Episode 19- Rock Stars

Captain's Log- 3:58 AM- Monday

I hurt myself sleeping again.  This time it's the elbow.  It happened last week when Catalina had a bad head cold and would not go down unless she was, literally, on top of one of us.  Treicy was quickly and unanimously voted in as the human sacrifice/mattress and I, in a futile attempt to stay awake and offer support, decided to prop my elbow up on top of a pillow and rest my head on my hand.  Naturally, I fell asleep within 30 seconds and woke up 90 minutes later with a stiff neck, shoulder and elbow.  The other 2 pains went away... the elbow pain has remained.  This is the stupidest injury ever.  I mean, I've heard of tennis elbow... but pillow elbow?  Ridiculous.  

The girls are advancing more and more everyday.  Renata has finally kicked it out of "reverse" and has begun crawling forward.  Her inspiration?  Not Mommy or Daddy or even Big Brother... nope.  It was Lola the house cat.   She is obsessed with her.  No matter what she is doing or what os going on, as soon as Lola enters the room Renata breaks out a huge smile and tracks her every move.  The cat, naturally, could not care less about her or her sister... or her brother or anyone else for that matter.  Lola is just looking for a warm, sunny spot on the tile floor to nap on.  Lola is on a schedule... Lola can't be bothered. 

"What?  The cute little brown baby likes me?  Great... give me a catnip treat and leave me alone, please."  

Another interesting development has been Catalina's complete comprehension of facial features.  When you say "Nose", she points to your nose.  When you say "Mouth", she points to your mouth.  She covers the entire spectrum; eyes, hair, cheeks, tongue and teeth.  Is that normal for a 10-month old, or is she some kind of a anatomical savant?  Is that even a thing?  Catalina is also standing up on her own a lot.  She grabs onto whatever is nearby and pulls herself up and then shuffles her feet sideways and moves laterally.  She's amazing and continues to lead the pack in all things developmental.  However, I will not declare her a genius until she manages to pull off one more feat... the most important feat of all.

SLEEP... THROUGH... THE... NIGHT.

Then, and only then, will these girls achieve the legendary status that they deserve.  They're not quite there yet, but rest assured that as soon as they do... you'll be the first to know.

Captain's Log- 3:11 AM- Wednesday

An interesting thing has developed in the last 10 months since we received the girls.  And it is something that we anticipated and actually looked forward to.  But now that it is here... I must admit it feels a bit stranger than I thought it would.  Treicy and I and Esteban as well, to a certain extent, has ceased to exist.  I mean this literally.  We no longer occupy space in the new universe that is... RenCat.  They are rock stars... they are all-powerful.  They are omnipotent, omnipresent and a force to be reckoned with.  They are glorious.  They never disappoint.  Time and time again they have been placed in enormous social situations where they are surrounded by family and they are cute and bubbly and smiling and perfect babies every single time.  Not one tantrum... not a single cranky day.  All rainbows and gumdrops, all the time.  The entire family is completely mesmerized by them.  They can't get enough.  Even the most hardened macho alpha male type is reduced to a pile of giggles and baby voices.  I saw a video where my father-in-law in Puerto Rico is dancing to the song: "Itsy Bitsy Spider" for them just so they'll smile.  He even used Jazz Hands!  Are you kidding me?  This is a man who leaves bruises on me every time he hugs me.  This is a man who climbed telephone poles for a living.  This is a man who carries a machete.  Treicy couldn't believe it.  She said it's been a long time since she's seen her father act silly like this.  Not since they were little kids.  

When I stop and think about it, maybe that's Renata and Catlina's mission in life.  To remind everyone of their better selves.  To remind everyone that they are still allowed to make goofy faces and act silly, if even for a little while.  But the point still remains that while the girls are causing all of this lovey-dovey good will and joy amongst the masses... Treicy and I now go completely under the radar.  Nobody notices what we are wearing... nobody is aware if one of us is not there... No one realizes it when we sneak away for a quick cat nap in the middle of the party.  It's amazing.  Now we realize that this state of grace will end as soon as the girls go from adorable little babies to moody pre-teens so we are taking full advantage of the situation and enjoying the invisibility.  Because we both know that when they become teenagers... we're going to wish we could be invisible.