Team Connison

So, it appears as though Team Connison is getting a tad big bigger, yeah, you heard that right, we are preggers AGAIN!! We will have 4 kids, Quatro, 3 +1. I thought we were done, ready to make it final, but God had other plans in store for us so I guess we will go with what the Big Guy says.

It's funny, Jen and I had discussions when we were dating (which now feels like a million years ago) about our family and how many kids we wanted. I always said, 2, maybe 3 and she said 3, maybe 4. Well, when we found out we were having twins, I thought God was just being funny.

Surprise!!!! Seriously, you should have seen my face when we found out. I broke out in a cold sweat in the ultrasound room and Jen just kept yelling, "Brett, Brett, Brett!" while she was hitting me. Few moments in life are truly life changing, and that was one memory that I will never forget.

We know He has a great sense of humor, so two pregnancies and 3 babies, that was pretty nice for me. I don't know if you know this, but pregnant chicks...(yes, my wife included) are C-R-A-Z-Y. Jen will readily admit this, she knows that there is some alien that comes in and takes over her mind and body for a while but eventually returns it after the spawning process is over and we end up with another beautiful child. In the end it is all worth it, but geez, it is a long 9 month process!!

Well, at least this time we know it is only one baby, so how tough can that be after what we have been through? Everyone knows that we wouldn't trade Parker or Jack for anything in the world and can't imagine it without either one of them. But after 11 months, I am happy to say that those early days of twinfants are behind us.

So just one more to go, and then we are done...no seriously, DONE. Now that the immediate shock and awe has worn off, we are getting excited, trying to figure out how we are going to make this all happen. 4 kids, all 3 years apart? This is obviously bigger than us and we just need to focus on what we can control, like trying to stay sane...

Wish us luck and stay tuned for more adventures in Connisonville.

Conversations with Jack

Let's switch letters and really confuse them...

Last night while bathing J & P, I had my first conversation with Jack. I always try to make them smile and laugh in the tub but yesterday, Jack was really responding to me. He has been making this distinct noise in the back of his throat that is a weird mix between a cough and a purposeful laugh. Jen and I could always tell who was who from across the room because of this noise, as Parker has his own voice and set of noises (until he recently starting doing this cough thing also).

Jack opened his mouth real wide and proceeded to start this noise making process, so I countered like I usually do with a similar sound. Then he did it again, and again, and back and forth we went. Jack was smiling big and looked like he was genuinely interesting in our dialogue. Parker sat next to him in the tub intrigued by our conversation and would occasionaly chime in with his own cough/laugh/noise, but mostly just sat there listening and smiling.

It was hilarious to both of us and I am not sure how long this could have gone on but it was quite the sight to see.

We may need to sleep (re)train.

We don't need no stinkin' sleep

For about 2 weeks now, either Parker or Jack has been getting up sometime in the 5 o'clock hour. This is unacceptable, so Jen and I deal with it in the following way: bring one or both of them into our room for a little breakfast, turn on baby Einstein on our bedroom TV on mute, and we get back into bed while they crawl around playing until I have to get up and take a shower for work.

Parents of the Year. Seriously, just give us the award right now.

The sleep habits of our children varied greatly due to the fact that we didn't have any clue what we were doing with Owen. We knew we needed to get Parker and Jack in check in order to have some sanity. Owen didnt' really sleep throught the night consistently (without some sort of interaction from us) until about 14 months. This happened between 6-7 months for the little dudes. We were determined to be on top of it. We read the Baby Whispererfor Owen and just happened to do everything they told us not to when it came to teaching him how to sleep. Learning from our mistakes, we actually followed the book this time around and it really worked out better for everyone. The routine really helped everyone sleep better and we are all well rested because of it.

Now that we have this great routine, it seems like one or both of the boys are trying to undermine our work. Ok, its probably not a conspiracy, just some little dudes trying to drop a morning nap. Because we are slaves to the sleep routine, this change in nap schedules will be welcomed. On the flip side, going through this change at 5am isn't going to be pretty.

Minus One

Wait, there's only 2 peas in this pod?

Last weekend was very strange in the Connison household - we only had 2 children. Owen went to visit GaGa and Pops for the weekend. He hasn't stayed in New Orleans overnight for a while and it was such a change from our normal weekend routine. It was quiet. Yeah, QUIET. It was so quiet, that I looked at Parker and Jack and wondered what all the fuss was about...then I remember Jen's post about her days in the beginning. Wow, we were INSANE. Truthfully, anyone who comes to our house during dinner or bathtime would probably still think we were insane, but we know they can't even comprehend what it was like back then.

I kept asking Jen what she wanted to do, and she kept telling me "anything we want" as if we didn't have any kids and we were going to paint the town red. So what did we do - we went to Target, that's red isn't it? Close enough.

Just being able to get out of the house and not cause some great disturbance to society is a pretty big deal for us. We are no longer a quiet family that can slip under the radar anywhere we go. You should see us at the mall. People stare...a lot. They look at Park and Jack, then Owen, then us, and then quickly away as if we didn't see the look on their faces. It is hilarious.

So, when we have just two little twin boys, we don't really feel crazy anymore? Somehow, that seems crazy!

Come play wif me Dadeeee.

This train table is affectionately known as "the wooden babysitter."

This morning, I came into work, and crossed my leg over my knee like I normally do as I patrolled Facebook at 8:05am. I noticed something on the cuff of my dress pants - it was oatmeal, my breakfast from earlier today. As I replayed how on earth it could have gotten there, I remembered that I was summoned to play with Owen and his new train table at 7:15am. "Come play wif me Dadeeee" was uttered numerous times before I realized that he wasn't giving up on this request.

I sat Indian style on the floor of his bedroom eating (and apparently spilling) my oatmeal and having a cup of coffee while Owen went around and around the table passing trains to me. Soon, P and J crawled in on our party and I had visions of the three of us playing with that Christmas present for hours.

While I could have been annoyed at the dried oatmeal on my clean pants, I just smiled and relished in the fact that I am constantly reminded of my kids when they are not around. It is one of the joys of being a parent and I love every minute of it.