Hidden Valley

Here in St. Louis we have a ski complex called Hidden Valley. I have never been there before, maybe it is because I don't know how to ski, but my aunt made all the grandkids on my mom's side of the family go last weekend. I also did not know that they offered tubing in the snow, basically sledding but in a tube. What a surprise...it was a blast. There was a huge hill, and a conveyor helps you on your journey up. You pay for two hours and slide down as often as you like. On this date, the temperature was in the 60's and not too sunny, perfect for sledding. We didn't need winter coats, or gloves. What an experience.

Here are some pics.

Here are all my cousins, not including Jose. I am the oldest, then Dave, then Kevin (in the white hat). Jacob on the bottom left, then his sister Tori (green cap). Michael and Jamie are next, both next to me. And that leaves the great grandkiddo, Josie.


Here is the hill, and all of our tubes are connected in the middle.

At the end of our ride down.

A tired little girl, she played in the mud and snow the whole time!

baby drama

Right before the girls turned four weeks old, Roxie accidentally scratched Kelly's ear. She was excited when our neighbor came over, jumped off the couch and right onto Kelly. This gave her an inch gap on the back of her ear and caused us to make a trip to the hospital. 5 stitches later, and now a nicely healed scar, Kelly is much better.

Then...

At their 2 month appointment, we discovered both girls have thrust, Kelly more than Leanna. It is basically a yeast bacteria in the mouth. It is fairly common in breastfed infants, but requires some work to heal. They are on an antibiotic that has to be administered four times a day and anything that goes into their mouth has to be boiled. So, after every feeding we have to boil the nipples, pacifiers, anything. More medicine for the two ladies. Kelly had the antibiotic for the ear, Leanna is on Zantac, and now this oral medicine.

There was good news out of the doc's office though...

Both girls have gained 5 pounds since leaving the hospital YEAH!!
Kelly is now 10 pounds 7 oz. and Leanna 10 pounds 3 oz. Both are in the 45 % for weight but in the 10% for head circumference and length. Kelly is 21 1/2 inches and Leanna 21 1/4 inches.

They are strong little ones, they are pretty steady holding their heads up and are cooing like crazy. We finally have our first smiles!! What darlings.

Leanna

Kelly

life with twins

Josie and Leanna
Leanna on the top, Kelly on bottom

Leanna on left, Kelly in crease of couch

Kelly

Leanna

It is really funny when Dave and I walk around with two car seats, people have the craziest reactions. It is as though they have never seen a family with twins before. Some want to look at them...that is the Ahhh, How Cute group. Then, there are those who give us the strange eye without saying a thing group. And there are the Twins, Oh My?? group. They then proceed to say, I bet your busy. I always love throwing into the conversation, I have an 18 month old at home too. This just blows their minds. And I giggle on the inside. I know our life is hard, but we continue to feel so blessed. I just keep telling myself that it could be harder.

Here is a run down of our days.

4 AM-Let's start before dawn. I suppose you consider this their first feeding of the day. 5 ounces is the amount at every feeding. It is more than normal for nine week olds, but the doc said if they want it, give the milk to them. Dave and I hardly make eye contact this early in the morning...sleep? Who needs sleep? This is the best stretch in between feedings of the day though, 6 hours from the last feeding. However, it takes them an hour or more to settle down and go back to sleep.

8 AM-Every 4 hours now for a bit. Usually after this feeding, they go back to sleep. This is really beneficial for us, because Josie tends to wake up soon after. This also seems to be the calmest part of the day.

12 noon-Another feeding, and usually a bit of crying before hand. Leanna has a case of acid reflux, which is getting better, but still not the best. Somewhere before or after, I try and get lunch ready.

4 PM-Another feeding. Everyday, or most of the time, I am not alone. A grandma or Dave have been here to help. I keep saying I can handle two kids, but when the third is thrown into the mix, life gets crazy. So if I am by myself, the girls are kind to me (sometimes) and let me feed them one at a time. But, the majority of the time they are hungry together. This means two Boppies and bottle in each mouth. Burping seems to be the tricky part. How do I hold one bottle and burp the other child? I am mastering this skill.

7 PM-now every three hours. Right after this feeding is bath time for Josie and into bed for her by 8 PM.

10 PM-last feeding. We have been better about putting them right into bed after this feeding to try and create a schedule...slowly but surely. After each feeding I also pump, this is harder to do when I am by myself.

My mom and I tried to go to Kohl's with all three the other day, VERY STRESSFUL! Not again for a while. All errands are squeezed onto the day, or Dave does them on his way home from work at 11:30 at night. Thank goodness Schnucks is open 24 hours!! I don't know yet how I am going to go back to work, which is coming up quick. March 14th seems like tomorrow. I just have to trust in those around me.

I know no matter how crazy busy it is, I wouldn't change it for the world...but I can't wait until everyone eats finger foods. I hate bottles...

sledding fun

With the huge amounts of snow we have had this winter, Josie is loving it. She is an outdoor gal anyway, but when she can play in "no" (snow) than it is a great day. FYI-"no" means three things, snow, phone, and no (for this meaning, it is not said very often). These were taken right after I had the babies. My mom and aunt were down for the day and Josie benefited.

just funny

Making Rice Krispy treats. She had a pretty good size diaper rash, so that is why she doesn't have pants. But this look cracks me up! She received a new kitchen for Christmas, so now she has a special interest in the real kitchen. She helps me cook (term used loosely), do dishes, and clean the floors.

A cookie after her hair cut.
Playing with my breast pump. She sees me use it everyday, so I let her put it on her tummy.

Corn anyone? There's her new kitchen in the background. She has the works: food, pots and pans, dinnerware, anything you can imagine. We figured with 3 girls, that this kitchen will get a ton of use. Already has...hopefully Josie doesn't break it before Kelly and Leanna can play with it.

Josie's First Haircut

We went to the Hairy Elephant for Josie's first haircut. I wanted to take her to a kid-friendly spot, and this was the closest and I knew many people who have been there before. Overall, not terribly impressed, but it was cute. The kids sit in cars and get to watch a video. Maybe because it was a Saturday and very busy, or maybe it was having crying twins with us, but it was a bit stressful. My little girl is growing up and looking more adorable everyday. Man, we are proud of her.

Here is Josie's before shot. Her hair was getting awefully long and kept falling in her face...in turn driving me crazy. I didn't have a plan of what I wanted going in, but I loved the outcome.
Intently watching Elmo on the TV. Let's all thank the man who created Sesame Street.

Family shot

Getting her sticker!