The Adventures of Motherhood with Twin Boys - mom2twinboys's Blog

The Adventures of Motherhood with Twin Boys - mom2twinboys's Blog - SacMomsClub.com http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys Love, Hugs, and a few Tears Love, Hugs, and a few Tears en-us Oh, Look Twins! http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9496 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9496 Just before leaving to do afternoon errands, I noticed Lucas' cheek was slightly red and irritated.  It reminded me of when Brodie had an allergic reaction to, I believe, raspberry soy yogurt.  But I didn't think that was happening to Lucas, so I put some hydro-cortisone ointment on, and we were out the door.  Lucas has sensitive skin, so I figured it was a skin irritation.  Only 20 minutes later, after arriving at a friend's house to deliver a meal, I knew he was definitely having an allergic reaction.  I should have listened to my instinct the first time.  Of course the children's Benadryl was now at home.  We went to Target to buy more Benadryl, and to finish our errands before heading home.  While shopping, Lucas and Brodie received the usual "Oh, look twins!" attention.  Only this time, I was so embarrassed because Lucas' face was now entirely red and blotchy, including his ears.  Luckily there wasn't any swelling, or hives, but he still looked horrible.  One man who stopped to ask if they were twins, took a closer look, and then asked, "What was wrong with Lucas' face?"  Before buckling Lucas into his car seat, I gave him dye free bubble gum flavored Benadryl.  He choked it down.  Bubble gum being a new flavor for him, didn't go over very well.  By the time we arrived back home, the Benadryl was already taking effect.  He was starting to look almost normal again.         So now I'm wondering what caused his allergic reaction?  I don't think it's anything he ate.  However, he may have touched the peanut butter and honey I accidentally dropped onto the kitchen floor.  I tried to clean it up before Lucas and Brodie got to it, but they are FAST!  Maybe he got some on his hands, then put it into his mouth or on his face? The cause of his reaction?  It's one of those unknowns.  I would also like to know why they don't make dye free Benadryl in a different flavor. Why make it bubble gum flavored?  Bubble gum is something you chew, not swallow, and you definitely don't drink.  Playground Faces http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9491 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9491 Sunday morning we walked over to the Oki Park playground to meet our friend Mr. S. and his two kids (ages 18 mo and 4 1/2 years).  All was calm until we arrived.  Lucas immediately walked over to the swings, picked up wet bark and put it into his mouth.  He then smeared the dirt from the wet bark all over his face as he tried to clean off his runny nose.  Who knows what caused him to start to crying, but that just made his face evern more of a mess.  Before I let Brodie out of the stroller, I changed his dirty diaper.  It was more like a wrestling match.  I held him by one leg, while he screamed, twisted and turned every which way trying to get away.  I had to use one free hand to clean up the hazmat.  In the meantime, Mr. S. took one look at Lucas and said, "I don't know what's going on with his face!"  He walked Lucas over to me, as if I could clean up his face.  My hands were already full.  Luckily, the wipes were already out.  Mr. S. helped clean Lucas' face, while I finished cleaning Brodie.  Finally, Lucas and Brodie were all cleaned up and ready to play!  And play they did.  They climbed, went down the slide, crawled through the tunnel, swung on the swings, walked across the swinging bridge, again, and again, and again.  They played on the wiggling merry-go-round, spaceship, and tractor.  We had a science lesson when we found a green, winged, 6 legged, bulging two eyed praying mantis in the bark.  There was much discussion as to whether it was a carnivore or an omnivore, and what the difference was between the two.  Lucas and Brodie spent the rest of the time walking around picking up sticks, bark, and leaves.  They practiced stepping up and down/in and out of the bark onto the sidewalk.  When they found the grass, wet from the early morning dew, they went toddling through it and were officially wet and dirty.  Brodie tripped and faced planted into the grass.  His face and hair were soaking wet and covered in pieces of grass.    It was time to head back home, eat a late morning snack, clean up, and take a nap.  We said good bye to our friends, and my husband and I each picked up a kid, and walked home pushing an empty double stroller.  It's nap time! Autumn Run http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9485 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9485 Thursday morning Brodie, Lucas, and I ran around Lake Natoma with my friend and her son. It couldn't have been a more perfect day with sun, blue skies and nice Autumn temperatures.  The trees were vibrant hues of yellows, oranges, and reds as many of them have already started dropping their leaves.  Other than occasional bikes passing by, we mostly saw squirrels and different kinds of birds.  The kids took naps, sleeping more than half way around the lake.  When they woke up, they were happy all the way back to our cars.  Our run was great!  The best part was we accomplished our goal: to run around Lake Natoma together pushing our kids in their running strollers.       Reflection http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9483 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9483 As I was rocking Brodie to sleep tonight, my mind was wandering, jumping from one random kid related thought to another.  Lucas is finally breathing quietly.  He is finally getting over his cold.  Maybe I don't need to use the humidifier at night anymore.  He still has a cough.  I'm going to keep using it until his cough is gone.  Why am I still giving Brodie a bottle before bed?  He is probably ready for a cup.  He drinks from a cup during the day.  Then I remembered when I weaned him from breastfeeding at night, I took away the one thing that soothed him to sleep: sucking.  So he went from breast to bottle at night.  Then I weaned him from all night feedings.  The only bottle feeding remaining is the one before bed.  Tomorrow night, no more bottle. At that moment, I realized how quickly I forget the past.  Brodie and Lucas change so fast.  They are growing up before my eyes.  That explains why I have had the sudden urge to take pictures of everything.  Brodie and Lucas eating with a spoon, eating from a bowl, walking up and down the step....  Reality has hit me hard.  My boys are growing up and I'm trying to capture each moment so I don't forget.  It brings tears to my eyes. I am so bombarded with the daily BUSYness, there are days when I don't have time to take pictures.  I will always have my memories.  I won't forget everything.  Like the time earlier this week when I was getting their dinner ready.  I heard Lucas crying.  I looked over and saw Lucas lying face down on the floor with Brodie standing on top of him.  It was a funny sight, but I had to rush to rescue Lucas.  They are into climbing on everything.  Enough rambling for now.  Reflection can be a good thing, and I had more time than usual because Brodie drank twice as much milk before bed tonight. Sleep is Good; Night # 3 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9467 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9467 My husband was home late last night.  So I didn't have any help with the bath and bedtime routine.  Lucas and Brodie were not happy.  Luckily, they still fell asleep without much of a fuss. Brodie woke up once at 1AM.  In the craziness of getting Lucas and Brodie ready for bed, Brodie's diaper must not have been snug enough, so he leaked out all over his PJ's.  I don't blame him for waking up upset.  I changed him into dry PJ's, with a new diaper, and he went back to sleep with a few minutes of fussing.  Lucas woke up once at 4AM.  He had the miseries.  He voice was hoarse from coughing, and his nose was running.  I picked him up to rock him back to sleep, but he didn't want to be rocked.  I gave him Tylenol, and tried to get him to calm down, without much luck.  Finally, I put him back to bed, and he finally stopped crying and fell asleep within 5 minutes.      Brodie slept in until 6:30AM.  Lucas slept in until 7AM.  Whatever I did over the past 3 days, worked!  I am so happy both my kids are now sleeping through the night.  Sleep is a good!  Find Beauty Everywhere http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9459 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9459 As I ran pushing Lucas and Brodie up and over the Occidental freeway overpass on Wednesday morning, I couldn't help but notice the graffiti written on the concrete wall.  It says, "Find Beauty Everywhere."  This graffiti has been there for several weeks.  Every time I see it, I ponder the meaning of those three words, and how their placement is so ironic.  Can a person find beauty standing above the freeway, surrounded by pavement, concrete, metal, and the loud sound of all the vehicles driving by?  Sure, why not.  We've all heard that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. On the same running loop, there is graffiti written on the Howe Avenue overpass that says, "Follow your bliss."  Who knew that graffiti could be so enlightening and bring a smile to my face.  I wonder how many other people have seen these same sayings and smiled?  Usually when I see graffiti, I don't give it much attention.  And within a few days, someone has come by and covered it up.  I wonder how long these sayings will last before being covered up?  After all, they are graffiti too.               Night #2 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9462 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9462 Night #2 was even better than the first.  I had my doubts, but was gladly proven wrong.  Brodie woke up again around 8:45 PM, just like the night before, crying at full volume.  I went into his room to check on him.  He of course was just fine.  As I laid him down in his crib, I told him it was night time, time to go to sleep, then left the room.  He continued crying, but was back to sleep within 15 minutes.  The rest of the night, he woke up a couple of times, but soothed himself back to sleep within a few minutes.  At 3:30 AM, he woke up and cried full volume.  I took a peek into their room, and they were both laying on their bellies with their butts in the air.  Lucas was sleeping.  Brodie's crying had decreased to fussing softly.  Within minutes, Brodie was back to sleep, and so was I.  Another successful night of sleep for the entire family.  Yipee!  Brodie woke up at 6AM.  Lucas woke up at 7AM.   Night #1 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9458 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9458 What I thought was going to be a horrible night, turned out fantastic.  Lucas and Brodie were both asleep by 6:45 PM.  They both drank their milk, and within minutes were in their cribs fast asleep.    I went to bed early around 8 PM, so when I awoke to at 8:45 PM to Brodie crying, I thought the rest of the night was doomed.  My husband went in to check on him.  He tried to get him to calm down, and back to sleep without much luck.  So Brodie kept crying.  30 minutes later, I went in to check on him.  Since he was quite upset, I picked him up and rocked him.  It took about 10 minutes to calm him down.  When his little eyes started drooping with sleep, I placed him gently in his crib, and he immediately sat up and started crying again, at the same volume as before I picked him up.  At that point, I knew I had done my best to sooth him.  I knew he was fine.  He just wanted me to hold him, and didn't want to be left him his crib to sleep.  I knew he wasn't hungry.  He already had his Tylenol to relieve teething pain.  He had a clean diaper.  He was dressed appropriately.  So, I told him it was night time, and time to sleep.....then left the room.  Between periods of sleeping and waking, Brodie cried at varying levels throughout the night.  Lucas slept through the night. At 6:15 AM, I heard Lucas and Brodie playing and talking in their cribs, so I went in to say Good Morning, and get them up and ready for the day.  They were both happy and smiling.  I believe this is the beginning of some good nights sleep for the entire family.  Changes at Night http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9456 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9456 Lucas and Brodie are both asleep.  Lucas will most likely sleep through the night.  Brodie will wake up in about 3 hours expecting 4 oz of milk.  On a typical night, Brodie wakes up crying around 11 PM and 3 AM expecting 4 oz of milk.  His crying quickly escalates to screaming if I'm not fast enough to pick him up.  After 3 AM, if I'm lucky, Brodie will go back to sleep.  But usually he doesn't, and I'm left holding a squirming, pawing, pinching, biting 14 mo old who is will do anything to avoid his crib and stay awake.  After discussing Brodie's sleep issues with his pediatrician today, I decided it is time for a change.  Little does Brodie know, tonight will be different.  No more milk, no more picking him up, holding, and rocking him back to sleep every time he cries.  Brodie is a determined child.  He has been putting forth all his determination to avoid sleeping after 3 AM.  I am going to put forth all of my determination to hold my ground.  I know there will be some tears shed, but once we get through this, we will all be happier, and we'll all be sleeping much better.        Time Out for Mommy http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9446 http://www.sacmomsclub.com/home/Blog/mom2twinboys/9446 Yesterday Brodie woke up at 3:30 AM.  I tried repeatedly to get him to go back to sleep in his crib, with no luck.  Finally at 4:30 AM, Lucas woke up from all of Brodie's fussing.  So my day started bright and early, or rather dark and early.  There is nothing bright about waking up to crying at 3:30 AM.  Thursday was a long day. By 1PM, Brodie still had not taken a nap.  Lucas fell asleep with no problem.  Brodie just continued to scream the entire time he was in his crib.  Knowing he was safe, I took a "time out" to shower and dry my hair.  With the bedroom door closed, the bathroom door closed, the sound of the shower, and then the sound of the hair dryer, I couldn't hear Brodie.  I felt so much better.  So while Lucas continued to nap through all the noise of his brother,  I enjoyed 15 kid free minutes.  Usually after 10-15 minutes, if Brodie hasn't stopped fussing, he won't fall asleep at that point.  So I went in, picked him up, and we hung out in the playroom while Lucas napped. Today is Friday and amazingly, both Brodie and Lucas are napping at the same time!  This hardly ever happens!  As I sit here in silence and reflect back on this month, no wonder I am exhausted.   October has been a long month!  Dealing with my sick twins simultaneously just about put me over the edge.   Brodie and Lucas caught a cold the 2nd week of October.  Later that week, they had their one year vaccines, in addition to getting their 1st, and now 2nd set of molars.  Then they caught a stomach virus.  Brodie had diarrhea for 24 hours, then Lucas followed suit. Just when I thought they were getting over the worst of their colds, Brodie got his first ear infection, and  Lucas caught a stomach virus and threw up numerous times.  The funniest moment was when Lucas threw up all over Daddy.  Poor Lucas.  Steve, however, handled the situation very calming.    It is now October 31, the last day of the month.  I can officially say, Brodie and Lucas are finally feeling good.  They are still teething, but this is nothing compared to everything else we've dealt with this month.  We're looking forward to a healthy November!