A few of my favorite things...

    This list is not like the previous post of top ten baby items, but a list of things that make me happy.

Tessa and Avery - I am not who I am without them. I could not imagine
life without them! They make me so happy!

Gosh, he's handsome, and he's all mine!
I love this man with all my heart, and he's such
a great Dad! 

Ahhh, wine, how I love you. This picture makes
me drool.

I could literally mow grass all day long. It is
so relaxing to me! (btw, this lady's lawn doesn't
look big enough to need a rider mower)

Taking pictures. I wish I had more time and
money (to get the camera I want) to do this.

Ok, I admit...I'm nosey.

I love learning my ancestry and working on my family tree.

My iPhone. I would be lost without you. I love having
endless resources at my fingertips.

Our 1966 Chevy Impala.

Drool

    So as far as an update to the past week. I had a job interview at St. Mary's. We'll see how it goes. I'm supposed to have a "peer interview" at some point next week. We'll have to see what pay will be like, hours, schedule, etc. At least I've worked there before and actually a lot of the people I worked with 5 years ago are still there. A lot more than I can say for my previous employer. I'm very nervous about the concept of working night shifts. I just don't know if it's feasible with the girls being so young. We shall see what they offer. I'm even open to working weekend option if it would mean day shift. Who knows. I need to weigh all my options, it's going to be a difficult decision none the less. I have other applications out too, so I could also hear from them in the weeks to come also.
    The girls are doing well, except for sleep. We are still on wonky nap schedules. There is no consistency with them no matter how hard I try. I try every day to get them to nap in their cribs and if I can get 20 minutes out of them, it's good. Most of the time, they will just cry and cry that tired cry but won't fall asleep...until I put them in the swing. Then their out within 2 minutes. Grrrrr! I want them to be able to nap in their beds before they go to daycare. I just dread hearing when they get picked up, "Well, we tried, but the girls didn't nap at all today. They just were cranky and wanted to be held." Ugh. It just might be a tough transition for the three of us if this doesn't get straightened out. They have also started to get up at 5:30-6am for some reason. I'm not sure if they hear Tom getting ready for work, are hungry or what, but I give them a bottle and they will often times go back to sleep until 8 or 9. I told Tom that we should try feeding them solids two times a day and see if that keeps them satisfied throughout the day longer. Who knows. Man there is a lot of trial and error in this thing called motherhood!
    The girls are sleeping, so I'm taking the cue from my contacts sticking to my eyelids that it's time for me to go to bed also! Goodnight!

My Top Ten Baby Items (Thus Far)

I think I've been asked about 500 times what are the top baby items I couldn't live without, so I figured I would put them into writing. I have decided that I will use some of these items as baby shower gifts in the future. I always try to give gifts based on practicality, not cuteness factor (although it's hard when it comes to baby items!). In no particular order:

1. Infant Mylicon - life saver for those gassy tummies in those first few weeks as their bodies adjust to life on the outside. Also a sanity saver for mom and dad. Tom made a 4am Walmart run to get this when the girls were days old. Safe enough to use with every feeding. You'll be glad you have it on hand (Here's a tip: buy the off brand! It's around $3.50, while the name brand is $11.50 for the same thing! Also, buy the dye free, you'll save a lot of onesies this way).
2. Sound Machine - we got ours with a 20% off coupon from Bed Bath & Beyond. We were going bonkers because the girls would wake up to any little noise in the house, and with hardwood floors, that was hard. We got this and set it to rain falling, not only is it soothing, but it drowns out all other noises from the house as well. We will be using this for quite some time, I can tell.
3. Dr Browns Bottles - They really don't have as many parts as some make it out to be (really the valve and vent are the only extra pieces, the rest is bottle, ring and nipple), and they can be a pain to clean. But, when it comes down to your little one having a horrible upset tummy from sucking too much air, these are worth their weight in gold!
4. Dishwasher Baskets - As mentioned above, the Dr. Brown's bottles can be a pain to clean. When you're sleep deprived anyways, you don't want to be standing at the sink cleaning the little nooks and crannys, or having parts flying all over the dish washer. Now granted, I have double the bottles, but I don't think I'd be able to wash all the parts if I didn't have a dishwasher (I would've probably opted for the Playtex Drop-Ins). Get one of these and it will save you a lot of time and effort. All the Dr Brown's parts fit well (no need to buy the more expensive Dr. Brown's basket)
5. Infant Swing - Now, some babies just don't like swings, so realize that for some, it might be an investment that won't get much use. In the Ervin household, they are used every. single. day. It is sometimes the only thing that will calm them down in the event of a meltdown. My biggest tip: get one that plugs into the wall, you won't be going through batteries like water. My girls like the side to side swing better than the front to back, so I would look into a swing that give you an option for the direction. 
6. Waterproof Mattress Pads - We use these everywhere. They are in their cribs, co-sleeper, on top of the ottoman in the living room for quick diaper changes, in the diaper bag, you name it. They keep the surfaces underneath looking nice, because frankly, I really don't feel like cleaning the nooks and crannies of the pack-n-play, or to have my ottoman smelling like urine when I couldn't get the diaper under the tush fast enough.
7. Chicco Keyfit 30 - I believe this is the best infant car seat on the market. It is always ranked high on Consumer Reports and the NHTSC tests. Being a Certified Passenger Safety Technician, I can tell you that I've come in contact with a lot of car seats in a lot of different cars, and these are by far the easiest to install. Less room for error, in my opinion. They also feel better than others. I hate chincy feeling car seats. These are solid and well made. The weight limit goes to 30lbs, but most children outgrow the height limit of 30 inches before they are even close to the 30lbs. Besides, who wants to lug around 30lbs?
8. Swaddle Me's and Halo Sleep Sacks - These kind of go hand in hand for me. When they were little, they loved the secure feeling of being swaddled, but those "swaddle blankets" you buy in the stores are tiny and don't serve their purpose at all. I have a whole drawer of them unused to prove it. So the Swaddle Me's make your little one feel secure, without the fear of your child waking to be re-wrapped 600 times per night. Now that my girls are a little bigger, they don't need to be swaddled, but I still want to have them covered. They are hot-bodies that don't like a lot of hot materials around them either. Right now we use their cotton sleep sacks. They aren't too binding, but don't make their little tootsies cold at night either. We've used the heck out of these.
9. Formula Dispenser - A staple item in the diaper bag. They serve their purpose well, the spout fits easily into the bottle so there is less spillage. They also stay tight and secure while bouncing around in the diaper bag. I'm probably going to be getting a third one to store cereal in for when we go down to grandma and grandpa's and we feed them solids.
10. EASY Baby Clothing - Now that I'm a mother, I can't stress this enough. Obviously the designers that designed infant clothing with non-stretchy, buttoned outfits never have had children of their own. I mean, come on. I know they look cute on the rack, but please step away when contemplating purchasing these. The new mother will thank you, instead of cursing you as she is trying to unbutton the back while the child is screaming from the blow-out they had all the way up their back. Some of my favorites easy clothing include: 
1. Gerber Sleepers (Tip: Gerber brand runs small, my girls almost always require the next size bigger) They are great because they zip up. I hate trying to line up snaps!
2. Circo Onesies - The best onesies out there in my opinion. They stretch nicely, they hold up to washings. They fit the best and my girls always look comfortable in them.
3. Anything Carters - They always have great deals online and very cute clothes. They do make outfits, with buttons (beware, lol), but they run true to size and hold up well and last a long time. If you're looking for something cute, you can't go wrong with this.

   I'm sure I could go on and on, but I'll stop at ten. I'll end with a picture of Tessa's new trick.

It doesn't look like it, but that is her foot!

My Non-Baby Related Hobby

    I have always loved to look at old pictures, to listen to stories of the "good ol' days" from my dad, grandpa or uncle Clifford. I always figured that if I didn't remember this stuff, then no one in my generation will know it. Last year sometime I discovered Ancestry.com and thus began my journey to discover my heritage (in a more in-depth scale). Pretty much every one of my ancestors that came to the United States were farmers (surprise, surprise!). I could go on for hours and hours about finding this or that out about great aunt so and so, but I know to most people that would be torturously boring. To me I find it very interesting. Like a way to add a personal link to all of those old pictures I love to look at, to feel like I actually knew who they were. I have a family tree online, and thus far it has 1115 people (both my side and Tom's side)! I know! A majority of those are not direct descendants, but brothers and sisters and their families too. I add those people because someone else may have a link that leads me to more information about my direct descendants. Kind of like the snowball effect.

    My goal of recent has been to obtain old photographs to scan and add to my family tree. Thanks to my aunt Kathy I was able to get an old box of photographs that belonged to my grandma (I really knew very little about her side of the family). In this box I actually have a picture of who would be my great-great-great grandparents! I have put the bug in the ear of several of my relatives to find some pictures for me to scan. If anyone needs advice on how to get started with making a family tree just let me know!

Ok, now onto baby stuff, which is what everyone wants to see anyways, right?

I know this is WAY late, but here is a picture I took of Tessa, Hudson and Avery (Hudson is 8 days younger than the girls) at Aunt Amanda and Uncle Travis' house on Mother's Day, and the one I took on Labor Day:

Every mother has ton's of high chair pictures right? Here's a few of mine:

Dad's teaching them to love those Chevy's early

Playing with toys

Last but not least, as promised, one of the girls' 4 month professional pics courtesy of Creative Bent

Vent Session...

    I've had a rough week. Not anything big, just a bunch of little things bringing me down. First, my knees are killing me, I mean, they hurt...bad. They started bothering me in my last trimester with the girls. I chalked it up to all of the weight and fluid I was carrying. It made sense. What I wasn't expecting was the fact that they hurt me after I had them and lost a bunch of weight. I think they're beginning to hurt me now more than when I was pregnant. I know I need to go to the doctor about it, but I'm not looking forward to the MRI, and/or physical therapy that they'll probably order. I really don't feel I have the money or the time to do it. To add insult to injury, I think that because my knees are out of whack, they're causing me to throw my back out of whack. I'm not lifting with my knees like I should, so I put extra strain on my back, and therefore throwing my back out of place...ugh.

    The girls have been kinda cranky lately. I understand there's this whole 4-month wakeful period and what not, but they're only napping like 20-30 minutes at a time 2-3 times per day. There have been a couple of days where they had a meltdown at 5 or 6pm, when usually they don't reach that point until 8:30. I've been trying everything to make them nap better/longer. Tom and I even went out and bought another full sized swing, just like the one we got. I know, I know, it seems pretty impractical to get one now, when they could potentially outgrow it in a month, but it's the only thing the girls will nap in at times, and they usually tend to nap a little longer in it. I was going bonkers having one nap in the swing and the other wide awake and cranky. This way, both tend to nap at the same time. It is my sanity saver for the moment. Besides, I figure either A. Kelly will be able to use it if she doesn't get a swing, or B. we could always sell it on Craigslist and get at least some of the money back out of it. I do put the girls in their cribs at least once a day to nap. Most of the time, they only do their typical 20 minute nap, but yesterday neither fought me very much to fall asleep and Tessa actually slept for 45 minutes in her crib. I hope it wasn't just a fluke!

    Ok, I really hate to admit it, and it's almost hard for me to type, but I think I'm ready to go back to work. I can just see myself 6 months from now eating those words, though. I tend to go stir crazy here with the girls. It is such a circus to get everything ready, packed up, and hauled to wherever we're going. I can't just get up and go to the store. I feel kinda trapped in the house at times. I know it'll get better as the girls get older, and they don't require as much stuff, but now it's tough. I have 4 active applications out right now. All are OB/women's health related. I'm also looking forward to having somewhat of a cash flow again. Get these darn bills paid down. Be able to enjoy ourselves without this huge cloud of guilt hanging over every flipping penny we spend that is not on bills. I'm ready to go back to be more physically active again. Being a nurse is a 12 hour workout. I know as soon as I go back to work, some of this pesky weight that's still hanging around from the girls will start to go away. We shall see what happens in the next month or so.

    Ok, I'll end on a good note. The girls got their 4 month pictures back and I am SO happy with them. I'll post some later if I can.

I am pooped!

    I took the girls today to get their 4 month photos done. I absolutely adore Anna at Creative Bent Photography! A lot of people know that I'm very very particular about pictures, and I can't stand a poorly taken photo. If I had the money, I would be getting myself a nice DSLR and taking photos on the side for people. But, alas, there is no said money, or extra time for that matter. To give you an idea of how particular Anna is, for their newborn photos, we were there for almost five hours! Yeah, five hours with two newborns and two parents on very little sleep. I left there thinking "thank God we never have to do that again!" Although I was very glad we did. Her photos were amazing! Check out their newborn photos here : The Ervin Twins 
    I wasn't sure if I was going to be getting myself in deep trouble for taking both girls by myself, but it was not bad at all. Anna's mom was there and she was the extra set of hands we needed. We worked in a frenzy taking advantage of the girls' good mood. Avery was getting a little more agitated with it all more than Tessa, but I think we got more pictures in the first 15 minutes today than the whole photo shoot the last time! I cannot wait to see what they look like! You would not believe how the hour and a half of photo taking these two would wear the heck out of you!