Finally a New Post :)

So I really have been meaning to update the blog for several weeks now...I promise...oops! I have gotten some feedback that I am slipping a bit so I will try to pick up the slack. The girls have grown so much in the last few weeks and we can't believe how much they are able to do. Amelia is crawling all over the place and gets where she needs to go quickly. Quinn has been able to do the army crawl since before Christmas and she is now getting the "normal" crawl down. Her army crawl is much faster though so I think she gets sick of crawling properly because it takes her longer. Both girls can pull themselves up to stand, but are pretty wobly.

The girls personalities have pretty much done a 360 swap from when they were newborns. We thought Quinn was going to be the quiet, shy, and sensative one. Nope! I think these words will better describe Amelia. We thought Amelia was going to be the high maintenance vocal one. Nope! Quinn is a chatter box, go-getter, nap skipper, and big sister beater-upper. She will steal Amelia's toys, pull her hair, pull herself up to stand by balancing her self on Amelias back or head, and so many other things that make Amelia upset. Amelia will cry quickly when Quinn does these things to her, but for the most part she is pretty layed back and likes to watch what Quinn is doing. Amelia is such a sweetheart, a good napper, has an adorable laugh, and can be quite the comedian. So fun to see their personalities start to come out.

Both girls are sleeping through the night which has been amazing! Our "bad" nights consist of getting up once or twice to pop in a pacifier...usually for Amelia, but she goes right back to sleep so its not bad at all. Since Quinn thinks she doesn't need naps during the day, she crashes at night and will quite often wake up in the same position as when she fell asleep.

The girls are eating all kinds of new fruits, veggies, and oatmeal. Their favorite by far has been avocado. Reid and Lauren got us a Baby Bullet for a baby gift so we have been making various baby foods at home. I think its pretty fun to make (for now)!

Their 6 month appointments went really well. I guess we are already coming on 7 months so these stats are already out of date, but as of January 18, both girls were right around 16.5 pounds which puts them around the 60th percentile for weight. And the all important height stats....Amelia is 29 inches and Quinn is 28 inches long, which puts them in the 99th and 98th percentile. However, our doctor's office method of measuring their height is not the most scientific so take this for what its worth.....and when your thinking volleyball like their daddy is, its worth a lot ;)

Their 6 month pictures on the other hand did not go so well. Kevin and I were so proud of our selves. The girls took great morning naps, had a bottle, and were happy and ready to go. Our photographer is just down the street so it didnt take long to get there. In the time it took to get there, Amelia managed to make a huge scratch mark all the way down her cheek (maybe Quinn did it now that I think about it). We got them setup and ready to be all cute and smiley and.....NOTHING. We got the most blank stares that not even our best comedian work could bring out a smile from these two. We left the studio an hour and half later and Kevin and I were exausted! haha! We did get to see them and there are a couple that turned out ok so I will be sure to share them once we get them back.

Here are some pictures from the last couple of weeks:



This is common...Quinn with her hands on Amelia's back or trying to crawl over her.

 

Pretty girl crawling in the ktichen.

Amelia standing up next to the bouncy seat Quinn is sitting in. Don't mind our mess...

Amelia fell asleep with all of her favorite things.

Both girls playing with all of their toys.

 

Quinn and cousin Mason played so nicely together.

Quinn eats so much better in a high chair. No more eating the Bumbo!

Amelia is such a good eater!

 

Quinn makes us laugh! Tonight when we put her down, we left a doll in the crib with her. When we went to check on her she was busy playing with it above her head. The next time we went to check on her, she had fallen asleep with it on top of her.

HAHA I had to post this one because it captures our little shadows so perfectly. Here they are on their way to the kitchen from the living room to chase after Kevin and me. Notice Amelia's very sad face and I caught Quinn mid blink.

6 Months!

Our little sweeties turned 6 months old today! I can hardly believe that as I type it. I remember that weekend like it was yesterday. Even the small details are so fresh in my head--Dr. McKay telling me to go home and get my bags (and Kevin), how my mom was babysitting Mason that day, the delicious red Popsicles, how absolutely hot out side it was, and also how nervous and excited I was. But of course there were the big details that day too...how amazing Kevin did with everything, our super fabulous nurse Amy, and then getting to meet our girls and hearing the sound of the little chime that goes off each time a baby is born. We got to hear it twice! I want to savor each detail like this.

They are getting so big! Amelia is almost crawling and loves to jump in her Jumperoo. She loves to read books or be read to. I think she is going to be the more quiet one with a dry sense of humor. She can be such a ham but then almost acts bashful for being silly. I love how her eyes sparkle when she smiles and that she has her daddy's dimples. She is getting to be a great eater and is mastering eating from a spoon. She thinks it's funny when we sign to her (we do some basic words/signs with the girls). She likes to wake up slowly, like her mom, and cuddle rather than play right away. This is our sweet Baby A.

Quinn is now sitting on her own. She can do a super fast army crawl across the living room floor and then when she gets where she wants to go, she just sits. She smiles all the time and she too has the cutest dimples ever! She doesn't love sweet potatoes and is pretty messy when she eats, another trait from her mother. When she wakes up from a nap or in the morning she is ready to go right away and then gets chatty and silly when she is tired. She thinks her daddy is pretty funny and loves to see him come in the room. She will laugh for him so easy! She thinks all of her toys are pretty fun but her favorites are the remote, cell phone, water bottle, or anything that Amelia is playing with. This is our sweet Baby B.

Happy half birthday girls!

We have their 6 month appointment next Friday so I don't have any of the height/weight/length stats for you right now. I know Kevin is eager to hear what those are to make sure we are still on par to becoming star volleyball players. ;) In the mean time, here are some pictures. And I know in the previous post Kevin mentioned some videos....well, we couldn't get them to upload. Will try again another time.

Amelia sitting so nicely!!

This is seriously the best one I could get of Quinn. She would NOT sit still--as you can tell by her moving feet.

Amelia in the suitcase and Quinn on the floor in front.

Amelia in one of her Christmas sweaters.

Wearing their Packer outfits from Grandpa VV....Go Pack Go!

Quinn after a bath. I love snuggling with the girls after their baths!

Have a good week everyone! 

Happy New Year!!

Its hard to believe the year 2013 is just around the corner.  Its crazy to think another year went by and so much happened.

Right now we are coming up on 6 months with the girls and we are in awe of what happens each day.  Below you will see some pictures and videos but the girls continue to blow us away.  Quinn who we thought was our content girl is now all over the place.  She is not able to crawl but she has mastered the army crawl and gets everything in sight.  She is also getting more vocal and at times has us laughing.  Amelia who we thought was going to be our fussy girl is actually pretty content when she is well rested and well feed, if you can keep up with those two things she is happy as ever.

Another aspect with turning 6 months is their 6 month appointment which we are not looking forward to because last time we went in for shots both girls got sick and it went down hill from there for a week or so.  One aspect I am looking forward to is finding out how tall and how much the girls weigh.  Each time we go in its exciting to see what percentile the girls are in.  Now being competitive, the coach in me starts to come out when the Dr. starts saying where the girls are at.  I start to think of what sport they will play and what position they will play in that sport.  I've already had several talks with them about what sports they won't play so we will see what happens.  I've also had numerous talks with them about college majors to avoid as well as the male gender and how horrible they are and most importantly how a one piece is so much better then a two piece bathing suit.  Time will tell if my wisdom will set in.

Anyways, we were able to head to Rock Rapids for Christmas.  We left on Christmas Eve and spent the night and then hung out with Amber's family all Christmas day.  It was good time and we were able to catch up with family we had not seen in a while.  At the same time we have been able to Skype with my family back in B.C. and that was fun to see nieces and nephews that we continue to watch grow from a distance.  All in all we feel blessed during the Christmas season with everyone healthy and happy.

Here are some pictures of the girls:

 Amelia just waking up

Quinn and her big smile!

               Quinn could not help but to touch every present at Christmas so we added a bow for her!!

The day was filled with too much excitement because Amelia had to take a nap while opening gifts.
See if you can find her in the picture.

 Family picture after church

Playing together!

         Picture time in their Christmas sweaters.

5 months old!

I think for the past two weeks or so I have said "tonight I am going to update the blog." Well tonight I think I actually have a chance. The girls had a big day, had a big last bottle, and are already sleeping. Yay!  A lot has happened since my last post so I will try to remember most of the details.

We had a great Thanksgiving holiday and a great visit with Kevin's family. It was a full house but definately great to see everyone. We got to meet our niece Sydney for the first time and we were thankful for that as well. And before you get the wrong idea....No, I did not cook Thanksgiving dinner for everyone. Thanks to my mom for having us all over! And I was pretty spoiled in that everyone helped out on meals here too so I got to enjoy my vacation from work as well. Definately a lot to be thankful for!

The Sunday after Thanksgiving was the girls Baptism Day. Everything went pretty well and we had a nice service and lunch afterwards. Thank you to everyone who came and helped us celebrate and welcome the girls into the covenant of God's grace.

Since that time there hasn't been anything too major going on--which I find really nice. We have enjoyed a lot more family time now that volleyball is finished and are feeling like our evenings are a little longer. Not that we arent busy and living without chaotic moments as we definately are. We try to just remind ourselves to take everything for what it is and just enjoy it.

This weekend we were able to finish our Christmas shopping so now I just have some wrapping to do. I was just saying to Kevin that I love having the tree on in the house. It feels so cozy and relaxing....or maybe I am just thinking that since the girls are sleeping since I wouldnt consider most days around here to be relaxing ;)

Other than that, the girls are getting so big and learning lots of new things. They roll and roll and roll all over the place. Quinn is really good at getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth and is great at getting where she wants to go. Amelia will get on all fours and do kind of a plank but doesnt move around quite as much as Quinn as far as crawling goes. Both girls love to sit in the jumperoo and can really get that thing moving. They like to sit in their Bumbos but are now thinking its pretty fun to try to turn in them, which doesnt work very well. We are trying to have them eat one solid food a day in the evenings. We do oatmeal or squash and will be adding mroe veggies as the month goes on. Sometimes they do really well eating and sometimes I think more ends up on their bibs than in their mouths.
Did I already tell you that they are sleeping in seperate cribs now? We just started that a couple weeks ago and so far that is going well. I think they missed eachother the first couple nights but after that they realized they had the whole thing to themselves. Because of that and the fact that they can roll, we have started to unswaddle them. We leave their arms out but keep the rest of their bodies in their SwaddleMe sacks.They start out on their backs but within not too long they have turned over onto their tummies--and they sleep so hard this way. Amelia especially loves it and will sleep with her butt in the air. Quinn will stay on her back longer and put her arms way above her head. Its pretty cute.
They are both also still really smiley and are getting giggley--which I love to hear. They also are starting to realize they like to look at eachother. They will smile and touch eachothers heads and hands. Sometimes Quinn pulls Amelia's hair and then Amelia screams. Sometimes Amelia kicks Quinn in the stomach and then Quinn screams. Pretty funny.

I am sure what most of you are wanting to see are the pictures so here ya go. Check out these bright eyes.

 

Five month pics did not go too well so here are the best :)

 

 

 Playing together in our Christmas Jammers

 

 

 

Quinn sitting with Bep and Sydney (looks a bit like Amelia dont you think?)

 

 Reading a book with Grandpa

 

Messy and Delicious Oatmeal

 

Before baptism meal...quickly trying to give them a few ounces to tide them over.

 

After the service:

 

In the Fireside room for lunch afterwards

 

That's it for now. Time for bed. Have a great week everyone!!

 

Multiple Blessings

Sunday, November 11:
I know I had a previous post titled "Life with Twins" but at that time I had no idea what "life with twins" really was. I wouldn't say it's hard necessarily...because for the most part the girls really are really good babies.What I have found is that our organization skills have improved and we are constantly planning ahead for all of the scenarios that might happen. But life with twins does bring about some challenges. I try to see these challenges as blessings because they are when you think about it, but in the moment it doesn't always seem easy.

One thing in particular that I am thinking about is favoritism.I don't ever want the girls to think I favor one over the other. This week the girls both had colds and got their 4 month shots on top of it. I even took Amelia to Urgent Care on Tuesday. Both have had fevers of 101 to 102 and have been very cuddly. In general Quinn is a little more layed back while Amelia makes sure you know she's upset. When I go to pick up Amelia, I feel so badly for Quinn who stares at me picking up her sister instead of her. I can just see it in her eyes that she's thinking she would have loved to have been picked up too. And this happens the other way around too. As I am typing this, I am holding Quinn while Amelia is sitting in the bouncy seat just staring at me wondering why it's not her instead.
I know I'm over thinking this but I am sure you can see my point too, right?

Another challenge is all of the stuff two girls can own. I realize this is the case with one child as well. However, as I look around our living room I see the following: 2 bouncy seats, 2 bumbos, 2 boppys, 2 Sophie the giraffes, 2 giraffe blankets, a playmat thing, 4 pacifiers...and the list goes on. The problem isn't so much the stuff but the feeling that your home is messy. Even if it's clean it feels cluttered. And we have found its really not worth it to put all this stuff away after each use because we just end up getting it right back out. The other aspect about having so much stuff is that it's hard to feel organized, which as I mentioned earlier is crucial to our sanity. I know that this too is something I have to get over as I am often reminded by my husband that a house is made to be lived in. Lets just say I think it's time to finish the basement. And again, we are blessed to even be able to own all of this stuff.

Friday, November 16: So I stopped writing after the last paragraph to take a nap and didnt get to start up again. Sunday night the girls, Quinn in particular, were really not feeling well. Since Kevin had Monday off for Veteran's Day, we decided we should take the girls in to the clinic. Between going to Urgent Care the previous week, going in for the 4 month shots last week Fiday, and now again for this, we are becoming quite the regulars. Anyway, the doctor did not like the way Quinn's lungs sounded, ran some tests, and determined that she had RSV and needed to be admitted to the hospital to be monitored. So I left work, we dropped Amelia off at Auntie Heather's, and headed to the hospital. Poor Baby!! She was dehydrated and the nurses could not get the iv in her hand or foot so they had to put it in her head. Definately not fun to see your little girl like that. She just was not herself. They ran a bunch of fluids through her and watched her oxygen levels all night and we did get to go home the next day. But it sure made for an interesting week. Especially since Kevin left for state volleyball on Wednesday morning. I stayed home with the girls Tuesday and Wednesday but went back to work on Thursday. My parents are amazing and came up each night to help with the girls. Just another one of the challenges turned blessings. I am so glad that it wasn't more serious and that it was only for one night. Definatley a lot to be thankful for and I think they are both getting better slowly but surely.

We are also looking forward to the upcoming week as Kevin's parents and sister and brother-in-law are coming to visit over Thanksgiving. Next Sunday, the 25th, the girls will also be baptized so we are glad that family will be around to attend that as well.

I also wanted to mention a couple of fun things that you may want to know about the girls. They both smile ALL THE TIME! They can be quite the comedians and love to be talked to. Amelia gets excited and her eyes sparkle and her tongue and lips kind of bounce when she gets excited. Quinn's eyes get so big and her dimples really show through. Amelia would love to be held all day if she could while Quinn would probably rather be playing on the ground. Both girls have had some oatmeal before bed and while its messy they actually eat it pretty well. I am hoping it helps them sleep better as they are starting to wake up hungry about 3 or 4 in the morning. Both girls can roll over. Sometimes they just keep rolling and if I leave the room for a bit and come back, I will find them across the room. Uh oh--gonna be time to baby proof soon.

Since I mentioned Kevin being at state volleyball I thought I should point out a couple of things regarding that. His team made it to the state championship so they will be playing Saturday night against a rival Sioux Falls school. Should be a great match! Good luck Riders!!
Second, last year during  state volleyball was when I found out I was pregnant. So these little peanuts have been with us for a year now! So crazy to think about!

Lastly, I want to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. I am so thankful for our two beautiful girls and their wonderful daddy. I am thankful for our family and our friends, our home, our jobs, and that the Lord's blessings are new every morning.

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”

-Lamentations 3:22-24

 

Thanks for sticking through my very random post. Not sure I totally got across what I was wanting to say but I think you can get the point. 

Here are some of the latest pictures of the girlies:

Smiling at their daddy!

Amelia not so sure daddy is funny anymore but Quinn thinks so!

4 month pictures. Quinn gets so distracted by the camera that a lot of her pictures end up with this deer in the headlight look :)



Amelia showing off some 4 month sassiness/

Since both girls are rolling constantly, this scene is not uncommon. Someone is usually kicking the other....that or eating someones elbow, foot, or forehead.

Happy babes!