Fun without flash

What is a good mother?

Really, I'm asking for your opinion. I've discovered I have no idea. I discovered this in the book, What to Expect the First Year, which keeps telling me things I didn't know. Like, did you know you are supposed to keep us a running commentary with baby including lots of repetition of key words? And did you know that you are not supposed to introduce added sugar until after age 2, or fruit sugar until age 1? And oh, flash is not good for baby eyes - but if you didn't know that, don't worry, it is unlikely to have caused any damage, just stop. So the book says.

I just picked it up again and learned you are not supposed to say "You are the best baby in the world" because this creates expectations which are impossible to live up to. Instead you could say "you were a good baby today" - but only if they were. (Obviously I am exempt from this rule, having the best babies in the world and all.)

Ah, my first response. A good mother is :One who has chips and salsa around for when her sister comes to visit. And, one who knows that you should never hold a baby upside down, even if the baby loves it.

Video from Birthday dinner

...but no audio, probably just as well.

Auntie Steffie & JuJu do dinner


Max and his Auntie


The Baby Whisperer


Finished!


What happens when Babies are Finished! but mean Mommy wants cute cupcake video

9-month birthday

What we can do:
- sit independently, balancing as needed
- get down from sitting position

- creep around using elbows and feet
- babble, sometimes back and forth with each other
- turn in the direction of a voice
- react to a new voice before seeing the person
- react to the sound of a bottle being mixed in the next room
- recognize the word cookie and try to sign it
- feed ourselves toast, cherrios, and cookies (and cupcakes)

- chirp and squeal happily when we see Grandma
- work to get a toy out of reach
- play together independently for up to an hour at a time
- look for a dropped object
- blow raspberries
- sleep through the night once a week; up once for a bottle most nights
- remember where the water dish is and go for it every chance I can (Vanh)
- scream louder than anyone else (Max)

Playdate with Addie

Here we are posing nicely with our favourite toys:
Max: I like my cockroach.
Addie: I like my dolly.
Vanh: I like my ball...oops.



Max: I like my cockroach.
Addie: Hey, can I see that cockroach?
Vanh: Let's see if I can get my ball.



Max: Look chickie, you don't touch the cockroach.
Addie: Okay.
Vanh: This ball-getting is harder than I thought.



Max: Hey Mom, I caught me a cockroach thief!
Addie: What's with this guy?
Vanh: Never mind his cockroach, what about my ball?



Max: I love my cockroach.
Addie: I love my dolly.
Vanh: I used to have a ball.



Max: Hey, where'd she go?
Vanh: Hopefully to get my ball.

Cute, but why?

I just don't get this whole baby fashion thing. I don't know about everyone else, but my babies HATE being dressed. Sleepers with zippers are the easiest and fastest to put on, which means they cry for the least amount of time. So why can't they just wear sleepers, at least until they start to walk? We were at CHEO a few days ago (more on that later) and there were month-old babies dressed in shirt, pants, socks, and sweater - because they were "out". So of course I came home and decided my babies should be dressed in real clothes too. One hour of screaming later they looked like this

and while I appreciate the cuteness, I can't see how it is worth it to torture them to satisfy...what exactly? My own sense of vanity? Other people's expectations? I really think that regularly dressing a baby in people clothes is a purely selfish act on the part of the parents. Not only is the process frustrating for them, but they don't seem very comfortable wriggling around with their shirts riding up, buttons digging in, etc.

Is this just my kids? Do everyone else's babies coo and gurgle when Mommy pulls out the dear little coordinated outfits? I was happy to recieve this as a gift

it looks like real clothes but is all one piece with a hidden zipper up the back. But most of their clothes is "separates".

So, if you see us walking down the street in our sleepers, please try not to judge me - and I will try not to judge you for putting your own superficial needs over those of your baby - unless of course it is a special occasion. I have to admit, bunny ears and such are their own form of baby torture!

Back to CHEO - no worries, just a check-up at the international adoption clinic. The boys are age appropriate developmentally, in the 25th to 50th%ile for height and weight, and in the 90th%ile for head circumference. They are also quite strong - it took 3 adults to hold Max down for the blood test.

Oh, and the doctor said they look identical to him... we will have to wait and see!

Updates from Facebook

Click here for how it began

March 2
Samantha is needing more than 2 hours sleep in a row.

March 6
Samantha is excited she got 4 1/2 hours of sleep - in a row!

Samantha is more excited Max took the new nipple - fed both babies at once for the first time!

March 7
Samantha is wondering what parents of one baby do with all their spare time?

Samantha is nominating whoever invented the exersaucer for sainthood

March 8
Samantha is intrigued by her babies' apparent addiction to the weather channel

March 12
Samantha is watching Vanh learn how to crawl - so cool!!!

March 14
Samantha is trying to train the dog to rock the cradle

March 16
Samantha is deciding she is the boss around here and it is #%&!! NAPTIME

Samantha is deciding it is not naptime after all... It is JOLLY JUMPER TIME so there I am still the boss, and the 90 minutes of screaming had nothing to do with it

March 19
Samantha is wondering, does the 3-second-rule still count if the food lands on the dog?

March 20
Samantha is wow, never knew cats could projectile vomit like that

March 23
Samantha is counting... 94 stuffed animals so far (5 are Shadow's)

Samantha is understanding why new Moms gain weight... eating junk is the most fun we have time for

Samantha is happy her babies went to bed at 6:15 but thinking she is going to pay for this later... Like at midnight when they decide it's time to get up

March 24
Samantha is eat, sleep, poop... and now for the babies

Samantha is not letting the dog in until he figures out how to clean his own paws

Samantha is done vacuuming the bed (somebody let the dog in)

Samantha is finished giving the dog yet another bath and thinking it would be less work to just let him do his business in the house. Seriously.

March 25
Samantha is what is with her babies' seemingly magnetic attraction to the space heater? Roasted baby flesh doesn't smell good.

March 26
Samantha is the good news is the boys are growing well... the bad news is they seem to require a bottle every 2 hours to do so, at least between 7pm and 6am

March 27
Samantha is thinking sleepers with snaps are the devil's work.

March 30
Samantha is impressed Vanh can pull out and dump his toy bins... tomorrow he will learn to put them back right?

April 3
Samantha is wondering how to get tomato sauce and blueberries out of baby clothes

April 5
Samantha is wow first time sleeping through the night... or at least first time babies were unable to wake either of us with their screams. Here's to many more!

April 8
Samantha is wondering why, when nearly every other inch of the house contains some sort of baby food particle or crumb, the ants remain obsessed with the (empty, washed) laundry hamper

Samantha is also wondering if whoever rang the doorbell during her bath, thus sending Shadow into a hysterical frenzy, would like to come over and deal with the crankiness which results when 2 babies are awoken by a barking dog an hour before nap time is over?

April 10
Samantha is back from taking the dog for a swim in the canal (no, not on purpose)

April 11
8 j,mmlyccv (from Vanh)

April 12
b jm jh m, (from Max)

April 14
Samantha is HOW do the sleepers get filthy after 20 seconds of slithering when I wash the floor eight times a day? and where can I buy black sleepers?

Monsters for Easter and Babies in bins

Happy Easter!

April in Ottawa

At least the hail stopped...

Do not pass go...

First time in the playpen

Giving twins a bottle

Every parent of twins has this photo...


More toast photos - taken by Daddy








Did you guess it was Daddy?