This month was another big month for change.

Perhaps the biggest was that Sam started walking. He can make it across the basement no problem. Aaron has taken about 5 steps in a row, but I’m sure this coming month will change all that.

The second biggest was that I weaned. They still drink a ton of formula and since I never had babies who drank from bottles before, I’m not sure how to faze formula and bottles out when they turn into one year olds next month.

Aaron now has 8 teeth, Sam has 6.

The twins have started to get a lot more chatty, even if they are not saying anything. Sometimes I catch them screeching at each other, as if they were actually having a conversation. They definitely know their names. When I say them followed with a NO! They turn and look, then grin impishly.

Aaron has become the dancer. Anytime there is music he’ll sway back and forth or pump is legs up and down when he stands to the beat.

They have also started wrestling each other, and anyone else who happens to be laying on the floor. If Ben lays down they will attack, slapping, rolling, and laying on top of him.

Sam is already fighting his naps. He will sit in his crib babbling sometimes for up to 45 minutes before going to sleep or crying.

There are many more new skills like opening toilets, and cabinets, and drawers. I’ve had to redo my kitchen cabinets in an attempt to keep them from pulling every single thing out of them. I’ll post pictures soon.

They love to play with a big orange ball. It’s half their size but they lift it up and throw it around, chasing it together. It’s super cute. You can see them doing it on my monthly video for March.

They love to follow each other around. Here they are watching Patricia vacuum.

We took the twins to their 9 month check up today. I thought it was going to be an easy, uneventful visit. Surprisingly there was a shot. Also surprising, Aaron measured bigger than Sam in every respect. Even more surprising, Sam’s ear infection is back. Or maybe it never fully left. I think the poor guy has been fighting it for over a month now. They gave us the next level up in antibiotics. Let’s hope this one works.

Here is how their measurements came out:

Sam’s height was 28½ inches, weight 20 lbs. 9 oz., head circumference 44.8 cm.

Aaron was 28¾ inches long, 20 lbs. 13 oz. for weight, and a head circumference of 45.3 cm.

This month I thought a lot about quitting breast feeding. I remember when the older boys were about 8 months old wanting to be done, but the thought of switching to bottles and formula was too daunting. With the twins I’m already on bottles and formula so it doesn’t seem as scary. I’ve also noticed they feed much more on bottles than the breast, and my production is down more than it was a few months ago. Oh, and the clogged milk ducts! So many of them this time around! I’m still slugging through it, getting out as much as I can by pumping and breast feeding them to sleep most naps and night feeds. Right now I’m just trying to push through to the one year mark, no matter how little I produce. I’m sad whenever I think of giving up that part of their childhood. Once it’s over, they stop being babies in my eyes.

Also, since we’ve come back from Florida, I’ve been spending a lot of time trying to analyze these little two. I am looking for clues to what their personalities are and how they relate to each other.

I thought for a while that Sam was the tough one. He’s got these strong, meaty fingers and was the first to crawl and stand. Aaron seems so delicate. But Sam cries more often. Like if Aaron steals his toys. Now if Sam steals Aaron’s toys, Aaron will hold onto it as fiercely as he can but if he loses to Sam, he lets him have it and moves on. No crying. No hard feelings. Aaron can also take a fall without noticing it as much.

Sam uses his two hands like chopsticks to pick up food

I used to say that Aaron was more social because he laughs at all Jack’s jokes while Sam sometimes fails to notice. But Sam is the one who will follow me around the house and asked to be held all the time, getting on his knees and puffing his chest out at me with his arms in the air. Aaron is much more independent in that respect. So I’m not sure who is more social.

It seems like Aaron his an inner peace that dictates everything he does. Aaron sleeps better and longer. When he wakes he hangs out in his crib until I arrive, cooing or just eating a sock that he’s taken off his foot. Sam announces each waking with a roaring scream. He’s impatiently waiting, standing at the front of the crib for the bedroom door to open.

Aaron prefers a full fist, one handed grab and shove.

Aaron’s inner calm is also shown when he eats. He eats calmly and afterwards can sit in the chair quietly and happily. Sam is more conflicted. Sam’s eating always ends in crying.

I love how different their eating styles are too. Sam carefully puts a piece of food between his two straightened forefingers and brings it to his mouth. Aaron quickly grabs with his whole fist then thrusts it in his mouth.

People always say twins are opposites. I wonder if it’s because they are born at the same time, you naturally compare them and try to find the differences. Or maybe over time twins themselves want to differentiate themselves and become opposites.

I guess we’ll never know which came first, the chicken or the two eggs.

They have started to laugh together at their own inside jokes.

I know it seems like with each new baby the time goes faster.

But with Sam, he really is going faster.

I came downstairs to see this the other day…

He’s only seven months yet he’ll already pulling himself up to standing? That’s a nine month old thing, at the very least. Which is only 2 months, I know. But at 7 months, that’s like almost 1/4 of his life faster. At this rate he’ll be in kindergarden by 3, his bar mitzvah will be at 9. Crap, I need to go hide the liquor bottles now.

Hard to believe that the twins are already seven months old. Actually they are a bit over 7 months, but with all the 40th birthday hullabaloo I haven’t had a chance to write about it.

What changes have I noticed from last month? A ton.

They are both cutting their top two teeth right now.

Sam has moved on from his inchworm crawl technique to hands and knees. Aaron has adopted more of a commando style crawl.

They have started to wander around the house, usually together, getting up to mischief. Twice we found Sam in the bathroom, the bathroom cabinet knobs out and in his mouth. Unscrewing is a pretty advanced maneuver for a 7 month old!

They definitely recognize each other and smile at each other a lot, as well as keep close together. If one has a toy the other may go over and just grab it out of their hands. Luckily they are too young to be upset about this, but I can see where it’s heading.

Sam is also my first kid to basically push himself up to sitting. In the past, I’ve always sat them up and let them figure it out that way. They both sit up now, but Aaron needed a little guidance.

We have gotten rid of the infant tub. Now they just sit or lay in the tub and play. Sam was completely into it, splashing like crazy. Aaron complied but eyed me wearily, like, “Really? you are going to put me in there with that splashing maniac?” 

First Bath without an Infant Tub

Sam continues to wake me around 1 or 2 in the morning for a feed. Aaron can make it all night, but often by 4 or 5 he’s crying for me. Aaron is an incredible sleeper, though. Just this morning Sam woke at 5am for the morning and Aaron slept until 7:30am, despite the fact that there were 3 other kids making quite a ruckus right outside his door. I used to worry about this, but it seems they both will have a nap around the same time, even if the wake up time is quite different.

This month I upped their calories as I have a sneaking suspicion that my hard core dedication to breast feeding may be part of what keeps Sam so cranky and his naps so short. Since I’ve starting giving more formula bottles, Sam is like a new baby. Super smiley and happy all the time.

This month I couldn’t help but marvel at how much I’ve changed as a mother. I remember one day when Jack was an infant not putting him down once. When Adam came home from work I hadn’t gone to the bathroom all day. But now I can get so much done in a day with the twins around. Here is a picture of my morning shower…

A Shower with an Audience

At the twins 6 month check up, our pediatrician talked to us about sleep training. We take our kids to Dr. Weissbluth’s practice. He wrote the book called, “Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child. Although we don’t see Weissbluth himself, all his staff follow the books practices. I like that they are concerned about sleep because it reminds me to fix these problems before it gets too out of hand .

So last week Thursday, Angelica and I decided to sleep train Sam.

His night wakings, mixed with the older kids night wakings, were getting unbearable to me. Sam seemed to have regressed from waking up around 2 or 3am to having a first wake up around 12 or 1am. Then another around 4am.

As the doctor suggested, we put him in his crib completely awake. First we watched for signs he was tired. Then we created a cue, which was to read Sam a book. Finally we put him in the crib, lights out, on his tummy – the way he likes to sleep.

We braced ourselves for the worst.

The first night he cried for 9 minutes. And only the first 5 sounded tortured. Then he cried out around 1am for another 10 minutes then settled himself. I fed him the next time he woke at 5am.

The second night he cried for 30 minutes. It was really hard to listen to. But the 1am cry was only a couple of minutes. Again I was up around 4:30am to feed him.

The third night I was out for a B’nai Mitzvah, but I think I remember a report that he didn’t cry very long. He didn’t wake at night either until around 4am.

We still continue the same schedule. Most nights he still cries a bit at night, sometimes it’s more like he’s talking to himself. But he no longer wakes until 4 or 5am.

It is life changing to me. I hope it lasts!

If someone asked me if I would be willing to wake up once or twice a night to feed the twins in order to keep them this age forever, I might actually take them up on it.

I’m so in love with this age.

They are happy to see me, but they are also happy to see just about anyone else as well.

They move around, but not so much as to create huge messes everywhere they go.

They mostly just breast feed, which makes planning meals a snap.

Sadly, much as I’d love them to stay like this forever, I can see their developments daily.

Superman Pose

Initially I thought Aaron would be the first to crawl, but now I’m changing my bet to Sam. Aaron was the first to move around, pushing himself forward with his back legs while shoving his face forward into the carpet, arms dragging on his side. Sam, on the other hand, looked like he would never move. His meaty frame seemed to immobilize him. Instead he would stay put and practice his ‘superman pose’ over and over again.

Flirting with Jack

However, I’m starting to see how his repetition is paying off. Superman is now super strong and starting to push himself up on his hands and knees and rock back and forth. Aaron is still tossing and turning easily from front to back, but he seems more interested in practicing his flirting skills instead. He’ll lay on the floor, all snuggled up like a cat in a spot of sunlight, sucking his fingers and watching, waiting for you to make eye contact. Then boom! Huge smile!

It’s no surprise that Sam, after six days of trying, has figured out eating and it’s making up for lost time. Angelica fed him three cubes of peaches Tuesday night, and more on Wednesday night. Here come the stinky diapers! Aaron is still grossed out by the entire exchange. I wonder how many days he can make faces at my home made baby food before he finds something he likes. If my older kids are any indication, perhaps five years? Or longer?

One of the things that Aaron has managed to master faster than Sam is sleeping. Most nights he sleeps until 5am. And sometimes he’ll sleep a longer nap. They both don’t have a consistent nap schedule yet. I just follow the rule that, when they wake up, they will be tired 2 or 3 hours later. If they sleep 45 minutes or 2 hours I just note it and watch for signs of tiredness again 2 or 3 hours after waking. Sometimes they have 2 naps, sometimes 3. If I’m lucky they over lap and, not matter how much housekeeping is piling up, I force myself to jump into bed and try to sleep.

Thursday Anjelica and I tried feeding the twins for the first time.

Their first taste of food was mashed up banana.

Sam went first and seemed interested. He rolled the banana around his mouth and I think some of it even got in.

Aaron didn’t do so well. He made the face shown above and proceeded to spit anything out that Anjelica gave him.

And so it starts. The food mess that will last at least 5 years, maybe more…

Today Adam and I took the twins for their 4 month check up.

Sam weighed in at a whopping 17 pounds, in the 75-90%. Aaron, surprisingly, weighed in at 16 pounds, in the 50-75%. Aaron always seems so light compared to Sam, I’m shocked it’s only a 1 pound difference.

Another shocker was that Aaron’s little head is actually bigger than Sam’s!

How can Sam’s head be smaller than Aaron’s?!

They both measured 25.5 inches in height.

They took their shots like champs and are both passed out in their car seats as I write this. I still went and bought tylenol just in case.

The Doctor said they were perfect. Even Sam’s goopy eye isn’t a cause for concern until his 9 month check up. His tear duct is still closed in his left eye but his right eye has opened up.

Finally he talked to me about sleep. I’m so happy I go to this practice that cares about getting your kids in good sleeping patterns. Because last night I was up 3 times with Aaron and 2 times with Sam. After yesterday’s beach day I was exhausted and did not appreciate waking at 12, 1, 2:30, 4 and finally 5am for the morning.

Aaron keeps crawling up to the top, right side of his crib and bumping his head against it. It wakes him up and so I, in autopilot mode, go and feed him. Sam just fusses in the night, even though I know he can make it longer.

So, tonight I’m turning off the monitor. And closing the door. This way only if they are really upset will I hear them. Adam suggested I get drunk with him tonight and watch the Bear’s game before hand just to be sure I sleep sound. Or maybe he was suggesting that for other reasons…

The twins have just past their third month of life. I’m in awe how quickly they’ve grown and changed. And sad it’s happening so quickly. Because for the first time in my life, I KNOW this is the last time I’ll have a baby.

Their personalities continue to surprise and delight me.

Sam is such a bruiser. He constantly clenches his fist, fidgets and kicks his feet in the air. He’s going to have one strong core when he’s done. As a back sleeper, he kicks them up all night. It might be what wakes him up, or maybe it’s time for some sleep training. Last night he work at 12:45, 2:15 and 4am. I know he’s not hungry each time, just unable to get himself back to sleep without my help. He seems much more visual and vocal than his twin brother. Sometimes he’ll be on the play mat or in the car seat and I think he’s crying but when I go look at him I notice he’s just making noises, trying to join the conversation. He continues to be a roly poly, the folds of his neck need to be swiped daily and massaged with Aquafor to keep them from getting too red.

Aaron is much quieter. He can sit for hours without making a peep. But that is not to say he’s not practicing his own skills. He has already turned himself over. And just today I caught a video of him scooting himself across the play mat like an inch worm. The only thing spastic about Aaron is the way he eats. He likes to suck with a big smack, sucking down air with his milk while pulling on and off the nipple. It results in big burps and lots of gas. He sleeps on his tummy. He also seems to have figured out ‘sleeping through the night’. The past three or four nights I’ve only had to wake once to feed him, somewhere between 4 or 5am.

As for Ben, we are 10 days into potty training. Today was the first day he actually pooped in the potty. I happen to have 30 minutes free at the right time this morning to sit with him until he went. He also only had one accident at the end of the day. He will produce a pee every time I take him to the potty but he will only go potty if he is asked too. He has yet to run to the bathroom on his own. It’s a start. Let’s hope we can finish before school. Tick tock, tick tock.

Jack’s big development this week is to stop bathing and start showering. I’m not sure if it’s a phase or he’s just grossed out by the fact that Ben still pees in the tub.

Even though the twins are three months old, we just did their two month check up Thursday morning.

I always dread this check up because of the shots. It’s easier than it was with Jack. The first time I held him down and cried ten times worse than he did. Now I don’t cry, but I dread it. Just like the bris, those poor little guys have no idea what we have in store for them.

Adam was super excited to weigh Sam. He’s beefed up so much since birth! I let him take Sam to weigh while I took Aaron.

Sam’s measurements were:

• Height: 23 and 1/2 inches. – 75%
• Weight: 14 lbs. 6 oz – 90-95%
• Head: 40.6 cm – 90%

Aaron’s measurements:

• Height: 23 and 1/2 inches. – 75%
• Weight: 13 lbs. – 50%-75%
• Head: 40.4 cm – 75%-90%

They both doubled their weight! The doctor said, whatever you are doing, keep doing it!

Auntie Doris with the Twins (in the outfits she bought them)

Then he remarked how well rested I looked. He was pleased to hear the babies were giving me good stretches already. Last night Sam stretched 8 hours, Aaron stretched 9! If only Ben didn’t wake me up in the middle of it.

He also started talking to us about putting the babies down drowsy but awake. I know it has to be done and hopefully I’ll have the strength to do it when the times comes. I just have to remember that I don’t want two MORE bad sleeper in my life.

Sam was fussy after the shots. So was Aaron, but less so. We dosed them both with medicine and it seemed to help.