I'm Back!!!!

DEAR FOLLOWERS!!!!
      I AM BACK!!! My twin boys are 5 months old. I am very sorry for not keeping up with this. I was using this to make money with the advertisements, but they decided I was cheating on it. It was very discouraging since I was trying to contribute to our finances while expecting twins. I also did not have very much time or energy to keep up with my Informative Blog. But I do now!!! Let me see if I can catch you up -via pictures!-, then today's blog is about making space for baby(ies) in a TINY space. 

This is how big I got, taken 3 days before I went into labor.

^ Ryan and Elliot ^

Still in the NICU @ 1 week old

^ Ryan Scott and ^ Elliot Shae 

20 days old

^ Elliot and Ryan ^

On their blessing day 

3 months old

Our family

4 months old

^ Ryan and Elliot ^ 

5 months old

Well now your caught up!! So we are a family of four living in a 2 bedroom apartment, approximately 700 sq ft. It's umm... Not as squished as it was in the 1 bedroom but still not as much space as we would hope for. Here is how we make it work:

This is in our living room. To the right is our "adult" area - a rug, couch, and entertainment center. The swings we borrowed from a fellow mom of twins. The toy basket and what I call "The Clean Area" which is a blanket nobody walks on, we change diapers here, lay them there after a bath and just to change their clothes. You can see in the bottom, right corner their car seats. We tuck them under the couch arm. I vacuum this room every night before bed. The boys have their own room, we have two cribs, a laundry basket, another toy basket and two Seed Sprout closet organizers from walmart.com for about $20. Under their cribs we store their bathtub and a collapsible walker. I hope this helps with ideas for your Little Ones space! 

Here's a bonus:

1/5 red bell pepper, chopped                   4 tilapia fillets

1/5 orange bell pepper, chopped              1 cup wild rice

1/5 green bell pepper, chopped

3-4 portabella mushrooms, sliced

Throw 1/3 tablespoon margarine or butter into a medium skillet till melted. Add all peppers and mushrooms, moving till mushrooms are browned, or however you like your veggies sauted. Prepare the rice according to package. Put oven to BROIL. TIP- cover broil bin with foil for fast easy clean-up. Broil fish about 10 minutes on each side (each oven is different). Scoop 1/2 cup of rice on each plate, off to one side. Place two fillets on each plate, next to the rice. Using a spoon, scoop a line of the pepper mix in between the fish and rice. Serve. 

Well, that's all for today!

In-laws and McDonalds....

Yesterday, my mother-in-law asked me if I was O.K. with them making the tradition of taking the grandkids to McDonalds every Saturday morning. I was so shocked all I could do was laugh at first. I ended up trying to get out that I did like the idea of a tradition of some sort, but that I wanted my kids to eat healthy. She almost totally blew it off. Almost, as in she continued trying to convince me in a way that said, "we already made up our minds, this is just a courtesy." I remembered my mom asking if I knew if they were trying to turn our kids into a "grandparents competition". I am really starting to wonder. She SAID it was so we could sleep in, but I don't know if I believe that. I am actually really looking forward to our kids waking up for Saturday morning cartoons, eating cereal in their pajamas till mom and dad wake up. Thats what we did! Can you imagine the trouble it would cause us if our kids went to McDonalds EVERY FRICKEN SATURDAY?! I''ll tell you what I imagine it would be like - 

1. Way too much salt, sodium, and grease in their little bodies every single week. 
2. We would have to get up ANYWAY in order to get them ready to go out with a grandma and grandpa. That would require baths, cute clothes and teeth brushing.
3. They will be super hyper afterwards and WE would have to deal with it. 
4. How would I get a Saturday routine set for them if that is what they did? 
5. Would I ever get to enjoy a Saturday morning with my kids? What if I plan on making waffles or pancakes with them every Saturday morning? 
6. Would Grandma and Grandpa bring them back when I ask them to? Breakfast does not need to last 4-5 hours. 
7. Would they want to go to McDonalds all the time? Does anyone know how hard it is to say no to a toddler or pre-schooler when it comes to going to McDonalds?! I do remember how it was with my little brother and my parents. We older kids did not help the matter. 
8. I already know Andrew will want to cook them breakfast every once in awhile and his breakfast foods are worse than McDonalds, Burger King, and Jack In The Box put together. But I cannot deny daddy this privilege, or my marriage might suffer [he he he]

It really does bother me. I asked Andrew how he felt about her asking [since it's his mom] and he agreed with my opinion. He was annoyed. Didn't actually say much about it but voiced that it annoyed him. I think this is one of those "don't worry till we get there" things but oh man. During the conversation I told her that it might not happen till the twins are like 5 or something. She blew off the age and was like "oh well I know it's not right away, I can't give them hash browns till they are almost a year." I was like "WHAT?!" I am not sure I am O.K. with my babies eating hash browns at 7 months. I actually read an article in Parents Magazine two months ago that gave us advice on how to say no to relatives that want to feed baby something over the holidays. It put it in an "Aunt Flo and her famous casserole" perspective.  It didn't give much advice on what to say but it did make me realize that I will have to deal with these issues, especially from Andrews side of the family. Now I wonder, is it just because I trust the women in my family on the topic of kids more than his? If my abuelita or mom wanted to feed the twins something I think I would be O.K. But I am picturing them trying things like mashed beans, mashed potatoes, a roll, cranberry sauce, and yams. I know how unhealthy husbands family cooks their holiday and regular food. It's loaded with salt, pepper, heavy creams and lots of butter. Plus his Grandma is just the kind of person to want babies to try her "famous" whatever. Oh, man. 


I am at a complete loss on this. I feel like I'm discriminating against his family, and that's wrong and unfair. But there are things that I will have to monitor from my family too. My family is much more into electronics than I would like my kids to be. But I was able to talk to my mom about this issue and I felt much better afterwards. I even found out she is planning homemade church activity kits that are 100% electronic free. I was ecstatic and felt bad. I never liked my moms disciplinary ways. I hear that is almost ALWAYS an issue between mother and daughter though. [I actually am not looking forward to my MIL and discipline more] I worry I will get told in front of my kids things like -

1. Ya like they understand what you are telling them.
2. Let them do it, it's cute
3. Don't tell them that

Or that they will be told to do it anyways and not to listen to mommy because she is mean. Maybe it will maybe it won't. My mom bought me a really great discipline help book this Christmas so maybe it's not. Now, in conclusion, I know I will not be the perfect mom. I know I will have times I forget and do something I shouldn't. I know I will yell or even ignore more than I should. I also know most moms would read this and say I'm delusional on the way I see how having kids will be. I don't think I am and I will try my hardest to raise my kids as mine and to be better than good people. My goal is similar to most parents and I will have my own way of getting there. My husband is my partner in this task my Heavenly Father entrusted upon us and that is how I see it. 

What a long day. Hubby and I were supposed to wake up at 8:30 am, but Andrew has been sick and finally got up after a long, almost sleepless night about eight. I thought he had a cold so I bought him some generic DayQuil. Now at the end of the bottle I think it's just allergies. His nose is runny and he has mild congestion, and a dry cough. He has allergy induced asthma so this might have been more obvious if it wasn't cold season, ha ha ha. 
I made me two strawberry toaster strudels [with the frosting] and Andrew had chicken nuggets with ranch dressing for breakfast. He eats stuff that I think is meant for lunch or dinner for breakfast all the time. It makes me worry about him feeding the kids. [I joke, I kid] We showered and by the time I was presentable I was hungry again so I made a waffle sandwich. My waffle sandwich is two toasted, whole wheat waffles with creamy peanut butter and Nutella spread on it. Nutella is a chocolaty hazelnut spread my uncle brought us from Germany once. Then we discovered they sold it here. I love it and have been eating it with peanut butter for maybe a decade. I really need to find a recipe for whole wheat waffles. I am sure I can make them healthier than Eggo can, which would make my favorite snack that much healthier. It would also save us money. I think I could make 5x the amount Eggo sells for the same price..... I will have to research this and make another post later with my findings. 
We left the house in our lovely car, Polaris. Andrew named our car Polaris because it is white and has hail damage all over it. WE JUST FINISHED PAYING FOR IT!!! We made the final payment on our car this past weekend and are totally suffering from it, but IT IS OURS NOW!! OUR FIRST VEHICLE!!!  YAY! We decided to look at apartments today before my doctors appointment. We had two that we saw online that we really liked. One was 930 sq ft for $650 but they did not allow pets. We love Moonlight, and really can't make the choice to find her a new home. It was so beautiful. Foliage everywhere and brown European style roofs. The second was 1000 sq ft for $650. Andrew lived there with his parents back in the day and I really like it. Very comfortable. With a $400 pet deposit.... We love our cat... but that much? We don't know yet. One we found just driving around was our favorite. It is only 815 sq ft for $799. Ridiculous pricing but oh my gosh it was perfect! We would have so much privacy, with enclosed patios, lots of space in between the buildings and the space was covered in grass and trees and shrubs and ivies! It was just gorgeous. But again with the $400 pet deposit. It breaks my heart because right now she is purring next to me and is so glad to have us home. My doctor notified me that I needed to start a high protein diet, in order to help the babies grow as much as possible before they arrive at approximately 36 weeks. He told me to buy the BOOST drinks for older people and eat lots of chicken and fish but I think it would be cheaper and more effective to just buy better vegetables. I know this amazing woman and I follow her blog. She is a very healthy eater and of course so are her kids. Now I discovered from a post that certain vegetables have more protein than meat. I think I also understood that said protein is more efficient than that from say a steak. I am also going to research this so I can buy proper protein next grocery trip. Well Andrew and I get a kick out of eating unhealthy after the doctor because I feel I eat healthier than is enough and get annoyed with the doctor implying that I could not possibly be capable of doing so. Probably because of my age? We pigged out at Sonic. Seriously not the smartest move on our part but somehow we spent $17 at a fast food restaurant for 2 people. We now have $15 left for the next two weeks. 
After Sonic satisfaction we drove around looking for apartments we might like but found none. I texted my mom after I got annoyed with Andrew for constantly turning the wrong way and discovered she was on her way to take my baby brother to his BMX practice. I decided we would go too. I'm so glad we did, I miss that kid so much and he just looks adorable in his gear. Of course it was good seeing my mom too. I think its hilarious to find out who she tells about her grandkids coming. Seems it's EVERYONE. 

After we left the track we went to go see Andrews parents. His mom was in such a fantastic mood it was almost annoying. [I joke, I kid] Andrews dad was bragging about some rice and chicken that he made for dinner so I tried it and man, it was worth bragging about. Darn good rice. Kinda tasted like stuffing. After I ate I noticed how miserable my husband looked so we took off. I asked if I could drive because he was coughing again and I was worried about him coughing and driving. HE SAID YES! So I got to drive home, then decided to ask if I could drive a little more. [No, I don't have my license yet so this is me practicing to pass the test soon] My husband said yes so I drove around the neighborhood for like 10 minutes. 


Now, today was not a very healthy food day but I have lots of things to do tomorrow. Research and maybe cooking. I had a fantastic day out with my husband and can't wait to go to sleep next to him. Thanks for reading!

My name is Kayla and 20 years old.  I decided to start this blog today because I am currently a bored unemployed pregnant woman. However I enjoy looking for new things to entertain myself. I'm really bad at introducing myself, in case you haven't noticed. I guess I'll describe the basics in my life right now:

This is my husband, Andrew. He's 21. This was taken the day of our wedding, by me. We had been dating for exactly 2 years before we got married September 2, 2010. We didn't have a big wedding, we just went to the courthouse, didn't even have any family there. Yeah, we felt bad but we were so tired of waiting, we just did it and glad we're married now. He enjoys reading WAY too much but I secretly love to see him enjoying a good book. He is the most handsome man in the whole world and makes me laugh everyday and usually every night before we go to sleep. We have DEFINITELY  had our ups and downs, our relationship has been tried many ugly times... but we made it. It is kind of hard to get him to do stuff together because he is usually short of time, or too tired from working his long hours. Even though I have to drag him and beg him to do stuff he almost always looks me in the eyes and tells me he really enjoyed the day/activity we had. We compliment each other perfectly. P.S. I love to talk about him.

This is the most recent picture of our fraternal twin boys. They are due April 29, 2011. They are extremely active already and they are the main reason I decided to start this blog. I hope to turn this into a memory book I can never lose or pack away, and to look back on many years from now when I miss them being little. We have not agreed on any names yet, but I will definitely be sharing all about them, for like... ever I hope.  

This is our cat, Moonlight. She was originally supposed to be my husbands cat. He got me her sister for my birthday in 2010. Her sister turned into a menace and a disaster and we gave her to my mom who loves her. Unfortunately for her, she adopted my sister, or so is my understanding. Moonlight has 100% adopted both of us as her caregivers and enjoys cuddling with me. This actually didn't start till about 3 months ago. Later I will add pictures of her cuddling, it's more like her getting really close to me and hugging my belly protectively.  She has a routine of playing with Andrews bootlaces every morning while he is putting them on. Her other fun habits include:

- Running to the microwave and stretching up with an extended claw every time we push the buttons to start it. We have not figured out why, this also only started about 3 months ago.

- Darting into our bedroom EVERY SINGLE TIME the door opens. We are both allergic to cats and so we don't like her on our bed. The easiest way to do that is to keep her out of the bedroom completely. Unfortunately we live in a tiny 1 bedroom apartment. We are sure she does this because she needs more space AND has figured out that we cuddle with her together if she goes in there. Shame on us. 

- Her favorite tall item to lounge on is Andrews shoulders, while he is reading at the kitchen table. She also enjoys curling up in his lap when he is on the floor playing video games. 

- We bought her a toy fuzzy ball with feathers at Wal-mart for Christmas. She loves it. Boxes are #2 on her list of favorite playthings. 

Well, I have to go contemplate dinner for tonight. I swear these will get more interesting to follow. Good night.