Aunties Rule

Ruby and Owen were also blessed with visits from their Mulliken/Voss Aunts.  Mindy drove from Steamboat twice actually, once while my mom was here and once while Tina was here.  We ventured into Park City to take in the sites and eat pizza, we walked the neighborhood and, of course, spent lots of time holding and loving the new additions.  Rooster and OT love their aunts!  They fell asleep in their arms, smiled at their antics, and cried when they left. ;)  It is so special, for me especially, to share this joy with my sisters. We are very grateful they made the time and effort to come stay with us for a bit and got into our new schedules of nap times and early bed times.

We love you!

 Mindy and Owen on the left.  Mindy, Ruby, and her boyfriend Bo on the right (Mindy's boyfriend that is- Ruby is going to probably have her fair share, but she is just  a little young for that right now)

 Tina was not afraid.  She suited up in winter gear, strapped on babies, and hiked around the neighborhood almost every day.  She is holding Owen in pink here (real men wear pink) and cuddling with him on the couch.  Tina is holding Ruby in the middle and lulled Owen to sleep on the far right.

And, I just can't help myself.  Here is another collage of some of my favorite shots of Owen from the past few weeks.  Some of them taken by the aunties.  :)

Finally, my favorites of Ruby as well.  She is rocking the tummy time.  I used to wonder why parents took so many photos of their kids on their tummies lifting their heads- not always the cutest position in my opinion (although the B&W one of Ruby is pretty cute I have to say- nice one, Chip).  But now, I get it.  It is one of the coolest things to watch your baby lift and hold their head on their own.  Such a simple movement has stirred such awe and excitement in us.  I am sure it is just the beginning of many such events. 

This is awesome.

"Only an aunt can give hugs like a mother, keep secrets like a sister and share love like a friend." 

-anonymous 

Catch Up

I have some catch up to do.  Owen and Ruby are 8.5 WEEKS old and the last pictures I posted are from when they were 8 DAYS old.  So, forgive all the collages, but we have about a bazillion pictures of these two little gems and I want to share as many of them with you as possible.  As usual, click on any of the collages to make them fill the screen (and almost be life size of the babies. :))  

 In this collage I attempted to capture the many expressions of Owen Thomas DuRoss.  His defined features communicate all kinds of emotions from complete peace to frustration, pensiveness, and many more.

Ruby Elizabeth DuRoss, loves to be held and makes it worth your while.  She gazes into your eyes, smiles, and seems to create a sense of peacefulness in the holder.

Check these two out.  Too much.  This one is worth enlarging to check out their expressions and interactions.  We are loving getting to know each of them individually, but also how their personalities mesh and compliment each other.

As I mentioned, Ruby loves to gaze into your eyes.  But when her daddy holds her, the gaze becomes one of awe and adoration. I can't get enough of it- melts my heart.

This is all of us (including Kessler) trying our hand at holding both of them at the same time.  It is possible, but not easy. ;)

The next few collages capture some of the month my mom spent with us.  We feel extremely grateful and fortunate that she was able to come and help us make it through the early days with the twins.  We sustained nights of simultaneous fussy babies and grappled with what parenting style to embrace- pacifiers? napping? schedule? how much crying IS okay?  And, by the end of our time together we were getting out on the town pretty regularly, walking around the neighborhood daily, and Chip and I even got out for a quick backcountry ski lap in the "backyard" while my mom watched the twins.  My mom filled the freezer with food (picture of rouladin factory below) and held the babies no matter their mood.  In fact, she made an art of putting them to sleep (even when sometimes I wanted them awake ;) as evidenced by the collage above.   They must have sensed her confidence with twins (for those of you who don't know, my mom is also a mother of twins).  

We were SO sad to see her go and hope she visits again soon.  We will miss our afternoon Starbucks, walks around the neighborhood, and delicious dinners prepared and served up.  Mostly we will miss her loving our kids in person- walking around with them in her arms repeating phrases like "Ruby loves Oma, Ruby loves Owen, etc.", singing German songs, and trying to get Owen to like those darn flash cards.

Owen and Oma checkin the weather out our front windows.  "What do you think, Owen, walk in the stroller or carriers today?"

If evolution really works, how come mothers only have two hands?  ~Milton Berle

The Photo Shoot

Owen and Ruby DuRoss

8 Days Old

Photos by: Julie Shipman

Salt Lake City, Utah

(to view larger images, click 'em!)

Welcome Home

This first photo illustrates how we all felt (including Kessler- not sure why- she got less activity than she ever has the first few days at home) as we made the adjustment to being at home and on our own.  There were no nursery nurses offering their watchful eyes so we could get a little sleep, no one resupplying the diapers while we held the babies or attempted to feed, no one offering to fill my bedside water because it got a little low or delivering three meals a day (although we have had SO much amazing food delivered to the house- our community here pretty much rules). 

 

Chip and I both averaged about three hours of sleep a night for the first handful of days...and if you know me very well, you know how I LOVE my sleep.  I tried to store up before hand like everyone suggested- we knew this time was coming- but that must have been a joke because it didn't work.  You can't store up sleep for something like this.  And, although it is draining to listen to crying babies, play detective about why they are awake and/or upset, and tiring to get in and out of bed in one night more times than you have in the past year cumulatively...it was fun too.  Although I did not want the babies to get any formula at all (again- lesson in letting go- breastfeeding also did not go as planned- another story for another day), it was really nice to have Chip there through the nights as an equal player and teammate.  We tagged off and tag teamed well to get through those first few difficult nights as rookies, not only to the game, but to covering two bases at once also.  

Sometimes when everyone else was sleeping I still couldn't sleep cause I might miss out on this.  Plus, I am convinced there is some mommy hormone that makes it possible to function on no sleep for longer than you would think. 

But, we did not have to fend on our own for too long!  After a few days, Nana and Papa DuRoss swooped in to help hold and love Ruby and Owen, do laundry, feed us, run errands, and generally anything we asked (or didn't ask- they had an amazing sense for what just needed to get done).  While they somehow also found time to hold and love the kids, they actually selflessly encouraged us to indulge in this activity most of the time while they ran around taking care of everything else necessary to our existence those first two weeks.  The words "thank you" and "you da bomb" somehow seem insufficient to express our appreciation for their time and efforts, so we will keep working on something more,  but I am  not sure the English language has words to express our gratitude.

Ruby and Owen's first week of life was one of extremes on many accounts.  We experienced very low temperatures and several feet of snow...which was exciting, and also added to everyone's to-do list as we did our best to maintain the driveway, stay warm (thanks for manning the wood burning stove Papa!), and get out of the house to hunt and gather for things like food and diapers. 

Owen all bundled up by the stove trying to keep warm while taking a nap. :)

Despite the weather and surgery and general whatnot, we did get out for our first family walk around the neighborhood on their one-week birthday.  Kessler was grateful (although once Nana arrived she got a lot more exercise than we were able to give her) and we enjoyed introducing Rooster and OT to neighbors while getting some fresh air.

Holding two newborns at the same time is a challenge, but we each figured out our ways to get it done. Chip's bigger and dexterous hands seemed to be able to grab them both and football hold them and/or get them to his lap together, while I resorted to the Moby wrap (thanks Dee!) to hold them both at once...which also allowed me to run over to the neighbor's house with things in my hands too!

It just made me laugh...
"When I have a kid, I want to put him in one of those strollers for twins, then run around the mall looking frantic."  ~Steven Wright

Introducing....

Owen Thomas DuRoss

AKA- OT, Little Man, or Bug. Born 12/23/10 at St Marks Hospital in SLC, UT at 3:01pm, weighing 5lbs 8ozs.

He and his sister were pulled out into the world in the same minute, so technically, they are exactly the same age. Owen, to me, has DuRoss written all over him. He has the narrow DuRoss face with the very distinctive chin his dad and uncle Chris sport as well. He has a few traits from the Mulliken side as well, making for a very handsome combination in our opinion. ;) He is our sensitive boy, wearing expressions of joy, determination, and concern on his face I never would have imagined possible for a newborn. His Oma said the other day, "Look at that face, when he speaks, people are going to listen!" When he cries he has a lower lip that trembles, making him and you feel so vulnerable, breaks your heart, and makes you want to fix whatever it is that could be wrong as SOON as possible.

and

Ruby Elizabeth DuRoss

AKA- Rooster, Ruby Du, RuDu, Ru, Rubes, RED (her initials), or whatever else you come up with- the nicknames seem to be endless. :) Born 12/23/10 at St Marks Hospital in SLC, UT at 3:01 pm weighing 6lbs 3ozs.

Ruby seems to have more of an overall Mulliken look and already makes lots of noise, leading us to believe she will be talkative like a Mulliken. She also has several DuRoss traits making for another perfect creation in our opinions. Her Nana said, "Look at her face, such wisdom!." Grandmothers (or Nanas and Omas, know things) She is calm and serene much of the time, gazing around intently at things, unless upset, at which point her cry seems to say "I am pissed! Get out the way!"

It has been amazing to see their personalities. I guess I didn't think newborns had much of a personality. Or, maybe it is that having two side by side which allows us to really see the differences, similarities and distinguish personality from regular baby behavior. Anyway, all very fun.

One last photo from the hospital. I am sure these two will be great friends one day. Right now they don't seem to acknowledge each other much even though they share a crib and breastfeed only inches from each other. However, in this photo, it appears they are communicating...perhaps just verbalizing some feelings left over from the womb.

"Sibling relationships—and 80 percent of Americans have at least one— outlast marriages, survive the death of parents, resurface after quarrels that would sink any friendship. They flourish in a thousand incarnations of closeness and distance, warmth, loyalty and distrust."
Erica E. Goode