Arranged Friendships

Yes - Pictures below!

So, one of the most interesting things about new motherhood is this idea of Mom's groups. Let me start by saying I absolutely love mine and I would probably be a little lost without it. Having a standing weekly date with people who understand why your hair is so greasy is so nice.

But the concept is definitely a little strange, no? I'm not sure how many of you out there are part of a group and/or how you came to be a part of it, but basically mine was the equivalent of an arranged marriage. I joined the local mother's club at large and then was assigned to a "playgroup" of women who had their babies in April, May or June. Thanks for your $45, now here are your new friends!

Amazingly it is a great group of women. My friend keeps saying, "Has the psycho shown her true colors yet?" and I fully expected there to be at least one, right?  But so far so good. In fact, I am pretty thrilled with the group.  One woman brings wine to all our playdates, not caring that they start at 11am. I heart her a lot. Another had a mom and babies TGIF party at 3pm the other day, complete with beer, bubbly and apps. Heaven!

In an attempt to provide myself with more free outings, I've joined another group for twin moms (my other group is all singletons). More coming after our inaugural meeting next week!

Speaking of next week, my triathlon is one week from today. I haven't exactly been training much. I walk all the time, and now with the B0B have been tackling more hilly terrain, but as far as, you know, actual TRAINING... uh no. In fact, I recently convinced myself that it's better if I don't take a run between now and the race. I figure there's not nearly enough time for it to have any training-type effect, and in the worst case I'll injure myself! So, that run will be my first in 13 months. The last being another 5k that I did absolutely no training for. Smaht. This race is even shorter than a true sprint tri, and I know I could complete each component (somewhat) easily on its own, but put all together? Gawd. It could get ugly.

Ok, as promised, photos!

 

This is a happy girl.

 

 

My big man.

The quintessential twin picture

 

Daddy keeping his girl warm.

 

Matty doing his best "sack o flour" imitation at our twins club summer picnic.

 

Matty in the jumperoo - he has no idea what it is, but he likes it!

 

Sarah taking her turn.

 

Once you get your fill of the cuteness, look past the babies to the SEA of baby gear.  It's EVERYWHERE...

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testing Windows Live Writer...

Yawn

Let me start by saying that I'm not posting any photos in this post. I don't blame you if you decide to just move on without reading any further. I get it. I'll make up for it next time, but I'm just too damn lazy to go find the camera AND the cable. Just trust me, they're cute. Gummy, dimply smiles... Drooly, goofy grins... you get the idea.

So, I'm on night 3 of putting them to bed by myself. W has a wicked deadline and has been working til 9 or so for the past week and a half. Last week my mom was around to help out, but this week she's illin', so I'm flying solo. Honestly it hasn't been that bad. I'm pretty tired from being "on" all the time, but other than that it's going ok. Tonight I even went for a higher degree of difficulty by adding in baths! Madness. Of course, as I type I can hear Matthew starting to clamor for his "dreamfeed." Guess I'll deal with him before he wakes his sis.

To be continued...

Ok, let's hope that takes. They've both got colds, so nighttime hasn't been all that fun lately.

Oy. The whining has commenced. FUUUUUUUUCK. Come home W, come home!!! He's supposedly about 10 minutes away. I'm letting M sputter it out - at least until Daddy gets here. It's not like he needs more food. As of yesterday Matthew weighs 15lbs 4 oz to Sarah's waif-like 12-11. She looks so tiny next to him! It's funny, though - girls really do do everything first. She smiled first, grabbed toys first, rolled over first... all that. And now she's gabbing away. He does a Chewbacca like moan, but she has all different kids of sounds that are so friggin' cute. I could chat her up all day long. Especially because the babbling seems to make her SO happy. She giggles and talks and giggles... I just love it.

I feel like I need more angst to blog. I know I'll have this to look back on and I'll enjoy reading all about the day to day stuff, but god I am SO boring, right?

One angsty thing is the fact that my mom is leaving me. She and my stepdad live in Palm Springs during the winter and they're heading down early this year - on October 1. She isn't here every single day, but she does stop by most days and often for a few hours. She has been a lifesaver and I don't know what sort of state we'd all be in if not for her presence. So that begs the question... What the fuck am I going to DOOOOOO????

Thankfully I have my mom's group, but that's only once a week. I will be going on lots of walks, I think.

Also, I'll be busy unpacking... Assuming that all the inspections pass muster, we BOUGHT A HOUSE! Well, they just accepted our offer. So we've got a ways to go, but it's looking good. It's in need of a bit of cosmetic work, so once that's done we'll be moving in. I'm so glad because the winter is coming and our current townhouse is pretty dark. Also, it's on the 2nd floor, so if we're not actually going for a walk, when the dog needs to go out it is QUITE the production. One kid in the bj0rn, one in my arms, poop bag in my pocket, dog on leash and then navigating the stairs without falling. It aint' pretty. The idea of just opening a slider to the backyard is very exciting.

Ok W is finally home! Woo hoo! More frequent, boring posts to come, but from now on punctuated with cute pics.

We're Alive!

I am a sucky blogger of late. My Firef0x has been open for weeks with six trazillion of your wonderful blogs open, just waiting for a moment so that I can comment. I have deep thoughts and supportive things to say, but just not when I've got two hands to type. When I have two hands, it means I have no babies, which means for some reason that my brain turns to absolute mush. And now, look at me - writing my own blog, while yours sit woefully uncommented-upon (by me - I'm sure there are many more together people who have their lives in order).

Since my brain function is fleeting at best, let me get in a few thoughts before it clicks off for the evening:

1. Overall the babies are doing SO great. Matthew is becoming a freaking giant. By our bathroom scale he is about 14.5 pounds. Sarah is around 12. For 16 weeks, that's not so bad! We have our 4 month appointment a couple weeks late on 9/16, so it will be fun to see how tall they are and what their weights are exactly. It still amazes me that my breastmilk makes them grow like this!

2. Speaking of bf'ing, it's still going well. I got another mini case of mastitis, but luckily Matty was extra hungry and he helped clear things out. What a guy. My little sumo wrestler... We are pretty much sticking to an every 3 hour schedule during the days and I nearly always feed them tandem style. This has been a lifesaver!

3. Once feeding time is over, we have a little play time - usually one kid in a bouncy and the other at the "gym". We signed up for gymb0ree class, so we've been going for the last two Mondays. It's probably too early for this, but I swear, they LOVE it! And it gives me good ideas for ways to engage them at home. I've been doing an assload of "itsy bitsy spider" of late. Thank god these two aren't too choosy when it comes to singing. They think I'm good! Or at least funny. They are both giggling all the time and I swear it has to be the best noise I've ever heard. Sarah's is this high-pitched squeak of glee, and Matty's is a bit deeper, but his entire face lights up, including the sweetest little dimples. Sarah contains her smile to her mouth and her eyes, almost like she's trying to hide the fact that she's smiling. I don't know who she's hiding from, but it's also super cute.

4. After playtime is naptime. Could someone let my kids know that? They're not really interested. I guess they just want to hear me sing! But seriously. A lil nap here and there couldn't hurt, could it? Sarah is better at it, and occasionally hers last 2 or 3 hours, but Matty thinks naps are for girls. You'd think he'd be all cranky from the exhaustion, but he is the sweetest, most-smilingest little dude! I will keep trying to put them down after 2 hrs of wake time, a la We1ssbluth, but it's getting a bit disheartening.

5. If only he'd sleep at night! Well, he does sleep, but not for long stretches. He was doing 5-6 hrs, and even did one 7 hour stretch, but now those seem to be gone. We put them down around 7:30, then he's usually up by midnight, then at 3ish, and then again at 6:30. It's no wonder he's so much bigger than his sister, because while he's eating the night away, she's sleeping like a champ. She's pretty good for between 10 and 12 hours, thank GAWD! I don't know what I'd do if they were both up all night. Sometimes we have luck with a good nap within an hour of their 6:30 wake up, but not always. Not even often. Just often enough to make me believe that it can happen.

6. As of two nights ago, we're done swaddling, which is nice. It was getting to be a pain, and Matty kept busting out, so we tried him for a few nights without. He did great, and then we stopped with Sarah, too. She hadn't had any issues with the swaddle, but didn't notice the change.

7. We got a B0B today! I cannot wait to get out on the trail with it! It is a dream compared to the snap-n-go. I mean, I totally love the sng for convenience, but we've been trying to take some fitness walks and it's just not cutting it. The kiddos are a little small for the B0B, but we'll probably make them take a ride tomorrow anyway.

8. Speaking of tomorrow... I'm going to 0utside Lands! It's this big concert in SF featuring two of my favorite bands. I cannot wait! W is staying home with the nugs. It will be great for him to get an idea of how my days are, and even more than that, to just hang with the babies. Basically by the time he gets home it's pretty much time to start the bedtime routine. The poor guy.

9. We had the most wonderful visit from Parker and Jackson (and their parents, of course!). I couldn't believe how big and fun P&J are! And CUTE! Man, are they ever cute. I guess it was good timing to see them when we did, as it was the eve of Watson's boot camp. I'm not sure she'll make it out alive!

10. I'm sure there's much more to say, but my brain is starting to fizzle.

11. Oh wait, I know - WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK with all the diving? Why do they need to do so many dives? They have been doing it for days and days and days. It's absolute insanity. Also? How does that chick analyze the dives so quickly? I mean, I know she probably was a diver and all that, but one's eyes can only take in so much! So, I'm simultaneously annoyed and amazed every time the diving is on, which is ALL THE FUCKING TIME.

Ok, pardon the Olympic rant. Here are some photos...

At my mom's group, just chillin' on the couch. Not sure what Matthew's winking at.

My niece decided that Matty needed some friends for his nap. He actually did sleep pretty well that day, so maybe there's something to it! Note the paci off to the side. Neither baby has ANY interest in them. So devastating.

Posing in these cute outfits from my friend CA.

Tummy time! Although it doesn't last too long these days because they both prefer to roll over. They can both go front to back, and Matthew seems VERY close to going back to front!

As promised

Ridiculous photos...





And from the outtakes...

Shhhhhh!

Babies are sleeping!

And sleeping and sleeping and sleeping!

The routine is kicking ass so far. We've done it every night, even those when we've been out way later than we should be, and night after night the babies fall right to sleep! We had so many nights of it taking forever to get them to sleep, but now they know the drill. Bath, food, slumber.

And the best part? Matthew has started giving us some long stints of shut-eye! The last few nights he's done anywhere between 5 and 6 hours at a time! Love it! And Sarah's been doing 8 to 9. It's just incredible.

I'm fully prepared for them to revolt, but for now I am loving life.

Also, we've been having actual FUN during playtime! Laughter, interaction, the whole works! Sarah's started reaching out for the toys dangling from the gym and on the bouncy chair, and I swear she reached out for Matthew the other day. Plus she's developed a fondness for this one particular elephant. He makes her so happy! And they laugh when I sing, make silly noises and smile at them! It has reduced me to acting quite the fool just to see those gummy grins, but hell, it's just us there, so who cares?!

We had a nice weekend. W had to work on Saturday, but our friends came over with their baby and we just hung out all day. She and I are former roommates, so it's very easy for us to hang out informally. She even took a nap at one point! Also, they live without tv, so she got good and sucked into some HGTV. Eventually W came home and we took the kidlets down to the pool. Unfortunately it was too cold for the littles, but their baby LOVED it. He's almost 6 months and has more meat on his bones, so the cool water didn't bother him. Today I played some tennis with my mom and got to have a swim on my own. GLORIOUS! (Except for the beating my mom gave me on the court. She plays almost every day, but still! It was rough.)

Ok, the laptop's dying and I'm too lazy to go get the power cord. Tomorrow I'll post these RIDICULOUS pictures I took of the babies. I dressed them up in Happy Birthday gear, popped them into the bumbos and will send a framed picture to my brother as his b-day prezzie. I never thought I'd be the type of person to give presents of my kids as gifts, but not even 3 months in, I've caved.

Last thing - I think we're going to make an offer on a house! We'll be a bit stretched, but I would LOVE to have a real house. This townhouse has done the job, but we need a yard and I really want to paint the babies' room orange.

Take Me Out to the...

BALL GAME!

Last night we got a call from my stepsis that her husband's G!ants tickets were available. We knew that we wanted to take the Littles to a game at some point this year, but we didn't think it would be so soon! We had four tickets, so my dad came along and we kept the last seat for the diaper bag.

They were perfectly well-behaved and the talk of Section 222! Sarah ate herself through the first and second inning, but after that she slept with her dad in the Bjorn, so we weren't able to get any good pictures of her. We more than made up for it with cute ones of Matthew, though!





Then tonight just before bathtime we took this picture. It's the first time I've gotten a good picture of Matthew smiling.


Speaking of bathtime tonight, we've instituted a nice routine for bedtime for the past few days. We head upstairs, they get baths, then I feed them and they go down. Not much to it, but at some point we'll incorporate a book. I was also thinking I would get a Baby E1nstein cd to play in their room while W gets them ready before and after the bath*. It's been MUCH easier to get them to sleep in the evenings, but I can't say the routine has done much for how long they sleep. Sarah had been good for 6-8 hrs lately, but then last night she was up nearly every time with her brother, which was 10, 2, 3:30 (swaddling escapage which was only corrected by bf'ing) then 5am. UGH. It's not fun. I'm so cranky by the time the morning rolls around. I just wish Matthew would show ANY teeny bit of interest in lengthening the time he sleeps. Just one 4 hour shot would make me so happy.

Oh well, they're doing great otherwise. That horribly cranky period of about a week ago seems to have passed for now. (As has any immediate thoughts of shelving the boob.) We get lots of happy times during the day. I still struggle with how to transition them from eating (tandem bf'ing) to a bit o' playtime, to naptime. So often I fall into the trap of letting them have the milk-drunk nap on the bf'ing pillow. I know it's not a good long term solution, but as long as I've got the remote, my laptop and some water, it's hard to make a case for moving them, you know? Plus, my mom (aka my only help) has been away for most of this week and won't be back until late next week, so we are just doing whatever we can to survive around here.

They will be 12 weeks old on Thursday, which just blows my mind.

Oh man, W just brought me some oatmeal choc chip cookies. Bye now!

*Bathtime - We got an infant bath at one of our showers, but it seemed like so much of their tiny nekkid bods were out of the water that they had to be freezing! So I've taken to hopping in the real bathtub and having W pass them to me one at a time. They seem to really like it, especially Sarah. I just hold her head and shoulders and she floats around so peacefully. I know I'm going to be shat on any day now, but for now I love bathtime!