Sunday, October 26, 2008

11 Months (and 1 week...and a few days) in review...

Man, I'm behind. I do have a few good excuses. The one problem with blogging is that if you don't keep up with it, all of the sudden there is so much you need to catch up on. Then, the task becomes daunting. But, I'll do my best here to catch everyone up! Believe it or not, I started this post on Monday and am just now finishing it. I might be overworked.

Life has never been better. Besides the whole stuck at home afraid of nasty germs part...this is by far the absolute best time of my life. My days are filled with sweet smiles, hugs, laughter, and a whole lot of mess. I like mess. Sort of. Well, I'm learning to like it anyway. Embrace what you cannot change, right?



It seems they are doing more, getting bigger, and are into everything. We've gotten the downstairs playroom set-up. They are getting tired of being in their walkers because they get around better without them. They can spot the smallest, tiniest, piece of lint...to taste. They have broken my mini blinds upstairs. And, diaper changes would go a lot better if I had at least two more hands. Between the rolling and wiggling of the baby who's being changed and the insatiable curiosity of the other two...who just have to get their hands in there and help me...and who find it an opportune time to pull hair and explore the eyeballs and nose of the helpless baby who is being held down by Mommy...we have some crazy times around here.

We're down to two good naps a day. Well, most days they are good. Jack has been ostracized to the guest bedroom because he apparently requires a little less sleep than Lily and Ben. So he says.

We've adjusted their bedtime/wake up time (HALLELUJAH!) They now go down at 7:30 pm and wake at 7:30 am. Brian gets to see them almost two hours when he gets home at night now. And...Mommy sleeps in. Now, three years ago if you told me that I thought sleeping until 7:00 am was sleeping in, I would have laughed. Aren't they cuties in their pyjamas?

Feeding rocks. O.K., most of the time it rocks. They are now eating mostly things that we eat. No more pureed stuff. Yeah! I love it when less work is required of me. They are eating a lot of finger foods. Lily will eat anything, Bennie most things, and Jack is still a little unsure of things with too many lumpies. But, he's getting better. He's just a bit more cautious than the others. I feel really good about the variety of foods that they eat and we try to give them a lot of healthy veggies and stuff. The favorite foods are still yogurt and anything crunchy. Coming from someone who has fed A LOT of picky eaters in my professional life...I am exceptionally proud of the fact that they will try absolutely anything. Rarely do they turn up their nose at foods. Even Jack will almost always take a bite, he may spit it back out at you, but at least he will try it.

Now, to the mess. Holy Cow. Did you know food fits well into ears? Oh yeah, and it works as a great hair styling product. For all of us. Check out Lily...apparently finger feeding spaghetti was a very, very, very bad idea. And, yes that is duck tape.


We are done with bottles! They are now on to the Nuby soft spout sippies. Such good babies. And, most amazingly, they hold the cups themselves. Yeah! O.K., most of the time they do, anyway.

Let's see...am I forgetting anything?

Oh yeah...Bennie has some big news!

Crawling is an old skill. For Bennie, walking is his new one! I promise to post video soon. He gets so much better at it every day that as soon as I video something...it becomes out-of-date. Jack and Lily aren't far behind!

Happy Halloween...I'll put some pics of their costumes tomorrow. Check back!

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

My Mom reminded me that I hadn't posted this...enjoy!

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

LOCKDOWN!


I just can't believe it's already here. I should have posted this two weeks ago, but I think I was in denial. RSV season began October 1st here in Texas.

For those of you who don't know what RSV is...click here. Note how incredibly contagious it is.

When an adult or an older child gets RSV it is simply a cold...but, when a baby gets it they can be hospitalized and left with life-long respiratory problems. And, while our babies are big, strong, and healthy they were still almost 7 weeks premature. Premature babies are at a higher risk of complications from contracting RSV because of lung maturity.

So, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that I want to keep that stinky virus as far away from my little monkeys as possible. It would definitely mean breathing treatments, could mean hospitalization, and worse...could mean life-long issues with asthma.

So, what does this mean for us?


PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE do not come to my house if you are ill, suspect you are becoming ill, or have had any symptoms of illness. Even if you think that your allergies are to blame. RSV shows up as a common cold in adults and some may have very minor symptoms.

No children are allowed to visit our house. Germs are easily spread by children and parents may be unaware of their symptoms until it is too late. RSV is extremely contagious and runs rampant in day cares, schools, and churches.

If you have been sick you must wait a minimum of 12 days from the onset of symptoms to visit our house. Most bugs will run about 7 days and I ask that you then wait an additional 5 days to ensure you are indeed well.

We require that adults who interact with them have their flu shots.

When you do visit...You are required to wash your hands and arms thoroughly and apply hand sanitizer. Think about where you have been prior to visiting our house. If you have been in a Dr.'s office surrounded by coughing and sneezing people, it's probably not a good idea to come over unless you shower and change clothes. The virus can last up to 6 hours on hands and 12 hours on hard surfaces! I'll also ask you to remove your shoes because they have been in all kinds of nasty places and my children have some sort of weird attraction to chewing on them. That's right, I have shoe lickers. Yuck.

But most of all, I just ask that you help me protect them. They are at an age where EVERYTHING goes in their mouth and much to my chagrin they do not possess good personal hygiene skills at this time. They can't protect themselves so we have to.

We are trapped at home until Easter. Can't say that sounds all that great. But, 3 sickies sounds much worse. These are the precautions we must take. We appreciate in advance to our friends and family for respecting these rules because I know we all want the best for these babies. Plus, if I found out that you got my babies sick with RSV....I will not be a happy camper.


This is the last winter we will be under strict precautions. We will make the best of it, grit our teeth, and pray for sanity for the long winter months. I swear I'm not a germ freak...just a freak to keep germs out of the house that could cause serious illness in my children.

Brian and I also have to be careful when leaving the house. If you have been sick, please let us know because we don't want to take those germs home with us.


I truly dread the next few months. We will not be leaving the house very much...which will get extremely old. Sadly, they will be turning 1 in just a few weeks so we will not be having a big birthday bash. Thanksgiving and Christmas will be small family get-togethers. BUT...We WILL NOT get sick...so it will be worth it.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Girls Trip 2008

For those of you who have been missing me...I've just returned from a relaxing and fun time in Hot Springs, Arkansas!

I have been so blessed in my life to be a part of a wonderful group of girls. Most of us have been friends for 10+ years and they have truly made my life memorable. I think we have something very special and are unique. Each girl brings something different to the group and those diversities have helped shape the fantastic women we have become.

When we are together the laughs, tears, and stories keep coming. It's amazing to have experienced so much of life with them. It's also amazing to feel so secure and loved by so many. I know I have a special place in their hearts...as they do in mine.

So, here's to you girls! Allison, April, Amy, Shannon, Shelley, Kayleen, and Rebecca...thanks for making this such a fun trip. And to Mary Jo and Audrey, who couldn't make it this year... We missed you so much and look forward to next year! Love you guys so much! (Pics will be coming as soon as I get around to it!)

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Here's a great basket of fun toys!

Which we could have saved a lot of money by not buying because their favorite things to play with are rubber mat edges,



laundry hampers,

doorstops,




bags of dirty diapers,


Solo cups,



and boxes...lots of boxes....


They do not discriminate, however. They love plastic boxes,




packing boxes,


and diaper boxes all the same!


And with this great big play room...


They prefer to play in the hallway.


Crazy kids.