What makes our heart melt...

**The above pictures were taken at Cody's brother's wedding, October 16, 2010. It was BEAUTIFUL!!

3 months

3 months ago today our lives changed in a BIG way!! Becoming a mother, a father, and a family...we never knew life could be this beautiful.

OUR GOD IS AN AWESOME GOD!

**I've been trying to upload pictures onto here all day...unfortunately with no luck!  SORRY :(   We hope to get it figured out soon!

11 weeks

My first day back at work and our first full week at daycare went pretty well. The first day was a little emotional (for me anyway...I think the kids handled it pretty well), with quite a few tears shed. We're getting into a pretty good routine though and the kids even slept all night, two nights in a row!

We also had our "two-month" well baby check this afternoon. Let me tell you...we've got a couple healthy babies on our hands:

Kaden:  12 pounds 9 ounces (50th percentile)

22 inches

Kenley: 14 pounds 3 ounces (97th percentile!)

23 inches

They got to experience their first round of shots :(   Kenley didn't do too bad. Kaden on the other hand...I think he passed out on the table. He forgot that it's important to continue breathing in order to survive. MY POOR BABIES!!



10 weeks

Our 10 week mark is a little bittersweet. I knew this day would come. It's brought me a lot of tears this last week knowing that the precious time I've been able to spend with these two beautiful babies has come to an end. I'm back to work tomorrow and  it's definitely going to be a difficult day for me. I am so very fortunate however to have the job that I have. Working in a school allows me my afternoons, weekends, summers, and nice breaks throughout the year to spend with my kids...I couldn't ask for anything more. Their two-month mark really revealed how awesome these two really are. They have had such amazing days... they are awake more, we've been able to play, and the smiling and "talking" has just melted my heart to the core.

Updates

Update #1:
I had an MRI done on my back on Monday. It's been a year since my last one. Everything still looked ok. The fluid filled cavity in my spinal cord is still present however it has not shown any change when compared to my first scan done two years ago. I am not having any symptoms so my doctor feels comfortable just "forgetting" about it. If something comes up in the future or if I start to experience symptoms again I will go back in to take another look. But for now, it's something we can mark off our calendars.



Update #2:
We're Smiling!!! It started a couple of weeks ago, but the kids are starting to smile and coo....and it's SOO.MUCH.FUN!  Of course I don't have my camera hanging around my neck at all times, so capturing them isn't always easy, but I've managed to catch a few.



Update #3:

We're two months old already. Holy Cow!! It's been awesome to watch Kaden and Kenley grow these last two months. They're starting to get little personalities and every day is a little more fun than the last. However, I must admit that I miss those tiny little newborn days (oh my gosh, did I just say that out loud?).



(Kaden and Kenley with their cousin Khloe and Grandma and Grandpa)

Update #4:

We're CRABBY!!! Our evenings have become filled with lots of screaming. Anywhere between the hours of 7-9pm we have two very cranky babies!

(trying to work my magic: consoling a crabby baby and get the dishes done...success!)

whew...a fantastic feeling!

another success!

Update #5:

I only have one more week at home with my precious babies (sniff, sniff). I have to go back to work next Friday, October 1st. The last ten weeks have gone in the blink of an eye. Who will ever take care of my babes as good as I can??  It's going to be an emotional day.... a prayer or two would be nice :)

Life at 7 weeks...

~ 7 Weeks ~

first Vikings game

Kaden thought the game was a little boring

trying out our new Baby Bjorn

Kenley enjoying our baby shower

I think Kaden had a little too much fun at his party

Kaden  helping grandpa in the kitchen

 

I love my life!!

Tummy Time

Kaden is kind of lazy when it comes to tummy-time :)   He usually doesn't like to work too hard, but he is more than content just laying on his belly.  He cracks us up!!

There we go, we're gettin' some air now!!

When Kenley is on her back she has been favoring the right side of her head IN A BAD WAY! I try to get her on her tummy as often as I can throughout the day. It's difficult though because her "awake time" is usually after she eats and when I put her on her tummy too soon....yep, we have throw up all over. I try everything in my power to get her off that side of her head, but she is one stubborn girl!! Little miss attitude. It drives me batty through the night, when I put her back into her crib and before I can crawl into bed I can see her on the monitor flip her head back to the other side...curses!


I have scheduled their two month check-up, however the pediatrician is out of the office until the first week in October. So our appointment is set for October 8th...which they will be 11 weeks by that time. Oh well.

Our first mini camping experience

Let me just say, I love camping!! However, this summer I got to do none of it :(   Not one single time. BOO!!  Although, even if I wasn't pregnant and didn't just have twins, I'm not so sure what we would have camped in since we threw our tent away at the end of last summer and don't have a camper........but I still desperately wanted to go camping.

Friends of ours were camping in Yankton this last weekend so Saturday afternoon we decided to pack up the kids, and everything required for a night away, and take a drive down to spend the evening with everyone. We figured it would get late, so we rented a hotel in Yankton as we thought it would be easier with the kids. We grilled, played bean bags, visited, and just hung out. It was great to sit in our lawn chairs and enjoy the outdoors.

It was sooo windy. We tried keeping the kids covered up and out of the wind or let them sleep in the campers, but this was Kenley wide awake wanting to see what this "camping stuff" is all about :)

I heart Mommy-Hood

Ok, I know, I know. I totally stink at this whole blogging thing. SORRY!

We hit the 5 week mark yesterday and the only thing I can think about is....I'm already half done with my maternity leave! In just 5 more short weeks, I will be back at work, without my children. The dreaded "D-Day" is fast approaching.....DAYCARE...and it does not set well with my stomach, putting me in tears almost the whole day yesterday.

Here are a few random thoughts and pictures to give you a better look inside our daily lives:

*I feel like we are constantly feeding.
*We use about 15-18 bottles a day ~ give or take a few
*The first few weeks, the babies were eating about every 4 hours, which wasn't too bad of a schedule. Now they are needing to eat a little more frequently. They are now eating about every 3 hours. During the day, they are like alarm clocks, waking exactly every 3 hours. They can usually last a little longer during the night.

*During the night feedings Cody and I both get up, change and feed a baby. During the day when I'm by myself, I have to do feedings back to back...which, I'll be honest, can get a little hairy at times! By the time I change both of them, get both of them fed, and burped (which, if you know Kaden, can be a little time consuming) it takes me just over an hour. That doesn't leave much time in between feedings to get a whole lot accomplished, before we are at it again!

*Each of them are on separate formula. We go through 2 cans of formula in just under a week.

*If we're not feeding, we're changing diapers!!
*we go through approximately 20 diapers a day, not counting the unexpected "blow-outs" or catch-you-off-guard-free-for-all-pee-sessions, in which we might use a few extra. A box of diapers lasts us about 4 days.
*my baby girl has grown out of newborn diapers and has moved on to size 1 (sniff, sniff)

*Kaden has been on Prevacid, for his reflux, for this past week. He is tolerating this much better than the Prilosec. It's a pill that he gets once a day, but we crush it between our fingers and then drop the little particles on his tongue. It must not taste too bad because he usually starts munching away the second I put it in his mouth. I'd like to say I'm noticing an improvement, but it could take a couple weeks to really see a difference. But for now, it's working.

*In terms of whining-fussing-crying, they feed off of each other. When one starts in the other usually is close behind. They can tolerate many sources of noise without even flinching, but if one of them grunts, then the other one has to grunt. If one of them starts to fuss, the other one starts to fuss. If one of them starts to cry, the other one starts to cry. Not always, but often....it's actually rather amazing!!

*It's tough work growing into such a big boy....it wears him out :)

*One of the many faces of Kenley. (please excuse the blue bib...it was the first one I grabbed out of the drawer. Ooops)

 

***Aren't they getting big??  They are changing every single day. Literally over night I can see a difference in them.

LOVE      LOVE     LOVE  them!!