Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Preparing for the Holidays


The holiday season is here, and we’re still tired! I thought the sleep depravation was supposed to end around four months, but I thought wrong. The boys are doing well and now over seven months old, with one at 20 pounds and the other near 18, but our little night owl still won’t sleep through the night. This is still the biggest challenge for us, as we never get a full night’s sleep. His latest thing is that he gets up for a bottle, and then refuses to go back to sleep. Getting up for two hours in the middle of the night has been so frustrating. I’ve spoken to other parents who say their babies never slept through the night until they were over a year old, so this could continue for quite some time. Last night I finally let him cry for about 15 minutes, and then he fell back to sleep. I’m not a fan of the “cry it out” method, but it seemed to be the only option, other than getting out toys and staying awake half the night.

On the positive side, it’s been fun buying and wrapping Christmas presents for them, and last week I took them to get their picture taken with Santa. They did very well and neither one cried. They even seemed to enjoy doing our Christmas shopping at the mall after the picture and liked all the attention they received from strangers.

Both boys are now mobile, which introduces a whole new set of challenges around the house. We have a two-story home, so we’re going to get baby gates for the stairs soon. They’ve also discovered the Christmas tree, and it’s as if they know all those colorful presents are for them. I don’t think they’ve figured out what “no” means, so we keep steering them away from the temptation! We also had to lower the mattresses in their cribs because it looked like they would soon be able to pull themselves over the rail.

I took the boys last month to get RSV shots – apparently twins are at greater risk, so they need to get shots once per month until Spring. This was my first time with them at the doctor when they got shots, and I felt so bad for them. As soon as that needle went in, you would think someone had hit them over the head. It took about ten minutes to calm them and wipe away the tears after the shots. Next week we’ll have to do it all over again. I remember as a child being terrified of the doctor and shots, so I can definitely sympathize with them.

Dinner time has become interesting now that they’re eating solid baby food. The bigger twin eats anything we give him with no problems while the smaller twin takes a little coaxing at times. I think we already know who our picky eater will be! I know some of our neighbors make their own baby food, like boiling and then mashing sweet potatoes. I’m going to ask for advice on this to find out what works best at this age.

I can’t wait for Christmas morning to see the excitement on their faces as they rip open their presents. They’re really into tearing paper now, so they may enjoy the process more than the toys.

Happy Holidays!

5 comments:

It's Daddies. Plural. said...

I'm 32 and I still don't know what "No" means :)
That is the most precious holiday photo ever!!! You guys must be besides yourselves.

As far as the "cry it out / Ferber" method, the one thing we've taken from ALL of the advice - and everybody gives you theirs - is you have to do what works for you.

GayDad said...

I'm saying "no" more and more each day! I can't wait for Christmas to watch them tear open all their presents - and then to take down the tree. Remove the temptation, and life might be a little easier. Baby gates were installed this weekend too.

The little guy finally slept through the night - once. When he gets up, he's not eating as much, so maybe he's on track to start sleeping through more nights.

Tim and Louie said...

Thanks for the update and the cute Santa picture (the twins, not Santa! LOL!)

Glad to hear things are moving right along at light speed! I can't believe that it's already been 7 months!

OY! VEY!

Where does the time go!

GayDad said...

Thanks Louie! Baby gates are up, kitchen cabinets locked. But they still find mischeif! It seems so strange to have one of them crawl over and grab my leg.

Every day I fall in love with them a little more - so now I hate going to work. I miss the little guys!

Tim and Louie said...

Oh, and their outfits are SOOOO CUTE!!!

I especially LOVE those old style, 1920's caps!

Very GQ!!!

- Louie