Thursday, January 31, 2008

Watching t.v. Audrey usually sits with her arms straight down like she is in a straight jacket so I got excited to see her little hands on the tray like this. Below is a picture of them sitting together in Audrey's bouncy seat. At first she thought it was nice but then........
She screamed "Get this butterball OFF me, I can't breathe"!
As you can see James was enjoying being "near" to his sissy! James is hilarious. He always has to have the side of his head up against something when he is
sleeping. And he twists and wiggles his way out of his blanket and up to the top of his crib most
of the time. The other night (morning) after I had fed him and put him down, I layed there and
listened to him flop around like a fish. I just knew I was gonna get up and see him turned over by all the flopping noises he was making but when I looked, he was still in the same place that I left him. He fell asleep soon after, so I assume he just had some energy he had to let loose before he could drift off!!





Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Late night clean-up

Sometimes Ms. Audrey Grace has what is commonly known as projectile vomiting. Last night, Jon was feeding her and stopped to burp her. As usual, she was screaming bloody murder when all of a sudden something shot out of her mouth straight into what looked like my magazine basket. I got up to go clean it up and couldn't find anything. Hmmm.....I looked a little closer and noticed some white stuff on the air vent. Sure enough, I took it off and found all of the spit-up as far as you could see down that hole. Jon informed me I had to clean it out or it would start stinking. So, picture me with my head down an air vent last night and maybe you can get a good laugh today!





Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Nanny HughEver since we knew we were having twins, Uncle Hugh has said he is going to be their nanny! This was the first time Hugh got to see them and I think he was a little taken by them. He even told Audrey that they are going to play barbies together when she gets older! What a mental picture that creates! Becky came to the hospital when they were born so she got to see them then but this was the first time she got to hold them and she just kept saying over and over how much it was like holding Jon again when he was a baby.


Sydney and Aubrey came with Nenie once while they were in the NICCU but this was the first time for Hughston and he fell in love with them and they with him. All children seem to love Hughston. He rode in the back with them on the way to Cracker Barrell and was so proud of himself because he got them to go to sleep!!

James really enjoyed his first trip to Cracker Barrell!



This is the group at Cracker Barrell. I had a wonderful time. Not only being with family and out with my children but because everyone who passed by James and Audrey just had a fit. And there were a few people (mostly new moms or moms to be) who couldn't take their eyes off of them the whole time we were eating. The kiddos did surprisingly well in a noisy, semi-crowded restaurant, even if we did have a surly waitress!! They seem to adapt to any surrounding they are in and I sure hope they keep it up!

This is proud SuSue holding Audrey


When everyone got to our house Thursday night it was about 10:00 and James was still awake so I kept him up for them to see. He LOVED having everyone around him. Bless his heart, he just kept looking around with wide eyes, smiling at everyone who looked at him. I think he is going to be quite the entertainer. Hmmm, I wonder where in the world he could have gotten that from?!! They both did really well at David and Sherri's the whole weekend. On Saturday after church a few people came over and for the most part I kept them away but I had to bring them out for a little bit. Audrey just kinda kept to herself looking serious most of the time but James again was wild eyed with wonder at everyone around him!


PaPaw and Audrey really bonded this time and James would stare at SuSue and break out in a big ol' smile when she would look at him!
I am so glad that we went and took our children. My heart is so full right now I feel like I could bust. Actually getting to share our babies with family and friends is something you cannot understand unless you have had to keep them away from most everyone for 4 long months. Now, when we can finally take them to church I will feel complete! They went so much before they were born I think they are missing it! Especially hearing their daddy preach. I remember how Audrey would start kicking sometimes when she would hear her daddy in church!
Me and the kids are planning to go with my sister and her kids next week to my daddy's for a few days and Jon's sister Emily and her family are planning to stop by on their way home from Disney World next weekend. Please pray that we ALL will stay well so my babies can meet their Aunt Emily and Uncle Ryan and their 4 cousins, Harrison, Hannah, Matthew and Issy who have been waiting so patiently to see them.
















Monday, January 28, 2008

Wonderful WeekendEver since getting the news from the doc 2 weeks ago about being able to take them out a little, my mind immediatly raced to the wimter meeting in Macclenny. After not being able to go to church for so long I was longing to go to this wonderful place where the Lord always meets with us. Macclenny will always be mine and Jon's home away from home. Unless you have ever been blessed to go there, you cannot understand the love that continually flows from that special place. Each member holds a special place in our hearts. So on thursday, my in-laws came in along with Uncle Hugh, Aunt Becky, their children, Nenie and Bro. Like Addison and on friday we all caravand to Macclenny. Ms. Susan and Mr. Ronnie were gracious enough to keep James and Audrey while Jon and I went to church friday night, all day saturday and Sunday morning. My dear friend Amber Gowens Ferrell is a wonderful and talented photogropher and she took the kiddos 1st professional pictures saturday afternoon. Earlier in the week I had thought about going to JC Penny to get their pics taken but then I thought about Ms. Ferrell and that was that. JC Penny doesn't hold a candle to Amber's talent! We had a great time and the kids really worked it out for her! SHe got some great shots and these are a few of them.
I will post some more later in the week and also some pictures of their first official visitors and their first trip away from home. They did WONDERFUL by the way. Although I am afraid now they are suffering from "arm fever"!




Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Don't call me little! I know she isn't doing so in this picture but just over a month ago Audrey got into the habit of SCREAMING every time you take the bottle out of her mouth and try to burp her. It is not very pleasant. I seriously think Jon and I will have some sort of hearing disability in the near future if she keeps this up. I thought at 1st it might be hurting her to burp but then I realized she starts crying when you remove the bottle out of her mouth. She's funnny. She whimpers and pokes her lip out at first and when she realizes you are putting her on your shoulder she becomes livid. (I am not making this up, for all of you who might think I tell stories on my babies!) When she first started, Jon actually put on a pair of ear muffs that he uses to sight his gun in! HA! Now we've learned how to hold our head on her back and smush our ear closed so she won't scream directly in it!

Sorry these pictures are a little dark. I felt sorry for them last night, always having a bright flash go off in their faces. So I took some with out the flash which resulted in dark, blurry ones.
By the way, the Dr. said that Audrey's strawberry on top of her head is starting to go down! It has a little gray area on top of it now which means it is starting to receed which also means it won't get any bigger than what it is now!


Monday, January 21, 2008

Sweet SleepDon't you wish we could all sleep this relaxed? He had just gotten finished eating when Nenie called me in to see how cute he looked! It is very hard work for a little boy to eat so much! We so enjoyed Nenie's time here and the children really took to her. I think they knew how much love their great-grandmother has for them. This was Nenie's first time getting to see them outside of the hospital and I think she was quite taken with them! Above is James laughing and smiling for the first time at his mobile. It was bitter-sweet though because he was fixing to get his RSV shot right before this was taken. But he took it in stride, just like he always does. To have had such a rough start, my children have really taken off! The Lord has blessed them ever since their arrival into this world and He continues to do so on a daily basis. Even during our darkest moments with them in the intensive care unit, we could still look around us and see that our children were so much more blessed then alot of the other babies in there with them. I often wonder about alot of the children and their parents that we struck up friendships with and how they are doing. James and Audrey were tiny when they were born but they were still some of the biggest babies in there and they got to go home sooner than most.

Audrey can hold her head up so well now and we are amazed at how strong she gets with each passing moment. To have been so premature, both of them are growing by leaps and bounds; another wonderful blessing. Dr. Walker told us they will probably be 2 months behind until 18 months of age so not to worry if they don't meet some milestones on time. But he also said he didn't believe that it would take them that long to catch up and Jon and I agree.



Above is how excited James was at the prospect of going shopping for the first time. He sacks out very easily and always does so with his mouth wide open. I think it is safe to say James does not lack the sleep that his parents do! Su-Sue is expected to arrive on Wednesday and I am looking forward to maybe getting a whole nights rest! The grandmothers are so wonderful about watching them all night so we can sleep! The last time we both got to sleep all night was when my sister came for Christmas, so Su-Sue we are READY for you!
My crazy husband and his crazy brother were going to Jacksonville today to go surfing. Yes, they knew how cold it is going to be today. They got up and checked the report about 7 this morning and I was so glad that the surf was flat! So, they went back to bed and I haven't heard from them since! Now, maybe Jon can go to Sears and buy our new washing machine so we won't have to wear our clothes inside out for much longer. Just kidding! It broke on Saturday so we haven't had to go to those lengths yet!



Friday, January 18, 2008

First shopping tripOkay, I could not contain myself one more minute! I had to take them SOMEWHERE! So Nenie and I loaded them up and went into Cairo yesterday and went to this little drug store in town. It is like the old time drug stores where they have clothes and jewelry and china and all sorts of other stuff. And it is never that crowded, especially during the middle of the day. Below is what they thought of their first trip out into the real world!They had all their Christmas stuff on sale so I bought them a few nice outfits for next year and the year after that. Silly I know but they were really expensive clothes 75% off and I can never pass up a good deal! It was so fun to have people pass by them and exclaim "Oh how adorable" I loved every minute of it! This is a real baby doll! Doesn't she look adorable? I was gonna take them to have their pictures made today and we were trying on outfits last night. But I decided not to be too gung-ho about taking them out AND they got their RSV shot this morning at 9 and we would have been in to much of a rush to get up there in time. And we really wouldn't have had time to shop for James an outfit to wear and I was afraid that they might be cranky from all the shots they have gotten this week. So......maybe next week we will venture out into the world again!





Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Shots My babies had their 1st immunizations today. They had 3 shots and one oral. They cried for about 30 seconds and then were okay. They are so brave!
James weighs: 10.5 He is 21 inches long
Audrey weighs: 9.4 She is 21 1/2 inches long
The doctor was very, very pleased with their weight gain and said they are doing superb and don't have to come back for 2 months! I love Dr. Walker because he always makes me feel like I am doing a wonderful job as a mother. He always calms any fears I have about anything and the best part is I know he takes my children's health just as seriously as I do.
He said that in February it will be okay for them to meet their cousins! Hooray! As long as they are not sick and don't touch them. He also said we could go out to places but just be smart, use good judgement; like going to the mall at 10:00 in the morning when there are not that many people there. But, still no church. He said they still do not need to be in large crowds where people are real close to them and handling them because you just never know who may be harboring some illness. And RSV is runnig rampant this time of year and even though they are getting preventitive shots, it is not worth the risk. Their immune systems are only as strong as a 6 week old baby because gestationally they are only 6 weeks old. So we must treat them as such.

However, I was SO excited at this news I was practically dancing in the aisles at Target. Nenie (Jon's grandmother) sat in the car with them this time because it is very cold and rainy here today. But just to know that if I wanted to, I could have taken them in! We probably wont go anywhere much but just knowing we could feels like a million bucks!


Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Little Red Riding HoodWe went to explore the world outside yesterday and they loved it! It was their first time in the stroller so I didn't know what to expect but they really enjoyed their ride. Uh, I put the stroller together by myself by the way. Well pretty much by myself. As always, their daddy got home at the last minute and put the finishing touches on it!

You know, when you hear nothing but ways to prevent your child from getting sick or being exposed to germs for the entire first month of their life it is pretty hard to forget those things. They stick with ya for a LONG time. And when their pediatrician tells you that if they get sick they WILL go back in the hospital, well you are going to do every thing under the sun to prevent that from happening. I guess that is why I never really thought to take them outside for a stroll. There are germs outside! They could get a runny nose from too much wind. Someone could be burning leaves 5 miles away and they would be exposed to it!


But I have pretty much gotten over all the "outside germ" fears. I decided that if my babies can't have a normal life by meeting friends and family, going to church, going to the mall and so on and so forth.........then they can at least play outside like normal kids, right? Right. So, my goal is to take them outside every day for at least 30 minutes. Well, as long as it is not too windy!



Aunt Bets bought them their jackets that they have on in these pictures and poor James' almost wouldn't cover his head! When she bought them they were practically falling off of their heads.










Auntie Em (Jon's sister Emily) requested a picture of the 4th level. That is what is going on below! Scary, huh?! He did not want to come in from our walk.




















Monday, January 14, 2008

Look what I can do!We had a good week last week but by Friday I had a serious case of "Cabin Fever" and thought it was the end of the road for me! I seriously was wondering if I would be able to make it through these last two months of being housebound. Saturday my sweet husband took pity on me and when he got back from church that morning he MADE me go to the mall. It only took a little persuasion to get me to leave and I was really glad I went. Now, if I can only get my children out we will be doing alright! As it turns out, James' turning over was only a fluke. Either that or he is just to lazy to try again! He is a precious baby, don't get me wrong, but he is a little difficult to keep content. No, make that very difficult! About the only time he is content is if he is A) sleeping B) being held C)pooping! He wakes up every time mad at the world. And if you don't tend to him directly upon his waking, beware! He has 4 levels and if that 4th level is ever reached it is just plain awful. If you are among the chosen few who ever get to see Jon imitate the 4 levels of our darling son, you will laugh uncontrollably. And if you are among the even fewer chosen who may get to see it from the perp himself, you will never forget it! He is a squirmer and a mover and very curious about his surroundings. I have a feeling he will be the one we will be forever chasing after! I don't have any pictures of him on here today because he is in time-out for yelling at his mama. JUST KIDDING!!! I just didn't have any new ones today.

Audrey is very easy to keep satisfied. The only time she really fusses is when she is tired. And even then all you have to do is pop that pap in her mouth and give her seat a little bounce and she is out like a light! And she wakes up very peacefully. She will lay in her bed in the mornings for a good 10-15 minutes before she lets you know she is awake and ready to get up. Even then she only gives out a little yelp. And she can just sit quietly in her seat and look around. Yesterday she laughed out loud for the first time! It was so precious! She was looking at her toys that hang down from her bouncy seat and was just a kicking and laughing and talking to them. And she even thought about touching them a few times but changed her mind at the end. She really enjoyed herself for a good 30 minutes and then she was ready to take a snooze.



We go to the doctor on Wednesday and I can't wait. I am hoping that he will take one look at how well they are doing and say "Okay, your children may now start living normal lives" but I seriously doubt that will happen. But I have been praying fervently for like 2 weeks that he will say we can start having more visitors and maybe they can finally meet their little cousins that have been waiting so patiently until they are not "sick" anymore! I really want to be able to go to church more than anything though. It is getting extremely old having to watch Jon leave without us on Sunday's and even though I know I will have some SERIOUS boundary issues when they can go out into the world, I am more than ready!



Wednesday, January 9, 2008

Look at me mom, I can roll over! Yes, you read that correctly. James learned how to roll over during the night. I don't know if it is just a fluk or what but I thought it was pretty amazing! After I fed him at 4 this morning, I swadled him, put him in his wedge and got back in the bed. When Jon came to tell us good bye, he woke me up and asked if I knew James was on his stomach. I jumped up scared to death because he is not good at turning his head and he smothers himself in the sheet. But he was fine and sure enough he was on his stomach. I couldn't believe it. How he turned over while he was swadled is a mystery. He usually gets his arms out of the blanket and always scoots out of his wedge but he has never turned over. Maybe they wont be so far behind after all!
Above is how Audrey handled the news of her brother turning over!
Below is Audrey smiling at her mama without yacking! They enjoy laying together on their mat and playing. By playing I mean usually punching and shoving each other. They layed here yesterday for the longest time, just cooing and kicking. They are starting to get to that fun age and I sat on the floor talking to them for about 30 minutes and they were looking at me and smiling and talking back! If they keep this up I really wont get anything done around here during the day!


And, Ms. Audrey Grace had another good night last night. She slept from 10:30 p.m. to 7:30 a.m.! James slept from 10:00 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. and then woke up at 8:00 and is still awake. Audrey is cat napping right now. I think she is going through a growth spurt. James is always growing. He continues to get fatter and fatter each day! We go to the doctor next wednesday and I can't wait to see how much they have grown!










Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Go Tigers!
That's what I'm sure was shouted in my living room last night when LSU beat Ohio State for the BCS championship, their 2nd National Title in 5 years for any of you who may have been wondering! Yes, I am a Tiger fan. It took me a few years but I made it! So sorry for all of you non-LSU fans. Some of you may have won a bowl game or a silly heisman trophy this year, but you have to admit, LSU had another AMAZING year! Now, lets all love one another!!!!!

I was laying on the floor doing Pilates yesterday and had Audrey laying behind me on her mat. I heard her just a talking so I looked at her and she had her legs kicked higher than I'd ever seen them. She was doing her exercises with mama!I am obsessed with taking pictures of my kids yawning. There is nothing cuter than seeing their little bitty mouths wide open. Especially Audrey, she reminds me of a baby bird opening her mouth for worms!



James ate at 8:30 last night and then I swadled him and put him in his bed. They sleep ALOT sounder when they are swadled. Audrey ate at 9 and then her daddy did the same with her. Jon came and got me at 1:45 a.m. since James was awake and ready to be fed. That little buger rarely misses a feeding! Audrey Grace did not wake up until 6:00 this morning! Now, if only we can get James to do the same we will be resting sweet!

I was on the phone when I uploaded this one so I didn't catch that it was turned wrong. Betsy called me this morning to tell me she thinks she has the flu :( She was supposed to come down here thursday to see the kiddos but not anymore! :( Anyway, my niece Hannah is always saying the funniest things and Bets said this morning she had been to the bathroom to throw up (sorry) and when she came out Hannah was standing in Betsy's room waiting to get in the bed with her. So Betsy let her and when they layed down Hannah said "Mommy, you stink like Daddy"! Out of the mouth of babes, isn't that what they say?!!!!