Love is in the air

Does having a smartphone make me smarter?

2012-01-23T21:30:00.003-05:00

I have a love-hate relationship with the iPhone. I hate it because people are constantly on it. What happened to reading books, talking to people, etc?
But, I also love it! I love that I can look up directions or find a store/restaurant while I'm out. And I love that if I have to sit in a waiting room I can be entertained.

Recently I became even more grateful for it. Having twins made my life pretty chaotic, but yet it forced me to become even more organized and remember everything.
Tracking the boys' feeding and diapers would be such a pain if I had to write it down in a notebook. Yes, I know you don't have to track, but there's no way I can remember who ate when or if it's been too long since someone had a dirty diaper, etc. There are too many other things for me to think about. But guess what? There's an app for that!

So, since I'm very grateful for my iPhone and how much it helps me, here are a few of my favorite apps:

Total Baby- as mentioned above, it tracks everything you can think of (and it can easily handle more than one baby!)
Full Term- I used this many a times during the pregnancy to time contractions
Orchestra- it's a to-do list, but it's available anywhere you can access the internet, and it allows you to synch with others (and assign them tasks!)
HomeRoutines- I split all of the house cleaning up so that I just do a little each day. Surprisingly enough, my house is cleaner now than it was before the boys arrived.
LDS Church apps- love them all! You can see the whole list here
Yelp- perfect for helping to find a place to eat while you're out
TripIt- tracks your travel stuff, including flights, car rentals, hotel info, etc
Games- these are great for times when I need to be entertained (flights!), but otherwise I don't play them often because I don't find I have much time anymore {Monopoly, Battleship, Angry Birds, Mr. AahH}

Do you have any favorite apps?

Christmas movies

2012-01-13T16:26:00.000-05:00

Here area few videos from the holidays:

On Christmas Eve we sing songs and act out the Nativity. This year Matthew accompanied us on the guitar.

Family singing from Amy Collins on Vimeo.

Clark liked to watch Matthew play:

Clark guitar from Amy Collins on Vimeo.

Another Christmas Eve tradition is to eat dessert on the twelve days of Christmas plates. After your dessert is gone, you can see which day you have. And then you have to sing that day!

12 days from Amy Collins on Vimeo.

A short video of Taylor napping with one of the boys:

Untitled from Amy Collins on Vimeo.

Christmas & New Years

2012-01-12T16:26:00.003-05:00

We had a wonderful Christmas spent in NY with my family. We were able to be there all week, which meant help with the babies and two date nights (if you're ever in Poughkeepsie, go to the Artist's Palate. It's delicious)!
Our week consisted of eating (even the boys got to try glazed cheese puffs), relaxing, playing Mario Kart, visiting the Samuel B Morse Home, sibling +spouse/fiance date night, watching football, and eating more delicious food.

{Christmas Eve}

{Acting out the nativity. Jared was on baby duty, Dad was narrator, and I was photographer, so that's why we're not dressed up}

{comparing baby sizes. Top left picture- 6 months, 5 1/2 months, 6 weeks}

{This is big & little Snort, and big & little Squeak. While I was in the hospital they colored pictures for us because our boys have the same names as them!}

{Christmas morning}

{Squeak and Snort's first Christmas. They slept through the whole thing, but we made sure to show them their presents}

{Christmas Day}

{hanging around the house, reading books, sleeping in the mudroom after a freezing walk, and dying curtains}

{Ringing in the new year}

{New Year's Day}

{Our family of four}

Home Tour: Photo Wall

2012-01-09T20:53:00.002-05:00

We don't have anywhere to hang things since our fridge is not magnetic, so I thought I'd turn one of our walls into a photo wall. I originally was going to paint the wall with magnetic paint, but then opted for a more simple clothespin and wire approach.
It's fun to see pictures of family and friends and current outings. And it worked great to hang Christmas cards!

{Our photo wall, between the kitchen and sunroom}

Hospital Bill

2012-01-04T13:41:00.002-05:00

I am so grateful for insurance (although our provider is a pain. I've had to appeal all my ultrasounds, my contacts, and even the pediatrician visits. Yes, we're switching!). I know medical expenses are ridiculous, but I thought the delivery charge would maybe be ~$20K. Any guesses how much the bill was?

$59,033.95

Christmas in New England

2012-01-02T21:40:00.007-05:00

I love Christmas in New England. There aren't as many lights to drive around and see but the houses decorate with wreaths, garlands, and candles, and it looks so lovely. We didn't do a lot of Christmas activities this year, but we did at least get a few decorations up.

{Our tree. We only have it because my Mom went to Home Depot at 5am on Black Friday. Thanks Mom}

{Nativities}

{outside decorations. Thanks to Mom Collins for helping me hang everything}

a few firsts

2011-12-22T17:23:00.000-05:00

The boys and I took our first outing together (and used our stroller for the first time. Plus I got to dress them in their adorable fleece outfits). We just went to Babies R Us to pick up some bottles. I know, not very exciting, but they were so well behaved (luckily!). And everyone looked at them and said, ' oh, twins, how cute'.

Also, we went to all 3 hours of Church this last week for the first time. And again, the boys were great! They love their car seats so they slept almost the whole time. I had to leave one of the meetings though to feed Snorty because he was so loud (hence his blog name). Not only does he snort while he eats, but he burps really loud too. Sometimes it reminds me of this:

And, just for fun, a picture of Squeak. I love this picture (from this photo shoot) because it captures his concerned/worried face... a face he makes often!

Five weeks

2011-12-20T18:57:00.006-05:00

I can't believe it's already been five weeks since we welcomed these two cute boys into our family. It has been wonderful, exhausting, frustrating, amazing...all rolled into one. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to take care of two babies (feeding time means lots of crying, because they don't like to stop feeding while I burp the other), but I'm getting by. Some days I even get showered and dressed!

I'm excited for the day that they'll let us sleep more than an hour or two at a time during the night. But at the same time, I know I'll miss them being so small and cuddly. I'm so grateful for them and feel blessed that they are so healthy. And I'm very grateful for a husband who is such a wonderful dad and a huge support to me!

Baby Blessing

2011-12-19T19:06:00.006-05:00

When the boys were one month old we had the opportunity to bless them. It was our first time to Church and they did great (no crying)! Jared gave them beautiful blessings and they looked cute in their little Sunday clothes.

{Me & Jared with Snorty & Squeak}

{The men who participated in the blessing (minus our friends Alex, Neal, and Brendaen)}

{My parents and us}

{Both sets of grandparents}

{Nicole pulling double duty}

{Squeak is a big boy- he already wants to drink from a water bottle!}

{he didn't like it so much, so he decided to go with his bottle instead}

Four weeks

2011-12-17T19:38:00.005-05:00

We went for the boys' four-week checkup and they're doing great. They're already ~2 pounds over their birth weight. They're both in the 25% for weight, but for height Snort is 25% while Squeak is 60%. Should be interesting to see how differently (or similarly) they grow.
As for us, well, we're tired and still not sure we know exactly what we're doing, but we sure love them. It's hard to believe it has only been four weeks!

{I love their little hands and feet}

Three weeks

2011-12-07T19:59:00.006-05:00

These boys are growing fast! Although we're pretty sure Snort is growing faster- he's kind of a chunky baby. Poor boy looks extra fat next to Squeak. It'll be interesting to find out their measurements at their 4-week doctors visit.

{Squeak}

{Snorty}

One week

2011-12-07T19:53:00.007-05:00

{Remember how I said I'd write up the birth story? Yeah, still haven't gotten to that yet. Twins take up a lot of time! And the fact that our first week home was full of tons of excitement (aka house issues) that we're still trying to recover from}

**For the safety of our boys, we will not be using their names on the blog. W will now be Snorty, and B will now be Squeak**

Here are the boys at one week old. It's amazing how quickly they grow, because looking back at these pictures they look so tiny in their onesies.

{Snort & Squeak}

Did I used to look like that?

2011-11-30T18:08:00.000-05:00

I know most people swell during their pregnancy- I was lucky enough to never swell in my arms or face. But, my lower half- that's a whole other story.

When I say I was swollen, I mean it. I was the talk of the hospital when the nurses and doctors saw how swollen I was. I was on self-imposed bed rest for the last month+ because it was too painful to walk. I slept on the couch for the last two months, and at the end even that didn't work.

By the time I went to the hospital I had gained 70 pounds- 35 just in the last month!

{Me standing with my legs "together", or as much as was possible}

Ten days after delivery I had lost 60 pounds. Within one more week all my swelling was gone and I lost all 70 pounds, but with it went all of my leg muscles (because I'm pretty sure I didn't have chicken legs before, although it's hard to remember). Note: I do not think people should lose their pregnancy weight this quickly (also note I did not say I had my body back- just my weight). The sudden weight loss has been one of the reasons that I've had a hard recovery, as it has made me extremely weak. Today was the first time I could go up or down the stairs without having to rest afterwards.

{My current look. I may look like I've been in casts for the past few months, but hey, at least I can wear more than just flip flops now}

They're Here!

2011-11-21T21:59:00.001-05:00

After many unexpected events, we are happy to announce that our sons, Snorty and Squeak, arrived safely.
{The story behind their birth and more pictures to come soon. Right now having a nap takes precedence}

Ready to pop

2011-11-21T21:38:00.003-05:00

Weeks 9-34

Just three days before I was scheduled to be induced

Home Tour: Nursery

2011-10-18T18:40:00.011-04:00

The nursery has been almost done for over a month (can you tell I was worried these babies would come early?), but we've finally completed it!

We were originally going to put the nursery in the small bedroom, but once we realized how big cribs were we changed our minds. Babies sure take up a lot of room! I think I'm especially fond of the room because it's kind of "homemade"- I made all the artwork/labels and mobile (except for two free printables). [If you want to know the source or how I made an item, just let me know]

{BEFORE}

{view from the hall}

{cribs}{closet}

{view back towards the hall}

{details}

It's not all fun and games

2011-10-17T13:12:00.000-04:00

Although we mostly post pictures of the fun things we do, the majority of our free time over the last few months have been spent shopping for the babies and working on the house. Jared has pretty much done all of the house projects lately, and I'm so grateful for that! Here are a few from the last few weeks...

{washing the skylights}

{taking a quick break from grilling our steaks in the pouring rain}

{cutting our Flor carpet tiles}
{cleaning up the leaves}
{unpackaging our chandelier}
{cleaning out the gutters}

Fall

2011-10-17T11:54:00.007-04:00

Fall is definitely here! The weather has gotten cooler and the leaves are starting to change. I love this time of year- soup is back on the menu, the air is crisp, and best of all the leaves are changing. The leaves are definitely not at their peak yet but it's fun to see the trees that have started to change and to watch each day for new colors.

On Saturday we drove just into New Hampshire (no sales tax) and took a quick drive on some back roads there. It was beautiful, but we didn't have much time as we had to be back for Church meetings. So yesterday after Church we explored some of our local parks/reservation areas. I didn't realize how many there were! I can tell that I will need to explore more of them, as they could be great places to go on walks with our boys.

{Elm Bank}

Preparing

2011-10-06T17:55:00.001-04:00

Twins can be so unpredictable on when they decide to come into this world. I'm still just 32 weeks, but so far it looks like I should be able to carry them to my doctor's minimum wish of 34 weeks. Given that they could come at any moment though, I've been trying to prepare. And besides getting the nursery ready and trying to get lots of sleep (which is ridiculously hard when you already have 9+ pounds of babies inside your belly), food is the next important thing.

{Spaghetti Sauce}

{Making Apple Sauce and Apple Crisp}

I'm also hoping to make lasagna, ziti, zucchini bread, cinnamon rolls, and soup. Let's hope the babies don't arrive before I finish!

Home Tour: Pantry

2011-10-06T13:49:00.003-04:00

I've had many requests to post pictures of our new house. Note: It doesn't seem that new anymore, since we've now been in it for almost four months. Also, the house itself is not exactly "new", just new to us. It is 100 years old (well, 96 to be exact).

I've been reluctant to post pictures of unfinished (i.e. undecorated) rooms, but little by little we'll take you on a tour. Even better, come visit and we'll give you a live tour!

As you know from our previous homes, we love our pantries (seen here and here). So I figured the pantry was a good place to start!
Since our house doesn't have a pantry closet in the kitchen, we decided to put shelves in the basement. We made a trip to Lowe's (it's probably our second home given how often we're there) to pick up the lumber, and then Jared and Dad got to work.

Unfortunately they didn't have time to finish putting up the second set, so our basement continued to have boxes all over it. Thanks to the Browns we got the second set of shelves up last weekend. And by we, I mean Jared. Pretty much all house projects are done by him while I'm growing these babies.

We wasted no time, and by Saturday afternoon had all our food up on the shelves, labels and all. Now that our food is finally out of boxes I guess it's time for a trip to the grocery store to restock!
Oh, and we have a small chest freezer too (not pictured, as it's not exciting at all). It has lots of meat in it, which is good, but not as good as all the ice cream I wanted.

weeekend in NY

2011-10-04T14:30:00.007-04:00

We decided we better head to NY one last time before the babies come. Some friends in NY were so sweet to throw me a shower (I'll post pictures once I get some from my Mom), so that was a lot of fun to visit with everyone.

I was the limiter on our possible activities, so we took it pretty easy. Jared and I have talked about going to the FDR home & library since we got married, so we finally visited.

{cool painting of Poughkeepsie from the 1930's}

{mosaic of the Roosevelt property and surrounding area}

{Mom & Dad in front of the home}

{Me & Jared}

{burial site}

{FDR's car}

{Jared hanging out with the Roosevelts}

Baby Shower

2011-09-21T15:54:00.000-04:00

My friend Deidre threw me a Baby Shower. I was so grateful to her (and her helpers!) for doing this. Not only is having your first baby (or babies) exciting and you want to celebrate, but babies are expensive (I've realized twins really does cost twice as much) so it's nice to get some gifts to help with that.

The Shower turned out so cute and it was wonderful to be able to celebrate with friends. I can't believe how quickly the last seven months have passed. These babies will be here before we know it!

Thanks to Christy for taking pictures! (see more here)

Photo Shoot

2011-09-20T12:39:00.000-04:00

As part of a baby shower gift my friend Christy Brown gave me a maternity photo shoot. It was fun to be on the other side of the camera; I felt pampered.

{28 weeks}

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-17T14:51:00.019-04:00

We wanted to take a trip before the babies come, so we figured the long Labor Day weekend would be perfect. We originally thought we'd fly down to DC but decided against it. After all, for someone on limited activity, that's a lot of walking! Instead we did some more exploring in New England.

On Friday evening we headed up to Concord, NH. We enjoyed dinner and a walk around the Capital Building, then headed to our hotel. The city wasn't large, but it had quite a few neat buildings. This, for example, was our hotel:

{The State House}

On Saturday we enjoyed the cute downtown of Wolfeboro and a beautiful view of Lake Winnipesaukee. We were hoping to drive diagonally through the White Mountains, but that road (and our second option) had closures due to the flooding and damage from Irene, so instead we drove up the East side. The scenery was beautiful, including a view of Mt. Washington. On a more clear Spring or Fall day I'd like to go back and ride the Cog Railroad to the top.

{Lake Winnipesaukee}
{White Mountains}

We made it to our hotel just in time to watch the BYU football game. It was frustrating, but I was glad we got the win.

Our hotel was awesome- I loved how much character it had. It was built in 1843 and has had lots of famous visitors. The town of Littleton was really great too. We ate at a diner that opened in 1930 and shopped at Chutters, an awesome candy store with the world's longest candy counter. Then we checked out the working Grist Mill, originally established in 1798.

{The town of Littleton}{Chutters!}

{Inside the Grist Mill}{How can you not buy old fashioned sodas? These ones were especially good, with flavors like sarsaparilla and maple cream}

We slowly made our way from NH to the western edge of Vermont. Our first stop was at Cabot's Factory. Not only did I learn a lot (did you know that cheddar cheese is naturally white, but the Western US wouldn't buy it unless it was yellow?), but the cheese samples were delicious! If we had a cooler in the car I would have bought tons of cheese and butter.

{I love the many layers of the hills}

{Cabot Cheese Factory}

Next we stopped in Stowe, a quaint town at the bottom of Mt. Mansfield, and home to the Von Tropp family. Then it was off to the Cold Hollow Cider Mill were we learned about the cider processs and got absolutely delicious apple cider and apple cider donuts. And since that wasn't enough food, we stopped at the Ben & Jerry's Factory for a tour and sample of ice cream.

After all those stops, we finally made it over to Burlington. As we tried to go to dinner, it started pouring! After two failed attempts we finally found a restaurant that didn't have over an hour wait. And of course, by then, the rain stopped.

On Monday, even though it was rainy, we walked around Church Street Marketplace, a open air shopping area. We even got to see a bike race while we were there! Then we took a boat tour of Lake Champlain. Our view was limited from the rain and clouds, but we still enjoyed learning more about the history of the Lake.

As we drove home, we stopped in Montpelier, the nation's smallest Capital City. It was really cute, and if it wasn't raining so hard we would have walked around the downtown.

The rain was very heavy at times, but it made for a beautiful ride home as the clouds were sitting low in the mountains. We had such a great time and look forward to going back, when I'm not very pregnant, to hike and do more exploring.

Hurricane Irene

2011-09-06T21:22:00.006-04:00

We didn't know what the path of Hurricane would end up being, but we planned for a strong storm, just in case. We put the garbage cans in the garage, turned the patio furniture upside down, made sure we had enough water & food, and knew where the candles and flashlights were.
We didn't get as hard as some areas, but it was sure a windy, rainy day! The wind was blowing strong almost all day, and the rain just came down in sheets at times. Our road was like a river. Church was cancelled, so we stayed inside all day, which was good, because quite a few roads were flooded. We were grateful to make it out without any major damage, especially after seeing the devastating effects in some areas.

{there were leaves & branches everywhere}

{our tomato plant survived, but took a beating}{we did have one branch break. We were a little worried about the massive branches hanging above our house, but luckily those didn't snap}

{our neighbor's trees weren't as fortunate as ours. All the trees lining their driveway broke}

new set of wheels

2011-09-01T22:32:00.001-04:00

I was monitored to ensure that all the contractions I was having weren't signs of pre-term labor...

...and since I'm still so early, the doctor ordered "limited activity" so now I have a new mode of transportation!

{sorry the pic is blurry; I'm super fast}

Saturday night drive

2011-09-01T15:00:00.000-04:00

I love being so close to so many towns and places to explore. Two Saturdays ago we decided to drive somewhere new for the evening.

We drove down to Hingham where we picked up a delicious seafood dinner at the lobster pound and enjoyed it while sitting on the beach. The food was delicious, the weather was perfect, and it was so fun to just sit looking out over the water. The only bad part was the crazy seagulls who wanted to eat our food.

After dinner we drove up the peninsula to the tip of Hull. We stopped to walk along the beach, get ice cream, and to enjoy a beautiful view of Boston.

{dinner on the beach}

{beautiful sunset as we drove along the water}
{walk along Nantasket beach}
{view of Boston skyline}