Kate: 4-months old

Weight: About 10 lbs. She is now wearing Size 1 diapers. For the most part I have her in newborn sized clothes, but there are a few 3 month old outfits that she can wear and are only slightly big on her.

Feedings: Anywhere from 3-5 oz every 3-4 hours. She has increased her amount since last month. She is not on any solids or rice yet. Per the doc’s suggestion, she is getting a 3 oz snack of PediLite once a day to help keep her hydrated. She is still drinking Neosure.

Favorites: Pacifier, her own hands (in her mouth), bath time and her mama!

Least Favorites: Having the doctor take wax out of her ears; Anything that doesn’t involve me holding her. Oh, and the morning drive to day care with Mark.

Issues: She has really become very clingy on me this month. I am generally the only one who can claim her down, she wants me to hold her constantly, she wants to sleep with me, she cries when I leave the room, etc.

Personality: More and more of her sweetness is coming out now. She is always smiling and laughing. She gets excited when she hears my voice, when I talk to her, and when she anticipates me picking her up. On the other hand, her “fits” have gotten very intense. She screams so hard that I swear she is about to pass out! It’s like she is in a trance, and I can’t bring her out of it.

Areas to Work On: Fussy fits and sleeping through the night. I think by next month — when she is closer to 12 lbs — she may be sleeping through. Fingers crossed. We also need to work on her wanting to sleep with me. I think she is behind on neck/head control…though I do think she is improving slowly…and rolling over. She is showing no interest in toys yet.

New Things: She is all about her pacifer now. She sucks on it so hard that it leaves a “binky mark” on her face. It’s almost as if she is taking out her aggression on it. She “talks” up a storm now. She has found her voice and her range. She is also blowing bubbles a lot and gnawing on her hands constantly. Kate has also discovered smiling and laughing this month.

Comparison: Kate vocalizes a lot more than Carson. He tends to make cute cooing sounds. Kate sounds like a cat or bird at times. I think she has gotten down the concept of coversation…I say something, she something back.

Randomness: Kate is very expressive with her eye brows. She seems to love day care.

Carson’s Turned a Corner

In honor of my beautiful baby boy treating us to two big milestones in one day — sleeping 10 consecutive hours (through the night and then some) and eating 7 oz per feeding — I am posting a double dose of Mr. Carson today!

 

Happy Father’s Day

 

Me & Carson taking a cat nap at the Father’s Day party.

We have had an action packed weekend, and it’s still not over.

My mom and Uncle Mike drove in from Houston and spent the night at our house on Friday. We got up early Saturday, and went to Ikea to buy my bookcases (I decided not to hire a carpenter. I went the economical route.) So the guys put together my four 8-foot tall bookcases while mom and I dealt with some serious fussy babies. Kate and Carson did not handle their shots very well on Friday, and have been horribly fussy ever since.

Around 4 PM, we headed out to Leander for a party at my Uncle Steve & Aunt Kathy’s house. Papa was there along with about half of my family. It’s always a good time out there. It’s in the country, so you can be as loud as you want, have a bonfire, etc. Anyway, we roasted marshmellows at the outdoor fire pit, played craps in their rec room, listened to my Uncle Steve play guitar, and feasted on a yummy spread of steaks, potatoes, salad, shrimp, etc.

 

We ended up coming home around midnight, and I was a bit buzzed. (Mark drove of course, and it’s been well over a year since I’ve really had anything to drink.) Carson was perfect, and Kate was Miss Fuss Pot. I don’t think she liked all of the noise (we are a loud clan), but she finally settled down in the arms of several relatives.

We had a great time!

We are having a low-key Father’s Day. Poor Mark has spent most of the day assembling stuff (which he hates doing). First he finished off my bookcases, and now he’s out in the garage with Carson putting together his Father’s Day gift (a new grill).

I am so incredibly lucky to have Mark. He has been such a wonderful father…always hands-on, always in the trenches with me, always gentle. When I think about Mark in terms of the twins, I also think about those scary weeks at the end of my pregnancy. He never left my side in the hospital and he kept me calm…and sane. Kate and Carson are blessed to have such a wonderful Daddy!

And, of course, I’ve thought about my own dad a lot today. I miss him. For many years our relationship was rocky, but after I got married everything improved. We had made our peace. We were finally on the path to having the father-daughter relationship I always wanted and needed, and then he was gone. He died the day after my 2nd wedding anniversary. This is my second Father’s Day without him, but the first with the twins. Anyway, I am thinking about him today.

Doc Appointment: 4 months old

 

Kate…9 lbs, 9.5 oz; 22 inches

Carson…12 lbs, 15 oz; 24 inches

They got more shots at this visit, and they did not appreciate it! He wanted us to start using regular Enfamil for half of their feedings and the other half Neosure (a special formula for preemies). I don’t think I will be doing that until they make more improvement in the weight department — especially Miss Kate.

Ready for the Weekend

The twins have returned to day care. I kept them home on Monday, but they have been there the past three days now. All seems to be okay for now. We like the new day care lady, and she seems to keep the twins active doing various developmental things. (My big fear about day care was that they would just sit all day long in their bouncy seats.)

Day care seems to completely wipe out Carson. He is sleeping a record number of hours now. Yesterday I went to pick them up at 3 PM…he was asleep. He briefly woke up when I picked him up to put him in his car seat — long enough for a big stretch, a few grunts, and a smile for me — then he was back to sleep for the drive home. Once we got home, he was back to sleep until 8:30 PM. He ate and went back to sleep again until 2:45 AM. They back to sleep again until 7:30 AM.

Kate, on the other hand, took a long nap, but she stayed awake for her normal hours. She acts like she is so afraid she will miss out on something. I am worried that we are developing two bad habits with her…letting her sit on my lap while we eat dinner (it keeps her quiet) and letting her sleep with me after her middle of the night feeding.

They won’t be going to day care tomorrow because they have their 4th month pedi check-up. I just can’t believe they are already 4 months old!

My mom, Uncle Mike and Papa are coming into town on Saturday. My Uncle Steve and Aunt Kathy are throwing a big Father’s Day shin-dig at their house out in the country. I am looking forward to doing something social again and seeing family. Most of my family haven’t seen them since Easter, so I think they will be surprised with their progress.