First Haircut 12/18/09 at OneTrueMedia.com

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First Haircuts!

The time finally arrived. I could not live with Megan's mullet any longer. It was so bad that we couldn't leave the house without putting in pigtails.

John's hair was short everywhere but in a few scraggly locations around his ears and on the back of his head.

I decided that we couldn't get one haircut and not the other, so this morning Tim and I took them to Cookie Cutters in Canton. This place is great. John got to sit in a car and Megan sat in an airplane. They watched an Elmo DVD and ate a sucker. Megan got at least an inch cut off of the back to even it out with the rest if the new growth that she has. Sadly, there will be no pigtails for a while. I am just thankful that there is no longer a mullet!

There were NO tears! They did great. It might have been more traumatic for me than it was for them! Each got to take a balloon home and didn't want to leave!

One more thing to write in their baby books...if I ever get to them!

Our Evening In 12/15/09 at OneTrueMedia.com

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How Preemie Moms Are Chosen--by Erma Bombeck

Did you ever wonder how the mothers of premature babies are chosen?Somehow, I visualize God hovering Earth, selecting his instruments for propagation with great care and deliberation. As he observes, he instructs his angels to take notes in a giant ledger."Armstrong, Beth, son. Patron Saint...give her Gerard. He's used to profanity."Finally, he passes a name to an angel and smiles. "Give her a preemie."The angel is curious. "Why this one God? She's so happy.""Exactly," smiles God. "Could I give a premature baby a mother who knows no laughter? That would be cruel.""But does she have the patience?" asks the angel."I don't want her to have too much patience, or she'll drown in a sea of self-pity and despair.Once the shock and resentment wear off, she'll handle it.I watched her today. She has that sense of self and independence so rare and so necessary in a mother.You see, the child I am going to give her has a world of it's own. She has to make it live in her world, and that's not going to be easy."God smiles. "This one is perfect. She has just the right amount of selfishness. "The angel gasps, "Selfishness! Is that a virtue?"God nods. "If she can't separate herself from the child occasionally, she will never survive. Yes, here is a woman whom I will bless with a child less than perfect. She doesn't know it yet, but she is to be envied.She will never take for granted a spoken word. She will never consider a step ordinary. When her child says "momma" for the first time, she will be witness to a miracle and know it.I will permit her to see cleary the things that I see - ignorance, cruelty, prejudice - and allow her to rise above them.She will never be alone. I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life because she is doing my work as surely as she is here by my side.""But what about her Patron Saint?" asks the angel, his pen poised in the air. God smiles."A mirror will suffice."***

Merry Christmas!

I hope that you all have a wonderful holiday season.

Poop!

I put John and Megan down for their morning nap on Monday and started to do the dishes. As I was cleaning I heard them chatting with each. This happens often, so I wasn't concerned. It was when the chat turned into a cry that I thought that I should just peek in. I was almost done with the dishes so I quickly finished up. By the time I was done, John was very unhappy.

As soon as I opened their bedroom door I was greeted by the smell of POOP!
John was upset because he had pooped and decided to go in his diaper and play with it. The poop was EVERYWHERE! It was on his shirt, face, hands, and legs. It was also smeared on the wall, the sheets, and his crib rails. There was more poop outside of his diaper than inside of it!

Needless to say it was not a good situation. Megan seemed to be very interested in what he was doing as she was watching him closely.

Cleanup was a treat...baths for both, new sheets, and Clorox wipes for the walls and crib.

I am hopeful that this NEVER happens again!

Let's Say Thanks!

Let's all take a moment to say thank you to a soldier serving in Iraq. To send a free card click on the link below and follow the directions. It takes just a few minutes to help touch a life of a soldier who is working hard to protect ours.

http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home1280.html

I have already sent mine!

18 months old already!

It is hard for me to believe that 18 months ago our children were born. This past year and a half has brought some truly wonderful times, some very stressful times, and even some times of great sadness and joy.

As I have adjusted from being a working gal to a stay at home mom of twins, I am thankful for the support of my family and friends. I am especially grateful for the support of Tim. Without him I would not be able to stay home and raise our babies. This is the best job that I have ever had and I would not change it for anything!

John and Megan had their 18 month check-up yesterday. They are doing great! They are on track with other children their age in regards to physical activity, but are lacking a bit behind in speech. John has reached the 10th percentile in weight and 40th percentile for height, but Megan is still not on the growth chart.

John weighs 22 lbs 8 oz and is 32 inches tall.

Megan weighs 18 lbs 13.5 oz and is 28.5 inches tall.

They are learning how to play nicely with each other, but John still tackles Megan a lot!

We are concerned that we will have to move John to a big boy bed sooner than we would really like to...he has learned how to escape! We have moved his crib so that the front is backed up to the wall. We are hoping that he won't figure out that he can go over the side! Megan is getting a ton of hair (she sports a fantastic mullet), which is worn in pigtails the majority of the time.

I hope that they continue to make me smile daily, appreciate the simple things in life, and love unconditionally. Without these two angels in my life, things would be very different.

We had oatmeal and smiles for breakfast this morning!

Oh crap!

John climbed out of his crib straight into Megan's during naptime this afternoon. Megan was not happy. I am pretty sure that he landed on her!

This should be interesting!

Halloween!

I took John and Megan trick or treating tonight. They were both pirates and were very cute!

The plan was for Tim to stay at home and pass out candy and for me to pull the kids in the wagon. As soon as we walked outside, Megan took off and ran to the neighbors house! We went to two houses walking and then came back home to get the wagon (and some blankets).

They had a great time! They walked up to doors, knocked (banged) on them, and put out their hands when people went to give them candy. At the third house Megan got her candy and was running back to the wagon when she did a face plant on the concrete. Her face is great, but her hand got a little scraped up. I think that the blood really made her pirate costume!

Unbelievably Cute!!!!!

Tim took John to the hockey store with him today...he had a great time!

Max

On our second anniversary Tim gave me an envelope with a picture of a miniature dachshund inside. It was to be my present. I was so excited. We had been talking about getting one for a while. I went with Tim's dad that week to pick up our little 5 pound puppy. He was adorable and fit in the front pocket of my overalls.

Today, just over six years later Max went to live at a new home. A home where he will be free to run, play, and even relax without two 17 month old children attacking him.

As John and Megan became more active Max became more aggressive. He had begun to growl and snap at them when they would try to take his toy or hit him. Because of these behaviors (and those of you who know him) and his constant barking, we felt that it was time to find him a new (good) home.
We are very lucky to have been going to an amazing boarding facility for the past year. Max loves being there and the owners and their children love him. When Tim mentioned that we were thinking about getting rid of him, they let us know that they would like to have him.
Max's days will now be spent running and playing with other dogs. Our hope is that he is now in a place where he will be happy.
We will miss Max, but know that this was the right thing to do for our family.

Help Needed

Hi Everyone,

As most of you know, I am a member of the Family Advisory Board. This boards focus is helping parents with children in the St. Joes Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU where our babies were taken care of).

There are two wonderful fundraising opportunities coming up soon and I wanted to ask for any assistance you can give.

The first event coming up is Shop For a Cause. This is a fundraiser hosted by Macy's. I am selling a 20% off coupon for all purchases (some exclusions) for the day of October 17th. The ticket is $5.00 and the proceeds go directly to the Family Advisory Board.

The second event is the 5th Annual Silent Auction and Fashion Show. The show is on Thursday, November 12th. The silent auction and reception begin at 5:30. The fashion show begins at 7. The event will be held at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor. The price of admission is $25.00 and the proceeds go directly to the Family Advisory Board.

If you are interested in supporting our cause please contact me for tickets. If you are unable to attend the Fashion Show or do not shop at Macy's, but still want to donate, please let me know.
You can email me at meawarner@hotmail.com with any questions or to donate.

It is important for our group to continue to be able to support the many families that go through the NICU each year. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

The dentist and the pumpkin patch...

Today was a busy, but fun day.

We spent the afternoon at the pediatric dentist where John and Megan had their first cleaning. Their teeth look good, but the dentist let me know that Megan is going to need braces when she gets older. Fun...

Here are some pictures from the dentists office.

Before we went to the dentist the kids played around in the backyard. The sweaters they are wearing were made by a dear friend (who I am going to beg to make them sweaters for next fall/winter). Here are a few of my favorite shots from the backyard.

The evening was spent at the pumpkin patch...pictures posted in the montage...enjoy

It has begun...

This week has been spent wiping noses, dosing out medicine, and giving breathing treatments. Both John and Megan have responded pretty well to the treatment and seem to be doing better.
The doctor seems to think that John has asthma and that Megan (and possibly John) has allergies. The asthma might be due to the immaturity of his lungs at birth and will quite possibly go away as he grows and gets stronger. Megan had an increased chance of having allergies due to her histamine cluster on her shoulder. Nothing is in stone yet, but we will discuss it further when we go in for their 18 month check up. Wish us luck.

Check out this amazing new website...

Hi everyone. Please check out my brother Zach's new website, The Truth Pursuit.

The Truth Pursuit is a smart news aggregator and gateway.
We utilize the Daylife news platform which provides our readers with access to a diverse collection of the day's news and views. Our smart news aggregator approach allows us to deliver multiple ideological perspectives, giving our readers an opportunity to develop an informed opinion. (taken straight from the website)

Follow The Truth Pursuit link to the right to see what the website has to offer.
I hope you enjoy it. I know that I have!

Recent pics

Last year our yard was horrible. We decided that it was time to redo everything. The grass was torn out and the yard was leveled. A concrete slab and a great deal of landscaping were pulled out too. We had sod laid and some basic landscaping taken care of. We are so pleased with the results and the kids are enjoying playing in the lush, green grass.

Megan wearing pigtails! So much better than the mullet she has been sporting!

Our new fire pit was broken in with some great friends..s'mores were made and eaten!

Helping a dear friend unpack boxes and try to set up her classroom! Wow there were a lot of boxes (which the kids loved to climb on).

If you leave my bedroom door open for even a minute, the children will climb on my bed and look out the window. Pretty cute, but a bit nerve wracking as they climb on everything!!!

We spent the day at the beach with some amazing friends. Both John and Megan loved the sand and the water. They were filthy and exhausted when we got home!

A look back

As September continues on, I look back fondly on the many wonderful things that the children and I (am sometimes with daddy) were able to do the past few months.
We spent days at the zoo with wonderful friends, met some family members at our family reunion in Iowa, made quite a few trips to Biggby Coffee on Plymouth Rd., and headed to Elkhart, IN to visit with my family.

We have had some great loss, but have also had great joy with my sisters wedding/reception and the birth of my nephew Vinny.

Both of the children are doing well! John has been filling out and actually has a chubby look to his face (so cute). We are not sure what the situation is with his injured tooth, but it looks like it might be coming in more (which would be a good sign). We go back to the dentist on October 1st and will update you all then. He now has his top 4 teeth, his bottom 4 teeth, and 4 molars. He is not a great teether and we had some tense days when all 4 molars were coming in at once, but he made it through by biting on everything he could get his hands on. He is very interested in jumping and has been trying to do so for a few weeks now. It is very cute to see him attempt it over and over again. There are a few occasions where he has actually done it and he gets so excited. He has a new found infatuation with airplanes. He hears them and will point in the sky and watch them as they go by. He loves them! He also has begun to play with a new type of toy...CARS!!! Can't get enough of them. I guess that we are getting out of the soft cuddly toys and moving into the big boy items. His personality continues to blossom and he makes me laugh constantly!

Megan is still pretty tiny, but is keeping up with her brother as he gets into mischief. She is completely in love with music and will dance and sing whenever she hears it. She is really vocal, but is not forming many words on her own..she will repeat words though. Megan is a magnet for mosquitos. I can't believe how often she gets bit and how large the bites become as well as how long they stay. I am wondering if it is because of her histamine clustering. Something to ask the doctor next time we see him. I got her a dolly last week and she loved it so much that she would sleep with it. I was hearing a strange banging sound during nap a few days ago and peeked my head into the room. Megan was banging the dolls head on the rails of the crib. I let it go and walked away. At the end of nap the dolls arm was broken off...probably not a good idea to let Megan play with any newborn babies by herself. Megan has her top 4 teeth, but only two on the bottom. She also has 3 of her 4 molars in with the fourth one working its way through. Megan has figured out how to open the pantry and get her favorite cereal out. She will pull out the box, take it to her favorite seat, open it, smile, and eat it piece by piece.

Tim is continuing to be busy with work and spending time with the kids and I. I have been training for a 5k (I am planning on signing up for one in October) and spending a lot of time with the kids and friends. It feels a bit strange not to be in the classroom right not, but am so happy that I am able to stay home and raise our kids!

We are looking forward to a wonderful fall. We will be trick or treating for the first time as well as heading to the pumpkin patch! Any suggestions for costumes???

Bath night gone wrong!

Tim was playing softball last night so bath night fell to me. Here's how it went down....

The kids were having a great time playing in the tub. I bathed them and let them play for a few more minutes while I cleaned up all the toys and started to drain the tub.

I got Megan out first and started to dry her off. Before I could get John out and dried off he squatted and pooped in the tub. I quickly scooped the poop and John out of the tub and began to dry him off so that I could get a diaper on him.

Megan followed us to the bedroom (carrying her towel) and played on the floor while I dried and diapered John. As I turned to put John on the ground I saw that Megan was squatting down and pooping on the carpet! I said "no, no, no", which caused Megan to step back into the poop. I scooped her up and blocked the path to the poop from John. I quickly cleaned her foot and put a diaper on her (neither finished their poops so diapering immediately was important). I put her down and had a wipe in my hand to clean up the poop from the carpet. Before I could get to it, my dog ran out from under Megan's crib and ATE THE POOP!!!!!

I don't think that I will be bathing them by myself for quite some time!

Here is a recent photo of the kids..enjoying a snack after naptime...

15 month check-up

AAAGGGHHH...a walk right before bedtime!

I took the babies in for their 15 month check-up on Thursday.

Both kids are doing great! They are continuing to grow appropriately...right along the arch below the charts.

John weighs in at 19 lbs 11 oz and is actually in the 3rd percentile for weight.

Megan weighs 16 lbs 15 1/2 oz and is still not quite on the charts.

Both of their head sizes are on the charts..basically I have long skinny babies with giant heads!

It is a wonder they can walk so well!

Both are starting to talk more and are very daring athletically.

John loves to stack things so that he can climb onto either the couch or a chair. He has only fallen a few times and we are hoping that he keeps all of his teeth and that he will not need any stitches. He realized that he is bigger than Megan so he picks on her. He will chase her and then grab her shirt, pull her down and sit or lay on her. Megan laughs some of the time, but at times gets pretty upset about it.

Megan loves to dance (as you can see by the video)! She is always moving and always chatting. She is repeating more words and can now say "all done". Because she is smaller and gets picked on by her brother she has started to BITE...so bad. Hopefully as she gets a bit bigger or as she learns different ways to get away from John the biting will stop. It happens about once every day or so and only once so badly that I had to get her to unclench her jaws! I guess that we are lucky it is not all the time.

The kids and I are heading to Indiana next Wednesday to help my sister get ready for her wedding reception. Tim will be joining us for the weekend. We are looking forward to spending time with family and friends again...for something that will be a happy occasion!

Megan Dancing!

Tim and I have been wondering where Megan got her dance moves from...any thoughts?

Anyone need a ride???

Enough...

My Uncle John passed away suddenly last week. The entire family has of course come together to try and get through this, but it is hard.

John was loved by so many people and he really loved my kids. It is hard to imagine them growing up and not knowing him.

Megan loved to pull out Uncle John's proudly displayed chest hair and play with his chain and ring. John loved it when Uncle John would put his ring onto his fingers. Each time we were together he would measure how big the kids were getting by seeing how many fingers his ring would fit over.

He was someone who always was smiling and having a good time. He would do anything for you and was always there for you if you needed him.

I will always look back on my childhood and remember the times I was whisked away by him and my Aunt Meg to a cookout or a swim at his sister Kathy's pool. He taught me how to ski...something that I am surprised I survived. He took me on more boat rides than I can count. So many of my favorite childhood memories involve my time spent with Aunt Meg and Uncle John. He always treated me and my sisters like we were more than just his nieces and we loved him unconditionally.

I miss him terribly and am having a hard time processing the loss, but hope that he is at peace.

This is our fourth family member that has passed away since September (Grandma Peggy, Grandpa Harry, Mary-Lou...my mother-in-law) and I hope that we are now going to have a break from death.

I have been looking for a picture of Megan with my Uncle John, but have not found one..if anyone has one can you please send it to me. Thanks.

These are two of my favorite photos of the boys. Uncle John came over to check on Grandma Peggy and helped me out with the kids for a while. I think that he was in heaven when the babies were around...

Recent Photos

Some of these were taken when we were in Indiana visiting family.
The kids love the water table...Megan threw my cell phone into it today! I dried it out and it appears to be working ok...time will tell.
They are getting so big and are walking everywhere. I will try to get some video of them walking and talking so that I can share with you all.

Strawberry Jam!

Wednesday night my friend Kelly and I made 36 jars of strawberry jam! This week I plan on making four more batches. I am so excited that jamming season is here. I am thinking about making blackberry this year. I will be making peach jam as well as apple butter before the jamming season is over...

If you are lucky, you might be getting some for the holidays!

Our First Dental Visit

Two weeks ago John was walking around the living room and lost his footing. He fell face first into the hardwood floors and was unable to catch himself or even get his hands down. Basically...he ate the wood.
There were tears and snuggling, but no blood. I noticed the his tooth (top tooth one off from the front) looked like it had been pushed back up into his gums. I had hoped that he would be OK and had been keeping an eye on it. The tooth appeared to be yellow and a bit sensitive when brushed. I decided to take him to see a pediatric dentist last week.
It turns out that not only did his tooth go back up into his gums, it also broke. The tooth basically cracked all the way across and the front tooth has a fracture. I was concerned that the tooth died, but the dentist feel confident that it is still alive. We go back in three months and if there is no change then we will do an x-ray. If the tooth dies then we will have to have it pulled.
I didn't even realize that it was cracked and feel so bad about waiting to take him to see the dentist.

My new nephew!

Here are some pictures of Vinny (my sister Sarah's new baby).

I love him already and wish that I could see him soon...my sister too! Tacoma, WA seems so far away when you really want to be there and can't go!

The past few weeks...

It is 11:20 p.m. on Fathers Day and I am finally sitting down to post to the blog (something that I have been meaning to do for days). Last week was very hectic. My friend and I had a huge garage sale at my house that began Thursday morning at 7:30 and ended on Sunday evening at about 4. We were exhausted, but are happy with the results..we say we will never do it again. I am already starting to put things aside for the next one! Because of the sale, the posts have been nonexistent..so here is a update of what has been going on recently.

John has been walking for a few weeks now. He is so sturdy. He still crawls at least half of the time, but is getting to be a strong walker. Today he walked from our bathroom, down the hallway, turned into his bedroom, and then walked to his bookshelf. The entire time he is smiling and giggling. He loves to walk! His third bottom tooth finally broke through last week and he is chunking up. I weighed him tonight and I think that he is just about 20 pounds. Yeah John!

As of my last post Megan was still not walking. She is now! She has really taken off in the last week. She is standing all the time and walks 7 or 8 steps easily. It is so cute to see such a tiny kids walking! She is beginning to mimic us when we ask her to talk. So far she has repeated "Angie", "Thank You", "John", and a few others..only if we say it first and repeat it a few times. I am not sure of her weight, but know that she is not gaining or growing as quickly as John. She has a lot of very fine blond hair. In fact, it is shaped like a mullet (nice).

Tim, the kids, and I are heading to Indiana tomorrow. My sister, Tammy and her family will be there as well. She has not seen the kids since they were a few months old. It should be a lot of fun! I will post pictures of the trip when we get back.

My sister Sarah is home from the hospital with Vinny and they are both doing well. She is sending me pictures and I will be sure to post them to the blog as well!

I hope that everyone had a great fathers day.

John and Megan are enjoying spending time with daddy. They pulled all their books of their bookshelf. Something that they do at least twice a day. Tim read them a few books before putting them back on the shelf. Megan was very excited about this book!

This picture was taken at the NICU reunion. We had a wonderful time visiting with doctors, nurses, staff, and friends that we met and made during our stay in the NICU.

Welcome to the family Vinny!

My sister Sarah finally gave birth to my nephew Vincenzo "Vinny".
I say finally because she was 8 days overdue and she went through 30 hours of labor (after being unduced)! Both mom and baby are doing well and will be going home from the hospital tomorrow.
I am so proud of her for fighting through the pain and giving me another nephew to love and spoil.
Congratulations Sarah and Dominic. We can't wait to see you and meet the little guy.

You can see pictures of Vinny as well as his birth stats by doing the following...

go to:
www.our365.com
search by last name: Warner
city: Tacoma
state: WA

In case you need her address....
Sarah Warner
3203 South Mason Ave
Apt. M103
Tacoma, WA98409

Not without me...

Despite what the video (Walking!) shows, Megan is not happy that John is walking while she just crawls. She has been watching him and seeing us cheer him on so she has started to try to walk. She is now letting go of furniture and standing for 10-20 seconds at a time. Today she even took 2 and 3 steps a few times.

We are very close...she looks so cute because she is just so tiny!

Here are two of my favorite photos of the kids..these are from their one year photo shoot done by Heather Rogers (She did the birth announcements and our Christmas cards too).

Walking!

Here are a few clips of John walking this morning! I hope that you enjoy.

What a day!

We had one of those days where naps were short, whining and wanting mommy to hold us were our two favorite things, and headaches came on full force.

I am not sure why the kids only thought they should take a one hour nap this morning (usually take at least a two hour nap), but it didn't set the day off to a good start.

After nap it was off to Fed Ex and then to the Post Office. Those went relatively smoothly except that I dropped my Carmel Marvel (almost teared up) on my bumper as I hit it getting out the stroller..I salvaged it and the kids behaved very well at both locations.

We then went to Sam's Club to get milk and some fruit. Can someone please tell me why so many people feel like they need to stop me and talk to me about my kids. I have gotten to the point where I smile and am polite, but don't even stop my cart/stroller anymore...I would never get anything done! This woman actually told me that it would be a great idea to get leashes for my kids as soon as they start to walk. The leashes will help me keep track of my kids...I wanted to tell her that they were not pets, but actual human beings and that they would not be leashed...but I simply said, "Thanks for the advice".

We left Sam's Club shortly after the leash conversation and headed for the house. Had lunch and then it was nap time. John fell right asleep, Megan was a bit fussy. I started a load of laundry and she was still fussing. I pulled some chicken out of the refrigerator and then heard a VERY LOUD THUD...my baby started to scream and I ran to the bedroom. Megan decided that she really did not want to nap and made a break for it. The thud was her hitting the ground. Thankfully she was just scared. She cried for 30 minutes and would not let me put her down for quite a while. John slept through her falling and screaming and me rushing into the room. As soon as I got her settled down he woke up and started to scream. He was clingy for the next two hours. If I put him down he would just sit and whine...so sad with the big tears running down his face!

At about 3:30 I started to get that wonderful behind your eye headache that doesn't go away no matter what you do..I am hoping that it decides to go away while I am sleeping tonight.

Tim came home at about 5. Kissed us all, changed clothes, and then went directly to the babies room to lower Megan's mattress and remove her bumper. I am pretty sure she will no longer be able to escape.

I feel like I have spent a lot of time complaining so here are some good things about today...

I got to take a shower that was longer than 5 minutes, the kind lady at Sam's club who was handing out grilled chicken cut two pieces into kid friendly sizes and John and Megan had a wonderful snack, Tim folded two loads of laundry, we had dinner together as a family, the kids were bathed and in bed by 7:30, and I am now sitting in the recliner with my feet up!

John and Megan got a Radio Flyer for their birthday from their Aunt Sara and Uncle Rog. They love it...so does their friend Max!

John has started to climb into his rocking chair and rock back and forth on it. He loves it!

He is walking 8-10 steps at a time now and really loves to show off doing it!!!!