September 16, 2008 - Discovery Zone (23 Weeks)

The boys have been doing the funniest things lately. They are definitely obsessed with their hands. Now Daniel does the whole intense staring at the fist and index finger. They both have discovered that their hands can clasp together. Daniel especially is amused by this and will bring his hands together and stare intensely. Then he will quickly bring them toward his mouth and shove them in. This is followed by laughing. Speaking of laughing, they seem to find sneezing quite amusing. They sneeze, and you can count on a giggle to follow. Anthony has taken to putting several fingers into his mouth at one time. Since Daniel has now found his voice, you can hear the boys' symphony of sounds filing the house. The last thing that has developed this week is Anthony's discovery of his tongue. He now likes to stick it out and looks like a turtle when he does.
This week was pretty quiet. Sunday was Daniel's birthday, and he wanted it to be low key. We had a little BBQ with our two neighbors and our friend Chris. Since he was working Sunday, we celebrated Saturday night. On the actual 46th birthday, we had breakfast as a family at Carrows before he left to show property.

September 9, 2008 - It's All in the Hands - 22 Weeks

It's official...I am back at work! It is definitely taking some time for me to get adjusted to being away from the boys. It takes all I have in me not to call home and check in on them. I do my best to get my work done during my prep period and my lunch time, so that I can get home to them. Being that they get sleepy at around 7:30 p.m., I only have about 3 1/2 hours with them. I definitely use that time to hold them, kiss them, and tell them how much I love and missed them during the day.
On a brighter note, they sure have become fascinated with their hands. This has been going on a few weeks already. Anthony especially loves to stare at his fist intently. He likes to raise his index finger in a way that looks like he is scolding you. It is a sight to see! They have also discovered their voices. They love to giggle out loud and babble. The boys are also drooling A LOT! I think it may be a sign that teeth may be coming soon.

September 2, 2008 - The Nanny (21 Weeks)

We are very fortunate to have acquired our nanny Josefina. She was the nanny for my friend’s twins. Janette will now be staying home with her children so she arranged for us to talk with Josefina. We liked her very much and have hired her to stay with our boys three days a week (Tuesday-Thursday). Daniel will stay home with them on Monday and Friday, and I will be with them on the weekend. This schedule allows minimum day care and maximum bonding while generating income. Hopefully we can stick to this schedule.
This week was hard for me. I had to return to work on Tuesday and Wednesday for teacher training days which meant leaving the boys for the first time. I kissed them both with tears streaming down my face. I then kissed Daniel and left before completing falling apart. I called my mom once in the car and cried to her. She calmed me down and I made my way to the meeting after getting myself composed. My mantra was, “Try not to talk about them and you’ll get through today.” One of my friends who already walked these steps years ago knew how hard this first day back would be for me. What he said to me I will forever remember. He said, “It doesn’t get any easier. It gets better.” It got me through the day. Thank you, Kenny!!! When I got home, I saw they were fine and not traumatized as I thought they would be. I guess the only traumatized person was me.
I worked in my classroom on Thursday, and Daniel helped me with my classroom on Friday. We didn’t get too much accomplished since the boys were with us, but that’s life.
A big thanks to Pat Eyestone from the district office. She gave us two high chairs, two car seats, and some toys compliments of her son who also has twins (girls). What a blessing!

August 26, 2008 - A Vacation From Our Vacation Needed (20 Weeks)

We had a few hiccups along the way (lost luggage, my lost credit card, Daniel’s wallet lost, his back going out, and Tropical Storm Fay) but we enjoyed our adventure . All good things must come to an end and this family was ready to wake up in our own bed and return to our regular life. Adios East Coast…until next time!

The weather permitted us to leave on Wednesday. Reliable Leah picked us up on time and got us home after a pitstop. I knew we'd be exhausted when we returned. Therefore, we made sure we left the house clean before leaving and planned to return with our clothes washed, so all we'd have to do was unpack and relax. That went as planned. I spent the remainder of the week trying to get the boys back to their routine. Daniel spent it playing catch up with work. The only real thing on my agenda was to get to the teacher supply store and take the boys for their vaccinations. They did much better this second round of shots. I still had the tears well up in my eyes as they cried out when each needle pierced their skin (3 shots and 1 oral vaccination).

A major event did occur this week...the introduction of day care! Josefina, our nanny, began spending time with the boys in preparation for my return to work next week. She was here for three days shadowing me, working with them, and being left with them for a few hours at time. They did very well with her. She is a very loving lady.
Updated Stats: Daniel is now weighing 14 lbs. 11 oz. and Anthony is weighing 17lbs. 8 oz.!!!!

August 19, 2008 - On The Road Again (19 Weeks)

It turns out my uncle's cousin has a boat. He invited us for a ride, and it was a perfect day. We got to see Washington's sites from the water. We also drove right up to a restaurant and enjoyed some great food. I have to admit I am now addicted to hush puppies. Yummo!!!! Unfortunately, Daniel's back went out from all constant loading and unloading the boys from the car and putting the heavy double stroller in and out of the car. It slowed us down, but didn't stop us from continuing on this whirlwind trip. We spent an extra day in Virginia and just vegged out.

The following day was spent on the road with the destination of Atlanta, GA. It turned out to be a long ride since the GPS apparently gave us the scenic route. ARRGGHHH! It actually was okay since my sister was teaching all day anyway and had a volleyball game after school. Despite the detour, we arrived at my sister's house before she got home from her game. She had no idea we were coming (her kids were in on the secret) and was thrilled to see us all. I can't believe how much my nieces and nephews have grown. We spent the night and had to hit the road again the following day. We could not leave GA without visiting her classroom. The four of us showed up at her school unannounced with Starbucks and made her very happy. After goodbyes and tears, we were off to Orlando, FL.

We arrived safely by dinner time and met my mom, stepdad, and nephews for dinner after checking into our time share. The following day we went to my dad and stepmom's house. The grandparents finally got to meet their grandsons!!! Tropical Storm Fay blew into town. We checked out of our time share and bunkered down at my dad's since the reports said to stay off the roads. Although we enjoyed our time with my dad and stepmom, the storm did not allow us to spend much quality time with my mom and stepdad which makes me sad. We were supposed to leave on Tuesday, but the storm closed down Orlando International. We would now have to leave Wednesday.

August 12, 2008 - East Meets West (18 Weeks)

Where do I begin? I guess with words of thanks to Leah, Rick, and my neighor Martha. We were running late on our departure date. Everyone jumped right in and helped load Leah's minivan, help install car seat bases, hold kids so mommy could shower and daddy could pack last minute things etc. Thanks to them, we made our flight. I must say the insanity continued once we got to the airport. The suitcase containing Daniel's and my clothing was over the weight limit and we were charged $100. Going through security required us to take each of the sleeping babies out of their car seat and carry them through the metal detector. The diaper bags, the double stroller, the car seats, and personal belongings then went through. It looked like an assembly line! The double stroller wouldn't fit and TSA insisted on trying to get it through. After 3 attempts they walked it through. This made us really late for our red eye flight. To make matters worse, our gate was the very last one in the terminal. Yeah, picture Daniel and me running to the gate with our double stroller. We made it to the gate and were met by a baggage agent at the plane door. He took the stroller and car seats. We board the plane and are reminded that we couldn't sit next to each other. We had to have a seat between us due to FAA regulations (something about infants and the oxygen masks). After all that, things went smoothly. We prepared the boys' bottles and started to feed them before take off. The sucking action avoided any ear pressure issues and they slept like champs after their bottles. They slept all the way to Newark!

We paid $100 for United to lose our bag! Yup! They lost our suitcase. It turned up but having to shop for clothes after landing was not fun. Did I mention it was our 2nd wedding anniversary? We made lemonade out of lemons and decided to enjoy the day. After all, it was our wedding anniversary and we had tickets for the Mets game. We had a great time at the game with the boys, my brother and his wife.

During our time in New York we took in many of the sites. We went to Yankee Stadium. We also went into Manhattan and took the boys to 42nd street, Rockefeller Center, FAO Shwarz, China Town, and walked the Brooklyn Bridge. I know they won't remember, but they'll have pictures showing we took them.

On Saturday, we met up with my sister and my aunt for breakfast at a very nice restaurant that had a beautiful view of the NY skyline. Our time together was not long enough!

Sunday we picked up our mini van and drove down to Virginia. This first leg of the road trip took us over 8 hours. The boys were great! On Monday, my aunt and uncle took us into D.C. to visit Arlington National Cememtery and some of the other sites. We actually got to take a picture in front of the White House.

August 5, 2008 - Packing, Packing, Packing (17 Weeks)

Not much to report for this week except that packing for this trip was insane. I never really realized all the things we use on a daily basis with the boys (lotions, powder, clothes, burp cloths, wash cloths, bottles, bottle brush, bottle inserts, lullaby cd, room monitor, diapers, wipes, etc.) We tried thinking things through so the trip would be as comfortable for them as possible. It sure was hard keeping their suitcase under 50 lbs. For those of you who haven't traveled in a while, know that the airlines are now nickel and diming passengers for everything. We limited our luggage to two suitcases, two car seats, two car seat bases, a double stroller, and 2 diaper bags.
Anthony has a fascination with his left fist. He clenches it and just stares intently at it. He also will extend his index finger and stare at it just as much. It almost looks as if he is scolding someone. Daniel and Anthony are both very happy babies! I just love the way they laugh out loud, giggle, and squeal when we tickle them.