Birth Story

Everyone,

Currently Juice is on the floor holding both boys (who are sucking furiously on their hands...I see a feeding in my future) and playing with Butterfly and her barn and ponies. Wow is he talented or what? And cute besides.

Ahem. Back to the matter at hand. The Birth Story of Pirate and Professor! It's 3 months later (can you believe it's been that long already?!) but I wrote it out about 2 weeks after birth. Most of you know the back story (since I got all the details from the blog) but since it has been 3 months, I will leave it in.



Friday April 11th I went to my normal doctor’s visit. I was 35 weeks, 6 days. As the midwife checked my cervix, she found I was 5 cm dilated and Baby A was so low that things were headed towards delivery. She said not to wait if I felt something going on. Also, my blood pressure was up, 167/ 113. Ouch. The whole office did not expect me to last the weekend. I did not expect to last the weekend. The midwife hugged me on the way out and asked me to really not wait. Okay!

Saturday came and went. Sunday. Then Monday. Then Tuesday. I had another doctor’s visit that day. The doctor checked me and I was still at a 5 and my blood pressure was climbing. 168/113. But there was no protein in my urine and they weren't terribly worried about it. In fact, if I had not brought it up, I don't think my doctor would have said anything about it. But I brought it to his attention and he asked me to come into the office again later that week and get it checked again. He told me that he honestly didn't expect me to last the next couple of days. Neither did I. Or anyone in the office. Again.

I was so uncomfortable. I could barely move and my hips had stretched out so much my ligaments were starting to burn. Wednesday came with a lot of contractions and we considered going into the hospital and just being done with it. But I worried for the boys. I worried that they would not be ready (even though I was)! I worried that they wouldn't be big enough, be able to breath well, have the suck/swallow reflux that I hear only comes late in pregnancy for them. I worried that they would not be able to come home with me and I so wanted them to. So I drank a ton of water, put my feet up and was miserable for the entire day.

On Thursday, I had another doctor's appointment. This time at my perinatologist's office. He saw me checking in and wanted to know what I was doing there! I said I had no idea. Both boys were looking great on the ultrasound and he was concerned more about the fact that I was 5 cm walking around with high blood pressure. He told me that if I did not go into labor by next Wednesday, he would schedule my induction for me. Fine by me! There was no more room for anyone and I was more than ready. I had already decided to go into the hospital on Sunday when my mom got into town so I knew I was not going to make it to Wednesday. I knew birth was close. It just had to be.

Slowly all the worries I had about the boys being healthy melted away that day. I knew that if I were to go into labor, they would be fine. I knew that even if they weren't fine and had to stay in the NICU for awhile, they would still turn out okay. I had done all I could, and now, it was time for them to come.

On Friday, April 18th, I had yet another doctor's visit. This was the one my OB asked me to make to check my blood pressure again. 170/119. And I had the maximum amount of protein in my urine. The first thing the midwife said to me when she walked in the room was, "Guess where you are going?" Of course I knew. I knew I was going to be admitted as soon as the nurse had told me my blood pressure. I had already made peace with it. But I was so nervous. How was I going to handle labor again? I admit I didn't do very well with Butterfly's birth and I felt totally out of control and ripped in half. With these boys' birth hours away, I wondered how it was going to go to deliver two! I had progressed to 6 cm so it was time to go.

We spent the next hour at home gathering up all the last minute things I needed, and arranging child care for Butterfly. I have some really sweet friends in the ward who helped out. I was really relieved that she was going to be so well taken care of and that allowed me to focus on getting these boys here safely. Once we dropped her off, we drove down to the hospital about 10 minutes away. We got closer and closer and I got more nervous! How was this supposed to go? Would I be okay with the epidural? Would the boys be okay? I also felt them moving a lot and thought about how in a matter of hours I was going to see them on the outside. I would see their faces. I would see these movements on the outside! Juice was ready. He kept getting more excited as we got closer. He said I would do wonderfully, and he was so excited to hold these boys. I guess I forget that parenthood kind of starts at the birth for him. He doesn't get to be kicked and bond with the boys before they are born as much as I do. We said a prayer before we went in, and up the elevator we went.

We got lost trying to find the check in desk because the ladies at the information desk told me to go up the main elevator rather than the back elevator (which is what I had taken the 2 times I went to Labor and Delivery before). But the nurses were nice and directed us to the desk where I checked in. We waited in the waiting room and exchanged small talk with a lady who was waiting for a grandchild to be born. I had a momentary pang that my mom couldn't be there for the birth and sitting in that very waiting room.

When they called my name, we followed the nurse to room #12 and met our labor nurse, Maryanne. She was wonderful! She listened to my concerns that things would go very fast like they did with Butterfly. She and I worked out a plan of epidural first, then water breaking, then delivery to present to the doctor. My doctor was Dr. Newbie, a new doctor in my practice. I don't think she was new to OB care, just new to the practice. She was nice, said okay to the plan, and told me that I would be delivering in the OR in case of an emergency. Okay.

It was around noon by the time I got all hooked up to the monitors and things started going. I got an IV with fluid, and we waited for me to be hydrated. We chatted to Maryanne, watched my contractions, and just waited for these boys to be born. Baby B had the hiccoughs so bad that the bed was shaking with each hiccough. They couldn't monitor their heart rates on the monitors because the hiccoughs were so loud. Juice kept asking if I wanted to be read to, watch tv, do something. I couldn't focus my mind on anything but the fact that soon, TODAY, I would be the mother of 3 kids, not just one. I was doing something. I was in labor! Frankly I was a little overwhelmed and just couldn't focus on anything else.

The anaesthesiologist came in and discussed the epidural to me. This was my very first one and I was very nervous. Down the hall, we could hear a lady screaming in pain, and the anaesthesiologist decided to go help her first, and come back and do mine after. Fine with me. We watched my contractions (every 4-3 minutes) and waited some more. My blood pressure was still very high. They were giving me a lot of fluid which normally brings it down. This time it wasn't. Probably because I was so worked up about the birth. I sent Juice to the cafeteria to get some lunch for him since it was around 2pm. I figured nothing was happening and I needed him to be able to focus on me later.

At this point they started me on some magnesium sulfate to try and get my blood pressure down. I was hoping that they would be able to get it to a reasonable level so that they would actually let me have the vaginal birth I wanted. They did tell me at this point, I would have to be on the magnesium sulfate for 24 hours after the birth and I wouldn't be allowed out of bed for those 24 hours. Okay then.

As Juice was finishing his lunch of hamburger and fries, the anaesthesiologist came back and started in on my epidural. I sat up, rounded my back, and shut my eyes. Maryanne held my shoulders and she started. Wow, she was fast and it hurt a little but not as much as I thought it might. I was actually impressed at how easy it was and wondered what I was afraid of. About 4 or 5 minutes later, my feet started to feel tingly and my legs started to feel heavy. It was working! It was actually kind of amazing because at one point I put my hand on my leg and had to look down to make sure what I was touching was my leg. I couldn't feel it in my leg but I could with my hand. Weird!

We were now waiting for the epidural to take full effect. We were visited by Nancy, our bishop's wife who is a baby nurse at the hospital. I was SO HAPPY she was there and was going to be watching out for my babies when they were born. She was also there to cheer me on, and I was surprised at how much I needed someone to just cheer me on that I knew. Yes, Juice was there and he was helpful, but there is something about having another woman there. Besides, she knew where the ice chips were and I didn't ever have to be alone.

About 20 minutes after the epidural, we decided it had taken enough effect. I could still feel the contractions on the top of my uterus and Maryanne showed me how to push the button for more pain relief. Something else that also started to take full effect was the magnesium. My contractions stopped (normal for mag) and we decided to start on some pitocin. Now, I didn't want the pitocin because I think that's why I had such a fast labor with Butterfly. But my contractions went from every 4 to 5 minutes to every 10-12. I was started off on the lowest dose, and immediately my contractions went back up to 3-4 minutes apart. I started to feel some trickling and she checked me. I had a lot of bloody show, and I was close to 8 cm dilated. My doctor came in then and we decided to break my water. Yes! Let's really get this going!

Dr. Newbie broke my water and it was a pressurized stream instead of a huge gush like with Butterfly. And like Butterfly's birth, my contractions suddenly ramped up in intensity. They hurt. Badly. I thought the epidural was supposed to help with this. So did everyone else. I spent a lot of time focusing through the contractions. Maryanne checked me about 10 minutes later when I felt a lot of pressure. Still 8 cm dilated. Only a few contractions later, I started feeling like I needed to move around and couldn't handle the pain any more. I heard Juice say that this is what he remembers from Butterfly's birth, and Maryanne checks me immediately. I am 10 cm and Baby A is starting to crown. They page Dr. Newbie for delivery, and shove scrubs into Juice's hands. He changes quickly and between contractions we take one last picture. Dr. Newbie wanted to deliver in the OR so they get the bed all ready to push me down the hall.

From here, things get a little fuzzy. I remember being wheeled down the hall to the OR and having several back to back contractions on the way. I remember thinking that the breeze they were making while pushing me was nice. I lost track of Juice. (Juice says he got lost!) When we got to the OR they wanted me to move from my bed to the OR table. Yeah, right! I could sit up and lay down and that was it. They helped me slide over, and it wasn't without a lot of pain and determination on my part that I moved a foot to the right. At that point I was in tears and just crying while they moved me around and got situated. The anaesthesiologist showed up at my head and I saw her pushing more medicine into my epidural pump. Juice finally took my hand and having him there made me start to cry even harder.

The lights came down out of the ceiling, Dr. Newbie was there and dressed and they had me hold my legs up to start pushing. Oh it hurt! I couldn't push the full count to 10 and I do remember trying to roll over to the left. Juice held my head up. Maryanne was holding my left leg, and some guy I had no idea who he was was on my right. Maryanne told him you can't be nice to them. She was a good helper, and didn't make me mad and just tried to support me in what I could do. Dr. Newbie was stretching out things and that hurt worse than the pushing. I think I pushed about 10-15 times. I do remember them saying to stop pushing at one point, when I'm assuming Baby A's head was out. Reading the birth report after, he had his cord wrapped around his neck once. One more push and out he came. He did not cry and all I saw of him was the nurses whisking him off to the warmer on the left. I put my head down on the bed, and waited to hear him cry. I do vaguely remember thinking that I was only pregnant with one baby right now, but there was nothing beyond that thought. Pirate finally started to cry and Juice got up to go and see him.

They wheeled the ultrasound machine around to my belly and did a quick look at Baby B to make sure that he was still head down. Dr. Newbie said, "Okay, he's still head down. We need to do this before he turns." She looked right at me and said, "You have to push him down NOW. I will guide his head so we make sure he stays head down." Okay. Juice came back to sit by my head again. Dr. Newbie broke the other bag of water and again, it came out in a pressurized stream. I pushed hard for one contraction. Dr. Newbie nodded and said he's down. I pushed for one more push and suddenly, she had a baby. She scrambled to catch him and Maryanne said, "Sunny side up! He was looking up!" Dr. Newbie had to call to the nurses to come and get Professor. He was very blue and very long. As the nurses took him from Dr. Newbie, he started to squall. And he cried and cried and cried. They had to deep suction out his lungs and he gurgled and choked through the whole thing.

They were 6 minutes apart. Pirate weighed 5 lbs, 13 oz and was 19 and a half inches long at 4:03pm. Professor was 6 lbs, 3 oz and was 19 and a half inches long at 4:09pm. They checked their blood sugar immediately because of my gestational diabetes and both boys were in normal ranges. They put the goop in their eyes and checked their apgar's (9 and 9 for Pirate, 7 and 9 for Professor).

Juice went to look at our sons, and I put my head back and was very thankful that we were able to have the vaginal birth that we had been praying for. I was pretty sure that my epidural did not work as I was in a lot of pain the whole time. The placentas came out in one huge whoosh and I felt instantly 20 lbs lighter. Dr. Newbie started to fix a few minor tears I had. Ouch! I felt that needle. OUCH! OUCH! Okay, she finally got the picture and asked for some local anaesthetic and gave me a shot. OUCH! About a minute later, another poke of a stitch. Yes, I still feel it. Another shot (another OUCH) and finally I couldn't feel anything. Finally.

They moved me back to the other bed, and brought me both boys. They told me how much they weighed, we rejoiced in their being. Wow, twins! They had an A and a B on their hats, and were just so comforting to have in my arms and not in my belly. They took me back to my delivery room and Nancy came in to check them over and give them their first baths. She then asked if I was going to nurse them and we started with Pirate. No problems for either boy. They each got their first shot and were doing fabulously.

After about an hour, they moved me to another room. Apparently, this was the old maternity ward of the hospital. (They are remodeling.) I wasn't allowed to go to the normal mom and baby wing because of my magnesium. They couldn't let me go but they needed the delivery room. So I was in a half way house. Our new nurse came in, told me I was only allowed liquids and brought me a tray with broth, water, and jello on it. Yum. Juice called our babysitter to tell Butterfly she was a big sister (he left a message, they had been at the park) and went home. At that point, they told me I was not allowed to have the boys by myself while I was confined to bed so they took them to the nursery. Juice went home to let the dog out and get something to eat and whatever else he needed to do at home. (Upload a few pictures! You can see them here.)

I don't remember much about the first night. I do remember getting up a few times, Juice sleeping in a very small bed next to me, and enjoying the boys. They were so tiny and perfect. But I was so sleepy and trying to recover. They took my blood pressure every 10 minutes all night long. They took my blood at 3am and again at 6 am. (This was to check the level of magnesium in my blood to make sure that it was doing what it was supposed to do.) I had another lovely breakfast of broth, water, and jello. I sent Juice home as soon as possible to get Butterfly to meet her baby brothers. I tried to sleep while he and the boys were gone, but I couldn't. I was too excited for her to meet them.

The first words out of her mouth when she came in the room was, "Hi Mommy, where are the baby brothers?" She and I snuggled on the bed for a few minutes while Juice went to the nursery to gather the babies. When they came, she held them and did not want to let them go. We finally convinced her to let me feed them and we continued to oh and ah over them. Nana and Grandpa came from Utah this afternoon, and they got to see them when they were about 24 hours old. We had a few more visitors from the ward and talked to a lot of people on the phone. Finally, after 24 hours on the magnesium, they moved me to the mother baby wing and into a really nice room. My blood pressure was coming down, but not very fast. My upper arm had tiny bruises all over it from them taking my blood pressure so much. The only thing I wanted to do was take a shower because I was all sweaty and sticky. They didn't want me to take a shower until the morning because I had just spent a day in bed and had twins and didn't want me to stand up for that long until the morning.

Another very busy and fuzzy night. I do remember Juice telling me the other bed was better than the pull out couch they had for him here and how happy he was for his pillow that he forgot the first night. I don't remember much else. Sunday in the hosptial went very well and we actually took some naps. I watched a few movies on my ipod. We oh and ahed over the babies again. I was finally allowed a shower and felt so much better. That evening, just after dinner, they sent me home. I was so happy to be home and sleep in my own bed.

I just can't believe that we were able to have these babies and they came so healthy and strong. What amazing blessings!

Safire

Teddy Bear Picnic

Everyone,

Here I am, being all crazy again. I took Butterfly and the boys on a teddy bear picnic/train ride today. I wasn't too crazy because I had my mom's group to help. What a fun group of girls and little girls we have. (Oh, and boys too...but they are tiny.) They were very helpful in carting around a baby for me. And I drove like the dickens to get there on time. The town had these little hills in the road and every time I went over one Butterfly would yell "wheeee!" But I made it on time! I was even impressed by myself.

I unbuckled Butterfly in record time and the whole time I'm telling her she needs to be fast and do just what I say when I say it. She jumped out of the car, looked over at the train and yelled, "My Friends!" It was so cute. 2 moms came and got my boys so I could run and buy tickets and they left as soon as we got on.

They took us on a very old train about 2 miles out on the track, and then back down the same track to the local playground. The playground was cute. Very big, quiet, and had lots of old playground equipment that wasn't plastic and 'safe'. Butterfly rode on those little merry go rounds with all the big kids. They got it going so fast they flung her off (she was sitting on the edge) but she hopped right up and wanted to get right back on. Brave! I like that it seemed kind of secluded and I felt like I could let Butterfly just have the run of the area. I took the 4 girls to the park and the rest of the moms watch my boys and it was a nice break for us all I think. Besides, I get to play with Butterfly which I don't get to do often.

They also told the story of Goldie Locks and the Three Bears. All the kids had stuffed bears with them. Butterfly and the boys had the same bear that we got at my old work's kid party. We ate lunch at the park and had a generally good time.

They gave her a tootsie pop at the end of the train ride (seriously, do the kids need candy?!) and she ate it on the way home. And by the time we got home, she had stuck the grime of the park to herself in a sticky slobbery mess. Her mouth, chin, neck, hair and hands were black. So into the bath we go.

She did not get a nap today and was very contrary this afternoon. Finally I gave up, put in a movie and just tried to deal with the boys who were angels on the train and only wanted to eat at home. Pirate was the cutest on the train. He was grabbing his bear, looking at it, jabbering to it, and then munching on it soundly. He'd make a face, pull it back to look at it, jabber, and munch. SO CUTE.

And Professor has got a shy little smile that just melts my heart. Looks like he has the same dimple that Butterfly has (though not as deep) and it shows up when he's happy. I am reminded of Butterfly when she was a baby how we used to do everything we could to see her dimple. I love to see it in both of them.

Safire

PS- Everyone like my new sidebar pictures?

Nap 2, Kids 1

Everyone,

Juice calls me foolhardy. Strangers call me brave. I'm not sure who to believe. The past couple of days I've had to go on a few errands. And while that might not seem like a big deal, it really is a big deal. Yesterday was the kid concert that my town puts on. I typically go and it's really no big deal to go sit on the grass and listen to teen aged girls bop around the stage. It's especially no big deal when friends come because Butterfly plays with them and I can focus on the boys. And the friends' moms help hold babies. But this time no one came. And while I'm okay taking care of everyone at home by myself, being out in public is another story.

(An aside...a mom with toddler twins sat down next to me and commented how cute my boys were and how she never wants to go back to those days. I told her I took that to mean that things will get better. She said I should already know, I already had one. But really, I loved Butterfly's babyhood. I didn't want it to get better because I thought it was the best it could already be. But it did get better. Anyway, another twin mom came up and sat with us too. She also said the boys were cute and that she never wanted to go back to her boys being so tiny. While we were at the vet, yet another twin mom commented on my boys and how she did not want to go back to hers being so small. I am noticing a trend here. Seriously, is this that bad? Granted, without my help I'm feeling a little overwhelmed. And I hate that I am feeling overwhelmed because I hate that I am not enjoying this as much as I enjoyed Butterfly's babyhood. And I know that every child is different and every situation is different, blah blah blah. But I guess I was hoping for a happy time with the boys and all I see right now is bouncing from one to the other. With Butterfly, when she napped I was able to hold her and just stare at her. I felt like I knew her inside out and each little tiny change I was on top of. But the boys are changing so much and I feel like I am missing tons. I feel like the current is sweeping me down the river instead of me paddling down it. And it's sweeping faster than I want it to.)

Totally random aside there. No idea where that all came from but there it is and I don't want to delete it so...there it is.

I was going to have a cute post about how I had 2 kids napping at the same time today and only one up (and crying...Professor is one needy baby) but I can't remember what I was going to say. We did take Soot to the vet after the concert and that was an adventure. But she is healthy and has all of her shots.

And now I can't think about where I was going with this entry because I am currently holed up in the bathroom to get a little bit of privacy to write and I smell smoke which means my dinner is probably burning. Sigh...

Anyone want to join the Disney Vacation Club with me? Because I so totally want to. Going to the happiest place on earth right now sounds...well...seriously stressful. Never mind. Gotta go save dinner.

Safire

Sad News

Everyone,

My friend Karen got some sad news today. Her adoption of a sweet little girl fell through. I know she spent a lot of time and effort preparing for this baby and I am sad for her. Loosing a child can never be easy, especially one that is only a few days old.

While I respect the birth parents' right to change their mind, they also made this adoption decision months ago. They allowed Karen and her husband to be involved in the pregnancy, planning for the baby, and even the birth. I understand how connected you feel to a baby right after they are born. Newborns are sweet. But they had decided to give the baby a better life. Do they think that keeping her will give her the best life? I'm not sure.

I do know that Karen must be heartbroken over this. Please go visit her and leave a comment or your thoughts. This must be very hard for her.

Safire

I won!

Everyone,

I never win! But this time I did. A blog I love was hosting a big Pay It Forward contest. Basically, you have everyone comment on your blog, you pick a winner, you send them a gift, and then the winner gets to host her own contest and send their winner a gift and their winner sends another winner person a gift, etc etc.

So anyway, Swistle had 64 people running this contest at the same time. I only had time to enter 15 of them because I seriously hate typing one handed. Drives me nuts. But I do it a lot in hopes that I will be able to get better at it. Eventually.

Anyway, I won! I was comment #17 on Courtney's blog. Yay! I get a random package in the mail. I love packages. I love packages so much that Butterfly knows the UPS man by name and we always sit and chat. (He is a twin too and told me not to name our boys something really rhymie like his mom did with them. No worries, our boys do not have rhymie names!) Anyway, I'm very excited to see what Courtney comes up with.

And yay for you readers who will have a chance to enter my own pay it forward contest after I receive my package. Let's see how many people come out of the woodwork for it.

Safire

Fun Times

Everyone,

Flower went home yesterday and I am so sad. When Juice took her to the airport, I realized just how much help it was to have someone around. All I really need is someone to hold a fussy baby or help Butterfly find a toy while I've got someone eating. It really is a huge help just to have an extra set of hands willing to entertain small people around here. I've got about 3 weeks before my cousin comes so wish me luck.

The other reason why I'm sad is because having her here gives me an excuse to play tourist. I love living in this area with so much to do all the time. We have been here almost 5 years now and still haven't seen everything. There are a ton of things that I have seen 80 gazillion times though *cough*airandspacemuseamjuice*cough* and I do not wish to see them again. Right now I'm into very kid friendly things to do in the area. I did not like going to Monticello and being told that my child was too loud.

Butterfly is an amazing traveler. She loves to eat at restaurants and is mostly beautifully behaved. She walks a lot, is interested in things, and is generally pleasant even without her nap. The boys are actually turning out to be fairly easy travelers as well. This is good because we are flying to Utah in a few weeks and I'm pretty terrified of the flight there. The only thing I have to watch out for with them is that they actually eat and eat enough. It also leads me to nurse them in different places, including the Lincoln Memorial, the Metro, a blueberry field, watching dolphins and then watching sting rays, sitting with my feet in the ocean and in the front seat of our new van.

So, a list of things we did with Flower:
Kiddie Pool, Sandy Point Beach, monuments, Smithsonian, Baltimore Aquarium, ice cream, blueberry picking, Annapolis, mall (not the one down town, a mall with stores), the Amish Market, baby doctor visits, the movies (we went to see Wall-E...so cute!), a few kid concerts, Youth Conference with my church, the resource center, and the farmer's market. We've had a busy month with her! I loved it and I miss her already even though she hasn't even been gone 24 hours.

She was fun to talk to when we got lost in Baltimore when we went to the aquarium. She was fun to talk to when we got lost going to the mall. (Okay, I'm getting lost a lot these days!) She was a huge help in carting the boys around the aquarium, and running around with Butterfly when I had to stop and feed them. She was just a huge help all around.

Thanks again for coming!

Safire

Twins twins!

Everyone,

A great big congrats and shout out to my sil and her family who just had her twin girls yesterday. Everyone is doing very well! Check out her blog for more info.

I am just so excited that our boys have twin cousins their own age and that Splats and I will have the same stuff pretty much going on at the same time like school and friends and super busy nights right now. It's going to be so much fun!

Safire

More Pictures

Everyone,

I have a moment to myself (Pirate is asleep, Professor is awake and happy in his bouncer, Butterfly is in bed.) so I thought I'd upload a few more pictures of things we've done this week. For more in depth talk about them, check out my friends' Laura and Lis's blogs.

We also went to a goodbye party for one of my friends in my mom's group who is moving out of state. We are so sad to see her and her kids go but one of us had to be the first to go, right? We will miss them a lot.

We've been out pretty much every day this week (beyond the beach and berry picking we've been to the Amish market and all around our town here). Professor has finally decided pacifiers are good and he's smiling up a storm now. They are so cute together in this picture.

Anyway, I probably won't be posting much in the next few days as we have a few things to go and see while Flower is still with us. But once she's back home (sniff sniff) and I have long days by myself and 3 kids I will attempt to catch up on blogging. I still owe a birth story and the boys' 2 month old stats and pictures. Busy busy busy.

Safire

Butterfly's 3 Year Old Update

Everyone,

I think I am sleep deprived because I'm not sure if I updated you on Butterfly's 3 year old stats. Probably not since they came almost a month later. When she turned 2, we were in Disneyland and I didn't get home until a month later. The peditrician's office wouldn't schedule something within the calander year because insurance doesn't always pay for it. So we went around June 3rd.

Butterfly is a big girl. She is as big as a 5 year old. Seriously. She is 45 lbs and 47 inches. (I can't find my little book they wrote it down in so we're going by my seriously lacking sleepless brain here.) She wears size 4-5 clothes, no more in the toddler sizes! She also wears a size 10 toddler shoe. I think this fall I will probably have to buy her regular kid shoes because she is so big. She is going to be so tall!

She has a memory like a steel trap and cries if she remembers something that we didn't do. She is also throwing tantrums if something happens that isn't in her time line. Like today, Flower went up to Butterfly's room to get the ponies. Butterfly played down here for a few minutes, and then went to go up to get something. On the way up, she met Flower coming down with the ponies. Apparently that was not in order and she broke down and cried. Arg...it's so frustrating sometimes.

I love that she loves to play so much. I love that she is a great eater and I never worry if she's getting enough. I love that she only wants Pirate to sit next to her in the van. I love that she is so active and so loving.

Here is her 3 year old slide show. It's pretty long so I understand if only my parents watch it. :) Enjoy Mom and Dad!

Safire

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Pictures Equals A Thousand Words

Everyone,

Too many things have been happening lately to blog about right now. Here's just a picture update of fun things we've been doing with Flower. (I'm not typing a big thing out because I am always feeding a baby and I hate typing one handed...)
Safire

Swimming with the Tots

Everyone,

My ward (okay, me...I organized it) had a tot pool takeover at our bishop's kiddie pool. We had so much fun! It was a scorcher day (over 90 degrees with the heat index putting us over 100 that day) but the water was deliciously cool and the kids ran and splashed and jumped and threw things and dug water and played with bath toys, etc. It was a great time.

Butterfly was so happy that bff Vinny was there. And Andrew and Rachel too. I spent most of the time at the pool nursing poor hot little boys who didn't enjoy the water on their feet. (Those blankets in the picture are just purely for shade purposes.) But I was able to have a few hands free moments. I also dumped Flower off of the big foam alligator they have anchored in their pool. It was a fun time!



PS- Thanks to my friend Laura who took these pictures with her camera that is exactly like mine. :)

One Rough Night

Everyone,

I have had probably the roughest night yet. I think I got about 2 hours total. Not 2 hours together. As I got into bed (late...need to go to bed earlier!), I fed both boys and Professor dropped off like magic. Juice wrapped him up and I proceeded to feed Pirate between his huge smiles. It was cute the first 15 times or so. But as 1am approached, it was time to stop. So I just flipped off the light, laid down and fell promptly asleep with him nursing/smiling away.

About 45 minutes later, Professor woke up screaming because he is alone! Again! Where is my mommy?!?! I put Pirate down in his bassinet, picked up Professor and fed him back to sleep. Just as I was starting to drift off, Pirate (who I must say was unceremoniously dumped in his bed...I was shaky and dazed by the jolting awake) was unhappy at being alone and started to fuss. I don't say cry because he rarely does this. He just fusses. I listened to the fuss as I rocked Professor into a deep sleep, gently laid him down, tucked him in, and soothed him back to sleep.

So I pick up Pirate and nurse him back down for about 10 minutes. In that time, I listened to Professor ramp himself back up to screaming. I put Pirate down a little nicer this time, and he stayed asleep. (With his arms over his head...so cute!) I poked Juice and got him to change Professor's diaper. I immediately went to sleep while he changed, and woke up about 2 minutes later when I was handed a very unhappy little boy. Some snuggle time, some nursing, and some rocking later and he was asleep. As soon as he was asleep, I glanced at the clock. 3:13 am. Great. Now I can sleep.

I did not put Professor down but held him in the crook of my arm while I dozed. He woke up around 4am, had a dream feed (love that phrase) and dropped off deep enough for me to put him in his bed. By now, Pirate was up again to eat so I quickly fed him and plopped him back into his bed where he stretched his arms up and went right to sleep.

Ahhh...both boys asleep! And only 5am! I fell asleep with my glasses on sitting propped up in bed. I know this because I woke up about an hour later when Juice's alarm went off at 6:15am. I took off my glasses, moved all of my propping pillows and sank into oblivion.

Juice said good bye around 6:45am, I think I nodded at him. I can't be sure. At 7:05am, Professor woke screaming again. I'm alone!! Where is my Mommy?!?! A diaper change, a feeding and we both crashed on the bed. Pirate woke up around 8am as happy as a lark and ready to eat. And smile, and eat, and smile. He woke me up with his happiness and I played/talked/nursed him for about 45 minutes. By 9am, I figured I should get up and eat before Butterfly woke up. As soon as my feet touched the floor, Professor woke up screaming. Where are you GOING? You're LEAVING me?! I took both boys downstairs and put them on the floor to play while I ate.

Butterfly woke up about 2 minutes later (just after my first bite of food...can kids sense these things?!) and I set down my cereal to go get her. A change out of pjs, a change of sheets (they were very wet) and a change to the kitchen. I fed her some cereal and had another bite of my now soggy stuff. Professor started to cry. So he cried for a bit so I could eat something.

Another change and feeding later (for both babies), and I am finally in a position to get showered. Yay for Flower to play with Butterfly and keep an eye on the boys so I can take my own sweet time. But just as I was getting in, I hear Professor sobbing so I rushed through it and quickly (meaning, didn't get all the way dry before I threw clothes on) and back downstairs to a hysterical Professor and Pirate just starting to cry (meaning he's gone beyond his fussing).

I feed both boys and they both drop off to sleep within about 20 minutes. By this time, it's lunch time for Butterfly. She cries through lunch because she picked sandwiches and not mac and cheese but she really did want mac and cheese! I gave her sandwiches. And put her down for a nap. Then I took both awake boys upstairs and put us all down for naps.

Well, tried to. They cried/fussed/nursed for about 2 hours. Back and forth. Back and forth. By the time Juice got home, I was feeling like a zombie and he made pizza while I tried to settle the boys. I think they finally got quiet around 7:30pm, and then it was time to put Butterfly to bed. The Butterfly who only wants her mommy right now. So by 8:30pm, I was finally getting myself something to eat and thinking about going to bed. Instead, I stayed up and watched a movie with Flower, loving the fact that I didn't have a baby attached to me and Butterfly was quiet.

It can't always be like this. And I suppose it won't always be like this. Most of our nights are very peaceful. The boys get up one after the other, and go back to sleep nicely. So I'm not sure why we had such a rough night but we did. I knew the sleepless nights were coming. And honestly, I just worry that they will impact my milk supply. I don't mind staying up so much for them. They will only be this little once.

I think once is enough.

Safire

Blessing Pictures

Everyone,

Here are the much requested photos of the boys in their blessing outfits. I played with them a little in iphoto and they turned out pretty good. I love the way Professor's outfit glows in his picture, and how sharp Pirate's outfit is. And you have to have one together!

I also included a picture of Butterfly and her bff Vinny on the blessing day. Those two sure do love to play together. When Butterfly saw Vinny at the party she said, "Well hi Vinny!" and gave him a huge hug. So cute!

Safire

What a Week

Everyone,

It's been a whirlwind week for us. My parents have been visiting all week and left to go home this afternoon. This has also been a week-of-serious-car-buying. Yes, you read right. We are buying a car. Bought. Van. We bought a van on Tuesday. Okay so it wasn't a week of car buying. Only two days of it. It felt like a week though. My dad and I furiously rushed around the local car places in hour and a half increments throughout the days. That was as long as the boys could go between feedings. I felt bad for my mom and Flower the last day because both boys were inconsolable towards the end. They did very good and allowed us to find a great car. Van. I mean van.

Butterfly wants to name the van Sally or Lightning McQueen. "Or we could call it Chick because it's green! And Chick is green!" Our van is green. I'm leaning towards calling the van Fern but Butterfly won't let me. Anyway, for all you car people, the van is a 2004 Kia Sedona with 14,000 miles on it. The miles were right. The size was a bit small but we can fit all the kids and us in it plus one. It does have a dvd player in it. The price was excellent. We were able to buy it out right. I love not having a car payment!

I also love having doors that slide so I don't have to worry about hitting other cars with them. I love being able to unlock the doors from a key chain. (A funny story about that. Our friend Julien came to visit about a month ago and said he needed to check if he locked the doors of his rental car. He walked outside, took about 5 steps, and walked back inside. Juice asked him if he could see from there if it was locked or if he had a cool key chain thing. Julien said, "Juice, everyone but you has a cool key chain thing." It was so true. And now we have one! Sweet!) I love that I can fit my strollers in the back (although I do have to take the wheels off). And I love that now we can actually go somewhere with everyone, including Flower. Yay for space!

So, all day Monday and Tuesday I spent driving cars. Wednesday we drove to the mall and got the kids' pictures taken. (Super cute, email me for the password if you want to see.) And then we spent 3 hours trying to get home. There was a huge storm (go here for a video of it). It downed trees all over the area. And of course, we were trying to get home through the back roads. Which had more downed trees and downed power lines. We had to stop twice to feed the babies. (Once in front of our bishop's house where a tree had smashed a car and their roof! No one got hurt thank goodness.) I had been in touch with Juice and we still had power but a lot of people didn't in the area. It was nice to finally get home.

On Friday, our good friends who moved away to St. Louis, came to visit. We had a great time with them! And it just confirmed to me that boys will never grow up because Juice and Juilen spent the morning shooting each other with foam guns and missiles. Never mind that the kids wanted to play too! I really miss them and it was fun to have a morning to connect again.

I feel like we have been moving all day, every day. Add on to that taking care of the twins and Butterfly (could not have been done without Flower!), I am exhausted. But this is just the beginning of summer for me. And I love it!

Safire

PS- All local gals, we are invited to swim at the bishop's kiddie pool on Tuesday at 10am! Hope to see you there.

Blessing

Everyone,

It's been a very busy couple of days. I have a lot of good posts coming up (birth story! Butterfly's 3 year old stats! 6 week doctor visit for me!). But let's start with the blessing.

Since there were so many of us pregnant in my ward, the boys and our good friends' baby Brooklyn were blessed on Sunday. We had a lot of family come from Virginia and the grandparents from Utah came too. Also, we have Flower (our niece) who has come to stay with us for a month and help out with Butterfly. She is 14 and a huge help!

Anyway, the blessing. Our friends were able to join us too and it was great to see everyone. The blessings went really well. They weren't very different, which is interesting. I thought they might be. Pirate's blessing commented on his patience and Professor's blessing commented on his loudness. Because he is loud. But he didn't cry through the blessing and I was sure he would. A nice meeting.

We all went home (except for Butterfly...she had to go to her class! And then to the party! Okay? Okay.) and had some sandwiches and salads in the park behind our house. It was really nice and everyone was having a great time.

Everyone was winding down and I was sitting by my parents. We thought maybe we should start gathering the food up because it looked a little cloudy and they were calling for showers in the afternoon. My dad said he felt a drop so the 3 of us stood up to go start moving food inside. And that's when the heavens opened. It poured. People ran for the food, ran for the babies, and ran for cover. We got everything inside without being too wet and everyone kind of stood around on our deck and under trees for about 20 minutes. And then we kind of migrated inside.

It was great to have everyone in my house, but it was hot and kind of in disarray. I had not anticipated people being inside that much so the food and everything was craziness. But that's okay. The boys had a great time being held by everyone, and I think it was a good time.

The only thing that I'm sad about (a little) is that in all the commotion, I wasn't able to get pictures of the boys in their blessing outfits. Maybe one of the grandpas got it. Still, I think tomorrow we will put them back in their outfits and get a picture done.

Safire

Stroller Talk

Everyone,

Okay, so let's talk strollers. When I found out I was pregnant with twins, I started researching strollers. I have to admit, I am a stroller-a-holic. I seriously need to go to strollers anonymous because I have 3 strollers for Butterfly. One child, 3 strollers.

Stroller #1- We got this stroller with our car seat when I was pregnant with Butterfly. It was huge and we found it was hard to push around our neighborhood with all of our stairs. We used it a few times with the car seat, but found it was easier to carry her around.

Stroller #2- We bought it to push her around the neighborhood when she got too heavy to carry on our nightly walks. Actually, I think we bought it to take with us on one of our many trips to Utah. It was cheep and if it got trashed on the airplane, no big deal. We used it every night after that to walk around the neighborhood with.

Stroller #3- A Christmas present to me from Juice. It's lightweight, has a carrying strap, and I love it. This is the stroller I take with me everywhere for Butterfly. It lives in our car. It's been hiking (easy to sling over a shoulder when the pushing gets too tough), downtown, down the street, several different states (like Hawaii), and to the beach. We have really used this stroller and it shows. It's starting to wear down.

Since that stroller is starting to wear down, I decided to get a new one with baby #2. I decided on a really nice stroller. That pregnancy didn't work out. And when we found out we were having twins, I switched to their double stroller. But then I heard some rave reviews about a different stroller. So when we went to the store to look at the strollers, I test drove a lot of strollers. And I really liked the different stroller.

I liked it so much more than my first stroller, that we decided to get a BOB dulie. I love this stroller. And the reason why we bought a BOB over a Phil and Ted's stroller? The sun flaps that come down were longer and had little windows in them to see the kids. We took it hiking around the lake by our house (and I use the term hiking loosely since the path is paved). We did push it on the grass some and up hills. It was no harder than pushing it on a paved path. Loving the stroller.

Hiking was cut short by Butterfly grabbing a thorny bush and getting a HUGE thorn in her hand. Luckily I started carrying around the kitchen sink in my diaper bag again because we were able to clean up all the blood and bandage it.

We did see this heron on the dock on the way home. The lake is a heron nesting sight and we see them around the area all the time. This guy likes to stand on the dock when the fishermen are there and steal their fish when they catch them. He must enough to have him stay on the dock so calmly. I was about an arms length away from him.

Bottom line: I love the BOB stroller. Do not touch thorny bushes. Try fishing away from the main dock.

Safire

PS- Yes, I have one more stroller. That makes a grand total of 5 strollers for 3 kids. This other stroller is a snap and go for their car seats. I'd like for it to live in the car while the boys are in their car seats. It is kind of hard to push. But I got it for free and the lady said I was the 3rd family to use it. It's nice to not have to pull them out of their car seats to get out and walk around. However, if I need to pull one out of the car seat, I can't push the snap and go with one hand and hold the other twin. (I can with the BOB.) Still, it works fine and when the boys grow out of it, I'll pass it along to another family. Honestly, I haven't been out much to actually use either stroller extensively but I hope to this summer. And of course, since the boys are in a stroller, Butterfly wants to be in hers too. That's been fun. Good thing I haven't gone out alone and needed a stroller. We'll have that fight when we're alone.

Summer Smiling

Everyone,

Yesterday I got two very small half smiles from Pirate. You could tell he was thinking about it both times. Today, he gave me a HUGE toothless grin! He looked so happy and pleased to see me. Wow, it's amazing how much these smiles make everything worth it. They can't come at a more needed time!

Professor gave a small half smile to Juice yesterday too so we're hopeful that the smiley phase is coming for both of them. It's my favorite stage. I love these little smiles.

Juice played hooky today and we all went to the recourse center and showed Daddy around. We did a craft, enjoyed circle time, and played with dolls. Well, Juice did all of that with Butterfly, I sat and talked to my friend Laura while the boys slept. A fun morning!

We then stopped by a fast food place for lunch (why not make a day of it?) and as we were leaving, we saw a semi hit a bright yellow convertible in the intersection. The convertible was going very fast, and I think the semi thought the convertible was not going to go through the light so he started to go. They met right in the middle. The yellow convertible spun around, hit a van right behind the semi's trailer, and skidded to a stop. Ouch. And who should step out of the convertible but a cop in all her gear. Ooohhh...not good for the semi driver.

We are getting ready for the boys' blessing this weekend. I will be making the great chicken salad tomorrow, and we have a bunch of tables and chairs being delivered so we can have ourselves some food outside. I love having spring babies so we can have all their parties outside. It also helps that we are right next to a park! I'm excited to see these guys in their blessing outfits. And of course, pictures will be coming!

Safire

Happy Memorial Day!

Everyone,

BBQ was eaten. Flags were flown. Babies were passed around. Swimming and summer plans were made. Popsicles were eaten. Fun times were had by all!

I love my ward.

Safire

FAQs

Everyone,

Here are some answers to your frequently asked questions:

1- They are sleeping as newborns sleep...in 2 to 3 hour stretches. I am lucky at night that they get their diaper changed (thanks Daddy!), eat, and go right back to sleep. I do try to keep them up some during the day so they will be tired and sleep at night. I also try to get them to sleep the same time Butterfly takes a nap so I can nap or do whatever.

Now, our nights are far from peaceful. Mostly Professor wakes up first, screams through his diaper change, eats for about 20-30 minutes and wants to be cuddled for a few minutes or he's back to screaming the millisecond I put him down. So we cuddle (me very sleepily, he very happily and also sleepily). I wrap him up, put him down and pick up a stirring Pirate. Sometimes Pirate is not stirring. Sometimes he is screaming and Juice has to deal with him until I am done feeding Professor. (Tandem feeding is not something I do at night, I just can't yet.)

Pirate also eats for 20-30 minutes, and wants to be cuddled a little too. Oh, and he has to be burped so that takes a few minutes. I often find myself jolting awake while patting him...I'm going to actually burp him in my sleep one of these days. He goes down, I fall into whatever position I happen to fall into on the bed and am out. Repeat in about an hour, hour and a half because it's taken me over an hour to get everyone sleeping again, and Professor will wake up for his meals on time.

2- They are totally different. Their faces, their bodies, their cries, everything about them are totally different. I have never seen twins so completely different as these guys except for my second cousins. (One is tall and red headed, the other short and dark.) Maybe it's because I spend a lot of time with them, but I don't really understand when people say they look very similar. Similar in size, yes. But everything else, no!

3- We are doing fine. Yes we are sleep deprived, some times cranky and sometimes silly. But isn't every new parent? We do manage to get Juice to work at reasonable hours (you know, before 11am) and we do manage to do things like go to church or to the grocery store. We are doing fine, if only surviving. That really was my only goal for the first 3 months was to survive.

4- Butterfly is doing okay. She is doing better than she was at the beginning of the month. She has started to include her baby brothers in prayers and night time good nights which is a big deal. She does want me to do things like carry her down the stairs because I carried the baby brothers down the stairs or feed her but those are little things in my mind and I am happy to do them for her. She cries a lot, throws a lot of tantrums, and I am frankly too tired to deal with them. Ignoring them sometimes works, enforced nap time works, and distraction works.

5- We are glad grandparents are here to play with Butterfly! She is warming up to them and will actually ask them questions now. Yay!

6- Pirate's heart thing that they watched so closely in utero was gone the moment he came out. This was our best case scenario. (Granted the worst case scenario was watching it till it went away but still...)

Any other questions?

Safire

We Are Sleep Deprived and Slap Happy

Everyone,

Juice was changing a little diaper (not uncommon in our house) late last night. We were making comments about Pirate and his internet name. Somehow money came up.

Juice said, "Well, he doesn't have a lot of booty but he sure does make a lot of golden nuggets."

Har har har. Let's just say pirate jokes abound right now.

Safire

One Month Old

Everyone,

The boys were one month old yesterday. I wanted to wait until I had their official stats to do an update on them. We went to the doctor this afternoon (no accidents on us this time! we are getting better!) and here you go.

Pirate- 21 inches long, head circumference: 14 1/4 inches, and weight: 8 lbs, 1 oz. You read it right, 8 pounds! He has gained almost 2 pounds since birth in just one short month. I just can't believe how big he's getting. He has also grown an inch and a half. He also got a shot for hepatitis B which he cried over. He doesn't typically cry much but he was not happy about this activity. Poor little guy. I hate getting shots too! Right now he is in the 25th percentile for everything, which is a good size. He is doing all the stuff he should be of eating, making nose, tracking, focusing on faces, peeing, pooping.

Professor- 21 inches long, head circumference 14 5/8 inches, and weight: 8 lbs, 3.5 oz. This boy has gained 2 whole pounds since birth in one month. My dad says that's right around a 30% growth rate. I just can't believe how big he is getting too! All those feedings late at night are really paying off. He is doing all of the developmental things like making noise, eating, peeing, pooping, and starting to track just a little. He is also in the 25th percentile for everything. He got his Hepatitis B shot today. Poor little guy cried so hard he gave himself the hiccoughs.

They are doing fantastic! I can't believe how good they are doing, and that it's been a whole month since they came into the world. I still am amazed that we are a family of 6 (including the dog) and that we are surviving. Honestly, when I thought of the first month of twins at home, I thought of just surviving and not doing much else. And that's what happening. I am starting to get a little bit of my life into a new kind of normal. Things don't seem to be as frantic as the first couple of weeks. But it's still kind of crazy here. Although I think with 3 kids, crazy is the new normal.

Check out my dad's blog for a cute little video of the boys.

Safire

To Butterfly

Butterfly,

Or Big Sister Baby Girl Honey Baby Red Bird (insert the rest of your full name here). I love that you have nick names for yourself. It's probably because for the first 10 months of your life, we only called you Baby Girl. I read in a book that you should turn in response to your name so I tried and tried it. You would not turn around! Finally, I said, "Hey Baby Girl!" and your head whipped around. Oh. I started calling you by your first name then, although I'd say we still called you Baby Girl 80% of the time. So I love that you have different names for yourself.

And even though you call yourself a lot of different things, you definitely know who you are. You have a stubborn streak a mile wide and I love that about you. I hate it when we butt heads on things like nap time or whether or not it's dinner time, but I love that you stick to your guns. I think it will serve you well in the future if you don't let it get the best of you.

I love how you are a mix of girly girl and tom boy. You love to wear dresses and dance to music and dress up. But your favorite toys are cars and tools and aren't afraid to get dirty. You can change the batteries in your music light all by yourself (with supervision of course).

I can't wait to see how the baby brothers react to you. They are going to love you! And you are going to love them, or at least love to boss them around. I know our ordered life has turned to chaos because of their arrival, but I really do think you'll have a great relationship. At least I hope you do. I feel like my brother and I are very close, and I hope for that for you 3 as well.

Thank you for going to bed when we insist. Thank you for loving your bath and saying things like "I want you because I love you and I love you because I want you to do [insert thing here]." Thank you for insisting that we say good night to everyone from me and Daddy to the Christmas Tree and asking the house to stay here.

We love you Baby Girl!

Mommy, Daddy, and the Brothers

To Pirate

Dear Pirate,

I can't believe how patient and pathetic you are. As loud as your brother is, you are not. But you pull the most sad pathetic faces that I just can't help but love them. I think you will probably be a lip pouter as I was. I never realized how cute that is!

You do actually sleep fairly regularly. However, you also pee all over me fairly regularly too. Like yesterday, when you peed, pooped, spit up and sneezed all over me in about an hour's time. I didn't even change my clothes because why bother? Thanks for that. I think.

And I'm still trying to figure out the mystery of your peeling forehead/eyebrow area. It's beginning to annoy me. But your cute little ear notch distracts me from your flaky skin.

Love,
Your Mom

PS- You know how Professor used to smack his lips after he nursed? Well, you do it before. It's so nice to know how happy you are to have mommy around.

To Professor

Dear Professor,

I know you are only 3 weeks old, but do you think you could at least sleep for longer than an hour? And when you are sleeping, do you think that you could stop grunting and squeaking long enough for me to at least get the 20 minutes of sleep at a time that I seem to be getting?

Much love,
Your Mom

PS- I think your eyes may be staying blue! You are staring up at me adoringly (and are also partially forgiven for not sleeping) and your eyes are so bright blue they remind me of the spring sky we had yesterday.

I Went, I Cut, I Couldn't Leave

Everyone,

This afternoon I went and got my hair cut. I gave up a nice nap because when I left, all the kids were sleeping. But my hair had to go. It was so long. It was long enough that as I was brushing it, I couldn't brush the ends because my arm did not go that far back. It was brushing my forearms when I was standing up and my arms were straight down. It was attacking Juice at night. He was begging me to cut it. I was begging myself to cut it. So I broke down, skipped my nap, and went.

I went to the local kid's place because if I donated it to Locks of Love, they would cut my hair for free. Okay then. Free hair cut, check! They were fast. The lady put my hair in a pony tail, snipped and then braided it to send away. Once she got my hair off, I thought, "My hair!" Although I was not sad to see it go. She evened everything out and told me horror stories about working there. Like people being bit so hard by kids they had to have stitches! Does not pay to work in a kiddie salon!

I was there 10 minutes and then went back out to my car (by way of the free samples at the cinnamon roll place...was all about free stuff today).

I was all excited to be able to get back to my house in record time and I was sure that the boys needed me or something. I hopped into my car, put the key in, got a tiny "rrrr...rrrr" and then nothing. Ohhhh...I tried again. I waited a few minutes and tried again. Nothing. Sigh. I called Juice. And then I called my in laws to come and get me.

Luckily, the hair cutting place was in the mall and I parked right in front of S*ears. So they brought out their little battery check machine to my car, got it at least started and got it into the work bay area. They checked the battery: dead. New battery installed in about 30 minutes (it pays to tell the worker who is checking you in that you have 3 week old twins at home and they are pretty fast).

It was nice to have my father in law there to come and get me and to help me through the whole battery process thing. Because frankly, I hate the car stuff. If Juice could do it all the time, he would. I even hate going to get the oil changed. I will do it because it makes sense for me to do it but I still don't like it at all. So thanks New Grandpa! (This is what Butterfly calls him...my dad is Old Grandpa because they were here first visiting.)

So I did get home. Before the boys needed to eat even (although Grandma had to convince Professor to hold out with a pacifier until I got there). I'm just happy that the hair is gone. It will be much cooler in the summer!

Safire

To Jill and Everyone Who Sent Stuff

Everyone,

Thanks for the little gifts! They have been a lot of fun to get in the mail. The boys got these sweet little outfits from Jill (see her blog here). They also came with hats but apparently they got my big head because the hats did not fit on them. But not to worry Jill, they have your hats on in my siggy picture, even though you can't see them. :)

I actually stayed the whole time at church yesterday instead of skipping out after sacrament meeting. And I took both boys to relief society and enjoyed the lesson. Why? Because everyone at church swooped in and wanted to hold the boys. Sure! I love that our ward has been so supportive and helpful with these guys. The bishop even mentioned to Juice that he loved 'hearing' from Professor during sacrament meeting (the boy has a set of lungs on him!)

Safire

Happy Birthday Butterfly!

Everyone,

Butterfly is 3 today. 3! I can't believe it's been 3 years since she came into our lives. She has grown up so much. It's interesting to have newborns again and think that this time 3 years ago, we had another newborn. She was so small. She was so new. And we were new to parenting. While we didn't know what to expect (because what brand new parent does?) we were so ready for her to join us.

Because it took us so long to have her in the first place, I suppose it's fitting that today was our annual baby reunion with our infertility clinic. They have a big party every year for those who have had success with them. They have clowns, face painting, pictures, and balloons. Butterfly got a purple dog balloon from the clown Bubbles. Everyone oohed and ahhed over the boys, and Butterfly ran around having fun with her dog on a leash. We also had yummy lunch and I got to talk to all my old work buddies.

When we got home from the party, Juice took a nap and Butterfly and I played with her new cars and new tea set from Nana and Grandpa. Dinner happened, and then cake. We ordered her an ice cream cake and I got to enjoy some this time! Yum! She was having a hard time blowing out the candles because she was blowing over them and not on them. Very cute. We each had 2 pieces of cake (except Grandpa who only had one) and opened a few presents.

Juice and I got her a little laptop of her own. It has Cinderella on it and you can use a magic wand to make the choices, or use the glass slipper mouse to move the cursor around. It is SO CUTE and you should have seen the look on her face. Oh wait, I think I have it on camera. She loved it and I'm expecting to be annoyed with in by this time next week. Good times.

I still can't believe she is 3 years old. Where does the time go? She can count to twenty (although she thinks that 1100 is right after 20 and the end of counting), she knows most of the shapes, most of the colors, and can recognize her name. Her friend from my mom's group sent her a few little books and by the end of reading them, she could recognize the word 'woof'. She runs, she jumps, she pretends like there is no tomorrow and all she wants to do is play. She says, "aww, a baby!" every time I pick one of her brother's up. She thinks every dress she puts on is a dancing dress and has to have music. Although not the same music that she likes for every day. She likes faster songs for every day, and only likes to listen to classical music if she has a dress on. Go figure.

I think she is having a harder time adjusting to the brothers than she always lets on. The past couple of days she has not been her usual cheerful self. She is crying more often. I can tell it's a fake cry, but she is crying none the less. She also bit Juice this afternoon. We had our new stroller out with the boys at the party today and she wanted to help push it. Fine. Except it has a tendency to tip backward and she was pulling on it. I finally told her she couldn't push it if she kept pulling it down. So she stopped and started to cry. We needed to get home so Juice just picked her up and we headed out to the car. She cried she wanted to get down. He told her he would put her down when she stopped crying and would walk. Her answer to that was to bite him. Boy did she get yelled at. And then she cried harder because she was in trouble. Ugh. 3 is turning out to be harder than 2.

But it's amazing to be able to have a chance to parent someone who is 3 and a new big sister. I hope that we will be able to do a good job. Juice said that he remembers things when he was 3 years old, so I'm hoping that we are making good memories for her. I wish I could have given her a birthday party with all her friends, but it's just too hard with the boys to do that. I'm hoping a cake, some presents and then a trip to the 'pond restrant' will be a good birthday memory.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl. Oh, sorry, Big Sister. Or Baby Red Bird. Or Honey. Or one of the other terms of endearment we have for you. Because you are endearing. Very. Love you!

Safire (and Juice and the Brothers and Soot)

Diaper Changes and Doctor Visits

Everyone,

We really shouldn't change diapers at the doctor's office anymore. Last time, Juice got peed on by Pirate. This time, we both got peed on by both boys. Our odds are going down. We should just skip diaper changes at the doctor's office all together. (Juice didn't technically get peed on...Professor peed on his clothes and I didn't bring a change of clothes so Juice had to hold him in wet clothes which then got his shirt wet. I, however, had Pirate who peed a significant amount on the changing pad while I was changing him. Missed his clothes, got mine instead.)

This was their 2 week doctor visit. Everything looks great! Let's start with the oldest:

Pirate was a calm little baby for them because we got there a little early and I sat in the waiting room and fed him. So he just took everything in stride and stared wide eyed at the doctor while she was checking him out. He now weighs 6 lbs, 7.5 oz. He passed not only his birth weight but his brother's as well! He is 20 1/2 inches long (gained an inch from birth) and his head is 13 7/8 inches around. He got his foot pricked for the repeat PKU test that they did in the hospital. Apparently that's standard now. Poor little boy cried a little, but he was pretty calm through most of the blood testing. A good report!

Professor squalled through the whole exam. He was not lucky enough to be feed before and cried while he was poked, prodded, listened to, and put on his belly. He now weighs 6 lbs, 13 oz. A whole pound bigger than his brother at birth! He is also 20 1/2 inches long and his head is 13 7/8 inches around. So other than Professor being heavier, they are basically the same size. He got his foot pricked for the repeat PKU test from the hospital. He blood clots well because the tech had to squeeze it down his leg for drops to come out of his foot. Poor baby screamed bloody murder through the whole thing. And this was after I feed him as well. He had to put on his wet clothes to come home and fell asleep almost instantly on the way home.

One thing that happened that irritated me just slightly was the doctor. She was nice enough, but she asked me if I was breastfeeding them both. When I said yes, she asked if I was feeding them exclusively. I said yes. She looked surprised, looked at her chart, and her eyes widened a little bit when she read the weights. (I'm assuming she read the weights, that's what I would read.) She then asked me if I was getting any rest. Um, yeah. If you get them on a schedule it's not that hard. Her surprise and her assumption that I am pushing myself too hard to feed these babies the best possible food for them set me slightly on edge. Why is it that people don't feel like you can feed more than one baby and be successful at it? We are obviously doing very well. It can go great. I feed them between 8-9 times a day which will slow down as they get older and have bigger stomachs. I do spend quite a bit of my day nursing, but I find nursing relaxing. I am forced to sit down and spend some time with each boy. I do tandem feed them (feeding them both at the same time) only when they are both hungry. At night, Professor always wakes me up to eat, and then when he's done I will wake Pirate up to feed him. Otherwise, 20 minutes later, he wakes me up just as I've gone to sleep. It's a good system and it's working for us. We normally get about 3-4 hours of sleep in a block. Which is good for newborns.

They really are very good babies. Calm, easy going, easy to soothe. Loud noises don't wake them up (thank you squealing and jumping big sister) and they are just so cute.

We stopped by Dr. SA's office on the way home to show him the babies. All the techs got a kick out of seeing them. Sadly, Dr. SA only works on Mondays and Thursdays so I'll have to go back on Thursday. I forgot my camera and I wanted a picture of them with him anyway.

Butterfly came with us to the doctor and got a sucker and a sticker for being such a good big sister. And she really is. Unless it's nap/bed time or a meal time. Then she's hard to deal with. She testing her boundaries to see if they are still the same and is very frustrated to find out that they are.

The boys have a visit in 2 weeks for their month old appointments. According to the little book the office gives me, I should be starting vitamins with iron at one month, and they should sleep and eat as their milestones. Also, I shouldn't give alcoholic beverages to them. I'm glad to know I shouldn't do that. It takes a load off my mind. (Seriously, who writes these things?!)

Butterfly has her 3rd birthday on Saturday! We ordered her cake (I only want an ice cream cake Mommy. Not a regular cake and not a small break apart cake like last time [cupcakes].) She wanted a Nemo cake and so we'll have that on Saturday with Grandma and Grandpa. Grandma's birthday is the next day (Mother's Day) so we are all going out to dinner on Monday to our favorite restaurant by the pond. Butterfly's name for the Red Rock Canyon Grill. Of course, we will be having Something Chocolate!

Oh, and I did go out with a few of my friends here for the Something Chocolate last week. I have pictures but I haven't loaded them from my camera. Boy that was so good! Good chocolate, good friends, good times. :)

Safire

2 Weeks Old!

Everyone,

The boys are now two weeks old today. Wow. I just can't imagine them not being in our family. I know I worried a lot before they were born how their birth would affect our family. I wondered how I would be able to parent/mother/love 3 children, 2 of whom were going to be very demanding for awhile. I worried if I was going to be able to bond with the twins. I guess specifically, I worried I would bond with one and not the other. But it was just like with Butterfly. The moment they came out, I was head over heals in love with them. Their entrance into our family has only improved the family dynamics. They fit in perfectly.

(See my new signature picture!)
Let's start with Professor today since he just peed all up his back and is currently being changed. And screaming his displeasure at the current situation. Professor is our loud guy. He's also the mellow one. He only cries when he's wet or hungry. But it's the loud lusty cries. He sleeps like a champ, eats like a champ, and is just an easy baby to take care of. Now, he was up for several hours last night complaining about who knows what. He is also our snuggle bug. He does not want to be alone. He loves having someone with him. It's a good thing he is a twin!

Pirate is very aware. He has this sharp little face and these big alert eyes. He does not cry so much as squawk until someone comes over to see him. Now he will ramp up the crying if you don't respond to the squawking but for the most part, he is pretty quiet. He is also very patient. If both are crying, I have to take care of Professor first and then I can take care of Pirate. And he's okay with that. He is so strong and can pick up his head already. He knows the sound of my voice and will turn his head to me when I call to him. He could care less if he's alone or not, but tolerates his brothers head whacking really well. He also tries to suck on his hands when he's hungry. Never mind his own.

My parents left yesterday afternoon and Juice's parents arrived late last night. I was alone with all 3 kids for a few hours. My very first time alone with the twins at all. I survived, but I think it hit me right then than I was the mom of 3 kids. Wow, 3. Weird.

Safire

PS- Who wants to hate me that I am back in my pre-pregnancy clothes? Nursing 2 babies!

Butterfly and the Boys

Everyone,

Butterfly loves her brothers. Every time one of them makes a little noise, she runs over there and says, "Don't worry! Big sister is here!" She loves to get diapers for me, get the boys their pacifiers, and hold them. After a second of holding, she will basically throw him back at you and rush off to play. Of course, she only wants to hold them when they are awake and hungry so she really doesn't care to hold them if they are squirming. Which is the only time she wants to hold them. And around in a circle we go with that.

She asks all the time, "Which baby is this?" I always ask her baby what baby she thinks he is, and she is right about 80% of the time. Of course, she insists that Pirate is Professor or Professor is Pirate to be funny.

One of the boys just sneezed and she piped up and said, "Bless you one of the babies."

Safire