I have moved!

Just to let anyone who reads my blog know, I have moved to another site. We are now located at Team Gillis on wordpress. I wasn't happy about moving because I know how this site works, but thanks to work firewalls, I had to switch.

Please come visit over there and change your bookmarks!

Happy Big 0 - 1, Boys!

As of 9:34 and 9:37AM, by baby boys have officially turned 1. I cannot comprehend that this day is here, and not only is it here, but it came flying at about 1,000 miles per hour! Yet, at the same time, I find it hard to remember life before the boys...like they've always been meant to be here and their arrival was just another jig saw piece put into the puzzle. It's amazing how much love you can have for two little beings that have existed just barely a year!

I plan on posting a year in pictures later, so stay tuned for that...but for now, here is some photos of the boys enjoying their big birthday party last Saturday. It was a fun bash in which over 30 friends and family came to celebrate with Team Gillis, who absolutely adored all the attention (and the food!) :) Please take special note of my cupcakes...again, one of my many great ideas that aren't all that great when I realize how much time and effort it is really going to take!! Enjoy!!

We are the birthday boys!!

yummy, pizza!

Josh's new favorite camera face.

Serenading the boys

Josh Before

Josh After

Brody Before

Brody After

Spill-Proof Sippy....my @ss!

There are many mythical creatures, ideas, and notions out in the world that people would love to believe in, would do anything to see, would try anything to get to. You know - unicorns, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, world peace, and spill proof sippy cups.

Oh sure, all the fancy packaging out there touts "No Leaks", "Spill Proof" and all sorts of other blatant lies, but the worst offense is even mentioning the fact that ANY sippy cup is actually spill proof! I have shelled out too much money than I care to admit, just to find that elusive sippy cup that actually does not end up all of the surface of where ever the boys are drinking them. I thought, OF COURSE, just like everything else...if it cost more it must work, right...right?!?!

Nope, nada, zilch. In the world of toddler drinking (and not of the alcoholic variety, what kind of mother do you take me for??), there is no holy grail of spill-proof sippy cups. And it is a sad realization when you discover that the mythical item that you were sure you'd find, never existed in the first place.

I guess I should say how lucky I am for being able to transition from the tag team of bottle/formula to sippy/cows milk. I have heard plenty of horror stories of the pleading and begging of parents to their little toddlers, to "puh-lease just try the sippy cup...it's for BIG boys and girls, don't you want to be a big boy and girl??". None of that in the land of Team Gillis, but really, are you surprised?? I mean these kids eat OLIVES for crying out loud!

So, the best option I could find was the high-tech "Straw Sippy"...ooh, I know sounds fancy, doesn't it?? It allows them to suck just like on their bottles, but this tricky contraption is actually a straw and they have just hopped, skipped, and jumped from bottles to straws, not even stopping to stay at the actually sippy cup for a moment. So surely, I was joyous, thinking I must have the special mommy touch for bottle transition!! I should order up an info-mercial stat and let everyone know my tricks!!!


But really, the joke is on me. Thinking the boys would make less of a mess with said "spill proof sippy straw cups" than they did shaking their bottles left and right just mesmerized with the white splatters all over the floor, the wall, and our clothes. I think in actuality they make MORE of a mess, and yes when they shake there are no more sprays of formula erupting out of a tiny pin prick of a hole...but now they have figured out in their demonic little toddler brains that if they suck as much as they can through the straw, it can't possible all stay in their mouth, but dump all over the front of them on the floor. Which in turn soaks them and completely messes up the floors.


Oh and another clever little trick they have figured out (who knew two "under-oners" could be so smart!) is to leave a little milk at the top off the straw where there is a little well and then they flick the straw with their little teeth and voila! White spray everywhere! ::sigh::

Sorry, don't have anymore time to post, must go wash off my floors, my walls, and my children!

Somebody kidnapped my babies!!

And in their place left me with these two toddlers:


Seriously?!?!? Where did my baby boys go to? I don't recall them growing up before my very eyes, but I guess the camera doesn't lie, does it? There is no denying that they aren't babies anymore and not just based on this picture, but on lots of things that have snuck up on me:

1. Josh is officially crawling....wounded soldier crawling, but crawling nonetheless. And man can that kid move only using one good arm and dragging his legs behind him. And what does he craw to the fastest??? The wires of course!
2. Brody is standing better and better when hanging on to something. While he has no interest in crawling, his favorite activity is spinning around on his butt.
3. Table food, here they come! They will eat any and everything you give them - no joke! I was eating olives the other day and Brody whined and whined until I gave him a piece, thinking he would spit it out immediately, but nope, he just whined for more!
4. They both have so many teeth! They are actually trying to chew things, including my feet.
5. Josh is clapping, and not only clapping, but with the accuracy of a Simon champion of the '80. We clap once, he claps once. We clap five times, he claps five times. No getting anything past this smarty-pants.
6. Brody is drinking not only from a sippy cup, but a straw sippy cup. And, they don't mind the taste of cows milk which has been slowly incorporated in their diet. But of course not, it's food, isn't it?
7. They have outgrown all their "age equivalent" clothing and have moved on to 18 & 24 month sizes...preemies, what preemies??

But alas, no mama...not even close, of course if you count "maba" close. Which I don't. Heck, if Matt didn't even count "a da" as close how on earth can I count maba? The quest still continues...maybe, someday, I'll get my wish. To be called the name that I am sure will drive me nuts for the rest of my life. But for now, lay it on me kids....mama me up, mama it to me, it's all about the mamas (wha!wha!) baby!

As for me, I'm getting quite weepy at the prospect that I no longer have two little preemies to care for, but two growing, independent on my hands. Really, where did the time go?? And to think, about a year ago I was on bedrest in the hospital on the precipice of some fantastic voyage that I hadn't the faintest idea what was in store for me. All the sleepless nights, all the hospital visits, all the hospital stays, all the spitty clothes, all the blow out diapers, all the thoughts of how on earth was I going to take care of not one, but two infants! I won't lie, I've thought about running away a few times (ha! The way I run, where was I going to go, to the end of the neighborhood before I was done!), but it was all worth it. All the smiles, hugs, giggles, raspberries, and all the new things they are learning by the second. It was worth EVERY minute I spent on bedrest, in the NICU, and nebulizing two very angry boys. They are a joy to behold and cannot wait to see what the future lies in store for us...

Maybe, just maybe, a "mama" :) Pretty, puh-lease!!

Just a running talley...

...of the boys' vocabulary so far: dada, baba, yaya, fafa, uh-oh, and all done! (don't ask...)

As you can see, there is one word that is strangely missing. One word that you're sure would be spoken before uh-oh and all done for that matter! Well, at least I was SURE that the elusive "mama" would have been uttered before any two word phrases. But sadly, it has not :( Well, I am fibbing, because just today, Josh said maba...but in my book that just doesn't count!!

And, with me going away on my first business trip since the boys have been born, I am now worried that they will indeed utter the words that I have been practically willing out of their mouths. Of course, why wouldn't they say mama while she is 3,000 miles away??

I also dread that I will miss them crawling, not that they aren't already mobile, because they are. They can roll so quickly across a room, it'll make your head spin. And you know what they are rolling to?? Nope, not all those bright, loud, and colorful toys....not those, but those fascinating wires coming out of the wall. And that absolutely intriguing dog toy that MUST be much more fun than one of their 10,000 toys scattered around the house!

So, now I am faced with a decision...go the full disclosure route with Matt, with strict instructions to videotape any new milestones, or I could decide that the "ignorance is bliss" mind-set is the way to go, asking to not be posted about ANY actions that may or may not have occurred while I was gone. The jury is still out, but I have a feeling that I will want to know if they have indeed called out for their momma. A little piece of my heart might break at the fact that I wasn't there to hear it, but at the same time it would be nice to know that they didn't forget about the person who loves them more than anything in the whole wide world, even though I have to be away from them for 4 full days...sigh.

So I will let you know how it goes to be without all my men for the first time since their existence...I'm not going to lie, I am looking forward to waking up to an alarm clock for the first time in 10 1/2 months instead of waking up long before the alarm is to go off and ages further from the sunrise itself. But man, will I miss the smiles, and the giggles, and the funny faces, and the games, and the snuggles. But, strangely, I won't be missing the super-duper explosive wonders that come from an hour in the jumparoo :)

Wish me luck, tomorrow...and not too many tears when I leave. Don't worry, I've already loaded my ipod with hundreds of photos to remind me of them and have demanded that Matt send me photos on my phone throughout the week! And here's some photos to make me (and hopefully, you) smile, because I need it.

Which is worse...

A) That I didn't take the boys' 10 month photo until a week later (and it says so in the sigh, you just can't see it, heehee),

B) That I am not that upset about waiting a week until their 10 month photo,

or

C) That the pajamas and bedhead are not because they just got out of bed, but because they just got up from their 2PM nap??

My guess is that none of you MOMs will think any of the above is bad or out of the ordinary, and pretty much neither do I. I'm just glad that I got their 10 month photos taken in the same month, let alone the same week!

'tis life with twins...your best laid plans kinda get thrown out the window, that is the window of a skyscraper, in the middle of a hurricane during the end of days. In other words, your plans will go pretty much the exact opposite that you were hoping. You start to actually consider yourself lucky if 10% any plan sees the light of day. "Oooh, the boys are being particularly good in their jumparoos today, I think I will organize my pantry" And the boys will be perfect angels up until you have ALL the items pulled out of the cabinet and you are actually going to start the organizing process...that is when both of them decide almost on cue, that they are capital D-DONE with the jumparoos thanks to their incredibly poopy diapers in which the poop has not only made it all the way down to their toes, but in fact has gone against gravity (as only poo can do, I'm convinced) and worked itself up their backs. It's then time to dump both babies into the tub and clean them while trying not to re-poop them with the clothes that you are wearing. So you decide to strip down naked since you are filthy and they are soaking you anyway. By the time you've bathed them, dried them and dressed them, it's time for their next meal in the disaster area that's called a kitchen because you thought it'd be a GREAT idea to organize (never again...my pantry can stay disorganized, thankyouverymuch!)

So I had all these great plans to update my blog regularly while on my Christmas vacation and as you can see, I did a piss poor job at it. But what can you do?? I'm just proud that I haven't thrown my hands up in the air and decided I'm through with this whole blogging business! I sure could use the free time for something more "me" oriented...like taking a long bath, reading a trashy magazine, or even just doing nothing (I know, I know, I'm so silly that way!). But in reality, I love doing this...updating people on my life as hectic as it is. And I love that one day I can sit Josh & Brody down (if they're even speaking to me, that is, since I will sure be so uncool) and show them what it was like for us when they first entered the world. The joys, the setbacks, the disappointments, the craziness, the laughter...all of it! So, while I may not post as much as I'd (or my family) would like, I am in this for the long haul...some posts just might be lengthier than others with all my updates :)

Speaking of lengthy posts - this is going to be one of them. If I'm boring you to tears, feel free to leave, I won't take offense...or just browse through the photos if that's what you're really here for, I don't mind. The fact that you've even read this far impresses me beyond belief!!

Alright, so Christmas was good in the Gillis house. Not great, thanks to the boys starting down the slippery slide to sickness again. Thankfully, we were able to nip it in the bud pretty quickly, thanks to marathon nebulizing sessions. The boys are now on an inhaled steroid for a month in order to help keep the brochiolitis at bay and maybe eliminate the chance of future asthma. And they are doing pretty well with it, well, I mean with not being sick, they actually HATE the nebulizer mask with a passion and it's always fun to guess how they will struggle today to get out of it. I'm thinking their father is teaching them wrestling moves already, and it's sad to say that they are working on poor old mom.

Anyway, I digress...Santa was so good to the boys (I remember telling Santa to keep it low key this year, AHEM), and they got all sorts of fun toys and warm clothes. Here are some clips from the holidays:

The Stockings hung with care:

Brody's 1st Christmas Gift

Josh loving the paper more than the gift!

What are you trying to tell me, dad?

Can't wait to get that giant ball in my mouth (minds out of the gutter, ladies and gentleman!)

Wow, this toy is loads of fun!

Aren't we freakin' cute in our Christmas outfits??

Brody, and old pro at opening gifts now...

What is this box of awesomness?!?!

How many days is Christma, Ma??

As you can see, they were literally opening gifts for days!! It was so much fun to be a part of that, and can only imagine how much fun next year will be with two toddlers...yikes!!!

Speaking of toddlers...our boys are "this close" to crawling. Not to say they aren't mobile already, cause those two are some seriously mean rollers. They can easily get from point A to point B (usually an electrical cord or a socket) in a blink of an eye, but it's not through traditional crawling. I was told that I never really crawled myself, I scooted backwards and then went straight to walking, so I'm wondering if the boys will take after their mother on that front. Of course their father was walking at 9 months, so I'm sorry to say that they aren't quite there yet. Well, to be honest, I am not sorry that they aren't walking yet. I am really dreading two mobile babies and was perfectly happy with raising two baby blobs for the rest of my life! Unfortunately, the babies have already had a taste of mobility and will most certainly be crawling and walking in no time...and once that happens, life as I know it will be over...along with my savior, the jumparoo!

What else??? Well, both boys have two bottom teeth and Brody has a top one surfacing. I have yet to capture a good photo of the teefies, but will be sure to post when I do. And they have figured out how to feed themselves, but that's a whole other post :) We are still able to feed them for the most part which makes my life a little easier (and WAY cleaner), at least for now...

Other than that, i am trying to eat up every moment of their first year that I can, because in less that two months, my boys will be ::GASP:: 1 whole year old! Project "General Lee" is in full swing...and if you aren't sure what I mean, you will!!

Thanks for stopping by and being patient with this blogger. Hopefully the cuteness helped lure you back in :) And I'll end with a few more since it's been such a long time:

Merry Christmas to all...

And to all a good night! Happy Holidays from Team Gillis! Hope Santa gets you everything you asked for. I borrowed a couple of his elves as you can see:


And of course you can't forget Ms. Santa Claws herself:


Enjoy this time with your family and friends!! I must admit, having kids makes Christmas special again! And for all that have been following...here's to a completely and totally uneventful 2009, we need it!

Photo Tag

Monica over at her blog Jonas Family tagged me for photo tag....here are the rules:

1) Choose the 4th folder where you store your pictures on your computer

2) Select the 4th picture in the folder
3) Explain the picture

4) Tag 4 people to do the same

NO CHEATING! (cropping, editing, etc!)

I was pretty curious as to what was the 4th photo in the 4th folder on my iPhotos (and I am sure you are waiting with baited breath as well!), so without further ado -


::sigh of relief:: Thank goodness it wasn't one of my baby shower photos, because if I have any say, they are not going to see the light of day...EVER!

Anyway, this is a photo of Matt and I at our friend Steve & Wendy's wedding. From the look of it, this was taken prior to the copious alcohol that we consumed there. See, Steve & Wendy were nice enough to sit our table (a table of very social drinkers) right next to the bar! Good times, good times :)

I tag MJ at Now is not a Time, Megan at The Wilsons, Aimee at The Barbagallo Twins, and Laura at Taylo 2 Babies...but don't feel the need to do it if you don't want too, but I had to say I was intrigued with what photo would pop up under these rules :)

Quick Update - The boys had their 9 month appointment and Josh weighs 20lb2oz (50%) and Brody weights 21lb4oz (75%) Their height and head circumference is wonderfully average as well. These boys have quintupled their birth weight in 9 months! Way to go, boys!! Oh, and Josh finally sprouted his first tooth - so for those of you who are keeping track (I'm guessing this is information only a mother could care about) Brody has two bottom teeth, and Josh has one. All the better to eat their Christmas cookies with, my dear :)

Miracle of Miracles...

Date: December 7th, 2008
Place: Our house (specifically, our living room floor)
Time: Not sure, it was daylight (give me a break, I'm lucky I still remember my own name!)
Witnesses: Me, Matt, Grandma & Grandpa H
Event: Both boys holding their own bottles together for the first time!!
Evidence: Photographic (kinda creepy how much that word can look like pornographic if you look too quickly!)


And it has been smooth sailing ever since....now I'm just flat out lying, but the boys holding their bottles is a very momentous occasion, even for a mom of a singleton! Baby holding their own bottle=free hands for all involved! In fact, I didn't even know what to do with myself those first few times in which they were holding their own bottles...I just stared in disbelief, knowing that (in the words of Jack Johnson) I was sitting, waiting, wishing for this day to arrive.

And it seems, just like every other milestone that I look forward to, it actually bittersweet. Because, it is one less thing the babies need me for. Look at these self-sufficient little guys. Soon enough they'll be changing their own diaper (which in reality would be fabulous, especially the really messy ones!), mixing their own bottles, and climbing into their own crib!

As much as I am NOT ready for my boys to up and move away to college...as a mother of multiples, I was more than ready for them to be able to hold their own bottles. As I am sure most people don't think about, the logistics of one person feeding two (or more!) babies is quite challenging, at least bottle feeding. Here's our methodology for feeding twins:

1) You have to find a secure (i.e. buckled-in) place to put the babies - when they were tiny, the boppies worked fine because there was no moving around, then we moved to the swings, because the boys sure as hell didn't enjoy them for the soothing motion, and the carseats were always perfect for this method when out in public, then finally we were using their bouncer seats.

2) When the secured area is located, you then need a prop - which can be a pillow, a blanket rolled up, a coat...pretty much anything that you can fold, roll, or mash up to hold up a bottle.

3) Once the little contraption was set up, you placed the bottles onto said props and then would sit and wait until one or the other's bottle would fall. And then screaming would ensue, especially those extremely fun times when both bottles would fall and you were just NOT quick enough and the world was crashing in because the boys didn't have their bottles.

4) And then you had to burp them, of course one at a time, which doesn't seem like a big deal, but when you have babies with bad reflux, this was a beat the clock kind of situation. Because as you were burping one, if you didn't get to baby 2 soon enough, he would then spit up half his bottle. And then more screaming would ensue (mostly me, as I remember).

So, although bittersweet, it is more so a sweet era in the Gillis household!! Now, if they could only use the toilet....

Wow, 9 months old...already!?!

Really??? My boys are 9 months old?? My little preemies that spent what felt like an eternity in the NICU?? I mean look at 'em, they think they are old enough to wear flannel and crowd surf! (Matt's contribution to the blog photos, if you didn't know he is obsessed with the 90's grunge movement and nothing makes him happier than flannels being back in):



Well, as you can see, they aren't so preemie in size anymore. We don't have their 9-month well visit to the doctor until tomorrow, but I'll make an educated guess based on their weights from their stay in the hospital...and we can see how close I am!

Josh - 20lb 9oz
Brody - 21lb 14oz

We'll see how close I came tomorrow, but I am guessing that I am not that far off. I'm so happy to have such strong, growing boys!

Speaking of which, my boys are now in full effect, 12 month clothing. Um, what happened to the 9-month clothing?? They kinda skipped over it, passing Go and collecting their 200 dollars. And the Gerber clothing?? Fuggetaboutit, they are in 18 month sleepers! They can't even fit into any of the uber cute "My First Christmas" clothing because they are too damn big. I guess the baby clothing companies have decided amongst themselves that if they are fitting in 12 month clothing, math predicts that they have indeed already had a "First Christmas" and are not in need of a "Baby's Second Christmas" getup. But to me that is just weight-ist, because although I know my boys are big guys, they are not by any means the most ginormous children out there and what about those other poor huge babies that can't fit into any of the Christmas clothing available?? It's a sad state of affairs, I'll tell ya!

Anyway, let me tell you what is up with my babies (sigh, more like little boys) - they are both sitting up on their own and have been for about a month or so. Of course, they topple over from time to time when there is a particularly fascinating toy (or dog) out of their reach. Their vocabulary has expanded and includes dada, baba, and gaga.....but, sadly no mama. I mean short of my life mimicking that famous scene in "Being John Malkovich" with mama being the only phrase we speak, I have no clue how to get them to say mama! I know, I know, someday I will rue the day that they can say my name and will wish that they could forgot it. But in all honesty, all I want for Christmas is my boys to call me mama (not that you have to take anything back for me, I'll use all the other gifts to numb my pain).

What else...they are obsessed with balls, which makes us obsessed with finding the lost ones throughout the house. Considering some of the toys they are playing with are meant to be Christmas gifts, it's kinda pathetic that we have already lost some balls prior to December 25th (and no family Christmas toys were included in this ball tragedy, I swear!).

Oh and the boys have now graduated to the big boy tub!! Here are some photos of the big event:







And finally (drumroll, please!)......THEY ARE HOLDING THEIR OWN BOTTLES!! Oh, happy day! But that is such news that it merits its own post, so stay tuned :)