Smiley B!

IMG_5026, originally uploaded by evans_nyc.

Now this picture is the B I've heard about. He's such a smiley, happy little guy. I just love the twinkle that is always in his eye. I can not wait to hear him laugh!

Sweet V-R

IMG_5023, originally uploaded by evans_nyc.

And I'm not just talking about her hands! I love this picture of her. Her little features, the way her eyes look. There is just something about this picture that just melts my heart!

Who'd have guessed?

IMG_5017, originally uploaded by evans_nyc.

Somebody loved the cake! Somebody was NOT as excited about cake.

B is 1!!

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I could be wrong, but I think this expression is pretty uncharacteristic for B! He looks less than thrilled to have been given his own cake!

V-R is 1!!

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I love the look on her face as she's checking out her 1st Birthday cake!!

Happy Birthday B & V-R!!!

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Look how big and adorable these kiddos are!
They just finished up dinner and are getting ready for cake!!

Where has the time gone?

(sorry, I have no idea where the pic went)

I can scarcely believe how fast this year has gone. It's unbelievable to me that 1 year ago I was in the hospital being monitored and hoping to return home for a few more days. Things did not work out as we had hoped and planned, but we were able to hold off delivery for 12 more hours so mom and dad could be there for the delivery.

The family adapted so well to 2 more wee ones to love. I'm sure this year has been challenging, but full of so many wonderful moments. It's amazing that each child has such a distinct and different personality! Miss V-R has always known what she wants and is so curious about everything. Mr. B is such a laid back, happy little guy. He's even starting to stand on his own, and I'm sure he has the biggest grin while he does it.

I get to go visit at the end of March and I can hardly wait to see them all and soak up their little personalities.

I'm sure that tomorrow will be much like every other Monday, but it's a very special day and they will not be far from my thoughts.

Happy 1st Birthday Miss V-R and Mr. B!!

Baby girl's got her first tooth!

V-R has her first tooth! Isn't it adorable?



And I hear that her brother has his first 2 teeth coming in at the same time!

1st Thanksgiving Dinner-9 months 4 days

Time to pack up the pump?

The babes are 9 months and 10 days and I think I'm just about done pumping. I only got 11.5 oz today. I've been waiting for the output to not be worth the effort and I think we're just about there. Technically, I was supposed to stop at the end of November, but it's really been hard to stop this time. Partly because the amounts have been so high and perhaps partly because I don't really know if I'll ever have this opportunity again. I just hadn't really been ready to give it up, but I think the time is coming soon. Perhaps by the end of the week even.

Such sweet siblings

I love these pictures so much! It really captures just how big they all are. B & V-R are almost 9 months old and are crawling all over now. They just look so darn sweet-and who can resist a sister's nose.
There were several shots of all four kids, but I love this one in particular. L is such a great big sister-you can see how much she loves V-R and how good she is with her. And if you look closely P is being very sweet with his brother's hand.
I can only imagine how wonderful Christmas will be at their house this year!

Pre-Halloween Fun

I can't believe I never realized I could drag pictures onto the blog. Here are the cuties!

Happy Halloween

Aren't they all adorable!!

Happy 8 months B & V-R!!

Today the babes are 8 months old! They are getting so big and really becoming little individuals. They have their preferences and are so different, but then there are little things that will remind you of their siblings.
They are getting more mobile and more interested in 'big people' stuff.

It's amazing to think that they are getting so big!!

Happy 8 months little guys!!

The Twins'

I've stumbled upon an easy way to steal/share pictures of the kiddos. I love this picture because it's a snippet of I believe lunch time at their home. There's no food on the laptop, which leads me to believe they have not eaten yet.

P & L are 3 years 1 month now and have just returned to preschool. This is a project that they made. These two are a tad obsessed/thrilled with space shuttles right now and the school used their enthusiasm as a project for the day (how great is that?)

Behind them you can see V-R & B ready for lunch (they look clean so I don't think they've eaten yet). V-R & B are 7 months old now and looking so big in their little Bumbo seats.

I've spent all day viewing this picture, I can't find a focal point with all 4 faces in there.

Many Celebrations!

Today S & S celebrate their 13 Wedding Anniversary! They make it look SO easy!

On Saturday the 22nd, V-R & B celebrate 6 months! They are growing fast and are gearing up for some big changes. They've been rolling for a while now and it looks as though food is of great interest to them.

On Tuesday the 25th, P & L turn 3 YEARS OLD!! Where has the time gone? They've handled the transition to older siblings so well. They sleep in their own beds, go potty all by themselves (have been for years), they are talking all the time and are so creative and fun to watch. They are an absolute delight to watch grow and learn.

As for me, I am still pumping 3 times a day and producing 55-60 oz a day. When will I stop? When I stop getting so much milk. I'm finding it much harder to stop this time around since I'm producing so much with so few sessions (although a session can last for nearly an hour). I will probably drop down to twice a day soon and see what happens to the supply.

1 year ago

It's hard to believe, but 1 year ago we were all waiting to see if 2 perfect little embryos would snuggle in for the long haul. 1 year ago today I got my first faint BFP and couldn't wait to see the line get darker and darker.

P & L seemed so little and yet just 1 year later they seem incredibly grown up!
1 year later and V & B are sitting around in bumbo seats and giggling like crazy!

It's amazing the difference a year can make!

16 weeks PP

I am officially shedding! The hair loss has begun and I'm finding hairs everywhere. Handfuls of hair! I'm back to clogging the tub with all of the hair. I knew this was coming, but I was really enjoying the break. I lost tons of hair for almost 2 years after P & L, so we'll see how long it lasts this time.

I have reports that BOTH babies are now rolling over and they are both holding their heads up so well while on their tummies. They appear to be getting very big and they look as precious as ever!

14 weeks-So many changes!

The babes are now 14 weeks old! They are getting SO big and B, the smaller of the two at birth, is no well on his way to weighing more than P&L! It's so wonderful to see them growing bigger and stronger. They are so smiley and just appear to be very happy babies. I still have not learned how to move the pictures, so eventually you can see how dang cute they are (this weekend is a bit slow, maybe we'll get the lesson in).

STE went back to work this week. It's only Wednesday, but so far, so good. The nanny appears to be working out, STE is able to get through each day and everyone is happy. She has such a great set-up that it's hard to feel bad about her going back to work. She gets to work from home, the kids are at the house, she can hear everything, plus she gets to do something she loves. Not to mention the perk of even HAVING a job in this economy.

I had been putting off actively taking off the pregnancy weight because of the pumping. I wanted to make sure my scar was healed (check) and that my milk supply was well established (check). I had been reading that it's not fully established until 12 weeks and then you can drop pumps without effecting the supply. I know from previous experience that once I started exercising again, my supply took a hit. I'd been doing so well, I really didn't want to cause a drop. Plus I just don't really enjoy exercising all that much (nor did I want to stop eating Swiss Rolls).

I'd been walking for a few weeks and the supply stayed in the 70's. On Monday I went back to Curves. I've made it every day this week as well, plus I still walked in the evening. I was amazed at how good it felt to use my back and shoulder muscles in that way. So I'm energized and ready to take this on. I got measured and weighed today. My last measurements were from a year ago, pre-pregnancy. I didn't look at today's numbers, but I'm quite confident that I will see results as long as I apply myself. I'm also keeping close tabs on the milk production and will add in some supplements if I see it diving. I will keep track of the progress on my 'home' blog if you'd like to follow along. My hope is to be much closer to pre-pregnancy by the time the kids go back to school, August 17.

Got Milk?

I typically don't post the same thing on both blogs, but I have difficulty deciding which things belong where. This seems to belong in both. I get a little 'crazy' excited when I see all the milk I've been able to freeze. It keeps me very optimistic that there will be enough to get the babies through their first year.

I forgot to take the before picture. This is my empty freezer that had 22 days worth of milk in it this morning. Each shelf holds about 40lbs of milk. I believe there are about 112, 16 oz bottles. I'm filling 4.5-5 bottles per day.

The bottom two pictures are the chest freezer my mom brought over this afternoon so I can store the milk easier. I'm a little surprised that it's almost full already. I can probably fit 4-5 more days worth of milk in it. I should have enough room to store the milk until mid to late June. Hopefully by then STE has more room in her freezers.