Monday, June 29, 2009

Seven Months



We turned seven (months, that is) this past Friday... my, how time flies.


Not smiling, but not UNhappy.


Pensive, I guess. Contemplative in our old age. Wistful...


Done with pics...

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Hello Daddy!



Hi Daddy, we miss you! We know you'll be back from your trip to Louisville soon, but we wanted to show you how well we play together! Also, Mommy thought she'd play catch up at posting some pics from this past Father's Day weekend.

Here's Ava hamming it up with Nana.


Colin lays low with Papa after being entertained by Papa's crazy Donald Duck voice!


Later that evening, Ava showed us her favorite thing to do in the bathtub -- suck on her washcloth. I swear you can hear her doing this from the other room.


Seriously, Mom, this camera thing is freakin' me out! Let me get back to my teether.


Colin chills out with his Milk Maid. Look Ma, no hands!

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Pump No More



I knew that if I was lucky enough to be able to provide breastmilk for my twins after they were born, I would. And I have done just that for the past 6 and a half months, thankfully.

But - I must say one thing - breastfeeding twins is HARD! Kudos and God bless yous to all who solely breastfeed without use of bottles/pumps. Unfortunately, I never made enough milk for the both of them, so I always had to supplement with formula.

Because they stayed in the NICU for just under 3 weeks, I became very intimate with a hospital-grade pump. Since I had to pump for them from the start, it became my third baby, taking up at least 2-3 hours a day in order to provide for them the nutrients, immunoglobulins, and love that only a mother can give. This was a burden I was more than happy to have.

We always knew I would return to work in some capacity, so we knew that the babies would have to learn to take a bottle, so from the start all their "scheduled" feedings would be from a bottle (a mix of expressed breastmilk and Neosure formula.) Sometimes, they would get a treat and be solely breastfed for a scheduled feeding, but that was rare. And sometimes I'd find myself doing the double football hold with the twins reaching over my breasts to hold hands -- an act that would melt my heart every time. But most of the time during my four months of maternity leave, I would only breastfeed on demand in between their feedings.

When I went back to work, the on demand feedings started to wane. At around 4.5 months old, Colin lost interest in going to breast. Ava also started to lose interest, but would still want to from time to time until a couple of weeks ago.



Four weeks ago, after going back and forth on the issue, I decided to start weaning myself from the pump. You can't just stop pumping or your breasts would engorge, you'd get plugged ducts and the pain would be unbearable. Maybe people do go cold turkey, but even doing it slowly, I had some painful moments. At this point, I had trained my body to only have to pump 4 times a day to get the same amount of milk out as when I used to pump 8 times in a 24 hour period. This would mean I'd have to pump at least once at work, which was difficult to do since I work in a lab, and have to leave my bench in order to pump in privacy. When I started weaning, I would reduce the time at each session, with the longest sessions being the first and last of the day. Eventually, I eliminated the middle two sessions and then I was down to just my nightly one. This took 4 weeks. I tried to speed it up, but my body wouldn't allow it. I would be in pain and be leaking (not fun).

And then 2 days ago, I didn't have to pump. That was it. I'm sad. I'm torn. But I tell myself that I provided my babies with nourishment for over 6 months, and I still will, just in different ways. So I pack up my Ameda Purely Yours pump. I say goodbye to my Lansinoh and breastmilk storage bottles. I say hello to a life with my twins (er,um, "things") where I'm not chained to my pump anymore...just in time for summer.


(Thanks to my friend and co-worker, Morgan, for the fabulous Dr. Seuss onesies!)

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Random Pics

Because random pics is what we do...



Colin enjoying a soak.

While Ava waits her turn...



and waits...



We love hanging out on the back deck while Mommy reads and Daddy grills.



Having fun outside in June...





Ava loves being outside and looking at the trees.



Who took my beer?



You're doing it wrong, son. Let me show you.



Mommy let Daddy have the afternoon off to go fishing... he came home with a big smile on and told lots of stories!

Monday, June 8, 2009

Fancy Pants



Mommy liked our matching fancy pants...



So she had to take a few photos.



The dude...

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Let's Go Sox!



(We train 'em young around here...)



Thursday, June 4, 2009

Dinner Time Lapse



Dinner time - a cube of green beans and a cube of sweet potatoes... with an apple cube for dessert. They LOVE their solid food!

Six months



The twins turned 6 months old last week, and they also had their 6 month well visit. Here are their stats:
  • Colin - 14lbs11oz, 25"long and his noggin' is 43.5cm. He gained 2lbs in just under 2 months.

  • Ava - 12lbs5oz, 24.75" long and her head is 40cm around. She gained 2.25lbs in just under 2 months.
Both of their individual growth curves look great! Yes, they are still small in comparison to other babies, but the important thing is that they're making great strides. Yesterday, a doctor at work brought in his 12 week old son. I'm sure he was the same size as Ava, but I don't let it get to me (or at least I try not to.) She was only 3lbs7oz at birth, so I think she's doing just fine.

For their half birthday, we decided it was time for some "upright fun." We ordered both and exersaucer and a door jumper from Amazon only to find out that the door jumper does not fit on any of our doors b/c the mouldings are too thick. So yesterday, I spied one of those Baby Einstein activity centers on Craigslist that also doubles as a jumper. It's not quite as springy, but it will do the job. And now the kids can go to the "office" and each be at their "desks" at the same time!





Monday, June 1, 2009

Some Ava Pics



Ava in her "house dress."





Close ups...









Hanging with Dad.





Colin says hi...