For The Record - Friday

A and B had their 2 month well checks today... They are 2 months old today exactly... A is 8 lbs 6 oz and 21" long... B is 10 lbs 1 oz and 22" long... They are both doing really well... They had their 2 month shots as well... It made them quite fussy in the late afternoon... I went to the first Autism Support Group meeting of the year... We are meeting in a new location... It is the office of the SLP... Our old SLP has a son with Autism... They had a fitness instructor there from a local gym... He is open to working with our children on the spectrum... He gave a really nice talk and was looking for help in setting up individual and group sessions... He is also interested in the public schools transporting our spectrum children to the gym for a session a couple times a year... Everyone enjoyed snuggling and oh/ah at A and B... It was a good night... I enjoyed relaxing and talking with other parents with children on the spectrum... One mom realized that I was Engineer's mom... Her son is in his class... She just never put the two and two together that he was my son or that I was his mom... I don't know her son too well since he is quite a bit younger then Engineer... However we both think it would be very good for her son, Engineer and all the other children in their class to have the opportunity to take classes with this guy... Engineer couldn't attend regular Phy-Ed... So, they put him in an 'adaptive gym'... He couldn't handle that sensory wise either... He doesn't have any 'Phy-Ed' except for some made up nonsense about him pushing carts/pulling wagons around the school... It will be good to see what a TRUE 'Phy-Ed' program would do for him...

Temperature Returning To Normal - Thursday

Thankfully we are all starting to feel better... Children missed school today and yesterday... I cancelled ST for Wednesday and today... Our SLP didn't need to be exposed to this too... I also didn't make it to the Abortion Clinic to pray either because of our illness... It was a pretty simple virus... You had a fever of 101-102 and horrible headache... No other symptoms... It was about 24-36 hours course... I was afraid we would miss our class tonight but everyone healed up just in time... They told us we would have our books next week... I can't wait... We watched a DVD video about the Principles of a Nurturing Parent and played the Hokie Pokie (I watched because A wanted to nurse) with the 3 and up group... Nursing A the 2nd half of the night worked out well... Last week he SCREAMED all the way home (5-6 minute drive) because he was hungry...

Wordless Wednesday

Teeth Tuesday

This morning I had a dental appointment... Just a routine cleaning... I also briefly attended the LLL meeting because of the time my dental appointment was scheduled... Linebacker had speech as well in the morning... Afternoon was pretty quiet... I caught what Linebacker had over the weekend... Monkey came off the bus and he had caught it as well... We layed around quite a bit... Thankfully the non sick children behaved for us who didn't feel well...

Labor Day

For Labor Day despite the rainy weather... We went on a road trip to Fort Abercrombie... Here is a bit of info...

Known historically as "the Gateway to the Dakotas," Fort Abercrombie was the first permanent United States military fort established in what was to become North Dakota. It was also the only post in the area to be besieged by Dakota (Sioux) warriors for more than six weeks during the Dakota conflict of 1862. During the Dakota Conflict, Minnesota Volunteer soldiers manned the fort when area settlers sought shelter there. The "regular" U.S. Army soldiers had been withdrawn during the Civil War and had been replaced by the Minnesota Volunteer Infantry. The fort was not protected by blockhouses or a palisade during the siege, but these defensive structures were constructed soon afterward. The fort guarded the oxcart trails of the later fur trade era, military supply wagon trains, stagecoach routes, and steamboat traffic on the Red River. It also was a supply base for two major gold-seeking expeditions across Dakota into Montana. Fort Abercrombie served as a hub for several major transportation routes through the northern plains. After the fort was abandoned in 1877, fort buildings were sold and removed from the site. A Works Progress Administration (WPA) project in 1939-1940 reconstructed three blockhouses and the stockade and returned the original military guardhouse to the site. Beginning in the summer of 2001, a project to refurbish major portions of the WPA project and to reinterpret the site was initiated.

Check out the link for more... We took a PIC inside the 'interpretive center'... Our last trip there was in 2007... Just before they built the new interpretive center...

Super Busy Saturday

I went and saw Engineer... We took 1st Day of School PICS...

Engineer - 5th Grade:

We also did some birthday shopping together... I had received some money yesterday and today... I bought a nursing cover at a new store in town called 'Eco Chic'... It is a really cool store... I look forward to going back when I can just browse leisurely... Engineer is a no-nonsense shopper... It is in and out... We bought popcorn for him and a smoothie for me after our shopping was done at the Mall...

I picked up the middle ones and we did their 1st day of school PICs...

Princess - Kindergarten and Monkey - 2nd Grade

I will have just these 3 home during the day...

After I did 'first day of school' PICS with the middle ones... We went to Sam's for our once a month shopping and for them to pick out their monthly snack... We headed home with all our goodies... My husband and princess went to the library and 5 o'clock Mass... Linebacker behavior is beyond what either of us can deal with so we are going to be attending in split shifts for a while... Monkey and I will go to the noon on Sunday... I didn't accomplish as much as I wanted today and that makes me irritable...

1st Friday of September

Today was 1st Friday... We had our CCM meeting... This years theme is Proverbs 31... It was fun seeing everyone I hadn't all summer... Everyone also saw all the new babies that had been born since the last 'official' meeting in May... We heard about our friend Sally's trip to Ireland... She lived there for almost a year... Her husband had a job opportunity... We also decided for the first time when to have an evening meeting... I'm not sure if I will make it or not... However it is a nice new option available for those who can't make it to the day meetings... A and B were developmentally screened this morning... They needed to score a 6 and scored a 13 on the Brigance Screening... Isn't that awesome... They will be screened again in about 2 months... After the children came home from school we went to our friend's house in Rural MN... It was our first visit... The children played... We chatted... She is also a mother of twin boys... They turned 2 in August... They are children #7 & #8 of 9 children... She gave me a tour of their house... It is huge and totally awesome... It used to be some kind of business... Pottery I think... I can't wait to see what it looks like once they have finished adapting it to their family's needs... It is a wonderful find... I know they are enjoying all the SPACE... Their previous home was quite small but of course they had 3-5 children (not sure what year they bought it) back then...

Thirty-First Birthday Part I

I am 31 years old today... I scheduled my post to appear at the time I was born (12:26 PM)... I was due September 26th and weighted 6 lbs 4 oz... My mom teased me as a child that I was born just in time for lunch and never stopped eating...

My birthday didn't start out so well... I must have been very tired because the children woke up and I was awaken by a crash... This is what I found:
They were trying to climb the shelves so they could play a board game... ::sigh:: This was after I spent 30 minutes cleaning it up... So, I was kind of in a sour mood... My mood was soured even further by the fact I couldn't seem to leave the house... It took HOURS before I finally made it out to do what *I* wanted...

I also had to clean the computer desk off...

Before:

After:

My first stop was to drop off a dish towel to a friend... I was poured on... Next I stopped at Peanut's school because she had forgotten her library book... I finally then went to have my hair cut and donated to Locks Of Love... I donated 20"...
Pretty amazing huh?

I then headed home... We did some things around the house... My husband hadn't picked up my cake so instead of being at home with all the children... We decided we would all ride to the store for the cake... He took forever in the store and I was almost late to my first Nurturing Parent Class... It was a good class... I definetely belong there and fit in well... I'm very excited to receive my book and learn the Nurturing Parent Method and become a Nurturing Parent instead of what I am currently... ::frown::

Thirty-First Birthday Part II

After my class we had my 'party'...
Steaks and Presents... What could be better?

Yummm... Cake...

Gotta blow out the candles and make a wish before you can open presents...

Opening Presents...
One of my many presents... Paula Deen Red Tea Kettle...

My other presents included tennis shoes, underwear, cash, twin sling, renewal CCLi subscription, book: Radical Homemakers, book: Oh Yes, You Can Breastfeed Twins, School Pictures, and Nursing Cover...

'New Year' Resolutions

My birthday is tomorrow... I always do my 'new year's resolutions' around this time of year when I start a 'new birthday year'... Here are my top 10 things I want to work on during my 'new birthday year'...

1. Give Up Sodas, so I can lose weight...
2. Eat Better, I've been known to almost on a daily basis not to drink (not even water) or eat for 8-10 hours after waking for the day... Ex: I wake at 7 AM and take my first drink/food at 3-4 PM...
3. Drink More Ice Tea (low fat and help keep me hydrated), I hope to eventually cut back on this and replace it mostly with 8 - 8 oz glasses of water...
4. Pay Down My Debt and NOT run it back up again...
5. Take a Parenting Class (actually go!) Signed Up for 15 Wk Course, starts tomorrow...
6. Read FIVE Books that I bought because I 'had' to have them even though it ran up my Debt...
7. Go Walking 3 Times Weekly with the Trio because I will lose weight and it is good for me!
8. Pray Wednesdays at the Abortion Clinic (weather permitting for the Trio)...
9. Create and Follow A Take Care of ME Routine...
10. Pray A Daily Rosary and Divine Mercy Chaplet

I will update throughout the coming year to let you all know how I'm doing... Pray for me... Thank you...

Wordy Wednesday

Well, I was going to start off my blog with just a photo and call it Wordless Wednesday but I can't do that... Maybe next week I can do a Wordless Wednesday once I'm back and given everyone and update of all that has happened since my last post (in APRIL! ::blush::)...

Well, the boys are here! I'm still working on 'nicknames' so right now they are going to be Baby A and Baby B... Feel free to leave a nickname in the comment section... I'm not sure if I want them related or have a team/twin/duo theme or not... I'm considering calling Baby A QB (or Quarterback) following the 'football' theme after Linebacker but can't think of a good 'football' theme name for Baby B... Only names so far for him are names I don't want him to live with the rest of his life like Chunky and Fat Cheeks... ::sigh::

For all that don't know... They arrived at 35 wks and 4 days gestation... Baby A - 5 lbs 2 oz and 17-1/2" was born all natural (no meds) vaginal birth (didn't even tear!)... Baby B - 5 lbs 10-1/2 oz and 18-3/4" had a prolapsed cord and face presentation... He was born via emergency c-section w/ vertical incision, 26 staples and me put under (asleep)... I'm not sure if they would have knocked me out if I already had the epidural in... However I deliver mine med free (no plans to change that in the future)... Just something to wonder about... Baby B spent 10 days in the NICU because he wasn't able to suck (very bruised face) to nurse or suck on a bottle and was tube fed (up nose, down throat) for the first 8 days of his life... Baby A was discharged when I was and roomed in during our hospital stay (standard 4 days, 3 nights) ... He is fully nursed... Baby B is formula; bottle fed but I'm trying to convert him over to nursing... It is slow going... I'm doing well... C-section (my first) was quite something new to recover from... I still look at my incision/scar and wonder if I will ever be "normal" again... I told my husband the other night "at least I'm looking less Frankensteinish"... ::smirk::

As for the rest of the family... My husband just had his 10 year anniversary of working at his job... WTG Hubby!!! That is a quite a milestone in today economy... Engineer is 10 and in the 5th grade... He is doing great in his program and we spend every Saturday together just the two (plus Baby A) of us... Monkey is 7 and in the 2nd grade... He is attending a new school and loving it! Smaller class size and none of the tension between us and the staff like at his old school... Peanut is FIVE (July Birthday) and in Kindergarten... She is attending the same school as Monkey and having a wonderful start to her first year of school... Kindergarten is all day here... They ride the bus together, eat breakfast together, then Monkey walks Peanut to her class (2 doors down from his)... At the end of the day Monkey picks her up from her classroom, they walk together and ride the bus home... We are in the middle of our first school fundraiser... So, if anyone is interested in a Butter Braid for $10... Send me an email... They are only available for purchase through fundraisers... Our deadline is Sept 15th... Linebacker is TWO (May Birthday) and at home with me and our almost 2 month old TWINS! Check the column on the right for updated photos of my crew...

I guess this is a good jump start to my blog... I am going to be writing regularly again Monday - Saturday... I look forward to reconnecting with all my readers... I look forward to your comments and questions...

PS: LOTS of PHOTOS to come... Tomorrow is my 31st BIRTHDAY!!! WOOO HOOOO....

Finally Making It Back - Friday

We were struck by the stomach virus (4 of us), head cold with severe runny nose and ear infection this week... I had to visit the ER on Wednesday night for 3 liters of fluid... So, this virus was a nasty one! We are all starting to feel better... Still have one with a faucet like runny nose and on antibiotics for the ear infection (same child)... They still having the daily sickies... UGH!!! Hopefully this child will be able to keep more down the juicy water (100% juice extremely water down) and antibiotic... My oldest was also struck with strep this week and is on antibiotics as well... So, it seems all that nice weather we had revived all the 'bugs' that froze for the winter... Hopefully we are done with all that and can enjoy our spring... It is chilly again here... I sure miss those 60 degree days... My family back east was saying it was 90! Now that is just wrong for spring... I would very upset if it was that hot... However I prefer not to find a thick layer of frost on my wind shield at 1/4 to 8 in the morning that takes the defroster 5-10 minutes to melt so you can leave... For those who don't follow on FB... I add our family to our new van...

Not the best picture but you get the idea... LOL... Need to break out our Mr. Clean Car Wash Kit (we picked ours up at Walmart and love it) once it is warm enough... We sold our old van to the junk yard yesterday... I'm going to rest some more because after spending several hours in the ER and L&D in the middle of the night... I'm still tired... I'm not sure if I will write tomorrow or not... I may take the weekend off and just pick back up on Monday... Let's all pray I have uneventful rest of the day and weekend... Gotta catch up on Laundry... So, I will be doing a lot of sitting and folding...

Taking a chance and Trying again - Thursday

It has been a while since I last blogged... Umm, like over 3 months?!?! ::smirk:: I've decided I'm going to try again... A lot has happened since my last publishing... An amazing event has happened which has lead me to try again so I can document this... I'm expecting again... Nothing too amazing about that... LOL!!! Here is my 20 week guess the gender belly shot (with Linebacker sneaking in there too):




However...
I'm expecting TWINS... Yep, right there in that ultrasound PIC you can see TWO heads which are connected to 2 seperate sweet bouncing BOYS! At the time of the ultrasound I was 20 weeks and 6 days... Baby Boy A was 21 weeks and 5 days and Baby Boy B was 21 weeks and 3 days... I bet you weren't 'expecting' that huh? So, our family is now a family of 8... Gender Count of Offspring is 5 Boys to 1 Girl... So, lately I've been filling my hours with eating ::smirk:: and talking with friends about their twin births plus reading online and various books I own what new things I'm to expect this pregnancy... If you have had twins and have recommended reading... Let me know... How do I feel about this news... Well, I have to say I'm still shocked (found out on Monday) but excited... I've decided during Lent to make Friday's internet free so my next posting will have you waiting till Saturday... On the bright side tomorrow is Good Friday and the last Friday of Lent...


In other news... We bought a new minivan (which will be FULL in a few months) 98 Plymouth Grand Voyager Expresso... Engineer is now 10, still in the 4th grade and doing awesome in his program... Monkey is now 7, still in 1st grade and he is doing well also... Princess is still 4 with a birthday coming up this summer and very excited to be FIVE and a Kindergarten this fall... Linebacker is 22 months and into EVERYTHING... I'm planning a trip to the clothing store with a friend of mine to ::gasp:: buy shorts (maternity for now)... Which she assures me will be modest and look good... ::smirk:: She promises to help me find jeans also that fit good/modest plus appropriate for a mom in her 30s without being frumpy after the twins arrive... Of course when I'm ready for jeans (aka willing to give up my maternity wear, hehehe)...


See you all on Holy Saturday...

PS: Don't forget to check me out on FB a.k.a. where I've been hiding the last few months... ::wink::

Finally Trying Again Friday

I'm going to try blogging again... A lot has happened since my last post... I'm still here... Hope to be posting regularly soon...