Well, mom is a WIMP!

The time has come when we realize that the babies are just waking in the middle of the night out of habit and not real hunger. They are biologically and physically capable of skipping that midnight-1:00 feeding and are really just wanting to be fed because they can't put themselves back to sleep. So, last night we decided to truly try to Ferber method (that coincides with the Moms on Call method sort of - they say put them in their room and don't go back in until morning)! Well, Ferber recommends progressively longer check-ins on them without feeding, meaning you go in after 5 minutes of crying, then 10, then 12 every time after that. I made it 2 hours (me crying the whole time along with Tyler) before I just couldn't take it anymore! Of course, when we went to feed them they were pretty disinterested in the bottle but were very happy to be up! They went back to sleep after that pretty well, Tyler because he was extremely exhausted after hours of screaming at the top of his lungs (I need to go apologize to the neighbors whose bedroom is on that side of the house!). We are going to try a different approach - weaning them off that night feed by giving them less and less throughout the next few evenings until they are making up for it in the day and I prove to myself that they don't need it. Lance was upset with me because he made me promise that I could do it if we were going to start it and I really thought I could, but hearing my baby boy cry incessantly broke my heart and I just couldn't handle it just yet. Oh well, the middle of the night wake-up isn't horrible and I can do it for a couple of more months!!!

Rolling Update! Katie rolled from her back to her front and we both saw it! Unfortunately, she got on her belly and couldn't get back over since she refuses to participate in tummy time! So, after we let her try to figure it out for a while we rolled her to her back again and she proceeded to get on her side but stopped short of going back on her tummy :-)! She now sleeps on her side, it is one of the sweetest things to see - her all curled up on her side with her fingers in her mouth! I am trying to enjoy it now because I am certain it will progress to her rolling all the way to her belly and then yelling when she can't get back over in the middle of the night!!! Needless to say, this weekend is all about tummy time for these two!

Getting big!

Well, they aren't as big as we thought - I guess, we were overestimating since nowadays they constantly want to be held, and they seem pretty heavy! BUT, they have gained well - the last time they went to the doctor was on January 5th (for their 4 month physical) and today when they went (for their RSV shots) Tyler had gained a pound and is 14 pounds, 10 ounces (up from 13 lbs, 9 ounces) and Katie gained more than a pound and is 14 pounds (up from 12 pounds, 14 ounces)!!! They are doing great - starting to really want to get up and go but they just can't do it yet. Still not sleeping through the night, but not doing too bad - still waking once and going back down relatively well. Katie is rolling from her back to her side constantly, but still can't get all the way over and neither has rolled from front to back yet (Tyler's one time must have been a fluke). They absolutely hate tummy time and just lay there crying LOUDLY until either we pick them up or they exhaust themselves and go to sleep. It is pretty sad to hear, but it is good for them. They, Tyler more than Katie, have somewhat flat heads and need more time on their bellies for their heads to round out :-)! We have been semi-ferberizing and it is working pretty well - I think Tyler is finally used to being laid down sleepy, but not asleep, which should help him put himself back to sleep when he wakes in the middle of the night, fingers crossed.

They have so many cute outfits that they never get to wear because they never go anywhere so I decided that they could dress up for the doctor today! Here are just a couple of pictures of Tyler and Katie at almost 5 months!!!

This is Katie smiling, something of a rarity these days as she has suddenly developed stranger awareness and no longer smiles at everything she sees!

Tyler looks surprised!

Naptime for Lance and his little mini-me.

Big THANK YOU!

Tyler and Katie's grandparents (So So and unnamed Grandpa :-)) babysat last night - thank you so much to them for watching the munchkins! Lance and I went to sushi dinner and a movie (Marley and Me) and had a great time. I can tell I am getting old, though! We used to do that sort of thing all the time and now we get home and realize that with no drinks, and a relatively cheap dinner we still managed to spend $80! That is a pretty spendy night out! It definitely wouldn't be doable if we were paying a sitter, so we are very grateful to get the help from the grandparents!!! I don't think the babies were on their best behavior (some fussing and crying as is pretty typical of them right now - only wanting to be held and entertained), but we got a great night's sleep. Tyler was up enjoying a backrub from So So when we got home and mean mom made him go to sleep instead of finishing watching the movie they were watching, but they slept until 2:30ish and got up and took a bottle and then went right back to sleep and slept until 7:00 this morning - woohoo! That is definitely doable!!!

Funny little Katie has started rolling all around her crib - not rolling over yet but getting on her side and somehow managing to turn every different direction in the crib. It is pretty obvious that Tyler is just a bit behind her in most things - he has started doing "crunches" too and talking a bit more so I am sure the rolling around for him is not far behind (although right now he is able to scoot his way around his crib too). We are going to start giving them oatmeal in the morning too and next week we are introducing veggies - I think we are going to start with carrots, blech! Tyler, especially, is trying to start not going to sleep as well and waking himself up moving and talking so we have started "Ferberizing" them - so far, so good!

Fun with oatmeal!

We tried oatmeal for the first time tonight since we've been over a week on rice cereal and it was a hit! Well, mostly. They did much better with it and seemed to like it a lot more, but they don't quite have the hang of the whole swallowing thing, as evidenced by these pics!!!

Katie would rather eat it off the bib, than off the spoon!

Tyler wanted his fingers more than the spoon.

First time Katie has ever smiled throughout this whole solids adventure.

This is actually the best night we've had, the least amount on his face to-date.

Katie was a mess too!

They got their playzone! Not their favorite yet, but maybe when they can sit without the bumbos.

Wow!

Well, last night I played tennis for the first time in a year, literally. It was fantastic (well, not the actual playing, but at least the experience), but poor Lance had his hands full. Feeding two ravenous four-month olds who can't really sit-up all that well rice cereal is impossible, so Lance tells me. I know that it stresses me when both of us do it so I can't even imagine. We also, just last night, decided to put them in sleep blankets instead of the swaddle. They are just breaking out of the swaddle too much and waking themselves up and getting the blanket up over their faces, so we figure the time has come to let them sleep unbound. The timing could not have been worse! The babies are just now discovering how fascinating their hands are and are constantly sucking on them, which does not bode well for sleep time with hands-free! Katie did alright, slept pretty well until 1:00 (yep, really early for them) and then when she got put back down she continued to "talk" (loudly as is her new skill and favorite noise) for TWO HOURS. Tyler, on the otherhand, was not talking, but rather crying, spitting out his paci, coughing (he seems to have gotten ANOTHER cold), and then crying some more off and on all night. It was an experience, that's for sure and I am betting that Lance is wishing that I would abandon tennis and stay home and help with baths, feeding, and bedtime so maybe that doesn't happen! It is good for me, though and I really enjoy it, and my philosophy on this whole thing is that this too shall pass and we are not going to be in sleep hell forever, I hope!

The unfortunate news, for Lance anyway, is that I have a board meeting tonight that I must attend which means it is last night, round two. I have an awesome husband, who does all this with minimal grumbling, so here's hoping that tonight goes a whole lot better for him and if not that at least Vandy kicks some UT butt (basketball game this evening)!

Tyler Rolled Over!

Well, this morning Lance put Tyler down on his tummy while I was playing with Katie in the exersaucer (she can't really sit up yet in it so you have to watch her!). With no fussing or crying he promptly rolled from his front to his back and NEITHER of us saw it!!! Lance looked back down at him and he was on his back just staring up at him like it was the most normal thing in the world. We tried to get him to do it again without success, but at least we know he can do it and maybe more rolling is in his future. We tried to get Katie to do it as well (we don't want her to feel like Tyler is "beating" her :-)), but she did the same thing as she normally does, got really angry and just laid there without doing anything really. I swear that she will skip the whole front to back thing and go straight from back to front. She is still constantly doing "crunches" and won't even take a break when she is eating - she tries to hold her head up the whole time she is getting a bottle!

They are doing better with rice cereal but, alas, still not sleeping through the night. They have in fact gotten a little worse - up twice night before last, only once last night but when they got up and ate they wouldn't go back to sleep for an hour or so. I have heard a lot about the four month sleep regression thing and I thought that since we never really got sleep to regress from we might skip it, but I guess not. Oh well, we will get serious on the "sleep training" in a couple of months if they are still not sleeping, but for now we figure they need to eat since they seem to grow and figure something new out every day!

Katie was unhappy about having to go out in the cold, NINE degrees that day.

Tyler has also started laughing when you laugh at him (or actually just when I laugh at him, he doesn't quite know what Daddy is trying to do), and loves it when you dance and sing (he is probably the only one who appreciates singing and dancing from me and Lance or will ever get to see/hear it)!

Picture Time!

Well, here are a couple of pics of the kids. It is really, really cold so we thought it would be the perfect time for them to wear their new sweaters from So So - they are a little big, but the way they are eating they will fit in no time!










She looks ready for snow, too bad it is going to be 3 degrees with NO SNOW!














She LOVES her keys that "Aunt" Lynley gave her.












She's got a lot to say these days!














We entered them in the Beautiful Baby contest on Regis and Kelly. You all will have to vote in March!

Just a little big!

Tyler looked so grown up in his outfit from Grandma Barnhart!

New tricks

I think we are coming up on a time when the babies are learning all sorts of new tricks, most of which aren't the least bit interesting to people who aren't their parents, I'm sure, but it is pretty fun. I told Lance at lunch today (yep, we went to lunch together - it was good and made me realize that sometime we can get someone to watch them in the daytime when they are a little less "trouble" and go to a movie, lunch, etc.) that we need to take some video tonight of some of the adorable things they are doing that they won't be doing for too much longer. When Katie gets excited she bicycles her legs really fast and lets out a big squeal - it's like she is so excited she just can't contain it. Tyler (in my opinion) is closer to rolling over and can get on his side now and soon will be all the way over so I want to get some video of these first efforts! I at least need to get video since I am doing horribly with keeping up with the baby books - I have no clue when their first smile or laugh was.

One that I do need to write down is their first rice cereal attempt - last night!!! It didn't go great, but it was a good first step. Katie made a horrible face but did "accidentally" get a little only to promptly spit it back up. Tyler was giving it a valiant effort, but he got frustrated pretty quickly because he was very hungry and he couldn't get enough, fast enough off the spoon. We are going to try again and feed him a few ounces more before we start with the cereal so he won't be so frantic. All in all it was a good first effort, they still hate their bumbos though (and are too small for the high chairs) so we don't really have a good method yet for trying to spoon feed them.

Here are some pictures of the adorable little munchkins. It is COOOOLD here today (and only getting worse they say) so we had them in their outfits that Uncle Tommy gave them, the sweaters that So So knitted for them, and they wore shoes for the first time. Of course, the camera was in my freezing car all weekend so it wasn't working too well this morning, but we did get a few pics! Another of their "tricks" is that they love, love, love holding onto blankets, lovies, our clothes, their clothes, really whatever they can get their hands on and they really love putting them in their mouths and covering their faces!!! I was worried at first and constantly moving the blankets off their faces, but somehow they inevitably find a way to get them back up there so I've ended the losing battle!

Tyler, "talking"!

Katie now has MULTIPLE chins, and the fattest, cutest "little" face.

Mom, where is my blankie?

Schedule woes

Well, I am sitting watching the Titans game (GO TITANS!) and the munchkins are sleeping soundly. We moved to a four hour schedule, completely by accident, we got off the day they went to the doctor and they seemed to like going a little longer so we kept it that way. It is working out alright, but they have started waking at strange hours - midnight and 5:00 AM last night. We are going to start solids on Sunday and hopefully that will make a difference. 5:00 AM just messes with the whole schedule because then they don't really want to eat at 7:00 and then we are off the whole day. This isn't a problem really on weekends but Nana Pam can't feed them between 11:00 and 1:00 when it needs to be if they wake so early if we intend to still make bedtime around 7:30. We are implementing a dream feed for a little while and are hopeful that will get them to a little longer. A dream feed is given after they have already gone down for the night (around 11:00 or 12:00 for us) and it is just feeding them while they are basically asleep just to kind of "top them off." It is really a babywise method that we are adopting, but Babywise suggests stopping it at about this time! From everything I have read four months is a difficult sleep age because they are just becoming aware of you leaving them, they are starting to be more active which hurts their little limbs, they are about to make huge developmental leaps, and they are starting the teething process. So, I don't think this odd (and tiring) schedule is ALL because we screwed them up so bad, but we definitely have to take some of the blame!

I have to admit that I am having a bit of a hard time right now feeling like we are in "baby jail." This is beginning to be such a fun age and we are loving getting to know their little personalities and see them grow and learn, but especially with the new earlier bedtime things are a bit difficult at the moment. With the later bedtime (they seem to do a lot better with the earlier one or we would change it back) that means that we can't just pack them up and go get dinner anywhere, can't fix our dinner until after they go down really which means not until 8:00, and can't get a babysitter (although I personally think it might be worth it) because the most difficult thing is getting these little boogers down and we would probably put them down first with a sitter and then leave and that seems silly to pay so much to someone to just watch them sleep. We had talked about trying to get out of the house every two weeks or so, but so far that doesn't seem like it will be happening. We want to try to go to a baby shower for a friend next weekend but it is from 6:30 until 10:30 and if we put them down and then left we wouldn't get there until 8:30 or so and then would need to be home to relieve a sitter fairly early moneywise and just so someone doesn't have to stay at our house too late and that doesn't really seem worth it. I know it will change soon and once they are Sleeping through the Night we will better be able to get a sitter - I guess I am just going a little stir crazy, probably doesn't help that Lance is at the game and I am not (not a horrible thing though since the weather is rough).

I am starting tennis again on the 19th (which means Lance has to put them both to bed by himself a few nights a month), so that will probably help me feel reconnected and like I am actually leaving the house occasionally!

Four Month Appointment!

Yesterday was Katie and Tyler's 4 month physical. They are doing great - both on target and growing well. Katie is 12 pounds, 14 ounces and Tyler is 13 pounds, 9 ounces! They are still little shorties - Katie is 22.2 inches and Tyler is 23 inches and they are only in the 1st (Katie) and 3rd (Tyler) percentile for height, but they are starting to catch up! Tyler is in the 23rd percentile for weight which is excellent since that doesn't even take into account him being 6 weeks early. We were told to wait until 6 months for rice cereal, we'll see...

Here are a couple of 4 month pics!!!

Almost big enough for our bumbos!

Katie likes sitting up like a big girl.

I think he was about to lose it, not a huge fan YET.

Our little Braves fan is getting so BIG!

I think it is time for round-the-clock bibs, Katie is a little drool monster these days!

She's started talking up a storm!

He can't wait to be on the go, so active and ready to move!

Baby Einstein

Also wanted to post a little thanks to Matthew (don't even know if you read this but if so...). We were at our wits end with little Katie Bug last night who at about 7:30 had worked herself into a frenzy and would not be calmed by anything. None of our sure-fire methods like walking around, the "good" swing, peek-a-boo, or just getting to sit with mom were working to calm her down so we attempted a little Baby Einstein diversion. IT WORKED! Katie was mesmerized (Tyler was napping), she is a real Beethoven fan. Thanks for the DVD's Matthew, I foresee them becoming a go-to!!!

Failed experiment!

Well, we had a miserable night's sleep on Friday thanks to a little experiment gone terribly wrong! We have been searching and searching for a way for the munchkins to sleep through the night so we decided to not wake them both when one wakes and let the other one sleep to see how long s/he could go. Well, Katie woke up at 1:30 so we tried to give her a pacifier and soothe her back to sleep with no success. So, we gave her a four ounce little snack bottle. She went back to sleep pretty well and we were back in bed by about 2:30. Tyler was snoring and seemed content so we were holding our breaths and hoping to not hear from him until 6:00 or so. That did NOT happen - at about 3:30 he was wailing and wanting to eat (Tyler cannot be soothed, when he wants to eat he is not going to be fooled by our sleep inducing shenanigans!). Tyler has also started only wanting to be held and screaming when you put him in his crib, or swing, or bouncer, or bumbo, or really anything but our arms! It is pretty annoying, we are really hoping it is a growth spurt, heightened awareness of being left that he will soon get over, or something that is not long-term! Anyway, we finally got him back to sleep at about 4:30 only to have them both wake at 6:30. Reminded me of the early days and not in a good way! It made us grateful for what we have had which is more similar to last night when they (well, we woke Tyler up) were hungry at 3:30, fed and back down (sort of for Tyler) by 4:00 and then not up again until 7:30. We'll just be happy that we have had a couple of months of waking only once and wait until they are both ready to sleep through. We are really hoping at their four month appointment tomorrow that they will let us give rice cereal - it has got to help!

Still no pictures, my mom took some cute ones that I will have to get from her!

Four Months Old!

Well, today the babies are officially four months old! I almost can't believe it!!! Pretty funny that just this morning Lance said, "so, when can we start rice cereal?" Some docs say four months, but I am going to guess we will be told to wait just a bit with these two. I know that pediatricians and the like say that rice cereal does not help them get through the night, but I'm not buying it - I am hoping that a few extra calories will get them through the night. We were up at 2:00 AM last night and then at 6:30 or so, not too bad but it sure would be nice to have a full night!

The babies are doing much better - Katie was the culprit last night for the 2:00 AM wake-up call, she is so stuffy. Lance is too and I am afraid that she has gotten yet another strain of something, because until yesterday she was starting to do better. Lance thinks he got it from sitting in the doctor's office last week and Katie probably got it from him. That means that Tyler is probably not too far behind with it and then me again, what a fun sickness merry-go-round we've been on! I can't wait until it is warmer so maybe they can get better, either that or when they can finally blow their noses themselves so they don't continue to think we are the most mean parents in the world, always coming at them with the nose sucker!

We had an awesome New Year's eve out (Go Vandy) and are so thankful that my mom came up to keep the kids for the evening. The little darlings can certainly be a handful so mom and GrandBob's watching them was MUCH appreciated!

So So gave the babies some awesome sweaters that she knitted - I'm going to put those on them to take the next round of pictures but haven't managed to do that yet - stay tuned!