Back to School

Ethan started is 2nd year of preschool yesterday. We are all excited to be back at school. Ethan and I both get to see old friends and meet new kids and moms.

We absolutely love Lake Harriet Preschool. The teachers are wonderful, the class sizes are small and the community support is amazing.

Last January when I was wobbling in and out of preschool twice each day for pick-up and drop-off, the parents in Ethan's class came up with the most generous idea. They all chipped in to reserve a front row parking spot for us for this year! They knew I would still be challenged by the task of getting in and out of the school toting around a couple of babies. We can't thank them enough.

The parking spot is SO helpful! Since Cal and Teagan have grown out of their infant carseats, I have to get both kids out of the carseats and carry them both inside. Then I can usually pass one off to someone else while we chat. This minimizes the strain on my arms and allows me to stay and visit with the other parents.

Check out our spot!

New Look

I got a little tired of the dots, so here is a fresh look for our blog.
Feedback always welcome!

This Is How We Roll...

If I plop the babies on the floor there is no longer any guarantee these two will be in the same position I leave them in.

This is just the beginning- I'm slowly losing control.

Calin & Teagan would also like to give shots out to Stephanie at The Electic Fetus!

More Fair Fun

Did I mention how much fun we had at the fair? We just had to go again. This time the kids and I went with Shalene and had a great afternoon.

Teagan can't expose her birthmark to direct sun while recovering from her laser surgery. So, she hung out in the shade all day...

_______ on a stick

We LOVE the MN State Fair!
Food, friends, fun!

Things we ate on a stick: the most enormous pickle in the world, fat chuck-o-bacon, corn dog, pronto-pups, venison, sausage, corn on the cob, cotton candy, and mocha (frozen, obviously).

Others things we ate, not on a stick: sweet potato chips & fries, walleye in a boat, fried pickles, strawberries & cream (my best attempt at getting something somewhat healthy into my child), popcorn, and Martha's chocolate chip cookies.

The fair may be Ethan's favorite place ever. Ethan doesn't really eat meals very well. He doesn't like to take in more than 10 bites of food at any sitting, ever. He's a grazer. He would graze all day if allowed. So, he was in heaven snacking all day long.

(Taylor & Kieran)

(Quinlans!)

("Little Farm Hands")

(Cal watching the giant mobile in the sky, the Skyride)

Great News All Around

Teagan's laser surgery was a success! She is home and recovering well.
Nick stayed home with Ethan & Cal while Teagan, Grandpa Rooney and I left for Gillette Children's at 5:30am this morning. Teagan slept until we reached the lobby and amazed us with her playfulness and affection at such an early hour without any food/bottle in her belly. She was happy to chat with the nurses and accept their gifts of blankets and toys. After being prepped for surgery (weight, blood pressure, tiny gown) the nurses and doctors explained the quick procedure and she was whisked away promptly at 7:30am. I picked up a gossip magazine and actually enjoyed a few moments of silence while my dad went for a coffee run. Suddenly at 7:40am, before my dad even got back with the mochas, the doctor came in the room and said, "All done!"
Done!? After only 10minutes? Wow, a ton of worrying went into that lightening fast surgery. The doctor said everything went as planned and she was already waking up. Incredibly, we were back home before 9am.
The left side of her face is slightly swollen and looks bruised, but that's normal and it will last for a couple of weeks. We're excited to see the results in a couple weeks when the bruising disappears.
Teagan will have the same surgery preformed again in 6-8 weeks. Now that I'm familiar with the process I don't think I'll worry so much next time....but we'll see.


AND more great news!
At Calin's PT and helmet adjustment appointment this week we blew the doctor away with Cal's great progress. His head is almost perfectly round already!
Calin still needs to use the helmet until the Torticollis is fixed, but we get to cut back on helmet time! Now he wears it only at night and during naps, to avoid laying on the left side and making it flat again.

Fabulous week for the Waltons5!

Teagan's 1st Surgery

As most of you know, or can see in the pictures, Teagan was born with a birthmark on the left side of her face. There are many types of birthmarks, and this one is a Port Wine Stain. This type of birthmark is considered permanent because it will not fade or disappear with time, it will remain the same forever, but can be lightened or almost fully removed with laser surgery.

When Teagan was born we were given tons of information about birthmarks and our options for removal. At that time a couple different pediatricians told us that we could wait until Teagan was 3-4 years of age before performing laser surgery, this way we wouldn't need to put her under general anesthesia. Well, this turned out not to be the case. Our Craniofacial Surgeon (the same specialist who is treating Cal's plagiocephaly) told us we would see the best results from the laser surgery if we start the surgeries just after she turns 6 months old. She will have multiple laser surgeries performed over the course of a few years, and her first one is this Thursday 8/29/08. Of course, we are nervous. The procedure itself is relatively simple and will only take about 15 minutes, but it's the general anesthesia we are worried about. We were told not to worry, that putting a 6 month old under anesthesia is no different or than an older child or even an adult. BUT, it's hard to think about seeing my baby being prepped for surgery. It's an outpatient procedure and we'll actually be home by 11am (we have to be there at 6am).

We've actually noticed that the birthmark has lightened in the past few months, not because it's fading, only because her skin is stretching as she grows. We don't have very many clear pictures of Teagan's birthmark, but I found one close-up of her at 3 months old.

Keep her in your thoughts on Thursday.

One Year Ago

One year ago I started this blog to stay in touch with family and friends as we began our journey through an extremely challenging twin pregnancy. It's amazing how drastically life can change in one year. I've actually been feeling sick lately and I realized it's because the smells in the house and the humid feeling of the hot summer air brings me back to this time last year. The smell of the bathroom, the cleaning products, vitamins, and the humidity in the air makes me sick to my stomach. Driving by the doctor's office, the smell of toast, the cool A/C on a hot day, and the stickiness of my skin makes me nauseous.

Last year at this time I was going through the hardest time of my life- severe sickness and depression. One year ago this week I was in the hospital for the 3rd time for severe hyperemesis. All the veins in my arms and hands were bruised from the many IV lines placed for hydration. My body was weak and I could barely walk 8 feet to the bathroom, couldn't walk up steps, lost 7 pounds, and was vomiting 24 hours a day for months. I only left the house to visit the doctor or the hospital. I was drugged and sleepy and spent a few months in the TV room. Talking, or opening my mouth at all, made me gag, so I rarely talked to anyone but Nick, Ethan or our parents, and never talked to anyone on the phone.

The sickness and sadness was a constant throughout the entire pregnancy. Those 8 months felt like an eternity and I could not picture what my life would be like without sickness. After a while I was forced adjust to the feeling of being sick. My puke bag was always in my purse and I stocked up on gum to have a pack within reach at all times. Most of my time was spent on the couch. Ethan learned to bring toys and games over to the couch to play with me and Nick brought me food and water. Nick did the cooking, cleaning and most other errands along with working 50+ hours/week. Life was hard.

BUT, here we are one year later and we look like a completely different family. Most people comment on how much work it must be to have twins and an older child, but they have no idea how hard life was the year before the twins arrived. Whenever I'm feeling overwhelmed, tired or just burnt I just hop on the computer and look back on our blog. It always makes me feel grateful for my health and happiness.

Here we are now. Cal & Teagan are 6 months old, Ethan 4 years, and someone has a 31st birthday coming up...