Sing it right!!!!!!!!!

Quick Update

Just to let everyone know we are all fine. We had quite a flash flood and lost a lot of stuff, mostly sentimental stuff. The main computer was on the ground and so we lost that as well as the cable modem and everything else that gives us internet access. I am posting from school this week anad hopwe to be back up at home later in the week. I have finals this week and am looking forward to 3 weeks off and my friend Jodi coming to visit with Harris.
This household is so ready for summer. We cant wait.

That is all this week. For now, we can be reached on the cell phones. (the home phone was through the cable). I will post when I can until then. Love to all.

a visit to the firehouse

Most know I joined the fire department here in Terre Du Lac, MO. I really enjoy it. so far I have learned how to pump on all of the trucks and to engineer a scene. I train Wednesday nights at fire meetings. I haven't been to a fire yet, but have made several medical calls with the EMS. I love that I am able to give back to the community and utilize my nursing skills beyond my job. The boys love it. We recently went to the firehouse to look at the trucks. The boys didnt like the siren though, LOL. They also think my gear is pretty cool too.

random pictures

Logan

Connor

Trev-so serious

Logan enjoing some cocoa

I just love the eyes

Last weekend at the beach.....

Connor

Logan

My duo

My 3 men!

Last weekend was so nice and warm. It was great to go splash in the lake and enjoy the outdoors. WE plan on spending quite a bit of time here this summer.

I'ts been a long time. I will try to catch up....

Trev is doing well in school. His last report card was 2 A's and 4 B's. He is doing great. He is finally adjusting at this new school, but the differences between the two schools are quite evident. Hanna Woods was so much smaller and he was really thriving there. This school is HUGE, housing only up to 2nd grade. The individualiation isnt there. He is doing OK nonetheless. For right now, we will go with the public school for next year as the IEP is what helps him the most, but we will see how it goes.
He is taking summer school for 2 weeks after school. It will be great for him- like summer day camp. Get this, It is all free. He gets the bus in the a.m. like usual, eats breakfast and lunch there and after the 2 weeks is up, if he had perfect attendance, he gets a $75 gift card to Walmart. How cool. I will post more pictures tomorrow. I just loved this one of Trevor so much.

celebrating the big 35

This year to celebrate the big 35, Our friends Mike and Amy and their kids came out to visit and we had a great cookout and bonfire. It was lots of fun and reminded me of Jellystone life. We enjoyed the fire a lot. It was noce sharing the great outdoors with friends for my birthday.

Connor getting ready for s'mores
Our fire that had lots of color in it. for some reason, the vines that were chopped up previously made the neatest colors.

Our fire pit in the back yard.

Mike making some serious s'mores.

The duo have a big boy room!

For now, their peapods will be the crib tents. This at least keeps them secured at night so I dotn worry about them running around and getting into crap. I stil have a few more things to do, but was so happy with how it turned out. This was my first venture into doing a mural and i am sure Korrie would blow me away. I wish she could have been here to help me out.

I kinda liek my little dalmation.

The beds are fabulous and so so sturdy. they are made by Kidcraft. I figured, I ma not having any more children, so I pulled the trigger and ordered these beds for them. I figure they should last until they are about 6. My duo is on the small fry side anyway. The boys fell in love with the beds instantly (though I dont blame them). I have more to do. I have a shelf to hang that will house their turn-out gear (fire hat and jackets). I also have 50 ft of real firehose that my friend gave to me to use in the room. i wnat to do it as a border. It is very heavy though with brass nozzels, so we will see. I also want to paint a flower box in front of the firehouse and a firehydrant and flag pole with american flag on it. But I am bushed. I worked on this all week.

enjoying nice weather

It has been warm here on a few days (but then t will get just as cold). We were able to do a nature hike in our font yard and go to the Terre du Lac park.

Since i have been on spring break, I have been busy- big surprise. On Monday, I ended up with Trev in the ER for him not being able to pee and he was hysterical because it hurt so bad. Turns out he has a urinary tract infection. They gave him some antibiotics and we were on our way. The first few days were hard for him to get his pee going and I had to hold his hand, but he is much better now. poor little man.

I have been diligently working away at the duo's room. I am so excited to have it done and I am so proud of my very own mural ability.

For now i must get some sleep. more pictures and posts to come....

Connor- this is why kids swing....

Logan

Connor

Logan left, connor right

Connor

Logan

Quick update

Routines

Routines are hard. However, we have managed now to keep routine for a month with this family. It isnt always easy, but when the kids know what is expected, it is easier. Trevor is keeping up with his school routine. He is making friends. School is kicking my butt, but spring break is next week on March 9 and i will so enjoy the time off from school to work on the boys rooms. The duo will have a mural painted by moi, and Trevor will have a dino painted by moi if time allows. John will likely be working on getting the family room functional. So we have a lot on our plates.

Now, for the me saga.... My nerve damage is likely permanent. The Dr showed me on a new xray where the nerve is severed from where the wisdom tooth was. The numbness is localized now to the left lower jaw. All the teeth, gums, cheek and lip are numb. It makes for very difficult chewing and eating is just plain not enjoyable now. Think of what is feels like when you are numbed for a cavity filling, but it never goes away. That is it. I have to be careful when I brush that i am not causing my gums to bleed and I have to be careful when i eat that I do not chew my cheek or lip (things I have done numerous times already). I still have bone pain in the jaw. He said 4 weeks for that to start easing. Sometimes it is intense and I get migraines too from it. The pain goes into my temples on both sides. It really just totally sucks.

The duo

Ahhhhh, the duo. They are talking so much. The biggest phrase out of thier mouths is "Me do it". I wish I had a quarter for each time they say this and I would be a millionaire by the end of the week. From dressing, to getting in their booster seats to doing up the carseat belts, it is "me do it!". Independence has hit for sure.

That is all for us now. We are enjoying living in the new house. It is quite nice. Can't believe a month has gone by already.

More house pictures

The lower level family room. When we first moved in, it was a cememnt slab with dirt and leaves and dead bugs on the floor. The theme is movies. We will have the big screen TV down here and the surround sound. We still have to paint the walls and add curtain valances and some moulding on the floor, but you can get the jist here
I hung more pictures in the kitchen. This si a good view of the french doors during the day.

The crap I have been through....

OK, so Ihad my 4 wisdom teeth removed on Saturday the 14th. They were impacted in the bone and settled at a 45 degree angle as my jaw was too small to accomodate them. 4 months ago I had to have my very back 2 molars extracted because my wisdom teeth had damaged them, causing them to crack and break below the gum line. Well I thought that was painful.....

I remember the DR placing the IV in to put me to sleep, but I have a very spotty memory of what happened in the 36 hours after. All I know is I woke up looking like this.

I was grossly swollen and so so sore and bleeding and the Dr had cut my lip! I had no feeling in my entire left side of my face- like I had a stroke and talking was difficult. I could barely open my mouth to eat any pureed food. I was sick to my stomach. I thought it was the antibiotic, but now I believe it was the anesthesia that made me sick and I am going to try to resume the antibiotic for preventative purposes. I do not need or want an infection.

Fast forward to today. I am looking better. The anti-inflamatories have helped with the swelling and nerve compression, but i still am considerably numb on the left side. My cheek is stiff still and difficult to smile. I also have a hard lump along my jawbone. Not sure if it is a hematoma or what, but it better go away.

I still resemble someone with Bells Palsy or something of the like. I was able to eat more and get my mouth open wider. One of my sutures popped too. It is frustrating. I didnt know I would be so numb with nerve damage. The Dr did say my roots were resting right next to the nerve and this was a risk.

So this is the crap I have been dealing with.

Mom went home today. I already miss her. We did very well with upholding some of the routines she helped us to establish with the boys and I do feel that as it becomes the absolute norm ( it has only been 2 weeks) and they fully know what is expected, things will only go smoother. We were so lucky to have her here to help us move and unpack and clean as much as she did. I feel so good that she got to see our lovely new house and new furniture and feel our giddy hapiness with us.

Miss you mom. I am sure Jay is glad to have you back home. The boys still knock on my office door and say "where Nanny?" (sniff, sniff).

Some pics of the new house.

Now keeping in mind that we want to do some painting too, this is how it will have to be until we have time off in summer. this is the kitchen and upstairs living room. I love the openess and flow of the house. I was able to hang some pictures, but have more to hang, but you can get a glimpse at the new dining set and couch and loveseat upstairs in th eliving room. There is a new couch downstairs in the family room, but that room is still being put together, so when it is done, I will post pics. That room will have our big TV and surround sound and will be the movie watching room.

Kitchen
Kitchen from the hall (Logan looking cute)

Logan my cleaner (Nanny bought the boys some hand brooms to help clean) and the new dining set. It is black and dark cherry and we love the bench idea as is tucks away nicely. The french doors open up to our deck on the back.

Kitchen view from the dining table. I love the built-in pantry which is as deep as the fridge is. You can see how the fireplace is a corner one and wraps around into the living room. The nice thing is that the boys are able to watch their morning Noggin and have breakfast at the same time.

The barren living room. It is in great need of some pictures on the wall. Eventually I will corner mount the Flat screen TV to eliminate the stand. The window in the wall looks down into the foyer.

Living room view from the bay window.

I am loving this house a lot. The space we have is amazing. Some of my kitchen cupboards only have 1 or 2 items in them from havign lots of space. I am used to creatively cramming stuff into place, so this is a treat.

It has been interesting giving the boys the run of the house. It's been 2 weeks and they have been a handful. But they are learning quickly how things work and the structure is benefitting them well. Mom has been a godsend and helping with consistency. Connor does well with the potty training and Logan just wants to play. It is annoying. Connor is much more astute at everything and is sooo sooo smart. Logan is coy and manipulative. He will take something he wants and sneak it back to his room and lock the door. (stinker)

I am recovering OK. the surgery was rough. I have amnesia of the whole day, except I remember sobbing all the way home in pain. From there I went to sleep in bed and aside from mom and John waking me to give me meds and ice packs, the next thing I knew was it was Sunday afternoon. I am still quite swollen, though not as bad and I am now getting some of the nerve feeling back in my cheeks. It was numb and frozen as if I had had a stroke. It is hard to talk and smiling is out- that hurts a lot. As feeling comes back my mouth or lips twitch uncontrolably. I drool when I talk-how embarrassing. I have pretty much stuck to pureed food or liquids. I have lots of sutures that are supposed to dissolve on thier own. I am planning on returning to work tomrrow. I figure I should be OK, even if i do look funny.

Trevor started at his new school today and seems to like it. He will have a long day. He catches the bus at 6:40ish and gets to school at 7am and has breakfast. Then he gets home at about 3:40 ish. He had lots of good things to say about the school, so that is a good thing.

That is all for now. It is late. Will post more later.

Ahhhhhh, almost settled.

The move went seamless. It was great. We have our wonderful friends, Mike and Amy and their family to thank. They gave so much of their time ot help us out. Slowly we are putting boxes away. We couldnt have asked for better moving weather. Despie the fact that it snowed 6.5 inches of snow just days before our move, it managed to make it over 50 both days and melt the snow away. It was clear as can be that Saturday night.
So the duo have taken well to their newfound freedom of the whole house. There are no restrictions here, jsut a lot of diligence. Mom has been such a huge help in helping us get things put away. Her help has been invaluable. She has had her eyes fully opened to the busy lifestyle we lead here. I am excited that the new furniture will arrive on Friday the 13th. I cant wait to see it in my house. It will be so nice to have new stuff to use.
I am having surgery on the 14th. They are taking out my 4 wisdom teeth which have become inpacted in the bone. They will have to remove bone to get them out and then suture me up. I am really nervous about the surgery. I told them to make sure I was fully knocked out. I think I will need several Xanax to ge there and thru the door. Luckily mom is here to help out with the boys and let me lay lifeless for a couple of days.
A new happening in the news is the boys (mostly Connor) using the potty. Connor has been communicating the need to use the potty and has pooped and peed on the potty.YAY!!!!Logan is still a bit behind in this respect, but has peed in the potty. Trev will be registered for school tomorrow. Hoping for a smooth transition for him there.
That is all for now. Will soon post pictures once the new funiture is in place. We are loving the new life out here. I still am baffled by how much less I fill my tank and how much more time I have at home with the boys.
That is all for now. Post more later!

3 days and counting....

3 days until the move. We are still frantically getting things loaded in boxes. Last night we got a dusting of snow and ice. It was expected to be much worse, but it turned out to just be enough to make the grass white and the roads are all clear. This needs to be gone by the weekend. It seems like evedrytime we move we are stuck with inclement weather.
I will post new pictures when I get us settled!

Clebrating the 3rd birthday via webcam with Nanny and Grandad

The boys get sung to by Nanny and Grandad on the web cam.

Updates galore

The duo are now 3!!!!! I cannot believe it. When I look back at their very early arrival and how small they were, it is amazing to see how far they have come. In fact, the other day, I was looking at Logan and thought, "Logan, you are looking beefy". He has always been the "skinny" twin. So I decided to strip them both down and weigh them. Connor was 29.6lb and Logan was 29.4 lb. This is the closest they have been in weight since they were in the NICU. They are doing wonderful. Speech improves daily, especially for Connor who is a little parrot on everything. He has finally been forming some intelligible sentences and communicting well. I think he may be mastering trickery too. The other day, they both had cookies, well Connor wanted another one, so he looked at me and said "Conner wants another cookie" I said "he does?" acting all coy. He points to Logan and says "yeah, Connor" and started giggling. It was funny because he recognizes he has a twin brother:)

Of course they are still up to their same old tricks. Stripping, climbing,ect. The move will be interesting as we do not plan to restrict them from any part of the house in order to work on potty learning. They are very ready, we just need to master it now. They pee in the potty very well, and Logan has went poo once, but we havent been able to be consistent.

The duo watch as Grandad sings

We didnt do much for the birthday this year as we are living amongst chaos right now (and I know Jessica can fully understand my pain) with boxes everywhere.

Today I get the keys to the new house and slowly this week will begin moving a carload of boxes a day until Saturday's big move day.
Moving is exciting. We bought new furniture- but it will take 3-4 weeks to come in. We bought from Ashley- new couch and loveseat for the upstairs living room and a new couch for the downstairs family room and a very nice new dining table set. The nice thing is they will deliver it to us and move it all in , so no lifiting for us!!! It was time. Our stuff is aweful!. In the future, a new bed for us. The boys will have a new room theme-firetrucks- or as the duo call them "roo roos" I am excited. their stuff comes on Wednesday and I cant wait to get their room in order.
I am absolutely in love with the new house and community. I cant wait to walk around the lake everyday and finally get those bikes out and put to good use!!!
That is all for now. I hope it wont be too long before another update, but with moving it might be crazy. I will send out new address cards soon.
Love to you all!!!!

Logan rocks the Air guitar to Guns and Roses!

OH the woes of a busy busy life....

Well, as you all know, we are moving very soon. As I look around, I am screaming EEK! at how much needs to still be packed. We are moving in just over 2 weeks and it is coming up quickly. To top it off, I am having ot get Trevor situated into a new school too. Speaking of school, John and I both started back to school. for Spring semester. I am taking a whopping 16 hours (yes I know I am a glutton for punishment. Yes I know I am going to kill myself this semester with moving, but I am a strong woman and can do this!!!!!!!) I still have yet to schedule my wisdom teeth surgery which is looking like the middle of Feb. If I schedule it the Friday before Predisents day, I wont miss but one day of school and will have time to recoup since we have no school on that Monday.

UGH, Mom is coming to stay for a couple of weeks to help us move. God love her. I need her sooooooo bad.

So forgive my scatty brain as a lot is transpiring in the next few weeks. I love you all, please forgive me for missing any birthday greetings and stuff. I feel like a bad aunt, cousin, daughter, sister, for missing so much. I think about you all constantly and things will settle down soon. I hope to post something of the twins 3rd birthday. We dont plan on a big hoorah, probably just a family dinner out to do something fun.

Love to you all,
Blitzed in the new year!

Heading home-but not before stopping by Grandma jan and grandpa Bob's house in Roann,IN

Opening presents from Grandma and Grandpa
After, we drove down in Bob's truck to visit with the cows. This one is a bull named Edwin.

Seening that Edwin was getting all of the attention, the Heifers came down to visit too. This is Connor looking at all of the cows.

The old covered bridge in RoAnne. This is the longest one in Indiana.

Bob, escorting us to all of the Roann scenery

Trevor

The old mill

Bob and Grandma's home Arrowhead Acres.

After we got back, we went out for a nice meal in Wabash before we set out on a long ride home. What a wonderful trip home it was for us to see so many family and friends (not to mention I did get to see my friend jodi and her little darlings too). We were fortunate and blessed with great weather.