One more thing

I finally found what we are going to give the babies for their birthday. I've been looking for something special, and not toys because they'll get lots from other people, and for Christmas. I found these:

http://www.taggies.com/cgi-bin/estore/show_entry?index=3

I think they'll be a hit, since neither girls have a "special" blankie, and they are both at that stage where they form attatchments to objects. For Jacob it was his blankies, and Aaron it was his binky. Katy & Mady both love to snuggle a blanket, so I'm really excited about these! And I found a shop in Corvallis that carries them so I don't have to order them. They also have plush toys, and lots of other neat stuff so I'm going to pick up a bunch of different things for Christmas too!

mish mash of stuff

Madelyn, you can't tell but she was doing her "army" crawling. Playing the guitar he got for his birthday from Mommy & Daddy
Katelyn
3 years old!
girl talk
My new favorite photo

I have been a bad blogger lately. I have no excuse really, it's been the same amount of busy around here. I guess it's just a crazy month, and with it getting dark out at an obscenely early hour now, I feel out of energy a lot earlier. Hopefully I'll get used to the season change soon!

Anyway...Aaron's birthday party was very fun. We just had family and my best friend Danielle, and her kiddos. It was intimate, and so not stressful. He loved having a party all about him. This was actually the first time he's ever had a birthday party. His favorite part was everyone singing happy birthday. He happily sang along to himself, and knew to blow the candles out. Everyone got him such nice gifts. He's already talking about next year's birthday!

The girls are doing great lately. Both girls are really starting to eat solids well. Mady is starting to look a little filled out. I don't have a weight on them yet, but we have an appt next week. I'm hoping to see a big gain from her. She's still not big on the bottle, she does o.k. as long as she's REALLY hungry.

Mady has been doing well in her therapies. She has 4 therapists working with her, so she's got someone at least once a week. I think it's really helping her meet some milestones that she was way behind on just a month ago. I mean just about a month to 6 weeks ago she could barely roll over both ways. Now she's doing that, comando crawling, and sitting. She still is pretty wobbley, and leans way forward, but she's getting so strong! Her therapists have noticed that Mady is very stimulus sensitive. She does not like having her hands touch at all (which makes the signing we are trying to teach her very difficult), and she shakes her head a lot. Her PT wants us to discourage the headshaking, but I'm not sure about it. She thinks she does it to cope with her surroundings when she's overwhelmed. She gave me some ideas to get her to stop doing it, but I don't think it's hurting her, so I'm really not worried about it. I will try to distract her and soothe her, but that's it. We've also been working on balance on an excersise ball at mighty oaks. She does not like it one bit! She stiffens up while on the ball, and while they are working with her in other ways. She doesn't like the way they push her, and make her work. After an hour there, she is always worn out, and will fall asleep on the way home. Obviously her hard work is paying off though, so we will keep pushing her.

Katelyn started sleeping through the night, and did so for over a week. Then the last 2 nights she's woke up for food. She may be hitting a growth spurt, because she's been eating a lot during the day as well. Katy has been so playful, and fun lately. She loves to sign "more" by clapping her hands after a bite. I don't know if she's actually picking up on the sign or if she just likes clapping her hands. But she claps at everything, so it could be both. She's still a drama queen, and loves being held, and lots of attention. But she's also getting a bit more independant. Katelyn started pulling herself up to her knees a couple weeks ago, and on Monday she pulled herself all the way up to STAND!!! I was sitting chatting with Leslie, (Mady's OT) when I just looked over at her and she was standing at the large toy basket I have in the living room. She can't figure out how to get back down, and since she's not quite balanced enough yet, she falls quickly. I'm hoping to catch a picture of her standing soon. I just can't believe how big she's getting! We are going to be having Katy's eyes checked again soon. She's been crossing her left eye a lot, and it doesn't track with her right eye the same. Ian and I have noticed it, but when 2 of Mady's therapists pointed it out when they were here this week, we took it more seriously. So hopefully we can get with someone local, and not have to drive to Portland to see her eye doc there. He's always booked for like 4 months or more. Last time her eyes were checked was August I believe, and she had some moderate farsightedness. But they said as far as her eyes crossing, and working together she seemed fine. So this is a surprise to see her have eye issues.

I'm excited about their birthday party this weekend. We are just having a small party at home. I was wanting to plan a big bash for them, but with it being cold and flu season I dedided that wasn't in their best interest. I can't believe how quickly this year has gone by. I think partly because they've only been home with us for 9 months and not the full year. All those feelings, and emotions during the "rollercoaster" we were on are so fresh still. It's been such a crazy year filled with so many highs and lows. I will post more about their birth and experiences later when I have all my thoughts together.

That's all I've got for now...Peace!

HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY AARON

Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear Aaron
Happy birthday to you!!!

Can't believe my little Bug-A-Boo is 3 years old! I love the little dude he's becoming. And that he's finally become a mama's boy. He's been a challenge to raise, but I love every minute of it! He's my wild child, my rock & roller, the one who makes me want to pull my hair out, and scoop him up in my arms and hold him there forever all at the same time. So much personality, so much energy. I see a lot of passion in him. Lots of love, and so much potential to become someone REALLY GREAT! He's got an old soul in him. I see so much of me in his eyes.

Love you baby! Happy birthday.

VOTE

It's election day...Do you know where your ballot is? I'm not a very political person, but this election day feels different. Lots at stake, so just remember to take time out and GO VOTE! Here in Oregon it's through the mail, so don't forget to drop off your ballot today if it hasn't been mailed.

November = "The month of Hall's"

Love these new photos of the girls. They are so sweet, and really interacting with one another. I really love the stage they're in right now. They're starting to explore, and have become interested in everything around them. They love trying to imitate sounds, and when we play patty cake. They play with their toys and look for things to play with. They've also started becoming very interested in what the other has. Mady always seems to want whatever Katy has, and will take it from her. She's always taking her binky, even if she already has one of her own, she thinks Katy's looks better.

If you didn't notice in one of the photos above, Madelyn is starting to sit unsupported! She leans forward to help support herself and keep balanced. But she's getting really good at not flopping over. Some other HUGE news, is that Mady has started CRAWLING!!! I am so amazed at her progress. She crawls by pulling herself with her arms and pushing herself off with her feet. It's so cool to watch her go, and so awesome that she's figured out how to keep up with her sis! I know that she's determined to keep up with Katy and THAT is her motivation.

Feedings are going a bit better too. She still takes the same amount of formula, but her reflux is much better controlled since upping her dose of prevacid, and adding reglan. I really think that is one of the reasons why we've seen her make such a huge amount of progress with her motor skills too. Now that she's not in pain, I think she can make progress. She also eats 1 full container of stage 1 baby food per day, and we are trying to increase that to 2 containers to add calories to her diet. I think we'll add some solids to our morning feeding. She's still more petite than Katelyn, and the weight difference is noticeable, but she's started filling out a bit, and doesn't look so sickly to me anymore.

In Katelyn news, she has started sleeping through the night at least a couple times per week. I'm so ready for that! Katy is also cutting her first tooth. It poked it's way through her gum last weekend. She's been tolerating it pretty well, and just gets crabby at night, and off and on through the day I can tell it's bothering her. She's also starting to practice pulling herself up, and she can get up to her knees.

We are now in the countdown for our 5 November birthdays. Aaron's is the 7th, and we are celebrating this sunday. Then they baby's 1st birthday is on the 18th. Jacob's 7th is the 26th, and Ian's is the 29th!!! They should rename November "The month of Hall's". I think God was playing a trick on me to give us all of our children in Novemeber. It's just weird! So it's going to be a pretty crazy month! Acutally a pretty crazy couple of months since it's also Thanksgiving this month, and then all the Christmas festivities next month! INSANE!

I didn't plan it this way, but Katelyn is on the right side of all the photos above!

Peace!