XOXOXOXO (Happy Valentine's Day)

Today is Valentine's Day and all across the country, candy, flowers, jewelery, balloons and other gifts were exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of love! Whether you celebrated a quiet Valentine's Day at home, at a romantic restaurant or some other venue, I hope you and yours enjoyed all the blessings and bounty of your special love and romance!

At our house, Valentine's Day kicked off with Paige and Taylor discovering what Cupid had brought them overnight - 2 HUGE "I Love You" balloons. These were the mother of all balloons...comparably sized to that of a bean bag and nearly as big as Paige and Taylor. (I don't think I've spent $10.00 on one measely balloon EVER, but this year, I spent that twice because these were THE coolest balloons in the store and I just knew Paige and Taylor would love them for all their big red HUGE-ness). The twins also received some other goodies from Cupid -- Valentine's Day M&M's, (2) Webkin Valentine's kittycat stuffed animals and a couple of little miniature-sized Cupid dolls including those infamous novelty conversation candy hearts! It was candy and sugar overload and it was only 9:00 AM....wow, what a way to start the day! Oh, and did I mention that before Cupid gave the Valentine's Day candy and goodies to Paige and Taylor, we all sang "Happy Valentine's To You, Happy Valentine's To You, Happy Valentine's Dear Paige and Taylor, Happy Valentine's Day To You".


Following the little song, we all gave each other hugs...mommy and daddy gave each other hugs, mommy and daddy gave hugs to Paige and Taylor, Paige and Taylor gave each other hugs and since their "Momo" from Virginia is still visiting us, hugs to "Momo" as well.

Below are a few photos of Valentine's Day at our house this morning.

Seeing Is Believing

Sometimes a person just has to see for themselves to truly believe.

For the past few weeks, I've been telling my husband that Taylor is near potty-trained. I've told him how she stays dry in her "big girl" panties for the day and that the only time she has been in diapers has been overnight while she sleeps and during naptime during the day. I have also told him about how Taylor has the occasional accident still, but that's to be expected as you're learning to potty-train.

Well, in spite of my telling him how well Taylor has been doing...I could tell he still wasn't quite the believer. Sometimes a person just has to see for themselves to truly believe. Besides, he spends all day at the office so why would he think otherwise since most times he still sees them in diapers when going to bed at night and when waking in the morning. He is not at home all day to see the progress that I see moment by moment, day by day. Well, today, I think my husband became a believer of what I'd been saying about Taylor and her potty-training.

This morning, while I was downstairs, Mike asked Taylor if she needed to go potty. She said, "Yes". After about 1 minute on the potty, Taylor stood up and said, "I did it, all done." My husband then proceeded to tell me all about it. He was very excited too. As he talked about how impressed he was that Taylor told him she needed to go and how about she just sat down on the potty and did her pee-pee lickety-split, it was at that moment that I knew my husband (finally) believed me because he had seen it first-hand for himself!

In other news from the potty-training arena, Paige is still quite uninterested in using the "big girl" potty. Oh, well, I'll take 50% potty-trained in my pair of twins with Taylor for now. Practice makes perfect and eventually, Paige will get it. Until she does, I'm now revelling and basking in how easy life is getting have one of the twins well on her way to truly being a potty-trained "big girl"!

Happy Valentine's Day (4 Days Early)

Paige and Taylor just couldn't wait any longer...

...to give their daddy their first homemade Valentine's Day card.

AND

...to give their daddy their hand-picked, from Jelly Belly's finest selection of gourmet jellybeans, candy hearts.

Tonight, when Mike walked in the door from a long day at the office, I had him sit down at the dining room table and instructed him to close his eyes. As he waited - with baited breath, I'm sure - Paige and Taylor joined me in the kitchen gathering up their homemade Valentine's Day cards and candy hearts from Jelly Belly. Then, both girls walked over to daddy and shouted out, "SURPRISE" and "Happy Valentine's Day". It was very, very sweet!

As fun as tonight was watching Paige and Taylor give their daddy their Valentine's Day gifts, we still have 3 more days to go in anticipation of the REAL Valentine's Day! What can I say...when there is this much love to go around in our house from the twins, ya' just can't limit it to one day!!!!

Here are a couple pictures of each of the girls' homemade cards:

In The Spirit of Valentine's Day

I find that I begin to celebrate the festivities and seasonal occassions much, much earlier than I ever would have prior to having children. For example, Christmas tends to last for about 2 weeks at our house beginning with the trips to the mall to sit on Santa's lap, to decorating the house and Christmas tree, to the grand finale of opening all those presents from Santa; and of course, there are always lots of photo opportunities to capture every moment along the way of Paige and Taylor. Now, it's February and although it is only the first week of February, I find that I am already participating in the spirit of the coming Valentine's Day. First, it was a trip to the photography studio to have the twins pictures taken (yes, for Valentine's Day)...today, it was baking cookies with Paige and Taylor - those ol' familiar slice 'n bake cookies with the little red, white, pink hearts on top - and, yes, these too were done in the spirit of Valentine's Day.


The twins were eager to help placing their cookies on the cookie sheets, then waiting patiently while the cookies were in the oven. Oh, and Paige and Taylor's "Momo" from Virginia is visting us, so baking the Valentine's cookies today was a little more special for the twins (not that baking cookies with dear ol' mom isn't special, but come on, mommy makes cookies with the twins a lot so it's no longer that 'big a deal').

Each girl started with their own plate of cookies...

Paige and Taylor helped place each of their cookies onto the cookie sheet...

Paige does a quick counting of her cookies...

Taylor waiting her turn to add her last 3 cookies...

Tada! The cookies are on the cookie sheet...

Watching and waiting at the oven door...

The longest 8 minutes of their lives...

Cookies are almost ready, but not yet...

Still waiting for the cookies, but a slight change of venue...

Still waiting for the cookies, but now doing a choo-choo train to pass the time...

Still no cookies?! What's taking soooooo long?!

Seriously, what's taking those cookies so long?!

Mom, do you hear me...seriously, I'm asking you what's taking the cookies so long?!

But we're trying to wait patiently...

After what probably seemed like the longest 8 minutes of their little lives, the cookies were at last ready. When the timer chimed to mark that their cookies were in fact done, the girls both started clapping and shouting, "the cookies are ready, the cookies are ready."

So, with 8 more days to go 'til Valentine's Day, besides baking a lot more fun, festive cookies, the twins will likely be taking a stab at making their very first "homemade" Valentine's Day card for their daddy. Now that they're 3, they are quite the little color-ers, glue-ers, and best-all-around crafty kids. But, shhhhhhh, that is a surprise for daddy!

P.S. Seriously, how cute is it that Paige and Taylor are sporting their "big girl" panties in these pictures?! Elmo and Barbie "big girl" panties are a big hit in our house. Even better, their "big girl" panties stayed - oh, how should I put it - unsoiled for a good couple of hours today! Awesome.

A New Pastime & Other Updates

Currently, the toddlers in this house have discovered a new pastime with those little fingers--turning the lights on and off. What's more, you just never know when the lights will turn out…it could be during a walk up the stairs at night with an armful of toys, laundry, shoes OR in the bathroom as you’ve stooped over to put toiletries underneath the bathroom sink and all of a sudden, it's completely dark. You just never know….'Tadah!’ the lights go out on you.

Oh, the joy Paige and Taylor have turning the lights on and off incessantly these days. It’s really very funny to watch how entertained these little girls are by a simple flip of a switch.

In other happenings, today, Paige started speech therapy at a nearby public elementary school in our district. (She is going to be seen by the school's speech pathologist once a week for one hour.) Paige turned 3 in December, and while she chatters and talks all day, many of her words are hard to understand. Paige was first seen by a speech pathologist for developmental delays in her speech right around the age of 2; and although we have seen improvements in Paige's overall speech and language since that time, she remains very difficult to understand particularly if you do not know the context of the conversation.

According to Paige's pediatrician as well as her previous speech pathologist, by the age of 3, most people should be able to understand the language and speech of a toddler. Paige's pediatrician commented that people should be able to understand about 50-75% of all speech and language of a 3-year old toddler. Well, Paige is now 3 and is still difficult to understand. In fact, there are many times when others will look to me for interpretation or explanation of what Paige is saying....Paige is frequently misunderstood by others. Sometimes, I can interpret and sometimes I cannot because even I have a hard time understanding Paige on occasion. Since my husband and I are generally the only ones who can understand what Paige is saying, we feel that it is important for Paige to continue receiving speech therapy, particularly as we begin to look ahead to her starting pre-school and later kindergarten.

Finally, potty training continues to go well. Taylor is using the "big girl" potty to pee-pee and poo-poo on a regular basis, although she is still not quite to the point where she is telling me in advance that she needs to go potty. She is also doing a great job at staying dry throughout the day in her "big girl panties" too. YAY!!! What's working for us at this point with Taylor is just making the "big girl" potty available and offering her lots of opportunities to go sit on the potty during the day and it's during those trips to the "big girl" potty that oila, we've had some success with Taylor using the potty. (We usually make a trip to the "big girl" potty during the day on the hour.) Taylor is always so proud of herself for being such a big girl and using the "big girl potty just like mommy." She loves being bragged on for each and every little toileting achievement.

Paige, on the other hand, is still a little reluctant to using the potty. Like, Taylor, she has had some good succcess on the potty but not to the consistency and frequency which Taylor has. I would describe it this way -- Paige enjoys tagging along with Taylor and mommy as we go into the bathroom and she will also sit on the "big girl" potty regularly alongside Taylor but Paige is "done" with the potty as soon as AND whenever her sister Taylor is "done" regardless of whether or not Paige has even done anything in the "big girl" potty or not.

Paige will get there eventually, but in the meantime, I continue to praise her for sitting on the "big girl" potty and usually, more times than not, I just end up saying something along the lines of, "Paige, great job for sitting on the 'big girl' potty...you can try again to go pee-pee and poo-poo next time you sit on the 'big girl' potty." Oh, and if you're wondering or asking yourself, "well, why not just make Paige continue to sit on the potty even after Taylor is done?" Well, ya' just don't know Paige...she is attached to the hip of her twin sister and if you try to make her stay on the potty after her older sister is "done" and off playing, you're going to find yourself faced with quite a battle from Paige. She is one strong-willed little tot. And, let me tell ya', a toilet-training power-struggle with Paige is something I'm just not going to take on...after all, it's just toileting and using the potty...all kids eventually get it when they're ready to get it.

What Do You Think?

In California, and throughout the rest of the world, this story is the talk of the town this week - the story of a young woman who gave birth to a litter of octuplets in Los Angeles.

I am posting a series of reactions (below the fold) from the blogoshpere; and as I read through the various commentators remarks, I can’t help but find myself agreeing with those bloggers who say that, however much we may disagree with the choice that this woman has made given her socio-economic lot in life as well as her own personal lifestyle, enforcing limits on exactly how many children we should be allowed to have, has very disturbing, sinister connotations. I am referring specifically to the reports in the UK press this last week about moves to advise families to ‘stop at 2 children’…well, personally, as a mom of two children myself, I can’t see how that will or should be imposed on anyone else. I, for one, would like to have another child and don’t believe that it’s another person’s or government’s place to tell me when and how many children to have. That said, I do believe that we should all be encouraged to take personal responsibility for our decisions related to our families and our children and that is where I find myself puzzled by the young lady in Los Angeles who after already having six children sought out fertility treatments to net her eight more children.

I can’t help but find myself feeling that this mother is demonstrating a heightened selfishness and an all-out abdication of her personal and financial responsibility to rear and care for these children. The reports of the mother’s dependency upon the welfare system as well as her poor ol’ grandmother are especially troubling to me. Dependency upon the welfare system is not taking ownership of one’s personal responsibility.

While multiple pregnancies are fascinating and interesting to many an onlooker, the challenges that come with raising and caring for multiples shouldn’t be glossed over…from infant care issues to medical and financial challenges, the difficulties can be many!

One baby is a handful.
Twins can be seriously nuts…and, I’d know firsthand on that!
Triplets must be absolute, total insanity.
More than that is pretty hard to fathom.

Yes, babies are a blessing. But eight of them at once? That’s blessing overload. Eight is such a HUGE number, it’s comical. Except it’s not funny at all. Who’s going to take care of all those babies? The poor grandmother with whom the octuplets are presently living? Who’s going to pay for the wipes and the diapers? Newborns often leave their mark on as many as 10 diapers a day for the first three months…that’s 7,200 diapers in the first 90 days! Then, of course, there is the clothing and the car seats, not to mention the passenger van required to accommodate all those car seats? So, again I ask, who is going to care for these children and provide for all their needs? Who is going to feed them? And, how? Finally, since these eight babies were all preemies, who is going to care for their unique special needs? Preemies are far more precarious to care for than full-term babies, from their vulnerable immune systems to a whole host of other medical issues, particularly for the first few months of life...how will these preemies be assured of proper infant care, medical and healthcare? And, in the event that there are any long-term complications or health issues as a result of their premature birth, will these babies have the necessary early intervention services and proper medical care to help them?

Now I leave you to read for yourselves just some of the many commentators and bloggers’ reactions to the mother of six who just recently gave birth to eight more….

- Reactions From the Blogoshpere -

Lisa Belkin at Motherlode at The New York Times wrote Update on the Octuplets.

I covered medical ethics for years for this newspaper, and wrote a

book on the subject, and while I have not directly heard this mother’s story nor that of any doctors involved, at the moment I cannot think of a scenario that would ethically allow the implantation of eight embryos in a woman who already had six children. Actually I can’t think of scenario that would allow the implementation of eight embryos ever. There is just too much risk here — to the mother, to the newborns, even to the emotional needs of the existing children. And we need not even get started on the expense.

Britgirl at Like It Is wrote

On Octuplets, Having 14 Kids and Other Stupidities of our Times.

No, what’s ridiculous is that this mother who is single, with the stability of the husband being in doubt (I’m not sure whether the husband referred to is the grandmother’s husband or the mother’s. A little confusing) is apparently without two brain cells to rub together is selfish and irresponsible, has apparently just declared bankruptcy, so… let’s see now, won’t have money, lives with her grandmother, so hasn’t got her own place
and…
has six OTHER children ranging from 7 to 2 years old…
…had fertility treatment. W.T.F?

Nechama Brodie at The Hunter Gatherer at The Times in South Africa wrote

Mother of octuplets already has six kids.

The birth of the multiples – the first time ever that all eight have survived (a previous set of octuplets, born ten years ago, lost one baby; seven survived) – has prompted wide debate over the use and abuse of fertility treatment, and whether or not it is ethical to allow a woman to carry so many foetuses. I can’t help but think, in this “reality TV” world we live in, people are desparate to become “celebrities”.

Caltechgirl at Not Exactly Rocket Science wrote

Keep your laws off my octuplets!

You can't have it both ways, either people get to choose the family they want, or they don't. And if they don't, who makes the rules? Based on what?

Darragh at This is what I do wrote

Mother of octuplets has six other children.

I can only imagine what this woman must be thinking or planning. Of course in the back of my mind the Kilkenny man is thinking "All she needs now is one more for a hurling team."

Deanna at Deanna's Ramblings wrote

Octuplets Make Fourteen.

As I said, I get the want and need to have a child. But what’s the point where more is too much? What’s the point when the problems outweight the benefits? I really don’t know what the answer is. But this situation strikes me as unhealthy.

Meagan Francis wrote

octuplet opinions.

But the truth is, I haven’t been able to muster up much of an opinion on this at all. It’s just too bizarre, with too many unanswered questions. First of all, I don’t feel like it is really a story about big families at all. It’s more a story about medical technology and the ethics of using it.

Karla at Baby G's From the Start wrote

Did You Hear About the Octuplets?

So, I do think it is a little wild that a women who already has 6 kids at home, is bringing home another 8....and is going to have the time and supply to breastfeed them all. It kind-of makes my situation seem like a breeze. I mean if she can do that, how could triplets be a challenge? I assure you my friends, it is a challenge. 14 kids seems downright impossible. Especially if 8 are preemies, which carry many challenges alone.

Deacon Greg Kandra at The Deacon's Bench wrote Octuplets: pro-life to the max.

UPDATE:As a couple commenters have noted, there are serious moral questions about how this was done. And I have to add: there's something just plain peculiar about this whole thing. A woman with six children (including a set of twins) has IVF to have more, knowing full-well she could have a lot more...and she may not even be married? It's...odd. To say the least.

Monica Mingo at Rantings of a Creole Princess wrote

Single Mother of 6 + Fertility Drugs + Octuplets = Single Mother of 14.

I don't quite know what to make of this.
Initially I'm like...is it anyone's business if she has 14 children?
Then I'm wondering...if she already has 6...why would she want more if she's a single mother?

But again...is it anyone's business?
I guess the fact that she's a single mother of 6 already makes one question her choice of taking the fertility drugs right?
Should people be up in arms thinking about her receiving welfare for these children? Should the factor that the welfare she would receive not be enough to cover the basics be taken into consideration?
Should someone even GET welfare for a child they had by taking infertility drugs?????????
THIS ONE IS ALL OVER THE PLACE!

Dr. Amy Tuteur of The Skeptical OB wrote

Who helped a mother of six conceive octuplets?

Something does not add up here. A young, presumably unmarried woman, living at home with her parents, who already has 6 children is exceedingly unlikely to be diagnosed with infertility, is unlikely to be treated for infertility even if she is having difficulty getting pregnant, could not have had 8 embryos placed in her uterus by in-vitro fertilization and would almost certainly be counseled to avoid intercourse in any cycle where 8 follicles were developing. Add to that the fact that the woman showed up for care already pregnant with octuplets and suspicions are raised that this pregnancy was conceived in a deliberate effort to have a spectacular outcome, including any publicity and money it might generate.

Now it's your turn. Well, what do you think?

Fun in the Sun

Sunny skies and warm temperatures over the weekend allowed the twins to get some much-needed playtime outside...I snapped a few pictures as Taylor and Paige were enjoying the fresh air. The nice weather continues today and I am absolutely loving a taste of Spring in February!