Still Sick...

Well we are all still sick, and now Marshall is too, but of course it was only a matter of time. He doesn't have the runny nose quite to the extent of Presley, but he has a cough that she doesn't. I was up all night because Marshall was up all night. At one point I went in and picked him up and he was wet from sweat, poor guy. So I changed his diaper and his pj's, the whole time he has a big smile on his face. :) Neither one of them have ever been sick, but I know we can handle this cold business! Oh, and my eye is still not 100%, but not guncky and crusty anymore. :)

On another note, Presley crawled last night on all fours for two crawls (does that make sense)? They are both army crawling, okay but as I am writing this I am watching her and she just crawled on all fours again...for a while! I've started giving them some finger foods, and so far we've tried blueberries, broccoli, peas, bananas. I've put frozen peaches, clementine oranges, and today I'm going to try grapes in their popsicle net things. Marshall has his top left tooth, and Presley has her bottom left tooth. So big things are happening at the Nix house!

Sick Days

Yesterday Presley woke up with a runny nose and a fever of 100.4. She also had a rash that ended up being a yeast infection. How the heck does that happen do a baby? My doctor's nurse said she had taken five calls in the last day that were yeast infections...weird. Yesterday afternoon she had a little diarrhea, and poor thing had a hard time getting to sleep last night because of all the snot in her nose. I tried to suction out what I could, but it's not easy when she is kicking and pushing it away. So I rocked her for a long time and she went to sleep. About 45 minutes later she woke up again and this time after I rocked her she went back to sleep for the rest of the night. She still has the runny nose this morning, but her fever is down thank goodness and the rash is better. I hope she gets over this soon, I feel so bad for her! The good news is, she is still happy and smiling all the time and her regular self.

Oh, and I woke up this morning with my right eye crusted shut. When I got it un-crusted, it was bright red. Awesome. So I'm waiting for my doctor's office to open so they can call me in some eye drops for pink eye. I have no clue how I picked it up, I'm not even around germy students' papers right now!

So far the boys of the house are healthy, hopefully it will stay that way!

Chubby babies

When people see how "big" Presley and Marshall are, they say "But you're so thin, how do you have chubby babies?". Well for starters I weighed 8 lbs 10 oz and Kyle was over 9 lbs when he was born. my sister was 9lb 4 oz and both my nieces were 8 lbs 8 oz. See a pattern here? Big babies run in both of our families. The twins were a month early, and were 8 lbs 6 oz at their one month check up. Even at 6 lbs and 5 lbs 12 oz, they were "big" for twins. How "big" or "small" your baby is/was does not necessarily determine how they will be when they are older. I know some people who are heavier, yet were smaller babies and others who are thin, yet were big babies. I've also heard, "well it's because they are on formula" or "my child is smaller because he/she was breastfed". That doesn't matter either because all of us (nieces included) were breastfed. So here is some photographic evidence that I was not a tiny baby. On the hunt for Kyle's baby pics...





Look closely, yes there are chubby rolls there!

Confused

First it was Marshall. Around the middle of November he started waking up after about 45 minutes of napping. People on facebook told me it was called the "45 minute intruder". Okay well whatever that is I don't like it! Presley was the good napper, sleeping 1.5-2 hours. Well, now the intruder has left Marshall and entered Presley! Only, she's worse than Marshall and only sleeps 30-45 minutes at a time. Even today, after being up for 4 hours, she only slept 45 minutes! What the heck? Supposedly this intruder thing normally happens to younger babies, so of course mine are abnormal and it happens to them when they are older. These short naps are not conducive to the 9:00 am and 1:00 pm naps that they should be taking by now. And yes, I know, they sleep long time at night, but they are tired by 6:30! If they napped better, maybe they could stay up an hour later...it's a vicious cycle. I know they aren't hungry and I change their diaper before I put them down. Anybody else had this problem at their age? It's okay if you read my blog and I have no clue who you are, any tips will be gladly accepted! :)

Marshall's big weekend!

Marshall has had two exciting milestones this weekend...teeth and army crawling! Yesterday morning we noticed his top left tooth FINALLY broke through. Neither one of them will let us see inside their mouth, you have to take random opportunities to look. When did his tooth? During a diaper change when he was laughing at Kyle. Poor photo evidence below...



Lately he has been rolling around alot and scooting places on his tummy. I finished washing bottles and came in to the living room and Kyle said, "I think he's going to crawl soon, he's all over the place." Literally not two minutes later I see him army crawling across the floor to get to a toy! So cool! No photo evidence yet. :)

So proud of my big boy!!!

Stock Show

We took M and P to the stock show Saturday, and I'm not so sure if they loved it per say, but I'm glad we took them and I know next year they'll be more into it. Kyle and I had never been (crazy, I know since I have lived in Fort Worth a total of 10 years) so we didn't really know exactly where to go or what to expect. By the time we fed the babies lunch, drove, parked, and walked...they were tired. The line for the petting zoo was way long so we didn't do that, but we eventually found our way to where the animals were. I had to carry Presley because she was not happy in the stroller, which ended up being an advantage for her because she got a better view of the animals. We did get Marshall out to take a picture by a pig, since I was determined to document the occasion. There were double fences around the animals, so it was hard to get a clear picture. The owner of this pig said she would open up the gate for us because "she's tired, she ain't gonna get up". The end result wasn't spectacular, but at least I got something and she was right, the pig didn't even blink an eye when she opened the gate. All in all I think we stayed an hour (lots of people and hard to maneuver the double stroller) , but the kids did great and the weather was gorgeous!


We were in a hurry and didn't have time for numerous takes



Mommy and Presley

Bath time pics

Don't worry, there aren't any indecent pictures. :) Here are some shots of them in the bath tub, and no I don't have mold (I have no clue why it looks that way in the picture). Last night Presley tried to grab Marshall's toy, to the point where she almost crawled for the first time...in the bath tub! I usually only put one toy for each of them in there. They like their newfound "freedom" in the tub!

Far from perfect

Super mom, I am not. People always comment, "You seem to have everything together" or something similar. Um...not on a daily basis I don't!

For starters, I don't cook dinner, and if I do it's homemade pizza or spaghetti. A meal that can be made quickly. The times when I have cooked meals that require some sort of preparation, I find myself frazzled. It's not easy taking care of Marshall and Presley while trying to cook dinner I'll tell you that. But guess what? My husband doesn't care and loves me any way. I didn't cook every night before kids so why would he expect that now just because I am staying at home? It's just not in me...yet. I'm working on it though. I just need to get my act together and plan meals so that when I go to the grocery store I can buy what we need. I also don't make the twins' baby food. I had good intentions, but it's just never happened beyond pureeing avocados and bananas together. I buy organic baby food when it's on sale, so at least I try!

I am a teacher, yet don't read to my kids. Have you ever tried to read to two babies (no matter what the age) at one time? And one of them you're pretty sure is hyperactive because she is constantly in motion? Um yeah it's hard! They want to eat the book, grab the book, their mommy is holding on to both of them so they won't do the aforemetioned items and so she can't turn the page, the list goes on. But, I know it's not impossible and so I am working on this too. Believe me I know the importance of reading to your child!

There are days when I don't know how I'm going to make it through the next 30 minutes. I've even asked myself, "why did you want twins again?" Two babies that want to be held, two babies teething, two babies that don't want to nap...twins is hard people!!! Of course when I am around other people I'm going to "have it all together". I don't want them to think that I can't handle my children. And as much as some people don't want to admit it, we all care about what others think about us in some way, shape or form. Least you think I try to make people think my life is perfect, no way! I'll be the first one to jump in and say what a rough day or week they just had. I want others to know that I CAN handle it. The down side being that they might not realize just how hard it really is. At the end of the day, however, I think in general that I do have it down and I do have things together. My babies are happy and healthy, which is all that matters. No matter how difficult my day before with Presley and Marshall was, I ALWAYS look forward to getting them up in the morning and starting a new day.

Imperfection #4 (of 1,000) is that I am looking forward to going back to work in August. Not because I miss the students necessarily, but I miss my teacher friends. Adult interaction every day. I miss that awesome feeling when a child that has struggled finally "gets it" and makes good grades on assignments or passes the TAKS test. However, I also can't imagine running around after two toddlers all day and thinking of stuff for us to do that doesn't involve sitting in front of the television. I'm not crafty, not good at sports, and I'm not the play barbies all day type. Will I do that stuff when I come home? Yes. Will I do that stuff on the weekend? Yes. I also think that kids need interaction with other kids on a daily basis. Yes, my kids have each other. But they need to learn how to build relationships with people other than their sibling. Is it going to KILL me when I have to leave them every day? Yes. But it's worth the try and if I'm miserable after next year then we'll rethink things.

My twins aren't perfect. They don't nap every day at the same exact time, and for the same length of time. Sometimes their nap is 30 minutes, sometimes it's an hour and a half. I don't care though, because they are in their cribs asleep by 7:00 and they wake up around 6:30 (in general). They can't handle being "out and about" for more than an hour and a half or so, and when they get tired, they get really cranky! They are loud. They love to explore their voice and it's volume levels. But that's okay because I love them no matter what, and I love the fact that they've had personalities pretty much since they were born. They are spunky, quirky and absolutely adorable and I would not change one thing about either one of them!

So Martha Stewart, Carol Brady, Betty Draper, I'm not. I'm just me, doing things the best that I can and loving my life, imperfections and all.

Bath time fun

Sunday night Marshall and Presley not only took their first bath together, but also their first bath in a regular tub. We decided to make the switch because when Kyle works late and I have to give them a bath, I don't have any place to "put" the child I'm not bathing...they are too big for their bouncy seats. Of course, now I have the problem of what to do with the twin I'm not drying off and putting pj's on, but whatever. We bought a mat to put on the bottom of the tub, put some bath toys in there and let them play. The funny thing was, they were right next to each other and barely even noticed each other! They were too interested in the water and the mat. They had fun, and we did too!

Nights Out!

This weekend I was so lucky to have two nights out! Friday night I went out to dinner with two friends that I met through my Mothers of Multiples group, April and Sarah. All three of us have boy/girl twins and we are around the same age. We went to eat sushi and it was delicious! We talked, talked, and talked some more and the next thing we knew, it was 11:30! So we walked over to the Pour House, had a beer, and talked some more. The next thing we knew, it was 1:15! The funny thing was that we talked about our kids MAYBE 25% of the time, if that. I told Kyle it was like a breath of fresh air. Almost all my friends I have known since we were freshman in college, so there's not a lot that I don't already know about them. The girls and I talked about everything under the sun and it was just nice to hear stories from other people's college, etc. experiences. Being a mom of twins is just different, and it is nice to have people you can talk to that totally understand what you go through on a daily basis without you even saying a word. I can't wait for our next girls night!

Friday was also the 5 year anniversary of mine and Kyle's first (blind) date! A friend of mine from my cancer survivors group had offered to babysit for me whenever I wanted, so she and her son came over to watch the babies Saturday night while Kyle and I went out to eat. She is the perfect babysitter because she is a pediatric nurse, and her sister (who is in my multiples group) has twins! We put them to bed before we left, but apparently they (mainly Presley) wanted to stay up and play with Genia and Mason because she was basically awake the entire time we were gone, little stinker! Kyle and I had a yummy, yummy dinner at Piola, a restaurant by the museums here in FW that is in a little house, so cute! I highly recommend it.

I am so lucky to have a wonderful husband and friends to help make things like this weekend possible. :)

Progress!

Yesterday Presley went from sitting up to an army crawl for two scoots, two different times. She did it again today! Marshall went from sitting up to attempting to be on all fours to his stomach. It's the fist time I've seen him with an intent to get somewhere look in his eyes! :)

Repost-Eight Months

Okay I am reposting this so it is not so all-over-the-place and I added some stuff. :)

At eight months, the twins are VERY busy! Presley, especially, is always moving! She is still trying/thinking about crawling. She goes from sitting up to almost on all fours, then stops and goes back to sitting. She has perfected reaching over to almost laying down to get something, then sitting back up again. Presley likes to pull up on me, but no furniture yet. Both of them love to stand! While watching the snow the other day, Marshall stood at the window sill for over 5 minutes! He LOVED looking outside, and he even took a few steps to the side.

They are both getting pretty heavy...I estimate around 19-20 pounds, although Marshall feels like he weighs a lot more. They are very good eaters! They wake up at 7 and have a 7 oz bottle, then around 8 they have some baby food. They go down for a nap between 8:30-8:45, and on a good day sleep till 10. They have a 6 oz bottle between 10-10:30 and then oatmeal and baby food around 12. They usually take another nap around 12:30, though that one is usually short. Another bottle between 1:30-2, then a little cat nap, then oatmeal and baby food at 5. Bath and bottle usually starts a little before 6:30, and they are in their cribs by 7. Their naps vary, Saturday Marshall took almost a 2.5 hour nap! Presley is the better napper. Lately they have been waking up after they have been asleep for an hour or so at night, but after that they are good. Some nights in the past 2 weeks they have woken up during the night several times, but always put themselves back to sleep. And yes, sometimes they wake each other up, usually at nap time. Marshall wakes up first majority of the time, and he will turn himself to face Presley's crib and start talking to her in attempt to wake her up! Needless to say, I usually go get him pretty quickly. When you lay Marshall down for nap or bed time, he just lays there till he falls asleep, which is usually right away. Presley, on the other hand, well she is just "busy" like I said and always moving. She rolls around in her crib for several minutes before she falls asleep. Unless, of course, she is dead tired!

They are STILL teething and still have NO teeth! Their spit up action is better, although not gone. They love to pull each other's socks off, they think it's hilarious. They also LOVE their sippy cups, especially Marshall. Their personalities are still the same, but Marshall is starting to stand up for himself more and fight back when she takes his toys. Both of them, but more Marshall, have started to get upset when I leave the room. They are both talking a lot too. Presley says "nanananananana..." Marshall doesn't put consonants together like Presley does yet but he is close. He does this thing when he sees necklaces...he grabs them and studies them and talks to them. Seriously, it is hilarious! I have to get it on video!

They are still in size 4 diapers, and are in between sizes in clothes. Most things they wear 12 months in, but some things are too long. A few of their 9 month things still fit, but not many!

They l-o-v-e to smile and play with each other, and their face lights up when we bring the other one in the room. It is so sweet! As I always say, I love these two more than I can ever put into words. Their faces, personalities, laughs, chubby rolls, everything is perfect to me. I have laughed until I've cried more in the past 8 months than I have my entire life. :)

Here are the 8 month pics of my little rockstars!

Great Day!

Yesterday we had a great day that made last week's struggle disappear. The twins woke up in a good mood (as usual) and we did our normal routine. After they went down for their morning nap, I left to get my hair done. Presley slept for a little over an hour, but Marshall slept for almost 2.5 hours!!! After I got my hair done I ran a couple of errands and when I came home the babies and Kyle were playing and having a grand ol time. He said they hadn't been fussy one time! In the afternoon we went to visit our friends Rebecca and Steve and their 4 month old daughter, Addison. She is adorable! Of course, I brought my camera but took no pics. It was nice to visit with them and the twins enjoyed playing with new toys. :) After we came home we played for a little bit and then Kyle and I took the twins out to eat. We went at 5:15 and of course the only people there either had kids or were over the age of 70. We fed them and were able to enjoy our dinner, and we even got yogurt on the way home! We skipped bath since it was almost past their bed time, and they barely made a peep when we put them down. All in all, the Nix Clan had a happy day! Here are some pictures from yesterday and the past couple of days.

Trying Week...

This week my patience has been tested many time with the twins, and I am the first to admit that I didn't always pass. Marshall has started this shrieking/dinosaur sound that he does A LOT. He has also been crying and just all around fussy 50% of the time. Presley has been fussier too, just not as much as Marshall. Sometimes even when I hold Marshall, he's still fussy! They have been waking up in the middle of the night or early morning (this morning it was 5:30 am for both of them). I know they are in the process (still) of teething, and both are learning new skills, which I'm pretty positive is the reason for the changes in them. I love staying home with them, don't get me wrong, but this week has just worn.me.out. To top it off, I'm getting a cold. Hopefully next week will be better! :(

I have a new job

Yes, that is correct...I am now a human jungle gym! Presley and Marshall think I am such a fun mommy that they love to crawl, climb, pull, spit-up (oh wait, that's nothing new), etc. on me! It's actually pretty fun, it just gets tricky sometimes when Presley is using me to pull up and Marshall wants to try and attack her face. :) Marshall has really developed a lot this week. He is rolling over more now (he has been able to for a while, just wasn't interested) and he is trying to pull up like Presley. He hasn't mastered it yet, but he is getting there! We are so proud of him! Presley still uses humans to pull up on, but I'm sure inanimate objects are coming soon. They will be 8 months on Monday, so I will give a more detailed update on them later!

New Years

Last Thursday we went down to my parents' house in Ellinger and spent stayed till Sunday. And yes, we had just gotten back three days prior to that from Midland! Such is the life when you have zero family that lives within four hours! We had a great and relaxing time, as always. Thursday night Amanda came in from Houston to see us and then left Friday afternoon. New Year's Eve we took the babies out to eat at Joe's Place, their favorite restaurant in the next town over. It was an early dinner, since we went at 5:30, but it was yummy and all the waitresses ohhhed and awwwed over the twins. My parents go their once a week, so everyone knows them and us! Kyle and I were exhausted (probably due to the LATE night we had with Amanda the night before) so we were in bed by 9! Not much of a New Years, but it was perfect to me! Saturday we watched the BIG game, and the twins and I wore purple to show our support of TCU. As I said in my earlier post, I am so proud of my team! All my friends went to the Rose Bowl and I can only imagine how much better the win was in person.

This was probably the earliest I can remember ever being in bed on New Year's Eve, but I could care less. I couldn't have asked for a better evening. I guess having kids has changed my views on things, like does it really matter if I am awake to see the clock turn on NYE? No! It doesn't bother me that I rarely stay up past 11:00 for anything! Because when 7 am rolls around, the only place I want to be is waking up my babies and playing with them. There isn't much that is worth missing that or feeling like crap because I am hung over. :)

Kyle and I had the year of our lives in 2010 with our surrogacy experience and then birth of Presley and Marshall. It will be hard to top 2010!


Watching the dogs from inside



Go Frogs!


Mommy and Presley


Yes, I agree!


Marshall and Daddy looking handsome NYE



swinging!

Chairs!

My mother-in-law got the twins these chairs from Potter Barn Kids for Christmas, and they are adorable! Marshall loves his but Presley isn't so sure yet. They have both fallen while trying to get down, but thought it was hilarious.

She is her father's daughter...

Last Wednesday our friends Jake, Sydney, and their son Gus, were in town from D.C. Jake's parents drove up from Houston and we all went out to eat along with our friends Katie and Stephen and their kids Currie and Elizabeth. Needless to say people probably rolled their eyes when they saw all of us walk in the restaurant! All the kids were so well behaved! I was very proud of the twins because we went at 5:30 and didn't leave till 6:40...they are usually in their pj's and getting their night time bottle at 6:30! They were perfect in the restaurant, but once we got in the car they let it all out! We rarely take the babies to dinner, and never with friends/other kids so it was a nice change and something that Kyle and I want to do more often. Presley sat in Sydney's lap after she was finished eating and she grabbed Syd's beer bottle and started sucking away! It felt good on her gums, and I couldn't help but get a picture. :)

What a big day!

Presley pulled up on me today! She was sitting in front of me, leaned on my legs, grabbed my hands, and pulled up to a standing position! She did it several times during the rest of the day and seemed VERY proud of herself. It was so cool, and like every other milestone they have hit, I got tears in my eyes. I am a pretty emotional person any way, but seeing the twins do these significant things makes me emotional because I can't believe how big they are getting. There are no words that can describe how it feels to watch your child all of a sudden be able to do something, amazing!

The second big thing is TCU won the Rose Bowl!!! The twins and I wore our purple today to show our support. It was a great game and I am unbelievably proud to be an alum of TCU. And yes...I teared up when they won. I told you I was emotional!