my goofballs

Well with the exception of Jacob...He's not been in too many photos lately :(

This is Katy wearing Aaron's beanie...she loves this thing silly boy
Aaron playing peek a boo with Landen
sweet girls...Mady left Katy right

I painted their toes...they loved it! Katy kept saying pretty pretty. And when I was done she went and grabbed all her necklaces and purse, and of course the beanie to complete the look.

Did the Groundhog see his shadow or not???

I must say that I never really pay attention to that groundhog's day stuff of whether or not we will have a delay in spring's arrival...but now that it's the first week in april and I've seen hide nor hair of spring's arrival, I'm just wonderin'! I can't take much more of this cooped up in the house because it's raining, hailing, or snowing stuff for much longer!

There I said my peace...just praying for a little sunshine! For my kids sake...and my sanity!

catching up with photos

Mady Easter morning (notice she's not wearing anything?) And Katelyn
Boys dying their eggs

Aaron climbed into Landen's pack n play with him to snuggle
A few from our snow day back in early Feb

The girls got their first haircuts a few weeks ago. I had her cut them into cute little bobs...Mady
Here's a good sideview of Katy

There just weren't that many photos to include from the past 2 months. I haven't taken nearly as many as I normally do. Easter's photo shoot ended up being a bust, when I noticed both my camera batteries were dead...way to prepare eh? So this is all for now. But Grandma I promise to be a better blogger!!!

what a bad bad

BAD blogger I am! You know I really have no excuse either...well besides the fact that Katy & Mady have hit the terrible 2's in a major way! I think I'm getting too old for the terrible 2's!!! Having 2 at once is frustrating, comical, frustrating, fun, and oh did I say frustrating?! A typical day in the wake of their ploys includes...picking up their dumped baskets of toys a bazillion times. Changing Madelyn's sheets everyday because she will NOT keep her diaper on, and will pee or poop and then it gets all over her bed. Feeding these 2 teeny tiny things all through out the day (they are always hungry or thirsty). Each girl gets at least 2 time outs in the corner per day for hitting, pushing or throwing things at one another. Which brings me to their brawling ways. I think these 2 got more spice than sugar...they are rough ones! They also enjoy pulling everything out of closests, drawers, and cabinets that are not under baby lockdown. Playing in the toilet has been a big hit, as is getting into the garbage, and throwing food from their highchairs. Udressing themselves all day long (keeping clothes on them is an endless battle). And it always amazes me that even though we have 2 of pretty much everything for them, they still fight over toys. All day long! Between the girls and Aaron I am on my toes all day long. And I've also been caring for 2 of Danielle's boys 2 days a week, and also my nephew Landen 2 days a week. So basically life is BUSY with many many children...and my poor poor house is never clean! I don't think I've even taken any photos of my kids all month! I plan on setting up my tripod for a family portrait on Easter Sunday after church. Hope to get at least one good shot of all of us together, since I don't think we've ever had one. Easter is one of my favorite days for taking lots of photos. I am hoping for sunshine for an outside egg hunt, and portrait session.

If I don't post again before this weekend...I hope everyone have a happy Good Friday, and a wonderful Easter!
Blessings!!!

where were we?

I am so behind on blogging! We had some major internet issues that have finally been resolved by having a tech come out. But now there seems to be so much I need to blog about...and honestly I just don't have the time. So I'm just going to write a bit of a quick update to get all caught up. Probably a bit in a list style format.

The girls are adding more and more to their vocabulary. Katelyn's favorite thing to say is "Mady NO NO Mady!" She's so darned bossy! Mady's favorite thing to say is "Jacob" she actually goes around screaming it at some point everyday.

We've all been sick over the past 2 weeks. Started with Jacob having strep and the stomach flu all at once! It was the sickest that kid has ever been. Then Aaron got the stomach bug, then Mady, and so on until we all ended up having it. Thank God it seems to be over finally! Now it's time to bleach and lysol the heck out of this house!

Katelyn is obsessed with shoes and purses. At the tender age of 2, I can only imagine how much worse it'll be when she's a teenager!

Madelyn is baby Landen's second mommy. Every time he comes over, she NEVER leaves his side. She shares her blankets and binkies and dollies, and everything else she loves with him. She even tries to pick him up! Which is hillarious since he weighs only about 6 lbs less than she does! But she's got the nurturing instinct!

Late last month we got some really good snow fall...which is rare around here. I have some really lovely pictures of all the kids enjoying a snow day that I promise I will share soon!

I have been devouring books lately...reading 3-4 in a week! I forgot over the years how much I LOVE to read. Now I just make time for it...instead of watching tv I read.

Aaron is obsessed with Johnny Cash and Elvis. I've said it before, he's a unique one!

Jacob has been doing very well with his reading...getting new glasses helped. He's flying through his reading lab assignments. We are so proud of him...he's been working hard all year! Everytime he passes to the next level, I take him to the bookstore so he can buy a new book. It's a great reward system that he very much looks forward to.

I joined a gym about 2 weeks ago! Man I didn't realize how out of shape I was until I tried a spinning class with Danielle. She is a machine I tell ya! Cause after an hour of that I seriously thought I would die!!! But she's a great motivator, it's nice to go to the gym with your "in extremely good shape" best friend...it's kind of like having your own personal trainer!!!

The new park opened down the street from our house FINALLY! The kids have been loving walking down there on nice days and playing.

I'm flying out to Sacramento tomorrow for a few days to see my Grandma. We just found out that she has stage 4 lung and brain cancer. I wanted to be able to spend some time with her before things get really bad. My Dad and my Brother are also flying there with me. I'm looking forward to going back there and being in her house and seeing the city I grew up in. It's been a very long time...too long.

Well I think that about sums it up! Now I must go put 2 little princesses down for a nap, clean my house, and start packing for my trip! I promise to post a TON of photos when I come back to make up for a month of no blogging!
PEACE!!!

eye doctor

The girls had their 6 month check up yesterday with their pediatric opthamologist. This is the first time that he didn't need to dialate their eyes...and what a great visit it was because of that! It made for a much shorter visit, and no holding screaming babies down to get the drops into their eyes. And if I haven't mentioned it before, it is much more torturous for me, because I have a huge eye phobia! It's a miracle I can get through my own eye exams, let alone their's!

So we got pretty good news! Mady's eyes have always been great and they are staying that way...so YAY! And Katy's eyes seem to be holding their own, and not getting any worse. She has a mild case of strabismus and is farsighted, but the issues have not progressed, so that means no glasses for her right now. I was so excited to hear that! We were pretty certain in august at her last appt. that glasses wer inevitable. So this is great news! The visit was our best yet. It's always so nice coming out of one of their Dr. appts with such great news. And it seems to be happening more and more often! Dare I say that they are finally overcoming many of their preemie obstacles?! A happy day indeed!

addressing a few things

Just wanted to answer a few questions that have popped up a few times.

How do I tell the girls apart? Well lots of people ask how I can tell them apart, and honestly it's not hard for me. To me they actually look very different. There are a few physical differences that are easy to detect...Madelyn has 2 birthmarks, Katelyn is bigger in height and weight (and it is noticeable), Katelyn's voice is loud and strong, while Madelyn is raspy, Katelyn's eyes go cross often, Katelyn's face is longer while Madelyn's is a bit rounder. Most of our close friends and family can detect at least one difference that helps them to tell who's who. But for me I have never mixed them up...though that was a huge fear of mine throughout my pregnancy! Daddy on the other hand does mix them up from time to time, and our boys do it too!!!

Are you a professional photographer? What a great compliment! But no I am not. I have had a love of photography for many years and know a bit beyond the basics. I also have a really great camera, and know how to use it. (it's a canon Drebel) But when all else fails I use picasa to freshen up my really bad photos. It's a great program that is free and very user friendly.

How long did the girls stay in the hospital? This question has come up a few times, and I haven't talked much about their NICU stay on the blog. The girls were born at 27.5 weeks. So that's 12.5 weeks too early! Katelyn was in the NICU for about 10.5 weeks, and Madelyn came home on their due date 12.5 weeks after they were born. Both had a rough first few weeks, with being on and off the vent. Mady ended up having a PDA ligation, which is what caused the damage to her vocal cord. Katelyn had no equipment or feeding tubes when she came home. Madelyn had O2, an apnea monitor, and a feeding tube. All of which she was done within 3 months of coming home!

What is Madelyn's voice like? Her voice is getting stronger and stronger as she gets older, and more mobile. She sounds raspy when she talks, but her voice is getting clearer. She still has a weak cry, but she can definitely be heard. She's come a long way! We work with a therapist twice a month, and Katelyn is also a huge contributor to her progress.

How are the girls appetites? They have pretty typical toddler appetites actually! Madelyn is a bit more picky than Katelyn is. And she eats less of her portions. But I'd say they are doing pretty darn good, and will try just about anything offered to them now. Mady's texture issues aren't so much of an issue anymore, so they both eat pretty much anything now.

I think that about covers it...but if you have a question go ahead and leave a comment so I can answer it.

Also I'd love to give a personal message to Shannon and Angie...I am so happy to have contact with you girls! I still remember like it was yesterday how we all rooted each other on while being hospitalized. It was amazing to have you guys going through it right along with me...that message board was my rock for many many agonizing weeks. I'm so glad we all got our happy ending, and look at all 6 of our kiddos now!!! Such miracles! All going through the terrible 2's together. I still go back from time to time and look at our "hospitalized girls" posts. It was something else what we went through, and no one else understood it like you guys! So glad that we can connect through blogging!

Back ON

After about a week of no internet, I am so happy to be back in my comfy cyber-world! I don't spend huge amounts of time online or anything, but going without it was like taking away a drug from an addict! haha! Well maybe not quite that bad, but I did miss it! It's been fun to get caught up on emails and all the blogs I read so faithfully. Good times!

And I've got some well check visits to report from yesterday's appointments. We were a little late with the girl's 2 year check ups (should've been back in Nov), but oh well it was nice to take a little break from our pediatrician's office. Of course the break may have not done Madelyn any good, because as soon as we walked into the door of the office she started into hysterics. She warmed a tad when Dr. F came in and started his exams. Of course only to start back in again when it was time for shots. Doc loved seeing them so aware of their surroundings on this visit...so if there is any good in a hysterical 2 year old, I guess that would be it. Katelyn was so brave and only cried during shots. She sat patiently while Dr. F did his exam, and as always asked me about a billion questions. She was very intrigued with the Doc's bubbles that he wears around his neck. It was not quite so traumatic for her like it was for her sis.

And for sizes...

Katelyn 20lbs 8oz 31.5" tall
Madelyn 19lbs 30.5" tall

I think the best part about the visit was that Dr. F did a little chart cleaning session, and cleared out 4 meds that the girls aren't taking any more! He also went over a lot of our previous concerns that they have now grown out of, or have thrived past. It was exciting to revisit those things, and remember how far they've really come. And so wonderful to realize how awesome they are doing! Basically gross motor wise they are pretty typical 2 year olds! Both girls have speech and cognitive delays, with Madelyn's being more on the moderate side. The best part though is that those things can be worked through even if they are moderate to severe. I just loved leaving there yesterday with no huge concerns or worries! For once we didn't talk about anything but positive things and really focused on what they ARE doing, as opposed to what they are NOT doing. It was nice to just accept where they are right now in the moment. This is HUGE for me! I'm telling ya good stuff !

My two princesses

Aaron trying to get Mady's feet (at least I think that's Mady)

Katelyn with her problem eye