California Dreamin'.....

on such a winter's day! Jared and I LOVE the seasons that we get to experience in Michigan. The snow is truly beautiful but we will definitely appreciate spring this year. I just recieved a jogging stroller for the boy's birthday (a bit early, thanks Grandma and Grandpa) and I cannot wait to get out of the house and use it. We made the best of what will hopefully be our last snow storm of the year (wishful thinking) by catching up on some laundry. Thanks for your help boys :)

Wow, time REALLY does fly by!

I remember my parents trying to tell me this as a child but of course the concept was lost on me. I remember thinking summer vacation was NEVER ending. I could not wait for fall so that I could see my friends and find out who my teacher would be. Now, however I have my own sweet boys and they are 10 months old. They once weighed 2 lbs and now Eli weighs 22. This picture I took of Eli trying to eat Daddy's boot (the boys now enjoy shoes as a delicacy along with remotes, cell phones, ect.) reminded me of the one I took of Alex when he first came home. Again, time flies! Although as I say this WHEN is spring going to arrive in Michigan? :) Oh the irony!

The New Year Brings Change Jan. 08

Sadly I report that it's time for separate cribs! As you can see in this picture Alex was more than ready. I am pretty sure if he was able to speak he would have said "Mom, Dad, get over it already, the big one is gonna squish me." Another time I went in and Eli was pinned to the crib bumper by Alex's butt. They seem to love having their own space now. It was definitely harder on us than them. We loved seeing them snuggle up with one another. Ugh, I guess it is time for a change :(

October 31st, 2007

This was Alex and Eli's first Halloween. Grandma bought them their bumble bee costumes. We went to Mindy and Kevin's annual Halloween Party. The boys fell asleep in daddy's arms.

October 14th, 2007 NICU Reunion!

This takes place every year at Oakwood in the fall. It was great to see the nurses and doctors who cared for the boys. It is a costume party and the boys went as soccer players. Here they are with their nurses.

The Bond of Twins

Alex and Eli slept in the same crib until this past January (9 months old) and it was always fun to check on them and see what crazy position they were in. They both enjoyed sucking on each others fingers, faces (see pic), back of their heads. I would find wet slicks in their hair thinking they had spit up and realize that they were just using one another as a binky. They now try and make each other laugh by jumping in their exersaucers or fake coughing which is their new favorite sound. They roll all over each other as if the other one is not even there (see pic below). I hope their bond will make them best friends. Jared jokes that he will make them be but we don't think that will be necessary :)

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The Whirlwind!

The first 6 months are a blur that I will refer to as the whirlwind. Amidst feeding, diapering and rocking our boys Jared and I definitely fell in love with these babies. Exhaustion is probably the best word to describe what we felt but it falls short. Their cranky time was anywhere from 4pm-10pm and sometimes the entire 6 hours. Poor Jared would get home from work and enter the nightmare of their cranky period. As all parents know however we already have trouble remembering what that was like and instead remember how sweet they were. I am not sure how that works exactly but I am convinced God knew it had to be that way otherwise people would never have more than one child (or in our case 2). Here are some pics of that period.

Preemie "Issues"

A few days after being home Eli and I trekked back to the ER and were transferred to Children's Hospital (downtown) due to noisy breathing. He was placed back on oxygen and remained on it for a total of 5 months (including NICU time). He has been off since September. Two weeks ago my sister and I took the boys for their Synagis shots and the pulmonologist said that Eli's lungs could not have sounded more perfect. God is SO good. So many other issues with Alex and Eli's health have been resolved (PDA, BPD, Inguinal Hernia, ROP) and they are not even a year old. Developmentally they are doing really well and are not at all behind for their corrected age (7 months). We heard so many grim outlooks when they were born it is such a tremendous blessing to know that for the most part we have healthy boys.

July 3rd, 2007 Coming Home!

This is the day that Eli came home. Alex had been home for a few weeks and was living the high life until his pesky little brother came home and tried to steal his spotlight :) We were so thrilled to finally fill our nursery that had been so carefully planned out for our little ones. This was a GREAT day!

April 18, 2007 Were it not for Grace

I'm thinking I should start with the day the boys came into our lives. They were a bit early :) Alexander Cecil and Eli Henry were born at 27 wks. 2 days and weighed 2lbs. 6oz. and 2lbs. 2oz. I developed Pre-eclampsia which progressed into HELLP syndrome and the boys had to be delivered. It was definitely the scariest moment of mine and Jared's life. I wasn't able to see the boys for 2 days. Jared was though and by the time I was able to I swear it seemed he had a nursing degree. He had learned so much about the boys conditions and the machines that were helping to keep them alive. It was very difficult to see our babies fighting for their lives when they should have been snug and content in my womb. Alex stayed in the NICU for 56 days and Eli 77. I am not sure how we got through it other than to say God guided us and his grace was MORE than sufficient. I remember looking at their helpless little bodies, seperated from their parents by plastic and tubes, and thinking that God had already used these little miracles, in their short lives, to teach me more than I could ever hope to teach them. [Photo]
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