My Little Girl Turns 5!

My little girl is 5! I really cannot believe it! She is an absolute joy and such a blessing to our family. Madison is such a sweet child. And smart. And funny. And such a love. I thought this would be a difficult year for her. Going from an only child for 4+ years to the big sister of not one, but two littles ones... Yikes! But Madison has handled it with maturity and grace that are well beyond her years. This little girl is so amazing. She loves everyone she meets and loves to take care of others. I am so excited to see what the world has in store for her. I know that she will do great things in life and I am so proud of the little lady she is becoming.

Madison came into the world on December 20, 2006 at 12:10 am. She made quite the grand entrance. I was at work on December 19th and felt kinda weird all day. Not really in pain, just not quite right. I didn't eat lunch that day, I felt nauseous. I went home around 5:00 pm and decided to take a shower to relax my back which was aching like crazy! At this point, I knew I was having contractions and so I called the on call doctor because, wouldn't you know, my doctor was on vacation! He told me that since this was my first pregnancy, I would most likely be in labor until sometime late tomorrow morning (December 20th). By 7:00 I was in quite a bit of pain, so David decided we were not going to wait much longer. We lived in Yreka, CA at the time and I was going to deliver in Ashland, OR (about a 45 minute drive). I convinced him to wait a bit longer, but at 9:00 I finally agreed to head out to the hospital. We arrived around 10:00 pm. We finally got checked into labor and delivery and the nurse confirmed that I was in active labor and dilated to a 4. She also informed me that it would be a while before our little one made her entrance. By 11:30 I was in so much pain, I didn't think I could go on much longer. I kept telling the nurse that the contractions were getting worse and I thought the baby was coming. She refused to check! Finally, I felt the need to push, and I did! The nurse looked and saw that Madison was on her way out! One more push and I delivered a healthy 6 lb 8 oz baby girl on the bed at 12:10, only 2 hours after checking in! No doctor, no nurse in the room! :) So, yeah, Madison has made her mark on this world. Look out.

Thank you for being my first born Madison. I love you so much. Happy 5th Birthday Madi Bug.

Lyrics

Music lyrics I heard on the radio today that really hit me...

Your picking up toys on the living room floor for the 15th time today
Matching up socks
Sweeping up lost cheerios that got away

You put a baby on your hip
Color on your lips and head out the door

While I may not know you,
I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes, does it matter at all?

Well let me remind you, it all matters just as long
As you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you,
Cause he made you,
To do
Every little thing that you do
To bring a smile to His face
Tell the story of grace
With every move that you make
And every little thing you do

More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/s/steven_curtis_chapman/#share

Sometimes I just need to be reminded that my job as a stay at home mom is a very important one. And it is one that I need to be thankful for. Give all the glory to our Lord Jesus Christ.

9 Months Old!

The babies have made it to 9 months! Yahoo! They are continuing to amaze me everyday and I love them so much! Here's what is happening around here...

Kenzie is on the move! Standing up, cruising, crawling all over. She is everywhere! She was so proud the day she pulled herself up to a stand. She is still a bit wobbly when standing, but, that won't last much longer! Her favorite word is still dada. She says is all the time. So cute and annoying all at the same time ;) She loves music and dancing. She loves to play with Madison. She is a bully. She is jealous if Lexie is in my lap. Today, Lexie crawled over to me while I was sitting in the floor and climbed in my lap. Kenzie was perfectly content playing with a toy nearby until she saw that Lexie was in my lap. She crawled over screaming and then pushed Lexie over. Such a little stinker! She is definitely the mama's girl of the two. She has also learned to clap which is so adorable! She has the cutest smile ever and is quicker to smile at strangers than Lexie. Latest stats from the Doctor: Weight, 18 lbs 9 ozs! She is in the 60% for her weight. And, 29" in length, which is the 80%! I've got me some tall girls!

Lexie is more mobile than Kenzie at this point. She pulled herself up and started cruising before Kenzie. She is very steady on her feet and stood up without holding on to anything yesterday. She also lets go of the couch and reaches for toys. She has taken a couple of steps without holding on but quickly realizes that she isn't holding on and grabs for the nearest security object. I know she will be walking in no time! She continues to be my little ""starer". She loves to look at people and it usually takes her a little while to start talking and smiling at new people. This is funny to me because she is my little squeaker. She has a fake laugh she uses to imitate me that is hilarious! She is always talking! Her latest weight check put her at 17 lbs 8 ozs! (40% for weight) and 28.3" for her length (60%). Oh yeah, did I mention they both weigh more than Madison did at 10 months?!

Both babies love to eat solids more than their bottles. We have started doing more table foods and they are loving it. These girls can eat! They have 3 meals a day, and most days, 3 bottles. Some days only 2 bottles. They are still sleeping at least 12 hours a night and still taking 2 naps a day, usually for 2 hours each nap.

All in all, we are doing great! Loving all our girls! Bring on the holidays!

Happy Halloween!

Miss Kenzie Poo
Miss Lexie Loo
Miss Madi Moo

Halloween was a lot of fun this year! Next year will be even better. We dressed up all the girls and took them trick or treating with some great friends. The little ones stayed in the stroller and just enjoyed being pushed around while Madison and Norah collected their candy. It was fun to see the houses all decorated and people really into the Halloween spirit. Madison collected an entire bucket of candy which we are all enjoying :) We also stopped by Grandma's house and she had special treats for all. Miss Madison stayed true to herself and was Bell from Beauty and the Beast (3rd year in a row as a princess!) Kenzie was an elephant (so cute!) And Lexie was a little lamb. Can't wait to be chasing them all around next year!

8 Months Old!

Here we are at the end of October and my little ladies have hit the 8th month mark. Again, I will say that I really can't believe it! They are getting so big! Here's the scoop on the Phillips' Household.

Miss Madison is loving how active the girls are. She is like a little mommy to them and plays with them, feeds them, reads to them, etc. She will chase whoever is on the move and carries them back to safety. I am pretty sure she is their biggest supporter of the crawling/walking fiasco we are entering. Mama could stand to wait a bit for the walking portion! I am constantly amazed at how smart and mature Madison is. She is such a great kid. She cleans her own room, sorts her laundry, puts laundry away, helps clean the livingroom, helps with the babies, and pretty much does every thing I ask of her. Hard to believe she isn't even 5 yet! I love her so much! She even has her own nickname for the babies "Trouble Monsters" lol. So funny!

Miss Kenzie is crawling absolutely everywhere, including under the coffee table. Down the hall, to her room, in the kitchen. Everywhere! No matter how I try to confine her to one area, she figures out a way past it! Her favorite word is... wait for it...DADA! Say what? She said mama a couple of times, but has switched to dada and there is no stopping her. She will crawl over to the couch where David sits and say dadada over and over. So cute. She gets excited when she hears his voice. She is our music lover and dancer.

Miss Lexie is still my little squeaker. She babbles on and on. Mostly saying Mama. She has also mastered standing up, but has yet to figure out how to get back down which is causing some trouble. And now that she is standing, she is also trying to cruise. Which, of course, Madison thinks is awesome and is totally encouraging her! I went into their room last Tuesday morning to find her standing up in her crib. That's how I find her every morning and after every nap. Such a cutie.

Today, Lexie was trying to cruise while holding onto the coffee table and fell and bonked her head. She was crying so hard. Normally, one doesn't really react to the other's crying, but today, Kenzie stopped what she was doing, crawled across the room to Lexie and started patting and rubbing her face trying to console her. It was the sweetest thing ever! I almost started crying when I saw how concerned she was for Lexie. She kept looking at me like "aren't you going to do something mom?" I love watching them interact with each other!

Sleeping schedule is still amazing. I am lucky. Bedtime is still around 6:30 pm and they sleep until at least 6 am. Sometimes until 7. After bottle, sleep until 8:30. Breakfast, playtime. Naptime. Bottle, lunch, play, nap. Bottle, dinner, play. Sleep. That's it. That's the routine. Great eaters, Great sleepers. But, now that I spend pretty much all day chasing them around, I am exhausted come bed time! I am able to bathe them both at the same time now so that saves me a little bit of time. Neither one have cut a tooth yet, but, I think Lexie is close. We will see! They fit best into 6-9 month clothing, but they can wear a lot of 12 month stuff. Lexie is in size 2 diapers, size 3 at night because she wakes up wet a lot. Kenzie is in size 3. Once we use up what's left of the 2's I will switch to 3's all the time.

Lexie is a little clingier of the two. She prefers to be held and loves to give kisses. Kenzie would rather be exploring and checking out what kind of trouble she can get into!

We broke Madison from her binkie at 8 months. I don't think I am brave enough to go there yet. They only have them for naps and bed time, so it's not horrible. I will let it go for at least a couple more months and readdress that issue in a little while :) Bottles will be done by 12 months. Period. I think it will be fairly easy because they have already weaned themselves to only 3 a day and they never have them before a nap or before bed time.

I finally got up the nerve to get their ears pierced yesterday! Yahoo! They look so adorable! We had Madison's done at 2 months but for some reason I wanted to hold off on these two. I am glad that I finally got it done and they have handled it like champs! Funny story about it, which I will get to later. :)

So excited to take their pictures, maybe today. I am going to do some of them with their pumpkins :) Can't believe how close we are to Madison's 5th birthday and their 1st birthday!

Pumpkin Patch

We went to the pumpkin patch at Seven Oaks Farm yesterday and it was so much fun! The babies were in a great mood and loved being out and about. We walked through the patch looking for Madison's perfect pumpkin. Our general rule is that she has to be able to carry it out of the patch herself in order to get it. We had a cart to haul our pumpkins in, so we bended on that a little. She could lift it herself, that's good, right? :) We ended up with 4 pumpkins. One small one for each little girl, Madison's and Daddy's. Madison and Daddy will carve their's soon and bake the seeds. I think I will put the babies' handprints on theirs. Can't wait for this to happen!

I took a ton of pictures while at the farm. Even managed to get Kenzie and Lexie to sit on pumpkins briefly to get some super cute photos. Only problem was they were so interested in everything around them, I had the hardest time getting them to look at me! We sat them on the ground by a pumpkin and I couldn't keep the straw out of Lexie's mouth!

They have a small petting zoo as well so we were able to feed the goats and see some ponies. Madison loves animals so that was fun.

It was such a beautiful day out and I loved being able to be out as a family of five :) Can't wait for more holiday traditions to begin!

Look How They Have Grown!

Getting ready to do a massive print job of pictures of the little girls from birth to the present. I am going to do a scrapbook for each child for their first year of life, them do a family scrapbook after that. Looking through the pictures of those tiny newborns is making me so sad. They have grown so quickly!

Randomness

Stole this from Krystle, since I always seem to talk about the kids! :)

If were to get pregnant again...I...would love to have another baby! hubby says no way, so we will see!

If I could have any job in the world...I would be a teacher

If I had a day to myself...sleep in, shop, eat delicious food...

If I could get married all over again...I would run off with david and have a quiet ceremony! and, we would actually go on a honeymoon!

If I could live anywhere in the US...i would like to have 2 houses. one in oregon close to family and one in hawaii!

If my girl would have been boy they would have been named... Madison would have been Landon. and, we didn't have any boys names at all for the baby girls

If I could have any talent in the world....I would love to be an artist

If you met me in real life...talk. a lot

If I could go back to school and get a different degree... I really don't want to go back to school, but if I did, I would want to be a teacher or a photographer

If money was no object...We would have a house and I would always be able to enjoy being a stay at home mom

If I could meet one celebrity, it would be....Paul Walker. No reason needed :)

If I could shop at only one store the rest of my life...The Buckle

If we were to get another pet it would be...Ugh, no more pets!

If I could go on a trip right now...I would love to take the girls to Disneyland. Or, Hawaii with David

If I had to choose between a house cleaner and a personal chef...house cleaner!

If I had the option of plastic surgery...tummy tuck. (Oh yes, Krystle. I feel ya)

Pictures of My Beauties

My Beautiful First Born - 3 months shy of 5 years old!
Miss Lexie - 7 Months Old
Miss Kenzie - 7 Months Old

7 months!

4 days ago, my babies turned 7 months old. I really am in shock. Partially because the last 7 months have went by so quickly and because my babies are getting so big. They are changing so much right now. Kenzie is crawling. Well, army crawling, but she can get anywhere and everywhere, so I consider her completely mobile now. She started last Monday, out of the blue. She is so proud of herself. I love when she gets to wherever she wants to be and turns to look at me with her adorable smile as if to say "I did it mom! Ha!" She loves being able to get whatever toy she wants, including whatever her sister has! She is our little bully of the 2. Always grabbing lexie and trying to eat her. Taking her toys, blanket, whatever. Her first word was mama. :) She was mad one day while I was feeding Lexie breakfast and started yelling at me. About 2o minutes later, I was holding Lex and Kenzie started in again, "mamamamama" Yay!

Lexie is practically crawling. She is so stinkin close! On her hands and knees rocking herself forward. she was even crawling backwards last week! Which means, they have figured out how to go in opposite directions! Yikes! She is finally sitting up on her own and she can even get into a sitting position when she is on her tummy! I couldn't believe it when I turned to look at her and she was sitting up! So cool! Lexie has also said her first word. Chalk it up for another win for mom. I am three for three baby :) Daddy even heard her and was not too happy :)

My girls are amazing. They sleep a ton and are the easiest babies I have ever seen. Bedtime is about 6, sometimes 7. They go down without a peep and I don't hear from them until at least 6 am. Most days it is closer to 7. Today, it was 8:45! Oh yeah! Normal morning they have a 7 oz bottle at 6 am. Back to sleep until 9. Then they have about 8 ozs of cereal and fruit. Nap for 2-3 hours. Bottle, playtime, nap. Dinner of 8 ozs of veggies, bottle, bed. Two solid naps a day and a solid 12 hours a night. Best schedule ever.

Child proofing is in the works. I feel like I need to vacuum twice a day! Kenzie is a huge fan of the dog food bowls :/

Madison is so happy that the babies are starting to play with her. She can read them stories and they watch her so intently. It is really sweet. She loves them so much and is the best big sister ever. They light up when she is around. She has adjusted so well to becoming a big sister. She is so helpful to me. I love my girls :)

Birthday planning is in the works! We will have a busy season ahead of us! My birthday this week, halloween with 3 kiddos, Thanksgiving, Madison's 5th birthday, Christmas, New Years, Babies' first birthday! Can't wait for all of these "firsts" with our family.

A-Z About Me!

Stolen from my friend Krystle at http://3littlemenandamommy.blogspot.com/ Follow her blog! Once she hits 100 followers, she is doing some giveaways!

A. Age: 26, I will be 27 in 6 days!
B. Bed size: King! I will never go back to anything else!
C. Chore that you hate: Cleaning bathrooms. Ugh.
D. Dogs: Yes, one pain-in-the-butt.
E. Essential start to your day: coffee! lots of coffee
F. Favorite color: pink
G. Gold or Silver: Silver
H. Height: 5' 5
I. Instruments you play: I leave that to my hubby
J. Job title: Supermom (me too Krystle!)
K. Kids: 3 girls. Madison (almost 5!) and Kenzie & Lexie (7 months)
L. Live: Southern Oregon
M. Mother’s name: Sandra
N. Nicknames: Sam, babe, mommy
O. Overnight hospital stays: After appendectomy when I was 14, after having Madison and the babies.
P. Pet peeves: Being late. (Oh Krystle, That is my biggest pet peeve ever)
Q. Quote from a movie: Wow. I can't think of any!
R. Right or left handed: Right
S. Siblings: Brother, Jared, 21 months younger
T: Time to wake up: Preferably, after 9 :) But, I have 3 kids, so it's up to them
U. Underwear: Comfy ones!
V. Vegetable you hate: Mushrooms
W. What makes you run late: I am never late!
X. X-Rays you’ve had: foot, abdomen
Y. Yummy food that you make: enchiladas. anything that involves baking :)
Z. Zoo animal: elephants

Half a Year Old Already!

6 months have come and gone since bringing home our 2 little blessings. I cannot believe we are on the downhill slope to celebrating their first birthday! I cannot wait! I have already started planning it :) Let's see, where to begin...

Kenzie weighs about 16 lbs now. She is so much fun. She rolls all over the house and is trying to hard to crawl. She has mastered sitting unassisted and that makes her happy. She loves being held and loves playing with her toys. Not so much of a fan of her jumperoo. She will sit in it for awhile, but doesn't really jump, just sits in it and plays with the toys. The girl loves to eat. Loves solid foods (which I am still making). Kenzie has what we call "Stranger Danger" (lol, thanks Cheyenne). She really prefers to be held by me. She does ok with strangers for a couple of minutes then looks around frantically for me. She loves to lay kisses on whoever is holding her. She grabs a hold of your face and gives you a big wet one :) I love that. She sleeps amazingly. Down for the night by 7, and sleeps until at least 6 am. She has a bottle then goes back to sleep until 8:30 or 9. She takes 2 naps a day, one long morning nap and a short afternoon nap. She loves bathtime.

Lexie weighs 14 lbs and has her first cold :( But, even sick, she is an awesome little lady and still sleeps and eats well. She prefers the bottle to solids and I have a feeling she will be harder to break from the bottle then Kenzie will be. Lexie loves her jumperoo and will jump forever! She laughs and giggles while playing, she really is the happier of the two babies. I love how different their personalities are! She loves being held by anyone who will give her attention. She eats it up! She is on the same sleep schedule as Kenzie which is awesome because mama has time to get some things done while they are both sleeping. I can't decide who will be the first to crawl. I thought Lex had it in the bag, but then Kenzie started rolling over first and sitting up first, so I thought Kenzie would master crawling before Lexie. But, just a couple of days ago, Lexie was scooting herself around while on her hands and knees. So, I am clueless and it just proves that these 2 will keep me on my toes!

The girls have started "talking" to each other while in their cribs. It has to be the cutest sounds ever! They will spit their binkies out and talk for 5 minutes or so, then settle down for their nap. when they wake up, they usually don't cry, but rather talk to each other until I go get them. Love it!

Jealousy has started in a little. When they wake up, I better bring both of them into the living room at the same time, otherwise, they let me know that I forgot one! If Madison is talking to one and not the other, she starts crying. They are quickly letting us know that you cannot forget about one!

We took them to the beach last weekend for the day. Amazing little travelers slept both the whole way there and home. Lexie even slept the entire time we walked on the beach in her ergo carrier. They were so great the entire trip. It was nice to get away as a family, even if it was only for the day. We walked the beach, went to the farmer's market and had dinner in a small restaurant on the pier. I have learned that I like Clam Chowder! lol. I don't like any seafood except for calamari! But, now I can add clam chowder to that list.

I am still working on 6 month pictures. I am not done yet since Lexie has been sick. But, I will get them posted soon :) Happy 6 months little ladies. I love you!

What a Difference a Year Makes

Exactly one year ago today, David and I got the most shocking news of our lives. Our ultrasound showed two babies. Two. That is one plus one. Hahaha. I was crying. I was scared. I was nervous. I was happy. I couldn't believe it. I was pregnant with two babies! I really can't believe that was a year ago. Especially when I think about how my little angels are already 6 months old. It seems like yesterday that I was laying on that table with David and Madison by my side hearing by 3 year old daughter say "2 babies, mommy, there are 2 babies!" She had it right from the start. I am so thankful that she was right, because life without one of the precious little girls would be sub par. :) I love all of my girlies and I feel so privileged that I was chosen to be their mommy.

Five Months!

Yay! Five months old! We are entering my favorite baby stage! The girls are getting so fun! I love to hear them laugh, see them smile at their big sister, interact with each other, grab for toys, get excited over food. I absolutely love these little ladies! Let's start with Lexie today :)

My beautiful baby. I will always call her the baby. She is such a little character. So outgoing and social. Lexie loves to talk, squeal, cry. Whatever the noise is, she does it to the fullest! She mimicks us when we say "hi" to her, so cute! She is the most smilely baby ever! It doesn't take much to get her to give you this huge gummy grin! Even when she is mad and screaming, we can make her smile. She is a daddy's girl. Yay! He got one! Ha! I don't mind too much :) She loves her daddy! She loves her sister! She loves bananas! We started on solids (which I am making) after their 4 month checkup. She is obsessed with bananas. She will pretty much eat anything as long as it is mixed with banana. So far she has tried, carrots, sweet potatoes, bananas, pears, peaches and berries. She hates peaches. Everything else she will eat. She hates being on her tummy, still! She will roll over and then scream because she hates being on her stomach so much. She prefers to sit in her bumbo with toys to chew on. I am pretty sure both girls are teething because the drooling has become excessive!

Kenzie is still a mama's girl. She favors me for sure. She is the laugher of the two. I can make her giggle almost every time I try and I love it! She is still our little chunkers too! Getting big so fast! I think she will be the first to crawl. She gets on her belly (her position of choice these days) and gets up on her knees and rocks herself back and forth. Big sister crawled at 6 months so we will see if Kenzie can match her! This little lady can eat! She love, love, loves food! I am thankful that so far, she loves everything I have given her :) Kenzie has the sweetest little eyes.

Our routine is starting to become pretty clear. Up around 7, 6 oz bottle. Breakfast at 9 ish, which is about 4 ozs of fruit and cereal. Nap at about 10 until 12 or 1. Then time for another 6 oz bottle. Bottle around 4, solids around 5:30 (4 ozs of veggies, 1-2 ozs of some sweet fruit) bath, bottle, bed. They have started going to bed around 7:30 and are thriving and sleeping at least 10 hours straight. Nice! Naps have also transitioned into their cribs with binkies and so far, no issues :) They take their blankie and binkie and if they don't fall asleep right away, they fuss for about 5 minutes and then they are out. I still don't let them have their binkies at night and that is working really well for us.

So, all in all, everyone is growing quickly and doing fantastic! Can't wait for them to start hitting more "firsts!"

*4 month weight check: Kenzie 13 lbs 5 ozs and Lexie 11 lbs 12 ozs. They will have another weight check on Aug 3rd, so I will update then :)

Kenzie's and Lexie's Dedication

Last Sunday we had the girls Dedicated at Applegate Christian Fellowship. It was a great day for our family. It was only the second time taking the babies to church since mama bear hasn't been ready to let them go to the nursery yet :) In fact, the only babysitter they have had thus far is my mom and grandma. haha. I am slightly overprotective. We knew we wanted to have the Dedicated and we wish we would have done the same thing with Miss Madison. We were not attending church on a regular basis when she was a baby. It was an amazing experience to thank the Lord for these two precious lives that he has given to us. We will continue to pray for them on a daily basis to become strong women who love the Lord and understand His sacrifice for us.

Combination of naptime and a stranger holding her, Kenzie fell apart within seconds. Poor Pastor Ben didn't stand a chance! But, he handled it well and it was still sweet. Lexie fell asleep in my arms while we were waiting for the service to begin so she was fine when Pastor John held her. Luckily we have the DVD of the Dedication since I was mostly concerned about consoling Kenzie :) Applegate is a wonderful church and now that I know the girls will do fine in the nursery, we will be attending on a regular basis.

4 Months!

Wow. Am I behind or what? Hahaha. I started this blog thinking it would be a great way to keep track of the girls growth and a special way to chart everything to look back on the future. And now I realize, I am not very good at it! I totally missed their 3 month mark. Oh well. I will try to get back on track. And with that, They are now 4 months old! 4. I know. What happened? Well, let's see if I can remember :)

We will start with Kenzie. Kenzie Poo. Chunkalicious. Mama's girl. Big Eyes. Butter. I love her. A lot. She is such a serious baby. It takes some work to get this one to smile. She has the biggest most beautiful eyes I have ever seen. When she looks at you, you just keep staring into her eyes. I have complete faith that she is going to be one of the most intelligent women in the world. She looks at you so deeply. As if she is staring right into your soul.

Kenzie is an incredible sleeper. Still. Yes, I am lucky. I know. She goes to bed around 9 and sleeps till at least 6 am. Yes. I know. After her bottle, she will usually go back to sleep until 9 or 10. She is rolling over from her tummy to her back and today, she rolled the opposite :) She is getting a tooth. It started showing on her 3 month birthday. I was amazed! It hasn't come through all the way yet, but I know it will. She eats very well. Sometimes I am amazed how efficient they can eat now. I remember when they were eating 50 cc's at a time. And it took forever. Now, she can down 6-7 ozs in 10 minutes. And, she never spits up! ahhh, nice! We just moved her up to size 2 diapers. She is a chunk, hence the nickname "Chunkalicious" lol. She is in 3-6 months clothes mostly, but she can still wear some smaller. At her last weight check which was 2 weeks ago, she was up to 12 lbs 4 ozs. I am so impressed! We have their 4 month appt next week and I will update their weights at that time.

Lexie. Lexie Lou. Pukalicious. Miss Smiley Pants. Pretty Baby. Peanut. This one is going to be all girl. I just know it. And a talker (well I guess that is the all girl part :) She is such a happy baby. She will smile at anyone. She rolls from her back to her tummy and gets sooooo mad when she can't roll back over. It is so funny to watch her legs go a hundred miles a minute trying to flip over and she just can't! She loves to sit up (in the bumbo) she loves music. She loves her sisters. We have been trying to figure out her puking issue because she is what our pediatrician calls a "happy puker" I told you, she is a happy baby. But, I wish she would stop throwing up so much because she is quite a bit smaller than Kenzie and I don't know if it is because she throws up so much or if she is just going to be a smaller girl. So, we have been trying different formulas to see what works for her. So far, not much success and she just might have to outgrow it. Her last weight check had her at 11 lbs.

Lex is also an awesome sleeper. I know. Blessed. She goes down at the same time as Kenzie and sleeps the same amount. Yup. I'm serious. Mama Like! And. Did I mention that we put them to bed awake? We feed them, swaddle them and put them to bed. I never hear a peep from Lexie and occasionally, Kenzie will cry for less than 5 minutes then they are both out. zonked. Until the next morning :)

The girls are already proving that they need their space. One day, they were playing on their play mat and Lexie decided "hey sister, that arm is mighty tasty looking, let me have a nibble!" So, she rolled to her side and started sucking on Kenzie's arm. Kenzie didn't approve. She scratched Lex in the face. Lexie cried, scooted herself up just high enough to start kicking Kenz in the head. Can you say "sister rivalry"! So, yeah, I decided to buy another toy! That night, Lexie got herself unswaddled and I went in the room and saw her sucking on Kenzie's face. That was the last night they slept in the same crib. So, onto separate cribs and they took it like champs! First night they woke around 4, but since, they are back to normal! It was time!

I love to sit them in their bumbos facing each other. They are hilarious. They babble. Look at each other. Play footsie. So cute. Can't wait for more interaction like this!

So, all in all. Having twins is amazing. I really love it. I wasn't sure how I would cope. But, I am being honest when I say I wouldn't trade it for anything. It is a complete blessing that we brought these 3 people into the world and I love watching them grow and change everyday.

Glorious Sleep!

The girls slept through the night! All of them! On the same night! Hallelujah! Madison of course has been sleeping through the night for quite some time, but Kenzie and Lexie decided that last night would be the first night that they would do the same. I am so excited! They went down around 10:00 and slept until 6:00 am. When I heard them crying on the baby monitor, I sort of panicked because the sun was coming up in our room and I thought for sure that they had been crying forever and I was just ignoring them. But, no, they actually were just waking up. Oh sleep, how I have missed you! During my pregnany, I woke up several times a night to use the bathroom or due to heartburn, so this was the first night that I actually slept 6 hours straight through in months! I am so surprised that they both slept through the night for the first time on the same night, but so happy about it! They even went back to sleep after their bottles and slept until 10:00. Yahoo!
What made my sleep even better was that I just got a new comforter and sheet set and so my bed was completely fresh and clean! Nothing like new sheets to make you sleep like a baby!

On a side note before I forget to post: The twins had their 2 month check up yesterday. Kenzie weights 10 lbs 6 ozs and Lexie weighs 9 lbs!

Babies' First Easter!

The twins made it to and through their first holiday! And, a very special one at that! Easter! We got all three girls up and dressed in their Easter apparel (the three more beautiful little girls in the world!) and headed to church! It was our first time taking the babies to church and it couldn't have been on a better Sunday than Easter Sunday! We were nervous that it was going to rain and Applegate Christian Fellowship was holding the service outside, but, we decided to chance it. After all, Jesus did more for us didn't he? :) So off we went. Madison was super excited for Bible School. She loves going to church. David and I strapped the babies to us with our awesome ergo carriers and they did great! Lexie got a little fussy toward the end because her legs were so cramped because of sitting, but other than that, they were fine. And, it didn't rain! Yahoo! It was nice to be back in church, sitting with our good friends and listening to our favorite pastors remind us of what Jesus did for us and how is still lives! Praise the Lord!
Other than church, our day was pretty low key. We stayed home. David and the babies napped, hahaha. Madison and I ran to the store and got sandwich fixings and strawberry shortcake for dessert. That was so delicious! We gave the babies their first Easter baskets which contained a couple of rattles (since we are getting close to that stage already!) and, their first Bibles! We bought Madison her first Bible on her first Easter so I wanted to keep that tradition. :)
Madison loved her goodies and she also got a new book filled with Bible stories which she loves.
Kenzie and Lexie are becoming excellent sleepers! Well, they have always been good, but now it is great! We put them down between 9 and 10, in their own room! And they sleep until about 4. Kenzie slept till 5 this morning. After they eat, they go back to bed until about 8:30 or so. They are eating a ton now! Kenzie polished off almost 8 ozs before she went to bed last night!
Tomorrow is their 2 month checkup. I am planning on holding off on their shots until their 4 month appt I think. I just really don't want to do it yet. Something is telling me to wait, so I am going to trust my motherly instinct and wait. No harm in that. I will post their weights once I know!

Busy Life

It has been a couple of weeks since I posted anything. Partly because there is not a lot to post about, and partly because I don't have time! Hahaha. My girlies are doing well. Growing like weeds. They are already 8 weeks old today! I love them so much! They have their two month check-up next week so we will see how much they weigh. I am still debating whether or not to get their vaccinations. I can't decide. Madison has had her shots, but for some reason I just don't know if I want to vacinate or not... What are your thoughts?

I love their sleep schedule! Right now, they go down for the night between 8:30 and 9:30 and sleep until around 2:00. They go right back to sleep after their bottles and then wake up again around 7. Yahoo! Usually after that bottle they will go back to sleep again, or they will stay awake for about an hour then take a nap. I am so happy that they are sleeping so well. Madison was a horrible sleeper and I am thankful that Kenzie and Lexie are not following in their big sister's footsteps!

Kenzie still prefers to be swaddled most of the time, but that's ok. She will outgrow it I'm sure! Lexie is still the most chill baby. She really only cries when she is hungry. Yay! At least I got one!

Today was a great day! David was home from work and he is busy getting some projects done. Madison has spent the majority of the day playing outside and hanging with Daddy. I have cleaned some, done some laundry, taken some 8 week pics of the babes, and had coffee with my good friend Lori :) The babies are even hanging out together right now on their playmat without fussing so that mom can do some blogging ;)

So here is something crazy that we decided to do... We had an english bulldog, Sophie. David's dream dog was an english bulldog. She was so stubborn and pigheaded that we just couldn't take it anymore. Her listening skills were terrible even though we took her through 16 weeks of training. She wouldn't leave the babies alone, wouldn't come when we called her, and was starting to pee in the house again. So, we decided to find another home for her while she was still young enough to adapt to a new family. But, I am convinced that it is great for children to grow up with a dog, so, we decided to go ahead and add a new addition to our family. Yes, that's right, I have 8 week old twins, and an 8 week old Goldendoodle. Say WHAT??? His birthday is the day after the girls' :) I think it will be great for them to grow up together. He will be used to having his tail pulled and eyes poked and they will be used to having a dog in their face all the time. Hey, I am already up in the middle of the night, might as well crate train a pup at the same time! He is doing great and loves Madison already. David is happy to have another male in the house! So, most might think I am crazy, but that's ok!

We took the girls to have Easter pictures on Sunday. I can't wait to see them all, but for now, here is a sample of Mandy's great work!

Great News!

Kenzie and Lexie saw the Metabolic Specialist from Portland today. They do not have VLCAD Deficiency. Thank the Lord! Both girls have only one mutated gene which means they are carriers of the Deficiency, but are not affected by it. Either David or myself is also a carrier of the deficiency and passed it on to the girls. There is a slight possibility (less than 5%) that they still could have it and that the test just couldn't find the other abnormality in the gene, but, this deficiency is so rare (it only affects 1 in 50,000 babies in Oregon a year) and in order for the girls to have it, David and I would both have to be carriers and then they would have had a 1/4 chance of getting it. We could do further testing (a skin biopsy to grow skin cells to see how the cells use/store fat) but, we have chosen not to do this because of the very slim chance of them actually having it. The test would take 4 months before we would know anything, and even then, there is a possibility of not really knowing for sure. The doctor said that even if they have the deficiency, it is the most mild case of it, and they really wouldn't suffer from it. And, he wouldn't treat them for it. Nothing would change. So, we are leaving it be. We believe they do not have it and are completely healthy! They were weighed today and we found that Kenzie is up to 8 lbs 14 ozs and Lexie is 7 lbs 10 ozs. Really healthy weights for 6 weeks old! Obviously mama's milk is doing something right!

6 Weeks Old!

My babies are 6 weeks old! Wow! Part of me cannot believe it has been 6 weeks already, the sleep deprived part of me says "oh, 6 weeks, that's it???" No, seriously, we are doing well. Some days are harder than others, some nights I feel like there is no way I can change another diaper and warm another bottle. But, I do, and I love those little ladies like crazy. Kenzie - My more serious baby. She still isn't smiling all that much. Only if you really work for it. She just stares at you. It is kinda funny. She love love loves to be swaddled. All the time. Day and night. If she isn't swaddled or eating, she is usually screaming. Seriously. She loves her binkie, but usually just during the day. She doesn't cry if she loses it, she doesn't need it at night to go to sleep. She is a great eater. About 6 ozs at a time right now and she can go 4-5 hours without eating again. Kenzie prefers the bouncy chair to the swing. She loves music and usually lets us know when it turns off by screaming until we turn it on again! She is bigger than her sister and we call her our chunk, which is really funny given she is around 8 lbs. Lexie - My smiling baby girl. She is the baby after all :) She makes the cutest little faces and is constantly wrinkling up her forehead when she looks at you. She is a little David Jr. She looks just like him. She acts like him too. She is the first to wake up, day and night. She doesn't cry too much, just when she is hungry and at that point, you better have her food ready, or else! She is more of a snacker because she is a little smaller than Kenzie, but she is getting better and usually eats 4-5 ozs at a time. She is also my puker. Ugh. Blankets, clothes, the laundry is never ending! Lexie prefers the swing to the bouncy chair and also loves music as much as her older sisters. 3 music loving girls = one happy daddy. :) Both girls are still in newborn clothes. They are getting long though so it will be time to switch to 0-3 months soon I think. Currently in newborn diapers, but due to the many diaper blowouts we have had recently, once I finish the opened box of newborn, we will switch to size 1. (a box of diapers only lasts about 5-6 days anyway) So, more than a box of diapers a week, probably 2-3 packages of wipes, 10 loads of laundry, 50 ozs of pumped milk a day, at least 3 outfit changes per baby a day... one busy and tired mommy for sure! Madison has adjusted really well. She loves her sisters. She will get me whatever I ask for and loves to help feed the babies when I need her to. She tries to comfort Kenzie when she is crying, she shushes her and gives her binkie back. Madison decided to cut her hair this last weekend and that makes me sad. She has such pretty hair and it was so long! But, it tangles bad and she was sick of it. So, we had it chopped off and she loves it. It will be nice for summer and I know it will grow back. She is still asking when she can go back to school so I still need to look into some pre-schools and get her back in at least a couple days a week. David is doing great with the girls. He will get up and help me feed them if I wake him up. He is a very sound sleeper and doesn't wake up on his own. I never woke him up when Madison was up at night, I just took care of everything by myself. But this time around, there are times that I just need help. I know he is working and needs his sleep, but, I am working too. 24 hours a day. I don't get to nap during the day when the babies sleep because I have a 4 year old to take care of. I have a house to clean, laundry to do, bottles to wash, etc. When the babies are sleeping, I am going non-stop. So, I may be "home" but, this is my job and I need help when I can get it. I usually wake him for one nighttime feeding and let him sleep through the second. Sometimes I will do both by myself. I feel really good. I really had no complications after we made it home frrom the hospital. I have had a lot of energy for the most part and feel like I am doing a good job. Twins is a challenge, I am not going to lie, but, I am doing a good job. I know I am. I love my family more than I ever thought possible and I feel so blessed that the Lord decided to give me this amazing life and family :)

My Growing Girls

Weight check today, just one day shy of a month old. Kenzie is up to 7 lbs 3 ozs! She is almost 2 lbs heavier than her birth weight! Yahoo! And Lexie is up to 6 lbs 7 ozs! They are growing and I am so happy about that! Tomorrow they will be one month old and I can hardly believe it. One month already. Wow. It makes me happy because I know we are on our way to some really fun times and milestones, but sad at the same time because the time is going to quickly. Tomorrow I plan on taking some pictures of the little ladies and comparing them to their big sister at one month. Kenzie looks more like Madison than Lexie does, but they all look quite a bit different to me!

We are still on a pretty good schedule. They sleep awesome. They eat a ton. They are good babies. I really have no complaints :) We put them down for the night in our room between 9:00 and 10:00. They sleep together in a playpen. They love having their faces next to one another. Lexie is usually the first one to wake up to eat. Since she is smaller than Kenzie, she doesn't eat quite as much and therefore gets hungry faster. She wakes up between 1:00 and 2:00 am. She eats around 3 to 3.5 ozs. I wake up Kenzie at the same time and she eats about 4 ozs. Then back to bed they go. Lexie wakes up again between 5:00 and 6:00 am. Then, they will sleep till 9:00 or 10:00 am. At this feeding, I bring them to the livingroom for the day. This routine pretty much goes throughout the day too. Eating about every 3 hours, they are awake for an hour or two at a time.

Kenzie prefers the bouncy chair and Lexie prefers the swing. And, they both love music. Yeah, that's right. One month old and they are already taking after dad and sister. Ugh, I am in for it. They want their music on. All the time. (Only during the day though :) They can be sound asleep in their swings/bouncy chairs and the music/mobiles turn off, and they wake up and let me know they want it back on! lol. I can't believe it. This makes daddy very happy.

So, all in all, we have had a great month. It has been so amazing getting to know these two little angels and getting to know a different side of Madison. She really is doing great with the babies. I know she loves them a ton. I have also learned a lot about myself too. I am meant to do this! "This" being a mother. I am good at it and I am not afraid to say it. I love my three girls with every part of me. Yes, I get frusterated. Yes, I get tired of being home all the time and I need a break every few days. But, that is all normal. I also love being home with them. I love taking care of them. I love seeing them change every day. I love it.

Best Picture Ever

This is my favorite picture of my beautiful little ladies. I cannot believe how adorable they are!
Thank you Mandy Kay Photography!

3 Week Check Up

Today I took the babies for a weight check with their doctor. Kenzie is definitely putting on the pounds! Ok, well ounces, but still, she is gaining weight like a champ! She weighed 5.6 at birth, dropped to 4.14 at the hospital, was up to 5.9 at her one week check up, and now she is... 6 lbs 12 ozs! Yahoo! She was 19 inches long when she was born and is now 20 inches. She is doing great!

Lexie is just a more petite little lady, which is just fine. She weighed 5.3 at birth, dropped to 4.13, was back to 5.3 at her one week check up, and now weighs... 6 lbs 1 oz! Yay for both babies being over 6 lbs! We work hard at it! She was 18 inches long at birth and is now 20 inches, catching up to Kenzie. I think I am going to have a bunch of tall skinny girls! Look out daddy!

I am continuing to pump and bottle feed both girls. So far, I have had enough milk for both of them for every feeding and have a good surplus going in the freezer. I am very thankful that so far I am able to give them strictly breast milk which is extremely important, especially if they do have VLCAD deficiency. My milk will help keep them from getting sick which is crucial!

The doctor said they both look fantastic. Their color and skin is great. Their hearts sounds great. They are eating plenty for their size and sleeping well. We are on a 4 hour schedule most of the time. At least at night. They snack a little more during the day because they are awake more, but usually not more than every 3 hours. Our routine at night is pretty good I think. I feed them between 9:30 and 10, swaddle and put to bed. They wake up around 2 for a bottle, then re-swaddle and back to bed. Then they wake again around 6 for another bottle. I put them back to bed again at this time and they will usually sleep until 9 or 10. Not too shabby for 3 week old babies! :) I am trying really hard to get them to know the difference between night and day since they sleep a lot during the day too. So at night, I really don't talk to them. I feed and put right back to bed. I keep the lights off and try not to stimulate them too much. During the day, they are in the living room with Madison, the dog and me. The TV is on, the blinds are open, they swing in their swings. We talk to them a ton and give them lots of snuggles. It seems to be working. They have their awake periods during the day. All in all, they are great little babes.

Today was also the last blood draw for Lexie. Since they are so small, the lab couldn't draw enough blood for all the testing they needed done at once. So last Monday, they took enough for the second PKU and one of the tests. I took them back last Thursday and they were able to get Kenzie's but, they used too small of a needle for Lexie and her blot clotted before they had a chance to put it in the test tube. So unfortunately, we had to go back today and let them re-poke my poor little baby. It is so heartbreaking to hear them scream. I hate it so much! They have such tiny little arms and veins. It is so sad. I know it needed to be done, but I still hate that they have to go through this :(

The blood has to be sent out of state so we won't have the results back for a couple of weeks. Bummer.

So, all in all, doctor's appt went well and it is nice to hear that I seem to be doing everything right so far :)

PICTURES!

I took the babies for newborn pictures yesterday! They look amazing from what I have seen (which is only 4 photos!) And I can't wait to see the rest. The girls did great and were champs the entire time! I never took Madison for newborn pics with a photographer, I just took her to a studio. Big mistake! Mandy was awesome and took the time to get the best pictures possible! She has twins herself so she know exactly how special that bond is and did great getting them posed together in the cutest positions! I cannot wait to make a collage for our wall! I definately have some beautiful little ladies!

So for those of you in Southern Oregon, check out Mandy's amazing work! Mandy Kay Photography. She is on Facebook!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mandy-Kay-Photography/187394234613954

Unsettling News

I got a phone call today from the receptionist from the Metabolic Clinic at OHSU in Portland. She was calling to schedule an appt for Kenzie and Lexie with their doctor. I was completely alarmed when I heard the voicemail and immediately burst into tears. I haven't heard from our doctor yet as to whether or not the girls even have VLCAD Deficiency and now I have a specialist in Portland calling ME???!!! I called back and of course, they have no information for me, just that our pediatrician has been in contact with their specialist and she was told to squeeze us in April 7th when the doctor is in Medford doing a clinic. So, do my girls have this rare deficiency or what?

I called their pediatrician who doesn't work on Mondays, and the nurse called me back. She said she didn't see any results to their blood work in the girls' charts. She said she would look into it more and call me back. Not too much longer and the doctor called me herself. She said that the blood results haven't come back yet, but the specialist is pretty certain that both girls really do have this deficiency and he wanted to schedule an appt for us as soon as possible. She said that she thinks it is a mild case, but we won't really know how severe it is until the results come back and the specialist can make a determination of their condition. Basically, this is a deficiency where their bodies can't make fatty acids. Meaning, they can't fast. Right now, they cannot go more than 5 hours without eating. If they go too long without eating, their glucose levels can drop and they can get really sick. It can cause liver or heart damage if left untreated. If one parent is a carrier of this chromosome, your child has a 1 in 4 chance of getting this deficiency, so how in the world did I get 2 with it! We are praying that it is very mild (or that the initial test results are wrong!) and that we will be able to give them a supplement to help their bodies make what they need in order to stay healthy.

If they do end up having this deficiency, it will be something that we will always be learning about and monitoring. As they get older, we will have to monitor their diets and make sure that they don't go to long without eating. Hopefully the final results will be in by our appt with the specialist and he can tell us exactly what their condition is and what we need to do to keep them healthy. We will need to maintain a relationship with him so that as they get older, we know what we need to do.

Please pray that the initial results were just an error!

Kenzie and Lexie's Birth Story

Well I made it to 37 weeks and 2 days. I probably would have made it to 38 weeks when the doctor wanted to induce, but I developed pre-eclampsia in a matter of a couple days and that was no longer an option for me.

I went for my ultrasound on February 22nd. It was just routine to make sure the girls were still growing and that they had enough fluid. They checked my blood pressure and it was sky high. Then they told me that the girls were not growing at the same rate anymore and I needed to go to RVMC to be induced. They estimated that Lexie weighed 5 lbs 15 ozs and Kenzie was 5 lbs 5 ozs. I asked if I could go home to get my things and tell Madison that I was going to be having the babies and she was going to stay with Grandma for a couple of days. I wanted to be the one to tell her. That didn't happen. The doctor told me I needed to go straight to the hospital and not go anywhere else. She said it was important that they get me and the babies on the monitors as quickly as possible. I started panicking. I was worried that something happened and the babies were in danger. I called David who met me at the hospital. I called my mom to let her know I was going to be induced, and managed to drive myself to RVMC (which was only a block away from where I was at, but it felt like it took forever!)

We got checked in and put into our room. I noticed right away that it was the room closest to the operating room and the NICU. I knew I had to deliver in the OR because we were having twins, but it was still unsettling to be so close. They hooked us all up to monitors and the babies were handling everything just fine. My body, however, was a different story. My blood pressure was getting higher and higher, my blood platelets were dropping dangerously low and I felt horrible. They decided to put an IV in of Magnesium Sulfate that made me feel worse and really sleepy. My doctor arrived at about 3:00 pm and broke my water. The contractions were intense at that point with no breaks in between. I asked for an epidural but they wouldn't give it to me because of the blood platelet issue. They were afraid my blood wouldn't clot and I would have to have a blood transfusion. The doctor told David to make sure he was ready to move to the operating room by 5:00 because she knew that is when I would be ready to deliver.

Sure enough, we moved to the OR at 5:02. Miss Kenzie Grace made her entrance with one push at 5:10. She weighed 5 lbs 6 ozs. I didn't get to see her because they whisked her away to make sure she was breathing, and besides, I had another baby to deliver! Doctor Stone broke my water for baby #2 at 5:13 and Miss Lexie Noelle appeared two minutes later at 5:15 with one push. In fact, David said she practically flew out :) She weighed 5 lbs 3 ozs. Not quite the extreme weight difference that I was expecting.

We went back to our room before 6:00 and both girls were with us! :) They were completely healthy! And Beautiful! I couldn't believe I managed to deliver them both naturally!

We had to stay in the hospital until late Friday (the 25th) Kenzie and Lexie had trouble keeping their body temperatures up the first couple of days, partly because they were so small and partly because neither one was too interested in latching on. On the third day I decided to pump and bottle feed so they would have an easier time eating and that way they could gain weight. Apparently that did the trick because they managed to keep they temps up and were released.

My blood platelets continued to drop while at the hospital and got down to 57. 40 is the magic number for a transfusion. My blood pressure continued to stay up, and they had to put me on medication to control it. I think it was just all the stress of how I ended up at the hospital and worrying that the girls were not ok.

A week later we took the girls for a weight check. Lexie was back up to birth weight and Kenzie passed hers by 3 ozs. Yay! They are doing fantastic and next Tuesday we go back to check their weights again. I am so excited to see how much they have grown. They eat like little piggies! I am still pumping and bottle feeding which works really well for us.

So, easy delivering, not such an easy hospital stay. But, we are all healthy and happy and together and that is all that matters!