Smiles :)

Ella will be two months old tomorrow.  She has grown like a weed, starting to get nice fatty rolls on her thighs and arms.  I have these same rolls...but mine aren't so nice!  Haha..  Yes, losing the baby weight seems to be a slower and slower process each time around.  After I had Chloë the weight just seemed to fall right off with little to no effort.  With the boys it took a little longer and then the last 10lbs hung around until I got serious and started exercising and eating better.  I figured that was because it was a twin pregnancy and I had gained over 50lbs (not sure the final number because I stopped looking when the scale hit two-hundy.  I'm fine talking about weight at this point).  Right before the boys turned one I got serious of shedding that last 10lbs and I was ALMOST to my pre-pregnacy weight (only about 2lbs away) when I found out I was pregnant again!  So my dieting and exercising efforts went to Hades in a hand-basket and I rekindled my romance with cinnamon rolls yet again throughout that pregnancy.  Anyways, here we are again.  However, this time I'm 20lbs over my pre-pregnancy weight and it ain't budging!  I know, I know, Ella is only 2 months old...but come on!  More than that had fallen off by this time with both previous pregnancies.  Anyways, I'm starting to come to the realization that I'm going to have to (somehow!) find the time to exercise eat healthy.  That gets more and more difficult with each child!  Where do I find the time?   I need more hours in the day.   

Anyways, I hadn't planned to go on a tangent about my weight.  Sorry.  Enough about that!  

Life with four small kids is chaotic.  It's non-stop.  There is NEVER a dull moment.  And if a quiet moment does somehow sneak into the picture I try to embrace it for all it's worth for the split-second it lasts.  You really learn to appreciate those little things when they do happen.  Like tonight Myke and I sat down and ate dinner at the table.  Alone.  Just the two of us.  That only happened because it is Friday night and that's our weekly "Pizza-Movie" night.  All the kids were distracted by Tinkerbell on the tv.  Yes, even Ella was in her bouncy seat in the family room with the other kids.  Not sure she could see the movie, but she was entertained by the toys dangling from the bar above her seat.  Anyways, it was nice.  Because we rarely get to talk all day long.  Someone is always interrupting us, needing something, crying about something, getting a boo-boo, etc.  Like I said, never a dull moment.  

BUT...TOMORROW IS DATE NIGHT!!  I found a babysitter.  I'm having her come at 5:30pm. Who goes out on a date so early, you ask?  US!  If I'm paying someone to come watch my kids then I really want A BIG FAT BREAK from the daily routine.  I don't want to make them dinner.  I don't want to get them in their pajamas.  I don't want to brush their teeth.  I don't want to put them to bed.  I want someone else to do that.  If we went out at 7 or 8 then we'd have to do all that.  What kind of break is that?  So anyways, we're looking forward to a night out.  Well, it's kind of a night out--Ella will be with us.  She still needs her mommy often enough that she needs to stay with us.  I left her home with Myke two times in the evening over the past week and both times I came home to her screaming bloody murder and apparently starving.  One of the times I was just on a run in the neighborhood and only gone 20 minutes.  So for now we'll just take her with us on our date night.  Having just one kid is break enough.

The boys having a snack on the front stoop

Chloë at gymnastics class

My big girls!

Playing nicely together (a minute later there was screaming and tears and fighting over a matchbox car.  They have 40 cars..why do they always want the same one at the same time??)

Oh, and I joined a twins group up here in North County.  I was actually pretty ANTI-twins groups at first.  I don't feel like I especially relate with other people with twins.  I don't need a forum to discuss what stroller is best for two babies or how to sleep-train two babies at once. I don't want or have time to go to monthly meetings to discuss twin-related-issues.   I feel/felt like my circumstances were different than someone who has just twins.  I need a group for moms who have four kids within 4 years.  That's an entirely different scenario and has all of it's own unique challenges.  However, after running into this same mom of twins about 4 times within the first month of moving here, and each time she trying to talk me into joining the group, I bit the bullet and decided to try it.   Hey, maybe I'll find another person in similar situation within the twins group.  We'll see.  Anyways, I decided to go in with an open mind--and I'm already excited that next Tuesday night they are having a pampering night for the members at one of the other mom's house.  A night of wine, desserts, and just hanging out....while we take turns getting mini-massages from a massage therapist who will be there.  Suddenly, I can find time to go to their "meeting"!  :)   (and non-crawling babies are welcome to join...which is good because I'll have to have Ella with me).   So, my main reason for joining the group was for Owen & Elijah to join the playgroup that the twins group runs.  They have never had their own set of friends- they've always just gone along to play dates and classes that I took Chloë to.  So I wanted them to have something that was just for them.  The twins group has a sub-group that sets up play dates and events for 2011-born twins.  The woman who runs this sub-group sets up 2-3 events and outings a week.  Her twins are her only children so it's easier for her to get out and about.  I figured if I made it to one event ever week or even every other week then it would be good for the boys.  Something just for them with kids their age.  We went to our first play date last week.  It was held at the home of another member.  At first I felt a bit odd just showing up at the house of someone I didn't know and barging in with 3 kids...but it was fine.  Everyone was really welcoming.  It ended up just being four moms total (and 4 sets of twins, and one Ella).  That was plenty!  In the end the boys had fun with some kids close to their age and I made some new friends up here in north county.  Win-win.  I'm looking forward to taking them to another playdate soon!

Snack time with the other twins