So many smiles :-)

Leah


Paige


Goofy Girls

So we had a three month appt yesterday - both girls are hovering a healthy 12 pounds! All is good - I can say with a lot of confidence and assurance now that our girls are SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT! Now, if only I could start doing the same....

Will write more when time permits - the girls are being baptised on Sunday - I'll have lots of pics to post next week.

Happy Canada Day, everyone!

Our Living Dolls.

Aren't they sweet? (Leah's in Pink, Paige in the Flowers.)

These were taken on Sunday - what a great - albeit busy - weekend we had.

My vaccuum cleaner broke down last weekend, so a quick call to Electrolux, and a *cough* little bit of cash later, and I've got Central Vac!! Oh my gosh, I vaccuumed for almost 4 hours on Saturday! I love it! (Yeah, I know that love affair wont last long!!)

Saturday night we went to Dianne T's house - she was holding a little going-away party for Eric and Ann H - who are relocating to Edmonton this summer :(

Sunday, my I went SHOPPING! Like, to a mall! Like, for the first time in over three months!! My mom & I took the twins while Paul stayed home with missy P and I so thoroughly enjoyed it. As did the girls - well, Paige slept the entire time, while Leah was just a little curious monkey. Of course, everything I bought was for either the twins or Peyton - oh, I did get myself the Feist CD (which I LOVE, btw.) But it was all about the outing. Then I took the twins out to Chantal & Colin's place - for a birthday celebration - Chantal's (ahem) 29th. Paul chose to keep the busy two year old home, especially seeing as Chantal informed us earlier in the day that the other invitees w/toddlers had all cancelled that afternoon. Yeah, C&C have a nice home with lots of nice things...not the most 2 yr. old friendly joint, at this point. Well, they don't care, but being mom & dad of a bulldozer in a china ware store is a bit nerve wracking. So the twins and I were met by many capable and willing (and wanting) hands, and my arms were baby free for the SECOND evening in a row.
I returned home just in time to tuck the monster in bed. And oh-my-gosh, did she have me in tears! So we read to her. A lot. Like we're supposed to, I know - but we do indeed get a lot of joy out of it, and Peyton LOVES her books. And we know she listens and follows the story and all, and she's even read along with us, and while sitting on the can, she's even read simpler stories to herself, cover to cover. Like Brown Bear, what do you see? Or Polar Bear, what do you hear? Very simple, repetitive books. But on Sunday, when I was tucking her in, she asked me to read "Kiss Good night, Sam" to her. So I did. And then she asked if she could read it to me. Well, this book is a lot more wordy than the others she's read in the past, so I thought I'd let her give it a shot. And in her sweet little 2 year old toddler voice, she read page-by-page the entire book to me. With lots of expression and sound effects (wind blowing, rain splattering, kissing...etc.) And I did my best to stiffle my giggles and the result was tears, just streaming down my face. Peyton knew I was tearing up and she just smuggly grinned at me and continued on with the story. Ah, this is what parenting is ALL about, I tell ya. So proud of my girl. Now if I could only get her to do this to her daddy. Or sing "You are my sunshine" or any of her other 15 million songs to Paul's parents - she just "shies" up when you ask her to!

They really are sponges, literally absorbing and retaining every little thing that happens. Paul's dad has been taking her to playgroup for a couple of weeks, and home she comes singing a song that I didn't teach her - it's hilarious. But even MORE funny is when I catch her using *my* expressions, or mannerisms. I guess I tend to put people (or maybe just her) off quite a bit, because it seems that whenever I ask her to do something, she responds "OK, give me two seconds!" I hardly think she's grasped the concept of time yet (or maybe she has??) Or her everyday good-bye now includes "see you soon!" Yup, me again. Love it. I could eat her up some days. Which is great, because there are a lot of "trying" and challenging times with a two year old, so the good things make the not-so-good times a little easier to get through (this too shall pass.)

The twins have been great - not too many changes to write about. Leah's going through something really weird right now that we're working to resolve - she drinks about 2oz of her bottle, then refuses the rest. I'm not sure what the problem is - I've tried to solve the issue by changing the nipples - we've tried about 5 now. We make sure she's well burped (that's definitely not the issue.) We hold her in a variety of positions. We don't overfeed - I never wake them to feed, we wait for them to fuss before we offer the bottles. I'm at a loss...? She's always been the worst spitter-upper (of the two) but that's been since birth, and I really don't think I'm dealing with a reflux issue. I wonder if her teeth are starting to come, and maybe her mouth hurts. Peyton didn't get her first until 11 months, so that would be odd for us, but every kid's different, right? And I don't think 3 months is too early to teethe. Anyway, we are managing to get her feed into her, it just takes upwards of an hour sometimes. And unfortunately, I'm finding it's getting harder instead of easier with each feed. But she IS eating, so I've got no reason to see the doc yet. We're scheduled for a 3 month exam at the end of the month, so hopefully we can make it until then. Frustrating, though. Particularly at 4:00 AM.

We've had them down to the lake a couple times recently - they're happy to be out for a walk if they're in the carriers (the bums!) Fresh air does wonders for everyone - me too :) Peyton got out and fed the ducks THREE TIMES yesterday. Jenna & I took her out at 7:30 last night, and the ducks were like "ugh, we're SOOO full." I swear, the bread we threw was untouched! The ducks in this lake are being VERY well taken care of, I tell ya.

Anyway, signing off now - but not before I post a link to TRISTAN'S passion http://media.putfile.com/Tristan-and-Shadow
She was in a competition on Saturday and WON FIVE RIBBONS!! Congrats, sweetie - we're proud of you and we'll make it out to one of your competitions one day soon!!

Kari
(xoxoxox)

Blissful times.

The Zombies have LEFT the building!!!

Things are going great – really great. Finally, I might add!

I will admit, this hasn’t been easy. In fact, Paul & I will both say that the first 8ish weeks of the girl’s life have been by far the most difficult of our entire lives. From the severe sleep deprivation, to the constant state of chaos (and never ending list of things to do, that HAVE to be done) to the absolutely BRUTAL "evening fussiness" it’s been a challenge – we’ve been tested, that’s for sure. Despite all the help we’ve been getting (and there’s been a lot) there’ve been some times where we thought we just couldn’t take anymore.

And then, it all turned. Almost overnight. They sleep much better overnight – just one feed, so we’re seeing 5 consecutive hours of sleep, then often another 2-3 hours. They nap better during the day, so we’re able to accomplish more of the other things that need to get done (including QT with the big sis) and best of all, the "evening fussiness" just. magically. stopped.

So our well-rested, better relaxed selves are coping with this new life of ours much better, and we’re even beginning to enjoy it again! That’s definitely not to say that things are easy, by any standard, but we’re managing much better and really, really enjoying our little girlies. All three of them.

You know, Peyton really didn’t prepare us for what REAL parenthood truly was all about. She was SUCH an easy baby, and integrated so seamlessly into our lives, we didn’t miss a beat. So now, when an invite gets thrown our way, it’s really odd to know that there’s so much more planning that needs to be done – we can’t simply pack up THREE little ones and just go anywhere. Strange, and humbling. But I’m REALLY not complaining at all – I like this life we’ve got now, I really do – it’s just very VERY different from the life we had pre-twins.

Well enough about us – about the twins…they had their TWO MONTH appointment last week, and here are the stats: Leah weighed in at 10lbs, 6oz; Paige continues to be about ½ pound smaller, at 9lbs, 15oz. Our girls are growing at an amazing pace! And they’re entering such a great stage. They’re both so interactive, with lots of cooing, smiling and eye contact – the two just melt your heart. Strange, but they don’t like outings. I know they hate their carseats, so trips to the grocery store or wherever are typically spent trying to soothe at least one of them. But I’ve recently also discovered that they’re not too fond of the stroller too. I can’t say that I’ve EVER heard of babies like this – I thought the general rule of thumb was that if you had a fussy baby, you take them for a car ride, or a walk and the change of scenery and pace will calm them. Well, not our babies. They’re happiest just hanging out at home – and THAT I find difficult, because of course in my attempt to regain something close to the body I had pre-twins, I would love to get out walking more. Unfortunately, a walk is a very stressful event, because at least one twin will inevitably be screaming at any given time. Not nice. They do, however, love the snugglies, so Paul & I try to get out on the nice evenings and wear them around. Tonight we went out to the lake and visited with all the new little ducklings. There’ve got to be a few dozen duck families out there – it’s crazy! And Peyton loves to visit them.

Well, that’s the update for now. It’s all good, and I’m told in another month, it’ll be even better.

As always, we love visitors and company – we can always use the extra hands in the household so call us up and drop on by anytime!

I’ll try to update again very soon.
Kari
(xoxoxo)

more pics.

Rain, rain. Go away.

Ugh - this weather is so depressing! We've had small windows of "nice enough" to get outside, but the constant grey and gloominess is sure tiring! And it's going to be like this as far as the forecast can see. Yuck.

So not much has changed in the last couple of weeks - we're still working on that overnight routine, which seems to be improving ... the fussiness is still very much with us - last evening, both babes cried from about 5:30 until 8:30 (but then settled down for the night - tradeoff, I guess.) I do know that one day that'll just stop. At least, I think I remember that it did with Peyton.

Last Friday, my mom & I took the twins to the Superstore for some professional shots - they turned out FANTASTIC. I will at some point scan in the photos, but in the meantime, here's a picture of Leah before we left.
OK, I know I SWORE that I'd never dress these girls alike (when I was pregnant) but so many people have been generous enough to give the girls clothing, and a lot is matching and identical, and you know they're SO DARN CUTE when they're dressed the same....so uh, ya. I didn't keep that promise! And in their first professional shots, they're wearing the same dress. So shoot me (ha.)

Getting to the appointment was a big ordeal. The twins are spitter uppers, in a bad way - so as soon as I got the dresses on, the bibs followed suit. And both girls barfed on their first bib, of course. So pack them in the carseats (and they HATE their carseats, so screaming screaming, screaming) rush to the store, undress them...and then they were complete angels and posed so perfectly! My appointment was at noon, and by 12:17 we were back in the van. Like, undress them, pose them, shoot them, re-dress them, pick out my selection of photos, pay for them, pack the girls back in the carseats, then back home in less than 20 minutes!! The photographer was thrilled - said it was her easiest shoot with twins to date. And she would know, she did THREE SETS of twins the day earlier.

Friday night, I got a break from ALL three girlies. Kerry & Laurie arranged for us to get out to the local Barley Mow, while Heron (with Mitchie) stayed behind with Paul and the girls. Tanya joined us. It was great to be able to enjoy a couple drinks and a meal without any disruption. And to talk about something OTHER than babies! (although a lot of talk WAS indeed about them, I mean, what else do *I* have to talk about these days!!)

Mother's Day was very nice. Paul & Peyton permitted me to sleep until the blissfull hour on 9AM (yeah, I was up at 5:00 AM though!) Paul made us Belgian Waffles with chocolate chips, and we topped them with berries, whip cream and maple syrup - yum! We had my mom and sister's family over for Souvlaki - it was a nice day.

We've found a young lady who will be helping me out during the day from time to time - meet Jennifer! Here's a picture of her "hard at work!" Jenn's in her final year of highschool and although we haven't worked out the specifics yet, she'll be helping me out with all three girls a

couple of days/afternoons a week throughout the summer. She was here on Monday afternoon, and I've got to say I am pretty pleased with how great she was, both with the babies and with Missy Peyton. Ha, as a teenager, I barely liked, forget loved, babies (and kids) so it's weird for me to see someone who does.









On that note, I'll sign off for now and wish everyone a good LONG weekend.

More pictures

I love baby parts.

How sweet are they?
How lucky are we?

The TV.

I am ashamed to admit how much TV I watch. Suffice to say, I know it's too much.
The twins and I pretty much 100% live in our "great room" - the open kitchen/family room. And the TV is always on.
I realized it was too much today when I thought to myself - "I've seen far too much of Tom Cruise this week." Seriously, I've seen him on late TV, on early morning talk shows, I've seen him on all the entertainment shows - and this morning, I saw a preview for Ellen for next week saying he'd be on. I think I've seen every interview he's done.
I guess I don't always HAVE to have the tv on, but really, it's my sanity I guess these days. When I try to pick up a book, Peyton will bring me about 15 of her books to read. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE reading to her and in fact, she's been read to so much that I think she should start reading her books to me. If I turn off the TV and turn on the stereo to listen to something easy-listening (Enya, Norah Jones, Sarah) Peyton complains and asks (NEEDS) me to put on her Sharon, Lois and Bram. Again, I don't mind this, but I can only take so much of "Little Rabbit Foo Foo!" and the never ending "dance mommy! dance!!" But when the TV is on and programmed to something she has no interest in, she will play with her blocks or Little People, or somehow else occupy herself. So it's MY time, I guess.
But how is it that you can have 500 + channels, and still find nothing to watch?? Throughout the day, I am tuned into the talk shows, or news programs. My touch with the outside world, I guess. In the evening, when I would actually LIKE to watch TV, I can't because there's too much going on (and typically a baby is fussing.) And OVERNIGHT, well the early morning feeds are all right because of timeshifting - I can still get the west channels late night shows. But around 4AM? Golden Girls or Infomercials. Or.....well, I'll share a secret with you.
WHEN these little girlies start sleeping through the night, there will be an open invite to this house to everyone and anyone, and I am going to Kick Some Ass at POKER! Yup, bring lots of money, because I've watched enough champion poker games to know all the tricks and strategies. I swear, you can catch a game of poker on the game network at any time throughout the night. I'm so addicted, I'll sometimes stay up a little later than I need to, watching just one more hand (or two.) Yeah, watch out. I'm going to be great, and I need the cash - ha.
Anyway, I know I've said it before - thank GOD these girls were born in the spring, because the nice weather means we can spend a lot of time outside, away from the draw of the television.
And back on the topic of Tom Cruise - what is with this guy? Really now, are he and Kate the first to ever have a child? Not that going to a movie is an option for me right now, but if I could, you'd better believe I wouldn't be seeing his MI3. I just can't take him seriously as an actor anymore, because I can't stand his public persona. Like really, when did he turn into such a nutjob? I wont be watching that episode of Ellen next week. I could recite what he'd say about his new baby girl (and Katie) anyway - it seems so scripted at this point. Oh my, did you hear that he set up a seminar for all the women in his life (mom, sisters, daughter) about the birth and raising of a child? You know, so they could practise such things as changing diapers and what not. Ugh. (yes - too.much.tv.)

Thank goodness the weekend is here. Paul is fantastic about getting up throughout the night to lend a hand when the twins both wake up at the same time, but MAN do I feel guilt about it. Like, I know they're his children too, and they're waking up hungry and definitely need to be tended to right away, but I respect the fact that Paul's got to work Monday to Friday so I will typically try my absolute best to keep him in bed as much as possible. Usually ONE feed, the twins will be off schedule by about 30 mins, so I can do that on my own, but that's about as good as it gets. On the weekends, however I feel no guilt. :) And he's up about as much as I am. So of course, we'll pass the feeding time by watching a movie (rogers on demand ROCKS) - the company and entertainment makes the midnight and early morning feeds not-so-bad.

Well, 5-4 for the good guys with 4 minutes left. Off I go to watch more tv... But not before posting a couple of shots. :)

Pics of Peyton's Playstructure

Quick update today, as everyone is sleeping (for now.)

So pictured at left is the new play structure - and Peyton just loves it! We thought we'd have to buy a little bucket seat for the swing, but after a couple of nasty spills, she's learned to hold on properly to the "big girl" seat and I think she'll manage with what we've got. Speaking of spills, there've been a couple to-date. I mean, pretty big ones where we hold our breath and wonder what damage we'll be dealing with - but she's so TOUGH! She gets up, brushes her knees, elbow, head, whatever - then goes right back at it. OK, sometimes she needs a kiss, but kisses somehow magically fix everything that hurts. But her LEGS, oh-my-God, they're so bruised! Laurie, our neighbour called them "Toddler Legs." Good thing there's an actual term for them - non-parental types might think we're mistreating her!!

The twins are thrilled with the playstructure too. Check out their reactions...















I think Leah's actually catching flies!!

So the twins have actually entered their "fussy period." Boy, is my memory short! I thought the hard evenings wrap up at around 6 weeks, but I guess they actually PEAK at six weeks. Our past three evenings have been spent walking the hallways with one, if not both twins. Paul & I had to eat in shifts last night, which is a first in the 5 weeks (no, I am NOT complaining.) Luckily, they settle down when we're ready (read: desperate) to go to sleep - like last night was about 10:30, but still - it's not a quiet household, particularly between about 7 and 10 PM. Thankfully, we see some humour in it - the constant "wah, WAH, wah, WAH" I'm almost thinking I should record or videotape it because I'm certain it's one of those things I'll forget about (again) soon enough.
Paul had Jeff over for a beer last night, and I think it's the first time I've EVER seen Jeff drink a warm beer - as in, his hands were so tied up holding a babe that his beer had time to warm up!
So needless to say, it takes quite long to accomplish anything in our evenings. From eating, to cleaning up the kitchen, to bathing Peyton and settling her for bed, to even getting the sprinkler on our on the lawn. It's go GO go until at least 10PM. But then, what a terrific night we had. The twins, last night, had their first big stretch between feeds - 5 hours! Could this be a sign of things to come? They fed at 8:30, then woke again at about 1:15 AM. Un-freaken' believable! Of course, they were back to the three hour sched after that, but I think they both SO exhausted themselves crying last night, that when they did wake to feed, they hungrily gobbled up then immediately settled back into a deep state of sleep. I can deal with the hectic evenings if the tradeoff is a good night - for sure.

When everyone wakes this afternoon, we're planning a walk around the lake. My mom spotted the ducks this morning, so I'll bring along the camera and some bread - hopefully we'll get some good shots!

Loving this weather.

Well, I guess I jinxed a good night of sleep last night when I spoke too much yesterday about how I felt maybe their overnight feeding schedule was stretching out. Ya, not going to happen - Paige was a hungry little one and actually had me up within an hour of lying down last night - each time. Ugh. But Paul & Peyton let me have a 2 hour snooze this AM, so the day wont be too blurry...a good thing, as it's so nice outside!
Yesterday, Paul, along with a pile of neighbours and friends, assembled a play structure in the backyard for Peyton - I'll get pictures up of it this afternoon.
Our neighbour giggled that at one point, she actually saw FIVE MEN LOOKING at assembly instructions! Unbelievable! I wish I had a picture of that as proof! What's next, asking for directions when navigating through Montreal?? But in all seriousness, they did a fantastic job and now our biggest challenge will be getting Peyton to come back in the house.
Spring is such a wonderful time to have a baby. Well, aside from the fact that I'm in no shape to put on a pair of shorts anytime soon - but as I write this, the babes are bundled up and snoozing in the backyard with their dad and big sis. Fresh air lends to great sleeping, I think...
We missed Peyton's gymnastic class this morning - a late night last night (hockey) coupled with a bad feeding night (Paige) and my two hour snooze this morning - Paul went out to get some Timmies this morning at around 10AM, and when he was dressing Peyton, it struck us both that we forgot all about the class! Oops! Next week.

Well, I've got to tackle some housework so I can get out and enjoy some of the afternoon, but will post pics a bit later.

:)

OK - what you really want to see.

Enough chat. Here are the goods - I'll try to update often :)

GO SENS GO!!




With Grandma, April 18


Asleep - April 17



With Chantal & Colin - Good Friday


With Mommy - ah yes, I am tired. (April 10)


A visit from Tracy, Good Friday


Awake & Alert - April 21


Our first sweetie!


What a great way to end this post. Restfully at sleep, on their one month birthday (April 28.)

First Post

OK - so we've decided to set up this blog and share our daily life/routine with everybody. The twins are now a month old (as of yesterday!) and I get the feeling a lot of people are sort of stand-offish with us because they think we're swamped and have no time.

Well, they're right :)

Except - we LOVE company! You see, whenever someone phones and asks "is now an okay time for a visit??" the answer is ALWAYS "Oh my God, yes! Your timing is perfect!" And today, I realized why the timing is always perfect - it seems there's ALWAYS use for an extra set of arms. You know, so I could do something else, like fold laundry, or brush my teeth!

So I'll start off with a couple of pictures:

Our # 1 Princess, the child we're currently experiencing the (ahem) terrific two's with!


Peyton Maya - February 4, 2004.













Our "middle" child - the most easy-going baby there ever was...



Leah Caitlyn - March 28, 2006












Finally, our baby - enough said ;)


Paige Emily - March 28, 2006












So these two new little beings have been with us a month now (a month old yesterday!) and we seriously don't know where the time has gone! I could write for hours about what has happened over the last 4.5 weeks, but really, all it boils down to is this:

Feed. Burp. Change. Change again. Oops, burp wasn't good enough and spit up everywhere - must change clothes. "WOOSH!" Ugh. Change again. Cuddle/Rock/Kiss. 30 minute break. Repeat.

OK - so maybe it's not like that ALL the time, but it sometimes feels like it! Of course, there are other things that need to be done too, like feed Peyton and what not...so needless to say, we get virtually NO down time. But man! Have we learned to fall asleep quickly (or maybe we're just THAT tired!!)

But as we approach that magical number of SIX weeks, I think I can say we're starting to see the light of day. Our girls aren't fussy at all - in fact, they're exceptionally good babies (and I should know - Peyton was good as gold) but we're REALLY looking forward to the nighttime feedings stretching out. Just a little bit. Like, 4 hours would be fantastic. And some nights, I feel like that's where we're heading.

We really can't complain - lots of support and help from just about everyone has completely enabled us to live as normal a life as possible. My mom has pretty much moved in - she's with us Monday through Friday from 8AM through 5PM, or 6PM, or until whenever we need her. Others have been kind with making casseroles, or bringing over freshly made meals. Others have taken Peyton off our hands for an hour here or there. And some have just come by for an hour (or 8!) to rock a baby, or just be that extra set of hands in the household from time to time. And boy do we appreciate it - everything.

So the twins stats:
Leah - born 6lbs, 5 oz - at one month, she's weighing in at 8lbs, 3.5 oz!
Paige - born 5lbs, 14 oz - at one month, she's a hefty 7lbs, 13.5 oz!
Can you believe it? 2 POUNDS in one month! Someone told me that once they get to around 10 pounds, they'll sleep through the night. I don't remember with Peyton - she started at around 7-8 weeks...and I am sort of hoping these guys will be about the same. Ah, it's ALL about the sleep (or lack there-of!)

Leah is very sweet natured, and very rarely complains. Except during bath time - she's not fond of being naked. But otherwise, most of our company complains that they never hold her - but that's mainly because she's extremely content, and quietly naps the day away wherever we place her . She's had a bit of a rough time with a pile of skin issues - infant acne, since about 2 wks old, and more recently she developed cradle cap. A nasty case too - in fact, so bad that we brought her to the clinic earlier this week to make sure it wasn't something more serious. But a bit of cortizone cleared it up. I noticed today just how much hair she's lost since birth - she's pretty much bald up top now, and her daddy's nicknamed her "Baldilocks." But, of course, she still looks like a little angel.
















Paige is our little cherub - rounded face with big full lips. She too is sweet natured, but not quite as easy going as her bigger sis. She's been (I hate to use the word) spoiled with handling, and quite likes it. But who wouldn't choose being rocked over sitting in a bouncy chair by yourself?? She a little more short on patience, and as such, she is the one you'll most likely be holding (or pacing with, doing the baby-dance with) when you come to visit. But don't get me wrong - she's still very easy going - just a little more demanding! She's started (just this week) rewarding us with big ear to ear grins, so it's all good :)