Dedicated to Baby Girl - AKA Baby C

This pregnancy is so different from my last one. One of the biggest differences is the amount of spare time and energy I have. Eden and Sebastien were my first pregnancy, and they were a miracle pregnancy that came after a very long wait. Not only that, but I spent almost 13 weeks on bed rest and in the hospital. I was ordered to do nothing but sit and try to keep those babies in me as long as possible.

So I thought about them a lot. I read books and articles about twins, about pregnancy and childbirth, about newborns, about bed rest...anything you can think of. I registered for baby stuff, I was thrown showers, I spent endless hours online (mostly on Etsy) looking for cute little things for their room. I blogged. :)

Now here I am, another miracle pregnancy (not such a long wait.) But no bed rest (thankfully!) and with two 2-year-olds who have continued to take up a lot of my time and energy. Oh, I've faithfully kept my "What to Expect" book on my night stand. And I've even picked it up here and there. I've taken my favorite newborn guide book "Secrets of the Baby Whisperer" off the shelf... but I haven't cracked it open yet. I've perused Etsy once or twice...

Just this past weekend, having finally moved Sebastien's stuff to his new dresser in his new room, I began to fill Baby C's drawers with newborn clothes. I found myself tearing up. I was looking at all this tiny little stuff, and honestly, I can't describe the feeling other than that my heart was completely full. She was moving around like crazy inside of me (as usual) and it was like this little private moment that we were sharing.

So, no, I have not spent hours on end dreaming and thinking and planning. But I know her. And wow, do I love this little girl. I cannot wait to meet her, to introduce her to her daddy and her brother and her sister, not to mention her grandparents and aunts, uncles and cousins - all the people who are anxiously awaiting her arrival along with us. So they can all know what I can already feel - this is one amazing little girl who will have a special and unique place in our family. A perfect gift from God.

Here's a picture from the ultrasound we had last week. They estimated that she weighed about 6 lbs 5 oz. They also estimate that babies gain about 1/2 a pound per week at the end, so potentially she could put on two more pounds before she makes her appearance.

Talking

I wish that I could somehow bottle up all the priceless moments with my kids, especially the things they say.

It takes a bit of concentration, some interpretation, and a lot of shared experience to know what Sebastien is saying sometimes. (When he's singing, you can go by the tune, as the boy definitely has an ear for music.) He attempts to say full sentences and phrases, but the more words he strings together, the harder it is to understand him. There are a few that he says often and we've caught on to. For example, what sounds like, "WOW, gookagat" is "Wow, look at that!" But one of my favorites is before bed when we're saying goodnight and he says (something like:) "uh ooh eh-uh" which is "love you forever."

Several weeks ago he requested "bubba gecks" for breakfast, and was frustrated when I didn't know what he was referring to. It took me some time, and I realized he was asking for Apple Jacks (which he had had for the first time the day before, at snack time.) When we slow down and I ask him to say "apple" he can say it, when I ask him to say "jacks," he can say it. One word at a time, he can articulate fairly well. But the cereal phrases, such as Apple Jacks come out as "bubba gecks."

Despite being difficult to understand, Sebastien still is quite a talker. He walks around talking, babbling on and on, and we smile and nod encouragingly. When he looks at us, that is. A lot of the time he is very happy to just talk to himself.

Eden says nearly full sentences regularly and is quite articulate. Rarely are we left wondering what she's saying, as she will often stick with it, trying to change her pronunciation until we get it. She sometimes gets impatient with us. We can tell when this happens, because she'll repeat herself and then add "Oooooh!" at the end. (As in, the enlightened "Ooooh!" we often say when we figure out what she is referring to.)

Not only is she articulate, but she is becoming capable of conversation in a new way. For example, today I said to Eden, "Do you have a poopy diaper?" She said, "Bashy does." I said, "Let Mommy take a peek." She repeated, "Bashy does!" I peeked, and she was clean. I went over to Sebastien and, sure enough, he was dirty. She is also capable of stating "no like it" whether referring to food, games, noises, etc., rather than simply crying.

What can I say... none of this actually does justice to what it's like talking with Sebastien or Eden, nor does it express that absolute thrill and joy I feel hearing them develop their speech. But I have to try to write things down from time to time, mostly because I'm afraid I'll forget.

Baby Books

Months ago I decided that I was going to try to finish Sebastien and Eden's baby books before our new baby daughter arrives. I figured that most of the stuff that is being recorded in a baby book is stuff that happens before kids are two years old, so I would be able to get most of the writing completed. Once Baby Girl is here and her first year starts, I'm assuming that I will start getting confused about who does what when. So, when the spirit moves me and my energy allows, I pick up both the books and work work work.

Tonight was such a night. I got quite a bit done. I was able to look back on Facebook, on this blog and in my personal journal and fill out quite a bit.

And this got me thinking. Are baby books going to be replaced by blogs? I was thinking about just printing off all of my blog posts from the first year of their lives and calling it "good." Similarly, I haven't printed pictures since the kids were born. I haven't done a Creative Memories book or even started an old school photo album. The idea of going back through my iphoto and choosing pictures from the thousands that are in there is quite daunting. I'd MUCH rather just create photo albums out of all the photos I've posted on Facebook. Those are my favorites anyway.

Maybe if I lobby with Facebook I could get Mr. Facebook to add a feature: print this album. Or something.

In the meantime, I'll keep working on my baby books, and I'll keep planning to print pictures, and never do it.

"Paci Broke."

About a month ago, we decided that it was time to wean our kids from their paci's. On a Friday night about an hour before bedtime, we brought Sebastien and Eden their whole basket of paci's, all of which had "mysteriously" broken. (I cut the tips.) We let them try them all, and it was with sadness that they understood..."Paci broke." Eden even came and asked for a hug when she understood what was happening. We all said "bye bye" to the paci's and Daddy brought them away.

That night it took them several hours to fall asleep. Over two hours of alternating between crying and ramming around. But finally, around 9:15 (I believe), they were both quiet, and they slept the entire night through. (I will skip the part of the evening when Eden's big tears and sad mourning her paci's actually brought me to tears. It was like she lost a friend!)

The next day, nap time came and they asked for their paci's. We reminded them, sadly, "Paci's broke." And they understood, again, with sadness. The nap did not happen that day. They stayed in their cribs, not really crying, not really happy, just not really able to settle down.

That night, bedtime came, and by now they remembered. Eden often told us, "Paci's broke." It only took about an hour, and they were asleep. And again, through the night they slept!

Sunday came around and again, no nap. But Sunday night came and they fell asleep within about 45 minutes.

Then it was Monday, and Monday is "Daddy Day" while Mommy works. They took a great nap for daddy, and went to bed great that night too. Every now and then for the next two weeks or so one of them would ask for a paci or remember and tell us that their pacis are "broke."

On Saturday my nephew and niece were in town, and my nephew Mattias, not yet being one year old, still has a paci. Eden liked to give him his paci, and that night before bed she told me that her paci is broke. But she wasn't sad, she wasn't asking for it, she was just letting me know, "Hey, I remember having one of those. But mine are broken. Oh well."

And with that, we are a paci-free house. At least until August when Baby Girl comes.

And Baby Makes 5...

Yes, it's true, come August 22-ish, we will meet the 5th member of our family. It was such a delightful surprise to find out about this little one, the kind of surprise that we believed would never happen for us. Eden and Sebastien were such miracles, and now this baby (affectionately nicknamed Baby C, as Eden and Sebastien were always Baby A and Baby B) is a whole new kind of miracle.

Sebastien and Eden have no idea what they're in for. We'll say "Mommy's going to have a ..." and they'll chime in "Baby!" or Eden will point at my stomach and say, "baby." But really, of course, at nearly 20 months, they just don't know what that all means. Not to mention the fact that while we do know what it means (of course), we have no idea what life is going to be like with a newborn and two 2-year-olds.

We have a lot to do to prepare. One of the biggest things is that we are going to put Sebastien and Eden in big-kid beds before the new baby comes. In fact, if all goes as planned, they'll be moving into a new room and new beds sometime in late May or early June. We want to get them transitioned before the baby comes. At times I think they'll be ready and it'll be fine, and other times, I think "they're too little!" I'll keep you posted on progress in that area.

As far as preparing for Baby C, I cannot even imagine having a nursery with only one crib and only one dresser, leaving room for a rocking chair. I could rock the baby in the same room that the baby sleeps in? Crazy. And then I think - won't the baby be lonely in there, with no brother or sister to listen to? And when the baby needs to get up in the middle of the night, just one of us will need to get up? Really? Ah yes, starting out with twins certainly has shaped my view of what it means to have a newborn.

I'm pretty sure that having one newborn will be easier in some ways that having two newborns was. On the other hand, I have never had just one child in the house, so I'm expecting that whatever "ease" comes with just one baby will be overshadowed by the challenges of balancing the needs of all three children. So all in all, I'm open to advice in this area.

Finally, we will be finding out the sex of Baby C on March 25! Tune in to Facebook for the most immediate news, and to this blog whenever I get around to it.

Sebastien and Eden update

Sebastien and Eden are 18 months old!! To celebrate, here is an update:

Eden

At the doctor on Thursday, Eden weighed 27 lbs 13 oz and is in the 90th percentile for her weight. Eden is a great eater. She will try anything. We have only discovered one or two things that she doesn't like, one of which is scrambled eggs (ironically one of the few things her brother will consistently eat!) She loves vegetables, especially broccoli.

Eden is talking up a storm! I have lost count of how many words she can say - from "cantaloupe" to "oh boy" to "magazine" there's nothing she won't try. The funniest is when she tries to communicate something, and it sounds like "vreiumdk" and she gives a confident nod afterwards. Then when we say, "Say it again honey, what do you want?" She says again "vreiumdk" and nods. If we guess wrong, she gives us a blank stare, but if we guess right, she breaks into a big grin and nods some more.

She loves to play with her babies, including diapering them, feeding them bottles, taking them for rides, and kissing them nigh-night. She also loves following her brother around and watching what he does for ideas for new tricks. Eden loves to sing as well, and can sing along to several songs, like "The Itsy Bitsy Spider," the "ABCs", "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and "This is the Day." (By sing along I mean, if I sing she will throw in words, especially at the end of the line.)

Sebastien

At the 18 month check, Sebastien weighed in at 26 lbs even. (He is in about the 50th percentile for weight, height and head circumference.) It makes sense that his sister outweighs him, because Sebastien is a much more discriminating eater, not to mention slow as molasses. He is not above spitting food out of his mouth that he has decided against mid-chew. Especially when it comes to vegetables, we can try to sneak them into things, but he will find them and spit them out. He has a few staples, so we know what to give him as back-up, but it is amazing sometimes to watch how long he can sit in his chair while only taking 3 bites.

Sebastien is very good at puzzles and putting things together. Sebastien also loves to pick up big toys with a funny little grunt and carry them over to mommy or daddy. He loves drumming, throwing balls, and spinning around. One of his funny games is that he'll spin around and say "Whoa, whoa, whoa" while he spins. (We often hear this over the monitor when he's supposed to be sleeping.)

Sebastien is very good at entertaining himself. As always, Sebastien is our very easy going child. The challenge with this is that his sister often speaks for him. When Sebastien is asked a question, Eden can be heard answering from the other room. He is perfectly capable of speaking for himself, but he seems happy to let her give her two cents.

With their individual differences, there are of course some things they have in common. Both kids love reading. They have days when they just take one book after the other to mom or dad and want nothing more than to hear their books read out loud, point out familiar items and try out new words. They also both love animals. They have several animal books that seem to be their favorite. Eden and Sebastien can identify and know noises for: cow, dog, duck, sheep, rooster, cat, dolphin, snake, wolf, goose, elephant, lion, tiger, bear, owl, fish, horse, goat, pig, rabbit, monkey/gorilla ... The list goes on.

Sleeping is going well also. They sleep about 12 1/2 hours at night, rest in the mid-morning for about 30-45 minutes (quiet time in their cribs... sometimes not so quiet), and nap for about two hours in the afternoon.

It's getting harder to get video of them demonstrating their skills. Mostly because as soon as the camera is out, they are more interested in looking through the screen than singing or playing or whatever it was that I got the camera out to capture.

I've been trying to download a video to this post, but it's not working so that will have to wait for another day!

Smile!

Knowing that we were going to try to have the kids' pictures taken by our friend Sara yesterday, we began to try to teach the kids to smile on cue.

Eden caught on pretty quickly, and here is the smile that she generally produced when prompted (it actually has come a long way since these, and now she mostly smiles with her eyes open.)


Sebastien has only once or twice ever really responded with a smile, but one of the times he gave us this gem: