A lot has happened...

A lot has happened in three years, and I'm not going to attempt to fill in the gap. I'm just going to start blogging again. "Rearing Twins is Tough" and a dozen other excuses can be found to explain the lapse in blog posting, so I am not going to go on any further about it. I'm just going to begin blogging again. (P.S. This post took two and a half days to complete.)

This weekend we went to JUNKSTOCK in Omaha, NE. We rarely get out of town and the last time we made a family getaway together was four years ago to Austin, TX for Renegade. I guess you could say it's becoming a pattern for us to stay in unique rentals while we're away for a fair or a fest. In Austin, we stayed at Verde Camp; fully furnished and eco-friendly houses in the South Congress neighborhood. The homes are amazing and about the same price as a room in a hotel.
This weekend in Omaha, we stayed in Jamison Hiner's tiny house via AirBnB.  It was comfortable, a unique experience, and a bit more delightful than camping.  It was just enough for a short stay, though I would not recommend it for a family of four.  I can see a couple with one child being comfortable, but it is really best for two.  There is a fold-out sleeping area for small ones, which fit the bill quite well for Kai and Finn for one night.

Now, on to our report on JUNKSTOCK!  It was fun and worth the trip, though crowded.  We entered before noon on Saturday.  In an hour or so, the place was shoulder to shoulder, but there was still a lot to see and hear.  I can honestly say that we used it more for inspiration for our own creations and picker adventures than for shopping.  I bought two little frames for a buck a piece and the boys got to pick out some little ornaments for their Christmas tree.  Below are a few shots from the day.

custom laptop decor

Finn decided that my MacBook needed customization this morning. I would have kept his creation but resale value dictates an all white MacBook. F.Y.I. Rubbing alcohol removes Sharpie from white plastic.

Growing up "Twins"

Kai and Finn are growing up faster than we ever imagined. It seems like just yesterday they were tiny babies, yet they've changed so much in the two years and three months they've been on this earth.

As twin brothers, they often bicker and attempt to get each other's goat, just as brothers are known to do. However, there are times that are surprisingly sweet and special to us, when we see how much Kai and Finn love each other and appreciate having a brother/friend. Tonight was one of those nights.

After putting them to bed, Sarah and I switched on their audio monitor and went to the kitchen to prep our dinner. A lengthy chat ensued between them, which is something they do regularly before falling off to sleep. After 10 minutes or so of conversation and mumbling, it was obvious that the sandman had finally arrived. When we went to check on them before going to bed ourselves, this is what we discovered:




Kai and Finn had moved every blanket, pillow, and stuffed animal from Finn's bed into Kai's, and they had fallen asleep on the pile.

Growing up as a twin might be rough at times, but it has its advantages too.


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March 2011

March was supposed to be a month filled with spring break fun and birthday celebrations. It turned out to be the hardest, most emotionally trying month we've had since becoming parents. The thought of losing a child is unfathomable, yet Christian and I were faced with the fact that Kai had developed a life-threatening condition called hemolytic uremic syndrome, which resulted from an E. coli infection. The first few days in the hospital were filled with uncertainty. There wasn't a "cure" for his condition, and the doctors couldn't even give us a prognosis of any kind. The treatment for HUS is supportive care, which means a lot of watching and waiting. So we watched, and we waited, and we hoped for the best outcome. Family and friends hoped and prayed, too, giving us the emotional support we so desperately needed.

Thankfully, Kai was released from the hospital after 10 days. He's not completely back to normal, but he's doing much better. It takes time to recuperate from such a traumatic ordeal, but I'm confident that Kai will make a complete recovery. April is a new month, and I believe good things will come from it.

We want to thank all of the people who gave us support during this difficult time - family, friends, and even complete strangers who were dealing with their own hardships. And of course we want to thank the doctors, nurses, and other members of the hospital staff whose expert knowledge and caring touch were instrumental in leading Kai on the path to recovery.

We love you all.

Moon!

Kai and Finn love to point out the moon. Stars too. Tonight on our wagon ride/walk through the neighborhood Kai found the moon first. A perfect crescent!



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Another great gift from Old Saint Nick

The Yookidoo Flow n' Fill Spout is a HUGE hit:


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Long overdue blog updates

It has been 9 months since our last post. This is, needless to say, pathetic and we have no good excuse for our negligence!

Today is Christmas, and the boys are enjoying every waking moment of the day! Our neighbor Diane and her three sons handed down a large set of BRIO trains and tracks for Kai and Finn. I set up some of the set on the coffee table in the living room, and we started our Christmas morning by revealing this gift from "Santa." We then moved on to stockings full of lizards, dinosaurs, and freeze-dried fruit.

The tool sets by Green Toys and the steering wheel/driving toys are also a huge hit! So far, the activities of the day have been hammering throughout the house and outmaneuvering the police.



I, of course, knew that "every kiss begins with K" and went to Kay Jewelers for my sweetie this year!

Happy Christmas and Prospero Año Nuevo to all!

Finn in his birthday suit.

The Sprouts have completed their first trip around the sun!

A busy new year

First of all, we want to say that we feel absolutely terrible that we haven't posted to our blog since before Christmas. We don't have a very good excuse except that this family of four has been very busy!

Christmas morning was absolutely wonderful! It was Kai and Finn's first Christmas, as well as the first Christmas in our new house. We dreamed of having a Norman Rockwell-type Christmas morning, but we also knew that it probably would be far from it. In reality, it was about as close to Norman Rockwell as you can get! We had a wonderful time getting up on Christmas morning, opening presents, taking a break for breakfast, and opening more presents. It was pure joy!





Afterward, we packed up the car and headed for Grandmother and Grandfather's house in Houston...more presents, and the first Christmas with Uncle Tyler! We're very thankful that he's a part of our lives.

Christian and I rang in the New Year at home with friends, cocktails, and a fabulous board game called "Ticket to Ride." The babies slept through the whole thing.

Apple eating

About a week after the boys returned to the Early Childhood Lab, they came down with hand, foot, and mouth disease. Really not fun. Then I contracted the disease right as they were recovering from it (it's pretty rare for adults to get it). As if that weren't enough, immediately following hand, foot, and mouth, the boys contracted RSV, which can be a very serious respiratory infection requiring hospitalization and breathing treatments. Luckily, they escaped all of that. However, they're currently suffering from the normal cold, and Finn has an ear infection. Our friends tell us that things get much better once they reach 2-years-old. I'm hoping that's true for the boys.

January was also a big month for Christian and me at work. Christian was having to conduct business at the Art Center without phones or Internet. It's a long story, but after crippling along for a month, Christian finally has phones and Internet again. As for me, a co-worker of mine was fired after making work a miserable experience for a lot of people. Now that he's gone, things are finally back to normal.

So, we hope you can forgive us for not posting to our blog sooner. Things have been crazy around here, but hopefully we're turning a corner. We're setting our sights on Kai and Finn's first birthday next month. We can't believe they're almost one-year-old! It's bittersweet for us. We love seeing their personalities develop more and more each day, but it's all happening so fast.

Kai and Finn on Christian's Birthday

Feb. 12th: 4" of snow fell on East Texas!

Happy Holidays!

The sprouts want to wish everyone peace and happiness this holiday! They are officially home on winter vacation until the ECHL reopens on January 4, 2010.

Kai and Finn gave their teachers, Ms. Melissa and Ms. Abby, gifts of hot chocolate, cider, and holiday sweets today. As it turns out, Ms. Melissa and Ms. Abby had something for them, too! The boys came home with two tumble ball toys. Super cool!

Kai must have had a full and active day today. He conked out at 7:35 p.m. after gulping down 6 oz. Finn is still hanging out and refusing his bottle, babbling "ie, ie, ie," and wanting to bounce on Daddy's lap or anywhere else he can spring off of.

Mommy and Daddy are hoping to enjoy a pizza and a glass or two of cab-sav with no creatures stirring, not even a baby. There are gifts to make and packages to wrap!

Tree hunting

This week was a bit of a whirlwind for the both of us. TGFTW.
Thank Goodness For The Weekend.

Santa welcoming visitors to the tree farm.

Today we went hunting for a Christmas tree. Since we are in "Texas Forest Country" here in Nacogdoches, it was only appropriate that we cut our own Christmas tree! We explored our options, avoiding the tree farm with the genetically modified trees, and ventured out northwest of town to the Diamond K Christmas Tree Farm.

Sarah drove the boys in the Versa, and I took the old pickup to handle the tree. When we arrived, we put the sprouts in Moby wraps and ventured onto the farm. As it turns out, the farm owner knew us. The owner is also the co-owner of the real estate company that represented our house when we bought it. Small towns can be scary like that sometimes!

Finn and Kai ready for a tree hunt!

After a thorough search of the farm, the sprouts decided on the perfect tree for our first house.

Finn and Kai examining the trees.

Watching Daddy cut the tree.

Carrying the tree back to the truck with Finn.

Cutting our own tree and getting the sprouts' photos with Santa are two goals for this Christmas. One down, one to go. When Santa arrives by sailboat at the Houston Yacht Club on the 20th, we'll be there!

...and the dish ran away with the spoon.

Finn with his Nana.

Thanksgiving weekend is coming to a close, and the sprouts are waving "bye-bye" to Nana and PaPa who drove all the way to Nacogdoches from Baton Rouge. We had a fantastic turkey dinner with all the trimmings here at our first house. Prue made the cranberry sauce and managed the turkey. Sarah prepped and cooked the turkey and made the green beans. I made the sweet potato casserole and pureed some turkey and formula for Kai and Finn ... they didn't like it. Fred mowed the lawn.

On Friday afternoon we ventured out for lunch and then went downtown for some culture at the SFA Cole Art Center (Daddy's work), Lyric's Decor and Gifts, and the Nacogdoches Antique Market. It wasn't until we got out of the car again that we noticed Kai received a five-finger-discount on a spoon from our lunch spot!
...and the dish ran away with the spoon.

This morning we got an earlier than normal start due to an early wake up call from two sprouts, who decided to go to bed early the night before! Thank goodness they're cute. Otherwise, 5-something a.m. wouldn't be so manageable.

Sitting up

Finn on Wednesday morning

A new development: the sprouts are sitting on their own! We attended a parent-teacher meeting last Thursday and were given the sprouts' current status according to their performance in the classroom. Both Kai and Finn are on track according to their age. This morning they demonstrated their ability to sit up on their own.

H, A, double L, O, W, double E, N spells Halloween!

Kai's first time in his Keekaroo high chair

Finn playing with Kai's leg on the play mat

What a wonderful day October 31st was! The sprouts were up at 7:30 a.m., a slightly later than normal time, allowing Mom and Pops to rest a bit more than usual. We did bottles, coffee for the adults, cereal for the babies, and were off to the Nac Farmer's Market. On our way to the market, the boys fell asleep in the car and continued to nap when we left the market to drive to civilization (ie. Sam's Club and Target) for essentials like formula in bulk, new pacifiers, and kitty litter. The boys woke up while we were shopping and fussed on the way home. However, once they had their lunch, a walk to the grocery, and a nap, they were ready for HALLOWEEN!
Skeletons!

At 5:30 p.m. we all piled into the car and drove over to see Great Aunt Leslie and Great Uncle Tommy. We also dropped by Scott and Kathy Robinson's house and Scott and Chay's before heading home to feed the children of Nacogdoches organic lollipops from Yummy Earth. Damn those lollies are good!

We were warned that our street was a magnet for trick-or-treaters of all shapes and sizes, but man were we in for a surprise!! Cars and trucks lined the streets from 6 to 9 p.m. Children from stroller age to teen swarmed people's yards. I have never seen anything like it! After the boys' cereal dinner, all four of us sat on the front stoop to greet the ghosts and goblins. Two wolfmen, a handful of punk rockers, a Jon Bon Jovi look-alike, one southern belle, and a kid with a Charlie Brown sheet-ghost costume were among the visitors last night. Afterward, we headed inside, gathered up the remaining candy, moved our spooky pumpkin indoors, unplugged the Halloween lights, and switched off the porch lamp. It was well past 8 p.m. and time for the sprouts' bottles and bed.

Today we're taking it easy. Hope everyone had a Spooktacular H, A, double L, O, W, double E, N!

November 1st morning

Booo!

Halloween is here, and the boys are ready! They've worn their "Frightfully Cute" ghost onesie and "Teething Bites" bat onesie to school a few times over the last few weeks, but today they get to go to school in costumes! Thanks to our friends Chay and Scott, the boys have skeleton onesies! Grandmother Cutler found them black tights, and I just finished their caps. They were so much fun to make! I used some white t-shirt material for the skulls, a black t-shirt from a now defunct scooter shop in Atlanta, and some random buttons we had lying around.

On Saturday we plan to take the boys over to a few friends' homes to go trick-or-treating. I hope they fill the sprouts' sacks with formula and baby food!
Skull caps!