The Breeze at Dawn

Not that our children have ever been finicky sleepers; indeed, ever since the day we brought them home, we've had to wake them for their night feedings, and then they go immediately back to sleep. Well, since both boys are gaining weight so well, we thought we'd try skipping the middle-of-the-night-drag-your-bum-out-of-bed feeding. And guess what...

The boys slept from 11:00 PM until 6:00 AM, and we're happy as clams when they woke up.

I, on the other hand, woke up at 4:30 AM (on a saturday nonetheless) wondering how long the babies would stay asleep, and excited they had made it that long. Maybe my mind will let my body sleep tomorrow night!

Meanwhile, here's a poem in honor of the boy's epic night of sleep, and my lack thereof:

The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.

Don't go back to sleep.

You must ask for what you really want.

Don't go back to sleep.

People are going back and forth across the doorsill

where the two worlds touch.

The door is round and open.

Don't go back to sleep.

- Rumi (from The Essential Rumi, tr. Coleman Barks)

The Mysterious Shrinking Sleep Sheep

One week

Two months 

Three months

Some details about the boys:

Ezra and Cedric are growing boys. They are three months old and have both doubled in size since birth. Ezra is weighing 8 lbs 12 oz; Cedric is 12 lbs 3 oz. Both are happy eaters and Cedric's gas issues are going away. They are sleeping less and less during the day, but are still sleeping very well at night. We still wake them up at 2 AM for a late-night feeding, but I imagine that this will be disappearing soon. Usually, they don't wake up in between feedings. Both are smiling a lot, especially in the morning. Cedric loves to be around people, and Ezra loves to have interesting things to look out. Ezra has been a bit fussy lately when going to bed. He cries for about 10 minutes, and then goes to sleep. 

A Little Update

It has been a long time since I have written a post. Since going back to work time seems to fly by. It is hard to believe that the boys are three months old already. They are doing great and growing by the minute. We are going to the doctor on Saturday for another weigh in. We are on a 4 hour schedule now. That means we only have one night feeding, and that only lasts about 35 minutes. We both feel good about the amount of sleep we are getting.

We are heading to Goa the first week of April. We are all in need of a little beach time. We also booked our summer flights. We are going to spend a week in France on the way home. I can't wait for the food and wine. When we get back to Delhi at the end of July the boys will have been on 13 planes! I find that funny since neither Douglas or I flew on a plane before 15.

Chad

Reach Out And Touch Somebody

Ezra on the left and Cedric on the right 

Can you tell from the photo which twin is fast becoming our social butterfly, and which one wouldn't mind some alone time?

Seriously though, it has been so much fun these last few weeks watching their personalities start to emerge.

Happy Twin Love,
Douglas

New Routine (version 3.0)

The boys are on a new eat-play-sleep routine. They are doing really well with this one, and love the longer period of sleep during the day.

Ezra			Cedric
Eat	Play	Sleep	Eat	Play	Sleep
6-6:30 AM	6:30-7	7-9:30	6-6:30 AM	6:30-7	7-10
9:30-10 AM	10-11:30	11:30-1:30	10-10:30AM	10:30-12	12-2
1:30-2 PM	2-3:30	3:30-5:30	2-2:30 PM	2:30-4	4-6
5:30-6 PM	6-7:30	7:30-9:30	6-6:30 PM	6:60-8	8-10
9:30-10 PM		10-2 AM	10-10:30PM		10:30-2
2-2:30 AM		2:30-6AM	2-2:30 AM		2:30-6

We call this a routine, and though I am including a time-table (just to show a typical day), we rarely are exactly on this schedule. Yesterday, for example, the boys were about +/- 10 minutes on this time table. That's about as close as we get to sticking to the plan. But today, the boys weren't really interested in their 6:00 AM bottles, so that meant that their 10:00 AM bottles actually came at about 9:00 AM, so we're running about an hour ahead of time. I'm pretty sure that sometime during the day, they will want a little extra sleep, so they'll probably get back on track by the evening.

Speaking of bottles, Cedric is taking 4oz every time he eats with few exceptions. He is about to get bumped up to 5oz each feeding. Ezra rotates back and forth between 3oz and 4oz. I'd wager that he'll be doing 4oz consistently by next week. They're growing boys!

All of that to say, that the schedule really isn't a schedule, it's a pattern of activity and the approximate times that the activities take place during the day. We do double feedings at night so that we can get back in bed ASAP, and single feedings during the day so that our daytime caregiver when we both go back to work isn't overwhelmed by having to feed both kids at once all day long.

Two Amazing Photographers: Part Two

Amanda Beam is a talented and gracious photographer who is based in southwest Ohio. If you live in the area, or are willing to pay for her transportation to wherever you are, I highly recommend working with her. Her portraits of our children, taken when they were six weeks old capture our most treasured memories of the last few months. We will cherish these pictures forever!

Two Amazing Photographers: Part One

When you come to Delhi for the birth of your child/children, you will inevitably be spending a few weeks after the birth filling out paperwork, visiting embassies and high commissions, and going to the MHA/FRRO. While you are doing all of that, make sure you take time to take pictures to document your journey.

I HIGHLY recommend that early on in your stay, you contact Tim Steadman, an American photographer now based in Delhi. He came out to our apartment when our kids were 13 days old. Here are a few of the pictures he took: