Allison: Two Months

Two whole months with the sweetest girl. Watching her grow has given me a new appreciation for taking everything in and (at least trying) to slow down in the great race of life. 

This month we've enjoyed getting more and more settled in to our life as a family of six. 

The kids are all still enamored with Allison. Brayden still calls her "the new baby" more than he uses her name and is the absolute best big brother I could ask for for her, Ashley is still my biggest helper, and Katie is still overly concerned with showing me all things belonging to Allie. 

Needless to say, they are in love. 

And so are we. It truly doesn't get better than this.

I was so glad that I took the time this month to go visit my Grandma Blievernicht one day when daycare was closed. I picked the twins up after school and took all the kids to Effingham to see her and let her meet her newest great grandchild. She had the biggest smile when she held Allison, and it's one of the things that I'll always remember about her, as 6 days after our visit she passed away. Rest in Peace Grandma, you are greatly missed. 

Allison is wearing size 3 month clothes and size one diapers. It was so hard to put away those newborn clothes knowing I won't be needing them again. But then there's Eric over there celebrating that we never need to store newborn clothes or buy newborn diapers again- the difference between a man and a woman ha!

She is weighing around 12 pounds 8 ounces and measures about 22 and a half inches long. She has really filled out this past month and has definitely lost her "newborn" look. We've also all agreed that she no longer resembles Katie, but that hasn't stopped us from still calling her that from time to time. 

Allison is now eating 5 ounces every 3 to four hours and is using a size 2 nipple. She is eating a total of 30 ounces a day, getting up around 6/6:30 and going to bed sometime between 9 and 10. And we are sleeping through the night- woohoo!

Allison is starting to smile SO much and it melts my heart every time she smiles at me- it has to be one of the best things in the world. She's found her voice this month and lets out lots of coos. She is starting to grab onto the animals on her play mat, though maybe not intentionally at this point. She is also giving you "hugs" when you pick her up where her arms wrap around you, which is just an heart warming feeling.

She has to be kind of coaxed to take her pacifier at times, and Eric and I have noticed that she has started sucking on her fists, especially if she is chest to chest cuddling with you and her hands are up by her face. 

She is loving bath time and the attention she gets from her brother and sisters. She is a fan of the swing and is trying to bat at the mobile on it. 

Allison is not a fan of trapped gas, but we've thankfully had a lot less of that this month, especially after getting adjusted by Sam (huge thank you to her!). 

I know we are in for loads of fun this next month with her- so here's to looking forward to all that is to come!

Katie: Two Months

It's been two months with this sweet girl, and we are loving every moment! 

We started this month with her first Fourth of July. We went to the Dieterich parade, but you won't see a picture of Katie there because it was HOT and she ended up in the car with the A/C on with her aunt Nikki.  

Katie finally got to meet her great grandma Flood, and got in lots of cuddles with her.

She is starting to smile a lot more, which we just love. I've caught her shooting smiles at Brayden and Ashley, which just makes my heart so happy. I hope she loves them as much as they both love her!

We haven't had our two month appointment yet, but my measurements at home show that Katie weighs 11 pounds 6 ounces and is about 22.5 inches long. I'll update with official stats once we have our appointment on Friday.

She is wearing size one diapers. She was in newborn clothes all month, but has been wearing 3 month sleepers the past few weeks. And just today I got out the rest of the 3 month tote.

Katie still loves to poop right after we put a fresh diaper on her, and she usually poops the most in the morning. 

Our current schedule- up at 6:30/7, bottle, down for a nap at 8/8:30, up at 10, bottle, nap at 11ish, up at 1, bottle, nap at 2ish, up at 3:30/4, bottle. Then we take little catnaps and have weird wake windows until we go down for the night, but she usually wants to eat around 6, and then again around 7:30/8, when we put her down to bed after finishing that last bottle. She's actually starting to sleep through the night a little here towards the end of this month, getting up anywhere between 4 and 6, which I am totally happy with!

Katie is drinking 5 ounces in her bottles now, but will occasionally leave an ounce or so in a bottle, especially in the evening.

She loves being held, especially at the end of the night. 

She enjoys tummy time as long as it is on your chest. She will hold her head up and look around. She is not a fan of tummy time on the floor though. 

She likes her swing (when the music is on) and has started staring at the star mobile on it. 

She's not a fan burping and reallllly makes Eric and I work for a burp. I didn't appreciate how easily Brayden and Ashley burped when they were babies ha!

We are looking forward to seeing what this next month has in store for her. I know I'll be soaking up my last month at home with her as much as I can.

Brayden and Ashley: Two Months

Two months old- how is it possible! These two had another exciting month cooped up at home with us. Don't tell them that there's a big exciting world out there, they might start getting annoyed with staying home every day haha.

So let's do a little recap of all that's happened to these two cool cats and kittens this past month. (Someone please tell me that you got that Tiger King reference.)

Week 5 was a big one for us! We celebrated our first St. Patrick's day. These two were green from head to toe, so no one was going to be pinching them. (As long as you don't count Eric and I pinching their chubby little cheeks!)

This week, Brayden and Ashley both had ultrasounds on their hips to rule out any hip dysplasia. Their pediatrician Dr. Bingham didn't think that they had it, but she likes to get ultrasounds done on breech babies just in case. I'm happy to report that they say that both of them have normal hip sockets- yay!

 

Week 5 also brought a minor procedure for Brady. We have known about his tongue tie since he was born. He had the cutest little dip in the middle of his tongue from it. He is a rock star nurser, but around a month his latch was really starting to become uncomfortable. We were referred to Dr. Cudone who did the quick and simple procedure. They didn't let me back there while they did it, but when I was brought back to the room about 10 minutes later Brady didn't seem phased at all. His cute little dip in his tongue is gone, but his latch is tons better. See picture of below of his cute tongue dip the night before he had his revision.

In week 6 we went on our first stroller ride. It was a little chilly that day, so the babes were all bundled.

Thankfully we have had some nicer days since then too- and we've been soaking them up outside as much as we can!

We've been doing a lot more tummy time together. In the early stages they both just laid their heads on the floor without much effort to lift it up.

By week 6, Brayden was really exercising those neck muscles, and he hasn't stopped since then. In week 7 he was lifting up his head while laying on your chest, and pushing off your shoulder to look out the window (his favorite thing to do this month).

In week 8 (on April 8th), Brayden even decided to roll over from belly to back- 3 times! He had done it once the week before (on April 2nd), but hadn't done it again since then so I thought it was just a fluke. But nope. Three times he rolled from belly to back on the 8th, he even rolled in both directions! Such a strong little man.

And Ashley wasn't that far behind. She really started holding her head up during tummy time on April 9th. Then she surprised Eric and I both when last night she rolled from her belly to her back during tummy time before bed! I didn't catch it on video, but I'm going to be on the lookout for it here in the future so I can.

Week 7 also brought their very first Easter. I never expected we'd be spending their first Easter watching church from our couch and not going anywhere, but thanks to COVID-19 that was our reality. Our parents stopped by from a socially appropriate distance to see Brady and Ashley for their first Easter. Hopefully one day soon they will get to hold and kiss on them again! Aside from that, I do have to say that Easter this year was one of the most peaceful Easter's we've ever had. We were able to slow down and enjoy each other's company and our time together as a family. There's nothing better than that.

Today the babies had their two month well baby check. Brayden clocked in at 11 pounds (25%) and 22.75 inches long (44%), while Ashley measured 10 pounds (22%) and 23 inches long (79%). So needless to say, both babes are growing like weeds! They got their first set of vaccines today too. If you want your momma heart to break, just watch your baby get shots. Brady took the shots a little worse than Ashley, but neither of them were pleased about them. Thankfully we have a few months before we have to do that again!

Some other things that I don't want to forget that's happened this month:

• We are both still in newborn clothes. But some of their sleepers are getting snug, and Brady is getting close to outgrowing a few onesies too. 

• In week 7 Brayden moved up to size one diapers. They are a tad big on him, but he was definitely ready to move up from newborn size. Ashley is still in newborn size. 

• Brayden's favorite thing to do this month is look outside. It's getting harder and harder to burp him because he's got his head lifted off my shoulder to peek over the back of the couch. If he's fussy, one way to calm him down is lift him up and let him rest of the back of the couch to look outside. 

• Ashley's favorite thing to do is watch the stars in the mobile on her swing. She's even started batting at them with her hands- it's the cutest thing ever. Ashley has also started finding her feet during diaper changes. She never holds on to her toes long, but she's definitely realizing that something is there.

• On April 1st I decided to post a picture of them every day for the rest of the month on Facebook. It's been a hit with friends and family, and I love seeing what expressions I get out of them each day. I can usually get a smile out of Brady. Ashley likes to give me lots of sass. She's definitely not as "smiley" as Brady is yet, but dang is she still cute as ever. On that note though, she is smiling more and more for Eric and I, which I just love. 

• Week 7 also saw them sleeping for 4-5 hour stretches during the night! We started noticing that between the hours of 3 and 9 at night they were both extra fussy and wanted to eat sooner than every three hours. One night we decided to just feed them every two hours, and instead of getting up at midnight to feed them, they didn't wake up until 3 that morning- hallelujah! We've been feeding them that way ever since and have been enjoying a longer stretch of sleep at night.

• They get 4 ounce bottles during the day (or breastfed if I have time), and then their middle of the night feed they take 5 ounces. Right now they are going down for bed at 9, and I get them up for the day after they wake around 9 the next morning for their next feeding. Then they take a 2-3 hour nap after lunch time. We are on a pretty solid schedule at this point! We are averaging about 16-18 diapers a day. 

• Some of our favorite things about each baby include Ashley's cheeks (Eric says they are even more kissable than mine), and chest to chest cuddles with Brayden (which he likes to do the most with me).

• This month we've been socially distant and in "quarantine" due to COVID-19. I made light of the situation with their "first pandemic" photos, but the fact of the matter is that it is serious. Only essential businesses are open. Schools closed on March 16 and will be closed until at least the end of April. Jasper County has had their first cases of the coronavirus and one person in our county has passed away from it. People are wearing masks out in public, grocery store shelves are empty, gas prices are at an all time low. Hospitals aren't allowing visitors. Churches are holding services online, sporting events and all other major events are cancelled as only 10 people can be together at one time. 

I pray that this craziness is over soon. That a vaccine can be developed and be effective. That we will get to get together with our family and friends again. Until that day though, we will be enjoying a little extra "forced" family time. I couldn't picture any other people than these three to be stuck inside with.