Year Recap

One only has to go back and read posts from this blog to see how our year has been. It has been quite a year. As the calendar turned to 2011, I was still adjusting to my new job and Latana was getting sick of carrying around twins in her belly. Shortly after the start of the 2011, I got a call from my father that he was again having major surgery. This time it was very serious and while he was recovering in the ICU, I flew out to Maryland to see him. I couldn't stay nearly as long as I would have liked because I had a (very) pregnant wife at home and a 2-year-old boy to take care of. Before the week was over on January 26th, my father passed away and we miss him very much. Two days later, Latana had a regularly scheduled prenatal checkup where she presented with high blood pressure. Her doctor decided that it was time for the twins to come into the world. One week after my father passed away on February 2nd, Jace Eli and Jenner Scott came into our lives. We were very happy to see them, but we had to visit them in the NICU over the next two weeks while they finished developing their lungs. During their stay in the NICU, Chay was not allowed to see his brothers. So we tried to juggle a normal home life for Chay while we spent as much time as we could at the NICU. The twins both came home on February 17th. This meant an adjustment for Chay as he not only had to contend with one infant in the house but two! Chay was a trouper though and showed that he could be a great big brother. The next few months were spent with Latana on maternity leave taking care of the twins with Chay in daycare and me at work. April rolled around and Jace decide to be a colicky baby and spit up his formula every chance he got. Thankfully Jenner was easy-going and didn't need too much attention. Latana's maternity leave ran out, but we did not have anyone to watch the twins yet. So Latana worked half-time from home for a while. The twins would not be able to attend Chay's daycare until October so we had arranged for Latana's cousin Ashely to watch the twins while we worked, but the only catch was we had to wait for her to graduate from high school first. So Latana watched the twins until the end of May when Ashley could start coming to the house during the week. Ashley split time with her mother Michelle and both did a wonderful job watching the twins. The summer went too quickly as everyone started settling into their schedules. Latana & I were working, Chay was still attending daycare and the twins stayed home. I'm not sure how the summer went by so fast, but I guess that's what happens when you're taking care of three kids under the age of 3. Over the summer, the twins had a series of "firsts" including rolling over for the first time, getting their first teeth, and crawling for the first time. Chay had his own "firsts" including his first boat ride and his first baseball game. When the calendar turned to October Chay turned 3 and the twins started attending Chay's daycare. Everyone seems to enjoy it there. Even though I can't get Chay to admit it yet, I think that Chay really likes Jace & Jenner being there. The last two months of the year were as uneventful as you can probably get (compared to the first 10 months) considering we had Thanksgiving and the start of the holiday season.

Over the course of the year, we have had a lot of fun watching our three boys grow. Jenner is so much like Chay it can be scary. He shows all of Chay's traits. It's been fun watching twins grow up. These two are nothing alike and don't always do things on the same schedule. Jace is normally the first one to do something. Jace was the first to breath on his own in the NICU. First to eat in the NICU. First to pass his car seat test in the NICU. First to be ready to come home. First to roll over. First to get teeth. First to crawl and first to stand. First to take one tiny step. But I'm not so sure that Jenner is going to let Jace be first for everything in 2012. Jenner is the first one to take multiple steps and start walking, but the past week Jace has started walking too. Now that both are starting to walk, we'll have to see how much trouble they will both get in.

We hope everyone has a great year in 2012!

Happy Holidays

I hope that everyone had a very Merry Christmas!

We had a nice four-day weekend. On Friday the 23rd, we went to Latana's mother's house for Christmas with her family. We stayed home on the 24th for a quiet evening at home with just the kids. The morning of the 25th came with presents under the tree. Then we went to Latana's aunt's house for Christmas with her family. The 26th was a nice day off just to clean up and take care of a few things after being busy from the long weekend.

The kids loved their presents. Chay has been playing with his new kitchen, a cash register, a scooter, a collection of trucks, and new games for his Mobigo. The twins have been playing with anything they can get their hands on! LOL

We hope that everyone has a great New Year holiday as well!

Adventurer Jace

Jace opened a kitchen drawer and climbed in.

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Christmas Cookie Time

Chay is enjoying his favorite part of making Christmas cookies, licking the batter!

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Walk With Me

Jace has been known to take 1 step every now and then all on his own. I predicted a couple of months ago that Jace would walk before Jenner. And these single steps were helping to prove me right. But Jenner seems to have not liked the idea that Jace would walk before he could. Tonight, Jenner took his first steps. He got about 4 steps in before he fell into me. Then later in the evening, Jenner could be seen taking about 3 steps before falling down. At this rate, Jenner will be an official walking baby by the end of the weekend! LOL

December Colds

Our house has been sick for quite a while now. Nothing too serious. It all started on November 17th, the day after the twins got their second flu shot. Jenner came down with some minor flu-like symptoms which can be an after-effect of flu shots. Jenner seemed to hold on to these symptoms for a while. As he started getting healthier, Jace came down with a minor cold. Jace's cold is just some nasal stuffiness and a cough, nothing too terrible. I think Jace gave this same thing to me. Just as Jace started to get over it, Jenner seems to have caught the same thing, but he got it worse slightly than Jace. Somewhere along the way, Jenner got his third and fourth teeth! So some of the nasal stuffiness for Jenner may have been due to teething.

The twins are slowly getting better and have been sleeping better the last two nights. But there is still a minor cough and once in a while, we have to wipe a runny nose.

Santa's Helpers

As I stated in an earlier post, we spent part of Thanksgiving weekend putting up the Christmas tree. As you can see, I had plenty of help!

Jace Sick

Yesterday Jace played hooky from daycare as he claimed to be sick. So Jace & I spent the day hanging out together. But then instead of having quality father/son time, Jace decided to sleep from 7am until 1pm. I guess he wasn't feel too good after all.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Yesterday, we hosted 33 people in our house for the big day. I cooked 43 pounds of turkey and there wasn't much left by the end of the day!

We were not foolish enough to head out late at night for the early Black Friday sales. From the sound of it, we were the only ones in town that stayed home.

Today is the annual rite of putting up the Christmas Tree. If you ever hear Chay say "Chris", he means Christmas lights.

Checkup Day

Today we took the kids to the doctor for their regular checkups. Chay was getting his 3-year checkup and the twins were getting their 9-month checkups.

Chay is now 37.5 inches tall and weighs 32.5 pounds
Jace is now 28.75 inches tall and weighs 19.4 pounds
Jenner is now 29.5 inches tall and weighs 19.4 pounds

Its odd that Jenner & Jace weigh the same but Jenner is 3/4" taller. The odd part is that Jenner looks stockier than Jace.

Everything checked out on all 3 boys. A perfect bill of health for each! The doctor even made sure that Chay had no bugs in his ears. LOL

Chay did not need any shots. The twins did not need any vaccinations, but they did need to get their 2nd flu shot. So one poke in the leg for each of them.

Spelling Bee

In my previous post, I wrote about how Chay has been teaching himself letters on his Mobigo. Yesterday, Chay was in the bathtub when he held up 3 fingers and said "Three Daddy!" Ok Chay...yes, that is 3. He then pointed at a bottle of shampoo which had a big number 3 on it. I get it now, Chay was pointing out the number on the bottle. Chay then looked at the bottle and said "N-I-ZERO-Y-I-N". Well the letter O looks like a zero and I can see how a 3-year-old can confuse a X with a Y. But he was spelling Nioxin. :)

Learning Letters

Chay already knows his numbers and can count. So the next logical transition is for him to learn his A-B-C's. But Chay resists this for some reason.

For Chay's birthday, we got him a Mobigo. Chay loves playing games on our cell phones and we thought he might enjoy his own handheld gaming system. The nice thing about the Mobigo is that it is educational as well.

One of the games is the old arcade-style duck shooting game. The duck swims across the screen and you are supposed to shoot it. The duck has a letter of the alphabet painted on the side and the way you shoot the duck is to press the corresponding letter on the screen. Initially, Chay would get a few of them confused like B and E or C and G. This is to be expected of a 3-year-old. But I've been watching him play and Chay has managed to teach him self every letter of the alphabet. He has done this all on his own. We now just have to put them in the order of the familiar song because Q-W-E-R-T-Y will not suffice when he goes to school!

Mr. Independent

As if on cue, once Chay turned 3, he is trying to assert his independence at every turn. Try to take off his shoes, "No, I'll do it!" he'll shout. Try to take off his coat, "No, I'll do it!" Try to do anything for him and its "No, I'll do it!"

Jace & Jenner - 9 Months Old

Jace & Jenner are 9 months old today. With Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years getting closer and closer, I'm sure it will be their 1-year birthday in no time!

Jace is trying to stand up more and more. He'll constantly let go of whatever he is holding for support and then wobble for a few seconds before crashing to the ground. I'm pretty sure Jace will be the one that walks first, which shouldn't be a surprise because he seems to do everything before his brother does.

Jenner has shown that he can think outside the box. While everyone crawls on their hands and knees, Jenner has started crawling around on his hands and feet with his butt sticking up in the air. He is much quicker this way. Jenner also prefers to crawl up the stairs if we let him. Jace seems less interested in doing so.

To Infinity And Beyond

Chay was Buzz Lightyear for Halloween. The twins were puppies, but neither of them liked thier costume. Chay had fun trick-or-treating. And now is his favorite part....eating the candy!

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Toothy Update

Jace now has tooth #5, and #6. He has two bottom teeth and four on the top. He doesn't seem to have others close to coming in now so he might slow down on his progress.

Jenner is still lagging quite a bit behind with only two teeth on the bottom. Jenner has lots of hard bumps below his gumline so I'm thinking he's going to get a lot of teeth in bunches.

This weekend was a busy one. We had hockey to go to. Latana & Chay went Friday night and Chay & I went Saturday night. Saturday evening, Latana took the twins to her parents to celebrate their anniversary. The on Sunday, we carved a pumpkin!

One Daycare

Ever since the twins were born, the daycare we send Chay to has not had enough room for both twins. There was room for one of the boys, but we did not want to split them up. So Latana's cousin and aunt, Ashley and Michelle, have been watching the twins while we are at work during the day. They started the week of Memorial Day and continued until Labor Day when Michelle had to return to her regular job. Since Labor Day, it has been Ashley watching the twins.

Last weekend, one of the kids in Chay's daycare turned old enough to change the numbers so that both of the twins could attend. So yesterday was the first day we packed up all three kids and took them to the same daycare. Its an adjustment period for everyone, but the twins seem to like it there. Everyone was super-tired last night so all of us went to bed early.

Ashely and Michelle did a great job watching the twins for the summer and into the fall. And we really appreciate them coming to our house every day and making sure our little ones were taken care of. 

October Update

This has been an action packed weekend! Before the weekend started, we discovered Jace has tooth #4 poking through his gums. Friday night, Chay & I went to the hockey game and then Chay had a sleep-over at Bailee and Carter's house. Chay had a great time! Saturday night was the twins first hockey game! Then on Sunday, we had Chay's birthday party at the house. Everyone was overly tired by the time Sunday evening rolled around!

Jace Tooth #3

Jace now has his third tooth!

Chay is 3!

Happy Birthday Chay! Our oldest turns three years old today. We no longer have 3 kids under the age of 3! :)

Artwork

I've been trying my hand at sketching lately. Trying to exercise that other side of my brain. What do you think?  

8 Months Old

The twins turned 8 months old today! Three quarters of a year have flown by in the blink of an eye.

Leaves Are Turning

Fall is here as evidenced by the turning colors of the leaves. But thanks to global warming, its still 80 degrees outside! They are predicting a high of 88 in two days.

Jace is starting to crawl all over the place and then when he gets to his destination, he stands up so long as he has something to hold on to. And Jace is often seen on the floor sitting unsupported. 

Jenner is behind Jace a few days or a week developmentally. It seems its been that way their entire life! Jenner can stand up like Jace but doesn't do the sitting thing as well.

Chay loved the hockey game Saturday night. If you asked him a question on Sunday, the most common answer you got was about riding the bus to the hockey game, even if that had nothing to do with the question you asked! :)

Hockey Begins

The hockey season officially begins for us tonight. Our team is playing in its first game of the season, albeit of the exhibition variety. Chay is super-excited for tonights game!

Picture Day

This morning, we took family pictures. Here are three boys in their nice clothes.

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He Stands Alone

Apparently, Jace crawled over to the couch today and pull himself up to a fully standing position! I'm sure Jenner will be doing likewise in the near future. Then it will be time to start walking.

Photo Shoot

On Saturday, we went up to Grand Forks. First, we had a visit with Mick's family. We gave Nathan his belated birthday present. After a good visit there, I was requested to take pictures for the Espelien's family photo shoot. We spent the better part of 3 hours taking photos and hopefully I have a few that they will like enough to use for their Christmas card this year.

Admittedly, I am biased, but I think the photo of Chay captured candidly during the photo shoot was the best unaltered picture of the day. There was no cropping or any other digital alterations performed on this photo. It appears exactly how it came out of my camera. 

Jenner Crawling

Jenner let me take this clip of him crawling...

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Jace Crawling

Here is video proof that Jace can crawl.

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New Kitchen Paint

Last night, Todd & I repainted the kitchen. Instead of the blue color we had previously, it is not a green that more closely matches the paint in the dining room/living room.

Sick Kids

Well Jenner got sick a few days ago. Not sure where he got it from. But he had a runny nose and a cough. Then he lost his voice. I can only imagine how tough it must be for a 7-month old to cry out when something isn't right only to have no cry.

Then Jenner bequeathed his cold to Jace who bequeathed it to Chay and Mom and Dad. So everyone has had a bit of a bug. Fortunately, its just a runny nose and an annoying cough and not much else. The kids all seem to be in good spirits through it all.

And while Jenner has been sick, he discovered how to crawl. He's not as fast as Jace, but he's starting to get around now.

Update

Jace is crawling now! And he managed to sit up on his own once. Jenner is just beginning to crawl too. Jenner has his first tooth and his second one isn't far behind. We attended Tyler's birthday party today. It was at Chay's favorite restaurant, Space Aliens. Afterward, we attempted to go to the water park, but it was closed for annual maintenance.

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Jenner's First Tooth

Jenner got his first tooth today! Jace still has two, but Jenner is trying to catch up!

7 Months

Forgot to add that the twins turned 7 months old a few days ago! :)

Labor Day

We hope everyone had a good Labor Day weekend. We spent the last two days at the lake. Chay had a wonderful time swimming and playing with his cousins.

Jace & Jenner are getting closer and closer to crawling. They manage to inch their way across the floor. now. With both of them getting more mobile, it means we have to shift our bed-time routine. Normally, I feed one while sitting on the bed and the other is just laying on the bed waiting his turn. That no longer works because it is hard to stop the one from rolling off the bed while you are preoccupied with feeding the other.  So we've moved to the floor. A few nights ago, Jace was entertaining himself on the floor while I fed Jenner. Jenner quickly fell asleep. I put Jenner's bottle on the floor, stood up and took Jenner to his crib for the night. When I came back, Jace had managed to find his way over to Jenner's bottle, picked it up, and started eating earlier than I had planned! LOL

This weekend brings an end to Michelle watching the twins two days a week. Michelle and Ashely have been splitting time all summer watching the twins while we are at work. Michelle now has to return back to work at her school so it will just be Ashely watching the twins during the week. The twins love to see Ashely in the morning, but I'm sure that they will miss seeing Michelle on a regular basis. And I know that Michelle will miss them as well. We will have to make sure that Michelle gets to visit the twins as often as she wants.

Summer's Ending

I can't believe the summer is over. The kids are all back in school in our neighborhood now. The summer went by too fast. Before we know it, the snow will start flying. Hockey season starts in one month and 3 days. And while we can't wait for it to begin, it also means the first snow will start flying in no more than one month after that. 

Quiet House

This weekend was a stark change from the previous weekend of bustling activity in the house. On Saturday, Latana was gone all day to go shopping at an outlet center to get needed clothes for the 3 boys. So it was just me and the 3 guys hanging out all day!

Busy House

This weekend, our house is very busy. On Friday, we had four of Latana's cousins stop by. And then Missy came over with her two boys. So we had 7 extras for supper that night. Kamren decided that he didn't want to go home so he stayed the night. Chay loved the extra houseguest.

Saturday, we hosted Kamren until about 4. That evening, my brother brought his family of six over and he also brought over my mother who is staying for a visit.

Today, we will continue visiting with my Mom and we will also see some friends of ours from Sioux Falls who are in the area.

I don't think we've ever had this many people over at our house spread out over a weekend like this.

First Baseball Game

Last night, we took the kids to their first baseball game as we watched the local FM Redhawks play Sioux City. I hope Chay isn't spoiled by the seats he had at his first game because we were in the Newman Outdoor luxury box.

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First Boat Ride

Yesterday, we went to the lake. Chay took his first boat ride as we cruised around the lake pulling others behind us on a inner tube. After the first inner tube ride was over, I asked Chay if he liked the boat ride and all he could say was "bounce on the water!" referring to the tube bouncing all over the place. He loved the ride though!

My First Ice Cream

Jenner gets his first taste of ice cream. He loved it!

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My Three Sons

This is an updated photo of our three boys.

Jace has been working on his pre-crawling activities. He can get up on his hands and knees now. He's not sure what to do next though. Jace also has his second tooth.

Chay has been a bit under the weather lately. We're hoping he gets better soon.

Jenner loves to stand. He needs some assistance, but he giggles when he stands up.

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Six Month Measurements

Jace & Jenner got a clean bill of health from the doctor today. For their reward, they got 3 shots each. :(

Jenner is now 26.8 inches long and weighs 17 pounds.
Jace is now 25 inches long and weights 16 pounds 10 ounces.

Both boys are getting more mobile. They aren't crawling yet, but both will manage to roll or scrunch their way along the floor.

I anxious to see Chay's measurements when he has his doctor appointment in two months.

Budding Computer Genius

Chay can never resist playing with a computer!

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Six Months Old

The twins are six months old today. My how time flies. They have a checkup on Friday and I will post updated measurements.

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First Tooth

Jace got his first tooth today!

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July Update

The twins are doing great. Growing like weeds. Jace often sleeps through the night. Jenner will get up once during the night. That is the rule and there are exceptions like last night where Jace got up at 4am for a feeding and Jenner slept through the night. Both twins are rolling over and teething like crazy. Jenner is talking more and more now and Jace often found laughing at Chay's antics.

Chay is going great as well. His vocabulary is picking up. On Saturday I heard him say, "Mom! I gave Jenner a toy and Jace a toy!". A well-formed 9-letter sentence. He loves to help out around the house. If I take something to the garage to throw in the trash bin, he has to help me.

The twins have a checkup on the 5th and I'll be sure to post the latest info for them.

Car Door

Hi, my name is Jenner. Normally, I sit on the passenger side of daddy's pickup, Jace on the driver's side, and Chay holding down the fort in the middle. Well the lock on my door quit working. So daddy was nice enough to rip apart the door and replace the lock for me.

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Only in North Dakota

As I write this, everyone in the house is sleeping but me. I can only hope the twins have visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads. I find myself wishing tonight were Christmas Eve and that I would see the twinkling lights on the tree, open the shades and witness snowflakes making a white cotton blanket of my lawn. But maybe I wish that only because it is so freakin hot outside! Today we topped out at 99 degrees. On my way home this evening, it was 90 degrees at 11pm and the dewpoint was 80 making it feel like 105 outside. This was not a 105 heat index at high noon when I would expect to find a man taking a siesta under his sombrero. This is 11pm in Fargo, ND! I'll take the dry heat of the desert southwest over this dripping, sultry, beat-you-into-submission heatwave we have been experiencing lately. Moorhead's heat index reached 134 for the day!

Tonight on the way home, my windshield was getting pelted with so many different bug varieties that it was becoming difficult to see. That's when it struck me to try my ice scraper to clean up the mess. Only in ND will an ice scraper be an implement of choice year-round...for removing ice in the winter and bugs in the summer.

Earlier today, I was reading a blog of a newcomer to our city. She was lamenting how in March, she got excited to see 25 degree weather after freezing all winter long. I know exactly how she feels. After a long winter, the first 25 or 30 degree day feels like Spring has Sprung, when most of the country would be shivering their collective ________ (you fill in the blank). Tomorrow's forecast is for another 90+ degree day with high humidity. But on Thursday, we are looking forward to a cooler 85 degree day! I can't wait! Only in ND can you think that a 25 degree day in March means the harsh weather is over and an 85 degree day in July means the harsh weather is over. LOL

It's no wonder Fargo won weather.com's worst weather city in a bracket tournament last March. Fargo easily beat all opponents. The only head-scratcher was that the finals against Bradford, PA was actually close. Seriously...does anyone outside of the 814 area code have Bradford, PA in their top-10 list of worst weather cities?

Name another city in the USA, including Alaska, Hawaii, DC and its territories that has a 130 degree swing in the normal temperatures. It was 99 degrees here today and I guarantee you that in 6 or 7 months, we'll see a -30 degree day. Toss in the annual rite of spring where Delta Tau Delta and Kappa Alpha Theta team up to craft a vessel 300 cubits by 50 cubits by 30 cubits, not for some wacky Greek race down the Red River but as a backup plan in case the dyke fails. Toss in the 60 m.p.h winds here last night and the 4 inches of rain that fell in one hour. Toss in the 5-to-1 ratio of mosquito to man...and you will have to agree that Fargo has the worst weather in the nation.

But only in ND will you find the residents who actually wanted their city to win the contest, proclaiming that our regular dealings with Mother Nature are not something that make us miserable but is a badge of honor. It would be great if Santa would make a surprise July trip to leave Chay, Jace, and Jenner stockings filled with care. I'm off to bed now, but not before I leave a glass of milk and a plate of cookies on the counter...just in case. Ho Ho Ho. After all, only in ND would Santa come in July, right?

Twins Say Hi

The twins just wanted to say hi and have me post an updated picture of them!

Fourth Fun

We went to the lake on Sunday. On the 4th, we stayed at home, ran a few errands, and found some time to enjoy the very hot day outside. Chay loved the sprinkler we set up in the backyard. The twins sat and watched.

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Happy Independence Day

Everyone please have a happy and safe Fourth of July holiday.

Yesterday we went to the lake for the day. Chay had a great time swimming and playing with his cousins. The twins had a good time just hanging out. 

Chay with Cat in the Hat at the park

Our boys posing for a picture together

Cars 2

This afternoon, we are going to take Chay to his first movie theater experience. He loves the movie Cars and Cars 2 came out this weekend, so Latana & I are going to see how well he'll sit for a 2-hour movie. If we pump him up with enough pop and popcorn, I'm sure Lightning McQueen and Mater will do the rest to entertain him for the full 2 hours.

Update: Chay liked the movie even though the critics rated it a stinker. We attempted to see the 3:20pm showing but it was sold out so we bought tickets for the 5:10pm showing. We felt the need to arrive early to get a good seat. I think it was a bit too much for the two-year old as about 1 hour 20 minutes into the movie he became restless. But we made it through Chay's first movie in a theater and he had fun, which is all that matters. 

Update

The twins are doing great. Both are getting bigger and bigger. They sleep mostly through the night now. One of them might get up around 4am for a quick bottle, and normally that is Jenner, but both will sleep from 9pm until at least 6am now. We wish Chay would sleep that good!

Jace is over his colic, thankfully! Now that he is no longer colicky, he is quite the happy baby. It is a night and day difference. That colic was a long 3 months. Jace will still spit up a lot of food. It is common for him to wear 5 different outfits during one 24 hour period. But he should be getting over that in the next month or two.

Both twins are rolling over and teething quite a lot. Jace has started to roll back now. Jenner is almost there.

Chay is still being a terror around the house. LOL. He loves playing with his brothers, his toys, and watching either Shrek, Toy Story, or Cars. And he's a big sports nut. During hockey season, he would play hockey all the time in the house. Once hockey was over and I started to watch the NBA playoffs, he would play basketball all the time. I don't get into the summer sports on TV much, so Chay has been varying it up between hockey, basketball, and bowling. Yesterday, we took Chay to a parade in Enderlin. Chay was the only kid on his side of the block so he came home with a ton of candy!

Latana & I have been very busy working and raising the kids. It's about all we have time for. :)

Pickup Truck

For some reason, Chay loves to hang out in the bed of my pickup.

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First Cereal

The twins had their first taste of something other that straight formula today. I gave them a bit of rice cereal. Jace seemed to really like it. Jenner was a bit more reserved.

Twins Checkup

The twins had a regular checkup today. They doctor said they are looking great! Both guys are growing quite a bit. Considering they were 1 month early, they are starting to catch up to kids their age. The doctor said that you can't tell any more if they are developmentally behind, which is good news.

Jace weighed in today at 12 pounds 13 oz and is 23.75 inches tall.
Jenner weighed in today at 13 pounds 13 oz and is 25 inches tall.

Both boys received two shots each today for their regular immunizations. They both cried terribly, but it is necessary. 

Four Months Old

The twins are four months old today! They are getting bigger and stronger every day. They have a doctor appt tomorrow where they'll get more immunizations. I'll post their measurements after that appt.

Chay & Chay

Last week, we went to Crookston to meet some of the Sioux hockey players. This is probably the last time for Chay to meet his namesake, Chay Genoway as his career at UND has concluded.

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Weeklong Trends

The twins have spent this week learning how to sleep more at night. This past week, both of them have managed to sleep a good 7 hour stretch or more every night. We're hoping they keep it up!

Chay has been without his pacifier for the week as well. I think he has had it once the entire week, but otherwise, he's been pacifier-free. 

Rollover

Last night, Jenner rolled over from his back to his tummy for the first time. Then this morning, Jace accomplished the same feat!

Chay's New Room

Chay's room is complete. Here you can see his headboard. One of my favorite touches is the night stands are little lockers! Chay is such a sport nut these days. So this theme is perfect.

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New Room

Chay's bedroom is getting a makeover. We spent last weekend painting and the new finishings should be in place this week. I'll post pictures when I get some of the completed room.

Happy Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day!

I thought I'd give a quick update.

Chay has been busy learning more and more every day. He talks in complete sentences now. He's always asking me "what you doing?". He knows all of his numbers from 0-9. I'm pretty sure that his favorite number is 4 because when we are in the grocery store, he always wants to go down aisle 4. Chay can even count up to 8 or 9, depending on the day. Once in a while, he'll get 2&5 mixed up, or 6&9 mixed up. But otherwise he's doing really good with the number. We need to get him started on letters next. Chay is getting faster now too. I think he might be faster than his mom now! LOL

The twins turned 3 months old on Monday. They are gaining weight like crazy. They pretty much have figured out that nighttime means sleep although they still get up for nighttime feedings. It is easier when they sleep at night because it means you can feed them and go right back to bed instead of being up for a couple of hours or more with them. Both boys are getting more and more smiley. And Jenner is starting to be a jabberbox. Other than that, there isn't much news from the twins. They don't have many tricks yet.

Otherwise, its been busy taking care of the kids and trying (whenever we get a chance) to get some work done around the house. I power raked the lawn yesterday but didn't have time to clean it all up until this morning. And I'm not sure when I'll get a chance to mow the lawn. But such is life when you have 3 kids under 3 and two of them are infant twins. :) 

Shoot The Ball

Last night, we had someone babysit the twins. Latana and I took Chay to his favorite restaurant, Space Aliens. He loves the arcade, especially the basketball game. He sunk 5 in a row and 7 of,8!

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Only in North Dakota

On Thursday, it was sunny and warm. People in the neighborhood were mowing their lawn for the first time of the season and enjoying the outdoor after the long winter. Yesterday for baptism, we had some cancel their trip due to a blizzard warning and this morning I work up to snow on the ground.

Baptism

Yesterday the twins were baptized. Below are proud parents, the twins, and all of the godparents.

This next picture shows Jace with his godparents Missy & Joel and Chris & Lisa.

This picture shows Jenner with his godparents Lakken and Mick & Sandy.

Happy Easter

Chay found an egg left by the Easter Bunny

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Helping Out

Chay is helping wash the twin's bottles.

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My 3 Sons

The twins are getting bigger! And Chay says "hi"

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Lakken and her cousins

We got all three (Ty, Lakken and Taran) to pose for a picture after Grand March.

Lakken being silly

After everyone goes through Grand March they all come around a second time and do something fun. Lakken got a Buzz Light Year balloon for her nephews and niece. She gave my mom strict rules to take that balloon home because it wasn't fair that one nephew got it and not the other. Chay had his eye on that balloon though because Buzz is his favorite. I'm pretty sure we'll be having a Toy Story birthday party this year. At one point he said....mama (grandma) where is Buzz balloon.

Lakken's Junior Prom

Chay & I went to see my sister Lakken and her date Taylor at Grand March last night. Lakken looked very pretty.

Colic Boy

If there was any doubt, our twins are definitely not identical...especially in the attitude department. Jenner is Mr. Laid-Back. He's rarely in a bad mood. Jace is a very fussy baby. We can't wait until the Colic disappears. He's getting better but he still has his moods some days.

And of course, we need an updated pic of Chay too!

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Jace at 10 Weeks

And here is an updated pic of Jace

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Jenner at 10 Weeks

Its about time I posted an updated picture of this guy.

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Rainy Day

The Red River is cresting and it is pouring rain outside now. That's not a good mix. But these guys are taking it all in stride.

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The Sickness

Life around our busy household has been even crazier the last few weeks due to everyone being sick. Chay's daycare had a bad cold going around and we were hopeful that Chay was going to be unaffected because he was the only one there that was healthy. Turns out he was just the last one to get it. Chay was home for a week recovering. Towards the end of that week, I got it. I think that if I was getting more than 4-5 hours of sleep a night, I would have been able to fight it off. As I was recovering, Jace started to get sick. Jenner was a little under the weather, but for the most part, he fared well. Just when we thought we were done, Latana came down with a mild cold. Then yesterday, Chay came home from daycare with a fever but that was it. Others had the same thing. Chay's fever was as high as 103 but was easily controlled with Tylenol. After 24 hours, he seems to be fine, just a fever a nothing else that had to run its course. Everyone appears mostly healthy now and lets hope it stays that way for a while. But I can tell you life is no fun with "the sickness" running through the house AND newborn twins demanding hourly attention!

Twin Conversation

I wonder if this is what life will be like a year from now....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JmA2ClUvUY&feature=related

Our Three Boys

From Latana: Brian was taking pictures for our birth announcements and Chay wanted to be in the picture too so he decided to lay in between Jace & Jenner.  The twins wouldn't cooperate too much but we could hear Chay say Daddy...Cheese.  Then he would say Daddy...I see picture.  He wanted to see the picture Brian had just taken of him. 

  Jace looks a lot like my side of the family.  Especially my grandpa. 

This was the picture that was taken the day we left the NICU.  This was also the first time that Jace & Jenner were together since they were born. They each had their own cribs in the NICU. It was so funny to watch them.  Their eyes got big as they sat and looked at each other. 

Jenner & Jace hanging out on the bed. 

Jenner looks just like Chay's baby pictures & definately looks like Brian.

Getting Bigger

A nurse came to the house today to check up on the twins. Jenner is now 7.9 pounds while Jace is right behind at 7.2 pounds. Jace is catching up!

On another note, college hockey playoffs start tonight. Go Sioux!

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Getting Bigger

Last week, a nurse came to the house to weigh the twins. Both boys are gaining weight. Jace now weighs about 50% more than he did when he was born!!!

At Home

Jenner and Jace resting comfortably at home.

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Chay Is A Big Brother

While the twins were in the NICU, Chay was not allowed in to see his brothers. We spent time telling him of his brothers. And we showed him lots of pictures. After I put the car seats in the back seat, on either side of Chay's seat, Chay would occasionally point to one and say "Jace" or say "Jenner". So he was getting the idea of the fact that he had two brothers that would be joining him soon. But how much does a 2-year really comprehend with these sorts of things? We were worried about how Chay would react when reality hit home (literally and figuratively). In the past, Chay has thrown a fit when he has seen either of his parents holding another infant. Would he do the same when Jace & Jenner came home? Would he lash out or would he embrace his younger siblings? It turns out to be the latter. Chay has been great around Jace and Jenner. He seems to really enjoy have them around. We'll see if that attitude remains when they get bigger and try to play with one of Chay's prized toys!

At home - Jace

Jace is comfortably at home.

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At home - Jenner

Jenner is comfortably at home.

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02:01:05:32

The twins were in the NICU for 2 weeks, 1 day, 5 hours and 32 minutes. Tonight, they were both released and we able to come home with us. We are very excited to have our entire family in one place!

Any Day Now - Again

The twins are both doing awesome! It won't be long and they'll be coming home! Yeah!!!!

Jace Pic

A more recent photo of Jace. He no longer has the feeding tube in his nose.

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Jenner Pic

A more recent photo of Jenner.

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Any Day Now

The doctors/nurses have not given us any information on when the twins will be coming home, but we are getting closer. They keep hinting it will be soon. We expect they will both be home by the weekend!

Jenner Update

I went to the NICU over lunch like I do most every day. Jace has been doing great as has been written in previous posts. We got better news on Jenner. He ate all of his bottles over the nighttime. Once the sun came up, he wasn't eating as much, but this is progress! And Jenner also passed his car seat test!

Twins Update Again

Here is the latest news. Jenner has started finishing a bottle once in a while. The more he eats the better. Jace passed his car seat test earlier today! Before they can come home, the infant has to sit in a car seat for 1.5 hours and they monitor their vital signs every 15 mins. Sometimes, infants will lose blood oxygen saturation when in a car seat. But not Jace. He passed with flying colors!!! One other thing, both boys are now above their birth weight.

Eat Up

Jace has been eating every thing he can. They have upgraded him to Recovery Care, which means he is one big step closer to coming home. Jenner is starting to eat more but he lags behind his brother.

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Another Update

Jace is still doing great. Jenner is now off breathing assistance. Yeah!!!

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Twins Update

I thought I would type up a quick update. Both Jace and Jenner are still in the NICU. Jace is doing great! He has no breathing assistance and he is keeping his body temperature up. He has been eating good too. Jace just needs to gain some weight. Jenner still has a little breathing assistance but he is getting much better in that department. Once Jenner can get the nasal cannula off, they will take him off the warming bed and try to feed him from a bottle. I think Jenner will have little difficulties making the transition. Both boys have a little jaundice so they are both receiving photo-therapy for a few days. Both boys continue to improve and we are getting more and more anxious to bring them home! Latana came home yesterday. She is still very sore but glad to be home.

Cool Shades

Jenner needs some photo-therapy so he gets these awesome shades to provide relief from the light

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