💙💜8 month twinnies! 💜💙

     Milestones after milestones!

They are so close to crawling, it will be any day now! They sit up like it's no big deal. They say mama and dada and I swear Callie calls Gran, "Nan" which is too cute. (I also have her on video telling Lucy, "nononononono") 

They love bath time, they love eating and of course- they love Lucy. She is entertaining to no end and cannot keep her hands off of them. She is determined to teach them how to crawl with teamwork... so that's how that's going....haha! They are going to be a great team, here's hoping we are all on the same team. 

And...drumroll please!!!! They sleeeeeeeeeeeep. Glorious, gloroius sleep. It's like a whole new house over here! Callie is using a pack and play in the living room, to be sure no one is waking anyone else up (although that was never their problem...) and I turn the monitors waaaay down- so they have to be super upset to wake me up- and this works. It's not in any parenting books to ignore your babies.... but honestly- after I let them figure it out the first night, they self soothe and hardly get up at all! We will keep it this way until it doesnt work! 
I cannot believe it took me 8 months to draw the line and demand my sleep but it's helped all around. They nap better during the day, we wake them up in the morning and they are pleasant! I took the humidifier back, returned the weighted sleep sacks and moved the diffuser back to where it was. And life is good. zzzzzzzz

       Eight months is when I start thinking about them being a year old and I get so sad. Then I calculated how old I'll be when they get to kindergarten and I know it' s okay that they are my last babies, haha! (39 by the way) And I start planning their birthday party, which is going to be sooooo cute!!! (We already have the photo shoot planned and scheduled!) I am so excited about the theme and how we are making it happen!!!

    BUT FIRST! We have Spring Break plans and we are about to go to the beach!! Babies and the beach, what could be better?!?
***Edit, we had spring break plans and this virus business is ruining everything. I cannot just NOT go do things- this may kill me.*** 

      I'm getting rid of their little baby stuff, with a tear in my eye and ideas in my head about what to do with the space we will have. We are also talking about donating our embryos, which is super exciting. I am so happy to be able to help other couples bring some super, really, totally adorable babies into this world if it works out for them. In my mind, we need to use our funds for our sweet babies at home rather than try and see if maybe IVF might work again. We are on the positive side of 3 healthy kids, with two babies that will never be. I also know that I could just not handle another failed transfer. Having two successes and one failure- and the chances of IVF are 50% success- I don't know that anyone can explain the feelings that come with that experience......

So all of my hopes and joys go into our three precious sweeties. 

     With the amazing new routine of actually sleeping at night....comes the energy (although it feels like an expectation) to exercise and lose weight. I was doing so well to prepare my body for IVF- although it turns out that had nothing to do with the result of the transfer. I cannot think of a better motivation than babies! But now, I feel huge. Then there is also the fact that my hormones and the way my body works makes losing weight hard. It made making babies impossible without intervention- but we made that happen, right? So here's hoping that eventually, I am able to maybe get back to where I was before I got pregnant. I really loved the excuse of being pregnant though.... but we know how body image is portrayed and how people are treated based on their body shape and weight and it just kills me to have other people use that to determine opportunities and how people are treated. That is the world we live in though. I wish I could just say, "who cares what others think" but its not just what others think, its about how others treat you and what opportunities are available based on how others perceive you. And I am doing it for me too, so that I can say- it was tough but not impossible. Or at least, it is tough, but I'm trying!! So I'm working out three times a week and eating with so much limitation. Blah. 
I'm trying. 
Wish me well! <3 

🥰SEVEN months!?!?!?!🥰

Month seven has been all kinds of exciting...but I need sunshine and warm weather and outside walks and please bring back the sun.
 We don't stop having fun, though! We took a trip to Gatlinburg and the babies only cried a little in the car...the only problem is that they take turns... They did great on the way home though, they slept almost the whole way! We had a great time visiting the aquarium, Apple Barn, The Island, and seeing the sights of Gatlinburg.

Some stats on these cats!
Miles is up another 10 oz this month. I only know because they weighed him again before his circ surgery and then he charmed all the doctors and nurses into thinking he was Mr. Wonderful.... which isn't too far off. He was fun before the surgery, had no reservations about leaving me to go with the anesthesiologist and was cuddly after the surgery. He was temporarily a monster as the anesthesia wore off- which is hear is the norm. He's already back to his giggly little self, so no worries. He also had his FIRST tooth pop through the evening of his surgery, so he's a champ!! He's almost crawling, but he really wants to stand- which is not okay with me. Ha! He is always saying Dada with a mischievous grin, so I'm sure he's up to no good. :)

Callie girl is up to THREE teeth with fourth not long behind. I already miss those gummy grins! She is finally getting good at the purees on a spoon but prefers the real deal. Pancakes in Gatlinburg were a huge hit! She's a roly poly with no need to crawl with the way she gets around the place. She continues to be a happy little ray of sunshine unless you're an unfamiliar old lady or the car wash. Those two things are guaranteeing tears these days.

And my Lucy! Being three is so weeeeird. She is the sweetest of sweet and then she's mean as a snake. She's hilarious one moment and super socially awkward the next. I signed her up for gymnastics, she thought it was a great idea....we've been through FIVE weeks of classes and she hasn't done one single activity with the class on her own. Not one. And its killing me- so I walk her in and sit in the hall with the rest of the parents and wait to hear how she did. One week left...
She can be incredibly sweet and loves to make the babies laugh buuuut she is also too rough and acts like it doesn't bother her if she makes them cry- I hope it's an act, please be an act. She's figured out that everyone has a different opinion and she likes to have hers. She is energetic to put it lightly, so I am counting down the days until I can send her outside to run, haha. (thought gymnastics might help with that) She still loves preschool so much! She cracks me up because shes always referring to her classmates as "her" kids.

February has been fun, but i'm looking forward to March! :)

❤️Half a year for Callie and Miles! 🎉

January!! WOo Hoooo! 

We started the year by leaving babies with Gran to take the cousins to Opryland Hotel and dive into the splash park at Sound Waves and it was wonderful! Lucy had the tale end of a cold and generously passed it to the babies. So we got to experience "Babies first cold" when we got home and all the first week of school being back in session- but we survived. :) 

Lucy is still living that preschool life, acting like she's big stuff. She makes the babies laugh so hard and is absolutely a ridiculous three year old. The stuff she says....its so perfectly three. It makes sense most of the time until she forgets to mention the most important parts. She was telling me a story about her cousins playing outside with her and they and they made bodies...they made bodies and laughed.... so, of course I'm  asking what in the world is she taking about. She tells me every detail except CHALK. So when I figure out that piece of the puzzle, everything makes sense. Hehe! Everyone is enjoying or at least tolerating coming to my basketball games on Saturdays. Lucy told me she might play basketball when she gets big. :) 

   Miles and Callie are big stuff now, rolling around, pulling blankets around, Miles is clapping and Callie is yelling Dadadadada. Miles is 19 lbs and 26 in and Callie is 18 lbs and 25 in. Callie has two adorable teeth that you wouldn't even notice when they were coming in. Miles has no teeth but acts like he's teething all the time.... Both babies love to splash, so we will have to take them to the water park next time! Both babies are eating purees, Callie prefers orange foods (pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots).... and Miles prefers whatever you put on a spoon. hahaha! Growing nicely, still terrible sleepers. 

They both checked out fine at their wellness appointment. The nurse did mention that they are big enough that they shouldn't be waking at night- and I laughed. And Mr. Miles has been cleared by his cardiologist to have surgery next month. He still has a PFO, which is a tiny hole between the top two chambers of his heart. It doesn't affect anything and will likely grow together before he is two. We will get it checked again in a few years. He absolutely charmed the nurses and doctors, was extremely well behaved and enjoyed hanging out with momma. The cardiologist also referred us to a pediatric ENT to look into his noisy breathing. She thinks he may have a condition called floppy airway or tracheomalacia. It happens when babies have a weakness in the walls of their windpipe. Generally, babies outgrow it by 12-18 months. It causes loud labored breathing, sometimes throwing up and gets worse with overexcitement or crying.... so the cry-it-out method is out the window, it just gets him worked  up and stresses his body out. So this may be a HUGE factor in the lack of sleep situation. 

     I mean, we've tried a few things...lavender bath soap, lavender lotion, vicks on feet and chest, sound machine, swaddle/no swaddle, swaying, rocking, gripe water, elevating their heads, consistent routine, essential oils in the air and on the baby, cool mist humidifier, benedryl, tylenol (not together of course), crib, bassinet,co-sleeping, rocker, heartbeat baby (plays the sound so baby doesn't feel alone), bottles/no bottles- although sometimes it is impossible for them to go back to sleep without eating....so I'm not sure what else to try. If there are suggestions, please help me. 

Just another night...

A slightly better night...

My best Christmas present.....I took one night off. One glorious night. Lucy had a big girl sleepover with cousins and Matt stayed up all night with babies. I left after bedtime routine and stayed at the new hotel in New Albany on Daisy Summit. My muscles were sore when I woke up from staying so still, I slept that hard. I recommend it to every single momma. Take a night off. I was a much more pleasant person when I got back in the morning and when I start missing sleep, I just think about that night. Ha! That hotel is so nice too! I bet there were about four people there and it's brand new so everything was shiny and sparkly! 

So if there are any suggestions other than take a night off, I'm all ears.

Pictures to prove the babies doooo get tired too! They get it! 

❄️🎄🤶🏼It's the Holiday Season! ⛄️🦌🎅🏼

We have five month old twins!!! Ahhh! 

We are constantly being asked, "are they twins?" but I hardly, if ever- sit down and think, man..we have twins. Lucy was hilariously repeating after people, asking me, "are they twins, are they twins?" She's caught on pretty quickly now that we just let her field the questions. 

Want to know the hardest thing about having twins? Having two babies. 
They are still the cutest little chunky sweethearts, wearing 9 month clothing at 5 months old.... so we are copying off of baby Lucy's style, no doubt. They are eating baby food or mushy smushy food and Miles is loving it. Callie tolerates it now, so we are headed in the right direction. They are kept up with all of the holiday festivities so far and haven't kept us from any adventure yet. :) 
 I am just so delighted to share their first Christmas!! I am so excited, and Lucy is too! 
 They are starting to move and groove, which is a little scary. They are the drooliest duo you've ever met. The roll, they reach, they play- all fun baby stuff! This also means they are playing on the floor or in walkers and bouncers and that puts them right within reach of big sis...which is interesting for everyone. She's great at entertaining..but also loves them too much with really squeezy hugs and likes to move their heads when they aren't watching her....so don't leave them alone in the room with her. Hehe. 

Callie and Miles don't get 5 month appointments, so no weight/height updates- although we may check in before their 6 month appointment because something still doesn't seem quite right about Miles' breathing patterns..... but he is eating, pooping and screaming just fine, so no doctor is worried about him. We have appointments in January for well checks after little guy has a cardio and urology appointment on winter break... fun. Then a urology surgery scheduled for February for the poor guy. They were so worried about his breathing and respiratory system catching up when he was in the NICU, they didn't snip him. Sooo the deal is, we have to wait until he is six months old, check with cardio and urology again and he has to sleep with anesthesia. So wish him well....wish momma well, and basically anyone who will be around him after all that. 

Speaking of winter break...we have ONE full week left of school before break and I am counting down the minutes. I have big plans... well I have plans. Day one, deep clean this house! I am super great at keeping things put away and pretty awesome about laundry and dishes- all of that is always done. I need a day to wipe down baseboards, mop floors and basically clean the walls of this house! So my big plans consists of cleaning so much and loving it. I am also toying with the idea of switching out car seats. The babies meet the weight requirement, and their little legs are starting to grow out of their infant seats. Ugh, why do they have to grow up?!?! Before changing out seats though- I am super excited to plan a "detail the car" day too. More cleaning!! I actually do love cleaning and the satisfaction you get from living in that clean space. 
School has been successfully crazy busy, between making blankets for Project Linus, making chocolate suckers to sell to the school and coaching girls basketball.... I think everyone is ready for the break! :)