Survived Minneapolis, 8.5 months

Flying with two 8 and a half month olds, with stopovers between 2, 1.5 hour flights. Not too difficult you would think. Lets just say draining and it took a couple of days of the following week to recover :). The flights themselves were okay, it was more the time change and lack of sleep at night with the change in sleeping environments for Sol and Safiya that wiped me out. I think the next time we travel for a conference I'll only go if Shammy doesn't "attend" the conference all day as it just makes things a little less full-on during the day.

I discovered Sol and Safiya only like my home cooking, anything bought was not up to their standards besides a spinach, mushroom curry I picked up from a take away :).

On the Sunday I managed to get out and have a look along the riverside, stone arch bridge and the local museums with the bubs. They were very well behaved and seemed to enjoy the german dancing on display. I also wandered across some farmer's markets so I got to try some local vegetable empanadas, yum!

I think Minneapolis would definitely be a summer city, not a place to be venturing to in the winter months, coming back to Allentown afterwards it felt so warm in comparison.

Sol and Safiya are both crawling well now and are now standing up on any piece of furniture, leg, object they can get their hands on. Safiya seems the more courageous of the two and because of this has had her fair share of mishaps. Sol is not happy just to stand still but wants to bop around or have you walk him everywhere. A lot of sounds are coming out their mouths but nothing really sensible yet. They are starting to understand basic commands though and certainly know when Mummy wants them to be nice and share rather than grab each others toys out of their hands. There is never a dull moment.

Wet weather

So the last couple of weeks have been pretty wet with some Hurricanes off the east coast having the area on constant flood warnings. Hurricane Irene caused a lot of power cuts, luckily not for us, and a lot of local flooding. Some people are just getting power in our area now and that is 2 weeks later. There has been more rain this week with Hurricane Katia and another tropical depression in the area, which is making driving conditions to Hershey interesting for Shammy. We also have the relay marathon this weekend so it could be an interesting and very muddy one, hoping it stops raining on the day so at least the bubs can come out and enjoy also.

With the wet weather we have been having some fun indoor days, hence the spaghetti fun and I think its time to buy a few indoor play mats before the carpets here are annihilated :).

Sol and Safiya are really getting more mobile now which is making things very interesting, hence the cots have been lowered and the gates are up high as they are grabbing onto everything and using things to stand up. Safiya in particular is enjoying sitting up in her cot and I find it most amusing walking into the bedroom to see if she has gone to sleep to find her sitting up smiling at me.

Its time to install safety measures as I'm quickly realising already I am finding them in some interesting places and once they start crawling there will be no controlling them. They also seem to like tugging on our pants now to let us know they want to be picked up.

I think the term "silence is deadly" is most appropriate as you can be sure they are up to something they shouldn't be!

In a couple of weeks we are all off for our first plane flight together to Minneapolis for a conference Shammy has. I'm as excited as always to see a new place and hopefully this will the start of some more exploring for us.

Just when you think you have it figured out it all changes :)

Hmmm how do think this works Sol

Nothing could be truer when it comes to babies. These two definitely keep me on my toes. I guess when you think about it their growth is so rapid its not surprising that change is happening so quickly.

It seems another tooth is on the way for each of them and combine that with a little too much stimulation at the picnic this afternoon and not enough nap time and it equals a good hour to get them both to bed when normally they both go straight down. Of course one would just about drop off and then the other would wake them up again, it certainly made for an interesting skype conversation with Lee-Anne.

Safiya is sitting by herself now, but I put a bean bag behind to stop the occasional fall, Sol hasn't quite got there yet, very close, but maybe its that little bum holding him back :). He is however constantly in crawl position but hasn't quite worked out how to go forward yet. Safiya also seems to like her hand and knees at the moment.

I seem to be getting into a nice routine, only thrown out by lack of sleep or should I say more than the usual lack of sleep. They are both still loving their swim time and today Shammy and I took them for our first family run together.

They both were quite happy in the stroller and seemed to like Shammy's pace, even though they had to stop and start a few times while they waited for Mummy. We are doing the relay marathon again this year and it has been a good motivation for me to get back into running again.

a new water and food proof mat, lets check it out

Its also been nice to have Shammy around more on the weekends as last year it was practically every 2nd weekend plus at least one week night he was working. Having said that he is on call tonight :).

They are both so much fun though, and smile so much we love just spending time with them and every day brings another laugh.

We love you Nanny!

Well it was with a few tears from everyone, Sol and Safiya included, that we said goodbye to Nanny this morning. We have loved having her here so much and Sol and Safiya always had big smiles for Nanny and I know have already gained so much from being with her for the last 6 months.

Shameer and I feel very lucky to have had sooo much help and another friend to share our life with.

We are staying positive though and it will be good for Shammy and I to make our own way through the ups and downs of parenthood, with lots of laughter and I'm sure a few tears along the way. I'm crossing my fingers that they give us a good respite at night time so that we are fresh and ready for the new day :).

They are both pretty happy bubs and are developing little personalities and love their food. Safiya has decided that crying is pointless to get what you want, why not let out a big screech instead :). Sol meanwhile will give her a look like what is that all about and continue playing happily by himself.

They are getting better at sitting but still need support around them and seem to be developing some crawl like motion even if on Sol's part it ends up in a head plant on the ground.

We have Miss Aleesha lined up to cover the 2 mornings I work a week and then a couple of hours on another morning to give me some time out. I'm also planning in enrolling them at the creche at the gym so that they can have some fun playing somewhere different and I can get my exercise in.

We have been making the most of summer with lots of walks at the Lehigh valley parkway and we are now taking the bubs to the pool to have a splash along with us. I'm happy to report that they seem to enjoy this.

With Mum's departure, Shammy has also finished his first year of fellowship, YEY, so hopefully we will be seeing more of him at home. He has an away rotation coming up at Hershey and we will have to work out if this means some exploring at the end of the week for the rest of the family also.

The first 6 months with the twins has been a whirlwind and we look forward to beginning a new stage together and are already looking forward to seeing Nanny in Macungie next Autumn! Safe journey Nanny and give all our cousins in Australia big hugs and kisses and even those that are due soon :)

Finger lakes

Watkins Glen

Since we have had Sol and Safiya we haven't had the chance to go away together for any prolonged period so a week away together was enjoyed by all and Sol and Safiya loved all the attention.
We stayed in a 3 bedroom cottage looking over Lake Cayuga. An early morning fog would sit over the lake and 5am starts never felt so bad with the morning sun winking through.
They also provided us with a couple of mountain bikes and my arse still feels a bit tender. An ideal area to cycle around with rolling farmland and vineyards between each lake, but even one rolling hill was enough for me particularly with a bike half the size it needed to be, Shammy didn't seem to have the same problem.

Tuchannock falls

Looks like Papa and Mummy are having a good time, not sure about bubs

We Enjoyed some really nice walks with Watkins Glen being the most spectacular with 19 waterfalls. The nearby town of Ithaca had quite an alternative feel and Cornell University sits prestigiously on the hill overlooking the lake.

A good time was had by all and there were plenty of laughs along the way :)

1st Mother's day

Shammy asked me when mother's day was and I thought thats right we better keep that in mind for Mum and then it dawned on me, thats right I get to celebrate as well, yay, although my 4 months don't come anywhere near that of Mum. Every day I am so thankful that I have such an amazing, loving, supportive mother!
We headed to Hawk Mountain for Mother's day for some fresh air and some mountain views, the outing was so refreshing and the day could not have been better.

Yesterday I was reminded again of what a caring husband and amazing Mum I have. I think I got some food poisoning - thanks coleslaw - which completely put me out of action for 24 hours and thanks to these special people everything kept on ticking in the household, and zofran tablets arrived via Shammy's prescription and transport. Sol and Safiya were none the wiser it was Mummy who missed picking up her little munchkins for the day.
We are all heading off to the finger lakes district next week for a much deserved chill out in an area of lakes, waterfalls and wineries.
I am also happy to report that the book Baby whisperer is proving to be successful, they are sleeping through the night, generally only waking up once for reassurance. Daytime also seems to be getting into a nice pattern and Miss Aleesha seems like she will be a success.

Spring is here

4 months and still able to fit their duckie outfits

Spring is definitely upon us, and with its arrival our daily outings to the park have begun. It is the highlight of our day and gives everyone some fresh air. This routine seems to be getting Sol and Safiya used to the stroller but its a pity their Mummy hasn't quite mastered the art of missing the goose poo.

My big achievement last week was to find an energetic, friendly babysitter which will be essential once Mum leaves. She will be working one morning a week while Mum is here, then 2 once Mum leaves and is flexible to work another complete day for us if I start back at Discover. So hopefully Miss Aleesha will work out well for us. Our gym has a creche so I will also be making the most of this once my period of being spoiled is over.
The 4 hour work stint gives me a change of scene and some 'quiet time' without completely exhausting me and I look forward to heading home for the afternoon spent with Mum and the twins.
Shammy is still working hard in his first year fellowship and I know the highlight of his long days is seeing his little munchkins, even if it is just to gaze upon them while they are asleep or catch a quick good morning banter session.
They are definitely showing recognition of all of us now and starting to notice each other and this is just adorable to watch.

Our next big goal is to have them sleeping through the night and to this end we are trying out a book called the baby whisperer by Tracy Hogg, that Mum picked up from the library. Last night was our first trial of it and if it was anything to go by it might actually work :). After a dream feed at 10pm for Sol and Safiya with a bit of reassuring and patting around 3am they managed to sleep through til 6am, big smiles alround if this works. It even tweaks the routine we have through the day a bit and at the moment both babies are down for nap time even if Sol required a few pick-ups and put-downs a couple of minutes ago he seems to be happily sleeping again, aah the bliss of silence!

I will update you on its success, if it works which I have a sneaking suspicion it might I will probably be very annoying and pushing it at anyone who is expecting a baby soon so watch out :)

Yes Mum we are ready for our afternoon at the park