Friday, May 25, 2012

4 Months Old!!

The babies have been four months old for a whole week now.  Man, time is flying....at the same time its going really slow too :)  How is that possible?  I can't believe how big my babies are!  They are getting so old and grown up, I wish I could keep them little tiny forever.  It is fun to see them grow and develop and learn new things though.  I'm so grateful for healthy babies!  

I did a few photo shoots of them.  On Sunday we got them all dressed up in the cutest outfits that my amazingly talented cousin, Lynette, made for them.  You can see her work here: http://www.thinkinginshapes.com.  Thanks so much Lynette!!  We got a few shots before church, but as usual, we were rushing and late for church so I didn't get any of them together, just individually.  When we got back, they were in really bad moods.  I tried to get a few of them together, but they were pretty cranky.  I decided to do some more pics a few days later.  I loved some from both "photo sessions" so you get to see both :)

Miss Liv:
-16 lbs 3 oz!! That is in the 90th-95th percentile! You are my little chunker.  I just love your arm rolls, double chin, and thunder thighs! I could nibble on them all day long.
-26 inches long! That is in the 95th-97th percentile! You have always been really long, but I guess I'm not surprised.  I mean, look at your gene pool :)
-Head Circumference is 16.5 inches.  That is in the 90th-95th percentile.  We always joke that you have a monster head.  It doesn't help that you have an extra big head, and Street has an extra small head, so side by side it kinda does look like a monster head :)  The nice thing is that you and Daci can share headbands.  Ha!
-You have a VERY flat head.  Just like Daci did :)  The doctors say it isn't bad enough for a helmet, but that we need to keep you on your tummy or off your head as much as possible.
-You are the HAPPIEST baby.  I know I say it constantly, but I am so grateful for your sweet and laid back demeanor.  You literally smile all.day.long.  Even when you are sad, if I look at you and pull a face you will bust into a huge smile, and then go back to whimpering.
-You get the biggest kick out of your little brother.  You look at him all day long and just smile and squeal.  Whether he is screaming his head off, or talking to you, you just think he is hilarious.
-You already seem protective of him.  You hold his hand a lot, or put your hand on his head or leg when he is crying.
-You are a super natural nurser.  I stopped nursing at 6 weeks, after all my help had left, and I didn't have the help I needed to be able to nurse.  I exclusively pump now and feed you two breast milk.  Well at 13 weeks I had a clogged duct so I tried to nurse you so that you could help me out.  I didn't think you would even remember how, but you latched right on and ate like a champ.  I have nursed 3 or 4 times since then, and you still just latch and eat right away.  
-Your rooting reflex is still really strong.  If I put my cheek up to yours to snuggle, you immediately turn and start sucking on my face :)  You also like to try to suck daddy's nose when he has you up close to his face, talking to you.  Like I said, you love your food.  I think you would eat all day long if I let you :)
-You have a little binkie that has an elephant attached to it.  You don't take binkies during the day, but for naps and bedtime you like to have it.  Mostly, you just like to play with the little elephant, but when you get really tired you will stick it in your mouth and suck until you fall asleep.  Its so funny, when your dad or I lay you in your little corner of the crib, you look right at us and open your mouth wide until we stick the bink in.  Daddy likes to tease you and wait a little while before he sticks it in to see if you will keep your mouth open.  You do!  You just keep it wide open and start kicking your legs and getting impatient until he sticks it in :)
-Like I said, you have a little corner of the crib that you like to sleep in.  If you aren't in that corner, you won't go to sleep.  Silly girl.
-You need a lot less sleep than your brother.  You always wake up way earlier than him from naps, and aren't always ready to go back down when he is.  You are happy as can be on less sleep than him though.  
-You are a light sleeper.....well maybe just a normal sleeper.  You always wake up if Street makes a noise, but his noises are generally full on screams, so I guess I can't blame you for waking up :)  Its frustrating though, because he will make noises in his sleep but not wake up. Once he does, you are wide awake and don't go back to sleep.
-Your big sister, Daci, absolutely adores you.  She pretty much mauls you :)  She constantly wants to hold or play with you.  You handle it so well and very rarely get frustrated with her.  You are a very go-with-the-flow baby.
-You are finally starting to work on your tummy.  For a while there, I was a little worried.  You hated tummy time and you would never lift your head up, you would just bury your head and scream.  You are very strong now, and push up very high.  You still aren't the biggest fan of tummy time, but at least you will do it longer now.  
-You also aren't the biggest fan of the bumbo.  You will sit in it ok for about ten minutes and then you get really mad and arch your back and try to jump out.  Good thing those chubby thighs of yours stop you from falling out when you arch your back like that!
-You rolled over quite a bit for three days in a row, and then all of a sudden you stopped.  So, I guess I can't really say you are rolling anymore.  I know you are capable, you just don't do it anymore.
-You have a particular blankie that you love.  Its really soft and you love to hold it in your hand and rub your cheek with it when you are trying to go to sleep.
-You like to suck your fingers and your thumb.  Its pretty darn cute :)
-You love your baths!
-Nicknames: Miss Liv, Livvi Lou, Princess.  Daci loves to call you Luva Lou, I think she is trying to say Livvi Lou but she says it too fast :)  "Mom, can I hold Luva Lou!?" "Luva Lou is smilin' at me!" "I gave Luva Lou her binkie!"




Mr. Street:
-15 lbs 10 oz.  That is between the 50th and 60th percentile.  You eat the same amount as your sister, but you scream most of the day, so you work it off :)
-26 inches long.  Between the 90th and 95th percentile.  The surprising thing about this is that 8 weeks ago, you were still an inch shorter than Liv.  You grew 4 inches in 8 weeks and are now the same length!!
-Head circumference is 15.75 inches.  That is only in the 5th percentile.  You have a peanut head, just like Daci did :)  It used to be perfectly round, but the last few weeks you have also developed a flat head.  Probably because you started sleeping longer stretches at night.
-You are still pretty fussy, although I am seeing longer stretches of happy time.  By that I mean like 30 minutes for every hour and a half that you are awake, rather than 10 :)  I'm hoping you will out grow this colic soon because you are SO much fun when you are happy!
-You don't really like tummy time anymore, but you are VERY strong!  Like you arch so far back that it looks like you could touch your head to your back :)  You did this for the doctor yesterday and she was shocked at how strong you are.  She thinks you will be rolling any day now.
-Speaking of rolling, you rolled twice from your tummy to back right about the same time Liv did, but haven't done it since then.  
-Your smiles are hilarious!  You didn't really start giving smiles until 12 weeks old.  Now you give them freely.....if you are happy that is :)  Since that isn't very often, you are still trying to figure out how to smile.  The corners of your mouth will start tugging and shaking as you try to pull them up.  You give HUGE wide open mouth smiles.  Its funny because I will look at pics and think, was he smiling or screaming?  Because your mouth does the same thing for both, but the key is in the eyes.  If your eyes are happy I know you are smiling :)
-Your mouth really is huge.  Kinda like a frog mouth :) I love it.
-You used to be a huge binkie boy, but ever since you got sick again at 12 weeks, you won't really take it anymore.  I think it scared you to not be able to breathe with your bink in, so you decided to give it up.  You won't take it for bed anymore, the only time you take it is if you are in your carseat and you get a little fussy.
-You never stop moving.  Your arms and legs are constantly kicking and circling.  Your little fingers are constantly wiggling.  Your muscles are always tense.  The only time I see you still is when you are asleep.
-You love to suck on your hands.  You usually have both fists in that big mouth of yours :)
-You still spit up all day, every day. You pretty much spit up your whole bottle by the time its time for another one.  I don't know how you are gaining weight.  You go through an average of four outfits a day.  You probably could go through more, but I get sick of changing you so I strip you down a lot now that it is warmer.  
-You also have a blankie that you love.  You like to cover your whole face with it to fall asleep.  We have to sneak in after you fall asleep and pull it off :)
-You LOVE your bath time.  You would sit in the bath all day long.  You just give me the hugest smiles during the whole bath.  I love it!
-Nicknames: Handsome, Streetie.  Daci calles you "Streetie Boy".  "Streetie Boy is fuzzin' (fussing) again, Mom!" "Streetie boy spit up, mom!" 



These were taken after  church when they were a bit cranky. They still look adorable though, right?





And of course, I have the get the naked pics!  Here are my chubbers:
Street on left, Liv on right

Love this pic! They are both so happy!

Street

Livvi



Here is the other photo shoot I did with them.  They were so happy!

My new favorite pic of these two.  I love it when they are both happy!







And of course, a photo shoot wouldn't be complete without Daci :) For those who are wondering, I can laugh about the hair cut story now, but I still get teary eyed when I see how short her hair is :(





And here are some pics of Street when he was in an especially good mood.  Smiles for Mama!




Monday, May 21, 2012

Mother's Day 2012


I woke up on Mother's Day to a breakfast of Gluten Free German Pancakes that Rick made for me.  Mmmm!  They were so good!  He is so good to me.  We all went to church for the first time since the babies got RSV.  It was a nice meeting, but I have to say, the last time we all went the babies were still little enough that they could sleep through everything.  Now, it is much more difficult to take them!  They are wide awake and restless during the meetings now.  After church we went over to Carly and Micah's for a BBQ.  We made the J-Dawg's special sauce for our hot dogs and it was amazing! We also had a yummy salad and cowboy caviar with chips.  For dessert Carly made cookies and got me a gluten free cupcake for my birthday treat.  It was such a wonderful day!  Looking back at these pics makes me want to cry because it was the last day Daci still had her hair!  She looks so dang cute!  She still looks cute now, of course, but I sure wish she hadn't chopped off her hair!


Gluten Free German Pancakes, made by Rick

Daci loves Germans!

Mommy Photo Shoot with the kids:

I adore being Daci's mommy.  She is such a joy!  She is also a little spit fire that tests my patience every.single.day!  She is such a smart little cookie and half the things that come out of her mouth completely shock me.  She is very active and loves to hop, jump, and spin around.  She is also not the most coordinated little girl at the moment.  She is constantly tripping and falling down.  I think she is still trying to grow into her tall, gangly limbs :) She is the most amazing big sister to her babies.  She loves them so much and is always wanting to hold them and play with them.  I just love my doodle bug.  I'm so glad that she is such an independent and strong-willed child....most of the time :)



She is really into striking poses lately :)

Such a cheese ball :)

Oh my sweet Livvi.  Such an easy baby and I absolutely love being her mom.  She smiles all.day.long. Even if she is sad (which is very rarely), she is smiling.  She'll start to cry, and I'll start talking and smiling at her and she will give me this huge goofy grin through her tears and then go back to her sad face.  Its like she can't help it :) She is such a little chunker and we just laugh over her rolls and her thunder thighs.  Seriously love this rolly polly.  I hope she always keeps her sweet, and easy going temperament.



And my man, Street.  Such a handsome little bugger.  He is a handful and a stinker, but secretly I adore that about him.  When I was a teacher I had such a soft spot for the naughty little boys....I have that same soft spot for my high maintenance little boy :)  He has such a hold on my heart and I just love him to pieces.  I keep telling myself that maybe I just have to go through the hard phase with him now, and then he will be easy the rest of my life.  Here's to hoping right?  Even though he can be a pill, he also has really sweet moments as well.  The way he looks at me and gives me his crooked little grin just melts my heart.  I love being his mommy!



My beautiful kids

Daci LOVES her babies! We were taking a shot of me with the kids and Livvi and I looked horrible but Street and Daci looked so cute that I had to crop it and save it


The BBQ:
The boys grilling and playing with the kids





My cute fam



My birthday cupcake.  Yum!


Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Birthday Surprise

 Ok, so back to my fabulous weekend.  Lets erase the memory of Daci's wonderful haircut....if you don't know what I'm talking about, scroll down to the last post.  Trust me, you will want to see it.

Ok so on my birthday Rick left at 5:30am, like he always does.  He gave me a kiss and said good bye but said nothing about my birthday.  I bit my tongue so hard.  I wanted to say something, but then decided to wait and see how long it would take him to remember.  I got a text at 6am when he got on the train that said, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" I told him he was lucky he remembered ;)  I also wanted to wait and see if he had anything planned for me but I couldn't stand the suspense.  I knew he was super swamped with work that week so I figured we probably wouldn't do anything but wanted to know for sure so I asked and he said, "I would love to, but I'm not sure if I can get everything done.  We will if I can."  Blah.  I wasn't mad at him, of course, I was just bummed that my birthday was going to be like any other day.  I guess once you grow up and have kids thats just how it is right? I mean, its not like I can just not have my kids just because its my birthday :)  So anyway, Carly and Stephanie and I decided to go downtown Naperville with the kids for a fun little outing.  See this post.

So then Carly and I decided to plan a fun dinner with our families to celebrate, which is why we ended up with Lou's.  But when I texted Rick to tell him we were doing that, he acted kinda funny.  I asked him if he would rather not do it but he said it was fine.  I told him we didn't have to, but I knew he was busy and that we weren't going to be able to go out for my birthday, so I thought we could bring something in.  He texts back, "Ugh.  You ruined it. We are going out, I already got someone to watch the kids tomorrow night."  Whoops.  Darn me and my impatience :)  I told him not to tell me anything else, that I still wanted everything else to be a surprise.  Oh, and I still got my Lou's, so maybe my impatience isn't such a bad thing? :)

The next night he came home from work, our friends came over to watch the kids and we jumped in the car.  Rick started driving toward downtown Naperville. Yay!  He parked in the parking garage, took my hand, and we just started walking.  It was so fun not knowing where we were going!  First he took me to the River Walk and we walked around for about a half hour.  It was fun and relaxing to actually walk it without the kids :)  Then he said, "Ok, we better go." And he took my hand and led me to our next destination.  We ended up at my most favorite restaurant in the WHOLE world!  Sullivan's Steakhouse.  Seriously, its to die for. I LOVE it.  And it definitely didn't disappoint.  That quite possibly was the best meal I have ever had!  It meant so much to me that Rick set all that up.  It makes me feel so special and loved when he plans fun things for me!  Sullivan's is definitely not something we can afford to just go to for fun, so it was so sweet of him to make my birthday a special occasion.


On the River Walk:


The Dick Tracey statue in Downtown Naperville.  The illustrator of the comic is from Naperville.



At Sullivan's.  Sorry the pics aren't the best quality.  I felt silly pulling out my huge camera with a flash in the dimly lit restaurant to take pics of the food, so we just used my iphone :)

The meals come with a wedge salad.  Best wedge ever.



I got the delicious filet with Gorgonzola Garlic Butter. Oh.my.gosh! 


It looks like I'm saying "Mmmm!"  Which I am, but really my mouth is shut like that to hide the two holes in my mouth. I have to take my mouth guard out to eat.  Ha! 
Rick got the Salmon Steak.  It was delicious!  We also got their crab fried rice to split. Mmmm!
Our waiter took this pic.  Rick was so embarrassed I asked him to take our pic :)

Outside of Sullivan's after dinner
We think we are cool :)

After our fun date.  Love my hubby!