Lake Tahoe Vacation

We meant to post this a couple weeks ago, but never got around to until now. A couple weeks ago we took the boys on six day trip to Lake Tahoe. From Las Vegas it's about a 9 hour trip by car with lots of open desert between gas stations. We know what you are thinking...are you nuts taking two 4 month old babies on a 9 hour trip. Well we thought we have never done this before, so how bad could it be? Katie's grandparents had purchased a condo many years ago on the California side of the Lake in Tahoma. Over the years it has been a place of family reunions, vacations, and even a few honeymoons. We like to try to make a trip there every year or so.

After getting the van packed early in the morning we waited till the last minute to load Aaron and Andrew. They remained a sleep in their car seats for a bit but soon woke ready to eat just as we were leaving town. We had it all planned, we left the third row of seat up in the back so Katie could feed them with a bottle while I continued driving. We only had to stop on the side of the road for a quick burping a few times. Unfortunately Katie spent most of the trip in the back of the van either feeding or entertaining them. Well needless to say we made it there in one piece and the boys did very well considering being strapped into a car seat for 9 and a half hours. We had to stop every 100 miles or so to give the babies a break (not to mention Mom & Dad). Aaron was the only one who truly had some trouble being stuck in his seat during the last hour of the trip. He finally said enough is enough and wanted out by giving us an ear full.

Vacationing with twins is only half a vacation, we spent most of our time changing diapers, relaxing during nap times, feeding babies, and a couple outings just to make us feel we were on vacation. One of our favorite activities was watching the Olympics on TV in the condo every evening after we got the babies to bed. We did however get the opportunity to take a few walks with the babies and visit the lake a couple of times. We were able to dip Aaron and Andrew's feet in the cold lake. At first they were shocked then they seemed to like it as they got used to the temperature. The pinnacle of the trip was an excursion to Virginia City. It was really cool to see all of the old buildings in spite of the tourist trap it has become. We walked through the town amongst the crowds of people with the babies strapped into a couple carriers we brought with us. We got a lot of stares and a few people stopped us to admire the babies. A few seemed to have a "are you crazy" look on their faces when we walked by. But we had a great time showing them off and they had a great time too. We just about wore them out each day, and would crash hard when it was bed time.

On our return trip we took the scenic route home by staying on the highways on the California side until Mono Lake. We wanted to soak up as much of the green trees and mountains as we could. One of our traditions is to stop at small hamburger stand in Lee Vining, CA to get a bite to eat. We like to eat there because they have a great hamburger and its just far enough from Lake Tahoe for a good rest. The boys did better going home than on the journey their. Luckily we left Lake Tahoe about noon, so it was dark for the last few hours of the trip. So they went right to sleep and didn't wake until we got home. All in all it was a great trip and we had a great time with the boys. We hope our next trip will be even better. We consider Lake Tahoe as heaven on earth and enjoy every trip we make their.

Bless Their Little Hearts

Sometimes when Steve learns that both babies are asleep he will make the comment, "Bless their little hearts."  This morning would've been a perfect time to say that.  Last night was the first time they slept through the night!  I hope this will soon become a nightly routine.

A couple of nights ago we thought we'd try something that has been suggested to us more than once:   Add a little bit of rice cereal to the bottles at night and they'll sleep through the night.  Yeah, right. When Aaron and Andrew woke up at the usual 3 a.m-ish to be fed we knew it didn't work.  Since then we haven't added it to their bottles partly out of habit, but mostly because we're not too hopeful that it works.  

This morning I rolled over and saw the clock- 5:45 a.m.  Wait a minute!  I don't remember getting up to feed them.  Did Steve get up and feed them both? (That rarely happens).  Just as I was about to ask him, Steve asks me that same question.  No, I didn't feed them.  We both smiled as we realized-- They slept through the night!!!  And it had nothing to do with adding rice cereal.  

Sneak Peaks

A couple of weeks ago I asked myself questions like: How many diapers do I change a day? How many bottles am I feeding our babies?  How many loads of laundry am I doing?  And the list goes on.  I feel like I'm working all day but there's not much evidence- my house is still a mess, the sink still has dishes, and there's unfolded clothes everywhere.  So perhaps to make myself feel better, like I'm actually doing something throughout the day, I thought I'd track some of this information.  Here is what I found:

Daily (varies from day to day- here's one of the days)

Bottle fed 12

Diapers changed 13

Sleep each night* 6 hrs.

Weekly (varies)

Bottle washings 12

Laundry loads  7 (up from abt 3 before twins were born)

# of Baths 12

*Editor's Note:  Six hours may not sound too bad.  But non-consecutive hours makes a big difference.  Usually it's 3-4 hours of sleep, then wake to feed them, and then 2-3 more hours.  I long for the night when I can have a non-interrupted night's sleep.

Overnight Changes

It's hard to believe how much they can change seemingly overnight.  They are like different babies than a short time ago.  Within the last week Aaron & Andrew are now doing the following (sleeping through the night is, unfortunately, not on the list):

- Rolls over (Aaron) from back to stomach

- Grabs toys (Andrew & Aaron)

-Moves from side to side (Aaron & Andrew)

- Giggles (Aaron)

- Wears helmet/DOC band- (Andrew- already his head is less flat)

- Discovered his thumb (Andrew)

- Discovered their toes (both babies)

- Eating more: going from about 4 oz to 5 or 6 oz each feeding (both babies)

- Noticing each other more- this is so much fun!  They'll watch each other, hold each others' hand (not sure if this is intentional), and smile a lot more at one another.  

      

Some Daily Routines

Just two months ago I felt overwhelmed and incapable as I tried to care for two babies. Within the last month or so things have improved dramatically.  Here is a glimpse into what some (not enough) of our days are like:

3:00ish a.m. Usually wakes up to be fed, goes right back to sleep

7:00ish  Wakes up for the day

8:30ish   Asleep for  morning nap

11:30ish Wakes up (my wishful thinking- sometimes happens much earlier)

1:30ish Asleep for afternoon nap

4:00ish Wakes up

6:-6:30ish Begins bedtime routine (we call them our 3 B's):

Bath, Book (which they LOVE), and Bottle

This is my dream day (minus the 3:00 waking, of course).  This schedule has happened a couple of times but not many.  The challenge is for them to have synchronized naps.  They sometimes take turns staying awake or asleep.  Aaron and Andrew need to get together and coordinate things a little better.  

At night they're usually asleep within an hour or so.  It's amazing at the difference this bedtime routine has made.  Before bathing them at night and pretty much rocking them to sleep each evening, it took FORVER to put them down. We made a few changes, at the suggestion of a friend, and overnight they were so much easier to put to bed.  

Andrew & Aaron Poems

With the school year starting this week here in Las Vegas it's a little weird to not be preparing my own classroom and gearing up for the new year.  This is the first time in 10 years that I'm not starting school again.  Certainly I'm not complaining; I'd rather be home with Aaron & Andrew any day.  It's different though.

One of the assignments I would frequently give my students was to write an acrostic poems about a topic we were studying.  Here's how you do it:  write one word vertically and with each letter a word or sentence is written that tells about the vertical word).  So I did one of Aaron and Andrew.  Steve saw what I had done and felt the need to outdo mine by writing his own-- except he wanted his to rhyme. Here's both versions of poems:

A-  At the time he awakes, Aaron is happy & giggles

A-  Animated and very photogenic

R-  Rolling over has begun this last week

O-  Observes everything going on around him

N-  Never have I seen so much spit up!

A-  An answer to the prayers of many- he is a true miracle!

N-  Now he wears a DOC Band, or helmet, to round out his head.

D-  During feedings he usually closes his eyes and looks asleep

R-  Reserved at first, then flashes that cute smile

E-  Either his fists in his mouth or straight up in the air

W- When we burp him, he does long, drawn out belches like that of a grown man

A-  Aaron smiles with grins and giggles

A-  Always with a bunch of wiggles

R-  Rarely does he sleep all night

O-  Only if we wrap him tight, but

N-  Now and then he fusses and fiddles when he gives a bunch of spittle

A-  Andrew always smiles for Dad

N-  Never yells unless he's mad

D-  During meals he eats so well

R-  Rarely diapers never smell

E-  Every minute he gives a toot

W-  We however think he's cute.

Andrew's new look

Any question about which baby is which??  Yesterday Andrew was fitted for his DOC band.  The purpose of it is to round out his head from its asymmetrical shape, or plagiocephaly.  That's what he gets for being the Baby A twin and then spending 5 weeks in the NICU.  

Andrew will wear it for 23 hours a day for about 4-6 weeks.  The one hour we take it off will be during bath time at which time we clean it with rubbing alcohol and let it air out.  Because Andrew prefers to turn his head to his right, his neck has short, tight muscles on one side.  To help resolved this I need to do neck stretches several times a day.  He HATES it... poor guy.  The DOC band can come off while I do this and then it goes right back on.  During the time he wears it I take him to the Cranial Clinic once a week where they do therapy and adjust the band according to the growth of his head.  As his head grows the head will automatically reshape itself to the curve of the DOC band.  During our weekly visits they will trim the band where needed.

Our first night wearing was a difficult one for Andrew.  Of course, it didn't help that he, along with Aaron, had his second set of immunization shots that same day.  Not a really smart Mom to schedule them both the same day.  Early this morning he was fussy and having a hard time returning to sleep so Steve removed the band an he went right to sleep.  For the first two days of adjusting to wearing the band, it's supposed to be removed periodically.  

Despite wearing this band Andrew looks just as cute as ever.  He is still his happy and cheerful self.

I had to add this picture too.  Last Sunday while Steve was taking a nap after church both babies awoke early from their naps and I was trying to do deal with them both.  Finally, I took Aaron downstairs and told Steve to cuddle him close and I had no doubt Aaron would fall back asleep.  Sure enough, when I went downstairs a while later they were both sacked out.  They look so comfortable.

Tummy Time

Before bringing each baby home from the hospital I was lectured by nurses to ensure tummy time became a frequent activity in our home.  One of the reasons was to prevent the possibility of them getting a flat head, or plagiocephaly, from lying on their backs so much.  Well, Andrew has it anyway, despite any efforts on my part to ensure tummy time and change their positions. It started during pregnancy since there were two babies and room was tight and he was shoved head down low in the uterus.  Five weeks in the NICU, where the first two weeks he couldn't be repositioned due to recovery, didn't help either.

Last week I had them on their stomachs for a few minutes.  It's not their favorite position and after a few minutes they begin to whimper.  But they're getting better and stronger.

These first two pictures are of Aaron & Andrew doing their very best to look up at me:

Aaron

Andrew

Then, after a couple of minutes, they give up.  This is just too hard!

Aaron

Andrew

Baby Shower

The beautiful cake and other decadent desserts!

This last Thursday some good friends of mine threw me a baby shower/open house.  It wasn't the first one someone planned for me.  On April 10, following my doctor's appointment, I intended to go to the school I'd taught at where my teacher friends had planned a shower.  Later that evening friends in my ward had gone to great lengths to throw me one.  To my utter surprise my doctor said rather than attend baby showers I would be having a birthday party- I was going straight to the hospital and having our twins.  What??!!!  You've got to be kidding? They were supposed to come for another two weeks.  So I had to call my friends and tell them I couldn't be there.  And since I was to be the center of attention (which isn't my thing) there would be no parties.  The babies ended up coming the next morning because 5 minutes before we were to go to the O.R. we got bumped.  Anyway, back to my point.  What was I talking about again?  Oh, yeah, not the first shower.  A third shower with my neighbors was to be that Saturday.  So I never had one.  

Friends were so generous to bring by their gifts over throughout the next couple of months.  Since Andrew was still in the hospital and we were dealing with his health issues my mind was else where.  So a shower never happened.  But I have a couple of friends who told me I HAD to have a shower, that everyone needs one, and I'm glad they did.  I, of course, am so grateful for my friends who put so much effort into  planning the showers that never came into fruition.  You are so thoughtful and kind.  And a big thank you to Michelle and Jessica for throwing this shower/open house.  And thank you to those who were able to come and join in the celebration.  I had a great time and so did the twins. Rather than thinking of it as a shower, it was more of a celebration of our two miracles, Andrew and Aaron.