Yep, I think they're ours.

I keep telling people that Evan looks like me and Amelia especially looks like her daddy. I have been meaning to post comparison photos forever, but since I have been requested to do so by Auntie Leslie, I'm just going to do it. I've been looking out for the perfect photos to compare, but lets face it, that will never happen even if I try and pose them. These are pretty darn good. Evan has my legs, too. You can see them in the sleeping pic from a couple of weeks ago.

These are John and my 6 month pictures (approximately).

Girls are hard

My mom kept saying while she was here, "I told you girls were harder." It's not that she likes to get into everything, because Evan does, too. It's not that she insists on putting the bottle into her mouth herself, because Evan does that too. It's that she does it with such attitude.

Besides that she moves around like crazy and won't sit still. Evan likes to chill once in awhile, Amelia never does. The pictures below show why she is no longer allowed in the bouncy chair.

We are also moving her crib to the guest bedroom because when she wakes up, even in the middle of the night, she insists on talking to herself very loudly. This starts to wake Evan up. What happens is as soon as I hear her on the monitor I run down the hall and stick a pacifier in her mouth. But even this doesn't work sometimes. She spits it out and starts talking again. I feel bad that I have to separate them but, really, they only sleep in their cribs anyway. As soon as they are both up, I move the operation to the living room, which has been converted to a pizza-less Chuck-E-Cheese.

And yes, she's buckled in.

Funny Clips

Taken this morning.

Evan eating the jiggly pig ball.

Amelia caught snoring.

Look at Evan!

His head is so straight now thanks to physical therapy. He is such a big boy now, bigger than his sis.

Scrapblog

OK, after a few publishing quirks, the scapblog is back. My friend Laura mentioned this and, of course, I had to try it. More creativity- it's out of control!

Half-Year Movie Clips

Happy Half-Year!

I can't believe it has been 6 months! Usually I just post pictures or if I get time a word or three, so this time I wanted to actually tell you what they are doing. They are both pretty different and doing new things every day. But they both are doing a few things the same- finally sleeping through the night is the big one. They both know their name when we call them, love to steal each other pacifiers and toys from each other, and eat their toes.

Here is what my Evan is up to:

Evan is probably heavier than his sister now. We will find out in early August at the next exam. He had a visit with the cardiologist in May and his heart sounded so good he is waiting until August to give him another ultrasound. That dacron is doing great in there! (Dacron is a plastic made of polyester fibers used as valve patches in the heart. It will last forever.) His occupational and physical therapists are amazed at how well he is doing. He is turning his right wrist and grabbing things. Before he was grabbing from the side. We have splints for that hand to keep it in a flexed position a few times a day, and also for his left hand to help it stretch out. His head and neck are much improved, too. He can look to his left and the muscles and tendons are starting to stretch out. We will keep at it. I stretch him and play with him every day. As far as his back, the back doc said we will probably have to have his one hemi-vertabrae fused in about a year. There is nothing wrong with his spinal cord according to the MRI.

Enough medical stuff. Evan started rolling over the end of May. He can roll over both ways, but forgets that he can't roll back over his left arm. I actually saw him launch himself over it a few weeks ago, but it hurt him a little. He likes to sleep on his stomach, so I'm always worried about him trying to get back over in the middle of the night. I'm not sure how crawling will go. He is a little behind because he can't lift himself up in the front. Somehow he manages to move across the floor, so I'm not worried about that right now. He also likes to take his right arm and use it to put his left hand in his mouth and chew on his fingers.

Evan has these little powerful legs. If you hold him up to walk, he will run across the floor like a little clydesdale, digging into the ground. He has been amazing with his legs, feet, and toes since birth. We think it is to compensate for his arm. He holds up his bottle with one leg in addition to the arms (I still have to help). And if he doesn't want the bottle, there is no way you are getting in the mouth with arms and legs kicking it away! He holds a ball between his feet and twirls it around, bounces it, kicks it. He has this ball made of wooden pegs, wooden balls, and rubber bands. He takes his super long toes and flings it. He also loves when I hold him upside down and dad tosses him in the air. He loves to be tickled on the sides and his upper legs. He now loves the jumparoo, too. And he loves his diaper off. What boy doesn't?

He has a laid back personality. He is just happy relaxing in a chair with some toys. His smile is huge and gummy and his cheeks go way out on each side. All I have to do is look at him and he gives a one note giggle in his baby boy voice (much deeper than Amelia). He talks in a high-pitched tone, though. He is happy until he wants something. And when he wants something it is serious and he means it. You'd better change him or feed him because the screaming will not cease until you complete the task. He has a red-haired temper.

Yes, red hair. It is growing in again really thick and getting longer. His eyes are turning green still, I think, which I predicted at birth. Hazel green like my mom, dad, and sister's. I say this because there is a definant yellow ring with brown flecks around the pupil. He pretty much looks just like me. Especially when he is sleeping. I'm guessing he will have freckles, too, because his skin is exactly like mine.

Here is what my Amelia is up to:

Amelia started rolling over in March. She isn't quite crawling, but can get anywhere she wants to, kind of like an inch worm. What is crazy is that she takes her pacifier with wherever she goes. And maybe a toy, too. I just bought this big plastic toy where the balls inside move when you push the top. Not exactly a little toy. I turned around for a minute and when I looked back, she was 5 feet from the playmat with the toy. How did she do that? She gets sick of playing on the floor pretty easily and wants to stand up and jump. I can only hold her for so long (or should I say she holds me- by the fingers) so I put her in the jumparoo. She, no lie, will jump for an hour straight. If you ever call my house, you will hear it in the background go up and down the entire time. She's still a little too short for it, so I have a foam mat underneath. After jumping, she wants to be thrown in the air or ride your leg like it's a horse, eat, and fall asleep. And not necessarily in that order. But we try to make her rest before playing that hard again. She gets in moods (most of the time) where she doesn't want you to sit down if you are holding her. Stand up happy, sit down cry. When she wakes up, she scoots over to her aquarium and turns it on. That's how I know she's up.

Other than wanting to be constantly moving, she is extremely sweet. She smiles everytime she sees John or I. Her mouth is open as wide as it goes and she screams when she gets excited. She puts her head on my head- her version of hugging. When she's calm she loves to lie on you and talk. And when she's lying on you, she contorts her body, usually arching her back and sticking her head in the corner of the couch. She is very patient in her car seat while Evan is doing his therapy. She also likes to stare intensely at her fingers and feel different textures.

She still has her light blue eyes, though there is a little bit of yellow around the pupil, so they will probably end up like mine, a greyish-bluish-green. Her hair still teeters between blond and brown, but when the sun shines on it it is red. This explains why I had two red-heads when they were held to me beneath those bright OR lights. She will probably be Auburn, I guess. Very beautiful!! She looks just like her dad did when he was a baby.

Here are some pics I just took! And yes, that is Captain Adorable.

5 month pics

I thought I would post the pictures I took of them at 5 months, since they will be 6 months tomorrow. I was trying to wait until I sent them out to family, but not everybody has gotten theirs yet. I guess I got a little busy ;)

Escape from the Bumbo chair

Here is how to escape from the Bumbo chair. These chairs are really great because they make babies sit upright and use their neck muscles. They are supposed to be able to be used as a mini high-chair or play table. Unfortunately, my kids think the purpose is to try and get out and they don't concentrate on anything else. Oh, well. I still recommend them. Note: Ignore the bottle of bleach in the background. I promise I will move it before the can crawl over, unscrew the cap, and take a chug.

Here is how to escape from the Bumbo chair:

1) Give that mischevious look.

2) Throw toy and arch back until the tray pops off.

3) Kick tray off.

4) Toss away the towel Mom used to keep me in and push tray aside.

4) Make escape.

Evan is getting closer to the escape, too.

I got a barrett in her hair!