Job Hunt is Ova'

As many of you know, at the end of June I was laid off and became part of the unemployed statistics we see every night on the news. Since that time I've been relentlessly on the job hunt talking to companies and recruiters on a daily basis. I am very happy to let everyone know that as of a few days ago, I have signed my name on the dotted line and have accepted an offer with another small technology company for their Director of Business Development ....... a fancier word for sales guy. I truly believe that everything happens for a reason so hopefully I will look back on the past few months and smile. On the brighter side, I was able to spend some extra time with the family enjoying time this summer with them. Charlotte, Gwyneth and Lillian are growing so fast that I was able to take a breath and enjoy the time. Enjoying a few days at the splash park, seeing Gwyneth and Lillian sit up for the first time and taking Charlotte to her first day of preschool are just a few things that I was so glad to be around for.

I just wanted to thank all of you for all of your thoughts, well wishes, prayers and crossed fingers in my hunt!! The passing positive comment or the short email kept me going!

So, now I start my new adventure and as you've all heard me say before....if it wasn't an adventure what the hell fun would it be!!!!

Carpe Diem!

We did it!

When Gwyneth and Lillian were born Owen and I said that we just need to make it through the first six months.  Once we make it though six months things will seem a little bit more routine and we won't be so overwhelmed.  We did it!!  We survived six months of being parents of twins!  I don't know how to accurately describe what it is like to be parents of twins except that it's more challenging than I thought it would be.  On the flip side of that, we get double the reward!

I took Gwyneth and Lillian for their six month doctor's appointment last week and both girls are doing great.  Gwyneth is 18lbs. 4.5oz and 26.5" tall.  Lillian is 16lbs. 10oz and 26.25" tall.  Both girls had to get more shots.  Gwyneth did awesome and was a total trooper.  Lillian wasn't as lucky.  She developed a pretty high fever on Friday and felt pretty miserable all weekend.  She is normally a happy-go-lucky baby but after the shots she just wanted to be held all the time.  She started to feel a little better yesterday but after a good night sleep we have our happy baby girl back! 

To celebrate their half birthday the girls got to "eat" their half birthday cake.  They were a little apprehensive since the last time they both sat at the table together they got peas.  They looked at each other as if to say "here we go again!"

Gwyneth waited for Lillian to try it first.

Then she decided to get in on the action too.

 The girls didn't really get the idea of eating the cake but they sure liked to play with it!  Charlie was pretty upset that she didn't get a cake but once she realized that her sisters couldn't eat it and she would get some she perked up!

Chow time!

So, Mommy and Daddy normally update the blog but Gwyneth and I wanted to personally tell you about our first experience with "solid" food.  First off, it is not solid.  It's like soup...not great, but at least it's something new.  

So Mommy got us pretty pumped up to try the new food.  She put us in our chairs on top of the table.  We must be special because Charlie doesn't get to do that!  She told us how great the food was going to be and how tasty it was.  Um, whatever!  She obviously has never tried this stuff.  It is N-A-S-T-Y!!!  The first thing that she fed us was green beans.  Yuck!  We wanted to make Mommy proud so we did our best but, yuck!  I'm pretty sure it was what wax paper tastes like!

Here we are listening to Mommy tell us how awesome the food was going to be.  She can be pretty convincing when she wants to be so we were hanging on to her every word.

Sometimes Mommy talks to quick for me to follow so I looked to Gwyneth for reassurance that everything was going to be okay.  Since Gwyneth is older than me I trust her judgment.  Rookie mistake!

Luckily, Gwyneth went first.  As you can tell, she didn't seem to care for the green beans.

I couldn't believe it but she actually started to spit it out back at Mommy.  There is no way I would ever have the guts to do that.

I just screamed to let her know how gross the stuff was.  Part of it was because it was my first time eating from a spoon and it was a little difficult to figure out but mostly it was because the stuff was disgusting!

Personally, I think that Gwyneth and I should get an A for effort for attempting this stuff.  You can't tell us how yummy something is going to be and then give us green beans!  How about some bananas or plums?  Even carrots would be better!  We were proud of ourselves for trying the food and even swallowing some of it.  Here we are doing our 'happy dance' to show how glad we are this first experience is behind us.  (Mommy has fed us some peas since then and they are MUCH better.  Now that we are getting the hang of the eating thing is kinda is fun, just like Mommy said.  Please don't tell her I said she was right!)

I'm sure we'll have a ton more experiences to share with you so keep checking for more updates.  Thanks!

Love,
Lillian & Gwyneth

This past weekend we took a little road trip down to Arcola to visit the Robeys.  We were planning on leaving right after lunch so we would beat some of the Friday afternoon traffic.  Plus, Gwyneth and Lillian eat about every 4 hours so we, and by we, I really mean I, needed to make sure that we weren't stuck in the car with two screaming and hungry babies.  I'm proud to say that we actually made it out the door right after lunch.  I think it helped that we started to pack on Thursday night!

Another reason we need to get down there was to go to Yoders.  I'm sure we have mentioned this before but Yoders is an awesome Amish restaurant in the neighboring town.  It is a must-do when we go visit.  We went to Yoders on Friday night and stuffed ourselves with their stick-to-your-ribs cuisine.  This was our first trip to a sit down restaurant with all three kids so I was a little concerned how the girls would do.  We timed it pretty good so Gwyneth and Lillian slept almost the whole time. 

When we get together with the Robeys, either down there or up at our place, we have a tendency to eat a lot!  This weekend was no different.  We had peanut butter pie for breakfast on Saturday.  We know it's not healthy but it is fabulous!  Charlie was so excited to eat pie first thing in the morning!

Nan was a great helper with the girls.  She got Gwyneth to fall asleep right after she ate.

Lillian and Gwyneth like to sleep by each other

Robey with Gwyneth just enjoying some quiet time.

 The main reason for our visit was to celebrate Josie's (aka JoJo Bean) first birthday.  She was surrounded by so many people that love her I know she had a great time!

The Burritt family ready for the party

 Sisterly love!

 Mommy (Laura) and the birthday girl.  Check out all the pink frosting on JoJo Bean!

It has only been a couple days since we left but we are already looking forward to the next time we can get together!

Arts & Crafts

Owen will attest to the fact that I'm not a crafty person.  I would love to be, but I'm not.  I have tons of ideas but never seem to know how to execute them.  I'm happy to say that I finally followed through with a craft project that I said I was going to do.  

If Gwyneth and Lillian have hair like their older sister there will be TONS of hair bows in our house.  I have yet to master making bows but I figured I could make something to display the ones they do have.  I saw the idea for a bow holder on another blog and thought it looked easy enough (no sewing involved).  All I needed was a glue gun, some fabric, ribbon and an old frame.  I didn't have a frame but found one at Goodwill for $5.00!  Since the frame wasn't the right color I had to get some spray paint too.  Add the paint, fabric, ribbon and frame together and my project only cost about $12!

It took longer for the paint to dry on the frame than it did to the rest of the project.  Here it is completed and ready to be hung up.

 On the wall in Gwyneth & Lillian's room.

Now I have to figure out how to make the bows.  Maybe I'll accomplish two craft projects.  Maybe.  Stay tuned...

Time seems to get away from me and before you know it three weeks have past since the last blog update.  Since pictures are what everyone really wants to see, below is what the Burritt crew has been up to.

We went to our friends house catch up with them and to let the kids swim in the pool.  Didn't get any pics of the kids but her is Lillian and Gwyneth relaxing after a day in the sun.

 

Charlie still had some more energy so she played dress up with Megan

She loved the devil costume!

All of the kids waiting for the 4th of July parade to start.  It was Charlie, Logan, Will, Ally and Jonathan.  They were all getting ready to get the candy!

Charlie wasn't a fan of all of the sirens on the fire trucks and police cars.  She just kept starring at them waiting for them to stop.

Lillian tried to stay as cool as possible underneath the tent.

Gwyneth couldn't handle all the excitement that day and fell asleep early.

We enjoyed some beautiful weather and had dinner on the deck.  Gwyneth was busy starring at the deer that were in the backyard.  

This time it was Lillian that fell asleep early!

On a nice day Owen and I took Charlie down to Navy Pier.  She was so excited to go on the choo choo!  Of course, she needed a snack to  complete her train experience.

Splashin' around in the fountain.

On the Seadog boat ride down at Navy Pier.

You can't tell by her serious look but Charlie really liked the boat.  She loves the water and loves to go fast!

She really didn't like getting wet.

Chicago is a beautiful city!

The boat ride really worked up Charlie's appetite so we had lunch. 

Then she did an impromptu dance on one of the stages.

Her first churro.  It was sweet so she loved it!

Back on the train she had to check and see if she had any messages from her peeps!

After a fun day in the sun she was ready for bed early.

This past weekend we went up to the lake.  We wanted to get Gwyneth and Lillian in the lake so they grow up to love it as much as Charlie.  We got Lillian in the water and after a little crying she really seemed to like it. 

Gwyneth thought that it was lame and slept the day away!

I think if Charlie would sleep in the water she could.  It was the first thing that she talked about in the morning and the last thing she talked about at night.  She can't wait to go back again.  If she only know how hard it is to get down to the beach with three kids and all of their 'gear'.  It's totally worth it once you see the smile on her face as she plays in the sand and water.

Lillian & Gwyneth had a lot of fun just relaxing on the blanket. 

Gwyneth already has a thing for shoes.  Even though they don't fit she insisted that she wear the pretty pink shoes!

Family Time & 4 Month Stats

As some of you may already know, corporate America has thrown our family a bit of a curve ball. I have a little of extra time on my hands so we decided to take advantage of it and go as a family to the zoo. It was a beautiful day to be outside and just enjoy. Charlie was more fun this year really wanting to see all of the animals and she really liked the monkeys, giraffes and zebras. Unfortunately the bears weren't swimming like they have been in the past...she really wanted to see the polar bear. Gwyneth and Lillian were surprisingly awake for most of the day and took everything in. We took along a picnic so we didn't miss a second of the beautiful weather.

Overall, a great day and it took my mind of the job hunt that hangs over my head now. So the silver lining of all this is that while corporate America has taken a turn that I didn't expect, at least I get to spend some extra time with ALL my girls. Nothing wrong with that! I truly believe everything happens for a reason so hopefully I'll look back on this in a few months and the reason will be apparent. Just wish, I knew this path beforehand so it wouldn't be so worrisome. But what fun would that be right?! Here are reasons why I continue to smile even in this bit of a stressful period.

Lillian did not want to take a picture, Charlie wanted her to be quiet and Gwyneth just ate so she was pretty calm

4 Month Stats

Hard to believe but Gwyneth and Lillian are already four months old. While some days seem to last forever the time really is flying by. We took them for their four month doctor's appointment and the doctor was happy with the girls' height, weight and overall health.

Gwyneth is 25 inches and 14lbs. 7oz. Just a little smaller, Lillian is 24.5 inches and 13 lbs 9.5 oz.

Lillian & Gwyneth

"I know that God will not give me anything I can't handle; I just wish that He didn't trust me so much."    -Mother Theresa

Things in the Burritt household are starting to calm down a little, but still far from routine.  We are starting to see better sleeping habits out of all three girls.  Yay!  Owen and I constantly have to remind ourselves that we will get a full night sleep again.  Not sure when, but we know it has to happen! We have gotten a couple nights where Gwyneth and Lillian sleep through the night.  Unfortunately, they are never two night in a row.  We've moved them into their own room and they are sharing a crib.  Even if we put them on opposite ends of the crib they eventually scoot closer and closer together.  I think there have been a few times they have woken each other up because they start knocking heads together.  For those of you who have met Gwyneth and Lillian you know Lillian is going to will that battle every time!  Next step will be to move one into the second crib.  Maybe I'll try that tonight...maybe.

Charlie is still growing by leaps and bounds.  Her vocabulary keeps expanding which is so great to hear.  Let me rephrase that.  It is so great to hear after I've been up for an hour.  The girl LOVES to hear herself talk.  She narrates her entire day...the good, the bad, and the ugly!  A typical morning for us is

Charlie:  I want a waffle...please

Owen/Donna: Ok

Charlie: I want apple juice...please

Owen/Donna: Ok

Charlie: No waffle, cereal.

Owen/Donna: Do you want a waffle or cereal?

Charlie: Waffle or cereal

Owen/Donna: You have to pick one

Charlie: Pick one

Owen/Donna: Charlie, do you want a waffle or cereal?

Charlie: Waffle.....cereal

Owen/Donna:  Ok, you said you wanted a waffle first so you are going to get a waffle

Charlie: CEREAL!!!

Owen/Donna:  Ok, cereal it is.  What kind of cereal?  (We'll hold up two boxes so she can choose)

Charlie: (Points) That one....that one.

Owen/Donna: You have to choose only one

Charlie: Only one

And back to square one we go.  I'm not sure of the whole "Who's on First" kit but I'm pretty sure it is close to our morning routine!

As Owen mentioned in a previous post we have to try and remember these moments because they will be gone before we know it.  We have to remind ourselves that we have three little blessings that were given to us for a reason.  We will, and have, made mistakes but have learned from them and are better parents because of them.  Would we love to get everything right on the first try?  Yes.  Since that is impossible, we thank God that he gave us three patient girls who love us even though we are not perfect.

Charlie

Gwyneth

Lillian

A rare quiet moment...