A Day In The Life Of Luci

6:00AM - Hannah wakes me up for nursing.  This can happen anytime from 6AM - 8AM actually. 
6:30AM - Check on Alex.  Get back into bed.
8:30AM - Alex wakes up.  Ryan gets her milk and gets her ready for the day.  I gather everything that the kids need for daycare.  Ryan takes Daisy out, and feeds her if he remembers.  I get Hannah ready, which usually just means I transfer her from her crib to her car seat.
9:15AM - Load everyone into the car and off we go.
9:30AM - Drop Alex and Hannah off at Dawn's.
10:00AM - Arrive at work.  Buy bad coffee from the cafeteria.
10:30AM - Pump.  Crochet while pumping.  It usually takes me 15-20 minutes from beginning to cleaning.
12:45PM - Pump.
1:30PM - Find something for lunch.  Bad days is eating in the cafeteria.  Good days are either I bring something or I have to drive out to get something.
4:00PM - Pump.
6:30PM - End of the work day. 
7:00PM - Pick the girls up from Dawns.
7:30PM - Arrive at home.  Ryan and Alex plays with Daisy for a few minutes. 
7:30PM - 9:30PM - Snack for Alex.  Ryan gives Alex a bath if she needs one.  I give Hannah a bath if she needs one.  Hannah gets a bottle, then nurses, then rocked to sleep.  Alex gets a bottle while reading with Ryan laying on the floor on her big stuffed dog in her room.  She picks the books from her shelf each time.  The last book is read after she climbs into bed.  Ryan tucks Alex, Pooh, Elmo, and Gogo (Clifford) into bed.  He kisses each of them (multiple times), shut off the lights and leaves the room.  Alex will either roll over and go straight to sleep or sing/play in her bed until she falls asleep. 
9:30PM (sometimes as early as 8:30PM or as late as 10PM) - Ryan and I eat dinner. 
10:00PM - 12:00AM - Clean bottles, gather stuff for the next day.  TV, computer, crochet, shower, get ready for bed.
2:00AM - Nurse, burp, diapers, nurse.  Pump optional.  Check on Alex. 
2:45AM - Back to bed. 
(4:00AM - Nurse, burp, diapers, nurse.  Pump optional.  Check on Alex.)  On bad nights, this timeslot occurs.  
6:00AM - Start all over.

Life With Two Girls

Life with two little ones certainly is interesting.  I really appreciate having Ryan around to help out.  It's never been clearer than now how much of a team we are together.  Since Hannah's arrival, Ryan has been spending more and more time with Alex.  I think that is one of the main reason why she has adjusted so well to having a little sister.  Alex loves Hannah and is very protective of her.  My cousin told me of an incident involving a half eaten banana when Ava (my 4 yrs old niece) gave Hannah a kiss.  Apparently, only Alex can kiss Hannah.  And I just love the way she says her sister's name... Han-na.  For a while there, Dawn thought she was saying it was very cold in the house in Chinese until she realized she was telling her that Hannah was crying.  Our weekday schedule doesn't leave a lot of time for Ryan and I to spend together or to spend with the furbabies.  Poor Daisy, there has been multiple days where we've forgotten to feed her in the morning.

I can't help but compare Hannah to Alex when she was a baby.  She looks just like Alex at the same age... when her eyes are closed.  They have very different looking eyes, but other than that...  I showed a picture of Alex around 2 months old to my mom and she thought it was Hannah.  I'm sure as they grow, they'll look different.  Alex looks nothing like she did as an infant.  Hannah is also a very pukey baby.  Poor child pukes after every meal, and sometimes in between meals.  The doctor said acid reflux is common in babies.  Alex rarely puked as an infant.  She puked more as a toddler.  There's a load of laundry each day just from Hannah's changes.  She's also a crier.  Alex was a sleeper.  She slept for the first 3 months of her life... but apparently preemies are usually sleepers.  Not that Hannah doesn't sleep, she just doesn't sleep as much as Alex, especially during the day.  Honestly, and I'm not sure if I should admit this publicly, but liking Hannah took a little bit more effort than with Alex.  Of course I love the child, but with a toddler around that has so much personality, an unresponsive baby that requires so much work just can't compare.  With that being said, she's growing so fast already and part of me can't wait until she gets to Alex's age.  The other part doesn't want my last baby to grow up.  I love her little doll like lips, especially when she's done nursing and the bottom lip is all pursed and stubborn looking.  That's her signal that she doesn't want anymore and nothing I can do would make her open her mouth again until she ready.  I have a feeling that she's going to be a cuddler... I'm very hopeful that is true.  Alex was never a cuddler and I was very envious my friend Erica when her baby girl just snuggles up with her.  Alex is much more of a cuddler now, not that she snuggles, but her openly affectionate hugs and kisses just melts my heart.  You can't but help be happy with her. 

I'm happy with two girls.  I'm happy with where I am in my life.... though I could use a bit more sleep. 

Fun In A Wheel Barrel

Rain Rain Go Away

Thanks Aunt Susie for the cute rain jacket!

Yummy Froyo

Posing for daddy at the new frozen yogurt shop near our house. Yogopop.

I Just Wanted A Good Family Picture...

Was it too much to ask?

I can't pass up a good deal... or at least what seemed like a good deal at the time.  Livingsocial got me with a $25 deal for 5 photo sheets.  Next time, I need to exercise better restraint.  However, I'll be extra nice and caveat that with "Perhaps I should have planned it better."  I had forgotten that the coupon was expiring.  That out of the way, it was a borderline horrible experience.  Stressful and poorly managed.  We set our appointment on a Friday night at 7PM, the day that the coupon would expire on.  That was the poorly planned part on my side.  Ryan and I rushed out of work to get home in time to get the kids dressed and get to the mall in time for our time slot.  We even got there early like they asked us too.  It still took over an hour before they got to us... by this time, it was after 8PM.  Alex is fussy and when she's fussy, she gets scared.  What was she scared off?  The backdrop cloths that they pulled down.  And when she's tired and fussy, she's not going to smile.  What she wanted was her sister.  Oh... and I made the horrible mistake of forgetting her Pooh.  At least we got one good picture of her with Hannah and a couple decent family photos.  After our shoot, I told them I'll be back another day to look at the pictures, we had to go.  The deal with 5 photo sheets of one picture and we also get a low-res CD.  In the end, I forked over $75 more to get a high res CD.  That's how they get you.  It took way too much effort to only get one picture printed, I wanted the other pictures too.  Was it worth it?  That's still debatable.  I've vowed to never do this again... at least not at Picture People.  It was crowded, you're surrounded by crying babies, frazzled employees, and annoyed parents.  You wait to take pictures regardless of appointments, you wait to look at pictures, and you wait to get your pictures.  Perhaps I did it the better way by coming back another day to look at them... at least that breaks up the annoyance of continuous waiting. 

On a side note.  THANK YOU Kristen Self for taking Hannah's newborn pictures. You are amazing.