5 Months Old

Everyone,

The boys turned 5 months old on Thursday. I can't believe they are getting to be so big! The pregnancy and the worry and the boredom has all pretty much faded away. The boys and Butterfly fill my life up so completely there's not much room for anything else. Juice was asking me what I wanted for my birthday the other day and I couldn't think of anything that wasn't kid related. He apparently thought of something else and it should arrive in 5-10 business days. I'll let you know when it does.

Back to the boys. Remember the cute pictures I got when they were 4 months old? No? Probably because I didn't post them until a few days ago. (Distracted Mommy, what can I say.) The link is here. And I'll pause to let you go read that. I'll go feed Pirate and we'll meet back here in say, 15. Okay? Good.

Well, it is more than 2 hours later. Thank you for waiting while I had a nap too. :) Let's get on with it, shall we?

Pirate has discovered toys! He get bored easily and cries if he's left alone. He is working on mastering the grab and pull to mouth thing that all babies do. He gets it about 80% of the time. I also see the beginnings of a pincher grasp starting up. When he rolls on his belly, he is no longer content to just look around. He is pushing himself up with straight arms or scooting himself up onto his knees (no arms involved). I get the feeling it won't be long until he's mobile! He is easy to smile, and even easier to make laugh. He holds his mouth wide open and his whole face lights up when he sees me. It's so cute. He is looking more and more like Butterfly these days. I noticed just today that his eyelashes seem to have darkened and thickened so he may have gotten Jeff's super awesome lashes. He's sorry but I'm not. I love them. :) He weighs 15 lbs, 7 oz and is 25 and a half inches long by my calculations. He is still in 3-6 month old clothes but I put a long sleeve/long pant outfit on him today that was 6-9 months and it fits perfectly. He sleeps through the night (typically from about 7:30-6am) but getting him to go to sleep is a chore. I get him all settled, all asleep in his bassinet (yes, still sleeping in my room) and about 10 minutes later, he wakes up inconsolable. Juice has been in there patting and rocking back to sleep for 30 minutes or more because I won't nurse him back down. But once he's down after he cries, he's down for good.

Professor is so easy going these days. We've been calling him the velociraptor lately because he has this cry and growl together that sounds like a very angry animal. Mostly it's when he has lost his pacifier. Every time he is on the floor he flips himself on to his belly and stays there most of the time. He can roll from his back to his front and front to back any time he wants but he's been on his belly by choice. Last night I even caught him sleeping on his belly with his bottom in the air. So cute! He can get himself up on his knees very easily. He's interested in toys but they are quickly discarded for his binkie. He loves to 'talk' and babbles to whatever he's looking at if he's in a good mood. He has the sweetest smile with a distinguished dimple and a deep slow chuckle. He's hard to get to laugh but it's very cute when it happens. He is eating a little more regularly now that we are home and I think he is gaining a few ounces. He weighs 14 lbs, 7 oz on my scale and is 26 inches long. I put him in a little footed outfit today and his feet barely fit in them. He looks a little lost in the 6-9 month old clothes unless they are long. The 3-6 month old long outfits are starting to look short. He is up at least 3 times in the night to eat. He is sleeping on his belly full time and seems to be helping some. He is easy to get to sleep but still seems to need those nightly feedings. And since he is small, I let him eat.

As twins they are starting to interact with each other. They love to lay next to each other and will hold hands or try to eat each other's hands. They discovered each other's feet before their own. (Meaning they will stare or try and grab feet when they are close but are just now starting to hold their own feet.) They do smile at each other sometimes. They sleep through each other screaming. They even sleep through Butterfly screaming so I have no idea why they wake up when I say something in a whisper in the room. I am going to move them into their own room as soon as I get all of their bedding washed. Well, Pirate anyway. I think I may keep Professor with me for awhile until he stops waking up so much at night. I am excited to move some furniture around and get every situated in their own rooms.

Safire