Baby/mama products we love

Baby tent: folds up to a tiny disc, then explodes (literally) into sleeping quarters for both babies. Got some more use at the Grandparents Leibowitz this weekend, and worked great yet again.

8 ounce Medela bottles: no more anxiously pumping while waiting to grab the bottles as they rapidly fill, then transitioning to new bottles while dripping/spraying all over my work clothes, the floor in my office, and my weird but awesome knee chair. And obviously my Medela Pump-in-Style from friends at Bleisenblog--it has saved the day on many, many occasions.

Indestructible books: chew-proof, rip-proof baby books with vibrant pictures and colors.

Bundlemes: We got ours for $10 each at the Multiple Moms Mingle sale this fall but they're a bargain at any price. We can't use them in the bigger carseats once they are out of the portable buckets but in the meantime they keep the babies cozy and warm in their seats. I have heard that they are the less-safe alternative car seat cover, and that the better version is this. Well, we love ours and we're not paying another $40 for two new ones.

Space saver high chairs: Got them for $40 total at the MMM sale last spring, and so far they've been working great. We can transport them easily if need be and they recline for various eating positions.

Nursing bras: I tried a couple different kinds and then bought three of these. They are comfortable and easy to latch and unlatch and have held up very well to nearly seven months of 24/7 use.

CJ's Butter: We have the Blueberry Crumble flavor from Jillian's Drawers. The smell is incredible. It's hard enough not to munch on these little guys because they're so dang cute. Now they smell like one of my favorite foods!!

Baby swing: The Cadillac of baby swings. AC adapter, continuous use (no automatic shut off), actual legitimate music, and easy-to-use safety straps. Yes, our boys barely fit in it any more but we won't stop using it until their feet hit the ground when it's running. It is awesome.

Baby Einstein activity gym, aka Baby Vegas: keeps them occupied for twenty minutes at a time, which is long enough for me to make a batch of cookies, make dinner, fold diapers, whatever. Awesome.

Glider: People told us we needed a rocking chair when the babies came, and we didn't really understand. We bought this a few months ago from a MMM mom and boy is it awesome. I don't know why we didn't have one earlier!

Shea Moisture baby products: I love the smell of this stuff. It's my favorite baby wash. Walgreens is the only place I can find it.

All the books and clothes the boys have received have been amazing! I can't even pick out any that are especially wonderful or appreciated--we love them all!

Ergo baby carrier: My favorite carrier, unless I'm in a huge hurry to bundle the baby up and get going, in which case I opt for the Baby Bjorn because it requires less finagling while I'm on my own. Big padded shoulder straps, comfortable fit for me and baby, and-aha!-zippered pocket for keys and phone.

Products we thought we'd love but kind of don't:

This Manhattan Toy: Theo and Beckett love all the other Manhattan Toys we've gotten as handmedowns from the Bleisenblog bunch, like the Whoosit. They also love the Skwish, which I bought for them. But this one just doesn't do it for them.

Baby socks: What a freakin hassle. Why bother? we ask, except that the boys' feet get too cold. We're constantly losing them, both in the house and when we're out ("excuse me, I think you dropped a baby sock!" is a common refrain when out of the house). Is duct tape the answer?

On the same note, baby shoes. WTF? Shoes? My kids can barely stand up without tilting their feet inward! They do not require shoes.

Waterproof crib mattress pads: Maybe this is more of a statement about how awesome our diapers are, but we really haven't needed these yet. Just the sheet over the pad would have worked so far. I guess we have lots of illnesses involving projectile vomiting to go in the life of our cribs, but we (thankfully) haven't required the use of the waterproof pad yet.

New sweaters

From Great Aunt Lucy! They are a little big now but given that winter lasts six months here, I'm guessing they will fit just about perfectly by the end of winter, in April or so.

Six Month Checkup

Yesterday we went to see Dr. Morisseau at Brighton Hill Pediatrics for the boys' six month checkups. Beck is 17 pounds, 10 ounces and 26.5 inches long, and Theo is 16 pounds and 25.5. inches long. Beck is in the 50th percentile for everything (weight, height, head circumference), and Theo is in the 10th percentile for everything (weight, height, head circumference). Both babies smiled through their exams and this time Beck is the one who freaked out with the shots, whereas Theo was a champ and cried for only a few minutes before setting into Grandpa Stu's arms and resuming smiling and laughing. Neither baby had eaten yet yesterday morning because they woke up late and we had an early appointment, so they should have been about 6 ounces heavier, but it doesn't really matter. Dr. Morisseau is very happy with how they are growing and developing and one of the nurses said she could tell that I was really enjoying every minute with them. Which I am. And it's fun that other people can see that!

Dr. Morisseau discovered that Beck has an ear infection. They have both been snotty for a little over a week but neither had been acting cranky, or having trouble eating or sleeping. It had seemed like they were getting better lately. I felt bad that I hadn't brought Beck in earlier, since he had been sick, and said so to the doctor. She said she wouldn't have brought her kid in either, because he really wasn't acting sick. So that made me feel a little better. He's on antibiotics now, as of last night, and I hope that will resolve things pretty quickly. It isn't quite as bad as administering medication to the cat, but putting the syringe of medicine in his mouth is pretty unpleasant, with lots of frothing at the mouth and projectile rejecting.

The BEST outcome of the pediatrician appointment is that Dr. Morisseau said that the boys shouldn't need to wake up at night anymore. Ha ha, I said, I KNOW that, but THEY don't know that. Well apparently all I need to do is take them to the pediatrician and have her say something when I want them to do it, because last night they only woke up once in the night! One time between 6:30pm and 7:45am. Whereas the last few weeks they've been waking up at least twice and often three or four times. Beck ate when I got home from work, at around 5pm, and they didn't eat again until 3am! I hopehopehope this is the start of a new pattern!

I have been working on two new mobiles for the last few weeks and finally put one together this afternoon. Theo's only had to wait five months for his own mobile. But his is TOTALLY amazing! Check it out:

We love Christmas cards!

And Auntie Tara.....


And the Grandparents Leibowitz...





And our new bath toys...


And our new Christmas stockings from Kim...


And Daddy Lovebo...

And Mama Lovebo!

Snotty babies

We had a great visit with Sara E and her son Preston on Tuesday. Sara warned me that Preston was still a little snotty, but I decided it was probably a good thing for Theo and Beck to get some exposure to some germs. They haven't had much yet because they're not in daycare and the people they spend the most time with haven't been sick yet this year. Preston dutifully infected them by sucking on their toys and sneezing and coughing in their faces several times. Beck got the bug first and had a runny nose and watery eyes by Thursday morning. Theo got it Friday. We have had a humidifier running in their rooms since Friday night, and they sleep at least part of each night in their carseats so they are more upright. I know that when I have a cold I much prefer to be more upright so the yucky doesn't just sit inside my nose. They were markedly better last night in time for a dinner date with Ana, Robert and James in Liverpool.

Photos, med update, work update

All three of the boys (Jeff, Theo and Beckett) got to meet my aunt Deb and uncle David in Clinton, Massachusetts over the Thanksgiving holiday. We had a really nice visit. They boys were very engaged with David and Deb and we all had a great time.




Beck got his first driving lesson from Daddy Lovebo on the way home from Thanksgiving in Massachusetts last weekend.

Extreme close-up of Theo!
A few weeks ago Grandma Joanie cleaned out our basement stash of paint (none bought by us) and took it all back to Grandpa Stu to take to the household hazardous waste drop-off in Ithaca. Grandpa Stu reports that we won the prize for most things dropped off from one car.


Mama is off the 'roids! I took my last dose of steroids yesterday and now the only thing I'm on is the synthetic thyroid hormone I will be on for the rest of my life (unless my thyroid grows back! not a joke!). I'm taking all my old drugs to the pharmacy tomorrow to get them out of the house. I figure with boys ready to crawl any day, we might as well eliminate any toxic things we can from the house.

Week One went well. Mindy is always as happy and smiley and calm at the end of the day as she was at the beginning, which astounds me. (Mama Lovebo has been known to be standing at the end of the driveway with one child in the Ergo and holding another, waiting for Daddy Lovebo to pull in at 5:30.) The boys have been happy to see me but also perfectly happy playing or chatting with Mindy. We feel very lucky.

Theo and Beck's First Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving dinner with everyone! Of course Theo and Beck picked that exact moment to both start cranking. We tried to eat with them squirming and fussing, then put them in their PeaPod (baby tent) for about 10 minutes, during which they screamed. When we brought them down again, they were in much better moods and allowed everyone to eat in peace!
From one turkey (27lbs) to another (Great Uncle Rich).
Cousin once removed Emily and Tommy, who is a total baby lover!