Week 8, Let's Sleep Great!

Thursday, February 25, 2016

HELLO WEEK 8!

Such little hams.  Lovin the camera.  Photo cred: Grandma West




Their smiles melt my heart!!!

I t 's   S l e e p   T r a i n i n g   W e e k...
We have made it to week 8!  And things are pretty great.  Okay I am done rhyming.  I've been talking to babies too long :)  We are embarking on this journey people call sleep training!  I recently downloaded an audible book that has changed the way I look at sleep training!  It's called 12 Hours Sleep by 12 Weeks Old by Suzi Giordano.  INCREDIBLE are her techniques.  She has 5 children, one set of twins, and her story is unbelievable.  She has sleep trained babies from newborns up to a 5 year old who still slept with his mom!  I HIGHLY recommend her book for anyone that's having trouble with sleeping.  Her method meets in the middle of the "cry-it-out" and the "rock your child to sleep" methods.  This fits perfectly for us.  I don't know that I could stand to hear crying for 30 minutes but her method of waiting 3-5 minutes and then going in to soothe, not pick up, your baby have been working the few days we have been using it.  The babies still feed at least 2 times per night and an early morning feeding between 5-6 AM.  So the 12 hours sleep is still far fetched for us, but I'll post again in 4 weeks and see where we are at.

Here's how they both feel about sleep training:



Not impressed with Mom and Dad just yet, but hey... we're learning  :)

G e t t i n g   O u t..
This weekend we went to the plaza again to meet some new friends and get a good walk in.   Lately that has been my mantra:  Walk every day.  There’s a park close to our house and my plan is to take them there every day I don’t work.  It feels so amazing to get out of the house and the babies just love being outside, even if it’s a bit chilly.  We get them bundled up and use those car seat covers and they are in their own little warm cocoons.


Since getting the clear to work out, it’s been harder than I thought to get a decent workout in.  The babies are definitely my first priority and getting my body back comes last on my list after taking care of my essential needs.  I will say, the mommy pooch that seems to stick around after having a baby is getting annoying, so my drive to get rid of it is at an all time high, hence the walking!  It’s good cardio and pushing the double stroller adds a more challenging effect to it. 

We took some more generational pictures with Alex’s family a few weekends ago and here they are!  It’s crazy awesome that our babies will get to have not only grandparents but GREAT grandparents in their lives.  That was so important to Alex and I and one of the many reasons we wanted to have children young.  We love how our babies will grow up with younger parents and grandparents who can enjoy them and spend time with them.

Great Grandpa John, Alex and Bennett, Grandpa Chris
Grandma Becky, Great Grandma Joan and Emmy, ME!
B a t h i n g...
Giving these two baths was something I thought would be a fight from the beginning but boy was I wrong.  They LOVE baths!  They started in the sink in our bathroom and have just outgrown them.  Those chunky monkeys have moved on to their tub in the tub.  We received the sunflower bathing tool from my cousin Katherine.  It’s basically a large waterproof pillow that collapses in the sink and your baby just sits in it while the water can run over them.  Here’s the link: 

http://www.amazon.com/Blooming-Bath-Infant-Canary-Yellow/dp/B007S1T4Q0/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1456415858&sr=8-2&keywords=sunflower+bath+for+baby

This was from Bennett's first bath at home!  He was such a little guy!
It's been a game changer for us.  Now that they have outgrown the sink we put the sunflower in the baby bath to cushion it.  These two hooligans love it.

Two peas in a pod.  The lion and the lamb, or bunny.  Who knows.


RANDOM NOTE:
H o s p i t a l   P a c k   L i s t...
One thing I have wanted to do since being home is give you a list of things I actually needed for the hospital stay.  Whether you are a singleton parent, parent of multiples or a future parent, I hope this reaches you and gives you something of good use.  Alex and I were such eager new parents and packed our hospital bags at 28 weeks pregnant, so no matter what we were ready.  But we were overpacked and with the wrong things.  Of course, pack anything you think you might want.  I read so many pack lists and ended up not needing some of the things they suggested I bring.  Anyways, here's the list of the most needed items.

1.  Phone charger (or multiple if both of you use your phones a lot)
2. Clothing for mom:  Loose fitting shirts, tank tops, nursing tops.  I pretty much wore these the entire time.  Bring a cardigan or sweater for if it gets chilly.  I brought my robe too and that was perfect.  You need a lot because they get dirty super fast with breastfeeding and such.  Loose fitting pants too.  PJ pants were the best but again bring a few, they get dirty fast.  Don't bother bringing underwear... they will give you some.  I brought my own thinking "Eh I want my own" and didn't even wear them once.
3.  A pair of slippers you will throw away after!  They get filthy- just prepare to throw them away.
4.  Toiletries:  your own things if you choose.  I'm picky about my shampoo and face wash so I brought my own.  The hospital provides toothpaste and soap but its not the same if you use special stuff.  I brought some makeup too because once I felt better I liked being able to put on some face powder and look less sickly.
5.  Dad:  Bring flip flops!  Alex needed these because of the many times he was up and wheeling me to the NICU for feedings.
6.  Baby-go-home outfit(s).  You just need one onesie, a hat and we brought a blanket for each for the ride home.  They will provide diapers, and pretty much everything else you need.
7.  I didn't bring my own pillow or a boppy but that being said, our babies spent time in the NICU so I think it would have been different had they been in my room with me.
8.  A somewhat empty bag.  I brought my diaper bag.  We filled it with things from the hospital that they gave us!
9.  Some snacks.  Alex brought CLIFF bars and they were great when we needed a bite and food wasn't readily available.

That's pretty basic.  But seemed essential for Alex and I.  Hope this finds and helps someone along the way!

Anyways!  I'm off the load the babies up for a walk!  See ya next week...

Lauren, E & B

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