Wednesday, April 28, 2010

6 month & 2 year/5 month Updates

Here are recent updates on the boys.

Corbin is having a small language explosion. He is coming up with sentences out of the blue finally, without being prompted. It's not finely tuned yet, but he's getting there.

We are working on a few things with him. First and foremost, we are working on getting him to have a more diverse palate. So, we serve him what we are having for dinner, along with one or two items that we know he will eat. It is going well. He has tried a freeze dried green bean, a baby carrot, and grilled turkey and cheese sandwiches in the past week. Here is photographic evidence of the green bean awakening:

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He has also been whining for what he wants at times instead of asking for them. I think that he is regressing because he sees the babies crying & then I tend to them. So, he expects the same. Today, I held my ground & coached him along & it went much better. He asked for a drink, to go downstairs & for specific foods when he needed/wanted them.

He continues to love letters and numbers. He can count to 100, but only under very specific circumstances. He has to see the numbers in front of him. We use the back cover of the Chicka Chicka 1-2-3 book & he points to them as he says them. Sometimes, he gets lazy, though, and when he gets into a sequence, he will start cutting them short. Here is an example: "59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 69...70!"

Here he is on an average day, organizing letters:

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Now, on to the twins!

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They had their 6 month appointments last Friday. The pediatrician said she is no longer worried about their physical development. She was concerned on previous visits about Jamie's muscle tone being slightly weak. but, no more! She said he is strong & will probably be the first to sit independently.

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Cameron weighs 14 lbs 10 oz and is 25 inches long. He is mostly in the 25th percentile. His head circumference is 17 1/2". He is growing along his curve just like he should be.

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Jameson is 16 lbs 6 oz and is 26 inches long. He is 25th to 50th percentile. His head circumference is 17 1/4". We were surprised to hear that his head was smaller than Cam's. Since he has the rounder face, it gives the illusion that his head is larger, but that is not so.

Jamie got his 4th tooth (the second central incisor on the top)a couple of days ago. So, even though his brother was the one born with the natal tooth, he has sprouted them more quickly since birth.

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We are working on getting them out of our bed at night when they wake up. It isn't easy, because we tend to feed them in our sleep, so we kind of forget.

Jamie has slept through the night for the past 4 nights. Cameron is still waking twice. It has been nice to have fewer wake-ups at night. Can't wait for the day when Cameron doesn't need the wake-ups anymore. Right now, he still will down a good 8-10 oz overnight.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

A Day In the Life of Team Kranz!

We did this for Corbin when he was about 5 months old, so we thought we should be fair and make one for the twins, too. It is exhaustive, but it is what it is. There are 3 kids to document now, so it's naturally much longer.

I woke up this morning at 6:30. The first thing I do every morning, is head for the coffee!

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Then, I had one of my very last pumping sessions. I thought I would take a pic of it, because we have been through a lot of months (11 with Corbin & 6 with the twins) together. It is stuffed with my nursing cover & decorated with a photo of Corbin when he was a baby.

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First stirrings were around 7 AM, which is right on schedule. Corbin is up!

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He thought it was hilarious that I entered his room with a camera!

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Diaper change time, first thing!

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I've decided to make some changes to our mealtimes. I want to start steering away from the baby/toddler plates & bowls. I also wanted Corbin to start getting used to cereal in a bowl. His favorite snack indulgence is Chocolate Cheerios, so I thought I had the best chance of this working if I used them.

He ate the Cheerios all right, but he picked them up with his fingers- even after I showed him.

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So, since that was a fail, I made him some toast & a healthshake (fruits, yogurt, etc.) & he ate that up.

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I get the babies' breakfast ready. They had last eaten a couple of hours ago overnight, so I am going to let them go straight to solids this morning. They are having pears & oatmeal.

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Corbin sneaks in a hug for Lula

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At this point, I need to leave for the race in a half an hour or so, so I have to go into our room & wake all of the boys up. Yes, they are all in our room. Jamie was brought into bed around 4-ish & about that same time, I kicked Cameron out of the bed & placed him in the swing next to the bed.

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"I'm up!"

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A little slower to wake...

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After a diaper & clothing change, Cameron gets ready for breakfast!

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I just took this to show off the rhino on the bum

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This is how we feed them- we angle their chairs & get right in the middle. They take turns bite for bite

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Jon finishes up feeding them while I get my running gear on

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Me, pre-race for the Hoover Hustle 10K. My time was 59:00

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This is how we position all of the carseats in the minivan

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I met up with the boys after the race. They were at a park I could walk to. Here is Corbin eating some of a post-race banana as a snack.

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We went on a little walk on a path that branched off from the park

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Not a mommy-approved move

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Even though Jon had fed & changed them while I was racing, they started to get fussy on the way home, so we pulled into a Kroger parking lot & gave everyone a quick snack.

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The babies start to snooze. It is about 11 AM, so we decide to loop 270 while Jon & I eat our lunch. So, we grab something we can eat in the car!

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Veggie sub w/ salt, pepper & vinegar

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Here we go, outerbelt, here we go!

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We get home at noon. The babies have napped & everyone is hungry.

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The babies get avocado

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Jamie's favorite!

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"Gimme that!"

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Jamie plays, while Cam finishes up

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While the babies play in their exersaucer and jumperoo, Mommy does the bottles & Daddy helps with the diaper-stuffing

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Corbin goes down for a nap, so we get to play with the babies

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Jamie's teeth are really bothering him today :(

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Corbin's up!

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We get the twins ready to go to the mall, so we set Corbin up with some shape & color flashcards

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It's a clear sunny day- beautiful at the mall today!

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We had our first Build-A-Bear experience today. We got Scruffy the Dog. Corbin wasn't too into it, so we don't have any happy pics at the store. Here, Scruffy gets his first bath.

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One of Corbin's favorite things to do is to watch the trains

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The spray fountains were on today!

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Both twins napped at the mall. Here is Cameron, just waking up

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A sign of spring, if ever I saw one

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Then I ran into Kohl's to get a swimsuit. While I was in there, they got a quick bite.

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We got home around 6 PM, so I have to pull a Rachael Ray. I found some honey, mustard & pork.

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Everyone plays for a bit while I make dinner

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Dinner turns out okay

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Corbin is not a fan

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The babies take a bath

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Final bottles of the day

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Corbin plays in the playroom while we put the babies to bed

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On our way up to bed, Corbin asks for a yogurt. Since he didn't eat dinner very well, we oblige. Here, he gets a little tickle.

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During his bath, he seeks & finds letters to make words or spell out the alphabet

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We sing the "Brush Your Teeth" song. Someone's tired!

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Tonight, we are reading his current favorites, "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" and "Chicka Chicka 1-2-3."

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We give our new friend Scruffy a hug

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After we read, we sing "Wheels on the Bus" and "Twinkle Twinkle," with a little light glowing from the Twilight Turtle.

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Goodnight, all!

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