Adventures in Eating

We decided to try to introduce some solid foods to the girls within the past week. While most sources say that this isn't really necessary or recommended until 6 months, our pediatrician suggested that we try it to see if it might help the girls sleep better at night. Additionally, since I will be returning to work right as the girls reach the 6 month mark, I wanted to have some time to work with them on this instead of expecting our nanny to take on that task.

Initially I tried feeding them some organic rice cereal since that is the first solid that is recommended. Neither Kenzie or Lexi wanted anything to do with it. Next I tried some organic bananas from a jar. Again, neither one wanted anything to do with it. I then tried making them some fresh food using my Beaba Babycook (thanks Mom!). This past weekend I made carrots and apples and froze them in these convenient portion sized trays. And we have had partial success!

Lexi really seems to like both carrots and apples, and she will even eat the rice cereal if I mix it with a little fruit or vegetable. She nows opens her mouth for the spoon and gets a huge grin on her face while she is eating. She has even started to fuss for more if I am taking too long trying to get her sister to eat. Kenzie on the other hand is still not too sure about the whole solid food thing. I basically have to force it into her mouth, then most of it comes back out, and when she does happen to swallow some she makes this awful gagging sound and face. Oh well, I am sure that it will come with time and we will continue to introduce some new fresh veggies and fruits to see if we find something that she enjoys.

I can't promise that I will make all of their food fresh, but I will attempt to make a good portion of it since it just seems so much tastier/healthier than the jarred variety :)

Off to the woods for some AC ...

So naturally our air conditioning decided to go out during the hottest week of the summer and of course it wasn't something that could be repaired, thus requiring us to invest in an entirely new unit ... a process which would take 4 days. Four days without air conditioning in 90+ degree heat did not sound like fun ... especially not for the girls. So we decided to escape to a cabin in Hocking Hills for a few days. Now, this would not typically be my top vacation destination pick but finding a place at the last minute, within easy driving distance of Cincinnati, with a setup that would easily accommodate two 21 week olds who do not yet sleep through the night limited our choices quite dramatically. And I must say that we actually had a really nice time!

Thankfully Daddy was able to take some time off work and Granny was able to join us to help out so we had some really great relaxing days with the girls and Tobi. We did some hiking, checked out some of the local small towns and relaxed in our air conditioned 2 bedroom, 2 bath cabin. The girls loved all of the attention they received by having Mommy, Daddy and Granny around all week and they were both so happy and really blossomed. I was also so proud of how well they did in terms of napping and sleeping in a strange place ... now don't get me wrong, they didn't sleep through the night or anything but it was at least not worse than it is at home :)

Kenzie got the hiking award. She was so laid back and really seemed to enjoy her vantage point from the hiking backpack. We have decided that Lexi is more of a city girl - while she enjoyed being in the backpack when we tried it out at home indoors, she would have none of it when we were actually in the woods. The only way that she enjoyed (tolerated) hiking was if she was being carried in her mommy's arms :) Hopefully this will change as she gets a little older as this would be a fun activity that the whole family (including Tobi) could enjoy!

Thanks Granny for joining us for our rustic little getaway ... the girls really loved spending time with you!

Happy 5 Months!

3 months

4 months

5 months

The girls are 5 months old today. I can't believe it! I have been meaning to write an update capturing their milestones and some favorite memories since their 3 month birthday ... Wow, time sure does fly and these girls sure do keep me busy ;) So this post will serve as somewhat of a recap of the past 2 months. Excuse the stream of consciousness approach ... I want to get something down in writing before the memories escape me.

Kenzie: You continue to be my sweet and smiley first born. When you were about 3 months old we gave you the nickname "Big Easy" - an homage to your father's home town and very fitting for your laid back style and rolly polly little legs. For your sake we have thankfully stopped calling you this, as this is probably not a nickname you would have appreciated when you are in high school. You are very generous with your smiles and have a giggle that melts my heart. As you are getting more independent and opinionated you aren't quite as laid back ALL the time, but you continue to be a very smiley and happy little girl. You are definitely a daddy's girl and your daddy can make you giggle like no other. It's hard for Daddy to help settle you down in the middle of the night because as soon as you see him you get a huge grin and start giggling ... and sleep is the farthest thing from your mind. You've got him pretty well wrapped around your finger :)

You are our talker. You can babble and screech all day long. There were a couple of weeks when you would wake up in the middle of the night and we would hear you talking for hours in your crib ... this was a key reason why we had to move you to your own crib when you were about 4 months old. You missed having your sister next to you for a few nights but adjusted quite well. While you are rolling over and "standing" now, you really aren't in too much of a hurry to be mobile. We think that since you are going to talk first, that you are just going to tell your sister to go get things for you :) You do love the jumperoo. We thought that your sister would be the one to prefer this since she loves standing, but you are the one that has really taken a liking to it. You can bounce and play independently for long stretches and you crack yourself up. You just started sleeping on your side a couple of days ago.

Lexi: You are as curious as ever and I continue to wonder what is going on inside that little head of yours. When you were about 3 months old we nicknamed you "Pepper" because you are our little spicy girl. Some days you are a sweet pepper, other days you can be a habenero. You went through a period where you refused to eat without screaming (read: Habenero) ... thankfully we are past that and these days you are almost always the sweetest little pepper. You used to make me work for a smile but are now getting much more generous with them. And when you do smile those dimples are to die for.

You are so strong. You have been "standing" since you were about 6 weeks old and would prefer to be in a vertical position most of the day. You have also been rolling over for several weeks and have now figured out that you can actually get places by rolling over repeatedly. You have become much more confident about being on your tummy in the last few weeks and have started creeping on your stomach ... you want to crawl so badly (to be clear, you would prefer to go straight to walking, but you'll settle for crawling if that will get you moving). You started sleeping on your tummy about a week ago. You love your four legged brother, Tobi, and are obsessed with watching him.

Other things from the past 2 months that I don't want to forget:

Your Omi K came to stay with us for a week at the end of June while your Daddy was in Geneva for work. It was so wonderful having her here with us. She was also so lucky to be here the week that you two really seemed to discover each other. Lexi, you were the first to really start paying attention to Kenzie. You would stare at her in amazement and smile the biggest smile, begging her to make eye contact with you. It took Kenzie a little while to reciprocate, but you now have deep "conversations/stare downs" with each other. Ahhh - how I love to watch that twin sister bond grow!

You both love books. Right now your favorites include "Buzz Buzz Busy Bee", "Where's Spot?", "Tails", "God's Little Lamb" and the Rodrigue Blue Dog books from New Orleans.

You both love the massage that I give you before naptime. I love how you will both grin at me and then look into my eyes so deeply as I rub your legs with yummy smelling lotion. I do notice a bit of jealousy here ... if I am spending too much time 'flirting' with one of you, the other will start to kick and whimper for attention.

Our vacation in the woods with Granny and our first attempts at solid food - but those will get their own posts.

Things that I hope to forget: Sleep deprivation! You were both sleeping pretty well when you were 3 months old ... bed time (the witching hour) was a struggle, but once you were asleep you would typically only get up once during the night to eat (usually between 2 and 4 for about an hour) and would wake up between 6 and 7 am for the day. Sometime around 16 weeks this changed and you have started waking up many times during the night. For a couple of weeks Kenzie was wide awake for several hours during the night. Thankfully that is no longer the case, but you are both still waking up several times a night.... multiply that by 2 and I am typically up 6 to 8 times during the night. We have been trying to follow the advice from Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby but sometimes that is hard because there are 2 of you and you wake each other up. I am really hoping that this improves before I have to return to work in September. At least you are both starting to be pretty good nappers during the day :)

Best 5 months of my life so far! I fall more in love with you both each and every day! I can't believe I only have 1 month left before I have to go back to work ... I get teary eyed just thinking about not getting to spend every day with you... especially because you are changing so much these days. I am planning to cherish every moment of this next month at home with you!