Life in the FAST Lane!

Everything we do, we try to do it fast. As I am reflecting on the week, the words I think of are quick, hurry, and fast. We are quickly trying to change one boy so we can get to the other that is crying. We are quick to get one crying baby out of the room before he wakes his brother. I am hurrying to burp one while the other has his bottle propped, and soon he will need to be burped. I am speeding through town because I am late for something... as I was trying to hurry out of the house. I find myself rushing through eating because I don't know how long I will get to eat and when the next time I will get to eat. I now shower in record time as it never fails that they are content UNTIL I get the shampoo in my hair... shaving and leaving my conditioner in for a little amount of time is only a luxury! Make-up and styling my hair is becoming non-existent and saved for special occasions. I am sure I am missing other instances that we are flying by the seats of our pants, but once again... I am hurrying to finish this blog post (which I did indeed start on Sunday)! On Saturday I played in the Menomonie Alumni Volleyball tournament. We didn't do so well, but we had a blast. It is so nice getting together with old friends and catching up with everyone. This mama was out-of-shape! This was my first physical activity in a LONG time! I was not the only new mama on the team either! Of the five players, four of us had babies in the past year and our sixth player didn't play but brought her newborn to visit... play dates are in order! Maybe we would have done better if we played as hard as we chatted and shared pictures ;) Cannot wait until next year! The boys had another appointment this week. They had their regular two month check-up with Dr. Walker. He is very pleased by their growth! Both gained exactly a pound since the last visit.

Ashton: So close to eight pounds!!! 7 pounds 15 ounces

21 1/4 inches long

head: 14 1/4

Aiden: 7 pounds 6 ounces

19 1/2 inches long

head: 14 1/4

It seems that the only time we leave the house is for appointments. Nana bought them some adorable little buntings, which are a bit big... but we put them on the boys anyway because they will soon be out of season!!! Welcome SpRiNg!!!!

Ashton

Aiden

When we aren't going to appointments... we are PLAYING!!!! It's fun to see the boys awake for longer chunks of time and they are really starting to look around (across the room). They love the light of the windows... maybe their longing to be outside like Izzie and I are! Ashton is right on the verge of cooing. You can tell he wants to and once he was watching his mobile in his swing and let out a sound. It wasn't a cry... I think he was trying to talk to it but the sound he made surprised him and scared him a bit. He is getting more smiley (not just gas smiles) each day!

Both boys are getting stronger and stronger. Aiden has a little more patience with being on his stomach and can really hold his head high!

Peek-a-boo! Or is he trying to be a pirate?

Then he gets tired, but still has his big blue eyes!

Friday night we had some visitors! Harper, Cindy, and Chris stopped over and brought us some supper. Harper is 7 months old and a little ham. He is full of smiles and really wanted to touch the boys. Once we were getting the boys ready for bead, we noticed they were matching!

For once in pictures, Aiden is the one sleeping. He just got done with his bath and his belly was full - it's bedtime!

Harper has his arm around Ashton ;)

We are looking forward to the boys being best of friends as Cindy and I have been great friends since 4th grade.

The boys continue to LOVE snuggle time. They still fit on Adam's chest, but are out-growing mine!

It wasn't planned, but even Daddy is dressed like the boys...

Ashton Alan

Aiden James

As the weather continues to get nicer and the days get longer, I cannot say it enough... We are ready to go for walks and leave the house more often!!! Bring on the nice weather, bye-bye snow, and hello SPRING!

Until next week!

~A to the 4th power and Izzie

2 Months Old!!!

Life at the Wamboldt's is busier than we could have ever imagined it to be! The story of our new life, "Where does all the time go?" Finding the time to do ANYTHING is difficult as one with kiddos would know... So... what have we been doing these past two weeks?

The Boys turned two months this past Sunday, March 2oth. This also marks the actual day they were due! Although they are indeed two months old, developmentally we need continue to use their due date (corrected age) and not their birth date when looking at developmental milestones.

I like this picture because it captures their two DIFFERENT little personalities. Aiden does not miss a beat of what is going on around him. He has been spending more and more time awake during the day (and night :o) while Ashton remains chill and asleep more of the time. Both are still in newborn diapers and their newborn clothes are finally starting to fit them nicely.

Sorry to say this Aiden... but sometimes it looks as though your eyes are going to pop out of your head sometimes! Maybe I need to drink less caffeine?!?! ;)

Ashton can sleep through anything and goes for longer chunks of time at night.

I also include this picture on the post so when their newborn pictures are shared... you can appreciate the fact we did indeed get both boys sleeping and settled in with the help and patience of the photographer!

We had two doctor appointments since my last post. The first was an appointment for a weight check and just to make sure the boys are continuing to move in the right direction. Since the first appointment, I realized that convenience takes over cuteness! One piece clothing and zippers are a must over cute, multi-layered outfit.

ASHTON: 6 pounds 15 ounces

19 3/4 inches long

AIDEN: 6 pounds 6 ounces

19 1/2 inches long

Again, Ashton barely woke up for the check up and Aiden ScReAmEd (or maybe it's more of a squeal)!!!

For the next appointment, we headed back to Children's in St. Paul for a follow up with the pediatric urologist. Upon discharge from the NICU, both of the boys' kidneys were still larger than they should be. Ashton had one more so than the other. The urologist asked to see Ashton in 4 weeks and a follow up with Aiden in 3 months. So this appointment was all about Ashton.

We started out the morning with an ultrasound of both of his kidneys. He looks like such a big boys laying on the bed!

After the ultrasound we met with the urologist. Everything seems to be okay. The best way he said it was that they are still a bit larger than "normal" but they are not getting worse. We have another follow up appointment on April 21st to continue to keep an eye on both boys. At that point we will see if things are the same or better. In that case we will just continue to keep an eye on them. However, if they are worse, we will look at more tests and a possible surgery down the road to take out a possible blockage. There still is the chance that after their "due date" they will correct themselves. Another possibility is that they just have large kidneys...

When we aren't leaving the house to go to doctor appointments, we are hanging at home avoiding the flu and all other little germs!

Spending so much time at home, the boys are adjusting and becoming very comfortable! Aiden likes laying propped on the couch...

While Ashton likes running the remote.

The boys are now getting nightly baths. At first they were a screaming match... but now they are really starting to enjoy them.

(Ashton studying daddy)

We do lots of snuggle time...

Melts my heart.

The boys are beginning to interact more with some toys. We spend some of our day on the play mat.

Even though there are toys hanging right over their heads... they both look in the direction of the window.

Izzie is a very involved little puppy that I have to mention this week. As we are interacting more and more with the boys, Izzie is not too far behind wanting to be in on the action!

She also likes being involved in the bath time. I think she just likes knowing that she isn't the one going into the sink. The first night we let her see the boys in the tub, she kept going to the kitchen and barking at the counter where the tub sat. It doesn't hurt that she was quite curious about the yellow duckie that the boys have!

And as good as she has been with the boys and their toys... she continue to wait patiently for the weather to get a bit warmer so we can go on walks. The boys and I are patiently waiting also ;)

As we continue to wait out the flu season and for nicer weather... we can't sit in the house ALL day - EVERY day... so last Saturday we met Nana, Mikalya, and Uncle Nate at Perkins for some breakfast. This was their first real outing in public besides doctor appointments and their newborn pictures.

They didn't even know they were at Perkins... not a peep out of either one of them or even as much as opening their eyes while we were there.

A huge thanks to many people who have been helping out with the boys the last 4 weeks! I cannot say that we could do everything by ourselves. Finding the time to complete a blog post, shower, nap, have a nice meal prepared and have some 'me' time are all things that are made possible with the help of others. We are grateful and very lucky to have the families that we do!

ZZZZzzzZZzzZz...

So the BIG question is... "What is it like having twins?" Well, first of all there is not enough time in my day. It feels like the days fly by with just trying to keep up with feedings, hence the reason for a late post this week! The boys are eating every 3-3 1/2 hours around the clock and this keeps us very busy! The rest of the time, they are still napping quite a bit... and when they nap, Adam and I find ourselves sneaking in a nap! The adrenaline has worn off and periods of pure exhaustion have began.

Mommy Sleeping... Even Izzie is exhausted ;)

Daddy Sleeping

The boys Sleeping... Seems like a whole lot of sleeping being done at the Wamboldt residence! Not quite.

On Tuesday the boys had a quick appointment for their RSV shot. They qualified for this very expensive shot because of their birth weights and the gestation they were born at. This is a shot that is given monthly to them lasting through the flu season. I told Adam I didn't want to go to this appointment, as it is tough for me to even take the dog to the vet! I was a trooper though and didn't leave Adam hanging. The boys did well and even got stickers when they were all done ;).

The boys with their puppy stickers!

To make sure they were given the right dosage they were weighed. WE HAVE A SET OF SIX POUNDERS!!!!

Ashton 6 pounds 1 ounce

Aiden 6 pounds even.

We had some special visitors this week. Adam's mom visited on Thursday night and brought us supper. Some nights if we didn't have family helping out, I think Adam and I would starve or be eating frozen pizza every night! Gramma spent some special time with the boys and even held both at the same time!

The other special visitor was my sister, Elly. She has some time off work and came over several days to get some snuggles. It has been 13 years since she held a baby (Mikayla) but she was a pro at holding both the boys also. OK - it's not the easiest thing to do right now, but I needed to get something done ;)

When the boys are not eating or sleeping, we are starting to play with some toys. They like looking at the bold colors and are really starting to focus on objects.

On Friday night, Adam and I had our first night (a couple hours) away since they boys have been home. My sister and her boyfriend were over. We were waiting for my mom to come over to order some dinner, and she had the idea of babysitting while the four of us went out to dinner. After a fish fry and two beers, we could barely keep our eyes open!

On Saturday, we had more visitors and Elle helped pick out some age appropriate toys to get out for the boys. She is such a big girl crawling all over! Izzie was curious to what toys they boys could play with... and she even leaves them alone. She is doing such a great job being gentle around the boys and knowing what toys are hers and what are OFF LIMITS.

Uncle Dave got some cuddles from ???. I thought he was holding Ashton... but now looking back at the picture it looks like Aiden!?!? It's been 8 months since he has held a tiny baby but he was a pro.

Well, off to a crying boy... a hungry boy... or a nap. That is our life but we are loving every minute of it!!!