the sisters are two months old!
here’s what going on:
Breastfeeding no longer puts a hurtin’ on Momma. Occasionally, they’ll have a bad latch when I nurse in tandem (which is once or twice a day). I’m also still taking grapefruit seed extract & probiotics to keep the yeast away. Lastly, I’m having oversupply issues, which creates the occasional firehose spray + infant near-drowning experience. But all in all, we are on our way to a pleasant breastfeeding relationship!
Sleep is coming in longer stretches. They both sleep on their tummies, in one crib. They go for four or five hours ’til around 3am, and then another three hours ’til sunrise. I nurse whichever one wakes first, and then Chris changes her and puts her back down while I wake the other sister to nurse. It feels a little odd, waking a sleeping baby. But it keeps them on the same schedule, and it means we’re only up once in the middle of the night! I know there will be growth spurts and teething and all of that nonsense along the way. But this week, we’re feeling pretty rested! Now that I’ve typed this, they’re going to wake us up every hour for the next week, aren’t they?
Weight is going up. Ames was close to 8lbs at birth, but he’s always been a slow gainer. I entered his measurements in
this calculator the other day, just for kicks. I discovered that my boy is still below 5% for height & weight. Have no fear – his head is in the 50-75th percentile! I expected to have the same experience with the twins, especially since they were smaller at birth. However, they seem to be growin’ up a storm. Fast weight gain is another symptom of oversupply, so it might plateau soon. But right now, the sisters are chunking up! Honor recently took the lead and surpassed 9lbs, while Isaiah is somewhere around 8.5lbs.
Isaiah in blue; Honor in green.
Dresses c/o Plain Jane Threads.
Personalities are developing. Isaiah sleeps soundly at home and pitches little fussy fits in public. Honor can sleep through a train in the stroller but tosses & turns in the crib. Although they are similar in weight, Isaiah Jane looks much smaller & more delicate, and her moods reflect it. She likes to be held and will stare at you for hours, fighting sleep. Honor snorts when she cries, has three chins, & sort of resembles a miniature linebacker. So naturally, Isaiah gets the pink & purple pacifier – Honor, the yellow & green. Both babies smile & smirk on occasion, usually when Daddy nuzzles their lips with his scruffy beard.
Isaiah being a diva delicate, while Honor smiles in the stroller:
I know they’re still brand-new, but they’re wearing
select, second-hand, shrunken 3month clothing, so I’m claiming it –
we made it through the newborn stage! Anyone who loves rocking almost-asleep-but-not-quite babies and doesn’t mind that they take and don’t give back and stare off into space cross-eyed and decide to wake up at inconvenient times and spit up on your shirt right before you walk out the door, YOU may come visit any time! These girls are sweet, they smell like heaven, and I love them to the ends of the earth. But I’m thankful to be moving forward. They’re starting to make more eye contact, and it makes my heart flutter. I’m excited for this next season!
isaiah jane
I’m still on maternity leave. I return to work June 20, which I’m actually not dreading. I love my job. To keep the vulnerability on this blog fair across the board, I’ll address our money situation. I wrote out a long drawn-out description of FMLA, PTO, & other confusing abbreviations. I decided to spare the details and bring you up to speed. I decided to take the full 12 weeks, which left me about four weeks without pay. And now I have to pay my employer for our health insurance for the remaining time. This is usually the time when other nurses on my floor have returned to work. But we’re holding out for the last few weeks. We’re going to make it work because it’s important to us that I stay home as long as possible. We saved up for this and now we’re dipping into those savings, as much as it pains me to type that. Friends & family keep reminding me – we can always make more money, but we can’t get this time back.
7 Comments
I hope you are able to establish a pumping schedule as well with your return to work :) It still blows my mind that you only get 12 weeks when we get 52 :( *hugs*
I dealt with the same insurance thing at my hospital: having to pay out of pocket when my PTO ran out. It’s crazy how little this country supports new mothers and our need to be home with our babies! The sisters are adorable and growing so fast! I think it’s amazing that you are nursing both of them, you are such an inspiration! I was worried about pumping at work because I work in ICU and it’s just so unpredictable. But I did alot of pre-planning and really got on the same page with my DON and it has worked out great! Brees is 6 months old and we are still nursing strong. Good luck to you!
Congrats on two months!
Enjoy your last few weeks at home.
The sisters are beautiful! Enjoy your last couple weeks with your babies :) When you go back to work, sip on mothers milk tea throughout the day. Nurse them just before you leave and first thing when you get home. I have found that my most productive hours are between 5-8am so I am sure to pump then and then at least 1 other time during an 8 hr shift. As a nurse and fellow mother of twins (7mo) and a toddler (21 mo) it is a LOT of work and crazy so I have had to learn to “let go” of the little things…my house may not look perfect but we have a roof over our head and everyone is fed and happy :) GOOD LUCK!!!
Totally cracked me up multiple times here! You are a true super mama!
Thanks, guys! Appreciate the encouragement & the pumping tips. I’ll be sure to keep you updated, whether you care or not :)
you are seriously my hero! I am so in love with your lil family and i dont even care if that makes me sounds like s stalker (i promise im not one)