GREAT DAY FOR A PLAY DATE

Today the girl's & I headed down to Burlington to have a play date with Elizabeth. It's hard to believe that it has been two months since we last had a play date. Of course the girl's had a ton of fun playing with Elizabeth and her great outdoor toys.

We have been talking about getting Olivia & Avery a sandbox for their birthday and today confirmed how much they would enjoy one. They loved playing in Elizabeth's sand box. Even after we put the lid back on Olivia was trying to get it off and play some more with the sand.

Here are some really cute picture's from today.....

A NEW PET

Last week Brian & I did something we had never done before. I took Avery shopping with me while Brian stayed at home with Olivia. The two of us were just amazed at how different it was to only have one child instead of two. We both couldn't believe how calm life was. Something we will have to do more often.

While Avery and I were shopping at Walmart we headed over to the pet section where she instantly noticed the fish. I had her point to one that she liked and that was the one we brought home.

This little guy has entertained these two everyday. They just love to sit and watch him swim around, they get super excited when it's his feeding time.

BUSY WEEKEND!!

Since it was such a beautiful day on Saturday, the four of us headed to Downtown Guelph and then over to Guelph Conservation Park. The girl's had a great time exploring, and Mommy & Daddy had a great time watching them.

Today the girl's had their very first bridal shower to go to. I just never know how the girl's will be at an event like this, especially when their nap gets cut short. They were a little hesitant at first with so many people around, but after awhile they settled right in.

Of course they didn't want to eat with all the excitement going on, but I did manage to get a couple of bottles of milk into them.

Auntie Linda & Uncle Joey

Bride & Groom to be!

Princess Olivia

Playing outside of the hall

Daddy & Olivia

Sweet Little Avery

ENJOYING A BEAUTIFUL DAY

THE RETURN OF POPEYE?No actually it's just Olivia flashing a Popeye smile. This is her new smile now every time she sees me pull out the camera. She looks at me and with that crooked smile says "CHEESE" it is so darn cute.

Yesterday afternoon we headed out again to the mall in search of some dress shoes for the girl's. They have their first bridal shower this weekend. I can't wait to see how they do with 100+ women. Yes it's a BIG one. I finally found them some shoes at Payless, they have a great sale on right now. Buy one get the other half price. I can never resist a sale, especially since I have two to buy for.

After we had finished shoe shopping it was getting close to the girl's dinner time so we thought we would try another restaurant. They weren't as patient as they were the other night, only because they were hungry. But they were still very good. After they finished their dinner we ordered them some ice cream. They've both had it before but never on a cone. They LOVED it. Avery even ate some of the cone.

FAMILY NIGHT OUT

After being couped up after all four of us were sick, we finally decided we just needed to get out. A change of scenery for all of us was needed. So when Brian got home from work tonight that's exactly what we did. We packed the girl's up and headed out for dinner.

The two of them were so good. They didn't fuss once at the restaurant. The best part about dinner tonight for me was that not one piece of food hit the floor. They ate almost everything! To say that they were well behaved would be an understatement. To say that they were perfect angel's would be correct. They were so good that we thought since their not fussing why not take them over to the mall since it was just across the street from where we were.

When we got into the mall they were pretty content sitting back in their stroller and relaxing. After about 10minutes of this they were ready to come out and do some exploring.

We walked around the mall for nearly two hours with them. I think I had more fun than they did. I just love to stand back and watch them take it all in.

One store we went in, there was a little girl who was the same size as the girl's were, only a year older. Avery was her typical shy self, while Olivia on the other was "little miss sociable". She walked right up to the little girl almost nose to nose and said "HI" I thought I was going to die from laughter. She amazes me all the time. She is so sweet that at times it can break your heart. My mother describes her as someone who loves life. Oh so true. She has the type of personality that people are drawn to.

So after buying the girl's some sandals for the summer, and the cutest pair of sunglasses ever, we headed home had some milk and off to bed. Not a peep out of them.

IS THIS WHAT THEY CALL THE TERRIBLE TWO'S ?

HAPPY EASTER

We hope everyone had a great Easter this year.

Ours was full of sneezing, coughing, lots of Kleenex, and of course sleeping. Yes we are ALL sick. It started about a week ago. What I thought was a simple head cold that would pass in a few days, turned into more than I bargained for. By the third day I had a sore throat and a really nasty cough. By the end of last week Brian then became sick and within two days of him getting sick the girl's were also blessed with this wonderful cold.

Because of us all being sick, we ended up missing our traditional Easter dinner at Brian's parent's Saturday. We didn't think it would be a good idea to share our germs. Especially since Auntie Nancy had Nicholas at the hospital a few weeks ago. We didn't think she needed another middle of the night visit to the ER. Besides we wouldn't want anyone to share their germs with us. The last thing we need is to have two babies spending more time at the hospital. I think three months was enough.

The good news is we are all on the road to recovery. The girl's still have a cough, and a chapped nose from all the wiping, but their temperment is great! They are still playing, running around, and of course fighting like they always do.

Since we didn't make it for Easter dinner last night, Brian's parents decided they would come over today to the house of germs and bring us dinner and of course they spoiled the girl's with lots of Easter goodies. So we didn't actually miss out on Easter dinner after all.

Last night while the girl's were sleeping, I put together their new Dora table and chairs that we got them for Easter. They don't understand who the Easter Bunny is yet, but they sure were excited when they came downstairs and saw their new table with a few chocolates, a little basketball and soccer ball waiting for them.

You Know You're The Parent of a Preemie When...

1.You use strange initials (C-PAP, CCs, NICU, NG) when discussing your child.

2.You actually remember how many CCs make up an ounce.

3.You count his weight in grams.

4. The skin on your hands is peeling from washing so often!

5.You hesitate when someone asks his age, but you know exactly how much he weighs!

6. The answer to "How old is your baby?" is a story 30 minutes long!

7. When someone asks his birthday, you reply, "Which one?" or "he's not supposed to be born yet."

8. You start to understand some of the things they say on ER!

9. You turn into Kung-Fu Mom when someone tries to touch your baby.

10. You cry at Maternity Ward and get mad at Baby Story.

11. You see a 7lb newborn and say "Wow! He's so BIG!"

12. Your baby is months old before he can even come home.

13. When someone says how tiny your baby is, you argue that he is huge -- and to demonstrate, you whip out pictures of him in NICU.

14. You do a health check on people when they come to visit . (SO TRUE)

15. You make people wash their hands before going near your child.

16. You want to scream when someone says that she just wants to have this baby now - at week 28, 32, or 34 weeks.

17. You never take your child for granted.

18. You worry about RSV season and it is still weeks away . . .

19. You know what "RSV" stands for.

20. You pick up 2 pounds of ground beef and think that your baby was born smaller than it.

21. You buy "Purell" in bulk.

22. You can stare at your baby for hours when he sleeps

23. NICU nurses are your best friends.

24. You no longer blink when an alarm goes off....

LIFE WITH A TODDLER

This post is for all the moms out there who are going through life with a toddler or are approaching the toddler years.

Tonight was just like every other night at dinner time, food being thrown on the floor, some getting ingested, a little bit rubbed into the top of their heads, etc. Except for one thing. When the girl's were almost finished and it was time for their evening fruit, I got up walked over to the counter grabbed a banana for them and when I came back to where they were Avery was sitting in her highchair with her finger up her nose. This is nothing new, the two of them have been discovering their nose's lately, and from what the books say, parents are suppose to ignore their child when they do this. So as always I did. Until of course I took a closer look at her and realized she had some orange coloured cracker around the edge of her nose. I tilted her head back and SURPRISE! there was a piece of a goldfish cracker jammed up one nostril. I tried to grab it but in my attempt to do so, it only went up further.

So of course here I am at home by myself with the girl's, Brian is out with the car. Even if I had the car, we are now in a new city and I have no idea where the hospital is or the nearest walk in clinic. Then I thought if I couldn't get it out myself I would have to call 911. But then I thought about what I would say. When they asked " what is your emergency? " would I reply " my daughter has a piece of goldfish cracker up her nose " I think if I were on the other end of a call like that I might burst into laughter.

I decided I better try something else before this thing gets lodged even further. I ran upstairs grabbed my tweezers came back down and actually for the first time ever used the recline position on the highchair. Why the highchair has a recline position is beyond me. I have never been able to figure this out. Who actually feeds their child in a reclined position? Besides, with all the feeding issues my kids had, they needed to be upright at all times. I definitely do not recommend this model of Evenflo highchair to anyone!

Anyways I managed to grab the piece of cracker with the tweezers. As soon as I pulled it out she instantly starts laughing. Well of course I started laughing, but I think my laughter was more nerves than anything else.

GOOD BYE OAKVILLE....... HELLO GUELPH!

The stress is finally over. We are here, moved in and really enjoying Guelph. I was so unsure how I would like it here but so far I have only found positives about Guelph. I am shocked that people actually talk to eachother here.

We dropped the girl's off at their Baka & Deda's house on Thursday night. Returned home and spent most of the night packing up the rest of our house. Friday morning the movers arrived, and had our house cleared out within a hour and a half.

Brian was out getting us some coffee's when they got to the house. So I had to greet them at the door with tear's running down my face. I can only imagine what they must have thought. I was fine up until I saw the moving truck turning onto our street. I guess that was when reality set in that we were really leaving.

Brian & I arrived in Guelph around 2:00p.m but the movers didn't show up here until almost 4:00p.m We knew they were going for lunch but we didn't realize they would be that long. When they came in the house I figured out why they took so long. I guess they decided they would go for a liquid lunch because the smell of alcohol on them was enough to knock any one over. All in all everything went pretty good.

The girl's were suppose to come back home on Saturday but we were still so unorganized and without any appliances so they stayed with Brian's parent's an extra night. Of course the were completely spoiled the entire time they were gone. I know they were spoiled because when they came home they didn't even seem to miss us. We on the other hand were so lost without them.

They have adjusted well to their new surroundings. The first day they were a little out of sorts, but after that they were fine. They have spent the last couple of days exploring all the new rooms, opening and closing every door, and watching all the trucks & bulldozers driving through our backyard. Which they think is pretty cool. I know this because every time one goes by they say "wow, cool". That's the new word of the week "cool".

Auntie Krista we are sorry we missed your birthday so "Happy Belated" Hope you had a good one and we will get to see you all soon.

PRINCESS AVERY

SHARING ISSUES... A COMMON PROBLEM LATELY

MINUTES LATER......BESTFRIENDS AGAIN

COLOURING WITH DADDY