We're big time now

because we can sit up by ourselves! Yesterday I took the twins outside in the backyard to play because it was so nice out. I sat Presley down and gave her a toy and she stayed sitting up for like 30 seconds! I was so exicited! She has gotten better even since then. You still can't walk away and leave her, because she does fall down eventually. I tried Marshall too, not thinking he would be able to do it, but he did! He can't sit up for as long as she can, but he can definitely hold his own! This is the first (I think) milestone they have made at the same time. I am so happy for them, even though I know we have some crazy roads ahead now! Note Marshall's ability to raise one eyebrow in the last pic, he inherited that trait from his dad!





just hanging out



It looks like she just punched him and he's pissed! Not the case though don't worry!



My little "Blondie" rock star



Charlie Brown's twin

Baby Books

Marshall and Presley's are empty. Oh wait, no they aren't, I wrote a few things in there BEFORE they were born. Where has the time gone? I need to get my rear in gear. My goal is to have everything written in there that I can before they turn 6 months, which is in the next couple of weeks! Sorry twinkies, your mommy isn't exactly on-top-of-things, as you will discover as you get older. :)

Weekend

This past weekend we went to Midland for a wedding (yes the babies were traveling machines the past week). We had a great time seeing all our friends and hanging out with family. We were able to see our nephew Grayson for a few minutes on Sunday, and he is so adorable! The last time we saw him was back in July and he has grown so much! It was pretty entertaining trying to get a picture of an eight month old and 2 five month old babies! Here are a few, some of them were just too funny not to include!

P.S.

One last thing spit up gods, Presley spit up in my hair tonight while she was on my shoulders. I now have crusty hair and a crusty ear, neck, etc. Have I mentioned how much I dislike you?

A letter...

Dear spit up gods,

Please exit Marshall and Presley's bodies. You are in there ALL day EVERY day, and I think you need to find a new home. They can't wear nice clothes because you attack the clothing. I can't wear nice clothes, because you then attack my clothing too. Our couch and carpet have also complained about your frequent attacks. Marshall and Presley are tired of having bibs permanently attached to their necks, and I am tired of having a burp cloth attached to my shoulder. Their father and I are getting pretty tired of smelling like you as well. So, any time you would like to vacate would be fine with us. I hope you have enjoyed your stay, now LEAVE!

Sincerely,

Me

Visiting grandma

Last week my mom and I took the twins to meet my grandma, who lives in a nursing home in Bronte (between San Angelo and Sweetwater). Marshall and Presley were the hit of the nursing home! Once people knew there were babies there, they started coming out of their rooms and into the tv room where we were. It was really cute. We had a short visit Tuesday, and a short visit Wednesday morning and afternoon. Tuesday afternnoon we fed them rice cereal there, and it was hilarious. Grandma loved the babies! She immediately wanted to hold them. She didn't know who we were, but knew we were important and "belonged to her". Other residents would ask her if she was proud of the babies and she replied, "Oh yes, of course I am!" with a big smile on her face. She kept getting confused as to which one was a boy and which one was a girl, but that's okay. :) I was very proud of my self, I didn't tear up until we were leaving her Wednesday afternoon. I think having the babies there helped me to have something else to focus on other than the fact that my grandma is not the same person she used to be. I am very happy that we went, and I know seeing the babies brought her a lot of joy.

Sleeping Soundly!

Okay well I will post about our trip to meet my grandma later, but I wanted to say how AWESOME the twins are doing with their sleeping! We start bed time bottles around 6:30 and they are usually asleep by 7 and sleep till 7 a.m.! It's great! They have done well the past three days too, even though they have been off their schedule. Most people told me it would take about 2-3 days, and they were right. I have happy babies again and I love it!

Two New Things

Today Presley rolled over three times in a row across the floor. I've seen her do it in her crib on the video monitor, but never on the floor playing! Also, the babies officially discovered each other today. Marshall was laying in his boppy, and I was holding Presley, when she leaned over and kind of layed on him and started smiling and grabbing/pushing his face. Then he started smiling and doing the same thing! A little while later the same thing happened on the floor! Maybe if I am lucky I can get a video and pictures of these happenings. :)

Pumpkin Patch

Today my Mothers of Multiples group had their fall festival at a Pumpkin Patch in Argyle, so we took the babies. It was quite a drive out there, but the twins did great! Presley was smiling at everybody, taking it all in. Marshall, well I think he was a little overwhelmed with all the people and pumpkins. We weren't able to get a picture of just the twins, and our attempt at a family photo was just that...an attempt. My favorite picture was one that my friend Sarah took when we didn't even know it. By that time, Marshall was halfway asleep and had his head down in every picture! After we drove back to Fort Worth we went and ate at a yummy Greek restaurant, Terra. The food was excellent and enough for us to bring home and have for dinner too!



Presley kept playing with Kyle's ear



My favorite



When Marshall was still awake

Sleeping!

Okay so I am not going to write about each night anymore, because that is sill. But...things are going great! They only cry for about 20 minutes or so when I put them down at night. Naps are going great too, 5 minutes max is usually the crying time. Today Presley didn't even make a peep when I put her down for her morning nap, and then she slept for 3 hours! We'll see how it goes next week when we are visiting my grandma and not able to immediately go down for a nap when its needed. Right now they are taking 3-4 naps a day. Presley usually sleeps anywhere from 1.5-2 hours (except for the 3 hour today) and Marshall is 1-1.5 hours. The earlier bed time is working good. We have them down by around 7. Last night I didn't hear anything until 5:30 this morning, and then they both went back to sleep till 6:45! They are still in separate rooms, which will only last until Monday when my mom gets here. I know they will feed off each other a little bit when they are back together, but I think they will get over that pretty quickly.

Oh, and I didn't end up going to the TCU game. Anyone who knows my husband is well aware that during football season, he is always watching some sort of college game. Well, UT played today (he is obsessed) at the same time TCU did, and let's just say that I knew their nap signs and times wouldn't exactly be his first priority. :)

Night #2

Well yesterday actually went pretty good...until 3:30. They went down for naps and thins were grand, until they ate at 3:30 and then Marshall never went back down!!! Presley finally went down around 5:50 and woke up at 6:20. So we started bed time routine at 6:30 and both babies were in bed at 7:30. They both cried hard until 8:05 and then just stopped, at the same time! (they are in different rooms) Then from 8:05 till about 8:25 I heard off and on whimpers, but that was it. Definitely an improvement! As Kyle said, "It's weird, we have a life again. We aren't rocking a baby or walking one around." How sad is that? It was so nice to be able to catch up on recorded t.v. (that also helped drown out the crying).

Marshall slept till 6:45 this morning, yay! I woke up at 1:50 to Presley crying and rolled over on her back. (the monitor was on super low). I fell back asleep till 3:30 and she was still crying! So Kyle went and turned her over, and immediately she stopped and was asleep. That is her main problem...rolling over onto her back and then she just screams because she wants to be on her tummy. She has rolled over back to tummy before, but not very much. You'd think she would just get pissed off enough that she would hurl her body over, but no. When Kyle rolled her over, he didn't soothe her at all. Just put her blanket on her and left. I know she has to learn to sleep on her back. But is it bad to turn her over after an hour and a half? She goes right to sleep! If anyone else has had similar difficulties please let me know! (and no, I don't care if you are a random person that I don't know, who follows my blog through someone else...we'll take any advice!)

So, in general things are better. They both woke up around 6:45-7 this morning and we ate and they went back down at 8. I think my goal is to get them to sleep till 7:30, so they are up a little longer before their nap, and the nap is closer to 9. Okay enough rambling about that!

Next week my mom and I are taking the babies to see/meet my grandma. She is in a nursing home out near Abilene (where my aunt lives). She does not remember who people are, and it is so hard for me to see her like that. I was extremely close to her growing up, and up until she got sick (which was oddly enough right around the time I was diagnosed with cancer). I cry every time, without fail. I even tear up when we pull into the parking lot. It is very important to me for her to meet the twins, and it breaks my heart that they will never really know "Grandma Reta" as Sophia calls her.

Anyway, keep fingers crossed that the nights get better and better!

Sleep Training

Alright, I can't take it anymore! We started sleep training last night. I was/am completely worn down when it comes to their sleeping. Presley has been on/off for a month now with waking up in the middle of the night, however she went down pretty easily for her naps. Not anymore. She also has started to require LOTS of rocking/walking around to get to sleep at night. Marshall has now started in on the not napping too. I had a breakdown on the phone yesterday to my wonderful sister and she said, "you need to start sleep training!"

So I read my book as much as I could and made notes as I went along. Basically what the book, and my sister, helped me realize is that they aren't getting enough sleep, and getting it at the wrong times. I am not going to get into all the details, but we decided to up their bed time. We also were waiting till they got fussy to start their bedtime routine (which was between 7:30-7:45). WRONG! I need to get them down, or in the process of down, before they get fussy, whether it be for naps or bed time.

So last night, after a horrible course of events yesterday, I put Presley down at 6:30. She screamed till 8:15 (with a ten minute span of quiet, she was taking a break and getting ready for her second wind of crying). After an hour I soothed her again...didn't work. But she finally fell asleep. We put Marshall in the pack n play in our room. She woke up at 1:15, I changed her diaper, gave her a small bottle (she didn't drink all her night time one) and put her back in her crib where she screamed till 2:30.

The book says to wake them up at 7, so I did that, and then put them down within an hour for a nap. I did that and they are sleeping right now. The problem, that again my sister helped me realize, is that they were basically sleeping through what should be a morning nap. They would eat between 5-6 and then sleep till 8 or 9.

Okay so enough details. I figured if I blogged about it, then maybe it would help me stick with everything. I don't feel guilty about letting her cry if I know she isn't hungry and doesn't have a poopy diaper. I just hope we get this under control soon, that Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child works! I've also decided that it is best to be at home as much as possible the next few days while we are doing this, so that naps aren't interrupted. So that means no TCU game for the babies, but Kyle said I should still go, and I am going to leave after half-time to come home. There is also a couple of other events that we are going to have to miss out on, but I don't care. The sacrifices are 100% worth it in the end.

Wish us luck!

Five Months!

This was her face in almost every picture...



My smiley boy!



Finally got one of her many smiles on camera!



Long legs!


Watch out ladies!




It seems like just yesterday I was writing about their 4 month stuff! Here is what each one is doing, besides being the cutest babies on the planet.

Presley- She is still the independent, dominant one. If she wants something, she WILL figure out a way to get it. She smiles a lot (though never when the camera gets in front of her), and talks all the time. It sounds like she says, "hi" even though it's more like "Aye, Aye, Aye". She still loves to stand and gets a big smile on her face when you raise her to stand. Everything goes in her mouth, including my hair (hence why I chopped it all off last week!) She prefers to be on her back since she has discovered her feet and loves to play with them. No matter where you lay her down in her crib, she will find a way to the corner, she loves sleeping there. I would say 90% of the time when you go to get her out of her crib she will have a huge smile on her face when she sees you. Presley can hold her bottle with out the bottle holder, but only if there is about 2-3 oz in there. However when it's in the bottle holder, she loves to take the bottle out of her mouth and put it back in...and it's becoming a game. When she takes it out too far and it falls by her feet, she tries to use her feet to pick it back up...smart girl! Another funny thing she does that started a couple of weeks ago, is when you are walking with her and the bottle in your hands, she will grab the bottle and start trying to put it in her mouth, and if she can't do that (which never happens because I'm still holding it) she will start licking the bottle! It's hilarious! She can sit up, but not for too long, because she is a little "middle-heavy" and falls over. She has rubber band arms and legs and is spunky, funny, and adorable!



Marshall- He is still the calm, chilled out, smiling boy he always has been. Although since he has been spending more time in the jumparoo he is getting stronger and stronger. He can stand for longer periods of time now. He is perfectly content on his stomach most of the time. He loves to push up on his elbows and play with his toys. He is in the process of discovering his feet, but still isn't sure exactly what they are. Whereas Presley sleeps in the corner, Marshall will turn himself sideways in his crib, pretty much no matter what. The other day over the course of his nap, he did a complete 180 in his crib! He drools constantly and loves to blow rasberries. As you have seen from the videos, he also still does his belly laugh which makes me crack up every time. He too can take his bottle out of his mouth when it's in the holder, but can't always put it back. He actually sits a little better than Presley, as his weight is a little more evenly distributed. :)


We have a lot coming up in the next few weeks. This weekend we are going to our first TCU game with the babies...should be interesting! The babies and I will be in and out of town, so I might get a little behind on the blogging. But have no fear, I will catch back up! Have a wonderful week!

Rice Cereal!

Tonight we tried rice cereal for the first time and they loved it! It really well so we can't wait to try it again tomorrow! Presley immediately got it, and once Marshall stopped putting his hands in his mouth he was good to go. It was really funny and the babies (and us) had a great time.



Hmmm...these bibs are cool



I don't know about this...



Yummy!



I like this!



Good job, high five!

Fun Videos

Here are some cute videos from this week. The first one is a small example of Presley's "parrot talk" from the other morning. The second is Marshall cracking up at water being sprayed from the hose. We are having lots of fun!

Think Pink!

In case you didn't know, October is breast cancer awareness month. If you watch football, you might have seen the NFL players wearing different pink things...gloves, etc. How cool is that? But yet so sad at the same time, that after millions of dollars of research, clinical trials, and hundreds of thousands of deaths, breast cancer is STILL claiming lives every day. October is AWARENESS month. Be aware of your body! You know what your tata's feel like, and if you feel something different, make an appointment with your doctor! Don't be afraid of what it might be, odds are it's probably nothing. I waited 3.5 months before I went to the doctor, and if I would have waited 4 more months till my annual exam, who knows how much more progressed my cancer could have been.

As I mentioned in my last post, my mom and I were 2 of the 6 panelists at the TCU Frogs for the Cure luncheon yesterday. The others were a TCU professor (survivor) and her son, and a TCU senior and her mother (survivor). I think we could have gone on for hours about our feelings and experiences because we are all very passionate about breast cancer awareness and want to shout it from the rooftops...or at least I do anyway. :) I left there feeling so good, and I realized it's because I truly enjoy speaking about bc awareness. Everyone knows I love to talk! Having breast cancer gave me a voice. It gave me something meaningful to talk about. When I was going through treatment, people would say "Oh, I am so sorry you are having to go through this." Yep, it is a shame I had to endure all that, but what can I do to make it all worth while? Tell my story so that maybe, just maybe, ONE person doesn't have to go through what I did, all because she heard my story and went home and did a self breast exam.

The year I was diagnosed, I was a featured survivor in the halftime video at the Frogs for the Cure game. The game happened to be the day of my wedding, so I was not able to be there. Yesterday, a lady came up to me after the luncheon and told me that she remembered me from the video. How she watched my story during halftime and cried, and she has never forgotten about me. Wow! I felt very humbled, and something clicked inside my head...maybe I have made a difference in people's lives?!

I am thankful to have had the opportunity to speak yesterday, and I hope I get more in the future. TCU has done great things for not only raising awareness, but raising money for Susan G. Komen For the Cure. You can do your part by going to the Frogs for the Cure website, http://www.frogsforthecure.tcu.edu and buy a FFTC t shirt or super cute pink baseball hat.



They are much cuter in person!



I also believe the TCU bookstore is going to be selling fun pink FFTC pink beachballs. A large portion of all the proceeds goes to Susan G. Komen. Even better, you can come out to the Frogs for the Cure game, next Saturday October 16th against BYU. A cure will be found some day, but it takes money to find it. I don't want my daughter or my two nieces to have to worry about getting what their mom/aunt/grandma had. Okay, I am stepping down from my soap box.

Weekend Activities

Friday was Kyle's birthday! We met him in the afternoon to run some errands and go to the new UT Co-op store here in Fort Worth. Marshall got a baseball hat, but we couldn't find anything cute enough for Miss Presley (just kidding!). Friday night we all (babies too) went to eat Sushi to celebrate. Saturday we ran errands and then watched the TX/OU game. The twins wore their smocked outfits that our friend Brad gave them. Unfortunately Texas lost, so to cheer Kyle up I made banana pudding. As lame as it may seem, it was good and I was pretty proud of myself. And yes, I realize that all it takes is banana pudding, cool whip, Nilla wafers and a couple of bananas, but hey...you never know how things might turn out! But it was yummy! Sunday we ran errands again, and Kyle watched the babies while I went shopping to spend gift cards I got for my birthday.

We got a Johnny Jump-Up (not that exact one but just so you know what I am talking about). Presley is still a little short for it, but Marshall loved it! I wasn't surprised because he loves the jumparoo. He hasn't figured out yet that he can jump like he does in the jumparoo, but he will soon. Presley has started this "sound" that sounds like a parrot squawking. It is really loud and she does it all the time. It's pretty funny and hopefully we will get it on video. Marshall has his own version of the squawk, but it has a yelling along with it. Our house is never quiet!

Hope everyone has a great week!

Finished...I think

Okay so I think I am done with the new blog layout and banner thingy. I would still like to find a way to change the "double dose of reality" and "nix family" font, but whatever. For now I like it! I did it all by myself...with a little help from Kyle of course!

Still under construction...

I am still playing with the background and such, but I couldn't stand to look at the boring, white background any more. :)

Almost There

Both Presley and Marshall are attempting to roll from their backs to their tummies. Presley gets halfway...on her side...then rolls back over. If Marshall can just figure out how to get his leg over he's got it made!

Nana's Visit

We had a great time with my mom. She got to experience Presley's random wake-up-screaming-for-no-reason thing that she does. My mom was totally baffled as to what it might be. It's nice to have someone else experience it so you know they know you aren't crazy and making stuff up. She is coming back Monday night because she and I are two of the guest speakers/panelists at the TCU Breast Cancer Awareness Luncheon. I am honored that they asked us, and also that I can do this with my mom. It is very special to me. Here are a couple of pics from this week. Oh...and happy birthday to my wonderful, amazing husband! He deserves his own post, so I will do his Daddy of the Year post later. :)