Scrambled Eggs and Chardonnay

Since the girls have started table food, I probably spend hours each week planning and selecting the healthiest ingredients possible for their meals. I focus on a healthy balance of fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins and fiber. Around 75% of their meals are organic. Why is it that I move heaven and earth to make sure my children don't miss a meal and are developing good eating habits and I skip meals on a regular basis (don't worry, I am not exactly fading away)? For instance, tonight I skipped dinner so I could get to Whole Foods to buy food for the girls only to come home and eat a scrambled egg sandwich and a glass of chardonnay for dinner! Brett ate a Jimmy John's sandwich and an Eggnog Latte from Starbucks. It's ridiculous!

Never Wake a Sleeping Baby

I know it has been forever and I promise I will get better but here's a good one...Every night before Brett and I go to bed, we go into the girls' room and check them. We fix their blanket and feel their backs (you know you do it). Tonight, Brett goes in and Sweetie Pie's blanket was under her. He attempts the "old tablecloth trick" and tries to slide it out from under her without disturbing her. He gets the blanket and as he lays it on her, her eyes spring open! What does Brett do, you ask? Instead of hitting the deck and army crawling out of the room like I would have done, he covers his face! Yes, he covers his face! Now I haven't been doing this parenting thing for very long but I do know that when you cover your face in front of a baby, they think you are playing Peek A Boo! I am so relieved to know that my husband, my rock, can handle high pressure situations! Love you, Babe!

Grandma strikes again!

Well, she struck again! While at my mom's annual Labor Day party at the beach this time! Each family that attended got to decorate their own picnic table. I chose Da' Cubs! I bought Cubs plates that were pretty small for food but they were just too cute to pass up! Anyways, I was only able to fit my turkey burger and a couple salads on it. I ate and then went back up to try another couple salads and I hear from behind me,"Are you eating again?". Guess who! My lovely Grandmother! Again, who says that? I can usually take pretty much anything she says with a grain of salt but this is getting ridiculous! I asked her why she says such nasty things and she told me that she is a pisces, dahling, so she is allowed to say those things. Are you kidding me? Because you were born in March, it's okay to hurt people's feelings! News flash, I was born in March and I have never and will never say something like to someone! She proceeded to tell Brett about it expecting a laugh for him. Instead, my dear husband just gave her the eye blink and walked away. What is her issue?

Are you pregnant?

Everybody has embarrassing moments and if you haven't then I have had plenty for both of us. My most recent moment came courtesy of my grandmother. If you know my grandmother, this story won't completely surprise you but it should make you go, "Oh no she did not just say that!". So recently my Uncle's father, JaJa, passed away. It was very unexpected and he will be greatly missed. Brett and I went to the wake on Sunday. We were in the lobby talking to some family friends and my grandmother came up. Instead of saying,"Hello, my darling granddaughter, how are you and your lovely family doing?", she says,"Are you pregnant?". My jaw dropped as did everyone around us. Are you kidding me? I have never been an arrogant person, but I think I look pretty damn good for just having had twins 7 months ago and I certainly don't think I look pregnant. In fact, I weigh less now then I did before I had the girls. Who says that? And for that matter, who says that to their granddaughter in front of a group of strangers? I was horrified. I will never, I repeat, never wear that dress again. I am sure I don't have to tell any of you this but it is never appropriate to ask a lady if she is pregnant unless you know without a shadow of a doubt that she is in fact pregnant. It is also not appropriate to point out to someone you love (in front of others and sometimes in private) that they look like they have put on a few pounds. So I am off to do 30 minutes of cardio and 100 crunches.

My Life

I don't know how many girls actually get to live that dream but I do know that I am one of the lucky ones. I am so grateful for the life I have been given. I have always had a loving and supportive family and then I met Brett. He is truly the love of my life and he came into my life so unexpectedly. We had our first date on June 7, 1997 and haven't spent more than a few days apart since then. When we got married in 2000, he was just starting his financial advising practice and I am not going to lie, it was TOUGH! Getting used to sharing everything with another person and struggling financially lead to some very trying times but we managed.

When his practice turned for the better was when we decided to start trying to have a baby. In my heart, I always knew there was going to be a problem. I didn't know what it was but I just knew. After a couple years of trying on our own, we decided to talk to a professional. I was diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) and was told that there was a very little possibility of me ever getting pregnant on my own. So began the series of fertility treatments...pills, injectables, IUI, and finally In Vitro. It was a very overwhelming process. Several injections every day and daily ultrasounds! I don't know how we did it but each time we got a negative result, we mourned for a few days and were ready to start the next cycle with the same optimism we had the very first try. Meanwhile, everyone around me was getting pregnant. I told Brett once that I thought my fertility treatments were working on other people! I never had negative feelings towards anyone for getting pregnant but I will admit, I often asked myself, why not me? We wanted a baby so badly! After I had an ectopic pregnancy, we decided to look into adoption. We went to a local agency for an orientation. I had my little notebook and was ready to really consider it. We knew immediately this wasn't the agency for us. They strongly encouraged an open adoption and that wasn't something we were comfortable with. On the way home, we decided that we would give In Vitro one more try. We called the doctor the next day and informed her it would be our last try. Because we waited until the last minute to start the cycle, our medication wouldn't arrive in time. We almost had to cancel the cycle when another patient of the clinic got a positive pregnancy test and donated all her extra medication! We began the cycle and several weeks later we got the happiest news we could have ever received. We were pregnant!!!! We in turn donated all our extra medication to the clinic! Three weeks after that we learned we were having twins.

Cut to my life today. I am lucky enough to have the option of staying home with my beautiful little girls. My husband has two successful financial advising practices in Illinois and Indiana and is able to spend a ton of quality of time with his family. We do not take our life for granted for one minute. We know not everyone is as fortunate as us and we share our love with each other and our children every day.

Ignorant Drivers

For those of you that have never noticed, certain stores have parking spots reserved for expectant mothers. If you never noticed, no worries, I didn't notice until I was actually pregnant. In fact, I never parked in the spots until I was visibly pregnant because I didn't want people to think I was an ignorant driver. The Westfield Mall near my house has several of these parking spots. I think this is a really nice idea. Anyone who has been in their third trimester of pregnancy knows how difficult it is to move around at that time. You are exhausted and in most cases, you are so swelled up so much you look like the Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters. These parking spots were incredibly helpful to me, as it was freezing cold during my third trimester and it would not have been a good idea for me to try to cross an icy parking lot when I was carrying around an extra 50 pounds. So, THANK YOU, Westfield Shopping Centers, Babies R Us, and any other establishments that thought of doing this.

So now my reason for this blog. Brett and I went to the mall on Sunday for a quick lunch. We had the girls with us and it was absolutely beautiful out. Sunny and High 60s! As we circled the parking lot looking for a spot, I noticed the Expectant Mothers spot was open. We found a parking spot and while we were getting the girls out of the car, I noticed someone pulling into the Expectant Mother's spot. But it wasn't an expectant mother getting out of the giant SUV. It was a man and his daughter (maybe 10-12 years old). How IGNORANT! Is that what you are teaching your daughter? I realize there are no laws against parking in that spot as it's not a handicap spot but come one. I am assuming it was his daughter and if she was in fact his daughter then at some point, his significant other was pregnant with this child and endured that horribly uncomfortable third trimester. How would he feel if his wife or girlfriend had to trek across the giant parking lot because some other schmuck took the parking spot dedicated solely to expectant mothers? Pathetic! Is there any common courtesy left in this world? This guy falls in the same category as the ignorant buttheads that rush ahead to the elevator when they see me approaching with my double stroller so they can get in before me, not to hold the door for me, but to hurry up and press the door close button so they don't have to share an elevator with me and the girls. Or the people that immediately asked to be moved at the restaurant when they see Brett and I and the girls get seated anywhere in the vicinity of their table. Seriously, what kind of world do we live in?

Daylight Savings Time...Whatever!!!

How is it possible that such a simple act as setting the clock ahead by one teeny, tiny hour can have such a monumental impact on a bedtime routine for two 12-week-old babies! We had finally got the girls into a consistent bedtime routine and bedtime. They would go right to sleep at 7:30pm and not wake up for six hours! Tonight, when I tried to read their bedtime book (Night, Night, Baby) Cupcake screamed the entire time. I probably looked insane trying to read a book to a screaming baby. And you could just forget about the bedtime song. Who could hear me over the blood curdling screams? It really helped when Brett reminded me that I had a pharmacy in my hands and that the babies could pick up on my frustration. Thank you, Honey! Wherever would I be without your highly intelligent and appropriate advice?!?!? My head is throbbing and I think the only thing that could possibly help is a nice hot jacuzzi bath and a large glass of Pinot Noir! See ya!

Cubs v. Yankees

There has been some controversy as to whether I am a Cubs or Yankees fan. Let me be perfectly clear. I bleed Cubbie Blue and that is all I have to say about that! Brett is a huge Yankees fan and I fully support that. However, they have been to the "promised land" more than enough times and I believe it is our turn. In case you are wondering, our girls are already Cubs fans. Example) Cubs tickets went on sale at 10:00am on February 22nd. They slept like little angels throughout the whole sorted affair. I was only able to get two sets of tickets! Thankfully some of my dear friends are season ticket holders and I know they love me and recognize I need to get to more than just two games this season! Now, Yankees tickets went on sale February 29th and the girls refused to sleep and screamed the entire time. We only ended up with one set of tickets! I believe they are telling me without a shadow of a doubt that they are Cubs fans! That's all!

Sleep Deprivation

Brett playing Xbox with the girls and rocking out to Welcome To The Jungle on Guitar Hero!

Nobody could have prepared me for how ABSOLUTELY exhausted I am. Before the girls came, I would drink coffee here and there but now I drink it throughout the entire day! Seriously, Brett and I go to Starbucks so much, they recognize us. On that topic, there is a barista (coffee maker for you coffee rookies) that has a serious crush on Brett. She doesn't even try to hide it when I am with him! He went there the other day and she declared that she had created flavored foam and was going to put it in his drink. Whatever!

Okay, so back to the sleep deprivation. Clearly it hasn't affected Brett at nearly the same level it has affected me. Why you ask? Because I just woke up on the couch drooling (I know, can it get more glamorous?) to find him playing Guitar Hero. Are you kidding me? I woke up the other night in bed with a dirty burp cloth and a bib stuck to my sleep pants and he finds time to play Sweet Child O' Mine at 11:00 at night.

Dinner with the Twins

Prior to having the babies, if Brett and I were hungry and there was nothing in the house to eat (rarely was) we would just jump in the car and get something. Cut to A.T. (After Twins). Tonight, our delectable meal consisted of shredded cheddar cheese melted on Tostito chips dipped in salsa that could have very well been from before the twins arrival (we justified that it was still good because there were no meat products in it so it should take longer to expire). In addition to the delicious nachos we ate frozen chicken nuggets while standing at the kitchen counter. It took us a total of 10 minutes to cook and eat this gourmet meal.

Now the bad part, we were only able to eat this meal because we are horrible parents and put both babies in the bouncers in front of the TV (hey, give us a break, it was Baby Einstein on the TV). At this point, Brett and I are in survival mode. So if one more person comments that they hate me because I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight, I will be glad to invite them over for one day to change 20 diapers, prepare and serve 16 bottles, wash two loads of baby laundry, get two babies dressed only to have them explode all over their fresh clothes, and still find time to eat a decent meal. Cheers!

Old People and Babies

Okay, I know I am behind on my blogs so I am going to add two tonight. Last weekend, Brett, my Mom, and I took the girls to West Lafayette to visit my grandfather at his nursing home. Before I go any further, let me say, I have heard about a thousand comments about the twins from strangers but until last weekend nobody has tried to touch the girls. I was previously warned that this could occur but had never prepared a suitable response in anticipation of it actually happening. Before I continue, here are the comments (in the exact order) we get from people when we bring the girls out:

1.) Are they twins? They are generally dressed exactly alike and in the same carriers but I still don't think this question is as stupid as they get!

2) Boys or Girls? Okay, getting stupider (is that a word?). Anybody who has seen my girls knows that it basically looks like I dipped them and all their belongings in Pepto Bismol. Who would do that do their sons?

3) Do twins run in your family? They do now!

4) Did you have them naturally or c-section? Seriously! Reminder, these are complete strangers asking me this question!

5) Do you breastfeed them both? I can't quite figure out if people ask this because they want to know if I breastfeed versus bottlefeed or if they want to know if I breastfeed them at the same time. I am sure it is the latter.

Comments provided not in the form of a question:
Uh-oh, Double Trouble (I like to think of them as Double Blessings)
Boy, do you have your hands full (Yes, mostly of poopie diapers and bottles of formula)
How do you do it? (Uh, do I have a choice?)

Anyways, back to my original subject. Old People and Babies. So we are at the nursing home and it would appear that senior citizens look at babies and see the Fountain of Youth because they make a bee line for them. Fine, I get it, babies are cute (especially my babies) but these people were like grease lightning. Before I could bat an eye, they grabbed Sweetie Pie's hand. Yes, the hand she has recently discovered and the hand that has taken up permanent residence in her mouth. Ugh, I have no idea where that man's hand has been. I am their Mom and I don't even put my hand in their mouth and I am an insane hand washing freak! Before I could say a word, Brett swooped Sweetie Pie away and immediately began wiping her down with baby wipes and then proceeded to quarantine her from all human contact for the remainder of the day. My hero!!!

Good Friends - The Sequel

On Friday I decided to go out to Indiana with Brett and while he worked hard to make the money, I worked equally as hard to spend it. :) Lindsay and I had lunch at Houlihan's (their Chicken Tortilla soup rocks) and then did some shopping. I know what you are thinking, how could she possibly shop so much? While at Target, Lindsay told me about a dream she had about Laffy Taffy (She's pregnant). She decided to buy some and so I ended up buying some Dove bars. After we left Target, I needed my Starbucks fix. While waiting for my grande non-fat Cinnamon Dolce Latte with whip, Lindsay decided to tear into her Laffy Taffy which of course meant that I needed to tear into my Dove bars. Cut to Lindsay and I at Chase Bank. I get up to sign some paperwork and all I hear is Lindsay laughing so hard I thought she was going to put herself into labor.

So back to my original question...What makes a good friend? A good friend (or cousin) is willing to clean the Dove bar off your butt (that you shouldn't have eaten in the first place) with a Shout Stick. Thanks Linz!

Good Friends

Question: What makes a good friend?

Answer: Today was a great day. I met my friends Tanja and Carrie (and Abby too) for lunch. I had the pleasure of introducing all of them including my girls to PF Chang's. I believe it was a hit...thank you Chang's Lettuce Wraps! After lunch, Carrie and I went shopping. During a quick break (I am soooo sure) to feed and change three babies, I was lucky enough to stick my hand in Sweetie Pie's VERY GREEN poop! So back to my original question...What makes a good friend? A good friend wipes poop off your hand while you are changing your daughter. (Thank you, Kramer!!!) It wasn't the first time I got baby poop on my hands since the girls arrived and I am sure it won't be the last. I can only hope that I will always have a friend there with a diaper wipe locked and loaded!