Trick or Treat

Phew!  We are glad night is here and both babies are finally sleeping.

Mom and Bubeaner getting make-up done

Bubeaner, as usual, started the day way too early.  But since we needed to make it to church that was not a problem.  However, with getting ready and feeding Bubita we actually missed mass at our new church.  So we headed to our old church.  We needed to be in that area of town anyways to pick up Momma's car from the shop.

Finally in costume

 And getting into character too.

Aunt Pau was able to join us which Bubeaner really liked.  Other than that Bubeaner was a little pill during the service.  At one point he was actually crawling and dragging his body on the floor!  Thankfully, we had decided to stay in the foyer.  We finally took him to the nursery.  Bubeaner walked along happily until the very moment he saw the nursery door.  At that point he started crying.  He recognized the ladies from his visits during the women's group on Thursdays but it did not matter.  Thankfully he was not crying when we returned for him.  But he started as soon as he saw us.

Chillin' with Dad before trick-or-treating

Our original plan for lunch with aunt Pau had to be cancelled once Bubeaner fell asleep in the car after mass.  And we know better than to mess with his nap.  So we hurried back home in the hopes that he would continue with his nap once we arrived.  Most of the time we can transfer him and he'll continue to sleep.  Today was not one of those days.  He woke up as soon as we parked in the garage.  We moved him to his bed and he stayed there.  Bubeaner just did not fall asleep; he talked, sang, even played, but did not sleep.  Sigh.  We knew then it was going to be an interesting afternoon.

Even Sandy was made to participate

Bubita on the other hand actually took a nice long nap today.  Not sure why, but we are grateful for it.  She's (Momma's) been really missing her long afternoon naps.  She also did so well during mass.  Of course, she had to eat as soon as we got there.  But we are used to it.  It does not matter which mass we attend; Bubita eats as soon as we arrive.  It's one of her quirks.

While Bubita slept, Bubeaner cried, fought Momma on his lunch and later his snack, kicked Dad during his diaper changes, chased the dog and pretty much cried on and off for most of that time.  Surprisingly he did allow Momma to paint his face for his Halloween outfit.  It did lead to more crying afterwards but at least he was in costume.  The entire family dressed as skeletons including Sandy.  The only one that refused, probably because he was the only one that could refuse, was Dad.  He wore his Cowboys jersey.  Dad said after today's game it was the scariest costume he could possibly wear.  The other neighborhood dads agreed.  But even so, we looked pretty cute.

We sit outside to wait for trick-or-treaters. 

It's easier than hearing Sandy go crazy each time the doorbell rings. 

Dad took Bubeaner trick or treating around our neighborhood while Bubita, Momma and Sandy stayed behind to hand out candy.  We had a good time.  Everyone was outside chatting and taking pictures of the kids in costumes.  It gave us a weird Stepford vibe but it was fun.

Bubeaner and Dad finally made it back home with a bag full of candy.  He finagled a couple of lollipops and a twizzler or two.  Refined sugar AND no nap.... not a pretty sight.  But he was able to help Bubita hand out candy for a little while longer.  Actually we were surprised not to have any issues with Bubita.  Other than gnawing our knuckles almost to the bone (she's most definitely teething), she really enjoyed sitting outside people watching.  And Sandy loved getting petted by almost every little kid in the neighborhood.

Our skeleton crew....muahahahaha!

And even though there was a meltdown while removing his make-up (thank the Lord for awesome make-up remover), another meltdown while changing his diaper and putting on his pjs, and another final one after reading the fourth book and putting him to bed (he usually gets only one story a night), Bubeaner is now peacefully sleeping.  Bubita is snoozing in her stroller.  And Sandy is snoring (loudly) on the recliner.  And peace reigns in the house.  All would be perfect except for the Rangers being behind in game 4 of the World Series.  Well, it all can't be perfect.

Excitement and Exhaustion

Excitement and exhaustion are two sides of the same coin.  And today we had both in spades which could explain why both babies crashed soon after dinner.  Well, that and the fact that Bubeaner thought 5a was a fun time to get up today.  As cute as he was, it's not so fun to wake up to "Dadda! Poopoo!" 

Of all the things at the airshow, this is what caught his attention.

Bubeaner really enjoys spending time with Dad.  And he especially loves the weekends.  Today, after the morning wake up call, both went to get their hair cut.  No girls allowed.  They both came back looking so handsome.  Bubeaner was sporting a faux-hawk.

We had planned on brunch today rather than lunch.  We needed Bubeaner to take his nap earlier; he's a little crabby when he does not get his nap.

Chillin' while Dad and Bubeaner admire the big trucks

Today Bubeaner and Bubita went to their first ever airshow.  Momma and Dad grew up going to airshows and L O V E D them.  And, it seemed like the perfect place for Bubeaner since he is obsessed with planes.  We purposely planned on going for only a couple of hours because both are so young.  It would not be fun if Bubeaner and Bubita were overtired and sunburned.  We remembered the best part of the airshow was always the Thurderbirds/BlueAngels.  And they always performed at the end.  So we headed out.

Poor Dad was trying to keep her shaded AND to protect her little ears.

We were actually pretty prepared: compact, light folding chairs; stroller; sippy cups; umbrella for shade; hats; sunscreen; hats.  Perfect.  Timing?  Perfect too.  We arrived with enough time to check some planes and then get into place before the Blue Angels took off.  The only problem?  We forgot just how loud and low they fly.  Bubeaner was not thrilled.  In fact, he was pretty distressed after a particularly low fly by that actually moved us. 

One of the few times he smiled during the Blue Angels show.

Bubita was not happy either, but mainly slept through most of the show.  Bubeaner was a trooper and made it through.  He even managed to enjoy a little bit of the other planes on display after the Blue Angels were done.  God willing, we plan on going back next year.  However, we will probably go early in the day and enjoy some of the less dramatic flying demonstrations.  Oh, and we will definitely remember ear plugs for the little ones next time.

Skeletons accessorize too

Afterwards, we made it back just in time to change Bubeaner, Bubita and even Sandy into their matching skeleton Halloween costumes.  Our new community organizes a trick-or-treating parade for children.  And it turns out it's actually a mile long, even though it feels like 10 miles since we were carrying Bubita.  (Bubita had had enough of the stroller after the airshow and drive home.  A little side note:  he actually informed us BEFORE he actually did it that he was pooping while on the drive home.  And he made sure to ask for "Dadda".  Momma enjoyed that.)

This was supposed to be just the babies and dog.

But we had a meltdown when we separated Bubeaner

from his candy bag.

Bubeaner was not sure about the whole bag and strange people all around.  At least he was until he realized people were putting CANDY in his bag.  Candy!  Oh, he was in 7th heaven.  Before we could decide what he was going to be allowed to eat, he had a lollipop in his mouth.  It was actually a good thing since he takes forever to finish lollipops.  By the end, he had gotten the hang of trick-or-treating.  The problem turned out to separate him from his candy bag.  Man, little boys have a strong grip when they want something.  And he voiced his complaints!  We are pretty sure everyone in the neighborhood heard him.

Aunt Pau and Bubeaner

Happy again since he had his candy bag back.

Thankfully, a quick shower followed by a quick supper helped distract him.  At least for now, the bag is forgotten hanging in the mudroom.  We will see how tomorrow works out for us.  But at least for now, both babies are sleeping after a fun and, definitely, exciting day.

Learning Curve

Momma and Dad were startled awake to the sound of a door closing.  The immediate panic was eased 1/2 a second later as we realized the alarm was not going off and the dog was not barking.  A 1/2 second after that we both realized the possible culprit:  Bubeaner!  He had gotten up and was opening and closing the playroom door.  Why?  Not sure.  Why not go in and play?  Still not sure.  But it did reaffirm that the baby gate was a good idea.  Who knows what he would get into if he could roam the house unattended. 

The only other thing we are having an issue with his new bed place is his sleeping.  Well, not the sleeping so much as the moving he does while sleeping.  Bubeaner would move so that his head and, most of the time, even his body, touched the edges of the crib.  The problem he still looks for that even though he has moved to the big bed.  We have been using pillows to create "barricades" so that he does not fall of the bed or get a crink in his neck.  Surely, at one point, he is going to stop moving so much.

And, in a change, Bubeaner was the one that woke Bubita up this morning.  She had slept 12 hours!!! Woohoo!  Bubita was in her stroller all night.  Not sure if it was coincidence and she was working her way back up to sleeping that long or if sleeping there eased her reflux.  Either way, we were thrilled.  We are trying it again tonight.  We are hopeful she'll have a good night especially since she refused to take any naps today. Although she did fall asleep during part of the pumpkin patch visit and during our evening walk.

Pretty soon we are going to have to move our evening walk up an hour or two.  Today was a little chilly already even though the sun was still out.  Bubeaner even wore a little pull up.  And Bubita had a hat on and was tucked in a blanket in the baby carrier.  As the weather gets colder the little ones may get too cold if it's late.  And of course, our hope is that they also start going to bed earlier as the days get shorter.  We have noticed that Bubita may be working her way towards that earlier bed time.  She gets really sleepy around 5-6p every day.  So it could be a possibility.

The pumpkin patch was fun.  It was not as crowded as last weekend.  Bubeaner actually got in some of the bounce houses.  He is not jumping yet, but he bounces up and down now.  And he really surprised us when he went on the TALL slide bounce house.  It took him forever and a day to climb up.  And once he was at the top we thought we would have to go and get him.  Bubeaner was not sliding down.  But some older kids started jumping at the top and slowly he bounced, bounced, bounced his way to the slide and all the way down.  He just got up and went again.  After that, Bubeaner would actually go down by himself.  But he was no fool, he slid face down, legs first.  Bubeaner even tried the hay ride too.  He was not too thrilled with it, but loved the horses along the route.  It's nice to find activities around our area we can enjoy. 

Pumpking Carving

Well, we are not completely back to Bubeaner and Bubita sleeping through the entire night, but we are close.  Bubeaner did great again last night.  He might have even slept a little longer, but Bubita was making so much noise that she woke him up.  We heard Bubeaner calling out for his Bebe from our room.  This time he was at the gate when Dad got to him.  It appears he was trying to make a break for it and had thrown Lovey over the gate.  He had decided there was no way of escaping (yet) and was trying to rescue Lovey.

Yo Momma!

What's going on?

Thankfully, we were able to get them back to sleep for almost an hour in the morning.  Bubeaner was playing when he just climbed on our bed and zonked out.  Just like that, with feet hanging off!  As to Bubita she had to be bundled.  She had been able to sleep with just her sleep sack for a while.  This was great since she outgrew all her swaddlers.  But, for some unknown reason, she's back to needing to be swaddled in order to sleep.  So we found the blankets our friend T made for John and a couple of his NICU blankets.  They are the only ones large enough to swaddle her effectively.  Interestingly, no matter how tightly she is bundled Bubita finds a way to free her hand.  We are finding she's a lot like Momma in many, many ways.... And Momma is scared.  The grandparents?  They are enjoying this a lot more than should be fair.

Mmm, yummy.

We were still trying some of the suggestions from the lactation consultant and were getting good results.  That combined with less beans in Momma's diet appeared to be eliminating all our problem symptoms.  At least we were until this afternoon.  She had to take her afternoon cat naps in her stroller because increased reflux kept waking her up.  Tonight she's sleeping in there too.  But we are confident it's just a little step back and are actually improving.

And Bubeaner is also deciding to change his diet.  He goes through phases.  For a while, he could not get enough tomatoes and carrots.  Later he would not even touch them, but ate so much string cheese and hummus we had to buy them at the wholesale store.  There were no worries about his calcium and protein intake.  Now, he is done with them and, surprisingly, back on veggies.  And Bubeaner is suddenly not into milk.  He absolutely LOVED his milk.  We could not figure out what caused the change.  Then we remembered Dr. Z changed him from whole milk to 2% milk.  Bubeaner does NOT approve of the change.  Surely less than 16 ounces a day of whole milk should not be too bad for him.  We see Dr. Z on Monday for Bubita's 4-month check up and will ask her then.

Mine! Mine! Mine!

We are still amazed that Bubita is going to be 4 months already!  It really does feel like we brought her home just a week ago.  Time is going by even faster with Bubita than with Bubeaner.  How is that even possible?  As much as we want her to stay little as long as possible she just keeps growing and growing and growing.  We just count our blessings; she's our little princess.

Today we were admiring her tummy control.  She's able to lean forward and force herself back up to sitting position just by using her abs.  That is impressive.  She got a work out today.  Last night she was finally able to grab a hold of her feet and so today she kept grabbing them.  Of course, one of those times she over corrected.  And Momma was so enthralled watching Bubita she failed to catch her.  Bubita was not thrilled, but at least she only hit the armrest of the recliner.

What?  What's wrong?

We are not sure when babies are diagnosed with asthma.  But she does wheeze and cough like asthma; it's in the family so we know the difference, but are hoping for the best.  At the very least we know that Bubita has more allergies than Bubeaner and Momma.  Most mornings she wakes up sneezing her little head off.  Sigh.  But then again, most people suffer from allergies in this area.  We'll just keep an eye on it to make sure it does not change.

This afternoon we worked on some Halloween projects.  Bubeaner made a drawing with some stickers.  And he also glued on eyes, nose and mouth to a construction paper pumpkin.  Bubeaner's pumpkin actually turned out a little scary.  We signed and dated them so that Dad can take them to his office.  Bubita provided moral support and encouragement.  She was quite vocal, but she was mainly busy trying to eat one of her toys.

There is always time to play with your sibling.

Bubeaner also helped a little while Momma carved out two little pumpkins.  He was not sure what was going on until he saw the faces.  The moment he saw them he said "baza", short for "calabaza".  We also toasted the pumpkin seeds.  Our time was a little bit off and the were a little brown but still tasted good.  Even Bubeaner agreed.


We take a little walk around every evening before dinner after we've put away all the toys and taken baths.  We've been doing it often enough that Bubeaner is starting to recognize the neighbors and kids and slowly peak out of his shell.  And there are plenty of kids for him to see; there are 40 houses in our little neighborhood and 53 kids!  And that is part of the reason we love our neighborhood.  It's nice to walk out and see other parents out enjoying the evening, chatting with each other while watching the kids play on the street.  Yes, kids still play on the street!  In a large metropolitan city!!!  Love it!

Bubeaner a little tired after finishing his artwork.

His is the one on the right.

Tonight our bedtime routine was a little different.  We took a little earlier walk and ate a little earlier.  And Bubeaner was even allowed to stay up a little later.  Exceptions had to be made; the world series started today.  And everyone loves to watch some "ballball".

Oh, Beautiful Elusive Sleep

Bubeaner did great sleeping on his own last night on his big boy bed.  He did not wake up during the night.  And this morning he did not stay in his bed when he woke up, but he did not attempt to leave the nursery either.  We wondered if Bubeaner would go into the play room or at the very least go into the hallway to the baby gate.  So far it looks like he's making the adjustment without a problem.  And we are trying to adjust too.

He had a pretty good morning.  His favorite part every morning, other than breakfast with Dad, is playing pretend with Dad.  Bubeaner loves to walk around in Dad's shoes.  There is a specific pair that's his favorite.  And a time or two he has made Dad change shoes.  He also has to go through the same grooming routine as Dad including trimming his beard.  Thankfully, it's not a razor in case he ever gets a hold of it without us around.

Bubita was not as easy going as her brother this morning.  She woke us up a few times during the night making smacking noises.  And she did actually wake up to eat at least twice.  That coupled with Bubeaner's normal early wake up time meant we did not get a lot of sleep.  And unlike us, Bubita did spend a good part of the morning sleeping. 

But Bubeaner and Momma enjoyed this special one-on-one time together.  We played and worked on learning our colors.  We also did a bit of organizing all the toys in the playroom putting away toys that Bubeaner is still to young for or that he has outgrown but Bubita has not yet grown into.  It was a good morning.  He did complain at lunch that he had an ouchie on his head.  Headache, perhaps?  In any case, Bubeaner took a good 2.5 hours afternoon nap.  Unfortunately, he woke up crying setting the tone for the rest of the afternoon and evening. 

Bubita refused, as she has lately, to take a long afternoon nap.  So she spent part of Bubeaner's nap enjoying one-on-one quality time with Momma.  The girl cracks us up.  She has developed a loud squealing laugh.  Thankfully, she works her way up to it so we are not taken by surprise.  How can such a little girl make such a high-pitched squeal?

Bubeaner had his swim lesson today.  He has improved so much from the first lesson.  Not only did he not cry at all today, but he actually ran towards the pool.  (Scary, but a good improvement.)  During class, he successfully blew bubbles in the water, and kicked.  He even worked on learning to float on his back and using his arms to propel himself forward.  Bubeaner was not keen on that idea of floating on his back.  But he did enjoy watching his legs and feet as he kicked.  Now that he is comfortable with coach Morgan, they are going to concentrate on getting out of the pool and other pool safety issues.

And, as a perfect way to end the day, Dad was able to join us for our daily evening walk around the neighborhood.  That and a quick dinner and both little ones were in bed on time.  Hopefully tonight we will all be able to get a good night's sleep and be ready for another good day tomorrow.

Bubeaner Birthday Bash: Aftermath

The decorations are put up.  Grandma, aunt Pau and uncle Ivan have gone back home.  And Dad returned to work today.  And just like that Bubeaner was back to his normal routine sleeping through the night and waking up at 6am.  Bubita's routine was still suffering from the weekend; she woke up twice during the night at midnight and 3am wanting to eat.  We are hopeful for tonight.

Thankfully, both were able to have good naps after a nice relaxing morning.  Bubita spent most of hers dosing in and out.  Bubeaner, on the other hand, was still playing with his new birthday gifts.  Of course, he did take time to help Momma clean using his new sweeper/vacuum cleaner.  He loves that thing.  And the best part is that it actually works; it's a win-win situation for all.

Bubita is still having some problems with her BMs.  Liquid fluorescent green poop is not a good thing in our opinion.  The lactation consultant believes Bubita may be getting too much fore milk and not enough of the hind milk causing this problem.  She suggested pumping for 5 minutes before nursing Bubita.  We are going to give this option a try before attempting the pediatrician's suggestion again.

Yes, it may be true that most babies will eventually eat once they get hungry enough.  But if Bubita is half as stubborn as her mother, well, we may well end up taking her to the hospital due to dehydration.  The girl just does not like formula.  OK, she HATES her formula.  And out of all formulas, it's one of the most disgusting.  The doctors even agree with this.  Bubita has absolutely no problem taking a bottle so long as it's breast milk.

The other option (a modified version of the pediatrician's suggestion) we might try is to have Momma just eat an extremely limited diet (yes, even more limited) for a week while still nursing Bubita and see if there is any change.

Thankfully, in other areas, Bubita is thriving.  She loves her walker.  We were surprised when she started moving (backwards) on the third day of using it.  However, we assumed Bubita was not aware she was actually moving it.  Today she proved us wrong.  She was happy so long as she could move backwards.  Bubita would start crying the moment she got stuck between furniture or hit the wall.  She knew she could move.  WOW!  She continues to amaze us.

Bubeaner is also doing great.  His vocabulary is increasing exponentially every day.  He can talk in English, Spanish, an interesting Spanglish version, and still a little bit of gibberish we call Bubeaner language.  Most people can even understand most of what he says.  However, there are many times when only Momma or Dad can understand what he says.  Some of his words have just a little tiny difference in pronunciation. But we are so happy he can now communicate so much better his needs and wants.

He's learning some etiquette and is now saying "mas" followed by something that might be "por favor" when he wants something.  And he also uses complex sentences!  He's definitely entered the questioning stage.  Most of his longer sentences involve asking how something works or what it is.  Bubeaner also appears to be interested in why someone wants something.  He's pretty nosy. 

And, we cannot fail to mention his big move.  Bubeaner is now sleeping in his big boy bed.... alone!  We did a trial run with uncle Ivan sleeping there.  No problems.  So we decided to try it again tonight.  He was actually really excited when he saw us pull out the trundle and got in without a problem.  Momma checked on him several times and he was awake for a while.  But not once made a move to get out of the bed and wander around.  The baby gate is up just in case.  If this continues to work, we may be moving Bubita to the nursery in a couple of weeks.  Maybe.

New Tricks

We have been asking Bubeaner to make a lot of adjustments in a really short time.  He is normally so shy.  We are not sure if all these changes are good for him or just make matters harder.  Bubeaner's refused to participate much in his new swimming and dance/tumbling classes.  However, we know he's learning because he e comes home and repeats everything from the class.  But the moment he's in class he shuts down. 

This week we saw a change. 

He still cried when we dropped him off at the church's nursery when Momma attended the women's group.  But we could hear him singing down the hall when we returned to pick him up.  The ladies at the nursery said he cried a lot less and interacted with them and the other children.  He looked like he had really enjoyed his time there.

And at dance/tumbling class, Bubeaner actually participated in the activities.  He was actually one of the first ones to do some of the activities without a glitch.  In the past we are usually the last ones because Bubeaner either refuses to get up and do them or he gets really upset if we have to stop to let other classmates take a turn.  No crying or fussing this time.  He even helped out coach Michelle when she asked for volunteers to help put the props up.  Bubeaner went by himself without Momma.  He didn't even look back.

He's also talking a lot.  But now we actually understand what he's saying.  He says new words during every conversation without our prompting.  Some words we haven't even practiced with him for a while.  He's just actually having conversations now.  He's saying words in both English and Spanish.  Bubeaner also knows the numbers 1-10 in Spanish.  Two is his favorite and the clearest - maybe because we are practicing since his birthday is coming up - while 6, 7, and 10 all sound pretty similar.  But it's progress.  And he's also been singing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."  His favorite part, and the most easily understood, is "up above so high."

Bubeaner enjoys admiring himself on the mirrors at dance/tumbling class.  But for the first time, we noticed that when he noticed the animals on his shirt he did not reach out to touch them on the mirror.  He touched them on his shirt.  He's definitely now aware of self.

We love watching as our children discover the world around them.  It's like we are rediscovering it with them.  Bubita has recently been extremely fascinated by her left hand.  She stares at it all the time.  She is also getting so much better at grabbing items within her reach.  Today, we could not stop her from moving a burp cloth so she could gnaw on it.  In so many ways, maybe because we know how fast they grow up, she appears to be growing so much faster than Bubeaner at that time.  With Bubeaner we were eager for the next stage.  Always wanting the next step.  With Bubita we want her to slow down.  We want to savor every little aspect of her current stage.  It just goes by so fast!

Although this weekend is not going by so fast.  We are sick.  OK, so not everyone is sick.  But it appears that Dad, Bubeaner and Bubita have all caught a cold, stomach bug, or something of that sort.  (Momma lucked out... or maybe not.  We are still debating that.)  We have no idea where we caught this bug.  In the past, the bugs came mainly from Dad's work.  But nowadays, it could be from gym class, dance & tumbling class, swimming class, play dates, and even the church nursery.  Sigh.  And, of course, there really is no realistic way to prevent Bubita from catching it.  Thankfully, they do not have a fever.  Our hope is that it's a short-lived virus/bug.

We did discover that Bubeaner takes more after Momma when sick; we used to think he was more like Dad.  Dad, and as we found out Bubita too, "sundown" when they are sick; they feel worse as the day progresses.  This is the more common occurrence.  However, Momma and Bubeaner feel the worse in the morning and tend to feel better as the day progresses.  Bubeaner was playing with his toys as normal by the end of the day.  He was so active we feared he would not settle down to bed.  Thankfully that was not a problem. 

Bubita on the other hand is having a hard time going to sleep like Dad.  They both look like they are a little miserable.  (Actually Dad is the one that looks the worse.)  Bubita has settled down a little now that she's swaddled, fed and being rocked to sleep by Momma.   She has been extremely needy all day.  She's also been cluster feeding.  We are not sure if it is due to a growth spurt or a need for comfort/soothing.  It may be a little of both.  Hopefully, we will all have a better day tomorrow.

Swimming Play Date

Today was a great day though we all ended up exhausted.  Bubeaner and Bubita had their first play date at the new house with H, Meme'Licia's granddaughter.  Bubeaner does not see her too often, but he's had fun the few times she's been in town.  And today he gave her a nickname: Laylee.  Although it really is just her name a la Bubeaner. 

Move over Ms. Universe there's a new beauty in town

We decided to entertain the children by taking them swimming.  Actually, they were just going to play in the splash park, but we could not get it to work other than in one zone.  Bubeaner and Laylee did not appear to mind at first, but then they were drawn to the pool.  We were concerned about the pool because both little ones love the water and are definitely not afraid of it.  In previous occasions we have gone the ratio of adults to children has been in our favor.  Today we were outnumbered if Bubita was counted. 

We traded the flower headband for a cute, yet functional, 

hat once we went outdoors.

We were right to be concerned.  We had to keep our eyes on them at ALL TIMES and EVERY single SECOND.  At one point Bubeaner decided to walk into the pool and just keep walking.  Meme'Licia was right behind him.  But we assumed he would stop walking once the water got to his chest, then his shoulders, then his neck, and sure he would stop once it hit his mouth.  Nope.  Apparently Bubeaner believes he can walk underwater.  Now, this all happened within seconds.  And Meme'Licia was at hand to rescue him from himself.  It happened so fast we are not sure he even swallowed any water.  Silly boy!  And silly adults for thinking common sense worked on children.

Bubeaner and Laylee playing in the pool.

The rest of the time was a little more relaxing since Bubita decided to take a nap in her stroller.  Man-to-man cover was a lot easier.  Amazingly after 5 private swimming lessons we could still not get anything out of Bubeaner.  He refused to blow bubbles, kick or pretty much do anything.  He did, however, enjoy floating on a "noodle" and jumping in the water with Momma.  We will just have to continue with the lessons and hope he's learning something.

An exhausted Bubita napping after her first trip to the pool.

Upon our return home, Bubeaner had a meltdown.  We are not sure as to the cause but it was not pretty.  It was a struggle to change him, rinse him off in the shower and dress him.  He only partially calmed down when he got a hold of his lovey.  He must have just been exhausted.  We were sure he was not going to make it through lunch before falling asleep.  We underestimated the power of a play buddy.  He not only finished lunch but even went off to play with Laylee afterwards!  (Laylee's nap time starts an hour after Bubeaner's.)  However sleep eventually won out.  After a little while he stopped playing and informed Meme'Licia he was going Night-Night and promptly went into the nursery, got in his big boy bed and went to sleep.  By himself!

Bubeaner insisted it was a Cookie Monster towel

rather than a dragon.

It was also an exhausting day for Bubita although she spent most of the morning napping in her stroller.  This was her first time in the pool.  And she was able to wear her very first swimsuit, a bikini.  She looked adorable.  And not uncomfortable.  However, Bubita was not convinced about the pool.  She most definitely did not like the inflatable turtle we had hoped she would use.  Bubita would have none of it.  She wanted to be held preferably with her body out of the water.  This proved a little difficult.  Bubita ended up being carried while being covered by her baby towel.  It was light enough to not get Bubita too hot but still offering her protection from the sun.  Maybe Bubita will eventually warm up to spending time in the pool.  She definitely enjoys her tub and even the shower.

We spent the late afternoon finger painting, coloring and playing

with Bubita while she did tummy time.

And that morning nap may have messed up her schedule.  Bubita had already refused to go back to sleep after the 6a feeding.  Instead she stayed awake until 10a and slept for about an hour.  When we got back she slept about an hour after each feeding in the early afternoon, but never took her long afternoon nap.  This probably explains why she had problems going to sleep at bedtime.  Bubita fought it until 930p; she's usually asleep by 630p-7p. Hopefully she will sleep through the night.

Bubita fuming about tummy time.

By all accounts Bubita should be exhausted.  Not only did she spend some time in the pool but we also worked on Tummy Time for quite a while.  She HATES it.  Absolutely hates it.  But  we are not discouraged because Bubeaner hated it to until he got the hang of it.  And it should be a little easier for Bubita since, even though she does have a large head, it is proportional to the rest of her body unlike poor Bubeaner who at that stage still had a preemie body.  But for now, she spends most of her time crying and screaming.  It did help a little today trying the play gym mat.  Bubita was entertained by the different colors and toys.  We also enjoyed watching, and videotaping, Bubita purposefully grasping at different items on the mat. 

She never complained during the brakes from tummy time.

BubeanerBubeaner sleep walks.  He was standing in his crib sucking his thumb; he looked awake but was completely asleep.  Dad just gently laid him back down and covered him up.  We are not too surprised since it runs in the family.  But we will probably have to put up a safety gate outside the nursery to stop Bubeaner from wandering through the house unsupervised while we sleep.  He already gets into too many things when we are awake to worry about when we are sleeping. Today Bubeaner managed to open the pantry door, get the peanut butter crackers, and close the door when he was done.  This is the reason we have door locks on some tactical doors.  Unfortunately, Momma forgot to lock the pantry door in the morning.  And Bubeaner was smart enough to do it while Bubita ate when Momma couldn't really do much.

Bubeaner self-portrait.

Bubeaner also continues to amaze us with his personality.  We do not spank in our household as a rule.  Though, we do believe there are occasions when a spanking has been, and will be, necessary.  Most of the time our approach to discipline revolves around the Love and Logic method (there are consequences for every action) which really means time outs for Bubeaner.  The catch phrases we use are "That's not acceptable behavior" and "That's so sad."  One of the keys is to always appear in control of your emotions.  So these phrases are said in a normal soft tone of voice, never in anger. 

Today Bubeaner was coloring with his crayons when he decided to start taking the wrappers apart and coloring on the cabinets in the play room.  All Momma did was say "that's so sad" and put the crayons away.  When we turned around Bubeaner was not to be found.  He had gone to his room and put himself in time out!  So we timed him (2 minutes) and then let him off when the time was up.  He went back to playing without a problem.  WOW! 

A Little Bruise...Or Two

Ah, we used to tell other parents how lucky we were that Bubeaner had no interest in climbing.  It was true until a few weeks ago.  Then suddenly, things changed.  He is climbing on everything: the beds, the couches, the chairs.  In fact, he will climb on any little thing that can give him a few more inches in height.  This means that he is also into everything.  Counter tops are no longer out of reach.  And it also means an increase in falls and bruises.  Almost every day he has a new bruise, usually on the head (a draw back from being top heavy), or scrape/cut.

Dad watching the pre-game show with his babies.

Sunday Bubeaner fell from his little blue chair while trying to show off for his godfather.  Uncle Jeff tried comforting him as a nice, big bruise (and bump) appeared on Bubeaner's forehead.  Yesterday, he fell on his bottom.  And this evening he tripped while running around the bedroom and bit his tongue.  Sigh.  We used to joke about getting him a helmet for protection.  Now we wonder if we should wrap him up in bubble wrap.  We are convinced these scares are giving us gray hairs.

He did not appreciate us interrupting his reading time.

Bubeaner has also made great strides in talking in both English and Spanish.  He's turned into a little parrot mimicking every word/sound we say.  He particularly loves to repeat everything, E V E R Y T H I N G, Dad says.  Dad had to be VERY careful while watching the Cowboys game.  Bubeaner is still a little shy about talking in front of other people but even Meme'Licia and aunt Pau have heard some of his new words.

Enjoying a good brunch after church.

Morning is the only time he eats well sometimes having 2 morning meals. 

And the shyness has turned into separation anxiety in regards to people.  Bubeaner was pretty open to strangers despite being shy mainly because of his NICU stay and being exposed to a lot of people through church and friend groups.  But suddenly something changed.  He had no problem being dropped off the first time at the church nursery.  He didn't even want to leave at the end of mass.  But the second time we left him, this time at our old church, he cried a little then settled down.  The third time it was a little worse and so on.  Today he even cried when going into gym class.  And it took him almost 10 minutes to settle down during his swimming lesson.  It no longer helps if he can see Momma.  He wants to be within touching distance.  Even at home, Bubeaner will cry if Momma steps outside without him.  We are at a loss as to how to help him through this.

Finally getting some swimming done with coach Morgan 

As to Bubita, she continues to grow and thrive.  She simply adores her big brother.  She smiles the moment he comes into her line of vision.  She's even reaching out to touch him now, which he loves.  Yes, Bubita is now reaching out to grab things.  And she's getting better at actually making contact.  Of course, it helps if it is a large object.  We love watching her.  Bubita will look at an object then get this look on her face (we call it determination) and then her little hand will start making it's way to the object.  And when Bubita makes contact, good luck trying to pry it out of her little fingers.  The girl has quite a strong grip.  Meme'Licia and Momma have lost some hair to her as of late.

Having a heated conversation with the flying bear.

 (She looks like Bubeaner's twin in this shot.) 

She is also turning out to be a talker like her brother.  Well, Bubita doesn't suffer from the Talking Disease that runs in our families; she's a little more discriminating.  But she does have some long conversations nowadays.  And she's making more sounds than just goo and coo.  We love the intense look she gets when she's talking with us.  Her eyes get so big and excited.  Half of her conversation is through the expression in her eyes.

Enjoying a pre-dinner conversation with Momma.  

She's still having some reflux.  We still struggle emotionally with giving her medication.  Of course, it does not help that it's extremely frustrating to get her to ingest the medication.  We tried multiple styles of bottles and nipples and even using breast milk versus formula.  We even attempted to entice her by adding dark Karo syrup to her bottle.  Nothing worked.  Most of the medication usually ended up being spit up or remained on the bottle.  We finally had to give up and give it to her using our fingers feeding her immediately afterwards.  It's the only way we found to make her take it.  Sigh.  On the bright side, her BMs look a lot better and she is still able to go without a bib most days.  It took us a while to get to this stage with Bubeaner.

Our Summer Garden

Good luck finding a prettier little blossom. 

 
Bubita also continues to sleep through the night.  Lately she's been sleeping almost 12 hours going to sleep sometime between 645p and waking up at 6a.  She's pretty consistent on her wake up time of 6a just like Bubeaner.  She wakes up in a good mood too smiling and cooing.  But, unlike Bubeaner, she goes back to sleep until 9-930a.  She's still eats every 2 hours with a little bit of a cluster feed right before bedtime.  The last few days Bubita has been even taking a long afternoon nap of 3-4 hours.  We are optimistic this means she is settling into a more "regular" routine.

We just adore how she looks in bright colors. 

TGIF

Thankfully, it is Friday.  Even being at home, the weekend brings a schedule change.  One was greatly needed after this week.  We did not have a good night at all.  After the trouble getting Bubeaner and Bubita to fall asleep, they woke up multiple times during the night.  The (EARLY) morning found them wide awake, rested and in bed with us.  We still have not figured out how they can keep us up all night and still wake up rested.  Not surprisingly both of them ended up having a long morning nap of 2+ hours.  And in truth, Momma even succumbed at one point to the exhaustion.  We are not sure how Dad managed at work without one.

Bubita completely enthralled with the ceiling fan.

Bubita has definitely found her smile.  She smiles whenever she sees any she recognizes.  This even includes Sandy and her new best friend the ceiling fan.  And she is not stingy with them.  She smiles during "conversations" too.  Most of the time the smiles are followed by her heart-warming giggle or laughter.  They are more common occurrence so Bubita no longer startles at the sound of her laugh.

Smiling Bubita

She has a sunny disposition.

Bubeaner continues to insist on helping out with everything we do.  He likes to push the laundry baskets to and from the laundry room.  But the best part appears to be actually putting the clothes into the washing machine.  Bubeaner waits until the washing machine starts; he's mesmerized by the cycling motion.  Thankfully, the controls are still too high for him to reach.  We also encourage Bubeaner to help us out with Bubita's care.  He will bring us the clean diapers and wipes when Bubita needs a diaper change.  We also get him involved in picking out her clothes.  Bubeaner really enjoys helping out.  He even helped to burp her at one time.  And Bubita loves her Bubeaner.  She will smile and giggle when he's anywhere near her.

Bubeaner ensuring the pantry door is completely closed.

He cannot stand seeing doors open.

And when he can't help, Bubeaner imitates our behavior.  His current favorite pastime includes making vacuuming sounds as he pushes around any item even vaguely resembling a vacuum cleaner.  So far he has used his golf club (courtesy of Ms. Debbie), curtain rod and a shower curtain rod.  We wanted to buy a set of toy appliances, but we've yet to find any that are NOT pink or feminine.  It's sad since cleaning is not, and should not, be considered a gender-specific activity.

Vacuuming the hallway.

He's tried pushing the real vacuum cleaner but it's too heavy.

We keep the TV off most of the day at our home.  It's not that we don't watch TV, but thanks to the DVR (digital video recorder) we can tape our shows and watch them after the kiddos are in bed.  The only exception is usually during the morning while we get ready.  Even so, Bubeaner really never enjoyed watching TV.  In fact, he still does not really watch much TV; we've been playing movies in the car and he will only watch for a few minutes.  Bubita, however, is another story.  We can't get her to stop watching.  If the TV is on, she will move and strain her little neck until she can see it.  This may prove a problem as she gets older.

Pint-size TV junkie

 Bubeaner loves his Bubita.  However, there are many ways where we are finding out how he resented the changes brought on by the birth.  Momma use to put him to bed for his nap and bed time with almost no issues.  We had the same routine of prayers and songs.... almost from when he was still in the NICU.  But after the c-section, Momma was on lifting restriction.  We did cuddle and still did our songs/prayers.  But either Meme'Licia or Dad actually got him in bed.  After six weeks, we are attempting to resume our normal routine.  Well, every time Momma takes him for bedtime Bubeaner will fuss and cry and not settle down.  It usually requires either Meme'Licia or Dad to calm him down.  It's normal and we're not giving up, but it breaks Momma's heart.

Bubeaner helping get the lotion for Bubita.

Bubeaner has also been terribly missing his girls.  He asks for his "Ayi" and "LaLa" every day!  Of course, he asks for them more when we discipline him.  Spoiled little boy.

Surviving

The other day, while buying night diapers for Bubeaner, we looked for some for Bubita.  However, we did not find anything below size 4.  We realized it's probably because not many newborns are sleeping 7+ hours a night.  Yes, she sleeps that long at night now.  Most nights both babies are asleep by 730p-830p.  Bubita will wake up between 4a and 5a and Bubeaner between 6a-7a.  We're pretty lucky and a little cocky.  But then there are days like today when when our children remind us that with kids nothings guaranteed and life is usually not without some issues. 

A peacefully napping Bubita

This is one of the cutest things she does

We actually had a pretty quiet day today on purpose.  This entire week it's felt like we've been on the road.  With children every trip takes twice as long especially if it includes a little one that NEEDS to eat every 2-3 hours.  Add to that the extra hour of driving time, without traffic, that we must add because of our new home location.  And of course the 105+ degree weather  does add an extra little something to the equation.  It's just draining.

Bubeaner got really excited when he found this "book."

He immediately knew it was football! 

But we did not mind the quiet day.  We had a relaxed morning.  Bubeaner played a bit, Bubita ate and slept pretty well, and Momma got some little items done around the house.  We even managed to eat a quiet lunch together.  Afterwards, Bubeaner AND Bubita both took nice 3 hour naps allowing Momma to finally get to organize her closet.  The afternoon went in pretty much the same manner.  We were all relaxed and just enjoying the day.  Then something happened.  Our peaceful, calm and rested children morphed into cranky, fussy and crying little tyrants.  We are still struggling to figure out what happened.

Momma told him to read to Sandy.

He apparently thought she could read it herself.  

He handed her the book. 

Bubeaner ended up deciding to read it to Sandy in the end.

All we know is suddenly, Dad is struggling to calm Bubita while he cleans her and himself from the poop incident and Momma is dealing with an unhappy and misbehaving Bubeaner who suddenly refuses to sleep in his room or anywhere for that matter.

Bubita's new nickname:

Chunk-a-Chunk 

Her unofficial weight: 10 lbs!

(on our scale at home)

Plans for a book club meeting were scrapped.  The TV was forgotten on pause at the first five minutes of the game.  Dad drank his dinner in the form of an Ensure while dealing with Bubita crying.  And Momma shared her glamorous cold and flavorless ramen noodle dinner cup with a suddenly starving Bubeaner.

Bubeaner was very helpful, putting books away,

during the earlier part of the day. 

Thankfully, there is one thing that is guaranteed; they are human (though sometimes we wonder) and will eventually run out of steam.  So, it's just a case of making it just a little longer than them.  And as expected, Bubeaner succumbed first.  Granted he ended up back in the pack-and-play in our room, but he at least finally fell asleep.  Bubita, stubborn little punk that she is, lasted the longest.  It's currently 1030p and she's finally asleep.  Though, she too is not in her bed.  She's currently resting on a pillow on Momma's lap as this entry is being typed.  She starts crying the moment she's placed in her bassinet. 

We thought they were so cute.  They were probably planning their

strategy for the evening.  It was all down hill after this picture. 

And it's not so much how late they stayed up that's the problem.  We can easily stay up later on our own watching a movie, reading or talking.  It's just that when they are up and crying and fussy, they have the power to drain the life force out of you.  At those times, a minute feels like an hour.  Though they sure are adorable when they finally fall asleep.  So peaceful!

THE MANY FACES OF BUBITA:

Hmm, what shall I do today to push Momma's buttons....

I forgot what I was thinking about, 

but my fingers are yummy.

Momma don't distract me!

I am working on a plan for world domination!

Man, all this thinking has really worn me out.