There's No Place Like Home!

I went to my Mother's of Twins meeting the other night and enjoyed a time of pampering as we each received a chair massage -- what a treat! I was so relaxed I could have drifted off to sleep. I have been involved with the club as a place of support from others who have experienced similar situations with their twins. It is difficult for others who do not have twins (even those close in age) to understand "twin things". Now that our twins are 5 years old I go more to offer support to the new Moms.

However, I am often saddened by the attitude that seems to prevail in the club. Almost every meeting I hear a comment about how I possibly handle staying at home ALL day with my children. Many of the Moms work and they say how it a place to "get away" and "take a break" from their children. Now I am not saying it is always easy or that my children never drive me crazy because they do. But I enjoy being at home with my children. I delight to see them grow, learn and experience new things along with ME! I can talk with them, play with them, hug them close whenever I want to. Even for all of the trying times I wouldn't want to be anywhere but home with my children. I am so blessed to be a Mommy! Lord, may I always remember to delight in each child!

 

 

Birthday Celebration

Our birthday celebration week has ended! The birthday boys woke on their special day to streamers hanging in their doorway (I now made a permanent one out of ribbons to avoid last minute cutting of crepe paper the night before a birthday). Seeing as their birthday party wasn't until the end of the week we tried to make their day memorable with a special meal on each birthday and rented a movie. Their Grandparents came down to spend the weekend with us which the children all looked forward to. Friday night we had a nice party with all of the Grandparents, Great-Grandpa and my sister and her family. 

This year I only made one birthday cake and thankfully all three could agree upon one! For some reason I started letting the boys pick out what birthday cake I make and that isn't always the best idea. They do have fun looking at designs and get excited when I begin to bake and assemble their special cake. This year I found a fairly simple castle cake that I convinced them to select and it turned out pretty well. Pete and Re-Pete picked a pumpkin cake (one for the flavor and the other for the color) and I filled it with a yummy cream cheese/pumpkin/whipped topping filling. My frosting is always a point of contention for me and I have yet to find the perfect not-too-sweet recipe to use for decorating so that didn't turn out as planned but the boys enjoyed it and it was pretty tasty too.  

Now comes a nice rest from all of the celebrating. But the sorting through of toys to make room for new ones needs to begin! Too many toys!!!

Happy Birthday My Sweet Boy!

 

Happy Birthday to my Sweet Little Boy! As I reflect back on his short three years I am reminded how when I first discovered I was pregnant with him I had a hard time dealing with the news. Not that I didn’t want any more children, but at that time in our life we had a 3 ½ year old and 16 month old twins who were quite the handful at that stage of development. In addition to that, my sister so desperately wanted to have a baby but hadn’t conceived in over a year. I wondered why God would choose to give me another baby now when I wasn’t ready and yet my sister was. I wish to say that I was happy to find out that I was having a fourth boy but I struggled with that as well. I cried often over my situation but God is faithful and knows what we need and how much we can handle and wants us to rest in Him.

Upon arrival of my little “Tank” all of those feelings ceased and were replaced with joy at this precious gift that God had entrusted to us. He has been such a delight and while one of our most willful and challenging children he is also one of our most loving and caring. When I carry him down the stairs he is always concerned for my safety and says “Careful Mama!”. Last night as my parents stopped by Tank noticed my Mom’s new shirt and said, “I yike your sssirt”. And he gives hugs and kisses so freely. Thank You Lord for giving me this little boy, my ray of sunshine – just what I needed!

Two Precious Boys turn 5 today!!

Five years ago today I gave birth to two precious little boys. It is hard to even remember all of the events surrounding that day. I have always wanted to write things down that I would not forgot and so I will try to do a little of that now.

The day began with a snowstorm and me waking up at 5 a.m. in labor. My husband began to snow blow a path to get out while I showered and packed my things. I kept watching out the window worried that we might not make it in time as things were progressing so much faster than with my first pregnancy. The snow was so bad that we ended up taking his 4-wheel drive truck as that is all that could make it through quickly on this morning, so I was in for a bumpy ride.

Upon arrival at the hospital everything was in motion preparing for the birth of twins and I was soon whisked into a delivery room full of doctors and nurses. By 8:22 a.m. I had delivered “Baby A” but now that “Baby B” had so much room he flipped. The doctors tried turning him head down for the next 40 or so minutes. Nurses later on told me that the doctors worked so hard they broke a sweat. Unfortunately, I ended up having an emergency c-section and everything moved very quickly. Thankfully I was able to be awake to witness the birth of my second baby. As they tried pulling him out it ended up that he was stuck so much that I needed to have a larger incision on my uterus, which now causes me to only be able to deliver via c-section. So at 9:30 a.m. “Baby B” was born. Two baby boys weighing 6# 10 oz. and 7# 10 oz. I was able to see my babies just briefly as they were whisked back to the nursery along with my husband.

“Baby B” needed oxygen and had an elevated heartbeat and so the doctors decided to send him to a larger hospital an hour away. I have been told that my husband sat in a rocking chair holding “Re-Pete” crying and asking God to protect our little one. I arrived back from recovery still numb and the nurses were so wonderful to cram my whole bed into the nursery so that I could hold my babies. Now holding a newborn baby in your arms for the first time is awesome in and of itself but having two at a time is a pretty amazing feeling. Unfortunately that did not last long and the paramedics came to take “Re-Pete”. That was one of the hardest things I have had to do as I lay there and watch my baby being packed into an isolate and wheeled away from me, knowing that I could not be with him and having no idea of what lie ahead. My husband and my Dad followed the ambulance down and were able to be with “Re-Pete” as I stayed with “Pete”.

After three days in the hospital my husband was able to bring “Re-Pete” back to be reunited with his Mommy and his brother. Praise the Lord he was healthy as could be! Since he had already been released from the hospital he was rooming-in as he could not be in the nursery or have the nurses take care of him. The first night with the two babies together was difficult to say the least and I remember crying most of the night. The hardest thing was that I had already bonded with “Pete” and now it almost felt as if this baby was intruding on that. This was my first time nursing “Re-Pete” and trying to maneuver two babies while being so sore from my incision and both of them crying at a time aaahhh!

It was so good to go home and be a “normal” family again with their big brother and start on our way to a new routine. We always say that the first year with the boys was quite a blur as so much happened and it was chaotic at times. Now when I have one baby crying I think back and wonder how we ever handled it all with two babies but I know God gave us the strength we needed each and every day. I am so thankful that the Lord brought these two special boys into our lives! While they may be twins, look alike, and are similar in many ways, they are each a special and unique individual and I am so blessed to be their Mama!

Happy Birthday Pete and Re-Pete!

My Little Dolly

I can't believe how different it is to have a girl! When "Missy Blue" was born and for awhile after she was just like any of the babies that I have had and so I wondered when differences would appear. Now that she is a year I am starting to notice. While this may not be true of all girls, my little one is like a delicate flower, very dainty. She loves to follow the boys around everywhere they go but is not near as aggressive or active as they were at her age. In fact she didn't crawl until right before she turned one but was content to just sit in the place I set her, as long as it was within eyesight of her brothers. Lately she has picked up her doll and will cuddle with it, give it kisses and lay it down to sleep; all of which thrill me! Enough with the crazy boys throwing dolls around, hanging them by their feet or doing who knows what with! Now a sweet girl to play with a doll as it was made for, to cuddle, and to love. My little Mommy in training.  Some of her brothers have recently taken to calling her "baby doll" which is so sweet to hear them say! Here are some pictures I took of her with her dolly (the boys picked this out as a gift for her when she was born).

"Reading" to her dolly

Kissing dolly

Cute little button nose (her latest way to smile)

My Husband, Perfect for Me!

I am so thankful for my husband! God certainly knew what I needed when he picked the perfect man for me. I have been reminded of this again the past few days as three of our little ones have been sick with the yucky flu bug that is going around. He has always been one willing to get up in the middle of the night whenever needed and the past couple of nights we have been busy changing messy diapers or removing bedsheets from someone missing the bucket. I was so thankful for the help as we gagged together over the grossness of it all. He helps me to look at the bright side of things and laugh when sometimes I feel like screaming. Isn’t God good!

Painter of the Sky

Yesterday morning I awoke to the most beautiful sunrise! (My picture doesn't do it justice). I was so excited by the beauty of it that with each child that awoke I carried them into the living room to see the big orange ball of sun rising behind the shadows of trees with various colors filling the sky. Wow! Now they weren’t nearly as excited as I was but I love art and God is the greatest artist of all! The colors He puts together to make a day are awe-inspiring. To end the day the glowing moon rose full just above the trees and lit up the night sky. Awesome!

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Psalm 19:1

 

Happy to be Learning!

We recently rowed (Five In A Row) the book Wee Gillis and learned a bit about Scotland. I was interested to learn that the song “Auld Lang Syne” is Scottish and that the phrase means “old long since”, or “long ago”. The words were written by Robert Burns, Scotland’s most famous poet. Then watching the news the other night a reporter was asking people on the street what “Auld Lang Syne” meant and of course no one knew so they went to a music professor to find the answer. All the while I am telling my husband that the boys and I just learned this. I was so happy to be reminded that we really are learning, even though some days I feel as if we aren’t making much progress. We get back to routine tomorrow and I look forward to more of a "normal" schedule. May we all remember the "days of long ago" and learn from them.

 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your works; I muse on the work of Your hands. Psalm 143:5

HAPPY NEW YEAR!