On the First Day of Fall

On the first day of fall, it’s time to recap the summer—

June: Started out on bed rest and ended with almost zero rest in bed. We celebrated as a new niece was born. Jon, Liam and I squeezed in lots of fun family-of-three activities before the ladies came right in the middle. After that, it was a house full of family, crying babies, lots of fast food runs, an adjusting two-year-old, more visitors, feeding ducks, dirty diapers, doctor visits, Funshine in the Park for Liam, commemorating four years of marriage, midnight feedings, and lots of new hugs and cuddles.

July: Began with the bang of fireworks that sent our little guy into an excited frenzy. In the middle, there was lots of swimming, TV watching, venturing out as a party of five to petting zoos, more doctor visits, more feedings, more diaper changes, zoo outings, weekly trips to Sam’s Club, and daily trips to Sonic. It ended with Grandma coming to visit, momentarily remembering we have to report back to work soon, and avoiding the back-to-school aisle at stores.

August: Commenced with more hot days of finding air conditioned fun. It included baseball games, staff development, lots of baby smiles, two Wiggles concerts, starting and stopping potty training, pink and purple onesies, running through the sprinkler, Saturday morning jaunts to Dunkin’ Donuts, two-month well-checks, beginning a new daycare, splitting morning duties, separation anxiety, and the onset of a new school year.

September: Kicked off with fantasy football and followed with a excursion to Houston, visits from relatives, sleepy early mornings, sweet girlie coos, lots of dirty bottles, big brother kisses, trips to doctors (and one ER) with three sick little ones, Chuck E. Cheese initiation, mountains of laundry, one ear infection, pony rides, train rides, being entertained at malls, and counting the days until Friday.

So, now fall is here and with it the promise of cooler temperatures, festivals, pumpkin patches, little ghosts and goblins, spicy candles, apple crisp, and perhaps a Ranger trip to the World Series. Right, Jon?

Barneys or Bust

Well, here’s a second post about Saturday night’s adventures at North Park Mall because not retelling it for posterity would really be a disservice to Liam when he gets old enough to be embarrassed by his parents. It works both ways, dear boy.

When Jon and I go to malls, we seem to have certain areas were we always park. Instead of entering the mall through Neiman Marcus like we usually do, I had Jon park a little further down to be closer to my, as previously mentioned, favorite kids’ clothing store. Unfortunately, the doors to the mall were locked at that entrance, and the next available opening was Barneys. Jon and I both know that Barneys New York is not the kind of store that caters to kids, so we were just going to walk on by to the next doorway. However, as we approached the entrance, a cheerful valet, swung open the door and said, “Welcome to Barneys!” And with that, we ventured in. All fiv

e of us. Somehow, Jon squeezed the double stroller through the gold-rimmed doors as I dragged Liam from behind.

Earlier that day, we talked about going to the Galleria, but at the last minute decided on North Park instead, and Liam apparently didn’t get the memo. We were halfway through the store when he started animatedly screaming, “Galleria, Galleria,” only it didn’t sound like Galleria. It sounded exactly like diarrhea. And, despite frantic shushing and desperate ploys for redirection, he didn’t stop until we were out into the mall. Nice.

After eating dinner, buying cute baby clothes, seeing Laura Bush, and visiting the ducks and turtles, it was time to go home. Fearlessly, Jon led the pack back through the high-end store, as the sale people greeted us once again. This time, Liam decided it was time to start being cooperative…in the potty training process, that is. “Mama, I have to poopy! Have to POOP and pee!!!” And that could be the reason why Barneys New York doesn’t have a clothing line for kids.

Celebrities

Tonight Jon and I decided to head over to NorthPark Mall to have dinner and do a little shopping.  Really the only store I really cared about going in was Peek…Aren’t You Curious—which, by the way, is my favorite kids’ clothing store of all time.  And, although it practically kills me and goes against everything I hold sacred and true, I did happen to pay full price for two adorable little girls dresses and leggings tonight…but, I digress from the point of this post.

So, we were walking toward our final destination, the duck and turtle fountain, as promised to Liam, when we had a completely chance encounter with the former First Lady, Laura Bush.  Here’s what happened:

Jon and I realize that it’s a pretty cool and somewhat unique thing to have twin babies.  What we really weren’t expecting was what a commotion that they cause whenever we go anywhere, but malls seem to be especially crazy.  We figure that probably about 30% of the people we pass make comments to each other, stop to ask us about them, point, etc.  Additionally, when you throw an active two-year-old into the mix, it causes even more of a ruckus.  Last week, my brother Patrick said he felt like he was out with celebrities when we went to the mall with him.  It’s pretty strange for us.  And tonight was no exception.  Jon and I had just been discussing how weird it is for us to spend so much time talking to random strangers and getting so many looks and attention in public places, when we saw her.

Three people were strolling toward us, two pretty, nicely dressed ladies and a gentleman following close behind.  One of the two in front was pointing at the girls who were riding in the stroller. She continued pointing and made a comment to the woman who was walking beside her.  Jon and I both smiled, like we usually do, when I realized who was pointing and, now, waving at the girls—Laura Bush!  As we passed them, she warmly met our eyes and said, “Congratulations.”  We smiled and said thanks, and I couldn’t help but look back.  And she was glancing back at us.  She had an expression on her face that made me feel like maybe she was thinking about her own twin baby girls.  Maybe how fast they grow up.  Maybe how it seems like yesterday that she and George were pushing them around a mall and getting lots of lingering glances and words of encouragement and inquiry from complete strangers.  Maybe how she missed those days when her twin girls were babies.

Anyway, Jon and I both agree that Laura Bush is much more beautiful in person and seems to have a kind and thoughtful aura about her.  She's more petite than I would have imagined, too.  Seeing her at NorthPark is something we'll never forget.  We only wished we would have asked her for some advice on raising twins...

...And Then My Water Broke

Our lovely little ladies are three months old today, and I thought I’d hit the rewind button, to capture the crazy, exciting, and absolutely breathtaking experience of the birth of our twins.

The Bushwar girls made their grand appearance during the wee hours of the morning of June 15th. And they came fast. The night before, I went out with some friends and co-workers for a Mexican feast at one of our local favorites, Via Real. If you live in the Irving area, you know they have great food. What you probably don’t know is that eating at Via Real when you’re 37 weeks pregnant may induce labor. After dinner, I did the usual things—watched a little TV, straightened up the house a bit, and went to bed feeling fine (not even heartburn) around 11.

The next thing I remember, I was awakened by a huge cramp. I looked at the clock, and it was a little after two in the morning. I nudged Jon and said, “I think I just had a real contraction.” With Jon still a little groggy, he asked if I was sure, and I honestly didn’t know. It came and went really quickly, so I told him that I was going to go to the bathroom, and I’d wait to see if another one came. As soon I walked in the room, I felt it. Instantly, I knew what had happened. My water broke.

Within 45 minutes, Jon’s parents were at our house to stay with a sleeping Liam, my Mom and brother, Patrick, were on their way to Dallas from Houston (where my sister had given birth eight days earlier), and Jon and I were settling into a labor and delivery room at Baylor Hospital.
When the nurse came in to check me, she said she didn’t think my water broke, and it didn’t appear as if I was dilated. I knew she was wrong, and I told her that I was 100% sure one of the twins was no longer swimming around in a sack of water, so she had her supervisor come in to examine me. The supervisor had other news—I was dilated to an eight, quickly approaching a nine. At that point, they laid me flat on my back and told me not to push. The nurse called the doctor and told him to get there as fast as he could. While we waited for him, the staff prepped me for surgery. (Liam had a c-section birth, and my regular ObGyn had already schedule me for a c-section the following Monday).

Everything happened so fast. I was wheeled into the operating room. A very nice man gave me a lovely epidural. Dr. O’Neal, a man who I had seen once or twice before at my regular doctor’s office, arrived. Looking over the curtain that was shielding me, he said he had just squeezed me with a surgical instrument that looked like a giant tweezers. “I didn’t feel anything.” A lady in blue scrubs brought Jon in and told him to sit next to me. Wearing a surgical mask, Jon held and nervously rubbed my hand. Feeling a little pressure but no pain, the room suddenly filled with the soprano of a newborn wail which quickly turned into a duet. Relief washed over me when I heard that they both looked healthy, were normal weights, and no NICU visit was required. Marin was the first one out, and Ellery quickly followed. Within two minutes we became a complete family of five, and the love grows deeper and stronger every day. Happy three months of life, baby girls!

Weekend in Pictures

While my Dad and Patrick were here this past weekend, we had lots of fun. On Friday night, we went to Chuck E. Cheese. It was Liam's first time there, and he went a little delirious with joy. We'll have to take him back again sometime soon. We spend Saturday morning at the zoo, and then went to Grapevine Mills Mall in the afternoon where Uncle Patrick took Liam on the train and bought him cotton candy. Just the big boys went out to have a steak dinner on Saturday night. By that point, Liam and the girls were all tuckered out and ready for bed!

Portraits by Mr. Chuck E. Cheese

Oh My....

My Dad and brother, Patrick, are here for a visit this weekend, and they wanted to spend the day today with Liam. So we gladly let them. And Liam may never be the same again. Meaning, he may see Jon and me as the biggest killjoys on the planet from here on out. Here’s why…
I had an early morning meeting, so I decided to run home to switch cars before heading off to my other school today. When I entered the house, I knew something was up. The three boys were nowhere to be seen. I quickly realized they were all in the bathroom, of all places. My Dad was maybe shaving or putting on aftershave or whatever guys do for facial grooming. Liam had his head under the sink, hair dripping wet, with foam soap all over the place. Patrick was kind of just standing there with a puzzled look, as if not sure when or how he should intervene in the situation. When Liam saw me, he proclaimed, “Mama, I washin’ hair!” Oh my.
And then there was the diaper debacle. Within an hour of me leaving, he apparently had been changed twice—once by Grandpa, which unfortunately fell off, and once by Uncle Patrick, which was on securely, just completely backwards. Oh my.
Oh, and I’m pretty sure I saw Grandpa give Liam a swig of Diet Coke as I was driving off. Oh MY.
All in all, I think Liam had the best day of his entire life today.

Houston Weekend

Here are some pictures of our fun Labor Day weekend in Houston with Debby, Jeff, and Avonlea. I took lots more pictures, but some just deserve their own post.

Double Date Night

Date nights are a rare commodity these days for Jon and me, so you can imagine how excited we were to discover that my wonderful sister, Debby, had babysitters lined up for us on Saturday night. The Quad Squad, consisting of Jeff’s parents and family friends, were each assigned to a baby/little boy. We were so thankful for them and enjoyed our double date with Jeff and Debby. It was a beautiful evening in Houston, so we walked around Rice Village, had dinner on the patio of the Black Walnut Café and ended the evening on a sweet note at the Chocolate Bar. For anyone out there who loves chocolate, it’s worth a trip to Houston just to experience the magic that is The Chocolate Bar. I mean, who doesn’t love a restaurant that is totally devoted to chocolate that offers 360 degrees of chocolate candy, cake, cookies, and ice cream??? Heaven!

Here is the Quad-Squad who made date night possible.

Check out these candy bar cakes.

Infirmary Closed!

All three of our poor babies were fighting a nasty virus this week. It started on Saturday evening, and our household wasn’t fever-free until Wednesday night. Ellery was the first to come down with a little fever on Saturday night, but it was Marin we had to take to Children’s in Dallas on Sunday afternoon. When we arrived in the ER, she had a fever of 102, and babies under three months are supposed to seek immediate medical attention if they have a temperature above 100.3. Over the next four days, the kids took turns making us uneasy about high temperatures. Our doctor saw the girls on Monday, and Ellery also has an ear infection, so she’s taking a round of antibiotics for that. I took Monday and Tuesday off of work, and Jon spend Wednesday at home with them. Besides being a little delirious ourselves from lack of sleep, all is now well. Temperatures are down. Babies are sleeping better. Eating is almost back to normal. We survived our first bout of a household full of sick kids. Now let’s hope we don’t have to do it again anytime soon.