Sunday Social- Thanksgiving

  It's been awhile since I linked up with these fun girls for their Sunday Social. I loved the topic for this week's questions- Thanksgiving, so I thought I'd link up. Enjoy! 1. What is your favorite Thanksgiving memory? My favorite Thanksgiving memories involve lots of laughing. Probably 2 favorite memories are 1) singing to the TV show theme song cd as an entire family. It was pretty hilarious. 2) Playing games.

(My mom, Aunt Marty, and I drinking champs while playing a game on the patio.)   2. What is your favorite Thanksgiving food? I'm not a huge Thanksgiving food fan. I'd much prefer Christmas or Easter food. My favorite from this holiday is the strawberry pretzel salad though- delish!

3. What is a Thanksgiving tradition you and your family have? My family all goes to my parents' house for Thanksgiving.  We usually get there mid morning and are joined by my Aunt and Uncle who drive up from Tucson. My cousins wont be joining us this year (sad!). We eat yummy appetizers including my favorite - crab dip- while we wait for my mom to finish cooking.  The girls usually talk in the kitchen while the boys watch football in the living room. Then we move into the dining room for lunch. After lunch we hang out, nap, play games, and talk. Later in the afternoon we would have pumpkin pie.  Before Reagan came, we would all go to the movies that evening. After the movies we would come back and have turkey sandwiches and play more games.  We had such fun! It's a little different now with the babies and we don't spend the night like we used to. But most of the other traditions still stay!    4. Show us a favorite Thanksgiving picture(or 5) from years past.

My sister Meg, favorite aunt Marty, and I.

My BIL Shaun, Nick, and my dad watching football on the patio.

The cousins love playing on the quilt in the backyard. Don't they all look so young in this picture?

My mom always sets such a beautiful table.

Family corn hole competitions. 

Enjoying the nice weather.

Watching Dad carve the turkey.

Turkey crafts 5. What are you most looking forward to about this Thanksgiving? I'm excited to spend time with my wonderful family this Thanksgiving.  It's going to be a crazy one as we have added 3 new babies to the family since last Thanksgiving! There is going to be lots of baby-loving this Thanksgiving! I just love that these sweet cousins are going to grow up together and be so close.  Just picture the kids' table in a couple of years! LOVE it!    What are your Thanksgiving traditions or favorite memories?

A day at our house....

(Before I begin, I want to thank everyone for the sweet messages here and on Facebook after my last post. I totally didn't mean to sound like Debbie Downer and "poor me"! I'm just like any mom of a newborn (or 2) who has good days and bad days. But I appreciate all of your love and support! XXOO)

I remember finding some blogs written by mothers of multiples when I was pregnant and I found them really helpful in knowing what was in store.  A few of them did posts where they wrote down what a day in their lives were like.  So, I thought I'd do the same.

Here is a typical day at our house
(babies at 5 weeks old):

* I got this sleep/feeding schedule I follow from the "Mom's on Call" book.

5:30 am- Hudson wakes up crying. (He always wakes up before her!)  We wake up Harper and fed them both. Then it was time to change their diapers, re-swaddle the, and lay them back down in their cribs.

(And at least one of them usually falls asleep during a burp!)

6:00 am- Nick gets showered and starts getting ready for work. I go to the kitchen to wash the bottles and prep bottles for the next feeding.

6:30 am- I wake up Reagan, make his bed, and get him ready for school.

7:00 am Nick takes Reagan to school and then goes to work.
I pump, eat breakfast, catch up on the computer, and shower (on a good day!)

8:30am - Hudson wakes up crying. I love on him a little while I let Harper finish sleeping.

9:00 am- I wake up Harper and set them both up in their Boppy newborn loungers and feed them both while I watch a show I have dvr-ed from the night before.

9:30 am - The babies have awake time. I put them on their play mat and do tummy time and play with them.

10:00 am- I change their diapers, get them dressed, swaddle them, and lay them back down in their crib.

10:30 am - Time to pump and get bottles prepared for the next feeding.

11:00 am - I do laundry, take out the trash, and eat lunch.

12:00 pm - I wake up both babies for lunch. I set them both up in their Boppy newborn loungers and feed them.

12:30 pm - More play time. They might swing in their swings or sit in their bouncy chairs this time while I fold laundry and put it away.

1:00 pm- I change both babies, swaddle them. and lay then down for a nap in their crib.

I then pump and prepare bottles for the next feeding.

I then may take a nap, write thank you notes, blog, etc. If I haven't gotten ready yet, I shower now.

2:30 pm- Hudson wakes up crying. (He is always the first one up.) I love on him a little while I let Harper finish sleeping.

3:00 pm I wake up Harper and set them both up in their Boppy newborn loungers and feed them both while I watch a show I have dvr-ed from the night before.

3:30 pm The babies have awake time. I put them on their play mat and do tummy time and play with them.

4:00 pm I change their diapers, swaddle them, and lay them back down in their crib.

My mom goes to Reagan's school and picks him up for me.  (She has been awesome and does this for me whenever she can so I don't have to load up the babies and go inside Reagan's school for 2 minutes to get him and then load everyone back up.)

4:30 pm Reagan gets home. He likes to play outside, do crafts, or watch a show and eat a snack.

I start dinner (on a good day).

5:15 pm Nick gets home from work.

5:30 We wake up babies for their dinner feeding.

6:00 pm I change their diapers, swaddle them, and lay them back down in their crib

We then eat dinner and spend time together.

7:00 Nick bathes Reagan while I pump and prepare the next bottles.

7:30 Nick and I climb onto Reagan's bed for his night time routine. Rea picks out 3 books for us to read. Nick leaves to start ironing or work. I stay and rub Reagan's back for a bit.

8:00 pm I do random stuff around the house before we wake up the babies.

8:30 pm We change diapers and put them in their jammies. Then it is time for their bedtime feeding.

9:30 pm I pump and prepare the night's bottles.

Then we fall into bed and watch a show before falling asleep.

We usually go to sleep by 11:00pm

1:30 am- Hudson wakes up crying. We wake up Harper and fed them both. Then it was time to change their diapers, re-swaddle the, and lay them back down in their cribs.

I clean bottles and then go back  to bed by 2:30 am.

Then we all sleep until 5:30 am when we do it all again!!

What it's really like ....

I just laid the babies down for a nap, got dinner going in the crock pot, and caught up on some blogs. Phew. A few minutes to myself that is very deeply needed. 

I love, love, love my sweet family but damn this is hard. 

I knew that it was going to be rough once the babies arrived (I was warned by everyone and asked daily "are you going to have help?") but actually living it is something else. There are amazing moments filled with joy and there are down-right awful moments where I am still in my pajamas, covered in milk/poop/pee/spit-up, crying on my bed while I have 3 crying children in the next room (yes- this happens more than you think!) 

I am blessed to have a wonderful support system. I can not explain how fortunate I am to have my hubby Nick. He is amazing. When he is home, he will tell me he is taking over for awhile and let me go sleep. He is so involved with Reagan and makes sure to give him  special time when I am busy and can't.  He still wakes up and helps me doing night feedings even though he has to go to work in the morning. He is awesome. 

 I am so fortunate to have my mom living  so close as well.  I can call her when I need help and she is down at my house in no time. For example, this past Saturday night Reagan started throwing up and was really sick. Of course the minute this happened, both babies woke up starving and were screaming bloody murder.  They needed to be fed, burped, changed into jammies, and laid back down to bed.  Reagan needed to be cleaned up and bathed.  The house needed to be cleaned from where Reagan got sick too.  There was so much to do and Nick and I needed help.  So I called my mom (who was getting ready for bed).  She came over immediately in her jammies and started feeding and consoling the babies. Thank the Lord. She continues to watch Reagan twice a week which gives him 2 days of undivided attention and gives me time with the babies. (It's no wonder he is obsessed with her. I swear, he cries every day because he wants to go back to her house and be with her. It breaks my heart but I know how special he is making him feel when we are really struggling.) 

Speaking of Reagan. Wow. He is still having a hard time adjusting. Or at least that's what I hope is causing his bad behavior. He has tantrums that rival any of the terrible twos. He disobeys and doesn't seem to care about the consequence.  For example, last night we came in from an evening walk and I put the babies' carriers by the laundry room.  Reagan walked by the dryer and hit it hard.  It told him not to do it again because it might wake the babies.  He looked right at me and pounded it even harder with a big smirk on his face. Oh my word. Trouble. 

I have only taken 2 trips out of the house alone with the babies.  They are 6 weeks old. That is insane! But it is such a task to take them anywhere it overwhelms the heck out of me.  Our first trip was to Buy Buy Baby.  I loaded Harper in the Moby carrier and put Hudson's carseat into the shopping cart.  They were really good as I shopped.  But the second I got them back  into the van, they both started wailing at the top of their lungs.  All I could do was laugh. If I didn't I would cry.  The second trip was to the mall to get a dress for Harper for the Christmas card picture. I had both babies in the double stroller.  That thing is a beast. I'm not even joking when I tell you I knocked over 2 displays at Children's place and needed help getting around in Gymboree. Hudson slept the whole time but Harper fussed and ultimately cried until  I pulled over and held her.  I decided it was close enough to lunch time and started feeding her. Then I decided I didn't want them to be off for their feedings, so I put her back in the stroller and fed them both simultaneously.I became a circus show and had many people coming over to watch (umm please leave us alone), ask if they were twins (duh), and tell me their experiences (I don't care at the moment). 

There was this one lady though.  She came up to me with tears in her eyes and told me how blessed I was. She said she tried her whole life to have a baby and couldn't.  She said she knows I'm probably stressed and tired but to please remember how lucky I am to have these 2 little babies to hold.  (If I wasn't in the middle of burping a baby I would have hugged her. Bless her heart.)

She is right. It's hard as hell right now, but I am blessed.

Fall TV

As you may remember, I am a bit of a TV fanatic.

I have my breast pump set up in our bedroom as well as the Boppy pillows for when I'm home alone feeding the babies. Plus when Nick and I are doing night feedings we just do them in our bed.  And this my friends is where I have my own DVR set up. This was one of the greatest things we've done.  I can tape all my junkie fabulous TV shows in here while Reagan and Nick tape their shows out in the living room. Between all of my reality shows and the shows Nick and I have been Netflix-ing, we have seen a lot of TV. Here is my rundown of favorites:

1. Parenthood

I have been told over and over how great this show is. And I was late to hop on the bandwagon. My friend Holly lent me her DVDs of seasons 1 and 2. So good. You all were right. So now we are watching season 3 on Netflix streaming. I love how close the family is. I totally feel like a mix between the 2 blonde moms- overbearing and uptight! It's funny because the really liberal and laid back characters drive me bonkers. Plus my heart just hurts for the family with the little boy with autism. I can't even imagine.

2. Dexter Season 6

We are Dexter lovers for sure. So we were thrilled when it was our turn on Netflix to watch season 6. It was soo good! It was an interesting plot this season and left us on such a cliffhanger. Can't wait to see the next season!

3. Homeland

After this last Emmy's and I saw all the awards this show was winning, I decided we needed to give it a shot. So glad I did.  We are still in the middle of season 1 but Nick and I are loving it!

4. The Voice

I love this show. I'm slightly obsessed with Cee Low and I think the singers are amazing!

5. X Factor

I've tried this show for the first time this season. Honestly? I thought the try-outs were good but now that we are getting into the live shows I think it's pretty crappy. I think I may quit! I really only tuned in to watch my fave girl Brit. She's the only redeeming thing left.

6. RH Miami

You know I love me some housewives. And this city does not disapoint! I am loving the drama. Holy catfights! They have taken RH to a new level. Plus I'm pretty obsessed with Mama Elsa. I want to know her in real life. I swear I watched the scene of her dancing around the living room in front of Marisol like 5 times. She is amazing.

7. RH Everything Else - I loved New Jersey this season. Holy smokes. I watched the reunion shows multiple times. I have problems, I know. But it was so good. New York was also surprisingly good this season. I wasn't sure at the beginning  but boy did they turn it around! I'm super excited for Atlanta to start- love me some Phaedra! 

8. American Horror Story- Season 2

We didn't watch season 1 last year, but thought we'd give it a shot. Holy smokes this show is scary. But good. I was surprised that I like it- I'm kind of a wuss!

9. Damages- Season 4

We have loved this show from the beginning. So we were excited to watch this most recent season on Netflix. It was awesome! I love a good drama! 

10. Ellen

I love watching this show during the babies afternoon feeding. She seriously cracks me up. My favorite parts are the beginning when she does little comedy bits. Her producer who says song lyrics to random people is amazing. If you need a smile or a chuckle this show will do it!

11. Chicago Fire

I am loving this show. Not to mention Lady Gaga's bf is totally gorgeous to watch.

What shows are you watching? I know, I know. I still haven't started Pretty Little Liars or Revenge yet. Last time I did a TV blog post you all suggested those. I promise. They are on the list!

Month 1 Must-Haves

We survived the first month with the twins.

Here are some of our must-have items that really made our life easier this past month. If you are pregnant and don't have any of these items- I would definitely suggest getting them!

1. Boppy Newborn Loungers - These have been so helpful for me when I'm home alone and feeding the babies.  I like to sit on my bed with these propped up in front of me. The babies each sit in one and I can easily feed them both at the same time. If I'm feeling really confident I pump at the same time. Talk about multi-tasking! 

2. Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper- The babies slept in these in our room for the first month. They were so comfy in them and slept really well.  The babies are now sleeping in their crib, so these aren't getting much use anymore.  But they were lifesavers that first month. I'm thinking of bringing them out into the living room for the babies when they are having some awake time. I hate to not use them!

3. Swaddle Blankets- Our babies (like most) need to be tightly wrapped in order to get a good night's rest. If they weren't swaddled they would wake themselves up with their thrusting arms and legs.  I know some people aren't crazy about the Swaddle Me blankets because of the Velcro  but I find that the babies are nice and secure in them.

4. Aden + Anais Muslin Blankets- These blankets are awesome. They are lightweight and are perfect to swaddle, cover a chilly baby, or cover a carseat or stroller.  They are huge and very soft. 

5. Bag Balm- When the babies were 2 weeks old, Harper got a terrible case of diaper rash. I felt so bad. It seemed to really bother her.  I tried Desitin and Aquafor but nothing seemed to work.  Then  someone recommended Bag Balm to me.  At this point I was ready to try anything.  I got it at CVS (on the bottom shelf in the hand cream isle)  and it was a miracle worker! It's a totally random product but worked! 

6. Oatmeal- Producing enough breast milk for twins is hard work.  I was doing a lot of research and  willing to try anything to try to boost my supply. I tried Fenugreek and it only made my babies CrAzY! (those of you who warned me- you were right!) So I started eating a bowl of oatmeal every day for breakfast and boy is it working! I'm producing around 29 ounces a day and I feel confident that it's in large part to do with the oatmeal.

7. Medela Hands Free Pumping Bra- This thing has been amazing.  I am kicking myself that I didn't have it when I was pumping for Reagan. Sitting there and holding the bottles seems like the biggest waste of time! With it I can now pump while feeding babies, catching up on my social media on the phone, or doing a blog post. It's amazing. 

I hope this list helps someone out there! 

The Twins at 1 Month

Wow.

This past month has been such a blur. 

It really seems like only yesterday I was holding my sweet babies for the first time.  And now they are a month old and have already changed so much.

Both babies are eating 3 1/2 total ounces (1.5 breast milk and 1.5 formula) at each feeding.  They are eating every 3 hours during the day.  In between feedings they have awake time (for about 20 minutes) and then sleep.  This week they have started sleeping 5 hours in a row at night. We are very happy about that! :) They are both sleeping in their Fisher Price Rock and Sleepers but are transitioning into the pack and play this weekend.  Then next week we are transitioning them to the crib! I can't believe it is already time to sleep in the cribs! We have them both on the same schedule and will be starting sleep training soon. They both love being swaddled and love their binkys! They have only left the house a handful of times and are not crazy about the car. (I thought all babies love the car?! These little guys hate it!) They are both still wearing newborn diapers and newborn outfits. Although I think they are almost ready for 0-3 month clothes! 

Harper Grace

My sweet Harper. You were a fiesty, wild woman when you were in my belly and we expected you to be a wild woman once you were out into the world.  But that hasn't happened (yet)! You are actually quite calm.  You have a serious face when you are awake, but give us such sweet "sleep smiles". It's like you know you are a girl and always have such dainty poses. You rest with your hand gently on your face a lot. I love to hear your sighs when you are falling asleep. You are a very good eater and gulp down your milk loudly just like your big brother Reagan used to do.  Clearly you are eating well since you have gained 2 pounds in a month! Your weight is in the 17th percentile now (up from the 7th).  You gained an inch in your length and are now in the 14th percentile. You are incredibly strong and have been lifting your head since you were 2 days old. We are certain you will roll over early and soon since you are almost there. Such a strong little princess! You are really starting to grab things like blankets, my hair, and fingers.You have such big eyes which can sometimes look a little crazy- hence why your big brother Reagan calls you "scary eyes". You still have very thin and light hair, and you have lost some since birth. I'm loving having a little girl and dressing you up in bows and girly clothes. Thank you for being my sweet princess!

Hudson Brooks

My handsome Hudson. You were my tiny and calm baby when you were in my belly but have definitely grown into your own since you've been out into the world. You have grown slightly bigger than your sister and seem to have an even bigger personality than she does. You look so much like your big brother Reagan when he was a baby. You still have your thick, dark hair and haven't lost any of it. You are a huge cuddle bunny and love to snuggle with Mommy - especially in the Moby carrier. You have a fierce temper and go from 0 to 100 in no time.  Your face turns bright red and you scream like nothing I've ever heard. But boy do you already know how to turn it on and off. You are a much slower eater than your sister, but if I don't give you your food exactly when you want it you go bizerk! You used to fall asleep with every bottle but are getting much better! You still get hiccups daily (just like when you were in my belly). You have gained 2 pounds and are in the 11th percentile (up from 5th).  You have gained an inch in length and are in the 4th percentile. Just like your sister, you have a very strong neck and love to lift it and look around.  You are a very noisy boy.  You grunt a lot - especially in your sleep. I could just stare at you for hours (and often do)! You have already grown into such a handsome little man.  Thank you for being such a sweet boy! 

Halloween 2012

I hope you all had a great Halloween!

We sure did!

And I'm still in the Halloween spirit as I sit here writing this post.

(Totally pigging out on Halloween candy! Oops!)

We started the day off by going to Reagan's class Halloween party.

The kids were so cute in their costumes!

All of the classes parade through each other's classrooms.

Story Time

Time to eat!

Reagan just loves his 2 teachers this year- Miss Jill and Miss Kim!

We then came home, ate lunch, took care of the babies and napped.

I started getting the kids ready for trick-or-treating at 4:00 pm. Holy smokes. It was a handful getting all 3 of them dressed and happy. I was frantically looking at the clock, begging for Nick to hurry home. It was hard. Two screaming babies who didn't want to be up, not to mention get into costumes plus Reagan who was too excited for words. He was a wild man.

By 5:30 Nick was home and we were ready to head to my parents' house.  We joined them and my sister Meg and her family for dinner before trick-or-treating. Reagan loved trick-or-treating but equally loved hanging out in my parents' courtyard passing out candy.  He is such a social boy. He talked to everyone. Pretty darn cute.

Here are the kids in their costumes!

My sweet niece as Charlotte's Web.