Have I gone crazy?

This week I am in Asheboro (aka: mom and dads) to babysit Aaden and Bentley along with my two. Stacy is up here to complete her externship for school so I offered to watch the kiddos. She offered money, but I told her what I wanted was a "favor" and I will call in that favor when she leasts expects it. HA!Ha! Today is the first day, but so far so good. (knock on wood). I'm hoping they keep it up!!

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What?

Yesterday this was my dashboard coming to Asheboro. Don't worry I wasn't taking the picture while driving. Do you see it? It says 80 degrees. What is up with this weather? I can't believe it, I mean it is still February.

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Celebrating my birthday

On Saturday my mom, dad, sister and nephews came to celebrate my birthday. We had a wonderful dinner and then a birthday cake.

No the cake is not on fire...those are all my birthday candles.

I was able to blow all of the candles out with one breath! I had a wonderful birthday. I am so blessed!!

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Eating at Steak and Shake

The kiddos today at Steak n Shake.
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Doctor Results

So I received another call from the pediatrician today. Now according to another doctors opinion (after reading Maddie's charts) they believe that Maddie has some condition/disease that I couldn't repeat even if I tried. She said it has to do with something in the hormones. According to her she kept telling me it was benign and nothing that I should worry about. It was a toddler thing and that she will grow out of it, but she is referring me to a specialist. This disease/condition has nothing to do with her weight so we will also be seeing a Gastrointestinal specialist as well. So, I'm not worried. I just hate we have to see a specialist if it is something she will grow out of, but I guess they just want to make sure they have all their bases covered.

Tonight Mike and I have a special treat because we are out on a date. That's right...we have found a babysitter. A wonderful babysitter at that. We found her by a fluke. She is such a sweet girl. She, Brandy, is just a freshman at unc-Charlotte so we hope to have her for a while!
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It's my BIRTHDAY!!

I am another year older. I'm still in my twenties (just barely), so no old jokes yet, haha.

I can honestly say that I am truly happy with my life right now! I am just so blessed to have such a wonderful family and a wonderful job (even if it is underpaid, LOL). Thank you to all the family for the wonderful cards, gifts and money. I love you all!! Here is to another blessed year to be with my family and friends.

Now...the perfect gift would be for my favorite team to pull off an impressive win tonight! GO HEELS!!

Madelin Update

I spoke to Maddie's pediatrician just a few minutes ago about her results from her blood work last week. We actually received most of the results on Friday, but there was one test we were still waiting on. She said the Celiac disease came back negative, the thyroid was fine, and she tested low for intestinal diseases, which was good. The only test that we were waiting on today was the phosphates. I called and spoke with her this evening and she said that the results said that 70% came from the bone while 30% came from the liver. According to Doctor Madrid she said this falls in the normal range. Which is a BIG sigh of relief. She has placed a call into the Gastro people and she said it usually takes a day to hear back from them. I should hear by Thursday what they want to do next. Thanks again for all of the prayers.

Big boy and girl

My kids are turning into such big boys and girls. Today we turned their cribs into toddler beds. It is quite a sad but also a proud moment for mommy. Mike and I took down the front rail today right before nap time. Unfortunately nap time was not a success. Zack did well because I came in to surprise them every few minutes at first, so he stayed in his bed. However, my defying Maddie just kept getting up to play. It didn't matter how many times I told her to get back in bed. I'm hoping tonight goes better, especially since their room gets really dark.

This afternoon we went outside to enjoy this wonderful 70 degree weather. They loved it. Oh how I long for spring!

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Go Tarheels

Yesterday Michael treated me to a UNC game in Chapel Hill. It was an ugly game but the Heels pulled it off with a win. It was still fun to be there! After the game we enjoyed Chapel Hill. We stayed at the new Franklin Hotel. It is BEAUTIFUL! Such a fantastic birthday present. Thank you sweetie! Love you!!

On a serious note...please say a prayer for our friends in Warrenton, NC. There is a severely dangerous wild fire, actually the largest fire in NC. Our friends are actually on the fire department, so they could be in harms way. Gregory, William, and the rest of the fire departments that are fighting that fire, you are in our prayers.
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Zack putting beads on poor Buddy

The kids are spending the weekend at Mamaw and Papaw's house. Michael is taking me to Chapel Hill for my birthday to watch the Heels play BC. I'm so excited! I haven't watched them play since I was first pregnant with the twins.

Maddie and Zack love beads. They are constantly fighting over them. So I thought it was funny when Zack started draping them on poor Buddy.
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Tuesday's Doctor Appointment

Sorry for the delay. I wanted to post about Madelin's appointment on Tuesday. First, let me start off by saying thank you to everyone that has been praying for her!! We really appreciate it!!

Tuesday morning I took her to the doctor's office. Poor thing, as soon as they shut the door of the room we were in she started screaming. She knew exactly what they were going to do. The nurses attempted to take blood from her. They couldn't get into her vein on her right arm, so then they tried her left. Nothing. So then, they called in the doctor. She couldn't get it either. My poor girl is strong!! She kept kicking us off her. So she sent us to the hospital to get her blood drawn. The hospital was able to get it in one try and it only took a minute, that is after we waited forever to get seen. The nurses there were great though. They gave both kids stickers and they were both smiling when we left.

I was glad that I did get to speak to the doctor. If the nurse had gotten the blood right away I wouldn't have seen her. The doctor is running three specific tests then also looking at her liver. She is checking for Celiac disease, her thyroid, and any intestinal diseases. This is protocol with any child having a hard time gaining weight (so I was told). I spoke to her in depth about the "test" that came back high on her first round of testing. She told me the abnormal test was the phosphates. She said this could be caused by the liver or it could be in her bone. If it is the bone (which it probably is) all it means is that her bones are about to grow, aka a growth spurt. Yes...all that EXTREME worrying over her just getting a growth spurt, so I believe. I was a little relieved. Yes there still could be something that comes back, but I really don't think it will and now neither does the doctor because Zack is just as small (well close to it). I believe that I just have petite kids. It is a family trait (not mine unfortunately, ha!). If her tests come back normal, which we suspect they will, we will have to see a Gastro-Intestinal Specialist. I'm not really sure what they will be doing. I'm hoping we will see a nutritionalist. That way I can find out what foods to feed my kids that are fattening foods, but healthy fattening foods. The last week they have had quite a bit of peanut butter, butter, and breads.

Thank you again everyone for your prayers, please continue to remember Madelin as we await the results. Much Love!!

Madelin Update

So this afternoon has been a little scary for me. The pediatrician called around noon today. She said that one of Maddie's tests came back abnormal. She started throwing out diseases, problems, etc. that it could possibly be. We are going to be doing more testing tomorrow. She said that the test that was abnormal was something that could be caused by something in her bone or her liver. She said that a normal range was a 100 while Maddie's numbers where in the 2,000s. So all afternoon I have been pretending to not worry, but all I have been doing is worrying. I could use all the prayers we can get. Thanks so much!
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Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day everyone. The kids are in Vday outfits. Maddie's shirt says Love Bug while Zack's shirt says Cause I'm a Ladies Man. They loved opening all of their cards from the grandparents. Mommy and daddy got them some bubbles so we are going to have a great day. Also you will see my gift from Michael. I received my first edible arrangement. I LOVED it! The kids have already ate all my grapes. It was so pretty and so yummy!
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Valentine's breakfast

This what I made the kids for breakfast.
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18 Month Appointment

Yesterday I took the kids to their 18 month appointment. It turned into a scare for me. We weighed the kids and Maddie ended up loosing weight. She is down to 17 lbs. So the doctor was extremely concerned. She took some blood and we are awaiting results (which will be a week). If all comes back fine then we are going to have to see a Gastrointestinal Specialist to see what is causing Maddie to not gain weight. This was scary to me at first, but after talking to family and friends I really just think Maddie has a high metabolism. Michael told me he and Amy both were small growing up and Cayden had the same testing done because they were worried about him as well. So my task now is to try and figure out how to put weight on her.

Zack did well. He too is below weight but not nearly as much as Maddie. She did refer us to get an asthma test done (finally a doc that listened to me) so we can for once and all figure out why Zack has his attacks.

I will update the blog when I hear more about Maddie.
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Gearing up for the big game tonight

Go Heels!
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Video of Zack Getting his hair cut

Silly Scissors

Today while we were out and about we decided to get Zack's hair cut (it was getting quite shaggy). Michael had found this place, Silly Scissors, that specialized in cutting kid's hair. So we decided to give it a try. Zack loved it! They had little seats that were cars. He sat in the fire truck. I thought he would have fun ringing the bell.

Now usually when we go to cut his hair at a regular salon he sits in my lap and I have to fight him to stay still so no one gets hurt. I mean this is a struggle. However, in his fire truck he did fabulous. He loved it! I have video of it that I will post tonight when I get home. He just did so well! It is a little pricy for a kid cut, $15, but not worrying if someone is going to get cut (I.e. Him or hairdresser) it is well worth it! Enjoy the pics!
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My babies are babies no longer

Well, it is official... my babies are toddlers today. They turn 18 months today. Oh it is just so crazy to think a year and a half has already passed. They are growing up so fast! They still are obsessed with Yo Gabba Gabba. We have to watch at least one episode when we wake up (either in the morning or afternoon nap). They are starting to climb on everything, which also means that we take more spills as well. Both are starting to talk more. We have to be extremely careful what we say.

Tomorrow we are going to go buy a potty. We aren't expecting to officially be potty trained until 2ish, but we want to at least introduce it to them. In a week (after a party we are hosting) we are also going to break down their crib and turn it into a toddler bed (tear). They really are growing so fast!

Maddie: She has learned to say a lot of words. (I think it is a girl thing). She loves to sing! Some of her favorites are The Itsy Bitsy Spider, Deep And Wide, Old MacDonald, and theme songs to How I met Your Mother and Yo Gabba Gabba. She still loves to read books. We have discovered that she is quite the daredevil, you can see proof when we went to the park. She is shy at first but also is not afraid to stand up for herself. One of her most favorite activities is to tease her brother. She likes to take things from him and make him chase her. She is turning into a wonderful young lady.

Zack: he has learned to say a few words, but not quite as many as his sister (which again I think is a male thing). He loves to sing and dance. His favorite songs are The Itsy Bitsy Spider, Happy and You Know it, Theme songs to Yo Gabba Gabba. He is extremely protective of his sister. He loves to watch out for her. If I even to pretend to shut the door with her still in the room he immediately pushes the door open to get her out. He will take her cups to her and give her anything that he has two of. He is also my helper when it comes to picking up. His favorite activity is to throw trash in the garbage can. He loves it when we change diapers so he can throw them away for us. He too still loves to read books. He is also turning into a great young gentleman!
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Special Memoriam

Today was the funeral for Carolyn Nowell, Michael's grandmother. Zack had an attack Sunday morning, so bad I was worried we weren't going to make it home without visiting the ER. So we decided to keep them here and Michael go to Sneads Ferry alone. I hated I missed it, but we didn't want to put Zack through a drive of 5 hours for one day and 5 hours back the next. So I wanted to honor her in my own way. Here is a picture of her holding the twins last year. Rest in peace Carolyn. We will miss you, but we take comfort knowing that you are in a better place.
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