The babies are now 9 months old. The last month has been great. Schools out and life is crazy, but the babies adapt so well to our crazy schedule.
Annika is just a bitty baby. She weighs 14 lbs 3 oz. and is 26 3/4 inches. Because Annika is so small the nurse practitioner told me to try to give her a lot of extra calories. She specifically mentioned putting butter on the vegetables I fix for Annika. I was a little surprised because usually the recommendations are to avoid a lot of the extra sweets and salty foods. I'm not the type to give sweets or fattening things like chips or french fries to my babies. Before the first birthday a graham cracker is as sweet as it gets around here. Annika eats well and is willing to try most new things. She may be small, but I don't think she looks malnourished by any means. Aside from being a little small Annika is perfect. She is so sweet. She didn't feel well a few days ago and she was more snuggly which was nice because usually she is on the go and doesn't want to stop to snuggle. She is crawling all over. If she gets lonely, sad, hungry, etc, she usually crawls out to the kitchen looking for me. If she can't find me there she just sits there crying until I find her. This usually happens when I'm up stairs. She is up to 7 teeth and isn't afraid to use them if you stick a finger or any body part close enough to her mouth! She is sleeping so well at night. She'll occasionally wake up at night and cry, but will go back to sleep. Sometimes she will get up early...5:30 a.m... if she has slept too long the previous day. She basically sleeps an hour and 15 minutes in the morning and again in the afternoon. I time the naps so they don't sleep too long during the day. I would rather have them up in the day time than up in the night! We love to make her laugh. She has a great giggle.
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| Annika playing goalie. |
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| On the move. She was tired of being goalie. |
Lincoln is such a sweet sensitive boy. Annika is fierce and feisty and Lincoln is tender and sensitive. He just puts up with rough treatment from Annika. He'll fight back eventually, but for now he just cried when she steals his pacifier. Lincoln weighs 16 lbs. 3 oz. and is 26 3/4 inches long. Lincoln has a small mass on his back which isn't normal. The doctors want to get it evaluated so we are waiting to hear what we will have to do. I have a feeling it will mean driving to downtown Syracuse to visit the Children's Hospital. He sleeps great at night. I rarely hear him cry at night. As with Annika as long as he sleeps less than 3 hours the previous day he usually gets up between 6 and 6:45. Those are times I can live with. He isn't moving nearly as much as Annika, but he is rolling over more. He usually just likes to cry and wait for someone to come pick him up. He is eating well and usually comes around to new flavors. He was given the green light to have butter on his veggies too. He is small for a boy, but doesn't look malnourished by any means. I think both babies were below the 3rd percentile for their age. Lincoln loves to snuggle and have me hold him. Things do get tricky when Lincoln and Annika want me to hold them at the same time, but it's manageable. He loves to be vocal and hear people sing. He will usually join in the singing. He loves to cheer. Here is a sweet picture of him cheering.
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| Patriotic for the 4th of July. |
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| Kimball and the babies. |
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| All four of my kids. Love them! |
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| Check out those blue eyes! |
I came home from running a quick errand and found everyone in the family room expect Lincoln. When I asked about him I was told he was in the living room alone. I went in there and he had fallen asleep. I guess it was nap time.
We recently went to the park with some friends. These friends just so happen to be twins so my friend told me how to put the babies in the same swing so they could both have a ride. It pays to be friends with parents of twins. The babies don't like keeping their hats on, but I finally managed to get them distracted long enough for them to forget that they were wearing hats.
Annika likes to scrunch up her nose when she smiles. She is so funny.
More cheering!! This is Lincoln's favorite pose! He LOVES to raise his hands up and cheer. We will do it back to him and it makes him cheer even more.
