It’s been some time since I’ve posted on this blog, but I wanted to give my take on “paternity week.” For the month of October, we really enjoyed having our mothers help take care of the house, cooking, and children. After slowly being eased in to parenthood, it was time to go it alone. We actually didn’t make the full leap since the Relief Society sisters brought us dinner for the first two weeks of November, which was fantastic.
After we said goodbye to my mother on the last Friday of October, we actually started the paternity week festivities by having our good friend, Dana, over. Having grown up with her since high school, it was great to catch up and see what her family has been up to lately. Anyway, she was only in town for 24 hours, so we said our hellos and goodbyes and then got the children ready for the zoo on Saturday morning.
Work sponsored a trip to the Houston Zoo during their Zoo Boo, which is held every year. I’d never heard of the event, but children dress up in the costumes and go around the zoo trick-or-treating and playing at the various booths that are set up. We made it in time for lunch and were able to catch up with a lot of friends who also happen to work with me.
After a successful outing at the zoo, we decided that we wanted to go out on our Saturday evening rather than sitting at home (which seems to be the trend these days). We ventured over to the Galleria and enjoyed our walk around the shops. It was our first outing where we used our baby carriers and it worked like a charm. Lucy and Evan both slept the whole time!
Unfortunately, as the start of the week began (Monday), we had a tough time with these two little kiddos. I remember Monday being especially challenging as they tag teamed us for hours on end. I quickly learned that holding a full-time job is a million times easier than being a stay-at-home mom.
Fortunately, after a difficult Monday, we were rewarded with a slightly better Tuesday. Since HMNS is free on Tuesday afternoons, we decided to head to the museum for our daily walk. The children behaved themselves for a while, but once they started getting rowdy, we knew we had to get the heck out of Dodge.
By midweek, I was having my doubts on how Diane was going to be able to manage parenting newborn twins by herself with me at work. So, that’s when we broke down and bought the Mamaroo. Initially, Lucy loved it and she would calm down immediately. Evan didn’t care for it so much, but it’s now growing on him.
On Thursday, we hit up Katy Mills because Lucy desperately needed some girl clothes. One thing I learned is that shopping at the mall on a Thursday afternoon is great because nobody is there except for a few moms — most of whom were sporting sweats/PJs.
Overall, paternity week was a lot of fun. I’m lucky to have been able to spend it with Diane and the children.
you guys look great! i absolutely adore that picture of the 4 of you. :)
Sounds like yall got some good QT in during your paternity week. I’m sure Diane will be great on her own, but don’t be surprised if she dumps the kids on you when you walk in the door from work. I remember doing that to Lane and just walking away. It’s for her sanity! :)
What a great update. Love those little babies of yours. Good luck getting through these early months. They’re tough. And you have two! Glad you got some use out of the Halloween outfits. Love you guys and thinking of you all the time.