Waiting for Rainbows

Sunday, October 14, 2012

HAPPY ONE YEAR BIRTHDAY Aubrey Hope and Avery Grace

As I look back on the year in review, I am just flooded with joy remembering how much fun we have had and how much I love being a mother to Aubrey and Avery. God has blessed me with full arms and an even fuller heart and I couldn't be more thankful. Here are some highlights from this past year:

Avery Grace: Born October 14, 2011 at 6:28pm 3lb 14oz (Currently: 17 lbs)
Aubrey Hope: Born October 14, 2011 at 6:29pm 3lb 14oz (Currently: 15.6 lbs)

Discharged to home on December 1, 2011 (after 48 days in the NICU) and we became a family of four under one roof.

Celebrated all the "firsts" for holidays.

Smiled, cooed, laughed, squealed, rolled, sat-up, pulled up to standing, crawled, started solid foods, and stolen our hearts.

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This last month the girls have really enjoyed having more mommy and daddy time as they have longer wake periods. They love playing with all their toys, babbling and laughing at eachother, racing around the house, walks in the stroller, going to the park and being in the swing, running errands, eating out, people watching, play dates...you name it, they love it! Aubrey has had major physical developments over the past two months and Avery has made major vocal developments in the past month. So, now at one year, they both talk and gab a ton and they both are cruising along furniture, just on the cusp of walking independently. As any proud momma would say-they are beautiful, smart and perfect in everyway.

I still love seeing their personalities develop and grow. I love watching how they are similar and also different. I just love everything about them! Here are some of the fun developments this month:

-In the bathtub, Aubrey loves to play on her belly. When she isn't playing with toys in the tub, she is splashing water all over the place and loving every minute of it. Avery prefers to sit up in the tub and play. Ironically, her favorite "toy" is sucking the water out of the washcloth. If Aubrey comes close to trying to take her washcloth--there is an all out brawl that will ensue!
-Both girls get so excited when it is time for a trip (either in the carseat or the stroller). Avery kicks her legs with excitement and they both light up with smiles.
-Both girls get excited over "Amen" when we pray at meals--they think it is pretty exciting that it is time to eat (who knew we would ever have that day!). Eating is always fun as they try to new foods and tastes. I love how Aubrey can "bite" foods because she now has two top teeth and two bottom teeth, while Avery crumbles the food in her hand to bite sized pieces if she needs to since she remains with just two bottom teeth.
-Frequently, Aubrey prefers to feed herself the bottle, because she wants to do it herself. Avery sometimes like to feed herself too, but usually she just wants to be held close to take her bottle and snuggle--I'm ok with that too!
-It makes me laugh when I try to get a cute picture of the two and they are doing their own thing--crawling away, looking somewhere else...just about anything but both looking at the camera!
-Now Avery also talks a lot like her sister and guess what--so many of their noises sound identical. Sometimes we are doing a double take (literally!) when we thought it was Aubrey talking and it was actually Avery.
-I love listening to the girls on the monitor (and then watching them on the camera in the nursery) where they are standing in their cribs just talking and laughing back and forth to eachother--seriously, what are they plotting?!
-Avery loves to carry things in her hand (something small) and crawl around the house with it. She will take a bottle lid or a link and just keep it in her hand all moring because she loves keeping something with her for her pitstops to play. Aubrey is more likely to find new toys as she goes because now that she pulls up on everything, she has a whole new world to discover!
-We bought our first Halloween outfits this year (pictures next month for all our Halloween festivities!). Even though they were with us last year, spending in the NICU just isn't the same. This year they will be pink poodles and it is going to be so cute. I guess that makes Jay and I their keepers:)

This past month was birthday preparation time. Jay and I have had fun planning, organizing, and throwing the party to celebrate this special day. We decided that since they were the only true Texans of the family (while we might be at heart, we aren't true bloods!) that we needed to throw a party with a cowgirl theme. A wonderful friend who did such a great job making all their bedding etc for the nursery also helped create their birthday outfits for the party. I loved how they turned out. Jay and I also were able to play the role of cowboy and cowgirl and I have to say we make a pretty cute family! We had good food, good company, and good times! I couldn't have imagined a better party. Many have asked if I'm sad that they are one already and my response is that I'm too happy to be sad--I am loving every minute and I'm ok with living in the presesnt and just enjoying the ride:)

Here are some pictures from the month:

Two thumbs up is all I have to say!

Aubrey "eating" chicken and rice--smears it around her tray.

Avery "eating" chiden and rice--get in my tummy!

What's that mom?

What are we going to do with this hair?

Does this outfit make me look fat?!

A jumper and a duck--that is all Aubrey needs to stay happy for a long time!

The girls look so big in the stroller now--I remember when they were too small to fit into the straps!

Drinking water after a fun time at the park!

While this photo might not capture their excitment, the girls really do like to be in the swing together.

Trying to mix it up a bit and stimulate different senses (fleece for touch and the zipper for noise) and it is just too hard not to squeeze a baby with hugs when she is so soft and cuddly!

Aubrey is slightly embarrased and won't even look at the camera! Needless to say, we had fun trying on different outfits for the girls birthday party.

Aubrey's first ice cream cone. She is a very dainty eater.

Avery's first ice cream cone--she is "all in!"

Shaking out the cheerios.

Munching on cheerios while playing.

Avery loves to pull her sister's hair!

Silliest picture ever!

Hey mom, come in here! Notice Avery trying to lick the door!

Sweet, happy babies!

Just a little close!

Having a blast!

So silly!

Still fit in the swing together.

Time for fall.

Avery: Mom--this hay is touching me...I'm out!

Avery wasn't too pleased about sitting for this picture!

Aubrey looks like she just gave Avery a giant push....and Avery is over it!

This is what our pictures look like anymore!

The girls first "choo choo" train ride at a friend's 2 year old birthday party. Avery was having a blast. Aubrey was busy doing a risk assessement, hodling on for dear life since there were no seat belts!

I love this picture...so sweet.

Those are my cuties!

Avery is having a blast.

Avery is having the time of her life and Aubrey is a little skeptical!

My gems.

I've recently read a blog about "being in the picture"...and while this isn't picture perfect, I'm going to try to take more pictures with the girls and with Jason in the coming year.

Bath Tub FUN!

Four Generations: Aubrey, Mommy, Gramma and Poppy and Great Grammom

Beautiful crocheted sweaters handmade by Nana...so special:)

Gramma reading to the girls

Thank you Aunt Maria and Uncle Jim for our most precious first cross pendants (all the way from Florence, Italy). What a special treasure and keepsake.

Uncle Joel being silly.

Time to help with the dishes!

Birthday Party Pictures

Kissy Time!

Great Grammom and her sweet peas!

Proud mommy and daddy!

Bounce house time!

Baby strollers from Nana and Grandpa

Our first Radio Flyer!

Love me some teething beads!

Thanks for all the wonderful help from family to make this such a special birthday party celebration!

Aubrey enjoying the ball pit.

Celebrating (again!) on their actual birthday with a cake made special from MOM.

And...the party continued at 6:28pm and 6:29pm on October 14 as we celebrated with party supplies sent by my best friend Liz and her daughter Kate who is 3 months old. This fun is just the beginning of many more celebrations to come!

Sunday, September 9, 2012

11 Months...Already?!?

Over the past few months, whenever I was asked how old the girls were I would report that they were “4 months, 6 months, 9 months” etc. Now I catch myself saying they are almost ONE! What…when did that happen?! It is amazing what a difference a year makes. This time last year, I was on strict bed rest and now bed rest seems like such a distant memory!! The girls have gone from 3lb preemies in isolettes to crawling, standing, and babbling babies!! Every day from first day they have been home to today has been “the best day of my life.” Jay seems to think it is funny that I say “this is the best time of our lives” almost every day. I just couldn’t imagine life without us four together. There is nothing like waking up in the morning and going to bed at night knowing that you have two miracles that call you momma.

This month has been a big month in development for Aubrey. She has learned how to go from a sitting position to a crawling position, how to pull up on her knees and play, how to pull up to a standing position, how to climb stairs, and how to feed herself the bottle. Avery this month is letting her sister catch up to her in development and is quite content with being a busy bee by crawling around everywhere, standing, cruising on furniture, and believe it or not—EATING! She loves eating solid food—in fact she prefers feeding herself and is really getting good at it. You know she is my daughter—she can pack buttered bread away and never think twice about it!

We survived a “first cold” this month. Aubrey unfortunately wasn’t feeling quite up to snuff this past week. She had a runny nose, was sneezing, coughing, low grade fever—the works. But she was a tough cookie. She played hard during the day despite not feeling well then needed some extra cuddling at night. While we really are thankful that they go to sleep so easy after we just put them in their cribs, it was sweet being able to rock her back to sleep after she was all goobered up with snot and needed someone to wipe her nose. Thankfully, Avery stayed healthy despite sharing toys, bottles, spoons etc. I give kudos to the breastmilk!

Both girls are now eating solids for breakfast, lunch and dinner. They are enjoying trying new foods. We typically can give them what we are eating for meals, with the exception of egg whites, peanut butter, strawberries and other highly allergenic foods before the first year of life. Some of their favorite foods are anything “Mexican style”—meaning any combination of avocado, beans, cheese, and sour cream. Their favorite veggie continues to be eggplant and their favorite fruit is kiwi. Aubrey prefers being fed by the spoon and Avery prefers to feed herself. Aubrey prefers to get her bottle before eating and Avery prefers her bottle after eating. Speaking of—Aubrey now holds her bottle on her own with decent success. They both hold their bottles when in the highchairs, but Aubrey actually can feed herself while on her back on the floor. Some people say they miss it when their babies learn how to feed the bottle to themselves, but after all the struggles we have had with feeding the girls, it actually is quite a treat!! We are happy to see such progress with their eating patterns. Both are still treated with Prevacid for their reflux, but it is the hope that we can hopefully close that chapter in our lives in the near future.

The girls were at the pediatrician office about a week ago for their first flu shot. At that visit we were able to get weights for both girls. Aubrey weighed in at 16lb and Avery weighed in at 15lb. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t matter how big they get, momma will always hold them together from time to time! The girls know exactly how they “fit” when being carried together and we all love the cuddling. Speaking of size-both girls fit into clothes ranging from 6-12 months and Aubrey is in a size 4 diaper and Avery still squeezes into a size 3 diaper (at least until we finish the box! Hahaha!). We know they are itty bitty compared to other babies their age, but they are on target for their growth curves, so we are thrilled!

Every year my hospital throws a big NICU Reunion party at the Houston Children's Museum. All the families can come back and bring their kids for a fun night at the museum. It is a special night for doctors and nurses because they get to see how well the kids are doing because there are so many families we never hear from after discharge. I was working that night, but we were allowed to go to the museum as long as we were "flight ready"...meaning we had all our equipment with us and ready to leave in a split second. Jay was kind enough to meet us at the museum for a night of fun. Granted, the girls will enjoy it much more in years to come when they can play more, but it sure was a joyful moment showing off how beautiful the girls are and how far they have come.

My favorite moments of the month are both girls saying mommma while playing, me being with them, or me leaving them and they call it out from their cribs (so basically…they say it all day long!). I love how when Aubrey gets upset when I’m wiping her down after a meal and she says “MOM” with emphasis, real abruptly! She really wants me to get the message!! They both are just starting to say daddada too. Daddada and babbaba are sometimes interchangeable, but we will take it! In the past, Aubrey was the one that really enjoyed the company of her sister and now it is Avery always wanting to be with her sister. Avery loves to crawl up to Aubrey and literally “ride” on her back while Aubrey army crawls away. Avery laughs and laughs and when she topples over, she catches up and gets right back on (Check out the video). Aubrey is a good sport and just carries on, even when Avery pulls hair. Speaking of laughing…Avery now laughs out loud all the time. It is so cute and adorable and definitely ranks as some of my favorite times this month. I also love that Avery now gives big hugs when you pick her up. She lifts her arms up ready to be held and then wraps her sweet arms around you...oh it is the best thing in the world. Daddy’s favorite moments of the month are when Avery sees the highchair tray and she kicks her legs and throws up her arms and gets a big smile and jumps all around in her highchair. It really is pretty cute seeing her get so excited over food (who would have thought?!). His favorite moment of the month with Aubrey was seeing her stand in her crib for the first time. We both heard them babbling on the monitor after their nap and you could hear laughter going back and forth from their cribs. We both assumed that they were communicating back and forth but it was much to our surprise when we walked into the room and we both saw Aubrey for the first time standing in her crib! Now, we are going through the phase that Avery did—learning how to get done on her own without us having to help! It really has been an exciting month watching Aubrey catch up to her sister and cruise their her milestones—literally!

Well…from here until the next blog, it is time to organize a twin birthday party!! Can’t wait to celebrate such a special day!!

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I know these pictures are of both Jay and I when we were a little younger than the girls are now, but you can see the resemblence of who looks like who from our baby pictures. The first one is Jason as a baby, who looks like Avery, and the second one is of me as a baby, who looks like Aubrey. We just continue to be amazed at how similar they look to each one of us.