Sam & Miles: Month One

Yesterday marked ONE MONTH in the life of the twins. Wow, what a journey it's been the past 8 months! Time has flown from the time we were told I was pregnant with twins until their one month birthday! Here's just a quick update:

Eating: Nursing is going great! Both babies have been fabulous latchers and eaters from day one.  I am so thrilled. This past week I began feeding them on a 3 hours schedule and I love it. It has made life so much easier for me and the babies are in a much better groove since extending the feedings from 2 hours to 3 hours. Now when they get a little fussy around the 2 hour mark I'm seeing that they are really just tired and need to sleep instead of eat again.  It has seemed to help their nights too as they are sleeping more soundly and not waking as often in between feedings.

Sleep: Both are sleeping a ton during the day and have a fussy period in the late evening that lasts a few hours. They are consolable and don't cry the entire time....they each take their turn!! Currently they are sleeping together either in their crib or their pack n play at nighttime. During the day they bounce between the  crib, bouncers, pack n plays, and peoples arms.  Yesterday a friend gave me a Fisher Price Rock n Play Sleeper that I'm excited to start using too.  At night they initially were waking up often in between feedings but the past few night they've had some 3 and even a 4 hour stretch without waking. This has been amazing for Mama!!

Fun Stuff: We've been on 2 stroller walks with all three kiddos. One trip to the post office with Aunt Dana and one trip to White Rock Coffee with Daddy. The twins use the Double Snap n Go by Baby Trend and Julian uses his own single stroller. So, obviously I need 2 people to go on a stroller ride...this may be a problem in the future and I'm considering my options for a triple stroller. Any suggestions?

We made our debut at church yesterday on their one month birthday. Daddy was playing bass all morning at church and I was not up for wrestling all 3 kiddos at home alone. People kept telling me how brave I was to bring all three of my children to church by myself but I think it would have been more courageous to have stayed at home! I knew at church I could drop Julian off at childcare and then hangout with the twins in the nursing moms room. Church felt like a safe place for me! And it was a successful and fun outing...although exhausting. Then again, anything and everything in the past month has been exhausting. 

Hard Stuff: Julian has come a long way with adjusting to life as a big brother. He understands they are here to stay now and loves touching them....a little too much. I can tell its been hard on him having to share mommy. He initially was throwing lots of fits, but those have for the most part stopped.  We are working through how to handle his roughness with the babies. We want to encourage him to love on them, but there is a fine line between love and aggression with Julian. There have been lots of squeezing, suffocating, and toy throwing incidents....but I think it's going pretty well for the most part considering Julian is just 22 months old.

Things I want to remember: People have been so wonderful. My mom, sister, and mother-in-law have taken turns staying overnight with us to help with the twins during the night. They've changed countless diapers, done loads of laundry, and helped to entertain Julian.  Our friends have been amazing about bringing us meals. I have not had to fix a single meal since the twins were born other then heating up the occasional leftover or making a sandwich. It has been a tremendous help to us because I would not be making time to cook myself. What a blessing it's been to have delicious home-cooked meals without having to lift a finger. People have just been so generous and have gone out of their way to check in on us and offer help whether that means stopping at the grocery store for us, holding a baby, taking Julian for a playdate, or taking out our trash. I am just floored by the outpouring of love and support we've received from friends, family, and neighbors. I want to say it takes a village to raise twins and a toddler, but I know that some people out there don't have that luxury and I know I am blessed beyond measure to have such a great network. Because of all the help, I've been able to enjoy my newborns without so much stress. 

The boys are so strong. They move their heads around during tummy time. They LOVE being held. They like cuddling and being held tight. They like facing inward to be tummy to tummy with mommy. It is SO SWEET! They both grunt a lot but Sam does it the most. We call him "the grunter". 

Stats: At their one month appointment:

Sam: 8 lbs. 9 oz.

         20.75 inches

Miles: 9lbs 11oz.

          21.5 inches

Dr. Naidoo says they are both doing great and he was very impressed with their weight gain!

*Ok, finally got the pictures uploaded. :)