Shenanigans...

Everyone is feeling great again! The girls started acting like themselves again around Wednesday. We have stayed in a lot since it is 105 degrees outside according to our thermometers...yikes!! If I can get the girls out to their swing before 9:30 am, we can usually stand the heat long enough to swing for a while. :) Other than that, we read tons of books, watch a few minutes of Sesame Street (every once in while, of course), and play with all our cool toys.

We have a dress-up, ballet outfit on loan from our friend Jessica and the girls weren't sure what to think of it yesterday...Miss Lexi sure can point her toes like a dancer though! :)

Lilly thought it was funny...
until she realized her Daddy was in his office and had closed the door on her...what nerve!!

After looking under the door, she sat up and yelled for him. :)

We are now in the full swing of the weaning process. I am down to nursing twice a day and so far we are all doing fine. Here are the girls showing off their sippy cup skills. They LOVE whole milk and go nuts when they see me pouring it into their cups. Here is Lexi... What a cute little mess...

The girls also like nothing more than to drink out of a cup with a straw. They have been doing this for a couple months now and think it is so much fun. Here is Miss Lilly drinking her Pedialyte while she was sick.

Then the other day, I was putting away a new package of diapers. Lilly grabbed one and was examining it sooooo closely. So I put it together for her, and held it up showing her how it went on her little toosh. When she leaned down to look in, and I stuck it on her head. Her reaction was the funniest thing I have ever seen. She was off...with it on her head...cracking up!! Then I was laughing so hard...it was contagious!!

She crawled all over the room, just laughing and smiling at me!! I adore her little laugh!! So here is one of the pictures she will hate me over when she grows up...they were playing the drums. :)

Last but not least, today the girls were feeling especially good, so I put clips in their hair. Here is how the conversation went...

Mommy - Hey Lilly, will you smile for Mommy? Come on, say cheese!! Pose for Mommy!! :)

Mommy - Awww, Lilly! Did you find your clip? What!! You don't like it and don't want to wear it?

Mommy - You would rather wear your new tutu on your head? You are such a stinker!! :)

Mommy - Lexi, are you going to pose too? First, can Mommy have her phone back? Last time you slobbered in it, we had to dry out the battery for a whole day before it would work again...remember that, honey bear? :) Your eyes sure do look big and blue right now!

And now the girls are sleeping soundly...what a good week!!

Crazy Weekend

It has been such a crazy weekend...we went to the ER again today. The girls were having tummy problems and then suddenly broke out in a rash all over their bellies and backs. By the time we got them to the hospital, the rash was down their legs and on their feet.

We weren't sure if going to the ER was the right thing or not, but decided to err on the side of caution...just in case!! The last doctor told us to come back if there had been no improvements or the girls got worse after 48 hours..it had been 46, so off we went.

The doctor was wonderful!! The girls acted traumatized just by us being there. Obviously, not enough time had gone by for them to forget the shots from Friday night. Lexi lost it when the doc went to examine her. :( He believes that the girls probably caught a virus and it has just been working its way through their systems...first through the ears (which are all cleared up now!), then the tummies, and now in the skin. I was worried that they may have gotten a mild case of chicken pox since they just had their vaccine 9 days ago, but it was clearly not chicken pox. He also said that it was not a reaction to anything...they were just tiny, red, pinprick dots.

Now we are home and the girls are sound asleep! Hopefully they will sleep well tonight. Here are a few pictures of the sweet babies...

This was Friday night while we were waiting for the high fevers to go down...Lexi has never sat still this long and was sooooo miserable. Eric wanted her to feel better, but was enjoying his snuggle time! Lilly sat in her chair sucking her thumb like a bump on a log.

These next 2 pictures were from yesterday afternoon. They were feeling so much better at the time! The first sweetie is Lilly and then Lexi...

Now to completely switch topics...I have been trying to eat healthier lately. It can be kind of hard since Eric hates fruits and veggies....BUT, I have learned that he will humor me sometimes and so I have just started to make dishes and then make him try a bite or two. Last week, I bought a spinach salad mix and put some bacon and cheese on his so he would eat it...he told me today that he really liked it. I will have to do that again. At least he got some good greens.

So I have been looking for some good recipes that are quick and easy. I got a recipe called, "Juicecous" from my favorite blog, www.mycharmingkids.net, a few weeks ago. I made it yesterday and it was sooooooooooo good!! It is also such an easy thing to mix up and make differently each time. It is actually couscous, but cooked with half water and half juice. Then you add whatever you want to it. I used apple juice and then added chickpeas, cilantro, and craisins. It was amazing!! I munched on it all afternoon. The couscous I bought is whole wheat couscous with milled flax seed and soy, and contains 450 mg of Omega 3 oild per serving! I fed some to the girls today and they seemed to like it a lot too!

I think next time, I might cook it in some broth and add a little cheese. The girls will like that and it is such an easy way to get some yummy Omega 3's!! Isn't it a pretty dish? :)

Sick Babies

Well the past few days have been ROUGH!!! I have no clue what it is like to have 1 fussy, sick baby, but let me tell you...2 fussy, sick babies is exhausting! The girls were not quite themselves all day Friday, but around 5:45 pm, they were super hot to the touch. When we got out the thermometer, Lilly read 99.8 and Lexi read 100.9.

These are 2 little girls who have never had a fever and always hover around 98.4 or so...so we freaked out. The triage nurse told us to give them baby tylenol and give it an hour. If the temps were still high, get them to the ER. Well, Lexi's fever kept going up and Lilly's was stable for a while and then went up.

Needless to say, we went to the ER. If I have never mentioned it before, I LOVE our hospital. I wish King's Daughters could stay just the way it is forever, but that is another subject...

After taking vitals and getting a thorough exam by the doc, he determined that they had an ear infection. Thankfully it was in the beginning stages, so they gave the girls a shot of antibiotics to get it over with. Now, here comes the crazy part of the story...there were 3 nurses giving the girls their shots. Two nurses to hold each leg and give a shot in each leg, and the third to help out. At this point, the girls were 3 hours past their bedtime, so while they were still super sweet and smiley, they did not react well to 2 needles being inserted into their thighs.

After Lilly went, it was Lexi's turn. I was holding Lilly, trying to calm her down and Eric was holding Lexi's arms and face while she got her shots. I happened to be watching the needle in Lexi's left thigh just in time to see the syringe fly off the needle and antibiotic shoot across the room, squirting everyone but me and Lilly. Now the nurse didn't do anything wrong...it must have been a faulty syringe and it is the weirdest thing I have ever seen happen. Poor Lexi...that needle jolted in her little leg when it popped and it started bleeding. Then I notice Eric look nervous and start blinking a lot...

He calmly says to the nurses, "Now I do believe that I just got antibiotic splashed in my eye. Should I be worried?" He was chuckling a little. It burned for a few minutes, but they said he would be fine. He kept joking around that at least he couldn't get an eye infection for a while.

We ended up being there a little longer since someone had come in that they did not want us being exposed to...so we hung out in the room for about another 25 minutes and then got to go home. The girls were asleep by the time we got the car running. :)

I just hate having them feel rotten...they have been absolutely precious, even in their grumpiness. Today they have been all smiles in between the tears and mild fevers and we even spent the day in our jammies snuggling and playing. I hope they feel all better tomorrow!

Please pray that they are not dehydrated...I have given them sooooooooo much to drink that I do not know how that would be possible, but they are not peeing a lot, so I will be up all night checking on them. I will post some happy face pictures tomorrow, but until then....goodnight!!

Water Babies and Doors

We took the girls to the city pool today...they loved it so much!! Of course we knew they would since they get so excited about their baby pool at home. We took 2 baby floaties but didn't really need them since we stayed in the kiddie pool. Here are the girls enjoying the fresh air after we got out. They had so much fun that they didn't even realize that it was lunchtime.

Lilly is in blue and Lexi is in the pink...

She actually let me get a picture of her in a hat...

Lexi was checking out the camera cord...

Mommy and Lexi...

And last, but not least, our new back door finally got put in...after 7 weeks of waiting! Here is the old sliding glass door...
Here is the new door...we tried to get a new and improved sliding door but the hole was the wrong size, so we got this one. It opens in, and I think I really like it...I am still getting used to less natural light, my favorite thing, but it is really nice anyway!! This picture was taken in the evening when the sun was setting...it isn't always that dark. :) :)

Friends and Dinner

We had a great day today! Well, overall that is...Lexi cut her 3rd tooth, Lilly's upper gum swelled up and started hurting, and they both just wore me out!! But I still love them more than I can imagine, so it was a great day!

When I was a student at UMHB, I babysat for the coolest family. I have missed them terribly over the years and love getting to see them every so often. When I first met them, the twins, Kate and Ryan, were 6 months old...they are now 9!! Peyton was 2.5 years old and will be 12 in November!! How did that happen so fast??...of course, that is also what Eric and I say when we realize we are going to be 30 on our next birthdays!! :(

So today, Kem and the three kiddos stopped by to bring the girls birthday presents. It was soooooo nice to see them and just hang out with them for a while. I had to take a picture with all of them. I used to say that I was going to go play with my Peyton and my twins!! Now that I really do have my own twins, it is really cool to see them all together!


From left to right: Kate with Lilly, Peyton, and Lexi with Ryan

Lexi playing in her new tutu before bathtime!

Then came time for dinner...I think I may have mentioned once or twice before how AWESOME my husband is, and I need to do it again. Eric has to have meat with a meal or it isn't a real meal...so weird! :) So when we went to HEB yesterday, I let him pick out some good meats for meals. He picked these sausages as an option. He volunteered to grill them for me...even in 100 degree heat, and they were amazing!! They were turkey sausages with spinach and feta cheese and were made by HEB...for those of you without this grocery store chain, I feel sorry for you!! It is the best!!! :)

So after a crazy day with 2 semi-fussy/grumpy babies, my sweet husband went out in the heat and made us some dinner. We just wrapped them in tortillas and YUM!!! I just loaded the dishwasher...I LOVE HIM!!!! Thanks, honey!!

Weekend Fun

The girls are finally back on schedule after the crazy birthday celebrations they had...we haven't stopped having fun though!!

Ever since Nana (Eric's momma) cheered for the girls when they put on their sunglasses, they have been wearing them a lot more. Here is Lexi showing off her glamorous pajama look!!

You think Lilly is trying to tell us something? She is wearing orange, after all! :) And no, this was not taught...she just posed suddenly with her fingers that way.

Lexi now likes to hold onto Eric's face when he is trying to set her on his shoulders...it's a bit awkward for him. :)

The girls take time everyday to lounge in their big girl chairs! These are a HUGE hit...thanks, Mike and Holly!!

And last but not least, this was the twins "big" birthday gift from Eric and I!! It was actually quite the find on craigslist and was just barely used...we only have a tree in the front yard, so we put it up and Voila!!

The girls LOVE to swing, so here they are enjoying some shade today. I also got a little video of them with their big smiles!! :)

Have a great week everyone!!

April Rose

I have been getting questions about April Rose...I wrote a couple little things about her and have been following her and her mother's journey for a couple of months now.

I do not really want to address the situation because I am not sure what to say about it, but REALLY HOPE you will read what Jennifer, Angie, and Raechel have written about it. They write so much more eloquently and sweetly than I ever could. Check it out here:
http://www.audreycaroline.blogspot.com/

Also, here is the link to the Chicago Tribune article.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-baby-hoax-12jun12,0,5601624.story

I was a bit shocked and saddened by this, but do not regret any time that I spent in prayer for this hurting woman who has more issues than I ever imagined. Thanks!