Happy V-Day

Happy Valentines Day!
Life is good in the Garcia household. The boys recently had their 2 month well baby visit and the news was good for the most part. Joaquin is developmentally ahead of the curve. He is meeting all of his milestones and is a healthy baby. Jacob is also doing well, but he is not ahead but rather where he should be. The only issue with him is the "usage" of his right arm. It is not as strong or active as his left one. He really likes to keep it at his side and his range of motion with it is somewhat limited. It is something we are going to have to monitor to determine if he will need some sort of physical therapy in the future. We are doing what we can to help him use it by doing range of motion exercises with it when we can. The good thing is that it does not hurt him or cause him any discomfort.
Jacob is 22 inches and weighs 11lbs 7 ozs. Joaquin is 22.5 inches and weighs 11lbs and 15 ozs. We got them some vitamins to ensure they are getting all of the supplements they need. They are still on 100% breast milk so that is really helping them gain some weight.
Latrice is doing well. Her recovery is on track and she hasn't had any issues to date. Sleep is still her number one necessity. On average she gets about 4 to 5 hours of broken sleep. Her day is extremely busy and the boys are keeping her up the majority of the day. These guys are on an alternating pattern as far as feedings and sleep. I really admire her strength, patience, and stamina to keep up with them 5 days a week. It's tough. But, what I admire even more is the love she displays with them and the time and effort she puts into caring for them and making sure they are loved and all of their needs are met. Latrice is a wonderful mom and our boys are very lucky to her as their mommy.
I am still helping out during the evenings and on the weekends. School has lightened up in a sense and we are starting to get into our "wind down" phase. I have 3 more months to go and then we will pick up and move to North Carolina. This move is going to be challenging since it will be the first time we have to move with children.

~Javier

Our Ying and Yang

Our boys are complete opposites of each other. These boys have their own very unique identities and character traits. It is comical at times.

Joaquin has a very aggressive personality. The kid is demanding. He has very little patience and does not tolerate your inability to respond to his needs at an instance. He does not build up to an aggressive posture, he is always there. He comes out of nowhere with no warning and it startles poor Jacob. If his screams were to be interpreted into plain English I am sure it would translate to a lot of anger.

Jacob is a calm and happy baby. If he needs something he will start off with an "umm hum". If there is no response he will then try a subtle "excuse me, but I do believe I have soiled my diaper". If he still doesn't get a response he will escalate to a " Yo, I just crapped myself and you need to change me!". His last resort is a soft scream with tears in his eyes that say " I pooped myself and it stings and I don't like it. Please change me know!" So, of course we are not really responding to his crying since it is "harmless" as compared to Joaquin; we feel bad for the kid because he cries soft tears.

Here are a few "predictions" and opinions I have formulated over the last 9 weeks that I have gotten to know my two boys:
-Joaquin is going to be very athletic. He is really strong for his age. He holds his head up very steadily and can bear his weight on his 2 legs. His grip is exceptional and he is already trying to crawl. His weight is evenly distributed through his body and he has good muscle tone already.

-Joaquin is going to be our "trouble maker". His aggressive nature is very evident in the way he eats. When he eats, he takes his bottle so fast that he collapses the nipple. He runs out of breath at times and he then begins to drown in his own milk. We have to take the bottle away and have him catch his breath and slow down. He gets angry and he starts to flail about with his arms and legs and twitch around until the bottle is back in his mouth. He then over excites himself and unintentionally pushes the bottle away. I have to literally fight him to put the bottle back in his mouth and wiggle it around so that he realizes it is back in his control. It is chore to feed him at times and something that has to be done cautiously.

-Joaquin is not as mentally clued in to his environment as Jacob. Joaquin does not respond to our voices like Jacob. He does not follow us around the room as much as Jacob does. Very little things hold his attention and his mind seems to wander about.

-Jacob is going to be an independent. He pretty much keeps to himself and he needs very little attention to keep him occupied. He only cries when he absolutely needs something and is a lot easier to console once you tend to his needs. His cries are soft and pleasant, very cute.

-Jacob is not going to be as athletic as Joaquin. He is not as strong as Joaquin is now and he carries a lot of his weight in his mid-section. He can bear his weight on his legs , but not very long. It took him a long time to be able to hold his head up and at time he is still wobbly with it.

-Jacob will catch on to mental tasks quicker than Joaquin. Jacob has always seemed more focused to me. He responds to our voices instantly and he does follow us around the room when we are in his field of vision. Objects also hold his attention; he seems to study them and his head does not wander around as much.

Latrice does not like it when I make these type of predictions about our boys. She feels that I am type casting them because of the way they look. Yes, I know it is apparent that Joaquin carries many of my physical characteristics and Jacob carries hers. So, she feels that I am projecting my personal desires on them because of the way they look. It is true that I see myself in Joaquin and I definitely see her in Jacob. But these predictions have nothing to do with the way they look. It is simply the way they seem to carry themselves. However, since these guys seem to inherently possess many of our physical characteristics, wouldn't it be logical to reason that they probably inherited some of our traits as well? I personally don't think it is unreasonable, but only time will tell.

I am really enjoying these boys day by day. Every day they make a new noise or do something new. They both recently found their hands and they really like sticking their fist in their mouth as a pacifier. It won't be long until they find their thumbs and we begin to spend a lot of our time trying to keep it out of their mouth.

I am still amazed by the sight of these guys. When I come home its like I haven't seen them for days. I am HAPPY to take them from Latrice and give her some time to herself. She routinely takes care of dinner, pumps, washes bottles and then sleeps for 2 to 3 hours until 10 pm. At 10pm we start our final feedings and get them ready for bed. By 11 pm, I am done and in bed for the night. Latrice has the "helm" and I sleep until 0610. I then get up, and go help her with the boys until 0700. I then get ready for work and am out the door at 0745 and off to work. Every chance I get I some home from work to lend a hand and get something to eat. I am usually home by 4 and we start the cycle again. I take the boys and Latrice starts her routine.

On the weekend I take most of the night shift and Latrice catches up on her sleep until Sunday. It is a brutal schedule for her, but we are both doing the best we can to make life as bearable for her as we can. We are now currently in the process of trying to hire some help to come in in the afternoons for 4 hours a day, 3 times a week. The goal is to get someone in her who can do some house cleaning and help her out with the boys when she needs an extra feeding hand or such. So far our search has yielded no one, but we are looking.

Well, I better end this post. Latrice is sleeping and I have the boys. Joaquin is starting to get uncomfortable and it is time to wake Jacob from his peaceful sleep so he can eat. Tonight is bath night for the boys and that is always a "treat" for us!

~Javier