Date Night/Instilling Bad Habits

Last night Tom and I had our first date since the girls were born. His parents came up to watch them so we could go to dinner and shopping at Keystone. It was really nice to spend some time together alone...we hadn't been out together since about August, since I was put on bedrest in September, so it was nice to get out. We did miss the girls though and were happy to come home to them. They were great for their grandparents so it looks like we will get to do it again sometime :-) On another note, I feel like we are instilling a bad habit with the little ones. We have discovered that they will sleep for 5-6 hours at a stretch at night if they are in their swings, so we have started letting them sleep there at night. We don't even try to put them in their beds anymore because if they sleep we get to sleep. I fear that this is going to develop into a bad habit, and I really hope that they will go back to sleeping in their bed soon. But I have read and heard of other kids who sleep in their carseats, so I guess whatever works right? So today the crib is leaving the bedroom so the swings can move in, because Tom and I are sick of taking turns sleeping on the couch. Yes, we have slept everywhere with these little ones. On the nursery floor, on the couch and in the guest bedroom in order to be closer to them. I know, one would think that the monitor would work just fine, but they still have this little bad habit of choking in the middle of the night, so I like to be close to them in case this happens. So that is the update from here and I am glad we will get to continue date night, because it was fun!

We have finally joined the ranks

Well, it has taken us long enough, but we have finally joined the ranks of DVR owners. For over a year now I have been wanting a DVR, but we never got one...I guess we thought it was silly or something. Now mind you we never used the VCR, we just missed shows or actually still had people tape them for us, but last night I did it, I made the jump went to Best Buy and bought the DVR. I have felt like a slacking mom, because I know I should be in the nursery doing the last feeding with the lights dim and lullaby's on, but the girls always go to bed right when "my shows" are on and I don't want to miss them. Well, now I don't have to and I am so excited, now I can have the best of both worlds :-) It was really cute last night, Tom got really excited when we started messing around with it since you can pause and rewind live TV, it is really really cool. So it is official, the VCR that has sat in the closet for 2 years now is going bye bye and we can finally say we are officially in the 21st century, ha ha!

6 things you have been told before, but really must do!

As a new mother people are always trying to give you advice. Some of it is beneficial some of it is not. I have discovered, however, that there really are 6 things you must do or remember as a mother.
1. Sleep when the baby or babies are sleeping! You hear it over and over again sleep when they are sleeping, and even though it is hard sometimes to make yourself sleep in the middle of the day, it is essential to do so in order to function. At first I was resistant to sleeping when the girls were sleeping, but now I understand how important it is to get as much sleep as possible, even if you only get an extra 20 minutes it will help you survive.
2. Shower as early in the day as possible. It really is amazing how great a shower can make you feel, even if you know that you are going to get spit up on you the minute you walk out of the bathroom, it is nice to be clean even for 5 minutes.
3. If you can't shower early at least wash your face and brush your teeth. Yes, this is a cover up, but in the long run it makes you feel so much better!
4. Always remember that it took 9 months for your body to stretch and for you to put on that extra weight so it isn't going to come off over night. I have lost a lot of my pregnancy weight, but the skin doesn't hang the same and I still need to lose more, but it has been really hard to remember that it has only been 2.5 months and it takes the average woman 8 months to return completely to her pre-pregnancy body...but it would help if I would get on the treadmill too!
5. Remember to eat. I know this seems simple, but sometimes you get so wrapped up in baby you find it is 2:00 pm and you haven't even had breakfast. You have to take care of yourself in order to take care of the little one.
6. Always follow your intuition. If you think something isn't right then do something about it...if your pediatrician tells you something that doesn't seem right for your child get a second opinion, your babies life might hang in the balance if you don't!
I know these seem like common sense, but sometimes you get so wrapped up in the day to day you forget to take care of yourself and to look forward. Just some things I have learned are really true.

Collars and Princess'

So lately I have been pondering baby clothes and what the makers are thinking when they assemble little outfits for newborns and infants. First off why put collars on newborn clothing. They have no necks so the collars swallow them up and make it look like they are suffocating, then when you try to put a bib on the child looks even more like it is being suffocated. Then, I am all for cute little girl clothes, but why does almost everything say precious or princess or I love mommy on it? They are adorable clothes, but it is almost like we are ingraining from the start that girls are princess and should be treated that way. It is all very odd to me and I love all the clothes but I just find it a little ironic that is all. Yes, I know a random post, but I just noticed all this as I was cleaning out the girls drawers, they are growing out of some of their outfits and we have had to upgrade and retire!

Ironies of Life

Lately I have realized that there are many ironies in life. Many of these have been brought about by my kids. It really is funny what is acceptable as a child, but is frowned upon as an adult. For instance babies are told they are good for burping or passing gas, but in adulthood this is seen as uncouth and disgusting. When a baby snores it is the cutest thing in the world, but when your husband or wife snores, it is just simply annoying. Even the babies passing of gas is cute, because you can't believe something so small can produce something so loud. Eating every hour or too is encouraged as a child, but not as an adult. Changing your outfit more than twice a day is okay as well, even though it will create monsterous amounts of laundry for your parents. It really is funny what starts out being acceptable and encouraged but later is totally frowned on by society. When do these things turn from good behavior to bad behavior? Anyway, this is just an observation I had lately!

Bumpers be gone

Today I had to take the bumpers off the girl's cribs. I cannot believe that they are big enough to be moving around a lot already, but they are. Yesterday I put Maddie in her bed horizontal and when I went back in to check on her she was laying vertical! It is crazy that they will be 2 months old next week and how quickly they are growing. So for safety sake the cute little bumpers had to be removed, although this will make it sooooo much easier to change the sheets I must admit.
In other news Natalie has developed a wonderful habit of crying from 6pm to about 10pm each night. She has to be held and wants to eat constantly, it is crazy the amout of food she is consuming...I believe they call this cluster feeding, but it is amazing to say the least. We are hoping she grows out of this little phase quickly, because the screaming is not her cutest aspect, but we love her all the same!

Back in the Saddle

This week I vowed that I would start walking again and trying to get back into shape...I cannot believe how long it has been since I last exercised and man I am in the worst shape of my life and working out is painful. So on Monday I broke out the old treadmill and started walking, Maddie was sleeping and so was Natalie or so I thought. She then started to fuss so I decided I would try out the snugli and see if she liked that. Much to my surprise she did like it so I walked for a little while with her and then decided I was bouncing around a lot since I hadn't worked out for so long and she would be better off in the crib watching me. Then today I was going a little stir crazy so I thought I would take advantage of the last few nice days out and take the girls for a walk outside. Maddie really likes the stroller rides and sat/slept like a champ as we walked around the neighborhood, Natalie I think was a little hungry but for the most part she enjoyed it too. I enjoyed all the curious looks we got from the neighbors, wondering what exactly was under that blanket! So for now my goal is to walk every other day and to try to get back into shape!

Mini Van Momma

Well, much to my dismay I am officially a Mini Van driving Momma. I know, I know, I swore I would never drive a mini van, but the true need for one could be seen the day we brought the girls home from the hospital and I was squished in the back between the two carseats, it was crazy. So much to my dismay we have purchased a Honda Odyssey. As far as mini vans go it is pretty nice, but the fact remains it is a mini van and I was devasted to trade in my CR-V. I know this is only one of the first scarifices I will have to make for the girls, but I know it is for the best! The safety features are great and there is so much more room that everyone will be happier. and we will actually be able to pack everything we need into the vehicle. The stroller was taking up all the rom in the back that you couldn't even put a bag of groceries in there. So that is the news from here other than I...the person who never leaves the house was sick this week with a fever and some weird cough, but luckily it is starting to clear up, now we just have our fingers crossed that the girls don't get it...that would be a rough one!