Christmas Blessings

94.Pumpkin Pancakes with REAL maple syrup
95. Family Laughter
96. Super Cute First Shoes for the Girls (and great for their feet too!)

97. Gift Cards 
98. Derek and I finally starting to put our photos on the walls. I can't wait until the whole wall is covered in sweet memories!
99.The cow toy we bought the girls. Aeralind's obsessed.

100. My Sweet husband wrapping his arm around me to keep me warm at a restaurant when I'm already wearing his coat and he's cold too.
101. Bronwyn snuggles at church.
102. My dad holding his grandbabies

103. The Child that came to Save

Milk Allergic/Sensitive Recipes: Ham and Bean Soup

For me, the hardest part of going milk free was adjusting my thinking to what I could eat rather than lamenting what I'm missing. However, once I did some research on all the dairy replacement products out there, googled some dairy-free recipes, and thought about how I could adapt what I normally cook, going milk-free wasn't so bad. In fact, I'm really enjoying trying some new dishes! But I won't lie: I'm tempted to feed the girls frozen milk for two or three days so I can binge on Mac and Cheese, Pizza, Tacos, and Ice Cream...

So for those of you with the same Milk-Free Restrictions  the girls have put on me, I've decided to start a dairy-free recipes series.  As I've already mentioned, most of my cooking is a fun creative experiment. I toss things in the pan and see what happens.  But since I have two little ones to care for, most of these recipes will be very simple and quick.  However, sometimes I do cook-a-thons on Saturdays or Sundays while Derek cares for the girls, so some recipes take longer. I'll try to remember to mark more weekend-oriented recipes.

Ham and Bean Soup 
Hands on Time: 10-20 minutes chopping veggies. Less if you roughly chop them in the food processor.
Total Time: 30-40 minutes

 
Ingredients

• Onion
• Celery
• Red Potatoes
• (Any other veggies dying to get out of your fridge)
• 2 packages of cubed ham (or a ham and turkey mix)
• 2 Cans of Great Northern beans
  
• 2 containers of reduced Sodium Chicken Broth

 Directions

1. Finely chop onion and celery and cook in a little oil until translucent.
2. Add finely chopped potatoes and ham cubes.  Cook while rinsing your beans.
3. Add beans and broth.  Bring to a boil.
4. Turn down to a simmer and simmer until potatoes are tender (15-20 minutes)
5. Serve with homemade Jiffy Corn Muffins (dairy-free mix!) if desired.
   

Breastfeeding: Dairy-Free Resources

 These are some resources that I've found useful in my dairy-free journey.  Feel free to e-mail me with links to other dairy free resources that you've found or a link to your blog with your own dairy free resource post!

Resources
Kelly Mom Hidden Dairy Handout: The most concise handout on hidden dairy out there.  Print this, go through your cabinets with it in hand, and go shopping with it in your bag.  Especially if your child is super sensitive.


Reflux Rebels: Click over on the side for information on Milk/Soy Protein Intolerance.  I had no idea that 50% of babies who react to dairy also react to Soy.  My girls react to large quantities of soy(as I found out with my homemade tofu chip dip), but handle hidden very well.

About.com Dairy Free-Cooking Group: Great recipes (though a little vegan focused) and it has a free newsletter with recipes sent to your inbox once a week.  Great dessert ideas :D

Go Dairy Free: Articles and recipes. My personal favorite part of this site is the Dining Out section with it's Fast Food Restaurant list.  Seriously, who would have guessed that McDonalds fries have dairy in them and that the only main dish I can eat at Chick-fil-a is the Grilled Chicken Sandwich (though I've heard they'll make you grilled nuggets if you ask)


I Can't Believe it's Vegan: A wonderful list of everyday convenience products that are dairy free. I wish I had seen this in the first 2 weeks of the Dairy Elimination Diet!
AllRecipes: I've had great luck here searching for Dairy-Free or Milk-Free.  I also love that there are reviews so I can see what others thought about it. I'm sure other recipe sites are good too.  I'll highlight some of my favorite All Recipe meals soon!

St. Francis Baby Downloadables: Scroll down for the Milk Free Foods for Nursing Mothers. A great list of quick convenience foods.

Lucile Packard Children's Hospital: A fantastic simple run down of what you can and cannot eat.  Easy to understand.

Dairy-Free Moms is a forum group on Baby Center.  These ladies are so helpful and answer questions promptly.  Plus it's fun to talk to other moms in the same boat!

Mom Recipe Blogs: 
The longer I've been dairy free, the more resources I find!  Here is a list of some dairy-free blogs, I've stumbled on over the past 5 months.  I'll keep adding stuff as I find it!


dairyfreetoddler.blogspot.com/
nowheymama.blogspot.com/
avoidingmilkprotein.blogspot.com/
milkallergymom.blogspot.com/
nosoynodairy.blogspot.com/
www.foodallergymama.com/

Breastfeeding: Dairy Replacement Reviews

I'll add to this list as I find and use other dairy-free products. However, if you're also on a Dairy-free journey and have a recommended product feel free to email me the link to your review or email me a review to add to this post. I would love for this to help others!


Milk Substitutes
Rice Dream: I've not personally had a drink of this product, but Nana made my pumpkin pie with it. I was quite the fan of the pumpkin pie so I highly recommend it for baking fantastic pumpkin pies ;) Update: I did buy a half gallon of this. It's super chalky tasting and really watery. I was not a fan.  But it made fantastic hot chocolate when mixed with Nesquik powder where Almond and Soy milks just tasted weird.

Almond Breeze: I've only had their refrigerated varieties but I imagine the aseptic containers contain a similar or equal high value product.
Vanilla (sweetened): This a fantastic drink product. I love the way it tastes. There is a slight almond-y taste to it and a sort of usual milk/sweet beverage aftertaste, but it is great cold in a tall glass.
Vanilla (unsweetened): I've been addicted to making banana and fruit or banana, chocolate syrup, and peanut butter smoothies with this product. It's perfect for adding a creaminess to a smoothie without adding unneeded sweetness.
Original: I think this tastes just like milk on cereal, but keep in mind it's a long time since I actually had milk on cereal... But it doesn't have the soy bean aftertaste, so it's got to be closer...

Silk:
Silk Almond: Well it's better than their soy products, but it's not as good as Almond Breeze and I think the Vanilla version is super close.
Original: Definite traditional soy bean-y aftertaste, but it's not too bad. Store brands generally tastes the same.
Vanilla: Also has a bean-y aftertaste, but a little less than original. It will work for cereal great, if you don't mind added sweetness, and isn't too bad to drink either. Store brands also taste the same.
Unsweetened: Great for baking. I just made pumpkin pancakes with this and they taste great. It's cheaper than other alternatives too.
Chocolate (full fat): My chocolate milk drinking snob of a husband will fight me for this stuff. It's fantastic and well... addicting. Buy with caution.
Pumpkin Nog: A great seasonal treat. Soy aftertaste, but it's really good flavored (though I'm somewhat miffed that there's no pumpkin in it whatsoever...)
Soy Nog: Has a traditional eggnog type flavor but is missing the stick to your throat creaminess of eggnog. I wouldn't buy this if you're an eggnog snob lover like I am.
Chai: A really tasty chai latte tasting drink. I really, really like this and I'm a chai tea snob. It does have the bean-y aftertaste though.

Butter Replacements

Smart Balance Heart Right Light Buttery Spread: Tastes like butter, but is only good for eating on a bagel or toast (not recommended for baking). This goes on my morning Thomas Bagel (dairy free!) sometimes with a little cinnamon sugar added. So good!

Earth Balance Shortening Sticks: We made my husband's double chocolate chip cookies with this product. They tasted the same. I'm sure a pie crust would be perfectly made with this too!

Earth Balance Vegan Sticks: I'm not going to lie: I spread this on a bagel while starving and running out the door. I gagged on it it tasted so bad.  I actually picked around in on my bagel.  That said; it does bake up into a fantastic muffin.  I can't master cookies with it. Maybe I'll mix it with the shortening sticks.

Ice Cream and Yogurt
Turtle Mountain Products: I'm quite a fan of Turtle Mountains Ice Creams and to top it all off I can find most of their products in normal grocery stores.

• Coconut Vanilla Bean Ice Cream is really rich and creamy and just about perfect, but you have to like coconut cause you do taste it!
• Chocolate Obsession is really good too, though you can taste that soy flavor. However, my ice cream snob husband will happily down a pint of Chocolate Obsession.
• Coconut Milk Yogurt This has less of an obvious coconut flavor than the ice cream and a good yogurt bacteria zing... but it's not at all comparable to the taste of my beloved Publix brand yogurts. I personally don't think it's worth the extra money (something like $.60 a piece), but it's not bad tasting. I can only find it at Whole Foods locally.
• So Delicious Minis Ice Cream Sandwiches These taste super soy beany to me in the ice cream content, but the chocolate brownie parts saves the whole deal. Not too bad at all but the Tofutti Cuties are better (and cheaper!).
  

Tofutti Cuties: My sister used to get these back in her vegetarian days. They were very tasty and you honestly couldn't tell the difference between these and your run of the mill ice cream sandwich. In fact, I'm not sure why I haven't looked for them locally yet... P.S. The mint chip variety is my new favorite treat now that I've found them locally!

Chocolate
Whole Foods Brand Vegan Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: Not as melty as milk based chips, but the flavor is perfect for a semi-sweet. At our local store these are $2.99 a bag, which is a steal compared to a fancy chocolate bar.
Whole Foods Brand Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: These have the same ingredients as the Vegan ones, but have the added warning that they were processed in a plant that also processes dairy. Since I don't think the girls have an allergy, I'm not too worried about trace amounts of dairy so I started buying these. They only cost $1.99. I like keeping that extra dollar...
Bakers Chocolate Semi-Sweet Baking Squares: This is what I use to make fondues with almond milk and pudding.   Tastes like chocolate to me :)

Handmade Christmas Gifts

Merry Christmas to you!  I hope you are enjoying the best Gift of this season: the Love of Christ!

My husband and I are still busy paying off our Buy One Get One Free baby special, so Christmas this year had to be highly budgeted.  I got a little creative with gifts and we only spent $63 dollars on 7 people.

My dad and Derek's parents received a 20 page 5 by 7 photo brag book of the twin's first three months from Shutterfly. These were buy one, get one half off.

I bought my mom a fancy garlic press (she wanted one) and made her a wallet set using stash fabric, zipper, and a snap.

A coin purse. I just stitched some rectangles to a 3" stash zipper. This was the hardest of the three and I'm still not happy with it. It would have been easier if I could find my missing zipper foot (so frustrated!) Live and learn!

Checkbook Cover

Quilted Wallet

For my sister, I machine quilted her Amy Butler Obsession Quilt and bound it.  I've never done such extensive quilting and I'm super happy with it, especially the fun variegated lines in the navy blue border.  My sister wasn't upset that we couldn't find matching cotton teal for that border so I had fun spicing up the plain navy.

Since my sister purchased all the fabric for her quilt and even sewed together the top, I decided I'd make her a cute bag and wallet too.

Rae's Gorgeous Buttercup Bag Pattern (I'm considering reopening my Etsy shop just to sell these. Would you buy one? I love it!)

The wallet uses her quilt backing and bag lining fabric and was a fun little project!


Aeralind and Bronwyn received a set of three hanging teething toys.  I'm also going to make them a pair of hand embroidered baby dedication gowns.  That deadline is quickly approaching, so I had better get started!

Breastfeeding Part 10: Turning the Corner

I've mentioned in some of my other post that the girls are latching without nipple shields! They've been doing so for about 3 weeks now and life is so much simpler because of it!

I haven't had mastitis or a significant plugged duct since Thanksgiving. I'll credit careful attention and a Soy Lecithin supplement (not to mention vegan chocolate chips also have Soy Lecithin).

The girls still have strong reactions to milk products.  I tried to sneak 2 spoonfuls of ice cream last week.  My ears hurt from the amount of screaming Bronwyn put me through and Aeralind was not happy with me either. I'll be posting more about the dairy free breastfeeding life in the weeks to come: recipes, resources, and milk substitution reviews are on the agenda.

I'll be honest, I cried at least once a week up until three weeks ago when they started latching and sleeping through the night. These first three months have been hard. Pumping, dealing with plugged ducts due to oversupply & pumping, mastitis, and  teaching two babies to latch, all while terribly sleep deprived definitely makes for an overly emotional journey

For those of you just starting such a journey: keep at it!  Surround yourself with supportive people: My husband would come home from work, tired himself, and when he saw me shed a tear he would gently send me to bed.  The lactation consultants at St. Francis were incredible.  I can't express to you how supportive they have been and how proud they are that I've made it this far.  Supportive people make all the difference.

Set yourself a goal; my first goal was 6 weeks.  Once you reach that goal reevaluate; at six weeks the girls were taking just about every feeding from me with the aid of a nipple shield and I still had more than enough milk. I decided I'd try to make it to 3 months.  At 3 months, a year seems like it'll be a piece of cake; it can only get easier from here!

For Moms of Multiples just beginning this journey, please feel free to contact me.  I'll do everything I can to encourage and support you.

Caught in Rebellion

A Day in the Life

Here's a day in the life of a mother of 3 month old twins in all it's chaotic glory. This post is LONG, don't feel like you have to read it ;) I think parts of it are rather amusing... seriously, how long did it take for me to make 18 pancakes?!

4:00 Derek retrieves hungry girls, I feed them.  He burps them and I take them back to the crib.
7:00 Same feeding set up. and the girls fall back asleep in bed with mommy
9:30 I wake and feed both girls who are rooting around for food. I struggle to keep Aeralind awake after the feeding.  Bronwyn screams until she spits up on changing table.  Both girls get diapers changed.
10:00 Babies play while mommy tosses diapers in washer, checks email, reads blogs and writes.
10:30 Babies fuss and go back in bed for a nap
11:00 Chat with mom on facebook and mix up pumpkin pancakes
12:15 Make a sandwich for lunch
12:20 Grab fussing babies feed them while eating my lunch.
12:45 Babies scream a lot after the meal (ate too much too fast).  Calm them down while eating a bowl of minestrone (they like watching my arm move apparently).
1:00 Grab babies play/drying rack to entertain them, turn diapers on washing cycle two, write a reply on baby center forums.
1:10 Babies are tired and put down for nap.
1:20 Aeralind still a little fussy, put paci in and she contentedly sleeps.
1:30 Turn on griddle to make pancakes (for Christmas dinner), unload and load dishwasher
1:40 Start making pancakes.
1:55 Pancakes are still cooking while I run back and forth collecting and sorting laundry and matching socks that have been clean since last Monday...
2:00 Bronwyn wakes up and fusses a little while I'm sorting laundry.  After continued mutterings I place a paci in her mouth. I'm excited that the pumpkin pancakes recipe is thick enough that it doesn't burn while I'm running back and forth!
2:05 Laundry is sorted,  6 pancakes made, and I stuff inserts in clean diapers
2:11 It becomes apparent that Bronwyn is not going to go back to sleep and Aeralind has joined her... Tummy time for babies ensues... Bronwyn decides that tummy time was not in her agenda and complains. Aeralind for once enjoys it... for about 3 minutes... I ignore complaints and stuff diapers and make pancakes...
2:25 Roll screaming Aeralind onto her back.  Bronwyn is practically asleep on her tummy, but I roll her over too.
2:35 Pull clean wet diapers out of washer (I don't usually wash diapers two days in a row, but I wanted to get all of that done today so that I could hold off on laundry until Wednesday or Thursday), Put in a load of mommy/daddy clothing, flip pancake over.  Girls are now hungry... bib them up and wait for pancake #10 to finish cooking, then feed girls.
2:41 Aeralind overeats and spits a ton on my tummy before I have time to even lift and burp her.  At least she didn't scream! Burp babies then down to play mat. Start pancakes again.
2:50 Bronwyn screams. I pick her up and she burps. We rest a moment reading a blog that I might as well begin following...
2:58 I burn my first pancake (#11)
3:01 Pancake #12 bites the dust... I turn off the griddle. Babies are happy under the drying rack/play mat. I go hang diapers outside.
3:12 Backyard was a flood zone... PJ/yoga pants get switched out for a skirt as the one pair of jeans that fit are in the wash. I laugh at my circle skirt, T-shirt, fleece jacket, and purple polar bears socks combo. Usually I'm better dressed than this I promise... though the crazy socks are typical.
3:15 Babies are ready for a nap, though Aeralind fights sleep... I read my Google analytics and discover that I'm on the 4th page of a Google search on "breastfeeding milk allergy."  Decide I need to write the next breastfeeding post since people are reading and I have learned a TON about being milk-free. I would love to help someone out!
3:23 Decide I better make dinner first while babies are asleep.  Throw in next load of laundry and start dinner.
4:00 Guess who turned back on the griddle to make pancakes while cooking dinner?
4:10 Resting while blogging/searching internet/cooking pancakes/waiting for dinner to boil so I can turn it down to a simmer.
4:17 Sweet Bronwyn awakes and spends some quality time on my lap while waiting for sister to awake.
4:26 Try to remember when I last changed the girls... um... 10 something... poor babies... Decide to wait until Bronwyn finishes filling her diaper to rectify that situation.
4:28 Final pancake count (minus burnt ones and the one I ate) 19. 
4:30 Bronwyn wiggles on the floor and I start writing some dairy-free blog posts
4:40 I get a box from Jen Odom!!! Haven't opened it yet :D
4:52 I think Operation Fill Bronwyn's Diaper is complete and she's getting hungry so I go change her diaper and wake and change her sister diaper too.
5:18 I struggle to keep them awake after their meal. P.S. Operation FIll Bronwyn's Diaper was unsuccessful
5:31 Husband calls to tell me he's coming home
5:40 Open Jen's box. Find two presents, two bibs, and three cards.  One card informs me that I must wait until Christmas.  I teasingly complain on Jen's Facebook page.
5:45 I sit down to enjoy dinner (too hungry to wait on hubby) and continue writing what has now become 4 separate blog posts (including this one)
6:10 Derek arrives and eats dinner. I read him this post so far. He laughs.  I take that as a good sign ;)
6:25 Both babies begin screaming.  It's like they knew daddy was home and wanted to talk to him. I promise they are daddy's girls!
6:31 Feed Babies, Derek burps them. We listen to Odyssey on the couch as a family.
7:11 Bronwyn goes to her crib.   Poor thing was rubbing her little eyes ;(
7:25 Aeralind goes to her crib.
7:27 Both girls fuss like crazy and get their little selves put in the swing.
7:43 Derek puts in another load of laundry for me. Pancake count now at 18 and I stuff them in the freezer to await Christmas day.
8:00 Bronwyn snuggles next to me, Aeralind is in her swing.  Daddy and I are just enjoying the evening. I'm downloading pictures onto my computer.  Looks like the girls are about to take one of their world famous evening catnaps.
8:34 I've finished and scheduled two blog posts. Both girls are napping and I'm nervous about their ability to sleep through the night tonight... Hubby is playing LOTRO and we're enjoying peace and the clicking of Aeralind's swing.  I'm realizing just how tired I am today.
8:58 Aeralind awakes instantly screaming for food.  Time to feed the babies!
9:17 Switch last load of mommy/daddy laundry into the dryer and slip back into my now dry (and clean) pj/yoga pants.
9:30 Derek alternates caring for both babies as they scream  Both babies spew all over him. We burp them almost religiously, but still they wait to spit up until later.  Oh well. I'm holding out hope for a 10:00 bedtime for Mommy.  The cloth diapers are still outside on the line.
9:39 I finish and schedule 5 blog posts (not including this one) and consider doing another before bedtime.  A & B are sneezing and making their adorable after sneeze sighs.  We love and laugh at those sighs.
9:54 I head upstairs to get ready for bed.  I take fussy Aeralind with me. Please calm down, sweet baby girl.
10:05 I notice a ladybug doing donuts on my mirror for a full minute.  I'm transfixed... oh, yeah... I'm sleep deprived.
10:07 Daddy read a good night prayer to the babies and the corresponding verse.
10:11 Girls still fussing... I decide to read Time for Bed to them. Maybe 10:30 will be bedtime?
10:19  In bed with husband.  He prays with me... my brain is still too busy to sleep, but eventually I drift off.

One Thousand Gifts

64. Conversations with Aeralind (She says Ah-oo and I respond in kind until she's tired of the game or just too smiley to continue)
65. That silly, fun, wonderful man-boy who stopped at bench 7 year ago just to say "hi" to a "pretty girl"
66. Warm cozy fleece wearable blankets so that we don't have to worry about the house's temperature
67. My crazy decision to cloth diaper the girls that has kept our checking account above the red many months now
68. Those generous folks who gave us gift cards or went out on a limb and bought us cloth diapers
69. Meeting Becca 7 years ago on a ropes course
70. The ropes course and the learning I have gained from it many times over
71. The courage to pursue working on that ropes course and the friendship with Becca that ensued
72. Majoring in Outdoor Leadership.  So much growth, so many mentors, so much love to nurture.
73. The joy of turning cartwheels
74. A roof over my head
75. Babies staying on the same schedule even if it is pretty wacky
76. SLEEP
77. Soy and coconut ice creams
78. Derek's double chocolate chip cookies
79. Pumpkins- So gorgeous, so tasty.
80. Bronwyn's special smiles that she reserves only for her daddy
81. Fellow moms of multiples and the support they offer
82. Chicken salad sandwiches from the St. Francis Breastfeeding Support group. Mmmm
83. Uninhibited laughter
84. Being in submission to a loving husband
85. Grace even for a proud heart like mine
86. A body that functions
87. A neighborhood with a pool
89. the ability to tend to a plot of land and produce food
90. Falling down the stairs again without hurting myself (only this time without a baby)
91. Gifts to give
92. Pastors who serve Him and shepherd me
93. Going on a walk with my husband, girls in Moby's and Moonbeam kitty following along

What a glorious season

What a glorious season with a child curled up on my shoulder. So safe, content, and protected in my arms. Her sweet curly eyelashes fluttering closed on her cheek. Little mouth gaping open with a soft whisper of breath.

What a glorious season with another daughter draped across her fathers arms. She coos and, when he looks at her, smiles. His eyes return the smile, laugh lines etching the joy shared. He was made to hold her.

These are the blessings, fleeting between cries of hunger, gas, sleepiness, and frustration, that contentment in Him allows. I was made for this moment and the next ones to come....

First Crushes

 

Two Hours of my Afternoon

1. Feed and Burp Babies (total time 25 minutes)
2. Decide to walk around the block in the $400 stroller someone gave us (10 sec)
3. Put together Baby Jogger and adjust stroller for babies' height (20 min)
4. Change, Bundle Up, and Settle Baby A and B in the stroller(7 min)
5. Squeeze stroller through doors and down the steps (3 min)
6. Run back inside and grab water bottle and handful of chocolate chips (50 sec)
7. Start strolling to the end of the street and up the corner (3 min)
8. Realize tires are flat and go back to the house (3 min)
9. Retrieve tire pump, attempt to pump up one tire (7 min)
10. Realize pump does not work, ask neighbor if she has one (5 min)
11. Neighbor comes to look at girls without a pump (5 min)
12. Retrieve both car seats and put in Double Snap and Go (3 min)
13. Transfer both girls to DSaG (3 min)
14. Squeeze jogger back up porch and into the house (2 min)
15. Grab more chocolate chips (10 sec)
16. Call Derek while walking down the street to share the humor (5 min)
17. Continue walking and return home (7 min)
18. Grab mail and smile at Marcie's Christmas card (2 min)
19. Bring girls into the house, return DSaG to my car trunk, drink some water (6 min)
20. Lug girls and car seats into their room praying they'll sleep another hour (5 min)
21. Grab bag of chocolate chips and type this post (8 min)

I'm EXHAUSTED.  Whew! I guess I got some exercise... though not what I was planning. Now back to the Vegan Chocolate Chips.  Maybe I'll grab another bag or three tonight...

OneThousand Gifts

40. Vegan Chocolate Chips
41. My husband "mowing the carpet"
42. FOUR nights with 7 hours of sleep
43. Babies that latch
44. Marriage and the wedding of friends
45. English Country Dance
46. Orange and White Moonbeam Snuggles
47. Cute warm dresses from my neighbor who drove me to the hospital

48. Three months with the sweet babies
49. A steady paycheck
50. Swag Bucks to spend on the girls for Christmas presents at Amazon.com without blowing the budget (if only I could decide what to buy!)

51. Flannel Sheets
52. A visit with Sara and her twins Frazor and Hunter
53. Fleece wearable blankets
54. Waffles
55. Winning a blog giveaway and the chance to share the whole prize with others for Christmas
56. Less reflux more smiles!
57. A predictable baby schedule
58. Not breaking my toe when the pot fell on it.
59. Reconnecting with folks from my Multiples Birthing class
60. The days about to get longer!
61. Sausage... I love sausage
63. All laudry clean and waiting to be folded

3 Month Photos

The wonderful woman who drove my panicked self to the hospital gave us these adorable dresses a few day after we arrived home. I literally cried they're so cute and cozy. And they say 1 bear 2 bear as if they were made for twins! Such thought was put into these outfits and it moved me to tears. The girls are finally big enough to wear them without being swallowed so I indulged in a little matching feminine pinkness for their three month photos!

Aeralind

Bronwyn

Sisters!

P.S. Sorry the photos are fuzzy.  I shot in low light downstairs and the girls don't like flash, so the camera's ISO is at 1600.  Makes the images grainy, but I couldn't resist taking pictures of this cuteness now rather than waiting for sunshine!

3 Months.

Aeralind Grace just gets more and more social! She loves to be the center of your attention and will just sit there and flashing goofy smiles as you tell her stories. She is not so fond of tummy time and typically either complains or drifts right off to sleep. She likes to sit upright in your lap, perhaps leaning against your chest, as she watches the world go by.  Her tummy is ticklish and she'll writhe in apparent agony if you tickler her.  Her hair is still longer and prone to mohawks.  She would rather be pacifier-less, but if you insist that she quiet down with a paci, she prefers the blue one to the pink one.  Aeralind is still Houdini in her swaddling wrap.  She can get her hands out of daddy's patented "Eyes Pop out of Your Head" Swaddle; if she can't get them out then she'll pull the whole blanket over her face while attempting! Aeralind is super good at making people laugh.  I'd call her my Comedian with all her crazy smiles and desire to be the center of attention.

Bronwyn Hope is a little more introverted, but she loves to be held! She would rather be snuggled up in someone arms than anywhere else. In fact, I think she would rather be laying across daddy's arms watching him play Lord of the Rings Online than anywhere else. I think that's also because her vision is better than her sister's, because she love looking at monitors and cameras and anything else black. Bronwyn still loves tummy time, but is more prone to complain loudly when she's had enough.  She'll pretty funny to watch as she frustratingly tries to roll over by picking up her legs and head.  She looks like she's doing the worm ;).  Bronwyn is so active that sister has started to put on weight faster because Aeralind sleeps and rests more. As a result, Bronwyn almost always cues to eat before her sister. Bronwyn is ticklish on the bottom of her feet and would rather you just not put those socks on her, thankyouverymuch! She prefers a pacifer of any sorts as soon as possible. I would call Bronwyn my Cuddler; she just wants to be near you as often as possible.

Milestones of Month Three

• Smiling! I love this one as it is so rewarding for us!
• Tracking large moving objects (people!) as they walk in front of them.
• Fat rolls on their still so slender legs, but, I promise you, they are finally there!
• They are so long that I had to snap the BG diapers up a size!  However, they're so slender the tabs are still meeting in the middle.
• Out-growing 0-3 month clothing in their torso length.  Just like mommy, they have super long torsos.
• Developing bluer and bluer eyes.
• Starting to cry differently.  Aeralind is higher and faster, Bronwyn is deeper and likes to punctuate her desperate cries with fury at the end.
• Being able to put their hands in their mouths and sometimes sucking their thumbs.
• Punching toys dangling in front of them intentionally.
• Holding their heads up most of the time, but not when they are tired.
• Holding their heads in line with their bodies when you slowly raise them to a sitting position while holding their arms.
  
• Latching without the nipple shield!!!!

And a milestone for mommy: I've lost 50 pounds!

Tongues

I couldn't get a single shot of the three of them smiling... but tongues all hanging out was easy!

One Thousand Gifts

30. Marcie Knox organizing the Under One Crowd at our local MoM's group
31. Marcie Knox making dairy free cookies for a playdate...mmm
32. Hugs
33. My frugal playmat updated with some toys.
34. Watching Bronwyn begin to whack the snail
35. Random gift of a $400 double stroller from people we'd never met
36. Girls that latch better!
37. How wonderful my husband smells
38. Hand me down clothing!
39. My sister and I laughing so hard it hurts our cheeks when I do something clumsy

Breastfeeding Part 9: Latching

My girls may be 3 months old, but in a way we're still breastfeeding newborns. I've been bf them at the breast with a nipple shield for every feeding about 3 weeks now.  During that time I've been trying both girls without the shield one or two feedings a day.  To my surprise Aeralind is latching rather well.  My tiny girl who could barely manage to suck a feeding from a bottle on her 4th day of life is latching! She is patient and opens wide and can even deal rather well with the overactive letdown I have on the right side (I wonder if it's common to have overactive letdown on just one side, but with all the plugged ducts/mastitis on the other side I guess it makes sense for me).

Bronwyn, the one who actually managed a feeding on that first night, is a latching mess. She has no patience and wants to clamp right down on the nipple.  Sometimes it's all I can do not to scream before detaching her and re-latching her about five times each feeding.  But I'm being persistent and have managed to do two days worth of daytime feedings sans the nipple shields. The nighttime feedings I don't even try yet... I'm too brainless and tired to help them latch.

After doing this for two days, I have a huge amount of respect for ladies who have taught/helped both twins to latch in those first few day postpartum. This is hard business, but I can already see the rewards.  Twice now I've been able to feed both girls separately in public with nothing but bibs and burp cloths. I find the latching much easier separately and in cradle or cross cradle holds, but I'm slowly figuring out both girls in the football hold on the pillow at home.

Oh and just for a good laugh, at the Breastfeeding Support Group feed and weigh, Bronwyn took 2.8 ounces which is about what she needs for her weight doing 8 feedings a day.  Aeralind on the other hand took an impressive 5.5 ounces. I'm still trying to figure out where she's hiding it since both girls weighed in at 10lbs 5oz!

A Frugal Girl's Playmat