10 months old, and they're only getting sweeter!

Erin

Elise

The twins will actually be 11 months old on August 16th!  Each month goes by so quickly.  These past couple of months have been busy ones for them.

They started crawling around 9.5 months (Erin first, Elise just a day or so later).  At first, Erin had this crawl that resembled a seal flopping around.  She'd lunge forward and then flop down.  So funny.  Now, she crawls normally.

They started drinking bottles unassisted, but only will drink a few ounces before abandoning the bottles for some other nearby distraction.

They started pulling up to standing (no cruising yet) just about a week ago.  Both did it for the first time on the same day.

They babble and talk a lot (especially Erin) and are always saying Dada and Mama about everything.

Their personalities continue to shine through.  A 16 hr. car trip will give you a good idea of a baby's tolerance for discomfort, boredom, etc.  Erin was pretty fussy after a while.  She can be LOUD.  Even when she is just happy.  We have started calling her Sally Jr. because Sally has always been so loud.  Elise rarely fusses or cries.  She has been teething this week, so has been fussier than normal, but usually she is just quiet and sweet and full of smiles.

They really interact with each other a lot more now, and it is so cute.  They fight over toys, and Erin most often seems to be the winner in those battles. 

They learned how to mimic us and will wave and clap back to us.

They are VERY interested in all our food.  They will try most anything, but still don't feed themselves very much in terms of quantity.  The majority of their nutrition still comes from breastmilk.

Speaking of breastmilk, I finally decided to stop pumping (well, I am starting that process anyway--which is NOT FUN!  I am down to 3 pumps a day right now (about an hr. long each), and my body is struggling to make the adjustment. I am so engorged and uncomfortable most of the time that I actually can't wait to pump!).  I have been pumping exclusively since they were about 4 months old.  I am so thankful to have been able to provide them with breastmilk, but it has been a sacrifice.  The main reason I decided to stop was to be able to spend more time with all the girls.  Every day, I spend almost all my time, when I would other wise be able to play with them, sitting on the couch pumping.  People always say, they grow so fast!  Enjoy them while they are little!  I finally realized, they ARE growing so fast and I am NOT getting to enjoy them nearly as much as I want to.  Another month and a half of receiving exclusively breastmilk is not going to make or break anything healthwise.  If I only had the babies, I would continue to pump.  But since I have older kids too, I decided to make the sacrifice for them.  I only have this year before Sophie starts school (tear!).  I am really looking forward to everything we'll be doing together this fall when Ryan starts back to school.  I also pumped exclusively for Sophie since she was born so early and never really learned to breastfeed.  I had to stop when she was 7 months old because I was pregnant with Sally (Breastfeeding can sometimes trigger pre-term labor, and the doctor wanted me to be super cautious since Sophie was born at 25 weeks.  Thankfully, Sally was full term and so were the twins!).  I wish I had some record of how many hours I have spent connected to the pump.  Crazy!

And finally, here is a typical day of theirs:

8:30 wake and eat (8 oz. bottle)

10 or 10:30 nap (sometimes they eat some solid food too before this nap)

12pm wake and eat (8 oz. bottle)

2pm solid food

2:30pm nap

4:30pm wake and eat (8 oz. bottle)

6pm solids

7:30 pm eat (8 oz. bottle)

8 or 8:30 bedtime

Next post for them will be when they turn ONE!  I can't believe it.  I am getting teary about them growing up much more than I did with the first two girls.  They are our last babies.  Sad!