Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to our dads! We love you Grandpa Bear, Grandpa John and Dad!


On Saturday, we went to a Father's Day picnic given by my LCMOM group. I was very happy that Steve was able to get off work early to join us. It was really nice to finally meet the husbands and finally see all of the babies that I have heard so much about. It was brutally hot outside, so thank goodness for the covered tables and the nice breeze. We munched on fried chicken and biscuits. Emily even tried some chicken and banana pudding. Zach had chosen to skip his nap, so by the time we arrived he was quite the fuss-bucket. He didn't want to try any foods (probably a good thing as I'm sure he would have thrown it up anyway), and if I put him down, he wanted to be picked up. And if I picked him up, he wanted to be put down. FUSS-BUCKET!!

Steve and I put the cubs in the park swings for the first time. Emily didn't seem too impressed. And Zach didn't want to even sit in the swing, but once we got him in there, and gave him the first push...SMILES all around. He LOVED it! He laughed the whole time. It's such a shame that it was so hot outside because we had to end his fun early. Then it was back to FUSS-BUCKET! Finally Steve took him for a ride, hoping for him to fall asleep (didn't happen) so that I could stay and visit just a little while longer. Adult conversation does wonders for Mommy's spirit.





Matt and Beth Ann came over Saturday night for "game night". We used to have game night often before the cubs arrived. Now that the cubs are here, game night is now considered a special occasion. We played a board game called Sequence. Of course, as always, Steve and I lost 2-1. It's a good thing that we are gracious losers (um, yeah, I'm not at all competitive...I HATE to lose). We have lots of losing experience, I'm starting to get used to it!

Steve's request for Father's Day was to watch the US Open. So that was our big exciting Sunday. GOLF! Steve is so excited to teach the cubs to golf. He's even started working on showing them the proper golf grip. GOOD GRIEF!

It's official

Emily Grace has taken her first official documented steps. Mom managed to get two separate "runs" on video, the second one lasting an impressive 15 steps. So now we give the challenge back to Zach. It's his turn now.

Today was Zach's nutrition appointment. How fitting that it fell on Friday the 13th. Here are his latest stats: Weight: 18 lbs 1.3 oz, and length: 28 3/4". He is in the 2.13 percentile for weight and the 15.63 percentile for height. So for those that have been keeping up, he has managed to gain some weight, but he has fallen some percentile points for both weight and length. ***SIGH*** So depressing considering that he went 20 puke-free days. But I guess any ground that we managed to gain then was lost in the last two weeks where he managed to spit-up 8 of the past 12 days. It's hard to narrow down what caused the spitting up to restart. He really seemed to like the Pediasure but he started spitting up after three days of it and has basically not stopped since. We're not sure if the Pediasure is the reason or not. It does have a higher calorie content than he is used to, and maybe his system just isn't ready to handle it yet. The Nutritionist gave us some new stuff to try. It's called Vital Jr. It costs on average $1800/month. You must be kidding me. I'm secretly hoping he hates the stuff. We are also going to try whole milk supplemented with Carnation Instant Breakfast for extra calories. A way cheaper alternative. Keep your fingers crossed!

Steps, teeth and cheese

I'm in trouble because I didn't write about Emily's first steps. Apparently she took three steps on Sunday. The reason I did not write about it was because I did not see it. No videotape, just Daddy's word. So, via second-hand information, our little Emily bear took her first steps. Still, just to egg on the competition, Zach took five. For once, Emily has a little catching up to do.

We did a tooth check tonight. Emily now has two bottom teeth and four top teeth. Little man has his two bottom teeth and three top teeth cutting through. He has been incredibly fussy today, so I imagine it's because he's hurting a bit. So with a friendly proactive dose of Tylenol, I'm hoping we all get some sleep tonight.

Last night was girl's night out with my LCMOM group (Mom of Multiples). We met for dinner at The Melting Pot. Yum! What can be better than good conversation, cheese fondue, wine and chocolate?! And it's always nice to come home and find the cubs sleeping soundly in their beds.

First steps??? Who took them???

Yesterday our little man took his official first steps. He took three steps - a short pause - and then two more steps for a grand total of FIVE steps....AND I managed to get it all on video! Man, I'm good! Especially considering that we were home alone. Emily and Daddy had left to go to Sonic when the big event occurred. We are very proud of little man. We had a feeling he would walk before his big sister. He seems to have no fear, so letting go of Mom or Dad's hand is no big deal. Emily walks like a champ as long as she has a hand to hold, and she's very fast, but she's just not ready to let go and try it on her own yet. She'll get there. You have to give the girl a break, she has a lot more weight to carry around than little man does.

It's been a really busy weekend around here. Because of the terrible winds we've been having, our fence finally gave in. We needed to get this repaired ASAP because our neighbors have two dogs (one is a pit-bull mix) and we didn't want any issues since we have our Eva. I had called on Thursday for some quotes and they were ridiculous, so we decided to fix it ourselves. So now Steve and I are tired, ant and mosquito bitten, and we're only half way done. The fence between our two houses is fixed, but we still need to replace some posts across the back. Stupid fence.

On Friday evening, we treated ourselves to Subway. I had my usual sub, totally loaded with the veggies (minus tomatoes thanks to the Salmonella outbreak), when Emily Grace decided she wanted some. That girl sure is grabby. Grabby Emily Grace! So she got to try a pickle and some black olives. We totally expected some funny faces, but she really seemed to like them. Big surprise! Is there anything that girl doesn't like??

Our little Picasso

The tides have changed. Last month I blogged about Zach's 20 day no-puke streak (shame on me!) and I was worried that saying anything at all would jinx our progress (but I was so proud of him and wanted to share that) and it HAS! I've jinxed it! When will I learn?? Of the last four days, Zach has "returned his food" three of those days. And today he did it three times, and we haven't even had dinner yet.

Today has been a crappy day overall. And I mean that literally. This morning (sometime between 4:30 and 7:00 AM) Zach decided to create "artwork" with his poo. It was everywhere...on his sheets, his jammies (PJs), his hands and even on his cute little poo-covered face. I was horrified, but I managed to calmly gather up little man, strip him (miraculously without getting any on me), and give him a bath. Then I returned to "his studio" and stripped all the bedding, brought out my trusty can of Lysol, and sprayed everything! I did manage to snap a few photos, of which I'll spare you, but I knew Steve wouldn't understand the extent of Zach's "artwork" without seeing it. So since he was unable to witness the start of my crappy day in person, it will forever be remembered in photos.

Emily is doing well. Bless her heart. Who knew she would become "the easy baby"?? (For now anyway, I've probably just jinxed that too.) When she was an infant, she would just start screaming when she was hungry. No warning. We used to joke that she could go from 0 to 60 in three seconds. Now I never really have anything to share because she generally does so well. Eating is not an issue with her, she pretty much likes everything. As long as I get it to her fast enough. Today she tried sliced cheese, and being my daughter, she loved it (of course)!

Both cubs clap their hands, which I think is just adorable. Zach is starting to stand up for himself. If Emily takes his toy, he now tries to take it back. And he did throw his first little mini-tantrum today when I took a toy away from him. It's so hard not to laugh at him. Our little Picasso is even cute when he's having a temper tantrum.

More pictures

Zach, picture taken 05/28/08
Emily, picture taken 06/03/08
Zach, picture taken 06/03/08

Orange nose and snaggletooth

I look at Emily's pictures and wonder when will the orange nose go away?? She makes Frosty's carrot nose look pale. Why is practically every Gerber's food (with the exception of fruits) orange? Chicken noodle, mixed veggies, turkey and vegetables, veggie beef....ALL ORANGE!! Does everything have to be made with carrots? YIKES! Poor baby girl. Until we make the transition to big people food, there will be plenty more orange nose pictures to come. Speaking of big people food, today she actually seemed to like the smashed banana. Previously we would get a funny face, now she gobbled it right up. She also had one of the Gerber Graduates -- beef ravioli...she seemed to like that too.

All Emily wants is her two front teeth. SERIOUSLY! I'm a little concerned that Emily is getting two teeth coming in on the top, but they aren't the ones in the middle. Where are her middle teeth? Is it normal for the ones on the side to come in first? We may have a snaggletooth on our hands. And to make matters worse, Zach has a tooth coming in on the top too, and it's not one of the middle ones either. I'm having very bad mental images of my cubs in overalls, picking at their teeth with straw, spitting and calling each other Bubba. I can hear the redneck jokes now, "you know you're a redneck when...."



Emily's orange nose and drool from her snaggleteeth coming in.











Zach's eating is unpredictable. It's like the weather. Several really good days, with a few bad thrown in. Right now, we're in the bad. A few spit-ups, and total pickiness on what he wants. The solids aren't a favorite right now. Maybe he's getting too much formula....who knows??? Tomorrow will be the opposite of today, you just never know. Steve and I have both commented that he feels heavier, but when I weigh him on my home scale there isn't much change. Stupid scale.

I do have to share that Steve made dinner for us last night. Move over Gordon Ramsey....shrimp and scallops with risotto. YUM! I could certainly get used to this!