No pictures today

Since finding out for sure that Emily has Celiac disease, people send me websites and tips and suggestions and answers to questions all the time. I read them. I try to process them. I keep them in my e-mail so I can pull them out later and re-read them. Most things say things like " Food is wonderful, food can be the best thing ever, food is sensual." WHAT!?!?!?
I do not see food, more importantly, COOKING food, in this light at all. It makes me feel stress. I rarely feel stress. I feel like a pretty balanced person and sure, there are moments at night when both kiddos are screaming that my blood pressure rises a tad, but overall, I'm calm, cool and collected.
The thought of cooking meals, that are wonderful and "sensual" makes me sweat though. When I read the safe list and the forbidden list, most things I don't even recognize. I've never seen these letters put together, and I would never think they would make a word. But it's a word...it's a thing, an additive, a seasoning, a something...and now I have to know about it.
Some might say I've been naive, not reading labels all along, to know what additives and perservatives are in our food. But really, I read labels for fat and calories, carbs and sometimes sodium, but 20 letter preservatives - nope, not so much.
I wish I was organic.
I wish I was more earthy.
I wish I could have a garden and grow food and really eat it.
But...it's really not me. I wish it was me, sometimes, but it's not. I'm not sure it ever will be.
So I am going to figure out this gluten thing for me and my family the best way I know how. Yes, I will try some recipes, that don't take 1 hour of prep time and require chopping 4 different vegetables. I don't like to chop. Yes, call me lazy, but I'm not good at chopping and it takes FOREVER.
I don't do recipes that take more than 20 mins prep time. Lazy again, yes.
I mop several times a week, but chopping and preparing food, ugh. I'd rather be on my hands and knees scrubbing grout. Or scrubbing bathroom gunk. Anything and anywhere than in the kitchen.
Maybe if I had more time. Maybe if my kitchen was big and beautiful, and could be the true " heart of our home." Maybe if my husband was home at night with us. Maybe if my attitude changed a bit. Maybe....
But for right now, I am going to continue to scour shelves for gluten free products. I will buy gluten free mixes and mix them up. I will not buy potato flour and learn what " thickeners and stabilizers" are gluten free...what the heck are those anyway!?!?!?
I will buy gluten free chicken nuggets. And buy boxed gluten free cookie mix.
I will do my best.
The end.

TOGA TOGA!

The pictures speak for themselves, lol....



P.S. I can't keep that picture from being at the very top, I give up!

Who needs gluten anyway?!

Well, we got our confirmatory call today, our baby girl has Celiac disease. I hate that word " disease." But, it is what it is. We have an appt the end of next week with a dietitian and then the real fun begins. We know the basics, but apparently there is a lot of hidden gluten in lots of things. Celiac also causes your body not to absorb nutrients as well, so I need to know what kind of vitamins to give, these are formative years you know, and I need to make sure she's getting all of the adequate "stuff" she needs.
This is especially hard for ME because I'm not good with food stuff. I mean I know the basic food groups, I know we need some of it all, but when I think about %'s and Vitamin A and E and zinc and folate, etc...I get stressed. When I quit nursing that was my one big fear - Holy cow, now what in the world will they eat?!?!?!
Eating times are still probably my least favorite times of day. I think about what to feed them constantly. Is it good enough? Nutritious? Are they getting the vitamins and minerals they need? I guess at least now I'll have someone to work with, just not in the way I wanted it.
Oh well, such is life. And honestly, I look around and I know it could be worse. Our girl is healthy by most accounts, and we are so blessed for that. So bring it on Celiac, we're ready for you!!!

We went to a family reunion in Waycross on Saturday at the Okefenokee Swamp. We did the train ride, walked some trailed and saw a snake show. I can't tell you how many people said " You better watch those babies, an alligator might get them." Lol, I couldn't help but laugh. Somehow the thought of a mad alligator on the loose, in the midst of bunches of people, only having eyes for one of our babies, just made me chuckle. Lol, still does!

I'm playing SAHM today and tomorrow, our sitter is on vacation. I'm not sure I could do this full-time. I'd like to think I could...but deep down, I'm not so sure. I highly admire you SAHM's, I don't know how you spend the day. Learning? Cleaning? Going places? Resting? Playing? It's tough and anyone who says that moms don't really " work" ought to be shot. Or at least made to stay at home with toddlers, babies and other young children for a week straight. Morning and night, no breaks. THEN see what they say. Here's to all you SAHM's, cheers!

Happy Monday!

Waiting for that alligator to come get her!

William decided he was gonna face that alligator head on!

Kicking Myself...

After I don't blog for a while, I always kick myself. I think about blogging, I wanna do it...but then I don't. I have no excuse, it's pure laziness. Anyway, just to keep somewhat on track, I'll blog about our experience yesterday. After 2 months of diarrhea, bloating and general malaise with Emily, I decided to take her to a GI specialist. We are fairly certain that she has Celiac disease. But in order to diagnose that, you have to do a biopsy of the intestinal area, through an endoscopy. So that's what we did yesterday. We did it at Wolfson's, which is where William had his eyes done, so we'd been through the routine before. Everything went well, they put her to sleep, did the procedure, and it only took about 15 mins, just as expected. She did well with everything, but she hated the IV and couldn't wait to get it out. Normally she likes bracelets, but she didn't care for this one! We should get the results on Tuesday. I'm hoping we get something to confirm our suspicions, if not...I'm not sure how we'll proceed, but we have our fingers crossed we'll know one way or the other.

Not much else has been going on. We have been very busy. We were out of town 2 weekends ago. The babies went to the fair for the first time, rode rides, even a mini roller coaster, which was much faster than expected. Everyone is still talking, playing, doing everything like a normal 22 month old does! Emily counts to 10! Lol, not really, she can do it with help, doing every other number, but I'm pleased. William counts to 2, lol, and sometimes 3. It's so funny to see how they learn things at different speeds, and at different times. He is still much more agile than she is. When they chase each other, he runs full speed, and she kind of plods along...somehow I doubt she'll be breaking any world records. Anyway, we are full of life and love at our house and I wouldn't want it any other way. Please don't ask why this is all underlined, I have no idea, and I don't care to figure it out! Happy Thursday!

21 months and counting…

Yesterday our babies turned 21 months old. Holy cow!!!

William:

26.2 pounds

33 inches tall

Emily:

26.4 pounds

33 3/4 inches tall

These are just my measurements and are not 100% accurate, but they’re the best I could do. Days are fun in this house and can also be very trying at times. Emily is still going thru her '”phase.” The I need to be held every single second by my Mama phase…it’s endearing…but it’s exhausting. We have started doing time-out with her when she’s pitching a fit for no real reason and that is hard, just hearing her scream and kick her legs but I also want her to learn she doesn’t get her way just because she acts like that. If she goes to time-out for any other reason, hitting or throwing which she has recently started doing, she immediately says “sorry” and continues to say it over and over…it’s SO funny.

Miss Emily also continues to have stomach issues. Without going into too much gross graphic detail, we have been having some diarrhea issues with her for the last….6-7weeks I guess? We have been to the doctor several times, we thought she might be slightly lactose intolerant, but now…I’m not so sure. I’m trying to debate on whether or not to take her to a GI doctor. I don’t want to overreact, but I also want to make sure her tummy and “insides” are Ok. Verdict is still out on what Ill do about that one.

I guess that’s it for now! Happy Monday!

Knock, knock…

So last night we were playing, having a regular night. Typically we keep all of the doors shut in the hallway, and I thought they were all shut last night. So I’m piddling around in the living room with Emily and I knew that William was in the hall and I kept hearing him knock on the wall. This went on for a wall, me not paying too much attention, and so I wandered down the hall to see what he was doing. Lol – well apparently he had gotten himself into their bedroom, in the dark, and closed the door behind him, and he was knocking so someone would let him out! Lol – it was sooooo funny, I went and got the video camera and got a little of it on tape, him knocking, every so often, I guess he was seeing if anyone would come! He wasn’t crying or upset at all, just knocking….so funny.

Tonight was another ordinary night, which is just fine by me!

Emily looking at Jag

They really like to take timer pictures, even though you can’t tell from William’s face in this one!

And yes, we all look slightly homely in these pictures, BUT – it’s the end of the day. Emily’s hair had been in crazy pigtails that she’d taken out, so her hair was WILD! And – since they were getting a bath anyway, I didn’t bother to clean their faces off AS clean as they could have been…so sue me! ;-)

Happy Tuesday!

At 20.5 months

I'm a terrible blogger, I can admit it. I think about it, I think of witty things to write...but then I never take the time to sit down and actually do it. Not sure why, I guess there's no excuse really.
Anyway, just a short post to get some tidbits about what these babies are doing at 20.5 months:

1) William still loves doggies - imagine that. He says Doggie alllll the time, but it's very hard to tell between that and Daddy, they sound almost identical.

2) He is all boy, he climbs, gets into things, sits in time out every day and is also so sweet. He is the one that likes to hug Emily and rubs her back when she's crying. He will also bring her her blanket or kitty when she's crying, to make her feel better. It's so cute.

3) He loves to help do stuff. He helps Billy cook on the weekends. He helps me with the dryer and loves to help pull clothes in the laundry basket. He still loves to vaccum.

4) Emily is going thru a very....NEEDY phase right now. Only with me, only when it's just us 3 at home. It's pretty terrible. She wants to be held and carted around constantly. And while it's endearing, yes she loves her Mama....I cannot hold her all the time! She pitches fits and cries constantly if she's in one of her moods and I can't have her with me all the time. Nighttimes are a bit more challenging right now because of this. If anyone else is around, this doesn't happen, only when it's just us 3.

5) She still loves books and will sit and look at books for a long time. She likes to take all of them out and loves to sit in your lap and read. She still backs up and plops down, only now she says "sit."

6) Emily talks more than William. She can say pretty much anything. She is just learnign the word NO here in the last few days and has been saying it constantly. Anything you ask her, she says No.

7) Both love to brush their teeth themselves, but when I do it, they hate it! With a passion. They get so upset each night when I do their teeth first, and once they get the brush, they're fine. My friend that's a hygienist said we should do it that way, so that's what I'm going with for now.

8) Please don't ask about potty training. We'll do it. When the time is right. It's not right yet.

9) Emily has been having something going on with her GI tract, not sure what. I won't get into too much graphic details, but her poopy diapers have been very distinct for a few weeks now, and we can't figure out why. We are thinking it might have something to do with dairy products, so we are trying to take away yogurt and milk and see if that helps. So far we've had mixed results.

10) We now have a fish named Jag thanks to Aunt Christie and Uncle Chris. The babies love fish, and they like looking at Jag while they eat ( he lives on our kitchen table for now).

That's all I have time for now! Happy Thursday!

Last day at 30

Well, this is my last night as a 30-year old. When I wake up tomorrow, I'll be 31. Tonight I spent my last time as a 30-year old driving home from work, picking up 2 babies, sitting in traffic ( not even sure why there WAS traffic), going by McDonald's ( yes, I know, unhealthy) and getting home almost 2 hours after I left work.
We attempted to eat a hamburger. William threw his on the floor. Emily ate about 1/4 of hers.
Billy bought them new stuffed animals today, Mickey Mouse and Pooh. Emily loved Mickey at first, until she realized William had Pooh and then she decided she wanted him too....needless to say, that didn't go well. They got into several fights that ended up in kicking and screaming.
I gave 2 babies a bath.
I got 2 babies ready for bed.
I picked up toys.
Drank a sweet tea.
Read some blogs.
Talked to the sitter about what William did today - during his nap, he took the poop OUT OF HIS DIAPER and SMEARED it everywhere! He didn't take the diaper off, but just took the poop out - GROSS!!!! I about died when she told me. I have to say - I was secretly pleased this happened at someone else's house, lol, that is very mean of my to say. I hope this will be a one-time thing and he's not going to start liking this very disgusting thing. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!
Happy Thursday and here's to 31 more wonderful years for me!

Monday, Monday….

The days just seem to move so fast, I can hardly believe it's already August. In just a few short days I'll start my 31st year, EEK!!!! I have a wonderful husband and 2 fantastic babies to show for it, and I am hoping for big things in my 31st year.

Just a few tidbits about what all is going on around here:

1) William is still obsessed with doggies, to the point of being ridiculous at times. He goes to bed with about 2-3 doggies every night, and carries them around almost anywhere he goes. It never fails that any doggie Emily may be playing with, he always wants THAT one. It's still hard to tell "doggie" and "daddy" apart sometimes.

2) Emily loves panties. Anytime I use the potty, she points out my panties, and says it over and over. When she's around if I'm changing clothes, she points and says "panties." She loves to feel them and wear them if the occasion arises. She also likes bras, if you remember from an earlier post.

3) Emily likes saying her name right now. She recognizes pictures of herself, or seems to, and says "Enileeee" or something to that effect.

4) William knows when he has a poopy diaper. He will come up and grab his diaper in the front and shake it a little and sometimes will say something that sounds like Yuck. My Nana says he's ready for "training" but I'm not so sure....I think I'll wait a bit longer!

5) We love it when family comes to visit. Wish we had more visitors, but we enjoy our time whenever they come!

Happy Monday!

Randomness

Well, not much has been going on with us, just normal, everyday life…whatever that may be! We played outside on Sunday afternoon and so we came in and gave the babies a bath. Billy was dirty too, so he took a shower while I bathed the twins. So normally when I’m home alone, I give them their bath, get both of them out, let the first one go naked, hurry with the 2nd one, put a diaper on, and then get the first one to get a diaper on them. Well, I did the same thing on Sunday, only since Billy was home, our bedroom door was also open. She was naked, with her towel on her head.

So I get a diaper on William quickly, and let him go, and go to get Emily. This is what I find:

OH MY GODDNESS! GROSS!!! Emily had diarrhea on the carpet. I quickly yell at Billy to get out of the shower NOW and proceed to take Emily into the bedroom to get her cleaned up. I’m trying to be soothing, asking her if her tummy hurts and why she went poopy all over the carpet. A few minutes later Billy strolls in and says “ It’s not diarrhea, it’s Coke.”

*sigh*  Coke.

Emily got a hold of a glass of coke that her DADDY left on the nightstand…lol…we were so relieved it was Coke and not diarrhea, needless to say…

Today the babies are 19 months old. We didn’t weigh them today, maybe later this weekend. My mom and nana are coming to visit, so they can help do stats.

Other than that, I’ll just leave you with a few pictures of all the fun we have around here!

Happy Tuesday!

I’d like to teach….

The world to sing…In perfect harmony….

Does anyone remember Mr. World!?!?!? Janet gave me a Mr. World DVD on Monday night, straight out of 1986, that’s what the copyright said. I immediately knew it had to come home with me, and I couldn’t wait to watch it. We watched Mr. World in 1st and 2nd grade and I distinctly remember everything about this video. We watched it tonight and the babies were somewhat interested, they danced a little and Emily was very impressed with “Dayo” as it talks and shows bananas. Anyway, music class wouldn’t have been the same without Mr. World and I’m thrilled to have the DVD at my house now. I doubt I’ll ever part with it!

We played with the camera while watching Mr. World tonight:

When my mom was down last time, she tried to teach William to wink. When you wink at him, he does the funniest faces, trying to do it back at you:

Yes, he also loves to do the “cheese” face!

Billy lets Emily go outside in all kinds of ways, this just happens to be barefooted, with a broom and a bra:

And last but not least, William wanted his picture taken with his favorite things right now, his doggies. He loves doggies. He wants one in his hand constantly, and pitches a FIT when you have to take it away. I might have already said this once, but i't’s worth repeating.

Happy Wednesday!

18 months and counting….

18 months sure has gone by fast! I can hardly believe that these babies have been in our lives for that long. At the same time, I can barely remember what life was like without them…what did we do with our time?!!?!? Lol, I guess we’ll figure that out in about 20 years!

We had a great holiday weekend. My mom and nana came to visit and so did my sister and her friend Lauren. My baby-sitter is on vacation, so my mom kept the babies and then stayed thru until Monday. We had a family gathering with Billy’s family and then just came on back home. No fireworks for us this year, maybe next!

Aunt Christie took all the pictures of the 4th, and they aren’t on my computer yet, so I’ll have to post those later!

We took their 18 month pictures today at JC Penney since I’m a member and all. I like them alright…for being a member and being able to take pictures whenever you want, it’s not a bad deal. Neither baby wanted to cooperate though. Emily was in a good mood, she laughed and smiled, but she wanted to walk around and NOT sit/stand where she was supposed to. William refused to crack a smile. He climbed, ran around, shimmied away, but no smiles were given. Oh well, we take what we can get!

Right now we like doggies, blankets and books in our house. William loves doggies again. He wants to take them everywhere and pitches a fit when I won’t let the doggie sit in his highchair when he eats. Sometimes I give in and the doggie DOES sit in the chair…so sue me! Emily loves books, she goes thru the basket of books on a daily basis and just carries them around everywhere. She has always liked them, and I hope she continues to. I loved to read as a kid, and though that love slowly changed….I’d like for her to be a bit of a bookworm. She is also very into blankets right now. Not just one special one, any blanket. Or towel. Basically anything that resembles a blanket, large or small, it goes with her. And she pitches a fit when you take it away.

Our life with these 2 munchkins is exciting and tiring and so much fun. They get into everything, but they come back at you with a hug and a kiss and it makes it all Ok ( most of the time, except when your daughter drops a thick book right on your toe from high up in the air). Thinking about them just makes me laugh, lol…these are good days!

Happy Tuesday!

18 month stats

Quick post, so I don't lose my scrap of paper this is written on:

Emily, 26.8 pounds, 75%
33 3/4 inches, 95%

William, 24.2 pounds, 25-50%
33 inches, 75%

More to come later!
Happy Friday!

Dear Ava…

I got aggravated at William tonight, but I’m sure you already know that. I also hope that you realize how much I love them and cherish them, and also at the very same time, how much we miss you. On this 2nd anniversary of the day you were taken from us, I choose today to be mad at your sweet cousin. After showering and thinking and saying a prayer or two, I have decided that I am utterly ridiculous. Yes, I know I’m allowed to get frustrated at times…that is natural and part of being a Mama. I get that. But I need to always keep in mind how precious they are, and how lucky we are to have them. You help me with that. You are a reminder to me of how special life is and how we can’t take anything for granted, you just never know when things might change. You pop into my mind at the strangest times and sometimes bring tears to my eyes and other times…just thoughts. Thoughts about what you’d be like today, how you’d act, if you’d be giving Kristin a run for her money too, lol…I’m sure you would be, but I also know how wonderfully sweet you’d be too.

I miss you. And I love you. We all do. Emily and William won’t know you, but they will know of you. And I’m counting on you to keep watching over them, and over me too, helping me to be a good Mama. Send your Mama a kiss down, she needs it right now. Rest in peace sweet niece….

Grout scrubber

That is me tonight…a grout scrubber. I don’t know why I started, I just thought I’d try again to make the grout look a little better ( I think it’s hopeless though). So I did a square or two. The night progressed…William became increasingly daredevilish and disobedient..climbing, laughing, running, etc…and I became increasingly irritated.

Don’t get me wrong, I love these 2 little folks more than anything. But right now…especially William, they are a handful! And sometimes I get aggravated and raise my voice a little too loud and possibly plop William down in the corner a bit too harsh. There I said it, I admitted it. I get aggravated at the 18 month old twins that live here at my house. That are my children. My beloved children, who came from my tummy and I wanted so much. And I love them to death, but this stage is still new to me. I know I am in store for much much more of this, I’m just saying tonight….I’m scrubbing grout. Right after I put them down (which maaaay have been a tad earlier than normal), I got on my hands and knees and started scrubbing away. Some people drink, some people jog…I guess I scrub.

And who says denim diapers are tacky?

Yes, I caved and bought the “ limited edition” denim huggies…I just couldn’t resist. We don’t use Huggies, I’m a Pampers Mama. But when I saw those funny lookin’ diapers, I just couldn’t help myself. Lol, they are quite funny, if I do say so myself….

Not much else to report today! Happy Thursday!

Going through the Big D…..

Yes, folks, we have been going through the Big D at our house….Diarrhea that is. That might be tmi for some, but it’s the truth! We thought Billy was reacting to something he was taking, but then William followed suit, so we are now thinking it might have been some kind of stomach virus. Poor little guy has a raw bottom and is just miserable when we change his diaper. I feel so bad for him, but hopefully they are both on the mend now!

We played outside yesterday at a park in Green Cove Springs, and then came home and got in their little pool for the first time. They really enjoyed getting in it, even if they DID track dirt and leaves all over the place.

Emily is all over her strep throat. It turned out that she was allergic to the first antibiotic she was given, so our first night in WR, we had to visit a Medstop and get a new antibiotic for her. Thankfully, she only had a bad rash and no other reaction.

We had a great trip to my dad’s house for his BD. We got to see a lot of people we never see and it was nice to see our cousins, their kids, and see everyone playing together like they were old friends.

Some other random things:

1) Emily is saying more and more words. She finally says MAMA, yay!!! She still doesn’t say it AT or TO me, but when you tell her to say it, instead of saying Daddy, she now actually says Mama. William, on the other hand, will still say Daddy when you ask him to say Mama. Go figure!

2) Emily loves to give kisses and they always big, fat, open mouth kisses…so funny!

3) William hates elevators! Everytime we get in, he cires.

4) They are both getting into more and more trouble, but William definitely gets into more than Emily does. They insist on standing on the couch and jumping, something we don’t want them to do. They have also discovered our “entertainment” cabinet, which holds the DVD player, Wii, etc. They are NOT supposed to open the doors, and we have tried several things to discourage this, but so far, nothing is working. They get their hand popped and they have to sit in time-out…and the first thing they do when they get up is go right back over. I suppose this is the life of 17 month old twins!

I guess that’s it for now. We did some computer re-arranging yet again, so my computer is in a better place now, and hopefully that will help me to blog a bit more. Happy Sunday!