Wednesday, April 29, 2009

No longer pregnant and still getting fondled!

I cannot believe it! I am finally getting back to normal and have been relishing in the idea that my body is no longer a free for all when out of the blue I see a hand reaching for my stomach. My one pet peeve from when I was pregnant was the idea that people felt that it was okay to rub my belly as if I was a Buddha. So the other day when I was waiting for my coffee at Starbucks, a woman suddenly reached over and said "how's your abs"? Yes, she knew I had twins and decided it was her place to see if my middle was soft and mushy. As she tried to feel my belly up, she declared that I too will be needing a tummy tuck eventually. How rude, not to mention incorrect! When will the madness end???

Monday, April 27, 2009

She's gonna blow!

Once again, my life has become a world of poop & pee. If I am not changing one of my sons diapers or getting peed on by them, I am running after my daughter to make sure she has used the potty. My daughter & I have come a long way. She has finally gotten over her strip teases, where she totally disrobes, with a diaper full of poo, smeared all over every inch of her bed, walls and herself. Gone is the duct taped diapers secured on her with the footed pajamas placed on backwards and the feet cut off. We have evolved to nighttime pull ups and no tape. The unfortunate side is, that we still have "poopy issues". The main issue is, that she typically poops while she is sleeping within the first hour of being in bed. So as each day passes with out a poop, the bedtime ritual becomes more of a fear. Is this it the night she is going to blow! My husband & I both fear the "big one" and unfortunaltely tonight was the night. After my husband & I both fed, burped & changed the boys we were both anxiously awaiting an early evening of sleep, but as we heard the voice of my daughter yelling from her room, the fanatasy of sleep quickly diminished. So it was back to changing and bathing her and washing the crib sheets. As we worked together we realized that it was almost time to feed the twins again. So yes, my life is all about poop & pee...it should end in a few years, right?!?

Saturday, April 25, 2009

The things I love!

Overnight I went from having one child to suddenly having three children. I have found that there have been certain things that have made each day more & more manageable.

I am grateful for the friends who have brought me meals. It is such a small thing but it has touched me in such a profound way. Every few days I "hit a wall". As if someone is looking out for me, it always seems that those are the days that someone kindly rings the bell with a wonderful meal for me & my family.

The gifts of diapers have been another one of my favorite things to receive. If you would have asked me what the best gift ever would be, I highly doubt in the past I would have responded "Pampers Swaddlers". But at this point in my life, diapers are better then diamonds! I just can't get enough:)

Whom ever invented the premade swaddle blankets, I salute you! Those swaddle blankets have helped ensure many good night sleeps or at least decent sleep in 3hr intervals. To me the swaddle blankets are a must have.

I love the Wubbanub. What is a Wubbanub? Well, it's a pacifier attached to a small stuffed animal. The stuffed animal adds just enough weight so if the twins spit out the pacifier, it just doesn't go very far. Another life saver, especially in the middle of the night!

So these are just a few of my favorite things...at least for today!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

I did it!

So it's day 16 since the twins were born and today was the day I decided to venture out with all three kids on my own. Over the weekend we had gone to the beach & the park as a family, so I new it could be done...but I had my husband with me. So as the alarm clock went off at 6am, I raced through a shower, fed, changed and burped the twins, and got my daughter out of bed. I helped my daughter wash her face, brush her teeth, brushed her hair, got her dressed and fed her. We were able to accomplish all this by 9:15am. As I piled each one into the car, we raced off to our Mommy & Me Spanish class. Class started at 9:30am. Of course we were not on time and we arrived 15 minutes late, but we got there! The key to my success was to just go on "auto pilot". I knew if I started to really think about the logistics and everything that could go wrong, I would never leave the house. I am amazed that we made it to and from without any tears, especially mine! So now I have the confidence I need to keep going. Today was school, tomorrow the grocery store!?1?

Monday, April 20, 2009

Little men, big men, they're all the same!

Today, as I was changing one of my son's I heard the loudest, most obnoxious sounding fart. I looked around because I thought for sure my husband must have come home and was somewhere in the nursery. As I turned my back to see where the sound had come from, I realized that fart came from the inside of the crib. How could my little man, a whole 5 1/2lbs create such a loud manly man fart sound? I don't recall my daughter ever doing that then or even now. So I guess it's just a "guy thing" and little men & big men are all the same!

Sunday, April 19, 2009

I just can't stop crying!

Thanks to my husband, I was able to bask in an early morning shower. As I stood in the shower enjoying every minute of the clean soap smell and the warm water, all I could think of was how fortunate I am. This is a daily ritual that so many of us take for granted. As I began to really relax, I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes,and my lower lip starting to quiver. I couldn't stop thinking about all the people in the world who don't have clean water. That is when I knew it was all over, I quickly was turning into sniffling mess. So, I tried to go to a happy place...it didn't help. As the tears rolled down my face, I thought about how my husband took over every feed last night, shut off my alarm clock and snatched the baby monitor from my nightstand. He did this so I could get a full night sleep...and I cried even harder. I thought about how sweet my boys are, and just kept on crying. Then I thought about my adorable daughter and cried even more. Today at lunch, my husband and I were talking and I was overcome with an enormous amount of gratitude and respect for him, and yes, I cried again. This evening we had friends stop by for a visit and after they left I couldn't help think how fortunate that we have such amazing people in our lives and cried once more. Yes, the waterworks are on and I just can't turn them off!

Friday, April 17, 2009

Do I Dare???

So now that I am beginning to see the return of my feet, I hesitantly eye the scale in my bathroom. When I first found out that I was expecting twins, I was told to expect to gain about 60lbs. Now I started at 135 and I remember doing the math...that would bring me close to the 200lb mark. One evening I was out to dinner with a friend and her husband, the big joke became, why not just go for it. What other time in my life would I ever have the opportunity to reach that weight. Yes, this is a twisted way to think about the weight gain. But hey, why not? I truly did watch what I ate, stayed as active as I could, but the closer it got to D-Day, the closer my weight came to obtaining a goal that I never wanted to make. At the very end I did throw in the towel and bask in the glory of eating everything under the sun and more. As the bloat and the swelling set in, I realized that there was absolutely nothing I could do. I no longer had control over what my body was doing or looked like. It has been 10 days since the twins have been born and I am slowly shrinking. Slowly is the key word! I am starting to see my toes again, the outline of an ankle. Is that my feet I see? Hello feet, it's been a long time. I really would like to see where I am weight wise. I am afraid though. So do I just do it? Do I just stand on the scale and see what happens? Do I dare? Maybe...tomorrow.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

My week in review...

I cannot believe how fast the last 9 days have flown by. Two weeks ago if you asked me, I could actually tell you what was going on in the world and well, since then my brain has gone to mush. I really have not a clue as to what is happening outside of my “little baby world”. I know taxes were due on the 15th and that the American captain was freed from captivity off the coast of Somalia. Other then that I don’t know a thing about the “real” world. The few things I know right now are; that I have gone through 190 diapers in 9 days, have done 5 loads of baby laundry in a day, have been peed on at least 3 times on in a day, went through 4 baby outfits, 2 swaddle blankets and 1 changing cover pad in just one diaper change. How can that be?!? It is strange how life changes so fast but at the same time can stand so still…at least for me that is how it is!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Seven days and still sane?!?

It’s been a full seven days since my baby boys were born and it is amazing how life has changed. I know everyone says this, but now that they are here I cannot remember what my life was like before their arrival. I remember thinking how can I handle two babies at once or how can I give them each the attention that they will need. But I can honestly say I can’t imagine what it would be like if there were to be only one baby. Somehow I have found my rhythm with the two boys. I think back to when my daughter was born, and how overwhelmed I felt. Was it because I was a first time mom? Was it because I feared every little cry or whimper? Was it because I wanted to be perfect? I really don’t know. The one thing I know for sure was that this time around, I had no expectations of how life would turn out once the boys arrived. I had planned for the worst. I had planned on being sleep deprived. I had planned on being cranky. I had planned on being crazed. Yes, all those things have happened, but each time I look into one of my sons faces, see their little scrunched up faces, their petite little noses and their cute little cupid lips…. I realize that nothing else matters!

Thursday, April 9, 2009

It's all about the timing.

Many have told me that I am a "Type A" personality. I never really thought about it, until today. I am still in the hospital from having my twin boys via csection and will be here until Sat afternoon. I think a normal person would be sleeping while their babies are sleeping or doing anything but what I have been doing. But I am not normal, I now realize. What have I been doing? Well, in between visitors, I have moved my bed...it needed to be closer to the electrical outlet, so I can plug my laptop in. I organized my room and sorted the babies clothes. Who does this 2 days after having twins and in a hospital, no less?!? Emailed a few friends, arranged a photographer to come to the house in 2 weeks to photo our happy family, planned the Easter Meal menu...like I'm really going to cook or even grocery shop, but it's a nice thought! Signed my 2 1/2 year old daughter up for a trial ballet class for this upcoming Tues. Now really what am I thinking???? And somehow managed to get the boys on a 3 hour feed schedule, at least for the day. Yes, I am a little wacko and believe I am officially a "Type A", but I would like to rationalize it all as being super organized and having just good timing...should I just call the therapist now?!?

I am in LOVE!!!!

After months of waiting, my baby boys made their appearance on Tues April 7th. I feel so blessed that they are both healthy. Somehow both weighted in at almost 6lbs each, which is great for twins and made me feel good about my massive weight gain. At least now I can declare that I was carrying 12lbs of baby and the rest, well can that be water weight?!?

It is simply amazing to look into their small little angelic faces and recognize how vulnerable they are and that my husband & I are responsible for their well being and safety. It seems like such a daunting task and all I want to do is wrap them up in my arms and never let let go!

Last night, my husband went home to stay the evening with our daughter and I was alone with the babies in my room. I have to say that I was and still am on a "mommy high", was blissfully carrying both babies in my arms, rocking them and just totally enjoying our first true private time. Then it dawned on me that I was alone and could I really do this? I started to feel overwhelmed! As quickly as I felt that dreaded feeling, was as quickly as I snapped out of it. After all, they are just two tiny babies. I knew there was no other choice but to rise up to the occasion and to be a Mom. Luck was on my side and the boys were great. I was able to feed, change and burp both boys on my own for most of the evening. I do have to admit I was "christened' by my one son because I forgot to cover his privates and like a fire hose on the loose, pee pee went every where! I felt like a first time mom all over again. Once this happened and he was covered in his pee, as was everything else, I did ask for help and quickly buzzed the nurse! Thank goodness for her because at that point my other son needed to be changed...

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Hospital Bag Checklist

Now that I feel like I am a pro with my many visits and stays at the hospital. I feel as though I have perfected my hospital bag contents. Here are a few must haves to include in your bag:

Comfy sweats or pjs- Who wants to wear the ugly open butt hospital gowns? I know I don't. I felt much better once my husband arrived with my favorite flannels. Pack more then one, if you think you may be there for more than a day or two.
A Good Trashy Book or Magazines- Lets' face it, a trashy book is one of the best ways to take your mind off of things, plus make the time fly by.
Toiletries- Nothing can make a person feel better then a nice warm shower with all of the amenties from home. Don't forget the shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, deodorant, a hairbrush, blowdryer & moisturizer. And for the ultimate for the pick me up, don't forget your makeup bag!
Your own pillow and blanket- Sounds strange, but nothing was better or made me more comfortable, then when my husband brought my favorite blanket that is usually on the couch and a soft, broken in pillow!
Your cell phone & address book-My iPhone helped keep me sane during the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep. Plus once you have your baby you'll be able to call everyone and let them know the good news.
A going home outfit for baby-Don't forget booties and mittens, some new baby's fingernails come out long and the mittens will help prevent scratches.
A going home outfit for you-Bring something that is comfy and will make you feel good about yourself!

Now all I need to do now, is go to the hospital, have my babies and return home with them. I am a little tired of spending so much time at the hospital and coming home with nothing more then a hospital band!