Time Flies

I can hardly believe a month has passed since Ezra and Elliott were born.  The past four weeks have flown by, and the boys are rapidly growing. They now comfortably fit into newborn clothes and are close to outgrowing preemie diapers. Although they weigh more, they still cannot go longer than two to three hours without eating.

Because of this, Nathan and I continue to suffer from sleep deprivation. Cheryl has been an amazing help and even offered to take one baby for the night on Christmas Eve. Although it was a lovely Christmas gift for Nathan and me, Cheryl spent the entirety of Christmas Day exhausted; waking up every two hours wore her out for some reason! I jokingly told her she probably wouldn't be offering to take a baby for the night anytime soon. She definitely didn't object to that statement.

Thankfully, the holidays have brought additional help our way. Ty and Jenny will be here until the end of the week, so Nathan and I will not be completely alone when Cheryl and Rex go to Portland on Thursday. We are hopeful survival mode will end in the next few months and that the babies can learn to sleep longer than a few short hours at a time.

As for breastfeeding, it remains a labor of love. We've encountered some bumps in the road (mastitis, thrush), but I still feel like I can handle it. I keep telling myself I have made it 1/6 of the way to my goal! My initial goal is 6 months (because it feels attainable), but I hope to make it a full year.

In an effort to alleviate the stress of feedings, I attempted to solely nurse the babies and do away with pumping; it didn't go too well. Elliott and Ezra both developed blisters on their lips from nursing too long (even though they had a proper latch), and the feeding sessions lasted two hours or so. As soon as we finished, I would take a quick break and then resume nursing less than an hour later. Needless to say, this lasted for one day.  I'm continuing to pump and breastfeed, and we will try again to exclusively nurse in a few weeks. For now, it is just too overwhelming for me to try and feed them on my own all day. As long as they are getting breast milk, I feel like I am making a good contribution!

All things considered, life is pretty wonderful right now. Ezra and Elliott are great babies, and our biggest complaint is that they are slow eaters. Compared to our first baby, it feels like a walk in the park. I am so grateful neither baby has colic and that they aren't allergic to milk. I am also thankful for the positive attitudes Nathan and I have been able to attain (You can read Nathan's post below if you are looking for some laughs and twin humor).

We're tired in the Robbins home, but we are happy.

(Our lovely friend, Megan, was nice enough to take a few quick photos for us when she visited over Christmas. We totally ambushed her! Here's a photo before she's done any fancy editing. I just couldn't wait to post it! Thanks again, Megan!)