Like I said...never a dull moment

Just when we thought we got through sickies with flying colors, IIIIIIII get a horrible evil stomach virus! UUUGGHH I'll spare you the yucky details but it wasn't pretty and it involved the porcelain god & the bathroom floor. And no, I wish it was a hangover! Somehow some evil virus caught me on the subways of NYC (this is my story & I'm sticking to it). I was visiting clients on Monday fine & healthy as a fiddle. Come Tuesday morning all hell broke lose. I had to call poor J from work to come save me because I swore I was on my death bed. And I wanted to give him special instructions about raising my girls :)

Anyhow 2 days on liquids and I'm 3lbs lighter. I guess something good can come out of misery. Well the drama doesn't end there. The next day the peanuts dad also got a whiff of my evil virus and while it hasn't actually knocked him down it sure has scarred him, in more ways then one. He's a trooper though, unlike me. And it's like I've always said, he has an iron clad stomach while I can become deathly ill over a day old milk. It's actually incredible how this man can eat a week old fish & walk away feeling nothing but a little gassy! I just don't get it.

The silver lining here is that the girls have NOT gotten it. And I am praying to everything that's holy that they don't. I don't think I could live through that!! I can only imagine what it could do to them after what's happened to me.

So word to the wise...thoroughly sterlize yourself after visiting bacteria ridden subways! (Sorry New Yorkers) And properly wash your hands as often as possible & Lysol everything in sight as often as possible. Yes, for those of you that aren't aware, I'm the epitome of OCD and I've throughly washed down the girl's playroom, nursery, toys, blankets, exersaucers, plush toys, you name it...it's hit the washing machine or the can of Lysol.

Sorry...no pics! I don't think you'd want any related to this post.


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Never A Dull Moment

What a week it's been and here we go with the start of another week! No wonder why I'm so exhausted, we are just non-stop every day.

For those that keep track (me & J) ha ha! The girls had their pediatrician check up. This is always fun for us because we take bets on how much the girls have grown weight & length & we also have a chance to brag to our doc about what wonderful & exciting things our girls are doing. And he doesn't get that glazed over look like most people who are just tired of hearing of the prodigies we're raising :) The doc is actually listening intently and offering advice and taking copious notes on my children's development. OR he could just be writing his grocery list but nevertheless he indulges us and allows us to give him a detailed update. They seem to be tracking the same length wise where Val seemed to have the advantage here by 1/4 inch. But Cati still outweighs Val by about 1/2 lb which has been the case since they were born.


Catalina is weighing in at 16lbs 12 oz and 28 inches
Cati is liking her new found freedom and attempts to move everywhere she can BY HERSELF. She refuses any help from us. As shown here....



I'll take this toy...Val clearly you're not fast enough!



Then I'm going to turn around & see what's good over here...


Oh look! Another cute toy....yup this one is mine too!

Valentina is weighing in at 16lbs 8oz and 28 inches
Val is not so interested in roaming the world on her belly. She much prefers to be on her bottom enjoying the view from her spot. And when placed on her belly, the girl refuses to move! As shown here.....



Hey mom...can you help a sister out over here!!



Uh where's the toy???...Cati came & went & there's no sign her OR the toy!

However if you stand her up like a dignified person she's happy for you to assist her!



Make sure I don't fall mom..okay.

In case you're wondering, they are playing in their finest threads because we celebrated baby David's baptism. Cati & Val's little cousin. I haven't gotten pics of him yet but stay tuned..

Since the weather was SO NICE we got away with wearing our frilly girly stuff today without any fear that we would freeze to death. The cute shoes didn't make it though so forgive us for the primitive look ;)





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TOUCHDOWN!! We made it...

Well we weathered the sicknesses and I survived the whole thing. This is a shocker because I honestly thought I was going to lose it there for a minute. There's some lingering stuffiness but all seems to be well since we are ALL (even the pooches) now sleeping through the night. YAY!!





I got a hint that the girls were on the up & up when Superbowl Sunday arrived and they were on their best behavior with our guests despite not feeling 100%. J managed a smile or two himself and was a suitable host.








You see, Superbowl Sunday has been a tradition in our house for the last 6 years (as quoted by J) and we just COULDN'T cancel this year. So we forged ahead with the plans & everyone had a good time even me!

And yes my girls were wearing their GREEN JETS shirts. In hopes that ONE day maybe even in their lifetime we might witness a GREEN superbowl :)



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Sick and Sicker

As a mom of multiples I should have expected this would come down on me one day. I have to admit that I was praying that the good Lord would spare me this experience until the girls were at least able to talk...no such luck!

Ah well here we are in peanuts' infirmary. BLEH! That pretty much sums up how everyone feels including Jorge. The universe has a way of making sure we all survive what's infront of us so I, of course, have managed to stay healthy throughout this ordeal. I saw hints of this on Monday & I was trying to convince myself the girls were just a little congested probably because of the heat in the house. It's okay to laugh you veteran parents :) Hey one can hope, right?! It all went inevitably down hill. FULL BLOWN COLD for both babies!

So here's one sick baby....

And here's sick baby #2...


And tired dog...

Sick & Sicker = tired mom. I haven't slept much in the last 2 days as the cough & sniffles have goten worse through the night. Let's be honest, I don't sleep much as it is since the peanuts were born but THIS is really just cruel & unusual punishment. My only consolation & light at the end of tunnel is, I'm sure Kate Gosseling (Jon & Kate +8 on TLC Monday nights!..who's a fan??) survived something similar with sextuplets with no outside help & just her husband to get her through it. So that's the inspiration I need to get through this. Unfortunately the girls' pediatrician was no help since there isn't anything you can give babies their age to help with the symptoms. We've been left with old school wisdom on this one...Vicks Vapor Rub, humidifier, and dash of modern medicine which includes saline up your nose (eewwww!) and the good 'ol hospital provided nose aspirator. Jorge still can't figure this one out so we just call it the "boogie thing" around our house.

We take turns comforting a baby that requires immediate adult cuddling...




A good toy, that would otherwise be off limits, also comes in handy when someone is experiencing separation anxiety..


I know you're probably thinking that toy is dangerous in her mouth. But right about now it's all about survival my friends.

Well Dr. Mom is on call so off I go into battle. Wish me luck!

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8 months!

Along with the celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Day we celebrated the girls 8 months of life. I won't get into the whole rant of the time flying by but you can see for yourself. I can hardly keep up with this blog!



Unlike their other monthly milestones Jorge & I got to spend the day at home with them to celebrate their 8 months. At this point the girls are still scooting around on their bellies and use their arms on occasion to move around. They love flipping over, not on the floor, but on the changing table when you need them to stay still & face up. For some reason they use their diaper changes to explore all the small things around them. They sit up on their own pretty well on their own now. So much that, the girls have decided life on their bottoms are MUCH better then lying around on your back. They really enjoy their excersaucer & this little walker that rolls around an activity table...the smile on their faces tells it all. Independence!




This month we introudced Cati & Val to the big girl tub. They enjoy bath time much more now that they can play with toys and sit up on their own & they can also play with each other err take toys from each other. YIKES!

Food-wise..the world is their oyster! But no big chunks mom! They eat a wide array of foods so long as the chunks are not too big or stringy. Go figure, already they're developing their preferences.

Here they're eating french fries. Before you cringe at what I'm subjecting my children to please note that these are organic & baked not fried. Clearly Cati preferred to play with her wiggly fries...and Val (no surprise) decided good food should not be wasted as you can barely see the fry in her hand & in her mouth!
Never a dull moment.

Cati & her fry guy!


Val making sure no one comes to take her fry!
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Val Says Mama...err something like it!

I finally heard it for myself after never ending days of DA DA DA & PA PA PA those lovely sounds that every mother longs to hear from the mouths of babes, MA MA MA My dear sweet Valentina has decided to wrap her mom around her little finger by saying those lovely words. Please allow me to indulge myself. Of course I know she has no idea what she's saying. But part of my likes the idea that my daughter is calling me for once. As well as the ability to finally see the smirk on Jorge's face melt when his daughter now calls MEEEEE her mother. The person who's at her beckon call day and night.

I always did share a different bond with Val. You see my little peanut was the smallest of the two. She was only 4lbs when she was born. And she had a very special place in my belly. A spot that caused days upon days of painful agony! Val was a breech baby laterally positioned towards the right side of my belly. You could literally see a large round bulge the size of a grapefruit stick out of my right side near my armpit. I really thought one day she would actually crack one of my ribs that's how bad the pain was. She was so wedged in there in fact that when they were trying to deliver her they had to kind of scoot her down similar to when you're trying to get the last of the toothpaste in the tube. Yes, just like that! They couldn't even turn her around to get her out head first so she was delivered breech. Her birth was pretty incredible because of how long it took to get her out of the small nook she created for herself in my womb. Throughout my pregnancy there was never any doubt when she moved & when she stayed perfectly still. I guess this was her way of say thanks mom for all you went through with me...aahhh. At least in my mind. All that to say my little girl can say "ma ma" :)

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Trying to catch up!

The holidays came & went and once again I feel like the rat race or the parent's race is upon us. Everyday there's projects, errands, chores, etc. to catch up on. When do we find time to blog & update our "History Book" I've developed here. The girls are quickly approaching 8 months & this month is no different then the others with developments, milestones, new worries, and yes, even more things to do!

Valentina surprised us this month by deciding she was going to be more vocal. Like most constantly worried, over protective, new parent Jorge & I were wondering what was "wrong" with her? We couldn't figure out why Catalina's speech was flourishing with new consonants including da da & pa pa & ba ba and Val was just sitting there just observing her sister in all her vocal glory. One night after considering bringing the topic with her pediatrician OUT came the noises & sounds of Val's mouth. I'm sure any veteran parent will say "I told you so" on this one but I'm new at this so please bear with me. I'm sure this will happen over & over & over again. My new worry is that Catalina seems like she want to start crawling when placed on her belly while Val seems to screech at the very thought of you placing her anywhere near her belly! She's quite happy to have mastered sitting on her own & she will contently watch her sister struggle with trying to become mobile.
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