Goings On

Our first week and some-odd days with Charlotte home has (have?) gone pretty smoothly. She is a great baby, only crying for a good reason (gas, poop, hunger, Jack poking her in the eye) and is happy to be swaddled and observing the action around her. Really, compared to caring for premature baby twins, she's a breeze. I find myself thinking, "How did I do (fill-in-the-blank) with twins?" about sixty times a day. The easiest thing is by far feeding her. "How did I nurse twins ten to twelve times a day without going absolutely insane?" You get the picture. It's a breeze.

The only part that hasn't been so breezy is, you guessed it, the twins. While they can't really express jealousy, they have definitely felt the shift in attention that necessarily accompanies the arrival of a new baby sister. This jealousy manifests itself in minor temper tantrums, clingy whining, and a general aura of crankiness. It was especially bad the first few days after she came home, and I found myself freaking out a little about having to care for all three of them by myself with the boys behaving so badly. But, as my sage mother predicted, they have mellowed out with time, and they seem pretty resigned to the fact that she is here to stay and that Mom may be a little distracted from time to time.

I am so thankful that they are at the age where they can entertain themselves for long stretches of time without too much harm to their persons. I can change/wash/feed the baby or do small household chores, all the while letting them play with only minor supervision. Even with their independence, it's really amazing how quickly I've learned to juggle my new charge--almost literally. Just this morning I made the boys breakfast, got them settled with it, continued to keep the bananas (Baylor now says "na-na-na") and waffles flowing, broke up minor skirmishes, and cleaned up the kitchen, all the while breastfeeding Charlotte. Really, I am sure it was very comical-looking. She took it all in stride, and the boys were delighted that I was able to wait on them hand-and-foot.

Jack and Baylor have warmed to their sister more and more every day, and they have learned to be very gentle and kind to her. If they want to approach her and touch her, I only have to say, "Be nice--Charlotte's pretty" and they instantly go from rambunctious toddler boys to calm, sweet, protective older brothers. We'll see how long that lasts. For now they are very taken with her, and they run to our room anytime she cries out in her bassinet. Baylor is still very empathetic and is prone to tears when she is upset. Jack did manage to say "baby" once this weekend, although he hasn't repeated it since.

What else? Stephen is settling into his new routine this semester, a routine that includes two new physical science labs and the shifting of astronomy class from the lecture hall in Reid, the science building, to the recently remodeled (with $300,000, thank you very much, Olivet) Strickler Planetarium. He is tired at the end of every day, but he continues to claim that he loves his job, so what more could I ask? He is a fantastic father and has been such a help in our transition from four people to five. Each night I am in charge of the baby and he is in charge of listening for the boys, who haven't been sleeping very well lately. What a great guy.

The weather here has suddenly shifted to autumn, and I find myself scrambling to outfit everyone in warm enough clothes. Baylor and Jack think that pants are just so fantastic, and since they don't really remember wearing them this winter, pants have provided them with an endless source of fascination and wonder. When I put them in pants, they stand very still and peer down at their legs. Baylor will do an improvised headstand to peer at his upside-down, and Jack likes to walk with very high steps when he wears his jeans. And putting them in sweatshirts just about makes their heads explode--they LOVE sweatshirts and cry when it's time to take them off. What weird kids.

Oh, one more update: We have had our first major tumble. While the boys have sustained many, many scraped knees, bumps, bruises, and bug bites this summer, both had managed to come out relatively unscathed. This past Sunday after church let out, Candice, Stephen, and I let them run around a little while outside of one of the church entrances, a patio area that is completely made of concrete. Yup, Baylor got too excited, ran, tripped on his own feet, and bit the dust. I have never seen a goose-egg form that quickly on someone's head. It was a sight to behold. (I called him "Quasimoto.") He was such a trooper. He only cried for a few seconds before wanting back down to run some more. The swelling has gone down and now he sports a beautiful purple bruise right on his forehead. I'll get a picture sometime, when he holds still long enough.

Well, I must close, as the baby is crying and the boys are waking up from their nap. I'll try to post some new pictures soon.