Any swaddlers out there?

I just received a recommendation to swaddle my babies in "The Miracle Blanket".

I checked out the website and it looks like it gets rave reviews! I have been swaddling my babies, but with really tiny blankets that they tend to wiggle out of. (dangerous) SO, this option sounds like a good one. Just wanted to know if there was anyone out there that has used these and had an opinion on them before I go out and spend the money on them. Or maybe you have other suggestions on helping the babies sleep better and not quite so active. (kicking, grunting, etc.) Please comment or email me if so...I know

a lot of moms read this blog!!!

Granny & Grampas return home today from their trip to Virginia! We are so excited to see them and can't wait to go pick them up from the airport in a couple of hours. Aunt Jenn is my "personal shopper" (she's excellent at finding deals and also is able to get out and about easier) and she recently went shopping for me and found the babies many new outfits. We will most certainly have to wear a new outfit for the "airport trip". :)

Just finished the BEST feeding the babies have ever had. I was able to feed and burp both babies back to back in only 50 minutes!!!!!! WOO HOO!!!! Check out how relaxed Mr. Jones looks even though he's in his sister's pink Boppy!

And here's Missy, WIDE AWAKE with HUGE eyes after her bottle!!! She is packing on the LBs!!!

Jones' Artwork

I apologize ahead of time for the picture...but I had to share what I consider one of the funniest experiences of my life. Nana was changing Jones' diaper the other day and announced from the other room that he had a dirty diaper. I yelled out to hold on, cause I wanted to take a look at it since he was having such irregularity issues. (I know, gross) Anyways, I ran in and the moment Nana removed the diaper for me to check it out, Jones decided he wasn't quite done going to the bathroom and proceeded to projectile poop. I have never seen so much force behind a poop. Unbelievable. We had to document this event with pictures so we could show him one day his talent. Oh, the joys of motherhood!!!!!!!

There are more pictures of this wonderful event, but I will not gross you out any further. Just know that he also hit that far wall.

Now on to a more appropriate topic...we had lots of fun spending the night last night with Nana. It was the babies' first slumber party over there. We went to "Ole Whiskers" for dinner and they slept through the whole thing. Little did they know what amazing food was around them! We all PIGGED out and it was absolutely fabulous. If you haven't been there it's a catfish buffet with all the fixins'....and the most amazing cinnamon rolls for dessert. We swung by Babies R Us on the way back to Nana's and then got home just in time for the 10:00 feeding. Before we left this morning, we did a quick photo shoot in their knit caps that hadn't fit them up until now. It cracks me up that both babies look like little porkers with their double chins!!! They are getting to be really good eaters!!

Nursery Details

I'm not sure if you're like me, but one of my FAVORITE things to do is look at other people's homes, decorating, etc. I love stealing ideas and I have had a blast decorating David & I's home. Because several people had asked for another look at the nursery, I went ahead and took pictures of everything in the room. :)

I absolutely LOVE the babies' red cribs...but I have to admit that they were the BIGGEST headache of my life! The cribs were dark wood (which I love if I had had 2 boys), but I wanted red. So we hired a company to paint them red. I got quotes from several people, and finally selected one. Let me just say that they had quite a bit of difficulty painting the cribs and getting them perfectly smooth and up to my OCD standards. After several weeks worth of work on them, I finally was happy with the final product! I also LOVE the way their bedding turned out and would be happy to share the name of the person who made it. She did a great job, and I found her to be reasonably priced...especially for custom work.

London's crib. I love the damask and I LOVE her ruffled bedskirt.

Rocking chair in between cribs. There wasn't enough space for an upholstered club chair rocker (my original idea) so I opted for the wooden rocker. It's surprisingly more comfortable than you'd think and takes up much less space.

Jones' crib. I chose houndstooth for his crib cause I thought it was more masculine. I also had his bedskirt made with box pleats. Love it!

Houndstooth storage cube at the foot of Jones' crib. I have toys and blankets stored in here...but it's most handy for a second person to sit and feed in the middle of the night!

The "J" and "L" plaques above their cribs. (just in case I forget which crib to put them in???) I just painted the wooden plaques black, and then painted their letter on in white.

This is kind of random looking, but this little display is not done yet. I am still waiting on the photographs from J&L's photo shoot to fill these square frames. The frame on the left is a chalkboard that I plan to write a Bible verse on, but haven't done so yet.

Changing table with my favorite lamp ever. (ironically, this lampshade just got ruined due to a hilarious diaper changing experience...will make a post about that next) You can also see a portion of my Zebra painting I painted...but I already posted pics of that awhile ago so I didn't take pics of it again.

This shadow box is filled with David's "Coming Home" outfit from 1979. David was also a preemie so you can see how tiny he was!

Another shot of in between the cribs.

Random shot of their closet. Not an overload of clothes yet. I have definitely found that there isn't a very big selection of clothes for the Newborn size. (which they are still in...London is just about outgrowing it) So I am waiting until they can fit into bigger clothes and then maybe I can go a little out of control with cute outfits. ;)

Happy Father's Day, Daddy!

Last weekend was a fun one filled with "firsts"! On Friday night, David and I went out on our first date since the twins were born. Granny and Grampas came over to babysit and David and I took off for dinner and a movie. We saw "Year One", and I must admit that we found it really funny. However, please don't be upset if you go and see it and think it's the stupidest movie you've ever seen. It's David and I's type of humor...but not for everyone. ;)

Sunday was David's first Father's Day and we had a great time celebrating all of the Daddys in our lives. Aunt Jenn, Uncle Trevor, Rowan, Granny, Grampas, Papa, David, and I all got together and went to "Five Guys" in Southlake for dinner. If you haven't been there, you must give it a try! Delicious!! (They have one in the Galleria too) After dinner, we headed back to our house for dessert. I made fried apple pies for everyone. They were tasty, but very filling...especially after a double decker burger!

David got a smoker (he's been talking about wanting to smoke briskets, ribs, etc.) and also a trip to the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium to tour it with Uncle Trevor. Tours begin this weekend so the guys are excited.

I am definitely struggling recently with the babies' schedule.

They have decided to change up my "eat every 4 hour" routine. Instead, they've backed it up to every 3 hours...and not always hungry at the same time. For some reason they are not wanting to burp as often anymore, but won't take the bottle back without a burp. This morning's feeding lasted 1 hour and 45 minutes and Jones still had 1 ounce left. I was VERY frustrated. (this is an understatement)

Some women from church (that teach the Prep for Parenting class) are coming over this afternoon to give me some suggestions on how to get things in order! Having 2 babies is SOOO much harder than I thought it was going to be. Especially when one has continued tummy issues. (did I mention that Jones was back to having stomach problems again) Hopefully I can get some good pointers today and be on my way to a "less chaotic" life!!!!

Mr. Jones posing in his crib...I couldn't get him to look at the camera!

Missy in her crib...looking at the camera, but no smile!

UPDATE: The girls from church just left and they were SO wonderful. I definitely screwed up when I switched the babies to the 4 hour schedule. We are back to a 3 hour schedule and we should see some great results eventually!! They shared lots of pointers with me so I am grateful for their time. They held the babies the whole time they were here and were so sweet with them! (and I'm pretty sure J&L both had poopy diapers the whole time they were holding them....sorry ladies!)

2 MONTHS OLD!

The twin's 2 month birthday has arrived and I can't believe it! Since Rowan turns 18 months tomorrow, we celebrated with a joint birthday party this evening catered by Granny! Most of you know that Connie is an out-of-this-world cook, and she didn't disappoint tonight. Besides a fantastic dinner, she also provided an AMAZING Elmo cake. Her cakes definitely always look amazing, but also taste amazing. YUMMY! Of course the twins could not partake in this part of the celebration, but I can't wait for the day they can! :)

David and I headed to the doctor this morning for J&L's 2 month well check up. We love Dr. Ogden! He answered lots of questions for us and then the nurses came in with their "shot trays". I was a wreck seeing all of the shots they were about to get. The nurses got everything set up, and then looked at each other and said "Go". It was almost like a race to see who could give all 4 shots the fastest! The babies both started wailing at the exact same time, but the nurses were awesome and done in a flash. We got a weight check and both babies weighed the EXACT same. 8 lbs. 3.5 oz. It is unbelievable that both babies have doubled their birth weight in 2 months. The babies "adjusted age" is actually just under 2 weeks old...so their developmental milestones are actually based on this age. The babies are finally beginning to focus a lot more, sometimes follow a face or object if it moves, and definitely having more wake-time after feedings.

Thanks to those who offered "gas" advice! I do appreciate it and it's nice knowing that lots of other moms have dealt with this frustration. We are (knock on wood) seeing improvement in Jones so that is excellent news.

I've only seen Jones suck his thumb a couple of times, that's why I have to capture it on film every time cause I think it's adorable!

London under the activity mat.

You'll notice their little rings around their heads. These are rolled up blankets that force them to lay on the backs of their heads. Otherwise they never lay on the backs of their heads and they need to in order to keep their heads shaped properly. In the hospital, they were always on the sides of their heads and this misshaped their heads just a bit. The nurses suggested we try this once we got home and it's working!

Jones under the activity mat!

Supermodels in Training

Well I have to admit that the title to this post is a bit exaggerated. Jones and London worked hard at their first photo shoot, but I would say we are still far from supermodel status. We do have, however, 3 preview pictures of their photo shoot that I wanted to share!!

I will give a disclaimer that you will LAUGH OUT LOUD when you see sweet Jones' shot with his "pig tail" hat on! Hilarious!!

Daddy with Jones & London

Mommy with Jones and Daddy with London

Mr. Jones in his pigtail hat!!!!! hehehe

The photographer said the remainder of the pictures (which there are a TON more poses) will be ready within a week or two! Yippee!!! Can't wait to post more of my little angels.

The twins and I packed up everything yesterday and headed over to Granny & Grampas's house. Joyce was in town (Dad's "little sister") and we were excited for her to meet the babies. She was AMAZING with them! I loved just watching her with the babies and feel I learned so much from her just by the way she worked with them. She definitely has a lot of experience and you can tell! The babies loved her and they even each got a sweet outfit from her!

(Aunt Jenn & Joyce)

After Joyce headed to the airport to return to VA, Nana and Kathy came over for a visit. Aunt Kathy had never met the babies, but was at the hospital the day they were born. She loved on them and oooed and ahhhed appropriately! hehe

I am not quite sure how I am even typing this post as last night was by far the worst night we have had so far in regards to sleeplessness. David had an important meeting this morning, so I tried REALLY hard to do everything on my own. Jones is continuing to have some tummy issues and screamed bloody murder off and on from about 9 pm - 4 am. Fortunately, London slept right through all the commotion! You could definitely tell he was in a lot of pain with gas, etc. If things don't improve within 24 hrs. we have orders to switch to soy formula. So we shall see!!! Anyone that has any suggestions, PLEASE feel free to leave a comment. I am open to anything!

And here I am being a bit dramatic and hiding in our middle bathroom during the "tornadic" activity the other night. The babies didn't have a clue, but Reese was really nervous. Notice my mini radio and enormous flashlight. :)

BUSY DAYS!

The last 2 days have been SO busy for the Laughlins! Granny & Nana both arrived early yesterday morning to help. The least I could do was provide them with breakfast and I must share THIS recipe as it was a hit. It's a Paula Deen recipe, and we all agreed it was yummy! How could biscuits, cinnamon, sugar, butter, blueberries, and oats NOT be delicious?!

After breakfast, we headed to the doctor for a weight check. Current weights....

Jones - 7 lbs. 1 oz.

London - 7 lbs. 2 oz.

I can't BELIEVE they are only 1 oz. different. London still looks so much bigger, but Jones' face is filling out. The visit ended in a "sick visit" as Jones was having some "irregularity" issues (nice way of saying he was having poop issues) and the doctor wanted to ensure he wasn't sick. All looked good and we have orders to give him water and/or Kayro syrup in his bottle.

Here he is at the doctor...he was a little scared so he started sucking his tiny thumb

After the visit, both grandmas stayed with the babies and I headed over to Morgan's for a quick visit. I wasn't able to stay too long, but it was fun getting to catch up. Morgan's little girl, Jillian, is due in just a couple of weeks and we are so excited to meet her. It's been fun to experience pregnancy together with one of your best friends. I brought Morgan a few gifts for Jillian, including a hot pink tutu. Before I wrapped it, I just HAD to have London model it. Unfortunately, the photo shoot didn't go wonderful. She eventually got bored with the tutu and gave me a big yawn.

Today was an even BUSIER day. Jones and London had their first professional photo shoot and it went great. I was very proud of them for holding out for 4 hours of poses! We did have quite a few spontaneous "peeings", some on David, some on me....and a lot all over the photographer's blankets! Whoops! Go check out some of the photographer's work at her website http://www.jamierogersphotography.com/.

VERY talented and VERY patient with my babies. I couldn't believe how wonderful she was with them! I can't WAIT to see how they turned out and will ABSOLUTELY post some of those photos as soon as I receive them.

I had a 3 hour nap....Yes, 3 hours....and am now ready for the evening!!!!

Professional Bottle Washer

I believe that cleaning bottles is my new pastime.  This picture shows the amount of bottles the twins use in just over HALF a day.  It's actually not quite as bad as it looks...plus, I know they won't be eating this often forever!  

Cousin Rowan came over yesterday for a little visit and was SO good with the babies.  We had him sit and pose with them, but he was a little uneasy about that request.  

When I was pregnant, we would ask Rowan where Jones and London were and he would point to my belly and kiss it.  Now when we ask him where Jones and London are, he is so confused that they aren't in my belly, but instead are these little human beings.  You can see the confusion on his face in this picture...hilarious!

We asked Rowan if London had toes and he was showing us where hers were located.  He was so proud of himself!

This is Ryan & Jessy's little boy, Jackson.  I know this is very hard to believe, but Jackson and the twins were born 1 DAY apart.  Jessy had Jackson on Thursday evening & I had J&L on Friday afternoon.  This just shows the difference between 7 more weeks "cooking in the oven".  He is a cute boy and was a good visitor!