The Mooney Clan

I was filling bottles this afternoon and thought I should snap a picture to remember this by. We make 2 pitchers of formula so we never run out and when the bottles are all washed we line the bottles up in a row and pour from right to left. These then go into the fridge door (second pic) and that is just about enough for one day and night.

Last night was not so great. Here's who was up and when: 2 - 2:15am - Evan 4-4something - Dylan 6:15 - Caden 7 - Evan 730 - Dylan and 10 hours after going to bed Liam was up at 8 (what a great kid - I think he's my favorite :) - well today anyway! )

Those of you who took the challenge and played 'guess that baby' from my last post, good job!! It was Evan, Liam then Dylan. Well done! They do look totally different don't they. Here's a picture of Caden at that age. Do you think any of the babies look like he looked? This picture is of Caden at 7 months (just cause I think it's cute).

I try to have the babies nap in their room at least once in the day but this is how it looks when they don't get to their room. This is a late afternoon nap, today. In the living room, tv on, Caden running around, phone ringing, dog barking... they couldn't care less! Anyone care to guess which baby is which?

It is 7:15 am and Liam just woke up! Yup - he just slept from 945 to 645. That is 9 hours!! WOO HOO. The other two weren't bad. No sound at all until 4:45 (Evan) and then 5:15 (Dylan). I am so happy! I would have been able to sleep from 10 - 445 (7 hours) if I hadn't gotten up at 215 to make sure they were all still alive :). There's hope!! Thanks again to Kim - a fellow mom of multiples (twin boys) who suggested an online parenting course that gave us the tips that has gotten us to this point with our boys. What a lifesaver! The other neat thing about this course is that it puts you on a schedule which then has you knowing when they will eat and basically when their naptime will be. So, now I know what to expect and can plan my day much better. They sleep from 10/1030 - 12 and then 130ish - 3. And then again a bit after supper. So - I can plan my workouts, my time with Caden, housework, etc. It's really great. Have a great day!

Any of you who read this have probably noticed a distinct change in attitude. I used to whine and complain all the time and now I'm a little happier for some reason.... :) Anyway - I want to brag about my people for a minute - The babies - slept pretty well last night. They went to bed at 945pm. Liam ate at 330, Evan at 430 and Dylan at 500. So a nice long chunk of sleep for each of them. Dylan is still asleep now and it's 815am . What a kid! Caden - IS POTTY TRAINED. Yup! I mean the 'mom, I have to pee!' potty trained. The "where are you Caden?" - "Going potty!!" kind of trained. He doesn't use pullups at night anymore and soon I'll be brave enough to leave the house without him in them. He stayed dry through church yesterday. It's FANTASTIC. He pretty much always just goes in there and goes - on his own. I don't know if I can express how happy I am about this! Justin - Is the best husband ever. For many reasons. B...

For those of you who are interested, we took the babies to the doctor again today and everything is looking good. Here are their weights today: Dylan 12 lbs 11 oz Evan 11 lbs 4 oz Liam 9 lbs 8 oz

I found some tips on TLC's sight for parents of multiples. So - if you have multiples have a read. If not, you might find it interesting to see what kinds of things we need to be thinking about. Also - it just made me smile to re- realize the life we've gotten ourselves into :) - "Leaving the house with more than one baby is not something that happens at the spur of the moment. It's an event," says Boyle. "Pack the car with everything you'll need the night before. Also get your babies' outfits set, and try to time your departure somewhere between feedings, diaper changes and naps." And if you can, keep a second diaper bag packed with all the essentials and leave it in your car for unexpected trips you may have to make. Here are some tips that can help make adventures with your babies a little smoother: Have a strategy for the pediatrician's office. The doctor's office will probably be the first place you venture out en masse , and ...

Well, the boys are getting busier, they are awake more. It is great but it makes it hard to blog. I have Dylan in a snugli on me just so I can type. Oh - and as I wrote that sentence Caden asked me to help him build his 'cars' blocks. So - I'm going to go do that. But you can all know that things are going well and the babies are growing and becoming more interactive, more smily. But, not more sleepy at night!! Last night was a great night and it went like this... They were all fed and in bed by 11:15, slept until 2:45, ate until 3:3o and then slept until 6 (except for a little blurb at 430 where Evan woke up for a minute but went back to sleep with a soother). A night like that doesn't seem to bother me. The night before, on the other hand, was a nightmare. The babies just finished eating and then Caden was up. He was up for almost 2 hours in the middle of the night. I have no idea why. By the time he fell asleep the babies were up again. So.... I was up f...

Well, it finally warmed up!! YAY. I had to get Caden outside and I put him right to work :) - won't it be great when all 4 boys are big enough to do some slave labour? - oh - I mean 'family contribution' chores or something like that. Anyway - it was fun to get outside and even Bailey was enjoying himself.

We just got back from the babies' first experience with immunizations. Not too much fun but not too bad either. They all cried. Dylan settled the easiest, then Liam. Evan was the most upset which is out of character and interesting. My favorite part was seeing their growth. Here's their numbers real quick - along with Caden's at the same stage. You'll notice that Dylan weighs more than Caden did at 2 months. His head is also a little bit bigger than Caden's was then. I didn't think that was possible! Dylan - 11 lbs 13 oz (Birth - 6 lbs) Evan - 10 lbs 4 oz (birth - 5 lbs 4 oz) Liam - 8 lbs 15 oz (birth - 4 lbs 14 oz) Caden at 2 mths - 10 lbs 15 oz (birth - 7 lbs 13 oz) The babies haven't reacted after 2 hours - so far so good.

I had a great time going out with some girlfriends last night. Friends are just the BEST thing and I am so grateful to have so many wonderful friends - both here and afar! We went out for supper and then saw "Bride Wars". We stayed as far away from a 'manly movie' pick as we could :) - although there was a little violence! It was also really funny - at least to us - that when the movie actually started and the title came up, 2 guys immediately stood up and made their way through their aisle, down the steps, across the front of the theatre and OUTTA there. It was pretty funny. They must have been wondering when all the previews were for chick flicks! So, thanks girls for a fun time! And thank you Justin for making it possible. Lorraine & Crystal (Lorraine made us all little candy bags - so fun) Laurie, me and Deanna (Andrea and Cindy were there too but I didn't get a picture)

Adam and Trinda and kids came for the weekend. The cousins loved hanging out, as usual. I can't get over how big those kids are getting. It's so much fun to see them and to see them playing with Caden and even the babies. Jaiden even covered the babies with his special blanket . That was so sweet. It was lots of fun and nice to have help feeding babies :).

Evan's new year resolution was to lift his head on his own and he's off to a good start!! Dylan had to show that he could do it too but Liam just went to sleep on his belly on the floor. He doesn't need to show off like the other two! :)

It's my birthday today. Every year I think about where I had hoped to be by this time or what I am hoping to have happen in the future but right now I'm just so ... happy. I'm tired and I don't have a career and all I do is sit at home. I don't foresee traveling any time soon and our budget is tighter than it has ever been (and I have forest green carpeting!). But this is the absolute best time of our lives. I feel so... full and my life has so much meaning all of a sudden. I should also mention that January is usually incredibly depressing for me. I hate the cold and it's such a long month with no breaks but this year I feel like life is SO GOOD. When I look back at the birthdays that were low points for me, I know that God was working in me and that my life was going the way it needed to go. This is a high time in my life and I know that we will have many more highs and lows but I think I've learned that even the lows have a purpose. Maybe more of...

"I like smiling, smiling's my favorite" - from the movie "ELF" I like smiling too and I love seeing my babies smile. The boys are 2 months old today and growing like crazy. Dylan smiled first a while ago but none of them do it very often and I can't say that Liam has really had that first Big smile yet. Dylan is the most smiley at this point and so we tried to catch a picture of him. Then, Caden drew this smily face. It's his favorite thing to draw and I thought it was pretty good so we took a picture. This morning Justin and Caden decided to make pancakes and since we were all in the kitchen we brought the little boys in to hang out with us. Liam seems happy to be here Evan is thinking "what are you putting in those pancakes!!" Happy Baby! It's been a really nice day!!