Game On!

For the last six weeks, we've been waking up on Saturday mornings and walking over to the baseball fields near our house.  Adam was learning to play t-ball!  It was pretty rough each week, as getting 3- and 4-year-olds to focus on anything for an hour is a big job.  God bless Coach Dan.  Anywho, this past Saturday was his last one.  They took team pictures and practiced a little. 

Little help, Dad.

About half-way through the practice, we noticed the team that practices after us was showing up early.  Why were they here so early?  Well, as it turns out, the coaches had arranged to play a little game!  Surprise!  The day just got better :-)  Coach Dan huddled the team up and Alan's pretty sure he heard him say to them, "Okay, this team's pretty good..." as the opposing team warmed up by running the bases.  We would bat first, and everyone would get a chance to bat.  It was the bottom of the 9th, bases loaded with two outs.  The score was tied and the count was 3-2...

And he scores!

After we all hit, it was time to field.  Interest just took a sharp dive.  We finally got everyone out there and Adam played second base.

At the end, I'm pretty sure it was a tie.  Adam had a great "game" and enjoyed his final practice.  He received a certificate, teddy bear and gift card for an ice cream cone from Coach Dan.

We enjoyed watching him, but I'm pretty sure we're going to enjoy sleeping in on Saturday morning even more.  Oh, wait... A woman can dream, can't she?

Fresh Air

This post is mostly for the family, as it's a video of the babies "playing."  I'm sure not everyone is dying to watch a video of my babies, but Grandma is :) 

Sunday was a beautiful day here, as many of the days are lately.  Adam asked if we would put up his bouncy house and we said yes.  But since Alan was generously mowing the neighbors yard (they're in the States right now), I needed to sit outside with Adam.  The babies were awake and happy, so I moved their bouncy chair and exersaucer outside with me.  Here's a video of them having fun outside.  I can tell Anaya can't wait to be able to jump with Adam.

Vacay, Dayton Style

Last week Alan took leave, which has only happened about three or four times since we've been married.  Poor guy.  I'm sure he had beautiful images in his head of a fun-filled, perfect week with his family.  Well, I hated to burst his bubble, but...

Saturday night I awoke to the sound of Anaya screaming.  Long story short, we spent the next four days watching her butt.  Alan did escape with Adam to the beach on Sunday while I stayed behind with the babies.  Every day we planned to go to the Aquarium if Anaya had improved, but every day we shattered Adam's dream by not going.  I couldn't imagine having to find a changing table every 45 minutes, not to mention handle a screaming baby in public.  I wouldn't wish that on an enemy, why would I subject myself to it?  After a doctor's appointment on Tuesday, we were told to monitor her and if it got any worse to go to the ER (there had been blood in her stools).  We already had a sitter for the kids who didn't go to the doctor, so we swapped Anaya for Adam and took him to the beach for a bit.  It was going to be a nice break from watching Anaya's butt for me.  Here's Adam enjoying an OJ on the beach:

After spending Tuesday night feeling like we were just sitting around waiting to go to the ER, I opted to call the pediatrician on Wednesday morning and tell her we were headed there.  She instead ordered an x-ray so that was less painful.  After a couple of x-rays (and hours), it was determined that Anaya did not have any obstruction and we were back to this being a nasty virus.  Oddly enough, she seemed to have improved during the time we were at the hospital and it continued through the night.  So, Thursday we headed up to Okuma for the night.

Wednesday morning Adam had started having "issues", but apparently 2+2 is higher level math around here and it didn't register.  So, Thursday Adam felt crappy all day.  He went to the beach for a bit with Alan while I stayed in the room with the babies, but he pretty much slept all day.  And the babies pretty much cried all day.  We ate dinner in the room.  Thursday night the babies had to sleep together in a pack-n-play, which they haven't done since they were about 3 weeks old.  Didn't go well.  At all.  Zero sleep for Mom or Dad and everyone up at dawn is what it all amounted to.  So, since it wasn't hot yet at that hour and Adam was feeling better, Alan and I each strapped on a baby and we all went for a morning walk on the beach.  After a little breakfast, I got a chance at some beach time with Adam while Alan stayed with the babies.  Then, we checked out and finally hit the Aquarium.  There are no pictures from Okuma as, who are we trying to fool?, it was not that fun and would almost be better forgotten.  Let's hope it goes better for Memorial Day when we go.  I hate that Alan finally got a vacation and this is how it went, but, let's be honest, we expected nothing more.  This was standard.

The Aquarium was amazing, as always.  The babies were a little attentive...for about 20 minutes.  Then they fell asleep for about 20 minutes.  Then they cried.  And cried.  While Alan took Adam to see the turtles, I headed to the handicap bathroom to change both babies.  As I was trying to enter, I was stopped by a group of Japanese women who were very happy to see twins ("Tween?  Ah!  Tween!).  One even snapped a picture!  Then they both started screaming again and off everyone went.  At the moment, I'm glad I don't understand Japanese.  There's never a dull moment around here!  I'm gonna go ahead and let you imagine me making my way to the handicap Japanese bathroom with my big-ass stroller and tweens. 

I've posted pictures from the Aquarium before, but here are a couple of pics of us and videos of the whale sharks.  They never cease to amaze me.  The first video is like 3 minutes long, so you don't have to watch it all.  The second video is of the big fish swimming overhead.  I was zoomed out all the way on the camera, so you get a little sense of how large they are.

The Girl Store

Saturday night at Adam's bedtime:

Adam: "Is Mr. Todd still here?"

Me: "Yes.  He's going to talk with Mommy & Daddy for a little while, then he's going to go home and go to bed."

Adam: "Where is his bed?"

Me: "At his house, in his room.  You know where you sometimes watch movies with Erin, on that big bed?"

Adam: "Oh.  Yeah.  Does Mrs. Michelle sleep there too?"

Me: "Yes, just like Mommy & Daddy sleep in our bed.  She's his wife."

Adam: "And you're Daddy's wife."

Me: "Right."

Adam: "And Robert's my wife."

Me:  "No, Robert's your best friend.  One day you'll find a GIRL that you like a lot and you'll ask her to marry you and she'll be your wife."

Adam:  "One day when I grow bigger."

Me: "Right."

Adam: "Well, where's the girl store?"

Me: "Hmm.  I don't know!  We'll have to keep looking for it."

Adam: "Well, the dog store is close-by.  So if the dog store is close-by and the girl store is close-by, how will I know which is which?"

Me: "Well, it's tough.  Sometimes you don't know.  Sometimes you wake up and realize you've been to the dog store." 

2...If You Aren't in a Hurry

That's how many Officers it takes to put up a tent - at the Dayton house, anyway.  We warned TD that Daytons have a hard time with projects, so he was subjecting himself to that poor luck.  I was doing my best to help so I didn't get every single step, but here's a rough review:

1/2 of the frame is up:

Now for the top, center rail.  Do we need a ladder?  Nah.

Lock it in.

Wait. I think something's wrong...that middle piece goes at the other end.

There.  That looks right.

Wait, lemme just...

Okay, all up.  Lock it in.

Wait.  What about the...?

Unlock it.  We'll lower it down.

*There are no photos of the tarp getting put over the top - that took everyone's help, plus a huge gust of wind*

Here, Alan is under the tent.  Sweating.  You can see Adam yelling, "Daddy!  Can you hear me?  How are you going to get out?"  He was very concerned about Daddy being trapped in there.

Pop the legs back up and we're done!  It only took about an hour and a half, plus an additional trip back to Outdoor Rec because they forgot to give us stakes to hold the tent down.  Simple.  The Dayton way.

 

Cinco!

Anaya and Audie are five months old!  I have probably said this every month, but I truly cannot believe it.  It is going by so fast!  Maybe because they're keeping me busy.  At any rate, five months have passed and sooooo much has changed!  They are very aware of one another now, and they constantly compete for attention.  If they're both laying down and I turn toward one to play, the other will start kicking me with their feet, regaining my attention.  This goes back and forth until one just melts down before my eyes.  They have also begun to fight over toys.  If she has something and he tries to take it from her (this is not uncommon), she'll start to scream until she gets it back.  They've started eating cereal and sleeping through the night from about 7 p.m. until 4 a.m., which is nice for Mom & Dad.  They love baths, especially when they get to take a bath with Adam.  They're trying to hold their bottles now, which is a blessing and disaster at the same time.  They are coming around on liking their car seats, which gives me hope for this planned U.S. trip in November.

Anaya's princess personality continues to progress.  I have made the analogy that Audie is like a puppy dog and Anaya is like a cat.  You have to work to get coos and smiles out of her, not just show up.  Unless you're Adam, then you just show up and she's all smiles.  She loves watching her big brother.  She has also taken quite an interest in Rosie...and her ears.  Poor Rosie takes it well, just sitting there, allowing Anaya to yank on those ears.  She's a trooper.  So far, Anaya has turned up her nose to rice cereal and oatmeal, only taking a few bites before refusing to eat anymore.  I hope that isn't an indication of what's to come... She's a deep sleeper and a great napper, but she nearly always wakes up totally pissed.  Awaking in the night to shrill screams is not ideal, so I'm hoping this passes.  However, even though she's screaming, she'll usually stop when she notices you and give you a smile that just melts your heart.  It's so funny, when the room is dark and I'm sleepy and can barely see anything, I can see her smiling.  She really is a pretty easy baby.  She just also happens to be a really loud crier, so it seems really bad a lot.  I know you think, "Oh, they're all loud" - that's what the x-ray tech said who had to give her a chest x-ray, after she warned me Anaya wouldn't like it and I warned her that Anaya was really loud.  Ha.  She found out.  She mumbled something about me being right.  You don't understand.  LOUD.  But as long as we can stay one step ahead and keep her happy, she's great!  She likes tummy time and she rolls from her belly to her back and grabs toys and tries to sit up when she's on her back.  She doesn't seem really interested in moving, though, but I'm sure that will change when Audie gets going.  She keeps up with her brother, for the most part, as far as formula goes.  At her well-baby appointment last week, she weighed 13 lbs. and was 24.5 inches long - long and lean...imagine that.

    

Audie, Audie, Audie.  Audie is such a little sweetheart.  He's snuggly and smiley and chatty and he loves to grab your face when you get close enough.  This child has done a complete 180 from a month or two ago.  He greets you with a smile and just eats up any attention you give him.  When both babies are sitting up, facing each other, he'll just smile at his sister and start talking to her.  He's been as patient as he can be, since we often tend to her first, just to quiet things down.  I figure we're really hammering in the "ladies first" rule.  As if always being four minutes younger than her isn't enough.  He can roll from his back to his belly and back, and he's even scooting when he's on his belly.  He's dying to be mobile, I think.  He hasn't fully found the use of his arms yet, but I think I'm in trouble when he does.  Twins on the move scares me.  He grabs at toys (especially the ones his sister is playing with) and gets excited about things and loves to play.  He eats (or something like that) lots of cereal and seems to like it, but he's quite a mess.  He's a lighter sleeper, though, and a short-napper, so we're working on his sleep habits.  It's a constant struggle to keep them on any sort of schedule because their eating and sleeping patterns differ.  Overall, he has turned in to a pretty easy baby, though.  He's weighing in at 13 lbs. 12 oz and 25.5 inches, just a tad bigger than his sister.  That also puts him in the "long and lean" category - shocking. 

I hate to jinx myself, but I really feel like the most difficult part is over.  I think we'll hit rough patches - that's to be expected - and there will be phases that we all go through.  But it is definitely more fun now and easier now than it has been.  Here are a few extra pics, but I've gotta run.  Anaya just woke up.