A&E's Second Christmas

We had a very Merry Christmas that we spent in Oklahoma. We almost didn't make the trip because Aiden has developed bronchiolitis that seems to be lingering. However, we decided that we would make a very short trip so that we wouldn't be sulking in Austin.

Santa brought Evan and Aiden a rocking horse and a little play tent. They really like the horse, but are still a little afraid to crawl into the tent. I think they will start to like the tent more once we can take it outside. Evan gave the horse several kisses on the mouth Christmas morning. They love it!

Aiden is taking nebulizer treatments 3-4 times per day for the bronchiolitis and he was on steroids and antibiotics this past week. I think it has helped a little. I'm really afraid of the "A" word (asthma). We'll find out more this week at our check-up. We are getting very tired of the doctor's office!

Here are a few pics of Christmas weekend...

Aiden with his nebulizer.

David and Evan napping.

Aiden on Christmas morning.

Evan on Christmas morning.

We now have a train.

Cold Days

It was a cold day at the park!

Really Late Thanksgiving

Better late than never, right. We went to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving, and the boys have been really sick ever since we got home. Therefore, I have had no time to post. I think they are on the mend now, and our pediatrician assured me that keeping them in a bubble would not be good. So, here is a recap of our Thanksgiving.....

We got a lot of time in with family and friends. They boys even got to see their great-Papa Wetsel from New Mexico. They also got to meet their great-Uncle Leroy for the first time!! They loved playing with their cousins, but they did not enjoy the car ride.

Evan

It was also my Mom's 60th birthday, and we had a little surprise party for her.

The boys playing with Cousin Carter.

With Callie and Papa Wetsel

David made his famous blueberry pie for Thanksgiving.

The boys are starting to take more and more steps. However, crawling is still their main source of movement. They are very curious, especially looking in drawers and closets. They continue to amaze me every day!

Very Long Week

We have had a very long week. Last Sunday started out good with a trip to Temple to see my sister and her husband. They were in town for a wedding. We spent the rest of the evening in the Urgent Care Clinic with Aiden who was running a very high fever and had an ear infection. Evan did the same thing on Wednesday and also had an ear infection. Luckily, I was able to take him to the pediatrician. I'll just say that two sick babies is very tiring. They both wanted to be held, and my lap is only so big. They are both on 10 days of antibiotics, which makes for lots of poopy diapers!

The good news is that the boys are approved for Synagis again this year! Yeah!!! It took a lot of begging the insurance company and the pediatrician's office. I think they had forgotten what all the boys have been through, especially since they have been doing so well. They will go in every month and it will still be very expensive for us, but it's a lot better than a hospital stay!

Onto more interesting things....
They both say "Mama" and "Dadda"
They are both taking little steps here and there. No major walking yet.
They love balls and throw them all over the house.
They have gotten a little pickier when it comes to eating.

Riding the car that was not meant for two.

Looking out at mama.

Evan

Aiden

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween! We took the boys trick-or-treating to some of our church friends this evening. Their costumes were peanut butter and jelly. I also made hats that looked like the jar lids, but the boys would not wear them. They looked cute enough without them. We went to a Halloween party at David's work on Thursday (Aiden was PB and Evan was Jelly). This evening on real Halloween Evan was PB and Aiden was jelly.

Nanny and Poppy came and visited this week. The boys had a fun time with them! I was very glad that my mom was here to help me take the boys in for their 15 month check up. Here are their stats:
Evan- 19 pounds 10.5 oz - 28 inches tall
Aiden - 19 pounds 10 oz - 29 inches tall
Yes, Evan has surpassed Aiden in weight. I believe this is because Evan's reflux has gotten so much better.

Our Bible Study had a late surprise birthday party for David. It was fun!
Other BIG news is that Aiden took his first steps! He can take few little steps and then he gets scared. It won't be long before these boys are running around everywhere!

Happy Halloween

Happy late Birthday

Little Boys

Baby Pump-led Weaning

If you are not familiar with baby-led weaning, it is a method of weaning a baby from milk onto solid foods by offering a wide range of solids for the baby to play with, explore, and taste. Our weaning process is going to be “pump-led”. You see, my breast pump is dying. So, the amount of milk I get really depends on the condition the pump is in that particular day. It has had a good life and been many places. In fact, it has followed me everywhere for the last 15 months! I am going to continue to “milk” it for all that it’s worth – literally!!

The good news is that the boys like cow’s milk. They are doing great with their sippy-cups. Aiden and Evan eat 3 meals per day and 1 or 2 snacks. They are down to 2 bottles per day (on a good day). Our goal is to totally be off the bottle by the time they are 1 year corrected age (Nov 6). We’ll see how that goes. I think Evan will have a more difficult time with it than Aiden. Evan laughs when he sees his bottles. Evan also has a big love for his blankie (a blanket from the NICU). He loves to hold it and suck his thumb when he is tired. When I give it to him at nap time, he giggles and rolls around on it. Aiden also likes blankets, especially at nap time and bedtime.

Aiden enjoyed his lunch!

So did Evan.

Love the candy-corn socks.

A day at the park.

We are just about finished making their Halloween costumes. Last year, the boys were a policeman and fireman. I bought their costumes at Build A Bear. Here are some pics:

Pumpkin Patch

We skipped a posting last week. I was very busy with work. Every minute spent behind a computer was doing work stuff. The food of the week last week was whole milk! I have been giving about 1-2 oz in a sippy cup once a day (almost all of that gets thrown away). Then, their morning and nighttime bottles are about 3/4 breastmilk and 1/4 whole milk. The boys are doing better on their sippy cups. The ECI therapist brought out a straw trainer last week to work on drinking through a straw.

David celebrated his 30th birthday on Saturday! We had a nice party with several of his friends at a restaurant. For some reason, he turned down my barnyard party theme idea.

Here are some pictures from last week.

Evan playing with his trucks on the coffee table.

Evan drinking milk.

Aiden will only drink from a sippy cup if it is propped up.

Molly at the pumpkin patch.

Dixie and Molly

The boys at the pumpkin patch.

Aiden sleeping. He has a curl on the back of his head!

Fred and Evan at David's birthday party.

David and his cake.

Pajama Pants

The boys are half immunized for the flu. They each got ½ a dose of the vaccine and will get their next dose in a month. They each weighed about 19 pounds, 4 oz at the pediatrician’s office this week. David was gone to Lubbock for part of the week with work. So, it was just me and the boys.

I have been working diligently on word associations with the boys. I repeat “ball” when we play with balls, “bottle” when they take their bottles. Now, Aiden thinks that my name is “ball” and calls “ball” whenever he wants picked up or my attention. Both of the boys follow me around the house like little puppy dogs. They still love to play with each other. Aiden even made his way up the stairs one day following me. Therefore, we now have gates at the stairs.

We bought the boys some pajamas this weekend since it is getting cooler at night. They normally just sleep in a onesie, but their little legs have been getting cold. They will not stay covered up. So, we put the new jammies on them Saturday night. They HATE them. Evan threw a fit. They both cried and tugged at the sleeves. They were better by the morning.

Sunday, we took a trip to Six Flags in San Antonio. David’s company reserved the entire park for employees and their families. It was great – no lines! We didn’t get to ride many rides, but we still had a blast. However, we are reminded why we do not take long road trips. The boys just do not travel well in the car. And, it doesn’t help that we got stuck in I-35 traffic in downtown Austin for 40 minutes (on a Sunday morning)! I packed a lot of stuff for our day at the park (food, diapers, bottles, sippy cups, blankies, etc.). At the gate, we saw the sign for no outside food or drinks. I was very nervous, but smiled really big at the security guard (and hoped the boys were doing the same). We were relieved that he did not check our bag. I was not about to throw away the applesauce, bananas, breast milk, and cheerios and feed the boys ice cream and funnel cake all day. Thankfully, we had no troubles. It was a very fun day, and we had super tired boys that night.

Homemade sweet potatoes.. YumYum

Six Flags

New Jammies - They don't like the sleeves.

They were better by morning.