Cohen is (apparently) sleeping!
xxx
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Monday, February 27, 2012
New Toy!
For quite a while now, we've been trying to find something we can have outside for Cohen and Kason to play with. We were looking at those small plastic playgyms, but figured they would only last until they were about 4...at a stretch, plus they are ridiculously expensive for what they are. Swing sets are a bit too big for them still, and they need help getting on and off. So...after the boys falling absolutely in love with sandpits, we decided to buy them one! It arrived a couple of weeks ago, but Simon only just got a chance to build it yesterday. We had 1.6 tonnes of sand delivered this morning and Simon set to wheelbarrowing and shovelling it into the sandpit. The boys loved 'helping' Daddy shovelling the sand into the wheelbarrow, and then they had an absolute ball playing in their new sandpit...to the point where Cohen packed a tantrum when he had to come inside to get ready so we could go out!! He was not impressed, and while dealing with him, Kason snuck back outside, wearing only his nappy so he could keep playing!
I think that the sandpit was the perfect choice - I have no doubt that Cohen and Kason will spend hundreds of hours playing in there over the next however many years! They always come home from playgroup and Occasional care with sand in their pockets and shoes, they just love it! Plus they won't outgrow it for ages! Success!!
xxx
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Cohen!
Cohen! a video by Road2Chaos2 on Flickr.
I had to share this, too. It's Cohen on the swing at the playground the other day...ya think he likes it?!
Sidebar: I have absolutely NO idea how to flip a video!
xxx
Saturday, February 25, 2012
New Haircut
Spunky Mr. Kason modelling his new haircut! He was absolutely perfect for the hairdresser, sat so still and quietly :-) She was very impressed!
xxx
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Funny Boys!
Kason cracked me up when I picked him and Cohen up from Occasional Care this morning. He usually runs over to me with a huge grin on his face and doesn't let me go. Today though, he ran over with his usual big smile, then ran over to the cubbys, picked up his bag, waved goodbye to the teachers, took my hand and walked to the door! Unfortunately for him, I still had to get Cohen's bag and his pictures. Cohe decided that he absolutely had to carry his own bag and his paintings, not a chance of Mummy helping him! Luckily I had gotten the carpark right out front, and he let me put his bag on his back J
We really had an awesome day today – starting when we had to actually wake both boys up just before 8am so we could get to Occasional Care on time! So impressed with them, and hoping they do it again tomorrow morning! Can't wait to hang out with them again tomorrow, and then on Friday when we have Simon home for most of the day J
xxx
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Give me a ride!
Often, if one of the boys jumps on a bike and his brother can't see the other bike, he will run over and jump on the back!
xxx
Cohen the Climber
Climbed up here entirely by himself. Needless to say, the stools have been put to the highest setting so he can't *quite* reach the rung...won't be long before he can though!
xxx
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Monday, February 13, 2012
Dates!
With Kason being so clingy to me lately, I felt like Cohen was missing out on getting all the attention he deserves, so I took Cohen on a 'date' on Sunday! We had such a great time, and so did Kason and Daddy, that we are definitely doing it again. Next time we are going to venture further apart – this time we all went to the mall together, then split up. I didn't want to go too far apart, just in case Kason cracked it. Which he didn't! Anyways, I took Cohen to our favourite cafe and got him a babycino and a bikkie. He really seemed to love his time alone with me, and I really enjoyed it too J Afterwards, I took him to the toy store and bought him a new toy (Simon did the same with Kase, so they both got something new), let him have a ride on a little carousel before meeting up with Kason and Daddy for a play on the playground!
I'm looking forward to my date with Kason next time!!
xxx
Friday, February 10, 2012
Neonatal Unit
Cohen and Kason were born five weeks early, and spent almost a month in the Neonatal Unit before we were able to bring them home. It's a tough place to be, like a whole different world where time almost seems to stop. The constant beeping of machines and buzz of nurses and doctors, parents, babies and siblings make it so daunting, but you quickly get used to it. Well, you get used to blocking out everything that doesn't relate to your babies. You have to. It would be too much to handle if you didn't. I couldn't even tell you how many hours we spent in that place, where the only break I'd get was occasionally popping outside to the cafe to get a chocolate donut which I'd take back upstairs to eat in the Parent's Room.
We had a fairly 'easy' journey in the unit compared to a lot of other families. Neither Cohen or Kason had any major issues. They were in humidicribs for ten days because they struggled quite a lot with maintaining their temperatures, Kason had a touch of jaundice, and they both struggled with sucks feeds meaning they were gavage (tube)-fed until about four or five days before they came home. They only needed oxygen for the first 24 hours or so, and I'm fairly certain (I was highly drugged up!) they both had their drips out by day 2. Cohen in particular had a hard time keeping down his feeds. Most of our time in the Neonatal Unit was spent willing them to put on weight, 'eat' a few more mls, take a little bit more by bottle. The first two weeks, each boy was only allowed out of his humidicrib for 30 minutes a day for cuddles. That meant that the vast majority of my day was spent watching them sleep.
Not long after they were discharged, we started going to a Playgroup for neonatal babies run by the physio department at the hospital, and from there they graduated to another playgroup for neonatal kids. We still go to that, and the woman who runs it started a not for profit organisation helping families on the same journey. Last year, I started helping her out with playgroups. One of the things she does is provide morning tea, once a month, for the families in the unit. Several of us do baking, and drop it off to her the night before. Anyways, I went up to the hospital to help her out with morning tea this morning. I've been back once since Kase & Cohen came home – that was at Christmas when our group of Mums took up Christmas packages for all of the babies and their families.
Being back there today was strange. There were so many people that came in for morning tea, just to get a break and have a chance to tell their stories. And man, are there some stories. One mum has a 26-weeker who is now 36 weeks and doing amazingly well. One couple had a full-term baby born with major lung problems they hadn't known about – they are from the country and had to have the Royal Flying Doctors retrieve Mum & Baby so they could get the care they needed. Another baby was born 3 weeks before his due date because he wasn't moving much, he was found to have a massive blood clot in the arteries of his heart. He is now almost 8 weeks old and it now takes two hours to find the clot – that's how much it has dissolved!
These babies are so incredibly tough. They are so tolerant, resilient and such little fighters. They really do amaze me. Everything that they are put through, the pokes and the prods, the tubes up their noses and into their stomachs, the tubes and machines surrounding their tiny cribs. And they are so, so tiny. They all look so fragile, so delicate and breakable. But my God, they are strong. They are the strongest of the strong.
xxx
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Musician!
Cohen loves music and is often dancing. He was given this saxophone for his 1st birthday, and he loves it! Pity he is scared of my real sax!
xxx
Crashing Thomas'
Kason and Cohen each have a Thomas the Tank Engine toy that is activated by a little Fat Controller whistle. Anyways, the boys LOVE them, and they love to make them crash off the table, which is what Kason is doing here - one Thomas is mid-fall and the other is just about to go!
xxx
Kason
Oh my little Kason! You are such a cheeky little guy, and you always know exactly what you want and nothing else will do! This particular personality trait is proving rather testing at dinner-time at the moment. You haven't been eating so well, just at dinner-time, for quite some time. You did go through a very brief stage of letting Daddy give you your dinner, but that didn't last long. You now completely refuse any meat or vegetables. A few nights recently all you have eaten is tomato sauce! Oh boy do you lurve tomato sauce! You start off eating it with a fork (I know, but you insist), but you ditch that about halfway through and just dig in with your fingers! Yoghurt is still a winner though, and you polish off fruit like no one's business. You demolish pretty much any fruit we give you, so at least you are getting some nutrients.
Your speech isn't quite as it should be, but you are getting there. Your favourite words at the moment are, "no", and "hi".
"No" is always, always accompanied by a vehement shake of your head; "hi" is always accompanied by a cheeky little smile and a wave. It's what you say in the mornings when Daddy and I come to get you and your brother out of bed. We leave your door open a little bit at night, and when you hear us coming, you peek around to see us at the door and then the cutest grin spreads over your face and you wave and say "hi!" You and Cohen have both started sleeping in until around 7-7:30am, it's fantastic!!! But, you refuse to let Daddy get you out of your cot. If I go to get Cohen up and Daddy comes over to unzip your grobag, you start to cry L
You love your Mummy!!! I ask you how much you love Mummy and you spread your arms as wide as you can. I say, "you love Mummy that much?! Wow! Mummy is so lucky!" and you will often respond with "more!" You are definitely getting more affectionate, which I love. You have always been very sparing with your hugs and cuddles, and you still are to a point. But when you do give me cuddles, you wrap your little arms around my neck and squeeze me tight. You will give me kisses, but I usually have to ask for them. You trick me though! You start of saying no and shaking your head. You wait for me to pout and ask "please?", then you giggle, give me a kiss and hug me tight – it is so sweet!
This new Mummy's boy thing does have a slight downside though...you hate to let me out of your sight. You can be happily playing with Cohen and/or Daddy and I'll go to have a shower and as soon as I leave the room, you are running behind me. When I shut my bedroom door, you stand there crying for Mummy L When I am trying to get you something to eat, or if I'm trying to do something, you are pretty much stuck to my leg. You much prefer to be picked up though and you hate it when I try to put you down – you cling onto me like a little koala bear. Daddy's iPad usually does the trick to distract you.
Oh, you are very much into The Wiggles at the moment! You would watch it all day every day if I let you! If you spy anything Wiggles you get super excited, and if we are at home, you head straight to the TV and ask me to put one of your DVDs on for you!!
You are such an amazing little boy! I'm so proud to be your Mummy J I love you so much Baby!
xxx
Monday, February 6, 2012
Day 33
I tied a whole lot of fabric scraps together and put them in a spare wipes container cause the boys kept pulling all my wipes out...they both love to wear the fabric pieces like little scarves!
xxx
Friday, February 3, 2012
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Slacker!
Ok, so I know I've been uber slack on the posting front, hopefully I'll get back to in the next few days!
In my defence, at the end of last week I got a stomach bug. Then Simon got it. And every evening since then I've been crazy busy crafting. Had a birthday present to make, and then I've had two monkey costumes to make as well. They're almost done, just need to make one more quick trip to Spotlight to get a bit more fabric.
Anyways, I'm going to leave it at that...I would quite like to get to bed before 1am tonight for a change!!
xxx
Giggles!
Ok, so Kason and Cohen are currently LOVING The Wiggles. As in, they would watch it all day, everyday if they possibly could. In their favourite DVD, there is a bit where a little girl giggles with her hand over her mouth. This is now how Cohen and Kason giggle.
In this picture, they are being very cheeky and opening and closing the DVD tray. Everytime it opens they giggle this VERY cheeky giggle with their hands over their mouths, looking at each other. I love that they love having fun together :-D
xxx
Bookworm
I love books, I love reading, and I LOVE that Cohen also loves books! He is often carrying a little book around - this one about food is one of his favourites at the moment, he likes pointing to food and asking what it is :-)
xxx
Dino!!!
I made this hoodie as part of a birthday present for our little neighbour who turned 3 the other day. I also made him a dino tail. He LOVED it!!! I love how it turned out, and I am DEFINITELY making one each for my boys...I've already made them a dino tail each :-)
xxx
Monkey Man
My parents bought Kason and Cohen this little puppet (and a lion one) while they were over...the boys LOVE them!!! According to Kason, this monkey says, "ROAR!!!"
xxx