I'm that kind of mom

One of my friends recently sent me an e-mail thanking me for not being one of "those moms" who share every achievement about their child- like going pee pee in the potty. Who knows how I'll act in the midst of potty training. I'm not there yet, but let me share where I am right now.

Matt and Will were a little fussy tonight, so after dinner we immediately started running their bath so we could get them to bed. We filled the tub a little too high and when I was putting Will in, he slipped a little and went face first into the water. Tears ensued as they usually do with Will. Chris grabbed Will and I lunged for the drain to let some water out. I slipped and was headed face first for the water but caught myself on the faucet. It scared our already emotional guys, and they started screaming. When I caught myself on the faucet I accidentally hit the hot water which started running. I also knocked the handle off somehow. So now the scalding hot water (it's instant- gotta love it) is filling the tub near my screaming sons and I can't get the handle back to turn it off.

Some peace returns when I get the water turned off and we start bathing the boys. There were still some tears, but everyone settled down. When I took Matt out of the tub, I cuddled with him extra long before getting him into a diaper and PJ's. I did the same for Will. I was holding him close, telling him how sorry Mommy was for scaring him and how much I love him when I feel warm liquid seeping all over the front of me.

Potty training? At this point I'd be happy if they would just go in their diapers.

Matt's two front teeth


Will showing off for the camera

Another week closer to high school graduation

We had a nice Father's Day with Matt and Will. We got to church only a few minutes late and signed the boys up for the nursery. After they scan them in and print off name tags (which are affixed to their backs), you take your babies to their "room" and wait for a volunteer to come get them. There were two volunteers with the "crawlers" and one of them came over to get the boys. She took Matt from me and walked across the room to set him down with another baby. He immediately began to protest, so she scooped him back up, walked over to us and said, "well, I can't hold BOTH of you at the same time!" I just had to chuckle. She was obviously not a twin mom.

The boys were super in the nursery and I kind of paid attention to the service, but I kept looking at the screen that flashes your child's ID in case you need to come to their rescue. The greatest thing about the nursery was that by the time we got home from church, the boys were asleep so we plopped back into bed with them and all took a nap. It doesn't get any better than that!

We decided it was time to get the boys their first basketball goal, so that afternoon after a dip in their blow-up pool the boys got to show off their skills. They've got a lot of work to do. Once Will gets the basketball in his hands, he refuses to give it up. Chris was practically shaking him over the basket in order for him to score. Matt is a serious goal tender and was such a show-off hanging onto the rim.

Will is walking when he feels like it. He took dozens of steps on Father's Day but then refused to walk for the following two days. I have 10 video clips of coaxing him to come to me, and all he does is drop to his knees and crawl.

Matt is back to his biting stage. He tends to do this when he's teething. Apparently, his favorite teether is a very unwilling Will and he's got a nice bite mark on his face to prove it. These are the times that I dream about the day they graduate from high school.

A Mother's Love

I have been reflecting on motherhood so much lately. Perhaps it is because our babies are turning into toddlers right before our eyes. Matt and Will are changing so much and it seems as though it is happening all at once. Will is taking dozens of steps at a time, although only when he is in the mood and definitely not when there is a camera involved. Matt seems to cut a new tooth every other day- we're up to 5- and he prefers to use them on both his brother and me. We turned their car seats around to forward-facing yesterday which means they are both finally 20 pounds. They are eating 3 solid meals a day and using sippy cups at each of those meals. Today they had three meals, a snack and 4 bottles. I promise all I did today was feed boys and clean up from feeding boys. What a life!

I can remember lots of conversations with my Nana about my mom. My mom is the epitome of a mother. She is innately nurturing, loves unconditionally, would sacrifice all for her children, is kind-hearted, can bake a mean chocolate cake- the list could go on and on. I never understood why my mom would give and give and give to me even when she had nothing left to give. My Nana would always tell me that I would understand this type of love when I became a mother. I always kind of brushed that remark off because of course I understood love. Well as usual, my Nana was right.

I was totally unprepared for how I would one day so completely love Matt and Will. Of course I loved them from the minute they began to resemble human beings on the ultrasound, but my love for them did not reach the "heart being ripped from your chest" type love until we brought them home from the hospital. I read a quote once about a mother's love and it was described as watching your heart walk around outside of your body (or something like that). It is so true. And what surprises me most is that I- a cynical, sarcastic, tough love type woman- am completely capable of overflowing with love for my children.

Happy Father's Day

It feels like this is the first Father's Day with Matt and Will, but it's not. It's just that I can't even recall what happened at this time last year. All I know is that Chris and I were in a fog of sleep-deprivation and were just working on auto-pilot to get through each day. That's pretty much how the first year went for me.

It seems like an eternity since that time. Our lives are slowly returning to some sort of order and routine. The day is filled with bottles, meals, clean-up, play, tantrums, laughter and bed-time rituals. Our lives have changed so much from the selfish ways of our first 7 years of marriage. Matt and Will now dictate everything we do. There is no more sleeping in, no more spur of the moment dinners out, no more uninterrupted TV viewing, no more late nights at the office. Our evenings used to be so easy, so relaxed. Now when Chris walks in the door it's like a mad dash to get them in bed at the right time. Get the sippy cups! Put on bibs! Cut up sweet potatoes! Run the bath water! Fix the bottles! Read the book! Say nighty night!

When the boys are finally in bed we then have to return the house to some sort of order- pick up toys, wash down high chairs, wash bottles and sippy cups, clean up the bathroom and do laundry.

What I love about Chris is that he does all of this, day in and day out, without complaint. He's not the kind of dad who walks in from a long day at the office and retreats to his recliner. He comes home ready to play, feed, and bathe. Sure he may not wash bottles, but he definitely knows how to mop a floor!

All I know is that I cannot imagine parenting Matt and Will without Chris. He's more wonderful a father than I could have imagined, and Matt and Will are blessed to be able to call him Dada. Happy Father's Day Chris!

Where did it go?

The boys are obsessed with sports balls- tennis balls, racquetballs, mini soccer balls- you name it. Yesterday Will fell asleep clutching his racquetball. Matt will actually sit and play "ball" with me. He'll throw a ball and I'll throw it back. Other days he's perfectly content playing by himself. He'll throw a ball and then crawl after it- the game goes on and on. The only problem with their obsession is that the balls often roll out of their reach under the furniture. I can often find both of them peering under the couch trying to figure out how to rescue their beloved tennis ball.
I tried a quick and easy recipe that I'd like to share with all my mom friends out there. I'll call it "Quick and Easy Mexican Pie."

Ingredients
1 can reduced fat crescent rolls
1 pound ground meat (turkey, beef, soy crumbles-whatever)
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
1 15-ounce can zesty diced tomatoes
1 15-ounce can black beans (or whatever you fancy)
Taco seasoning to taste
1/2-1 cup low-fat shredded cheese

Directions
Unroll crescent rolls and press into bottom of 9x13 pan
Bake "crust" at 375 until golden brown on top (~10 minutes)
While crust is baking, brown meat in a skillet
Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, beans, and taco seasoning to meat- simmer for a few
minutes
Spoon mixture on top of crust, sprinkle with cheese and return to oven until cheese is
melted. Top with shredded lettuce, tomatoes or salsa. Enjoy!

Twin mischief

Today marked my first day of my new work schedule. All I had to do was get to the office by 10:30. How hard could that be, right?
I started the day at 6:30, changed into walking clothes, did some laundry, brewed my coffee and listened as the boys babbled from their nursery. At 7:00 I stripped them of their pj's, changed diapers, soaked pj's (thanks to some wayward poop), made bottles, fixed toast, fed babies and had my pre-workout snack. While I was doing another load of laundry (thanks to Will's poopy pj's), the boys were getting acquainted with the bathroom.
We always try to keep doors shut in our house, because there's no telling what Matt and Will can get into when left to themselves. Apparently "someone" left the bathroom door open last night, but he was such a great help giving the baths that I won't call him out. So of course Matt and Will make a beeline for the open door and this is where I find them. Will eating toilet paper and Matt decorating. I tell you, all Will thinks about is food!
I quickly herded them out of the room, put them in their best "white trash" outfits (sleeveless rompers that I swore I'd always put on over onesies but decided that it was just too hot today), and loaded them into the stroller. We got back from our walk a little after 9:00 and I put them in the pack n play to watch them duke it out during my shower. By the time I got out, they were seconds away from total annihilation, so I took them into the playroom for a change of scenery. I can usually manage to get myself ready while they play, but they were in full koala bear mode and refused to be anywhere but my arms.
I played with them until our wonderful nanny arrived, gave her instructions for the day and then glanced at the clock- 10:15- time to leave. I still had wet hair, no make-up and no lunch.
I finally breezed into my office at 10:50. It's not like I can just sneak in, because for the past year I have shared an office with my boss. I realize this would totally stink for most people, but I have the greatest boss in the world (who also totally reads this blog, if you know what I mean).
Before I go, I'd like to give a shout out to Shelly at the Revenue Office. She let me cut in line and paid no mind to the fact that my driver's license expired 2 1/2 months ago. Apparently there's a secret identical twin society that offers these special perks. Matt and Will have a big responsibility to pay it forward whenever they get the chance.

Guess what toy is broken?

Since I have been really bad about posting pictures lately, I wanted to share some recent photos. Matt and Will love their push toys. They push them all over the house and Matt can now turn in circles and maneuver his way through all the obstacles in the house. Just today I heard him squealing in delight, and when I peeked around the corner to see what he was doing I caught him ramming his toy into Will. Unbelievably, Will was smiling right back. After I redirected Matt's attention several times while trying not to laugh at him, it finally dawned on me that I needed to video tape him. Of course, when I started taping he lost interest in Will and abandoned the toy altogether.
Matt and Will have tried two new foods this week- grilled cheese sandwiches made with Havarti cheese and fresh Bing cherries. In the highchair pictures, they are enjoying one cherry split between the both of them. Yes, I know. We are really slow and cautious when it comes to introducing solids.
I took Matt to the doctor yesterday for his persistent diaper rash and while we were there, the doctor commented on Matt's interesting teething pattern. He cut his bottom central incisors first, but then he cut a top lateral incisor instead of the expected top central incisors. Thank goodness one of his top central incisors is coming in. I was afraid I would have two draculas crawling around (Will has the exact same teething pattern).
Both Matt and Will get closer and closer to walking every day. If they don't know I'm doing it, I can let go of their hands while they are standing and they can stand unassisted. As soon as they realize they aren't holding onto anything, they drop to their knees. They can walk all over the place just holding onto me with one hand. All they need is a little more self-confidence and they'll be off and running. Apparently, that's when the real fun begins.

Welcome to my life

Thursday night I discovered that my driver's license expired on my birthday- about two months ago. So I decided to get to the revenue office bright and early Friday morning before I had to drive north to meet a friend. I was up by 6:20 and was in the shower when Matt awoke a little earlier than expected. Chris was running late, so he kindly got him out of the crib and changed his diaper. By the time I was out of the shower, Will was awake and the morning rush began. I actually managed to leave the house by 8:10 after I had 1. Changed Will's diaper 2. Prepared two bottles and fed two boys 3. Soaked Matt in a J&J bubble bath followed by a baking soda bath (we're still battling a horrible diaper rash) 3. Wrestled two boys into onesies, pants, shirts and socks 4. Put make-up on and dried my hair and 5. Loaded the double stroller and two boys into the car.



When I arrived at the revenue office I unloaded the stroller, got both the boys securely buckled into it and headed for the front door. Greeting me at the door was a computer generated, laminated sign that read: "The card machine is out of order. We are unable to process driver's licenses at this time."



Are you kidding me? I seriously wanted to march into that office and explain to them what I went through to get there with two babies who had been bathed, dressed and fed. I mean, I HAD MAKE-UP ON. And I USED A HAIR DRYER.



When I calmly explained to the man at the desk that my license was expired he shrugged and told me I better not attract any attention from the police. Believe me, I could have attracted plenty of police attention right about then, but instead I smiled at him through gritted teeth and politely took my leave.

Twins?

One of our neighbors is newly pregnant and her husband told Chris that she has a feeling it might be twins. If I ever see her I will tell her to run immediately to the nearest ultrasound technician and get that "feeling" checked out.
That comment brought me back to the moment we found out we were having twins. I was only 10 weeks pregnant and Chris and I were at our first real appointment with the nurse-midwife. I had been suffering from horrible morning sickness since week 5, and everything I read about morning sickness discussed that being pregnant with multiples could cause symptoms to worsen. I always skipped over that part, because I knew there was no way I was carrying more than one baby.
So Chris and I were with the midwife and she decided to do an ultrasound because she could not confirm I was even pregnant. She pulls out the portable ultrasound machine and starts looking for the baby. Nothing other than a black void appeared on the screen. She then tells me we would be moving down the hall for a mega-powerful-baby-finding ultrasound. At this point I was a little concerned because if they determined I was not pregnant than I was surely dying a horrible nausea filled death.
We moved to the room down the hall and I'm lying there as the midwife is inspecting the screen which was turned away from me. She finally says, "Alright. Here is Baby A." My first reaction? Thank you, Lord, there is a baby! My second reaction? Why do they refer to a baby as Baby A? Not having ever been pregnant before, I assumed this was just the technical way of referring to one baby, but just for the sake of asking I stuttered, "Baby A?"
The midwife replies, "And here is Baby B. You're carrying twins." She was so calm, but I on the other hand was nearly hyperventilating on the table. I remember saying to her, "You're lying! You're lying!" Then I looked over at Chris and he was squeezing my hand, laughing and shaking his head. All he said was,"I better get back to work."
Looking back, I am so glad that I didn't have a "feeling" that I was carrying twins. I am so glad I didn't pay attention to my dreams that only included one baby- a girl. There has never been or will ever be any surprise that can top the moment we discovered we were carrying Baby A and Baby B. We went into that first appointment with nervous excitement about our baby and left having heard the greatest surprise of our lives.