Picture time!

Ok, I'm going to try to catch up on the pictures...lots of Easter Bunnies, egg hunts and a baptism... hold on here we goooooooooooooooooooo---------
Girls will be girls. Here they are just hanging out and being their happy selves. It's been such a joy having the two girls and watching them interact. So far they are enjoying each others company. Come back in about 10 years and we'll see if I can still make that statement. :) As of the last measurements K is 32 lbs (50%) and 39 in (97+%) and A is 12 lbs 6 oz (75-90th%) and 22.5 in (50%). It absolutely amazes us how opposite they are. IN EVERY WAY! Other than the fact that they are the same sex- they are totally different!





A's baptism was absolutely perfect! She was a doll. It was great to have so many family and friends in attendance. There were about 20 at the ceremony and 45 at a lunch reception in our home afterward! I wish A could be able to remember her special day. Luckily we did take some photos, although I always wish I took more. There are from my super niece.


After the luncheon A and her cousin N0ra got a chance to know each other a little better:

Shortly after the baptism it was time to get ready for EASTER!
K hung Easter eggs with mom-mom and at home on the little trees.





And would an Easter egg hunt be without a creepy bunny who looks like a nightmare to take pictures with little kids? Of the 7 Easter egg hunts K did, there were 3 bunnies.



And here's some more pictures for fun:

Come on in Spring!

We are all anxiously awaiting spring to come. I'm pretty sure cabin fever has set in and we are ready to take to the outdoors and suck in some rays! The girls are doing well for the most part. Yet again, K has developed a cold and we are trying to keep her germs away from A. No desire to go through the whole hospital episode again! A is fully recovered and off breathing treatments all together and trust me, it's nice to be done with that extra duty. Last week was spring break around here so everything that we normally do during the week was canceled. So as a friend put it, our social calendar was about as deserted as an old western town with a tumble weed coming through every once in a while! I did have my postpartum check up on Wednesday and luckily I'm about 12 pounds under what I was when we found out I was pregnant at about 5 weeks. I am obviously thrilled about that. Who knew that pregnancy could be a great weight loss plan! hahaha! I hope this finds you all well. Love to hear from you!

Green through and through...

We have had a great week! A is starting to sleep long periods in the night... we're talking 6-8 hours at a time! K is back at preschool and loving it! She is such a great little mommy! At times, she has been an absolute life saver! We are all healthy and looking forward to warm weather. This past week we have been able to take in the warm weather and enjoy the park a few times!
Next weekend we will be taking family pictures and celebrating A's baptism on Sunday! We are looking forward to seeing family and friends again!

Dancin' A

Funny Videos to get you through Hump day!

Miss A in the Hospital

A was admitted into the hospital yesterday due to a severe case of RSV. K had a cold from preschool that she brought home and spread to A. K's symptoms were a runny nose and a bit of a cough. In A, it turned into RSV. RSV is short for Respiratory Syncytial Virus. In older kids and adults it appears as a common cold. In infants under 6 months (A is only 2 1/2 weeks!!) it causes the airways to become inflamed and makes it very difficult to get oxygen out to the body. Her lungs are basically physiologically acting like an asthmatics' lungs.
It all started Sunday night with a little cough. I called the peds office and I was told that as long as she wasn't running a fever and was eating well, not to be too bothered. Well by Wednesday/Thursday her cough was really bothering her, turning her face colors and she was not acting herself. That's when I decided that whether or not she had a fever, she was going into the doctor.
There they diagnosed RSV and sent us to the ER. In the ER her oxygen levels were quite low and she was laboring to breathe. We were told that the oxygen levels were lower than if an adult had bad case of pneumonia. They monitored her breathing, removed mucus several times from her nose and gave her breathing treatments at which point they made the decision to admit her into the pediatric unit.
We will be here through Saturday or Sunday depending on how she continues to respond to treatments. So far she has responded positively to the nebulizer treatments and they took her off the oxygen at noon. She needs to pick up on her eating and diapers as well as maintain her oxygen levels before they will discharge us. I'm hoping this happens tomorrow. Although, we don't' want to rush it and would rather stay here longer and insure that we won't have to return anytime soon.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!

Book and Tummy Time

Little Blue sucking thingy

All is going fairly well in the transition. G is back at work now and I really miss having him here. He was such a huge help and it was so nice to have an adult to talk to throughout the day :)
The girls have congestive colds. I believe K got it from preschool. We tried our best to keep her away from A but it was nearly impossible. So we are using the little blue sucking thingy to try to stay on top of the situation. Although, I'm finding it very difficult to use with A. Her nose is just too small for that thing! Any suggestions???

Big Sis Comes Home!

K came home this week and met A. At first she thought nothing of A, but then she warmed up and I think everything just kinda clicked all of a sudden! K looks after A and is at her side as soon as she makes a peep. I think these two will be great friends as they grow up together. This morning K was up before the rest of us and after waking mommy up and telling daddy "Surprise, Happy New Year!", she asked where sister was and wanted to see her. I thought that was a good sign :)

Welcome to the World Miss A!

We welcomed A$hl@nd Ele@n0r (the symbols are to break the search-ability!) on February 15th @ 2:09 am. She weighed 9 lbs 1 oz and was 21 inches long.
Although she was a "big" baby, it took just two easy pushes and she greeted us with a warm cry. She is doing great. She will be on a Billiruben blanket for at least a day to try to lower her jaundice. We go to the Pediatrician tomorrow to get updates on her stats. She is much calmer and easy going than her big sis- so far at least! :)
K is on vacation at Mom-Mom's and Papa's be spoiled shamelessly! She doesn't quite get the concept yet, so that will be fun to watch that relationship develop!
Thank you to everyone for visits and well wishes! It is much appreciated!
Here are a couple of pictures...

Not yet...

It's pretty simple...we're still waiting. So while you wait because we're waiting because the baby is waiting- here are some pictures.

Hanging out on daddy's shoulders



Kohl's Children Museum, Glenview





Science and Industry Museum, Chicago




Craft Time! A favorite of K's!

Nursery Unveiling....

Here it is...








And of course my biggest helper (with her sunglasses on upside down)...


Only about 5 weeks to go...*sigh

This pretty much sums it up...

K is over her ear infection...for now. M's busy getting the nursery together and G is dreading more snow tonight!

Dancing Queen

K has developed a double ear infection...yuck! Unfortunately the medicine she is taking is awful!! So to bribe her we use popsicles! (We don't want to hear any gripe about bribing...you have no idea how bad the medicine is!) Just merely opening the cap of the antibiotic smells like something was fermenting inside for a good 3 decades!

After the meds and popsicle it appears that she gets a burst of energy that just makes her want to dance!


She exhausted herself from all the dancing and we found her just hanging out in papa's chair eating popcorn and juice while watching the Colts' season come to a brutal end.

We had a great two weeks while G was on vacation. Of course we always wish there was more that we could cram into the time, but all that will have to wait until next time. K wore G out by playing lots of "hiding". Herr idea of hiding is G under a couch cushion or trying to get him to squeeze under a laundry basket. It's a hoot to watch! Luckily M has established that only daddy can hide with her and that mommy can't do it nearly as well! :)