A busy couple of weeks

Last week was quite eventful (at least by our new standards) and as we approach Christmas, this week is bound to be as well.

Aside from the fact that I was sick on Thursday night and all day Friday (fever and flu-like symptoms), last week was a good week. Amelia and Penelope met a lot of new people and made a few trips out of the house, which broke up the normal routine and the days just flew by - although most of them do lately regardless if we go anywhere or not. :D Last Sunday, the 14th, one of my good friends (and roommate) from Ashland University, Kristy, stopped over to meet the girls. It was great to see her and I'm so happy she got to meet the babies while they are still so little. Then on Tuesday afternoon, I made my first trip out with them. Yes, that's right, me and 2 babies! OK, so Paul was home that day and helped me get them in their car seats and in the car... But once we backed out of the driveway, it was just the 3 of us!! I couldn't believe that they were 6 weeks old, my maternity leave was half over and I had yet to venture out alone with them. It was starting to feel like a "now or never" situation so I took them to Chase and introduced them to all my co-workers. It was a fun - and successful - trip. This was also the first time I used the double stroller and that felt a little awkward. Not only did it seem to draw lots of second glances and a few stares, but I think it will also take some time getting used to pushing something so long. I barely fit in the elevator! :D On Wednesday afternoon, we had another outing and this time I was home alone and did manage to get both babies and all their supplies packed up and out the door on time. It took about 2 and 1/2 hours to feed and dress them, get myself dressed and fed and then feed them again right before leaving but we managed to do it AND even got to the appt a couple minutes early. I had my 6 week post partum check up with my Dr and am happy to report that all is well with me. My blood pressure is back to normal and I got the "ok" to start being more active and exercising again (or at least as soon as I can find both the time and energy). The girls and I ended up meeting Paul at the doctor's office, so I did have some help with that trip as well. It was so nice though to be able to take Amelia and Penelope with me and let my Dr and all the nurses that we'd gotten to know over the past 9 months see just how well our family is doing. I'm so grateful that I found such a warm and caring Doctor and staff to take care of all 3 of us throughout my entire pregnancy. I don't think I have a single complaint about him or his office and I'm a little sad about the fact that I don't get to go in there every week anymore. :D Anyway, I'm off the subject... Back to our busy week... Amelia and Penelope both did great on the trips out. Penelope fussed a little during our visit to Chase, but who can blame her?? I get fussy when I'm there too. :-} She must have sensed my true feelings for working and knows that eventually I have to spend my days there instead of hanging out at home with her. And at my doctor's appt, they slept in their carriers the whole time and were perfect little angels.

All the activity on Tuesday and Wednesday must have caught up with me on Thursday because by that evening, I was feeling pretty rotten. I had a horrible headache, my neck and shoulders ached and I couldn't stop shivering. I ended up having a temp of 102 that was still around on Friday morning. I got in touch with my Dr right away and got started on an antibiotic by that afternoon. I'm guessing that I was in the early stages of mastitis and was lucky to have caught it so quickly. I took it pretty easy all day Friday and Saturday, even getting an extra nap Friday afternoon while Grandma Clopton and Aunt Sarah babysat (and put up our Christmas tree!!). Hopefully the infection will be all cleared up by the time I finish the prescription.

On Sunday, Grandma Clopton came over to babysit again for a couple hours, letting Paul and I make what seems to be a monthly trek to Babies R Us. We got stocked up on a few items, bought a Christmas present for our babies and generally enjoyed being out of the house for a little bit (even though it was bitterly cold and windy). I took some time Sunday afternoon to do a little online shopping and am happy to report that my Christmas shopping is done! Granted I didn't have that much to buy thanks to some "big ticket" gifts that were purchased for various family members some time ago. It still feels good to cross "shopping" off my list though! Now I just need to wrap a few things and put some decorations on the tree. Maybe I'll get everything done by Thursday after all... :D

Exciting baby news from Sunday - Penelope rolled herself from her tummy to her back during our "tummy time"! Well, the first and third time she did it, it was just sort of onto her shoulder and side, but that 2nd time, she definitely went from tummy to back. I sort of missed the first time as I looked away to tell Paul something and when I looked back at her, she was on her side instead of her belly! Paul didn't believe it and had to come in the room to see for himself and she did it again. After that, we realized we needed the video camera (we're new at this "gotta record every moment" thing!!). By then you could tell she was getting tired and a little frustrated being on her tummy but she still did her best (with a little nudge or two from me) to do it again. What a fun moment for Mommy and Daddy! Now I see what everyone means when they tell us that once the girls start to do new things (smile, laugh, roll, etc) the sleep deprivation seems to disappear. :-)

And now here we are - Amelia and Penelope are 7 weeks old and all of us are getting ready for a busy week of celebrating Christmas. We are hoping to do something special on Christmas Eve to start our own family traditions and then on Thursday, the four of us will have a little family gift exchange and take a few pictures before heading over to Grandma and Grandpa Clopton's for dinner and more presents. Then on Saturday, Grandma and Grandpa Reinke, along with the Krupiczewicz family, will be here in Plain City to visit for a couple of days. I'm really looking forward to all the time we'll get to spend with family later this week.

In case I don't get a chance to post anything else for several days - Merry Christmas to all our family and friends! And if you haven't been in awhile - check out our Smug Mug website. LOTS of new pictures were added last week and a few more last night.

Happy Holidays!!

Pictures

Has it really been 10 days since my last post?? Where did the time go?!?!? Not much has happened here in the past week and a half... We've just been going about our daily routine of eating, sleeping, changing diapers and doing laundry. Grandma and Grandpa Reinke came to visit for a few days and that gave Paul and I the chance to go out for an evening . We had a quick dinner and saw a movie - a real date night! :D Oh, and we've learned that Penelope is turning into quite a little spit-up champ. At first it was just a little here and there, but in the last week, she's really put some distance behind it! Nothing like having to clean up a baby, change her clothes and your sheets at 12:30am all while listening to the your other baby fuss and cry. We could have sworn they were ganging up on us!

OK - the main reason I'm posting is to let everyone know that LOTS of new pictures are being added to Smug Mug this afternoon so keep an eye out. Feel free to give a thumbs up or thumbs down rating to as many of the pictures as you want - we'd love to know which pictures are your favorites.... Also, I'm in the process of working on the birth announcements and should have those out in the mail very soon. We can't wait for everyone to see all the pictures we've taken and just how much Amelia and Penelope have changed over the last month!

The 1 month check-up

Just a quick message about the girl's 1 month well visit. Both Amelia and Penelope are doing great! They are gaining weight at about the same rate and slowly moving up in the percentiles for weight and length. Amelia now weighs 7lbs 3oz and is 19 inches long and Penelope weighs 8lbs 12oz and is 19 and 3/4 inches long. At their 1 week appt, they both fell in the 3rd percentile for weight and now, Amelia is in the 10th percentile and Penelope the 45th! I guess it is safe to say that they are getting enough to eat! :D Their doctor was really pleased with how much they've gained and the fact that we haven't had to supplement with any formula. I've even gotten a head start on freezing milk for when I return to work. Some days (like today when they want to eat every 2 hours), I feel like a real milk machine.... But as we move into the 2nd month of their life, I find that nursing is getting easier (although still a bit time consuming) and I know it is only a matter of time before it all just clicks for them and meal time becomes something all 3 of us enjoy and look forward to. Some of the other things the pediatrician told us to expect this month are cooing, smiling and laughing. We can't wait!!! I have a feeling that hearing or seeing any of those three things will help to erase some of the sleep deprivation we are currently suffering from. Both girls also showed good neck strength at the appt and the Dr even thought Amelia is starting to show signs of being able to roll over. I've also started to notice a pattern of them staying awake longer after mid morning and late afternoon feedings and that means more interaction and play/bonding time and even better, getting to see their different personalities develop. Oh what changes we are about to go through in the next few weeks!!!

That's about all that I have to report on our 2 baby girls. Outside of the doctor's appt on Thursday and meeting their Great Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Lee on Wednesday, the rest of this past week/ week and a half has been relatively uneventful. I am happy to report though that this was the first week that I've been home alone with them during the day and we all survived to tell about it! I even managed to get through most of the night feedings by myself, letting Paul sleep more so he could function at work. Maybe I can do this "mother" thing after all!! ;-} Now as far as my previous alert to watch for more Smug Mug pictures - please be patient with us. Paul is currently updating our site a little bit and once he's done with that, we intend to get lots of new pictures posted.

Let me also apologize in advance in case I get behind in posting on the blog. As we get into this next month, I think the days are going to slip by even faster than they already do. I really want to post more often, but there are times when I have to focus on getting the bare necessities done (eat, dress, sleep, feed babies) and the blog gets pushed aside. Plus there are times when it seems like our daily activies just aren't worth writing about. Trust me though, if something exciting happens here at our home, I will write about just as soon as I can! Besides, I know it's the pictures everyone wants to see on here, not my silly little ramblings... :D