How Life Has Changed

Found this on the www.babycenter.com website and love it. Mommy wanted to post it to remember it.

What changes when you have a baby? A better question may be: What doesn't change? Here, writer and mom Rebecca Woolf lists her most notable post-baby observations. Then scroll down to read our favorite comments from readers about how their babies changed their lives.
1. You finally stop to smell the roses, because your baby is in your arms.
2. Where you once believed you were fearless, you now find yourself afraid.
3. The sacrifices you thought you made to have a child no longer seem like sacrifices.
4. You respect your body ... finally.
5. You respect your parents and love them in a new way.
6. You find that your baby's pain feels much worse than your own.
7. You believe once again in the things you believed in as a child.
8. You lose touch with the people in your life whom you should have banished years ago.
9. Your heart breaks much more easily.
10. You think of someone else 234,836,178,976 times a day.
11. Every day is a surprise.
12. Bodily functions are no longer repulsive. In fact, they please you. (Hooray for poop!)
13. You look at your baby in the mirror instead of yourself.
14. You become a morning person.
15. Your love becomes limitless, a superhuman power.

And from our readers...1. "You discover how much there is to say about one tooth." — Ashley's mom
2. "You finally realize that true joy doesn't come from material wealth." — Anonymous
3. "You now know where the sun comes from." — Charlotte
4. "You'd rather buy a plastic tricycle than those shoes that you've been dying to have." — Sophie's mom
5. "You realize that although sticky, lollipops have magical powers." — Roxanne
6. "You don't mind going to bed at 9 p.m. on Friday night." — Kellye
7. "Silence? What's that?" — Anonymous
8. "You realize that the 15 pounds you can't seem to get rid of are totally worth having." — Brenda
9. "You discover an inner strength you never thought you had." — Ronin and Brookie's mom
10. "You no longer rely on a clock — your baby now sets your schedule." — Thomas' mom
11. "You give parents with a screaming child an 'I-know-the-feeling' look instead of a 'Can't-they-shut-him-up?' one." — Jaidyn's mom
12. "Your dog — who used to be your 'baby' — becomes just a dog." — Kara
13. "You take the time for one more hug and kiss even if it means you'll be late." — Tracey
14. "You learn that taking a shower is a luxury." — Jayden's mom
15. "You realize that you can love a complete stranger." — Dezarae's mom

Grace Crawling!

Gracie started crawling officially on Sunday, Dec. 9, two days shy of her 8-month birthday. She has improved each day and follows her "big" brother everywhere. (This video is from a week later--today, Dec. 16.) Mommy and Daddy have used boxes (from the move) to create "barriers" around the house that keep the twins in a limited space--i.e., away from the dogs' water bowls.

Bath Time

Chance adores bath time. He continually wants to get in the bathtub and can't wait for Daddy to get home from work so he can bathe--well, splash, kick, and put his hands under the water falling from the spigot. Grace enjoys chewing on the rubber duckies but is still a little hesitant about the water.

Baby Derby

IT'S OFF TO THE RACES!

On Sat. morning at 8 am, The Little Gym (www.TheLittleGym.com) held a Baby Derby to raise toys for the Toys for Tots charity. Mommy took the twins, who raced against other 0-14 month olds. We were all on the news on Monday night; Mommy ordered a copy of the newscast! (Daddy was sleeping because he took the "late shift" and went to bed officially at 4 am. That's right, folks: Chance still only sleeps about 3-4 hour stretches, mainly because of gastrointestinal challenges, poor boy.)

Photos below:
One of the teachers at The Little Gym helped Gracie down her lane while Mommy cheered both twins on.

Cue the victory music. The twins were awarded their first medals! Doesn't Gracie look sooooo adorable as she sits so upright? (Apparently, Chance mistook his medal for a tasty treat.)

Daddy's birthday, Thanksgiving, Aunt Carla, and More

When Daddy came home from work on his birthday (Nov. 15), he found his twins and wife were covered in baby food but wearing birthday hats and singing "Happy Birthday" too!

Photo below: Aunt JuJu came over for Thanksgiving, bearing a Honey Baked Ham nonetheless! She read Karla Dornacher's book, HeavenSent Baby to Chance. The book was a gift from Karla, with places she personalized for the twins. (Mommy especially loves the letter from "Your Ever-Prresent God and Father" and the suggestions for prayers.) Karla's books are truly quite amazing, with interactive pieces inside and Karla's own words and watercolor paintings -- check them out at http://www.karladornacher.com/.

Aunt Carla (Eric's sister) came to visit after Thanksgiving; she and Gracie stayed up past their bedtimes then fell asleep together on the couch.

On a warm day in November (there are lots of those in Summerville), Chance donned his golf pants and decided he'd practice his swing out by the pond in our neighborhood.

Gracie took a turn at the golf club too.

Grandpa Redux

Grandpa Boespflug (Jenny's dad) came for another visit in early November. We explored Charleston, including visiting the fah-bu-lous Children's Museum of the Lowcountry (http://www.explorecml.org/) and SC Aquarium (http://www.scaquarium.org/).


Photo above: After church, Gracie insisted that we remove her tights so she could taste her foot. (She usually removes her socks by herself.)

Photo: Grandpa bought Grace this sweatsuit from the Life is Good store on The Market downtown.

Gracie kisses with her mouth open, as seen in this photo.

Photo below: Grandpa kisses Gracie back.

At the Aquarium, we toured the Turtle Rescue Program facilities. Mommy carries Gracie (in Bjorn) in front of DeBourdieu, a 305 lb. female Loggerhead, who was healing well and will hopefully be released soon. (You can check the Web site for updates about her.)

Something is indeed "fishy," and its name is Chance!

Shopping at the Children's Museum. Chance wanted the ice cream (takes after his Mommy).

Photo below: We purchased a whole basket of Grace!

Grace playing at the Children's Museum (that's Grandpa's hand, by the way).

The twins are so advanced that they can write their names already!

Grandpa giving Grace a "ride" on the seagull at the Children's Museum