Circles

circles...dark ones...they are showing up under my eyes!! anyone have any tricks/good products/etc?? i mean, i know that they are not going away any time soon, so...whatever. :) in all reality, things are going pretty good! since my last post both of the girls have gotten sick, we have had several of my siblings here from michigan, and my legs still itch! 

annabel and claire got some congestion from someone and then annabel somehow got an ear infection...at 5 weeks old! what the heck??!!?? poor baby!! the ear infection then led to thrush because of the antibiotic (that seems backwards to me, btw). so, two antibiotics also leads to seriously messed up poop. that led to our first blowout diaper. of course we were out at a softball game. in case you are wondering, bleachers are just wide enough to change my babies!! lol. through it all, the girls have continued to be very good babies!! they rarely cry unless they are hungry or needing a diaper change. they have each been sleeping pretty good. their sleeping is good but mine is still lacking...only because i am up feeding two separately. at night, i am up for about 35 min with each baby, that adds up pretty quickly. i am usually able to do the night feedings alone, giving peter a chance to sleep as much as possible, after all, he cant take a nap mid afternoon. i rarely nap, but its the knowing i usually can if needed. but, all of that is contributing to my dark circles. while i am gaining circles, i am loosing weight. i am 6 pounds less than when i got pregnant!! my skin is still loose across my belly and my belly is shaped differently now and lets not even discuss the stretch marks. but its nice to say that i lost all my pregnancy weight within the first month and continue to loose! now, most of that is due to forgetting to eat, but whatever!! lol.

so, we have also had lots of family visiting the last two weeks. my sister, olivia, and her 2 year old, zoe, came to visit for a long weekend. liv was a HUGE help while she was here. i loved having zoe here too! she is so smart and was super sweet with annabelclaire (yes, they are one person in her mind). liv and i did some shopping, we all went for frozen yogurt (several times), we went to the park and used the moby wraps for the first time, and had some great sister time! i hope that annabel and claire grow up having an awesome relationship with each other. liv and i are finally becoming close, and i love it! right after i dropped olivia and zoe off at the airport i got a call from my brother jonathan that he and his wife and his best friend were coming down the following day for a few days. WHAT??!!?? ok! my bro (whom i call paco) is very quiet and not open about anything. him calling to say he wanted to visit meant the world to me. it was so great having paco, whitney, and beal here. we ate out (thanks, paco), whitney and i had fun girl time while the boys went to a million gun shops, and we took advantage of the media room. i really miss my family and loved having them here! this week some of peter's family comes on thursday..his sis laura and dad carl. we have had a ton of out of town company...we are so blessed!

yep, legs still itch. i went to see dr. todd for my follow up and he has no idea what it is. he told me to go  see a dermatologist. i had an appointment, but i was having a rough day and needed to cancel. so, i still itch, like crazy!! i have little raised bumps from my knees down. i work very hard not to scratch, but i cant help it sometimes...ugh!!!

i of course think my girls are sweet and totally adorable, so here are a few pics!! :)

on our way to church

aunt livvy and the girls. annabel in pink, claire in blue

momma and her babies

i love this pic!! 

daddy holding claire in the moby wrap at the park! :)

momma and annabel. we both love to swing!

all of out to dinner! 

Liv and Zoe at menchie's for fro yo

some of the many faces of claire..all within 45 seconds!! lol

Uncle Paco and Claire. she wasnt too sure about him!! lol

pics while out to dinner. top left: Claire. top right: Peter and Beal. bottom left: Paco, me, and Whitney. bottom right: Annabel

the girls fell asleep while i blow dried my hair this morning!  so sweet 

Claire all dressed up to meet daddy's coworkers today. 

Annabel liked wearing her Easter dress again!

precious!! 

i am a momma in love, even with the dark circles! i have things i could complain about (and sometimes i do), but i am choosing to be grateful! 

blessings, ALo

One Month

the LOtwins are one month old!! i really cant believe it! this month has flown by!! we are so thankful for how this first month has gone! i have loved (almost) every single moment. the only thing that was hard was recovering from surgery...feeling and knowing that i missed out on the very first few moments/day of their life because i was recovering. but, aside from that, life has never been more perfect, more fulfilling, and more unpredictable!

Claire Mackenzie:
loves to look around and becomes very wide eyed when moving from dark to light rooms. she loves to look at herself in the mirror when getting her diaper changed or getting dressed...we could be in trouble! :) she is a good eater, but makes a complete mess of herself and whoever is feeding her. she is now eating between 3 and 4 ounces every few hours. she is a great sleeper and doesnt even wake up when her sister screeches! claire is still our little peanut, but has gained almost 2 pounds this month. claire needs to work on her neck strength a little, but she is doing very good for her size! claire fits great into newborn onesies/tops, but newborn pants are too big around her waist. however, she is too big, especially too long, for preemie pants. we still call her curious claire...she just loves to know what is going on...when she is actually awake! :)

a little shy at first...look at that dark hair!!

hi, mom! i love those little bloomer shorts! 

we think she looks like her daddy, just more girly :)

passed out on daddy during pictures :)

Annabel Marie:
really loves to be held!! that has become even more evident the last two days. she gets upset when i have to feed or bathe claire in the mornings and no one is there to hold her. she is a good eater and keeps a lot more of it in her mouth, she just takes a little longer. annabel is our little grunter...she makes so many noises throughout the day, including the cutest snorting noises especially when she is done eating. annabel is becoming our chunky monkey. she is starting to little rolls and i love it! i just love kissing her cheeks. she fits great into newborn clothes, but is also abel to wear a few 0-3 month outfits. she is about a pound heavier and inch longer than claire. she really loves bath time and becomes so alert during her bath. i treasure those few moments! annabel loves to wake me up at night by screeching at the top of her lungs...its piercing. annabel was laid back in the beginning, but has shown us her more dramatic side as of late. annabel loves to cuddle with her daddy and it melts my heart to see them together. i am totally in love with this little girl!

yes there are a few more pics of annabel...thats because her mood was all over the place...its was so funny!

she got really ticked right away...mad i changed her clothes and put on the headband. 

annabel mid screech

then acting like nothing happened

little smirk...mischievous just like her momma! 

then she totally passed out!

just wanted to hang with her daddy. she looks a lot like me!

they are really sweet babies and i am so blessed!

attempt number one: two screaming babies. just like our mornings. it happens! 

they love their daddy!!! 

attempt number two: much better and the normal. laid back sleeping babies.

 blessings, ALo

New Crazy

well, of course, my life has taken on a new form of crazy. i am the mother of twin girls...i think that explains it all! so, i am sorry for the lack of posts, but this first four weeks has been all about learning how to adjust to this new crazy life.

honestly, i must have been reading major horror stories, and people must only tell me the crappy stories of being a mom of multiples because, so far, this has gone a lot better than i ever expected! i do have awesome babies though too! they both are great eaters and sleepers. i dont love the whole diaper part, but that is probably normal! :) today, my favorite thing we do is bath time...they love it, and i love how they smell after!

the first three weeks home we were lucky enough to have our moms here! peters mom, susan, was here for two weeks and my mom this whole last week. this is the first week we are on our own! my sister and 2 year old niece will be here thursday, but until then...just babies and momma!!

we have had some really awesome adventures the last few weeks: Easter (yes, we went to church. the girls looked adorable), lots of shopping (including a 3 hour trip to the outlet mall), a day trip to waco, tx. (waco is two and a half hours away, i have cousins that are there at Baylor), and buying a new car for momma! the girls are really good about traveling and being out and about, thankfully!! we love to meet up with people for lunch or coffee or a stroll around target (we haven't done that yet...i have to figure out the logistics of that...2 carseats but only room for one in the cart!)

with all our running around, i am not surprised that someone got sick. that someone was me and it was on Easter. :( so sad!! we had gone to church saturday night to avoid some of the major crowds, but we still saw plenty of people we knew. sunday i woke up not feeling that great and as the day progressed, i just kept feeling worse. we went to our friends house for an Easter cookout, and i spent the whole time sleeping on the couch...so sad! thankfully no one else in the house got it!!

that sickness did a number on me...and a HUGE number on my milk supply. that has been the hardest thing for me during this new journey...nursing. in the beginning, the girls did not want to/couldnt figure out how to latch on. after several days, we were all frustrated and stressed out. so, i started pumping and still supplementing with formula. i was not producing enough for both girls, but started taking fenugreek and eating lactation cookies (thanks, lisa!!) and drinking a TON of water. i was getting almost two ounces (total) each time i pumped (yeah, not a lot). but being sick really took a toll. i am now only getting a little less than an ounce (total) at each pump session. what a bummer!! i am so sad!! i have thought several times about giving up, but i am still holding out hope that my supply will pick up again. my biggest frustration is that i feel like a failure. i am supposed to be able to do this, my body is supposed to be able to do this. yes, i know that things happen, but still. i really wanted to be able to do this with and for my girls. both girls are growing like weeds and getting things that they need from the formula, but it would have been ideal to have me suppling the nourishment. but like many things...i made plans to nurse and i have had to change those plans. (that has been a theme the last four weeks!)

my life is crazy, but its amazing! its demanding, but so rewarding! its the most amazing blessing to be the mom to these two beautiful baby girls!!

Claire loves this hair bow, i promise!! 

Claire has fuzzy hair after her baths!! 

Annabel was ticked during Easter morning pictures!! lol

Cousin Alyson (sophomore at Baylor) loved having coffee with the girls!

Cousin Brett (on the football coaching staff at Baylor) tried getting the  twins recruited! 

Claire was serious about shopping for her new hat

Annabel was totally underwhelmed!

Thanks, Mimi, for the cuteness!!

Annabel is becoming a chunky monkey!! 

Annabel loves TV time with mom!

sisters snoozin!

Momma and her babies in our Easter best

3 generations and lots of spring colors! (thats my mom, aka Mimi)

family of four!!! love this!! what a blessing!!

momma's new to us Acadia...room for cars seats and passengers!

we have taken sooooooo many pics...these were just a few! i am seriously obsessed! lol!! we did have a doctor check up a week ago today... Claire weighed in at 6lb 7oz and Annabel was 7lb 6 oz. they are gaining weight really well and we dont go back until their two month check up!! woohoo!!

hope you are all great! thanks for all the continued support and encouragement!!

blessings, ALo