Because I don't already have enough on my plate, I welcomed two house guests from Cameroon yesterday. No, I'm not stressed at all about packing up for our first international flight, then moving to New Mexico for a couple of months about two weeks after we get back. not at all right...
Actually I'm kind of hoping that our house guests will be so nice that I will want them to stay while we are away. It would give them time to look for a nice place to live, and help me out too. But first I want to make sure they don't destroy the house. Did I mention one of the guests is a 7 year old boy?
One of the members of our church came to the US 6 years ago and has been waiting for a visa to come through for his wife and child since then. It finally did, but with a caveat that they had to leave the country in 5 days. The man is currently an in home care provider, so he had no place for his family to land, and I have an empty room upstairs.
I'm really hopeful that it works out, but with twin infants in the mix, I'm also a little worried. Guess we will have to wait and see...
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Monday, December 3, 2012
To every season...
I love going to a Christmas tree farm and picking out a tree, hauling it home, putting on the lights and the ornaments, playing Christmas music while we decorate everything...
Except, perhaps not this year.
The time involved for the length of time it would stay up is not an efficient use of my resources. We leave for Germany on December 14th, so that would be less than half a month of Christmas. Plus, we would either need to pack everything up before the 14th, while packing to to to Europe, or come back to a very dead tree with needles spread throughout the house....
So I did something I never thought I'd do. I bought a fake tree. A pre-lit fake tree that I put together in less than 5 minutes, including getting it out of the original packaging. I did a little rearranging of branches, but overall, it's pretty quick to set up a fake tree. It was either a fake tree, or no tree at all, and I just couldn't see not having a tree for the babies' first Christmas.
And, I figure we'll run into this problem every other year, so this will be a useful option in the future. Now I need to decide if I get out the ornaments, or have a second set of basic things to put on the tree. I'm debating ribbon bows or gingerbread ornaments, something to keep it not bare, but that I can put on and take off without a lot of thought. I debated making baby hand imprint ornaments and then giving them away at the end of the season, but we'll have to see if there's enough time for that or not.
On another note, we're about to get unexpected house guests. A member of our church, and one of my mini-parish members, is from Cameroon. His wife and son got a visa to come to the states, but were given only 4 days to leave the country. He currently works as a certified nurse assistant staying in someone's home every night as a caretaker, so he doesn't have a home of his own right now. They'll stay with us for two weeks as they look for a place to live. Really you would think I would learn not to do things like this, but I'm kind of hoping it works out.
If it does, I'm hoping they'd like to stay until we get back from New Mexico. They could watch the house for us while we're gone and I wouldn't need to worry too much. Of course, we did learn enough that we are giving them a two week trial period before even mentioning this as a possibility.
Plans for NM are afoot (and keeping me up at night). Speaking of night, I think I'll try to sleep tonight. That would be a change...I don't need the kids to keep me up at night, my own insomnia does that for me.
Except, perhaps not this year.
The time involved for the length of time it would stay up is not an efficient use of my resources. We leave for Germany on December 14th, so that would be less than half a month of Christmas. Plus, we would either need to pack everything up before the 14th, while packing to to to Europe, or come back to a very dead tree with needles spread throughout the house....
So I did something I never thought I'd do. I bought a fake tree. A pre-lit fake tree that I put together in less than 5 minutes, including getting it out of the original packaging. I did a little rearranging of branches, but overall, it's pretty quick to set up a fake tree. It was either a fake tree, or no tree at all, and I just couldn't see not having a tree for the babies' first Christmas.
And, I figure we'll run into this problem every other year, so this will be a useful option in the future. Now I need to decide if I get out the ornaments, or have a second set of basic things to put on the tree. I'm debating ribbon bows or gingerbread ornaments, something to keep it not bare, but that I can put on and take off without a lot of thought. I debated making baby hand imprint ornaments and then giving them away at the end of the season, but we'll have to see if there's enough time for that or not.
On another note, we're about to get unexpected house guests. A member of our church, and one of my mini-parish members, is from Cameroon. His wife and son got a visa to come to the states, but were given only 4 days to leave the country. He currently works as a certified nurse assistant staying in someone's home every night as a caretaker, so he doesn't have a home of his own right now. They'll stay with us for two weeks as they look for a place to live. Really you would think I would learn not to do things like this, but I'm kind of hoping it works out.
If it does, I'm hoping they'd like to stay until we get back from New Mexico. They could watch the house for us while we're gone and I wouldn't need to worry too much. Of course, we did learn enough that we are giving them a two week trial period before even mentioning this as a possibility.
Plans for NM are afoot (and keeping me up at night). Speaking of night, I think I'll try to sleep tonight. That would be a change...I don't need the kids to keep me up at night, my own insomnia does that for me.
Monday, November 19, 2012
The Routine
I think I would go crazy if I didn't try to follow some sort of schedule with the twins. Sometimes it just doesn't work, but overall I try to follow a routine. The times are pretty solid in the morning, more approximate in the afternoon (except bedtime, that almost always occurs between 6 and 6:30...otherwise they get over tired).
At 5am Tim wakes up, gets a formula bottle, is changed, then goes back to bed.
At 6:30-7:00 Ryan wakes up, gets a formula bottle, is changed, dressed in day clothes, and then hangs out with me on the bed until Tim wakes up. We break out the morning toys...a stuffed dragon that crinkles, a few fluffy stuffed animals, a dog that squeeks...
8:00ish, Tim wakes up. I change him, dress him in day clothes, then play with him along with Ryan on the bed for a little bit until we make the trek downstairs. I carry one, then the other baby downstairs (trying not to fall) and put them in bouncers in the kitchen.
9:00 Whoever said not to put bouncers on an elevated surface doesn't have twins. I put the bouncers on the kitchen table and warm up 2 breast milk bottles. I then roll up some dish towels to prop the bottles and give the babies their bottles at the same time. I have to make sure they stay upright here and there, but overall, I have my hands to myself. I try to hold onto their hands while they eat so they're still getting some contact.
9:30 I make breakfast for me and Gerd. Often eggs, sometimes oatmeal and almonds..simple, but with protein.
10:00-10:30 The babies take a nap, give or take 30 minutes.
10:45. I put both babies are on the play mat. I play with them a bit while they kick around, then pick one baby up at a time and read stories to them for around 10 minutes each, then play with them together for a little bit. Overall, this takes around 30-40 minutes.
11:15-I'm back in the kitchen warming another 2 breastmilk bottles. I have the babies in the living room still. If they're fussy, one gets the swing while I feed the other baby. I want to hold them at least once during the day.
11:45 - back to the kitchen and the bouncers while I fix lunch for me and Gerd.
12:15, back to the living room and tummy time or off for a walk. If tummy time, that only lasts about 10 minutes, then I flip them over and play with them a while longer. So far they really don't like tummy time.
1:00: Another breast milk bottle for each and then time for another nap. This one usually lasts about an hour.
2:00 back to the play mat and I sing to them for a while. If we haven't already gone for a walk, sometimes we do now, otherwise I try to fit in some tummy time.
3:00: We break out the formula bottles, then they take another nap...if I'm lucky.
4:00: We wing it here. Another book usually, and then some time on a blanket. The afternoon often doesn't go quite as planned as the morning...
5:00: Gerd is "off work" and comes down to help out. They get another formula bottle
6:00 or 6:30ish The bedtime routine begins, a bath for each, a song as they finish their bottle or drink another one. From bath to bed takes about an hour.
At 5am Tim wakes up, gets a formula bottle, is changed, then goes back to bed.
At 6:30-7:00 Ryan wakes up, gets a formula bottle, is changed, dressed in day clothes, and then hangs out with me on the bed until Tim wakes up. We break out the morning toys...a stuffed dragon that crinkles, a few fluffy stuffed animals, a dog that squeeks...
8:00ish, Tim wakes up. I change him, dress him in day clothes, then play with him along with Ryan on the bed for a little bit until we make the trek downstairs. I carry one, then the other baby downstairs (trying not to fall) and put them in bouncers in the kitchen.
9:00 Whoever said not to put bouncers on an elevated surface doesn't have twins. I put the bouncers on the kitchen table and warm up 2 breast milk bottles. I then roll up some dish towels to prop the bottles and give the babies their bottles at the same time. I have to make sure they stay upright here and there, but overall, I have my hands to myself. I try to hold onto their hands while they eat so they're still getting some contact.
9:30 I make breakfast for me and Gerd. Often eggs, sometimes oatmeal and almonds..simple, but with protein.
10:00-10:30 The babies take a nap, give or take 30 minutes.
10:45. I put both babies are on the play mat. I play with them a bit while they kick around, then pick one baby up at a time and read stories to them for around 10 minutes each, then play with them together for a little bit. Overall, this takes around 30-40 minutes.
11:15-I'm back in the kitchen warming another 2 breastmilk bottles. I have the babies in the living room still. If they're fussy, one gets the swing while I feed the other baby. I want to hold them at least once during the day.
11:45 - back to the kitchen and the bouncers while I fix lunch for me and Gerd.
12:15, back to the living room and tummy time or off for a walk. If tummy time, that only lasts about 10 minutes, then I flip them over and play with them a while longer. So far they really don't like tummy time.
1:00: Another breast milk bottle for each and then time for another nap. This one usually lasts about an hour.
2:00 back to the play mat and I sing to them for a while. If we haven't already gone for a walk, sometimes we do now, otherwise I try to fit in some tummy time.
3:00: We break out the formula bottles, then they take another nap...if I'm lucky.
4:00: We wing it here. Another book usually, and then some time on a blanket. The afternoon often doesn't go quite as planned as the morning...
5:00: Gerd is "off work" and comes down to help out. They get another formula bottle
6:00 or 6:30ish The bedtime routine begins, a bath for each, a song as they finish their bottle or drink another one. From bath to bed takes about an hour.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Sleep
Whenever anyone hears that we have twins they automatically assume we are the worst sort of sleep deprived. And sure, we have times when we don't get much sleep, but overall I feel pretty blessed to have children who seem to like to sleep.
At first, of course, they slept a maximum of 4 hours at a time, usually during the day. Usually it was every 2 hours we would change, feed, and return to sleep each baby. If they were off cycle, it could mean 1 hour intervals.
During the first two weeks my mom, husband and I decided the only way to make sure everyone got some sleep was by running shifts. Two people needed to be on at all times. We camped out downstairs and worked in 4 hour shifts. That way everyone got at least 4 hours, but occasionally 8 hours of sleep at night. We would also take naps during the day, so it all kind of worked out. Emotions did run high sometimes, as we were all exhausted, and forgiveness and understanding was quick to follow, because we all recognized that we were not fully functioning.
After 2 weeks we decided it was time to move the babies into their hammocks in the bedroom. They were, at this point, pretty colicy. It seemed like they were either allergic to the formula, or something I was eating, but they would wake up screaming in pain. We went to our pediatrician, who we have since fired, who told us we were feeding them too much. At this point Tim was sleeping around 6 hours at a time, and Ryan would sleep in 4 hour increments.
Our new pediatrician, who we love, recommended probiotics. The next night Ryan slept 8 hours straight, and stopped waking up in pain. He has since worked himself up to 12 hours and almost always sleeps at least 10 hours straight. Tim hasn't much improved. He would wake up so soaked, often we would need to change his pajamas.
We switched to our "super-duper" diapers, soakers that do a good job keeping everything in the diaper cover. We got a few nights of 8 hour increments from Tim, but he's pretty much back to 6 hours, then another 3, then another 3. Not ideal, but we're working on it. It's nice that he wakes up all happy and smiling, but we hope the sleep times increase. Last night he fitfully made it through 8 hours, but we were constantly running over to help sooth him back to sleep.
But all of this might change soon. We've already introduced cribs for naps. Today their naps include sleep sacks in their cribs. But for nighttime, they've yet to try out the cribs. Thanksgiving will be a first, but we need to get them used to cribs before their trip overseas. Currently they sleep in hammocks that are mounted with springs. When they begin to stir, they move around, and end up bouncing themselves back to sleep. I don't know what will happen when they move to cribs at night. We might end up back to shorter sleep times.
My hope is that they've learned that it's nice to sleep all the way through the night. They're getting enough food during the day that they don't need a night time feeding. I'm hopeful that they will remain tired enough that they will be able to sleep without the spring action. Only time will tell. In the mean time, I'm enjoying only waking up once in the middle of the night (Gerd wakes up once too).
Now if only we could work on the naps. They get so tired, and want to take naps, but they're frequently only half an hour. When they get 3 separate hour long naps in, they are much better about going to sleep happy, and actually sleep better through the night. As long as we don't go anywhere during the day they seem to nap okay, not great, but if we go anywhere their routine is shot and it'll be a rough bedtime routine.
At around 6:00, although we are trying to start a little later, we begin the bedtime routine. First one gets a bath and is then dressed for bed while the other plays with the other parent or hangs out in a bouncy chair in the bathroom. They then they get a bottle and lullabies while the other gets his bath, pajamas, bottle and songs. One is always in bed around 30 minutes before the other. We've given up on bedtime stories for now, they're too hungry to listen to a story, and then too full and tired to listen to a story. We're thinking of doing stories before baths, but right now it doesn't entirely work out. They get independent story time at least twice during their day routine, so they are being read to daily.
Hopefully I'll be able to write about their daytime routine next time I write. That's a work in progress, but things have been pretty good lately. It helps that I think about the day as a group of mini-lesson plans :)
At first, of course, they slept a maximum of 4 hours at a time, usually during the day. Usually it was every 2 hours we would change, feed, and return to sleep each baby. If they were off cycle, it could mean 1 hour intervals.
During the first two weeks my mom, husband and I decided the only way to make sure everyone got some sleep was by running shifts. Two people needed to be on at all times. We camped out downstairs and worked in 4 hour shifts. That way everyone got at least 4 hours, but occasionally 8 hours of sleep at night. We would also take naps during the day, so it all kind of worked out. Emotions did run high sometimes, as we were all exhausted, and forgiveness and understanding was quick to follow, because we all recognized that we were not fully functioning.
After 2 weeks we decided it was time to move the babies into their hammocks in the bedroom. They were, at this point, pretty colicy. It seemed like they were either allergic to the formula, or something I was eating, but they would wake up screaming in pain. We went to our pediatrician, who we have since fired, who told us we were feeding them too much. At this point Tim was sleeping around 6 hours at a time, and Ryan would sleep in 4 hour increments.
Our new pediatrician, who we love, recommended probiotics. The next night Ryan slept 8 hours straight, and stopped waking up in pain. He has since worked himself up to 12 hours and almost always sleeps at least 10 hours straight. Tim hasn't much improved. He would wake up so soaked, often we would need to change his pajamas.
We switched to our "super-duper" diapers, soakers that do a good job keeping everything in the diaper cover. We got a few nights of 8 hour increments from Tim, but he's pretty much back to 6 hours, then another 3, then another 3. Not ideal, but we're working on it. It's nice that he wakes up all happy and smiling, but we hope the sleep times increase. Last night he fitfully made it through 8 hours, but we were constantly running over to help sooth him back to sleep.
But all of this might change soon. We've already introduced cribs for naps. Today their naps include sleep sacks in their cribs. But for nighttime, they've yet to try out the cribs. Thanksgiving will be a first, but we need to get them used to cribs before their trip overseas. Currently they sleep in hammocks that are mounted with springs. When they begin to stir, they move around, and end up bouncing themselves back to sleep. I don't know what will happen when they move to cribs at night. We might end up back to shorter sleep times.
My hope is that they've learned that it's nice to sleep all the way through the night. They're getting enough food during the day that they don't need a night time feeding. I'm hopeful that they will remain tired enough that they will be able to sleep without the spring action. Only time will tell. In the mean time, I'm enjoying only waking up once in the middle of the night (Gerd wakes up once too).
Now if only we could work on the naps. They get so tired, and want to take naps, but they're frequently only half an hour. When they get 3 separate hour long naps in, they are much better about going to sleep happy, and actually sleep better through the night. As long as we don't go anywhere during the day they seem to nap okay, not great, but if we go anywhere their routine is shot and it'll be a rough bedtime routine.
At around 6:00, although we are trying to start a little later, we begin the bedtime routine. First one gets a bath and is then dressed for bed while the other plays with the other parent or hangs out in a bouncy chair in the bathroom. They then they get a bottle and lullabies while the other gets his bath, pajamas, bottle and songs. One is always in bed around 30 minutes before the other. We've given up on bedtime stories for now, they're too hungry to listen to a story, and then too full and tired to listen to a story. We're thinking of doing stories before baths, but right now it doesn't entirely work out. They get independent story time at least twice during their day routine, so they are being read to daily.
Hopefully I'll be able to write about their daytime routine next time I write. That's a work in progress, but things have been pretty good lately. It helps that I think about the day as a group of mini-lesson plans :)
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Need Vs. Want
My next post was supposed to be on my babies' sleep patterns, but this topic seems more pressing.
I have big kids. Or long kids, or both. They're around 14-15 pounds, according to our home scale, they're not due in to the doctor for a while. They're also 24 inches long. Our car seats are rated 22 lbs and 29 inches. While new car seats aren't an emergency, at the rate they're growing, it won't be a full year before they've grown out of their current seats.
And that's a problem. Actually, that's a part of many problems:
1) My Yaris is small enough that we have to strap in the car seats each time because they don't fit with the click-in base. We bought the only car seats and stroller that fit into my Yaris, not really considering that I might have to trade the car in a year anyway. Convertable car seats won't fit while they are rear facing. The recommended age to turn them around is 2 years. We will need to put them in a bigger car.
2) We HAVE a bigger car, my husband's Passat, but it doesn't have the hooks for the click-in base, so that's not useable either, and we have quickly discovered that with double everything, it's not really great for traveling either. We could get a roof rack and storage container and retrofit the car for the hooks, but that also costs money. We've had to shell out something like $4000 in repairs this year, and the car is a 2002. We're not really sure it's worth spending more money on or not, plus I don't particularly enjoy driving it. Finding a parking spot is very difficult in Southie, and the bigger the car the bigger the challenge it is to find somewhere to park.
3) Our parking spot has been revolked. We rented an off street parking spot until the owners of the lot sold it and gave us one day notice that our spot was gone. Finding parking spots for rent is difficult. The only one on our side of town is $200 for one car $300 for two cars in a parking garage 1/2 mile from our house. While a walk might be nice in summer, think icy unkept sidewalks and a twin stroller...But if we got it at least we would know where the car was, and find a spot when needed.
4) With street parking, getting babies into a convertible car seat before they can walk to the car will mean putting the kids in a stroller, walking to the car, moving the kids into the seats, folding the stroller and putting it into the car. We might need to get a smaller stroller that has the only purpose of doing this. The stroller I have is fabulous, but it folds up pretty large when the seats are attached (we are still using bassinets and car seat adaptors so I'm not sure how large).
In other words, we're in a predicament.
I *want* a car big enough to tote everything around with me, but I also want to be able to find a parking spot on the street. The bigger the car, the more difficult it is to park. Really, we should think about moving, and we are, but it won't happen right now. We're doing all we can just to keep up with the babies, I can't imagine trying to pack and move right now, let alone visit potential houses and trying to keep our house tidy enough for a realtor to show our house.
I'm also up against my own values. Keep things simple, keep them small, don't take on too much debt. I've long been against buying a gas guzzler, especially if only one person is in the car most of the time. It's hard to look at cars that only get 21mpg city and realize that that might be the best we can do.
Minivans are WAY too big, my favorite vehicle that I've coveted for years, the Highlander Hybrid is way too big. I finally found a car that seemed like what I wanted and it has been discontinued (Ford Escape Hybrid). Very few options are available that fit our needs. All of them are priced between $25,000 and $28,000
Our short list is:
Subaru Forester, 179.5 inches long, 21mpg city, 27mpg highway, 63 cubic feet trunk space. Comes in manual transmission, not really a smooth ride, but very nice inside. I really like that it's AWD and feels like a comfortable mix between car and SUV.
Toyota Prius V (the hatchback): 181.7 inches long 44mpg city, 40mpg highway, 67.3 cubic feet trunk space. The most expensive option (and somewhat of a waste since we don't drive that much) but my favorite so far (also the longest option).
Honda CRV: 178.3 inches long, 22mpg city, 30mpg highway, 70.9 cubic feet trunk space. Also a nice option. I loved, as in *loved* loved loved my Honda Civic. But I test drove the CRV after the Toyota. I didn't like the dashboard on the 2013, but if it's still available when I go home for Thanksgiving a dealership in my parents town has a certified 2010 version which would be far less expensive, and has a nicer interior.
In comparison: My Yaris is 150.6 inches long, 29 mpg city, 35mpg highway and has 9.3 cubic feet of trunk space and my husband's Passat is 185.3 inches long, 19 mpg city, 28 mpg highway, with 15 cubic feet of storage space.
Logic says that I should just start driving my husband's car until we sell our house. The car is paid off and large enough for everything but road trips. But...I don't want to. I want a car I like. And I want a car I like without going back on my ideals. I used to *like* car shopping. Now it feels like an assault on my ideals.
I have big kids. Or long kids, or both. They're around 14-15 pounds, according to our home scale, they're not due in to the doctor for a while. They're also 24 inches long. Our car seats are rated 22 lbs and 29 inches. While new car seats aren't an emergency, at the rate they're growing, it won't be a full year before they've grown out of their current seats.
And that's a problem. Actually, that's a part of many problems:
1) My Yaris is small enough that we have to strap in the car seats each time because they don't fit with the click-in base. We bought the only car seats and stroller that fit into my Yaris, not really considering that I might have to trade the car in a year anyway. Convertable car seats won't fit while they are rear facing. The recommended age to turn them around is 2 years. We will need to put them in a bigger car.
2) We HAVE a bigger car, my husband's Passat, but it doesn't have the hooks for the click-in base, so that's not useable either, and we have quickly discovered that with double everything, it's not really great for traveling either. We could get a roof rack and storage container and retrofit the car for the hooks, but that also costs money. We've had to shell out something like $4000 in repairs this year, and the car is a 2002. We're not really sure it's worth spending more money on or not, plus I don't particularly enjoy driving it. Finding a parking spot is very difficult in Southie, and the bigger the car the bigger the challenge it is to find somewhere to park.
3) Our parking spot has been revolked. We rented an off street parking spot until the owners of the lot sold it and gave us one day notice that our spot was gone. Finding parking spots for rent is difficult. The only one on our side of town is $200 for one car $300 for two cars in a parking garage 1/2 mile from our house. While a walk might be nice in summer, think icy unkept sidewalks and a twin stroller...But if we got it at least we would know where the car was, and find a spot when needed.
4) With street parking, getting babies into a convertible car seat before they can walk to the car will mean putting the kids in a stroller, walking to the car, moving the kids into the seats, folding the stroller and putting it into the car. We might need to get a smaller stroller that has the only purpose of doing this. The stroller I have is fabulous, but it folds up pretty large when the seats are attached (we are still using bassinets and car seat adaptors so I'm not sure how large).
In other words, we're in a predicament.
I *want* a car big enough to tote everything around with me, but I also want to be able to find a parking spot on the street. The bigger the car, the more difficult it is to park. Really, we should think about moving, and we are, but it won't happen right now. We're doing all we can just to keep up with the babies, I can't imagine trying to pack and move right now, let alone visit potential houses and trying to keep our house tidy enough for a realtor to show our house.
I'm also up against my own values. Keep things simple, keep them small, don't take on too much debt. I've long been against buying a gas guzzler, especially if only one person is in the car most of the time. It's hard to look at cars that only get 21mpg city and realize that that might be the best we can do.
Minivans are WAY too big, my favorite vehicle that I've coveted for years, the Highlander Hybrid is way too big. I finally found a car that seemed like what I wanted and it has been discontinued (Ford Escape Hybrid). Very few options are available that fit our needs. All of them are priced between $25,000 and $28,000
Our short list is:
Subaru Forester, 179.5 inches long, 21mpg city, 27mpg highway, 63 cubic feet trunk space. Comes in manual transmission, not really a smooth ride, but very nice inside. I really like that it's AWD and feels like a comfortable mix between car and SUV.
Toyota Prius V (the hatchback): 181.7 inches long 44mpg city, 40mpg highway, 67.3 cubic feet trunk space. The most expensive option (and somewhat of a waste since we don't drive that much) but my favorite so far (also the longest option).
Honda CRV: 178.3 inches long, 22mpg city, 30mpg highway, 70.9 cubic feet trunk space. Also a nice option. I loved, as in *loved* loved loved my Honda Civic. But I test drove the CRV after the Toyota. I didn't like the dashboard on the 2013, but if it's still available when I go home for Thanksgiving a dealership in my parents town has a certified 2010 version which would be far less expensive, and has a nicer interior.
In comparison: My Yaris is 150.6 inches long, 29 mpg city, 35mpg highway and has 9.3 cubic feet of trunk space and my husband's Passat is 185.3 inches long, 19 mpg city, 28 mpg highway, with 15 cubic feet of storage space.
Logic says that I should just start driving my husband's car until we sell our house. The car is paid off and large enough for everything but road trips. But...I don't want to. I want a car I like. And I want a car I like without going back on my ideals. I used to *like* car shopping. Now it feels like an assault on my ideals.
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Breastfeeding
I've finally come to accept the way feeding is going and have gotten into a realistic pattern.
I'd thought that I could breastfeed both twins without any problems, but I was wrong. First there was the supply issue. In the hospital I wasn't getting much in the way of colostrum. The babies latched right away, although Ryan had a death grip on my nipple, but there wasn't anything there. Not even the small amount of colostrum you would normally find. The less they found, the less they stayed on the breast trying to latch.
Which led to latching issues. Tim would try for a minute or two, get frustrated, and begin to wail. Ryan tried chewing his way to milk. I'd pull him off to try for a better latch, and then he'd wail. Two very upset babies and I was so exhausted I just went with whatever the nurses suggested. After a day they introduced formula.
It was a complex system. I would have a tiny tube attached to my breast, they would attempt to nurse, and they would get formula as they suckled. I would do one baby at a time, while Gerd would finger feed the other (ie, the tube was attached to a finger). It worked, but was extremely frustrating getting it all to work, getting the tube in the right place, keeping it there, all while worrying that the latch was right.
We went home with this method, and were told that as my milk came in, the babies would gradually ween off of the formula. My milk didn't come in for 6 days, the longer end of the spectrum, but still within "normal". By then, however, the babies were used to a lot of formula. I was supposed to pump after every feeding, because that would simulate the additional work needed to get the full amount they needed if I hadn't added formula.
Unfortunately, pumping right after a feeding was not realistic. There would be the diaper change, then the attempts at calming the babies from the diaper change, and the putting down for sleep, and almost all sleep occured on me.
Which means that my milk supply didn't fully come in. Later, while working with a lactation consultant, she had me change my priorities.
I was to stop trying to breastfeed. Formula would be mixed into bottles so the feeding would take less time and be more manageable. I would pump religiously 8 times a day and my mother or Gerd would take care of the babies during that time. The goal was to better establish my milk supply before it was too late.
I took herbal supplements, Blessed Thistle, Fenugreek, and eventually Golac. I would eventually find that Golac made my nipples feel like I'd touched my tongue to the ends of a 9 volt battery. My supply inched up, and ended up around 28 ounces a day...just a little under the 30 ounces I needed for one baby.
But I was pumping every 2-3 hours and not spending enough time with the babies! It was terrible to hear them cry, but then hie off to another room to pump while someone else calmed them. So I reduced the pumping. I ended up pumping 6 times a day, then 5, and now 4.
My supply has leveled off around 25 ounces. It's enough that they get 2 or 3 bottles of breastmilk a day. They get about 6 bottles daily, now at 5 or 6 ounces, so it's not quite half their supply, but it's something.
Intermittently I would try to nurse instead of pump, but the babies were now so accustomed to bottles that they would fail to empty the breast, instead demanding a bottle. I ended up with plugged ducts, again and again. I've thought about trying again, now that I pump less frequently, the milk comes much faster, but then I go to long between pumpings, and end up with plugged ducts again and remember how miserable that feels.
I recently met up with the other birth mothers and babies from our Bradley Birth Class, and everyone was breastfeeding together while I pulled out a bottle. It about broke my heart, and I vowed to try again, but it just doesn't work. And I've come to the conclusion it's not worth more effort. What I'm doing works.
And as a benefit, my babies get more food in during the day, so they sleep better. Sleep is its own post, but I'll mention that Ryan slept 11 straight hours last night, and Tim slept 6 hours, then another 5 hours with only 1 bottle and a diaper change in between (30 minutes).
I pump in the morning, around lunch, at the end of the day, and once in the middle of the night. I would love to cut out one more pumping, but my boobs don't agree, and I'm pretty sure I'd loose supply. I'm not really sure how this will all work out on out Christmas trip to Germany, but we will have to wait and see.
I'd thought that I could breastfeed both twins without any problems, but I was wrong. First there was the supply issue. In the hospital I wasn't getting much in the way of colostrum. The babies latched right away, although Ryan had a death grip on my nipple, but there wasn't anything there. Not even the small amount of colostrum you would normally find. The less they found, the less they stayed on the breast trying to latch.
Which led to latching issues. Tim would try for a minute or two, get frustrated, and begin to wail. Ryan tried chewing his way to milk. I'd pull him off to try for a better latch, and then he'd wail. Two very upset babies and I was so exhausted I just went with whatever the nurses suggested. After a day they introduced formula.
It was a complex system. I would have a tiny tube attached to my breast, they would attempt to nurse, and they would get formula as they suckled. I would do one baby at a time, while Gerd would finger feed the other (ie, the tube was attached to a finger). It worked, but was extremely frustrating getting it all to work, getting the tube in the right place, keeping it there, all while worrying that the latch was right.
We went home with this method, and were told that as my milk came in, the babies would gradually ween off of the formula. My milk didn't come in for 6 days, the longer end of the spectrum, but still within "normal". By then, however, the babies were used to a lot of formula. I was supposed to pump after every feeding, because that would simulate the additional work needed to get the full amount they needed if I hadn't added formula.
Unfortunately, pumping right after a feeding was not realistic. There would be the diaper change, then the attempts at calming the babies from the diaper change, and the putting down for sleep, and almost all sleep occured on me.
Which means that my milk supply didn't fully come in. Later, while working with a lactation consultant, she had me change my priorities.
I was to stop trying to breastfeed. Formula would be mixed into bottles so the feeding would take less time and be more manageable. I would pump religiously 8 times a day and my mother or Gerd would take care of the babies during that time. The goal was to better establish my milk supply before it was too late.
I took herbal supplements, Blessed Thistle, Fenugreek, and eventually Golac. I would eventually find that Golac made my nipples feel like I'd touched my tongue to the ends of a 9 volt battery. My supply inched up, and ended up around 28 ounces a day...just a little under the 30 ounces I needed for one baby.
But I was pumping every 2-3 hours and not spending enough time with the babies! It was terrible to hear them cry, but then hie off to another room to pump while someone else calmed them. So I reduced the pumping. I ended up pumping 6 times a day, then 5, and now 4.
My supply has leveled off around 25 ounces. It's enough that they get 2 or 3 bottles of breastmilk a day. They get about 6 bottles daily, now at 5 or 6 ounces, so it's not quite half their supply, but it's something.
Intermittently I would try to nurse instead of pump, but the babies were now so accustomed to bottles that they would fail to empty the breast, instead demanding a bottle. I ended up with plugged ducts, again and again. I've thought about trying again, now that I pump less frequently, the milk comes much faster, but then I go to long between pumpings, and end up with plugged ducts again and remember how miserable that feels.
I recently met up with the other birth mothers and babies from our Bradley Birth Class, and everyone was breastfeeding together while I pulled out a bottle. It about broke my heart, and I vowed to try again, but it just doesn't work. And I've come to the conclusion it's not worth more effort. What I'm doing works.
And as a benefit, my babies get more food in during the day, so they sleep better. Sleep is its own post, but I'll mention that Ryan slept 11 straight hours last night, and Tim slept 6 hours, then another 5 hours with only 1 bottle and a diaper change in between (30 minutes).
I pump in the morning, around lunch, at the end of the day, and once in the middle of the night. I would love to cut out one more pumping, but my boobs don't agree, and I'm pretty sure I'd loose supply. I'm not really sure how this will all work out on out Christmas trip to Germany, but we will have to wait and see.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Birth Story
I've been meaning to put something like this up for a while, but of course I haven't yet. This is a letter that I sent to our Bradley Class childbirth educator, Ann Marie. The class was great, and by her recommendation, I started eating tons of protein. I have to say, the babies stayed in a long time, and were very healthy when born. I'm sure some of it is genetic, another part is luck, but a great amount of our fortune has been due to the amount that we learned in the class, and our acting upon what we learned. Hopefully I'll find time to update the blog with some other baby things that have been floating around in my head...breastfeeding, sleep, daytime with twins, getting in shape, etc. For now, though, here's my birth story.
Hi,
We have had a great experience with
Mount Auburn! On Friday we had a line-up of appointments set to help us
figure out what to do. With twins, the ideal time to give birth is
between 38-39 weeks, and while they weren't too concerned about getting
to 40 weeks, they were concerned about 41.
The
ultrasound ob suggested a home birth or scheduled c-section, the head
of ob's met with us and suggested we wait at least until 41 weeks, and
the assistant director of midwives suggested we induce and work out a
plan for intermittent monitoring. All of the plans had their own merits,
but we were most inclined to wait it out another week. Unfortunately it
started to look like I was possibly developing pre-eclampsia, so we
really needed to induce. So on Friday, after 3 hours of appointments and
meetings, we decided to be admitted and tried to see if a Foley bulb
would be enough to start natural labor.
While
the foley bulb did help, it was obvious in the morning that we would
need to use pitocin to really begin active labor. We ate a good
breakfast had a consult with the anesthesiologist, and then started an
iv for pitocin around 10:00am. It was a gradual induction, so we didn't
really get into active labor until about 4:00pm. Before 4:00 I was
continuously monitored, but let off my leash for a few walks around the
l&d area and every time I wanted to use the bathroom. I often
switched between sitting on a birthing ball, a rocking chair or sitting
on the edge of the bed. The midwives and nurses were great, because
every time I moved, and often even when I was trying to stay put, they
would have to re-locate the babies heartbeats.
As
active labor began I spent more time in bed on my side, but would get
up and switch to the birthing ball or rocking chair. I was also still
let off my leashes to go to the bathroom and used the toilet as another
laboring position. I was only able to eat 2 bites of dinner before I
realized that food was no longer an option. As labor progressed I began
to get shaky and nauseated. I didn't start saying I couldn't handle any
more until around 12:30 am. I asked for an exam and said that if I
wasn't progressing I'd take the epidural (the anesthesiologist had made
up a special batch of bupivicaine free dosage if I needed it). I was
6cm dilated and at 0 station. Around 2:30 I was about ready to quit
again, and asked for another exam. I was at 8cm, 0 station.
Around
that time the monitors became more and more of a problem, but the
midwives and nurses went above and beyond, sitting with me holding the
monitors on me whenever I changed positions, letting me off again and
again as I went to the bathroom. At one point I asked how other twin
mothers would do this and the response was that they would just limit
other mothers movement to the bed. I don't think I would have made it
through without further intervention if they had restricted me.
I
would say that my "transition period" was not very clear, but probably
lasted from at least 2:30 to 4:00. My doula was key in helping me get
through it. Around 4:00 I was examined again and told that I was at 8 cm
and fully effaced, so I should start pushing whenever I felt like it. I
don't think I got the hang of that until around 4:30/5:00. I labored
for the first on a birth stool, which I liked a lot, but I had such
extreme back pain that I ended up switching to my side on the bed.
At
6:06 Ryan Oliver Schreiter was born (in the caul)! He had a 9/9 apgar
and started screaming immediately after they took him from the sack. They let the cord pulse
for about 2 minutes and immediately put him on me but, the fetal monitor
on the second twin was showing a dipping heart rate. Gerd was able to
cut the cord, then they tried to determine now far back baby B was.
Pretty far back it turned out, and the low pulse was very concerning.
They gave me one option besides an immediate Caesarian, and that was to
push hard and fast to bring him closer to the outside and they would
step I'm with a manual vacuum pump. Gerd took Ryan and held him from
that point on.
Timothy Alexander Schreiter was
born at 6:42! His umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck, and his
breathing sounded a little off, so they cut the cord immediately,
suctioned him, and had him on oxygen. His apgar was still pretty good
7/9, but they wanted to take him to the nursery, so Gerd handed me Ryan
and went with Tim to the nursery. Ryan and I had skin to skin time and
and he tried to latch on, although we're still working on that. Tim
perked right up in the nursery and didn't even need to be further suctioned. The
rest of the morning is kind of a blur to me because my blood pressure
dipped pretty low. They gave me saline, I ate breakfast, and had some
orange juice and it went back to being too high.
Originally
we had planned on leaving the hospital the same day, but that hinged on
my mother being here to help us as we transitioned to home.
Unfortunately my grandmother passed away on Friday so she was back home
making preparations with her sisters, so we decided to stay at least
overnight. Being here has been a mixed bag. We've had different nurses
and lactation consultants pointing us in many different directions. I'm
thinking we're going to need some outside help on this when we go home.
While
here they've been monitoring me for pre-eclampsia and they're not quite
sure I'm out of the woods yet. We may be here an extra day if I need a
magnesium sulfate drip. That piece of the story is still to be
determined.
I feel extremely fortunate to have
had everything turn out as well as it has so far. Both twins are
healthy and strong and we made it through without a ton of
interventions! Ryan weighed 6 lbs 9 oz at birth, and Tim weighed 7 lbs
12 oz. They're adorable, but I don't have downloaded pictures yet, so we
will send photos later.
Thanks for a wonderful class and all of the advice along the way! Please share with the class!
Bethany, Gerd, Ryan & Tim
As an update to this, I did end up with problems with possible per-eclampsia and had to be monitored for two weeks. My kidney and liver functions would alternate from okay to abnormal, and my blood pressure was very high. In the hospital they decided it would be a good idea for me to get a blood transfusion, partly in order to ensure I would develop milk. After a few weeks I was back to normal, but I wasn't 100% alright for a while. I'm so glad my mom was able to come back to Boston and camp out with us the first two weeks. We literally ran in shifts each night to ensure everyone got at least 4 hours of sleep a night. Doesn't sound like much now, but with twins, it was pretty miraculous to get that much the first few weeks :)
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
A gathering of thoughts from a new mother
I'm sure everyone thinks that I haven't written because I haven't had any time, considering I just had twins. Not really. Sure time is tight, but that's not really it. I just needed a bit of time to contemplate everything that just changed. I've probably written hundreds of posts in my head over the past two months, but couldn't quite commit them to written words.
I wouldn't say that I had post-partum depression, those are strong words. I would say the first few weeks were a bit of an adjustment, and some of my first thoughts were...what the hell did I just do?! Of course that didn't last, but I wasn't really sure how I was going to handle two infants...I'm still not sure how it's going to go when I take over on my own. So far there's been a two on two rule. My mother or my mother-in-law have been here to be a second set of hands.
There's just been so much emotional stuff going on, I wasn't sure how I could write about it. First my grandmother dies, then I give birth, without an epidural (which was a bit traumatic at the time), then I have two babies to take care of, and then my cat has to be put down, we took a road trip to my grandmother's memorial, my in-laws visited, my property manager in New Mexico didn't tell me my house wasn't rented and my bank account went negative, AND I discovered that I'm happy.
For so long my only means to communicate has been to complain. That's what friends do, discuss problems, right? Well, I'm trying to look forward to happy conversations...I just have to learn how to hold conversations again, because I'm happy.
I don't know if it's because I have kids after a long time not having kids, or if it's the fact that my thyroid was messed up and is now regulated, or if it's just that I'm no longer pumped up with pregnancy hormones, or if it's that I don't have to worry about work, or being on time, or anything other than taking care of babies (which isn't too much of a hardship since they're so sweet!).
So perhaps I'll find a way to write about everything that's going on, but so far it looks like I'll need time to contemplate.
I wouldn't say that I had post-partum depression, those are strong words. I would say the first few weeks were a bit of an adjustment, and some of my first thoughts were...what the hell did I just do?! Of course that didn't last, but I wasn't really sure how I was going to handle two infants...I'm still not sure how it's going to go when I take over on my own. So far there's been a two on two rule. My mother or my mother-in-law have been here to be a second set of hands.
There's just been so much emotional stuff going on, I wasn't sure how I could write about it. First my grandmother dies, then I give birth, without an epidural (which was a bit traumatic at the time), then I have two babies to take care of, and then my cat has to be put down, we took a road trip to my grandmother's memorial, my in-laws visited, my property manager in New Mexico didn't tell me my house wasn't rented and my bank account went negative, AND I discovered that I'm happy.
For so long my only means to communicate has been to complain. That's what friends do, discuss problems, right? Well, I'm trying to look forward to happy conversations...I just have to learn how to hold conversations again, because I'm happy.
I don't know if it's because I have kids after a long time not having kids, or if it's the fact that my thyroid was messed up and is now regulated, or if it's just that I'm no longer pumped up with pregnancy hormones, or if it's that I don't have to worry about work, or being on time, or anything other than taking care of babies (which isn't too much of a hardship since they're so sweet!).
So perhaps I'll find a way to write about everything that's going on, but so far it looks like I'll need time to contemplate.
Friday, August 17, 2012
This Crazy Thing We Call Life
I know, from experience, that the way I deal with death isn't normal. Or maybe it is, I guess, because the first stage of grief is denial.
During high school, when my grandmother died my senior year (during mid-terms) I simply didn't believe it. I had JUST come back from a visit to see her, and it simply wasn't real. In college two years later my grandfather passed away in his sleep. I spent most of the time around his funeral stripping old outdoor chairs and putting together a flower basket for him.
Sure, I cry, but not as much as you would think I would, considering I cry all the time over little things. I simply don't deal with emotions right away. It takes me a while to process everything.
But that doesn't mean that I'm not grieving.
This morning I found out that my maternal grandmother passed away. I am so sad that my grandmother won't be able to meet the twins. I had looked forward to calling her and asking her more about raising twins. I don't feel like I learned as much from her as I could have, as I'd planned to. She was going to be my go to girl.
I can't feel bad for her though. She really wanted to move on. After Grandpa died, she was really lonely, despite every effort to make sure she frequently had company. She didn't want to die in pain, and she got her wish. Instead she died in her sleep, completely unexpectedly. There's a certain pattern here, between both sets of grandparents. One grandparent dies of a chronic lung problem, two years later their spouse dies quietly and peacefully in their sleep. Interesting, isn't it, that on BOTH sides of the family that would happen.
I wonder if the twins not arriving on time has anything to do with this. The timing, of course, is terrible, but it could have been worse. We have a few more days to deal with loss before new life begins.
A sick cat, a grandmother passing, a husband taking on more responsibilities at work, a loss of a job prospect, a delayed birth. It's all nuts. You can go months, years, without feeling the pull of all the different strands of life, and then suddenly life is all around you like a whirlwind. It never makes any sense. But it's life. And, in it's own weird, chaotic way, it's beautiful.
It is as if I'm in a boat battling a storm, and with the help of God and a little adrenaline, I am surviving the storm. But wow, what a storm.
During high school, when my grandmother died my senior year (during mid-terms) I simply didn't believe it. I had JUST come back from a visit to see her, and it simply wasn't real. In college two years later my grandfather passed away in his sleep. I spent most of the time around his funeral stripping old outdoor chairs and putting together a flower basket for him.
Sure, I cry, but not as much as you would think I would, considering I cry all the time over little things. I simply don't deal with emotions right away. It takes me a while to process everything.
But that doesn't mean that I'm not grieving.
This morning I found out that my maternal grandmother passed away. I am so sad that my grandmother won't be able to meet the twins. I had looked forward to calling her and asking her more about raising twins. I don't feel like I learned as much from her as I could have, as I'd planned to. She was going to be my go to girl.
I can't feel bad for her though. She really wanted to move on. After Grandpa died, she was really lonely, despite every effort to make sure she frequently had company. She didn't want to die in pain, and she got her wish. Instead she died in her sleep, completely unexpectedly. There's a certain pattern here, between both sets of grandparents. One grandparent dies of a chronic lung problem, two years later their spouse dies quietly and peacefully in their sleep. Interesting, isn't it, that on BOTH sides of the family that would happen.
I wonder if the twins not arriving on time has anything to do with this. The timing, of course, is terrible, but it could have been worse. We have a few more days to deal with loss before new life begins.
A sick cat, a grandmother passing, a husband taking on more responsibilities at work, a loss of a job prospect, a delayed birth. It's all nuts. You can go months, years, without feeling the pull of all the different strands of life, and then suddenly life is all around you like a whirlwind. It never makes any sense. But it's life. And, in it's own weird, chaotic way, it's beautiful.
It is as if I'm in a boat battling a storm, and with the help of God and a little adrenaline, I am surviving the storm. But wow, what a storm.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Lessons Learned
Well, as I sit here, nearly 40 weeks pregnant with twins, and wait, wait, wait, I thought I might as well put down a few thoughts about being pregnant.
I don't think I've ever been one of those people who just couldn't wait to be pregnant. Sure, I wanted kids, and pregnancy usually comes with the territory, but I wasn't looking forward to the actual pregnancy bit. I can honestly say though, that I'm glad to have been (am) pregnant. Here are a few things I've learned:
1) Despite how annoying it can get with everyone asking again and again how far along you are, and if you're having more than one, it's very nice that people are caring and concerned about people who are pregnant. Random strangers basically stop you on the street to wish you well. Even a woman begging for change outside the grocery store asked about my pregnancy.
I tend towards pessimistic, well, maybe not pessimistic exactly, but I see all the problems of the world and often forget about the good parts. People, as a rule, are generally good. They help lost travelers, they send money to people in need, they wish people well.
I'm under no disillusionment. As soon as I have screaming toddlers there may be more judgement than compassion, but it's something to remember for later. People mean well, and they love to see a little hope enter the world.
2) You wouldn't believe the amount of people who ask if I've scheduled my c-section yet. Medically speaking, it's just assumed by many that if you're having twins you will have a c-section. If I need one, so be it, but it's interesting that c-sections are so common that people would ask me what day I had planned to have the kids. It's a little sad actually. Sure, there's a greater chance of c-section in twins, but even then, there's nothing wrong with going to term and THEN having one when the babies are actually ready to pop. I'm not really sure what this says about society, other than perhaps we're jumping the gun a bit with babies.
3) It is really important to learn about pregnancy and birth from somewhere outside of the hospital community. I highly recommend Bradley classes, although I feel a little less avid about some tenants of the class. If I had only taken the mainstream classes I would have believed that I should only gain 45 pounds during my pregnancy. I've gained at least 75, but I'm pretty healthy. I wouldn't have know about the amount of protein, water, and exercise recommended. Mainstream views say to eat more, but not nearly as much as I have. I completely believe that my nutrition is key to why I've lasted this long in pregnancy. Okay, I might be fully ready to give birth now, but it's far better to get to 40 weeks than to deliver at 34 weeks, which is the point where nearly all of the twin mothers I've met have told me they delivered. All of them had NICU stays as well, although they did end up healthy in the end as well.
4) I've learned to take even sage advice with a grain of salt. For instance, although I love Bradley classes, there's one basic tenant that I disagree with. Bradley says that the human (female) body was designed for birth, and therefore everything can happen naturally. I add, in most cases. The hospital's interventions are seen as an industrial complex, which I do believe is somewhat true. We intervene way too much in pregnancies, BUT sometimes it's necessary. Before modern medicine lots of mothers died in child birth. While our infant mortality rate isn't the best right now (we're number 34), it's far better than many others.
Also on that note, while it is important to get your protein in, it won't kill you to have an off day once in a while. Today's breakfast? Carnation Instant Breakfast (2 packs) in a large glass of milk, cheese and crackers, and apples with peanut butter. All said in total, maybe 30 grams of protein, which is where I want to be...but no eggs and no leafy greens. I think we will survive. I just didn't want to cook this morning, so I didn't.
5) I do not enjoy being fat. I know it's really not fat, it's babies, but blech! Not fun. I've been pretty thin my whole life, so it's interesting to deal with all of the physical demands of heaviness. I'm hoping that my dislike of extra weight will help me get back in shape as soon as I'm able.
Overall, I feel like the things I've learned over the past 9 months will only help me through the next stage of parenthood. People mean well, find the right people to learn from, take a critical look at the medical industry, but remember that they're there to help you, perfection is not necessary, remember that you'll want to exercise after birth. Would I have learned these things if I hadn't been pregnant? I think I already knew them all already, but it was a nice refresher.
I'm not against adoption. How could I be knowing that one of my best friends from high school was adopted. She's a great advertisement for adoption. I am, however, grateful that I've been able to go through the experience of pregnancy, even if I never thought I really needed it. Now lets see if I'm grateful for the experience of the actual birth. So far birth videos do not make me any more excited about that part of becoming a mother. But I guess I'll just have to remember that I've enjoyed (can't believe it, but it's true) being pregnant (although I am very, very ready to no longer be pregnant).
I don't think I've ever been one of those people who just couldn't wait to be pregnant. Sure, I wanted kids, and pregnancy usually comes with the territory, but I wasn't looking forward to the actual pregnancy bit. I can honestly say though, that I'm glad to have been (am) pregnant. Here are a few things I've learned:
1) Despite how annoying it can get with everyone asking again and again how far along you are, and if you're having more than one, it's very nice that people are caring and concerned about people who are pregnant. Random strangers basically stop you on the street to wish you well. Even a woman begging for change outside the grocery store asked about my pregnancy.
I tend towards pessimistic, well, maybe not pessimistic exactly, but I see all the problems of the world and often forget about the good parts. People, as a rule, are generally good. They help lost travelers, they send money to people in need, they wish people well.
I'm under no disillusionment. As soon as I have screaming toddlers there may be more judgement than compassion, but it's something to remember for later. People mean well, and they love to see a little hope enter the world.
2) You wouldn't believe the amount of people who ask if I've scheduled my c-section yet. Medically speaking, it's just assumed by many that if you're having twins you will have a c-section. If I need one, so be it, but it's interesting that c-sections are so common that people would ask me what day I had planned to have the kids. It's a little sad actually. Sure, there's a greater chance of c-section in twins, but even then, there's nothing wrong with going to term and THEN having one when the babies are actually ready to pop. I'm not really sure what this says about society, other than perhaps we're jumping the gun a bit with babies.
3) It is really important to learn about pregnancy and birth from somewhere outside of the hospital community. I highly recommend Bradley classes, although I feel a little less avid about some tenants of the class. If I had only taken the mainstream classes I would have believed that I should only gain 45 pounds during my pregnancy. I've gained at least 75, but I'm pretty healthy. I wouldn't have know about the amount of protein, water, and exercise recommended. Mainstream views say to eat more, but not nearly as much as I have. I completely believe that my nutrition is key to why I've lasted this long in pregnancy. Okay, I might be fully ready to give birth now, but it's far better to get to 40 weeks than to deliver at 34 weeks, which is the point where nearly all of the twin mothers I've met have told me they delivered. All of them had NICU stays as well, although they did end up healthy in the end as well.
4) I've learned to take even sage advice with a grain of salt. For instance, although I love Bradley classes, there's one basic tenant that I disagree with. Bradley says that the human (female) body was designed for birth, and therefore everything can happen naturally. I add, in most cases. The hospital's interventions are seen as an industrial complex, which I do believe is somewhat true. We intervene way too much in pregnancies, BUT sometimes it's necessary. Before modern medicine lots of mothers died in child birth. While our infant mortality rate isn't the best right now (we're number 34), it's far better than many others.
Also on that note, while it is important to get your protein in, it won't kill you to have an off day once in a while. Today's breakfast? Carnation Instant Breakfast (2 packs) in a large glass of milk, cheese and crackers, and apples with peanut butter. All said in total, maybe 30 grams of protein, which is where I want to be...but no eggs and no leafy greens. I think we will survive. I just didn't want to cook this morning, so I didn't.
5) I do not enjoy being fat. I know it's really not fat, it's babies, but blech! Not fun. I've been pretty thin my whole life, so it's interesting to deal with all of the physical demands of heaviness. I'm hoping that my dislike of extra weight will help me get back in shape as soon as I'm able.
Overall, I feel like the things I've learned over the past 9 months will only help me through the next stage of parenthood. People mean well, find the right people to learn from, take a critical look at the medical industry, but remember that they're there to help you, perfection is not necessary, remember that you'll want to exercise after birth. Would I have learned these things if I hadn't been pregnant? I think I already knew them all already, but it was a nice refresher.
I'm not against adoption. How could I be knowing that one of my best friends from high school was adopted. She's a great advertisement for adoption. I am, however, grateful that I've been able to go through the experience of pregnancy, even if I never thought I really needed it. Now lets see if I'm grateful for the experience of the actual birth. So far birth videos do not make me any more excited about that part of becoming a mother. But I guess I'll just have to remember that I've enjoyed (can't believe it, but it's true) being pregnant (although I am very, very ready to no longer be pregnant).
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
By the Number
2: babies to be born
4: number of thank you notes still to send out
26: alphabet letters to be nailed up in the nursery
10: days until a medical induction
7: approximate lb weight of each baby (so far)
75: lbs gained by me so far
5: approximate number of miles walked so far this week
4: number of thank you notes still to send out
26: alphabet letters to be nailed up in the nursery
10: days until a medical induction
7: approximate lb weight of each baby (so far)
75: lbs gained by me so far
5: approximate number of miles walked so far this week
Monday, August 6, 2012
On My Mind
Call it genetic, or call it the amount of protein intake I had throughout the pregnancy, but these babies just do not want to come out! I figured I'd have hopefully 2 weeks off before the babies arrived, but ideally one month. I'm going on 6 weeks now, and we set a deadline for induction. Sure, I'm using the time to rest, but overall, there's not much I can do, and when that happens, my brain goes on overdrive.
So what's on my mind?
Well, one thing is that I have been reading more news, and I'm particularly concerned about the different reports on the drought in the midwest. Fish dying because the water is too hot? Organic farmers struggling to fulfill their CSA obligations? Corn growers with land that is too dry to work? We have been pretty lucky here in Boston, but I'm far from immune to the concern over water disbursement. According to Lester Brown this was all going to happen someday, but climate models had it all down the road a little. With any luck next year will be a rainy season, but once the earth is scorched, and the topsoil compromised, the amount of water absorbed will decrease. With increasing bouts of dryness, I wonder how many people realize how serious, how quickly, this can become.
But I need a better news source. I often go to HuffingtonPost.com because, although they have fluff pieces,the also have articles on things I want to know about. Unfortunately, I see more and more fluff and less and less real stuff, and they have bought into the drama of violence in America. Can we PLEASE not give voice to all of these people who are violent?! It does not help any of the victims, or the rest of us really, if we make it so easy for someone to become notorious if they kill others. I'm convinced people do these big acts of violence so they make it on the news. Is that crazy, yes, but I think it's true. I'd rather hear a headline story about a hero during an attack than learn the details of how the killer planned it all.
Houses, houses, houses. After I started looking around for a vacation rental in Germany, I ended up on a site that is selling apartments. For 29,500 Euro we could buy a one bedroom house a few blocks from my husband's mother. We happen to have 24,000 Euro sitting in a bank account that we've been debating how or if to transfer back to the states. That money is a contentious subject between us, as it wasn't supposed to leave the states in the first place, but that's another story. Gerd isn't really sure about the idea yet, and I do wish it was a 2 bedroom place, but I can't help but think of how useful it would be to have a place that we knew we would go to each time we go for a visit. We could leave cribs and toys there, and we would be able to use some of the belongings Gerd's grandmother has in her abandoned apartment (even though she has been in an assisted living community for 5 years, and has no plan on moving back, she still has an apartment in a retirement complex).
Of course that got me thinking about my house in New Mexico too. I've started conversations with a different property manager to determine if my house would be a good short term furnished rental. It would be a bit nerve-wracking, wondering if I could rent it out enough of the year to make it pay for itself, but it would be SOO wonderful if I could actually stay in my own how when I visit New Mexico. I didn't now there were property managers who specialize in furnished short time vacation rentals, but I could hire someone to manage all the bookings, cleanings, bills, etc. BUT, I have a pretty stable renter right now, and I'm not sure it's a good idea to rock the boat. We'll have to see what the property manager says when she drives by the neighborhood. It's possible she could say the area is just not desirable enough and I wouldn't be able to rent it out enough to make it worth the investment.
You would think, with this amount of time on my hands, that you would find my house spotless, meals cooked on time, plenty of projects started and completed, but no. Instead my head just spins and spins. Acupuncture tomorrow, maybe it'll work! Then I won't really have time to think of all this stuff for a while, and that would be a good thing.
So what's on my mind?
Well, one thing is that I have been reading more news, and I'm particularly concerned about the different reports on the drought in the midwest. Fish dying because the water is too hot? Organic farmers struggling to fulfill their CSA obligations? Corn growers with land that is too dry to work? We have been pretty lucky here in Boston, but I'm far from immune to the concern over water disbursement. According to Lester Brown this was all going to happen someday, but climate models had it all down the road a little. With any luck next year will be a rainy season, but once the earth is scorched, and the topsoil compromised, the amount of water absorbed will decrease. With increasing bouts of dryness, I wonder how many people realize how serious, how quickly, this can become.
But I need a better news source. I often go to HuffingtonPost.com because, although they have fluff pieces,the also have articles on things I want to know about. Unfortunately, I see more and more fluff and less and less real stuff, and they have bought into the drama of violence in America. Can we PLEASE not give voice to all of these people who are violent?! It does not help any of the victims, or the rest of us really, if we make it so easy for someone to become notorious if they kill others. I'm convinced people do these big acts of violence so they make it on the news. Is that crazy, yes, but I think it's true. I'd rather hear a headline story about a hero during an attack than learn the details of how the killer planned it all.
Houses, houses, houses. After I started looking around for a vacation rental in Germany, I ended up on a site that is selling apartments. For 29,500 Euro we could buy a one bedroom house a few blocks from my husband's mother. We happen to have 24,000 Euro sitting in a bank account that we've been debating how or if to transfer back to the states. That money is a contentious subject between us, as it wasn't supposed to leave the states in the first place, but that's another story. Gerd isn't really sure about the idea yet, and I do wish it was a 2 bedroom place, but I can't help but think of how useful it would be to have a place that we knew we would go to each time we go for a visit. We could leave cribs and toys there, and we would be able to use some of the belongings Gerd's grandmother has in her abandoned apartment (even though she has been in an assisted living community for 5 years, and has no plan on moving back, she still has an apartment in a retirement complex).
Of course that got me thinking about my house in New Mexico too. I've started conversations with a different property manager to determine if my house would be a good short term furnished rental. It would be a bit nerve-wracking, wondering if I could rent it out enough of the year to make it pay for itself, but it would be SOO wonderful if I could actually stay in my own how when I visit New Mexico. I didn't now there were property managers who specialize in furnished short time vacation rentals, but I could hire someone to manage all the bookings, cleanings, bills, etc. BUT, I have a pretty stable renter right now, and I'm not sure it's a good idea to rock the boat. We'll have to see what the property manager says when she drives by the neighborhood. It's possible she could say the area is just not desirable enough and I wouldn't be able to rent it out enough to make it worth the investment.
You would think, with this amount of time on my hands, that you would find my house spotless, meals cooked on time, plenty of projects started and completed, but no. Instead my head just spins and spins. Acupuncture tomorrow, maybe it'll work! Then I won't really have time to think of all this stuff for a while, and that would be a good thing.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Twins Don't Come Cheap
The babies haven't even been born yet and we're looking into international flights. My husband's grandmother is still alive, and turns 99 years old this month. We would very much like for her to meet the boys, and would probably choose to travel for Christmas vacation. They would be about 5 months old by then, and if I DO retake my job, it would be before I'd be due back at work.
So even though they're not even born yet, I've started researching what it takes to bring twin babies overseas.
First, European carriers are much more kid friendly than most US ones. Air Lingus, Air France, Lufthansa, KLM, and United all offer bassinets for babies under 22lbs. I'm not sure how heavy a 5 month old baby is, but I'm hoping it's less than 22 lbs. United, unfortunately, has a policy of only allowing one baby per seating section, so that would probably rule them out. Air France also lets you pay only 10% of the regular price of a ticket for an infant to have their own seat. Very nice to know. Even if babies fly on a lap, there are international fees that are added to the ticket, on all flights regardless of the carrier. They all have "child prices" available for children not flying on your lap, but I have no idea how much they would cost.
Lufthansa flies directly to Munich from Boston, so they were my top choice. Ticket prices round trip were only around $600...but then there are all the fees, and by the time everything was added up, the total cost of a trip was a little over $2000. That doesn't include transportation to Chemnitz, our final destination, but honestly, it could be worse. Unfortunately it's likely to be worse, because there are already only 5 seats available at the economy rate for one of the flights we would probably prefer.
All of the airlines offer 22 lbs extra baggage per child, plus a free stroller check, assuming it's under 20 lbs and folds up. My twin stroller is 30 lbs with car seats attached, so it will be interesting to see if they'll okay it, since it's one stroller for 2 kids. Of course, I can take the carseats off, but then I don't know if that would cost extra for the additional equipment...
The next question of course is how we would get to Chemnitz. Would we fly into Leipzig (one hour drive or train away) or drive the 3 1/2 hours from Munich? Car rentals are much more expensive in Europe, and gas is INCREDIBLY expensive there...like $8.00/gallon. BUT, trying to deal with 2 flights, also expensive and difficult. My thoughts are that the car is probably still the best choice because we can make stops along the way and we would still need a car in Chemnitz. Of course, there's also the option of a train ride directly into Chemintz and a rental there...if we can lug everything on a train. Keep in mind, however, that traveling on trains in Germany is much easier than here. Still, I'm more likely to want to drive, however, I really don't know, and don't want to think of yet, how much two weeks of car rental would cost in Germany over Christmas vacation...
The last time we traveled to Germany we got a rental apartment, and that's what we would need to do again. I believe the cost came to somewhere around $500 (300Euro?) and was just far enough away that walking from my husband's family home was out of the question. Likewise, public transportation didn't really run between the two places.
We would probably need to stay put the first day we arrived in Munich too, because I've learned that for my own benefit, trying to take a trip right after an international flight just about kills me (I in turn, just about kill my husband at every turn when something, inevitably, goes wrong...like sitting on our suitcases in the isles of a train for 3 hours). Hotel costs for the day of arrival and day of return would also therefore need to be calculated into the price.
Another thought would be what equipment we would need to travel with. If we're lucky the rental apartment and hotels would have cribs available. If not, we would need to buy travel cribs. My husband and I don't entirely agree on WHICH one to buy, but I tend toward the Baby Bjorn travel crib. One weighs 11 lbs and it's very easy to set up and take down. My husband, on the other hand, likes the Phil and Ted's crib, which is 6 lbs, but looks like a *process* to put together and take apart. Here's a link to a few of the options... One product not covered is the 4moms version, which is due out any day now, and looks very easy to open and close. The weight, however, has not yet be published, and it looks like it might take up more space than we would have.
We also like this portable exercauser, and would debate taking them with us. In addition, we might need some sort of high chair I guess, but I'd likely pick one of the types that you attach to a chair or table, IF we really felt like we needed one by then. This might seem like overkill for an international flight, but keep in mind, we'd be there for probably 2 weeks, and that can be a long time to try to make due without. Plus, (pre-baby mom talking here) I'd like to try to stick to their regular routine as closely as possible.
So basically, what would we take on the plane with us? Up to 4 bags, with max weight of each at 50 lbs each.
Possible kid inclusions:
stroller
car seats
portable beds
exercausers
folding bathtub
toys
books
blankets for tummy times
clothes
diapers/wipes
I'm sure the list will change as we get closer, but it's really already time to start thinking about it all. Despite the exhaustion that may set in the first few months of parenthood, if we really want to go overseas at 5 months, we will have to buy seats, make reservations for hotels/apartments/cars sooner than later. The problem is...how soon can you try to plan this stuff?
So even though they're not even born yet, I've started researching what it takes to bring twin babies overseas.
First, European carriers are much more kid friendly than most US ones. Air Lingus, Air France, Lufthansa, KLM, and United all offer bassinets for babies under 22lbs. I'm not sure how heavy a 5 month old baby is, but I'm hoping it's less than 22 lbs. United, unfortunately, has a policy of only allowing one baby per seating section, so that would probably rule them out. Air France also lets you pay only 10% of the regular price of a ticket for an infant to have their own seat. Very nice to know. Even if babies fly on a lap, there are international fees that are added to the ticket, on all flights regardless of the carrier. They all have "child prices" available for children not flying on your lap, but I have no idea how much they would cost.
Lufthansa flies directly to Munich from Boston, so they were my top choice. Ticket prices round trip were only around $600...but then there are all the fees, and by the time everything was added up, the total cost of a trip was a little over $2000. That doesn't include transportation to Chemnitz, our final destination, but honestly, it could be worse. Unfortunately it's likely to be worse, because there are already only 5 seats available at the economy rate for one of the flights we would probably prefer.
All of the airlines offer 22 lbs extra baggage per child, plus a free stroller check, assuming it's under 20 lbs and folds up. My twin stroller is 30 lbs with car seats attached, so it will be interesting to see if they'll okay it, since it's one stroller for 2 kids. Of course, I can take the carseats off, but then I don't know if that would cost extra for the additional equipment...
The next question of course is how we would get to Chemnitz. Would we fly into Leipzig (one hour drive or train away) or drive the 3 1/2 hours from Munich? Car rentals are much more expensive in Europe, and gas is INCREDIBLY expensive there...like $8.00/gallon. BUT, trying to deal with 2 flights, also expensive and difficult. My thoughts are that the car is probably still the best choice because we can make stops along the way and we would still need a car in Chemnitz. Of course, there's also the option of a train ride directly into Chemintz and a rental there...if we can lug everything on a train. Keep in mind, however, that traveling on trains in Germany is much easier than here. Still, I'm more likely to want to drive, however, I really don't know, and don't want to think of yet, how much two weeks of car rental would cost in Germany over Christmas vacation...
The last time we traveled to Germany we got a rental apartment, and that's what we would need to do again. I believe the cost came to somewhere around $500 (300Euro?) and was just far enough away that walking from my husband's family home was out of the question. Likewise, public transportation didn't really run between the two places.
We would probably need to stay put the first day we arrived in Munich too, because I've learned that for my own benefit, trying to take a trip right after an international flight just about kills me (I in turn, just about kill my husband at every turn when something, inevitably, goes wrong...like sitting on our suitcases in the isles of a train for 3 hours). Hotel costs for the day of arrival and day of return would also therefore need to be calculated into the price.
Another thought would be what equipment we would need to travel with. If we're lucky the rental apartment and hotels would have cribs available. If not, we would need to buy travel cribs. My husband and I don't entirely agree on WHICH one to buy, but I tend toward the Baby Bjorn travel crib. One weighs 11 lbs and it's very easy to set up and take down. My husband, on the other hand, likes the Phil and Ted's crib, which is 6 lbs, but looks like a *process* to put together and take apart. Here's a link to a few of the options... One product not covered is the 4moms version, which is due out any day now, and looks very easy to open and close. The weight, however, has not yet be published, and it looks like it might take up more space than we would have.
We also like this portable exercauser, and would debate taking them with us. In addition, we might need some sort of high chair I guess, but I'd likely pick one of the types that you attach to a chair or table, IF we really felt like we needed one by then. This might seem like overkill for an international flight, but keep in mind, we'd be there for probably 2 weeks, and that can be a long time to try to make due without. Plus, (pre-baby mom talking here) I'd like to try to stick to their regular routine as closely as possible.
So basically, what would we take on the plane with us? Up to 4 bags, with max weight of each at 50 lbs each.
Possible kid inclusions:
stroller
car seats
portable beds
exercausers
folding bathtub
toys
books
blankets for tummy times
clothes
diapers/wipes
I'm sure the list will change as we get closer, but it's really already time to start thinking about it all. Despite the exhaustion that may set in the first few months of parenthood, if we really want to go overseas at 5 months, we will have to buy seats, make reservations for hotels/apartments/cars sooner than later. The problem is...how soon can you try to plan this stuff?
Overdue
Okay, so depending on what you believe about twin pregnancy, I could be considered overdue, or not yet due. I'm at 38 week, which I really didn't think would happen, but has. According to even the midwives, who are a little more nature based than the regular OBs, twins are fully developed at 38 weeks, they have to be because of space limitations. According to the Bradley method twins can, and often should, take the full 40 weeks. Bradley also thinks it's perfectly normal for a singleton pregnancy to take up to 44 weeks as long as everything appears healthy and normal. He's pretty anti-induction.
With that being said, we already know that the midwives want to induce around 40 weeks if I get that far. Pretty much everyone, the OB, the midwives, the doula, say that a 38-39 week delivery is being best if possible. Natural induction efforts have begun and will continue throughout the week. I am hesitant to go too far, so I'm saving the more dramatic induction efforts, like using a breast pump, or a foley pump, until at least 39 weeks (and hoping I don't make it that far). If I make it to 40, there's not much to be done but go with pitocin and hope for the best. At least I'm not actually allergic to pitocin.
So what are the natural induction strategies recommended?
walking/physical activity
bumpy roads (hey, it almost worked before)
spicy food (at least it tastes good)
acupressure points
acupuncture
integrated awareness session (somewhat like Reiki)
sex (sadly, not likely)
breast pump/nipple stimulation
foley pump (to expand dilation)
thumb sucking (but have to already have started some type of labor)
herbs/supplements (I'm a bit wary of this, herbal medicine can be pretty strong stuff)
I might be missing some, but there's the short list. And there you have it. Now I'm off for a walk :)
With that being said, we already know that the midwives want to induce around 40 weeks if I get that far. Pretty much everyone, the OB, the midwives, the doula, say that a 38-39 week delivery is being best if possible. Natural induction efforts have begun and will continue throughout the week. I am hesitant to go too far, so I'm saving the more dramatic induction efforts, like using a breast pump, or a foley pump, until at least 39 weeks (and hoping I don't make it that far). If I make it to 40, there's not much to be done but go with pitocin and hope for the best. At least I'm not actually allergic to pitocin.
So what are the natural induction strategies recommended?
walking/physical activity
bumpy roads (hey, it almost worked before)
spicy food (at least it tastes good)
acupressure points
acupuncture
integrated awareness session (somewhat like Reiki)
sex (sadly, not likely)
breast pump/nipple stimulation
foley pump (to expand dilation)
thumb sucking (but have to already have started some type of labor)
herbs/supplements (I'm a bit wary of this, herbal medicine can be pretty strong stuff)
I might be missing some, but there's the short list. And there you have it. Now I'm off for a walk :)
Sunday, July 29, 2012
False Labor
Sometime during the opening ceremonies of the Olympics I felt the first pulls. Almost like a back pain that decided to wrap around my waist to create a band of construction, I was sure they were contractions. The first was so mild I paid it no real mind, but then I had another one two hours later, and then again another hour or so later. I downloaded an app that keeps track of these things, and soon enough I was having contractions every 40 minutes. We decided to go to bed because obviously they weren't really strong or close together, but we thought we'd need our sleep for the next day.
On Saturday I woke up and they were still coming on. Not really horribly painfully, but uncomfortable, and more regular. My husband went alone to a wedding we had finally decided we would be able to make after all, and RSVP'd on Thursday before all of this. He skipped the reception though. I was still just hanging out at home, every 30 minutes to an hour having a contraction.
We'd had a friend over Friday before the opening ceremonies, and having a real live baby in our house had been a little bit of a wake-up call for me. I realized that I would really need to get a few more things done before I'd want infants to crawl around downstairs. Like, say, clean the floors more and at least close up holes in the baseboards and floor... She drove, and I loved her car. So much so, that I decided as a distraction that we should go look at the Subaru dealership. Honestly, I might have to give up on my small car idea. Looking at the gear she carried for a one hour visit, I wondered what we'd do if we had to try to fit it all into the Yaris, times 2. My husband, amazingly, agreed. He said something like we might be able to trade his car in!!! (WOO HOO)
So we went to the dealership, with me thinking I was in early stage labor, and test drove a Forester and an Outback. Our friend had the Forester, and I liked it, but we both liked the Outback a little more, although for no clear definitive reason. Not that we're buying one this second, but the idea exists for once the dust settles after the babies come home. Our other idea is a Jetta Wagon (ideally TDI, but not sure if the price is right...).
Anyway, we hit a few bumps in the road on the way home, and contractions, although mild, started coming every 10 minutes. Now I was really starting to think things were coming along.
By the time it was bedtime they weren't really any stronger. Again we thought we'd get our sleep and wake up prepared for the morning. But overnight, they stopped. Nary a one today. We didn't do anything to induce or speed along labor, considering it's still only 37 weeks and we thought we'd just take it as it was. If they come back and are more painful we'll try all the natural induction methods we can think of, after we hit 38 weeks. I don't really want to rush them out really, although I would LOVE for them to be out now. Really, I'm pretty disappointed that it was only false labor.
But we have a pretty packed week this upcoming week, including a visit to the vet about my sick cat. I'd love to make it through that appointment with him to see if the medicine is helping or not...he does seem to feel better, but that doesn't mean his life is in any way prolonged. If the babies come before then my mom will take him, but this particular cat is extremely attached to me, and I'm hoping not to stress him out too much in one week!
So we're back to the humdrum experience of waiting. We've planned our meals for the week and finished the laundry (still not really up for scrubbing floors) so there's not much we really HAVE to do (until we have all of the appointments next week anyway). So we wait, and wait, and wait :)
On Saturday I woke up and they were still coming on. Not really horribly painfully, but uncomfortable, and more regular. My husband went alone to a wedding we had finally decided we would be able to make after all, and RSVP'd on Thursday before all of this. He skipped the reception though. I was still just hanging out at home, every 30 minutes to an hour having a contraction.
We'd had a friend over Friday before the opening ceremonies, and having a real live baby in our house had been a little bit of a wake-up call for me. I realized that I would really need to get a few more things done before I'd want infants to crawl around downstairs. Like, say, clean the floors more and at least close up holes in the baseboards and floor... She drove, and I loved her car. So much so, that I decided as a distraction that we should go look at the Subaru dealership. Honestly, I might have to give up on my small car idea. Looking at the gear she carried for a one hour visit, I wondered what we'd do if we had to try to fit it all into the Yaris, times 2. My husband, amazingly, agreed. He said something like we might be able to trade his car in!!! (WOO HOO)
So we went to the dealership, with me thinking I was in early stage labor, and test drove a Forester and an Outback. Our friend had the Forester, and I liked it, but we both liked the Outback a little more, although for no clear definitive reason. Not that we're buying one this second, but the idea exists for once the dust settles after the babies come home. Our other idea is a Jetta Wagon (ideally TDI, but not sure if the price is right...).
Anyway, we hit a few bumps in the road on the way home, and contractions, although mild, started coming every 10 minutes. Now I was really starting to think things were coming along.
By the time it was bedtime they weren't really any stronger. Again we thought we'd get our sleep and wake up prepared for the morning. But overnight, they stopped. Nary a one today. We didn't do anything to induce or speed along labor, considering it's still only 37 weeks and we thought we'd just take it as it was. If they come back and are more painful we'll try all the natural induction methods we can think of, after we hit 38 weeks. I don't really want to rush them out really, although I would LOVE for them to be out now. Really, I'm pretty disappointed that it was only false labor.
But we have a pretty packed week this upcoming week, including a visit to the vet about my sick cat. I'd love to make it through that appointment with him to see if the medicine is helping or not...he does seem to feel better, but that doesn't mean his life is in any way prolonged. If the babies come before then my mom will take him, but this particular cat is extremely attached to me, and I'm hoping not to stress him out too much in one week!
So we're back to the humdrum experience of waiting. We've planned our meals for the week and finished the laundry (still not really up for scrubbing floors) so there's not much we really HAVE to do (until we have all of the appointments next week anyway). So we wait, and wait, and wait :)
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Decisions Decisions
So today I found out that my previous position is re-opening with a 20 hr/week contract. They'd like me back, and sound pretty amenable to waiting until January for me to come back. I'd always thought I'd want to be a full time stay at home mother, but I'm seriously considering it. Why? Well, here are a few good reasons...are they good enough?
1) If I did work 20 hrs/week I would be able to divide it into 3 days with 6 hrs/day plus 2 hours on another day (and hubby could watch the babies those 2 hours, great for father-son time). The location of the workplace is about 5 minutes away, and I would split my time up, 9-12, 1:30-2:30, 5-6 or something similar based on kid routine and class schedules. Ideally the afternoon time would be during nap time. I don't think I'd be away so much that I wouldn't be able to be a very involved parent. I'm not even sure if I'd need to pump breast milk because I'd be around during feeding times (by the time I'd start work the kiddos would be about 6 months old, and hopefully on a pretty stable eating schedule?)
2) If I did this, I would get a part time au pair. The cost would almost eat up the entire amount of my earnings, BUT there'd be some significant benefits. First, I would want a German speaking au pair so that more German would be introduced at an early age (and hopefully with a proper accent, my husband's region is renowned for their difficult to understand accent). Second, au pairs do some of the cleaning up, so I would have help keeping the house clean and the diapers washed.
3) Pin money, or so regency novels call it. Even though it wouldn't be much, I'd earn enough money to have a little extra spending money each month, when otherwise our budget will feel pretty tight. We're talking less than $400, but that's $400, help with housekeeping, and a German tutor.
4) Career wise, I wouldn't have a huge break away from work, and I'd be doing something I love. It's close by, and I think having a routine would actually help me organize my time better and get more done. I've learned from experience that having time away from work doesn't automatically mean I'll start learning to make cheese or any other project I haven't completed yet, and I'm sure kids will make it even harder. To do the things we love to do, we just have to schedule it in and make it a priority.
The drawback to all of this is that I wouldn't get to be a full time stay at home mom. In the back of my mind, at some point when the kids get used to a routine I've been hoping I could become an urban homesteading mama, but realistically, would I be that disciplined anyway?
Of course this is all moot if a) they don't agree to my hours/start date and b) I can't find a German au pair that wants to work part time.
What do you think...too soon to decide? Will my thoughts change when I've got two babies in my arms? Decisions, decisions....
1) If I did work 20 hrs/week I would be able to divide it into 3 days with 6 hrs/day plus 2 hours on another day (and hubby could watch the babies those 2 hours, great for father-son time). The location of the workplace is about 5 minutes away, and I would split my time up, 9-12, 1:30-2:30, 5-6 or something similar based on kid routine and class schedules. Ideally the afternoon time would be during nap time. I don't think I'd be away so much that I wouldn't be able to be a very involved parent. I'm not even sure if I'd need to pump breast milk because I'd be around during feeding times (by the time I'd start work the kiddos would be about 6 months old, and hopefully on a pretty stable eating schedule?)
2) If I did this, I would get a part time au pair. The cost would almost eat up the entire amount of my earnings, BUT there'd be some significant benefits. First, I would want a German speaking au pair so that more German would be introduced at an early age (and hopefully with a proper accent, my husband's region is renowned for their difficult to understand accent). Second, au pairs do some of the cleaning up, so I would have help keeping the house clean and the diapers washed.
3) Pin money, or so regency novels call it. Even though it wouldn't be much, I'd earn enough money to have a little extra spending money each month, when otherwise our budget will feel pretty tight. We're talking less than $400, but that's $400, help with housekeeping, and a German tutor.
4) Career wise, I wouldn't have a huge break away from work, and I'd be doing something I love. It's close by, and I think having a routine would actually help me organize my time better and get more done. I've learned from experience that having time away from work doesn't automatically mean I'll start learning to make cheese or any other project I haven't completed yet, and I'm sure kids will make it even harder. To do the things we love to do, we just have to schedule it in and make it a priority.
The drawback to all of this is that I wouldn't get to be a full time stay at home mom. In the back of my mind, at some point when the kids get used to a routine I've been hoping I could become an urban homesteading mama, but realistically, would I be that disciplined anyway?
Of course this is all moot if a) they don't agree to my hours/start date and b) I can't find a German au pair that wants to work part time.
What do you think...too soon to decide? Will my thoughts change when I've got two babies in my arms? Decisions, decisions....
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Freezer Crockpot Meals
I finally got around to it! A while back I discovered a site on pinterest that included make ahead meals. Considering we will have little time in the next few months, it seemed like a good idea. Through links and surfing I discovered the original author who based her recipes off of Nourishing Traditions, a cookbook/ideology I happen to really agree with. Sooo, why not give it a go?
I did two recipes, Thai Chicken Curry and Stephanie's Goulash. Both recipes come from an online ecookbook sold by the author of the blog Mama And Baby Love.
All in all, I think I spent about $50 for both recipes, but each recipe is supposed to make enough for 4 meals for a family of 4. One recipe called for beets (blech!) so I'm not sure how many meals that recipe will make for us since I left them out of the mix. It took about 2 hours to prep everything and clean up, but then I move pretty slow right now. I could easily see this going faster if you're working with a food processor or if you're listening to upbeat music in the background.
I have no idea how the food will taste considering we haven't actually cooked one of them yet. According to instructions, the food doesn't need to be thawed before sticking it in the crockpot. You bake the food for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low and then add garnishes or last minute ingredients (like sour cream for the goulash).
As far as ingredients go, I bought almost all of the vegetables at the local farmers market or they came in my CSA box. I did have to buy red bell peppers and the meat at Trader Joes (nobody at the farmers market had just what I needed meat-wise anyway). Still, I think $6.25 a meal is a pretty good deal if they turn out alright. That's only about $1.50 per person!
I'll add pictures later, although I can say now it looks just like what you'd think it would look like...gallon sized ziplock bags filled with meat and veggies. They really do stack well in the freezer if you lay them on their side and squeeze the air out.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Full Term!
Well, I've officially made it! The magic 36 weeks where apparently twins are fully mature for delivery. I remember that originally I was pretty set on lasting as close to 40 weeks as possible, but I've had a change of heart. ANY TIME NOW. Really, ANY TIME.
While we're not 100% ready, I'm feeling much more prepared. Things are washed and put away, the house is no longer under construction. My bag, while not entirely packed, has a few ready to go items that I won't have to worry about.
I'd still like to make some make-ahead meals and there's a chance I'll do that this weekend. Then again, there's a chance I will fall back asleep and ignore my to do list. If I DO end up making freezer crock pot meals, I'll be sure to blog about it. In the mean time, we're just hanging out waiting for a birthday to come along :)
While we're not 100% ready, I'm feeling much more prepared. Things are washed and put away, the house is no longer under construction. My bag, while not entirely packed, has a few ready to go items that I won't have to worry about.
I'd still like to make some make-ahead meals and there's a chance I'll do that this weekend. Then again, there's a chance I will fall back asleep and ignore my to do list. If I DO end up making freezer crock pot meals, I'll be sure to blog about it. In the mean time, we're just hanging out waiting for a birthday to come along :)
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
34 Weeks, Crazy Cat, Raspberries and more
At our most recent ultrasound the doctor estimated that the babies were 5 pounds each! I've been planning on 36 weeks rather than 38, because it seems like I can't get much bigger, but he seemed to think I'd last longer. Soooo, I'm thinking I'll have pretty good sized twins pretty soon.
Meanwhile one of my cats has gone a bit mental. Perhaps it's the latest construction (drywalling the living room ceiling) or just the fact that babies are on the way, but he has gone seriously weird of me. Hiding, peeing and pooping in places he shouldn't be, avoiding the other cats, constantly grooming himself, etc. Finally we took him to the vet, who told us it was a behavior issue. Yes, he has early kidney disease, but none of the behaviors suggested pain, just mental anxiety. So we just sit around and hope that it'll get better as soon as the ceiling is finished and the babies are out.
I'm no longer working. Thank goodness because I spend a lot of time sleeping. You'd think I'd spend more time working on the garden or fixing up the house, but no. My iron is probably still low. That's okay, the garden, while not exactly free of weeds, is still doing a pretty good job. You should see the size of my garlic this year!
No really, you should SEE this garlic!
Our raspberries are doing well again this year. This shot was taken AFTER my husband already picked a pint of raspberries and claimed there were "just a few more to pick..." We also had a bunch of Beach Plums this year. Okay, by a bunch, I mean a pint, but it was enough to make a little jelly... Also notice the peas that are buried under the raspberries.
I'm about ready to pick the cabbage too, although I'm still trying to figure out what to do with it. I could shred it and freeze it for cole slaw later, try to ferment it into sauerkraut (yuck, but Gerd would like it), or stuff cabbage leaves with rice and meat and freeze the cabbage roles for later, or I could see if it can be preserved some other way, like in the sandbox. All options seem to require work, therefore the cabbage is still safely in the ground :)
Other than that, we've harvested scapes, and I've got some zuchini ready to pick, along with a few cherry tomatoes (we thought we hadn't planted zuchini, but turns out I didn't plant squash). Cucumbers are growing too, along with onions, potatoes, carrots, brussel sprouts, and celery (I have no idea when to pick that...).
We're really looking forward to grapes this year. No idea when they'll turn ripe, but the vine is awfully pretty on our arbor!
There's really not enough of anything to sustain us this year, so I've been going to the local farmers market more than in past years, and I've signed up for a CSA this year. I get to pick up the veggies at our local specialty foods store, American Provision, which is about 4 blocks away from us. We're keeping our regularly delivered box of organics, but have changed it to a 100% fruit box. I think it's going to be a good summer for food. Lets see what happens to it all with babies in the mix :)
Meanwhile one of my cats has gone a bit mental. Perhaps it's the latest construction (drywalling the living room ceiling) or just the fact that babies are on the way, but he has gone seriously weird of me. Hiding, peeing and pooping in places he shouldn't be, avoiding the other cats, constantly grooming himself, etc. Finally we took him to the vet, who told us it was a behavior issue. Yes, he has early kidney disease, but none of the behaviors suggested pain, just mental anxiety. So we just sit around and hope that it'll get better as soon as the ceiling is finished and the babies are out.
I'm no longer working. Thank goodness because I spend a lot of time sleeping. You'd think I'd spend more time working on the garden or fixing up the house, but no. My iron is probably still low. That's okay, the garden, while not exactly free of weeds, is still doing a pretty good job. You should see the size of my garlic this year!
No really, you should SEE this garlic!
Our raspberries are doing well again this year. This shot was taken AFTER my husband already picked a pint of raspberries and claimed there were "just a few more to pick..." We also had a bunch of Beach Plums this year. Okay, by a bunch, I mean a pint, but it was enough to make a little jelly... Also notice the peas that are buried under the raspberries.
I'm about ready to pick the cabbage too, although I'm still trying to figure out what to do with it. I could shred it and freeze it for cole slaw later, try to ferment it into sauerkraut (yuck, but Gerd would like it), or stuff cabbage leaves with rice and meat and freeze the cabbage roles for later, or I could see if it can be preserved some other way, like in the sandbox. All options seem to require work, therefore the cabbage is still safely in the ground :)
Other than that, we've harvested scapes, and I've got some zuchini ready to pick, along with a few cherry tomatoes (we thought we hadn't planted zuchini, but turns out I didn't plant squash). Cucumbers are growing too, along with onions, potatoes, carrots, brussel sprouts, and celery (I have no idea when to pick that...).
We're really looking forward to grapes this year. No idea when they'll turn ripe, but the vine is awfully pretty on our arbor!
There's really not enough of anything to sustain us this year, so I've been going to the local farmers market more than in past years, and I've signed up for a CSA this year. I get to pick up the veggies at our local specialty foods store, American Provision, which is about 4 blocks away from us. We're keeping our regularly delivered box of organics, but have changed it to a 100% fruit box. I think it's going to be a good summer for food. Lets see what happens to it all with babies in the mix :)
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Sleepless night at 32 weeks
I'm *almost* to 32 weeks (2 more days) and therefore almost "safe". By "safe" I mean that 98% of babies born at 32 weeks survive with less risk of serious lasting medical conditions, particularly if they're twins because twins develop faster than singletons...or so my various research tells me. Not that I want to give birth early or anything, but it is nice to feel a little closer. At 32 weeks we'd still have to transfer to a hospital with a NICU, so the next benchmark is 34 weeks...when we can actually deliver at our hospital of choice. In a bed, not an OR. Naturally...hopefully.
So why am I awake? Well, it could be because it's hotter than Hades tonight. Our scheduled construction projects are running dangerously late, and we still have all of our vents sealed off to prevent dust and dirt from getting into our vents. That means no air conditioning, and it was 97 today. Of course that's not really why I'm awake. Today we went and bought a portable air conditioner for our top floor that never gets cool enough anyway. We set it at 60 and managed a temperature closer to 70, the thing hasn't stopped running since we turned it on. Looks like it's going to have to be replaced with a bigger better model. I'm currently sitting downstairs though, and the thermometer reads 81. Warm for sure, but not dangerous.
No, I'm really awake because I feel completely unprepared. The house is in pieces, I can't find anything in the kitchen (half of my dishes are in boxes due to cleaning out the dining room for construction) and all of my clothes, nursery items, and other belongings are currently strewn about the floor in our top floor bedroom as we await our contractors return to finish the nursery and our bedroom.
Also, I've been delaying shopping for the rest of my baby goodies until after the shower. I knew there'd be a lot to buy, and I just didn't want to duplicate anything. Now I'm trying to figure out exactly what I still need....except everything is so disorganized I have no idea what I do or don't need. Hard to do when everything is in scattered about or in bags and boxes.
While looking up a suggested list of items, I ran across a new baby checklist, and realized I have even more to think about. Actually I've done pretty well for the past 7 months (the only items I haven't done on the list: begin a journal, take pregnancy pictures, try prenatal yoga). Not bad really. I do wish I'd taken more belly pictures, but there's only so much you can do. But the list of things to think about is pretty long. Still to do? (keep in mind that I should be done with all of month 8 things to do)
So what's my immediate plan? Well, figure out what things I have and what I need. Buy nursing stuff, like tops and bottles (I've been told to hold off on the pump until 3 weeks postpartum because a) I shouldn't use it until then and b) if the babies are born early I could need a hospital grade rental if I need to supplement their nursing with extra breast milk (via syringe in the side of their mouth).) Pack a bag, put together a call list for people who don't use Facebook :) (like my father and aunt in Texas), and pretty much work through the Bradley birth class book again...oh, and buy a few more books that people have suggested (and find time to read them). Right, and get some sleep.
Really I should work on that last bit now.
So why am I awake? Well, it could be because it's hotter than Hades tonight. Our scheduled construction projects are running dangerously late, and we still have all of our vents sealed off to prevent dust and dirt from getting into our vents. That means no air conditioning, and it was 97 today. Of course that's not really why I'm awake. Today we went and bought a portable air conditioner for our top floor that never gets cool enough anyway. We set it at 60 and managed a temperature closer to 70, the thing hasn't stopped running since we turned it on. Looks like it's going to have to be replaced with a bigger better model. I'm currently sitting downstairs though, and the thermometer reads 81. Warm for sure, but not dangerous.
No, I'm really awake because I feel completely unprepared. The house is in pieces, I can't find anything in the kitchen (half of my dishes are in boxes due to cleaning out the dining room for construction) and all of my clothes, nursery items, and other belongings are currently strewn about the floor in our top floor bedroom as we await our contractors return to finish the nursery and our bedroom.
Also, I've been delaying shopping for the rest of my baby goodies until after the shower. I knew there'd be a lot to buy, and I just didn't want to duplicate anything. Now I'm trying to figure out exactly what I still need....except everything is so disorganized I have no idea what I do or don't need. Hard to do when everything is in scattered about or in bags and boxes.
While looking up a suggested list of items, I ran across a new baby checklist, and realized I have even more to think about. Actually I've done pretty well for the past 7 months (the only items I haven't done on the list: begin a journal, take pregnancy pictures, try prenatal yoga). Not bad really. I do wish I'd taken more belly pictures, but there's only so much you can do. But the list of things to think about is pretty long. Still to do? (keep in mind that I should be done with all of month 8 things to do)
Month 7
- Have baby clothes and necessities ready (well I have some, but not really sure what sizes, if I really have all I need for the first 2 months)
Month 8
- Pack your bag (well, I've thought about it, but no progress there)
Shop for andlearn how to install your car seat (s).- Put together a family first aid kit.
- Buy your diaper bag, and s
tock up on diapering essentials.(I have no idea what type of bag I want...I've been looking and don't like anything I've seen so far) - Buy a high chair. (can't this wait a little while? I know I want 2 matching Ikea high chairs)
- Build your email/phone tree for sharing the birth of your baby! (hadn't even thought of this yet)
- Shop for a nursing bra.
Month 9
- Study up on newborn vaccines and find out what's best for your baby. (well, I've heard mention of a "delayed vaccine schedule, but that's the amount I know about vaccines...interestingly enough picking a pediatrician is not on this list, and I have scheduled 3 interviews. One farther away, but both an MD and Natreopath, one nearby, but likely pretty traditional, and one kind of in the middle (both ways).)
- Pick out your baby announcements and thank you notes. (And address those envelopes now since time will be at a premium soon!)
- Buy a baby sling or baby carrier. (well, I have one wrap, but I know I want 2 slings too, one for each of us)
- Prepare yourself for labor and delivery. (according to Bradley classes, we should be practicing labor drills daily by now...um, yeah, not really on top of that right now)
- Wash and put away your babies new clothes. (well, soon, I suppose, as soon as I can put things in the nursery)
- Prepare for the weeks after you give birth. (how? I guess I could prepare food ahead of time and have lots of food in the freezer)
- Relax and enjoy the last days before delivery! (not there yet, but looking forward to it)
Really I should work on that last bit now.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
28 Weeks and Counting
Only about 2 more months to go, and I wish it could go faster and slower at the same time. I wish I could have plenty of time to get everything together and relax, but I want the time to fly by too.
So far everything has been pretty good. I'm anemic, but that's not exactly shocking, I verge on anemia even while not pregnant. Unfortunately I'm home sick today because the increased dosage of iron has me not feeling too well.
I'd like to believe that if I was done with work now I'd get my prefold diapers washed, finish buying the rest of the pocket diapers, wash organize and sort through the growing pile of baby duds that I've been given, perhaps I could better monitor my diet too, I could even finish planting my garden..better yet, weed my garden. Chances are, I'd spend more time doing what I'm doing today though, surfing the internet, taking naps, and reading.
There really is so much to do, both at work and at home. At work I have a magazine to finish pulling together, a community service project to complete with students, and a summer guide to distribute. At home I can't do many of the things that need to be done, like, move a door, paint, move furniture...can't really set up the nursery until there is one. Bradley birthing classes keep marching on. Slowly I'm accumulating things that we'll need.
I haven't written much lately, because there's just not much new to say. We're all just waiting for the next step. School's out in June, maybe there'll be more movement then. Holly and her kids move out this weekend, so some of the work that needs to be done to the house can start. Right now, we're still waiting...semi-patiently.
So far everything has been pretty good. I'm anemic, but that's not exactly shocking, I verge on anemia even while not pregnant. Unfortunately I'm home sick today because the increased dosage of iron has me not feeling too well.
I'd like to believe that if I was done with work now I'd get my prefold diapers washed, finish buying the rest of the pocket diapers, wash organize and sort through the growing pile of baby duds that I've been given, perhaps I could better monitor my diet too, I could even finish planting my garden..better yet, weed my garden. Chances are, I'd spend more time doing what I'm doing today though, surfing the internet, taking naps, and reading.
There really is so much to do, both at work and at home. At work I have a magazine to finish pulling together, a community service project to complete with students, and a summer guide to distribute. At home I can't do many of the things that need to be done, like, move a door, paint, move furniture...can't really set up the nursery until there is one. Bradley birthing classes keep marching on. Slowly I'm accumulating things that we'll need.
I haven't written much lately, because there's just not much new to say. We're all just waiting for the next step. School's out in June, maybe there'll be more movement then. Holly and her kids move out this weekend, so some of the work that needs to be done to the house can start. Right now, we're still waiting...semi-patiently.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Forever Ago
Okay,
So I haven't blogged in, well, what seems like forever. What can I say? Anyone who didn't already know, yup, we're pregnant. First I was just too tired to blog, and then I had a new job and was too busy AND too tired to blog, and then I just got introverted.
I suppose I'm only blogging now because I had a sweetened ice tea with dinner (caffeine AND sugar...not smart considering how much trouble I've had sleeping this whole time). News you might NOT have heard, is that we know we're having twin boys. Sigh. I really wanted at least 1 girl. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure I'll fall right in love with whatever babies I get, but I've had a girl's name picked out since I was 12. You never know, maybe we'll decide to have more kids, but really we'd planned on this just being it. So I suppose it's just the feeling of finality of it all, that I won't get that girl someday that makes me a little sad. Well, that and double strength hormones.
Also newsworthy, if not already posted or figured out, I've got a family living in our upstairs bedroom. While I don't regret the offer, I'm getting ready for them to move on...just so I can start rearranging the house. No nesting happening here yet, and I'm patiently biding my time until the end of May when I get my house back. There are doorways to move, and walls to construct, and lots and lots of trim to either replace or paint.
The house itself has been a bit of drama. With chipped lead paint, and half finished renovations, we've been debating what we're going to do. Fleeing was my first instinct. At first I was head strung about going back to New Mexico for a while, now I'm not so sure again (but then again, it's warmer outside again...I'm sure the discussion will be revisited when it snows again) Moving really isn't a realistic option right now anyway. Our unfinished projects will take at least a year to catch up on, and I'm only talking about the projects we've already begun.
Our next house will be different I swear. Our next house will not require any walls to be constructed or moved. We will not have shady electrical work or cracked pipes. We will not have period woodwork that is in terrible shape and would take years to repair. Hmmm, perhaps I'm nesting in another way. It's just that I'm not very happy in this house right now.
I've finally figured out what I really REALLY want, is to live somewhere around friends. Now that I'm having kids, I want to live around friends that are having kids too. Somewhere with a backyard I can get to from the front of the house. Somewhere with a garage. Let me tell you, I'm still not sure how I'm supposed to get twins in and out of a car by myself....particularly if I can't find a parking spot in front of the house.
But so far everything has been going well. Never got morning sickness even. I have an enormous belly at this point. If this is what I look like at 20 weeks, I have to wonder how big I'm going to get. I just went to a baby shower for a friend who is 32 weeks, and she looks slightly bigger than I do. Gerd continues to work from home, which I hope will be a good thing after the babies are born (I'm a little afraid that he'll have difficulty getting anything done).
Our older kitties aren't fairing so well though. At least one of them was diagnosed with kidney disease, the other wasn't able to be tested for it (empty bladder) but has problems with his teeth. I really wonder how they'll take to a couple of new babies. So far they're still active and snugly and just regular cats. I hope the stress of crying babies doesn't age them more than they already have aged :(
I've been thinking a lot lately about our lifestyle, and how it will change, and what values I want to hold true to, and what I'm flexible on. For instance, I don't think my commitment to organic milk or produce will go away, but I can easily see myself going to regular grocery stores more often. If I shop at Stop & Shop, which is 2 blocks away from me I think, it's unlikely that the meat I'll buy will be up to my current standards. It's either time to buy a meat share, or compromise a little. Let me tell you, after reading the Omnivore's Dilemma, I really WANT to shop a farmer's markets and buy local, but I'm just not sure I'm going to be up for it.
Breastfeeding is another issue. I'm still hoping to breastfeed, although I'm sure it'll be difficult with twins. The thing is, I don't know how it's going to work out. I know I'll need to pump throughout the day, because I want Gerd to be able to give the kids a bottle too. I've heard babies can prefer bottles over breasts after a time though, because the milk comes out faster from a bottle. I also want to make my own baby food when it comes time, but as of yet I have no idea what the process of that is, or what the nutritional needs of a baby really are!
Diapers, at least, I think, will be easier. I want to cloth diaper, and the only major decision I need to make now is a) do I go with the diaper service (even though it might make the house stinkier for a while) or b) do I get used to doing an extra load (no pun intended) of laundry each night. At around 24 diapers a day for 2 kids I'll either need to buy (and wash) a boatload of diapers or I'll have to deal with 170 stinky diapers waiting to be picked up each Tuesday (that's right, the diaper service only delivers once a week). I'd seriously consider adding an additional washer/dryer in one if a) I knew I could do a cold rinse, then hot cycle, then extra rinse, and then dry, AND it wasn't so expensive. Really, instead of a diaper pail, you could just throw them in the washer and run it at night and just pull them out in the morning...
But back to the whole expensive thing. I have expensive tastes. I want amby baby hammocks instead of bassinets. I'll later need cribs, although I want to go with mini-cribs for space (maybe something like this), and I still covet this double stroller (with bassinets, but probably not gonna happen). Oh right, and I'll need a nursing pillow suitable for twins, and possibly a different glider (depending on how the glider works with the pillow), and bouncers, and car seats and everything else you need with babies. In other words, we haven't bought a single thing yet, and when I do start buying things, I'm going to have to make a budget and start prioritizing.
Well, it's late (or actually, really early) and I still can't sleep, but I guess I better try something else as a sleep aid because writing this all down isn't helping. Why oh why did I need to have ice tea? We'd all probably be better off if I'd had a half a glass of wine and fell asleep at the table :) (no I'm not drinking or advocating drinking during pregnancy).
So I haven't blogged in, well, what seems like forever. What can I say? Anyone who didn't already know, yup, we're pregnant. First I was just too tired to blog, and then I had a new job and was too busy AND too tired to blog, and then I just got introverted.
I suppose I'm only blogging now because I had a sweetened ice tea with dinner (caffeine AND sugar...not smart considering how much trouble I've had sleeping this whole time). News you might NOT have heard, is that we know we're having twin boys. Sigh. I really wanted at least 1 girl. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure I'll fall right in love with whatever babies I get, but I've had a girl's name picked out since I was 12. You never know, maybe we'll decide to have more kids, but really we'd planned on this just being it. So I suppose it's just the feeling of finality of it all, that I won't get that girl someday that makes me a little sad. Well, that and double strength hormones.
Also newsworthy, if not already posted or figured out, I've got a family living in our upstairs bedroom. While I don't regret the offer, I'm getting ready for them to move on...just so I can start rearranging the house. No nesting happening here yet, and I'm patiently biding my time until the end of May when I get my house back. There are doorways to move, and walls to construct, and lots and lots of trim to either replace or paint.
The house itself has been a bit of drama. With chipped lead paint, and half finished renovations, we've been debating what we're going to do. Fleeing was my first instinct. At first I was head strung about going back to New Mexico for a while, now I'm not so sure again (but then again, it's warmer outside again...I'm sure the discussion will be revisited when it snows again) Moving really isn't a realistic option right now anyway. Our unfinished projects will take at least a year to catch up on, and I'm only talking about the projects we've already begun.
Our next house will be different I swear. Our next house will not require any walls to be constructed or moved. We will not have shady electrical work or cracked pipes. We will not have period woodwork that is in terrible shape and would take years to repair. Hmmm, perhaps I'm nesting in another way. It's just that I'm not very happy in this house right now.
I've finally figured out what I really REALLY want, is to live somewhere around friends. Now that I'm having kids, I want to live around friends that are having kids too. Somewhere with a backyard I can get to from the front of the house. Somewhere with a garage. Let me tell you, I'm still not sure how I'm supposed to get twins in and out of a car by myself....particularly if I can't find a parking spot in front of the house.
But so far everything has been going well. Never got morning sickness even. I have an enormous belly at this point. If this is what I look like at 20 weeks, I have to wonder how big I'm going to get. I just went to a baby shower for a friend who is 32 weeks, and she looks slightly bigger than I do. Gerd continues to work from home, which I hope will be a good thing after the babies are born (I'm a little afraid that he'll have difficulty getting anything done).
Our older kitties aren't fairing so well though. At least one of them was diagnosed with kidney disease, the other wasn't able to be tested for it (empty bladder) but has problems with his teeth. I really wonder how they'll take to a couple of new babies. So far they're still active and snugly and just regular cats. I hope the stress of crying babies doesn't age them more than they already have aged :(
I've been thinking a lot lately about our lifestyle, and how it will change, and what values I want to hold true to, and what I'm flexible on. For instance, I don't think my commitment to organic milk or produce will go away, but I can easily see myself going to regular grocery stores more often. If I shop at Stop & Shop, which is 2 blocks away from me I think, it's unlikely that the meat I'll buy will be up to my current standards. It's either time to buy a meat share, or compromise a little. Let me tell you, after reading the Omnivore's Dilemma, I really WANT to shop a farmer's markets and buy local, but I'm just not sure I'm going to be up for it.
Breastfeeding is another issue. I'm still hoping to breastfeed, although I'm sure it'll be difficult with twins. The thing is, I don't know how it's going to work out. I know I'll need to pump throughout the day, because I want Gerd to be able to give the kids a bottle too. I've heard babies can prefer bottles over breasts after a time though, because the milk comes out faster from a bottle. I also want to make my own baby food when it comes time, but as of yet I have no idea what the process of that is, or what the nutritional needs of a baby really are!
Diapers, at least, I think, will be easier. I want to cloth diaper, and the only major decision I need to make now is a) do I go with the diaper service (even though it might make the house stinkier for a while) or b) do I get used to doing an extra load (no pun intended) of laundry each night. At around 24 diapers a day for 2 kids I'll either need to buy (and wash) a boatload of diapers or I'll have to deal with 170 stinky diapers waiting to be picked up each Tuesday (that's right, the diaper service only delivers once a week). I'd seriously consider adding an additional washer/dryer in one if a) I knew I could do a cold rinse, then hot cycle, then extra rinse, and then dry, AND it wasn't so expensive. Really, instead of a diaper pail, you could just throw them in the washer and run it at night and just pull them out in the morning...
But back to the whole expensive thing. I have expensive tastes. I want amby baby hammocks instead of bassinets. I'll later need cribs, although I want to go with mini-cribs for space (maybe something like this), and I still covet this double stroller (with bassinets, but probably not gonna happen). Oh right, and I'll need a nursing pillow suitable for twins, and possibly a different glider (depending on how the glider works with the pillow), and bouncers, and car seats and everything else you need with babies. In other words, we haven't bought a single thing yet, and when I do start buying things, I'm going to have to make a budget and start prioritizing.
Well, it's late (or actually, really early) and I still can't sleep, but I guess I better try something else as a sleep aid because writing this all down isn't helping. Why oh why did I need to have ice tea? We'd all probably be better off if I'd had a half a glass of wine and fell asleep at the table :) (no I'm not drinking or advocating drinking during pregnancy).
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