We've Been Having A Lot of Fun Lately

This past weekend was a fun one for us. We stayed in town and enjoyed many of the things that Grand Rapids has to offer. On Friday night, we went to a Greek Festival at a local Greek Orthodox church.  They had delicious food, wonderful music and great dancers.  We enjoyed the night and had fun meeting new people.  We met 'John the Walking Guy' who we see frequently see walking down Lake Michigan Drive.  It turns out he walks 10 miles a day! Wow! I wish that I had that energy. 


 On Saturday, we packed up the kids for a day of fun.  Mark's day started with a 45 mile bike ride and then an oil change for his car.  Then we took the kids back to the NICU so we could visit baby Noah whose parents are friends of Mark's from Ludington.  Noah was born at 28 weeks. He is now 38 days old and doing awesome. And he is so tiny and cute! His room is in the same pod as Will and Erin's room.  It was strange to go back and see so many familiar faces.  It was fun to visit some of our primary nurses too.  Everyone was so excited to see how big Will and Erin have gotten.  We took Jen and Chris to the 28th Street Cruise (which is Grand Rapids version of the Woodward Cruise and it doesn't even come close to the Woodward Cruise).  We cruised 28th Street in our mini-van before heading downtown for dinner.  It was a beautiful summer night so we went to one of our favorite bars Hopcat. They had outdoor seating and we hung out for a few hours. Yes, we were those people that had a baby (actually two) in a bar.  But, the babies were very well behaved and didn't cause any trouble. We were all exhausted when we got home. I couldn't help but snap a few pictures of Mark and the kiddos.

On Sunday, Mark and the kids made strawberry and chocolate pancakes for breakfast.  We hung out at home and I went to work in my classroom.  I had an itching for some ice cream so we packed up the kids and made a run to the Dairy Queen.  It was another beautiful night, so we decided to go for a Sunday evening drive.  Both babies fell fast asleep in their car seats. 

 

 

On Monday, Will, Erin and I went to meet Mark for lunch.  He has a great park across the street from his work.  He has always wanted us to come down for lunch and the summer has just slipped away.  So we made sure to get down there. It was another beautiful day.  We ate Jimmy Johns while Will and Erin hung out on the blanket.  After lunch, Mark went back to work and I took the kids for an hour walk along the Grand River and downtown. We walked to the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum and I showed the babies where the President and Mrs. Ford were buried.  We are so lucky to have such a special part of our history right here in our backyard.  Walking around downtown was one of my summer Bucket List items that I was glad to check off. 

Seven Months Old!

Where has the time gone? Will and Erin are already SEVEN MONTHS OLD! The time has flown by and I can't remember life without them.  They are both getting so big and doing awesome! We went to the pediatrician on Wednesday and both babies are finally on the growth chart! We are now on the 'normal' baby doctor schedule. We don't have to go back until they are 9 months old. The doctor is VERY impressed with their weight gain and growth. I am proud of how well Will and Erin are doing.  Here are their monthly pictures with the bears Blueberry and Strawberry. I am so thankful that Kylie, Ashley and Aunt Kathy bought these bears for W & E for Christmas.

This month Will is picking up his head when on his tummy. YEAH! He looks around and checks everything out.  He is putting toys into his mouth too.  Mostly the toys that are hanging on the toy bar on the bouncy seat or the play mat.  He is sitting in his high chair seat while we eat dinner.  Will continues to interact with people and has starting cooing and 'talking' with them.  He smiles ALL of the time.  He loves to chew on his fists and fingers. Maybe there are some teeth that are going to be coming through soon.  He is a good eater and is up to about 140 ml (4 1/2 ounces) every 3 hours.  He was sick last weekend and we've been doing the breathing treatments as needed.  His reflux is finally under control! YEAH! He can wear a whole outfit all day without spitting up on it.  That is a huge accomplishment.  Will continues to be easy going and a happy, contented boy.

This month Erin is rolling over and from her back to her tummy. She is happy to be on her tummy and loves to play on the play mat. She is very independent and will play for over an hour by herself (which has been helpful with Will not feeling well this past week.) Her bottle feedings haven't been going well so with the advice from the developmental doctor we have stopped oral feedings for two weeks.  During this time, Erin is being fed by her g-tube (button).  Whenever we would put a bottle into her mouth she would scream, cry, push the bottle out of our hand, arch and was just miserable (and so were we).  She's been bottle free for a week now and we have noticed a difference. She has her fingers in her mouth all of the time.  She is putting toys to her mouth too.  Per the doctor's suggestion, we have started some spoon feeding (pears and bananas) once a day.  We are trying to give her positive spooning experiences.  Erin prefers pears to bananas and makes the funnest faces when we feed her.  She sits in her high chair seat to eat (and when we are eating).  We give her spoons to play with and she is starting to put them to her mouth.  We will start bottles again on August 30 and add Simply Thick to the milk/formula to see if that will help her.  Erin eats 145 ml every 3-4 hours.  Please pray for her to bottle feedings to go better and for us to have the skills needed to help her be successful. The doctor did say that some babies with g-tubes never master a bottle. I am okay with that.  I fear that she will be totally orally averted and refuse to put anything in her mouth as she gets older.  It is more important for her to master spooning and using a sippy cup.  I know that we will get there, but I am still nervous about the whole thing.  It is a skill that we take for granite and just assume babies are able to do.  For Erin, it isn't so simple.  She works with an occupational therapist to help with the oral feeds. (We have taken a break from this for two weeks also).  Please pray for her to make progress with her oral feedings. Thanks!

The progression of these pictures cracks me up. I guess we aren't ready to sit up without support for a long time.  Maybe next month. :-)



More Family Fun

Last weekend we traveled to visit my dad and introduce Will and Erin to more of their family members.  My sister (Aunt Krysten) flew in from Chicago for the weekend.  On Saturday, we traveled downriver to visit my dad's side of the family.  We only see them on Christmas Day, but this year we were able to get together for a summer celebration.  Will and Erin were on their best behavior (as always) even though they weren't feeling the best.  Everyone had fun loving on the babies and taking turns holding them.  We can't wait to see everyone again on Christmas.

Aunt Krysten loving on Will and Erin. (Thank you Aunt Sarah for providing the adorable onesies.  We'll get pictures of you with the babies in a few weeks.)

Will and Erin were the center of attention (and loved every minute of it!)

Aunt Diane (my dad's sister) and Will

Cousins Kylie and Brad hanging out with Will.  Sorry for the poor picture quality. I don't know what happened.

While we all munched on Jet's Pizza, Will and Erin napped.

Brad, Erin, Kylie and Aunt Kathy (my dad's sister)

Cousin Joseph and Will

Most of the girls (we were just missing Diana)  hanging out with Erin while she ate.

Family and cousin pictures

A Few Pictures from the Past Two Weeks

Erin decided to hang out in Will's bed with him while I took a shower (I am taking advantage of these moments because I know that they won't last long). They played nicely and Erin enjoyed watching her mobile (which is now on Will's bed). I love their 'Introducing Me' coordinating outfits. They are so cute!

On August 13, my grandma (mom's mom) celebrated her 86th birthday.  She lives in Escanaba, MI (6 hours away from us) and we couldn't travel to celebrate with her. Instead, we were able to Skype and she could see Will and Erin on her special day.   I would love to visit her, but it's just such a long drive with the two babies.  I know that she would love to hold and kiss the babies.

Will is hanging out with Grandma Melanie wearing the cute overalls she bought for him.

Look who can hold up his head! He did it for the first time (that I saw him) on Saturday. One day he was struggling to hold up his head and the next he can hold it up and look around. Way to go buddy!

Both babies have their first stuffy noses and coughs.  Will has been wheezing and coughing pretty bad. The doctor prescribed breathing treatments every four hours for Will (yes, that's around the clock) and twice a day for Erin.  They tolerate the mask pretty well. It's been 4 days now and we can already tell a difference in their breathing.  My biggest fear is that they will end up in the hospital again.  I hope that this won't happen.  I guess we need to be more diligent about washing hands and using sanitizer.

She's Rolling!

About three weeks ago, Erin mastered the skill of rolling from her back to front. Once over, she can throw her head a certain way to get herself onto her back again. Our little girl is growing up!

It's exhausting to roll over all day long!

Whitecaps Game

As the March of Dimes Ambassador Family, we were asked to attend the Whitecaps game to accept a check from the team and Sheldon Cleaners.  Every time Hernan Perez scored a run, Sheldon Cleaners would donate money to the March of Dimes.  Hernan scored enough runs to earn the March of Dimes $1,000.  Before the check presentation, he signed mini-baseballs that Mark purchased in the gift shop. Will and Erin (along with mommy and daddy) lasted for 2.5 hours at the game. Once again, I was so proud of how well the babies did for the whole game.  They loved people watching and just took it all in.  Will wasn't so impressed with the guy sitting right behind us who kept shouting at the players. At one point, Will made the sadest face and started to cry.  The man said he felt really bad.  It was also Steve Kemp bobble head night.  Will got one for his Grandpa Paul who promised to some day tell Will all about Steve Kemp.  It was a BEAUTIFUL night to enjoy a baseball game.