Back up and running....

Hello friends, family and all my followers from so long ago. Hopefully you haven't given up on us although I have had several emails asking if we were ok and what happened. Basically when blogspot made their google login change switch my blog was lost in the mix, but I have finally figured out what the problem was and we are back! A lot has happened since my last entry August 3rd. I'll work on catching you up on my boys who are now 18 months old! Wow where has the time gone? I feel a little sad that I have missed out on recording the last 6 months of their lives! My blog was not only a way to keep up with friends and family, but also an electronic baby book of memories!

Love the job, but miss some of the old one!

I haven’t updated in forever, but who has time for that anymore? Not me! Life has been like a rollercoaster lately. Its like every time we make it up one hill and start going down, we end up climbing another and sometimes we are thrown in loops or at least that’s how I feel. I started “work” on Monday. It’s not really work, but it is a bunch of workshops this week and then staff development for the next two weeks. I love being at the school and I work with a really wonderful bunch of people. I am really excited about school starting and just thinking about all the fun things I will be doing in my classroom this year makes me smile. I didn’t think being away from the boys would be all that bad and a big part of me was looking forward to going back to work just so I would be out of the house. However, it is starting to take its toll on me.
Thank God the boys are at home with my wonderful mother so I know they are in a safe and loving environment and when I am away I don’t worry about them. It’s just hard being away all day and coming in around 4 or 5 when it’s cram time for dinner, bed and planning for the next day. Not to mention it’s the worst time of day to be around the boys. After about 4:30 you can count on fussy babies because they start to get hungry and it’s too late in the afternoon for a nap, which has made dinner time lately a complete battle.

It’s 6:45 and they are in bed which means if it’s anything like the last few night, Jason will be back up by 10. It’s either let them sleep now or listen to the scream and try and keep them up. It’s frustrating because the time I am getting to spend with them is not the least bit enjoyable and it makes me sad because I feel like I miss out and all the sweet and cute things they do. Today when I came in I told myself I am not doing school stuff or anything but playing with them. As it turned out they fussed and fussed and sat at the door crying. They love being outside so I ended up taking them for a walk (and nearly melted) and then headed back when they got fussy again. By that time it was dinner time and they were so sleepy at this point (its only 6pm) that they don’t eat but 5 or 6 bites and then pitch a fit again. Right now I want to scream. I just want to play and love on them and all they want to do is cry cry cry!

I am sure this is typical behavior for both them and me, and I am sure with time we will all adjust. On the bright side of everything I don’t work weekends and I have enjoyed the late night wake-ups despite me not sleeping much, because then they are rested and are no longer monsters. I just want my sweet baby boys!

Ok off that rant…I don’t have any new pictures. We are camera-less. I was using my Dad’s but the battery finally gave out and I will probably have to wait until my birthday to buy a new one. I am pretty sure moisture got in ours while camping a few weeks ago. It’s sad because every month I have a file of picture and in 13 months there maybe 15 or 20 pictures…oh well. Alright well I am off to shower, iron clothes for Ryan tomorrow, and hopefully go to bed early after I work on a presentation for a bit. Ho hum…thrill thrill!

And on a side note, a huge thank you to my Mom whose last day at work was last Friday. The boys couldn’t be in any better hands and if they didn’t have you, I would be a complete basket-case!

Our CRAZY World

Life as of lately has been a little busy which explains my lack of posting. The boys are a few days shy of being 13 months old. I can’t even tell you where time has gone since their birthday. I feel like this month has flown by and next week I start training, workshops and two week of in service full time. I have been trying to spend time at the school to get things ready so hopefully it makes things a little less stressful. I wouldn’t trade my little monsters for anything, but they don’t make life easy. My mom has been helping out with keeping them mostly, as well as my grandparents and Ryan’s mom a few days here and there over the last month. Yesterday my sister went up to the school with me too and we got quite a bit done.

As for the monsters, they are ok. They have both been teething like crazy. Jason has nearly chewed off the railing on his crib. He is now at 8 teeth with more white spots showing on top and bottom. Reece I think has 5 now. It seems like every day a new one pops up between the two of them. Reece’s mouth is so tiny that you don’t usually see his teeth, unlike Jason.

Four up top, 3 fully in on bottom with one hiding

(Yes, my child has food on his shirt and looks dirty...welcome to the world of twin boys!)

With teething also comes screaming, nasty diapers and with nasty sour diapers comes diaper rash. We have gone through more Destin, Butt Paste, Dr. Smiths & AD cream in the last two weeks than we have in the last year! It's pretty awful, but this too shall pass. Luckily, they are mostly all smiles minus a few daily break downs. The other day Aunt Laurie (Lala) came over with her usual goodies and one of which included a swimming pool for the boys. Of course my little water bugs loved it. Unfortunately our outside activities take place in the evenings when its a little cooler out and after dinner when the are already an awful mess. So with that being said 9 out of 10 times I just take all of their clothes off and let them be "free". I took a billion pictures, but Ryan would kill me if their "deuter" was posted all over the internet. I suppose it is rather tacky haha.

How cute is this minus breakfast on his shirt?

I love my little goofy smiles!

Now there's the Jason that I know and love...

And of course my sweet Reece...always happy!

A Day With DADDY :)

Let’s just start this with I am not knocking Ryan’s babysitting skills, but I am glad he didn’t tell wheat all went on until I got home. This morning my sister and I had planned on going back to school shopping for me since I have maybe two outfits that are work acceptable. I got up at 7 to go shopping and left by 8:30. When I left Ryan and the boys were asleep and I left all instructions for Ryan for feeding while I was gone. My phone has been working in and out (but will be fixed soon because my warranty is good for another 9 days or so I was told).


Anyways back to my story…so when I left all was ok. I checked in and all I got out of the phone conversation was poop and he washed them off with the water hose. That was a little after 10. I thought, ok well at whatever happened I am sure is better now and at least they are cleaned up.
We got home around 3:15 and after being home for about 30 minutes I found the popp filled diapers and clothes in the garage…the same night time diapers that they slept in all night which means they had them on still at 10 this morning. LOL
So I thought that was the worst of it. As we are sitting on the couch Ryan goes “Well we almost had a really bad accident”. I said “what do you mean”. “Well I went to the bathroom and I thought I locked the gate. When I came back the gate was open and Jason was down here playing but I couldn’t find Reece.” I just sat there for a second as he paused and then he said “I heard a thumping noise and he was upstairs hitting a bottle up against the wall.” YES, he climbed the stairs and thank God he didn’t fall. I would imagine for a first time stair crawler it would take him a bit of time which means Ryan must have fallen in the toilet for them to beat down the gate and for Reece to climb upstairs.
So then I watched him crawl around for a while and sure enough he took right off the the staircase and headed up about 5 stairs with me behind him. Needless to say I now have the stairs double gated. What next.
It could have very easily of happened to me, which is why I started this with I am not knocking. As for the poopy explosion…you get what you ask for and by not changing their diapers you can expect an explosion. This is why God made sure it took a man AND a woman to have children, but at least I did get some clothes!

Over The Weekend...

I am up late and can't sleep for whatever reason...probably due to the fact that when I am in bed a billion different thought run through my head about everything that needs to be done. If I was smart I would be cleaning or working on things that need to be done now but I am exhausted...but can't sleep because the voice in my head won't turn off. Anyways this weekend was pretty relaxed. My parents had gone out of town camping again so my sister spent a lot of time over at our house which was nice. She and I rarely get time to just hang out without a bunch of other family around too. On Friday night we worked on painting some of my decorations for my classroom and then continued during the boys morning nap Saturday. When Ryan got home he wanted to go to Bass Pro Shop and offered to take both of the boys. WOW. As much as I wanted to say yes please, take them! I knew I couldn't. I know what its like to be out alone with them and furthermore how easily his patience can be tested so we compromised on him just taking Jason while I kept Reece. I honestly don't think he wanted both of them, I just think he knew that without taking them or at least offering I would not be happy with the fact that he was going to be gone the rest of the day. As it turned out it went great. My sister and I decided to go shop for Ryan some clothes for his new job. He starts in the morning at Bridgeway. He got an entry level position and I think it will be a nice change for him. Before we started shopping my sister treated me to her new love for sushi and now its my new love too. YUM. After shopping we stopped by Dollar Tree my new frequent shopping place for teacher stuff and then went to Tutti Frutti where Reece found his new love for frozen yogurt. By far a really good day...and we got Ryan a lot of stuff for a really great price! I just love TJ Max and Ross and love shopping for men because they are so easy!

Today was a little slow to start, but after my parents got home I went over there and wore the boys out with them. We did a lot of swimming and playing and by 6 they were beat tired. I brought them in and put them in the playroom while I was unloading things and when I came back in the house I couldn't hear them. They were both nearly asleep on the floor in the playroom. Poor boys...so they went to bed early tonight which means they will be up early too I am sure.

We have ECI in the morning. I really want to call the OT and discontinue services. I don't feel like Reece needs it as much as he once did when we were worried about him. Now its just a pain to get them dressed, feed and the house cleaned for her to come out and for us to sit and play and do things that I do with the boys all the time anyways. Most of the time the OT just watches him and tells me the same thing from the month before. I feel bad though saying your not needed and this isn't really helping. The one thing I have learned about Reece is he needs his own time and a lot of opportunities to explore and try things over and over. Sooner or later he will watch on and typically its about 4-6 weeks after Jason does it. Its so wild that they have had that gap between them for so long. Sometimes I wonder if they are really even true twins. Some things will never be understood I suppose.

For now I am going to go pick up the kitchen and go check on my boys. Its funny how when I am up alone sometimes I wish that just one one the boys would be awake and just let me hold them on the couch...which never happens. Oh and now when Jason doesn't want to do something or doesn't want what you feed him he shakes his head no and its obvious he is saying no...too cute but at the same time not the greatest thing in the world :) Kids, got to love them!

How do they figure this stuff out?

WOW ok so I just ran to use the bathroom for a few minutes and came back to silence. I thought oh dear what have they gotten into. And I found them like this...

Jason had climbed into the walker...notice his feet didn't make it in. So I took them off of it and\ watched what they did assuming they climbed on the bean bags and this is what I saw next...

(that would be juice on his bottom...no worries)

So now I thought ok fine if your going to climb on it to play with the toys I will unfold it and put it on the floor so you can't get in it.

WRONG AGAIN MOM! They proved me wrong again. Reece had climbed in and even got a leg in the whole...can you see his foot under it? So I put Reece in alone and then...

Had the door been open Jason would have pushed him right out...

Its a man house and I just live in it...

Until recently I never thought anything about being in a houseful of boys, but WOW it is catching up with me. There's three things about boys that I have recently experienced and don't get me wrong I love all 3 of them dearly, but there is truly such a thing as "a mans world and a woman’s world".


Where to begin? Let's start with heir appetite. Many nights I will make an entire 9x13 casserole for just Ryan and I and by bedtime it is gone. REALLY? The other day I made a vegetable pasta and broccoli and asparagus and Ryan asks "are we on a diet?" as we sit down to eat. He didn't mean it in a rude way, but truly was curious where's the meat this is chick food, while I gobbled it up! Now I am starting to see that same little trend in my little boys too. They are like bottomless pits. Last night we ate dinner in the living room as opposed to the dinning room because the boys ate early because they were yet again hungry before our dinner was ready. I knew there was no point in putting them in the highchairs while we ate because it would only result in unhappiness. So my monsters now have a new name. As I was eating they were flocking me at my feet. Reece was grunting which I believe was code for "FEED ME MOMMA" and Jason was like a monkey crawling into my lap trying to grab my bowl. At THEIR dinner time I made a sweet potato and cut it up thinking half for dinner tonight and half for lunch tomorrow with a jar of green bean baby food. Fat chance, the little monsters ate all of the potato and the beans. So while I was trying to enjoy my dinner I shoveled a jar of peas and a jar of mixed vegetables in their mouth and laid out a mum-mum cracker for them each just so I could eat.
This morning was the same situation. We got u at 9. Jason had an 8oz bottle of milk at 5:30 and Reece had one at about 8:45 consisting of 6 oz. I thought of I will make them rice cereal with apples and myself two waffles. As it turned out they ate all of the cereal and were still hungry so I gave them one of my waffles, they ate the other 1/2 of apple baby food that wasn't used in the cereal, abut 15 or 20 of the graduates puffs each and 3/4'2 of a banana. REALLY? They out ate me...
My next "man world complaint" is the mess they leave behind. I am not a neat freak by any means, but order and straightening up is always nice. If I were to clean the kitchen, the dishes would go in the dishwasher after a rinse, all the food would be put away, and I would gather the dishes from the dinning room or living room and would start the dishwasher if it was full and then clean off the counters. Pretty routine...Last night Ryan said he would do the kitchen after I went to bed. This morning when I made the bottle at 5:30 I saw just how clean it was. At 6:40 when he came in to kiss goodbye he said "what are you going today?" and I responded with "clean" and he said "there isn't much to do I cleaned the kitchen" and he did mean well. Here's where I laugh because man and woman clean differently. Only the dishes that were in the sick made it into the dishwasher. (The dishes on the counter were still there and those in the living room) The dishwasher was still open and nearly full, counters still had all the food on them from dinner. My boys are still too young to clean up after themselves, but from the times I have spent around little girls, boys are much different. Mine love to get into everything that’s messy. As I was watching them play the night before last in their sand and water table it really made me laugh and think about all of the messes that will come in the near future. Boys live for messes. Jason was getting water into the sand area of the table and literally had mud from head to toe and he was splashing it with his hands.
It's just so funny to me...well I am off to give this house a woman’s touch. Wish me luck...oh and don't worry I have no intentions of trying to balace the number of boys vs girls in this house. I would rather not take my chances haha. I love the three I have now and one (possibly two more) would be one or two many more!

Camping For The Fourth!

Over the weekend we went camping for the first time with the boys. My parents have an RV and the setup worked perfect. In the back is a storage area that air conditioned for hauling my Dads motorcycle. As it turned out the boys had their own little area in the back with toys and their pack-n-plays. We camped at Shady Creek outside of Jasper. The campsite was really nice. We next to the water, around the corner from the boat ramp and had the playground in our "backyard". The boys enjoyed being outdoors and had a great time swimming and exploring. We took their baby swim pool and set it up in the shade. They loved crawling in and out of the water. We got rain everyday, but I would rather a few showers here and there as opposed to extreme heat! Friday night we had brisket for dinner and then cooked ribs on Saturday that we ate on again Sunday. Thats the best part about camping...THE FOOD! Ryan and my Dad did some fishing while we were there. They caught several bass and Ryan also caught an alligator. The water was loaded with them! The one Ryan caught he said was about 3 or 4 feet long. We told him had the boys been a little older that would have been one of those "Dad Memories". All in all we had a great time rain or shine! Oh and Jason really likes ribs!

Reece sitting in the big chair!

Papa & Reece

Jason eating ribs!

Mommy & Reece

Boys playing with PaPa in the window.

The boys watching at the boat dock.

Daddy & the boys

Aunt Ashie taking the boys for a ride!

Its been exciting...

Well the boys have been one now for just a little over 24 hours. Yesterday on their actual birthday my Mom and I took them to Toys R Us (no we didn't add anymore toys to the collection but did get a few needed things)...My Great Grandmother use to always take us to Toys R Us on our birthday and would let us spend $100 on whatever we wanted. Mom wants to carry on the tradition in the future. After Toys R Us we went to SuperSalad. I figured it would be this great deal because the boys could eat a variety of stuff and have a little ice cream when they were done. As it turned out they weren't too hungry.

After we ate we went to Sam's to get stuff for this weekends camping trip. I stayed in the car with the sleeping babies while Mom ran in. While waiting in the car an ambulance pulled up...turned out a lady passed out in the bathroom. On our way to Target we were talking about how scary it would be to be in a store alone and to pass out. Our next stop was Target. I ran in to get a few things for our chili dog cook out (which turned out to be hot dogs in the oven due to the rain). Anyways while I was inside I dropped a can on chili on my big toe right on the joint. It hurt so bad. As I walking up to the front of the store limping, I could feel my body getting weak and a lady asked "are you ok?" Next thing I knew I was on the ground and a crowd of people were around me asking if anyone was with me and I said my Mom. Luckily the Target workers had enough sense to look in my cell phone and dial her number. Before my Mom got into the store with the boys I had stood up to get in a chair and fell right back over again. Yes, I passed out twice. So that was my excitement for the day. Apparently I don't tolerate pain or anxiety well. That evening I had invited my family and Ryan's mom over for dinner for the boys birthday. We had hoped to grill and let the boys play outside and sit on the porch but the weather didn't turn out. Plus, my Dad ended up having to work late and my sister had a deadline to meet and also didn't get home till late. Oh well...the boys had a long day and crashed pretty early.

Today I took them to their one year check-up. My Mom went with me and thank goodness she did because this time they knew they didn't want to be at the doctors office. They screamed bloody murder. It was awful. Jason went first and started screaming and then Reece who hadn't even had a shot yet started crying because Jason was crying. They were so terrified. Reece is up now and I just gave him some meds. He feels like he might have a low grade fever and is a little fussy, but seems content watching ShushieBye. We are about to head off to bed though. We have plans to go camping this weekend...please let the rain go away!

Here are the boys on their birthday...

(Always clapping)

ONE YEAR OLD!!!

I found this poem a few weeks ago while scrapbooking and knew right away that it fit my kiddos perfectly.

I thought I would share it with you all.

Birthday Blessings

Instead of counting candles,

Or tallying the years,

Contemplate your blessings now,

As your birthday nears.

Consider special people

Who love you, and who care,

And others who’ve enriched your life

Just by being there.

Think about the memories

Passing years can never mar,

Experiences great and small

That have made you who you are.

Another year is a happy gift,

So cut your cake, and say,

"Instead of counting birthdays,

I count blessings every day!"

By Joanna Fuchs

This poem speaks so much truth. Yes, turning one is a big event and a big day, but we have so many more blessings to count than we do candles. Over the past year we have been through many ups and downs as a family with the boys when we started this journey. God continued to provide for us time and time again and has wokred miracles through my sweet little Reece. One year ago today was a day filled with uncertainty. The doctors couldn't say for sure what toll the lack of blood would have on Reece or if he would even survive. At 12:50pm Jason was born weighing 5 pounds 2 ounces and my super baby Reece was born just a minute later at 12:51pm weighing a whopping 2 pounds 12 ounces. It was then that our journey began. I will never forget hearing those tiny little screams that I heard for the first time. Oh how sweet they were...now days those screams aren't nearly as joyfull as they use to be. I would like to share with you a video I made that reflects on the boys over the last year. This video truly captures just how blessed we are and how far we have all come in just one year.


Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

If your anything like me, you weren't able to watch the video just once and you teared up just as much the second time as you did the first time. I just love the part of Reece in the beginning and the boys laughing in the tub! These two little men are my whole world and I can't thank God enough for brining them into my life! Happy Birthday jason and Reece. Mommy loves you more than you will ever know...but you might undertstand it once you have children of your own one day. May God bring you many more blessings and continue to mold you into wonderful young men that you will become one day.

(More postings to come today)

1 More Day Till Birthday!

This morning I took the boys to play group. As it turned out it was just us and sweet little Ivan. Apparently a lot of the kids have nasty noses and colds so I am glad they stayed home! The boys were too funny playing together. Laura and I both brought toys, but of course they were more interested in pulling up on the windows and crawling under all of the tables. I really don’t know why I bother with toys. If my entire house was kid-proof I would just turn them loose! I should have taken pictures, but the hour flew by and before I knew it we were packing up and getting ready to go.
After playgroup we went by and saw Grandma Judi and PaPa Tom before they head off to Branson for the next several days to celebrate their anniversary and Great Grandma Jackie’s 90th birthday! Yes, all of this and the boys’ birthday occurred on June 30th so there will always be a lot to celebrate around this time of year!
When we got home I thought for sure the boys would take a nap, but they didn’t. They slept on the way home, but that wasn’t a long nap at all! They just don’t nap like they use to! Here are a few pictures of the boys playing at Grandma Judi’s today and also a few pictures I took of the boys in their cute little outfits (that are dirty now of course because they have been in them all day) in their new rockers. I normally wouldn’t allow them to stand up like they did in the chair, but it made for a cute picture!
Tomorrow you must check the blog! I am posting the boys 1 year video, pictures from their 1 year photo shoot and the link to the 11-12 month photo album as well as a few other special little things! BIG DAY!!!

They love door stops!

Jason & Great Grandma Judi

"Here kitty kitty kitty!" J wanted that cat so bad!

Great Grandma Judi & Reece walking!

The boys in their chairs. Jason was clapping to the choo choo sounds the chair makes.

Mr. Spit Up

Backs of the boys chairs

Reece

Jason

Cute but MESSY!

So the saying "cute but messy" truly plays out in kids. Tonight we had left over lasagna


And Jason now really wants to feed himself as opposed to somebody feeding him. So I chopped it up and he shovels it into his mouth. It’s a huge mess, but at the same time 100% priceless. (Did I mention it’s great because I don’t have to feed him…but still have to feed Reece!)
We were done with dinner by 6:30 which was too early for bath time so I took the messy boys outside to play in their new sand/water table that they got for their birthday. I am certain we will be using this a lot in the evenings after dinner since they are already a mess and its close to bath time. Anyways here are a few pictures….

Reece really was having a good time but he had sand stuck to his hand and that would explain the screaming picture. He hates for his hands to be dirty...strange, but true!

Choo Choo Bash

First of all let me just say that birthday parties are a lot of fun and a lot of work to pull off! Today we had Jason & Reece’s first birthday party with a train theme and from what I saw everything turned out wonderful aside from the heat, but that is to be expected with a summer birthday in June! My parents so graciously allowed us to use their house since they have plenty of room with the yard and patio. My Mom contributed to the food and Grandma Judi and Aunt Jana covered the cake and cupcakes for the kids which was so sweet and greatly appreciated. My college roommate, Sarah, also came in on Thursday and helped me hang decorations and what not on Friday. Also a big thank you! We rented a “jamming choo choo train” for the kids, and I set up a few play stations in the back yard to keep the kids entertained and busy.


All in all I believe everyone had a great time. The adults were all drenched and miserable due to the heat, but I am glad that I did it from 10 to 12 as opposed to 2 to 4 which was my original thinking. The kids I know had a blast including J&R who were pretty much filthy by the time it was all over and done with. The pictures I took really don’t even capture all of the elements of the party, but they are memories that will last a life time for my boys special occasion.
When it came time to sing happy birthday I had every intention of videoing the train rides, birthday song and the digging of the cake, but it just didn’t happen. I will have more pictures to come. Jennifer Pinto came out with John and she took well over 250 shots so I am sure there will be plenty more memories for us to reflect on to remember this special day. Thank you to everyone who joined and spoiled my rotten children with more toys, clothes and gifts than they will ever know what to do with. Our play room is packed at the moment, but I intend to rotate toys and bring birthday gifts out slowly over the next year :) (yah right!)
Here are just a few pictures. Once I have all of them I will create an album on snapfish and share for viewing. Thanks again family and friends!