9 Months

Has it really been 9 months since we brought those two tiny little bundles home from the hospital?  They aren't so tiny anymore!  9 months has been such a fun age and brought lots of changes for us! 

9 Month Stats:

Rhett - 19 lbs. 11 oz. (34%); 27.5  inches (22%); size 9-12 month clothes; size 4 diaper

Rhys - 17 lbs. 11 oz. (28%); 26.75 inches (21%); 6-9 month clothes; size 4 diaper (could fit in a size 3 but I am too lazy to have different size diapers so she wears a 4....it's a twin's life!)

big 9 month olds LOVE reading books

Our Schedule at 9 Months:

Our schedule changed some this month.  We have completely dropped the 3rd nap of the day.  Last month it was just a "catnap" but now we don't need it anymore.  I am so glad!  Sometimes if the babies are really tired or didn't have a good nap earlier in the day, I will take them on a walk in the late afternoon and they sometimes fall asleep.  Most days, however, this isn't necessary.  Our naps seem to be lengthening a little bit (YAY!) and are a little more predictable.   One thing I have noticed this month is that the babies are less sensitive to the amount of time they are awake.  In the past, they would show signs of being tired sooner (yawning, rubbing eyes, fussing), but now they will just play and play until I put them down for a nap or bed.  We had a rough month in the way of sleep thanks to teething, sickness, and the holidays.   We do seem to be getting back on track now.  Thank goodness!  The babies are still nursing 4 times a day, and eat solids 3 times a day.  They aren't really eating a whole lot of solids yet.  We have introduced some table foods like waffles, whole wheat pasta and bread, blueberries, and small pieces of fruits and veggies.

7:30 a.m.  Wake and nurse

8:15 a.m.  Breakfast solids

Play!

9:30 a.m.  Nap

11:30 a.m.  Wake and nurse

12:15 p.m.  Lunch solids

Play!

2:00 p.m.  Nap

3:45/4:00  Wake and nurse

Play!  Go for a walk, run errands

5:15/5:30  Dinner solids

6:15  Bath and books

6:30/6:45ish   Nurse

7:00/7:30  Bed

 playing together on our activity table

Unfortunately, the twins got sick for the first time this month.  It was terrible!  Rhett got it first.  We took him to the pediatrician and found out that he had RSV and an ear infection.  I was so frustrated!  I have tried so hard to keep the babies "in" and not have them around a lot of people, etc.  Poor Rhett was so miserable......lots of snot, fever, and did not want to eat.  The amount of snot was unbelievable!  Rhett started on his first antibiotic.  We were so worried about him!  Because he wouldn't eat, our pediatrician was worried about dehydration.  We thought he was going to be hospitalized but thankfully we avoided that.  A few days later,  Rhys started getting the runny nose, a cough, and fever.  We went back to the doctor and found out that she too had RSV and a double ear infection.  Leave it to Rhys to have to outdo Rhett!  She also started an antibiotic.  Rhys had more of the wheezing and coughing.  It was so sad to hear her trying to breathe.   Then Tim and I both got sick.  It was a long few days around here with some very fussy babies.  I am so thankful that my mom was able to come and help out for a few days.  We thought the babies were finally getting over it all, and then we went for their 9 month checkup.  We found out that Rhett had gotten another ear infection (in the other ear) and was also cutting his 4 top teeth, as well as 1 new bottom tooth.  Geez......a few more sleepless nights, as well as another prescription.  I was so tired of giving babies medicine!  We were thankful that the babies were feeling much better by Christmas Day!

sick Rhett  :(

Rhett:

Rhett has started "talking" a lot more this month.  He babbles lots of "ba ba ba"  "wa wa wa" sounds and I even heard a "mama" one time.  He still loves to be held and his favorite place is outside.  He loves to stare out the window, but would rather have the wind blowing on him out on the porch.  Rhett loves books and loves to be read to, talked to, tickled, and cuddled.  He is wearing his second DocBand and his head shape is looking good.  He still has a few more weeks in his band.  Rhett continues to do therapy weekly, and is now working with 2 different physical therapists.  He is making progress and getting stronger.  He loves to nurse, but doesn't really love to eat solids yet.  Some days he eats well and other days he just spits it out at me.  He does like to feed himself the MumMum crackers.  Rhett's favorite foods right now are pears, oatmeal, and sweet potatoes.  Rhett has 3 teeth on the bottom, his middle top 2 teeth, and 2 more top teeth are about to make an appearance any day now!

Rhett working with his physical therapist, Patti

Rhett getting some love from his Aunt Caydee

sweet boy!

reading his favorite book at tummy time

R loves this ball

Rhys:

Rhys has changed more this month than any other month!  She is saying "mama" all the time and experimenting with lots of other sounds.  She has started crawling and pulling up on everything.  She is very strong and never sits still.  Ever.  Rhys has a super sweet personality and is very content to play alone.  She loves to chew on everything and anything, including her brother!  Rhys loves to feed herself and makes a huge mess at mealtimes.  Her favorite foods right now are waffles, banana, and carrots.  Rhys has her 2 bottom teeth and we don't see any signs of any more yet.  She does not like to be still to have her diaper changed or to get dressed.   She will start crawling away and when I call her name she stops and sits up, then looks at me, then starts to crawl off again.  She will stop every single time I call her name.  (How long will that last?)  Rhys rarely cries or fusses and is a very happy baby girl!  

 a rare moment where Rhys was still

 choosing a book from the basket

 what does this taste like?

pulling up

Rhys learned how to wave this month!

crawling everywhere!

happy girl

I love playing with the wipes  box

cutest strawberry ever!

look at me in my tunnel!

The twins have been very attached to me the past couple of weeks.  They cry when I leave the room, and don't want anyone else to hold them, etc.  We are hoping this phase will pass quickly.  The babies are so much fun and have such different personalities.  Here are a few more of my favorite pics from this month.

 

"hey there, Rhett"

chubby baby legs

watching baby einstein

 my loves

Looking forward to watching our babies change and grow this next month!

Roll Out the Red Carpet....and Santa Pics

Roll out the red carpet for our little celebrities!  That's right....Rhett & Rhys are pretty famous now that they have filmed their first television commercial.  Well, maybe they aren't famous yet....but every star had to start somewhere, right?  HA!!

Tim's company, Gehan Homes, needed some kids to film their Christmas commercial and asked Tim if they could use the babies.  We thought it would be fun!  All we knew is that there would be a Santa and they would need to sit in his lap.  I was also excited about the idea of getting the twins' picture with Santa done without having to go to the mall, wait in line, etc.  We would have our own private Santa!  

I was pretty nervous on how they would do for a couple of reasons.  First of all, we were going to film early on a Monday morning.  We had been out of town all weekend and got home late Sunday night, and the babies had been up multiple times in the night.  Secondly, they had never seen a Santa before.  So, yeah, I was nervous.

We got to the model home and just hung out while the camera guy got all set up.  Here is Rhys hanging out with one of Tim's co-workers, Angie.  

Rhys loves Angie!

We thought it might be a good idea to get the twins used to Santa before the actual commercial was filmed.  So I held the babies and just stood next to Santa and talked to him.  Then Santa played with the babies while I held them.  Then we decided to let Santa hold them.

It started out great!  Rhett went first and seemed fine.  He even posed for a few pictures.

Then the tears started!  Rhett cried for about 2 minutes and then was fine.  Of course, it made me nervous for how he would act during the actual filming!

 Next, it was Rhys' turn.  I absolutely love this next picture!  She wasn't scared at all and was very interested in Santa's beard, as well as the bells on his wrists.

We had a few more minutes before the commercial shoot, so we took the time to take a family photo.  If you look closely, Tim and I look exhausted!  It's a twin's parent's life...

The babies were getting antsy, so we spread out a blanket and let them play a little while the camera guys finished setting up.  Santa was sweet enough to join in for a picture.

The babies did fine during the commercial!  We were so proud!  For those of you who did not get to see it, here is a video clip of our little stars!

After the commercial filming was finished, we were able to get a few pictures with Santa.  The babies were really tired and it was hard to get them to both look at the camera and smile at the same time.  This
was the best we could get!

I thought it would be a good time to try to get a few pictures for our Christmas cards.  We got the babies all posed and ready...and couldn't get them to look at us.  Rhett had just gotten some new shoes and R&R were obsessed with them!  It was pretty funny, even though I was frustrated that I couldn't get a good pic!

look at my cool new shoes!

Rhys could not keep her eyes or her hands off of Rhett's shoes.  

 So I gave her a gift to distract her.  Then she couldn't keep her eyes or her hands off of the gift.

 This was one of the pictures that we ended up using on our Christmas card.  Not really what I had in mind, but it worked!

We really had a fun time with this all!  It was really cool to see the commercial on t.v.  One evening I was feeding the babies their solids and I heard the commercial start playing in the living room.  I ran to the remote so that I could record it and now we have it saved on our DVR so that we can watch it all the time.  I may or may not have the little jingle memorized....HA!  

Our little celebrities really did like Santa.  Will we be so lucky for next year's Santa pic?

"Cousants" Weekend

Back in November, we had a busy weekend spending time celebrating and having fun with our cousins. My family calls cousins "cousants."  Several years ago one of the little cousins couldn't say the word cousin very well, and said "cousant" instead.  The word just stuck, and I think cousins in our family will forever be "cousants."

First, we headed to Houston to see Tim's cousin, Jessica, get married.  The wedding was held outdoors and was absolutely beautiful!  

Rhett with Susan and Rhys with Bdad

Rhett sure did love being held by Susan!

Rhys loves weddings!

Rhys sitting with Bdad and Gram during the wedding

Sweet Camryn (Tim's cousin's daughter) doing a great job as a flower girl

The beautiful bride, Jessica, and her daddy, Mark

 The twins were exhausted by the time we got to the wedding.  We had done quite a bit of traveling the previous couple of days.  The wedding was also in the evening, and started around their bed time.  They were a little fussy, but we had lots of aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents to help hold, entertain and distract them.

At the reception, Rhys loved sitting with Wes.  She seemed so relaxed and comfortable with him.  This is where she stayed most of the night!

Rhys loves her Wes!

Doesn't she look comfy?

And still sitting with Wes!

We didn't get to stay very long at the reception, but we are so thankful that we were able to go and celebrate with Daniel and Jessica.  It was so good to see most of Tim's family.  We love our time with them!

After the wedding, we headed to Sugar's house for the rest of the weekend.  Aunt Sandra, Heather, Zach, and Zoe decided to come over and play with us!  Heather is my cousin, Sandra is her mom, and Zoe (3 years) and Zach (10 months) are her kids.

It was fun getting the cousants together!  Here they are all playing together.

Zach and Rhett sharing a music toy

Zoe playing with Rhys

Cousants share everything....even fingers!

"That's my toy...give it back!"

Rhys grabbed Zach's paci and wouldn't let go

Cousants forever!

"Give me back my paci, Rhys!"

"I mean it!"

"I will bite you if you don't let go of MY paci!"

"Mom...make her give it back!"

"Okay, we will smile for one more picture!"

Cute Zoe posing for Tim's camera

"Someone help me..."

Sugar, Nonna, Rhys and Zoe playing on the iPhone

It might be hard to tell from the pictures, but the cousants really did have a fun time together!  I am so thankful that we were able to spend some time together and I look forward to many more play dates.  It won't be long and these cousants will be getting into trouble together, I'm sure!

We sure do love our cousants!

Twas the Night Before....

Twas the night before twins, when all through the house

Everyone was stirring, especially my spouse!
The car seats were placed in the Avalon with care,
In hopes that the babies soon would be there.


I had originally planned on writing out an entire "Twas the Night Before Twins" but just can't seem to get it finished.  I was so excited to get started and Rhys crawled over and knocked over my water.  The carpet needed a towel and Rhys needed a new pair of pajamas.  Then Rhett needed some cuddling since he is getting another tooth.  Ouch!  After that, both babies needed a diaper change before bed.  And then they were hungry.  So, I put down the computer and postponed this blog post so that I could feed them.  Yes, it's true.  I do feed my children occasionally.  Even at the expense of my blog.  And now I am just tired.  HA!  Maybe next year I'll add another verse or two.


Here is a pic from our last night before twins!  (I can't believe I'm actually posting this picture with my ginormous belly!)

 And here is a picture of me cooking dinner for Tim on the night before our twins were born.

Just kidding!  Did you really think I cooked dinner?  This picture was staged.  (You know "barefoot and pregnant...")  I remember eating some chicken noodle soup and goldfish crackers for dinner that night.

And this was the last picture taken before the twins were born.  Wow....that belly was dangerously big!