Normalcy

I feel like things are getting a little bit back to "normal" around here. Phew!  Not that I don't absolutely LOVE being a mom, but sometimes you just need some things for yourself as well, am I right?!  Last week a girl in the ward held a craft night and since I haven't scrapbooked in 3 1/2 months I jumped at the opportunity to be able to get all my stuff out and have some uninterrupted scrapping time.  My hubby is so sweet and not only let me go, but wanted me to go.  He knows how crazy it is here and I really appreciate that he recognizes that I need some time to do some things for myself as well. I finished 3 two page layouts in the two hours that I was there.  Whoot Whoot!  And then, the babies have been going down between 7 and 8 all week so I have had a few hours at night to veg on the couch, have a movie night with my hubby, or craft!  I can't tell you how much having an outlet is important for me.  Not everyone needs it, but I sure do.  I LOVE being a mom and enjoy the time I spend with my kids.  But I also enjoy the time I have away from my kids too.  I hope that doesn't make me an evil person :)

Here are some layouts I worked on this week.  These along, with some others I am in the middle of, and quite a few digital layouts make me almost completely caught up again!  It feels so good!  You can click on all of them to see them larger.

Layout of their first bath in the hospital

Layout of the first time Daci met the twins

Layout of the birth, I journaled the whole story.  It took up a full page so I will be putting it behind the layout in my book.

A layout of Daci playing in our first snowstorm of the year

And here are some of my digital layouts:

Layout of Family visiting in the hospital

Layout of the twins' first week home

Layout of Livvi's first week at home

Layout of Street's first week at home

I am also really excited to announce that I have entered the 21st century and have an iPhone!!  Whoot Whoot!  It was time for an upgrade and we went for it.  I am in LOVE with it and don't think I will ever be able to go back!  I am especially in love with the Instagram app!  LOVE!  Here are a few random iPhone pics:

My Nakie babies holding hands. Aw!

Street covered in spit up, story of his life!

Drinking her green smoothie

Some of the many faces of Liv.  She is so expressive!  She is also so in love with sucking her fingers lately.

My happy girl

Street has been so much happier lately!  YAY!  He will give me cute little smiles.  This pic cracks me up.  Its like he posed and said, "cheese!"

Daci wearing her princess dress and doing princess puzzles.  She is ALL girl! Love it :)

Street pulls this face a lot.  I think it is hilarious!

Schedules

I've had a break through this week!  I have felt so absolutely out of control since the babies were born that I have started to feel like I am going crazy.  The babies hit 3 months two weeks ago and I decided it was time to institute a schedule, for my sanity as well as theirs.  They took to it soooo well!  I have felt like a new person this week and my babies, especially Street, are new babies as well!  He is doing so well.  He still has his freak outs that are most definitely hard and challenging, but I also have really good moments with him too.  I think this is a combination of things: 1) his new medication seems to be working, 2) he is on a really consistent schedule and getting good sleep, and 3) we got a bumbo and he LOVES sitting up and watching everything.  It also seems to be so much more comfortable with his reflux sitting straight up, rather than just on an incline like he was on in his boppy, swing or carseat.

Here is a sample schedule.  The times vary each day, depending on what time they wake up in the morning, but for the most part this is what its like:

7am: wake up, eat, get dressed, play on my bed

8am: down for morning nap

10am: wake up, eat, play on floor mat, in bumbo, tummy time, etc

12am: nap

1pm: wake up to eat, play, etc

3pm:nap

430pm: wake up to eat, play, etc

6pm: bath

7pm: eat, bedtime

3am: wake up to eat

Pretty much they eat every three hours, and go down 1 1/2-2 hours after they wake up.  They really like their sleep and it helps them sleep better at night when they get good rest during the day.  I guess what all the experts say is true: sleep begets sleep.  Before I started this schedule, I didn't really watch the clock and kinda put them down whenever they got super fussy but I'm realizing they do so much better if I get them down before they get overly tired.  I also didn't always put them down in their crib, they would just fall asleep downstairs with us and then wake up to a little noise a few minutes later.  They were so overly tired.  I have been putting them down in their bedroom this whole week and it has been so much better!

I also have a schedule of my own.  My house has been a wreck for three months.  I found this "chore chart" thing on pinterest and I've started doing it this week and I love it!  While the babies play on my bed in the morning I pick up my bedroom and bathroom, when they go down for their first nap I do laundry and my daily chore for that day of the week. During the second nap, Daci and I work on letters and craft together, and during their third nap I get dinner ready.

Because I feel so much more organized and less chaotic I feel like I am a better mom.  I was so uptight and anxious and would lose my temper really easily.  I have felt much more relaxed and have been able to have a lot more fun with Daci.  We have done some really fun things together this week while the babies were down for naps. We scrapbooked, made cards, made Little Mermaid cupcakes, and started tracing the letters of the alphabet and learning their sounds.

Here are some pictures in their Bumbos. Street LOVES his, Livvi HATES hers :) Like I said in my last post, Livvi doesn't like to work.  She doesn't like using her muscles, so she hates anything that makes her have to do that :)  She hates tummy time, and she hates bumbo time.  They have both gotten so much stronger since we got the Bumbos though.  I swear Street will sit by himself any day now.  His core muscles are so strong....probably has something to do with all the screaming he does too :)  Livvi is also getting stronger.  She will go longer and longer each time sitting up tall in the Bumbo.  But after a few minutes she just slumps over in it. Haha!

He doesn't look all that happy, but he really is :)

He loves it so much, he even fell asleep in it one time :)

Livvi all slumped over, not using her tummy muscles :)

 We went to Park Day with a bunch of people in the ward this week.  Daci loved getting out and the twins really enjoyed a change in scenery as well.

All bundled up in their sweatsuits from GG

Proud big sister. These twins sure put up with a lot of lovin' from their sister.  It looks like she is strangling them!

We put Street in the bumbo on the ground next to the other little boys.  The funny thing is that Street is only 3 months and the other two boys are 9 months and almost a year. Street almost looks like the same size sitting next to them!  Granted, these cute boys are small for their age, but still.

Chillin with his new best friends, Mason and Braden

A few pics showing how much Daci loves her babies:

Daci is always begging me to bake with her.  I got these Little Mermaid cupcake tins and toppers at the party store a little while ago and busted them out this week.  We made a gluten free chocolate cake from scratch and it was delicious!  Daci picked out how we would decorate them.  She picked blue frosting with sparkly sprinkles to look like the ocean...what a smartie pants.  She had SO much fun making Ariel and Flounder cupcakes!

Mmmm!

 We started alphabet tracing pages this week.  Here she is working on the letter "A". She did such a great job!!

I helped her with the first three, and she did the rest

Then we talked about things that start with the letter "A" and she drew them.  She drew two apples (a mommy and a baby), an ant, an angel, and an alligator.

She is still totally obsessed with princesses.  She changes into a new princess dress every hour or so.  I can't keep clothes on that girl unless it is a princess dress.  I secretly love that she is so girly :)

3 Months

The advantage to having sick babies and going to so many doctor visits is that I get to find out exactly how much they weigh :) We went to the doctor in Utah on exactly their 12 week mark and Livvi was 14 lb 8 oz and Street was 14 lb!  These two are chunkers and very tall, especially Livvi!! Everytime someone asks me how old they are and I tell them 3 months, they are always shocked.  They say things like, "Oh!  They are big!" or "Oh! I was expecting much older than that!"

C'mon, how cute are they, anyway?!

I wanted to record a few things that they do as individuals, I feel like I kind of lump them together as one person when I am talking about them, but they couldn't be more completely different babies!


Street:

Oh my handsome little man, where do I start?  You are such a handful!  You also have such a hold on our hearts and I can't imagine my life without you....well, sometimes I imagine it with a lot less screaming :)  You are a colicky, high maintenance child.  We only get a few minutes a day that you are awake and not screaming at the same time but oh how we cherish those moments.  I was able to capture a few of them in these photos.  Normally you have downturned eyes and lips in your photos because you are almost always on the verge of crying, if you aren't already. But, you were in a rare, happy mood this time! It is my favorite when you are awake and somewhat content.  I say somewhat because even when you aren't crying, you can still tell that there is something bothering you.  It breaks my heart to see you so sad, so often.  It can't feel good to have a tight tummy and a constant burning coming up your throat!

You are soooo strong!  You have been strong since day one.  You lifted your head up so well right when you were born and you continue to amaze us with your strength.  You hardly ever relax.  Your muscles are always taught.  Like in the photo above, you are always using your hands and arms, you never just relax them down by your side.  We got a bumbo this week and you have loved sitting up and watching the world around you.  I think it also helps with your reflux, which is another reason you like it.

You still spit up constantly.  From the second you finish your bottle, until the second you start your next one you are spitting up.  We go through about 4-5 outfits a day for you.  We switched your reflux medication and are hoping we will see some improvement soon!

You just started getting neonatal acne...darn it!  You started later than most babies that get it.  Usually it is just ending at 3 months, but yours is starting now.

You aren't a big smiler.  We really have to work to get a smile!  I would say you really started giving us a few smiles at 12 weeks old, but we still don't get them very often.  When we do, it just makes our day!  Because you don't give them very often, you still aren't very good at them :)  Its so funny to watch you try to figure out how to get both corners of your mouth to lift at once!  You usually get one up and then the other one quivers as you try to pull that side up too :)

Your very favorite thing is "the bounce".  If you are upset and screaming your head off, the bounce can usually calm you down.  Unfortunately, you are getting so big that your dad is the only one that can do it anymore, and even then he can't do it for very long.

You are definitely a daddy's boy.  I can get you to give me occasional little smiles, but you like to save your big ones for your daddy.  I'm okay with that, it melts my heart to see my two boys together :)

You are starting to sleep much better!  In Utah (at 12 weeks) you started giving us a 6 hr stretch, and 2 nights you even gave us an 8 hour stretch!  Since we have been back you have gone 7-8 hours each night.  We started moving your bedtime back and you are going down at 8pm and waking up at about 4am to eat, and then you go back to bed until about 7:30am.  Your mommy really loves you for that :)  Now if we can get you to go 2-3 more hours before you wake up, we will be golden!

I love you, little man!



Livvi:

Beautiful Livvi, you are my angel!  I am so lucky and blessed to have you.  You have such a sweet, easy-going and laid back temperament.  This is very helpful when I have a little boy who demands so much of my time.  You are very patient with your little brother, and I don't know if this sounds crazy, but I think you are also very compassionate.  The other day, Street was screaming his head off next to you on the floor mat and I went over to pick him up, and you were looking right at him, and stroking his head, as if you were trying to comfort him.  I know you are just teeny tiny, and maybe you don't understand yet, and it was just a total coincidence, but I really felt that you were trying to make him feel better.

You are such a smiley baby.  It is so much fun to make you smile!  You started smiling at 7 weeks.  You will just stare and stare at me until I make eye contact, and then once I do, you give me the biggest, gummiest grin you can.  It makes my day!  You are also pretty amused by Daci. You usually have a quizzical look on your face like you think she is crazy as she is being silly and then you will all of a sudden give a big smile.  It just makes Daci's day. I'm also glad you are so patient because Daci loves you a little too much, if you know what I mean :) She likes to smother you with her hugs and kisses!

You are a great sleeper at night.  Just like Street, you are going 8 hours and then you get up when he gets up to eat.  I think that if he didn't wake you up with your crying that you would go longer though.  You are very spatially oriented (if thats even a thing?), you will only sleep for me if you are in your little corner of your crib.  Its like as soon as you get put in there and you see the curtains, and the ceiling, you realize how familiar the setting is and you remember that this is where you sleep.  Once I get you in your crib and give you your bink, you are pretty good about falling asleep.  You are not a big binkie girl.  You never want it during the day or to calm down, but you love it when you are really tired and are cuddled up in your corner in your crib.

You are not the strongest of babies :)  Actually, I think you are more indifferent to working...or in other words, lazy :)  You don't like tummy time, you don't like to hold your head up, you don't like to hold your body up when I sit you on my knee.  You just like to sink into yourself.  I think this is why you feel like you are 5 lbs heavier than Street, rather than just 1/2 lb heavier :)

Thank you so much for being patient with me!  You are such a sweet princess!

I wanted to remember how chubby my little rolly pollys are so I took a few diaper pics:

Street

Liv

Left: Street, Right: Liv