Wow

A few posts back I mentioned that after the babies were born I had some changes, one of them being a change in my memory. That rang true even today. Seriously, I had to post this because I thought it was quite humorous. And it shows that it does not only happen to me!

After we went grocery shopping yesterday we hit Tim Horton's on the way home, although I would have preferred Starbucks. ;) So we get home and take the babies out of the car and right into their high chairs to eat dinner. While I cooked Jason put all the groceries away. We all ate dinner, then it was clean up time, and then play time before bed.

So, after the went to bed we did the normal things around the house before bedtime. No big deal.

Except, today around 6:00pm when we went out to run more errands we both got in the car and realized that our very full and untouched coffee was still in there.

We both just looked at each other.

Seriously, can I tell you how much I was looking forward to that coffee yesterday? A little extra caffeine to help me plow through the rest of the day would have been great! I wanted it! I just find it hilarious that because we were so preoccupied with them that neither of us even remembered our full cups of coffee.

Now what really has me curious is...................what the heck else have I been forgetting that there is no evidence of????

Getting ready

Jason will be leaving for Seattle this coming Tuesday for training with Microsoft.



For. Two. Weeks.



Sigh.



Now, we've done this before, but never for that long of a time.....so in preparation for that we decided to stock up on grocery items. I can and have taken the babies grocery shopping, but in reality it really is so much easier to only grab a couple of items. So this helped take some stress off of me.

We hit two of the four stores that we needed to go to today.....usually the twins are really great...looking around at everyone, smiling, etc. And they were great, but Sabrina was a little bit fussy so I tucked her into the Mei Tei.

I love "wearing" them both, but sometimes they assert their independence and prefer to ride in the cart. We usually let them decide what they want to do. So Sabrina snuggled with me in her carrier, and I just ate it all up today. I know with her independence she will soon fight me and the carrier, so I take it when I can. And I love it.

I just had to share that....soon she will be so big that I won't be able to fit her in it! Sammy doesn't seem to like it as much anymore anyway.....my big boy is asserting his independence too.
So, very soon we will be missing daddy. Most everyone that loves us had called/emailed to offer any support that I will need in the coming days. It really helps to know that people care for you and offer help when you need it most.

And the people that know me best have told me not to act like superwoman and to ask for help when I need it. :) People know me too well sometimes.

Before I am off, does anyone know how to do emoticons on blogger? Or I am stuck with the regular smile and sad faces????

My head would fall off

If it wasn't connected to my body.

I swear this is true.

Today I was feeding the babies their afternoon snack. While they were snacking, I decided to cook up some rice for me to eat. So, I gave them their snack, boiled the rice and water, turned it on low and went to entertain the babies.

It was very close to their nap time so after their snack I took them upstairs and laid them down to sleep.

Now nap time for mommies is a rush of trying to get things done. Well, for me it is anyway! So I am putting things away in the kitchen, dishes, etc. I decided to check my email real quick. Then I go back to the kitchen to finish up some stuff.

I smell something.

Oh.

I left the rice on the stove while it was still cooking. For a good solid forty minutes.

Joy.

The rice went down the drain and a peanut butter sandwich took it's place.

I shouldn't be allowed to use the stove anymore. :)

Since having the babies

Since have the babies I apparently have developed some odd habits, particularly night time ones.

Snoring.

Snoring so loudly that Jason had to go sleep on the couch the other night.

Oops.

I really don't 100% believe him, as most people that snore rarely admit it. But how would I know anyway? I did not snore before the babies came, unless I had a really bad cold. But I did moan in my sleep when I got pregnant. Now any of you with dirty minds stop right there.....it was an annoying kind of moan, like humming over and over again. I do actually remember doing that a few times because it woke me up.

So, this made me think about all the changes that have happened since I got pregnant and since I know no one else is keeping count but me......here are the big changes that have happened to my body, mind, and spirit since having the little ones. I would consider these changes to be a combination of good, odd, and well.....just wonderful.

**A super fantastic sense of smell......this started when I was pregnant. Jason coined this "Prego Super Power Number One" because I could smell everything and anything that came within a five mile radius to me. And it usually made me nauseous. Okay, so I might be exaggerating there, but you get the drift.

**A super fantastic sense of hearing...........I could hear anything. Which did not mean good things in an argument for Jason.....if anything was said under the breath I heard it anyway! But I could pick up sounds that he couldn't always hear unless he was closer. Weird.

**Feet growth! I swear from the moment of conception to the moment of birth my poor feet more than doubled in size. Seriously. At the end of my pregnancy when I went in for my appointments, the nurses would give me the most sympathetic look that you could ever give a pregnant woman. I will never, EVER be able to put into words what my feet and ankles looked like. Imagine Lake Michigan......retained in my feet.

**The aforementioned sleep issues. The moaning, where did that come from? It wasn't great because it interrupted even my sleep, which I was desperately trying to save up in the form of a savings account. It didn't matter in the end, but I have no idea what that was about.

**The ummmmm, extra baggage around my middle. I won't be gross or anything, but let's just say there is way more than I would ever need. Nuff said.

**My loss of memory. This is totally true and I would change this one even before my weight. I can't remember squat anymore! I've invested in a planner again because if I don't write it down, it might not happen. And I am as anal retentive as they come in regards to being on time, making appointments, and so on. This is not good.

**My ability to cry at the drop of a hat. Usually, it is because a baby is around or on a movie screen. I don't cry at my own, unless they do something incredibly sweet (an everyday occurrence) or any of the following: was born, first cry, first smile, first roll over, first word.....oh you get it! I'm a MAMA! My point is that other babies make me cry sometimes too! They are just too precious and remind me of how sweet this time is.

But out of all these things, the biggest and best change that has ever happened to me is..............


Sam and Sabrina.

Of course, I would have gained another 70 pounds, sold all my old normal size shoes and gave up my super prego powers to have them over again in a heartbeat.

They have changed my life for the better in so many ways that they will never know.

So to my dear and loving husband, snoring just may be a new part of me. But it came with a package deal with the babies. :)

Two walkers??

Before putting the babies to bed tonight, we were all playing in the family room....as is part of our nightly ritual. Sabrina has mastered walking completely now, so as she was strutting her stuff around the room, Jason and I were playing the walking game with Sammy.

I would face him towards Jason and hold him, trying to let him walk and normally he jumps right down. Today though, he took a couple of steps towards daddy. Of course we started clapping and yelling for Sammy. Sabrina chimed right in and started clapping for him also. He got so excited when Jason turned him around to me his little legs were already trying to walk. As he came towards me, he again walked a couple of steps.

We played this game for a few minutes more (he was getting sleepy) and he was SO excited! He just kept laughing his little laugh. And it was so cute that Sabrina watched near a chair......it was like she knew that she had already mastered this and let him have his moment.

I know she probably didn't know exactly what she was clapping at, except that we were excited about something. But it was so sweet and precious to see her cheering her big brother on (older by one minute) as he was learning to walk. She must have forgot that ten minutes earlier he was trying to give her love and knocked her over.

The joys of toddlerhood. :)

My babies are growing up.................

Tonight, as I was cleaning up the kitchen after putting the babies to bed, I had a "moment". Tonight, I washed and cleaned their formula dispensers that I have taken with us for the past year on errands, doctors appts., and such. Obviously, if the babies ever needed a bottle I could whip out one of these dispensers, fill a bottle, and feed a hungry baby.

I also took down and washed the two bottle racks that have been sitting on the right side of my sink for the past year. You see, we were trying to slowly wean Sam and Sabrina off of their bottles, one week at a time. We didn't want them to feel rushed in any way, so we started with the after dinner bottle, then the plan was to take away the bottles for lunch, breakfast, and finally, night time.

But somehow, over the past week, both of them have decided that they no longer need the bottle except the night time one. I would make it and they refused. Their sippies (and real food) were enough for them finally.

So tonight, instead of washing everything and putting it back into the proper places......I will be putting them away for good. And it made me a little sad.

It sounds silly, doesn't it? That something so trivial, that most people would be jumping in joy over, saddens me. My babies are growing up. True, they are still babies, but this is only the beginning of them growing up.

I have treasured every moment of this past year. Even the hard ones. People would tell me, "They grow up so fast!" But I already knew this. I knew that the sleepless nights would end so that never really bothered me. I knew that one day Sammy wouldn't want me to pick him up, so I held him (and still do) every chance I could. And I knew the same for Sabrina, that her flair for independence would shine through one day and she would realize that she doesn't need her mama as much as she used to.

Yes, those days seem a long way off. But I'm smart enough to know that kindergarten really isn't that far away.....so I treasure the precious simple moments that make up our day. And those baby bottles, while simple, made up a big part of our day.....and I will actually miss them.
And oh how I dread the day when I don't get to cuddle and rock my babies to sleep at night. Some would say that we have spoiled them.....and to that I would answer..........................................................................................

"Hell yes, we have."

Buh bye baby bottles. And hello to a new year full of great, precious, and simple moments.

A walk back in time........................

Dinner is cooking.

The twins are sleeping.

The house is clean.

What the heck????

So, while I have a moment, I have to share something. Jason and I met for lunch today and while I was driving the twins home, I passed a movie theater in Westland. We saw it last week also, and I can’t believe I forgot to blog about it.

Our old movie theater is now closed down. Westland Showcase Cinema’s had a sign on the marquee thanking the patrons of Westland for their business. It almost made me want to tear up a little.

This was the theater that I first went to went I was a child. I remember when it was built! It was before the days of stadium seating (which I actually enjoy). I remember getting dropped off at the movies with my bff Carrie and taking in a show. I remember first meeting boys there to see a movie. And, as I got older.....I remember when I got my license I could DRIVE there....it was the happening place to see a movie.

I can’t actually believe that it is closed down, although it doesn’t truly surprise me. With Emagine theater just in Canton and a huge AMC in Livonia, I guess it really was only a matter of time.

But it felt kind of sad to drive by and momentarily reminisce. I can’t believe that I am now actually old enough to remember when something was built and now watch it close down.
One day, I’ll be driving down Wayne road and the twins will be 16. Then I’ll say, "Kids, that’s where me and your dad used to go to the movies. I remember when they closed that place down."

And then they will roll their eyes at me and say, "Yeah mom, and I bet you had to walk 10 miles in the snow without boots on to go to it. Quit boring us with stories from your youth."

Ahhhhh, to be young again.

A note: I can only imagine that this does not bode well for Westland at all. These are the new stores just built in Canton recently:

Target, Old Navy, Kohl’s, JC Penney, Borders, Bath n’ Body Works....just to name a few.

I hope Westland thinks of something new soon.

Forever Ago

Once upon a time, I had time to write.

It seems I do not have that time any more.

Don't get me wrong, I love the twins more than words will ever express (and that is usually who I write about anyway), but at the end of the night, I am truly exhausted. It seems all I can do is tidy up the kitchen and dishes, check some online stuff, work on any pics if I have them, and I am so ready for bed.

They are pure joy, but exhausting at times! Especially more so lately......I believe they are reaching the peak of seperation anxiety--which means leaving them for a moment to go to the bathroom, grab a load of laundry, etc......sometimes doesn't happen because they don't want to see me go......even for a minute.

How wonderful it is to be loved that way.

Since they have been born, they have shown us their unique personalities. Sabrina, even one week old, had a fierce cry that could shatter glass. Sammy was always the more patient and willing one.

And oh, how this rings true today. Sabrina is full of emotion, more so lately than ever. If she wants it and can't have it she starts to cry.....then looks for the reaction. "Do I have them wrapped?" I can hear her thinking this in her head. And she does.

Today we were shopping at Target and she wanted out of the cart.....so I took her out while we were in the aisle and held her. But she wanted DOWN. So, for a brief moment (Jason had Sammy) I let her walk around the aisle.....but when it was time to move, I picked her up. Um, no.....the girl was not having it. She has NEVER thrown a tantrum in a store--ever! And it probably wasn't really a tantrum--but I had to do something to distract her so I started dancing with her right in the aisle. That calmed her. And then she realized she wanted down again. Yeah, it was time for us to go.

And my Sammy. I love both of them so much, but he is totally a mama's boy. He will crawl right up in my lap and snuggle with me......she does it too, but he does more often. He loves to cuddle. He is not quite there on the walking yet, but he gets where he needs to go by crawling ultra fast--we call him turbo.

It's so funny how they both have their little quirks and we can watch it on a daily basis. I think Sabrina is nearing the point where she doesn't want me to feed her anymore, yet she knows when something is pureed, so she'll let me feed her then. Sammy will eat by himself, but it's like he knows it's easier if mama gives it to him. So cute.

And I can't believe that just a little over a year ago we brought home two babies that weighed just over six pounds each. Now Sammy is a little over 23 lbs. and she a little over 18 lbs.

I just can't believe how fast they have grown............

How much I love them............

How much I miss them when they are away from me........

And how much I truly do love being a mom.........even if it barely gives me time to write.