Will Potty Train for Treats

It is time.  Time to potty train Gradybug.

When we moved him to a big boy bedroom in March, he was about 20-21 months old.  It was about that same time that he started to show interest in using the potty.  We decided to purchase a little potty and some pull-ups just to see how interested he was in the potty.  Turns out he thought it was fun, but wasn't consistent enough with that interest for me to attempt and train him (not to mention, I was about 3.5 months pregnant with the twins at that time).  Kevin and I discussed what we wanted to do, and decided it was best to wait until after the twins were already here.

At daycare, he moved up into the 2 year old class in August, and they start to put them on the potty because some of the kids in his class are already potty trained (G is one of the younger ones in his class - sweet summer baby).  He has picked up a lot from watching the other kids, and has even used the potty some at school.  He's become very consistent with using the potty before bath time and in the morning at home, so we decided....it is time.

Which brings us to today...

We got a little bit of a later start than I wanted to, because Grady had an eye appointment this morning.  So after we got his eyes checked out, we came home and built a fort and stripped him down.  I explained that if he needs to pee pee he can go use his potty in the bathroom.

We started off with a movie in the fort (with our cars and blankie, of course)

Before starting this training, I did a little bit of research and reading on how to potty train.  Just like sleep training babies it seems that everyone has their own opinion/approach and some even contradict one another.  So I basically decided to wing it.  I'm taking some ideas of what I read and then basically figuring it out first hand.

I let Grady start off in his fort that I built him in the living room.  I put down layers of blankets and set up the iPad with a movie on it.  Within 10 minutes I heard "Uh oh, mommy!  I poo pooed in the floor." (Grady calls both #1 and #2 poo poo, and since he had a dirty diaper at the eye doctor already, I doubted it was actual poo poo.)  Once I got to the fort, he was pointing to the spot on the floor where he had an accident (#1 only...whew).  We went to the bathroom to make sure he was done, and then we changed out the top blanket on the floor.

Grady quickly tired of the movie in the fort and went into the study to dig through his toy box.  I could hear him playing around, and then all of a sudden he got really quiet.  I said, "Gradybug, whatcha doin?" To which he replied, "Mommy I'm on the potty!"  Sure enough, he was sitting on the potty and had filled it up with pee pee!!!  He got lots of high fives and got to put 2 stickers on his chart and get his M&Ms.

Grady gets a sticker for each time he "Tries" to potty, another one if he "Pee Pees" and another sticker if he "Poo Poos"!

After that, he wanted to play ball, so we sat in the floor and bounced/rolled a ball back and forth for a while.  During that he jumped up and said he needed to potty.  I got excited and said let's run to the potty.  (So he did...literally run to the potty.)  He was almost there and hit the tile in the entry right outside the bathroom and BUSTED it!  I felt SO bad.  I made sure he was ok, and then he sat on the potty and pee peed again.  (This time I gave him 2 oreos because I felt bad that he fell and hurt his arm and leg.)

On to our next activity... we decided to decorate the Christmas tree.  Grady was such a big helper!

Admiring his work

For the rest of the afternoon, Grady did so good.  We watched another movie (Home) and I hoped he would lay down and take a nap.  He started to have a little accident, and stopped and finished in the potty.  I took the blankets to the laundry room, and we decided to use a pull-up during nap time.  After that, I made him try and use the potty (his pull-up was still dry) and he did!  As you can see from his potty chart above, he has been doing a good job of taking himself to the potty.  I only made him try 2 of those times, the rest were all him!

With only 2 accidents so far, I think he's done a great job! The day is far from over, and daddy and H&H will be home soon, so we will see how we continue doing.  

Tomorrow we are going to Kevin's company Christmas party and get to meet Santa!  This is where I will go "off book" from the "experts".  We are going to stick a pull-up on him (gasp!) and just go to the potty every 45-60 minutes to let him try to potty.  We're just too busy to carve out 3 straight days where we don't have something going on this time of year.  

I will give another update of how the rest of today goes and how Day 2 starts out tomorrow. =)

Day 1 hasn't been quite as bad as I expected (but we haven't had to deal with #2 yet....that's the one that will be interesting).  Better get back to it for now!

Back to Work

Monday marked my first day back in the office, and the twins first full day of daycare.  We all survived, but it wasn't as easy as I had hoped.

There was a full day opening at daycare for Mondays and Fridays in the nursery, so we decided it would be best to go ahead and send the boys all day so I can go into the office 2 days a week.  Sending them from 9am-1pm was nice, but it meant that I didn't really do much before or after that time period.

Sunday Night Prep

In preparation for Monday morning, Kevin and I began packing bags and lunches and bottles on Sunday night.  First thing we did was put all three kids to bed by 8pm.  Once we both got into the kitchen to get started, we determined that the twins would need enough for 3-4 feedings (so we better pack for 4).  I needed to be able to pump at work, so I would need at least 2 sets of pumping stuff and bottles for the milk I pumped.  So here's what all we had to wash Sunday night just to be ready for Monday morning:

• 12 feeding bottles (8 for daycare and 4 for the night and morning feedings)
• 10 pumping bottles (6 for the bedtime/middle of the night/morning pumping sessions and 4 to take to work)
• 5 sets of pumping accessories (all the other pieces required to pump for each of the pumping sessions mentioned above)
• 3 large bottles (for the extra milk I would pump at work)

Let's just say that took a while.

Since I didn't have enough milk pumped in the fridge for the kiddos to take to school, I had to dip into our freezer supply to get us started.  So we put those bags in the fridge to thaw out over night.

We packed my lunch and put it in the fridge.  We packed Grady's lunch and put it in his backpack (with a note to remember and add the 2 cold items in the morning with an ice pack).  Kevin luckily already had lunch at work.  We packed 2 sets of pump bottles and accessories and a sterilizing bag for me to take to work, along with the 3 large bottles for the milk. We put coolers out for each of the twins so we could add their bottles to them in the morning.

I packed my laptop and work files in a bag to carry into the office with me the next morning.  We picked out clothes for the boys and ourselves to wear the next day.  We packed what we have come to call the "night basket". (Night basket contents:  2 pump sets, 4 bottles, and 4 bottles of rice cereal measured out.)  Our bedroom is upstairs, so I don't have easy access to putting dirty bottles and pump stuff in the sink when we finish in the middle of the night.  So we pack a basket to carry upstairs with everything we will need in the middle of the night, and then we bring it back down in the morning to wash everything.  

After all of that was done, I pumped one last time before bed.  It had only been 2 hours since the twins had taken their bed time bottles, and they've been sleeping a consistent 5 hours before their middle of the night feeding.  However, that would put them waking up at 12am instead of the preferred 2-3am (it was only 10pm, so I didn't feel like waking up again in 2 hours to feed them).  So we unswaddled the babies and made them take another 2oz bottle before swaddling and putting them back in bed. (They didn't wake up again until 3am. #success) 

Monday Morning

Kevin and I both got up for the 3am feeding so that it would go quicker.  After feeding Harrison, I pumped and we were all back asleep within 30 minutes of waking up.  I woke up again at 5am to get in the shower. I started getting ready and woke Kevin up around 6am, and I pumped again.  Kevin and I were pretty much ready by 6:30am, and we woke Grady and the twins up to get them dressed for school.  Kevin took Grady and I took H&H.  I had just enough time to start soaking the night bottles in the sink and it was time to start loading up the car.  By 7:05am we were all pulling out of the driveway.

The daycare dropoff went as smooth as it possibly could.  Grady walked in while I carried the twins and both bags.  I sat the twins down in their room and went to drop Grady off in his room.  After that, I went back to the nursery to help unload H&H and get their bottles out for the teachers.  Then my job there was done and I was heading back home to grab all of my bags.  That part won't be happening every morning, but since I was earlier than I expected leaving the house, I decided not to burden myself with 2 trips up and down the basement stairs to get everything loaded up.  I still had to grab my computer bag, lunch box, pump, and cooler with pump accessories and bottles.

Then I got to go to work!

Back in the Office

This week is truly a different kind of week, because my co-worker is out of the office this week unexpectedly and I needed to take over his workload in addition to my own.  So I spent the day busting it to get my job ready to bid, and then started reviewing his to make sure it was complete and ready.  I actually didn't even finish in time, so I had to take it home with me to complete.  

Pumping at work is hard and stressful.  I'm going to have to find a better routine and work out a system, because it's so easy to get caught up in what you're doing at work and forget to pump.  I set alarms to remind me, otherwise I would probably explode before I remembered I needed to pump. But even with those alarms, I missed my 2-3pm pump session. 

What will be interesting is when my co-worker returns to work, because we share an office, and it's just not appropriate for me to kick him out of the office for 15-20 minutes 3 times a day.  We don't have any empty offices, so my three options are going to be the conference room (awkward), the bathroom (just not very appealing), or my car. At least this week I can use my hands free pumping bra and work while I pump, but if I have to go to my car every three hours and then wash my pump bottles and then get back to my desk, you're talking about an entire hour and a half I will lose every day at work.  Which means I likely will be eating lunch during one of my pumps so that I don't lose any more time.

Then I have to remember to pack up all of the milk and ice pack into the cooler to take home with me.  Oh, and I have to make sure I leave by 4:45pm or I will be late to get the kids.  So I'm actually losing an hour and a half of work AND I'm leaving 15-20 minutes early every day.

So while it was nice to be back in the office and feel a little more normal again, it was also still a little stressful because of everything I needed to cram into the day. 

 

Made it through the Day

I made it to daycare by 5:15pm to get my boys (they close at 5:30, so they were definitely happy to see me pulling up).  The babies were finishing their bottles, so I got Grady and we made our way back to the nursery to load up H&H.  We all got into the van just fine, and made it to the house where Kevin came out to help us all unload.

It was a whirl wind of a day, and I'm sort of thankful that we're only doing it on Monday and Friday for the time being.  It will give us some good practice before January when this will become our daily norm. 

Even typing this made me tired just thinking about the fact that tomorrow night we will start that preparation part all over again.  Whew!

Oh, and the boys are 3 months old today.  Seems like a lot more time has passed, but at the same time I can't believe they're already 3 months old.  Perspective is so funny when it comes to your kids.  I will be posting their month pictures and info later this week, because now lunch break is over and it's time to get back to work (from home).

A typical Monday

So, part of this blog is to keep everyone informed about how life is going with the twins, but it's mostly so I will remember this part of my life (that I'm sure will be a big blur even by next year).  So for today's post, I'm going to update the blog throughout the day so I can remember what a typical Monday looks like (with the twins in MDO).

To start, I got a pretty decent night's sleep.  We put the twins and Grady in bed by 9pm (that process started around 8:20pm).  After washing up some bottles and pumping before bed and of course folding some laundry, Kevin and I were actually in bed by 10pm (#winning #teamwork).

There was a moment around 11pm that I thought might break me. H&H have been doing a solid job of sleeping 5 hours between their bed time feeding and the middle of the night feeding.  However, last night, Harrison was up just 3 hours after the bed time feeding (one hour after I crawled into bed).  So I gave him 1/2 an oz of his middle of the night bottle and stuck a paci in his mouth.  That did the trick!  He didn't get up again until 2am! 

I was up at 2am for their feeding and back asleep by 2:45am.  Kevin gets up every morning to feed them and lets me stay in bed to get a little more sleep, so he fed the kiddos at 5:30am and I didn't get up until 6:45am.  (This means I got to sleep solidly from 11pm-2am (3 hours), and again from 3am-6:45am (almost 4 hours)! [insert smiley face])

Let's begin my "Typical Monday" there.

6:45am - Wake up and take bottles downstairs to be washed

6:50am - Grady hears me come back up the stairs and is ready to get out of bed.  I grab a diaper for him and clothes for school today (he doesn't want to go to school...he wants to go to the couch with mommy).  I convince Grady that school is cool and tell him and Kevin goodbye.

7:00am - Time to pump!

7:15am - Now time to wash all of the bottles from last night

7:30am - Breakfast time (and catch up on Quantico from last night)

8:20am - Hudson is awake and ready to eat =/  I go and get him dressed for MDO and then wake Harrison up to get him dressed.  Harrison was in a real happy mood this morning and just kept smiling and cooing while I was getting him dressed (Hudson was hangry and pouting on the chair).

8:50am - Both boys are loaded up in their carseats, diaper bag is packed, and we're heading out the door.  (Something important to note:  For those who don't know the layout of our house, the garage is in the basement.  Usually we pull the van up to the street right in front of the house to load the boys up.  Recently, I've gotten bolder and decided to carry both boys down the stairs in their carseats to save the step of moving the van.  Challenging, but do-able.)

9:05am - Back home  (daycare is ridiculously close to our house) and ready to work.  Let's see what I can get done in these 4 short hours.

10:00am - Time to pump again. (This never ends...well it will end, just not right now)

10:20am - Realize the oatmeal cream pies are gone.  I'm now mad at myself for having 2 yesterday.

10:30am - Just agreed to go to a cardio workout class tonight at church.  I may will definitely regret that tomorrow.

11:00am - I'm hungry.  We have nothing to eat here.  Chickfila? Peanut Butter & Jelly? I know what I won't be eating...oatmeal cream pie (still mad at myself).

11:05am - Decide on eating peanut butter from the jar with a spoon. And work a little more.

12:00pm - Get side tracked on potty training research.  Yep, this is happening soon.  Set a date for first weekend in December.  Let the games begin!

12:20pm - Time to go to Publix and figure out what's for dinner.

1:10pm - Back at home, groceries and twins unloaded and put away.  (Hoping they want to nap for the next 2 hours before it's time to eat again.)  Also, wondering why I didn't get more oatmeal cream pies....

1:12pm - Hudson's screaming...won't stop.  He's been fed, his diaper is clean, and he took an hour nap at noon.  Who know's why he's screaming.

1:19pm - Back to actual work...you know the stuff I get paid to do.

1:30pm - Arghhhh! Forgot to pump, time to do that again.

1:40pm - Making a mental note that I need to buy bigger bottles to pump into.  These 5oz ones are filling up fast these days (hungry/growing boys means more milk to pump and feed/store). #justcallmeBessie

I get really tired of pumping every 3-4 hours of the day (around the clock, no time for sleep).  So it's helpful for me to see how beneficial this is to us financially (because I already know the benefits of the nourishment for the babies, but sometimes it would be nice to dump some powder into water and shake and go.  Tons of babies are only formula fed, and they're doing just fine.).  

So as self motivation, I just checked the stats on my pumping app (yes, I have one of those).  Apparently since November 2nd, I've pumped 48 times for 10 hours and got 3.3 gallons of milk. I just did some math on the cost of formula...I'm saving us $190/month (and that's buying the cheap stuff)! Also, holy moly, my babies drink more than 3 gallons in a week.  Plus, I have just under 400oz in the freezer, but when you do the math (with 2 babies), that's not even a full week of feedings. =/ 

1:45pm - Now, let's find a snack and get back to work.  Babies will eat again at 3pm, so hoping to get an hour of work done.  (Found some Halloween candy! That cardio workout tonight isn't going to know what hit it!)

2:51pm - I'm going to attempt to clean the kitchen quickly before the babies wake up.  That way it's ready for me to cook dinner when I actually get around to doing that. (Besides, my program on my computer isn't working, so I'm having to wait on Help Desk to return a call anyway.  I'm currently ignoring emails, because they're evil.)

3:30pm - Kitchen is clean and chicken is cut up and ready to cook for dinner.  Babies are still snoozing because I cheated and swaddled them to make them nap longer (#mommyhacks).  I also caught up on washing bottles! BOOM!

Kevin and I started a chore chart (lame, I know), but with his study schedule and me being here ALL day but still needing to work, something had to give.  So now I have a board up in my kitchen that lists what we have to do each night.  Monday is my easy night, because I get to go work out.  So now that the bottle washing is caught up, it's less work for me later tonight...I'm on bottle washing duty on Mondays. ;)  I was sweet to Kevin, because I washed all of the dirty dishes (he's on dish duty).  And despite all of the laundry we've been doing lately, we currently have 3 clean loads that need to be folded and put away, one load folded that needs to be put away, a load in the washer and dryer, and 3 more loads that need to be washed.  Laundry is a viscous cycle! #LoadsofLaundry

3:45pm - Time to feed some babies.  Harrison first, then Hudson.

4:15pm - Babies fed and time for a little catch up on work before I start dinner.

4:30pm - Give up on the work (my program I use still isn't working), and start dinner.

I tried a new recipe tonight and it turned out great! :)

5:20pm - Dinner is served

Dinner is a challenging time around here most nights. Grady is a struggle fighting to get him to eat. Tonight he sat in my lap and ate off my plate (at least he ate all of my bread). After the prayer, I got up from the table a total of 6 times before I was able to finish my meal. Once to go "potty" with Grady. Then 5 different times to pacify babies so that I could hold them off to feed them after we were done. 

6:00pm - Time to feed babies...oh wait, somewhere between washing bottles and cleaning the kitchen and feeding babies earlier, I forgot to pump. Luckily, I have enough for 2 feedings in the fridge. Which means we need to warm up some bottles. 

6:30pm - Babies are fed (glad Kevin is home to split duties with). Now it's time to pump again.

7:15pm - Heading up to the church to do a little cardio with the ladies (it feels sooooo good to get out)

8:30pm - Survived the workout! Whew! That was fun.

9:00pm - Arrive home just in time to realize that Grady is still awake and not ready for bed, and that the babies are almost ready to eat again.  Apparently Harrison was crying the whole time unless Kevin was holding him, so Kevin's hands were tied up the entire time I was gone.

9:15pm - Time to feed babies and get them ready for bed.  I take Hudson while Kevin gets Harrison.  Grady sits on the couch with his bop (cup of milk) and toy cars until it's his turn to get ready for bed (he was trying to negotiate for some cookies....ummmm I don't think so buddy.  Should have done that when mommy was gone.).

9:35pm - Hudson is ready for bed, so now I'm free to take Grady to bed.  Against his will (at first), I pick him up along with his pillow and blankie.  We go to bed and read a story and say a prayer.

Every night I ask Grady who he wants to pray for, and every night he thinks for a little while and then says GOD! Occasionally he wants to pray for airplanes or cats, but tonight I asked if there was any person that he wanted to say a special prayer for, and his response was Daddy.  We've been praying for daddy a lot since he's studying for the CPA, so last night we said another special prayer for daddy and Grady was very happy.

10:00pm - I finally make it back downstairs, and Kevin is getting the twins swaddled.  I need to pump again before bed, so I get started on that.  Usually on Mondays, Kevin and I stay up to watch NCIS: Los Angeles, but we were both so worn out that he went on to bed and I came up after pumping.

10:30pm - Successfully in bed ready to sleep!

And so the cycle begins again.....

Working/Stay at Home Mommy

It's 3:10pm on a Friday afternoon, and I FINALLY got both babies to sleep at the same time.  To say it's been a long day is an understatement (I'm eating crunchy peanut butter with a spoon straight from the jar).  It seems like no matter what I've done today, either one baby will sleep while the other screams, or they both decided to just scream at me.  Mommy's nerves need this nap they're taking, and I only pray it lasts until they're ready to eat again at 5:30pm (not likely, but a mom can dream).

I have been working from home since October 5th.  It's been an uphill battle to this point, but I think I might be getting into a good routine.  The most difficult part is staying on top of all of my different responsibilities and not getting behind.  The trick is to not sit down and do nothing, always be doing something.  No breaks! BUT if I do take a break, its imperative that it not happen before 2pm.  If I slow down before 2pm, you can just kiss the day goodbye.  The result is a lot of stress and tears just trying to catch up to my day.  It's not pretty.

The WORST is when I get the babies fed, changed, and in position, then refill my drink and sit down to start working, I then realize I need to pump (speaking of...ugh....I need to do that now).  Oh, and the bottles are all dirty.  So I have to take 10-15 minutes to wash bottles and dry my pump accessories.  Then I have to sit down and pump for 10-15 minutes.  Then I have to pour that into 2 bottles for their next feeding and put the rest in the fridge. (As I open the fridge, I realize that's where all of my pump bottles have gone, and I make a mental note to freeze all of that at night and wash those bottles so we have enough for the next days storage.) 

Finally, 30-45 minutes later, I'm ready to work.  I look at the clock, and they should be ready to eat again in an hour and a half.  Let's knock out some work! annnnndddd Harrison's crying. *puts paci in his mouth* Now let's do this. *checks email* (terrible idea) *responds to 2 emails, and forwards 3* Hudson now cries. *puts paci in Hud's mouth* I tell myself, "Stay away from email, do actual work.  You now have an hour to do something productive with this time."

All of that amounts to about 30 minutes of actual work that gets accomplished between those feedings.  Time to feed babies again, and after this feeding I'm going to actually get a lot done, because I'm ready for it now! Now I'm hungry.  Digs in pantry for food.  Only finds peanut butter.  That will work. **Gets an hour of work done between those feedings** #progress

My office/view during the day

Being a working mommy isn't easy.  You deal with the guilt of having someone else spend close to 10 hours a day with your children, and you know that you miss all kinds of cute things that they do during the day.  You miss the smiling faces looking back at you and the warm snuggles after they finish their bottle.  You work 40 hours a week, come home each night and try to spend as much time as you possibly can with your kiddos while also cooking dinner and somewhat cleaning the kitchen, and looking at the laundry pile get bigger (because there are more important things to be done).  Once the kids are finally in bed, you do some last minute cleaning and rush off to bed yourself (because you know the babies are going to be up again at 1am, and you will be joining them).

Being a stay at home mommy isn't easy.  Your job NEVER ENDS!!!  You're always on call, you're always cleaning something, you're probably covered in spit up (and decide it's easier to let it dry and have less laundry, besides, you're now immune to the smell.  The smell is now a part of you.).  You are the meal planner, the errand runner, the laundry washer, the baby keeper aliver, the milk cow (at least that's the stage of my life currently).  You are wonder woman!  You likely haven't showered in the past 2 days, and hopefully you had a chance to brush your teeth, and maybe use your deodorant (where did I put that again? Gotta put that on a to do list to find.).

Being a stay at home/working mommy is just not even in my wheel house. (Side  note: it's 3:48pm I'm still attempting to blog after pumping and getting my snack, and Harrison is crying...BRB.)  (3:56pm and I'm back.  Harrison has now been swaddled so he will actually nap.)

Back to what I was saying....it's HARD to work at home and be a stay at home mommy.  These first 3 weeks I've tried to keep up with as much as I can, but my sanity recognizes that I need to pick and choose what my priorities are going to be, and everything else will just get done whenever we get more than 24 hours in one day.  Kevin is a huge help to me, but he gets to go to work and get out of the house every day (I'll admit I'm slightly jealous.  But I'm mainly jealous during days that the boys won't settle down.).  I know he's tired in a different way than I am.  We share the dinner responsibilities as far as cooking and cleaning.  He does almost ALL grocery shopping (he's an amazing man...I HATE the grocery store.).  We share the laundry load (and are both still drowning in it).  Our greatest complication is that there are two little mouths to feed.  Ideally, once Kevin is home we each take one baby so they get some solid one on one time from us.  I've been feeding 2 babies at the same time all day, so I will admit there are occasions when I decide to put Grady to bed and leave Kevin high and dry to handle two crying babies at the same time.  I'm immune to the crying.  I have a volume button and I can block it out until I can get to what they need (always within a reasonable time...babies are a bit dramatic).  Kevin on the other hand....cannot block it out.  So when I finally get Grady to bed and can relieve Kevin, I sometimes have 3 cranky boys to calm down.  =)

In order to not completely lose our minds and become frustrated with each other, Kevin and I communicate A LOT.  I'll admit that I mostly complain, and he listens.  And then there's really no real solution to my frustrations, so we hug it out and I take a hot shower (if I have time) or go to bed.

Next week, I have a new game plan.  The boys have been enrolled in Mother's Day Out on Monday and Friday!  So I will now have 2 days a week that I get a few uninterrupted hours to complete my work.  I don't even feel guilty about it.  I wanted to send them 4 days, but they only had an opening for 2 kids on those two days.  As soon as another baby in the nursery is ready to move to the toddler room, we will take that spot and send the boys more days a week.  Starting in January, they will be there full time and I will be back in the office.  So I just have to come up with a game plan to make it through the next 2 months and still be productive.  I can do this!  We will see how next week goes.

Time Slow Down

To say that the past 7 weeks have flown by is an understatement.  I can remember thinking that the first week home with the twins felt like 2 weeks, but now that we've gotten into a semi-good routine that has changed my perspective of time.

6 Week Postpartum Checkup

I attempted to blog last week, but things came up that prevented me from getting to the computer long enough to finish the post.  Last Monday, I went in for my 6 week postpartum appointment.  I loaded up both of the boys and made my way downtown.  Once we got to the doctor's office I got them in their stroller (aka: The Limousine), and we wheeled our way inside.  Overall we successfully navigated the building all the way to our assigned exam room.

When the physician's assistant entered the room, she smiled at the boys and then focused her attention on me. She asked how I was doing, so I explained to her that I was still having some postpartum bleeding, and that I feel like it's an excessive amount at this point.  At times in the past few weeks, it had gotten so bad that I even called into the after hours emergency line.  The nurses that called me back told me what I was experiencing was normal, but I had my doubts about that.

Once she started my exam, she quickly said that she needed to go get my doctor to take a look. (Great! Oh and the babies are starting to wiggle because it's time to eat.  And did I mention that their stroller is HUGE!  It took up roughly 25% of the exam room.  Logistical issues.) Once my doctor arrived, she took a look and was very concerned with the fact that I was still bleeding as much as I was at this point.  It was determined that a part of my placenta had remained lodged in my uterus post-delivery and was attempting to work it's way out.  This was causing my issues.

Long story short, I had to get Kevin to rush up to STV downtown (because I couldn't watch the babies while under anesthesia, and he had to drive me home).  It was quite the juggling act to get me from my doctor's exam room to a hospital room to prep for surgery with The Limousine and screaming babies.  Once Kevin arrived, he took over the kiddos, I went to get my issues taken care of, and after surgery I joined Kevin and the boys in my room.  My appointment had been at 10am and by 4pm (ish) we were rolling up out of there.

Definitely not what I was expecting, but now everything is so much better!

Back to the Work Grind

October 5th was my doctor approved day that I could return to work. (Great! It's that time already?!?!)  I took things slow on Monday and sorted through emails, made phone calls to check in with everyone, and made my game plan for the next couple of weeks.  (I should mention that I will be working from home for the remainder of the year.  Once the twin's spots at daycare open up in January, I will return to the office.) 

Finding a happy work/mommy balance is a challenge for any mommy that is returning to work following their maternity leave, but especially hard when you're still sitting at home with the kiddos and needing to split your attention with them staring at you from their cradles.  It's now Friday, and I've made pretty good progress with my work and not sacrificed how I care for these kiddos.  I call that a win (so what if it's noon and I haven't brushed my teeth yet).

During the day, I'm able to get up and get about 2 hours of work done before they wake up around 9am.  Truthfully, those are my most productive 2 hours of the day.  After I feed them at 9am and pump, it's about 10am and I have another 2 hours to work and grab something to eat.  At noon, it's time to eat again, and they usually want to stay awake a little longer after this feeding.  So mid-day is when I have mommy/H&H time.  They eat again around 3pm, I pump, and then I have an hour to hour and a half before Kevin and Grady get home.

(Notice that there's no mention of laundry or bottle washing.  That's because it's not happening at this point.  Meaning dirty sink and an increasing pile of laundry.  Also, no naps...if that was even a thought.)

It's going to be a work in progress, but I will find a happy rhythm to life, and I'll just whip and nae nae through my day. 

 

Out and about: Week 4 Update

It happened.  The boys and I got out of the house for the first time last week!

MONDAY

After being at home for 3 weeks, it was finally time to venture out and get some fresh air.  Monday morning I decided that our first adventure of the week would be a quick run to Babies 'R Us to pick up a few items that we needed.  The initial plan was to load the twins up after their 10am feeding; however, that didn't happen.

Having already showered in plans to get out in public, I was ready to load up the kids and leave at 10:45am when the boys finished their bottles.  But the timing of this feeding meant that I was now hungry (because I showered instead of breakfast...some days these choices must be made).  So at 10:45am I was now hungry and decided to fix a bite to eat.  Then I needed to pump.  Then bottles needed to be washed.  Then I collected dirty laundry.  Then it was 30 minutes until H&H needed to eat again.

It was then 1:30pm.  Still at home.  So I fed babies and planned to load up the car after this feeding (I'm still ready to go).  We finished that feeding just after 2pm, and then I had to pump.  FINALLY at 3:10pm, we were in the van and rolling down the road! SUCCESS!

Our trip to BrU was uneventful, but nice.  We got everything we needed, and even picked up something for Grady. We were home again by 4:15pm and it was time for the boys to eat again (then more pumping, and bottle washing, and starting some laundry, then Grady and daddy got home).  Whew!

TUESDAY

We had visitors on Tuesday last week.  My grandmother, Pucky, and my Aunt Teresa came for a visit and to help me with the babies.  During their visit, they fed and changed the babies and I just got to sit there and enjoy their company and relax.  We didn't even turn the tv on all day and it was amazing.  I LOVE visits with family!

WEDNESDAY

Wednesday I got a little too ambitious, but it turned out ok.  The boys and I just hung out at the house for most of the day, and then Kevin called and said he had a meeting after work.  So after their 4pm feeding, I got H&H dressed and loaded in the car to go pick up Grady from daycare.  After we got Grady, I decided I needed some things from Target so why not just go pick them up. 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Me and my "good" ideas.

Once we arrived at Target, I got the babies loaded in the stroller and asked Grady if he would walk and hold my hand.  Nope.  He looked at me and said, "I carry you" (which means I'd rather you carry me so I don't have to walk).  He finally did decide he wanted to walk once we got in the store (and that's when our trip started to take a turn).  

I don't even remember what all I had in mind to pick up while there, but all we had time to grab was a gift bag for a birthday gift that we needed on Saturday.  Grady found a shelf of plastic Disney cups and I told him he could get one of them; however, he wanted 10.  He kept trying to pick up an entire stack of cups and when I kept handing him just one he started with the "toddler in the floor screaming in the middle of Target" routine.  (He rarely behaves this way, but for all of you out there that don't believe me...it really did happen and there wasn't much I could do about it.)  The great thing about toddlers is that their attention span is relatively short (at least Grady's is), so the best method I've come up with to combat the stubborn toddler is to deflect to another object or activity.  I got him to help me pick out a bag and some tissue paper and the tears dried up real quick and he was happy again.  With a smile on Grady's face I decided not to push my luck and told him it was time to check-out.

As usual, I got in the WRONG CHECKOUT LINE!  The lady in front of me was having some issues with her payment, but I had already committed to this line and had 2 people behind me.  Thanks to this woman's complications, I got to purchase some additional items to maintain the peace with my toddler.  (I do understand that I'm the adult, and I'm bigger, and what I say goes.  However, sometimes it's easier to give in and purchase a few little items in the checkout line.  That's what all that junk is there for, right?)  So we finally checked out and left target with a gift bag/tissue paper, a plastic Disney cup (Frozen with Elsa, BTW), a pack of chocolate chip cookies (I'm guilty of this one), a Hershey bar, a small package of gold fish, and a bag of Cheddar and Sour Cream chips.  SUCCESS!

On top of that ambitious adventure, I decided that all 3 kids needed a bath that night. I had no clue what time Kevin's meeting would be over, so instead of waiting for assistance I took on bath time.  It was a fairly smooth process.  Grady got to play while I took turns washing the babies in their tub on the counter.  After bath, I got Grady ready for bed, and then he helped me with the twins.  He's so cute with them when he wants to take care of them.  

Kevin got home around 8:30pm and I had all 3 kids ready for bed.  Grady went to bed as soon as he got to see Kev and then the babies ate again around 9pm, got swaddled, and put in bed.  Then I actually got in bed by 10:30pm.  SUCCESS!

THURSDAY

Continuing with our week of getting out of the house, I decided to take the boys into the office with me (because I needed to submit some paperwork).  We actually managed to leave the house only 30 minutes later than I had planned, and we got back home around lunch time.  SUCCESS!

Also, on Thursday, I attempted the whole baby wrapping thing.  I've been scouting YouTube to learn how I can wrap and carry the twins at the same time.  First I attempted one baby at a time (surprisingly easy and comfortable). But that extra baby complicates things.

One baby = Easy (look, no hands!)

Harrison was not too sure about this one.  I found a different way to wrap twins after I did this one that I like better, but Harrison was still not a huge fan.  When I wrap Hudson, he almost immediately falls asleep.  When I wrapped Harrison (even alone), he immediately went into escape artist mode and started looking for the nearest exit.  The double wrapping thing may not work out for my kids.

FRIDAY

We didn't go anywhere on Friday, but the boys did turn 1 MONTH OLD!  When we woke up, I took the standard "month sticker" picture.  The past month has had a lot of ups and downs (the ups are mostly related to these kiddos and the downs are with my body dealing with having these babies).  I can't get enough of these sweet babies, and it's kind of sad that I only have 2 more weeks at home with them before I have to start working again.  (Luckily, I get to work from home for a few months before leaving them at daycare while I go to the office all day.)

 

Sometimes the pictures mom wants to take don't turn out as planned....

Grady at 1 month vs. H&H at 1 month

I would say that we had a great week.  On Saturday, we went to cousin Lilli's 1st birthday party and then Sunday the boys made their first appearance at church.  I think it's safe to say that we're settling into our life as a family of 5, and things are going pretty well.

Thank you to everyone who has made us meals and stopped by to visit and help me with the babies.  We have such amazing friends and family and are so grateful for them.

 Pictures from this week:

#twinning 

Some day my body may be "normal" again...maybe?

So obviously my body has been on a roller coaster of changes since the beginning of this year.  I gained a total of 43lbs from January to mid-August, and since August 18th I have lost 40lbs.  My legs and ankles and feet were extremely swollen for the better part of 6 weeks before delivery and another 2.5 weeks postpartum. (I finally have knees and ankles again!) I also became anemic during pregnancy, while trying to keep both of these kiddos well nourished.  Not to mention all of the hormonal changes!

After delivery, it's amazing how quickly your body starts working to get back to it's "normal" state.  It is truly amazing the way God designed our bodies to be able to carry a tiny life (or lives) and then shift back after delivery.  (Of course it doesn't go back exactly as it was before, but you're able to find a new "normal" that is still remarkable considering what your body just accomplished.  Every "imperfection" tells the story of how you became a mommy.)

I continue to thank God each day that he made me strong enough to carry these babies as long as I did and that they are healthy and growing strong.  I'm truly in AWE of His Awesomeness and I know He will continue to carry me through these changes.

"On My Own"

Hudson and Harrison entered this world 3 weeks ago today!  For the past two weeks, we have had either Kevin's mom or my dad stay with us to help out with the babies and around the house.  But today, for the first time, I am going to attempt things on my own.

So for today, I've decided I'm going to blog about how my day goes.

Night Recap

Last night, we got home from visiting Gani and Denny around 9pm and it was time for H&H to eat.  After Kevin and I got everything unloaded from the car, babies fed, Grady put to bed, and bottles washed for the night, we finally got in bed around 10:30pm.  

1:30am - Harrison woke up to eat, so I fed him, changed him, swaddled him, and put him back to bed.  Kevin got up 30 minutes later to do the same with Hudson while I was pumping for their next feeding. 

A Day with the Twins

5:15am - Harrison woke up to eat, so I fed him, changed him, swaddled him, and put him back to bed.  Kevin came in to do the same with Hudson after he had showered for the morning.  I then pumped and got a shower myself (this in itself is the first accomplishment of the day).

6:45am - I woke Grady up and got him dressed for school while Kevin packed lunches and washed bottles. By 7am, Kevin and Grady were out the door for work and school.  

9:00am - I fed Harrison and changed him out of his jammies and then I fed and changed Hudson and we moved downstairs for the day.  I pumped and ate some breakfast while they snoozed in their cradles.  So far, so good.

10:30am - LAUNDRY time!  We've got a good stack of clothing, changing pad covers, burp cloths, etc. that have accumulated since yesterday morning, so that means it's time for a load of laundry and then some lunch!

Took time to put away 2 basket loads of clean laundry before rounding up dirty clothes to be washed.

11:00am - LUNCH/Relax

12:00pm -  Babies eat (Harrison then Hudson).  Babies spit up.  Harrison needs clothes changed, goes through a burp cloth.  Babies get a diaper change.  Hudson immediately poops in his clean diaper while Harrison spits up all over his fresh change of clothes.  Spit up claims onesie, burp cloth, and a blanket as it's victim.  Harrison is left in diaper while Hudson gets a new diaper.  Hudson spits up on his onesie (not bad enough to change).  Harrison gets fresh change of clothes and is put in his cradle....spits up on clothes {face palm}.  Harrison gets wiped down and it will dry.

Mommy needs to pump!

1:00pm - Pest control guy calls and asks if it's still a good time to come by and spray and do termite inspection....sure....why not!

Pest guy leaves, time to change out the laundry.  Oh wait, bottles need to be washed?  Better do that.  Need to pump first

1:50pm - Finally pumped (just an hour later than I wanted to)

2:10pm - Bottles finally washed and sterilized

2:30pm - Updated blog and got bottles ready for feeding in 30 minutes (didn't we just do this?!?!)

2:33pm - Harrison got cranky.  Picked up baby and he gnawed on shoulder.  Guess he can eat now.

3:00pm - Hudson got to eat, and immediately fell asleep (in my arms...so I snuggled and watched some tv).

4:25pm - Pumped again (What's for dinner?)

4:45pm - Relaxed on the couch with H&H and waited on Daddy and Grady to get home.

5:30pm - Daddy and Grady got home and we all ate dinner

6:00pm - Fed babies...again

6:30pm - Pumped again and Started watched "Planes" with Grady while babies snoozed (ohhh, and just remembered I have laundry in the dryer that needs folding...ugh)



I think it's safe to say that we made it through our first day and survived! Now that Daddy and Grady are home, we will hang out with them, get baths for the kiddos, and start our bed time routine.  Maybe tomorrow we can attempt to sweep the floors.  Maybe.

Getting on a Schedule

Most moms would agree that the best favor you can do for yourself with a newborn is GET ON A SCHEDULE.  I had an idea of how our schedule would look (based on how things went with Grady), and after only a few days at home I realized it was time to throw that plan in the trash!

Every baby is different (and then there's the fact that we have 2 this time).  So Kevin and I have been taking things one day at a time, utilizing the help that his mom and my dad have been able to provide us, enjoying the meals our church family has been keeping in our fridge, and adjusting our plan for a schedule each day.  I have yet to have a full day at home alone with the twins, but I believe this week we are going to attempt it.

The New Plan (Survive)

Feedings

Our new plan is basically to not have a plan.  Difficult for me to wrap my mind around, but from our trial and error method that we've been using thus far I think this is our best option.  There are certain things throughout the day that I strive to achieve (like keeping the twins on a feeding schedule 15-20 minutes apart).  The original plan included me feeding both babies at the same time so that I wouldn't just be constantly feeding babies.  However, after attempting this, I've learned it's best (for me) to feed one and burp him and then move on to the next baby.  They actually eat better when I feed them one at a time, and after doing feedings both ways I've discovered that at any given feeding each of these methods takes about the same amount of time.  So I wasn't really saving myself any time by trying to multi-task.  The "no plan" part of this includes the fact that if both babies wake up to eat at the same time, I do what is needed for that feeding.  The key for me to stay sane is to just do what works each time throughout the day and not get hung up on it being done "my way" each time.  Basically do what it takes to survive that feeding and make it to the next one.

Pumping

Ohhhh the pump.  I'm re-attached to this pump bag again, and on an entirely different level than I was with Grady.  Currently, I'm strictly pumping and bottle feeding both boys (for 2 main reasons: I can monitor their exact intake to make sure they're getting enough to gain weight AND when help is around we can divide and conquer).  In order to stay on schedule with the fellas, I pump after each of their feedings.  They eat a lot...therefore I pump a lot.

After their next weight check, I will likely start to breast feed a little more to help reduce some bottle washing, but I will keep pumping to stock up the freezer. 

Feeding and pumping consume approximately 30% of my day.

Night Schedule

I will brag on these amazing babies for a minute (I have already knocked on wood for this).  They are on a good 3 hour schedule during the day, but at night these wonderful children of mine are on a 3.5-4 hour schedule (which means I get 2-3 hours of consecutive sleep!).  We feed them around 10-11pm at night, again between 2-3am and then not again until 6-7am! 

For the past 2 weeks, we have had someone staying with us at night (Kevin's mom or my dad), so Kevin and I will take the 10-11pm feeding, I get up with our helper at 2am, and then Kevin takes the morning feeding with our helper before heading to work.  Once we're on our own, I will get up to feed both babies for each feeding and then Kevin will change and put them back to bed while I pump.   We will re-adjust slightly when I start back to work and can't nap any during the day, but for now this will help Kevin and I both get some good sleep each night.

Bottle Washing

So. Many. Bottles.

When you consider the fact that after each feeding we have 2 bottles and my pump stuff, the sink fills up quickly.  With the help we've had so far, they make it really easy for me to stay on top of this part of the day, but once I'm on my own during the day I will become very busy.

If I wash bottles after every other feeding, then bottle washing will take up about an hour of my day (minimum).

My nightly routine for bottle prep has gotten pretty smooth.  I pack the white basket full of everything I will need upstairs so that I'm not going up and downstairs all night long.  I typically pack:  6 pump bottles, 3 sets of pump attachments, 6 feeding bottles, and lids for the pump bottles to store the extra pumped milk (which I do have to take down to the refrigerator). This will typically get me through the night feedings and have bottles ready for the first morning feeding (between 9-10am).  Then I get to go downstairs and wash it all and sterilize it to start off another day.

Laundry

I can't even wrap my mind around this, because our helpers have done every bit of our laundry for the past 2 weeks! #blessed #Ihatelaundry #laundryistheNEVERENDINGstory

This will be the only time EVER that our laundry is so caught up in this house.  Something you should know about new born twins (if you can't already guess), is that they generate a LOT of laundry.  We have at least one full load each day that consists of burp cloths, baby clothes, blankets, mommy's shirts and pants.  Basically anything in the spit-up zone is at risk around here.  Hudson was an overachiever Thursday of this past week, because between 8:45-9am he had already spit up all over 2 of my shirts, 2 burp cloths, and his jammies.  That my friends takes some real skill.

I can only imagine that once I'm left on my own, to fend for myself, I will need to do at least 1-2 loads of laundry each day of the week and probably an extra load of Kevin and Grady's clothes and sheets on the weekend.  Loads of laundry happening over here.  Loads!

Naps

The babies get to take them, and while I've had help I typically take at least one 30-60 minute nap each day.  However, once the help leaves, I doubt I have much time at all for naps.  We will see. I'm pretty creative and if I'm tired enough then the laundry will wait and I will sleep. =)

Diapers

Can't even describe how many diapers we use each day.  THANK YOU to everyone who has sent us diapers. THANK YOU!

Working out/Getting mommy back in shape

Hahahahahahahaha! So far I've been happy with the natural results of the power of breast feeding/pumping.  There will come a time and day when I'm able to start running/working out again, but I'm not too concerned about when that day comes.  I've only got 8 more pounds to lose to get the number on the scale back to where it was before I was pregnant, however, that number has nothing to do with the effects pregnancy had on my body.  

I am happy to report that my knees and ankles have returned to their "normal" size, and it's a lot easier to move around now that all of the swelling has subsided.  

Summary

So in a typical day (so far) I wake up, feed babies, change babies, pump, wash night bottles and pump accessories, eat breakfast/lunch, gather up laundry from the night before, feed babies, change babies, pump, gather up laundry, sit down and attempt to relax, feed babies, change babies, pump, wash bottles, gather up laundry (start a load), etc.  You get the idea.  

Then at some point Kevin and Grady get home.  I play with Grady in his play room or take him for a walk, we eat dinner, get Grady a bath, read some books, feed babies, change babies, pump, wash bottles, put Grady to bed (it's a fight every night), sit on the couch with Kevin for 30 minutes and wait until babies need to eat again.  Then get what sleep we can to function during the next day.

This is why our best option is to have the "no plan" plan.  We just take what we can get, survive the day, snuggle with these precious babies and soak up all of their newborn cuteness (then change clothes because they likely spit up all over me again).  We work Grady into the babies schedule and get him to help whenever he is interested (he loves to help burp them and always brings them their paci).  Grady get's his special time to play with mommy and daddy in his new play room, and this has helped us transition pretty smoothly to having all 5 of us at home.

This plan is subject to change at any point this week.

2 Week Check-Up

The Monday after we got the boys home, we took them to the pediatrician to get a weight check and have Dr. Malone take a look at the health of the little guys.  At that visit, Hudson's weight had dropped from 5lbs 9oz (at birth) to 5lbs 2oz and Harrison's weight had dropped from 5lbs 1oz (at birth) to 4lbs 12oz.

This past Tuesday, we took them in for their 2 week check-up.  I'm happy to announce that they got a perfect report, and our goal now is weight gain.  Ideally they will be gaining at least 1oz per day.

Here are the boys stats from their 2-week check:

Hudson Weight: 6lbs Length: 18.5” Head Circumference: 33cm

Harrison Weight:  5lbs 8oz Length:  19” Head Circumference: 33cm

They're taking in more milk each day, and we haven't had to use formula to supplement their feeding in the past week.  (I've even been able to start freezing about 15-20oz of breast milk for the past few days. Which means that most of my day is spent pumping and feeding, pumping and feeding.)

We go back again on September 23rd for a weight check, and then we won't go back again until their 2 month check up.

The Fun Has ARRIVED!

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY

Hudson Thomas Finnen

Born @ 11:01am 8/18/15

Weighing 5 lbs 9 oz

Measuring 18" long

AND

Harrison Edward Finnen

Born @ 11:06am 8/18/15

Weighing 5 lbs 1 oz

Measuring 18" long

Monday, August 17, 2015

(Two weeks ago) I wasn't feeling very well when Kevin got home from work.  We decided that I was in enough pain to go to the hospital and get checked out.  Upon arrival, they started to monitor the babies and my contractions.  Our nurse informed us that I was in labor and progressing slowly, but we would be having our babies within 24 hours!

That night went by very slowly, but they were able to give me some pain medicine to help me relax a little.  By morning, we were getting closer to delivery and the nurses started to prepare our room for the twin's arrival. (So much happening in one labor and delivery room.) 

Due to some technical difficulties with the oxygen hook up in our room, we were wheeled to the OR for delivery at the last minute.  Everything from that point went fairly quickly.  Hudson (Baby A) was delivered quickly and easily.  Harrison (Baby B) decided at the last minute that he would flip around and had to be delivered breech (not ideal, and I will spare you all the details of this experience, because he got here and was healthy).  Both babies were taken by the nurses to be cleaned up and given a check-up, and Kevin let me know that they were both healthy and beautiful baby boys.

Once back in our room, we were able to hold the babies, and family members that were in the waiting room came back to see the babies.  We weren't in our room long before they came in to check on the babies and made the call to send them to the NICU for observation because their breathing was too fast and shallow.  I believe they took the boys around 12:30pm and I didn't get a chance to see them again until 8:30pm that night.

Just before going to the NICU

NICU

Overall, Kevin and I were completely blessed that H&H's stay in the NICU was as brief as it was.  Their progress each day was so reassuring to see, and to have been delivered at 35 weeks and only spend 4 days in the NICU is truly a blessing from God.  The Saturday after the boys were born, we were able to bring them home with us (only 2 days after I was discharged).

Family photo (minus G, because he couldn't come into the NICU)

Holding my little Harrison in the NICU

Kevin holding Harrison in the NICU

Grady meets the Twins

Ready to go home

Time to meet Grady

First Family Photo

long day calls for a good nap

Grady saying "Shhhh, babies are asleep"

He loved meeting his brothers

Grady is tickling daddy's feet

Big brother likes to help

So far everything is going good in the Finnen household.  We have had tons of help and meals brought to us from church friends and family.  We are so grateful to God for these beautiful blessings and we thank you all for the prayers you have made on our behalf.