Four Month Birthday

WOW, has it been 16 weeks already? Yes it has, and while most of that time has flown by, some of that time elapsed excruciatingly slowly.

They are healthy.

The New Family Twins, Liesel and EJ, went for their well baby visit Monday. Liesel is 11 lbs, 13 oz. and 2 feet tall. EJ is 13 lbs. 15.5 oz. and 2 feet, 3/4 inch tall. EJ is in the 50th percentile while Liesel is around the 20th percentile.

Neither one has much fat on them despite the NF Parents attempts to force feed 'em. They're both solid muscle. They currently average about 28 oz. of food a day. EJ set the high water mark some days ago at 36 oz. Of course he gave some of that back- all over himself.


The NF Parents will soon introduce solids.
They are now both feeding only during the day. Because they've mastered rolling over, they no longer sleep swaddled. Too bad, they miss it. She still wakes at night and sometimes requires soothing back to sleep. Dad noticed a correlate between the day's activities and they're ability to sleep all night. The more stimulation they get while awake, the better they seem to sleep. Less stimulation seems to have the opposite effect.

Their naps have lengthened to multiple hour stretches. Gone is the fragmented, 20 ~ 30 minute interval sleeps 7 to 8 times per day. Now they have as few as three naps during the day. They have a 7:30 bedtime (sooner depending on their fatigue) and generally sleep until 6:30 to 7:30 a.m.

They aren't close to being on the same schedule. They are at slightly different stages of development, him having achieved nap coalescence sooner, her only recently, so Dad thinks that this is reasonable for the current time.

EJ's endearment is now Buddy. So Mom and Dad sing songs to "Bugaboo and Buddy too." It fits him better than Monkey Bear. His eyes are hazel to brown depending on the light and when the source comes from a angle perpendicular to his face, he appears to have two different colored eyes. Hers are still the lightest blue.

Socially,  Buddy and Bugaboo are both vocalizing, him more so than her. They mostly do it to Mom and Dad, but have on occasion "talked" to each other. That is magical. They love to hear Mom and Dad sing. They are mesmerized by it.

Neither reaches for objects yet and both seem to exercise little self-control over their arms. The pediatrician seemed unconcerned. Due to their sleeping arrangements, she motivates herself all over her crib. He sleeps in a bassinet in another room and so lacks the ability to move about. That'll be remedied this weekend.

Whomever advised the Parents to keep them together at all times to acclimate them to the cries of each other, could not be more wrong. While sleeping in the same room, they wake each other up just as much as they wake their Parents when one of them cries. And when they both wake, the Parents have two infants to soothe.