here's ozzy
and our sweet abel
life doesn't get much better then this!
Saturday, March 31, 2007
smiles galore!
the boys are having a grand time learning their environment and imitating mom and dad, which means they are smiling lots and lots!
here's ozzy
and our sweet abel
life doesn't get much better then this!
here's ozzy
and our sweet abel
life doesn't get much better then this!
Sunday, March 18, 2007
7 weeks old
i can't believe the boys have turned 7 weeks old. they've grown like weeds. they've swapped personalities. they've turned our lives upside down, in a good way. every time we think we know something about them, they change it up on us just to keep us on our toes. gone are the days when these boys just slept and ate!
here are some things that are for sure, though (or at least i think they are): both our boys are incredibly physical. let's just say active is an understatement. and they are active in the scrappy sort of way. they both are holding up their heads almost completely. they both can push from a squat to a standing position when they have your shoulder for support (they do this when we are burping them). they both can lift their heads, shoulders and chest when on their tummies. they are awesome in their car seats and go for errands and appointments with ease. they also hate it when we put them to sleep. they want to be up and part of the action, despite how tired they actually are. good thing their parents know better and enforce nap time pretty strickly. their wake up routines are hilarious and they make some of the most outrageous faces and stretches on earth, which i hope they never outgrow. they also both take after their father, for better and for worse, and are now on zantac for acid reflux. apparantly heartburn runs in the family.
our sweet lil' abel jacob is not so little anymore and is quickly catching up with his brother. he weighed 7lb 11oz last tuesday and is consistently gaining over an once a day. he smiled for the first time yesterday, st. patty's day. he loves having zerberts blown on his tummy and his cheeks tickled. he also is a big fan of the foot massage. he's still a talker and is cooing and yelping more and more every day. he is the ultimate snuggle bunny and really doesn't like being put down (who would!). mom and dad have resorted to wearing the bjorn around the house with him because the swing, the bouncy seat, his crib and the boppy just won't do. he is also a kung fu master, particularly the praying mantis variety, and practices after every feeding. while he doesn't love tummy time and often gets frustrated, he almost crawled the other day (i know parents exaggerate, but i'm not making this up). he was grunting so hard while he was trying, i actually thought he was going to will himself across the mat!
oz man finally busted through the 8 lb mark last weigh-in (8lb 1oz)! he's still a trooper when it comes to less than delightful doctor's visits, etc. and makes everyone believe he is the mellowest baby on earth. little do they know... oskar is very vocal when it comes to his needs. he doesn't just fuss to let you know he wants something - he bursts out in an immediate lip-quivering wail. but he's pretty easy to calm and also to put to sleep, especially in his swing and even in his crib. he loves baths. he's a voracious eater and resembles a barracuda when going in for the boob. taking after his father again, he's losing most of his hair. but you can see very blonde fuzz growing in its place. ozzy has an amazing gymnastics talent already. when jordan swings him up in the air, he can hold his body completely horizontal, straight as a board, for ten seconds! in gymnastics, we call this a planche. you can also call it a superman. his strength even impressed the lactation specialist, who at our last consult proclaimed, "you better get this boy in gymnastics as soon as possible, he's got such strong legs!" when content, oz moves his arms around like he's conducting a symphony or singing an aria. he also has an incredible grip and has grabbed onto things like the leg of the stuffed animal giraffe on his activity mat and won't let go (and does this as i'm lifting him out resulting in the mat getting dragged across the room).
someone said caring for a young baby is kind of like living in the movie "groundhog day." our reality is far from that. every day is a unique adventure we wouldn't miss for the world.
here are some things that are for sure, though (or at least i think they are): both our boys are incredibly physical. let's just say active is an understatement. and they are active in the scrappy sort of way. they both are holding up their heads almost completely. they both can push from a squat to a standing position when they have your shoulder for support (they do this when we are burping them). they both can lift their heads, shoulders and chest when on their tummies. they are awesome in their car seats and go for errands and appointments with ease. they also hate it when we put them to sleep. they want to be up and part of the action, despite how tired they actually are. good thing their parents know better and enforce nap time pretty strickly. their wake up routines are hilarious and they make some of the most outrageous faces and stretches on earth, which i hope they never outgrow. they also both take after their father, for better and for worse, and are now on zantac for acid reflux. apparantly heartburn runs in the family.
 |
| abel jacob |
 |
| oskar herse |
oz man finally busted through the 8 lb mark last weigh-in (8lb 1oz)! he's still a trooper when it comes to less than delightful doctor's visits, etc. and makes everyone believe he is the mellowest baby on earth. little do they know... oskar is very vocal when it comes to his needs. he doesn't just fuss to let you know he wants something - he bursts out in an immediate lip-quivering wail. but he's pretty easy to calm and also to put to sleep, especially in his swing and even in his crib. he loves baths. he's a voracious eater and resembles a barracuda when going in for the boob. taking after his father again, he's losing most of his hair. but you can see very blonde fuzz growing in its place. ozzy has an amazing gymnastics talent already. when jordan swings him up in the air, he can hold his body completely horizontal, straight as a board, for ten seconds! in gymnastics, we call this a planche. you can also call it a superman. his strength even impressed the lactation specialist, who at our last consult proclaimed, "you better get this boy in gymnastics as soon as possible, he's got such strong legs!" when content, oz moves his arms around like he's conducting a symphony or singing an aria. he also has an incredible grip and has grabbed onto things like the leg of the stuffed animal giraffe on his activity mat and won't let go (and does this as i'm lifting him out resulting in the mat getting dragged across the room).
someone said caring for a young baby is kind of like living in the movie "groundhog day." our reality is far from that. every day is a unique adventure we wouldn't miss for the world.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Thursday, March 08, 2007
boobie monologues
i had this idealistic notion about breastfeeding while i was pregnant. i thought it would be this serene, beautiful, as-nature-intended action. and while nursing two would add a second dimension to it, what would stop me from tandem nursing?
the reality of breastfeeding, for me, has been a shot in the arm. albeit i sit here today, at 5.5 weeks post silverboys birthday, able to tandem nurse at every feeding and provide the boys mom's milk exclusively. but i'll tell you this, it hasn't been a walk in the park.
because the boys were technically born as preemies just shy of 36 weeks, they lacked the strong sucking motion of a full-term babe. they could still nurse, and did from day 1, they just weren't stimulating my milk to come in. so i pumped. and pumped. 8-10 times a day to replicate what a strong nursing baby would feel like. but no milk came in. after 7 days of no milk, i started getting desperate thinking i wouldn't be able to breastfeed the boys. it was a rollercoaster i care not to repeat. i talked to lactation specialists, our doula, and wonderful friends who assured me life would go on and our boys would be perfectly healthy if we had to formula feed them. of course, all the books you read say that any normally functioning woman can produce enough milk for their babies. i have grown to be disenchanted with this kind of dogma. i started to feel like a failure.
it wasn't until the boys 2 week birthday that my milk came in. i don't know what did it - maybe all the herbal lactation tinctures and teas? all the pumping? nursing the boys even though they were barely getting anything (and trust me, they were frustrated to suck on a boob with no gratification!)? whatever it was, my prayers were answered.
since then, it's been a journey to teach the boys to be better nursers. with the help of silicone nipple shields, it's become a lot easier. at our last lactation appt. we discovered i had a fast "let down," which means when the boys start sucking, the milk comes out really fast at first. i went from no milk, to too much milk, and it was overwhelming to the boys. the shields help them control how much milk they take in, similar to a bottle nipple. last week we achieved tandem nursing (both of them "on" at the same time), and we are now starting to ween them off their supplemental bottle (they've been each getting about an once of pumped milk as part of their feed). i'm also weening myself from this foresaken pump, as i've been cleared to transition to pumping every other feeding (down from EVERY feed!). in some ways, it feels like i'm going through a separation and divorce! of course, weening the boys from their supplement means possibly more nursing sessions per day, but i'm willing to give it a try.
along the way i've experienced lots of tenderness, plugged ducts, tons of frustration and heart ache, but ultimate success. it hasn't been easy, i've felt like quitting, but i'm really pround of myself and boys for sticking with it. i've also learned that what i experienced isn't the most uncommon thing in the world, especially for preemie babies. thanks to the amazing support of our hospital's lactation department, where i've received FREE consultations (as many as i need/want), and the support of my family and friends, i've been able to do this. i've also realized that while it's awesome to be able to nurse our boys and give them this nutrition, it's not the end-all-be-all that some folks make it out to be. you ultimately need to do what works for you and your family.
p.s. i was pumping the whole time i wrote this thanks to my porno tube top (aka hands-free pumping bra)!
the reality of breastfeeding, for me, has been a shot in the arm. albeit i sit here today, at 5.5 weeks post silverboys birthday, able to tandem nurse at every feeding and provide the boys mom's milk exclusively. but i'll tell you this, it hasn't been a walk in the park.
because the boys were technically born as preemies just shy of 36 weeks, they lacked the strong sucking motion of a full-term babe. they could still nurse, and did from day 1, they just weren't stimulating my milk to come in. so i pumped. and pumped. 8-10 times a day to replicate what a strong nursing baby would feel like. but no milk came in. after 7 days of no milk, i started getting desperate thinking i wouldn't be able to breastfeed the boys. it was a rollercoaster i care not to repeat. i talked to lactation specialists, our doula, and wonderful friends who assured me life would go on and our boys would be perfectly healthy if we had to formula feed them. of course, all the books you read say that any normally functioning woman can produce enough milk for their babies. i have grown to be disenchanted with this kind of dogma. i started to feel like a failure.
it wasn't until the boys 2 week birthday that my milk came in. i don't know what did it - maybe all the herbal lactation tinctures and teas? all the pumping? nursing the boys even though they were barely getting anything (and trust me, they were frustrated to suck on a boob with no gratification!)? whatever it was, my prayers were answered.
since then, it's been a journey to teach the boys to be better nursers. with the help of silicone nipple shields, it's become a lot easier. at our last lactation appt. we discovered i had a fast "let down," which means when the boys start sucking, the milk comes out really fast at first. i went from no milk, to too much milk, and it was overwhelming to the boys. the shields help them control how much milk they take in, similar to a bottle nipple. last week we achieved tandem nursing (both of them "on" at the same time), and we are now starting to ween them off their supplemental bottle (they've been each getting about an once of pumped milk as part of their feed). i'm also weening myself from this foresaken pump, as i've been cleared to transition to pumping every other feeding (down from EVERY feed!). in some ways, it feels like i'm going through a separation and divorce! of course, weening the boys from their supplement means possibly more nursing sessions per day, but i'm willing to give it a try.
along the way i've experienced lots of tenderness, plugged ducts, tons of frustration and heart ache, but ultimate success. it hasn't been easy, i've felt like quitting, but i'm really pround of myself and boys for sticking with it. i've also learned that what i experienced isn't the most uncommon thing in the world, especially for preemie babies. thanks to the amazing support of our hospital's lactation department, where i've received FREE consultations (as many as i need/want), and the support of my family and friends, i've been able to do this. i've also realized that while it's awesome to be able to nurse our boys and give them this nutrition, it's not the end-all-be-all that some folks make it out to be. you ultimately need to do what works for you and your family.
p.s. i was pumping the whole time i wrote this thanks to my porno tube top (aka hands-free pumping bra)!
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
hangin' in our radio flyer
the mohrlein-anderberg clan got the boys the ultimate lil' boys accessory! we can't wait to wheel them around in their wagon, especially in the 4th of july parade...hooray!
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| abel in grey; oz in white |
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| a |
Monday, March 05, 2007
too much love
it's hard to imagine life without these guys. we stare at them for hours, kiss them more times in a day then we've ever kissed anything our entire lives, and take in their smell as if it were our last breath. my mother-in-law says they're delicious. i agree - i want to gobble them up every day!
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| ozzy's sensitive-man portrait |
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ozzy showing off his double chin and receding hair line (left) and aj plotting to take over the world
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| aj in surprise and delight |
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