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If only I had another set of hands, I would have taken a picture of myself feeding Brodie and Lucas dinner with 3 spoons.  But with only 6 hands, they were all at work.  Lucas ate like a big boy, when in reality he has only been eating this way for about 3 weeks.   Today he ate a combo of spinach, brown rice, and potatoes like it was an ice cream sundae.  After almost prying his lips open, Brodie took one bite, gaged, sneezed, and then stared at me stone faced.  I thought that was all he was going to tolerate, but he proved me wrong.  I put some pre-soaked Joe's O's on Brodie's tray.  He pushed them around until they were either sticking to his hands or smooshed all over his tray, but still not in his mouth.  So dinner progressed as usual, Lucas eating and Brodie not. 
I cleared the Joe's O's off Brodie's tray, gave him a spoon, and held a second spoon of yogurt up to his lips.  Brodie grabbed my spoon, and dropped his spoon as he opened his mouth and ate the yogurt.  I promptly picked up his discarded spoon and prepared for the next spoon swap.  I gave Lucas, who was NOT waiting patiently, a bite of food with a third spoon. Yes, we are now using 3 spoons to eat dinner.  With each bite of food, Lucas would grab with both hands, trying to help get his spoon into his mouth.  I was using both of my hands to coordinate feeding both kids.  After a few more spoon swaps of yogurt, Brodie decided he was done.  Yogurt was now all over his face, hair, arms, hands, bib, and tray.  Not to mention, my hands were now sticky with yogurt, spinach, brown rice, and potatoes.  Brodie took a break from eating.  I continued to feed Lucas, who loved all the attention focused on him.  I heard a strange noise and looked over at Brodie who was sucking his bib.  He had figured out how to eat yogurt without a spoon.   I figured if he was so intent on eating the yogurt off his bib, he must still be hungry.   I remembered my husband saying a few months ago that Brodie had drank his rice cereal.  So I held the yogurt container up to his mouth with a spoon inside, and Brodie happily drank the yogurt as I spooned it out of the container into his mouth.  Hmmmm.  I think I might be on to something.   Drinks anyone?  How about a spinach shot?

Brodie and Lucas woke up at 4:45 AM.  I would have rather stayed in bed sleeping.  After changing diapers ad nursing the kids, Brodie fell back asleep!  No such luck with Lucas.  He was wide awake and doing baby acrobatics rolling all over the family room floor.
At 6:00 AM I started getting ready to leave for the No Excuses 5K running race this morning at Land Park.  Lucas didn't want to play all alone, so he hung out with my husband and I in our bedroom as we got ready to go.
We were all out the door by 7:00 AM.  Steve left by bike, as I drove with my car full of running and baby gear to arrive in time to nurse, change diapers, load the kids into the running stroller, pick up my race packet, and get to the starting line by 8:30 AM.  Believe it or not, even though I arrived  1 hour 15 minutes early,  I barely made it to the start on time.  Nursing two kids separately, unloading the running stroller, changing diapers, and then a last minute blow out that resulted in a complete outfit change took up most of my time.  We ran from the car to the packet pick up area, said Hello to my husband as he rode off to help lead the kids race, and then the the 5K race.  I found a friend to watch my kids as I made a last minute quick visit at the port-a-potty.  Then dashed off to thank my friend, grab my kids, and start the race with no time to spare. 
We started in the back of the pack,  with approximately 1000 people in front of us.   I knew right away, as I started out walking, I was never going to be able to weave my way through the crowd so I could start running.  So after crossing the start line, I hopped the curb and ran along side the paved road on the grass.  This was great!  With a clear path ahead, we passed hundreds of racers.  Finally the pack spread out, we hopped the curb and were back in the pack speeding along, weaving our way forward. 
Mile marker 1, were were just under a 10 minute mile.  Mile marker 2, we were at a 9 minute mile.  Mile marker 3, we were just under a 9 minute mile.  With the finish line only seconds away, I picked up my pace,  and pushed my stroller weighing well over 60 lbs across the finish line in just under 27 minutes.  What a rush!  The twins slept through the whole race. 
We joined in the post race festivities.  Free food, drinks, Jamba Juice, massages, drawings, and huge blow up slide for the kids.  We didn't go down the slide, and decided against the massage, but we enjoyed everything else.  
Once the gear was loaded and we were all buckled in the car, we delivered a belated birthday gift to ktja of SacMomsClub, and headed home.  As I type this blog, my kids are both still asleep.  We had quite an exciting morning.  My husband just returned home by bike.  Now it's my turn to take a nap! 

My twins are now 9 months old.  Lucas is finally rolling.  One day last week he started rolling left.  He rolled left for a couple of days, and suddenly, he was rolling everywhere, left, right, with or without his hands full of toys.  Brodie can roll.  I've seen him do it.  But he prefers not to.  He would rather sit up and watch his brother.  The problem with that is Lucas takes all the toys, and Brodie is left with none.  I see this as motivation for Brodie to take action and roll.  I know it is just a matter of time, and they'll both be on the go; rolling, crawling, walking, running.  I love watching my twins grow!

Monday, May 19th was the 3rd Cycling with Your Kids event.  Where were you?

The last two months, we met at William B. Pond along the American River Parkway.  There are usually 3-4 moms and their kids, and we leisurely ride for about an hour along the bike trail taking in the beautiful scenery.  The weather on our ride yesterday was perfect.  The breeze kept us cool as we pedaled along watching the river flow by.  We saw a couple of coyotes a ways off the trail, which are normally nocturnal.   Our favorite section of trail we rode yesterday was between mile markers 9 and 10.  The huge trees make a green canopy over the trail.  The birds were singing and the squirrels were busy scampering up and down tree trunks and running across the trail. 
Our post ride picnic in the park was relaxing.  The moms enjoyed chatting, while the kids played under the shade of the trees.  We are all looking forward to next month's ride, scheduled for Monday, June 23rd.  We hope to see you there! 

Their last feeding was 7:30 AM.  By the time I packed their diaper bag and ice chest, it was 8 AM before I left the house.  As I drove up Hwy 80 to Foresthill, I couldn't stop obsessing about what time they would get hungry again.  Was my husband going to be able to handle the twins by himself while I was gone?   Would they eat the solid food I prepared?  Would the kids even open their mouths?  Would he give them enough water so they wouldn't get dehydrated?  Were the kids going to be able to hang out at the swap meet until 12 Noon, without nursing?  What was going to happen to my breasts after 4 1/2 hours of no breast feeding? 

My husband also left the house Sunday morning at 8 AM with the twins and headed over to the swap meet at Mad Cat Bicycles to sell some cycling gear.  The plan was for me to drive to Foresthill, ride my mtn bike around the Foresthill Divide Loop Trail (approximately 12 miles), drive back to Sacramento, and meet him at the swap meet by 12 Noon.  He would feed the kids yogurt, applesauce, and breast milk from a sippy cup.  The kids would hang out in their running stroller. 

I made it to the Foresthill exit in 45 minutes and saw a long line of cars backed up on the freeway off ramp.  There was a bike race going on and traffic control was in full effect.  As I sat there, I frantically made a decision to get back on the freeway going back the way I came and exit at Elm Street.  I didn't want to spend my time alone sitting in my car in traffic.  I made my way down the canyon to the confluence, and back up the canyon on the other side. I finally arrived at the trail head.  Within 10 minutes I had unloaded, geared up, and was on my bike pedaling up the trail. 

I was so excited.  I was on my blue Salsa El Mariachi 29" fully rigid single speed mtn bike, riding on single track in the dirt.  I hadn't been on this trail in 1 1/2 years. The poison oak was prolific over growing parts of the trail.  The oak trees provided plenty of shade, with the exception of a few exposed hill climbs.  Okay, so by the time I climbed the first hill about 10 minutes into my ride, I was already a little sweaty and covered in a thin layer of red dirt.  But this is all about the experience.  Some girls love dirt. I being one of them.  I've always been a farm girl at heart.  By the way, my bike has a pink headset and rear hub. 

My ride was quite fun.  I was nearing the end of my ride as I descended down and around a blind corner, I instinctively rang my bell.  I glanced up and  another cyclist was headed straight for me. We both swerved away from each other as we past by on the narrow single track.  My heart was pounding and my feet were shaking in their cleats.  It took about 5 minutes for me to recover.  I felt like my life had flashed before my eyes.  (A bit of an exageration.  I wouldn't have died, it just would hav ereally hurt if we had crashed into each other.)  I pedaled up the trail finishing my ride taking in my surroundings: thick manzanita bushes, tall oak trees, wild flowers, talll grass, and lush green poison oak with its branches leaning into the trail occasionally brushing against my arms and legs.

Thoughts of my kids immediately came to mind when I reached my car.  I looked at my watch and figured I had made good time, so I could make it back to the bike shop well before 12 Noon.  Ah, a sense of relief.  I cleaned up by rubbing Tecnu all over my arms and legs, making mud.  Then quickly rinsed off, changed, and was on the my way back to Sac.

My drive back should have only taken 45 minutes, except for the road closure and detour, resulting in stop and go traffic.  There were only 2 routes rmaining to get  out of the canyon.  First and most direct option required sitting in miles of stop and go traffic to get onto Hwy 80.  Second and least direct option required driving through Cool to El Dorado Hills via Salmon Falls Road to get onto Hwy 50. 

With kids on the brain, breasts overflowing with milk, and little patience for traffic, I chose the least direct route.  I could barely believe my eyes when I saw the 3 Model T's driving ahead of me SLOW, barely going 25 MPH in what was soon to be a 50 MPH zone.  Then my gas warning
light turned on.  Luckily, the Model T's turned toward George Town, leaving me open road ahead. 

I stopped for gas filling up at $3.99 a gallon, ouch!  Drove as fast as I could to avoid getting a ticket, and pulled into the Mad Cat Bicycle parking lot at 12:10 PM.  It officially took me 1 1/2 hours to get back from Auburn.  The drive took longer than my entire bike ride! 

My husband and kids were happy to see me.  They were all very hot from being outside for the past 4 hours.  My husband said the kids were great!  They each took naps. They drank water out of the bicycle water bottle he brought for them.  They drank a little milk from their sippy cups.  They ate a little yogurt and apple sauce.  He even remembered to put on their floppy hats, sun block, and changed their diapers.   

Heck, I guess I should leave them with Daddy more often! 

Saturday morning 5 sets of twins and their moms met at Oki Park to play.  Some of us just met that day, and some of us had not seen each other since we were in the hospital after delivering our twins last August 2007. 

The twins ranged in age from 3 months to close to one year.  There were 2 sets of boy/girl twins, two sets of boy/boy twins, and one set of girl/girl twins.

The mom with the 3 month old twins was happy to be out of the house since the fog of being a twin mom had not yet lifted.  We assured her that the fog would lift soon, and she'll start getting more sleep.  More sleep in a twin moms world is all relative.  We all enjoyed sharing twin stories, offering suggestions, and moral support. 

We had a fun time watching the twins play.  Some just sat there taking it all in.  While some of the twins rolled, crawled, and walked over and around each other.  Each twin thought the other twins' toys were better than their own. 

Our calm picnic in the park was abruptly interrupted by the park's sprinklers.  Twin moms went into action and started picking up toys, blankets, diaper bags, lunches, and the 10 twins in an attempt to get everything and everyone moved before getting soaked.  It made for a hilarious and memorable day in the park. 

I was reading "Your 7 month old" from Baby Center on-line this morning.  Usually I just get frustrated and stop reading because almost everything it says my kids might be doing, they aren't. For example, it said they might throw a kiss to familiar people or even repeat it if you clap in appreciation.  No, they aren't doing this.  I finished reading the article anyway because my curiosity got the best of me.  I figured I might learn something. 

After reading through 7 pages, the second to last paragraph, on the very last page, I read a comment from another mom that made my day!

"If you're a stay-at-home mom or dad, the main thing to remember is that you're staying home to raise children and spend quality time with them, not to have the perfect house." 

I hope by sharing the above comment made your day as good as mine!

The twins are sick.  I thought they were just teething.  And maybe they are, but in addition, they are also sick.  I called and spoke with another Sutter Medical Group advice nurse for the second time in 24 hours.  Today she recommended the twins be seen by their pediatrician within 24 hours.  The earliest they can be seen is tomorrow morning.  Brodie has been running a low grade fever for the past 72 hours.  He hasn’t been sleeping well. He has some nasal congestion.  He is fussy, and just wants to be held.  Lucas has the same symptoms, but his low grade fever has been inconsistent over the past 72 hours.  In addition, Lucas threw up twice today.  The first time all over me and the rocking chair. The second time, all over himself and his high chair.  This required me to quickly find a happy place to keep Brodie occupied while I gave Lucas a bath.  I still have the rocking chair, high chair, and floor to clean up. 
Today there are only three things that prevent the twins from crying:  nursing, being held, and playing in their Exersaucers.  I can’t hold both of them 24/7.  I decided since they aren’t feeling well, they can play in their Exersaucers as long as they are happy being there.  I am going to temporarily ignore the pediatric physical therapists recommendations for now.  When the twins feel better again, then we’ll go back to the rules of no standing for more than 15 minutes per day and mandatory floor time playing on their bellies, practicing rolling, and sitting up.  My focus is to keep the twins comfortable, happy, fed, hydrated, and rested so they will start to feel better soon.  Today we have had enough hazmat incidents to last us at least the rest of the week.  I have a feeling this is just the beginning of a long week.

With gas prices nearing $4.00 per gallon, I made my first purchase from Diapers.com, and saved gas by not having to drive back and forth to Babies R Us in Folsom, received free shipping, and $10.00 off our first order.  I thought shipping would take at least 2 days.  I was presently surprised when the diapers arrived the next day.  We went from having only a handful of diapers ,to being fully stocked with over 380.  We are set for another month!
 
I remember the first 4-5 months after the twins arrived, they used a minimum of 24 diapers in a day, 168 diapers in a week, and 672 in a month.  Now they are nearing 9 months, and they use a minimum of 12 diapers in a day, 84 diapers in a week, and 336 in a month.  To complicate matters, Brodie wears a 3 and Lucas wears a 4.  As the diaper size increases, the quantity of diapers in a box decreases.  Essentially, diapers become more expensive as the kids grow.

Some moms might wonder why we don't buy our diapers from Costco in bulk.  The reason being neither Kirkland or Huggies brands fit the twins. Pampers brand seems to fit the twins the best.  Unfortunately, Costco doesn't sell Pampers.  But we do buy Kirkland baby wipes.   At least we're able to save some money on something kid related.





 

Ant Facts:

They crawl under door thresholds.
They like rice cereal.
They live in walls.
They like baby spit up.
They crawl through windows.
They like baby toys.
They curl up in a ball and play dead, but they are really still alive.
They can survive an entire wash/spin cycle with laundry.  Apparently they can swim.
They like baby bibs.
They crawl up drains in bath tubs, sinks, etc.
They climb walls.
They like babies.
They carry their fellow wounded and dead back home from battle.
They like ant bait.
They are intelligent, resilient, and keep out smarting the pest control company.

Is there anyone out there that has a green solution to my ant problem?

Three days and one night in Cool, CA.  I was the kitchen coordinator/team support for our cycling race team.  Which meant I was responsible for coordinating the kitchen set up and break down, as well as ensuring we had the necessary cooking supplies and gear.  I also planned the menu, shopped, prepped food, cooked, and served food for 35 people during the 24 hour race.  How could I forget to mention that I also took care of my twins and supported my husband who raced 24 hours solo on his single speed mtn bike. 

Friday

Covered in sunblock, wearing wide brimmed floppy hats, my twins spent the afternoon being held by various friends and riding around in their full suspension Ironman Bob running stroller equipped with sun shade.  My husband and I set up his solo pit, the tent for the twins and I, and the Team kitchen.  Thankfully we had lots of support from the Team setting up the kitchen.  There were several Coleman stoves, 5 tables, and even a kitchen sink  all covered by 3 EZ ups.  Not to mention we also had numerous cooking pots, pans, utensils and just about everything else that makes a kitchen complete.  After everything was set up, we went home to sleep in our own beds.

Saturday

Awake at 3 AM with Brodie.  I had only 5 hours of broken sleep.   We arrived at 7:30 AM in Cool, just in time to prep and serve breakfast.  Members of the team volunteered to help in the kitchen throughout the weekend in 4 hour increments.  My parents came up to help take care of the twins and stayed until about 2PM.  I had a ton of support.  The race started at 12 Noon.  Our Team had 7 riders who raced in the 8 hour event 12 Noon-8PM.  In the 24 hour event, we had two 4 person all male teams, one 2 person all female team, and six solo riders.  The twins spent most of the day playing with my parents, or going on walks in their stroller.  By the time my parents left, they were tired, but they wouldn't nap.  I brought portable high chairs that they sat in on the floor of the kitchen.  When they started to fuss, I just kept rotating them from high chair, blanket on the ground with toys, stroller, Bjorn pack, Moby wrap, car seat, and to various friends who volunteered to hold them.  The rotation of the twins continued for the next 24 hours.  By 10:30 PM, I got them both to sleep in their Pea Pod  set up inside our tent.  We all slept until 2:30 AM.  Four hours of sleep, that was it.  At least, that was all I got until Sunday night.  Once they were awake at 2:30 AM, nothing I did could soothe them.  Finally a couple of my team mates volunteered to hold them bundled in blankets, next to the propane heaters under the EZ ups until 4 AM.  The twins smelled like Burt's Bees All-Natural Insect Repellent.  At 4 AM they were both asleep, so we transfered them to their car seats, where they slept until about 7 AM. 

Sunday

Camping in a field of tall grass brings quite a plethora of critters.  Big brown spiders, miniature grasshoppers, green bugs, earwigs...I could keep listing the visitors we had crawling inside our tent and all over the outside of our tent.  We only had one snake, a large King snake slither through camp.  Luckily it was far enough away from us, so I didn't freak out.  My parents came up again to help with the twins and stayed until 1 PM.  The race ended at 12 Noon.  One of our female solo 24 riders finished in 2nd place.  Our two person female team finished in 4th place.  One of our 4 person all male teams finished in 2nd place.  Just to name a few of our team's standings.  By 2 PM, with the help of m parents and our team mates, our cars were loaded and we were ready to leave.  I loaded the twins into the car and we were off. 
I decided to take Hwy 49 to Salmon Falls Road to El Dorado Hills to get onto Hwy 50.  Two years ago I raced 8 hours solo and then stayed up all night supporting a friend who raced 24 hours solo.  I then drove home Hwy 80, mostly freeway and I could barely stay awake.  So I figured the curvy roads would help keep me awake.  Well, it worked until I got on Hwy 50 and I started falling asleep.  Luckily, Brodie started crying.  I exited the freeway at Prairie City to check on him.  We did a quick diaper and outfit change and were then on our way.  By this time, both twins were crying.  They cried the rest of the way home.  They were tired and just wanted to be home. 
We made it the entire weekend, without any insect bites and no sunburns. We almost ran out of diapers, but luckily my parents brought more up on Sunday morning.  Lucas successfully ate Oatmeal on Saturday morning at Cool.  Brodie didn't want anything to do with it.  They both drank water from bicycle water bottles throughout the weekend.  Otherwise, I breastfed them on the go, standing, walking, sitting in chairs or on the ground.  We were all happy to be home.  Overall, I think it was a good weekend. 
I was absolutely exhausted.  We went out to eat Sunday evening, because I didn't feel like cooking.  I had done enough in the past 24 hours.  I went to bed at 7 PM with the twins hoping to et some sleep.  But Brodie woke up every 2 hours through the night.

Monday

By Monday morning, I didn't feel anymore rested.  My mom come over and took the twins on a walk and to play at the park, while I napped.  By afternoon, I finally felt recovered.  Monday night I was given a gift from Brodie.  He slept great, only waking up once to nurse at 3:15 AM, then sleeping until almost 6 AM.  He sleeps through the night at least once a week.  I think Brodie is going to be our 24 hour solo mtn bike racer.  He definitely has the ability to function on little sleep.     

Monday late afternoon while I was blogging, my twins were playing in their exersaucers.  Every time Lucas or Brodie made one of their toys play music we all danced.  Brodie stopped moving mid music and I heard him load up his diaper.   I took immediate action, but it was still his second blow out for the day. 

After Brodie was all cleaned up, I returned to blogging, and I kept smelling poo.  I had thoroughly washed my hands,  so I figured I was just smelling things.  The smell just wouldn't go away, so I went back to rewash my hands. This time I also washed my wrists, forearms, and elbows.  At that point I thought, maybe I should have just taken a shower. 

It had been about 15 minutes, since I had changed Brodie.  The twins were starting to fuss.  They want all my attention focused on them, not the laptop.  I don't blame them.

Since they were both fussing, I had to decide who to pick up first. I decided on Lucas,  So I picked Lucas up and gave him a sniff to check to see if he needed his diaper changed.  Even if I had lost my sense of smell, I would have known he needed his diaper changed because my check pressed lightly again his pants and was now wet and sticky. I now had poo on my face.  Now I really needed a shower and Lucas needed a bath!

Since Brodie's fussing had escalated to crying, I decided not to bath Lucas just then.  I cleaned him with baby wipes and we headed out to pick up Brodie.  Brodie was so worked up by the time we got to him that he was sweating.  Between his tear streaked face and his sweaty hair and body, he was a mess. 

I nursed both kids, Brodie calmed down, and then I started their bath routine for the evening. 
It is now the next day, and I am just finishing my blog. 

I have a confession to make.  This morning I was frustrated with my husband after our sleepless night.  So when he walked out the door to leave for work, I ate his chocolate cupcake.  He had been saving it for the last couple of days, but had not yet eaten it.  His cupcake had been sitting there just staring at me in the face.  So  it was with great pleasure I ate his cupcake.  It wasn't so much that the cupcake even tasted that good.  It was the sheer fact that I ate his cupcake, and now its gone!  No more cupcake staring at me.  So now I am out the door to go for a run with the twins. I know its going to be a good day!

Ever since Brodie started eating solids, his sleep at night has changed for the worse.  I went to bed at 8 PM hoping to get some extra sleep, knowing we were probably going to have another sleepless night.  Brodie woke up crying at 9:30 PM, 12:30 AM, and 3 AM.  Lucas woke up at 4 AM. Brodie was still fussing at 4:30 AM.  It seemed like no matter what I did to soothe him, he wouldn't stop crying.  He might be teething.  He might of had gas.  I had been up with Brodie since 3 AM. So by 5 AM I was so tired, I decided to go back to bed and let him cry.   I slept for almost an hour.  At 6 AM my husband's alarm went off.  I asked him if he was going to ride his bike into work today, and he said he didn't know because he had hardly any sleep last night.  He said he got up and held Brodie at 5:30 AM for about 30 minutes and he was quiet until he put him back in his crib.   My husband didn't get much sleep, so now he's grumpy.  He has a solo 24 hour mtn bike race this weekend.  He said he's concerned that he won't be rested for the race if Brodie keeps waking up crying throughout the night.  So now I feel guilty and sleep deprived.  I shouldn't have gone back to sleep and let Brodie cry.  I probably should have stayed awake holding him until 6 AM.  This way Brodie might have cried less and my husband would have got more rest.  Overall, I got about 5 1/2 hours of broken sleep last night between 8 PM and 6 AM.  The ironic thing, everyone is awake now, but Brodie.  He is in a deep sleep.  I don't blame him.  After such a sleepless night, he needs the sleep.  I would go back to sleep too, if Lucas wasn't wide awake.