What a week. What a weekend. I had fully intended to get back on the blogging wagon with my short burst of a few posts a week or so ago. Then life happened. As in, new state mandated standardized testing for kindergarten in which I spent no less than 8 completely dedicated hours assessing my students this past week. And I'm still not done. Then a college friend of mine succumbed to the aggressive cancer she was first told about 6 short months ago. She was 28 when she died- and one of the few truly wonderful women without a fault that I can identify in this world. It's been a tough week.
We drove Friday night after work to our home state to attend the funeral on Saturday. Luckily, my MIL lives 30 minutes from where it was, so we had a babysitter for the day. Unluckily for us, but that looonggggg car ride meant that our still WON'T SLEEP IN THE CAR twosome fell asleep Friday night at 11:30 pm. Slap-happy overtired toddlers can be entertaining, but stressful too. (My favorite part was telling Anna to "hang on" in a gas station bathroom and after grabbing the coat hook and dangling her feet, said "I hanging on!" Also unluckily for us, but Anna forgot she was potty trained and peed in her car seat, with several hours to go to our destination. Luckily for us, my MIL had a washer we could use when we arrived. What's even more awesome than driving with two overtired toddlers for 6 hours and then doing laundry at midnight? That it was all so we could attend the funeral of my 28 year old friend the next day.
We returned home on Saturday night because I was determined that we would a.) go to a pumpkin patch this year and the wet weather had prevented it so far plus my husband will be on a work trip next weekend so it was Sunday or never as a family this year. b.) have some good aspect of the weekend so it wouldn't completely blow and c.) rake our leaves because our leaf pickup for our area starts Monday and again, the wet weather had prevented it so far so it was now or never.
Anna had yet another accident in her car seat with hours to go in our drive on the way back and so I waved my white flag, bought diapers at a gas station and told Sam and Anna that we now wear diapers for long car rides. At least that meant we weren't stopping 5+ times for icky gas station bathroom breaks. Sam and Anna went to sleep at 10:30 pm (so at least a little earlier than the night before) after again, NOT SLEEPING IN THE CAR ONE SECOND and the side effect meant they slept in the next morning until 8:30 am. We salvaged our weekend with a perfectly fun time at the pumpkin patch Sunday morning, decent naps to catch up on their sleep deficit, ample time to get the millions of leaves in our yard to the curb, 8 loads of laundry,washing and changing sheets on three beds (and I thought changing the bedding on cribs was a pain), and pumpkin carving since Daddy's leaving town in a few days until Halloween morning.
Whew!
I have high hopes for a less stressful, less of a downer week.
Showing posts with label road trip. Show all posts
Showing posts with label road trip. Show all posts
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Monday, November 28, 2011
I May Be Relaxing A Little On My Media Rule...
Sam and Anna watched zero tv before they were 1 year old. We rarely had the tv on while they were awake. Once they were 1, I bought some Baby Signing Time DVDs and they would occasionally watch it for 30 min, every few days, maybe 3 times total a week.
Lately when Daddy lets Mama sleep in on a weekend morning, and one of our littles wakes up early, he sometimes turns on a little Saturday morning cartoons to keep the early bird quiet. I don't really say much about it most of the time, because- well, we make compromises in this thing called parenting and I do still get to sleep in. :)
Then I got an ipad for my birthday this fall... and I discovered some pretty awesome apps for kids, right up Sam and Anna's alley. Sam's favorite is I Hear Ewe and Anna's is Magic Piano. Sometimes (not every day) I will let Sam and Anna do something supervised on my ipad while Daddy is finishing up making dinner (our often fussiest time of day). They love it. I am amazed at how quickly they both learned how to finger swipe and touch the screen, not to mention turn it on. For that reason, most of the time the ipad, like our laptop, is out of sight, out of mind while Sam and Anna are awake.
And then they were not feeling well at daycare along with the other two day care kids, and they watched an Elmo movie. Then promptly fell in LOVE with Elmo. I guess most kids discover the wonderfulness of Elmo sometime in their second year, right? Elmo has been on their diapers since they were newborns, so they knew what he looked like, but didn't love him until now. I do have to say it is super cute to watch them sing and dance along to Elmo's song.
It's a slippery slope, because while we were on our Thanksgiving road trip of 10 hours total drive time, Sam and Anna may or may not have watched Elmo's World on the ipad 5 or so times. I'm not admitting how many times I let it play. What I will admit, is that it was the least painful road trip we've ever been on with our non-car nappers. Elmo over tears and tantrums made it completely worth it!
Lately when Daddy lets Mama sleep in on a weekend morning, and one of our littles wakes up early, he sometimes turns on a little Saturday morning cartoons to keep the early bird quiet. I don't really say much about it most of the time, because- well, we make compromises in this thing called parenting and I do still get to sleep in. :)
Then I got an ipad for my birthday this fall... and I discovered some pretty awesome apps for kids, right up Sam and Anna's alley. Sam's favorite is I Hear Ewe and Anna's is Magic Piano. Sometimes (not every day) I will let Sam and Anna do something supervised on my ipad while Daddy is finishing up making dinner (our often fussiest time of day). They love it. I am amazed at how quickly they both learned how to finger swipe and touch the screen, not to mention turn it on. For that reason, most of the time the ipad, like our laptop, is out of sight, out of mind while Sam and Anna are awake.
And then they were not feeling well at daycare along with the other two day care kids, and they watched an Elmo movie. Then promptly fell in LOVE with Elmo. I guess most kids discover the wonderfulness of Elmo sometime in their second year, right? Elmo has been on their diapers since they were newborns, so they knew what he looked like, but didn't love him until now. I do have to say it is super cute to watch them sing and dance along to Elmo's song.
It's a slippery slope, because while we were on our Thanksgiving road trip of 10 hours total drive time, Sam and Anna may or may not have watched Elmo's World on the ipad 5 or so times. I'm not admitting how many times I let it play. What I will admit, is that it was the least painful road trip we've ever been on with our non-car nappers. Elmo over tears and tantrums made it completely worth it!
Friday, August 5, 2011
I'm Baaaack
My absence from posting should have been a good clue that I decided to push through whatever was holding me back and go on my little mommy-cation by myself. I left Monday morning... and returned Wednesday (the earliest I was thinking I'd return). It was possible for me to stay until Friday, but after one full day of relaxation, rest and rejuvenation- the advantage of having more time to continue relaxing was outweighed by the amount I missed my family. So I came home. It was amazing how easy a 7 hour drive was without two non-napping toddlers in the back!
I got tan. I read 1 and a 1/2 books (The Help and The Happiest Toddler on the Block). I swam. I slept in. I watched a movie without multitasking by doing something else at the same time. I unplugged and did not go on a computer for 3 days in a row. It was very nice.
I also made Anna these hair clips and two hair clip organizer boards to hold all of the clips she has, now that she has enough hair to be able to wear them! (One board is larger for later, once she has more hairclips and needs more room.) I used fabric that was incorporated into the quilt my friend made before Sam and Anna were born, so it goes with the colors we have in the nursery, and will coordinate with the stuff in her room once we separate them into their own rooms. We are attempting to get rid of her pacifier once and for all this weekend, and I'm planning on giving her the hair clip board as a "big girl" gift afterwards.
I also got bit by a few flies on my feet, and for me this is bad news, because I am severely allergic to fly bites. My feet swelled up and were insanely itchy. In the past I've had fly bites that have swollen my eye shut and swelled joints so badly that I couldn't bend my arm or knee. Besides missing my children and husband, that was the other biggest downer to my mommy-cation.
My husband did great without me. Sam and Anna did just fine too. I'm glad I went, and glad I came home when I did. It was just enough time for me. I think I might just do it again next August!
I got tan. I read 1 and a 1/2 books (The Help and The Happiest Toddler on the Block). I swam. I slept in. I watched a movie without multitasking by doing something else at the same time. I unplugged and did not go on a computer for 3 days in a row. It was very nice.
I also made Anna these hair clips and two hair clip organizer boards to hold all of the clips she has, now that she has enough hair to be able to wear them! (One board is larger for later, once she has more hairclips and needs more room.) I used fabric that was incorporated into the quilt my friend made before Sam and Anna were born, so it goes with the colors we have in the nursery, and will coordinate with the stuff in her room once we separate them into their own rooms. We are attempting to get rid of her pacifier once and for all this weekend, and I'm planning on giving her the hair clip board as a "big girl" gift afterwards.
(The hair clips I made)
(The empty board)
(All the hair clips I have for Anna's hair on the board)
My husband did great without me. Sam and Anna did just fine too. I'm glad I went, and glad I came home when I did. It was just enough time for me. I think I might just do it again next August!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Sam and Anna's First Vacation
Whew! What a whirlwind weekend! Sam and Anna's first vacation was a success. They had a great time while at my MIL's cabin, and slept fairly well, which combined made the challenging drive more tolerable.
Sam and Anna overall did great. Although they were awake for each of the 4 3+ hour drives we made (we broke it up knowing it was highly unlikely they'd nap in the car), it could have been much worse. When left our home to embark on our trip, we thought we were in for trouble when 1 minute into the drive, Anna starting saying "All done! All done!" On the return journey, we didn't even make it out of the driveway before the "All done! All done!" began. But we survived. The worst leg was understandably the last 3 1/2 hours before we got home. I was tired, longing for my own bed and needing a break from entertaining two confined toddlers. Sam and Anna were tired, probably longing for their own cribs, and needing a break from sitting immobile in the same spot with the same toys. My patience was depleted and theirs was too. But we DID get home with minimal tears all around!
Sleep went pretty well. The only problem was on the second night when Sam woke at midnight and was up for 2 hours because he wasn't used to me sleeping in the same room with him. He could not settle back down. They managed to sleep in every morning (as late at 8 am) without a later bedtime even though my MIL was up at 6 am, because we slept in a separate small building just big enough for us and two portable cribs. They napped almost as good as they do at home- which I'm attributing to all the activity and fresh air they got when they were awake (plus the separate small building). On Saturday, they needed two naps from all the excitement of having all the extended relatives there. My two 15 month olds took better naps than the 3 and 4 month old that were there too. Since they were sleeping apart from the main cabin, the smartest thing we did was bring along our monitor. That way, I could relax or have fun on the dock or the beach and still hear if they were fast asleep or not.
By far, Sam's favorite part of our trip were all the boats. Every time we'd take him for a boat ride, he'd do the toddler happy dance (bouncing up and down by bending his knees saying "Oh, oh, oh!") Then he'd make the sign for boat and say "Bo! Bo! Bo!" If we passed a boat on the lake, he'd start saying and signing it all over again. While driving home he kept looking out the window asking for the boats again. Anna liked the boat rides too, especially watching the water or loons on the lake.
Anna was our water baby (in small doses). While she hated the feeling of sand on her feet, she had a great time swimming out with me in deeper water. She especially liked when I twirled her around in a circle. Not surprisingly, she had a major temper tantrum when we tried to take her out of the lake. If we walked with her on the dock, she tried to go in the water every time. Sam was okay with the water if it wasn't too deep. If he could sit in a couple inches of water, he was just fine, even in the sand. Once we put two chairs in the water for them to sit on, everyone was happy as a clam.
Sam and Anna overall did great. Although they were awake for each of the 4 3+ hour drives we made (we broke it up knowing it was highly unlikely they'd nap in the car), it could have been much worse. When left our home to embark on our trip, we thought we were in for trouble when 1 minute into the drive, Anna starting saying "All done! All done!" On the return journey, we didn't even make it out of the driveway before the "All done! All done!" began. But we survived. The worst leg was understandably the last 3 1/2 hours before we got home. I was tired, longing for my own bed and needing a break from entertaining two confined toddlers. Sam and Anna were tired, probably longing for their own cribs, and needing a break from sitting immobile in the same spot with the same toys. My patience was depleted and theirs was too. But we DID get home with minimal tears all around!
Sleep went pretty well. The only problem was on the second night when Sam woke at midnight and was up for 2 hours because he wasn't used to me sleeping in the same room with him. He could not settle back down. They managed to sleep in every morning (as late at 8 am) without a later bedtime even though my MIL was up at 6 am, because we slept in a separate small building just big enough for us and two portable cribs. They napped almost as good as they do at home- which I'm attributing to all the activity and fresh air they got when they were awake (plus the separate small building). On Saturday, they needed two naps from all the excitement of having all the extended relatives there. My two 15 month olds took better naps than the 3 and 4 month old that were there too. Since they were sleeping apart from the main cabin, the smartest thing we did was bring along our monitor. That way, I could relax or have fun on the dock or the beach and still hear if they were fast asleep or not.
By far, Sam's favorite part of our trip were all the boats. Every time we'd take him for a boat ride, he'd do the toddler happy dance (bouncing up and down by bending his knees saying "Oh, oh, oh!") Then he'd make the sign for boat and say "Bo! Bo! Bo!" If we passed a boat on the lake, he'd start saying and signing it all over again. While driving home he kept looking out the window asking for the boats again. Anna liked the boat rides too, especially watching the water or loons on the lake.
Enjoying the pontoon ride
"Bo! Bo!"
Helping drive the "bo"
Anna was our water baby (in small doses). While she hated the feeling of sand on her feet, she had a great time swimming out with me in deeper water. She especially liked when I twirled her around in a circle. Not surprisingly, she had a major temper tantrum when we tried to take her out of the lake. If we walked with her on the dock, she tried to go in the water every time. Sam was okay with the water if it wasn't too deep. If he could sit in a couple inches of water, he was just fine, even in the sand. Once we put two chairs in the water for them to sit on, everyone was happy as a clam.
Despite their worried faces, they did have fun!
Anna's favorite part
Water chairs
Posing in front of the giant walleye on the return trip home!
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Quaking in my Flip-flops
The time has arrived for us to make another road trip with Sam and Anna. The last two times we're visited family, we've had disastrous car rides. Having a little one awake extremely past bedtime (11:30 pm!) is not something I ever want to go through again. This time, the length of the trip is double our usual expedition- a 7 hour distance away, and a 5 night stay versus our usual 2 night standard.
I'm afraid. Very, very afraid.
Sam and Anna are not good car riders. Anna has not fallen asleep in the car in a very, very long time. Sam will only fall asleep if he is way past his typical nap time. This is unfortunate, because we live a state away from all of our relatives and drive over 3 hours several times a year. They also are not stellar at self entertaining in a confined position, even if I keep giving them new toys to play with. I often end up sitting between the car seats reading books, singing songs and interacting with them if our ride lasts over an hour. For the record, our dog is not a great car rider, either. Our dog is also coming with us on our 7 hour drive. Can you just imagine the fun we will be having all smooshed into our Pilot with all the stuff 2 toddlers require for that many hours? Yeah, I don't really want to think about it either.
Tomorrow we will embark on our most adventurous trip yet- heading to my mother-in-law's cabin for the 4th of July weekend. It will be Sam and Anna's first trip there. I am excited to see them play on the sandy beach. I have been itching to finally see them in their summer swimming suits and get them in the water. I know they will have fun during the day.
But I am not looking forward to upholding their sleeping needs and of course, the ride there and back.
Keeping my fingers cross that we make it there and back with minimal tears... myself included!
I'm afraid. Very, very afraid.
Sam and Anna are not good car riders. Anna has not fallen asleep in the car in a very, very long time. Sam will only fall asleep if he is way past his typical nap time. This is unfortunate, because we live a state away from all of our relatives and drive over 3 hours several times a year. They also are not stellar at self entertaining in a confined position, even if I keep giving them new toys to play with. I often end up sitting between the car seats reading books, singing songs and interacting with them if our ride lasts over an hour. For the record, our dog is not a great car rider, either. Our dog is also coming with us on our 7 hour drive. Can you just imagine the fun we will be having all smooshed into our Pilot with all the stuff 2 toddlers require for that many hours? Yeah, I don't really want to think about it either.
Tomorrow we will embark on our most adventurous trip yet- heading to my mother-in-law's cabin for the 4th of July weekend. It will be Sam and Anna's first trip there. I am excited to see them play on the sandy beach. I have been itching to finally see them in their summer swimming suits and get them in the water. I know they will have fun during the day.
But I am not looking forward to upholding their sleeping needs and of course, the ride there and back.
Keeping my fingers cross that we make it there and back with minimal tears... myself included!
Monday, May 23, 2011
Long Time No See
Wow- I don't think I've gone a whole week between posts before. It's been a busy week with lots going on! First off, Sam has another ear infection. Secondly, both Sam and Anna are walking more and more, but still aren't very steady on their feet, so they need a shadow where ever they go to prevent as many mishaps as possible. Then add in the end of the school year complete with the kindergarten concert and end-of-the-year testing as well as a whirlwind weekend after a 4 hour road trip, and who would even have time to turn on the computer? I've been a little exhausted and busy, busy busy!
This past weekend, we went back to our home state and stayed at my parents' house. We went out to dinner with my MIL on Saturday, and went to Sam and Anna's great grandma's 90th birthday party Sunday afternoon (my FIL's side). After a stop back at my parents for a quickie nap, we headed out for my cousin's wedding. That's three sets of relatives and grandparents in 24 hours! Sam and Anna did great, especially considering it was a lot of unfamiliar faces in such a short time.
While we were at the park for the 90th birthday picnic, there were tornado warnings. Really not fun when you have 2 1-year-olds under your care. The tornado warnings continued after we got back while Sam and Anna napped, but thankfully, they were napping in the basement anyway, so that made things more convenient. We drove across the Twin Cities to get to the wedding through tornado watches, but thankfully, although the rain put a damper on our weekend plans, tornadoes did not.
Then, although I swore after last time we'd never do it again, we attempted to drive the 4 hours home at bedtime, hoping (praying fervently, actually) that Sam and Anna would sleep most of the car ride home. If I didn't learn last time, I better have learned my lesson now. Once again, Anna hardly slept at all. I really thought she would, because last time she ended up having a slightly dirty diaper (that we could not smell), and we attributed the lack of sleep to that. So we got home at 11:30 pm with an extremely overtired Anna and this time I KNOW I will not try that again.
My saving grace was that I took this Monday off of work anyway. I slept in and had a massage appointment for noon (the last of my push/cut present gift certificate). A great start to another hectic and crazy busy week, since my husband is out of town for work all week and I'm solo-parenting it again.
Just a few photos from our weekend:
With Grandma Dianne (my mom)
With Aunt Mary
With Sam and Anna's Great Grandma (FIL's side)
At the wedding reception
Pictures with Dad, since I seem to not take that many
This was one of the only ways we could keep Sam awake after a long day!
They adored this glass wall at the reception
(The mark on Anna's nose is a scab. We have no idea how she got it- she just woke up one morning with it like that.I'm thinking she just scratched her nose with her own finger.)
Sunday, April 3, 2011
We May Never Go Out of Town Again
On Friday we went on a 4 hour drive to visit my family (and for a job interview for my husband, but that's for another post if we seriously consider the position after it is offered) and Sam and Anna started out doing well. They fared relatively well in the car on the way there, especially since we didn't have time to stop except for emergency diaper changes.
Then during my husband's 3 hour job interview, they had lunch with momma ( lunch with twin 1 year olds all by myself- uff da!), we went to an indoor play park ( it was crazy full and busy with kids and I was again, all by myself) which gave them a bit to crawl and play and get out of car seats, and then I drove around while they took a second crap-nap in the car until the interview was over.
Although they only took short 10-30 minute naps, they did take two naps, so I was hopeful that the night would go well at my parents house sleeping in pack n plays. After all, we did the very same thing around the holidays, and it went okay.
That night ranked in the top 10 of worst-night-evers. Anna would not sleep for any sort of stretch without crying out. Every time she cried out, Sam would pop up in his pack and play and get started too. They were right next to our bed, so that didn't help matters. My husband finally gave up and spent the night sleeping on the floor to help Anna sleep. After that she did better because she could constantly see him.
We headed back Saturday night at their bedtime, which we have done in the past twice. It went decently the other times, so we attempted it again. Unfortunately, Anna did not sleep for a minute of the entire drive. That means she was awake an additional 4 hours past her bedtime... until we got home at 11 pm. Nothing I could do could make her settle down enough to actually sleep in the car. She whined or cried out almost the entire time. It was awful. Thankfully, Sam slept through it all though.
Probably needless to say, her sleep after that in her crib at home was better but not by much because she was one very overtired little girl. She cried out several times until morning. Now tonight she's had a really hard time settling down again for bedtime. She cried for almost an hour before finally quieting down- something that really never happens around here. It seems like our little trip has ruined her nighttime sleep for the time being. Since I got back to work tomorrow after having the week off for spring break, I am hoping this is a very temporary thing!
Then during my husband's 3 hour job interview, they had lunch with momma ( lunch with twin 1 year olds all by myself- uff da!), we went to an indoor play park ( it was crazy full and busy with kids and I was again, all by myself) which gave them a bit to crawl and play and get out of car seats, and then I drove around while they took a second crap-nap in the car until the interview was over.
Although they only took short 10-30 minute naps, they did take two naps, so I was hopeful that the night would go well at my parents house sleeping in pack n plays. After all, we did the very same thing around the holidays, and it went okay.
That night ranked in the top 10 of worst-night-evers. Anna would not sleep for any sort of stretch without crying out. Every time she cried out, Sam would pop up in his pack and play and get started too. They were right next to our bed, so that didn't help matters. My husband finally gave up and spent the night sleeping on the floor to help Anna sleep. After that she did better because she could constantly see him.
We headed back Saturday night at their bedtime, which we have done in the past twice. It went decently the other times, so we attempted it again. Unfortunately, Anna did not sleep for a minute of the entire drive. That means she was awake an additional 4 hours past her bedtime... until we got home at 11 pm. Nothing I could do could make her settle down enough to actually sleep in the car. She whined or cried out almost the entire time. It was awful. Thankfully, Sam slept through it all though.
Probably needless to say, her sleep after that in her crib at home was better but not by much because she was one very overtired little girl. She cried out several times until morning. Now tonight she's had a really hard time settling down again for bedtime. She cried for almost an hour before finally quieting down- something that really never happens around here. It seems like our little trip has ruined her nighttime sleep for the time being. Since I got back to work tomorrow after having the week off for spring break, I am hoping this is a very temporary thing!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Christmas Recap
Ah Christmas. The babes' first Christmas has come and gone, and we survived our long road trip crossing state lines (but barely on the return journey). One more family get together this weekend (At our home- thank goodness I have all week off of school to clean. My home hasn't been cleaned adequately since October when the last relative came for a visit.) and Christmas 2010 will be in the books.
Our dog Bella had her best Christmas ever: at the last minute our friend (who has a littermate of Bella's) invited Bella to stay at her place for the duration of our trip to Minnesota, instead of the mean ol' nasty kennel (where a stressed out Bella ate her own leash last time). Our friend was staying at home and apparently liked the thought of two puppy-like labs staying in one apartment for a few days. This also meant that Bella got to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas morning at our home since we didn't have to drop her off at the kennel during their office hours. It wouldn't have felt quite right without her there.
We went to our church's 4:30 pm Christmas Eve candlelight service this year; because of our babies' bedtime the later service we used to attend just wasn't a possibility. We weren't prepared for the much larger crowd and actually ended up sitting in folding chairs in the sanctuary by the front door. We were so far back that I couldn't read the words on the tv screen set up just so the overflow crowd could follow along. Wowza- I will have to remember that next year we need to be at least a half hour early, if not more. It warmed my heart to remember singing my favorite Christmas songs at the candlelight service last year to my uterus, and this time being able to sing them while snuggling my babies close. Anna punctuated a few songs with her noisy "Mwah!" kisses. And then it didn't matter one bit that we were sitting under the exit sign by the drafty door.
Sam wet through his special Christmas pjs overnight (accidents at night still seem to be more regular than I'd like, even though we use overnights diapers), so we postponed stocking unveiling and gift opening until I could wash and dry the sleeper. (Hey, it was only for an hour and a half and Sam and Anna didn't know the difference. Plus, the pictures were a lot cuter with the matching Santa pjs.) In true little kid fashion, the wrapping paper was a bigger hit than the gifts. In our family, Santa only fills your stocking with smaller gifts. Santa brought Sam and Anna socks (that he got from babysteals, naturally), slippers, ornaments, books, and their first toothbrushes. (because when else can you put socks and toothbrushes in a stocking without an adverse reaction?) Anna thought that Sam's wrapping paper rustling was the most hilarious thing ever that she fell over guffawing at him. I adore that little girl's laugh. Sam and Anna got one gift from us- My Pal Violet and My Pal Scout. We didn't feel the need to get more than one thing to unwrap as our family of four because they don't have a clue anyway, and we knew they'd get more than enough from our other gift exchanges. Scout and Violet are the first toys that belong to just them- everything else so far is pretty much community property (because how can you tell a 9 month old that something belongs to their sibling?) I preprogrammed their names into the toys before they were wrapped, so right away the stuffed dogs were ready to say, "I love you Sam" and I love you Anna."
We hit the road that afternoon and 4 hours later arrived at Christmas gathering #1. It went well, even though Anna decided to skip her second nap (This has never ever happened before. A car napper she is NOT.) and the babes were up 2 hours past their bedtime. I kept looking nervously at the clock, but they were troopers and did not get fussy until we finally put them in their pajamas. We just couldn't put them to bed any earlier because we were staying at my parents house and there was no way they would have been able to sleep through the ruckus. So yes, Anna was awake for around 8 hours in a stretch. I credit the fact that I've always been really aware of their sleep needs that one day that was wayyyy off of their sleep routine didn't cause them to meltdown. They did not get enough sleep on Christmas Day, but were still able to function well because they aren't perpetually getting too little sleep. Since my father cooks the turkey in the fireplace, the heat didn't really kick in all night, and we woke up to a chilly room at 59 degrees (since the door was closed). I was really worried about Sam and Anna, but apparently they fared well in their onesie+fleece sleeper+fleece sleepsack.
. 
We then headed to Christmas #2 the next morning on the 26th. This also went well, although Anna once again had a second nap strike. We planned on leaving at their usual 7 pm bedtime that night and driving the 4 hours home while they slept. This worked okay for us at Thanksgiving and so we thought we'd try it again. As it usually goes, we ended up leaving much later than we had planned and finally hit the road at 8:30 pm. Anna did not do as well during this nighttime drive; probably because she was so overtired from skipping a second nap two days in a row and staying up late both days as well. They both started out sleeping, but Anna ended up awake from about 11 pm until 12:45 am. I must have replaced her pacifier 50 times trying to get her to fall back asleep to no avail. I think we will really have to evaluate how it went before we try the nighttime driving plan again...
We did get home in one piece and are slowly trying to get back to our typical routine (minus daycare for the next week). The poor kids have so many new toys they can't even play with all of them in one day. If the toys hadn't taken over our home before this, they certainly have now. I'm learning that as they get bigger, their toys get bigger too...
Our dog Bella had her best Christmas ever: at the last minute our friend (who has a littermate of Bella's) invited Bella to stay at her place for the duration of our trip to Minnesota, instead of the mean ol' nasty kennel (where a stressed out Bella ate her own leash last time). Our friend was staying at home and apparently liked the thought of two puppy-like labs staying in one apartment for a few days. This also meant that Bella got to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas morning at our home since we didn't have to drop her off at the kennel during their office hours. It wouldn't have felt quite right without her there.
We went to our church's 4:30 pm Christmas Eve candlelight service this year; because of our babies' bedtime the later service we used to attend just wasn't a possibility. We weren't prepared for the much larger crowd and actually ended up sitting in folding chairs in the sanctuary by the front door. We were so far back that I couldn't read the words on the tv screen set up just so the overflow crowd could follow along. Wowza- I will have to remember that next year we need to be at least a half hour early, if not more. It warmed my heart to remember singing my favorite Christmas songs at the candlelight service last year to my uterus, and this time being able to sing them while snuggling my babies close. Anna punctuated a few songs with her noisy "Mwah!" kisses. And then it didn't matter one bit that we were sitting under the exit sign by the drafty door.
Sam wet through his special Christmas pjs overnight (accidents at night still seem to be more regular than I'd like, even though we use overnights diapers), so we postponed stocking unveiling and gift opening until I could wash and dry the sleeper. (Hey, it was only for an hour and a half and Sam and Anna didn't know the difference. Plus, the pictures were a lot cuter with the matching Santa pjs.) In true little kid fashion, the wrapping paper was a bigger hit than the gifts. In our family, Santa only fills your stocking with smaller gifts. Santa brought Sam and Anna socks (that he got from babysteals, naturally), slippers, ornaments, books, and their first toothbrushes. (because when else can you put socks and toothbrushes in a stocking without an adverse reaction?) Anna thought that Sam's wrapping paper rustling was the most hilarious thing ever that she fell over guffawing at him. I adore that little girl's laugh. Sam and Anna got one gift from us- My Pal Violet and My Pal Scout. We didn't feel the need to get more than one thing to unwrap as our family of four because they don't have a clue anyway, and we knew they'd get more than enough from our other gift exchanges. Scout and Violet are the first toys that belong to just them- everything else so far is pretty much community property (because how can you tell a 9 month old that something belongs to their sibling?) I preprogrammed their names into the toys before they were wrapped, so right away the stuffed dogs were ready to say, "I love you Sam" and I love you Anna."
We hit the road that afternoon and 4 hours later arrived at Christmas gathering #1. It went well, even though Anna decided to skip her second nap (This has never ever happened before. A car napper she is NOT.) and the babes were up 2 hours past their bedtime. I kept looking nervously at the clock, but they were troopers and did not get fussy until we finally put them in their pajamas. We just couldn't put them to bed any earlier because we were staying at my parents house and there was no way they would have been able to sleep through the ruckus. So yes, Anna was awake for around 8 hours in a stretch. I credit the fact that I've always been really aware of their sleep needs that one day that was wayyyy off of their sleep routine didn't cause them to meltdown. They did not get enough sleep on Christmas Day, but were still able to function well because they aren't perpetually getting too little sleep. Since my father cooks the turkey in the fireplace, the heat didn't really kick in all night, and we woke up to a chilly room at 59 degrees (since the door was closed). I was really worried about Sam and Anna, but apparently they fared well in their onesie+fleece sleeper+fleece sleepsack.
. We then headed to Christmas #2 the next morning on the 26th. This also went well, although Anna once again had a second nap strike. We planned on leaving at their usual 7 pm bedtime that night and driving the 4 hours home while they slept. This worked okay for us at Thanksgiving and so we thought we'd try it again. As it usually goes, we ended up leaving much later than we had planned and finally hit the road at 8:30 pm. Anna did not do as well during this nighttime drive; probably because she was so overtired from skipping a second nap two days in a row and staying up late both days as well. They both started out sleeping, but Anna ended up awake from about 11 pm until 12:45 am. I must have replaced her pacifier 50 times trying to get her to fall back asleep to no avail. I think we will really have to evaluate how it went before we try the nighttime driving plan again...
We did get home in one piece and are slowly trying to get back to our typical routine (minus daycare for the next week). The poor kids have so many new toys they can't even play with all of them in one day. If the toys hadn't taken over our home before this, they certainly have now. I'm learning that as they get bigger, their toys get bigger too...
(The 6 foot tunnel was a big hit)Sunday, September 12, 2010
Whirlwind Weekend
This weekend we took Sam and Anna on their first road trip across state lines- we headed to our home state, Minnesota. It was their second long car ride of their lives, and the longest yet.
Anna continues to be unable to really sleep while driving, while Sam can, but not well. On Saturday Anna had two 30 minute naps, and that was it. The only way I could get her to fall asleep (after being awake for over 3 hours) was to tuck a blanket around her, pinning her arms down to simulate being swaddled, hold in her pacifier, and continuously brushing her eyelids closed. She woke up from her last crap-nap at 2 pm and we were unsuccessful in getting her to take another one. She ended up going to bed for the night at around 6:30 pm- which means she had been awake for just under 5 hours.
Getting them to drink in new environments was a bit of a joke too- geez, you'd think they'd be used to distractions because their sibling is always drinking at the same time and inevitably making noise too. That is not the case, however. We had the hardest time getting each of them to buckle down and focus on drinking every bottle. Let's just say I am maybe a little glad they are going to daycare tomorrow so she be the one to work on getting them back on their typical eating/napping schedule!
We headed to Minnesota for an old college friend's wedding. My MIL babysat while we attended the ceremony and reception. It was the first time someone else fed them solids (which didn't go so well) and the first time someone else did bedtime (which also did not go so well). I didn't expect it to though, especially after the day of naps (or lack of napping!) they had. I had so much fun at the wedding regardless of how "off" they were. It was fun to hang up my mommy hat for a night, have a few drinks and dance the night away. Well, dance for a few hours at least- we left the reception at 10 pm so we could relieve my MIL from baby duty!
We also managed to visit my parents, my husband's grandmother (one of Sam and Anna's great-grandmothers), and my FIL while we were in Minnesota. Seeing 1 great-grandma, 5 grandparents and college friends in just over 24 hours made it a pretty successful trip, I think (even if the naps and eating was less than stellar).
Anna continues to be unable to really sleep while driving, while Sam can, but not well. On Saturday Anna had two 30 minute naps, and that was it. The only way I could get her to fall asleep (after being awake for over 3 hours) was to tuck a blanket around her, pinning her arms down to simulate being swaddled, hold in her pacifier, and continuously brushing her eyelids closed. She woke up from her last crap-nap at 2 pm and we were unsuccessful in getting her to take another one. She ended up going to bed for the night at around 6:30 pm- which means she had been awake for just under 5 hours.
Getting them to drink in new environments was a bit of a joke too- geez, you'd think they'd be used to distractions because their sibling is always drinking at the same time and inevitably making noise too. That is not the case, however. We had the hardest time getting each of them to buckle down and focus on drinking every bottle. Let's just say I am maybe a little glad they are going to daycare tomorrow so she be the one to work on getting them back on their typical eating/napping schedule!
We headed to Minnesota for an old college friend's wedding. My MIL babysat while we attended the ceremony and reception. It was the first time someone else fed them solids (which didn't go so well) and the first time someone else did bedtime (which also did not go so well). I didn't expect it to though, especially after the day of naps (or lack of napping!) they had. I had so much fun at the wedding regardless of how "off" they were. It was fun to hang up my mommy hat for a night, have a few drinks and dance the night away. Well, dance for a few hours at least- we left the reception at 10 pm so we could relieve my MIL from baby duty!
We also managed to visit my parents, my husband's grandmother (one of Sam and Anna's great-grandmothers), and my FIL while we were in Minnesota. Seeing 1 great-grandma, 5 grandparents and college friends in just over 24 hours made it a pretty successful trip, I think (even if the naps and eating was less than stellar).
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Weekend Road Trip Recap
We did it and all survived in one piece! The night before we left, Sam and Anna had a crummy sleep night (it's like they knew we were getting up early and needed quality sleep to get through the weekend's events) and so much coffee was guzzled en route to keep us alert enough to drive and manage babies. Sam and Anna weren't the ones drinking coffee, but they were pretty alert anyway. I am still amazed at how little they slept while laying in one boring place with the same stuff to look at for hours. They did both sleep through the ceremony once they could be in our arms once we got there. We left right after dinner (it was a casual wedding held at the home of the bride and groom and so dinner was more picnic style- think graduation/birthday party-like) since Sam and Anna were getting cranky, needed their medicine and it was starting to get past their bedtime. We were pretty tired too and enjoyed the excuse.
Overnight at the hotel went pretty well. Sam and Anna actually slept better than they had the night before, and stuck to their usual nighttime routine even though they were together in the co-sleeper. When my husband got up to feed Sam his one middle-of-the-night feeding (which we have no intentions of trying to get him to drop at this point, since how much the babies are eating has been a concern lately), he said Sam had unswaddled his arms and was hitting Anna in the head. Although she was making noises, she slept through it all.
The drive back had some good moments and not-so-good moments. Giving them their reflux medicine while driving pretty much stunk. Since it HAS to be given 30 minutes before they eat, we ended up stopping at a very little town in which the only fast food restaurant was a Dairy Queen. A Dairy Queen that we quickly discovered had only 10 tables in it... and the 9 occupied tables all stopped their conversations while we were there to stare at us. I'm sure we were quite the sight- toting two crying babies, trying to mix medicine, draw it up in syringes and squirt it into their mouths.
When you have two babies, it becomes pretty apparent that there's a lacking of gender equity in changing table locations too. Why don't men's restrooms have a changing table where ever a woman's restroom has them? Picture this: my husband and I each have a crying baby in our arms. I take one in, change them, then return to our table (that still has the syringes and medicine sitting out on because no one has a free arm to put it all away). We do the baby shuffle and switch babies. Then I walk back into the restroom and change the other. We could have escaped out of there much faster if my husband didn't have to sit and wait for me to change both babies. I think I'll have to start taking note of where the good changing table locations are. Note to self: Wendy's in Chippewa Falls: no changing table (since I had no choice but to change Sam's stinky diaper on the floor, I think I'll remember that one.)
The good part of the return drive: the babies were so worn out from their unusual weekend that they actually slept for almost 3 hours on the way back. We even ended up having to wake them up once we got home after we had unloaded and unpacked everything else. They haven't had a midday nap that long for over a month. I hope they remember how to nap longer than 45 minutes again tomorrow!
Overnight at the hotel went pretty well. Sam and Anna actually slept better than they had the night before, and stuck to their usual nighttime routine even though they were together in the co-sleeper. When my husband got up to feed Sam his one middle-of-the-night feeding (which we have no intentions of trying to get him to drop at this point, since how much the babies are eating has been a concern lately), he said Sam had unswaddled his arms and was hitting Anna in the head. Although she was making noises, she slept through it all.
The drive back had some good moments and not-so-good moments. Giving them their reflux medicine while driving pretty much stunk. Since it HAS to be given 30 minutes before they eat, we ended up stopping at a very little town in which the only fast food restaurant was a Dairy Queen. A Dairy Queen that we quickly discovered had only 10 tables in it... and the 9 occupied tables all stopped their conversations while we were there to stare at us. I'm sure we were quite the sight- toting two crying babies, trying to mix medicine, draw it up in syringes and squirt it into their mouths.
When you have two babies, it becomes pretty apparent that there's a lacking of gender equity in changing table locations too. Why don't men's restrooms have a changing table where ever a woman's restroom has them? Picture this: my husband and I each have a crying baby in our arms. I take one in, change them, then return to our table (that still has the syringes and medicine sitting out on because no one has a free arm to put it all away). We do the baby shuffle and switch babies. Then I walk back into the restroom and change the other. We could have escaped out of there much faster if my husband didn't have to sit and wait for me to change both babies. I think I'll have to start taking note of where the good changing table locations are. Note to self: Wendy's in Chippewa Falls: no changing table (since I had no choice but to change Sam's stinky diaper on the floor, I think I'll remember that one.)
The good part of the return drive: the babies were so worn out from their unusual weekend that they actually slept for almost 3 hours on the way back. We even ended up having to wake them up once we got home after we had unloaded and unpacked everything else. They haven't had a midday nap that long for over a month. I hope they remember how to nap longer than 45 minutes again tomorrow!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
First Road Trip
This weekend will be a momentous occasion, and not just because my husband's aunt is getting married. This weekend will be the first time Sam and Anna go on a long road trip (a 3 hour drive) and the first time they will spend the night somewhere else since we brought them home from the hospital. This will be the first family gathering they will have attended as well.
It will be the first of many road trips since our families live in the adjoining state, but I'm full of stress about it all the same. I hope my little ones do well with all the changes and become seasoned travellers quickly.
Here's a list of everything I'm worried about:
It will be the first of many road trips since our families live in the adjoining state, but I'm full of stress about it all the same. I hope my little ones do well with all the changes and become seasoned travellers quickly.
Here's a list of everything I'm worried about:
- I'm worried they will get overstimulated and get super cranky and won't be able to sleep
- I'm worried their schedule will get majorly disrupted and they'll get super cranky and won't be able to sleep
- I'm worried that their reflux will be an issue and they'll be super cranky and won't be able to sleep
- I'm worried that since they'll have to share the co-sleeper at night they won't be able to sleep well and then will be super cranky.
- I'm worried that they won't tolerate the long time in their car seats and (you guessed it) won't be able to sleep and will get super cranky
- I'm worried that we'll forget something VERY important like the miracle blankets and ___(fill in the blank)
- I'm worried that their very likely crankiness will cause some of my in-law relatives to inaccurately judge my parenting skills.
- I'm worried that I won't have any time to figure out what the heck I'm going to wear!
Wish us luck!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)