Holmes Online

Moving the site

2006-04-07T22:01:00.000-04:00

Blogger has been stressing me out so we're moving. Here is our new link. www.jenandjohn.wordpress.com

The park

2006-04-02T20:05:00.001-04:00

Things are slowly getting back to normal. Leah has been in a very good mood lately which is much appreciated by all. Today Emma actually cried more than Leah. I honestly don't remember the last time that happened. Emma is having constipation issues again. The flu seems to have slowed down her system and she's not all that interested in eating - she's still eating and drinking water so we're not overly concerned yet. We have learned in the past that we really need to watch her diet and this week was an exception. Today she wouldn't eat her pears or veggies so I told her to show Elmo what a big girl she was - right away she opened up her mouth... Leah is just fine - apparently these two little girls are different right down to their bowels ;) Our weekend consisted of the usual trips to Costco and the grocery store. Friday night we watched TV and last night John went out for dinnner with some of his former co-workers. I was invited but I see my old co-workers quite regularly and I know it's nice to just get out and relax with only yourself to worry about. I spent the evening reading a book Coby lent me called Freakonomics. So far I have to report it is quite fascinating and I can see why Coby thougth I would enjoy it (and I'm only 65 pages in). There is a chapter on parenting I am looking forward to reading. This afternoon we took the girls to the park. I wanted to take the camera but the battery is dead. The park is far enough that we opted to drive. There is a huge park (complete with splash pad, soccer fields etc) slated for just down the street from us but who knows when that will be ready. The girls weren't walking last fall so this was their first trip to the park. They REALLY liked it. Leah loved the swing, Emma was scared. They both loved the slide and went down themselves no problem after a few runs holding our hands. The park was pretty busy and again the girls very different personalities were apparent. Emma is pretty shy and could care less about other kids. She's quite content to play by herself. Leah on the other hand is fascinated by other children. She is not at all shy and will walk right up and try to engage kids of all ages. At one point today she was trying to play with 3 little boys (of about 4 years old) and their dumptrucks. When we got home I brought out some stickers I bought them a few weeks ago. Lazy me has been hesitant to give them stickers for fear of our walls but they actually really liked them. We gave them each a pack and a piece of paper and it was good for about 30 mins of entertainment. Not bad for some dollar store stickers that were of fruit and birds. Imagine if I gave them Sesame Street stickers!

We all fall down

2006-03-30T18:04:00.000-05:00

So we had a good weekend. We went to Ronan's first bday party on Saturday and then I had book club on Sunday. John's dad arrived Sunday night to finish up all the little things that needed to be done before the drywalling starts. John came home early (it's sad when 5pm is early...) on Monday night, walked upstairs and threw up. He had a really bad headache and I was hoping it was just a migraine (although John doesn't get migraines...). At 3am I heard Leah wimpering and made it into their room just in time to rub her back while she puked all over her crib. I got her and the bed changed and she went back to sleep. I didn't go back to sleep at all, she threw up again at 4:30 and then at 6am which woke Emma up and there was no going back to sleep for anyone. Leah was in good spirits throughout the day and I thougth all was well until she projectiled her dinner. John was in bed sick all day. Leah didn't throw up in the night but she threw up 2 more times yesterday morning. By mid morning I was feeling queasy and I started puking after lunch when the girls went down for their nap. Emma woke up from her nap and then she started puking. Oh it was a lovely afternoon. Thankfully John's dad was here to help me clean them up and take care of them. The girls are doing fine today. I am still a bit off but nothing like I was last night. I guess I should be thankful that it is a quick acting flu. This is the first time the girls have been sick like this and I'm also thankful we got to wait this long. Leah is a real trooper. She did a fair amount of lying down on her pull out couch but for the most part she got on with her day. Throwing up didn't really phase her. Emma on the other hand started to cry when she was sick. I think she was scared. She recovered quickly and we all watched in horror as she danced around in circles on the carpet minutes after losing her entire dinner. John's dad left last night but not before catching the awfulness. I'm just glad he got to be sick in his own bed. The poor man has had to see/hear me be sick no less than 8 times this past month...and then he had to clean up the girls puke. I think he might be taking a bit of a break on the basement! Nana and Papa got the girls some rain boots. They love them and can put them on themselves. Here are some pictures from before they got sick. I didn't take any pictures of them when they were sick although I wish I had taken one of Leah lying down on her couch. They never sit still like that and it was very cute.

Emma loves the dishwasher (and has been known to stand on the door and dance...)

One of Leah's many looks...

Puke City

2006-03-29T19:25:00.000-05:00

We're all sick. Trust me - you don't want the details. I'll be back soon. Check out Carrie and Coby's website for pics from Ronan's first bday party.

Formatting fiasco

2006-03-24T10:42:00.000-05:00

I'm looking into moving our blog and I tried something out which seems to have ruined the formatting. I'm not going to fix it until I decide what I want to do - I'm sorry if it hurts your eyes!

Cold hands mama

2006-03-22T19:32:00.000-05:00

It's still cold outside. It's some demented payback for the soft winter we had. I've taken the girls out in their wagon every afternoon. We go over to the pond and they say hi and bye to the birdies (Canada Geese that never left - I don't know if any of them do anymore?!). About 2 blocks from home I let them out and Emma pushes the wagon while Leah tries to test me over and over again by walking off by herself. Lucky for me "Do you want me to put you back in the wagon" seems to have the same effect as "I will pick you up if you don't hold my hand"...it's just not a very lasting effect. I have been spoiled the last few weeks because John's dad has been here and then I spent that week in Windsor. He took a week off this week and I was a bit worried about 5 days in the house with no car and cold weather. The no car thing really is killing me (I told you I would whine eventually). I was the one who pushed John to get a new job and said over and over again that I was tough and could live without a car. Well it sucks...but I'm hoping the warm weather, if it ever comes, will help. And at the end of the day I've had the pleasure of actually having a car and not being able to drive it and that sucked much, much more than this little inconvenience. Being the wonderful person that he is, John has also offered to take mass transit whenever I want the car. It's not an option I will use very often but it's nice to know it's available. Lately you can tell how the day is going to go within seconds of when Leah wakes up. If she's happy and chatting away to Emma you know it's going to be a good day. If she's crying and whining to get out of her crib watch out. On those bad days the whining sometimes never stops and it pushes me to my patience limit. One of the good things about being alone with the girls is that I spend a lot of time trying to figure out what her problem is. Early indications are pointing to sleep. She's a pleasure on days when she gets 12 hours. On days when she's up 30 mins to 1 hour early she's not happy. It got so bad yesterday morning I put her in her crib at 9:30am. She was not happy, but hey she wasn't happy before I put her in the crib, and within 10 minutes she fell asleep. I woke her up 1 hour later and then put her down for her nap with Emma. She was a pleasure to be around yesterday afternoon. They were both up early this morning and it was a so so day for Leah. Happy but not well rested happy. We put them to bed at 7 tonight. They didn't actually fall asleep til 7:30 but I'm hoping she'll sleep her full 12 hours. Fingers crossed. The girls finally figured out they can sit in their doll strollers. Luckily at 22 pounds the stroller can handle their weight. This has resulted in HOURS of entertainment. As soon as one of them sits down the other will come over, do up the seatbelt and push her sister around. Then they switch. It's pretty cute.

Seatbelts are not optional

St Patrick's Crystal Ball

2006-03-17T22:20:00.000-05:00

"I said GREEN BEER and you give me this water crap. Yeah, that's right, CRAP. CRAP!, CRAP! - Emma don't bother with your sippy cup - it's full of CRAP" "LEAH, LEAH, I see the beer truck"

"I'm coming - do you think I have time to change? I hate it when mom caves and dresses us the same. I struggle with my identity..."

"Here let me help. I think we're too short. There must be something around here we can stand on. Hey, how about you lie down..." "Come back...hey where did that sippy cup go? Maybe mom found the food colouring and that beer Uncle Coby left the last time he was here. Hey is that dad coming? What did we do to deserve a dad who doesn't drink beer?"

Happy St Patrick's Day and Happy 5th Birthday Jackson!

Just pictures

2006-03-14T20:38:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures from around the house and our trip to Windsor.

Playing Elmo on the computer

They're getting so long. This is Emma

Leah - check out the new shoes.

Emma being cute (no, she's not always cute)

Kissing - Leah will usually only kiss Emma goodnight

They like to climb in the toy chest (apparently Leah will kiss the baby doll!)

Leah and Chance. She's not at all afraid of dogs. Emma is scared if he gets too close.

Gabe's 2nd Birthday Party

Playing with Uncle Drew aka Deeeeewww

Emma always finds my book - but then she brings it to me while yelling "Mama's book". She brings John the remote!

Leah in the teddy bear's hat

Off with Nana to see the neighbours

21 months and our weekend

2006-03-12T21:17:00.000-05:00

The Update The girls were 21 months on the 7th. Their hair and teeth are unchanged. They're still sleeping 12 hours at night (in bed at 7:30pm) and having a 2 hour nap at 1pm. No change on the potty front except that they seem to be aware of when they pee now (used to only be poop they were concerned with). Although they are still pretty picky, the do eat well with the foods they like. We actually got them to eat chunky hamburger soup (John's dad's recipe) which was a first for them. They've never taken chunky smushy food off a spoon - ever. They have no problems using forks but they don't eat as much when they get the forks so we're not pushing it. Spoons are way too messy and I'm fully prepared to wait on that one. I can only clean the floor so many times a day! Their vocabulary is expanding daily. Emma is a little parrot and will attempt to repeat anything you say. Leah is not a performer but when she's in the mood she can say everything Emma can. I've been using the speech workshop techniques and Emma uses 3 words quite a bit. Leah is using 2 words for the most part. Of course when we have visitors they use zero words - little monkeys. They both really enjoy singing and they are quickly picking up the gestures I add to the songs. They yell for more when I sing. It can get a little intense. They are really enjoying the Sesame Street characters. They seem to like Elmo, Big Bird and Ernie the best although they can name them all. They are completely entranced by the TV when Sesame Street is on and I have to be careful because they would watch it all day long. I don't know if I've mentioned this before but if we take them up to the mirror and ask them who it is they will both say each other's name. Same thing with pictures. It must have something to do with seeing another little person and assuming it is the other. We turned the carseats around this month because they were getting too long. They were 22.4 pounds on the scale on Friday. They have finally outgrown the shoes we got them in October. We got them runners on Saturday. They are both a size 6. They still wear 18 month clothes but some of the pants are getting too short so they are in some 24 month stuff. The fit really varies by the brand. Our weekend Saturday we got up early and headed to Sherway to look for shoes for the girls. I've been hunting for running shoes for some time now but I refused to get them any "I am a little princess" themed pink shoes. Selection is limited when you don't want pink! Alicia suggested Olly Shoes and we were pleasantly surprised to find nice runners at a reasonable price. We ended up getting them the same pair because we liked them so much. Today John had to get a haircut and I decided to take the girls to Walmart while we waited. We forgot the stroller and I'm sure I'm going to pay for letting them both ride in the main part of the shopping cart (Walmart doesn't have shopping carts that fit two kids). The girls loved it and I eventually gave up trying to get them to sit down. They held on tight and didn't fall. I made the mistake of walking through the toy section with them - with all the screams of "up mama, WALK!!!" I was in and out in under 1 minute. This afternoon John's cousin Christine came for a visit. She arrived while the girls were napping so we had time for some adult conversation before the girls figured out there was a new book reading candidate in the house. After Christine left we did the webcam with John's parents and then put the girls to bed. We then had chocolate chip bran muffins for dinner - there are some perks to being an adult!

Hi Mom

2006-03-09T09:29:00.000-05:00

I got a call this morning from my mom asking if everything was ok because I hadn't updated the site (and posted the promised video). I think she's getting anxious to see the girls! Everything is fine. I've fallen victim to DVR. John taped a bunch of shows while I was in Windsor last week and I've been watching them with him when the girls go to bed instead of spending time on the computer. The drive back from Windsor was terrible. I threw up 3 times. I had a bad headache and then got carsick...or maybe it was some quick acting flu because both John's parents weren't feeling well either. I was so happy to get home and I ran inside to ask John if he could help his dad with the girls so I could go puke some more. Poor John had spent all weekend painting our family room/kitchen as a surprise and I don't think he got quite the reaction he was hoping for. It is really nice and I did fully appreciate it once I felt better. Monday I had the second part of the speech workshop. This week we learned how songs really connect with kids and get them to talk. We spent 30 mins writing our own songs - which was tougher than you might think! I think I'll pass on writing mine here - you'll all think I've truly gone simple. Needless to say I've been that annoying singing mom that I can't usually stand all week and it really does work. I need to get a video of them singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. John's dad had the inpector in yesterday to look at the electrical work. Everything passed so we are one step closer to moving all the crap downstairs. I have to stop saying crap. Last week we were at the mall and I made some comment to John's dad about all the Dora crap. Next thing we knew Emma was yelling crap, crap, crap. They are little sponges. We finally turned their carseats around. Emma is fine with it. Leah gets pretty worked up when I don't respond to her every need (mainly up, up, up, UP, UP, UP! UP!). She'll get used to it. Leah has been pretty whiny lately. I'm not sure what it is but I'm hoping that a few days locked up in the house will get her back to normal. Here's a video of the little recital the girls put on for the nuns.

Away for the week

2006-03-04T13:11:00.000-05:00

On Sunday afternoon the girls and I decided we would pack our bags (and playpens, and feeding chairs, and food, and lambie, and chickie etc etc etc) and go back to Windsor with John's parents after my appointment Monday morning. We knew John was going to have a busy week with work and I just wasn't up for 5 days with no car and no adult interaction. We've had nice week in Windsor. John's dad is very much like me in that he just likes to go out for the sake of getting out of the house. We've been all over Windsor and the girls have done a ton of walking. They are now very good at holding your hand (except Leah refuses to hold Emma's hand) and the threat of being picked up if they don't hold your hand works like a charm. We visited the convent where John's mom works and the girls put on a show on the piano for the sisters. I got a good video I'll post when I get back home. The girls are going to a birthday party this afternoon and then John's dad is driving us home tomorrow afternoon. He's going to stay and work on the basement for a couple of days. John has been very lonely with us gone. He's worked late each night and discovered that with no traffic he can make it home from work in 35 mins (it takes him between 1 and 2 hours most nights). I'm thinking it might be easier on him if he sees the girls in the morning and goes into work later, avoiding rush hour traffic both there and back. I haven't been able to convince him yet though. Although he has been lonely, he was pretty excited last night at the prospect of sleeping in today and tomorrow. I must admit I'm a little jealous. I think I have been alone in our house a handful of times since the girls were born and it is very relaxing! The speech appointment was better than I expected and I learned some new things which we can use. The main thing I came away with is that you should always be encouraging vocabulary in a fun way. I know that sounds like common sense but they encouraged you to always push them which I might not have done. If they can say one word, give them two back. Always add an extra word so they learn. Gestures also count as words so if they give you a gesture you're supposed to say the gesture and add a word. They still don't want us to teach them please and thank you (useless words to speech and language people) and you have to stop and think of how to add words. If they say "more mama" I say "more cheese mama". It actually works. I have the second part of the workshop Monday morning and then I will have to take the girls in at some point to be videod (is that a word?) using the techniques they teach you. I think (hope) we might be done after that! I'll post some pics when I get back to Oakville.

Nana and Papa come to visit.

2006-02-26T20:32:00.000-05:00

Nothing exciting to report from last week besides the girls new found love of Sesame Street (which has everything to do with us getting DVR). They have learned all the names of the characters (Emma calls Big Bird "Big Bob") and they have even started chanting "Elmo on, Elmo on" whenever the tv is turned on. I indulged them a few too many times the first couple of days and I really noticed it made them whiny and restless. They are much better behaved when the TV is off and I save Elmo for a special treat. I know that sounds mean but I'm not kidding when I say it makes them whiny and they lose all ability to play by themselves. Nana and Papa arrived on Thursday night for the visit. It has been nice having them and I took full advantage of having a car and the freedom to go out without the girls. Friday I had lunch with a friend and then in the afternoon John's dad and I drove to Guelph to watch the team Drew coaches play in the provincial qualifier tournament. We were back in Guelph with John on Saturday afternoon to watch another game. Spending time in a high school was weird. I clearly remember when the guys on the Senior Boys Basketball team looked old. The kids on Drew's team (and all the kids in the stands) looked so young and it was a bit of a shocker realizing that I had at least 12 years on all of them. The even bigger shocker is that in 12 years the girls will be nearly in high school. There was nothing comforting about any of the teenage girls I saw. The third shocker of the day came on our way home from dinner when The Proclaimers 500 miles song was on the retro station. Last night we met Coby and Carrie for dinner - in a restaurant! We haven't been out just the four of us since a few weeks before Ronan was born. Ronan was 11 months yesterday. It was nice. Today I had book club. I was supposed to host but I opted for brunch instead. This afternoon John and I did some shopping just the two of us. It was nice. Tomorrow morning I have the first of two workshops with the speech people. I'm not looking forward to it but I will try and maintain a positive attitude. We are fortunate that the girls are being monitored and maybe I'm missing something when I think the girls are fine verbally.

Reading with Nana

Elmo time with Chickie and Lambie

"Don't worry Mom, we'll be good for Nana and Papa."

Amazingly our camera is still capable of taking pictures without babies. This is us ready for our big night out on the town (dinner at a restaurant...)

Emma LOVES shoes.

It's freezing.

2006-02-20T16:23:00.000-05:00

For the first time this Winter it is cold outside. And it's not even that cold, we've just been spoiled for months. There hasn't been snow on the ground since early January. There's still no snow, it's just really, really cold (like -7 but the wind makes it -20. I am officially a Toronto winter wimp). The weekend was good. Troy, Jess, Sarah and Brennan came over for dinner on Saturday night. Brennan is crawling everywhere - it's nuts how fast all these kids grow. The girls really enjoy Sarah (she's a year older than them) and Emma was calling her by name. The three of them spent a large part of the evening laughing and running around after each other. Yesterday we did some shopping and then I put all off season (and in my case still too small but I'm not giving up - I will one day have time to myself to go to the gym again) clothes into rubbermaids. I am a little bit obsessed with putting things in rubbermaids these days. John's mom and I watched a Dr Phil the other week on hoarders and it got me in the mood to organize and throw out junk we don't need. The Salvation Army is cashing in. John's dad is going to build me shelves in the storage room that will fit the tubs and it is going to be so neat and tidy. I can't wait. The girls are doing well. I am very excited to report that I have found a new way to trick them into eating veggies. Apparently in the States they have these things called spinach nuggets. I looked at the grocery store and at Costco but I can't find them so I decided to try spanakopita (spinach and feta in phyllo). They love them. They ask for more. Yesterday I bought some phyllo and tried it with brocolli. They love it. They ask for more. I'm pretty sure I can chop up anything, wrap it in phyllo and give it to them. Good thing phyllo is low fat so I don't feel too guilty about serving veggie pastries! They are still sleeping well. I think their bedtime is creeping towards 8 again but we're trying to keep it at 7:30 for selfish reasons like primetime tv. Leah watched me put my hair in a ponytail the other day and whined until I put her hair in a ponytail (not a happy moment for me). She stood perfectly still and let me put two pigtails in. Her hair is pretty thin but the elastics stay in. I will admit she looks pretty cute. The camera has been dead but is now charging. I will get a pic of the hairdo soon. Emma has no interest in me touching her hair and ran away when I asked if she wanted a ponytail (good girl!).

Happy Valentine's Day

2006-02-14T20:04:00.000-05:00

This time last year I had the time (and the cooperative subjects) to take Valentine pictures. No such luck this year - not even an attempt. I didn't even think to dress them in red until the day was nearly over. We had a nice weekend. John hosted poker on Friday night. From the amount of yelling I think it's safe to say they had a good time. The girls slept through it all. The rest of the weekend wasn't very eventful. John's dad arrived on Sunday night to work on the basement. He is working really hard and making good progress. The girls are so used to drilling and hammering that they don't even flinch. Today I had to go to North York for a focus group for former patients and he watched the girls for me. The girls are doing well. They are still sleeping. Emma continues her obsession with taking her sleeper (and then her diaper...) off. This morning they were up early and I let them play for a bit only to go in and find Emma sitting naked on her soaking mattress. The only consolation is that it was warm pee so she wasn't cold yet! I don't know how people do it without laundry. Jackson ruined one of the girls comfy chairs over Christmas and we finally decided to replace it. We were going to get the same style of chair (room for one) but then we saw this Sesame Street pull out couch and changed our minds. They both really like it and for the first time ever they will sit for 30 mins and watch a Baby Einstein video. It's great. After months of waffling we finally got DVR (Cogeco's version of TIVO). We got it in the mail yesterday and I didn't waste any time setting it up. I love it. I can now record shows on Treehouse that I want them to watch like Sesame Place and cut out shows that aren't geared towards them or are guaranteed to make them (or me) go mental. Poomba (sp?) will not be played in this house again ;) Another thing we discoved this week is the girls love playing in the dark. If you turn out all the lights they run around (they didn't inherit my eyesight!) laughing. The both used to be kind of iffy on the concept of off but they sure get it now. They chant "light off" , "off", "off".

Their new couch. Check out Emma's little belly and the couch potato posture.

Sitting still...watching Baby Einstein

Leah loves all the animals

20 months

2006-02-10T19:37:00.000-05:00

I keep on thinking I'm done with this but then I realize how much fun it is to look back and see where they were at in one place. They were 20 months on Tuesday. We missed the 18 month NICU follow up visit when we were in Florida but I think it's safe to say that they have caught up to their actual age. We're still supposed to correct (18 months) until they're 2. Teeth: I don't know. They bite. Hair: Leah's is getting quite long in the back and it is now a true mullet. There is talk about cutting it. We'll see. It's got a slight wave to it so it doesn't look too bad, just messy. Emma's is still really curly but hers is also getting longer. Sleep: They are finally sleeping through the night again. We've had three bad nights in the past three weeks. One night Emma took of her diaper and proceeded to wet herself and the bed. The other two nights Leah has woken up awake and played a little too loudly and woken Emma up. We haven't (and won't) given them a bottle in the night since we got back from Florida. They are going to bed at 7:30 but they usually play til after 8. They've been getting up around 8am. I've managed to get them to give up napping in the morning and they now nap after lunch. Somedays they nap for an hour, somedays I wake them up because I won't let them sleep more than 2.5 hours. Getting around: They both started their obsession with climbing this month. They are both surprisingly sure footed and they have yet to really fall. We set up the slide on their play house and although they really enjoy it, any chair is still their favourite. They can both run and Emma has started jumping which is pretty funny. They like to dance and chase each other around. Emma is starting to walk up the stairs rather than crawl. Leah can walk as well but she prefers crawling. Food: They are eating better these days. Emma is very open to trying new things and she will eat most of the things we give her. Leah is still throwing new foods (unless it's a bread product) on the floor without even trying it. Their favourites are pasta and pizza. They still get their bedtime bottle - now that they're sleeping again I have a whole new excuse not to take it away. Emma had some constipation issues in Florida but she didn't eat well for the first couple of days. She's been fine since. This month I'm going to start them on utensils. Yes I know I should have done this months ago but as I've said 100 times by now they are not good eaters. I don't care if they eat with their hands til they're 3 but we're going to give it a try. I weighed them the other day...well actually I told them to stand still on the scale. They are both 21lbs exactly (our scale goes to 0.1lb). Potty: No change. They are not all that interested now that the novelty has worn off. They do come running seconds after they poop to let me know though. I've started changing them on the floor downstairs and whoever isn't getting changed likes to try and wipe her sister's bum with a wipe... Talking: They are doing really well. They learn new words every day and they are constantly pointing out things and telling us what it is. Emma has really started speaking in two word phrases. She is contantly telling us who an object belongs to. It's no longer book, it's mama's book or Leah's shoe. Leah uses two words but only on special occasions like "no Emma". I got a call for the second workshop with the Speech and Language people. I have to go at the end of the month. I don't think they need it anymore but I know if I say that they'll just think I'm one of those moms that thinks her kids are perfect. Personalities: Leah has really mellowed the past few weeks. She is loving and will come for hugs and kisses throughout the day. This is a big change for the girl that used to hate being cuddled. She is much more patient and easy going. I think it might have something to do with her expanding vocabulary. She can now tell us when she's hungry, tired or upset. She is really good about sharing with Emma and if I give her a cookie she will give it to Emma and then come back for hers. Emma won't give Leah one until she has two and even then sometimes she tries to keep the two for herself! Emma on the other hand is not as loving as she once was. At the beginning of the month there were times when only I could hold her. She wanted Mama mama mama mama mama. It got to the point where she wouldn't let John push the shopping cart if I was there. The past couple of weeks she's been a lot more independent which is good because she was getting a bit clingy. She's even much more friendly with strangers. Emma is a hoarder. She will accumulate a pile of blocks and scream "Leah Leah Leah" when Leah tries to take one. Sometimes I think she's very lucky Leah is easy going when it comes to toys. Emma has also started taking off her clothes, the dolls clothes and tonight she took the sheet off her bed. Sleepers with buttons are no longer safe and I think the zippered ones days are numbered. We're going to have to put them on backwards soon! Leah has unbuttoned her sleeper once but thankfully she didn't take off her diaper. They've both started running to me saying the others name when something has happened. John and I are both pretty set on letting them figure things out on their own and it seems to be working. When they get hurt they'll stop crying to tell you what hurts. For the most part they get along well. They are never far from each other and sometimes you can catch them giggling over some secret. The two of them can get pretty silly and they just feed off each other. They like to dance and yesterday they were holding hands going around in a circle. It was very cute. They still talk and laugh in their cribs which is nice to hear now that it's not at 3am.

It's good we got two buckets of blocks.

"Look at us mom, we can handle the ceramics"

Emma on the slide

Plotting in the coat closet

Time outs...who was I kidding.

2006-02-05T21:54:00.000-05:00

There are two things that are very clear in our house... 1) The girls are not ready for toilet training (or learning as some people like to call it) 2) The girls are not even close to ready to understand time outs. With the second one pretty obvious, John and I were forced to relax. I would say that for the most part we aren't what you'd call uptight parents but on Friday I was pushed to my limits. On Saturday the girls put on the same climbing show for their dad and his reaction was pretty much the same as mine. We talked about it at length and decided that we need to relax. We even managed to figure out the obvious - that us freaking out over them climbing was making them want to do it more. It's amazing how freaking out can blind you from the obvious. Here's the plan we came up with. The girls have one of those plastic houses (that we keep in our living room rather than the backyard) and we decided it was time for us to add on the slide. The plan being it would be something they could climb that they were actually allowed to climb. They love it. We are also letting them climb on the couch. If they stand up we just take them down and calmly tell them they are not allowed to stand on the couch. Does it work everytime...no, but it's better. They are stil not allowed to climb over the ceramic tile. I don't care if we're too uptight about that, until they learn to listen and be careful they are only allowed to climb in the carpeted areas.

Friday!

2006-02-03T19:23:00.000-05:00

This week flew by. Nothing really exciting to report. John's mom was here for most of the week which was nice. John's second week of work was uneventful. The girls had a cold for most of the week. They were very clingy on Tuesday and both of them wanted me to themselves. It made for a lot of attempts to push each other off my lap and of course tears. Lots and lots of tears. The rest of the week they were just really congested. They think it is hilarious to randomly blow their nose and watch me jump to get a kleenex. It's definitely a good example of why you don't strongly react to anything because now they know that it gets me moving - fast. They'll both start doing it at the same time then take off running and laughing when I try to wipe their noses. It's actually pretty disgusting but funny at the same time. The key is to get to them before they start wiping it with their hands. Their climbing is becoming an issue. They climb everything. I don't know what to do. I can't just let them do it because they will fall. It's not like they climb up on a chair and sit like good girls - they climb up and then stand up on the chair/couch/whatever and then get silly. It's the silliness that scares me because they are not careful and the ceramic tile is just waiting to crack their heads open. They climb the kitchen chairs, the dining room chairs, the couch, their toy trunk - everything. I tell them not to do it and they laugh and think it's a game. I try and distract them and within seconds one of them will be back at it and the other will follow. Today I spent 4 straight hours following them around trying to get them to stop. For the first time in my parenting career it wasn't even safe for me to leave them so I could go to the bathroom. So I'm at a loss. I'm thinking it might be time for time outs. When they're bad make them sit in a toddler chair. I don't know if they'll get it but I need something to make them understand that they need to listen. The logistics of doing timeout with one while the other one runs free will be a challenge but based on today they'll both be in the same boat. I'm open to suggestions on this one.

Our weekend

2006-01-30T19:40:00.000-05:00

We had a nice weekend. Friday night we took the girls to Costco and then ordered Thai food and watched the craptors, I mean Raptors, game once they were in bed. It drives John nuts when I call them the craptors. I'm only joking - I mean I still watch most games with him so I can't think they're that bad. Our new mantra is every loss is one step closer to more balls in the draft pick lottery draw. Saturday night we were supposed to have dinner with our university friends at Coby and Carrie's house but Ronan got sick so we had everyone here instead. We had Alicia, Jeff and Amelia, and Liv, Scott, Emma, Brady and Conner. Sean and Sylvia dropped in for a bit before leaving for dinner plans(and swearing they would never have children I'm sure!). We were even numbers with the kids which was good because it really was something to see. Liv's Emma is 3, the girls are 19 months, Brady and Conner are 10 months and Amelia is 9 months. Needless to say we didn't even attempt to eat at the table. It was fun to see the kids crawling, dancing and running all over the place. Alicia posted lots of pictures. Here's one I took that I find amusing. Liv and Scott with 6 kids - can you find them all!

Yesterday I had book club. We used to do it on the last Monday of every month but we've moved it to Sunday afternoons. Bev made us all brunch and then we played Scene It. Not having seen more than a handful of movies (rented and in the theatre) in the past 3 years I was a bit worried that I wouldn't know anything but it was actually pretty fun. That's high praise from someone who traditionally can't stand board games although I think the interactive DVD part was what sold me. Today the girls woke up sneezing. By late afternoon we had snot city. By bedtime we had the famous snot bombs. Leah seems to have forgot how much she loved ramdomly blowing her nose (fingers crossed!). Every episode of sleep hell we have had has started off with them getting a cold. We've had TEN nights in a row now...I wonder how long this streak can last.

General silliness

2006-01-27T08:41:00.000-05:00

The girls really like to dance. It is pretty entertaining. They each have their own dancing style. Emma is very intense and Leah just walks around all happy go lucky. I'll have to get some more video to capture them when they're really dancing but this one was too funny to pass up. Enjoy. I know some of you saw this when I posted it and couldn't see the video. I can't get the video to embed (something weird is going on with YouTube). Here is a link. I'll try to embed it again later. THE VIDEO

I think they understand...

2006-01-26T12:54:00.000-05:00

...how frustrated I was with them. They have slept right through for SIX nights in a row. They go to bed at 7:30pm - no crying or fussing. They wake up around 7:30am and laugh and play with each other until I go in and get them at 8am. They eat up all their breakfast, lunch and dinner. They even ate quiche yesterday (big steps in our house!). They ask nicely for drinks and snacks and they are sharing with each other. All week they have napped after lunch which I must admit is quite enjoyable. I find it breaks up the day much better than when they would nap and be up for the rest of the day by 11:30am. It's been a bit of a fight to keep Leah up but she's been better with each passing day. They've been napping for 2.5 hours. The house is clean, the laundry is done and dinners are much improved (right John?!). They are in very good moods and there isn't much crying of any kind. They are picking up new words like crazy now. All in all they are much more enjoyable - or maybe I'm just not exhausted. Jackson has also stopped whining and is eating her new food. This can't last but I do enough complaining here that I thought I should give the 3 of them some credit for their excellent behaviour this week!

Jinx

2006-01-24T13:28:00.000-05:00

The girls have slept through for 4 nights in a row. We've started leaving the radio on for them all night (we accidentally left it on the first night and now we're scared to turn it off...) and we gave them these neat flashlights my dad bought them that don't need batteries (you shake them). The flashlights are pretty funny...if you peek in right after they go to bed it's like Starwars (but entertaining!). Unfortunately I can't say that I am well rested yet. Before we left for Florida Jackson was nearly out of her food. We went to a few stores but couldn't find it so I ended up mixing the old stuff with new stuff (same brand - some organic expensive crap)for when she was at Drew's. I'm assuming this was acceptable to her and that Drew wasn't lying when he said she was good. Well now we are out of the old food and she is not happy...and she is most unhappy between the hours of 1am - 6am. She likes to voice her unhappiness on my bedside table right in my ear. This past weekend we went hunting for her food only to be told that they've stopped making it. Nice. She does eat it so at this point she'll just have to get used to it. I don't have the heart to lock her in the basement yet but it's coming. We had a nice day yesterday. The weather was great so I decided to walk the girls over to the voting station. An educational field trip! They got to go again with John after work. Last night was TV heaven with the Senators beating the Leafs, 24, the Raptors game and the election coverage. Sometime after 10 I decided it would be fun to watch the election stuff in bed. I had to check online to see who won in our riding this morning. John had a good first day at work. I had a good first day back solo with the girls. I'm trying to get them to nap after lunch instead of in the morning. So far so good.

We're back

2006-01-22T15:50:00.000-05:00

We've actually been back since Thursday but I've been enjoying the last few days of our vacation. Our last couple of days in Florida were nice. We all went out for dinner twice and the girls were pretty good. We don't take them out much at home - it's not relaxing so we usually wait and go out just the two of us when we have babysitting in town. Maybe if the girls were into food it would be better but they are much more interested in running around so you have to eat fast or in this case take shifts entertaining them. At one point we gave both of them forks and discovered that they are quite capable of stabbing food and feeding whoever's lap they are on.Leah also got a taste of spicy food when she stole a piece of cajun chicken off my plate. She was very upset and could not understand why her mouth was on fire. Our trip was a nice break. My mom and dad have the perfect location - you can see Tampa Bay from their deck (see picture below) and the ocean is across the street on the other side. There is water everywhere and it is very pretty although hurricane season can be a bit stressful. The weather wasn't too hot and it was a nice break from snowsuits. One bonus of the girls being so small is that all their summer stuff still fit. The plane ride home was a bit better. I gave them gravol again and this time it knocked them each out for about 45 mins - not at the same time of course. The plane was mostly empty so we got two rows in the back to ourselves and they were able to move around a lot more which made them happy. It was nice to be home and sleep in our own bed. As I have mentioned, the girls have not been sleeping well for the past few months. It is slowly sucking all of our energy and we really did need a break. I think the majority of our problems are because they are in the same room. Emma has night terrors and it wakes Leah up. If you go in to comfort Emma, Leah sees you and wants up. If you try and leave with Emma all hell breaks loose. The same thing happens if Leah wakes up. We have got into the very bad habit of just giving them bottles in the middle of the night because it is the quickest way to settle them both down and there is always some reason why we don't want to be up for hours in the middle of the night trying to get them both to settle! It has become an expectation that we be up in the middle of the night with one of them. With Christmas and then this trip I was hesitant to start any sleeping boot camp but I have reached my limit. I'm not 100% sold on separating them yet so our first try will be getting them off the night bottle. If they wake up they have to work it out (with minimal intervention from us because I don't want the bottle to be replaced with the expectation that they get snuggles if they cry). Thursday night Emma cried for 10 seconds in her sleep and woke Leah up. Leah played in her crib for about 30 mins and then decided it was show time. Emma then woke up. I went in, gave Leah her soother and Emma her chickie and left. They weren't impressed. John and I made a deal that we weren't going in unless it was real crying and not just the whiny cry. Emma fell asleep after minimal whining. Leah alternated between whining and playing for 1.5 hours and then went to sleep. The last two nights they have slept through which I'm sure is just a fluke. I am determined to be strong on this and not let exhaustion cloud my judgement. I will embrace coffee and diet pepsi! John starts his new job tomorrow and I will not let him get up with them. If he has to put ear plugs in and sleep in the other room then that's what we'll do. I really hope this works for us because I really don't want them in two rooms but I am just so tired and fed up with getting up in the night. I get so frustrated that I can't fall back asleep! I guess I got spoiled with them sleeping through until they stopped 3 months ago. So that's the news here. Tomorrow starts a new phase for us. John will need the car for work so I will be carless (which I'm sure I will whine about here on a regular basis!). Hopefully he will have clients downtown so he can take the train in sometimes. I have to mention that Emma peed in the potty. They are still not at all ready for the potty but we are back to trying before bath now that we are home. John's mom was here Friday night and Emma peed for her. They have also started saying a few two and three word phrases. Emma is much more into it because it usually involves bossing around Leah. She can actually say "No touch Leah" which is pretty funny. Here are a ton of pictures from our holiday. No pictures of the cruise - I didn't bring the camera. The first picture is of three storks that showed up the night we arrived. Nobody in the park had ever seen storks before (not many babies in a retirement community....) and it was really, really weird. They are definitely not at all what the storybooks portray them as - long pointy beaks and a creey fixation on the girls. They actually followed them down the street. One lady took it as far as to say that it meant that one day I might have triplets. I didn't laugh.

The creepy storks "Hurry, they haven't noticed us leaving yet.." With Granny on the pier Hanging out with their new friends. RUN!!!! Leah looking for shells Emma posing What's that? Leah Emma John and Leah All of us The view from the deck. With Granny and Grandpa

Holidays

2006-01-17T10:05:00.000-05:00

We're still on holidays. Our trip isn't flying by which is nice. The plane ride with the girls was about as good as can be expected. We flew Westjet which was really good. They gave us a row to ourselves and each seat had it's own tv with all the satellite channels (including Treehouse). Unfortunately the girls (like at home) had little interest in the TV. Boy was I cursing not letting them watch TV!! They wanted to move around but we managed to keep them in our aisle. They were both tired but wouldn't nap (again our fault for never letting them sleep on us). I am not looking forward to the plane ride home. Oh, the Gravol had little to no effect...maybe a full dose on the way back ;) We spent 1 day with my parents before we left. The weather was warm and we spent the afternoon on the beach. John fished off the beach while the girls played in the sand. They weren't interested in swimming so it was quite nice. We were all able to relax while they played happily in the sand and pushed the wagon down the beach. Thursday morning John and I left for Miami to get on the cruise. We made good time and we were one of the first people on the boat...and at the buffet! The cruise was just what we needed...we slept a lot, ate a lot (ok, maybe we didn't need to eat a lot but at least we didn't have to cook!), and relaxed. We stopped in Key West and then in Mexico. John's birthday (29th) was on Saturday and I think he had the perfect day. He slept in, went snorkling in Mexico, ate not one but two dinners, played blackjack, poker and last but not least got to spend the whole day with me! The most memorable part of the cruise started Saturday night. There was a big cold front and the wind was crazy. The boat was rocking like nothing I have ever experienced. From my unscientific poll I think the majority of the passengers (including the staff) were sick. I had on my barf bracelets from when I was sick with the girls and I was queasy but managed to keep everything down. John was not so lucky. Gravol helped him out though. All in all the cruise was really fun and we would both do it again. The girls had a good time with my parents. They spent a lot of time at the beach. They are quite popular with all the people in the park and they have received lots of gifts. They have adjusted to Florida life quite well and I think the cold weather is going to be a shock to them. My dad gated off the deck so they can go outside whenever they want. It's nice to not have to run after them. We're here for two more days and then we fly home on Thursday. I'll post some pictures then.

Bye Bye See Ya

2006-01-09T21:15:00.000-05:00

We're off tomorrow morning. I'm packed, the girls are packed, John is packing. We are not looking forward to the plane trip with the monkeys. I talked to the pharmacist yesterday and he suggested a half dose of gravol to settle them down. I think we're going to do it. Whatever happens it will be memorable. The girls were 19 months on Saturday. I think I'm done with the monthly update (for this month anyway - too busy). Instead I'll just highlight some of the things they did this month... - Emma can now run and climb up on all our furniture. She is starting to show an interest in walking up the stairs rather than crawling. Leah is still quick walking and can only climb on the leather couch. They are fearless when they are on the couch and we have saved them from some nasty tumbles. It's scary. -They are learning new words everyday. Their latest is more. It was a very frustrating word at first because they just repeated it over and over again and got frustrated when you didn't bring them what they wanted. They are starting to understand that they have to tell us what they want and are putting it together with what they want. More pasta is their favourite. They love rotini. They also understand help and hot which has proven quite useful. They also say beep beep when they want you to move. -They are eating much better. Their appetites have increased a lot. They still love bread, cheese, yogurt, chicken and pasta. Emma is much more willing to try new things. Leah still throws it on the floor without even trying it. -They are sleeping much better. We had some bedtime issues over the holidays but they are back on track. We stil have some night wakings but it seems that they are more night terrors than them just waking up for the fun of it. -They are really starting to enjoy each other. They'll share their toys and have been known to randomly start kissing and hugging each other. They will sit together and build thing with their blocks or climb up in a chair and read a book together. They like to chase each other and sometimes the squeals of laughter are so loud it's piercing. I really hope they always get along - wishful thinking I know.

A break...because Christmas sure wasn't!

2006-01-04T11:18:00.000-05:00

We are going to Florida. The plan has been in the works for many months but there were a few things keeping us from booking. The most important being that John got a new job. His last day with his current job is Friday and he starts his new job on the 23rd. We leave for Florida on the 10th and we get back the 19th. Yipee! Not many of you have seen my mom in action but she's just like me when it comes to taking care of the girls. I give her the rundown at the beginning of the visit and then I sit back because she wants to do it all. She occasionally tries to give them fries or chocolate (suspiciously my dad is always close by at these times) but I know they are just teasing me. Oh but it gets better. John and I are going on a 4 night cruise. Yipee! Yipee! Sleeping, eating, swimming and reading my book. There are even poker tournaments for John. Four days to ourselves. I need a break. John needs a break. We are very excited. The girls will stay with my parents. The girls are doing much better. The snot production is way down and they are much happier. Their bedtime is slowly coming back to normal. Last night they were in bed at 7:55. Emma cried a bit but she settled by 8:15pm. They slept right through til 7:45 this morning when they woke up happy and lay there and talked to each other. They are napping again in the morning and I think they are slowly getting back to normal. I don't care if they want to go to bed at 8...I just need to know what time they go to bed at so I can get through the day. I know that makes me sounds pretty terrible but as much as I enjoy them I need some time of my own and by the evenings I am tired and my patience is low. Hmm...do you think I need a break! I have to write some of the cute things they are doing these days. They are sharing very well. If you give one of them two of anything and ask her to give one to her sister they do it no problem. Emma has started saying "aaahhhh chooo" when anyone sneezes. Leah loves blowing her nose - kleenex is optional. When you carry Leah in the store she says "walk" over and over again. Emma has started climbing on the kitchen and dining room chairs. Yesterday she made it up on the dining room table. They have tested every toy for step stool capabilities - some have been confiscated. Their language has really taken off. Leah can name every animal in one of her books and they both are constantly pointing out things they know when we're out. They are able to repeat and remember very quickly now. They can also follow two commands like "go find a magnet and put it on the fridge" or "go find the lion and give it to Jackson" (they are willing to give Jackson anything!). No more luck on the potty. Last night Emma refused to get in the bath - she wanted to sit (but not pee) on her potty...

Happy New Year!

2006-01-01T20:01:00.000-05:00

I have never been a big fan of celebrating the new year. It used to be because I thought there was too much hype that rarely lived up to expectation but now it's simply because the thought of staying up past midnight is not very appealing. Throw in two 18 month olds in tow and I'm sure you can understand why I wasn't all that keen on going anywhere. We always get together with our university friends for New Years and this year we were all set to go to Liv's. We had exchanged emails on how we were going to get her twin boys, her three year old, Amelia and the girls settled and sleeping so we could enjoy New Years. Unfortunately Liv's family came down with the flu so plans changed to Alicia's. The girls have been a disaster since Christmas. I know they say kids thrive on schedules but I always thought that didn't apply to us. Now I'm not so sure. They have been hard to get to sleep at night (hysterical crying etc) and they have given up a set bedtime or wake up time. I'm hoping it's the cold they have because to be quite honest it sucks. They are not happy so we are not happy. So back to New Years, I was pretty skeptical about getting them to settle at Alicia's but we packed the trunk full of their stuff and crossed our fingers that maybe we'd get to spend some alone time with our friends. No such luck. We were there a total of 3 hours where John and I took turns attempting to have conversations with people while keeping the girls out of trouble. We gave them their bottles but we just couldn't get them settled. We might have stayed if they were willing to play happily but Leah was in full tempter tantrum mode and there was no reasoning with her. We left. We were home by 9pm. Emma went to bed...Leah, fully recovered from her tantrum, was miss happy til 9:57 (yes, I kept on looking at my watch!) when she finally fell asleep. John and I were in bed by 10:30 talking about our evening when the neighbours behind us set off the best home display of fireworks I have ever seen. I was glad I got to see it. We were all fast asleep at the stroke of midnight...which was good because Leah was up bright and early this morning. Today was a lazy day. John finished painting our room so we got it all put back together. It is so nice to have some colour in the house. We took the girls out this afternoon and shoveled the driveway and went for a walk. Emma likes to walk but Leah gets fed up pretty quickly. The rest of the day was spent napping (thankfully they still nap!) and playing with the girls. I just went back and read what I wrote last year on New Years day. Apparently 2005 was everything I thought it would be...we sold the condo, moved into the house, the girls sat, crawled, walked and started talking. It was a busy year. I don't think 2006 will be quite as eventful but hopefully it will be just as much fun...with maybe a bit more sleep! It's 8:50pm...they are still not settled. John is back at work tomorrow. Leah peed in the potty again tonight!

Off to work

All done

Pretty snow

Walking with Dad

Posing with Dad

Leah peed in the potty

2005-12-30T20:33:00.000-05:00

...and yes I know it was a total fluke but this has become their journal so you will be forced to read about it! Uncle Drew got the girls potties for Christmas (shitty gift - ha ha). I've done my research on potty training and I understand there are 2 distinct schools of thought. I'm generalizing here but basically there's the get em trained early camp and the wait until they are good and ready camp. While I am fully prepared to wait until they are close to 3, I see no harm in getting them used to the idea now that they can a) walk, b) communicate and c) have shown an interest (they say pee pee, do do, yuck, dirty and toot toot when they or anyone else, ahem, pass gas...). Double diaper money is also a good motivator for us to try. So is me being at home with them all day, everyday. All that being said I have no false expectations that this is going to be a quick process. I asked for the potties so we could slowly introduce them to the idea. We have not started potty boot camp, I have just set them up and put them in their bathroom and the plan is to sit them on it before bath each night and go from there. Tonight was the first night. John is at poker so I did bath time solo. I got them undressed, closed the bathroom door and nicely asked them to sit on their potties to see if they needed to go pee pee. I have been making a big production everytime I have to pee so they know what pee pee is now. They both sat down and looked up at me waiting for the pee pee. I thought they would lose interest quickly but they both just sat there. About 3 mins in Leah peed. She actually started squealing pee pee and I clapped and got all excited. She was pretty happy with herself. Emma continued to sit but after 5 mins I put them in the bath. So there you have it. Our first free pee! What will we do with the 25 cents we saved on that diaper ;)

Christmas 2005

2005-12-29T21:17:00.000-05:00

Hmm where do I start. I guess with the good stuff. The girls were about as well behaved as we could have expected. They were happy and good and kept everyone entertained. We ended up staying in Oshawa for 2 nights and we decided very early on that the schedule would be tossed out the window and we would play it by ear. Christmas Eve the girls lasted til 9:30pm (they are usually in bed and sleeping by just after 7:30pm). I made the critical error of giving them their bottles before we left Aunt Bonnie's. Emma was fine but Leah woke up and decided it was party time. John got her to bed after midnight. They got up at 10am Christmas morning. They really enjoyed Christmas. Their favourite toy was the stroller and baby. They both knew to give the baby its bottle without us showing them! They also liked their blocks. We didn't open everything so it will be Christmas for awhile as far as they're concerned. Christmas Day we relaxed and then everyone came over for the turkey dinner. It was really good and the girls gobbled up the turkey with everyone else. They weren't overly excited about stuffing or turnip though. Leah started saying night night at 8:30 and so we gave them their bottles and put them to bed. They woke up at 9:30 on Boxing Day. Emma woke up with a runny nose... We got home just after lunch only to find that we had forgotten to open the basement door. Jackson the stupid cat still hasn't figured out going in the cat door... she didn't poop anywhere but she peed in the girls yellow comfy chair. It will be thrown out. We both felt awful for forgetting about the door. By dinnertime Emma was sneezing snot bombs so we knew we were in for a rough night. Sure enough she couldn't sleep and we ended up bringing her into bed with us (all bets are off when they're sick). Sure enough at 6am Leah woke up crying and Emma once again sat up in bed, pointed and repeatedly said Leah until John got Leah settled. So now they both have a cold and are completely off schedule. They are going to bed at 9 and getting up close to 10am. I know it sounds like a dream come true for sleep deprived parents but come 7pm John and I are ready to have them in bed so we can have some relaxing time. I'm not sure that we're going to be able to get them back on schedule for a few days but I'm not too worried. Next week John goes back to work and they'll have to get up to drive him to the train. I think that will fix them. So that's it. We've been relaxing and enjoying having John home. Coby, Carrie and Ronan were over tonight which was nice. After they left John went to Home Depot and bought paint for our bedroom and I'm supposed to be helping him...I should go ;)

Christmas Morning - 10am

With Chance and Uncle Drew

Giving Great Grandpa his gift

Where's Papa?

Little Moms

Blocks!

Our 2nd Christmas

"But Grandpa, Mom said that all good girls like the Ottawa Senators..."

Merry Christmas

2005-12-24T10:36:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone. We're off to Oshawa this afternoon to celebrate Great Grandpa's 93rd birthday and Christmas Eve. We'll be staying over in Oshawa and spending Christmas Day with John's family. The girls are napping right now so they'll be ready for all the excitement!

Night terrors

2005-12-22T10:41:00.000-05:00

John's dad left this morning. The basement is completely framed - it looks so different with framed walls. We now have an imaginary laundry room, storage room, rec room, bathroom, bedroom and little nook for the computer under the stairs. It is very exciting. Our homework this time is drilling some holes for the electrical. John's parents got the girls some boots and John's dad and I tried them out. They really like walking by themselves now so we weren't surprised that they loved being outside in their snowsuits even though it was freezing. It was sad times when they had to come inside. They weren't too sure what to think of the snow but they played in it. They much preferred walking down the middle of the street. I'm thankful our neighbourhood is quiet because when I'm by myself all three of us won't fit on the sidewalk because of the snow banks. I'm pretty anal (who me?!) about making them hold our hands when we're out. Emma is good but Leah can be stubborn. I want them to learn that if they want to walk they have to hold our hands. It's not optional when I am by myself. Once they listen they can walk by themselves down the middle of the road! Sleeping is going much better these days. It is no longer inevitable that we be up at some point in the night. Emma is having night terrors. I know she's 18 months and can't tell us she's having night terrors but it's pretty obvious. She'll wake up SCREAMING and curled up with her face in the mattress as opposed to standing up wanting to get out....now. I don't know if there is anything you can do about terrors (my instinct tells me no but I'll do some research) beyond console them and help them get back to sleep. I've brought her into bed with us a couple of times just so she doesn't wake Leah up. The last (last being the key word) time we tried it Leah woke up crying 4 hours later. Leah rarely wakes Emma up anymore but of course on this night Emma sat up with a start and yelled "Leah...Leah...Leah". Fun times at 4am. Leah is in orange, Emma in yellow.

What's this? Cold sand?

Little Sumos

full

2005-12-18T20:16:00.000-05:00

We just got back from Drew's. We had a Christmas dinner with John's Aunt Tina, Jeff, Tom, Steve, Drew, his roomate Matt and John's parents. It was a delicious turkey dinner with all the trimmings and I don't think I'll need to eat again for a couple of days. The girls even ate a ton and we put them straight to bed (without a bottle) when we got home. We'll see how this experiment goes. The girls were pretty well behaved until they got mad at being told not to touch the tree and the tv or go up the stairs. This age is hard because you can't reason with them and they are such sneaky little buggers. They just kept on trying again and again. I'm so thankful we made our entire downstairs babyproof. At least they didn't find Uncle Drew's cupboards... This weekend just flew by. Friday night John had poker and I watched the debate. Last election I was an ignorant Canadian. I didn't follow it very much (even though I was a human incubator stuck in the condo for weeks) and I didn't vote because the girls were in the NICU. Not only am I planning on voting this time, I plan to be properly informed. Yesterday we did some shopping (with the rest of Toronto) and watched the Sens score 8 goals on the Leafs for the 2nd time this season. This morning we did some groceries and then we were in Guelph for the afternoon. John's dad is staying until Wednesday to work on the basement. I'm not sure what he's going to do but our homework was to mark all the spots where we wanted plugs and switches. We just finished it...procrastinating again!

18 month check up

2005-12-15T20:13:00.000-05:00

We had our appointment today in North York. There was/is a big snowstorm coming and I waffled and waffled on whether or not to postpone it (it's a 45 min in good weather) but the next available appt wasn't until February so we went. I haven't taken them myself for a couple of appointments and I've never done the needles by myself. In order to keep them happy I decided to drive during their naptime so they would nap and meet Aunt Bonnie at the hospital for lunch. My plan was to have them well rested, well fed and well drugged with Tempra before our 1:15pm appt. The girls were on their best behaviour at the hospital. Everyone came to say hello and they all couldn't believe how big they are. Aunt Bonnie found two stuffed animals and two non breakable ornaments and they had a ball running around and laughing at each other. Even I will admit they were having a very cute I love my sister and think she's the funniest person in the whole world day. We took them into a quiet room and tried to get them to eat but there was way too much stuff to get into to be bothered with more than a few mouthfuls. The pediatrician's office is very small and I didn't bother taking the stroller in (they are starting to hate the stroller). They played well in the waiting room and let the nurse measure and weigh them. No more baby scales and the measuring tape - they had to take their shoes off and get on the scale and stand against the wall. Such big girls. They are both exactly 20lbs (FINALLY!!!!) and 30 inches (Leah is 3mm taller than Emma). They are still not on the growth curve for their age but they are following their own growth curve so once again Dr. Govan is pleased. I find it very interesting that they are both the same weight and height. I was looking at them in the bath tonight and physically they aren't that different. Emma just walks around like a little tank while Leah has more of a dainty little walk. It totally affects the way they physically appear. So they were doing well and then they got the shots. Leah could win an acadamy award for the performance she put on. She would not settle and finally I just asked if we could go ahead with Emma because Leah just wanted to sit on the floor and wail and I just wanted to get out of there. Emma was fine for the exam but was very upset by the two needles (one in each arm). At one point they were both going full strength. I had to joke that all those people that were saying how lucky I was in the waiting room were probably having a good laugh at my expense. It was one of the very few times I have actually seen them feed off each other. I finally got them calm enough to put on their coats and I let them walk to the elevator. The sniffling as they walked through the waiting room was priceless but they followed me out. Once they were in the car they whimpered a bit and then fell asleep. Of course by this time the snow storm was in full gear and they had a nice long nap while I drove across Toronto. We're supposed to get as much as 30cm before the snow is over. It's piling up quickly now. There's no doubt we'll have a while Christmas this year.

winter

2005-12-12T09:19:00.000-05:00

Well there is no denying it anymore - winter is finally here. We had our first big storm late last week and John and I were forced to face the winter responsibilities that come with owning a house. Of course we'd been procrastinating on buying a shovel - that's the way we work! I was able to sweep the steps and a path to the road (that never got plowed)and John stopped at Canadian Tire on his way home from work and bought a shovel. I used to love winter. All last winter the girls were in their infant carriers and it was so easy to keep them warm. Getting them both dressed and in the car is a long process and I am very thankful that my dad installed our garage door opener and John's dad organized our garage so the car fits because it is so much easier than lugging them both outside. Needless to say my incentive to get them up and ready to drive John to the train isn't quite what it was in warmer weather. Last week we were carless from Wednesday to Friday. Being trapped in the house with them all day is a whole other challenge. I'm thinking next summer I will make more of an effort to meet some of the neighbours so that come winter months we can have some playdates. I NEVER thougth I'd say that and in the summer I had plenty to do but now that winter is here I totally understand the need for playdates. And my reasons aren't even selfish, I really think the girls get bored being inside all day. And when they get bored they get cranky - so maybe it is a bit selfish because I can only listen to whining for so long. So anyways today it's -20C with the windchill but we have the car and we're going to do something this afternoon. The girls are doing well. They are sleeping well again and we are all well rested. We had a nice relaxing weekend and got some stuff done that we had been putting off. Yesterday I was at the front door with the girls looking out the window when I noticed the mailbox is in. I don't know how they managed to get it in without me seeing and I honestly thought I was seeing things. I have been picking up the mail at the Canada Post Depot for 8 months now. The woman there doesn't even ask me my address anymore AND she brings the mail out to the car so I don't have to unload the girls. While I am going to miss my mail lady friend I can't wait to have mail delivered to 5ft west of our front lawn (yes they moved it).

18 months

2005-12-08T20:42:00.000-05:00

I can't believe they're 18 months. Teeth: I'm officially not sticking my fingers in their mouths anymore. They are getting really good at brushing their teeth on their own. Hair: Filling in slowly. Leah has more hair and it's not as curly. I actually bought baby shampoo for them this month (we had been using the all purpose baby wash). Sleep: Not good. It's completely hit or miss but more often than not one of them will be up in the night screaming her (which turns to their) head off. I'm inclined to think they're having bad dreams because they get so upset. We also thought maybe they were hungry so we've started snacks and tried to get them to eat as much as possible at dinner. The last two nights they have eaten way more than usual and slept through so hopefully we're on to something. John and I are both pretty frustrated (and tired) with this - they were sleeping better a year ago. They are still having two naps every so often. They like to nap in the morning but I'm trying to get them to go right after lunch. Some days are better than others. Getting around: Leah started walking this month. They are both getting very good at climbing things. They can get up on their craft table (of course they stand on it) and they are smart enough now to pull things over to use as a step to get on the couches. They have a pretty good idea of where the edge is but it still makes me very nervous. I think they would both be careful enough on their own but you can't trust them not to accidentally (or so I think) push each other. Food: I am happy to report that we've had a pretty regular month and they are back to eating all their favourites. They've both developed a love of raisins which has really helped. I've also started making them banana and apple bread on a regular basis. They love bread of any kind but they gobble up homemade stuff. They still aren't overly excited about trying new things but we manage to get a well balanced diet it them although some days it is very challenging. Talking: They continue to add words on a daily basis. They are starting to use their words to tell us what they want which is reducing the crying and whining. Emma is better at this and Leah can still pitch a pretty good fit but she will eventually tell you what she wants. My favourite is during the day when Leah is tired we ask her if she wants to go night night. If she doesn't she used to ignore us but now says Noooooo. If she does she'll come over, put her arms up to be picked up and say night night. Emma will run to the stairs saying night night and they both usually go to sleep. Over the past week or so they have both started saying no. At first I thougth they didn't understand the meaning but if I throw in "are you a good girl?" in a series of questions that get a "nooooo" they will smile and not say anything. Buggers. Leah has taken no one step further and has a quick decisive no, a long drawn out noooooo and a no no no no which is accompanied by a wagging finger. It is so hard not to laugh. Personalities: It is becoming harder and harder not to compare their behaviour - both good and bad. Leah has been a real handful lately. She is so determined, independent and impatient. She gets very upset when she doesn't get her way and it is a real test to my patience. She lets you know in a hurry if she's tired, hungry or mad. That being said she is much better at sharing and much less sensitive than Emma. She plays well by herself and when she's in a good mood she's full of laughter and smiles. Emma is for the most part much more even tempered. She seeks approval and direction from us and is much less independent. She will share things with us (including the cat) but if you ask her to give something to Leah she gets very upset. Her outbursts are short lived and quickly forgotten. When her feelings are hurt she drops to the floor and does the saddest cry...with the occasional peek up to see if we are watching... They both have their challenges and we are really starting to have to act like parents. It amazes me how much work it is and how consistent you have to be. The other week I let them in the cupboards because I was fed up saying no every 2 mins (this was pre magnets). I successfully created two little monsters who pitched fits any time you tried to tell them no after that because they knew that they'd been allowed that one time. I definitely learned my lesson! Enough complaining! For the most part they are two happy little girls. They are full of laughs and smiles and they like to play with us and each other. I'm really glad I found the video feature because now you can all see just what they are like most of the time. They both really love books and will either read by themselves or fight for a spot on our lap. Here's a video I took today. It was dark so the quality isn't that good. They just started this walking around in circles dancing thing - they get so dizzy which is not for the faint of heart. I'd never thought I'd be saying that I'm glad we don't have a lot of furniture. There are some pics too.

Drawing

Dresses....

"Do you think we can fit mom down there?"

Emma

Leah

Two little walkers! (Video)

2005-12-07T09:36:00.000-05:00

Leah has been walking full time since late last week. It is so much fun to see them both up and they seem to alternate between nicely following each other around and chasing each other. She is much happier since she mastered walking and for the most part will go down willingly now (she was crying whenever we came home and put her down - not very convenient when you have two babies to unload). We are hearing much less "Up, Up, Up" these days unless you are relaxing on the couch and they want up on your lap to read a book. It's hard not to indulge their love of reading though so we usually give in. I can't wait for their next NICU appointment (I don't think I have ever said that!). I don't think they thought she'd be walking by 18 months corrected nevermind 18 months actual (16 months corrected). I wasn't so sure either and I am so happy with the progress she has made - remember at one year she was still doing the commando crawl. She's pretty proud of herself as well and Emma is very excited and the house is filled with non stop laughter from the two of them playing. We had a busy weekend. On Saturday we took the girls to Joe and Andrea's wedding in Port Perry. We decided to go to the ceremony and skip the reception. The girls were very good. It was a 1.5 hour drive and then they had to sit in church and afterwards we visited with John's family during the break between the wedding and the reception. We brought lots of snacks, books and a couple of toys. They both did really well and after the ceremony was done they walked all over the church to the delight of all their admirers. They had on their little dresses (yes I will put them in dresses now that they can walk) and they looked like little girls. Not very dainty little girls though! Sunday I had my cookie exchange. Last year this was a disaster because I put dozens of treats in the condo freezer and then proceeded to salivate over them all day long. This year I put most (yes we did some sampling) down in the basement freezer. Hopefully laziness will keep me away from it and I won't be forced to send it all with John to work so I can't eat it. Today the girls are 18 months (and Aby is 1 - Happy Birthday Aby!). I'll try and do the update later today. Here's a video of them both walking in their diapers and Robeez. Next summer I think this is going to be their main outfit!

2005-12-01T10:36:00.000-05:00

I'm not very good at updating lately but it's not for lack of trying - I just keep getting distracted. We had a good weekend with John's parents. Saturday we went shopping and tried to go see Harry Potter but the line up was insane. Sunday we were in Guelph for most of the day at Ronan's baptism. I didn't take any pictures but I'm sure Carrie will post some soon. He was a very good boy and did well with all his admirers. It was fun watching their families get so excited about seeing him. The basement is coming along well. John's dad worked pretty much non stop from Friday afternoon until yesterday at lunch when he went home. He did come upstairs to give me some breaks from the girls which was nice. I actually got to go to the library by myself - something I haven't done it over 2 years. We went to see Harry Potter on Tuesday night - I wanted to see Pride and Prejudice but I gave in to John's begging. It was ok and it was nice to see Harry finally do some magic (I didn't see the last one so I might have missed some magic). The girls are doing well. They are starting to pick up stuff at an amazing rate. They have added tree and light to their vocabulary and they will try and repeat most things you say. They also understand so much - they listen when you tell them to go get their shoes and sit down so you can put them on and many other things. You only have to tell them things once or twice now before they remember. They are also saying no and shaking their head much more but so far it's been at appropriate times like when I ask if they want a drink...we'll see how long that lasts! We got the magnet locks for the cupboards and drawers installed and I love them. There is much less crying and whining which is good because I was slowly going crazy. This morning they learned how to climb up on their craft table so that will be the next thing. They sure keep me on my toes.

They love to read

Reading the flyers with Papa

Eating their snack

Emma

Leah

basement

2005-11-25T22:06:00.000-05:00

John's parents arrived today. John and I are going to be godparents and we asked his parents to come watch the girls so we could focus our attention on Ronan for a few hours. The ceremony isn't until Sunday but John's mom was itching to see the girls and his dad was itching to start the basement so they arrived this afternoon. I am very excited to get the basement started. Eventually we plan on having a rec room and guest bedroom with an ensuite down there. For starters they are going to do the bedroom which we will use as a playroom. Although the girls don't have a ton of toys they have an amazing ability of spreading them throughout every inch of the house and it's getting on our nerves. I am trying to teach them to tidy up but it seems I'll get one picking the toys up and putting them away then then other will think it's funny to grab each toy that's being put away and run off with it. I have yet to get them both in picking up mode. The girls are doing all sorts of cute things these days. My favourite is when they lie on the floor on their backs and read their books. They love books lately and several times a day you'll find them sitting in their chairs reading to themselves. They also like to bring me books and get me to read to them. I've also started giving them snacks without putting them in their feeding chairs. I make them sit in their comfy chairs until they are done eating. It takes a bit of persistence (especially with Emma) but they are getting the idea that if they want to eat their Arrowroot they must stay in their chair or Mom will take it away and she could care less if they cry. They are both obsessed with the cupboards and it is driving me insane. It used to be we could block them with chairs but now they can move the chairs. My holdout on childproofing has come to an end. I bought these neat magnet locks and now all we have to do is get them installed.

Leah walking

2005-11-19T19:58:00.000-05:00

Things are a lot better around here - not 100% but a lot better. I did end up getting sick but nowhere near as bad as John. We are both on the road to recovery and at this point our only symptoms are waves of nausea and complete loss of appetite - which is honestly like heaven compared to the past few days. The girls are both recovering from nasty diarrhea and they've been sleeping a lot - 13 hours at night and 2 naps. They've been a bit whiny but they never got fevers or lost their appetites which we are very thankful for. So needless to say we haven't been up to much at all. We had plenty of offers for help but I just didn't feel right about spreading the nasty germs to anyone. Drew came over last night and helped John get the girls to bed then watched the Raptors game with us. Tonight we were in the living room playing with the girls when I asked Leah if she wanted her dog toy. Rather than crawling over she decided to walk. We made such a big deal that for the next 45 minutes (until bedtime) she walked everywhere. She was so proud of herself. She's not at all steady and having Emma around doesn't help. We had to hold Emma back because she wanted to chase Leah and Leah's not quite ready for that! Hopefully she'll remember tomorrow. Here's a video. John is holding Emma back which is why you hear her crying at the end. She wanted to tackle Leah...ah the joys of having two!

update

2005-11-17T19:44:00.000-05:00

Poor John has had a rough couple of days. He puked pretty much every 1.5 hours for over 24 hours. He couldn't keep anything down until last night when we got him some Gatorade. While the puking has subsided he still has the fever, nausea, and a headache. So no, he is still not well. I was fine yesterday. In an attempt to get the girls out of the house and let John rest I took them to Mother Goose in the morning and to the library in the afternoon. I was thinking what a great immune system I had until the middle of the night when I woke up repeatedly feeling like I was going to puke. The feeling has been with me all day but I haven't given up any food yet. The thought of having to eat is motivation enough to breathe through the puking sensation. My temperature has been climbing but I still don't have a fever or a headache. Hopefully I can sleep it off tonight. It's hard to tell if the girls are getting sick. Their appetites are good and for the most part they were in good spirits. They had two long naps today and several very dirty diapers each (a rare event around here) so I have a feeling they're fighting something. Emma was very clingy tonight and wanted lots of hugs which is not a good sign. Taking care of the two of them when we're healthy is tiring. Taking care of them when we're sick is miserable. Taking care of the two of them when we're all sick is something I don't even want to think about!

Crappy day

2005-11-15T20:31:00.000-05:00

Last night the check engine light came on while John was driving home from the train. I spent all last night hoping a night parked safely in our garage would make it feel better but no such luck. He took it in this morning and it was there all day. Six hundred bucks later and we have our car back. As some of you may know, due to a mess up by the salesman, we have free maintenance on the Focus. I'm not just talking oil changes - we get all the recommended service for free. We've been really good at following the maintenance plan - there's something about telling the service guy that you actually don't owe them $400 for package 4 (aka the greatest ripoff around) that makes you want to do it again and again. So needless to say we are not impressed that anything this major went wrong. Especially not seeing as we are a mere 6 months (3000km) away from the end of the lease. I know the odds are higly in Ford's favour that we'll be driving one of their minivans soon but now I am even more determined to try and find a way to not let that happen. So that in itself was enough to label the day crappy. Unfortunately it doesn't end there. At lunch time John called and said he felt sick...like he was going to barf sick. I told him to go buy himself some lunch and report back. When he called an hour later and said that he couldn't eat his Wendy's chicken sandwich combo I knew we were in trouble. By then he was also reporting a fever and a headache. Since we had no car he had to take the train to the dealer and get the shuttle home. He lay in bed all afternoon while the girls laughed and screamed their heads off - with no car and heavy rain there was nothing I could do to keep them quiet. He got up to have some dinner and for an hour he seemed to be feeling better. I got the girls to bed and then he started barfing. John never throws up. The last time I saw him barf it was self inflicted and even then that only happened once and it was many years ago (Coby will remember!). He is now laying on the couch, drinking gingerale (John hates gingerale), with two pairs of socks on and a blanket because he is freezing. We got some flu stuff but he's waiting until bedtime to take it. Not that it would do us any good now but we had an appointment tonight to get the girls their flu shots. We had to cancel it because we had no car. Cross your fingers that the girls (or even me for that matter) don't get sick.

Our week

2005-11-14T18:25:00.000-05:00

Nothing too exciting this past week. The girls are doing well. They are very silly lately and they find each other very, very funny. Some of their favourite games are chasing each other, dancing to music together and locking themselves in their play structure which we have made into a fort in our living room (beats furniture!). On a not so cute front Emma figured out that toys can go in the cat door today. We had a pretty relaxing weekend. We were supposed to see Coby, Carrie and Ronan on Friday but Carrie was sick so they stayed home. Saturday we did some shopping then relaxed. Sunday John attempted to put up the Christmas lights outside but the ladder is too short and it was much too windy for him to go up on the roof. Today was far from relaxing. Jess goes back to work next month and is currently interviewing so I have been watching Sarah and Brennan. Today she had 3 interviews and I had the 4 kids from 9:30am til 2:30pm. I have a new respect for people that run in home daycare for infants and toddlers - I am pretty tired. That's all I've got. Pretty boring around here these days. The girls are sleeping better again. I have no idea why...

17 months

2005-11-07T19:39:00.000-05:00

The other day Alicia asked me when the girls started yogurt. I had no idea - I thought it might have been while we were still in the condo but I wasn't sure. Luckily I have their every move documented so I just had to search the updates. Teeth: I haven't looked and we've had no signs of teething. Since we are spending more time around kids their age I realize just how toothy they both are. Nice to see them excelling at something! Hair: It's getting thicker. Everyone who hasn't seen them in awhile comments on how much more hair they have. I probably could get Leah's hair in a tiny ponytail but I think it would look stupid... Sleep: Much better than last month but still not perfect. We had a stretch of 5 nights of uninterrupted 12 or 13 hour sleeps but since then it's been hit or miss. Last night Leah woke up at 4am and was just talking to herself. It wouldn't be a big deal except it wakes me up and then I can't get back to sleep. We also had a night last week where they were screaming with laughter at 3am. John and I were lying in bed laughing at them which was a nice change from being fed up with being up in the middle of the night. They have officially gone down to one nap a day which if they had their way would be in the morning. We get in a nice little groove but then we have Mother Goose on Wednesday mornings at 10:30 which messes it up. Oh well - good thing they're flexible. A couple of times Leah has got pretty wound up in the afternoon and taken a second nap but Emma is officially done. We have also moved their bedtime to 7:30 which is quite nice. We now give them a bath every night and they get their bottles in their room while we read them a story. They go to bed no problem and they don't cry anymore at all. They say night night to us and go to sleep. It's very cute. I love having an extra 30 mins to myself each night. Getting around: This month Emma decided to walk. It's by far my favourite developmental thing because she is just so proud of herself. It's also very nice not to have to carry her everywhere when we're out and I'm by myself. She is getting steadier and quicker with each passing day. Leah has also shown amazing progress and is able to stand up by herself (in the middle of the room) and walk a few steps. She's nowhere near as steady as Emma was but she has determination. I don't think she'll be taking any one month breaks like her sister now that she's started to get the hang of it. She is also very proud of herself and she seems a lot less frustrated these past few weeks. We got them walking shoes this month and they love them. They both ask for their shoes and will sit patiently while we put them on. They're also great because you can really hear them coming. They're not light on their feet! Food: It's been a month of trying to keep them both regular. We've had to carefully watch their diet and we've ended up cutting back their milk intake. We tried the other dairy but it did not help. We now give them water all day long and they get their milk at bedtime. This has been really frustrating because it doesn't exactly get us any closer to getting them off the bedtime bottle. I am making an effort to stop my obsession with their bedtime bottle. They need milk and since they still aren't 20lbs yet (according to our scale) it's pretty obvious they need the extra calories. It's just one of those things I said I would never do which I know is stupid but it bugs me and I just have to forget about it. So now that the constipation is sorted out they are eating well. They still aren't very adventurous but they eat healthy foods and have healthy appetites so I think they're doing fine. Talking: They were both evaluated by the speech and language program earlier in the month and they are doing just fine for their age. They are picking up new words every day and starting to communicate their wants and needs. I am using some of the strategies I learned in the workshop and I can see it helping. We have to go back in January for the second workshop which while a pain should be interesting. I'm too lazy to list all their words but I would say they're nearing 50 by now although some are way more common than others. Cat is still a favourite - poor Jackson! Personalities: Not a big change this month. Emma is still our little suck and Leah is still miss independent although she does get sucky every now and then. Leah is very motivated by food and Emma is very motivated by our reaction. They are both very good at playing and they only follow us around when we're in the kitchen. They like "helping" with laundry, vacuuming, cleaning and they love the dishwasher. In that parenting class I took they said that all kids should do chores as soon as they are able and not be rewarded so they learn it's their family job. I can't wait. Two little slaves!! We started swimming lessons this month. They both love the water and they don't cry unless they are cold. They will blow bubbles and don't mind being dunked. Leah even tries to go off by herself which is pretty funny. We also started Mother Goose which is when I realized how independent they both are. Part of me wishes they would sit on my lap and stay close like all the other kids but then I go home and I'm thankful they're not like that. They seem to enjoy Mother Goose. They are starting to pick up the words to songs and they will sing which is very cute. They can say row row row and something that sounds kind of like merrily for Row Your Boat. We have had a lot less temper tantrums this month which is very nice. Emma has bitten Leah twice in the past few days to try and get her to give something up. It is very hard not to have a big reaction to that type of behaviour but so far they are isolated events. That's all I can think of. We are all doing well. We're a bit tired but it could be so much worse. They are so much fun now and every day they make us laugh.

Leah is taking steps...

2005-11-06T10:14:00.000-05:00

...and as I predicted she had NO FEAR. She usually starts off sitting down in her chair and then she'll stand up. She may or may not get her balance before moving forward. We have seen her get all the way across the tv room and we have also seen her dive bomb and hit the floor! No tears though she just gets up and tries again. She's very proud of herself. I think she still needs to get more balance before she takes off but somehow I don't think we'll be able to convince her of that. There's a reason kids learn to walk while they're still under 3 feet and the ground is nice and close. I'm just very happy we have carpet.

Halloween week

2005-11-03T20:17:00.000-05:00

The girls had a good Halloween. We had a full house and after dinner as John and I got ready to take the girls out in the wagon the grandparents decided that not trick or treating wasn't an option. John's dad grabbed Emma, my dad grabbed Leah and we all followed as they went door to door with their trick or treat bags (that my mom magically produced...hmm...). The girls thought it was really funny and they weren't shy or scared by some of the more elaborate houses. I took some pics but they are all too dark. When we got home we let them play with their candy while the rest of us rooted through and ate the good stuff. Mean I know but we all know I'm mean by now. The girls had no interest in eating it - they were more interested in hoarding it from each other and putting it back in the pumpkin bag. My parents left for Florida on Tuesday morning. My dad has been itching to go with the cold rainy weather. Of course since he left it's been in the upper teens and dry. It's supposed to rain this weekend so I'll have to call him and tell him how miserable it is up here in the great white north. Speaking of the phone I don't think I ever mentioned that we are fully on Vonage now. We got a nice card from Bell today telling us how much they missed our 75 bucks a month. John's dad has been here this week. On Tuesday he came with us to the speech appointment which was helpful because I got to take one girl in at a time. Leah went first and they videotaped me playing with her. I then got to watch the video and it was quickly apparent that I am a question machine. When encouraging kids to speak you are not supposed to ask a bunch of questions. I knew that I did it but the video really drove it home. Emma was second and I did much better. The therapist was cursing herself for taping over Leah because the difference in me and the girls reaction was really neat to see and she said she could have played it in her workshop (was I ever happy she taped over it!). Emma was much more engaged and spoke quite a few words. I'm supposed to keep on applying what I learned but I still have to go to another workshop in January. If all goes well that will be the last. Yesterday John's dad came to Mother Goose with us. It was much easier having another person there and the girls didn't make anyone cry. In the afternoon I met Alicia and Amelia at Square One while John's dad watched them. After shopping we all came back to our place where John and Jeff met us for our annual Raptors season opener night. After all the girls were fed and put to bed we raided their candy and relaxed. Today the weather was beautiful and we did some work outside and continued organizing the garage so we can fit our car inside. John and I took the girls to swimming tonight - they let us dunk them no problem now. They seem to enjoy swimming except they get cold. Someone called our house at 1:30am last night and it woke Leah up. We tried to get her to settle on her own but she kept on waking up. I gave her a bottle at 3am but she was up with Emma at 7:30am. She was a real grump today and we're all hoping it's just because she didn't sleep well and not because she's coming down with something. She actually wanted me which was what she was like when she had the cold... Here are some Halloween pics. We got the costumes in Vegas. Emma is a cow and Leah is a giraffe. They were very cute.

At the pumpkin patch

Still at the pumpkin patch...

Cute Emma in John's baseball cap

Halloween

Temptation

Eating dinner with Amelia

Emma Wonder.

2005-10-29T22:23:00.000-04:00

Nothing very exciting to report. I had the second speech and language workshop on Friday and we have a follow up appointment this Tuesday. I'm supposed to pick a target word and repeat it all sorts of ways. Since the girls say and understand "up" so well we've decided to try for down. So far we get "da" every once and awhile. During the follow up session they will videotape me interacting with the girls (using all the new skills I've learned....) and then we will review the tape and receive feedback. It should be interesting. I would really love to get discharged from the program but I'm not going to beg and be reported to child services. The workshops are a pain because I have to find someone to watch the girls for 2 hours in the middle of a workday. We had a nice weekend. Last night we did some shopping, took the girls for a walk then watched the Sens pound the Leafs 8-0. The girls did well with the clock change this morning and got up at 7:45 new time. Today we went to the library - no I didn't have to drag John along - he was the one who suggested it after he discovered the Oakville library has much more current computer books than Mississauga. I wish I shared his love of technical books. After the library we took the girls to the pumpkin patch and got a pumpkin. We were going to try and get the girls in bed by 7:30 but by 7 all four of us were tired of each other and we decided to let them go to bed because they were very tired. We'll try to stretch it out a bit more tomorrow night. We're looking to change their bedtime from 8pm to 7:30pm. Tomorrow John's dad and Drew are coming to drop off our old couch. I am fed up looking at our empty living room and I miss our nice comfy couch. John's dad is going to stay for the week and his mom is going to come for the weekend. My parents are also staying tomorrow night on their way through to Florida so we're going to have a full house. I'm going to have to be extra vigilant that none of the grandparents or Drew try to sneak the girls any Halloween candy! We're not going to take the girls trick or treating but we'll probably pull them around in their wagon so they can see all the "cumkins" - that's the word they learned today.

Getting their bedtime bottle in Ottawa Going for a walk

Here's a video taking yesterday afternoon of Emma dancing...we call her Stevie Wonder. She gets her rhythm from John ;)

Wednesday already

2005-10-26T20:21:00.000-04:00

We had a good weekend even though the weather was terrible. On Sunday we had a visit from Sean and Ahren (our university friends). We see Sean all the time but it was nice to see Ahren who now lives in Vancouver. We also had a birthday party on Sunday afternoon. The little boy across the street turned 4 - his little brother is the same age as the girls. The girls had fun watching the older boys run around screaming. Little boys sure have a lot of energy. This week we've been busy. Monday we did errands. Yesterday we went to the Early Years for the drop in. It was the busiest I'd ever seen it and it was a bit challenging keeping the girls out of the path of some of the older kids. Thankfully they're used to being pushed around by each other so there were no tears. This morning we had our first Mother Goose session. Emma made two of the other kids cry. She didn't mean it but again she's used to playing with Leah. One thing I did notice is that the girls are actually pretty good at sharing. We haven't had any tantrums in awhile now. They have adapted a system where they play tug of war which turns into them both giggling because they think it's funny. Of course they tried doing that with the other kids today and the look of shock when the other kids just started crying was funny. Of course I didn't laugh - I was already on thin ice with all the other moms because Emma is such a bully. All in all they seemed to enjoy Mother Goose. They both danced and laughed even though it was right in the middle of their nap time. They were pretty grumpy in the car on the way home and went straight to bed. Tomorrow Jess is dropping Sarah and Brennan off for a couple of hours in the afternoon. Friday I have another speech and language workshop so Jess is going to watch the girls. Two busy days and then it will be the weekend.

VIDEOS!!!

2005-10-24T19:02:00.000-04:00

Here we go. I found this website that hosts the video so expect lots more in the future. This one was taken moments ago. While some of you may think that Leah is at a disadvantage because she doesn't walk this will show you that is not the case. Pay close attention to the audio at the end - I promise Emma was not hurt in the making of the video!

We're back

2005-10-22T16:20:00.000-04:00

First off let me say that Emma is walking!! When we were in Ottawa she got more and more confident. We then got them walking shoes and she's really going now. Way more walking than crawling. She still has her arms up in the air but she's looking less and less drunk as she gets the hang of it. The shoes also seem to be helping Leah - she's tried a few times to get up to standing, can stand by herself and on Thursday night she took 2 steps! She still has a way to go but she's much more daring than Emma. The girls had a good trip to Ottawa. We are still battling constipation with Emma. We get her sorted out and then it starts up again. Nothing has changed in her diet and the only thing I can now think of is that she doesn't drink as much now that the hot weather is gone. Leah is fine. They both aren't eating as much as they were and they still aren't sleeping very well although we're down to 1 wake up a night. My theory on this (it seems all I do is sit around and think up theories!) is that they're hungry. They are really not interested in sitting in their chairs and eating but I'm going to start trying to get them to eat more. Baby Einstein during meals helps as well as letting them eat off the coffee table. Bad habits I know but they're so small and they need to eat more. I don't understand how they didn't get my "I love food" gene. Our trip to Ottawa was good. We got a flat tire on the way but thankfully we left early enough that it was still daylight and the roadside assistance was very quick. I'm sure we could have done it ourselves (we actually found the donut and all the tools) but neither of us were confident enough in our non existent tire changing abilities to risk the girls. The weather for the wedding on Saturday was crappy but they had a good indoor backup plan and the night was a lot of fun. It was nice to be out without kids. John left on Sunday and we got back Thursday. My parents didn't read my last post but I was still able to do all of my plans minus watching Oprah because I was napping. Thursday night the girls had their first swimming lesson. The girls were in the water a lot over the summer and they quickly got used to it again. We had to lay them on their backs, on their tummies, dunk them and blow bubbles. There was no crying during the dunking - just alot of funny faces. We were also officially the last people to go home that night. I'm not a slow poke and I couldn't figure out why we were last until I remembered seeing a supporting cast of onlookers for each child. These same people swooped in at the end of the lesson and got the child ready while the swimming parent changed. Maybe one day I'll be a grandparent and undertand but I can't even imagine how boring it would be to spend 30 minutes watching toddler swim class. Yesterday I had my first workshop with the speech and language program. There were 7 other parents there and their children were mostly a little over 2. It was an interesting session. I learned some ways to encourage them to talk. We've already been doing some of the things like not talking all the time and making them ask for stuff rather than providing everything. I also learned some things like correcting them in a positive way, waiting for them to express themselves and rather than trying to get them to focus on one activity to just move on and stay engaged with them. Last night John and I went to Canyon Creek for dinner while my parents watched the girls. We went to the one right by the condo. I forgot how busy that area is - we got there at 8:30pm and we still had to wait 40 minutes. Even when we were leaving there was a big wait. That restaurant really reminds me of the days before we were married when we were both working and going out all the time. My parents left this morning so it's back to reality once again. They go to Florida soon so it really is reality this time. It's cold, rainy and miserable here today. We took the girls to Costco and the grocery store then came straight home. I wanted to go to the pumpkin patch but it doesn't look like the weather is going to cooperate. I might have to buy our pumpkins at the grocery store which I guess is a fair trade off for the hottest summer on record. I'll post some pictures soon. No change except they are both cuter.

Emma may or may not want to walk to Ottawa

2005-10-13T22:38:00.000-04:00

We're going to Ottawa tomorrow. One of our university friends is getting married on Saturday night near Montreal and we're going to leave the girls with my parents. While I'm not looking forward to the drive at all I am looking forward to a week of help. John is coming home Sunday but I'm going to stay for a few more days. I have some pretty elaborate plans of sleeping, catching up with my high school friends, visiting family, reading, lying on the couch and watching Oprah...you know all those things some people think stay at home moms do all day ;) Hopefully my mom and dad will read this before we get there so they are fully aware and on board with my plan! This whole week has been very long. I think it's because that beautiful summer weather has finally gone. It's been cold and rainy all week. Yesterday I took the girls to Ikea just to get out of the house. They still hate Ikea. Jess called today to ask if I wanted to meet her, Sarah and Brennan at Square One and I jumped at the suggestion. We walked around for 2.5 hours and the girls were so good. I had the diaper bag packed with distractions because I thought they would be monsters but they were fine just watching all the people. Emma has started walking again. Last night she was trying to press the buttons on the TV and since "NO" results in fits of giggles I just moved her to the other side of the room. When I put her down she started walking back towards the TV. I kept on moving her further and further away and everytime she walked back. When she fell she stood up and kept on going. Today she wasn't really interested but tonight she walked all the way across the family room and back without falling. Hopefully this time she gets it and I can officially say she's walking soon.

Long day

2005-10-11T21:05:00.000-04:00

The day after a holiday weekend (or helpful visitors) always seems so long. Today was no exception. The girls and I had two appointments so I thought it would go by quickly but it dragged on and on and on. On the plus side I was well rested because the girls are very nearly back to their old sleeping selves. Our first appointment was with the Speech and Language program. The appointment went pretty much as I expected. It was nap time so the girls were a bit crusty but they did well. Of course they both didn't say much to the therapist but I had accounted for this and had the list of all their words (see my updates are good for something!). If we have the pleasure of going again I will suggest to the therapist that we use books rather than toys to get them to talk. They don't really make a habit of talking when they are dropped in a room full of new toys - the same thing happens at the Early Years. They become very quiet while they take everything in. The appointment consisted of the therapist asking me all sorts of questions about their play habits and how they interact with others. The girls were left to play while we observed and tried to get them to talk. Emma did much better than Leah - Leah wouldn't even say baby. Thankfully the therapist took my word that Leah is actually very chatty. In the end she didn't see any cause for concern with the speech but because they were preemies (and speech problems are very common in preemies) she did not want to discharge us. She instead signed me up for a workshop on strategies to help encourage them to talk. Should be interesting. While you might think that my brain is rotting away while I'm not working I'm actually learning a ton about child development which I guess is one perk to having preemies. So the morning nap didn't happen. We got home around 11:30am and they were asleep by noon. I had to get them up at 1:30 to eat because I had a doctor appointment at 2:15pm. While they were napping I looked up directions to our new doctor and discovered that it was in an old house...a not very stroller friendly old house. I was tempted to cancel and reschedule when someone else could watch the girls but I decided to give it a try. There were stairs when we got there so I brought the stroller into the reception area then got the girls. We were all set when the receptionist told me the stroller wouldn't fit through the door to the doctor's office. When I told her that they would have to crawl around she offered to watch them while I was in my appointment! So in the end the appointment which I expected to be hell because the girls don't sit still for long was nice and relaxing. At the end they even helped me carry the girls and the stroller to the car...and the doctor was nice too. I'm pretty excited to have a nice doctor with nice staff. The funny part is the doctors office is actually walking distance from our house - for those of you that have been here you'll know how amazing this is...we live in the sticks now. I haven't mentioned lately how much I still miss the condo - especially now that summer is over.

GUILTY

Tricking them into sitting together

"Jackson come back...we promise we'll be gentle"

Happy Thanksgiving

2005-10-10T09:20:00.000-04:00

We usually go to Ottawa for Thankgiving but we have a wedding near Montreal next weekend so we're going then. We were not up for travelling two weekends with the girls (two playpens...two feeding chairs...etc etc etc) so we decided to stay home. Aunt Bonnie invited us over for Thanksgiving dinner last night so we went to Oshawa. It was nice to see everyone and we had a very nice meal. The girls cried for Great Grandpa initially but then he made them laugh with a teddy bear. Unfortunately they don't enjoy sitting on laps anymore but theymake up for it by being very entertaining. Kim and Steph took them out on their trampoline and they both really liked it. They took some pictures which I'll post once I get them. During dinner we put them in their chairs and gave them measuring cups and spoons which they loved. I gave them some peas which they put one by one into a cup, dumped them on the tray and started over...and here I thought they might eat them! We got them ready for bed, gave them a bottle and drove home. The woke up in the transfer but went to bed no problem. Leah was up at 12:30 and that was it. They are sleeping alot better the last few nights. We have no plans for today. On Saturday morning we made a list of the things we would like to get done this weekend. It is getting harder and harder to get stuff done because the girls want to be around us more. We are hearing a lot of "up, up, up" which we usually indulge when they're being curious and not whiny. Today I would like to organize our closets and put away all the girls summer clothes. Hopefully it will get done but if it doesn't it means we had better things to do!

16 months

2005-10-08T17:23:00.000-04:00

Teeth: I just counted (oh it was fun...). Leah has 8 on the top and 8 on the bottom. Emma has 8 on the top and 8 on the bottom too. We gave them big girl toothbrushes this month and they are doing pretty well. We usually end up brushing their teeth for them and then letting them do it themselves. They both know where their teeth are and can say teeth. Hair: A little more - not accessory worthy yet - yes, I'm still happy about that! Sleep: Terrible this month. They were good for my parents while we were in Vegas and then they got their cold and it got bad. We've had some of the worst nights ever with them this month. It really can't get much worse so I can talk about it here! Wednesday night was awful. Emma was up from 11pm til 3am and would not settle. At 4am Leah started waking and would not go back to sleep for more than 45 minutes. It was awful. Last night was the best night in weeks. They both woke up once but they were able to settle themselves and quickly went back to sleep. They still go to bed at 8 and who knows what time they'd get up at if they were well rested. I think we'll bring their bedtime a bit earlier when the clocks change at the end of the month. They are also starting (I think) the transition down to 1 nap. It seems to be from about 11am - 1pm. Again I'm not counting on any of this behaviour being consistent seeing as their nighttime sleep is so terrible lately. Getting around: Nobody is walking. Emma looked like she was ready to go but now shows no interest in doing it on her own. Leah is getting stronger and gaining balance everyday. While they're not walking by themselves they both prefer to be up on their feet. They have a push toy that Emma can run behind and Leah can speedwalk and they also enjoy pushing the hamper around. They both can walk backward, sideways and are pretty agile. They are both getting very good at climbing. Emma can muscle her way up on the couch and they can both climb up on the chair in their room. They are crazy fast at crawling now - it's pretty funny. Food: We had some issues with constipation this month. Thankfully it is all sorted out now. They are still eating and drinking well. Somedays they'll try new things and other days it goes straight to the floor. They really like chicken and eggs but they still aren't fussed on veggies. I'm still anal about no crap. The end of the bedtime bottle has been put on hold until they get their sleeping sorted out. I have a feeling we might have missed the window on taking the bottle away. I hope I'm wrong. Talking: They are really talking now and it is very cute. Some of you may remember that at our last NICU appt they decided to refer us to the Speech and Language program in our region just in case it became an issue. I guess the waiting list in Oakville isn't what they were expecting because we have an appt on Tuesday morning. We think they're doing fine but we're not turning down an opportunity to have a second unbiased opinion. They also understand so much. They know where their body parts are and can understand and respond to questions. Here is the complete list of what they can say: From last month... -cat -mama -dad -papa -cheese -ball -book -baby -hi -bye -yum yum -Leah -Emma -cookie New this month.. -Jackson (other cats are still cat) -teeth -night night -see ya -all done -no no no -shoe -car -cheese -do do (Leah says this when she has a dirty diaper) -duck -up -chicken -chickie (Emma's stuffed animal) Personalities: This month we discovered that Emma deals much better with being sick. She turns into a big suck but is otherwise happy. Leah on the other hand was very irritable, threw tantrums and was very hard to settle. She did have some cuddly moments but she was much harder to deal with. Thankfully now that she feels better she is well behaved and happy again. Not much else has changed. They both went into nursery without me this month. It was for 2 hours every Tuesday morning. They both did very well. They didn't cry when I left them and from all reports they were happy and well behaved. They are both learning so fast. I taught them both how to close their eyes by showing them twice and then they got it. John taught Leah to blow her nose. Unfortunately he did it while holding the kleenex for her so now everytime she sees a kleenex she blows her nose. Thankfully the snot has dried up! They are both a lot of fun to be around but they are a handful. I am pretty tired by the end of the day and somedays I am just so happy when they go to bed! Horrible mom but before you call child services come spend the day with them! They are go go go. Their attention span is getting longer and they will sit on the couch and watch 3/4 of a Baby Einstein before they get distracted. They also pay more attention when we're reading. They both really like music and they dance which still needs to be fully captured on video for later use.

better

2005-10-05T23:06:00.000-04:00

Things are a lot better around here the past couple of days. And that's all I'm going to say. I don't want to jinx it!!

Oh and GO SENS GO!! The girls bedtime was before it started but I was tempted to let them see it. Hard to believe that the last time NHL hockey was played they were in the NICU.

HAPPY LEAH!!!

You can't even imagine how hard it is to get them to sit still for 3 seconds...

Emma pulling up her shirt to show me her belly

Even more tired...

2005-10-03T13:35:00.000-04:00

So last night Leah (and therefore everybody else) was awake more than she slept. They both went to bed like a dream...no crying...or even talking. I made the mistake (I should know by now) of laying on the couch, eating an ice cream cone and pronouncing our sleep issues over. The minute I said it I said to John that I'd jinxed it. Well I was right. I can't even remember what times she woke up at after midnight. We were all up at 12:40am and then Leah was up a few times and then we were all up at 5:40am. At that point we called it a night and John got ready for work and I pretended (in the dark) that it was morning. They had a leisurely breakfast while John tried to regain consciousness in the shower, we drove him to the GO train and then I pretended at 8am it was naptime. They slept for 49 minutes (I know this because I slept for 19) and then decided it was time to get up. I was so tired so I packed them up and took them to the Early Years Centre for Toddler Fun. They behaved ok...they were both tired but determined to play. They weren't too interested in sitting with me for circles time and I can't say I was all that into singing stupid kids song so I wasn't really devastated. After Toddler Fun we came home, they ate a big lunch and they went to bed. I'm not even going to comment on my hopes for this nap but I'm sure it's pretty obvious. So I'm sure you can imagine that there have been some pretty lengthy discussions about what Leah's problem is. We both agree that she is over her cold. We also both agree that she has learned that screaming her head off in the night gets us. Sometimes it takes awhile but we come. She has always been a light sleeper and it is possible that now when she wakes up she gets up rather than soothing herself back to sleep but we don't think that's the issue. There is something waking her up that's new. Yesterday Leah started to get constipated as well. There is no more medicine and I finally figured out that it was the cereal I have been giving them. I am fed up with cleaning bananas off the floor so I started mushing them up with baby cereal again. Iron fortified cereal. So that's it for cereal - I would much rather clean the floors! So the plan is no more cereal and continued attempts with apple prune juice and prunes. We are also leaving their straw cups on the floor so they don't have to ask (or me remember) to get a drink of water. We also have those suppositories on hand if needed. I hope this solves the problem for both of them. It's awful when they cry because they have to poop. Leah is also going to get some tougher love when it comes to the night time crying. Hopefully it will subside once she gets her bowels sorted out but I have a feeling she's learned a bad lesson and she's one very stubborn little girl. I'm really hoping my next post will be titled - SLEEP FOR ALL!! S

Tired

2005-10-01T20:01:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it's been over a week since our last update. Time flies. We haven't been up to much. The girls are much better and for the first day in awhile we didn't need any kleenex. I think it's safe to say the mystery has been solved as to where they picked up their cold. On Tuesday when I dropped them off at nursery another mom was dropping off her son. I overheard her saying that her son had a snotty nose and a cough but that his snot wasn't green so she knew it was ok to bring him to nursery. I now completely understand why kids in daycare are frequently sick - if I was working I would have had to take 8 days because of the girls runny nose. Emma is very constipated again. We've been trying to think of what has changed in her diet and as I write this I realize it could be the cold medicine we've been giving her. Nothing else in her diet has changed. Is cold medicine binding? I'll have to look it up. Leah is not constipated but she's been a real terror. She's pitching fits at pretty much everything and she's not sleeping well. I think we have two problems with Leah - she's tired and she's learning that screaming her head off gets our attention. We both ignore her tantrums but we are inclined to go in and give her the soother in the night because we know from experience that she will not settle down without it. She slept better last night and there were fewer tantrums today so fingers crossed she just wasn't feeling well and will be back to her cheerful self again. One thing we are both certain is that something is bugging her so it's not behaviour we expect to last. So we are all pretty tired. When you have newborns you expect to be up all night. Leah was only up once last night but for a few nights this week she has been up 3 or 4 times. Yesterday Rachelle (my friend from University who now lives in Alberta) came for a visit. Alicia and Amelia came over as well and we had a nice afternoon catching up on all the gossip. It was a fun visit and it's too bad she lives so far away. Today we did some shopping and then Coby, Carrie and Ronan came over for dinner. Ronan and Amelia are growing up so fast. They can both sit up on their own and they interact with Emma and Leah which is really neat to see. We have no real plans for tomorrow - well I'm sure John plans to watch football! We'll probably go to Costco and maybe take the girls for a walk because it is going to be hot and sunny. I can't believe it's October - it still feels like summer.

15.5 months...not bad

2005-09-23T20:47:00.000-04:00

There's pictures below...I won't be offended if you skip my blabber! Well I think it's fair to say that the girls are officially sick for the first time. Nothing too serious - just a cold. The night I wrote the last post Leah had a fever. She had a very hard time sleeping unless I was holding her. She finally conked out at 2am. This is very unlike Leah so we knew something had to be wrong. Leah's snot cleared up by Tuesday but Emma has been pretty snotty all week. Last night we thought they were over it and then this morning they both started coughing and they would not nap. They both just wanted to be held - they've never wanted to be held so badly at the same time and I did my best. Thankfully it was cool in the house because the heat of 2 babies lying on you is something else. It's been a long day. Of course by the time John got home they were back to themselves. I'm really itching to get them off their bedtime bottle. They both ate a HUGE dinner last night (eggs, chicken, veggies, yogurt, bread and lots of milk) so we thougth last night would be a good idea to try no bottle. What a disaster. We ended up giving them their strawcups with warm milk at 9pm (bedtime was 8...) and then at 2:30am. Poor babies were sick and I'm trying to make them be big girls. They got their bottles tonight - we're waiting til they both feel 100%. Not much else to report. I'm just happy it's Friday and John is home. I love weekends. The girls have another baby friend to welcome. Denise and Rick had their baby boy Owen (check out the Two Step link). So many babies!

Poor Jackson never gets to nap

I WANT THAT CAMERA

Groovy Emma

Groovy Leah

Hey Amelia - do you want to play with us?

10 minutes of Baby Einstein peace

Looking more and more like a big girl

Snot City

2005-09-18T19:52:00.000-04:00

On Friday morning Emma's nose started to run. By late afternoon she was dropping snot bombs everywhere. What's a snot bomb? It's what comes out of a sneezing baby who can't yet blow their nose. Gross. Leah was fine until this morning and her day progressed just like Emma's Friday. We finally bought one of those ear thermometers (we are not bad parents, the girls have never had a fever) - the one we got when the babies were newborns has never registered higher than a corpse's temperature. Neither one of them have a fever or a cough - just a runny nose. They each have had a few more clingy/whiny moments than normal but for the most part they are carrying on with their day. We've been giving them Dimetapp at bedtime to get the snot under control and thankfully it's working. We've also put the space heater back in their room since they kick off their blankets. John is convinced they got it in nursery in Tuesday. I think I'm probably in denial but I think they might have got it from us - I never mentioned I got a cold in Vegas. Not much exciting to report. Friday was a really long day. John needed the car so I was carless and it rained all day so we were stuck inside. It was also Poker night so John was home for 15 minutes before he left for the night. I worked a 12 hour solo shift trapped in the house that day and I was in bed sleeping by 10pm. The girls can be exhausting. The rest of the weekend was pretty relaxing. We did some shopping and relaxed. One time when we were at Bronte this summer I saw the perfect wagon for the girls. We decided that's what we would get them for Christmas this year. We take the girls for walks every night and we use the carriers but as they near 20lbs it's getting hard on our backs so yesterday we bought the wagon. They absolutely love it. It has seatbelts so they are secure and they laughed and played the whole way. They have also started to be obsessed with pictures - especially of themselves. We hung two pictures my parents gave us of the girls and all day they would stop in front of them, point up and say baby. I showed them a picture of both of them tonight and they both picked out themselves as baby and the other by name. They also like the pictures on the fridge of all their baby friends. That's it for now. I have no pictures. I keep on meaning to take some and then I get sidetracked. I will definitely take one of them in their wagon because it is so cute.

Another first...

2005-09-14T14:50:00.000-04:00

Yesterday morning we went to Toddler 2 Step. There were 7 other moms in the class with "babies" anywhere from 11.5 months - 23 months. We spent two hours introducing ourselves and talking about our main parenting issues which we will cover over the next 5 weeks. I brought up temper tantrums because it's the one thing I have no patience for and I'm sure there are other strategies than just ignoring them. We'll see. The centre is on the second floor and there was no elevator so I had to carry them both. Needless to say I was one of the last people to arrive and when I dropped off the girls in the nursery there were crying babies everywhere. There were four caregivers and each of the had their hands full. Lucky for them the girls saw all the wonderful toys and couldn't care less when I put them down. It was the first time I have left them with strangers and true to my cold hearted history it didn't bother me at all. It might have been because I was only 2 rooms over but I think I know that they have each other so they aren't really alone. Lucky girls. All the moms were asked not to go visit at all during the 2 hours and I could tell it was hard for those who were also leaving their babies for the first time...I didn't mention that last week I left them for a week to go to Sin City ;) The girls are doing well. Today we went and got the oil changed. It is really hot out today so I decided to stay at the dealer in the A/C. Luckily they were quick and the girls were good. They are really climbing things lately and you have to watch them. Leah is obsessed with food and as soon as you do anything in the kitchen she's at your feet saying "Yum, Yum". She's also perfected a dirty look and it's pretty funny. It's very hard not to laugh when you are the focus of her wrath. After the oil change we stopped at the grocery store and she dirtied her diaper. She started to whine and point at her bum and when I told her to hang on I got the dirtiest look yet. She kept it up all through the checkout, the whole drive home and all the way up the stairs until I could change her.

Back to reality...

2005-09-12T16:24:00.000-04:00

We got back fromVegas yesterday morning. We took the red eye so yesterday was all about napping and trying to slowly get used to things while my parents are still here to help with the girls. We had a great trip. It was just long enough that by the last day we were ready to come home. We napped a lot, lay by the pool, ate and walked around the casinos. There was no schedule or planning - we slept when we were tired and ate when we were hungry. It's been awhile since John and I did what we felt like doing and it was fun to realize again that we pretty much have the exact same idea of what a vacation should be. The night we flew out we met with Troy and Jessica for dinner which was fun - it's been along time since we hung out without kids! Jess had her camera so I'll post a picture when I get it - we had the camera but couldn't be bothered taking any pictures. The girls did really well with my parents. I promised myself I would not spend my week worrying about them and I was fine with my photo and our daily call. My mom put them on speaker and they were so cute. They were very excited to talk to us on the phone. Emma is taking more and more steps but only when she's interested. She still prefers to crawl. My dad said he saw 10 steps one day - we've still only seen 5. Leah seems much stronger as well - she's getting up and down and cruising all around the furniture no problem now. She's so much more daring than Emma ever was and she's quickly getting better with her balance. We took them to the doctor today for their 15 month checkup. They each got 2 shots and they recovered quickly from the tears. While they are still not on the "normal" growth curve they are following their own curves so the doctor is pleased. Emma is 19lbs 6ozs and Leah is 18lbs 14ozs - so we still have to keep their carseats rear facing. They are both 30 inches tall. I think my Mom and Dad are going to go home tomorrow so it will be back to reality for me. John is at work today - he's finding it pretty long. Tomorrow morning we have our first class at the Early Years. This one is a session for parents of 1-2 year olds and it's from 9:15-11:15am. The girls go into nursery while I'm in the next room with the other parents. It's right in the middle of their morning nap so it might be a disaster. When I signed up I was hoping to get into the late October session but I think if the girls are playing they'll be fine. This might be the beginning of 1 nap a day.

Emma's first step

2005-09-04T18:05:00.000-04:00

Emma just took her first step. I didn't see it (go figure) but John and my parents did. We leave for the airport in 45 minutes. If she walks when we're in Vegas I don't think my mom is going to tell us!

Almost ready...

2005-09-04T16:30:00.000-04:00

Well our bags are pretty much packed - just a couple more hours and we'll be on our way to Vegas. We are both really excited to be going although it's going to be strange to leave the girls. My parents will take good care of them and we bought calling cards so I can call 3 times a day to check up on them(the girls that is). Last time we were in Vegas on our honeymoon I missed the cat so I'm a bit worried but we need a break - the last 15 months have been pretty intense. I know we've had lots of help but ever since I started puking on week 6 of pregnancy my life just hasn't been my own. I don't know what I'm going to do with myself but I'm not too worried. The forecast is fantastic and the pool is waiting for me and the blackjack and poker tables are waiting for John. Have a good week.

15 month update and some more cottage pics

2005-09-02T20:27:00.000-04:00

My parents arrive tomorrow and we leave Sunday night so I'm doing this now to make sure I get it done. I've included some pics John's mom took at the cottage. We paid $1.33.9/L for gas today - Kieran is probably the only person that cares but he mentioned it so I'm pointing out how insane it is. It costs over $50 to fill the Focus. We'll have to stop having kids so we can always drive a small fuel efficient car...I can just see some of you saying "No, don't say you won't have more kids"...and it's not because you don't want us to have to finance gassing up a minivan but because you're all anxiously waiting to see if we have twins again. That seems to be everyone's favourite joke these days. Not funny. Teeth: Their mouths are filling up quickly. I haven't counted lately but they each got a bunch more of their molars. They've handled it fine. Hair: Slow and steady progress. Leah is getting a bit of a mullet...I always said no child of mine would have a mullet but it's actually pretty cute. Sleep: I hate talking about sleep because I usually end up jinxing it. They have gone to bed with no crying all week. There was one night Leah had a bad dream which woke Emma up and we had to go in but besides that they have been doing fantastic. They are still going to bed at 8 but they go right to sleep (no talking or laughing even) so they've been gettting up earlier. For awhile there they were getting up at 9. It was kind of nice but I'd rather have them up early so we can drive John to the GO station and have the car. They still need two naps a day. Getting around: Leah is doing really well. She is right there with Emma minus the balance and stability. She is so determined and fearless that she'll try anything. Thankfully there aren't any bad falls to report. It's the first time they've been anywhere near each other in terms of physical stuff since birth and they're having fun playing and discovering new things together. Emma has started standing up on her own (in the middle of the room). She's not taking any steps and I think she has all the tools required to walk except the confidence. She's still a little chicken but she is so proud of herself when she stands that she laughs and claps - and thankfully doesn't lose her balance. "Are they walking?" seems to be the question on everyone's mind these days. We hear it everywhere we go. I've started telling people their corrected age (13 months) because I am sick of people looking at them like there is something wrong with them when we say they don't walk. My favourite are the people that point out that little "Sally" walked at 10 months when they've just found out the girls are 14 months and obviously nowhere near walking. Again this is one of these times where I need to be more like John and be content with the knowledge that we are informed and know the girls are doing just fine. It's just hard not to care what other people think when it comes to your children. Food: Our picky little eaters have developed a love of food. People told me it would happen and we wouldn't be sending them off to university on mush but I was starting to have my doubts! They are open trying more new things now. Leah likes crunchy stuff and is less open to soft things (like blueberries, grapes or tomatoes) than Emma but we keep on giving them to her. They're not big on veggies yet so we still give them mushy veggies at dinner. Besides that it's all table food. They get three meals a day. We decided against snacks because we only let them eat in their chairs and cleaning up after the two of them three times a day is enough. They get the odd Arrowroot when we're out. They have also started to be very interested in what we're eating. Leah has started saying "YUM YUM" whenever she sees us eating (I have no idea where she got it - John has this thing about no baby talk). They both beg likes dogs with their mouths hanging open. It's hard not to laugh at them. They are still getting their bed time bottle. We're going to try bed time straw cups when we get back from Vegas. Talking: They both really took off this month. They babble back and forth all day long and one of their favourite toys is the phone. Here is what they can say in context - we hear other words but they are not consistent enough to count yet. -cat -mama -dad -papa -cheese -ball -book -baby -hi -bye -yum yum (I know - not a word!) -Leah -Emma -cookie It's also crazy how much they understand now. You can ask them to get a list of things and they will bring you the correct object. They are starting to learn body parts (nose, belly etc) and they can find objects in their book and point to them. They both dance when you play music - or just ask them to dance. They also "sing" which is very, very cute. They are so much fun these days. Personalities: Leah seems to have inherited my patience. If things aren't ready right when she wants them she'll let you know she's not happy. She's a pro whiner and we do our best to ignore her so she doesn't think it works. When all is good in her little world she is very happy. She likes to talk and her favourite thing to do is quietly sit and flip through the pages of a book. She's still not a big cuddler although when she's tired she will follow us around grabbing our legs and pulling at us to pick her up. She still gets the soother in her crib and there is talk of taking it away. That will be interesting. She's also very stubborn and I expect it will be a big fight. Emma is still a big softie. She's my little clinger and she holds on tight if she's unsure or sometimes if she just wants her mama. She is very determined and her favourite thing to do when you tell her not to do something is to smile, laugh and then do it again. She is much more patient than Leah but if she gets upset watch out - she has quite the little temper (unfortunately another trait from me). Emma is quicker to laugh and be silly than Leah and she scrunches up her nose when she smiles. The twin benefit (thankfully there are some!) is finally starting to happen. They are quite content to play with each other and learn from each other. Emma has taught Leah how to climb in their chairs and Leah has taught Emma where her nose is. They have really started to call each other by name. They don't fight very often - every once in awhile they'll each tug at something and they'll be some crying but for the most part they enjoy each other. Leah kissed Emma the other day - Leah usually only kisses Jackson. John and I have to beg for kisses. I'm not sure how much they weigh these days but they're both still under 20 pounds. I'm guessing they're close to 19 by now. At this rate they'll be 2 before we can turn around their carseats. We have a pediatrician appt when we get back so we'll know then. They are both so long and skinny. When we were at the cottage John switched their bathing suits. It was the first day we all realized that they have very similar builds - Emma is just stronger than Leah. It was really hard to tell them apart at a glance when you couldn't see their faces. Let's hope this keeps up and they can share clothes for years to come.

Bedtime story

Leah reading the paper with Papa

Family swim

Uncle Van and the girls - he was too scared to hold them this time last year (they were so tiny!)

Uncle Drew, Aunt Bonnie and the girls

the little people

2005-08-30T20:27:00.000-04:00

The girls are doing well. They have gone to bed without a peep three nights in a row now and slept through no problem. They are learning so fast these days - like little sponges. I'll have to do the 15 month review before we leave because we'll be in vegas on the 7th! I had another run in with Bell today - totally unprovoked I might add. Some Bell guy rang the doorbell this afternoon wanting to get to the box in our basement to ground our phone line. I had no idea what this meant and I didn't really care enough to ask because my days with Bell are numbered (hopefully) and I assumed it couldn't be anything serious because even I know that things that aren't grounded can't be safe... So he was down there for a few minutes and as he was leaving I asked if my phone would work. He said it would but of course I have learned my lesson and after I shut the door I RAN to the phone to find it with no dial tone. I then RAN back and got his attention. As he walked back towards the house his eyes shifted to the side of the house and he said that his coworker must be working on grouding our line from the main box. Curiousity got the better of me and I asked why they were doing this all of a sudden...get this reply "Your phone line was never grounded and we discovered it today. If you had been talking on the phone during an electrical storm and lightening stuck you might have been electrocuted." For good measure he also added "Your phone box is a mess, whoever installed it really did a hack job (hmmm - striking technicians). We've both been shocked while working on it and I would suggest you stay off your phone until I come back and tell you it's fixed". I didn't bother to point out that not one minute earlier he'd told me my phone was in working order. So whatever I was more amused than anything else - I'm just happy my Vonage package arrived yesterday. I still have a glitch to work out but I have faith that I will be telling Bell to shove it sometime soon. On another note we also have an issue brewing with Mattamy. It seems they picked the one week I wasn't watching them to install the concrete slab that the mailbox will sit on. The utility plan clearly shows the mailbox about 10 feet from our property line in our neighbours side yard which will be fenced and hide the mailbox from our view. Unfortunately the plan wasn't followed and the slab as well as the wheelchair friendly modified curb now stradle the property line. If it stays there (which will be over John's dead body) the mailbox will be in our front yard. They guy who manages it is on vacation but the guy John talked to was very receptive to the fact that it should be moved. We'll see.

We're back

2005-08-28T21:01:00.000-04:00

We made it back safe and sound. We had a very nice vacation - it went by very quickly. We made it to the cottage late afternoon on Saturday. We stopped at McDonalds on the way - we didn't have the stroller and it was the only place in cottage country that we knew would have highchairs. Of course we ate fries while the girls had their packed lunch. No Happy Meal yet. The cottage John's parents rented was beautiful. I've never seen so many decks in my life. The cottage was set higher up on a hill and completely decked at the back. Down by the water there were lots of decks, a dock and a beach. The cottage was also very luxurious. We all had our own bedroom (even the girls!!) and the main floor was completely baby proof so the girls were free to roam inside as well as outside on the deck. They loved it. There was even satellite tv (I know some of you were concerned I was going to miss Big Brother!). The first few days were a bit cool but then we had perfect cottage weather. We took the girls swimming, boating and they played on the beach. John and Drew went water skiing and we all (yes even me) went tubing. Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Van came to visit for two days and then Aunt Bonnie (aka my doula) and Tom came for a couple of days. The girls napped and slept really well and we played cards, dominos and poker after they went to bed. Yesterday morning we left right after the girls had their breakfast. We have never had any problems with them in the car before and we were expecting another smooth trip. The cottage was about 30 mins off the main roads and the way in was very hilly and windy. Everything was going well until we got onto the main road and Leah started to whine. We both figured it was her nap time when we heard gurgling and the splatter of the first wave of puke hitting the back seat (so happy we have leather!). I got back there just in time to catch the second wave of breakfast in my hand but I couldn't contain it. Once she was all done she just looked at me with the saddest eyes - poor thing. John pulled over and we got her and the car cleaned up. She was fine after that and we are hoping it was just the cottage roads - it was just a bit of a shock to both of us because it is no joke the first time either one of them has puked like that since Emma did when we had the family sleepover in the NICU! We stopped off in Oshawa for a surprise visit to John's grandpa. He was very excited to see the girls and we fed them lunch and let them play on his front lawn. It took them about an hour to see his front steps and after that it was just a game of us moving them away from the stairs and following them back to the stairs... Today I had a book club pool party. It was a very nice day and we had a lot of fun sitting by the pool and eating. The girls were good for John. I got home in time to take them for walk and help John get them to bed. They are doing very well at bedtime lately and there wasn't a tear or a yell.

Nana (check out the shirt), Leah, Papa and Emma

Dining on the deck

First time on the beach

Wait up Emma

Looking for rocks to eat

Family shot (that's my shadow!)

DUCK! DUCK! DUCK!

Adventurous Leah

Not so adventurous Emma

Warmer weather

Swimming

Vacation

2005-08-20T09:51:00.000-04:00

We're off to the cottage for a week!

The last straw...

2005-08-17T19:59:00.000-04:00

Some of you might remember how mad I was at Bell (our phone company) when we moved. I have not forgotten how crappy their service was both on getting us our phone and dealing with me as a customer. Way back then I considered getting voice over IP but I couldn't get our number and the hassle of changing everything again just wasn't worth it. Until today. This morning I picked up the mail and found out that today is the last day to register the girls for the Early Years program (deadlines come quickly when you pick your mail up once a week!). I found a program I wanted to register for (Mother Goose) but I wasn't sure if they would let me go by myself with both girls. I picked up the phone to call and there was a guy talking on my line. This is not the first time this has happened - apparently our line is the one the techs use when they have to call the switchboard while setting up all our neighbours phones. They never check if it's ok and they essentially tie up our line so we can't make or receive calls. That in itself makes me angry. So I told the guy to get off our phone. He said he would be 5 minutes and I calmly explained that I would appreciate that they first check to see if I was home before using my line. I told him I had an important call to make in 10 minutes but he could use it until then. I got distracted and about 30 minutes later I checked and there was no dial tone. I decided to be patient (shocking I know) and 1.5 hours later there was no dial tone. I went looking for the Bell van to find the guy and he was gone - so he left my phone all screwed up. I used the cell phone and called Bell. True to form I got an idiot on the phone who could offer me nothing but a repair appointment TOMORROW between 8am and 5pm. No apologies or condolences for my crappy situation or even an offer of anything more than a credit for the day of service their stupid technician robbed from us. Thankfully the girls were napping because Mommy wasn't very nice on the phone. So I got off the phone, walked upstairs to the computer and signed up for voice over IP. Our number is available now and if all goes well in 2 weeks I can call Bell and tell them to shove it. I can't wait although I have no false impression that they'll care.

Cottage

2005-08-16T20:30:00.000-04:00

The drive to the cottage on Friday was uneventful. The girls still do really well in the car and I know we are very lucky. We only stopped once and it was to get fries from the chip wagon - and of course we didn't give them any. I know I'm mean but don't forget John - he's mean too! I had never been to Uncle Van and Aunt Bonnie's cottage so I was really excited. They live there year round so it is more of a home on a beautiful lake. They also built it all themselves which I think is really neat. Brian, Christine, Olaf and Kaiser the dog also came up for the weekend and it was nice to see everyone. The girls REALLY liked the dog although they kept calling him a cat... We had a really relaxing weekend. There were plenty of people to watch the girls. Sue (the family friend who took care of them in the NICU), Mike and Michelle Dempsey came for lunch on Saturday and it was really nice to see them. We took the girls swimming and for a boat ride but I think they enjoyed the stairs to the sunken living room the most. We couldn't get them off of them. Papa taught Emma to go down them backwards but stubborn Leah insisted that face first was the way to go so we really had to watch them. They also really loved the big long hall and they screamed and laughed when you chased them. John did lots of fishing but Uncle Van got the biggest fish award - the fish experts were all very impressed. They tried to convince me to try to water ski or tube but I was happy enough sitting in the boat and spotting John. We are off to the cottage for a week on Saturday and maybe I'll try and ski. I really don't care if I ever ski (I'm quite content in my role of chicken) but it's like a rite of passage into John's family so maybe I'll try...maybe. The girls were pretty good. They went to bed in their playpens fine both nights. The first night Leah woke up when John and I went to bed (we were all in the same room). We managed to get her back to sleep without waking Emma. The second night Emma had a bad dream and woke up screaming which woke us up and unfortunately Leah. We managed to get them both settled without waking the whole cottage up. Now that they are very aware of their surroundings sleeping in the same room with them is a bit of a challenge. You have to be so quiet and we were both scared that even moving the sheet would get their attention! Here are some pictures. I didn't take very many but everybody else did so I'll post some more when I get them.

Emma's first boat ride

Leah's first boat ride

Papa, Leah, Nana, Emma and the cottage

The most we've ever paid for gas - this record will most likely be beat on our next tank of gas.

And I called her stupid...

2005-08-11T21:10:00.000-04:00

Jackson has figured out the cat door. I did what Margaret suggested and propped it a couple of times so she would think the pushing was her idea - worked like a charm. She still only comes out of the basement but next week I'm going to move something down there that she likes - most likely her food to start. This weekend we are going to Uncle Van and Aunt Bonnie's cottage. We are all really looking forward to it. I really hope the girls behave...I wouldn't want their little angels status within the family to be tarnished! It will be their first time sleeping in the playpens since May and I'm not sure what to expect. Somedays I wish they would sleep if we brought them into bed with us but whenever we try that they think it's party time and start laughing and playing. Again, they are not snugglers. I guess this is my fault because when they were small I was so paranoid that if they were held all day I would go mental. While they aren't the world's biggest cuddlers they do have their affectionate moments. Tonight I sat on the floor and asked if anyone wanted to give me a hug. Leah came crawling over at top speed, climbed on my lap and then gave me a kiss. Very sweet. Not to be out done, Emma wasn't far behind and she wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her head in my shoulders. Leah really likes John these days. He goes outside several times a night to BBQ or move the sprinkler and without fail Leah sits by the door and cries until he comes back. She doesn't want anything to do with me - she just wants her dad. Tonight she was outside the bathroom door whining for him. John thinks this is the greatest thing ever. I'm not so sure! Have a nice weekend. I'll try and get some good pictures.

Retaining walls and toilet fun

2005-08-10T22:18:00.000-04:00

I didn't mention our weekend in my last post. We had a good one. We have started working on our garden. I provide the vision and John provides the labour while I watch the girls. Since it's too late to plant we decided to start with landscaping. We (John) built a retaining wall which is quite nice but it sure was a lot of work putting it together and then stealing dirt to fill it up. Yes, we stole dirt from the top soil pile down the street. There has to be some perks to living in dirt city. Next year we hope to build a path that will come up to the front door and then around the wall to our side yard. All part of my vision. The girls are doing really well. They are really starting to point at everything and try and express themselves. The current Baby Einstein (Baby Shakespeare) has a part on cat. Everytime Emma sees it she points and yells cat. If Leah isn't paying attention she'll yell it over and over again until Leah points at the screen and yells cat. They get pretty excited. Yesterday I watched Sarah and Brennan for a couple of hours while Jess was at the passport office. Brennan is growing fast and he is a good little boy. Sarah had fun playing with the girls and I am pleased to report that there was no crying or whining and they all shared their toys. The girls really like Sarah and they follow her around. Neither one of them cared when I fed and held Brennan - I'm not kidding when I say they aren't mom clingy. They did get pretty excited when they saw his bottle... Last night I was upstairs when John yelled for me to come quickly. This usually means the girls are doing something cute. Halfway down the stairs he informs me that I might be mad - my immediate response is "are they eating french fries??". I then hear the water splashing. There are no bathtubs downstairs and I thought it highly unlikely that they had got to the kitchen sink. You might have guessed that they were in the (thankfully freshly cleaned) toilet. So gross. They hadn't seen John yet so they squealed with laughter when I rounded the corner. Little monkeys.

Our new wall

Emma has discovered that grass isn't so scary

Leah won't look at the camera! You can see her clown hair in this picture.

Leah sneaking a look at the computer - I'm not sure what was so exciting

Reading. That's Emma's beloved chickie in her hand.

"Oh hi..it was her idea..."

14 months

2005-08-07T21:03:00.000-04:00

I'm sure some of you are wondering when I'm going to stop the monthly updates. I really enjoy reading back at their progress so we're going to do it for a few more months. Teeth: They are working on their side molars this month. Emma has two on the bottom and Leah has the same two and then one on the top. Hair: It's slowly filling in. Leah's is pretty long at the sides and the back and I call it clown hair because it curls. I'll have to get a picture. Emma's is more evenly dispersed and still quite blonde. Sleep: They are going to bed at 8 and getting up around 8. For the most part they sleep right through but there is still the odd crying in the middle of the night that needs our attention. On those nights the guilty party gets a bottle and goes back to bed. They never seem to wake up after 1am anymore which is nice. They are still taking two naps - usually around 10 and 3ish. The challenge these days is getting them to bed. Once they are in their cribs they talk and play. If anyone starts to whine we try not to go in because if they see us then they both scream with insult at not getting out of bed. It's not fun and we've been burned a few times this month while trying to be stealth and grab the crier without the other one opening their eyes. Getting around: The big news this month is that Leah finally decided it was time to pull up to standing. She started about 3 days ago and has now mastered couch, crib and bathtub standing. She is able to reach down and pick stuff off, balance one handed and loves to walk with our assistance. It's funny because based on her accomplishments since our NICU appt she is now right on target for gross motor for her corrected age! I am so proud of her. Emma still refuses to walk on her own although I am convinced she could. They are both super fast at crawling and they love chasing each other around. There is no shortage of laughter in our house. Food: They are finally starting to eat like little people. Leah's favourite meal is breakfast - she will eat and eat and then steal Emma's food and eat it. Emma prefers dinner. They are both a bit more open to trying new things. We still have a fair amount of mouth clamped shut head shaking "NO WAY - NOT THIS GIRL" behaviour but it's improving. They'll eat chicken no problem and they love bread and cheese. I gave them homemade pizza today and Emma gobbled it up while Leah picked at it - but at least she tried it. They are doing really well at drinking from their straw cups. We cut out their afternoon bottle and they only get the bedtime bottle. They get milk at every meal and water throughout the day. We are going to wait to cut out the bedtime bottle until it's not so hot outside. We don't want them to get dehydrated. Talking: They are still doing a lot of babbling with the odd word here and there. They both point and babble and it's very cute. We have noticed a huge difference in their understanding of what we are saying. If we ask them where something is (like the ball) they will go and get it. We also bought them a phone and they talk into it. Personalities: Leah went through a rough go this month. She was very upset for a few days and it was pretty trying. We think it was her teeth and thankfully she has returned to her happy self. Leah is a very nice little girl when she is happy. She'll sit and talk to herself while reading a book or play quietly by herself. She is able to wrestle for toys with Emma much better now that she is stronger. She is pretty easy going and doesn't get overly upset when Emma steals her stuff. When Leah is unhappy she lets you know by screaming. To say this is irritating would be an understatement! We are trying to ignore it and hope she outgrows it - we definitely don't go running to get her whatever she's screaming about. Emma was a good girl this month. She was very happy and for the most part pretty easy going. She is still very intense and she rarely sits still. She's not big on reading by herself but she'll grab a book and crawl up into our laps so we can read it while she flips the pages. She is definitely more clingy than Leah. She loves getting her hugs and she is very attached to her chickie stuffed animal. We have also decided that Emma doesn't like men. She cries pretty much everytime we see Coby and most other men but she is fine with women. We have seen a bit more of Emma's temper this month. She will cry hysterically when Leah takes her toy - again we ignore this hoping she will realize that crying gets her nowhere. With the screaming and the crying we are finding that we are starting to think about discipline and teaching the girls to listen. We are definitely entering the next phase of parenting - one I don't think is going to be so much fun. I am quickly finding that I am going to need a whole new reserve of patience. Thankfully John is a very patient person because while I can deal with teething babies in the middle of the night I am not so good at dealing with temper tantrums. It is very easy to say that we don't want two bratty kids but I'm scared in reality it's going to be very hard with the two of them. Some days going back to work looks mighty inviting! Sorry no pictures - I'll have to take some.

Another first...

2005-08-03T22:03:00.000-04:00

Today the girls had no baby food! This is so exciting. For breakfast they had a banana, cheerios and they split a waffle. For lunch they had marble cheese and pumperknickle grilled cheese (they love pumpernickle bread), a Nutragrain bar and a minigo. For dinner they had BBQ chicken, boiled pototoes, corn, a minigo and some of the banana bread I made for John and them (which they also love). They drank all their milk at each meal and guzzled water throughout the day. Besides the yogurts, they fed themselves and very little make it to the floor. I'm going to have to stop calling them babies soon!

Another long weekend

2005-08-02T20:08:00.000-04:00

We had a nice visit with John's parents. We took them to Bronte on Saturday but we didn't last very long. The girls are still loving the water but there was a strong breeze that day and they started to get cold. It didn't stop them at all but when their lips started turning blue and they were shivering it was time to go so we went and checked out the farm. The little piglets we saw last time are much bigger and the smell was horrible! Saturday night John and I went to the Keg for dinner. Mmmm it was so good. I even got my all time favourite dessert - Billy Miner pie. John's parents left for two weeks at the cottage on Sunday and the rest of our weekend was spent relaxing and shopping. We finally watched Finding Neverland. It was good but not what I expected. I really like Johnny Depp but I'm having a very hard time trying to convince John to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The girls are doing really well. They have made some big steps this past week. I'm just going to list them - I'm feeling lazy and I don't feel like writing in complete sentences... -they have had no formula since we put them on milk -they haven't had an afternoon bottle since Friday -they are drinking milk out of their straw cups at meals and water throughout the day -they are sleeping through the night without waking -my mom taught the girls round and round the garden. When you sing Leah points her finger and draws a circle on her hand while "singing" and Emma draws a circle. Leah also knows where her nose is. -I taught Emma how to grunt - this drives John nuts but it's really quite cute. -they are eating much better. We are slowly cutting out baby food. -Leah is getting much stronger. She can climb the stairs and yesterday she pulled up on the couch (only the once though). So that's it. Nothing overly exciting besides the girls development. John's dad put in a cat door on the basement door. I am sick of the fourth bedroom being Jackson's bathroom and I was so excited to have the door installed so we can move her litter to the basement. Now Jackson is a pretty smart girl but do you think we can get her to go through that door??! It's driving me nuts. She'll go through if we push her but no amount of cookie bribing will make her come through on her own. She's going to get tough love and get locked in the basement if she doesn't work it out soon. I know she's not this stupid. The babies even know how to push the door open - they haven't worked out putting toys through...yet.

busy week

2005-07-29T16:21:00.000-04:00

We've had a busy week with my parents. They left this morning and John's parents arrive tonight. Monday we went to Bronte Creek. I got the girls this water float thing with a sun shade. They only had one left but it was fine because they both fit in it. They thought it was a lot of fun and it was very cute. The weather was really hot and it was the perfect day for the pool. The rest of the week was spent shopping and watching the progression of the grass! Yes, the front lawn finally arrived - 3 months to the day we moved in. Right after they laid it down it started to pour and we had our first days of rainy weather this summer. It was too wet to do the side and back yard but they did that today and Mattamy told me I could use our neighbour's (who haven't moved in yet) water to water it for free. It's my pity prize for being last to get grass! I had a very enjoyable week and boy it would be nice to have a live in Granny. I finally joined the local rec centre and I went to a class every morning after dropping John off at the Go station. I then came home and had a leisurely shower while my parents entertained/fed and dressed the girls. It was nice. Monday I had book club, Wednesday I went out with some girls from work and last night my Dad and I went to a Jays game. The game went 18 innings and we didn't get home until just before 1am. We kept on saying one more inning but then it was the most innings in Blue Jays history and we couldn't leave. Thank god they won. John didn't get out as much but he did go out and play poker one night. And the fun is not even over - we'll probably go to a movie tomorrow night while John's parents are here. I have to mention the new addition to our neighbourhood - the ice cream truck. Every afternoon around 4 it drives around. We never had an ice cream truck in Ottawa where I grew up. There was a truck that drove around ringing a bell but it was for knife sharpening??!!? The only other time I have ever seen them is in Ireland when I was a kid. I can only imagine the begging that is going to go on when the girls figure out the ice cream truck. I also want to mention that yesterday the girls had no formula. They got homogenized milk for their afternoon and bedtime bottles. I have heard some real horror stories about the transition from formula to milk but I can honestly say I don't think they care. Today I also decided that the afternoon bottle is going to go because they drink enough at meals and will drink water when they're thirsty. They went down for their afternoon nap no problem. Leah is still a bit grumpy but she's getting better. She'll let you know when she's not happy. She has decided she likes to have you hold her hands so she can walk around the house. This is huge progress for her and she can't get enough. As soon as we stop she gets very upset. She's developed quite the little temper and it's hard not to laugh (or in my case get frustrated). They have both started pretend talking on the phone.

Girls and Granny

Big smiles

Swim float for two

Emma's crab walk - she does this on anything that's not tile or carpet!

"Hey, let's be good. The big meany usually doesn't let us play on the bed"

"Emma, why are you dressed like an Easter egg?"

GRASS, GRASS, GLORIOUS GRASS!!!

Birthday week extravaganza

2005-07-24T19:45:00.000-04:00

The girls are 1 year corrected today! They are getting so tall and starting to really look like toddlers (minus the toddling). As most of you know I have been pretty stressed about their eating habits. The last thing I want to raise are two underweight, picky eaters so I had a hard time dealing with their total disinterest in anything beyond cheese, bread, baby food, bananas and yogurt. I have been told countless times to be patient and keep on offering different things. I even read somewhere that it can take something like 13 times of "trying" something before a kid will eat it. So much wasted food and messy floors. So tonight I made pasta shells and chicken with tomato and cream cheese sauce. First I gave them the pasta shells. They ate them. Then some chicken. They ate it. Then I added sauce and gave it to them. They ate it. Then some blueberries. They ate them. For the first time since they started getting baby food they had none for dinner! I'm so excited. I don't know if I mentioned that they eat their own breakfast now - chopped up bananas and Cheerios. We are getting closer to complete self feeding! To celebrate their 1st birthday we gave them a bottle of only milk this afternoon. They gulped it down no problem so the transition has begun. Friday was my 29th birthday and I had a nice day. John says I am impossible to buy for so rather than a gift I got - "Birthday week (not weekend!) extravaganza". It all started last Saturday with dinner and a movie and for the entire week my wish was his command. All I had to say was "um, John, I'm pretty sure they both pooped..." and he'd be off changing two diapers without complaining. It sounds pretty silly but it really was a great gift. I'm pretty sad it's over. The girls have done another switch. Leah has been a real handful these past few days. She's very whiny during the day and does not want to go to bed without screaming her head off. Emma for the most part is going to bed without a fight and sleeping well. It's very frustrating but we are at least grateful that they have yet to be in a funk at the same time. My parents should be arriving any time now for the week. It will be nice to see them and have some help.

Asleep

2005-07-19T22:12:00.000-04:00

The girls went to bed at 8:15pm. They laughed and talked for a bit and then they both went to sleep. No crying! They know better than to make me miss Big Brother ;)

The joy of teething times two...

2005-07-19T11:26:00.000-04:00

John's mom came for a visit this past weekend. It was great to have an extra set of hands and eyes around and it gave John and I a chance to do some things around the house without the monkeys slowing us down. On Saturday night we took advantage of having a babysitter and John took me out for my birthday dinner and a movie. We went to Mexicali Rosa's which was my favourite restaurant in high school. I didn't think they had any locations in the Toronto area but there's one in Oakville (complete with Oakville pricing!). It was really good. Afterwards we went to see Wedding Crashers. It was pretty funny but don't go if you don't like vulgar humour! The girls have been a bit of a handful the last few days. Leah has been VERY whiny which is unlike her (thank god because I would have gone nuts by now). Her tenth tooth is coming in and it's one of the side ones on the bottom so we think it's causing her some pain. She was also really constipated but that's worked itself out thanks to lots of water and some prunes. Emma has been in a pretty good mood during the day but she's hard to get down at night and she also appears to be teething. Last night bedtime was a complete fiasco. They went to bed just after 8, Emma started whining at 8:30. We went in at 9 to get Emma because she was obviously not going to settle. Leah started crying because Emma got out. They both got settled. We tried to put them both back to bed. Crying. Both up again. Crying. We didn't get them to sleep until 10:30. There was talk of them getting their own rooms again last night. We'll see how they do tonight. The one positive is that once they get to sleep they don't get up in the night. I had a whole bunch of plans for them this week. I was going to start them on whole milk on their corrected 1st birthday (Sunday), cut out their afternoon bottle and maybe try to cut out their morning nap. I think we will wait until they settle down a bit. Here are some pictures. Nana took a ton so I'm sure I'll have more.

It rained all weekend - here's the view from the back of the house...jealous??! Want to come over and sit in the dirt?

Emma sitting in the hippo (that's her sweet "I didn't do anything" look)

Leah pushing Emma in the hippo.

1 year corrected NICU appt

2005-07-14T11:40:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we had their appointment. We had to fill out a big long checklist for each of the girls so we had a pretty good idea of where they were at going into the appoinment - so not too much stress! They've added a speech therapist to the usual pediatrician, nurse and occupational therapist. They just observe, play with them and ask us a ton of questions - it can get pretty intense. Emma is right on track in terms of her gross motor (sitting,crawling, standing, walking stuff). They are pleased with how she moves and what she is capable of doing. It's funny because it's just not a matter of can they do something - it's more can they do it properly in terms of their weight shifting, agility, coordination etc. As we all know Leah is behind in gross motor. As I mentioned before, John and I are not overly concerned because she is making very good progress. I was very happy to hear they had the same opinion and there was no freaking out - not even a little! They are very pleased with the way she moves and how agile she is! Again, this is exactly what I think! They both got perfect scores for all the cognitive stuff (communication, social skills etc). They are a bit behind on verbal - but this might be my fault. They asked how many words they have...I think I have issue with what a word is. Emma makes a noise everytime she wants something - to me that is not a word but to them it is. So I think I might have scored them a bit low on verbal because we said they only had 4 or 5 words that I know are words. Either way they are not concerned because boy can they "talk" - they were very chatty throughout the whole appointment. Just to ensure proper care and minimal wait time should anything happen in the next few months they have registered them with our regional preschool speech therapy program. So that was that. They gave us lots of reading material for what they are expecting at the 18 month appointment. I was telling John that although I am grateful that the girls are monitored and we informed as to what is age appropriate (I seem to preface every NICU appointment with that sentence!), I find it's a bit of a fun sucker having all these checklists and things they must accomplish by their next appointment or be deemed delayed. It would be nice to be completely oblivious and enjoy watching them grow and learn without ever having to doubt that they weren't perfect in every way! On the other hand I am learning so much about child development with minimal effort which is nice. After our appointment we headed to Oshawa to visit with John's Grandpa. He has no air conditioning and it was hot. We spent most of our time under the trees in his front yard trying to convince the girls that they didn't want to eat grass, dead leaves and dirt. Having learned from the Guelph bedtime fiasco the other week, we waited until 8 and gave them their bedtime bottles before we left. They were both awake and chatting to each other by the time we got home just after 9 but we put them in their cribs and they went to sleep. Success!

early years

2005-07-12T20:30:00.000-04:00

The days seem to be passing by quickly. We are doing the most to enjoy summer - and what a summer it's been so far. The temperature today was 35C and it's not supposed to let up anytime soon. Here's the weekend recap. Saturday John got together with all his university guy friends for a day of golf followed by a night of poker. He had a really good time which was nice since days like that are few and far between. Alicia, Amelia, Carrie and Ronan came over to keep me company in the afternoon. After they left I took the girls for a walk, got them to bed, had a bath, read my book and then went to bed. The whole house to myself and that's the best I could do - pretty pathetic eh! Sunday we cleaned and washed the car - you're probably wondering what's the point of washing your car when you live in dirt city - it was more about owning a hose and being able to wash a car after 4 years of apartment living. After that we put some shelves up in the girls room, and some pictures, and the letters that spell their name. Their room now feels like a baby room minus paint but we're supposed to wait to paint. Today I decided to finally check out the Early Years Centre in Oakville. It's a free drop in centre and I wasn't too sure what to expect. It was actually pretty fun. It was two big rooms full of toys that encouraged learning for kids of all ages. The room was completely baby proof and the girls just crawled around and explored for 2 hours. Two other families showed up which was nice because it gave the girls an opportunity to interact with other kids. I will definitely be going back and I will probably register for some of their programs in the fall. Tomorrow we have the 1 year corrected NICU appointment. For once I'm not worried about the appointment although I am curious to see what they have to say. After the appointment we're going to Oshawa to visit John's grandpa. Thursday we're going swimming at John and Denise's - I'm so excited!

Amelia and Ronan relaxing on the playmat

Emma being silly

still so very blue..

Looking for Jackson

13 month update

2005-07-08T21:41:00.000-04:00

They were 13 months yesterday. They've changed a lot this month. Teeth: First of all I'd like to say that I would seriously advise against sticking your fingers in the girls mouth. They think it's funny when you scream in pain as they clamp down on your finger. For this reason, we hadn't checked for new teeth in awhile. I was surprised last night to find they both have another tooth. They are on different sides (I can't remember which one has which and I'm not going back in there or sending John!) and are about halfway back. There was no crying for their 9th tooth. That's good news. I should add that we do brush their teeth and mouth every night so we have not been neglecting their new tooth - you just can't feel it with the finger toothbrush. Hair: Maybe a bit more...maybe. Sleep: I would rather not comment on this but seeing as this is their journal I will. I better not get jinxed. Emma was bad, then got good but couldn't sleep through Leah's badness. Leah all of a sudden got very bad for a few days, made us all very tired, then went back to being our little sleeper. Since then we are proud to call them our little sleepers. We are all very well rested these days. The girls have even started sleeping in until 8 everyday. Somedays 9! They still take 2 naps but it's getting harder to get them to take them when they are not in their cribs. The days of falling asleep in the stroller appear to be over. Getting around: Emma can walk behind the push toy. She can walk if you only hold one of her hands but she's no risk taker and will usually try and crawl. She loves to climb and has very good balance. I can see her loving rock climbing when she's older. She studies her target to figure out the best way to get up. Today she was trying to climb up the outside of the stairs on the 1 inch carpet that hangs over edge. Leah continues to get stronger but she's has little interest in standing (a topic I'm sure you'll be hearing more about after our NICU appt next week). We are not concerned since she is progressing. She has much better balance and is getting stronger in her mid section and her legs. She will stand if you hold her hands - but she doesn't like it for long. She has caught up to Emma in crawling and is very quick. Food: They are finally starting to eat a bit better. There is no more crying at meal times. I've been giving them lots of things to try. The majority of it gets thrown on the floor in disgust but they are getting better. Slowly. We still start every meal with baby food veggies because otherwise they don't eat enough. They just don't like food all that much and I'm trying my best not to get really frustrated. They are still on 2 bottles of formula a day. We're supposed to switch it to milk when they're a year corrected (July 24). They are drinking from the straw cups like pros now. It's very cute. Talking: They "talk" all day long now. They wake up and talk to each other in their cribs and every night they fall asleep after at least 30 minutes of talking and laughing. We have no idea what they're saying but they sure have fun! They are starting to mimic 2 syllable words like baby. Leah can now say Emma and eeeah as well as cat. They also say mama and the occasional dada in context. They also learned the sign for milk this month. Just what they babble is different - like we'll hear Leah say "oby giby oh oh" to which Emma will reply "ba ba ba CAH!!". I sure hope it's not twinspeak. I have been reading that sometimes twins are delayed on verbal because they make up their own way of communicating with each other. Cute stuff: This is the stuff that makes me realize that our days of calling them babies are numbered... -if they manage to beat me to the cat's bowl they will eat catfood (none ingested...yet...catfood is in our ensuite now). Hmmm maybe I should add catfood to their menu...I can't even count how many things get thrown to the floor without even being tasted. -Emma was splashing the toilet water the other morning. Bathroom doors remain closed now. -they lick the floor and eat the carpet fuzz -Emma turns the tv off and presses all the buttons and shakes her head, smiles and does it again when you tell her to stop. -they know how to get the cd out of the portable stereo -Emma will get your glass if you leave it on the coffee table -Emma can pull papers off the edge of the kitchen table -they broke the safety latch (I use that term loosely) on the stove -the love doors -they LOVE taking the grate off the vent. Emma suffered her first injury when Leah pulled the grate off the one by the front door. Emma was standing looking out the window and fell in the grate cutting her foot. I was watching the whole thing unfold but was not quick enough. -Emma likes pulling Leah's hair -Leah likes lifting up her shirt and slapping her belly -they both have a fake laugh, a fake cough and can growl -they both stick their arms up in the air when they want up That's all I can think of right now but I know there's much much more. Personalities: Emma continues to be timid in new situations. She's very clingy if she's not comfortable and will scream her head off if you try and put her down. If she's in her comfort zone (like her stroller) she is very happy and LOVES attention. She'll smile at anyone and squeal in delight. She's still very rough and very stubborn. If she wants something she will keep on trying to get it. She's started to cry when you take stuff away from her (even if Leah takes her toy) which we don't like. We just let her cry although she's so stubborn I don't think she cares. When she's in the mood Emma loves to be held. She wraps her arms so tight around your neck - it's very sweet. Leah is very easy going. She adapts well to new situations and is usually very happy. She's not so quick to give out the smiles to strangers these days but she warms up quickly. Leah is not a cuddler. When she wants to be picked up she'll follow us around like a dog and try to climb up our legs. It's also very cute. Leah rarely screams her head off, when she cries it's because she's scared or her feelings have been hurt. She has perfected the pouty lip and the big teary eyes. The girls are never far apart from each other. They will race around the house after each other and play with the same toy. One thing that I find surprising is that they could still care less if the other one is crying - it's just business as usual with a bit more noise. They are always talking to each other in their cribs, carseats and stroller. When we're in the car we usually turn the radio down and listen to them. It's very entertaining. I know I have said this before but it's like all of a sudden they became little people this month. They are so much more interactive and will mimic whatever you show them. It's definitely a lot more work keeping them happy and out of trouble but it's a lot more fun than the days of feeding them and watching them sleep.

nothing much...

2005-07-06T15:01:00.000-04:00

The girls just went down for a nap and I thought I'd update this with a few of the things they are doing this week.

Emma napping with her butt in the air

Back view (look at her cute little feet)

Leah napping with her precious. She still gets the soother for naps.

We've driven John to the GO train everyday so far this week. Monday I took them to Costco and for groceries. I somehow managed to forget the diaper bag again so that was it. Yesterday we met Carrie and Ronan at the Ikea in Burlington. There is something about Ikea that the girls just don't like and they whined the whole way through. After that we went to Costco - I had managed to forget formula on Monday and Carrie wanted to go with me. The girls were relatively well behaved in Costco. They love sitting side by side in the shopping cart and basking in all the attention. And I love the cart because it is so much easier than the stroller and I can get whatever I need no matter how big or heavy. I'm not overly impressed with the stores that only fit one kid up front - Walmart, Canadian Tire, Petcetera, Ikea - I'm sure I'll be adding to that list. Today we went to visit baby Brennan. He is a a very peaceful little boy. I got to feed him the end of his bottle - I remember when Sarah was born I was so scared I was going to break her. I'm such a pro now! Yesterday the girls napped late so I decided to wait until we got back from picking John up to feed them. Of course it was the day that the train was delayed an hour because there was a fatal collision on the Lakeshore line. At the time I didn't know it was going to be an hour so I sat there waiting for the bored/hungry crying to start. They did surprisingly well and by the time they started fussing I had remembered that I had a Costco size box of Arrowroots in the trunk! So they had cookies for dinner. We didn't get home until 7 and not wanting to put them off their bottle (they need the fluid) we just gave them some cheese and a yogurt. We're lucky that for the most part they're pretty flexible. This morning I was cleaning up the kitchen and since the girls were still awake I just spot cleaned the floor. Of course they saw me doing it and raced over to see what was up. I turned around to put the sponge on the counter so I could move them (unfortunately "please go away" doesn't work) and they were both licking the floor. Gross. I moved them into the living room but they kept on racing to the kitchen to lick the floor. They thought they were pretty funny. I had to go sit in on the floor with thier favourite book to get them to stop it.

John reading them their favourite book. They climb up in your lap to read now.

They are starting to actually play together a bit more. We have these balls that rattle and one of them will pick one up and throw it. Then they both race for it and whoever gets it throws it again. Leah is doing surprisingly well at getting it before Emma. This went on for at least 30 minutes yesterday afternoon. On the not so cute side of noticing each other Emma has started pulling Leah's hair. It really hurts Leah's feelings (and head I'm guessing) and she does the saddest cry which starts up again if Emma looks at her. I guess we should be happy that she doesn't try and pull Emma's hair back (not that there is much to pull).

Leah

Leah kissing Jackson

Canada Day Pictures

2005-07-04T10:21:00.000-04:00

Alicia sent me some pictures of the girls at their place on Canada day...

Swimming chez Reitsma

Check out the Canada Day shirts

"You go that way and I'll go this way..."

Canada Day Long Weekend

2005-07-03T20:17:00.000-04:00

We made the most of our long weekend. The weather was perfect. Hot, sunny and not as much humidity. Canada Day we went over to Jeff's parents to go swimming and relax. The water was much warmer this time and the girls really enjoyed themselves. They were both sticking their faces in the water (yes - even Emma!). Yesterday we went out to Guelph to visit Coby, Carrie and Ronan. We had a nice BBQ meal and then we loaded the cars up and got ice cream at this great place that makes their own waffle cones. Mmmmm. I think it might be better than Baskin Robbins! Today was the much anticipated trip to the Bronte Creek pool. It was insanely busy but it is so big it just felt like a busy day at the beach and there was no problem finding shade. The pool itself is a big irregular splat shape. It is just like a concrete beach in that it gets deep gradually - the deepest part would be at least 6ft from the markers I could see. The shallow part was perfect for the girls. John put Leah down and she started crawling around in the water right away. I had miss clingon and when I put her down she turned around and grabbed my neck doing her best to get back into my arms. Five minutes later she was crawling around too. After awhile we took them out to the deeper water and they were laughing and squealing away. I have no pictures of the girls in their Canada Day shirts or of them swimming. We are finding that they are a lot of work lately and that we really never have a free hand unless they are locked up in their stroller or in the feeding chairs (and we have enough pictures of that!). We got burned yesterday because we didn't bring the stroller to Guelph. When we went for ice cream we both had to hold one and it is IMPOSSIBLE to eat an ice cream with a VERY interested baby on your lap. They also missed their nap and ended up napping on our way home at 7pm. Needless to say with the sugar and their catnap the 8pm bedtime didn't happen. At 9pm I put them both in the same crib so they could keep each other company. I had visions of them all curled up together sleeping like little angels. At 10pm the crying started and they got another bottle after which they went to sleep. This time last year we were on Toronto Island at Jeff and Alicia's wedding (Happy Aniversary!). The girls had been home from the NICU for 4 days and they were with my parents. One positive thing about the NICU experience is that we've never been nervous about leaving them. Ever. I am grateful for that. When we get out we go without worry and we enjoy ourselves.

Sidewalks and the long weekend!

2005-06-30T15:08:00.000-04:00

The girls have slept through all night, every night since my cyber threat to split them up. Now forget you read that so we don't get jinxed! The week has flown by and in a few hours John will be home and it will be the long weekend. We don't really have too much planned but we are FINALLY going to check out the pool at Bronte Creek on Saturday. I guess because of the terrible weather last year they delayed the opening until July 1st...and then of course we've had 13 days of over 30C this month. John promised me we'd go Saturday. It better be hot. I drove over there today with the girls to just look at the pool and it is enormous. I'll have to get a good picture. I forgot the diaper bag at home for the first time today. It's such a production getting them both in the car in this heat and I was racing to get the A/C on in the car and forgot about my last trip into the house to grab it. I had planned to go for a nice walk in Bronte Park after checking out the pool but it was way too hot and I didn't have their hats or their water. So we went to Walmart where it was nice and cool. I forgot to mention that on Monday my friend from high school Sheelagh and her husband Shawn stopped in for a visit. They live in Arizona and I hadn't seen them since their wedding two years ago. It was really nice to see them. Monday night I hosted book club. I picked the book Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin. We all loved it. It's about a girl that steals her best friend's fiance - just in case any of you go out and buy it thinking we're into deep, meaningful, thought provoking novels... Not much else to report. I met Alicia and Amelia at Square One yesterday and I searched for some Canada Day shirts for the girls. Old Navy was all sold out so I ended up getting them in the Gap. They match...but hey it's Canada Day. Oh I nearly forgot. They poured the sidewalks on our street. One step closer to grass!!!

Good girls

2005-06-27T09:53:00.000-04:00

They both slept through. They're fighting for the title.

Babies, babies everywhere!

2005-06-26T21:40:00.000-04:00

The girls have another new friend (it's been a busy year!). Troy and Jessica's baby boy "B" now has a name - it was a secret - all we knew was the B. Brennan Fraser was born yesterday morning weighing in at 9lbs 6ozs. No pictures yet. We had a good weekend. We're in the middle of another heatwave and we are VERY grateful for the A/C. We've had the girls in their pool a couple of times and I am now more anxious than ever to have grass. They are infatuated with the dirt and the rocks and they spend most of their pool time hanging over the side of the pool trying to eat rocks. John starting spraying them with the hose to get them to stop but they decided they liked getting sprayed. Yesterday our friends Liv and Scott hosted a BBQ in Waterloo for some of our University friends. It was really nice to see everyone - it's hard to believe we graduated 5 years ago this month. Some of you might remember that Liv and Scott had twin boys, Braden and Connor, in March. It was the first time we met them and it was really fun seeing infant twins again. They've had to send away for testing to see if they're identical...I couldn't tell them apart but that doesn't mean anything - I mean people tell us the girls are identical - um...no! I really enjoyed having other parents to talk to about the twin thing that weren't just random people in the mall. Besides the boys and our girls there was Liv and Scott's daughter Emma, Ronan and Amelia. There really were babies, babies everywhere! I think I'm going to stop posting about sleep. That night after my last post was the beginning of what has been an awful time around here. Leah, once known as "our little sleeper", has woken up every night. We think it's the air conditioning that is scaring her. Either that or she's hungry. We're lost. I mean this kid slept through Emma WAILING for weeks without waking up but it seems she gets scared right after the A/C clicks on. It also might be their shots. The doctor said to expect fussiness between 4-14 days and they got it two weeks ago tomorrow. Whatever it is she wakes up wailing. She doesn't want her soother - she just wants to be....cuddled. Yes, she's turned into Emma. Emma on the other hand is trying her best to win the title of "our little sleeper". Problem is Emma has slept in silence for months. Now when Leah cries guess who wakes up... Tonight is their last night in the same room. If we have another 1am fiasco they're getting their own rooms.

Check out our new swimsuits!

Leah's "ohhhh" face (comes complete with cute ohhhing)

John, the girls, and big Emma

Coby, Ronan, Jeff and Amelia

Braden

Connor

Peace at last!

2005-06-22T20:48:00.000-04:00

I am pleased to report that Emma has gone to bed without screaming her head off for 5 consecutive nights. Almost every night we walk them in the Baby Bjorns (the greatest baby carrier ever), get them in their pjs, give them a bottle, brush their teeth and get them in bed just after 8. They are rarely asleep by 9 and for awhile Leah would play happily in her crib while Emma screamed...and screamed...and screamed. Now instead of crying Emma has discovered she can hug her chickie and laugh and play with Leah. We've even seen them hold hands through the crib rails - how cute is that! It's so nice to listen to them interact and so much better than the crying. Some of you might remember me mentioning baby sign language months and months ago. We've only been really consistent with the sign for milk (we say it and do the sign nearly every time they get a bottle) but to be honest it seems like a huge waste of time when they totally ignore you once they zone in on the beloved bottle. So yesterday I was holding both bottles so I just said milk and Emma did the sign!! Then Leah did it!! I thought it was just a fluke but they do it all the time now. This is so neat and I can't believe they can do it. I have to pick another word to teach them. I'm thinking book - they love books. Now if only they could love food...but that's another post. Tonight is about things they do well!

Happy Father's Day!

2005-06-19T22:15:00.000-04:00

It's hard to believe that this is John's 2nd Father's Day. Last year we spent the day in the NICU and the nurses made cards with polaroids of the girls in their incubators. Crazy. We had a nice day. Even though our parents live 4 hours in either direction we actually got to see our dads today. My parents left this morning and John's dropped in for dinner on their way back to Windsor. They brought us a bed for our spare room so we can now have guests without making them sleep on an air mattress! John had a nice day. I got him one of those cheesy "World's Greatest Dad" tshirts from Old Navy thinking there was no way he would wear it outside of the house. Well he surprised me by wearing it to Costco and saying how proud he was to be the guy in the cheesy shirt! The girls are lucky to have such a great Dad. Not much else to report. I am all by myself again tomorrow so I will be going through the usual phase of "oh my god do these babies ever rest??!!!". Thankfully it usually only lasts a day or so. Emma has gone to bed without screaming two nights in a row now. Please let it last.

Happy Father's Day!

They're wiggly

I like this one

I want to go out and play.... (Emma)

Naked swimming on our front "lawn" during the heat wave

It's TOO COLD...

I AM SOOOO FUNNY

Make that THREE movies!

2005-06-18T23:41:00.000-04:00

We just got back from Star Wars. Oh boy was it awful. I fell asleep. John will be seeing some cheesy romantic comedy in the near future...

We have A/C...where did the heat go?

2005-06-18T14:30:00.000-04:00

The major highlights of my week were getting the A/C installed (even though it's freezing out again) and my dad hooking up our dishwasher. We've had the dishwasher since the day we moved in but it needed some plumbing done so we had to wait until someone came to visit who had the tools. I was getting pretty fed up with washing dishes...my day is busy enough. My mom and dad spent the week with me and the girls. We did some shopping and stuff around the house. On Thursday we took the girls to Bronte Provincial Park and checked out the Kids Barn. They had so many different animals and it was much better than Springridge Farm. Uncle Drew got the girls a summer pass for the park and I think we'll be spending a bit of time there. In addition to the pool and the farm they have lots of nice trails for walking. We took advantage of having my parents here and saw TWO movies this week. Monday night we saw Mr and Mrs Smith. It was pretty entertaining but I hope Jennifer Aniston has the sense not to watch it! Last night we went and saw Cinderalla Man. It was a really good movie. I also got my hair cut yesterday - first time since October! The girls are well. Emma has been a bit fussy lately which could be because of their shots. She's starting to throw little fits when she doesn't get what she wants. Cry away sweetie is what we say. She's also been terrible at bedtime and we're all hoping it's just another phase. All she wants is to be cuddled. Leah still has her soother for bed but Emma gave it up and now she wants cuddles! There's a very fine line between giving her love and teaching her that screaming her head off gets her what she wants and we are trying very hard not to cross it.

One Year Update

2005-06-13T22:12:00.000-04:00

My mom and dad and I took the girls to their 1 year pediatrician appointment today. The drive isn't so bad from Oakville and I'm still not annoyed enough to get a local pediatrician. Dr Govan was the second person the girls ever met (before us even!!) and it's very nice to walk into his office and have him call us by name without checking his file. He is very pleased with the girls progress. He really had no concerns at all with them which was great. I'm very thankful we get to go to the NICU follow up clinic but I find they get caught up comparing the girls rather than evaluating their progress. Enough said - our appointment with them in July 13. Some of you may know that I was a bit concerned with their weight. At their last appointment at the beginning of March Emma was 15lbs 12ozs and Leah was 14lbs 12ozs. Today Leah weighed in at 16lbs 8ozs and Emma is now only 1/2 a pound heavier at 17lbs. They are definitely small for even their corrected age but they are still following the all important growth curve so no need to worry. Dr Govan's only suggestion was that I hold off switching them to milk until they were 1 year corrected and that I continue to give them their 2 bottles a day for the extra calories. They are doing very well lately with the straw cups and I might give them formula in them rather than a bottle but we'll see. I have to get at least 16ozs in them daily - now is not the time to start aggressively trying to wean them off bottles. They also got 2 shots each today. Leah went first. She screamed pretty good but calmed down pretty quickly. Emma started screaming the minute Dr Govan started measuring her and it intensified with the shots. She would not let me put her down. I can only imagine the scene it would have been if I hadn't had my mom. I booked our 15 month appt for the Monday after we come back from Vegas so my mom and dad will be here again. I know I could do a shot appointment by myself - there would just be a lot more crying. On to the update.... Teeth: They still have 8 each. They both took a break from teething this month. Hair: A bit more. Emma's is showing signs of being very curly like her dad's. Leah has more hair and it's got a wispy curl to it. Sleep: Leah is our little sleeper. I honestly don't remember the last time she woke up in the night. Emma got much better this month. At the beginning of the month she was very hard to get to bed. As soon as you tried to put her in she would cling to you and then start to scream. We let her cry a couple of nights and it seems to have cured her of not wanting to go to bed. She'll still fuss but she'll go to bed on her own. No more rocking her to sleep! She only got up in the night a few times. We only go in and get her when it's real crying. There are so many stages before real crying but it's amazing how quickly they realize that it's just easier to go to sleep when crying doesn't automatically get mom or dad running in to soothe them. They are still napping twice a day. Getting around: This month Emma figured out how to climb stairs (yikes!). She now crawls properly all the time and is very, very quick at getting around. She cruises along the couch no problem and she has no problems balancing. Leah continues to get stronger. It's hard to describe but she is just so much more agile than she was a month ago. She started crawling properly a few days ago and I don't think it will be long before she completely gives up the commando. Food: We let them try pretty much everything these days. Whether or not they eat it is a whole different story. Their current favourites are cheese, cheerios, NutraGrain bars and of course yogurt. We still give them mushy veggies with tofu mixed in because of their weight. We pretty much try and get them to eat as much as possible at all meals. Meals can be very long! They get an afternoon bottle and a bedtime bottle of formula. They're not big sippy cup fans. The whole having to tilt it up to drink is too much work for them when they have things to do (like climb stairs or chase the cat). We have had much better luck with the straw cups. Talking: They both babble all day long. I'm sure they have "words" for things that we haven't even picked up on yet. They both love Jackson and as you all know Emma's first word was cat. She can also say eeeeaaaaah (Leah) and mmmmmaaaa (Emma). I've also heard her say hi, dad, and mama but she's not as consistent with that. Leah talks alot but we're not too sure what she's saying most of the time! If you ask her where Jackson is she'll make the same noice everytime. She can say bye, mum mum and dad. When Leah gets really excited she makes this face and goes oh oh oh like a monkey. It's so funny. Cute stuff: Leah can clap, give you five, play peekaboo, kiss, make funny noises with her mouth and repeat sounds. Emma won't kiss but she does all the rest. They both will put their hands up when you ask them to and if you say up they'll put their arms in the air. They are much more interactive and fun these days. If you show them a book they'll climb into your lap and flip the pages while pointing at the pictures. They love to chase the cat and pet her. Emma tries to grab her whiskers and Leah always wants to kiss her. We are very lucky to have a patient, loving cat. They also like to race each other down the hall and they are never far apart. Both girls also love to look out the window when they're in the crib. Personalities: Emma can be very clingy. She'll wrap her arms around your neck and hold on tight. She is always on the go and she is still very determined. She's starting to listen more - if she's going for the buttons at the bottom of the tv and I say her name she'll sit back down for 5 seconds then try again. If I keep on sternly saying Emma she won't touch the buttons. She was much better with people this month. We have recently discovered that Emma likes to hoard toys. If you give them both a toy Emma will take Leah's and sit on it to guard it while she plays with her own. She's lucky Leah could care less. If you take away something Emma likes she'll cry. We have no problem letting her cry til she gets over it and it never lasts more than 10 seconds. Leah is extremely laid back. She will lie in her crib for a hour playing quietly and not complain. She eat much more than Emma and she is usually the one that lets you know it's feeding time. Leah rarely cries but the odd time you'll take away something she was really enjoying and she'll pout out her bottom lip and start to cry the saddest tears. Again we don't respond but the sad cry is definitely harder to take than Emma's tears of rage. Leah still loves people and it's very obvious she loves getting attention when we're out and about. They really are unique little girls. Although they both wave and play peekaboo they do it totally different. They are starting to interact more and more. We got some really great video on Saturday night of the two of them screaming with laughter at each other through the crib rails. It went on for 15 minutes and it was the sweetest sound. For the most part they still play side by side but everyonce in awhile you'll catch them both sitting in front of a board book flipping the pages together. They are very lucky to have each other.

1st Birthday Party!

2005-06-12T20:49:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we had the girls first birthday party. Three weeks ago when I first called about air conditioning it was because I knew we'd be having 25 people over for a BBQ. To say it was hot without A/C would be an understatement but I think I've gone on enough about the heat. The girls had a great party. They woke up from their nap just as people were arriving and greeted them in their diapers. They were extremely well behaved for the whole afternoon and we were very proud of them. The highlight was definitely when they got their cake. I was convinced that they would cry but Emma started laughing and Leah was clapping. I have never seen them as cute. I'm sure quite a few of you have heard me saying I didn't want to give them lots of sugar until later on in life. I was seriously considering not giving them ice cream cake (John said whatever I thought was fine) but it was so hot and everyone was so excited to see them eat it that I'm pretty sure someone would have snuck upstairs to call child services if I had insisted they have a yogurt. I'm standing firm on french fries though! Anyways, they got the cake and John and I went off to do something after watching them take the first bite...well lick. I could hear laughter coming from the kitchen but I didn't think anything of it until 10 minutes later I went in to see them COVERED in ice cream. It was cute but disgusting (see pics). Thankfully my mom and John's mom each grabbed one and gave them a quick bath and I didn't have to touch them The rest of the party was good. It was nice to see everyone. With moving and everything we have been so busy that we haven't had time to go visit so it was nice to have everyone come to us. My parents are going to stay for a few days which will be nice. Tomorrow the girls go for their 1 year checkup with Dr Govan. They'll get shots so it will be nice to have my mom because I don't think they'll get over it as well as past visits - we'll see.

1st birthday cake

Emma laughing and Leah clapping while 25 people sang them Happy Birthday (I thought for sure they would cry!)

Emma's first taste

Leah going tongue first again

Emma aftermath

Leah aftermath

Four generations (girls in outfit number 2)

With Granny and Grandpa

With Nana and Papa

Uncle Drew pushing them around Dirt City

Heat Stroke

2005-06-09T20:55:00.000-04:00

Thank you for all your birthday calls, emails and cards. John and I are very lucky to have the girls and also to have so many people that care about them. It means a lot to all four of us! I can't even begin to describe how hot it is in this house. There are no trees for shade or blinds and the sun beats in all day long. We are going to get some blinds tomorrow. Yesterday I was so hot from lugging two sweaty babies around all day that by the time John got home from work I had a terrible headache and started throwing up. No, I am not pregnant, although when I feel like that I tell John I WILL DIE if I get sick again next time I'm pregnant. For those of you that didn't know I was really sick for 10 weeks with the girls. I could hardly sit at a desk and do my job nevermind run after toddlers all day long. The girls are hot but they don't seem to mind the heat which is a relief. The AC will be installed next Friday - 8 days to go. We are on day 5 of 30C plus weather and the forecast calls for nothing but scorching heat. So I'm too hot to sit here and write the update. They have their pediatrician appointment on Monday so I will wait and do it then. We did get some exciting news today. Mattamy gave us notice that they are going to start the curbs and sidewalks on Monday. They don't commit on how long it takes but the guy said we might have grass in a month or so. Imagine - grass by the end of July!

Happy Birthday Girls!

2005-06-07T20:59:00.000-04:00

I'm going to defer the big update til tomorrow night We've had a busy day, I'm tired and it's HOT HOT HOT upstairs where the computer is. I think the girls had a good birthday. Leah was up bright and early so we got to sing her happy birthday at 7:24am. Emma was napping at 9:30am. Little bugger John was at work today but we drove him to the GO station so we could have the car. We went to Canadian Tire and for the very first time my stroller did no fit through the cash register. I don't know if I tried hard enough though (I had quite the audience) because our stroller is the same width as a wheelchair and I have a hard time believing that Canadian Tire doesn't meet the handicap requirements. After Canadian Tire we went and got a new gate. The one we got was missing screws so we are still using our bench to keep them off the stairs. Our final stop was Costco to get some pictures I had developed for an album of their first year. They are much better quality than Walmart. I know going three places doesn't sound like much but it's about the limit the girls will take of getting in and out of the car and stroller/shopping cart. We came home and they had a good nap while I put their album together. Tonight John and I got them little carrot cakes with cream cheese icing. It was a nice sunny night so we sat them out front so they could make a big mess. The candles wouldn't light in the breeze and I'm going to have to get sparklers for their party on Saturday. They both enjoyed the cake and after they were done we gave them their absolute favourite. You're never going to guess what it is....ice cubes. My mom started them on them and they love licking them. We always take them away when they get too small so don't worry! Here are some pics. There are a lot but it's their birthday so I have an excuse!

Emma - 1 year old

Leah - 1 year old

Before (check out what's sitting on the ground)

If you're not sure use your tongue!

OH BOY THIS IS GOOD! Why have you been feeding us crap all year?? (they both feel really bad for implying that all that pumping I did was crap!)

Emma

Leah

More Emma (I can't resist)

More Leah (again, they're too cute not to post)

Emma's curl (OH NO!!!)

Emma likes the straw cup

Clean up step 1

Clean up step 2

A year ago today...

2005-06-06T21:35:00.000-04:00

This time last year I was in full blown labour. I'm sitting here in our computer nook watching the sky darken and I clearly remember doing the same thing last year while laid up in the hospital bed hooked up to all the monitors. Warning to those that don't like labour stories - stop reading now and check back tomorrow for some cute pics! So as I mentioned last night John was away the night I started labour. I had no idea I was in labour. I kept on waking up every hour but that was nothing new. I hadn't been able to sleep for more than an hour in weeks by that point. Come morning I just felt off. It took me a few hours to realize it was coming in waves and by the time John called at 11am to say he was on his way home I did report that I was feeling a bit weird. For the next two hours I started timing my off feeling and by the time he got home at 1pm it was coming every 10 minutes. We're pretty open about poop on this site so I will say that the off feeling was like I had to poop. Knowing that nice detail I'm sure you can appreciate my reservation at John insisting I call his Aunt Bonnie to see if we should go to the hospital! As the story goes Bonnie didn't freak out but calmly told me I should get some stuff packed and go get checked out. She then called the hospital and told them I was on my way and in labour. I was still completely oblivious and spent the whole ride to the hospital telling John I was going to be so embarassed when I was told the only thing wrong with me was that I had to poop! I even talked about what we were going to have for dinner so you can imagine our shock when I was told I was being admitted because I was having contractions 2 mins apart and was 3cm dialated. There was no turning back...the girls were coming. John called our parents and Drew and they were on the road right away. The first few hours in the hospital were fine. I was able to walk around and every so often they would check the heartbeats. I was the only patient in labour and delivery and Dr Shuen was on call that night so we were all set. I remember him joking at one point that he could stagger them over midnight so they would have different birthdays. As the hours progressed they had trouble getting the heartbeats and I had to be permanently hooked up to the monitors. It was very uncomfortable not being able to move during the contractions. I became obsessed with missing the window for the epidural. I only had one item on my birth plan and it was to not miss the window for the epidural! I think I drove everyone nuts asking if I should get it yet. Finally Bonnie said to me that when I needed it I wouldn't be asking if I needed it I would be begging for it. Sure enough at some point in the early hours of June 7th Dr. Shuen broke my water. Thirty minutes later I was begging for it. I can't say I was ever scared for the girls health while I was in labour although looking back I maybe should have been. During the evening Dr Govan (their pediatrician) came in to talk to us about premature babies. He was very frank with us but I was still a bit in denial. We had spent so much time focusing on making it to 32 weeks that at 33 weeks 2 days I thought it couldn't be that bad. After the epidural we all rested for a few hours. By 5 am my nurse Juliet checked me and it was time to push. I did most of the pushing for Leah in the delivery room and then they moved me into the operating room. What a scary place. I pushed and pushed and pushed and Leah was born at 7:24am. They took her away immediately to be inspected by Dr. Govan and his team. I never wrote her APGAR down (I should ask Dr Govan) but it was not good. He came over and quickly told us they were taking her over to the NICU to get her some help for her breathing. There was no time to think about it as it was Emma's turn. True to form Emma loved her mom too much and didn't want to talk to anyone else! She did not want to descend and I pushed and pushed and pushed some more. At my last appointment with Dr. Shuen I had asked about the possibility of having one natural delivery and one c section. I had made an offhand remark about wanting one or the other but not both! Well I guess he took me seriously because he was very patient and determined to get her out without the knife. Having John's aunt Bonnie there for everything was a real comfort. I didn't ever have to wonder if my best interests were being looked out for. As the pushing continued with Emma, John was able to sense that something was up. (All my attention was being taken up by pushing). He quickly figured out that Emma's heart rate was dropping everytime I pushed and that there was some concern. After a small debate Dr Shuen decided that we would do one more push with forceps and if she didn't come then he would do a c section. Oh boy did I push that time and Emma was born 2 hours and 6 minutes after Leah at 9:30am. We all watched intently while Dr Govan examined her and my elation when he gave the thumbs up sign quickly turned to panic when I realized there was no such sign for Leah. I was able to hold Emma for a few seconds before she went off to see her sister in the NICU. They wheeled me off to recovery and then over to see the girls. It was surreal seeing them in the incubators with all those tubes running into them. Leah was on the ventilator and we had no idea what she even looked like. The next few days would be pretty stressful.

A taste of Summer and their first swim

2005-06-05T21:15:00.000-04:00

Oh boy is it hot today. Thankfully the guy is coming from Sears tomorrow to do an estimate on air conditioning. We probably should have got the estimates sooner but we've been busy and we weren't expecting it to be 30C so early in June. We had another busy weekend. Yesterday Mattamy had a BBQ for all the new people in the community. They had music, food and a petting zoo and the girls got a kick out of the animals. They are really into ducks right now and Leah liked the goat. We met a couple there with boy/girl 18 month old twins. The mom seemed overwhelmed and she told me to enjoy it while they still couldn't walk. Coby, Carrie and Ronan came over for dinner and we had steaks on the BBQ. Mmmm. After dinner we went for a walk. We had a good laugh at what our lives have become. Ronan is much more alert than when we last saw him and he's starting to smile and coo. Earlier on in the week, Alicia and Jeff said we could go for a swim today if the weather was nice. I have been glued to the Weather Network hoping that it would be pool worthy. I got my wish. It was scorching hot and sunny and lucky us got to spend the day in the pool! It was the first time the girls have been swimming and once they got over the fact that the water wasn't bath warm they loved it. I dunked Leah twice and she made all sorts of funny faces but she didn't cry. We didn't attempt it with Emma since she gets all freaked out if you try to lay her back in the water. We figured dunking her would ruin the afternoon and decided to save it for swim class. I am signing them up for the next class and we are planning on making full use of the pool at Bronte Creek. Amelia is also growing like a weed. She's a very peaceful baby and she was having a great time playing on her mat in the shade. This time last year John was away at Jeff's Bachelor party (after much convincing that I would be fine by myself for a night) and Troy had just chauffeured me home from Sarah's first birthday party. I had made it to 33 weeks and I was determined to get out for a few hours. Little did I know that in a few hours I would be in labour and my lazy life of lying around moaning and groaning would come to a very abrupt end.

Why I can't do swimming lessons by myself!

Girls and John

Stuffing their faces with Cheerios

Check out the hats - they have all sorts of cute ones but the only ones they don't tear off and throw in disgust are these funny looking ones.

As you all probably know we don't like to dress them the same. Unfortunately they only have the one bathing suit so I had to suck it up today. I will admit they're cute but I can't even imagine what it would be like if we took them out in public dressed the same.

Bright eyed Amelia

Playing

Nothing ventured, nothing gained

2005-06-02T21:23:00.000-04:00

The weather has been fantastic this week. I already feel like I've experienced more summer weather than I did all of last year. I'm sure that is because I only have a few memories of the blur that was last summer and most of them involve feeding babies in the middle of the night. My mom is going back to Ottawa tomorrow morning on the train. I have had help with the girls for nearly 3 weeks so I'm going to have to adjust to doing it on my own during the day. It's funny because I'm starting to think they are just as much work now as they were when they were newborns. From about 4 - 10 months they were very easy to look after but now they are so curious and active that it's a lot of work keeping up with them all day. We've all been busy this week. I've alluded to John working hard these past few months and on Monday they launched the website he built. It's a private real estate site (www.buyourhouse.ca) and yesterday they were on CityTV 6 o'clock news. It was very exciting. John's always wanted a shot at doing something like this and he has worked very hard (and very late at night) to ensure that it didn't take time away from his time with the girls. I am very proud of him no matter what happens with the site. Some other exciting news (for us anyway!) is that we have booked a trip to Las Vegas for our second anniversary in September. We're going for 6 full days at the Mandalay Bay. We had a great time on our honeymoon and we are both very very excited. My parents are going to come watch the girls and I know it will be hard to leave them but we'll know they're in good hands.

Granny Nanny!

2005-05-30T22:15:00.000-04:00

We had a busy weekend. My mom is still here and we've been taking advantage of the help. It's funny because we haven't gone out for dinner or the movies instead we've done a bunch of errands. It's very strange to be able to hop in the car and go out just the two of us. The highlight of the weekend was definitely buying a BBQ. We got it yesterday afternoon and had it assembled and fired up in time for dinner. It was delicious. Another perk about having my mom here is that I can drive John to the GO train station so we have the car during the day. Last week we were out everyday. We have been checking out the places around the house. There is a lot of countryside nearby and we found a farm that I'm sure the girls will love when they're a bit older. There are lots of places to go pick berries, apples and pumpkins. We're going to try and check out Bronte Provincial Park this week. There is so much green space here compared to where we were in Mississauga and I am starting to appreciate living in "the sticks". The girls are doing well. Hard to believe they'll be one a week tomorrow. Emma is crawling up the stairs. We bought a second gate which will have to be installed asap. She's quick and obsessed with the stairs and it's a bit scary. We had our 30 day home warranty inspection this past week and there are very few defficiencies in the house. They are for the most part small cosmetic things that I think only John can see. We did have a leak in the ensuite shower and Mattamy was here about 10 minutes after we called to fix it. Somehow a nail went through the pipe which caused the leak. Two more families have moved in on the street behind us but we haven't seen them yet.

They still love the bath!

still blue...

Maybe all the hundreds of people who thought they were being very witty by telling us we had our hands full were right!

Family Shot

A trip to the dentist

2005-05-25T22:30:00.000-04:00

I had a dentist appointment tonight at 7pm. Our dentist is across the street from the condo and for the past two years going to the dentist has been very convenient. Not anymore. I think we'll have to look into getting one closer to home. I parked in the parking lot in front of the condo and it was very strange to be there but not be home. We've been so busy lately that I've really only missed the mall and not really given much thought to the condo itself. It was such a nice night out and it would be perfect on the balcony. I immediately counted 13 floors up and noticed that "our" balcony was empty and all "our" curtains and blinds were closed. I hope they're taking good care of "our" condo. The people at the dentist are all really nice and they like to keep track of their patients which I'm sure is comforting for those who are scared of the dentist. I hadn't seen the hygenist I had today since October 2003 and I guess that day she had marked on my file that I was a bit down because that day at work 25% of my company had been laid off very suddenly. I was very confused at first when she asked me about it but I had no trouble remembering that awful day. So while I was lying there listening to her talk it occured to me that I was just pregnant with the girls at that appointment (but didn't know it yet). I thought that was neat. By the time I was done with dentist I was in full reminiscing mode and walking to the car I couldn't help but think of what was going on this time last year. Although I didn't know it, I was in the final stretch of the pregnancy and very uncomfortable. The one thing that stands out about my condo arrest pre babies was a compressor on the top of the Novotel. I guess it was broken because every 15 minutes it would make this big noise that you could hear even with the windows closed. Insignificant to most (John never really noticed it) but that noise nearly drove me insane. It was like a timer ticking away telling me how little time had past when all I wanted was for time to go quickly so I could have the girls and be comfortable again.

A trip to Ottawa

2005-05-24T10:57:00.000-04:00

It's been awhile since I've posted. John had some work to do so the girls and I decided to go to Ottawa for a week to give him some peace. I had been moaning and groaning about not having any family to help us out so I decided to bring the girls to the help. I was a bit nervous about the 5 hour drive but they did really well. They cried for a bit before I could stop for lunch but for the most part they slept and giggled while I sang and tossed them the occasional Arrowroot cookie to keep them happy and quiet. My mom came back with us today so it was nice to have help in the car and it will be nice to have help while she's here. Our visit was good. My mom and dad did most of the feeding/bathing and diaper changing so it was a real break for me. I visited with some family, friends from high school and all the neighbours who I think are still a bit in shock that I have kids. The weather for the long weekend was terrible and I was very grateful that I don't have to rely on my weekends for sun. John missed us a lot and he was very excited to see the girls today. He couldn't believe how much they'd changed in a week. Emma can now say "eeeeah" (Leah) and "mmmmmaaaaahhh" (Emma) and is crawling properly for the majority of her travels. Leah got a lot stronger and she can pull up on her knees and is just generally a lot more agile than she was last week. They both can cover their eyes to play peekaboo and Leah will give out kisses but only when she feels like it. Oh I can't forget that Emma is scared of grass!! We had them out in the garden at my parents before the weather turned sour and Leah was crawling all over trying to eat the flowers. Emma started to scream when we put her on the grass so we got her a blanket. She would not go off the blanket and if the grass touched her she got back on that blanket as fast as she could. It was pretty funny. On Victoria Day we took them over to Quebec (where the shops were open). They thought it was funny when people started pointing and saying "les jumeaux, les jumeaux!". Oh and Emma screamed her head off at the puppies in Ottawa but she thought the ones in Quebec were cute. I guess she likes French dogs.

Emma on the blanket

Granny and the girls

Curious Leah

GET ME OFF THE GRASS

Soon to be toddlers

Playing together

Look what you're missing Emma!

Cat!

2005-05-15T21:09:00.000-04:00

We got the Focus back today. I am pretty excited. The van was very handy when we were moving but it was not fun trying to load both babies with only one sliding door. When we got our carseats checked they insisted that they were too reclined the way the manufacturer had us install them. When we fixed the recline there was "tons" of leg room in the front so there was really no reason for us to have the van anymore. I am pleased to announce that Emma is saying her first word. We have been hearing it a few times over the past week or so but I was waiting to be sure that she was indeed making the proper association. What is it? Mama? No... Dada? No... She's saying cat! It's pretty cute. She says it a lot which made me think that she had just found a new sound but then Jackson will walk into the room and she'll say it. Leah is still saying Mama but it's harder to tell with her because I'm always around. Emma is also pulling up on everything now. We keep on waiting for her to take a good spill but she's very good at keeping her balance. She can cruise along the couch and nothing is safe anymore. Emma is also starting to crawl properly. She'll go 4 or 5 feet and then drop down and do the commando. Leah is also progressing. She can pull herself up to her knees and she is definitely getting stronger. John and I are starting to think that Leah should have had the jumperoo or the exersaucer. We can see that she is slowly gaining lower body strength and we work with her by getting her into positions where she has to use her legs. Of course most of the problem lies in that we can compare her to Emma. The two of have proven to me that every baby develops differently. They have both been exposed to the exact same thing but their development is very different. We have our next NICU follow up clinic next month - it will be interesting to see what they have to say.

We didn't do much this weekend. A bit of shopping and no unpacking. The girls were a handful yesterday and I think we were both counting down the minutes until it was bedtime. Emma has had another few rough nights and we are both pretty tired. She's been waking up several times at night and crying so hard that we have to go in and rock her back to sleep. I was so tired last night that I thought maybe she wakes up and is scared because it is so dark. It is much darker in their room than it was at the condo. I turned on the lamp in their room and she woke up 3 times crying but rather than getting hysterical she cried for about 10 seconds then went back to sleep. Fingers crossed for tonight. Leah continues to sleep through no problem. I can't even imagine what shape we would be in if she decided to misbehave at night!