Family Time All the Time, Plus All the Ailments

It has been a lot of family time around these parts, which both makes Lola incredibly happy and, at the same time, incredibly frustrated.  I really hope we are in the hardest parts of her terrible two's, because her temper tantrums and uncontrollable, sudden sobbing occurring multiple times a day are fraying our nerves.  Given the current situation, I can't say that I blame her - I think I feel the same way on a lot of days!  Cooped up, free to nap or play, yet without school/work/routine, reveling in being near all my loved ones, yet needing a break.

 Al is 15 pounds now, and Teo close behind at 14.6.




They are still such good babies, really patient and adorable.  Their gummy grins are amazing - lighting up their whole faces!
 
They still seem largely unaware of each other at this point, though we try to put them in their cribs together to encourage contact and play.  Lola is still adjusting to the intrusion of two baby brothers in her life, and shows it by snatching away any of their toys and refusing to share.  Just this morning I witnessed a small miracle because she actually let Teo continue to use the Baby Einstein musical player without throwing a huge fit!

I mentioned that I went up to Bowen Road in my last post - now I have gone up there to jog and walk a few more times.  It helps me to clear my head and feel a little bit better.  Here are some views.

 

I have been struggling with my body lately.  It's to be expected trying to come back from being hugely pregnant with twins, but in addition to my body weight I have also been dealing with issues with my skin and teeth.

I'm still 16 pounds off of my pre-pregnancy weight and I have a very stubborn, hard mass around the center of my belly.  It's a bulge that sits up high and I believe is the "mommy tummy" that everyone talks about.  It's very discouraging and I despair at whether I have the discipline and time to get rid of it.  I wore a binder /belt for nearly two and a half months after my C section and have stopped now because my doctor said I don't need it any more.  Now it's just the long, awful road of post-surgery recovery.  Part of what makes this period so hard is knowing I have a whole closet full of clothes that I like that I cannot wear - and so I am stuck in bigger, baggier shirts and pants feeling frumpy and out of sorts while I wait to return to "normal".  The rational thing would be to work out toward regaining that normal, or getting a personal trainer to help me achieve the vision I want, but instead I would rather laze in bed and snack and complain. 

Whether due to stress, heat, or allergies, my skin has been breaking out all over.  About two weeks ago my arms, neck, chest and legs were all itching nonstop.  Now that has mostly gone away but I have a swath of itchy red hive-like bumps on my stomach and chest.  That has been irritating as heck and I am squirming in discomfort in the heat and humidity.  At first I thought it was because of my postpartum pregnancy belt - perhaps I had been cinching the thing so tight for so long that it was irritating my skin.  Then I thought it was a cream I was using to combat my dry skin.  Now I think it's a combination of stress and heat rash. 

Lastly, and for the icing on the cake, I have impacted canines and never properly addressed them, and it looks like after decades of avoiding the issue I have finally run out of time.  I am now consulting with not two but three dental specialists - a dentist, an oral surgeon and an orthodontist - to try to figure out how to fix my teeth.  If it were just a matter of a little crookedness, I would let it slide in a heartbeat.  I don't even care if I have an imperfect bite (which I definitely do).  But it's a matter of living with a temporary and imperfect situation for at least the next forty or fifty years, or undergoing a pretty invasive surgery, fixing the spacing, and getting implants, all of which will probably take nearly two years and countless hours of effort and discipline - if it all goes smoothly.  I don't want either scenario and it's leaving me wallowing in despair. To say the least, none of this has helped me achieve mental and emotional equilibrium!