8 Months Old

I am really starting to love these monthly updates. I feel like once the details are recorded, my heart is OK to move on to the next milestone because I can come back and re-live the stages whenever I want. I did, however, catch a slight smell that reminded me of the NICU the other morning when I was cuddling Gray after feeding him and my heart broke just a little bit. And then he gave me a huge slobbery kiss on the cheek and I remembered that I wouldn't trade this time for anything. Not even to have brand new Nash and brand new Gray again.


My boys love me. I know that. But, oh they love their dad. Dad is a hero around here. His lap is the best seat in the house.



These boys are QUICK. I still have to take one out of the tub at a time, so I drain the tub, wrap one up, lay him on the rug, and go get whoever is still in the cold, empty tub. And regardless of who is on the rug, they are naked and thrilled about it by the time I turn back around with their towel nowhere in sight.



See that mischievous smile on Gray's face? Yeah, it's showing up more and more these days. And it just makes me so excited. I LOVE the mischief that comes with boys. [I hope I remember that when they make me want to rip my hair out sometime down the road.]



And it makes me even more happy that they will ALWAYS have a partner in crime. Brothers are the best. And these two are major fans of each other.



Gray is so beautiful to me. He has his daddy's eyes and nose. And I kiss them constantly. He is a doll.



This was my first attempt at shooting in manual mode with the remote control. I am just giddy about it! I feel like I can be in more pictures with the boys. It takes a lot of planning and a lot of tries, but then you get the one that really captures a feeling and it's perfect. I love Gray's hair and his little content grin in this one. We look out their bedroom window at the big green tree outside or the train as it goes by in the mornings. It is the best.



I keep thinking the boys need haircuts [around their ears especially! It's getting a little scruffy...] until I see a picture like this. Oh my handsome dude.



I've been taking the boys down to the Chiropractic clinic at Parker University every week for the past month. It has made such a difference! I am a huge advocate for adjusting from birth. There are two interns there that are specializing in pediatric chiropractic. They are the absolute best. The boys were having a hard time with constipation. I had changed their diet and pumped the fluids and nothing was changing. I mentioned this to the interns, they gave a quick adjustment and ever since, there is no sign of constipation at all. I just love how much chiropractic can do. I feel like it is so non-invasive and I love that I am not putting harmful chemicals into my babes' bodies.



And when they get adjusted, they can play HARD because we will work out all the kinks later. They love playtime with Dad. He is working so hard lately. We live for the times he gets home before the boys go to bed. And the weekends. He balances everything better than anyone I know. It's so impressive to me. And it makes me so happy that the boys look forward to their time with him and really make the most of it! They get so giggly when he's around!



Nash consistently scooches himself right underneath the couch. He doesn't like it under there. Hasn't figure out how to avoid it. Poor kiddo. But I think it's hilarious. haha.



Every time we put Nash in the stroller, he puts his fist in the air. And keeps it there for the duration of the ride. It's so funny! I think he looks so handsome here. I love his dark hair and light eyes. He is such a lady killer!



We finally put the boys in the shopping cart after a friend of mine [Cam's cousin] sent me the most adorable picture of her little boy in a shopping cart. I couldn't believe they were big enough for that! But oh we stopped traffic.



The fastest way to get everybody clean for church is a shower with Dad. The boys are so animated! They love the water. And love the naked. I think all babies love that.



beautiful, beautiful Nash.



CHEESE!



Gray has been chewing on anything and everything trying to get his teeth through. No luck so far. He sits up really well though. He is SO strong.



I give the boys some finger foods to practice with at every meal. They are getting better and better! Gray picks up the food and smooshes it into his mouth with the rest of his hand and gets the food in there 100% of the time now. Nash is working on pinching the food with his thumb and index finger and does a pretty great job of it. He probably makes it into his mouth about 70% of the time. I love watching them figure things out! It is so fun to see their minds working.



This is what I wake up to every day. Regardless of where I put them down to bed, they end up right against the side of the crib that borders the other crib. And they almost always wake up happy. It is so fun! The sadness comes when I pick one up out of the crib to nurse him. I try to switch off, but a lot of the time I just pick up the one who isn't quite as happy as the other. And for the next 10 minutes, I sing our morning song roundup. It consists of a few originals. "Wake up, wake up, wake up I said! It's time to get out of your bed. The day is here! It's so much fun to wake each morning with the sun!" followed by "When you wake up be happy! Be happy when you're awake! When you wake up be happy! It's gonna be a good day! When the sun is up start smiling! It's easy if you can. 'Cause I love my Gray Baby! I love my Nash Man!" And then we sing the cougar fight song. A few times through this and it's time to nurse the other one. I have really noticed a major change in myself from singing first thing in the morning. I am happier when we do this. I am a better mom. I love it.



OH that belly. :) [Nash]



OH those legs! [Gray]



We have been working on not hitting our brothers. It is a hard thing.



Sesame Street is on Netflix. The boys watch maybe 5 minutes of it before they are done and on their bellies playing with something else, BUT it gets me a shower! And they love the songs. It was so fun for me to see them enjoy that part of it. I felt a little part of my mom-dream fulfilled. Which sounds a little silly, but my mom let us watch Sesame Street all growing up and it is one of my fondest childhood memories. My siblings and I still adore a lot of the classics. And so many clips from Sesame Street still crack me up. I loved seeing Nash and Gray love something I loved when I was their age too.



We are vain. We have discovered ourselves in the mirror. And it is the best thing ever. They get so giddy when their reflection is staring back at them.



We watched the election. The boys couldn't handle the tension.



Nash gave us his best analysis and prediction, which was that Romney would get the most votes but lose the election. Smartie pants.



Daddy taught them all about Nutella on Toast. We pretty much just think anything Dad does is the best.



The boys are wearing 12 month old jammies now. They look so grown up to me! Ah! Especially that last picture. My friend Karen sent them to us right before the boys got here and I remember thinking that they would NEVER fit something that big! They do. And at 8 months no less. Oh they grow up so fast! I love their hair in this picture too. Such handsome gents.



I have no idea where this wolf hat came from, but seriously? Seriously. I die. Look at that face! Cam takes one of the boys running with him after he gets home from school every day. It is such a treat. They are always so proud of themselves when they get back for getting such fun time with Dad. It makes me melt.



The longer Nash's hair gets, the crazier it gets. He has my dad's hair. Fine and thick. And it has a mind of its own. Especially after bedtime or naps. :)



I told a friend the other day that "I swear infertility is the best thing that's ever happened to me." And I should probably explain. I feel like every little thing in my life is a blessing [that pertains to the boys.] I have bad days too. Don't get me wrong. But seriously, I think everything is SO fun now! We are planning what to put in the boys' stockings and what to get them for their birthday coming up and it just makes me giddy. I LOVE IT. I love them. I love making them happy. They are my whole world. And my world rocks.

Cruising for Chicks

Moral of the story: Just because Gray looks like he has completely forgotten the goal does not mean he will not win the race. Also, we will most definitely be having wingman issues in the future. oh boy.

Cloth Diapering Twins Part 3: The Wash Routine

So, once you start researching cloth diapers, you find out all sorts of crazy stuff that takes even more research. One being "the wash routine." You do have to be careful, because some detergents aren't safe for cloth diapers and can make them repel liquid which makes for really leaky diapers and sad babies. However, I don't think it has to be so hard! I'm keeping this post short because I got so overwhelmed just trying to figure out how to clean them. Here's what I do.

1. Detergent: We have used Tide for our cloth diapers from the very start. It is Cloth Diaper safe. It smells good. I have had no problems with it. I am almost out, though, and have heard that the homemade laundry detergent I use for the rest of our clothes is Cloth Diaper safe [and cheaper] so I will absolutely be trying that out before I buy another jug of Tide.


2. I use about 1/4 of what a normal load of laundry would get detergent-wise.


3. Hot Prewash


4. Hot Wash


5. Cold Rinse


6. Longest Cycle Possible


7. Extra Rinse [You have to make sure the water is clear of bubbles. Any bubbles mean your diapers will have residue and won't be as absorbent. I sure wish someone had told me that before I started all this! Would've helped a TON.]


8. On the clothesline or in the dryer [during winter months]

And then you see this out your kitchen window. Oh it makes my heart so happy!



Part One and Part Two of this series.

Sleepy Sunday

You know what heaven is?

It's breakfast for dinner.

It's long, lazy, deep-breathing, drool-worthy naps.

Where the air is thick and muffled.

It's perfect company.

And delightful conversation.

 

Never Trust a Woman in a Corset

Hate is a strong word. I get that. I mean it. I hate Halloween. I don't like scary Halloween. I don't like gross things. I don't like food that resembles body parts. Normally, though, I can get past it, dress up and have a good time. This Halloween, we ended up pulled over in a side street with me having a total breakdown. Let's rewind a few hours and I'll explain.

Originally, our little family was going to go as Despicable Me characters. Cam would be Gru, I was going to be Vector [complete with a bowl cut. awesome.] and the boys were to be minions. Well, they don't make hoodies small enough for the boys in bright yellow. We looked everywhere. So we opted out of that idea and during a stroke of genius in the kitchen, we decided we would be the judges from The Voice. 3 guys, 1 girl it was perfect! We made a list of everything we needed and set about finding them for cheap.

We really had no money to spend on costumes this year, so I decided to go as Christina during her dark hair days. [If you don't remember the dark hair days...she was exceptionally trashy. awesome.] For Cam's costume, we drew tattoos on a pair of nylons and he wore them over his arms. Then, he pretty much wore what he always wears. Cam's pretty stylish anyway. It worked great.

I spent the greater part of Friday pulling together the costumes. We found Nash a perfect plaid shirt, black vest, and long dark pants for Blake. He looked super suave and oh so charming.

Gray being Ceelo was the hardest part for me. The only look of Ceelo's I could get into my head was the all white ensemble complete with a white baseball cap. I spent 3 hours trying to make him a white baseball cap. I picked it apart 3 times and tried again when it just didn't fit right. I was losing my mind. Seriously. Just in case you were wondering if it's possible to make a baseball cap out of a cereal box, an old dress shirt and a hair tie...it's not. I had reached a new low. I was laughing so hard at myself. It's one of those times where you just step back and ask "what the heck was I thinking?" I couldn't keep it together. I'm still laughing. I tried to call my mom, because it is her gene that makes me feel like I can make anything. She was teaching piano, so I tried calling Cam. He picked up and I let out this spurt of laughter and explanation that was so loud and fast and hysterical that he had to hang up until I got myself together.

I gave up and found Gray a fantastic pair of red sweats and a red collared shirt. Popped the collar, gave him some sunglasses and we were in business.

Last up, I had to get my costume together. Being that I was Christina Aguilera...who is quite...chesty, I donned tight black pants, a black shirt and, like any logical mother of twins, a teal corset from my lingerie drawer.

Let me remind you that I'm getting dressed for a Church function.

I put on all the jewelry I could handle and more makeup than I think I've ever worn. We got all loaded up and started to drive to the church.

You know in old horror movies where something dons on the main character and the background goes all fuzzy and their eyes get real big? Yep. Lived it.

So, we pull into the parking lot for the trunk or treat and I realize that we have been in young student married wards for so long that we didn't put together that we were in a real family ward now. As in, there are so many kids that the adults must not dress up anymore. [I was wrong about that, but all the adults that were in the parking lot were dressed in normal clothes. The dressed up ones were eating dinner inside.] Either way, in my head all I am seeing is kids dressed up and adults wearing street clothes and I AM WEARING A CORSET.

"Drive Cameron. DO NOT PARK. Drive. DRIVE!"

And it all came crashing down.

One street away, I totally lost it. Sobbing and freaking out about "WHY can't we be normal and just buy animal pajamas for our boys?! We look ridiculous! No one will recognize us, but even if we HAD money for animal pajamas, that wouldn't be right either because we're not animal pajama people! yada yada yada yada yada yada. sob. moan. cry. choke."

Clearly, I was stable.

Cameron somehow got me to laugh at myself. And the situation. And our conversation went a little like this:

Me: OK. I think I'm good. Let's go. I just want to see our friends anyway. Who cares what we're wearing?

C: I think that sounds great. I really want to go.

Me: K. Let's go.

C: Well, your face looks scary.

So we went home and I washed my face and re-applied the make up and grabbed some bottles for the boys. We ended up having a great time. I kept my coat on. We made the kids sing for their candy. It was a blast.

And we went home and watched some well-deserved White Collar. Because that's just how we roll.

When I finally got a hold of my mom she told me to tell Cameron "Never trust a woman in a corset."

Words to live by.

For real. The only picture I took that night. Nash a.k.a. Blake Shelton.

Our "the Voice" pumpkin. Which is almost too good looking to include in such a post.

{And don't worry, the pictures from our annual Halloween Party will show the rest of our costumes. Corset included.}