Both kids love to be tickled! (videos)

Just an update

I have no pictures to post because our computer has not been working for the past 2 weeks...we are hopefully getting it back today in working order! I thought I should write a little update on the kids so that I don't forget this stage they are going through. They will be 2 years old in only 2 weeks and I am not sure where the time has gone!

Ashlyn - continues to amaze me. This is a little girl that had a grade IV intra-ventricular hemorhage at birth and she is now walking and talking. Grade IV means that the bleed was so large that it leaked out of the ventricle and caused further damage to the white matter of her brain. There are no higher grades. We were initially told that she would be profoundly impaired and that we may need to make decisions surrounding "life vs quality of life". I am so glad that God chose another path for her. There are definitely signs of of her brain damage, but she continues to surpass all my expectations. She is still quite unsteady on her feet and falls frequently...she has more bruises and scrapes than any child I know, but it does not slow her down. She gets right back up and keeps going. Her strengths are definitely in her fine motor skills and cognitive skills. Her favorite phrase lately is "Oh No!" and she says it very frequently. Other new words include, shoes (for which she continues to have a fetish), milk, juice, nose, and others that I can't think of at this moment :). She finally knows the difference between her g-tube scar and her belly-button, she likes to give kisses and hugs and she is starting to walk up and down the stairs instead of crawl. She is becoming a very sweet little girl.

Caelan - is definitely all boy. He has become a bit of a bully toward his younger sister lately, which does not make me happy. He wants whatever she wants and pushes her out of the way to get it. He laughs if I scold him and he thinks everything in life is a big joke. He loves it when he sees a plane in the sky or hears a train. He now says "wooda" for "What's that?" and "hi", but the rest is all jibberish. He walks up and down the stairs, loves to rough-house with his big sister Shaylah and loves to eat. He is becoming such a big boy so quickly and has a very fun personality.

New discoveries

Things we learned this weekend.

1. Caelan hates being dirty

2. Ashlyn loves being dirty

3. Caelan will not wear a hat no matter what you do

4. Ashlyn asks to wear a hat...but it has to be the one that she (not you) chose to wear

Raspberries

As with everything Ashlyn does, the raspberries went down much more slowly and neatly than her brothers.

Ashlyn's stats:

Weight: almost 21 pounds

Favorite foods: pasta, berries

Favorite game: Peek-a-boo

Favorite book: anything with animals

Personality: independent, fiesty

New skills: walking, talking

New words of the week: More, banana, night-night, Ashlyn, book, balloon

Hates: when someone tries to help her do something

Favorite activity: climbing

Caelan loves raspberries (almost!) as much as his Mama does.

Caelan's latest stats:

Weight: 27 pounds

Favorite game: Chase

Favorite foods: Fruits and Vegetables

Hates: Long sleeved shirts, wearing shoes

Personality: Very affectionate, loves to laugh, easy

New skills: walking up and down the stairs, starting to run

Language: lots of pointing and vocalizing, but no words yet

Thanks Carmen!

We have a very hard time getting pictures of us as a family. Usually it is either Johnny or I behind the camera and the kids do not stay put long enough for us to get set up. We have many pictures of the kids, but very few of them all together. So before they got too big....we thought we would call in an expert! Carmen is an amazing photographer and someone I have know since highschool. She was able to capture our family in photos that I did not think were possible. Please check out her blog to see a sneak peak of our photo session and look through her portfolio to see more of her amazing work!

http://carmenvandyckphotography.com/blog/two-times-the-fun/

Thank you Carmen for coming across the bridge and spending the morning with us. It was so great to catch up with you and we are so pleased with the pictures you have taken.

She's walking!

Last Wednesday (June 17th), Ashlyn decided she wanted to walk on her own and she has not stopped since! She has been taking a few steps for the past month, but was still more comfortable holding onto the walls and furniture. Now, she gets upset if I try to pick her up or hold her hand....she just wants to do it herself and she is very proud of her new independence. Go Ashlyn!