Holiday to Cornwall

Our First Family Holiday

We had a fantastic time on our first holiday as a family of four. Catching up with friends, visiting new and previously visited places, seeing the babies in a different environment, eating different things and just having time together with very few appointments or deadlines was wonderful. I think we did some lovely family bonding as a result.

Journey down

This went surprisingly well. Of course we didn't leave when we had planned to but I think we were only an hour behind the schedule we had hoped for!  Of course we had packed every last inch of the car space, not to mention the newly purchased roof rack! Of course the babies had some grizzly moments but actually far fewer than we expected and we only needed to make one service station stop in the end. Sitting in the back next to Ella behind Dan wasn't the most comfortable way to travel but it meant I could see and interact with both Carl and Ella and keep them a bit happier. With Dan being tall and our car built for shorter people, that was about the only configuration we could make work for a long journey.

Visiting Jen & family

So happy that we were able to fit this in. Very lucky with the timings too as it meant we met Shigeki who had flown out just a couple of days earlier and got to spend some time with them all before they flew back to Japan a couple of days later. It's always a lovely visit to Bude and always wonderful hospitality from Christine.

Flowrider & Creche

Luckily there are no photos to share of us doing this rather unusual experience! We had a crèche session as part of the package for the resort we stayed in so we used it on Tuesday morning so that Dan and I could have a go on the Flowrider, a machine that creates waves so that you can learn to surf, or in our case, bodyboard.

I'm sure we looked just as professional as this! Getting the wetsuits on was the first challenge, then taking the plunge and launching with the board from the side. Dan was so much braver than me and just went for it whereas I was hanging back thinking I can't do this! Once we'd had a couple of goes (and taken a couple of falls) it was actually quite a buzz and really enjoyable. I think we can safely say we made the most of our child free morning.

Carl and Ella got on very well at the creche. They were the only children there and had the full attention of the lovely lady running it. That's the first time we've left them with someone outside the family and they were absolutely fine. I'm sure this went a long way towards preparing them for going  to nursery one day a week.

Travels around Cornwall

We visited both the south and north coasts as well as spending a day at The Eden Project - definitely worth ticking off the bucket list. 

As we were staying in the same resort that the Poldark cast stayed in (despite not having watched it) we heard a lot about the show and the locations so decided to visit Charlestown mainly for that reason.

While there we went to the slightly odd but interesting Shipwreck museum. Pushing our buggies down very steep, old harbour tunnels was a bit hair-raising but neither Carl nor Ella seemed to notice.

The babies spent a little bit of time walking with us on their first beach visit to Mawgan Porth. This is one of the few beaches with direct flat access for buggies and wheelchairs but it's also one of my favourite beaches in Cornwall. I remember it well from our previous visit. Bit too windy to have a picnic or anything else but lovely views as we walked. 

We also visited Port Isaac, home to Doc Martin, which again is not a show I've watched but it was absolutely beautiful.

We also revisited a section of the north coast which we had visited before between Newquay and Padstow which has some magnificent views from the car. We had an incredible view from our table having lunch at the Bedruthan hotel which is possibly the most family friendly restaurant I have ever seen. 

No holiday in England would be easy to dress for. This was no different. Sunhats worn with hoodies was the most practical way to dress the babies most days. 

On site at the resort

We took the babies swimming a few times which they loved. We were able to put into practice some of the things we've been learning in the classes they've been attending. Both babies have no problem swimming underwater for the time being which is lovely to watch. We also had a baby music class one morning which again they participated in very well, being quite used to classes like this at home. 

Dan and I had a lovely date night meal at the restaurant on site while the babies were looked after by a babysitter. It's called The Green Room and is run by a Masterchef winner, James Nathan. Very delicious food and so nice to be out in the evening after so long.  Here's my fantastic chocolate pyramid dessert.

There was quite a bit to do on site, which helped on rainy days. We took Carl and Ella to the playground and they went on the swings, down the slide and on the seesaw, all with a bit of help of course. We had a very relaxing Sunday afternoon, sitting in the lounge having lunch and reading the Sunday papers while the babies slept in their buggies, quite unusual for us. There was also a lovely lake, stocked full of fish and ponds all over the place so lots of opportunities for nice walks in better weather. Our lodge came with a hot tub, so we made good use of that in the evenings once the babies were in bed. Unfortunately they did struggle to sleep in the beginning as they weren't used to the travel cots so we didn't get them to sleep until quite late some nights. 

Travelling Home

This was a bit more difficult than the travel up. The babies weren't as happy in the car and the journey seemed to take so much longer. We had a lovely stop off though at Jamaica Inn, a place I've wanted to go for many years and never got round to each time I was in Cornwall before. It was nothing like I imagined though especially as when we visited, the weather was lovely and the sky was blue! Not quite the mists of eerie dark fog that the book conjures up. 

As a big DuMaurier fan, I was really excited to go and pleased to see the pub had some real character.

Unfortunately it was also a stopping point for lots of coaches full of tourists which meant it lost a bit of its charm and the food wasn't great but nevertheless we enjoyed being there and did the tourist thing too!

It was quite late when we got home and we had a frantic unpack to find the essentials to get the babies to bed. They went down well though and then we were able to relax. 

A lovely week away as a family. Can't wait till the next one.

April Update

Sizes & Weights

Haven't had them weighed since the last blog - must get round to that soon. Have started to wonder if Ella might have actually overtaken Carl? Will be interesting to find out.
Both babies are now in Size 4 nappies and are about to transfer over into size 6-9 months clothes. So finally they will be wearing the size that matches their age. The babies were six months old on the 6th April.

Feeding

Carl eats everything I give him. So far he has tried baby porridge, baby rice, rusks, carrots, squash, sweet potato, parsnips, peas, broccoli, banana, apple and pear. He more or less has three meals a day now and is full of joy throughout his mealtimes, swallowing and opening his mouth as quickly as possible to get the next mouthful.

Ella won't eat yet. She is struggling with the mechanics of it. She still thrusts her tongue out so all the food comes straight back out. She sits in the high chair next to Carl though and no longer screams to get out. She sucks food off my finger and hasn't objected to any flavours yet.

Interaction 

This is such a lovely age for interaction. We can really play with the babies now. They respond so much to things. It's lovely to see them light up when they recognise things they love. Carl has fallen a little bit in love with a teddy and his whole face lights up when he sees it.

He also loves textiles and is  so happy playing with pieces of fabric. Ella needs people to play with and doesn't like playing alone for very long. She watches her brother intently at times when he is fully engaged with something. Since we've started using the high chairs, we've noticed some lovely new interaction between them. Carl likes to hold Ella's hand while he eats and she likes to watch him eat. Then they quite often just look at each other and giggle. It's adorable.

Sleeping

I'm almost afraid to write this in case I jinx things but.... both babies now sleep through the night. 7 or 7:30pm till 7:30 am. Makes getting up and doing breakfast before going to activities so much easier.

Activities

We attend the following activities;
Mon - free day
Tues morning - local Stay n Play
Wed morning - Gemini Stay n Play or OW Tiddlers & Toddlers (planning to start soon)
Wed afternoon - Swimming
Thurs - day with Nanny and any hospital appointments etc. Sometimes attend Sensory Play session in the afternoons.
Fri morning - Datchet multiples Stay n Play

We used to go to Sing n Sign but we couldn't make the times fit this term but we're hoping to go back next term as that was so enjoyable.

It's nice to have a few afternoons free for play dates and recently with the lovely weather we've been going on long walks around the village, along the river, in the Great Park around Virginia Water and the Saville Garden etc. We are so lucky to have such lovely places on our doorstep. We've also been spending more time in the garden which is lovely. I barely stepped foot in it last year. The hot weather was too much for me during the pregnancy.

Swimming

Today was our first swimming lesson and our first time back in the water since Carl turned a bit blue a few months back. We joined Turtle Tots as they use a pool in a private school in our village so it's very convenient. It's a Catholic private school and I was amused to see a cross on the wall in the pool. Strange place to have a cross.

Both babies did very well, no crying at all and Ella was laughing and making her screechy happy noise throughout the lesson. No turning blue either. The temperature felt fine to me and we all really enjoyed it. Looking forward to next week's lesson already.

Holiday

Looking forward to our very first holiday as a family. May 4th - 11th we're going to Cornwall. The resort we're staying at is 'twin-friendly' in that it provides 2 of all things baby related so 2 high chairs, cots etc. So we shouldn't have to load the car too much. But I expect we still will! It has a hot tub on the terrace of out lodge so Dan and I are looking forward to relaxing with a glass of something nice after the babies have gone to bed!

Other Stuff

Ella has found her toes!

We had a nice visit from Nanny Maureen and Uncle Danny

Carl seemed to really enjoy Elsie and Maia's visit. Outnumbered by females (3 baby girls & 2 mummies) he may have been but shy he certainly wasn't!

Changes

So apparently the last blog left some people curious!

There have indeed been some big changes here in the Boresjo household. It's been a very exciting week!

Weights and Clothes Sizes

Carl is now 14lbs 10oz (6.66 kilos - what a number!) and still wearing 3-6 months but not for too much longer I think. He is still in Size 3 nappies.
Ella is now 14lbs exactly (6.36 kilos) and has just moved into 3-6 clothes. Here's a picture of her in a new size dress -

Change No.1 

Ella has been showing her displeasure at still being pushed around in the carrycot on the buggy recently. She can't sit unaided yet but has been trying to sit up and see more when out and about so I knew we would soon have to change to the seats. However on Tuesday afternoon, Carl somehow got his legs up and outside the carrycot, arched his back, grabbed the side of the carrrycot and looked as if he was going to escape! Gave me a heart attack. Cue the decision to move to seats and a hasty ordering of matching footmuffs! So we went from...

 the old carrycots to.......

new seats which can face forwards or backwards and recline/incline at a number of different angles.

I think they really enjoyed the new view on their walk today.

Change No.2

We went from using only this....

to attempting to use these....

alongside......

Basically the health visitor gave us the all clear this week to start introducing foods to the babies. Not outright weaning for another couple of weeks but 'messy play' if you like for now. It's not exactly baby-led weaning but it's not far off. We are letting them play with food for a couple of weeks then following a more structured plan from then on. If food goes in, great but if not, never mind. There's a lot of research about how having fun with it helps them want to explore much more than having spoons thrust into their mouths. So we gave it a go today.

They weren't very interested in the water. Ella used it as a teether quite violently but I don't think she actually sucked any water out. Carl just didn't want to know at all.

When it came to the carrots, we made a mixture of steamed batons alongside slightly blended mush for them to play with. Mixed results but great fun for all four of us. 

Ella enjoyed playing with the batons to some extent. She wasn't too bothered about the mush although she did suck some off my finger. Think the taste was fine but she just wasn't too hungry.

Carl on the other hand seemed to really love the carrots. He had great fun squashing batons and playing with the mush. Quite a bit seemed to actually get eaten too! This picture really gives a sense of his personality too I think. 

Change No. 3

No pictures of this one yet but Carl now rolls from his front onto his back. He doesn't roll the other way yet, mainly I think because he prefers being on his back. When I put him on his front now he doesn't stay there long and just rolls over! A couple of times also when he has been on his front and I've popped into the next room briefly, when I've returned he has been in a slightly different position from where I left him. I think playpen building may soon be on the cards :-)

Fun times ahead for the Boresjo babies......

Christening

The Christening!

Although it was over two weeks ago, I feel like I'm only just recovering from the Christening. What a wonderful day it was but how utterly exhausting! It was a huge thing to organise and took a lot of advance planning but it was of course worth it.

Ella looked gorgeous in her dress but unfortunately was having a really bad teething day. She doesn't do well at the moment in warm rooms and of course having a lot of people around can add to her stress. Bless her, she cried almost all day long. Here's a rare photo of her on the day not crying.

Carl on the other hand, whilst also looking gorgeous in his lovely suit, was his usual mostly chilled out self. He was happy to be passed round all the different groups at the party afterwards and didn't make much of a fuss at all.

This is my favourite picture of them together.

Thanks to the always professional, personal and calming Uncle Danny, the only voice able to stop Ella's crying!

Thanks to the lovely Karen and Owen who did the readings for us.

and of course to all 4 Godparents, Karen, Owen, Maria and Shane

Here's a lovely picture of Carl and Ella with all their cousins

and aunts and uncles

The cakes weren't too bad in the end. My first attempt at decorating...

and I think a good time was had by all.

Thanks to everyone who came, from near or far. It was lovely to see you all and spend time together. Wish we could do it more often but my energy levels need to replenish first!

The week after the Christening I got hit by a quite nasty bout of laryngitis and lost my voice completely for a while. Not that I noticed Dan complaining but it was a bit odd just whispering and signing to everyone. Good job we've been taking the babies to their signing classes; it definitely came in very handy.

Some big changes in the pipeline at the Boresjo household. Hope to be updating on those sooner rather than later.

xxx

K,D,C&E

Active babies

Gosh. Lots been going on and no time for blogging recently.

Weights
Carl is now 13lbs 6oz (6.06 kilos) and Ella is now 12lbs 7oz (5.65 kilos). They have both been tracking perfectly in range for quite some time and we have no major concerns.

General Health
Carl's digestive issues seem to have been solved by the medicine. We have to increase it as his weight increases but the transformation has been wonderful. No more screaming as if in pain when we lay him down in the evenings. He's so much happier.
Ella's neck seems to be improving very well too. She turns from left to right as she wishes. While she still favours the right, she looks to the left enough that we're not concerned. In fact she often turns to the left in her sleep these days which certainly will be helping with the head shape.

Sleeping
I can't really complain to be honest. Both babies are now in their own cots in the nursery. They go to bed around 8pm and wake just for a feed sometime between 4 and 5 am. They then sleep again till around 8 and are happy to play till feeding at 9.
During the day there are plenty of naps but rarely at the same time! Need to work on that so I get some time back.
When we put them down to bed, Carl just lies down and drifts off without complaint. Ella will have a mini cry just to register her protest but normally by the time we've got downstairs and poured a glass of vino she has stopped and is asleep!
Carl loves his sleep! Even in his Jumperoo!

Clothes 
Carl moved up to 3-6 months a couple of weeks ago but I don't think he'll stay in them too long. Likewise with Ella who is now in 0-3 but again I don't think it will be long before I have to do the big wardrobe shift again.
They are both in Size 3 nappies.

Personality
It's been a while since I specifically wrote about this and things have definitely changed since then.
Carl is still very placid and quite content in his own company. He can entertain himself when needs be and loves touching and holding onto things. He is a real grasper! He also chuckles away randomly and hilariously at God only knows what! However when he isn't happy he rages as if he is being murdered. He screams the house down and his face is screwed up in the angriest way possible. It never lasts long though as he can be pacified almost instantly by being picked up and recently by having his dummy put back in. Think the gums are hurting them both at the moment. Carl is quite good at Tummy Time and lifts his head to look around. He moves his legs as if he would like to crawl. He hasn't rolled yet but looks almost ready to do so soon lifting almost half his body up when on his back. He's not keen on sitting up even when supported. He has started paying attention to Ella recently and will often whimper if she cries. His face lights up when he sees Mummy or Daddy or any hanging toy that sways above him. Oh and he can babble for Britain!

Ella is a much happier baby that before. I'm pretty sure that was neck related. She has a lovely smile and can be a little coy sometimes but if you tease it out of her she lights up. We think she has a sense of humour coming through too as she sometimes seems to tease Daddy into getting something for her then smiling wryly once she's got it as if to say "Ha I got my way!" She's only happy in her own company for a short while. She prefers people to play with her and loves attention. She is more precise in her hand movements and studies our actions carefully before trying to copy them herself. When we show her a new tactile toy, she will watch us play constantly with it for around 5 minutes then have a go herself, usually getting it right. She seems to be a 'practice makes perfect' personality as she will keep going again and again getting better and better each time.

She is not a big fan of Tummy Time and will usually cry quite soon after being put there. She loves to sit up though (aided of course) and even when being help by one of us, sits with her back upright rather than snuggling in. Ella too seems to be having gum trouble and needs to chew on things constantly. She has VERY rosy cheeks all the time at the moment too. She chats away at times but not so much or so often as her brother. She loves bouncing, whether in the jumperoo or in the door bouncer.

Classes & Groups
We now attend Sing and Sign on a Monday morning in Central Maidenhead which is going very well so far. On Tuesdays we have attended a Stay and Play in Old Windsor which is our most loval children's centre. Wednesday mornings we go to the Baby Incredible Years course. Thursdays are free and Fridays we go to the local Multiples (Twins & Triplets) play group in Datchet. Afternoons tend to be spent at doctor's appointments or just chill out at home time.
On Saturday we will all be attending a TAMBA talk for expectant parents of multiples. We went to this when I was pregnant and it was very helpful. We loved the bit where the families came in with their twins to answer any questions and now it's our turn to give something back.
In the same vein I have signed up to be a Parent Advisor on the Children's Centre Advisory Board. 1st meeting was very interesting and I am looking forward to being involved.


Babies are looking forward to being the centre of attention at their Christening very soon. Mummy is looking forward to a rest after the Christening and Daddy is probably looking forward to a beer!

Four Months

17 weeks old (4 months)

Ella is 11 pounds exactly and Carl is 12 pounds exactly. They both look healthily chunky now!
Ella went into 0-3 months clothes today for the first time and they fit really well.

Carl doesn't look like he has much time left in his before moving up to 3-6 months.

This weekend they are attending a 1st birthday party (Happy Birthday Jasmine!). Social invites already! I'm glad Ella's gone up a size now because I have far more choice in what to dress her in for things like this.

We've decided to give swimming a break for a while as Carl especially seems to just turn blue in no time. We tried Windsor Leisure centre and the only place warm enough was the jacuzzi! They'll have to  make do with baths at home for a while.

Speaking of which, they are almost to big for their baby bath now so we need to figure out logistics for having them in the big bath very soon. They are also finally outgrowing the Moses baskets. Carl still sleeps with us in his basket. He doesn't have much room left once he stretches out his legs so we are about to start the adjustment to the cotbed in the nursery. I've tried putting him down for daytime naps there but he's not so keen yet.

 Ella has already moved into her cot in the nursery 

The trip to Scotland went well. The snow was beautiful and it made for serene scenes both at the hotel (shown in pic) and from the crematorium window where we saw swans on a loch surrounded by snow.

Daddy did a great job looking after the babies. I keep hearing this week at the groups how well he did last week. The other Mums were impressed so it must be good.

The jumperoo is keeping them very well entertained and using up some energy. Ella bounces around loads and seems to keep time with the music.

Carl sits, strokes it, bashes things and occasionally bounces.

Their hand eye co-ordination is coming along very well and they can both grasp things quite effectively now. They have both learned to put their fists into their mouths and they are very 'helpful' when I put the bottle in or try to take it out!

Carl finally has the prescription for Ranitidine that I've been asking for since they were 6 weeks' old. He now lies down on his back in the evening without screaming and therefore is able to sleep at nights. 10 weeks of pain is terrible and utterly unnecessary considering the first doctor said this was what he needed but we had to jump through far too many hoops to get it. In the same vein I will have my first physio on Mon when they will be 18 weeks old to try to solve the back problem I've been left with since the C section. Here's hoping I will be able to finally feed/pick up the babies without soaring pain. Again another unnecessary wait. Rant over!

Otherwise all is well in the Boresjo household.

xxx