Week of 1/21/08

So not too much happened last week, but I'll give you a summary anyway. This past week was the first week where I worked 7:30-7:30 and Matt took care of the boys by himself during the "witching hours" from about 5:30 'till about 9 every night. I still have a job, Matt can still count to ten and the boys are still alive, so I count that as a victory. We must give credit to Grandma and Grandpap Bevevino for helping Matt out a couple of nights to get him started. What would we do without them!?! We found out that Bryan has yet another ear infection - thanks for the warning April! Because of this, Bryan has been "red flagged" by the Dr. and if he gets another one right away, then he'll have to see a specialist to make sure it's not something more serious. Jonathan is still in great health - other than a runny nose, but hey, we can't all be perfect.
Matt and I got a lot done this weekend and we're finally feeling like we're making some progress on some renovations that were put on hold when I went on bed rest...in June '06. At least it hasn't been a full year!
We've also decided that it was about time that we stop complaining about being so tired and start doing something about it. Namely, taking vitamins, eating healthier, and starting a workout plan. Ok, so we're obviously not going to just change everything right away, but there's some small transitions in progress. For instance, we've cleared out space in the basement for a workout area. Matt has a rewards program with Kraft where he gets free merchandise. He has enough points where he can get a treadmill and a small tv. Then Matt's little bro, AJ, has some weights and a bench press that's been collecting dust in his parent's house, so we'll be borrowing that. And to top it off, Matt will be cancelling his fat tax *cough* I mean his gym membership so we can start using it to pay for something more important, like say, diapers. :) That's a pretty decent start, huh? Wish us luck!
One awesome part of the weekend was a family trip to Red Robin with the 'rents. It's such a kid-friendly restaurant, so we didn't worry if the boys started to fuss, which they didn't, the little angels. Jonathan was in awe of all the decorations on the walls and all the people that were there. Bryan was mesmorized by Grandma's face and latched on every chance he got. It was great to take them out to a restaurant, we'll have to make it a common occurrance so they're used to it and not acting like crazy kids running a muck.
So, I don't have pictures for you once again. I'm sorry! I've been taking pictues though, so I'll just have to download them. Maybe tomorrow at work. I'm writing a reminder on my hand right now!
Side note: Does anyone realize how expensive grapes are now!? They were almost $8 a bunch at my grocery store! Too bad I didn't realize this 'till after I got them home! Oh well, they're still yummy.

High Chairs

So, I brought the high chairs up last week and they're actually sitting in them! I was really quite surprised to see it, but there they were, sitting up and smiling back at me. I think they like being up high and being able to see everything that's going on. They don't like being in it while I'm busy with something too long, like the dishes, but when I'm playing with them or eating dinner with them, they're all about those chairs. They have casters on the bottom, so they love it when I roll them close and then away from me while making funny sounds. It's so cute! I think they're going to like eating in them. We've started to give them their bottles while sitting in them when we can. I took a picture of them in their chairs, but I need to connect the camera, so that could be a few days. I'll post it to this entry when I get it.
Last Thursday, Matt took the boys to the Pediatrician for their 4-month shots. They're 5mos old now, but Bryan was sick when they were first scheduled, so the Dr. pushed them both back so they could be on the same schedule. According to Matt, they did great again. They cried while getting the shots (two on one thigh and one on the other), but they were fine once Matt picked them up. Their weights are: Bryan 13lbs, Jonathan 13lbs 7oz. I'm going to be so strong, or have a broken back, one of the two! Their lengths are: Bryan 23 3/4", Jonathan 23 1/2". So Jonathan has pushed ahead on the weight - way to go! The Dr. said that they are developing great and they are no longer "behind because of their prematurity". To clarify, when you have a premature baby, they have an "adjusted" developmental age that gives them extra time to catch up with a normal developing baby. The twins were one month behind because they were one month early. Make sense? That's about all for now. More to come about my first week of "busy season". Wish me luck...and Matt!!!

Great News!!!

I just got the ok, so I want to share with you all some great news! Bryan and Jonathan are going to have a new cousin in about 9mos! Yep, my sister-in-law, Amy is pregnant!!!! We're super excited! It's still super early, but I could barely contain myself any longer. How exciting!!!

Week of 1/13/08

I'm sorry, I don't have any pictures to share with you this week. We had a few really good "Kodak Moments", but I couldn't find my camera in time. Instead, you'll have to settle for a brief update on the boys. I want desperately to get the boys sleeping in their cribs, so this past Friday night (the 12th), I decided that I would try and get at least one of them put down for the night. I had Jonathan and Matt had Bryan. I want them to just get used to the idea of sleeping in their cribs for awhile before I make them fall asleep by themselves, so I waited until Jonathan fell asleep after his night-time bottle. He slept on his tummy for about 4hrs then he wanted fed again. This is pretty unusual because he normally lasts till about 2-3AM. I expected the sleep to be a lot less than normal since he wasn't cuddled up next to me in bed, so I wasn't worried too much. After I fed him, I tried to do the same as when I first put him down, but he kept on waking up and crying when I laid him down, so he got to sleep in bed with me the rest of the night with the hopes that the number of hours would increase with practice. Saturday night, I had Jonathan again. Pretty much the same thing happened, except that he didn't wake up till his normal 2:30AM feeding. This time I fell asleep before I could get him back into his crib - oops! Sunday night, we tried to put both boys in their cribs, but Bryan only lasted a couple of hours - he's going to be difficult about this, I think. Jonathan surprisingly went back to sleep in his crib after his early-morning feeding with very little fussing. On Monday night, the same occurred, but on Tuesday night(last night), Matt and I were shocked when we realized that Jonathan slept all through the night! YAY!!!! Matt had to wake him up in order to get his diaper and outfit changed for Daycare this morning. He said he was all smiles and wasn't even fussing for his bottle. What a big boy! I was so proud! Bryan slept in his carseat till about his usual 3AM feeding then he got to sleep in bed with us afterwards. That was all my fault, cause I got lazy and didn't want to put him in his crib - he was just way too cuddly. Don't judge! Let's see you lay down Bryan (who's simply irresistable, mind you) at 3AM while he's being all lovey dovey. Here's a picture for reference.. It's just impossible! Well, we're still going to work on it. I figure if we at least give it a try each night that they'll get used to their surroundings, then we'll be able to try the "cry it out" thing.

On another issue, I've been asked about a gazillion times if we've started to feed the boys solids. As of today, the answer is no. They're 5mos on the 19th(can you believe it!), so the timing is about there. I think we're going to wait for a few more weeks. I'd like to see the boys refine their sitting skills a little bit more and I'd like to have them holding their bottles a little better. These aren't requirements, but they're helpful in the whole process. In the mean time, I'm going to lugg the highchairs up from the basement and start to get the twins used to "sitting" in them. Am I crazy for making them wait? I hear there are many benefits to waiting (with alergies), but there are a lot with starting now (sleeping longer, less formula to buy). What are your thoughts?

Week of January 6th, 2008

Since it's been about forever since I've updated the blog, I thought it would be nice to update everyone on the twin's health and goings-on. Jonathan is doing great! He's started to laugh really loud from the belly and it's the greatest sound ever. In development news, Jonathan has started to hold onto his bottle at every feeding now. I expect pretty soon he'll be able to hold it by himself. Yay! A few days after coming home from our Christmas trip, Bryan had a low grade fever. Matt and I assumed this was just a little infection, so we didn't bother calling the Pediatrician, however, he had this fever for over three days, so on the fourth day we took him to the Dr. and it turned out that he got his first ear infection in both ears. yucko! The medicine is giving him some major gas pains, but other than that he's handling everything with a good attitude. On Friday night, Matt and I took the boys over to Grandma and Grandpap Bevevino while we went grocery shopping (the first time since before Christmas). When we came back, Bryan had a new trick to share. If you sit down with him facing you sitting on your lap and let him hold onto your hands, on "three" he'll stand up all on his own. I think he did it about thirty times that night and we've been practicing every day since. He'll be crawling in no time with those muscles! We tried this with Jonathan and he doesn't get the idea yet, but we'll keep on trying.

We did it!

Yes, we survived Christmas 2007. It was close, but we did it. It all started with our drive to Clarion on Saturday at 6AMish. The boys were really great, we did our usual stop every three hours for about an hour to feed and change them. Me, on the other hand didn't do so well. I thought for sure that I was getting the stomach flu once more, but realized that it was my friend, car sickness. Matt graciously stopped about an hour into our trip at a hospital where I made friends with their public restroom. After a hefty dose of dramamine I was feeling much better. There was one other hiccup in Ohio where we stopped for lunch at a Hardees and it took an hour to get two burgers and fries. Apparently they lost our ticket among the million other tickets that they had processed. They gave us our money back and an apology. Luckily, we brought the boys inside and fed them after we ordered so we were feeding them for most of the time anyway. We checked into the hotel around 5PM which makes our whole trip about 11hrs. And I used to complain about a 61/2hr drive from Richmond to Pgh. - what was I thinking!?! That night we ate Chili (of course!) at Grandpap Bevevino's and introduced the boys to everyone there. Here are a couple of those pictures...Aunt Lori with Jonathan. Uncle Shane with Bryan(I think...I know, I'm horrible).

We also spent the next day with the Bevevino side of the family. We ate a lot, laughed a lot, and calmed the boys down after a ton of overstimulating. Here are some more pictures..

Aunt Amy with Jonathan and Skippy.Cousin Erika with Bryan.Great Grandpap Bevevino with Bryan. Look at him chow down on that hand!And Uncle AJ chowing down on one of about 8,000 different kinds of cookies and snacks that were on the table. Check out that enthusiasm!

The next morning, we headed out for Nanny and Popu's house in Glen Hope. That trip only took about 1hr and 45mins. We wished that trip was just a bit shorter! Everyone had a great time seeing the boys. We barely even got to hold them with all the family that wanted to see them. Big families mean lots of love. While at Glen Hope, the boys got to dress up as "Ho Ho" and the real "Ho Ho and Mrs. Santa" came to visit. Here are some pictures...

Nanny with Bryan... Cousin Jessica with her son, Owen, Bryan, and Cousin Janel's son, Brock...Uncle Jim and Aunt Lisa with Jonathan...Cousin Janel with Jonathan... Bryan with Ho Ho and Mrs. Santa....

Christmas Day, we opened gifts from Uncle Shane and Aunt Amy then we drove to Aunt Beth's for some games and more food. Here's a family photo...

The boys were definitely ready to go. That night, they cried for a few hours and there was nothing we could do to stop it. They eventually cried themselves to sleep - thank god! Thankfully, we didn't wake up anyone except for Uncle Jerry which assured us that he wasn't bothered by it.

The drive back home was a little less desirable. We were off to a good start with just a little crying, we took a little detour for a special restaurant in Ohio during lunch, then they were just sick of the whole traveling idea. They cried for a while, then fell asleep again. We were all very happy to be home and in our own beds that night approximately 14hrs later.