them both. They christened it with a boat load of spit up too. I guess that's better than a christening from the other end, right?

There were a couple moments when they woke up wide eyed, not really knowing where they were, but they would shortly go back to sleep. They actually went a half hour later between feedings too. Maybe as they get used to it, they'll start sleeping through the night. Wishful thinking for a 6 week old?

That reminds me, they are 6 weeks old today! Can you believe it? I know I certainly can't.

Tweet Tweet...

I have added a new feature to my blog, Tweets. I joined Twitter a while ago and just never really had a use for it. Now what better use than to give live updates of what's going on with the twins. Oh and it's a great way for me to see what all my favorite celebrities are up to, haha. If you know me at all, you know I love celebrities! So keep a look out to the left and see our updates and if you are on Twitter already Follow me!

The Big Decision...

So after much discussion and planning, I have decided to become a stay-at-home Mom. Ryan and I have taken up residency with my parents for the moment and are in the process of renting out our condo. Since the real estate market stinks right now, selling our condo would not be the wise choice and we have found a renter to cover most of the cost. We will have to make some cut backs financially since we will only have the one income, but it will all be worth it in the long run.

I am loving being home with the twins and watching them grow everyday. They become more alert with every blink of the eye and now I don't have to miss a second of that. Everyone kept telling me that it would all work out and so far they are all right.

One Month Appointment...

The twins had their 1 month appointment today and boy are they growing! Cavan is up to 7lbs 7oz and 19 inches long. He's made it to the charts and is in the 5th percentile. Kaylie is up to 7lbs 15oz and 19 1/4 inches long. She's in the 16th percentile. They also got the second round of their Hepatitis B shot, which they were not impressed with.

I do have to say though that I love my pediatrician office. They are so accommodating to us and they have given us tons of formula everytime we go in. This is very helpful for us, seen as how we go through a container of formula every few days now. It's definitely helping them grow though so we are happy about that!

One Month...

Where did the month go? I know it's been a while since I've updated, but it's been a busy month. It seems like only yesterday I was being told that my babies were coming and now, a month later I have the most precious little babies.

In the past month here are the top 10 things I have learned about parenting:
1) Schedules are meant to be broken
2) The first month is a "Getting to know you" phase. We are getting to know what each cry and coo mean. The babies are getting to know that we are here for them and building that trust with us.
3) Your body will adjust to waking at night
4) Babies like a very warm bath (sorry Kaylie for being the test model on that one)
5) Babies leak... from EVERY angle!
6) Reflux makes feeding time very messy
7) When you hear your baby poop, give them a few more minutes. They probably aren't done and don't mind finishing when the diaper is off.
8) Pacifiers are lifesavers one minutes and sleep deprivers the next!
9) It takes a lot longer to accomplish anything
10) Laundry and trash are never ending!

The twins are growing so fast. They are both taking 3oz at every feeding. They have an appointment tomorrow so we will see how much they weigh and how much they've grown. They are officially out of their newborn clothes and into 0-3 months. We are all doing great and enjoying watching them grow.