BITS -N- PIECES VOL. 7

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The month started off with both of the kids being sick. We had record heat on top of that over the 4^th of July so we didn’t really get to do a whole lot for Independence Day. With the boys having fevers and rashes we decided to skip out on the fireworks to not make things worse.

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July 6^th we went to see the Physiatrist. I never look forward to this appointment because we always leave the appointment pissed off and confused. We always seem to wait forever in the waiting room and then the Doctor always rushes through our appointment, never follows up on our last appointment and just seems downright rude. This time we were determined to get answers. We walked in with our questions in hand and were not about to let him leave until all of them were answered. Not only did he answer the questions, he was nice, joked around and took his time with us. The best part of the appointment is when he said that Alex was progressing nicely. My eyes welled up. Do you know how long I have been waiting for someone to tell me that? I felt like I could see it, sure it’s small progression, but it’s something and that something means everything when you are raising a special needs child. For the first time since seeing this Doctor last September, we left feeling good.

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July 14, 2012 – 2^nd Birthday Party (See Previous Post)

July 16, 2012 – Alex and Evan Turn 2! (See The Twins Turn Two Post)

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Last weekend my Mom and I had a Garage Sale at my house. Right after the birthday party, I moved the tables into the garage and started setting up the following Monday night. It took me ALL week just to get everything set up and priced. By the time Friday came, I was exhausted. We didn’t sell as much as I would have liked, but we made some money and that’s all that counts. I have decided to do a Mom2Mom sale in September since my strollers and swings didn’t sell. Hopefully it will be a success. I have some money now to do an 11 week Hippotherapy Program for Alex next year. (Hippotherapy is a form of physical, occupational and speech therapy in which a therapist uses the characteristic movements of a horse to provide carefully graded motor and sensory input.) The program requires him to be 3 years of age in order to participate in the program, so that is why we have to wait.

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This weekend we are taking Alex and Evan to the Columbus Zoo/Aquarium in Ohio. We haven’t done much this summer as a family because we have been so busy with other things and I want to do something before summer is over! I am really excited because I think they boys will really like the Aquarium part of the trip since they have never been to one before. We don’t have an aquarium in Michigan, so it was either Columbus or Chicago. I would love to do Chicago, but I think we will wait until they are a little older to explore a big city!

I can't believe July is almost over. The days and months go by so quickly when you have children.

Birthday Party Pics

Well I am way overdue on posting to the blog and I do apologize.

As you know, Alex and Evan turned 2 on July 16^th. We threw a birthday party for them on July 14^th with the theme of Mickey Mouse and everything turned out so nice!

They both had a really nice time and it showed at the end of the night!

Alex enjoyed opening presents and playing with the tissue paper. Evan was all about running around and driving his new toy around the yard.

All in all, the party was great, the weather was nice and everyone had a good time! Here are some pictures from that day.

With Cousins Layla, Brook, Annamarie, Benj and Sierra



Evan used his spoon to eat all of his cake and ice cream!

Alex dug right into his cake!



The Twins Turn Two

Happy 2^nd Birthday to my beautiful boys, Alex and Evan.

I think back to my days in the NICU with them and never being able to see this far into the future. Everything was day to day when we were there and I was just wondering when we would all be home together as a family. There was no planning or looking ahead. It was hope and faith that got us through the long days.

Well, here we are two years later and our days spent in the hospital are long gone and seem so far away. We have celebrated holidays, milestones, a first birthday and now a second. We go for walks, go to the park, get together with friends and do weekly therapy appointments.

There are crying fits and tantrums being thrown, hugs and kisses given out daily and cuddles that warm my heart. Just today, Evan reached over and offered Alex a bite of his cracker....and Alex took it.

My boys share the same birthday and very different personalities, but the one common thing that I already see clearly is the love they have for one another. Evan shows it a little more than Alex for obvious reasons, but I know it’s in Alex’s heart. They speak to one another in their own little language, they make each other laugh, Evan will pick up a toy for Alex if he drops it from his stander tray or he might switch it out to give him something different to play with. If I sit Alex in the big chair in the family room, Evan usually comes over so he can sit next to his brother. Now when I put them in their car seats in the car, I always say “Hi Brudder” from Alex to Evan and they both smile from ear to ear. It’s something they expect now. I hope as the years pass and Evan learns a little more about his brother that he will continue to love him and help him out when need be.

It’s not easy having two 2 year olds. The screaming fits are a bit overwhelming at times, but I think not having both of them run around and play together is the hardest thing for me to have to deal with. I feel like both of them are being robbed of having a playmate and I have had a few people comment on how crazy it would be if both were running around like Evan. I would give anything to have that for my boys... Anything.

I am hoping that this is getting harder for me now so that it will eventually get easier in the future. It’s hard to tell. I wish I had all the answers, but I don’t. Everything is a waiting game and only time will tell.

Last year at this time, they were both still taking a bottle, eating baby food, Evan was only crawling, Alex couldn’t really roll or sit up very well. They are now on a regular diet, Evan is running around, Alex is rolling and sitting with some assistance and both are self-feeding with their hands. We are working on utensils next!

What I am hoping for in the next year is that both boys will be potty trained, both will be talking, Evan will be riding a tricycle, Alex will be sitting on his own, possibly crawling, standing or taking a few steps. I am really hoping Alex will also be using his right hand more and both boys will be full self feeders.

It’s amazing to see what children can learn and do in such short periods of time. My twins are different in so many ways, but they have each amazed me with their own individual accomplishments. It’s important to me that they are recognized for these as individuals.

We are truly blessed to have Alex and Evan in our lives. In two years they have turned my life upside down and inside out and I wouldn’t have it any other way. God has always challenged me throughout my life, but this is his greatest challenge yet and as far as I can tell, I think I am succeeding.

Birthday Extravaganza

It’s kind of my thing to always write a post on Friday the 13^th and this one would be no exception.

It has been a busy couple of weeks. The kids have both been sick, so dealing with that and the unbearable heat last week, it was quite the feat. We didn’t get to go to Fireworks, but Eric and I did manage to go on a date. We had a nice dinner and went to The Tigers Game last Friday. We even hit up the Casino afterward for a few minutes. It was a really nice night. My sister and niece watched the boys and even stayed the night so we didn’t have to be home early!

The past couple of days I have been getting ready for Alex and Evan’s 2^nd Birthday Party which is happening tomorrow. (Their actual birthday is Monday) Cleaning, decorating and keeping up with daily life is exhausting, but I am proud to say that almost all of it is done. Tomorrow should be a breeze. I just have to set up the tables and chairs and blow up a few balloons. I even have the garage cleaned out and ready to go as a back up if it rains, but I just checked the weather and it’s only a slight chance. I planned well this year!

The theme is Mickey Mouse, and I absolutely love the decorations and cake. It all looks so nice. I will post pics in my follow up post next week. We will have close to 30 people (only family this year) and I am just super excited to see everyone and have a great time.

Happy Early Birthday to my handsome little men. We are so proud of both of you and can’t believe you are 2 already!! XOXOXOXO

Dallas

It's July already? This summer is already moving too quickly for me as I knew it would.

Well, I went on my solo weekend get-away last weekend and it was so much fun. I had never really been to Texas before - just drove through years ago - so it was nice to visit and see what Dallas and it's suburbs were all about. I was going to see and stay with my best friend Stephanie and her husband Matt.

As I mentioned before, this was my first flight in over 17 years, so essentially it was like flying for the first time. We decided to stop for dinner before dropping me off at the airport. BAD IDEA. Not only were the kids "unruly" but it really pressed me for time which was not a good combination for me. After kissing everyone good-bye and wiping away the tears, I made it into the airport only to find a LONG line to check my bag. I had already printed my boarding pass and paid for my bag, so I had an advantage. I could do a "fast bag drop" so I got in that line only to find out 5 minutes later that it wasn't the "fast bag drop" it was actually a cancelled flight full of ticked off people. So, I had to get in the other line which had grown emensely in the 5 minutes. Luckily I got my bag checked and through security in 45 minutes and still had another 45 minutes before my flight left. That was still cutting it way too close for me. The flight went well and I got into Dallas right on schedule.

I of course didn't sleep well the first night and was up bright and early on Saturday. No worries though, I wasn't going to let it ruin my vacation. I wanted to make the most of my kid-free time anyway. Matt worked Saturday so Steph and I had the day to ourselves. We went to the Farmer's Market first, then a quick stop at Walmart for some drinks and ice for the cooler, lunch at Subway and home to get ready to go to the pool. As I got out of the car to go to the back to get the ice out, I decided it would be fun to roll my ankle off the lip in the floor of the garage and skid across the driveway on my hands and knees. This is a classic "Keri" move for anyone who knows me. My hands were fine but the skin was pretty well scraped off my knees.

Off to the pool we went. It was going to reach 100 degrees that afternoon and it did. We stayed in the water most of the afternoon and just floated on our rafts. It was just what I needed. I was completely exhausted from the heat that afternoon and went to bed early.

Sunday Matt drove us to downtown Dallas where I got to see the area where JFK was shot nearly 49 years ago. They have "X" marks on the road in the areas where he was shot the first and second time. From there we went to Hard Rock Cafe and had some appetizers and a delicious frozen drink. We got to swim for a bit when we got home and then headed off to dinner that night at The Cheesecake Factory. YUM!

Monday was another "Pool Day" and then they took me to the Texas Rangers/Detroit Tigers game. It was 100 degrees at game time but lucky for us, Stephanie bought "all you can eat seats" which gave us full access to a private restaurant with air conditioning. We only sat in our seats for 20 minutes before camping out in the restaurant for the rest of the night. 100 is just too hot for me! The Tigers won (woo hoo!!) so it was a good night.

Tuesday was my last day, so I packed and we went to the mall before she dropped me off at the airport. This trip was exactly what I needed. It was relaxing and laid back and quiet. It was a nice mini-vacation.

Eric picked me up from the airport on Tuesday night, and Alex and Evan stayed with Grandma until Wednesday morning. As much as I wanted to see them as soon as I got home, it was nice to come home, unpack and unwind and not get thrown back into craziness.

I was soooo excited to see them on Wednesday. Alex was all smiles as soon as he saw me and heard my voice. Evan didn't care at that moment. It was later at home when he wanted to cuddle!

I want to Thank my Husband for letting me take this wonderful trip, my Mother in Law for helping out while I was gone and Stephanie and Matt for being such wonderful hosts and showing me a great time during my trip.

Now it's back to life and back to reality.