A day to celebrate

Their birthday was actually on August 29th, so this is really late.  Sorry my little ones!  The twins turned 6 this year and they have come so far in this world.  It is hard for me to look back at the day they were born.  It was such a traumatic day for me and is a day that took a long time for me to recover from and learn to celebrate.  They were not healthy, fat babies when they were born.  They were very sick and almost didn't make it.  The fact that they are healthy and thriving today is such a miracle and we are so grateful it turned out the way it did.  I can finally say that August 29th is a day of great happiness when I get to celebrate these amazing children!

(Ashlyn on her birthday - 2 pounds, 1 ounce)

 

(Caelan on his birthday - 2 pounds, 2 ounces)

 

We had a home party this year and I actually made the cakes (first time for me!).  Caelan's was double chocolate and Ashlyn chose my grandmother's famous white cake with lemon filling and coconut icing.  Mmmm.

 

 

They played games, had a pinata and danced with their friends.  It was quite fun.  We always do "no present" birthdays, but there is always one person who doesn't think we are serious and brings a gift anyway.  The kids LOVE it when that happens.  :)

 



 

Here is an update on each of the kids.

 

 

Caelan:  All he wanted for his birthday was Lego Chima and a wallet.  He got both of those and he was quite happy.  Caelan wants to be a police officer when he grows up so that he can help people.  He enjoys crafts, playing the piano and has become quite a good reader in the past few months.  He is sweet and kind and I am always told how polite he is when he is out in the community.  Caelan loves to talk and he is the first kid up every morning...just so he can talk to Daddy before he goes to work.  Caelan plays soccer, but it is not his favorite sport.  He has a lot of anxiety when he is asked to perform in a group setting and playing on a team highlights this for him.  He much prefers doing activities that are one-to-one.

 

 

Ashlyn:  All she wanted for her birthday was to get her ears pierced.  She was so brave that she didn't even make a sound when she got it done!  Ashlyn wants to be a zoo keeper when she is older.  She is practicing by collecting as many stuffed animals as she can fit on her bed.  It is amazing that she still has room to sleep.  Ashlyn is more out-going than her brother and she is the one that makes friends easily at school.  She is a bit of a perfectionist and won't try new things unless she knows she can do it already, so it is hard to convince her to explore new things.  She has a natural talent for playing the piano and I hope she keeps at it.  After watching from the sidelines for the past 2 years, she decided she wanted to play soccer this year and she is loving it so far.  She is often goofy, she giggles a lot and she loves to dance and swim.

 

 

These are two amazing kids and we love them so much!

  



 





13 months old

Our little man is 13 and a half months old now.  He has changed a lot in the past month and has moved past the baby stage (so sad for his Mama!).  He walks everywhere now and is getting much more confident on his feet.  I love watching new walkers figure things out...it is so cute!  He is quite the climber too.  Micah has learned how to climb the ladder up onto his big sister's loft bed already.  He is fast at it too. 

On a recent camping trip, Micah discovered how much fun it was to sleep with his Mommy and Daddy.  Since then, he has decided that he would like to sleep with us permanently.  Oh boy!  He will sleep in his own bed until about 1am and then he is in bed with us the rest of the night.  I have taken the path of least resistance, against my own better judgement, but it is working for now.  I keep saying that I will put Shaylah in our bed for a few nights while I try to break this habit, but it hasn't happened yet.  We will see.  He does sleep well once he is with us though.  :)

Micah has recently gained 4 new molars, for a total of 12 teeth.  I will be so glad once teething is finished.  Micah's eye has finally healed, after many months of drops and check-ups.  We are still putting drops in once a day, but the eye doctor is happy with the healing and does not think there will be any long term damage.  So thankful!

Micah was recently weighed at the doctor's office at 20 pounds.  I was surprised at how small he is, considering that he is quite tall for his age.  His height continues to be above the 90th percentile, while his weight is between the 10th-25th percentile.  His doctor assures me he is growing well though, so not to worry.  He currently wears size 18 month clothes, size 4 shoes and size 4 diapers.  He desperately needs a haircut, but this Mama is putting it off as long as possible.  Babies always look so old after their first haircut and I am in total denial that he is growing up.

Micah loves soccer balls, remote control cars, shape sorters and bath time.  He does not love being put his car seat, being without his Mommy and sleeping in his own bed.  He loves to eat noodles, fruit and cheese.  He will not eat meat.  He continues to be so easy going and full of joy and we love him so much!

 

Happy Birthday!

Our little man is officially a one year old!  He just gets cuter with each passing month too.  :)

I realize I missed his 11 month post, so this will be an update on all the changes he has made in the last two months.

 

Micah is starting to do a lot of communicating.  He can say "uh oh", "daddy" and "hi".  He waves his hand "good-bye" and shakes his head for "no".  He signs "all done" when he is finished eating.  He points at everything he wants and gives high fives.  He still doesn't say "Mama", but it is clear that I am his favorite, so it is all good. 

He is not walking on his own, but he loves to walk with his hands held or with his walker.  He can stand up without support and bend down to pick something up, so walking is close!  He loves to climb up and down the stairs and can pretty much do this without supervision now.  He can be left on a bed or a couch and knows how to get down by himself without falling.  I am sure that he will soon be climbing on all the things that he is not allowed to climb.

Sleep continues to be an issue.  He wakes up every 2-3 hours every night and he does not like to go to bed very early (I'm talking 10:00 each night!).  We have recently cut his naps down to just one per day, which has helped with bedtime.

He is not a very big eater.  He loves yogurt, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, watermelon, bananas, peas, Cheerios and cheese.  Not much else!  He won't eat any kind of meat, so I am struggling with getting iron into him.  He no longer accepts the iron-fortified baby cereals.  He still breast-feeds several times per day...all three of his siblings were totally weaned by 12 months (not my choice, but theirs) so this is new for me.  He currently has 8 teeth, but those upper molars are so close to poking through the skin.

He has such an easy-going personality and is very loving.  He loves to explore and is happiest when he is just on the floor doing his own thing.  He loves cars and any toy that makes a noise, as well as playing in the dirt/sand.  He will not sit and read a book for more than 2 pages.  He has a serious fascination with the dog water/food bowls and it has been hard keeping him away from them.  It's a good thing that Jackpot loves him so much, or we might be in trouble!

I am so happy to have this little guy in our family.  I cannot imagine life without him and I am so grateful for him.  Happy Birthday Micah (sorry we were all so sick yesterday on your actual big day)!  



Corneal Abrasion

We finally got to see an eye specialist today.....doctor #5 if you want to keep track.  This has been a frustrating road, trying to get answers for my little man.  Anyway, the official diagnosis is that he has a corneal abrasion.  These usually heal quickly (24-48 hours), but Micah as been battling it for 5 weeks.....which now puts him into the chronic/re-current category.  May 16th was the day he got scratched in the eye by another baby.  He has been on antibiotic drops/ointments on and off ever since.  He continues to struggle with sensitivity to light, weeping of the eye, swelling of the eyelid and difficulty opening his eye in the morning.  At least he is no longer screaming in the middle of the night from pain.  He hates the antibiotic drops and I hate giving them to him, but they are still necessary.  I got to see the scratch today under a special cobalt light.  It is definitely still there.  I feel so sad that we couldn't have seen an eye specialist right away, instead of multiple doctors prescribing drops and not even looking in his eye.  I feel good that we are now under the care of someone who knows what she is doing.  I worry that this will permanently damage his vision.  :(. We go back to the specialist on Monday and hopefully she will do a more detailed exam of his vision to double check.  Prayers are always welcome!!

End of School and Extra-curricular activities

I love this time of year.  I love all the end of school parties and the winding down of all the extra activities the kids are involved in.  Sports Day was at the end of May and each of the Black kids were on a different team.   

Last weekend we had our last t-ball game of the season.  We were lucky that all three got to play on the same team (Go White Sox!) and they had a really great time playing together.

 

We have already finished Beavers and GEMS for the year, we have one more soccer game and 2 more piano lessons.  There is only one week left of school and we are ready for the summer to begin.

 

I love having lazy days with the kids where we get to do whatever we want.  I plan on spending lots of time in our backyard and at the local water park.  We have a few daycamps lined up as well....our church VBS, bike camp at Pedalheads and a culinary camp at another one of the local churches.  We have also planned a week at Birch Bay and a long weekend of camping at a local lake.  I missed the entire summer while on bed rest last year, so I am so looking forward to spending lots of concentrated time with the kids.  I hope Micah doesn't mind spending lots of time outdoors!

 



10 months old

TIme is flying by way too fast.  Our little monkey is already 10 months old and I am trying to prepare myself that he will be one before I know I know it.  I am not ready for this!!

Micah is so super sweet and happy.  Johnny keeps saying to me that he doesn't remember the other kids being this cute and smiley all the time.  I remind him that they were...it was just a LONG time ago!  He definitely has a special place in both our hearts and we are so glad we decided to go for number 4.  With kids this sweet, maybe we should have a fifth!  (just kidding)

Micah is on the move all the time these days.  He loves to explore.  There are always lots of toys and other junk on the floor for him to check out (despite my best efforts at keeping this place tidy, it is impossible with 3 other messy children living here).  We have had to finally put up the baby gates to keep him semi-contained.  He is officially climbing up a full flight of stairs, cruising around furniture and he has even started letting go of the supportive surface while standing (only momentarily, but it is a start!). 

Likes:
His Mama - he basically only wants to be with me (which I am totally fine with).  :)
Balls - he loves to roll a ball back and forth.
Cars - he has a favorite green car that he pushes around constantly.  He loves to make the "Vvvvv" sound while pushing it. 

 

 

Dislikes:

Diaper changes - he screams and rolls over the moment I try to lay him down for a diaper change.  I have had to start changing him in the standing position.  This is fine for wet diapers, but it gets a bit challenging when they are messy.  Thankfully, we only do three changes a day....first thing in the morning, after his afternoon nap and before bed.  He is a pretty regular kid!

Eating - he is getting better, but he really does not like solid foods.  He is not at all adventurous with new foods and spits almost everything out.  He accepts Cheerios, bananas, grapes and watermelon.  I am still giving him baby cereal and breast feeding lots to make sure that he is getting enough nutrients!

Going to bed at night - he is a serious night owl.  He will not go to bed before 10pm.  At least he is now sleeping much longer chunks of time....This morning he didn't wake up until 5am.  That is a whole 7 hours of sleep!!  This makes me very happy.  He is much better at going down for a nap during the day and only cries for a few minutes before dropping off for a lovely 2-3 hour nap.

Eye-drops - Micah has been battling an eye infection for the past five weeks.  We have seen three different doctors and been on 2 different eye medications.  It still looks swollen and sore (although so much better).  Poor guy!

 

 

I am so incredibly thankful for this little guy.  He is such a joy and is totally adored!

 

 



9 months old

I am so slow at adding these monthly updates.  At least I am getting it done before he is 10 months old!  Life just seems to be so busy that I don't ever have time to sit at the computer.  Life is good though!!

Here is the latest on Monkey....

This kid loves his baths.  With his siblings or by himself, it doesn't matter.  He will sit and splash in the water and have a great time.  He has been to a swimming pool only once, but he loved that too.  Just smiles and giggles the whole time.  We signed up for a mom and baby swim class for June, but unfortunately it was cancelled due to low enrollment.  I will try again in the Fall when the kids are back in school.

 

 

He has started eating more solid foods, but it is still a slow go.  He loves Cheerios and has developed a very nice pincer grasp (even when on mat leave, it is hard to put away my therapist brain!).  He will also eat bananas, watermelon, cantelope and cucumber...but not much else.  We just keep trying!

 



 

People tell me everyday how much he looks like his big brother.  I don't think so at all, but I always smile and nod anyway.  I think he looks like his Daddy, but I don't have any baby pictures of Johnny to prove it.  Next time we visit Port Alberni, I am going to see if we can get some from his parents to compare.

 

 

He loves his puppy (who is 10 years old already!).  Jackpot tolerates him, but would probably be happier if he was just left alone.  Interesting though.... Jackpot has started sleeping outside of the baby's room at night now instead of his dog bed.  Maybe he does like him afterall?  We are so glad that he is a gentle dog.



 

 

Micah seems to have a fascination with shoes.  He is often found escaping to the front or back entrance to play with (or suck on) the shoes that have been left lying around.   

 

 

Micah has had a rough few weeks, but is finally starting to get healthy.  He had a nasty eye infection from being scratched by another baby and had a long bout of diarrhea.  Both have finally cleared up and he is happy once again.  His sleep is improving too.  He will sleep in 4 hour periods now, which is so much more manageable than his previous schedule of waking up every 2 hours.  We are moving in the right direction!