May happenings

I can’t believe it’s been two weeks since I last posted here.  It’s not because nothing’s happening.  Oh no.  We’ve been staying plenty busy!  Here’s a few snapshots of what’s been going on.

Logan went to Sesame Street Live with his Nanny for the third year in a row.

My Grandpa and Grandma De Groot (my kids’ great-grandparents) came to visit, and we all went to the Michigan City Zoo on the most beautiful spring day of the year so far.

Great-Grandma got in some special snuggles with Emily and playtime with Audrey.

 

Audrey’s working on potty training.  She’s successful some days.  Not so successful others…  I waver daily between pressing onward and abandoning ship.

Emily took her first bites of rice cereal…

…with “help” from her eager sister.

 

With all the indoor rainy weather we’ve had, my “little people” set up a large land of little people in the living room.

Logan had some friends over for lunch and to play.

The kids wrestled on the bed together. 

Emily’s not so fragile anymore, is she?  :) And Audrey’s now sleeping in Logan’s room since she was waking up Emily every single night  (screaming “Mommy!  Emily’s crying!” every time Emily moved/breathed). 

<Sigh> 

So we continue to play the game of musical bedrooms.  Now the problem is Audrey wants to talk too much at bedtime (Luke says it’s hereditary), and Audrey and Logan wake each other up (too early, in my opinion) in the morning.

And the latest excitement is that Logan and Audrey can hardly wait for sunny weather to play in their new “tree house” built by Daddy, Grandpa, and Uncle Nate!

Piggies

Over this past weekend, Emily has learned to roll from back to front (she’s been doing front to back for a while now)… AND…

… She found her piggy toes! 

For a former NICU baby, this is a huge accomplishment!  Full-term babies spend the whole 3rd trimester curled up inside their mommies, so after they are born, they are able to keep themselves flexed inward with their arms and legs tucked into their bodies.  That’s what makes newborns so cuddly!  Most full-term babies naturally bring their toes to their hands… or even to their mouths! 

Emily spent her whole third trimester flat on a mattress in the NICU, so it’s harder for her to curl inward.  She naturally wants to arch her back and extend her arms and legs. 

With weekly physical therapy and a lot of encouragement, Emily is gradually curling more (important for many developmental milestones like sitting and crawling) and extending less, and today she brought her toes to her fingers all by herself to find those cute, little piggy toes! 

Easter

Luke says my curfew is in 10 minutes (I have a habit of staying up way too late), so without any commentary, here are some Easter pictures for your viewing pleasure!

                        

 

Potty Time!

Guess who made her first pee-pee on the potty while watching Elmo’s Potty Time (thanks, Netflix) today?

Bows

I’ve been looking for a better way to store all of our hair bows.  Digging through a drawer of ribbons and bows is becoming increasingly frustrating and time-consuming, and now that Emily can also sport a little bow in her tuft of hair, it was time to organize! 

I saw a bow holder that I liked online and thought we’d be able to make something similar, so yesterday I sent Luke on a mission to find a cheap, large picture frame at a second-hand store.  Here’s what he came home with:

 

He then removed the glass and gave the frame a few coats of spray paint.  Staple a few strands of ribbon and WA LA!!  A fun bow holder!

 

I don’t usually have time or mental energy for anything crafty (no, this will never turn into a “look what I can craft” blog, and notice I had Luke do all the work) but I’m pleased with how it turned out and it is so much nicer to see all the bows in one glance.  Now for a way to store all their floral headbands…

Emily Update

It’s time for an update on Emily.  Over the past couple weeks, I have had a few appointments at Comer Children’s Hospital where Emily was born to test things like vision, hearing, and overall development.  I love it that the doctors and staff at Comer want to follow-up on Emily since she was born so early.  If there are any red flags, we’d rather find out sooner than later.

I’m happy to report that Emily is doing great!  She weighs 15 lbs. 3 oz. and passed her vision and hearing screens with flying colors.  Today she had a developmental screening (Bayley exam) to see if she is meeting her milestones for her adjusted age of 4 months.  The examiner played with Emily and watched to see if she visually tracked toys, grabbed for dangling toys with two hands, explored toys with her mouth, transferred toys from one hand to the other, smiled at herself in the mirror, turned toward a noise, sat unsupported, rolled either direction, responded to my voice, etc.  It was so interesting to watch!  Emily met all her 4 month goals (yay!) and is measuring at 5-6 months in several areas.  Praise God that she’s right on track!  We continue to do weekly physical therapy for Emily at home (through First Steps, a governmental program for children at risk for delays), but she’s making some great progress and may not need this for too much longer.

A couple days ago Audrey wanted Emily to ride in her doll stroller.  I was kind of curious myself if she would fit, so I sat her in the stroller.  Yeah, she’s a little too big… hahaha!  Poor third baby, always getting pushed around by her older siblings' demands.  Audrey had fun pushing her back and forth though, and Emily truly didn’t mind.  I took a couple pictures.  You can see when Audrey gets sick of pushing and reads her Ladybug Girl book instead.  Then Logan joins Audrey.  And they end out back by Emily again.  I love my kids!

Audrey's Birthday

Yesterday we celebrated Audrey's second birthday with a fun, pink birthday party. Everything was pink: decorations, food, and even all the guests wore pink! Audrey loved it. She had so much fun being in the spotlight and even sang along to "Happy Birthday, Dear Audrey." In fact, I think the highlight of the party for her was singing the birthday song and then getting to blow out the candles all by herself! (Logan had been telling me all day, "Mom, if Audrey forgets to blow out the candles, then I'll do it for her." I assured him that she wouldn't forget.) :)

We celebrated with lunch, a little time outside (it was a nice 72 degrees here!), gifts, and cupcakes with Audrey's Papa and Nanny, Grandma, Uncle Nate, Uncle Matt, and Aunt Kristen. It was a lot of fun with a group of relatives who mean so much to Audrey.

Here are some pictures from the party!