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| HAAAAAYYYY EVERYBODY!! |
How are we here already? We survived month TWO?! It's all a blur of bottles, spit-up, and over 1,000 diapers to date. (An average of 20 a day, in case you were curious.)
We see little bits of their personalities starting to show here and there...
Payton is a little more laid-back, unless he needs to be held, in which case he screams until he's in your arms, and then he's good to go. But you better not put him down too quickly (the dishes can wait...) because you'll have to start all over again. He's more patient when it comes to food. Payton has the best burps of the two, which is something I never thought I'd be excited about.
Owen is an easily hangered boy. He goes from happy, sleeping little man to STARVING in a matter of mere seconds, and he will let you know it. However, being hangry about every 3-4 hours, you'd think he'd be an efficient/enthusiastic eater. NOPE. At most, he'll spend an hour taking a 4-5 oz bottle. I have shed tears over this situation. It's rough. I'm a patient mama, but hooooly Moses. Daddy likes to tease that they both get their whininess from their mother...Overall, though, they are happy and calm babies. They have both recently discovered the ceiling fan and it keeps them hypnotized for a good while, which is nice when I need to accomplish something during the day! The best thing they've been doing? Smiling. Big, cheesy, gummy grins!! Nothing in particular prompts the smiling that we can figure out, but it's just too terribly adorable when it does happen! We look forward to when they laugh and giggle!
Now...let's get to the good stuff!
1. Gain laundry sack. My mom gifted us with this for washing their little socks, and it's seriously awesome! We just keep it hanging off the side of their hamper and throw it in with their laundry. We have not lost a sweet little baby sock yet!
2. Simple Wishes Hands-Free Pumping Bra. I know what you're thinking! "Jenny, you look fabulous! Your hair looks so different!" Why thank you!!! I love a good compliment. This bra has changed my life. (Don't you just love a good bra?!) I went from not being able to do anything at all while pumping to writing this blog! TMI? Sorry. But it's probably theeee best $35 I've ever spent on the wonder that is Amazon, and that's saying something. Ladies: don't hesitate to invest in this one if you're going to be pumping. This is a purchase you'll never regret!!! Trust.
3. Flower Designs Coloring Book Speaking of doing things while pumping...I love coloring. There's been a surge recently of coloring books not for 5-year-olds. I purchased this one in April in preparation for potential bed rest, which never happened. But now, with the right bra, I have the option to color about 6x a day. I color mine with good 'ol Crayola colored pencils, the 24 pack with plenty of color options.
4. The Pocket Nanny. We just started using the nifty little devices in the past 2 weeks. Each boy has one assigned to them that we use to track how long it's been since they've eaten, had a diaper changed, pooped, and slept. Otherwise, were trying to remember to write things down which, when you're focused on getting a nap or preventing your house from looking more like a disaster zone than it already does, doesn't always happen and it leaves the other parent guessing. If we only had one little nugget, I'm not sure we'd use this, but with two and not ever being able to remember the exact-ish time they ate last etc, it's totally necessary. They're not on the exact same schedule now, so these are a huuuge help. I plan on sending them to the sitter's as well since she'll have more than one kiddo and might find this handy! They come in blue, green, and pink.
5. Baby Trend Snap N Go Stroller We are loving our stroller! This particular stroller is just a frame to snap your car seats into and go, hence the name. This isn't a forever stroller, but for right now it's great. It folds up really nicely and takes up a lot less space in my tiny trunk than a regular stroller would. It has good storage down below, two cup holders, and a nifty spot to store my phone! It does not have the greatest shocks, so we're the people walking on the street instead of sidewalks. Sorry. (Our town is known for not having the best sidewalks...a sore subject for this town's residents.)
6. Enfamil AR. Freaking formula, I know. Wasn't in my plans at all, but here we are, exclusively using $25/can formula. About 4 weeks ago or so, the boys developed some super obnoxious reflux and had to do something about it. We tried the rice cereal but that stuff does not dissolve that well, so we buy this stuff. This formula is heavier and sits better in their bellies. They don't stay full longer, but it definitely makes a huge difference with the spit-up issue, which makes me very happy!
7. Carter's Terry Teething Bibs These bibs are the bomb.com. We received a few with outfits and not only are they super cute but discovered they are the most absorbent of all the bibs we have. The spit-up doesn't roll all the way down and off of these like other bibs. It's a double layer of super awesome terrycloth with a button in the back. I'm not a fan of the velcro bibs, those come undone way too easily.
They are a bit on the pricey side ($7 with no sale) but with your Carter's Cash (just like Kohl's cash, a vicious circle of spending) then it's a little more justifiable. I picked up the footballs for this fall at $4.something a piece on sale the other day. I know they're fantastic quality so I'm willing to drop a few more dead presidents on them.
Right here is the Amazon link to the same products; more selection than on the Carter's website, which is the link above.
8. This poop chart. Laugh all you want! When you have one baby, you can probably easily remember when they last pooped (I'm assuming. Never only had just one child.) Early on, we would go back and forth trying to remember who pooped and when...not great when you're worried about constipation and they're on an iron supplement, which can cause said constipation. So, with the help of Microsoft Excel, wah-lah! A poop chart. We have it taped to the wall next to their diaper pail with a pen nearby, so we just jot it down after we toss in the turdy diaper! (Bonus points if you can figure out where we changed formulas based on their BM's on this chart!)
9. Tandem feedings: Look at that...the non-cliche husband feeding not just one, but both of his children...AT THE SAME TIME!!! But it hasn't alwasy been like that... we were complete fools for the first 6 weeks. At 2, 5, 8, 11 AM and PM, the boys would be fed. Well, Owen would be fed and diapered. At 2:30, 5:30, 8:30 and 11:30 AM and PM, Payton would be fed and diapered (or whenever Owen finished...he's a painfully slow eater.) Then I'd pump after. What were we thinking!?!? Well, we weren't. My husband, a thinker and slightly less patient person than I, started to become frustrated with this ridiculous feeding schedule. Granted, it's logical and easy to remember but holy cow...who has that kind of time?? Not us. So he consulted this book which contains the answers to all of life's important twin questions, and it said we gotta tandem feed them. So we did...and our lives have changed. You have to work quickly to burp the little nuggets when you're tandem feeding, otherwise they get hangry and it's ugly, but otherwise it's pretty dang great.
5. Baby Trend Snap N Go Stroller We are loving our stroller! This particular stroller is just a frame to snap your car seats into and go, hence the name. This isn't a forever stroller, but for right now it's great. It folds up really nicely and takes up a lot less space in my tiny trunk than a regular stroller would. It has good storage down below, two cup holders, and a nifty spot to store my phone! It does not have the greatest shocks, so we're the people walking on the street instead of sidewalks. Sorry. (Our town is known for not having the best sidewalks...a sore subject for this town's residents.)
6. Enfamil AR. Freaking formula, I know. Wasn't in my plans at all, but here we are, exclusively using $25/can formula. About 4 weeks ago or so, the boys developed some super obnoxious reflux and had to do something about it. We tried the rice cereal but that stuff does not dissolve that well, so we buy this stuff. This formula is heavier and sits better in their bellies. They don't stay full longer, but it definitely makes a huge difference with the spit-up issue, which makes me very happy!
7. Carter's Terry Teething Bibs These bibs are the bomb.com. We received a few with outfits and not only are they super cute but discovered they are the most absorbent of all the bibs we have. The spit-up doesn't roll all the way down and off of these like other bibs. It's a double layer of super awesome terrycloth with a button in the back. I'm not a fan of the velcro bibs, those come undone way too easily.
They are a bit on the pricey side ($7 with no sale) but with your Carter's Cash (just like Kohl's cash, a vicious circle of spending) then it's a little more justifiable. I picked up the footballs for this fall at $4.something a piece on sale the other day. I know they're fantastic quality so I'm willing to drop a few more dead presidents on them.
Right here is the Amazon link to the same products; more selection than on the Carter's website, which is the link above.
8. This poop chart. Laugh all you want! When you have one baby, you can probably easily remember when they last pooped (I'm assuming. Never only had just one child.) Early on, we would go back and forth trying to remember who pooped and when...not great when you're worried about constipation and they're on an iron supplement, which can cause said constipation. So, with the help of Microsoft Excel, wah-lah! A poop chart. We have it taped to the wall next to their diaper pail with a pen nearby, so we just jot it down after we toss in the turdy diaper! (Bonus points if you can figure out where we changed formulas based on their BM's on this chart!)
9. Tandem feedings: Look at that...the non-cliche husband feeding not just one, but both of his children...AT THE SAME TIME!!! But it hasn't alwasy been like that... we were complete fools for the first 6 weeks. At 2, 5, 8, 11 AM and PM, the boys would be fed. Well, Owen would be fed and diapered. At 2:30, 5:30, 8:30 and 11:30 AM and PM, Payton would be fed and diapered (or whenever Owen finished...he's a painfully slow eater.) Then I'd pump after. What were we thinking!?!? Well, we weren't. My husband, a thinker and slightly less patient person than I, started to become frustrated with this ridiculous feeding schedule. Granted, it's logical and easy to remember but holy cow...who has that kind of time?? Not us. So he consulted this book which contains the answers to all of life's important twin questions, and it said we gotta tandem feed them. So we did...and our lives have changed. You have to work quickly to burp the little nuggets when you're tandem feeding, otherwise they get hangry and it's ugly, but otherwise it's pretty dang great.
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| Owen loves photo shoots... |
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| Snuggles on mama's lap after a meltdown duet. |
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| Post bathtime...so fresh and so clean! |
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| I mean, seriously. |
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| All of my boys hanging in the kitchen while I did dishes. |
Smiles!!!!! Above, I was sending my bestie, Alicia, a selfie at 2AM and Payton had perfect timing with that grin. I teared up. Below, I just had the camera ready at the perfect moment. Thank Jesus for iPhones (ok, and Steve Jobs and Co.) How did anyone get pictures of their smiling babies before iPhones?? Those smiles disappear SO quickly.
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