You know you’ve spoiled your kids with too much Santa celebration (or they are sick of waiting!) when they make this face when sitting on Santa’s lap.

Mom and dad thought it would be fun for us to take BART into the city (only a 25 minute ride) to see all the lights and go ice skating at Union Square. Fun it was! I was absolutely fearless on the skates, and Cooper impressed me too with his bravery. Bell is another story, but I guess I’ll give her until next Christmas to get her skillz down.

The best part of the whole trip was when we were on our way back on BART waiting for our train. The UC Berkeley band was also waiting for their train with instruments galore. I FREAKED OUT when I saw a tuba and ran up to look at it. The guy was cool enough to put it around my neck (whilst holding some of the weight) to let me see what it felt like. Unbeknownst to him, I laid my germ-ridden lips right on the mouthpiece and gave it a hoot. The ladies went nuts. Literally. There were some really cute women standing around who gave me a huge round of applause. I think this might be the first time I ever flushed with embarrassment. Cooper also got a whack at it, which was way cool for him.

Tis the season!
Quinn

So, it’s been a while since we’ve been on vacation as a family, so we took the plunger – I mean plunge.

For years we’ve been hearing about Club Med at Ixtapa, Mexico. Many families in the Bay Area go there because it’s relatively easy to get there and parents actually get a vacation. You see, they have something called Kids Club that is basically a fun daycare for children so everyone can have a little fun and relaxing time (Quinn and I were registered, but the ‘rents thought Bell was a little too young). The only problem is that Quinn and I are strange birds and would rather hang out with mom and dad than do crazy cool stuff with other kids our age. Yes, we’re weird. And mom and dad felt bad because after all, it’s our vacation too, so we probably spent about 10 hours total in the Kids Club for the full week.

It was also a real treat because Deanna (our nanny) came with us, so we had tons of fun and lots of attention from the people who love us most. And it turns out, it was crucial that she was there because EVERYONE GOT SICK except for her and Bell, who we kept far, far away from our sick rooms. It started with dad, then the boys were sick sick sick for 2.5 days. And then mom. Poor mom – on the last two days of the trip she was out of commission. So basically, every day, someone was sick.

That didn’t stop us from having a great time, though. When we weren’t sick, we swam in the “kiddie poll” that was ginormous and 3 feet deep (perfect for us!), got thrown in the air by dad in the pool, swung on the trapeze (not us – just mom and Deanna), took walks on the beach, made loads of sand castles, and on and on and on. For some strange reason, I kept telling mom and dad that I wanted to go home. They’ve still not figured that one out yet, but I think I missed my routine and my toys.

All in all, we swam like fish, ate like kings (though mom and dad were surprisingly disappointed with the food at the resort), and slept like bears in hibernation. Oh, and learned what “virgin drink” means. ☺ We’ve now learned that that is what vacation is all about!

Standing firm on having ONLY drinks with umbrellas,
Cooper

The day has finally come. I actually think the build up of Halloween has been more fun for the kids than the actual day. Kinda like New Years…

We had a great time at a friend’s house and the boys got LOADS of candy. We have a rule in our house that when it comes to candy, they are allowed to eat the number of pieces as they are years old. So this year, they get to eat 4 pieces of candy on Halloween, and 4 pieces every day until their candy runs out (which will last less than a week). It’s adorable that they don’t even know yet what a rip off this is and don’t even try to ask for more! Of course I’ll try to pull this off as long as I can, but have a feeling that next year I’ll be called on my scam!

Another annual Halloween “tradition” we’ve got in our house is donate half of their candy to the local Children’s Hospital so the children there get to enjoy Halloween as well – even if they weren’t able to go trick or treating. The boys are so proud of this – and it makes my heart warm (not to mention keeping the boys’ teeth in their heads!).

Happy Halloween!
Terra

I think it’s safe to say that we are more excited about Halloween than any other child on the planet. Perhaps more so than all other children combined! There are loads of pumpkin patches nearby and we’ve managed to go three times this season. One in particular that is in a cute little town called Clayton has hay mazes (look above). If you can’t see the absolute glee on our faces in this picture, take my word for it – it very well may be the best day of our little lives. Not only did they have hay mazes and rubber duck races, but they had big bins filled with dried pumpkin seeds that we had a ball in. We literally jumped in those with mama for about an hour.

All this excitement and this is before we get candy in us!!!!!

Coop-de-loop

As part of a ploy to get us to eat, mom does this scary-but-funny booty shake dance for us when we take a good bite of food. And boy does it get us rolling (as you can see in the picture).

So… Aunt Jackie and Uncle Chris are in town this weekend and mom had the brilliant idea of going on a bike ride through Golden Gate Park. First, despite how fabulous and fit we all look in this photo, we should note that our parents aren’t necessarily the “outdoors” type (nor the “exercise” type)… but we were willing to get nutty and take on the challenge.

To put it lightly, we completely freaked out.

The poor pitiful souls in the oh-so-cool Haight Ashbury bike shop had no idea what they were in for when we walked (I mean barreled) though the doors of the joint. Cooper and I both absolutely freaked out upon mounting the bike… and if that weren’t enough, we both went into voluntary seizures when it was time to put the helmet on.

Mom all but put is in straight jackets because she “knew (we) would like it once we got rolling.” The cool cats at the bike shop were ready to call child protective services until they realized she nailed it. How do moms know this stuff? It took about 10 seconds of fast riding with mom and dad and we were in heaven. I wouldn’t say we were glowing with excitement, but a very content wave came over both of us and we sat quietly and took in the beautiful trees and air as we breezed through GGP for the first time on two wheels.

And that’s how I roll.
Q-dawg

POSITION FOR:

Mother, Mom, Mama, Mommy, Momma, Ma

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an, often chaotic environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities. Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5. Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf. Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers. Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects. Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks. Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next. Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices. Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst. Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product. Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION:

Virtually none. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you.

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE:

None required unfortunately. On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis (see photo above)

WAGES AND COMPENSATION:

Get this… You pay them! And offer frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent. When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS:

While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for life if you play your cards right.

Mom is a slaker. She tells us it’s not nice to call people names – especially her on Mother’s Day – but we are using name calling in a last ditch effort to get her to post more often on our blog. She keeps using excuses like FlyingPeas, and getting acclimated to her new fabulous job, and being a mommy… but we don’t think any of those reasons are good enough. I mean, we do all the hard work of writing the posts and doing the photo shoots… all she needs to do is type them in the computer (we’ve yet to learn to type, but it’s our next thing to tackle).

But we forgive her. We conducted a mini Q&A for her on her third Mother’s Day, and this is what we got:

What was your favorite part of Mother’s Day this year:

Hmm… it’s hard to day – I loved it all – the brunch at home, beautiful flowers, mani/pedi and fun in the sun with my favorite boys!

What do you particularly love about me (Cooper) right now?

Other than your healthy lungs, my love? Ok… I absolutely adore how you laugh with your whole body. There is nothing sweeter than that. And when you are sad or scared, you hold your little arms up to be held and lay your head on my shoulder. I also love how you curl your core in anticipation of a tickle. And how you light up each time I walk through the door. Absolutely precious, you are.

And what about that rascal brother of mine (Quinn)?

I love how intense Quinn is – I can already tell what a deep puddle he is. At any given time, his eyes are saying a million things (I call them “sexy eyes” even though I’m his mommy). Oh, and I love how he is a little collector and likes to control where everyone sits by pointing and patting at the desired location. He has such deep love for me – and I feel it every day.

What else is important for us to know on Mother’s Day?

That I couldn’t be the mommy I am to you if it weren’t for your dada. He is such an amazing partner for me and mentor for you.

Any other updates you’d like to provide while you’ve got the floor?

Well, I probably should since a lot of people ask what you guys are up to lately… let’s see… the concept of sharing is not something we’ve mastered yet… nor eating out. You are starting to say a few words… Quinn says mama, baby, bye bye; and Cooper says bubbles, fish, dada. You both love trucks. Cooper is particularly good at puzzles and Quinn is good at cleaning (who knew a broom would be the best “toy” in the house?!). You also both like to kiss, which is super fun for moms and dads.

Happy Mother’s Day, mama.

P.S. Our slacker mom (ok, last time!) is also still working on getting our other blog up to snuff… “soon” she says.

Our routine these days is solid! The only part our parents don’t love is the waking at 5 am. Our parents tell us we should talk to other kids about wake time, but since we are still quarantined from other kids (until Spring), we can’t! So, to pay them back for not allowing us to play with other kids, we’re just gonna keep waking them up before sunrise. :) Good news for mom is that dad is an early bird.

Sanja (our fab nanny) gets to our house at 7:30 and has us all day until dad relieves her at 5:30. We hop in the car to get mom at the train at 6 and the picture above is basically what we do when we get home. We double team mom for about 20 minutes before we hop in the bath (dad gets his double teaming time in the morning), then off to bed at 7/7:30. And 10 hours of good solid sleep before we call out for the next day to begin.

Mom’s been in Singapore and Hong Kong this week for work (and a little fun), but she’s coming back tomorrow (picture above is from The Peak in Hong Kong). It’s by far the most time we’ve been away from her and we are sure giving dad a run for his money. It’s really fun to gang up on our parents when they are flying solo. Thank goodness for webcams and Yahoo! Messenger!

Counting down the hours,

Cooper

P.S. Mom would like to give a shout out to her new buddies – one team! one team!

Mom was feeling particularly outnumbered tonight, and decided to throw some “ponchos” on us. :) Good thing we are comfortable with our masculinity!

UPDATE: These are FlyingPeas items, not actually purchased for us. Mom hasn’t gone that coo-coo.

We’ve got a new baby in the hizzie. It’s called FlyingPeas. In all mom’s spare time(!), she decided to start this online baby boutique selling some of our favorite products. Granted, there are a couple of items that we’ve never had the pleasure of owning ourselves ($$$), but many that I can attest are the bomb.

This is something mom has been working on each and every night after Cooper and I go to bed and at naptime on the weekends since APRIL. I don’t know about this woman. In my spare time, I like to go to playgrounds and eat.

So, shop away friends. Maybe this site can pay for our college education. I think it’s estimated to be about $150K per year by 2023, so pony up! …Oh, and I probably should mention that we’d like to go to a cool school, not Nebraska or Ohio U. like some old geezers we know…

Thanks for your support,

Q-Dog

(added later: mom got her 15 minutes of fame here)

Ever since we started swim classes a couple weeks ago, bathtime has taken on a whole new meaning. For some strange reason, we didn’t realize before that you could slap the water and it goes in mom and dad’s face! Now we know, and we’re all over it. We basically run them out of the joint.

P.S. This picture was taken by Miss Sherry and Amir, who was in town visiting from Albuquerque!

Boy do we know how to make mom smile! She woke up this morning (Mother’s Day) to us sporting “I love Mom” jammies and sent her to a spa. And the best of all – we are healthy! Quite a different Mother’s Day compared to last year…

Dad sure is doing a great job of teaching us how to “woo” the lady in our lives!

Wooing away,
Quinn & Coop

We, the Wonder Twins, resolve to have a fantastic 2006.

To ensure we have proper measurement tools in place for our performance review at the end of the year, we thought we would share our resolutions with the world. Bring it on, New Year!

1) crawl

2) walk

3) get teeth

4) get along perfectly with brother and share with each other

5) meet hot babes (babies)

6) go to bed with NO crying and nap well

7) sleep through the night – every night

8) include bernie as our “other brother”

9) keep all poop in diaper and no peeing on parents during diaper changes

10) grow mustaches and hair on our chest like daddy (of course, Cooper needs to work on the head first)

We’ve been held by some really funky lookin’ people, but none as crazy as this guy. The funniest thing is mom completely Sanitized Santa before we sat down – maybe a first for him… As you can see, we got a kick out of him and have invited him to our house on December 25th.

So… i woke up early recently (about midnight) to find mom in the living room surrounded with a bunch of paper… yes, folks. she has become a scrapbooker. The very thing she used to tease others about. She blames it on our first year albums, but from the looks of this photo, she’s pretty into it.

What’s next, stamp collecting?
Cooper

(Beware: Boring, but important blog post from mom)

Ok… call me mama bear, but in the interest of keeping my guys from getting a very serious virus called RSV, the doctors suggested I post this information for all family and friends to see.

RSV stands for Respiratory Syncytial Virus and causes an infection in the lungs that can make some babies – particularly premature babies – very sick. Interestingly, it’s a very common virus and is usually carried between October and March. In older children/toddlers and adults, RSV simply causes a cold and cough; however, premature babies and those with lung disease (yes, Cooper and Quinn fall into both camps) are at high risk of getting sick with RSV, which involves being re-admitted to the hospital.

Yes, I’m pretty protective of my twinkies, but RSV is very serious and can also cause longer-term health issues, such as asthma, etc. While we’d love to put them in a bubble and keep them from every illness known to mankind, it’s important to continue to socialize them and help them build antibodies against other viruses/illnesses.

For RSV prevention, the boys are getting monthly shots of Synagis, an antibody which helps prevent against RSV and is made from mice cells (not to mention runs at $1800/shot – thank God for insurance!). The doctors gave us a list of rules we should abide by to help us stay RSV-free and suggested we share them with family and friends. So here we go (you’ll find that these are good rules for any baby, but particularly with preemies):

1. Wash hands with warm water and soap before touching the baby

2. Avoid being around the baby if you have a cold or fever

3. Be aware that kissing the baby can spread RSV infection. Hug your baby gently, or stroke your baby’s head instead

4. Try to keep other young children away from the baby

5. Do not smoke around the baby

6. Avoid crowded environments, when possible

Thanks so much for helping the boys stay healthy!

Regards,
Protective Patrol

If you’d like to know more about RSV and how to prevent it, click here.

We gave mom and dad a great anniversary gift today… we’ve quintupled our weight since birth! Cooper weighs 11 lbs 6 oz and Quinn is 11 lbs 12 oz.

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad. Thanks for getting married and having us.

Love,

Coop and Quinn

(Left to right: Cooper, Quinn)

WARNING: It’s been a while since we wrote, so this is a long one!

Ok, I’ll admit it – we’ve been a little tough on mom and dad lately. I keep saying that it’s not really our fault, but mom says that I’m not allowed to make excuses. So, I’ll just state the facts: We have pretty severe reflux, which causes our feeds to be very painful (for all of us)… which then leads to some colic-y behavior. Despite the craziness, we all still find time to laugh. A perfect example was when a photographer came to our house last weekend to document the joy in the home. Her goal is to really capture newborn behavior – which usually involves babies sleeping curled up perfectly in a ball. Well, she was here six hours and at least one of us was screaming the entire time (including mom and dad). They literally had to shove pacifiers in our mouths to keep us quiet. Right before a picture, they would count to three and withdraw it just in time for the camera to flash.

Despite our issues with feeds (which are about every 3 hours), life is great and we are getting to know this world we live in. Mom takes us out every day and most dinners are out of the house (nothing has changed in that respect for mom and dad!) They are hoping that’s not what has given us the colds/runny noses we have now. Today, for example, hung out at the mall with mom for about four hours. The feeding in the food court created quite a scene. Mom had both of us on her lap feeding/burping at the same time (Dad also has this down to a science!). We’ll have to post a picture of this exercise soon – we call it baby yoga. Anyway, we love getting out. It’s funny how much joy we bring to the world just because we are twins.

Aunt Lauren has been hanging around a LOT and she has been so fun to be around. We sure are going to miss her when she starts teaching later this month. We also have a friend who comes a couple nights a week – her name is Anna and she is a night nurse. It’s super helpful to mom and dad to have a full night sleep every couple days. On days that Anna is not around, mom is on duty until 3 am, then dad is on the clock. We tend to keep mom up till the wee hours, and zonk out for dad. Mom says “things are going to change around here.” We’ve started a schedule this week – and we’ve been cooperating… so far. Should we continue to cooperate, mom or dad will just need to get up to feed us at 1 am and at 5 am. They think this beats one of them being up with us 24 hours a day, although we really like it that way. We’ll see how things progress. We are the bosses after all.

Mom is already starting to prep for going back to work on November 1. Her nanny research usually happens while she is pumping breast milk for us – that is unless one of us needs to be held during that time (no time for only doing one task around here – someone is always doing at least two things at once…). While she is not looking forward to being away from us or the commute to San Jose, she is excited about seeing all of her work buds and getting back into the swing of things at Yahoo!. Thankfully, Dad works from home so we still get to see a lot of him even though he’s back to work.

Well… that’s about it from me. Cooper will be providing the next update. He’s probably going to proudly report that he’s caught up to me in weight. Who cares – I’m always going to be older no matter how hard he tries.

Peace out,
Quinn

Despite the Giants’ loss today, we are still big fans. Maybe it’s the brainwashing dad did while we were in the womb…

Today is a big day for my family and me. I was so overwhelmed and excited, I fell asleep (see picture – mom is holding me).

After a long 3 months in the NICU, I marched out of the hospital today (all 5 lbs 9 ounces of me) with two proud parents and Quinn.

No doubt, it’s been a rough go. But with a lot of love from friends and family and fierce determination, I’m doing great and am ready to start my “life on the outside.” (Dad told me that I better never have to use that term again… something about prison.)

As some of you have figured out, this was all part of my grand plan – and it’s worked out beautifully. Mom and dad have now mastered the diaper changing, bathing and feeding, so it was time. Quinn and I have talked about the fact that he has to share mom and dad at home and he’s cool with it. Bernie – well – that’s another story.

Thank you all for the props and love. Can’t wait to meet you.

Lovin’ life on the outside.

Free at last!
Coop

(Guest bloggers – Mom and Dad)

Just when we thought our lives couldn’t get any better, it did.

At the beginning of this adventure of having 3 month premature twins, we knew we had a long road ahead. In some ways, it feels like yesterday that we were blessed with these beautiful boys, and in other ways, it feels like it was 5 years ago that we were facing one of the most trying times of our lives.

Despite the (very) scary days ridden with many premature complications, we had faith that Quinn and Cooper were born with the will and vigor to not only survive, but to thrive. Today our family is complete, and we couldn’t be more proud of our little guys – and thankful. We are thankful for their health, for each other, for modern technology and the amazingly talented doctors and nurses at CPMC, and thankful for the loving people in our lives who sent positive vibes our way from the time we announced we were pregnant.

We look forward to continue learning from these little twinkies and doing our best to raise good, compassionate, strong men.

So, we are saying goodbye to Act One of their lives and are gearing up for the next exciting chapter – parenting twins (and one jealous dog) for the first 6 weeks. Let the fun begin!

Chris and Terra

After 66 days in this world, I’ve left the only home I’ve ever known to go to my real one. While I’m so incredibly thankful to the doctors and nurses at California Pacific Medical Center for keeping me healthy the past 2+ months, I’m happy to report that I’ve been turned over to the arms of my mom and dad today.

And the better news is that Coop is not far behind – he should be home within a week (barring no complications), so we can all be together as a family. (He was sleeping when I slipped out the NICU door, so we didn’t have to deal with a meltdown. We’ve since called the nurses and they said he’s coping just fine without me… independent little bugger!)

With the exception of my WLG syndrome (Whole Lotta Gas), I was very well behaved for my parents last night while they stayed over with me in the hospital. I plan to do the same tonight – and for every single night moving forward.

So, that’s it, my friends. I’m home – sleeping, eating and pooping a lot. I can’t wait to meet you all. The doctors/nurses say that my parents need to be a little careful with how many people come to visit me for a bit, but they can’t wait to show us off!

Lovin’ home (and missing Cooper),
Quinn

P.S. It was also nice to have my first breath of fresh air today – being outside ROCKS.

P.P.S. A very, very special thanks to Kerry, Jo, Mary, Lisa and Jasmine – you ladies are wonderful.

(Guest blogger: mom)

I’ve gotten a lot of calls today (thanks all for the love!) about Quinn’s departure from the hospital… He’s still doing great and on track to come home on Wednesday. One little hiccup that we are dealing with is that I’m now sick. :( I’ve got some kind of nasty respiratory infection and am on antibiotics. Today is the first day of my little boys’ lives that I have not seen them. While I’m miserable about it, I know that it’s better for me to stay far, far away from them until I’m better and no longer contagious. The doctors are saying that I will not be contagious by Wednesday and that he should still be able to come home. I honestly don’t know how I feel about that and tend to think we should play it safe, but we’ll see where we are on Wednesday. Until then, Chris and their favorite nurses are giving them extra love in my absence.

Thanks everyone for your support and phone calls. Hopefully we can beat this quickly and get my little monkeys home.

(Guest Blogger AGAIN – Mom)

People aren’t kidding when they say time flies by when you have children. I just can’t believe how fast the month has passed since we delivered these twinkies. More amazing is the progress they have made in 30 short days.

Recent developments include them both topping 3 lbs! Cooper just made his debut into the 3 pound club yesterday and Quinn is at 3 lbs 3 oz. Quinn also took to my breast the other day, which was kind of by accident. I was holding him when I felt I was “letting down” (when the milk ducts release milk to the nipple) and happened to tell the nurse I was feeling it. Right as I said that, Quinn smelled it and started shimmying his way to the food! I didn’t believe the nurse when she told me what he was doing, so she told me to give it a whirl. He latched on and started suckling immediately! It was absolutely incredible. We didn’t allow him to do it for long because his little brain isn’t capable of sucking, swallowing and breathing at the same time yet, but it was encouraging to see that he knew what to do.

Needless to say, I continue to be amazed at their beauty and resilience, and love every little ounce of them.

One month down, 1,199 to go!

(Guest blogger – Mom)

Boy… do my guys know how to make a girl feel special…

My first Mother’s Day was outrageous. First, I woke up to a house full of flowers and Chris making breakfast for his mom and me. Before breakfast, he brought a bouquet of flowers over to me… after thanking him and digging into my eggs, he told me to take another look at the flowers. Lo and behold, I saw a sparkly thing dangling from the ribbon tied to the vase. Yes, it was an absolutely STUNNING diamond ring. I swear, this guy never seizes to amaze me.

As if that wasn’t enough, we got to the hospital that morning to see the boys, and they each had a letter taped to their isolettes. Chris quickly confessed that the boys dictated the letters to him and he typed for them. The letters were beautiful and funny (I just love the balance these boys have already!) and I will cherish them forever. The nurses also helped them document their footprints as a Mother’s Day gift, which was a huge treat! You wouldn’t believe how little these feet are…

Cooper and Quinn – take notes from your dad on how to treat the lady in your life when you are older. You’ve got the best trainer in town…