Just a quick story for today...
We have several different toys set up around our living room for the boys to play with, including a ball pit and 3 another toys that develop hand eye co-ordination and encourage them to put balls into different holes.... Anyway, they all use slightly different balls.
This morning Ethan was in the ball pit and found one of the balls from another game in the ball pit. He took it in his hand, crawled accross the room and took it to the toy it belongs to.
I thought he was very clever, such a simple action shows good memory and problem solving skills. I'm really enjoying watching them grow, learn and develop!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Other Pics and Stuff
Ben playing with the dinosaur toy. He’s very good at picking up the balls and putting them in the holes. 
Friday, March 20, 2009
Random Stuff
ALLERGY UPDATE:
I think a few weeks back I posted our allergy plan, but haven't given any info on how things are going....
Firstly, Ethan has been fully successfully weaned onto formula. He drinks it well and has not had any problems!! Yay for Ethan.
Tracie has given up the breast pumping and did so very easily..... everything is back to its pre-pregnancy state. She's happy.
Secondly, we successfully introduced wheat and the boys are enjoying eating pasta, bread and weetbix.
Thirdly, we introduced Salicylates, and as expected, Benny had a reaction. We gave them a high salicylate diet until he had the reaction. Day 1 was fine. Day 2-4 both boys had very mild rashes (Ben worse than Ethan). Day 5 (yesterday) Ben had a larger and more acute rash. Today both boys are back on their low allergy diet. We are waiting for Ben's skin to calm down and then we will try the amine challenge next week.
CAR SEATS:
Well, after much debate, we decided the time had come to turn the boys into a forward facing position in the car.
It's all a matter of safety. They are safer in a rearward facing position for as long as possible. Australia's guidelines say they can be turned around when they are 8kg and are able to sit with minimal support (about 6-7months). The majority of the rest of the world's guidelines says 9kg and one year old. Currently they are about 9kg (Ben) and 10kg (Ethan). They are almost 11months and have been sitting unsupported for about 4 months.
We were planning to wait as long as possible to turn them (for safety) but even though their car seats say they can travel rear-facing up till 12kg, Ethan had outgrown his seat and become too tall to safely travel like that. We turned them both.... cos you just can't have twins being too different!
The first time we put them into the car, we got into the front seat, turned around to say hello and Ethan looked at us, gave a great big smile and waved at us..... it was SO SO SO cute!! He's so happy facing the front and being able to see us. Ben didn't seem too impressed and didn't really care either way!
DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES:
Talking - Both boys have become very chatty and talk for hours a day. Ben has a quiet high voice and loves to say a sentence like 'da da a dai dai a da a dai' He also says 'hi' and 'nan nan nan'. Ben doesn't say mum very often. Ethan's voice is lower, and louder. He like to say sentences like 'mum mum mum bub mum bum mum bum mum' and 'a yay yay yay'
Eating: Ethan is very good at eating a variety of textures and flavours. He chews and swallows very well. Ben has difficulty with food that doesn't easily slip down his throat. He seems to get a lot of food stuck in his mouth and often requires a few mouth fulls of water to help wash everything down. Ben prefers everything to be pureed and slippery.
Fine motor skills: Ethan is very very good at picking up very small objects and putting them in his mouth. Unfortunately his favorites seem to be kitty litter and dust. Ethan is also good at feeding himself actual food, picking up his toys and spinning objects. Ben's fine motor skills aren't quite as good. He can pick up larger objects and sometimes gets them into his mouth. He is getting much better at his hand eye co-ordination and can pick up balls and put them into holes as he plays with his toys.
Gross Motor Skills: Ben is very good at his gross motor skills. He crawls properly, he can put himself into a sitting position. He can easily get himself into a standing position and walks along the furniture, sometimes almost runs. In the last day or two, Benny has started to leg go of objects when he's standing up. He can only stand for about 3-4seconds, but he'd defiantly getting better and sure is practicing a lot. Ethan's gross motor skills aren't as good. He still crawls on his belly and can't get himself into a sitting position. He is however now very good at standing up. He can stand up where ever he wants, walks along all the toys and furniture and has recently (thankfully) learnt how to get back down too.
We find it interesting that Ethan has better fine motor skills, where are Ben is better at the gross motor stuff.
SLEEPING:
Since the boys were born we've all been sleeping in the same room. We decided the time has come for us to sleep in a different room. We have given the boys the bigger room (as they have more stuff) and we moved out. We bought our selves a new bigger bed and we're enjoying sleeping in our new room. The boys have coped very well with the adjustment and actually seem to sleep better. We have had a few unsettled nights with the boys waking a bit more than usual as the next street is being re-surfaced with night road works (very bloody noisy all night long!!!). We hope this is almost done and things will be back to normal soon. We've been spending some time decorating their room now that it's all theirs, it's almost done and we'll upload some pics soon. We also plan to decorate our new room and have already done our guestroom. We still need to do the study...... ohhh how the days need to be longer!!
DISCIPLINE AND PUSHING BOURDARIES:
Our boys, especially Benny are starting to test their boundaries and can be very stubborn with the things they want to do. Ben seems to be obsessed with standing at the coffee table and banging a plastic toy on the table. I think he likes the noise. He's not allowed to do this as we don't want him to damage our nice coffee table. Every time we tell him to stop he gives us a very cheeky little smile and bangs it again. We tell him to stop 2-3times then get up, take the toy off him and make him sit down and tell him 'no'. This, of course makes him cry for a while. Within a minute or so he's back at the table, often with another toy testing us again. Sometimes when he knows we're not paying attention he gets up to the table with a toy and taps it very lightly so it only makes a quiet noise. He looks at us and smiles and you can see him thinking 'i wonder if they'll stop me this time'. So cheeky!!!!!! They are also forbidden to play with electrical cords, the TV and the laptop and love to push those boundaries too. Ethan loves to open and close the storage box that contains nappies, wipes, bags, creams and other things he's not allowed. He gets very upset when he's told to stop. We are trying to introduce discipline and set boundaries without it being a big deal. It's a tricky balance. We hope we're doing it right.
Wow.... long post tonight. Sorry about that. I'll upload some pics next time.
I think a few weeks back I posted our allergy plan, but haven't given any info on how things are going....
Firstly, Ethan has been fully successfully weaned onto formula. He drinks it well and has not had any problems!! Yay for Ethan.
Tracie has given up the breast pumping and did so very easily..... everything is back to its pre-pregnancy state. She's happy.
Secondly, we successfully introduced wheat and the boys are enjoying eating pasta, bread and weetbix.
Thirdly, we introduced Salicylates, and as expected, Benny had a reaction. We gave them a high salicylate diet until he had the reaction. Day 1 was fine. Day 2-4 both boys had very mild rashes (Ben worse than Ethan). Day 5 (yesterday) Ben had a larger and more acute rash. Today both boys are back on their low allergy diet. We are waiting for Ben's skin to calm down and then we will try the amine challenge next week.
CAR SEATS:
Well, after much debate, we decided the time had come to turn the boys into a forward facing position in the car.
It's all a matter of safety. They are safer in a rearward facing position for as long as possible. Australia's guidelines say they can be turned around when they are 8kg and are able to sit with minimal support (about 6-7months). The majority of the rest of the world's guidelines says 9kg and one year old. Currently they are about 9kg (Ben) and 10kg (Ethan). They are almost 11months and have been sitting unsupported for about 4 months.
We were planning to wait as long as possible to turn them (for safety) but even though their car seats say they can travel rear-facing up till 12kg, Ethan had outgrown his seat and become too tall to safely travel like that. We turned them both.... cos you just can't have twins being too different!
The first time we put them into the car, we got into the front seat, turned around to say hello and Ethan looked at us, gave a great big smile and waved at us..... it was SO SO SO cute!! He's so happy facing the front and being able to see us. Ben didn't seem too impressed and didn't really care either way!
DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES:
Talking - Both boys have become very chatty and talk for hours a day. Ben has a quiet high voice and loves to say a sentence like 'da da a dai dai a da a dai' He also says 'hi' and 'nan nan nan'. Ben doesn't say mum very often. Ethan's voice is lower, and louder. He like to say sentences like 'mum mum mum bub mum bum mum bum mum' and 'a yay yay yay'
Eating: Ethan is very good at eating a variety of textures and flavours. He chews and swallows very well. Ben has difficulty with food that doesn't easily slip down his throat. He seems to get a lot of food stuck in his mouth and often requires a few mouth fulls of water to help wash everything down. Ben prefers everything to be pureed and slippery.
Fine motor skills: Ethan is very very good at picking up very small objects and putting them in his mouth. Unfortunately his favorites seem to be kitty litter and dust. Ethan is also good at feeding himself actual food, picking up his toys and spinning objects. Ben's fine motor skills aren't quite as good. He can pick up larger objects and sometimes gets them into his mouth. He is getting much better at his hand eye co-ordination and can pick up balls and put them into holes as he plays with his toys.
Gross Motor Skills: Ben is very good at his gross motor skills. He crawls properly, he can put himself into a sitting position. He can easily get himself into a standing position and walks along the furniture, sometimes almost runs. In the last day or two, Benny has started to leg go of objects when he's standing up. He can only stand for about 3-4seconds, but he'd defiantly getting better and sure is practicing a lot. Ethan's gross motor skills aren't as good. He still crawls on his belly and can't get himself into a sitting position. He is however now very good at standing up. He can stand up where ever he wants, walks along all the toys and furniture and has recently (thankfully) learnt how to get back down too.
We find it interesting that Ethan has better fine motor skills, where are Ben is better at the gross motor stuff.
SLEEPING:
Since the boys were born we've all been sleeping in the same room. We decided the time has come for us to sleep in a different room. We have given the boys the bigger room (as they have more stuff) and we moved out. We bought our selves a new bigger bed and we're enjoying sleeping in our new room. The boys have coped very well with the adjustment and actually seem to sleep better. We have had a few unsettled nights with the boys waking a bit more than usual as the next street is being re-surfaced with night road works (very bloody noisy all night long!!!). We hope this is almost done and things will be back to normal soon. We've been spending some time decorating their room now that it's all theirs, it's almost done and we'll upload some pics soon. We also plan to decorate our new room and have already done our guestroom. We still need to do the study...... ohhh how the days need to be longer!!
DISCIPLINE AND PUSHING BOURDARIES:
Our boys, especially Benny are starting to test their boundaries and can be very stubborn with the things they want to do. Ben seems to be obsessed with standing at the coffee table and banging a plastic toy on the table. I think he likes the noise. He's not allowed to do this as we don't want him to damage our nice coffee table. Every time we tell him to stop he gives us a very cheeky little smile and bangs it again. We tell him to stop 2-3times then get up, take the toy off him and make him sit down and tell him 'no'. This, of course makes him cry for a while. Within a minute or so he's back at the table, often with another toy testing us again. Sometimes when he knows we're not paying attention he gets up to the table with a toy and taps it very lightly so it only makes a quiet noise. He looks at us and smiles and you can see him thinking 'i wonder if they'll stop me this time'. So cheeky!!!!!! They are also forbidden to play with electrical cords, the TV and the laptop and love to push those boundaries too. Ethan loves to open and close the storage box that contains nappies, wipes, bags, creams and other things he's not allowed. He gets very upset when he's told to stop. We are trying to introduce discipline and set boundaries without it being a big deal. It's a tricky balance. We hope we're doing it right.
Wow.... long post tonight. Sorry about that. I'll upload some pics next time.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Playtime at home
Now the boys are 10months old they are starting to really enjoy playing with their toys. Of course they are way too spoiled and have way too many toys! Below is Ethan standing up playing with a toy. 
Benny playing on the floor.
Yesterday we went to toys'r'us and bought a ball pit. Today, after setting it up the boys played in it for the first time. In the beginning they weren't sure how to move in the ball pit. Below is Ethan sitting in the front, and Ben in the background getting buried in balls!
Ben - Buried by balls! 
Benny playing on the floor.Yesterday we went to toys'r'us and bought a ball pit. Today, after setting it up the boys played in it for the first time. In the beginning they weren't sure how to move in the ball pit. Below is Ethan sitting in the front, and Ben in the background getting buried in balls!Ben - Buried by balls! Someone..... Ethan I think, being buried by balls!
Boys in the ball pit (Ethan in the front, Ben in the back)
Ben and Ethan - See Ethan clapping!
Ben and Ethan - again
and again
Ethan 
Ben
Boys in the ball pit (Ethan in the front, Ben in the back)Ben and Ethan - See Ethan clapping!
Ben and Ethan - again
and again
Ethan Ben As promised..... here's the video of the boys playing with their favorite standing toy - the ball table
Boys standing at the gate between the living room and kitchen. Ben on the left in a green shirt. Ethan on the right in the blue shirt.
Boys in the highchairs..... Ben has learnt to wave bye bye on command. Ethan does it sometimes.... but unfortunately, not this time!
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Day by day - 10 months old
10 months old! It really amazes me how fast these boys grow and develop. It's fun, but sad at the same time. This week has been a big week in ways that show the boys are getting older.
Ethan eating his roast lamb and veges. This was the first time they had lamb. They liked it.
Rudey nudey boys waiting to have a bath!
Ben and Ethan in the bath
Ben and Ethan in the bath - again! 
Ethan playing peek-a-boo with his towel after the bath.
Ethan after the bath
Boys in the PJ's climbing up to the TV
Again, they love that TV!
Ethan and Ben having a bottle
Ethan and Sal brushing their teeth. Ethan is playing with Tracie's tooth brush..... his one is a lot smaller - and apparently not as fun as mummy's one!
Cheeky naked boys again..... in B&W this time!!
First, we've been weaning Ethan from breast milk to formula. Tracie expressed breast milk for 10months!!! We finally sent the breast pump back from the place we hired it from and threw out the disposable bits...... no more pumping!!! I'm so proud of Tracie for spending hours a day on the breast pump to give our boys the best start in life. (For those who can't remember, we took Benny off breast milk at 4 months of age due to allergies. He's been on his special formula since then and is doing great). Ethan is doing really well on formula and has adjusted very well to the change in his diet.
Secondly we finally got a new bed..... something we've been wanting for years. We've put the new bed in our new bedroom and last night, for the first time we slept in a different room to the boys!! Both of us slept terribly.... the boys were fine. We hope we will adjust soon. We both felt sad sleeping away from them.
Thirdly, we've started the boys dietary challenges. This week we're starting the wheat challenge. We will give them wheat every day this week. Yesterday they had pasta. Today they had weetbix. They weren't too sure about pasta, but loved the weetbix. So far so good. If they're still good in a few days, we can give them bread.
Below is Benny eating some cut up bits if lamb roast and veges we had last week.
Ethan eating his roast lamb and veges. This was the first time they had lamb. They liked it.Rudey nudey boys waiting to have a bath!Ben and Ethan in the bathBen and Ethan in the bath - again! Ethan playing peek-a-boo with his towel after the bath.Ethan after the bathBoys in the PJ's climbing up to the TV
Again, they love that TV!Ethan and Ben having a bottle
Ethan and Sal brushing their teeth. Ethan is playing with Tracie's tooth brush..... his one is a lot smaller - and apparently not as fun as mummy's one! Cheeky naked boys again..... in B&W this time!!Things in general are going very well. The boys are very happy. We've had a few teething related miseries this week, but nothing too terrible..... No new teeth yet. Ben still has 5. He's very close to having 6. Some days that 6th tooth pokes through and causes him some pain, and feels sharp, but the the next day it's back in the gum. It's bothering the poor boy. Ethan still has 2 teeth.
Both boys are now very good at standing and cruising along the furniture. Neither boy can stand without holding something..... but Ben is getting closer.
Both boys love their standing activity table (see below). They are now able to pick up the balls, put them in the holes, watch them fall, then pick up the ball and repeat the process. I'll try and get it on video and upload it soon. It's amazing to watch them learn cause and effect and develop their fine and gross motor skills.
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