7 Months Old

The boys are 7 months old. That's so hard to believe! Each day they are growing and doing new things. They have added new foods to their diets. First cereal, then vegetables. Alex and Logan will eat just about anything although they prefer the non-green foods. Nick still isn't very interested in spoon food, unless it's sweet potatoes (or tonight he started out good with the squash, but then stopped).

They are also more mobile! Gone are the good ol' days when we could set them down, turn around and back again and they were still in the same spot. Now they love to squirm out of their chairs and roll all over. They're even starting to crawl, although it's still more of a scoot than a full blown crawl.


They have also found their voices more. When they wake up in the morning, they usually lay in bed for a while and play/talk to themselves. We can hear their happy squeals and chatter over the monitor. It's so cute. As the day goes on, they talk more and more. And of course there's the screeches. Logan started it and still holds the record for highest pitch and greatest volume. But he's taught his brothers the fine skill of screeching. Our ear drums have already been damaged, but I feel bad for our neighbors or people walking past the house. With some of the nicer weather, we've had the windows open. You can hear our high-pitch choir just as loudly outside! The good news is, they tend to tucker themselves out pretty well to. In fact, they can sleep anywhere sometimes!

Alex - asleep in the activity center

Nick - loves to sleep with something over his face

Logan - asleep on dad - that can't be comfy!

Speaking of sleep... They are all doing well at sleeping through the night. We put them to bed between 9 and 9:30 and they usually go to sleep once they're in bed. Then they start to wake up between 6:00 and 7:00 am. They usually will play for a little while and maybe even take a short nap before breakfast between 8:00 and 9:00. Did you notice what was missing??? No more 4 am feedings!!! They get 3 meals with formula and cereal/veggies and then a bottle before bed... and we both get an extra hour of sleep! So far, so good. Although they have been waking up a few times during the night wanting their pacifiers. But still... no 4 am feeding!

We had the boys baptized this last weekend. They were baptized along with their cousin Sydney. If anyone took pictures... I'd love to see them! We were a little too busy with the boys and didn't get any pictures... oops. I'll post more soon about our Mother's day festivities and the baptisms. For now, it's time to go to bed.

One last note/update... Congrats go out to my sister and brother-in-law. They're expecting baby number two this December. Sydney will be a big sister! Yay... We're all happy for you!

Random Stories: How do you tell them apart?

We get this question a lot, so I thought I’d address it here. It was actually a major concern for me before they were born.

At first it was difficult. And even now, I'll sometimes call one by another's name. I know who the kid is, but for some reason, I say something different.

People have mentioned that the boys look a lot alike in the pictures we post. In the pics they do all look alike. Especially if they have their bodies covered and/or anything on their heads and/or it’s at a distance.

For probably the first month, we kept their hospital bracelets on them. It was especially a problem with Alex & Logan because they are most likely twins. Nick has always been easy to distinguish because he has a lot of hair and it’s darker than Alex & Logan.

I think we also tracked them by clothing as well in the early days. When we changed them in to a new outfit, we just kind of subconsciously processed that Alex was in the blue, Nick was in the white, etc. etc.

The first conscious distinction we were able to make between them was their cries. About a month or two after they came home, Tiffany & I could tell who was crying from across the house easier than we could identify them by sight. For example, Nick has kind of a guttural cry. Alex's is preceded by a kind of cough like thing. And Logan's tends to be quieter but protracted.

Now, they simply look different enough (again pics kind of distort this if they have a lot of clothing on). Nick still has his dark hair & sly smile. Logan is the lightest in weight and smiles the most. And Alex is our pudgy baby (we like to say "healthy”). Additionally, their personalities and voices are different. Each of them has their own little mannerisms.

It’s very strange, but I think a lot of the identification happens on an unconscious level, esp. at first. You just kind of know. Granted both Tiffany & I are wrong on occasion, but that also becomes a bit of a fun guessing game. The phenomenon of "you just kind of know" is very odd. I used to ask parents about this before we had kids and never understood it. But I think it’s largely true. You pick up on all kinds of things that you don't process consciously (and some you do) that allow you to "just know" who is who.

From Horrible to Great!

What a week! Last Monday the boys got their 6 month immunization shots. We usually ask someone to come up and help us watch the boys that night, just in case they're fussy. So far, they've done great... Until this time, when we figured we didn't need help. WRONG!!! All of the boys did great getting their shots. They scream while it happens, but then calm down quickly. It helps that I typically go during nap time, so they're tired and go back to sleep after it's done. They did well for the first part of the night. We didn't feed them cereal - one less trauma for the day. But then it began. First one would scream and then a brother would join him. We'd get 2 of them calmed down and almost asleep (they were fighting sleep on top of everything) and the 3rd would start screaming. Notice I'm not saying crying... I'm saying screaming. Baby number three would wake up baby 1 - more screaming... you get the point.

Finally we got them all somewhat calm and it was bath time. After baths (trying to calm them from the traumatic day), we were back to all 3 babies were crying again. Baby Einstein to the rescue!!! No matter what mood they're in, put them in front of the TV - specifically Baby Einstein DVDs - and they're distracted/content. Sound like anyone you know (um... me)?! We save this as our last reserve. Eventually they all calmed down enough to go to sleep. Woo... glad that was over!

To make a long story short (to late), the rest of the week they got better each day. They were still overly fussy at night (oddly enough, right around bed time). They're back to their normal selves now which is a relief. Hard to believe that happened only a week ago... it was a long week!

But on to happier news... Food! We started them on cereal a few weeks ago and they've had Rice, Oatmeal and Barley. No one seemed to have much of a preference between the different flavors. We started giving them peas this week (starting with veggies before fruit) and they seem to like it well enough. It all depends on when you get them. If they're in the mood, they'll eat great. When I say they, I mean Alex and Logan. Alex will even grab for the spoon or your hand and push it in faster. Assuming he's not starving. If you get to them when they're starving, they need a bottle first, then they'll think about the spoon thing. Nick... another story. He really doesn't like the spoon feeding. Doesn't matter what's on it. Granted, I mention that to our friends who were over visiting and he ate almost the whole thing while they watched. Maybe 1 to 2 times a week, he'll eat well. Otherwise, just give him the bottle ... or else! I even tried carrots tonight when he didn't want the peas. Didn't work any better. The good news is Logan (who typically eats less than his brothers - and weighs less) does great with cereal or peas. I just have to say WHATEVER! The picture below was from a dinning experience that left everyone exhausted (all 5 of us)! Well, like I said, Horrible to Great. Shots bring out horrible babies (spitting out green peas). Good thing they will be exorcised before the baptisms next weekend! Nice weather and a week to heal, the boys are doing great again. Went for a walk with them tonight and they came back a little tuckered out! Aren't they so adorable when they're asleep?!

Well, I should get some sleep. I'll post more later about their new found mobility skills and how unprepared mommy and daddy are for it!