Somedays are good, and some are bad.

You figure out which is which.

We had a wonderful weekend with Boppie (Scott's Dad) here. Saturday, the boys went to soccer, and Home Depot, Mommy got time to work out without worry that someone was going to wake up and raise her heart rate in a whole different way. There was lots of boy time. Boppie played with the boys while Daddy dug trenches for new sprinklers. (We are planting some fruit trees in the back yard, fruit, that I hope someday my children will eat.) Mommy got some uninterrupted time to think about and work on the invitations for that impending second birthday party. (Someone should remind me next year not to design invitations that require me cutting out 300 circles. I thought I was doing something super simple, HA.) Most importantly Boppie and the boys got some great bonding time.

*******

Yesterday, we met our friends Elizabeth, Aviel and Coby at the Wild Animal Park. It was really fun, and the boys were on their best behavior. Aviel and Coby are about a month younger than Ryan and Evan and it's really fun to watch the kids interact. Coby and Ryan seemed to want to play together, but they were a little unsure. There was a lot of circling and following, only to have one boy run the other direction when actual interaction seemed just about to happen. Aviel is so incredibly verbal. She's amazing, quite a parrot. She uses words like running and swimming appropriately, and clearly to someone other than her mother. Elizabeth says it's hard having one talk so much, it makes her realize how far behind Coby is!



That is one of the challenges with twins. Comparison. How do you not compare when you have two kids the exact same age. When you have one at a time, I think you forget a lot, It's harder to do the direct comparison, environments change, your parenting skills are refined, and having an older sibling makes a huge difference for the younger child's development. I think it is easier not to compare when your twins are not identical. My boys are so distinctly different in appearance, temperament and strengths--I find I start to compare them and then I quickly remember they are individuals.

*******

After naps on Monday we had a special Sensory Workshop put together by our EI teacher and our OT. It was supposed to be 4 families, but 2 canceled so the group was small. The point is, all of these kids have eating issues, playing with food is a great way to bridge some of the fear that these kids associate with eating. There was cornmeal, pudding, rice crispies, food puzzles, food books, fake and real fruit, all to play with experiment with. Great messy fun! We also made smoothies, something we've done with Melinda here at the house. For some reason Evan lost his marbles when the blender was turned on. He is not usually afraid of noises, but something triggered this (over)reaction. I could see him start to tremble when the blender came around and thought uh-oh, but I never imagined his reaction would be so...so...dramatic? He screamed and cried and cried and screamed. He told me he was finished, and he wanted to go through his tears. He would not let me go anywhere near the table with the blender. He did not want to play on the playground, but he found some comfort in walking around and around. He cried in the car on the way home, but once we were home, he was fine.

*******

Evan threw up three times today. Just when we think he is doing better he has days like this. Days when every bite is a battle royale. Days when I am in the parking lot at OT grabbing at blankets and sweatshirts to catch the projectile vomiting that comes out of nowhere. Days when I am reminded why I carry two changes of clothing on my back at all times. Days when my baby is crying and telling me he is finished and I am crying and telling him he cannot be finished, he just threw up his entire dinner.

We see GI again on Thursday. I just don't know what to do. He's been on Prevacid for almost 2 years, he should have out grown this by now. What do we do? Do we scope him? Do we put our already frightened to death of doctors baby in the hospital overnight, sedate him, and stick a scope down his throat, when 99.9% of the time they find nothing wrong? Do I hope he is that .1% and gamble that we can find something that can make him better? I'm thinking probiotics and acupuncture, and all other suggestions are welcome.

*******

Is there anything more wonderful than watching kids explore their environment? Roll around in the dirt and just laugh? Stop to have a wrestling match? Run carefree? This is one of the most amazing things about being a parent. Seeing the world through the eyes of a child, or two.