(Un)Happy Hallowe'en Everyone!

– Well, 'dis is new. I wonder what I think of it.

– Oh, right. 

– I hate it! 

– I'm with you brother. 'Dis is stinkeroo! 

– Why mommy? Why??? 

Sound oddly familiar? Sometimes this blog really does write itself, but even I did not predict this reaction. Really. I thought leaves and pumpkins would equal a fun time had by all – or at least be distracting enough to snap a few photos.

Sadly, long gone are the days of placing Nate and Seth side by side and taking a few cute pics at my leisure. We are mobile and on the move now and we sit still for nothing and no one. And also... leaves are a little scary. Apparently.

Everyone did much better above ground: 

– I is doing better now everyone.

– I think.

– 'Dis is kind of fun.

– OK, maybe I not do so well with leaves everyone. And maybe 'dis outfit has a bow tie... 

– ... but I is still tough guy you know!

In the end, Nate at least made his peace with the leaves. 

Only to look like he was expecting trouble from... 

... this guy: 

It was an adventure to say the least, and at the end I had the worn out babies to prove it: 

And lastly (despite appearances), it really is a Happy Hallowe'en everyone! I'll be keeping my favorite treats far away from the scary leaves today while keeping an eye out for their regular trickery. So basically, business as usual.

Boo!

- L.

Next post: The Hallowe'en after party. Stay tuned!

Updates on Everything III

We Survived: Our first illness. Of course, I was too sick to post about it, but it happened. At first I wasn't sure what was going on so I consulted my mommy friends online with the following:

Can teething cause a runny nose/throat mucous or am I looking at our first family cold? 

I ask because I'm up with a screaming, runny nosed baby who is otherwise showing all the signs of teething. No fever, lots of drool, hand in mouth, etc. But he can't/won't go back to sleep - when I even try to settle him in my arms cradling him he starts coughing/choking. He won't lie on his tummy or side unless he is already/almost asleep and lying reclined on his back is keeping him awake (as is sitting on my lap). Help!

And it turns out teething really can cause a runny nose, but alas it was not the cause this time.

Less than 36 hours later I posted an update:

Well, I thought you all were onto something with the teething/runny nose, even the next day when Seth also got a runny nose (he is also teething though). But today, I have it too. And a sore throat. And I'm definitely NOT teething. Ugh. 

I knew it would happen eventually, but all the same I was dreading it. I'm glad it's over and that I can say we did pretty well all things considered. The boys are long back to 100%. I'm still struggling with occasional bouts of runny nose and dry cough, especially at night, but then it's also allergy season for me so it's hard to know what's residual cold and what is allergies but I'll put myself at 95% which is more that enough to say we survived our first family cold. Yay!

Toothwatch 2010: Keeping an eye out for first teeth may have come and gone – but the teeth, they keep on coming.

Nate has been sporting two top teeth for the past couple weeks, but it wasn't his front teeth he cut first – rather the ones on either side. I guess that's pretty unusual but not only is Seth following suit, it turns out they come by it honestly since I also cut my teeth that way.

This week, after much preemptive drooling Nate finally cut one of his front teeth (right side if you're facing him), but it will probably be awhile before you see any evidence. I think he's still wary of the Tooth Fairy lady and he really doesn't appreciate me poking around in there either.

Final tooth tally for October:

Nate: 5
Seth: 2 (with one imminently on the way).

First Foods: As predicted, applesauce was a success. I might even try making the next batch myself, but don't tell Nate and Seth that or they won't eat it. I'll just pretend it's store-bought.

Up next on the new food frontier is egg yolk (and yes, I will obviously be making that myself, so... shhhh!). If all goes well we'll be trying yogurt next.

Food load for October:

8-10 oz. of solids per baby per day (plus Mum-Mums!)
32-36 oz. of formula per baby per day.

Really, I have no idea why they're so skinny.

Getting around: They are. All over the place. Keep an eye out for (imminent) future posts.

That's all for now, but Nate and Seth are going for their 9 month check-up Nov. 2nd, including height/weight stats so check back for more updates in a few days.

- L.

Blueberries: Possibly The Most Stinkeroo Food Of All Time

Yesterday afternoon while Uncle Brent and Auntie Karen visited (and kept the boys good and entertained!) I got busy in the kitchen whipping up a batch of blueberries. I was disappointed that the big bag of berries only yielded 8 servings, but in hindsight I guess I should be relieved.

This is Nate experiencing blueberries for the first time today:

Don't mistake his wide-eyed look for anything but total shock that I have just fed him something so awful.

This was the beginning of the revolt: 

But it got worse. Much worse. No pics obviously since I was too busy with my own shocked look when Nate actually gagged on said blueberries – and trust me, it wasn't because he had too much in his mouth (although if you ask Nate he would tell you that any amount of blueberries is too much blueberries). He really hated them.

And then there was Seth. This is his first reaction: 

Followed quickly by this: 

Does this kid give the best stink-face, or what?

So yeah, that sums up our attempt at blueberries. I think I'll keep the rest on ice for now and maybe try applesauce tomorrow (don't worry, I didn't slave over the stove for that – I went strictly store-bought so the odds of it being well-received are in my favor).

In the end, Nate did discover a purpose for the evil berries after all: 

They're fun to play with at least.

Otherwise, verdict is: SUPER-STINKEROO.

- L.

Well... What Have We Here?

There are times when I poke my head into the nursery during playtime to take a peek at everyone (particularly if it gets a little too quiet in there) and am typically greeted thusly:

Two heads whipping around in unison with the most innocent of expressions on their faces that clearly say, "we wasn't up to anything mommy – honest!". Of course, I'm usually suspicious but can never prove anything. Until yesterday morning. Yesterday morning my guys were definitely up to something.

That's right – Nate and Seth have some new tricks to show you all!

Here's Seth showing off the Discovery Wagon by Haba™.

It's meant to help babies who are taking their first steps, but it's got so many gadgets and fun things on it I had hoped they would enjoy it right away. It didn't get a lot of fanfare the first couple of days – the stacking cups and hammer balls stole the show – but on Sunday Seth took an interest and pulled himself up to a kneeling pose by balancing his hands on the little blue seat. There's a mirror on the back of the chair and he had a grand time up on his knees chattering at himself.

And yes, of course there's a video. But before you run off to check it out, you should know that Nate also had some tricks up his sleeves. 

Not to be outdone by his brother, Nate busted out a serious crawling pose over in the Jungle Gym – and a pretty decent "downward dog" yoga move as well. And yes, there's video of that too.

Enjoy!

- L.

PooBucket™: A Love Story (Part III)

Q: What do you get for the boy who has everything but still desperately longs for a bucket to call his own?

A: Why, you get him his own bucket of course!

– Listen everyone. Drop what you is doing right now and go get yourselves a bucket just like 'dis one. It is the best thing EVER! I is serious. 

– Now I check and make sure no one sneak up on us because I has something to tell you.

– In my spare time, I write a poem about my bucket. Is you ready? 

Bucket red, Bucket bright, 
I dream'd about you day and night. 

The world's best Bucket – you is grand...

... I like to thump you with my hand. 

– What you think everyone? Go easy on me. 'Dis my first poem. 

– I sure hope the other buckets doesn't get jealous.

•   •   •   •   •

Mommy note: Yes, it's true. Seth has his very own Bucket now, fresh from the store, carefully washed, rinsed and stickered so there won't be any mix-ups between Seth's Bucket™ and the "working" buckets (AKA PooBuckets™ "A" and "B").

See? 

Added bonus: 

Seth's Bucket™ is also a great place to store toys between playtimes. Everybody wins!

- L.

I Think They Liked It!

As you may recall, my first attempt at introducing meat protein to Nate and Seth was not a hit. A few days later, I tried a Beef Vegetable flavor that was met with a similar reaction and so decided to shelve the meats for awhile and let everyone regroup.

Now when I first started feeding the babies solids I was determined to make as much of their food as possible. I had my freezer well stocked with sweet potatoes, peas and bananas and was contemplating carrots when I gave them pears from the jar for the first time. They loved those pears (still do), but one of the things they loved most was the extremely smooth texture that is only possible with commercial baby foods. It wasn't long before they wanted ALL their foods from the jar, including sweet potatoes and carrots (although it turns out they just don't like peas – at least not anymore – so I guess I won't take that one personally since Gerber® didn't get it right either).

I had all but given up on making anything other than avocados and was wondering if I'd still be feeding the boys' pureés on their way off to college when they decided a little texture is OK after all.

Earlier this week I postponed my dinner to make a batch of pureéd chicken and offered it to Nate and Seth for lunch the next day (I mixed it 1:1 with sweet potatoes since plain chicken paste didn't seem very appealing on its own) and while it might not be their very favorite meal ever, they ate it!

Check it out: 

– Mommy feed me some new foods today. At first I was like this...

– ... but then I think about it and I was like this! Not bad, mommy. Not bad.

– I hear you brother. I was a bit like this myself.

– But then I say, bring it on mommy! 

– No really, bring it on! I is waiting. 

•   •   •   •   •

Mommy note: Nate and Seth are modeling their new Ikea® bibs – talk about full coverage! – and a great idea for messy babies to boot.

- L.

An Update + Some New Fun Toys

Earlier this month, Nate had his follow-up appointment with Osteopath Samara and not only did she give him a big thumbs up on his progress so far, we don't need to go back for any more visits! This is good news for me, but probably gets a mixed review from the boys. They always had a great time at Nate's appointments because Samara has the best toys.

At our last visit, she introduced some different toys than the ones we were starting to get familiar with because as she pointed out, the boys are older now and looking for new challenges... which got me thinking. And shopping.

I didn't want to overwhelm everyone, so I decided to introduce things slowly – but check out some of the new toys I was able to find online. They are definitely a hit.

Up first was our new Stacking Puzzle Box by Gowi™. It features 10 stacking/nesting cups and also comes with a shape sorter in the lid of the container that everything neatly fits back into when it's time to play "put away". The pieces stack up really high when fully assembled, but that was a challenge with two babies who were intent on destruction.

I'm surprised there are two that are still stacked actually. 

And there was not time to stack and take a picture before things got knocked down, but I like the motion in this shot: 

It was all very fascinating until Seth decided my camera looked like a fun toy too. The rest of Seth is out of frame because he's trying to climb up my leg to get at it. 

That's when I knew it was time to introduce the Hammer Balls by Plan Toys™ (minus the hammer of course for reasons that should be obvious). It's really a well made toy that can be enjoyed without the hammer option as the balls push through with a hand as well.

Seth was having a pretty good time with it... 

... when suddenly Nate spied the new toy and couldn't get over to it fast enough. I had no idea my laid back son could move this quickly. Seriously, he's a blur. 

In the end a good time was had by all... 

... although perhaps too good since later this afternoon the camera again found Seth in a sad state. 

Midway through his afternoon bottle he promptly rolled over and hit snooze. I couldn't decide whether this looked comfortable or not, but I leaned toward "not" and put him to bed.

- L.

PS. The new jammies in the playtime pics are size 18 months. 18 months!!! I know my babies are long, but this is starting to get ridiculous.

The OP Turned One Today!

Happy Birthday to us!

It was one year ago today that I sat down at my laptop and typed out our very first post. I wasn't sure how much time I'd have for blogging once the babies arrived, but it seemed like the best, most efficient way for a weary, pregnant mommy-to-be to keep everyone up to date as we prepared to welcome Nate and Seth earthside.

And then they arrived. These two. And there was no way I couldn't not keep blogging and sharing our adventures with you all – our ups and downs, our first foods and first teeth, our time spent growing up and making important discoveries, documenting noodly babies, silly conversations and sometimes a little trouble to keep things interesting.

I tried to take some pics of the boys today to commemorate the occasion. This was the best one: 

Hmm... the rest could perhaps generously be interpreted as "out-takes":

And in case you're wondering why Nate's shirt is wet, this was one of the first photos I took: 

Yes, that is what it looks like. And no, I don't know why Seth often looks like he's pulling Nate's ear.

All the same, it's been a blast blogging this past year – more than I ever imagined when I took my first timid plunge into the blogosphere – and we look forward to sharing our stories with you all for a long time to come. Thanks for tuning in.

- L.

This Is What Happens...

... when Seth decides to cut his afternoon nap short.

Poor little guy ran out of steam right in the middle of play-time and I didn't have the heart to move him since it would have woken him up. I didn't have any qualms about grabbing the camera however.

- L.

Full Of Surprises

I originally grabbed the camera to show off Seth's prowess at opening and closing the drawer on the nursery wardrobe, but as often happens things took a turn for the interesting and I captured more than I bargained for. 

I think it's pretty clear they're up to something, don't you?

The whole thing is on YouTube™. You know what to do.

- L.