Brushing, Talking, Munching

This past week was marked by sleep-filled nights with a couple of full nights of sleep for the whole family plus others with minimal interruptions. However, such good fortune could not hold out indefinitely. Thursday night was a game of musical cribs (Alex was very congested, and Dom had a tooth coming in), and I had to wake the Twin-Daddy several times to help me switch out a sleeping baby for a crying one without waking the sleeper. Still, when morning finally came, our boys were cheerful and smiling, and Mom got lots of time with her babies snuggled up on her.

Brushing Teeth

I’ve started working on brushing the boys’ teeth. I typically brush my teeth in front of them. Then, I use their soft-bristled toothbrushes to brush their cute little teeth. Next, I turn them loose to explore the sensation of brushing their own teeth, tongues, lips, gums, etc. So far it has been fun for all.

Food

This week Dom and Alex loved pears (right up there with peas and carrots), and they decided yogurt mixed with other yummy food was acceptable. They’ve been working on their Cheerio-eating skills as well. Before almost every meal we give them a few Cheerios spread out on their tray so they can practice picking them up and feeding themselves. Last night, they really enjoyed munching on some Cheerios:

Mr. Gabby and an Evening on the Town

After my long night with the boys, the Twin-Daddy offered to take the boys out after getting home from work if I wanted some peace and quiet (or a nap), but I opted for a family excursion. When he got home, I had already fed the boys their dinner and packed the diaper bag with bottles of haffle (half apple juice, half water) and a little tub of Cheerios. We headed out and wandered around together with a son strapped to each of our chests (What will we do when they outgrow their Baby Bjorns?).

As usual, our little fellas got lots of attention. We met a double twin-daddy. Yes, that’s right – two sets of twins (9 and 5 years old), and we ran into one of the NICU moms who we had gotten to know while our boys were there. Before heading off to Target, we were starting to feel a bit peckish and decided to stop at the nearby Starbucks for a treat. However, that Starbucks is right next to our favorite Indian restaurant. Yes, you guessed it. We never made it to the Starbucks.

We indulged ourselves with a delicious Indian buffet – ah, it had been too long since we last feasted on curries, chai and mango ice cream. Since we hadn’t intended to dine out, we were somewhat unprepared, but we just took turns eating and entertaining Dom and Alex. Our boys were in a good mood even though it was soon past their bedtime. They are so good to us. Dom was soon babbling happily away, and he broke out one of the big syllables, “da” as in “dadadada.” Ah, I have a feeling our little Mr. Gabby (Dom) will be using “Dada” in context in no time. Mr. Grabby (Alex) also lived up to his name – making a grab for everything within reach on the table and taking advantage of a moment of distraction to make a break for the bowl of cheerios.

It was a delightful and rejuvenating family outing. My heart has been full of love and joy today – treasuring every moment with our sons and my wonderful husband. I love:

• crawling around on the floor of our bedroom playing peek-a-boo with our boys,
• attacking them with tickle spiders (their anticipation at the approach is the best part),
• watching their joy at all their daddy’s antics,
• listening to their laughter and conversations,
• being pinned to the floor by a baby puppy pile,
• seeing their faces light up when we read their favorite books,
• observing them as they explore their world – new spaces, new toys, new ideas,
• snuggling with our boys – each hug, zubert and smile is a precious gift

One of the greatest joys of raising twins is the sound of their shared laughter. Our little guys were delighted with each other during lunch today. We thought we would share the joy.

Our little guys just keep growing and surprising us. Dom continues to babble away, and “Mamamamama” has definitely become his vocalization of choice when he wants Mama/food (an easily blurred line at this point). The boys have been playing a lot with their toy “house” – opening and shutting the door, crawling through it, and checking out all the parts that move. They just recently learned to open the mailbox to get whatever is hidden inside, and this weekend Alex also started lifting the window up and down and turning the light switch on and off.

Yesterday we all had a lot of fun going into our bedroom with the boys and letting them crawl around. The Twin-Daddy played peek-a-boo with the boys by peeking around the side of the bed, and they gleefully crawled toward him, and after they got close, they “ran away” in the other direction – delighted when he chased them down. Dom checked out the dresser handles and managed to pull one of the drawers open just the tiniest bit. Our little guys love the hinges on the door, and if you aren’t watching they’ll start chewing on them. They are two little cuties.

A little laughter to share:

Pears!

The boys tried fresh pear sauce yesterday for the first time, and it was an instant hit. Dom ate it as quickly as he does peas, and Alex didn’t even make a yucky-face when he first tried them. We’ll give pears another go today.

Peek-a-boo

For some time now, we’ve been playing peek-a-boo with both boys at once using a blanket to cover them up and then pull off. Dom and Alex have really enjoyed it, and occasionally one or the other will squeal, kick and wave his arms in delight – pulling the blanket off in the process. Yesterday, Alex initiated his own game of peek-a-boo for the very first time:

The boys are calling, so off I go….

New Skills

Dominic now claps, and Alex waves with his right hand. They both enjoy dancing to music, and they continue to improve their crawling and wall-walking (walking while holding onto the wall of their Playzone or the side of their cribs). They’ve started crawling and climbing over obstacles, and they enjoy pushing themselves up to stand. They are babbling like crazy these days, and they are just so cute. The Twin-Daddy and I often find ourselves looking at each other and rejoicing in the miracle of our two little boys. We still find it amazing that we had identical twins, and we feel so very fortunate to have them in our lives.

Developmental Appointment

We had a follow-up appointment to check on how our boys are developing this past Wednesday. Most babies don’t have this type of follow-up; it’s primarily for NICU babies, and our little guys did well – testing right on target for their birth age. Considering they were born almost 6 weeks early, that means they are doing very well. Both Dom and Alex moved a block from one hand to the other, pulled the string to get to the toy on the end, pulled over the wash cloth to get to the colorful duck sitting on the far side of it, looked when a toy was dropped to the floor, and investigated when a bell was rung under the table.

Alex was a bit more talkative and answered to his name, while Dom didn’t pay attention when she called his name and talked less (even though he’s normally Mr. Gabby). They both showed off their crawling, sitting and standing skills. We were given advice on how to help them continue to stay flexible and build their muscles. One of the big pieces of advice was to not try to help them walk by holding their hands. Apparently that can hinder them strengthening all the muscles they need to walk well on their own.

Both boys are 27 3/8 inches long, and we also got their weights:

• Dominic: 18 lbs. 14 oz. (8.55 kg)
• Alexander: 19 lbs. (8.6 kg)

Food

The current favorite food is peas. Carrots come in second. They’ve started to warm up a bit to homemade applesauce, and I’m planning to add pears as their next new food.

The Dreaded Cold

It’s been awhile since we last posted, and the days have been passing in a bit of a blur. Two weekends ago an evil cold hit all the boys of the household. (Surprisingly, the cold skipped me, but I’ve been dragging for the last two weeks with allergies.) The Twin-Daddy valiantly held down the fort on Saturday while I worked on my dissertation, but that night the boys had lots of trouble sleeping. The Twin-Daddy let me sleep in to make up for lost sleep, but when I got up, he was looking frayed around the edges. So it was a double-parent day with our boys, and I tried to give the Twin-Daddy some down-time to rest. My guys were all still feeling yucky on Monday, and we had another day of groggy, slightly fussy boys.

During the worst of the congestion at night, the boys took turns sleeping in the recliner on Mama, so they could breathe a bit easier. Alex absolutely hates to have his nose wiped, but Dom is generally more indifferent. They both hate when Mama uses saline to help clear up their breathing. They still have runny noses, poor little fellas.

Teeth

Since last we wrote, the boys have added a few teeth. Just this morning I discovered a new bottom tooth on Dom (that might partially explain his difficulty sleeping last night). That brings him up to 3 bottom teeth and 3 top ones. It looks like his last upper front tooth might be on the verge of breaking through too. I believe Alex has 2 bottom teeth and 3 top ones right now, but neither boy likes for us to check their upper teeth.

With runny noses and teething for the boys and allergies for me, the last couple of weeks have been difficult. I’ve been going to bed early due to allergy-induced exhaustion, but the boys’ sleeping has been pretty disrupted. I’m so lucky to have a partner to pick up the slack. There was one day when Puck got home, and I asked him to take the boys out. I just wanted some quiet time alone at home. He packed the boys up and headed off. They had a nice time walking around a book store and getting lots of attention, and I had some blissful time to myself.

From the Twin-Daddy:

Here we come heading into month 8 this week.

The Baby Codes

Each day my wife and I pass information back and forth about naps, meals, and poops. It might seem to an outsider like a never-ending stream of trivia but knowing is actually important when you are on the inside of the parenting relationship with a partner.

Non Trivial Trivia 1:  Naps

When were the naps, how many naps,  and how long were they?  This sounds really boring, but nothing could be further from the truth.  Imagine Navy SEALS being dropped into enemy territory.  They have a vested interest in whether the landing zone is quiet or erupting in wild gun battles.

On a good day the boys will pull 2-3 naps.  A good nap could be an hour and perhaps even two hours.  On the other hand, a nap could be as short as 15-20 minutes followed by an encounter with a wailing angry boy.  There is no guarantee that all the naps won’t be 15 minute cat naps with the guy in question getting more and more grumpy as the day wears on.  Paying attention to the nap schedule tells a careful man whether he’s walking into happy Hobbiton or Mordor and Mount Doom.  It will also tell you whether you wife has managed to get any extra sleep during the day or whether she has been harried and screamed at all day.

Coming home on time, taking the boys, and letting mom sleep on a bad nap day is how we show machismo in our house.  What could be more macho than feeding babies, changing diapers, reading a bed time story, and singing them a bed time song?  The classic male fantasy portrayed in film has a guy risking his life to save his family, but in reality most dads live for and with their family.  Seriously, a guy that can handle twins for an extended period of time can beat his chest, tear up the jungle, and puff out his chest.  He’s gone from omega chimp to alpha silverback.  Twin Dads, be proud of those white hairs because it is all silverback, baby!

 

Silverback Dad says, "Please fall asleep already."

 

Non Trivial Trivia 2: Poop

Who is pooping?  How much are they pooping?  What is the poop like?  This sounds gross and to an outsider who hasn’t got kids, it is a common joke leveled at parents of infants.  Here is the deal.  Dry poop hurts the baby and irritates his butt.  Constipated babies struggle and strain to relieve the pressure in their stomachs.  That little kid’s face can turn beet red so fast you’re jumping out of your chair to check and make certain he is okay.  As it turns out, he is trying to poop and having a rough time.  Knowing if the poop is dry means that you are armed with information that you can use to relieve the kid’s pain.  Add some haffle-juice (1-part water, 1-part apple juice) and then some prunes at the next meal, and you are in good shape.

Likewise, if you haven’t had a good poop in awhile, you need to be ready for the big danger poop that could be lurking and ready to spring forth at any moment.  If your guy is due for a poo and you get the poop face, you should move quickly or you could be headed for total containment breach.  If you don’t pay attention to the baby’s poop, you could end up covered in it.

 

You must avoid the Poo-Pocalypse

 

Know their poop or wear their poop.  The choice is yours.

Non Trivial Trivia 3: Food and Teeth

What have the guys eaten recently, and how are their teeth?  Some of this should be obvious considering the poop discussion above.  When you are feeding a little one solid food, areas that are teething hurt, but the kid may not be able to tell you about it.  If you can avoid those spots, you are saving your kid some pain.  If your kid suddenly goes nuclear on you while eating, it is a good bet that you have found a tender spot that could be pushing teeth through the gum.  Once the meltdown has started, your best bet is a dramatic and sudden distraction.  I bang the highchair tray or remove it completely, lift the kid in the air, or clap my hands.

In normal playzone activity our guys tumble all over the place. A bit of vigorous rubbing helps one of the guys get past a bump or tumble, but you are not going to be able to rub a hurting gum.  Baby tylenol or a cold teether are pretty good though.  Teething can also lead you into a rough and unhappy napping schedule.  Once the sleeping schedule goes down in flames, it is all hands on deck.

 

Ouchie!

 

Where are we now?

Alex

 

Alex is all about physical power and balance.  He has a lot of strength in his legs, and he can stand without help for 15-20 seconds at a shot.  He is beginning to babble and sing, but he is not creating any words I can recognize yet.  Alex is also pushing the boundaries of what is possible on a regular basis.  He seeks opportunities to push himself further by climbing to a standing position and then using a hand to steady himself without grabbing.  Then he may let go to try balancing without help.  This has lead to some spectacular wipe outs but he is ready to persist and keep trying.

 

 

Dom

 

Dom is all about interaction and fine motor control.  When both boys were served trays of diced bananas, Dom managed to eat 7 pieces of banana in the time it took Alex to eat 1.  He was focused, coordinated, and methodical about identifying what he wanted and bringing it to his mouth.  He brings that same focus to his play as he tends to sit and study objects.  He doesn’t stand well yet, but that’s because he would rather try walking.  He is also very social.  He has started creating words like “Mmmmm” (Mom or food), “Mama” , “Ah-yaaah” (Alex), and “Hhhiiiiiiiii” (Hi, hello, I’m excited to see you!).

 

 

Together

When we first erected the play zone and laid down the floor mats the boys were largely trapped in place because they were not coordinated enough to travel.  There was rolling and tumbling around, but it was not directed or focused movement.  Both boys are crawling now and testing the bounds of their prison.  They pull up to stand on any object nearby, and they are most likely to identify where mom is and then stand at that edge of the play area and pine for her.  (“MMMmmmmm!!  MMMMmmmm!!”)  Keep in mind that the guys have gone from largely immobile, to randomly mobile, to directed mobility within the space of a few weeks.

 

Learning and Achieving Together

 

What is most interesting is that the boys are developing abstraction.   Each boy has developed object permanence which means that you can show them an object and then hide it and they will know it is hidden.  They are also developing object context which means that they know some objects have different roles:

• Chewer – It goes in your mouth (Almost everything except limes)
• Shaker – It makes noise when you shake it (Rattles, crinkly books)
• Beater – You can hit stuff with it (Rattles, megablocks, things that make cool noises)
• Pusher – It has a button that you can push to do something (Toys that play music)
• Hugger – You can hold it and squeeze it (Stuffy toys)
• Ripper – You can take it apart (Megablocks)
• Climbers – You can clamber around on it, pull yourself up, or balance with it (Playzone wall, larger toys, boxes, mom, dad, or your brother)

One distressing and amusing aspect of this is that it’s fairly common for one boy to treat the other boy as a Climber object.  The added benefit is that when you grab hold of the other kid to balance yourself, he has got this very convenient hair you can grip to help you keep your balance.  If you just happen to tumble over and you pull his hair, well… that’s his problem.  (Mom and Dad’s hair is pretty much the same deal, and Mom gets off lucky because she doesn’t have hair on her legs and arms for ready grabbing.)

They are finding a basic understanding of new tools as a result.  When they see a bowl of baby food and a spoon, they know to open their mouths to make the baby-bird face.  If you hand them the spoon, they pop it into their mouths to chew on it.  Show them a bottle, and you will get a hoot-fest that will rival any zoo’s chimp house.  Hand them the bottle, and they can do a modest job of getting at the fluid even if they still do a better job with a bit of help.

I’m watching for signs of systemic thinking, but we are not quite there yet.  They are happily taking things apart, but they largely create chaos in their wake.  When they begin to create order (building, organizing, matching) it will be a clue that they have crossed another mental threshold.  At that point, they will be building relationships between objects based on context with an understanding of patterns.

What does all that add up to?  It shows an ever expanding series of horizons in their development.  They continuously seek that which is beyond them trying to expand their boundaries of control and ability through exploration and experimentation.  As a species, this continual desire to expand our knowledge and explore the unknown is integrated into our core selves.  It is the engine which drives human development on a personal and a global scale.  Just watching them develop you can draw a straight line from the earth to the moon landing.  It seems odd to draw the parallel, but our desire to explore the universe comes from the same root as my boyos standing tip-toe to peek over the playzone wall.

 

 

What is over there?

 

Growing Boys

This chart hasn’t been updated since February, and my guess is that the boys weigh about 18 pounds each now which should push them up over the 8000 mark on the chart below.  They are within the normal average weights for a singleton baby if perhaps just a bit below the average, but considering they were almost 6 weeks early that is a pretty impressive feat.  The real indicator is the shape of the curve in the image, and by that standard our guys are doing great.

I will update the chart again when I get new weight information.  Our home scale isn’t accurate enough to do anything but add noise to the chart so it will need to wait until we get to the pediatrician again.

~P.