Logan & Taylor are 7 months!

This morning, Billy and I were talking about how this past month, Logan and Taylor have gained so much more understanding of their surroundings. Every day they explore and discover new things, and it is so much fun to watch.

At 7 months, Logan:

- eats my face and chews on my jaw (or in other words, he kisses me a lot).
- can sit up on his own and falls over only occasionally.
- wakes up once a night and occasionally sleeps through the night.
- eats all sorts of vegetables and fruits.
- started wearing his Belgian clothes.
- started eating his own feet.
- grabs his feet.
- got sick for the first time with a runny/stuffy nose.
- does not mind having his nose wiped.
- started playing the piano.
- started drinking water from a sippy cup.
- got his first booboo after falling over on the computer.
- said mama, dada, and baby, but I don't know if he' has made the connection.
- can move backward and in circles.
- is doing a lot more taking, and it sounds like words rather than sounds.
- started objecting when I move him where he does not want to be.
- works to get a toy that is out of reach.
- drops objects then looks for them.
- passes objects from one hand to the other.
- likes to "hit" me while I nurse him.

At 7 months, Taylor:

- eats my face and chews on my jaw (or in other words, he kisses me a lot).
- can sit up on his own when he is distracted and only falls over when he is showing off.
- sleeps through the night and occasionally wakes up once a night.
- eats all sorts of vegetables and fruits.
- started wearing his Belgian clothes.
- loves to jump on our lap and in his exersaucer.
- can stand while holding on to furniture.
- got sick for the first time with a runny/stuffy nose.
- hates having his nose wiped.
- started playing the piano.
- started drinking water from a sippy cup.
- got his first haircut.
- said dada and poop, but I don't know if he' has made the connection.
- can move in circles.
- is doing a lot more taking, and it sounds like words rather than sounds.
- started objecting when I move him where he does not want to be.
- works to get a toy that is out of reach.
- drops objects then looks for them.
- passes objects from one hand to the other.
- likes to "help" me feed him by grabbing my hand (messy).
- likes to poop while I feed him.

Taylor eating bananas, and Logan eating Taylor.

Logan and Taylor playing together (and sharing).

Logan with his arm around Taylor. (I did not pose them for this picture - it just happened.)

What I'm looking forward to this month: maybe some crawling, even though I know I might take this back as soon as they do start moving around.

I love-hate Sundays

I love Sundays for so many reasons!
- We renew our baptismal covenants during Sacrament Meeting.
- We are taught about the Savior and his Gospel.
- We see friends we sometimes only see on Sundays.
- We spend time together as a family (except this last month).
- We hang out and relax.
- No laundry, no cleaning, and very little cooking.

But I also hate Sundays for one simple reason!
- Logan and Taylor's schedule gets way off, which means that I have to deal with fussy babies all day!
Today was such a day, and we ended up having to come home after Sunday School because Logan and Taylor were being extremely difficult. I am so thankful to all the people who volunteered to help us out, but I just needed to get out of there because I was about to have an emotional breakdown - which I did as soon as I got into the car. It is sometimes so hard to entertain them in church. I cannot wait until they can entertain themselves (or each other) a little better. Fortunately, when we got back home, Billy was back from the E.R., where he is rotating this month. He took over for a couple of hours, so that I could rest and regain some energy. I am so grateful for my husband, who knows exactly when to stay clear or give me a break.

My little musicians

Logan playing the piano.

Taylor playing the piano.

Pulled over

This past Friday, I got pulled over by a cop. I hate when this happens.
I was driving on EP True, going 50 mi/h in a 35 mi/h road. He was going in the opposite direction but saw me and made a U-turn. I knew right away he was coming after me, so I turned into a small road. (Subconsciously, I was hoping he wouldn't see me turning into that small road and would keep going, but that would have been too good to be true.) As I pulled my window down, I knew I was in trouble and didn't even attempt to talk my way out of this one. I was going 15 mi over the speed limit, I didn't have a front licence plate, AND I didn't have an Iowa driver's licence (which apparently I should have gotten within 30 days of living in Iowa - it's been 2 1/2 years). When he came back, he told me that he would only give me a warning this time, but that I really needed to take care of my licence plate and driver's licence. I was shocked! I got away with a warning? How did that happen? I would have given myself a ticket! Maybe I was blessed for being on my way to donating clothes and shoes to GoodWill? (Note to self: Watch out for cops on EP True!)

TMI

As I've already said before, whenever the boys and I go anywhere, we get A LOT of attention. It's a fun way to meet ppl and engage in friendly conversations. But sometimes ppl get a little TOO friendly in my opinion.
On Friday the boys and I went to Wal-Mart to get a few groceries, and as we were checking out, the cashier started asking questions about Logan and Taylor. I get those questions a lot, so I really didn't mind answering them.
At one point, she asked me if my husband and I were done having kids after having twins. I didn't know this lady, so whatever. Then she asked me how old I was. That was a little personal, but okay. But then she must have thought we were like best friends or something because after she had told someone behind me that she was closed, she told me the reason she was closing her register... She needed to take a break and use the bathroom because she thought she might be having her period!!! Awkward!!! Sometimes ppl share WAY too much information with strangers!!!

Valentine Weekend

This weekend was the first weekend Billy got off in 3 weeks, right in time for Valentine's Day!

Friday night some friends of ours offered to watch Logan and Taylor so that Billy and I could go out. They are done having kids, but they still really enjoy watching little babies, so they come and watch our boys once a month. This time, Billy and I decided to go eat downtown. We went into Splash, but the wait was 1 1/2 hour, so they sat us in the lounge area. As we looked over the menu, we decided that the food was okay but the prices were ridiculous, so we walked out =S We walked a couple of blocks and decided to give Dos Rios a try. The wait was only 10 minutes, and the prices were much more affordable. The food was really good, too.

Then Saturday morning, some other friends of ours came with their little girl to watch Logan and Taylor so that Billy and I could go get a massage at Massage Envy. This was our first time getting a couple's massage, and we could get used to it. But I have to admit that Massage Heights was a little nicer. I went there a couple of weeks ago after getting a gift card from Billy for Christmas.

That night, we watched our friends' little girl so that they could go to dinner. Logan and Taylor had a lot of fun with her. They kept showing off how well they could stand on their feet and sit on their own (which they are still learning to master). After they came back to pick her up, Billy went to the store to get some ice cream. But he came back with roses and chocolate-covered strawberries. It was really sweet.

I feel so lucky to have such a wonderful hubby! I love that we can laugh at nothing, finish each other's sentenses, and sing made-up songs together. We are BFF and I love it!

Billy's proposal

I realized today that I never blogged about how Billy and I met each other or how he proposed.

THE MEETING:
I moved to Orem, Utah, in August 2005, with my friend and roommate, Jemma. Since we were living on our own for the very first time, we decided to get involved with as many activities as we possibly could handle. It was for that reason that I joined the Special Events Committee at Utah Valley State University. In October of that same year, all the clubs left on a Student Government Retreat in Wyoming for the weekend. It was there that I met Billy. We had a dance that night, and he asked me to dance. I thought he was super cute and said yes... only to realize that we were about to "swing." I didn't want to make a fool out of myself, so I told him this wasn't really my type of dancing. He just smiled and said it wasn't his type either. So we just went along with it, goofed around, and had a blast. And that's when I started falling for him... The next day we were already heading back to Utah. The bus ride was going to be 4 hours long and I had made plans to sit by my friend, Darci. When Billy asked me to sit by him on the bus, I had to say No, even though I really wanted to get to know him better. But when Darci fell asleep after only 10 minutes, I decided to go sit by Billy. Fortunately, the seat next to him was empty. In his version of the story, he says that I had told him to keep the seat empty because I would sit by him if Darci fell asleep, but I really don't remember saying anything like that. Whatever. We talked for 4 hours and soon realized that we had a really strong connection. In fact, as a "test," Billy placed his hand on my lap, and in response I placed my hand over his. I passed (A+). When we got back to school, he gave me his phone number because he didn't have his phone with him to get my number. I totally thought that he was blowing me off. I thought that maybe he hadn't felt that same connection on the ride back. I mean, seriously, he wanted me to call him?

FIRST DATE:
On the bus ride back from the retreat, I found out that Billy was planning on going to the BYU Football game that night. A guy friend of mine, who totally had a crush on me, had asked me to go with him, but I had said No. That night, I called him to say that I would go with him. I was hoping that I could meet up with Billy and that we could all hang out. It hadn't occurred to me that Chewy would think this was going to be a date. So when Chewy and I got to the game, I called Billy. I told him exactly where we were sitting and within a few minutes, he was sitting by me. Billy and I talked throughout the whole game, and as time went by we were sitting closer and closer to each other. We tried to include Chewy in our conversation because we didn't want to be complete jerks, but he didn't seem to be in a really good mood. The poor guy must have felt like a third wheel - Billy totally mowed Chewy's lawn! When Chewy took me home, we talked about the evening, and I told him that I really liked Billy. I think he appreciated my honesty.

FIRST KISS:
The day after the BYU game, Billy and I went on a walk in a park and had a picnic. We were the only ones there, and it was fun to spend some time alone, getting to know each other. After a couple of hours, he took me home so that I could have my Sunday dinner with my roommates. That night, he called me to go on another date. He picked me up, we went to another park, we layed some blankets in the grass, and we watched IRobot on his computer. We didn't really watch the movie, though, because we still wanted to get to know each other better. When the movie was over, we turned the computer off and admired the Provo Valley view. Then after we talked some more, we decided that we like each other enough... and Billy kissed me. WOO HOO!

THE COMMITMENT:
Some common friends of Billy and I were having a concert in their basement, and we decided to make it a date. Billy and I had a blast listening to them and dancing together. After the concert was over, my roommate, Jemma, asked me if I could walk over with her to talk to these really cute guys because she didn't want to do it by herself. I accepted, for moral support, and we talked to them for a little while. Then I noticed that Billy was no where to be seen. I called him, and he told me that he had left because he had an early class the next day. I could hear in his voice that he was not happy, but he obviously didn't want to talk about it over the phone, so we left it to that.The next day, I met him in school, like every other day. We sat on a love sack, and I asked him why he had been so upset the night before. It turned out that he had not liked the fact that I had left him to go "flirt" with other guys in front of his face. I explained to him that I had not "flirted" but only "talked" to those guys, and that I had only done it for moral support. Then I told him that it didn't matter who I talked to because we were not exclusive. And that's when he told me he wanted to be exclusive. Haha. Before he went to his next class, he had to call off a date and tell the girl that he now had a girlfriend. Haha.

(This picture was taken while Billy was visiting me in Maryland - we took a trip to NYC for New Year 2006)

THE PROPOSAL:
Over Christmas break, Billy flew to Maryland to spend a few days with me and my family. While he was there, he asked my dad for his permission to marry me. They ended up talking for like 4 hours, but my dad did say Yes.February 9, 2006, was a beautiful day in Provo, so Billy and I decided to go sledding in the mountains. We had two sleds, but used one most of the time beccause it was a lot more fun to fall together. At one point, we walk to the top of the hill, and Billy offered that I go down first, separately from him. I didn't think much of it and went down the hill. When he went down the hill after me, something fell out of his pocket. I mentioned that he had dropped something, and he walked over to pick it up. Then he walked back toward me, got on his knee, and said, "Nathalie, will you marry me?" I was in shock! I totally thought he was going to wait until Valentine's Day to propose, but he surprised me earlier. It was the best surprise of my life! Two days later, Billy and his family left on a vacation to Cancun. Of course, I was not invited. At the time Billy's parents made reservations, we were just dating. Plus, we weren't married so we obviously couldn't share a room. When Billy came back, he said the vacation had been miserable because he had missed me so much. It made me feel a little better about missing out of this fantastic family vacation. I cannot believe it's been 4 years! Since then we have moved to another state and have had 2 children! I have also graduated from college and he has started med school. It's crazy how much things can change in only 4 years. I feel so blessed to have found my Prince Charming. And I feel so blessed that he loves me, cares for me, and appreciates me for who I am. He is everything I have always wanted and always dreamed of. I love him so much!

Sleep training on hold

After only 2 nights of absolute misery, Billy and I decided to give sleep training a break.

1. The boys had their 6 month check up yesterday, and Taylor is not growing as well as he should. He is only in the 2.42 percentile in height and 1.44 percentile in weight. I want him to grow and fatten up, and if that means I have to feed him 4 times a night, then that's what I'll do. He needs to get some more fat rolls.

2. The first night, I was up 13 times with Logan and 10 times with Taylor. The following night I was up 5 times with Logan and 10 times with Taylor. Then I had an emotional breakdown, gave up, and fed them. The next morning, I was so exhausted and stressed out that I had a headache and nausea. Not fun.

So we're giving sleep training a break for now, and we'll try again in a couple of weeks

Logan & Taylor are 6 months!

I feel like so much has happened his past month. I know I have said this before, but Logan and Taylor are just getting so much more fun every day.

Logan: height 25 1/4 in. 11%
weight 15 lb. 7 oz. 14%

At 6 month, Logan can:
- get 9 oz. of formula down in less than 15 min.
- eat 5-6 oz. of solid food in less than 20 min.
- occasionally sleep through the night, like once every other week
- sit up on his own for a few seconds
- occasionally hold his bottle
- eat from a spoon
- occasionally put his binkie back into his mouth
- flip the light switch
- hold on to his feet while I change his diaper



He also:
- said "Brrrr" as we were venturing out in the cold
- started wearing size 3 diapers
- started eating rice cereal
- started eating carrots, green beans, and sweet potatoes
- had his first solid poop
- had his first haircut
- survived his first ice storm
- reaches for toys
- practices walking on our chest
- loves standing on his feet
- loves to hear his own voice
- loves it when I pretend to lick him
- enjoys dancing with mommy
- enjoys spending time on his tummy
- wants whatever toy Taylor is playing with
- chews on everything that comes his way, even Taylor
- sticks his tongue out a lot
- fish-hook us, pinches our cheeks, grabs our noses, stabs us in the eyes, and scratches our faces

Taylor: height 24 1/2 in. 2.42%
weight 13 lb. 7 oz. 1.44%

At 6 month, Taylor can:
- get 9 oz. of formula down in less than 15 min.
- eat 4-5 oz. of solid food in less than 20 min.
- occasionally sleep through the night, like once every other month
- sit up on his own for a few seconds
- flip the pages of a book
- eat from a spoon
- occasionally put his binkie back into his mouth
- flip the light switch



He also:
- said "Dadadada" (twice) but I don't think he's made a connection with Daddy
- started wearing size 3 diapers, but only at nighttime
- started eating rice cereal
- started eating carrots, green beans, and sweet potatoes
- had his first solid poop
- survived his first ice storm
- reaches for toys
- practices walking on our chest
- loves standing on his feet
- loves to hear his own voice
- loves it when I pretend to lick him
- enjoys dancing with mommy
- enjoys spending time on his tummy
- touches our faces very gently
- chews on everything that comes his way, even Logan
- jumps all the time!

What I'm looking forward to this month: sleeping through the night

Just for laughs:

The plan

Thank you, thank you, thank you, to all of you who gave me wonderful suggestions, and to my sister-in-law, Marie, who did some research, on how to get Logan and Taylor to sleep through the night. This week we are starting a new schedule, and although it could still change, I really hope it will work for all of us.

Old schedule:
8:00 - nurse
8:30 - breakfast for me; play time for the boys
9:00 - play time
10:30 - shower for me; nap time for the boys
noon - solids
12:30 - lunch for me; play time for the boys
1:00 - trip during which the boys snooze on and off
3:00 - play time
4:00 - nurse
4:30 - play time
5:00 or 5:30 - cook dinner
5:30 or 6:00 - dinner
6:30 - nap time on mommy
7:00 - bath time
7:30 - bottle
8:00 - bedtime routine

New schedule:
7:00 - nurse
7:30 - breakfast for me; play time for the boys
8:00 - play time
9:30 - shower for me; nap time for the boys
11:00 - solids
11:30 - lunch for me; play time for the boys
noon - play time
1:30 - nap time
3:00 - nurse
3:30 - trip
5:00 - cook dinner
5:30 - dinner
6:00 - bath time
6:30 - bottle
7:00 - bedtime routine

Since the morning nap will be the first one to go, I need to make sure that the boys sleep well in the afternoon. If they have a good afternoon nap, they won't need to sleep in the evening. And if they don't have that short evening nap, I can put them to sleep earlier.

I'm also trying the "no-cry approach." It is more time-consuming than the "cry-out approach," but I can't have them keep each other up (and us) with their crying. Instead, I would rather get up 50 times a night to comfort and rock them without feeding them.

We'll see how it goes. Wish me luck!