Getting Some Words

On Tuesday (11/29/10) Makaio said his first intentional word and the following day, Kekoa said his.

Makaio's first words: Thank you.

Kekoa's first word: Yay!

Perhaps I should be reinforcing the "mommy" and "daddy" more than manners and excitement. No matter what the first words are, they are still exciting.

"Yay" for the boys and "Thank you" for reading!

An Unexpected Present

Today is Sterling's birthday and he almost got the worst present EVER! You might be wondering what that gift might have been so brace yourself for the story.

These were used to extract the gift!

This morning I was getting the boys ready to go to Vanderbilt so that we could have lunch with Sterling and deliver his birthday present to him (we took his gift to the school because it was for his office). Anyway, I put the babies in the bathtub so that they could be pretty and smell nice for our birthday lunch. After 30 minutes of playing in the tub they were all cleaned up and ready to get out of the bath. Makaio was standing up so I thought about taking him out but he sat down so Kekoa was removed first.

I was getting Kekoa ready and then I noticed that Makaio was really quiet. He is generally a quiet child anyway so I wasn't too worried but I had a feeling that I should check on him. When I walked into the bathroom I almost died. There in the tub with Makaio were 20 pieces of poop, the size of rabbit poop, asking me to gather them up and dispose of them. My throat started to close and I was in a full blown panic attack.

It seems like it should be common sense to immediately remove the child from the poo infested waters but instead I ran for my telephone. When my mother answered all I said was, "I need you to come over." I'm sure that isn't what mom's want to hear from their children but I needed my mother and she was too far away to save me this time.

Let me give you a snippet of the parts of our conversation that I can remember.

Mom: Cylynn, what is wrong?

Cylynn: Makaio pooped in the bath and I don't think I can clean this up.

- I got him out of the tub at some point during the conversation.

Cylynn: What am I supposed to do? How do I get it out of there? MOM!

Mom: Drain the water and then pick it up.

Cylynn: Pick it up?! Are you kidding me?! I can't drain it. I am not touching that because even if the poop isn't by my hand there are poop particles floating around in there. I think I have to leave it for Sterling until he gets home from school. I can't do this!

Mom: CYLYNN! Stop being ridiculous and clean it up!

Cylynn: "Dry Heaving"

Mom: Get it cleaned up. I have to go to the doctor so I have to go, Bye.

At this point I am literally freaking out and wondering if I can actually do this. I am wondering why I didn't follow my heart and take Makaio out first? I am still contemplating leaving it for Sterling. Fortunately for Sterling and the overall smell of our household, I decided to clean it up.

Thanks to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics for sending us home with a few extra pairs of rubber gloves! One year later they have finally been put to good use. I was dry heaving the entire time and almost puked on one occasion but stopped knowing that I was going to have to clean that up also.

I am happy to report that Sterling only received good gifts on his birthday this year. If this happens again however, he better be prepared!

A Date with Fate

I found this on the playroom wall this morning and almost hyperventilated. I quickly started my Lamaze breathing, as learned from television, and put the babies in their cribs. I then went downstairs and got the fly-swatter to quickly end this bug's life. Once I got back upstairs and was in position for the kill I started dry heaving at the thought of the sound it might make when I smashed it. I knew then that I had to come up with a Plan B, why didn't I think of this sooner!

I decided that I would just push it off the wall and then pounce on it with a paper towel in hand. Then I started to think that I might not be brave enough to actually try and catch it once it was on the ground. Next idea was to get it to walk around and then I would coax it onto the fly swatter, dump it in the toilet and flush.

The coax-dump-flush method was my final plan and it would have gone smoothly if this thing didn't decide to start right for the handle of the fly-swatter and directly on course for my jugular. My throat started to constrict and I started to panic but I didn't want to run because I knew that if it dropped to the ground I wouldn't even try to get it. Luckily I made it to the bathroom and this little guy had it's date with fate.

I wouldn't normally care if there were critters like this in the house, never mind, yes I would. But I had to dispose of this one because the other day when I caught Kekoa chewing on something and pulled it out of his mouth it was the remaining legs of some bug. I puked in my mouth just a little.

Our First Halloween

This is actually our second Halloween but since we were discharged from the hospital a month prior to our first Halloween, this is our first one to celebrate. Daddy and Mommy really went crazy this year by taking us to one house and allowing us to get one piece of candy. It happened to be our neighbor and she kindly took a picture of the four of us.

As you can see, our parents didn't dress up like they promised but I guess we will forgive them. At least Daddy dressed up for the Trunk-or-Treat and that is saying a lot for two parents that don't really get into this holiday. Mommy said she would gladly dress in all gray, crouch down in a ball and be a rock but we don't know if her old legs could crouch into a ball at every door.

Our first trick-or-treater was actually me, Makaio. I took the opportunity while Mommy and Daddy were distracted to get into the candy bowl and go for a Kit Kat.

I chewed through that wrapper so fast and quickly devoured all the delicious chocolate knowing that as soon as Mommy caught me she would take it away. You better believe that I put up a good fight when she tried to get it from my "kung-fu" panda grip!

We hope that you have enjoyed the adventures of our day as much as we enjoyed our Halloween spoils. We love you all.

Makaio and Kekoa

Trunk-or-Treat Update

Someone actually asked Sterling if he worked at the Zoo. Either his costume was that good or he just looks the part of zoo animal pooper-scooper.

Halloween Preview

Neither one of us is a fan of Halloween but since Tutu sent us costumes this year, we went with it. The Zoo Keeper and his little Panda just headed to the Trunk-or-Treat. I must say that the last minute Zoo Keeper costume didn't turn out that bad. Unfortunately Kekoa and I are home sick but we'll celebrate the night by watching Game 7.

On Halloween we'll take pictures of both bears and both zoo keepers and post them for your viewing pleasure.

Easing our Pain

After 16 months of life we experienced our first diaper rash. I felt pain because I was so neglectful and allowed my child to get a rash. Sterling felt the pain each and every time he changed a diaper and heard Kekoa scream, I could actually see the pain on his face. Kekoa felt the pain with each dirty diaper. Makaio was just as happy as ever so I guess there was no pain there.

The only cure seemed to be a lot of baths and time. The lesson I learned...DO NOT EVER USE DESITIN! All I know is that I would be fine if we didn't experience that again for another 16 years!

Being a Mom Stinks Sometimes

Yesterday Makaio and I were headed to his PT appointment, late of course, when I suddenly realized that I had forgotten his diaper bag. At first I started to freak out and I called Sterling, of course there was nothing to be done. So I resorted to praying like crazy that he wouldn't poop while we were at PT. However, knowing my little machine, I knew that at about 9:00 he would be dropping off his first load of the day. Sure enough we get to PT and I smelled something a little putrid and I knew it was his brand. I was hoping that it was just a toot but the giant bulge in his diaper lead me to believe otherwise.

It was a really large and stinky poop that I could do nothing about. I was thinking of going into the bathroom and dumping it out of his diaper and hoping that would do the trick. However, even though my prayer for no poop was not answered I did find a spare diaper in the bathroom and you better believe that I used it!

CLARIFICATION: The title of this post is in reference to the stinky diaper and not that I dislike being a mother.

Auntie Chelsy Visits

Ode to Chelsy

We like Chelsy a whole lot

She has money, our parents do not

She took us to the zoo

Auntie Chelsy is pretty coo'

She will hold us when we cry

Mommy doesn't do that we don't know why

Her next visit won't be soon enough

Life without Chelsy is pretty rough

Next time our visit might be more fun

Instead of crawling we'll be on the run

Nashville has may things to do

Be like Chelsy and visit us too!

Now That's Funny

This past week my sister Chelsy came to visit and we wore the babies out. This picture is proof that Makaio was extremely tired. He usually falls asleep on his hands but then moves them at some point during his nap. This time was different. He fell asleep in the same exact position in which he woke up. The end result was hand prints on his face.

Perhaps he is working on war paint for Halloween. Whatever the case may be, we laughed just as hard as he did!

Bitter-Sweet

We have talked about this day off and on for the past week and now that it is here it's bitter-sweet. One year ago today the boys were supposed to enter this world but they decided they couldn't wait another 15 weeks and so they arrived in June of 2010. 

I think back on it and wonder how different our lives would have been had the boys been born full-term? It is hard to remember our three months in the NICU and how miserable life was at that time. If I could do it all over again I know that I wouldn't choose to be in the NICU, but maybe I would. We met so many wonderful people who changed our lives and more specifically the lives of our children!

We needed to be in Iowa at that time. God, with the help of the hospital staff saved the lives of the twins and our wonderful Iowa friends saved us.

So today we celebrate the boys' One Year Adjusted Birthday! We are so blessed to have such wonderful happy children. These are the things we did today to celebrate this special day.

• We went grocery shopping as a family. (I know, pretty boring)
• We went to the park
• We ate a lot of fun foods.
• Green Beans
• French Fries
• Raspberries
• Peas
• Macaroni and Cheese
• Watermelon
• A Big Sugary Cupcake
• We took a much needed bath after all of our eating adventures.

Here are some pictures from our special day.

 

Labor Day Adventures

My very best friend, roommate, sidekick and sometimes nemesis from college came to visit this weekend. I wasn't sure how the visit was going to go since we hadn't seen each other in almost five years but it went well. The babies and Sterling were able to spend time with one of my college roommates and she and I were able to relive and re-hash some of our past memories.

The rainy weather wasn't ideal for the weekend but we had a good time anyway. We went to Baskin Robbins where she tried the best Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream EVER! We visited the Parthenon museum and enjoyed the artwork on display. We tried "Nashville" pizza at Pie in the Sky Pizza, I would recommend it because they have amazing crust. We went on a couple of walks and she refused to push the babies. We did a lot of talking (which is normal for us) and we watched The Scarlett Pimpernel.  It doesn't sound overly exciting but I feel good about the visit. It made me realize that neither time nor distance can diminish what years of living together has created.

Of course we didn't take any pictures but here are a few new things that the boys tried out over the weekend.

1. Pizza
2. Grilled Kebabs - zucchini, yellow squash, green and red peppers
3. Peaches
4. Chicken
5. Peanut Butter Sandwiches
6. Whole Milk (not going well)
7. Blueberry Pancakes
8. Watermelon

They love food and we are so happy that they are not picky.

The Observations of Children

I love how children ask questions according to their knowledge or understanding. Children make me laugh and on occasion they manage deepen my  understanding and appreciation.

In church on Sunday one of the little boys in our primary class was playing with Makaio when he suddenly tapped me on the leg. I looked at him and while pointing to Makaio's head he said, "Your baby's head is broken." All I could say was, "It used to be, but now it is fixed." This simple answer was enough for him and he continued to play with Makaio.

This reminded me of something that was said when we were back home on vacation. One of our nephews was riding in the back seat with the boys and he asked, "Uncle Sterling, why does your baby have a hill on his head?" We laughed and then Sterling tried to explain the so-called hill on Makaio's head.

These comments were regarding Makaio's shunt. At first I was a little sensitive about the subject and even wanted to hide it the best that I could. Now I realize that it is part of him and that I would never be ashamed of my child whether he has a "broken head" or a "hill"!

Rockin' The Solids

For the longest time the babies would not eat solids at all, or so we thought. Being first time parents we just assumed that you went from Stage 1 foods to Stage 2 foods and then graduated to Stage 3 foods. Unfortunately the babies still do not eat Stage 3 and who could blame them? Here we are feeding them nice smooth decently delicious foods and then all of sudden there are chunks!? What? 

Picture me getting upset and thinking I am a failure because my children can't handle Stage 3 foods. Then picture me doing my very best to persuade them that the food is delicious and they should swallow it instead of puking it up every time. I tried to lick the spoon, not make a yucky face, and then say yummy. Result...still puking.

We were beginning to think that they might never eat a solid thing in their lives and then we tried a different approach, solid only. They loved it. They are now eating bananas, as you can see, peas, corn, zucchini, yellow squash, apples, star puffs, yogurt melts, cheerios, grapes, rice, lettuce, cantaloupe and whatever else mommy or daddy sticks in their mouths. 

Other Updates

Makaio:

1. He has five teeth, four on top and one on the bottom.

2. He scoots like an inch worm.

3. He can stand up while holding onto things.

4. He thinks Kekoa is the funniest person ever.

5. He is really quiet and loves to sit back and observe people.

6. He is a problem solver. It is so fun to watch him look at obstacles and then cleverly solve the problem.

7. He loves his mommy. If I am ever anywhere near him he crawls and gives me hugs and kisses instead of playing.

8. He loves being outside and will have an emotional breakdown if the door closes and he doesn't get to go outside.

9. He wants to eat whatever we are eating. He is not picky and will try anything that you put in his mouth. He ate grass this morning while we were outside and when I finally caught him he was chewing away at as if he were a cow.

10. He has the saddest cry ever. Even if he is just upset about something, his face looks like it is the end of the world and his cry sounds just as sad.

Kekoa:

1. He has four teeth, two on top and two on the bottom. 

2. He looks like a vampire because he has his two top canines. So cute!

3. He crawls like crazy. His favorite place to crawl towards is the top of the stairs.

4. He can stand up and walk around things while holding onto them.

5. He thinks loves to scream and make Makaio laugh. 

6. He is cautious but once he feels comfortable watch out because he will probably be climbing on you.

7. He is a bull in a china closet. He goes as fast as he can until he runs into something and has to change directions.

8. He loves his daddy. When the garage doors opens Kekoa heads for the kitchen because he knows Sterling will soon enter the door. Sadly he prefers Sterling over me.

9. He loves being outside. He ate a rock and some wood chips on a recent outing and would have eaten the bug if he was fast enough to catch it.

10. He makes a face as if to say "This is disgusting." every time he eats something new and yet he still eats it and enjoys it.

Going to the Beach or Church?

So buying dress clothes for babies is not easy. It seems like a majority of the dress clothes are for children that are older and larger than the twins. Therefore I usually dress them in shorts and a polo shirt for church. 

You may or may not know this about me but one of my pet peeves is when people dress like they are going to the beach when they are actually going to church. So when a member of the bishopric recently told me that our children are so cute and that they always look like they are going to the beach with their clothes and spikey hair, I had to make a change!

The boys' hair was instantly buzzed and now they are sporting things like this to church. 

Luckily my mother purchased these outfits about three months ago so we had them to fall back on. Now what to do for next week? I guess they can just alternate outfits until we have enough money to buy different ones. Dang you graduate student salary!

This is for Jospeh

During our vacation back home we had the chance to spend some time at my family's condo at Bear Lake. While we were there we realized that Joseph has some real talent as a model and so we hope that this post does some good as he pursues his future. 

I hope he doesn't kill me for posting these!

So we recently had family pictures taken by a very talented photographer and I wanted to share some of our favorites with you all. If you are on FB then you have seen them already and if not, feel free to browse it up!

It was so much fun to have the pictures taken and we are already trying to figure out how we can decorate our home with all of the boys' cuteness.

Vagabonds

In the 5 years that Sterling and I have been together we have lived in 6 different states. Apparently we enjoy the nomad lifestyle and so we continue to move around the country. In June we packed up our small family and made the trek from Minnesota to Tennessee. Yahoo maps said that the trip should take 12 hours, we made it in about 24 hours.

The first day of traveling went pretty well. We tried to keep a consistent schedule of driving for three hours and then stopping to feed the babies and let them get out and play. We drove through Minnesota, Iowa and into Missouri to wrap up our first day of traveling. Our problems were few but the problems we did have were huge.

At the end of the first day the air conditioning on the suburban started acting a little funny. By a little funny I mean that it was blowing in the back of the vehicle but not in the front. As long as the babies were cool I figured I could sweat it out. However as we started our descent into the hot and humid south my tolerance for back and butt sweat was quickly diminishing. I had been sweating for an hour or so before I called my dad and asked for some help.

I was told that I needed to change the fuse for the blowers and that this should hopefully fix the problem. We pulled over for dinner and because I didn't have any spare fuses in the car, I stole one from the back wiper and it worked! I couldn't have been more happy with the results; we could now make it to Nashville the next day in a nice air conditioned vehicle! So we continued on our way and stopped at about 11:00 pm on the border of Kentucky and stayed the night in a stinky room (supposedly non-smoking) that was overpriced but happened to be one of very few rooms to be had.

The next morning we woke up, at breakfast, loaded up and headed out. The air conditioning worked until we got out of the hotel parking lot which was so very nice. Since it was early in the morning and only 80 degrees I figured we could make it to Nashville and things would be okay. As the minutes passed the temperature quickly increased and I couldn't make the babies sweat it out. It turns out that I am a caring mother after all. So I called Sterling and told him that we needed to pull over in the next town and find a place to get the air conditioning fixed.

Paducah Kentucky, home of the largest quilt show in the United States was where we stopped. My mother and sister were happy to know that it is so close to Nashville because now they can attend the infamous show. Anyway, back to me and my sob story. The first place we went to said that they could get the truck in to be looked at in two days. Oh great, just what I wanted to be stranded in this town for two days...no thank you! Luckily the man was very nice and suggested a friend of his and even offered to call the guy and ask let him know we were on our way.

I was a little skeptical about this "let me call my friend" business but I agreed and headed over to his buddy's shop. I was worried that we were going to be charged an outrageous amount of money to fix the AC but we needed it fixed and this was our only option. When we arrived at the new mechanic's shop I felt a little comforted because right on the lawn was a large stone with the Ten Commandments engraved upon it. I figured if nothing else hopefully this guy keeps the Thou Shalt Not Lie commandment and tells us what is actually wrong.

He was very honest and we walked out of there 1 1/2 hours later and $450 dollars poorer but we had air conditioning. So our journey continued, we made it to Nashville, moved into our house and began a life in Tennessee. You should know however that the air conditioning went out the following weekend and living without it is just NOT an option.

You will be happy to know that is has now been repaired and we hope that it lasts this time. The point of this entire story is to let you all know that we now live in Nashville. We finally live in a city that has some appeal to it so please come and visit!

What Goes Around Comes Around

Right before we were going to get the boys ready for bed I noticed that Makaio had pooped his pants. Knowing that it was Sterling's turn to pray with him tonight I didn't say anything and I definitely didn't change him. I tried to pawn him off on Sterling before we went upstairs but Sterling said he would just get Makaio once we were upstairs.

Once we made it to the bedroom I put Makaio on the floor and told Sterling he pooped. Sterling started laughing and asked if that is why I wanted him to carry Makaio upstairs. Of course I admitted that it was the reason. Sterling proceeded to tell me that Kekoa had a full diaper as well. I happily started to change Kekoa's diaper because at least it would only be wet. To my dismay Kekoa had also pooped. Stering laughed right out loud at that.

12 Month Stats

Yesterday we had our 12 month well child check-up and I am so grateful that Sterling came to help. Not only did they have immunizations but they also had to have blood tests which made for a doubly horrible day.

I generally do this kind of stuff on my own but since it was their last appointment here in Minnesota Sterling decided to come along. Oh how grateful I was for this choice. The boys cried harder and louder than they have ever cried and so much so that Kekoa fell right to sleep after the immunizations. Unfortunately he had a rude awakening when we were called in for them to draw his blood and he got poked again. Makaio on the other hand cried after his immunizations and then screamed for the entire blood draw. One question, why don't they hire people to hold the baby down so that the parent doesn't have to do it and look like the bad guy?

Makaio - 17 lbs 14 oz - 28.5 inches

Kekoa - 17 lbs 3 oz - 27.5 inches

Both babies are doing really well and are meeting most milestones for their adjusted age.

Sometimes getting older just isn't as fun as we would like it to be!

Where Did the Time Go?

One year ago today Sterling and I went to see my OBGYN to find out if we would be moving to Minnesota two days later. There was a part of me that thought we would be moving for sure and yet somehow I knew it wouldn't happen. During the appointment we found out that not only would we not be moving to Minnesota but we would probably be meeting our two boys within the next couple of days.

Throughout the day the doctors kept checking on me to make sure that things were not progressing toward delivery. At 6:00 pm I was having my final check with the day shift and by 6:30 pm we knew that the babies would be delivered before the end of the day. 1 hour and 58 minutes later Makaio was born and two minutes later Kekoa joined us. It was a rocky start but looking at the boys today it is hard to believe that the beginning of their lives was so fragile.

I can't believe this year has passed so quickly. Look at how far they have come in one year!

Makaio

June 01, 2010

Makaio

June 01, 2011

Kekoa

June 01, 2010

Kekoa

June 01, 2011

Doing Business

My best friend in college trained service dogs and by trained service dogs I mean raised them and taught them how to "do their business" on demand. I learned this shortly after we had become friends and I learned it in a very awkward manner.

One day when I was at her home I asked if I could use the restroom. Once I was in the restroom I could hear someone outside the bathroom window saying "do your business." At first I thought it was a joke and so I chuckled to myself but then the phrase was repeated over and over and over until I finished doing my business. It turns out that the dog and I happened to be doing to same thing at the same time and thankfully the encouragement was for the dog and not me. How embarrassing would that have been? Anyway...

For the past couple of weeks I have noticed that every day around 11:00 am Makaio wants to get back into his crib. I say this as if he can talk and requests to be taken to his crib but actually it has been a frustrating time of trying to figure out what is the correct translation f0r rolling around screaming and whining. After a couple of days of this morning time ritual I just started putting him in his crib and letting him figure it out.

He generally starts to calm down as we walk down the hallway to his bedroom and then once he is in his crib out come the smiles and laughter. I tried to convince myself that he just needed some alone time but when it came down to it my feelings were a little hurt that he would rather play in the crib than play with Kekoa and me.

I let this go on for a week or so and then I had to call my mother. I explained the situation to my mother and she said that maybe he just feels safe and comfortable in his crib. I graciously accepted this explanation but decided to pull out my detective cap and see if there was anything else that routinely happened in conjunction with these minor fits.

It only took me two days to figure out that when he was finally happy and ready to play nicely again I always had to change a poopy diaper. The third day confirmed my findings and it appears that Makaio views his crib as both a crib and a litter box.

So what do these two stories have in common? Nothing really unless you want to think of me putting him in his crib as permission to "do his business." The funny thing however is that somehow this all made sense when I started writing and now, well, you be the judge.

Dear Skype, I Love You!

This past Sunday, thanks to the Skype folk, the boys were able to see their Great Grandma Bina. She is 96 years old and up until Sunday she had only seen the boys in pictures. My dad and I decided that we would give it a try and see how my grandma liked it. I think she liked seeing the boys scooting around, hitting each other, babbling and just being themselves. Even though the twins don't really know what they are supposed to be looking at or doing when we Skype I think it is always fun for those who get to see them.

I'm sure that my grandma loved seeing the babies but the best part about it for me was seeing her sweet face again. I am so excited to go home this summer and hug her and kiss her sweet face and let her know how much I love her. I hope that the boys will be able to feel what a special woman she is just by being in her presence. Come on June 29th!

Personalities

The boys are almost one year old and it has been so much fun watching them grow. They are a lot alike and yet very different. I am going to post a picture of each of them that illustrates something that I really enjoy about them.

Kekoa is little Mr. Efficient. He seems to observe, plan and then attack. I love watching him as he notices a toy across the room that he really wants and then stops to plan how he can get to it in the least amount of movements. He also does things like hold his bottle with his feet instead of his hands so that he can still play. He is such a happy baby and makes us laugh daily.

Makaio is Mr. Independent. He thinks he should be only do what he wants to do and it is his way or the highway. I generally prop him up in the boppy to eat because most of the time he doesn't want me to touch him while he eats and he wants me to hold the bottle the entire time if I do hold him. He will hold his bottle if it is his idea but if I try to put his hands on the bottle to help him he pulls his hands away from me as hard as he possibly can and will often grunt which indicates that he doesn't want me to tell him what to do. He is very laid back most of the time and just enjoys doing his own thing and chillaxin' when he has time.

We love them both very much and look forward to the many years ahead.

Graduation Celebration

From this point forward would you please refer to our daddy as Dr. Sheffield!

This weekend we were able to take a trip back to Iowa for Sterling's graduation. It was great for Sterling to have one last get together with his classmates before this chapter of their lives comes to a close. It was a time of great happiness and sadness. He couldn't have asked for a better group of colleagues and friends. We are so proud of the entire Audiology Class of 2011.

While we were in Iowa we were so lucky to see so many of our friends, especially those at the NICU. It was amazing to see all of the nurse's that took care of the babies while they were in the hospital and to see how much they still loved the babies. We will never forget them! We left the NICU with a greater appreciation for the skills, talents and dedication for all of the NICU employees.

The weekend was long and exhausting but it was worth it. Sterling has worked so hard over the past four years to complete this doctorate and our family couldn't be more proud. He is a great husband, father and student. In fact he loves being a student so much that our next stop is Nashville Tennessee where he will be working on his PhD. Go Daddy, make us proud!

Meet the Cousins

Makaio and Kekoa were able to meet two more cousins and an aunt and an uncle over Easter weekend. Jaycia, Justen and their family came to visit and we had a great time.

We went to the Mall of America and the boys did great. We were there for the entire day and they didn't get as fussy as I did.

We also took them swimming for the first time. Kekoa loved to kick and Makaio loved to splash. Jaz was a real trooper and even allowed Joseph and Michaelee to have some fun while she held on to a floatie and kicked around the pool.

It is so much fun to have the boys meet their cousins and we can hardly wait for July when they will finally meet them all!

This is a cute picture of Jaz and the boys. Jaz is showing off her true Wisniewski colors by pinching Kekoa's squishy squishy ears

Your Baby Can Read

So I don't know if this program actually works because the boys don't really like to watch it that much. However it looks like Makaio learned to read without ever watching the videos all the way through.

Stay tuned for his complete review of the program!

Come Listen to a Prophet's Voice

I remember when I was growing up that the expectation was to listen when the prophet spoke. Since today is the first experience that the boys are having with general conference, they too were expected to listen as President Monson spoke to us. Here they are being as attentive as 10 month old boys can be.

They did manage to sit still until President Monson finished and then they went crazy. I think a big part of the problem was that it was time to eat and sitting still when you are hungry is very very hard!

Moving Along

I can't believe that 10 months ago I gave birth to these two sweet boys. The beginning of their lives was a roller-coaster that I will never willingly ride again. Yet the 6 months since they were released from the hospital seems like one big amusement park trip that I will never forget.

Makaio has turned into our little mover. He rolls and rolls until he can't roll any more and then he screams until I move him away from whatever obstacle stands in his way. Sometimes he rolls toward a toy that he wants and other times he rolls just to move around.

Here he is getting ready to pump some iron so that he can improve his rolling skills and maybe even take a stab at crawling. At 10 months he is 16.5 lbs and moving right along. He is finally on the regular growth chart and is just below the 10th percentile. He is such a happy baby and really only cries when he needs help or if he is hungry.

Kekoa is our social butterfly. I don't know how Sterling and I are going to deal with a social child but it will be interesting, I can guarantee that. He loves people! He would rather play with a human or a stuffed animal that has a face than any old toy. He loves to talk and is developing a talent for screaming as loud as his little vocal chords will allow.

He has lagged behind when it came to eating from a spoon but he leads the way with a sippie cup. I think he likes to chew on it more than drink from it but as long as he is getting some hydration I won't complain. At 10 months he is 15.5 lbs and growing every day. He is not quite big enough to be on the regular growth chart and falls into the 3rd percentile. However he looks healthy and he is healthy so we won't complain. He is such a happy baby and instead of crying when he is hungry he much prefers to scream.

Just the Two of Us

The boys have really started to interact with each other and sometimes it seems like they are in their own little world. They will be on the ground playing and look at each other and start laughing. I doesn't seem like anything funny happened but maybe it was an inside joke.

It is so hard to believe that they were once so small. Look at them now!

Smacky Smackerton

In the Wisniewski household it was a really big deal to chew with your mouth closed. It was so important to my mother and has therefore become one of the biggest annoyances to myself and my siblings. Every now and again I hear my siblings tell a child and sometimes their spouse to chew with your mouth closed. It's funny how these things get passed on.

The other day I heard Sterling tell Kekoa that, "we chew with our mouth closed." Of course he is a very small child and doesn't yet understand but it is nice to know that Sterling is on board. I took a video to demonstrate Kekoa's smacking.

All Boy

Kekoa has shown his first sign that he is going to be all boy. While playing on the ground and working so hard he accidentally passed gas and burst into laughter. Oh the things I get to look forward to!

9 Months Old

They are now seven times the size that they were at birth. Makaio weighs 15 lbs 4 oz and Kekoa weighs 14 lbs 6 oz. I couldn't have asked for two happier babies! They are finally starting to recognize each other. Kekoa seems to be way more interested in Makaio and then again he has always been a people person. Makaio loves to grab anything that is within an arm's length and will almost always put it right into his mouth.

They are both make noises (semi-babble), roll from tummy to back and drool like crazy. They love to have books read to them and they often will grab at the book and on occasion they will accidentally turn the page.

Makaio grabs my glasses every chance that he gets and if your face is close enough he will slap and scratch it all day long. He loves table food and has yet to refuse any of the fruits or vegetables offered to him. He is a good eater and generally has his mouth open for the next bite before I can even fill the spoon again. Fortunately he is not a picky eater.

Kekoa on the other hand, hates anything that approaches his mouth besides his hands and a bottle. We have been trying to introduce cereal to him on a weekly basis and he does not enjoy it. If you try to get him to eat from a spoon before he takes a bottle he will refuse the bottle. He seems to hate different textures and will gag or spit all food out immediately. He loves to snuggle with people or stuffed animals, especially if they have a face he can look at.

We are so grateful to have them in our lives. The past nine months have been wonderful and a lot less difficult than I had imagined. I think I am going to be in for a shock once they are mobile. I am so excited to see what the next nine months has in store for us!

Lesson Learned

So I have this delusion that if I wrap the diapers up nice and tight before I put them in the diaper pail then it won't stink as badly. Today as I was feeding Makaio, there were some pretty loud and offensive noises coming from the direction of Kekoa's diaper. I tried to feed Makaio quickly in order to prevent a blowout from occurring but Makaio was having none of that. About ten minutes later, I finished feeding Makaio and hurried over to assess the damage. Luckily he did not have a blowout but the scent that smacked me in the face as I lifted the blanket was nasty!

I took him to the room and changed his diaper. It was completely full of poop and so I proceeded to do my "wrap it tight to lock in the smell" maneuver. If I had considered the fact that sometimes runny poop will not be contained then I wouldn't have ended up with poop all over my thumb! Truth be told, I did puke a little bit in my mouth.

Lesson Learned!

Perspective

To me, the whiskers are painful if not trimmed to the proper length. To Kekoa, they are tools for tickling all of the time!

Laughter is the Best Medicine

Who knew that my face was so funny?

Our Little Pinocchio

Just imagine this little guy singing...

I've got no strings to hold me down

To make me fret or make me frown

I had strings but now I'm free

There are no strings on me.

Yes, Kekoa is finally off of oxygen as of January 21, 2011. We are grateful for the all that the oxygen did for the boys but we are even more grateful to be off of oxygen!