Twins Blog: Boring

January 17, 2011, By Josh Katzowitz 4 comments

Josh Katzowitz

My twin babies turned four months old the other day. We celebrated by staying home and … well, doing nothing. That, of course, is what Noah and Stella usually do.

Nothing.

This stage of their lives, we’re finding, is a bit strange.

The kids are more awake these days, more alert. They make it clear that, if they’re not sleepy, they’re not interested in hanging out in their crib with no stimulation. But, at the same time, if you dangle a toy in front of them, they’re either not interested or they’re not sure what they’re supposed to do with the bait.

It doesn’t help that, even though they’re about 17 weeks old, their adjusted age, because of their premature births, is closer to eight weeks.

To be perfectly frank, they’re a bit boring. I, of course, say this with all the love in the world, because I think they’re awesome, fun and glorious. But they’re also not giving us much back either. And, man, we are working hard.

A few days ago, my family attended a going-away party for some good friends. There were, as is becoming more and more common at the shindigs we crash, quite a few babies laying around the house. There was the one-year-old boy who continuously wanted me to hold him, probably because he found it hilarious when I placed my sunglasses on his cute undersized face. There was the one-year-old girl who, while walking around the living room, spotted my daughter’s pacifier inside the car seat, strode over with all the confidence in the world and popped it into her mouth. There was the eight-month-old and his seven-month-old buddy who were playing with toys and learning about the social interaction of sharing.

My kids? One slept in her car seat, the other was content to stay in the arms of his mother and watch the babies around him play.

We’ve heard multiple times that the part we’re currently experiencing is great. But it’s really, really great when they start interacting with you, playing with toys, doing something rather than nothing.

So, what are we supposed to do with the babies at this point – when they’re old enough not to sleep all day but too young to do much of anything else?

Well, we try to get them to smile. Noah has been doing much more of this lately, and it is absolutely amazing to watch him break out one of his big, dazzling smiles. Stella also has to begun to stretch her lips, a shy grin where her tongue pops out of her toothless mouth.

We give them toys and direct their attention to the mobile above their cribs. We hold them on our laps, cuddle them in our bed. We put them on their bellies and watch them try to push themselves up on their forearms. We try to get them to roll over – Noah, in particular, has become pretty decent at this in the past week or so. We try to introduce the world around them.

We massage them to give them the sensation of touch. We sing to them so they can hear something pretty. We put them in the swing to calm them. We read to them to stimulate their brains. We put our faces close and we smile.

Sometimes, they smile back, and most of the time, that’s reward enough.

But all I’m asking for is a little entertainment here. The kids have gotten a free ride so far. It’s time for them to give back, because the rent ain’t free. Show me something or gets to stepping.

Or, you know, they can just go back to sleep. That’d be OK too.