Things I LOVE

This post is all about the stuff that I have come to love since having the babies. Back before they were born I didn't have any clue about what types of things were even available. Now I know what is out there and more importantly what I prefer.

Before I begin I want to pass on the best parenting advise we were ever given. One of Brandon's home teaching families (Fred and Sara for those of you in the 61st ward) passed it on to him and his companion (Noel). They said that they were told lot's of things that were guaranteed to work but those things didn't work out with their baby. The stuff that did work was what they came up with on their own. The advise was, "Don't listen to anyone." I like this advise because I approach things from a business standpoint and so a lot of child development stuff is just too touchy-feely for me.

1. I love twins! I really can't imagine only having one baby. Everyday is an adventure in how to get things done. Here is how to hold two babies and still have your hands free.

2. I love bottles. I would get nothing done without bottles. Whoever invented them was a genius. I'm still doing the thing where the girls take turns being the nursing baby and the bottle baby each day. It works really well. If you are wondering how I can switch the babies from breast to bottle so easily I have one word - nipple shields.
3. I love sleepers. The girls came home from the hospital in November. We kept our apartment warm, but I still worried whether or not they were warm enough. I loved sleepers because I didn't have to worry about keeping socks on the girls' feet. Now that it is warming up a bit I still love sleepers because they are an instant outfit. And with two babies it's nice to not have to hunt for a onesie, a pair of pants, and 2 socks.

The girls are starting to outgrow newborn size clothes so I've started putting them into 0-3 month clothes (they are now 4 months old). In this picture you can kind of see that their clothes are baggy on them.

You can also see that they are having a contest to see who can shove her whole fist into her mouth first.

4. I love swaddle baths. I don't have any pictures of this one, but you should check out my earlier post where I have the video of how to do a swaddle bath. I still do these with the girls and they still love them.

5. I love the bag that holds diapers. I did not want a cutesy-pastel-sesame street-bedazzled diaper bag monstrosity. So I was overjoyed when my friend Becky gave me this black bag. She had picked out exactly what I wanted. I usually clip my purse, camera, and bottle bag to the handle with a carribeaner.
Those of you who know me know that I like to be prepared, but that I also like to pack light. Here is everything that goes into my bag. Changing pad, 20 diapers, wipes, diaper rash cream, small garbage bags, extra bottles, extra formula, extra nipples, two burp clothes, two extra binkies, a blanket, a pen, baby lotion, hand sanitizer, extra nipple shield, and two sleepers.

6. I love my calender and to do list. These two things are hanging up in my kitchen. I look at them several times a day. Writing things down means I don't have to remember them any more. 7. I love Kroger formula. I love it because 1)it is half as expensive as any other brand and 2) it doesn't stink like Enfamil.
8. I love Kroger diapers. Thanks to a lot of very nice people we didn't have to buy diapers until the end of January. We were able to try a lot of different brands and discover what we liked or disliked about each one. Then when it came time to buy diapers with our own money we decided to try Kroger diaper because we love everything else that is Kroger (and they are cheap). It turns out that Kroger diapers are my absolute favorite. We've had less major blow outs with them than any other brand. Brandon thinks they are cool because they have hot air balloons on them rather than stupid Winnie the Pooh or Sesame Street characters.

I have to add that we tried cloth diapers. My sister was kind enough to let us borrow hers so we could see if we liked them before we invested the money. I got to the point where I could tolerate them, though I thought it was rather cruel to dress a baby in a diaper that was bigger than her head. Brandon wasn't thrilled with them, but he was going along. Then Lydia got a terrible diaper rash and that was the end of trying out cloth diapers.
9. I love things that people have made us. This is a picture of some of the blankets we have. I was given the blue and white blanket for my wedding (Thanks again Marion!). I took it to the hospital to brighten up our room while we lived there. It was my favorite part of that room. We have received countless blankets, booties, hats, and other very cute homemade things. I am so grateful for the love and time that have gone into these wonderful gifts.
10. I love swaddling. I don't have a picture of this, but I love swaddling the girls. They love it too which is why I keep doing it. It is so nice when I can take a crying baby, wrap her up tight, give her a binkie, and hear silence within a few minutes.

11. I love our car seats and their covers. Of all the things we registered for I wanted car seat covers the most. And those are what my Grandma and my aunt bought me. The girls came home from the hospital right when winter started so these covers have been well used. We live across the street from the church so we usually just walk over and carry the girls over in their car seats. The covers have kept them out of the snow and cold.
12. I love our jeep. Okay I know this isn't a baby thing, but our jeep was our first baby. And I'm so proud to say that this jeep is paid for!!!!!! (Thanks to a large tax return brought to us by the girls.)

So yeah those are some of the things that I have learned to love. Like I said, everyday is an adventure. Today I learned how to feed a baby while rocking the other one in her car seat.