Christmas program

Trevor had his preschool Christmas program on Tuesday. It was so cute to see all the 3 and 4 year olds up on the stage. We were a little nervous on how Trevor would act once he saw everyone in the audience. We were afraid he would clam up and do nothing. Or worse, walk off the stage.

We were wrong! The little guy is destined for show biz! At times he was the only one you could here. He was singing so loudly! And when it was time for the movement he really got into it! Then half way through, he decided to start picking his nose :) Of course we have it all on video! We will post it soon. Most of the kids had their fingers in their noses. What is it with preschoolers and nose picking?

The girls were watched by wonderful people we met through MOPS that watch our sweet babes each Tuesday. What a blessing they are to have in our lives!

Trevor still wants to practice his Christmas program daily, even though it is over. He keeps asking when he gets to go on stage again. We told him probably in May during his preschool graduation. But 5 months is way too long of a time for a 4 year old to grasp.

Santa's visit

Today Santa came to the house for a visit. Trevor thought it was pretty neat that Santa came and visited with him in his own house! When asked what he wanted for Christmas, Trevor said a new big house and a leapster game...

The girls were not impressed at first. Santa handed them candy canes, but they refused to take them. After a few pictures with Santa the girls warmed up and even had a few smiles.

Allie loved Santa! She kept coming back to him and wanting to be held by him. She crawled into his lap and blew him kisses. It was so cute to watch! Kara would keep coming closer, smile and run away.

Trevor went and worked on a Christmas list for Santa asking for a new big TV, I wonder who put him up to that one :)

We filled Santas sack with goodies for the food bank and he went off on his jolly way.

15 month checkup

I can't believe the girls are 15 months already! I barely remember last Christmas. It was all a blur with 3 month old twins. They had their checkup the other day. Allie is now up to 20lbs 12oz and Kara is 20lbs 13oz. They are still hovering between the 15th and 20th percentile, but considering when they were born they were not even on the charts, they are doing awesome! They are both 29.5" long. The best news is they still fit in their infant carriers! I do not know what I will do when they outgrow those! For quick trips it is so nice to have them in those and whip out the double snap n go.

The girls love to have things on their hands. The other day Allie and Kara were walking around the house with Trevor's puppets on their hands. It was so cute to watch them. Kara loves to put on our shoes and try and walk around the house. Allie loves to blow kisses. They are so sweet. Now that the fog of the first year of twins has lifted, I am enjoying my two gifts from God a little more each day :) The way they play and laugh and giggle with each other is priceless!

Christmas Lights

We decorated the house inside and out with Christmas lights. The girls woke up from their nap and were very excited to see all the new lights and decorations! They point at everything in the house and stare at it. It is so cute to watch them. They are "talking" as they point at the Christmas Tree and all the pretty lights.

Allie had been sick last week with a high fever and some congestion and a lot of drooling. Today I looked in her mouth and teeth #13 and 14 have popped through! Kara had a high fever a couple days ago and now has a ton of drooling and some congestion, maybe hers are next? I didn't think they would get such high fevers from teething, but I guess it is possible. There has been a lot of snuggling in the last week. Although the girls are feeling better and the snuggling is coming to an end... I have also been battling pink eye. It has been fun times around here.

We are planning a trip to see the Lights of Christmas. I think the kids will love it! Just have to get them feeling a little better before we take them out in the cold.

Updates

I got to help out in Trevor's preschool class last week. It was a lot of fun. 4 year olds have a lot of energy! We did crafts, sang songs, read stories, played games ate a Thanksgiving feast and had a lot of fun. Trevor is really enjoying school.

Kara is practically running now! She is so fast. Trevor wasn't even walking at this age. She is fascinated with all the Christmas lights we put up. She is constantly pointing at them and grunting. It is so much fun to watch her learn and explore. She loves to pick up toys and put them away. She loves socks and shoes. She is always walking around with a sock or shoe on her hand or in her mouth.

Allie is such a confident walker now. She too is fascinated with the Christmas lights. She loves to look at pictures and books. It is so much fun to watch her learn and explore. She loves to pick up toys and put them away. She too, will carry socks and shoes on either her hand or in her mouth. Such silly girls!

The girls are starting to share with each other a little, but they also steal toys away from each other. The other day Allie got upset because she had a pink sippy and wasn't happy until she had Kara's purple sippy. So we traded, Kara didn't mind which one she had.

We had fun with family over the Thanksgiving holiday. Eating way too much of course, and trying to get some midnight shopping in, along with everyone else.

The girls and I participated in a flash mob on Sunday for Community Transit. It was a lot of fun, but it was over way too fast!

Trick or Treat

We had a busy day on Halloween. The kids dressed up and went trick or treating in Downtown Arlington. We went with some friends. The kids had a blast. The weather was dry until the last 10 minutes, then it started to rain. Trevor was dressed as a bumblebee and the girls were pumpkins.

Later that afternoon we went to my Mom's house to celebrate her birthday. The kids went in costume and had cake and ice cream, then trick or treated in the neighborhood.

We went back to our house and met up with friends there. We went around the neighborhood, only Trevor got candy. A lot of people asked if the girls wanted candy, but we declined as we would be the ones eating it :) Once we got home we looked at Trevor's bag of candy, there was way too much in there! But it sure was fun. Now we'll have candy for Trevor's birthday pinata again...

Uh oh, and Hi

Kara and Allie have learned some new words besides mama and dada. They walk around the house saying "Uh-Oh" and "Hi". It is so cute to listen to them. They also love waving bye-bye. Kara will walk around the house putting Trevor's hats on her head. She also likes to put clothes around her neck and walk around. I think she is going to be the one to love dressing up!

We went to the pumpkin patch with our MOPS group on Tuesday. I had all 3 kids with me and they all did great! Trevor went on the bouncy house and enjoyed some popcorn. I took all 3 on a hay ride and train ride. The girls didn't get their morning nap in but they were awesome during the field trip!

We had to hurry back home for lunch, then turn around and go back to the pumpkin patch for Trevor's preschool fieldtrip. So the girls once again missed another napping opportunity. Again, they were awesome! Trevor even got to have snack and pick out two pumpkins this time! We went on the bouncy house, train and hay ride again! It was a very busy day, the girls finally got a nap in around 3:30. I had to wake them at 5 so they could eat dinner. They slept a lot the following day!

Silly G's

Today we went on a hunt for the perfect pumpkins. Since it was pouring down rain all morning we skipped the pumpkin farms. We found them at Haggen instead. Trevor asked where the store was. Scott asked him if he seen the store with the big green H. Trevor said "yes, you mean the one with the silly g's" ? Yes, the g's do look silly, we never thought of it before! To look at things through a 4 year olds eyes is so fun!

Trevor helped pick out 5 pumpkins for Mommy, Daddy, Trevor, Kara and Allison. He reminded us that on Tuesday he gets to go to the pumpkin patch and pick out two more for Jazzy girl and Fuzzy Buddy (our cats).

Kara and Allie are both getting their molars in. There has been a lot of sleepless nights for me. Hopefully those teeth will come in quickly! I started taking the girls to the living with toddler class at the hospital where they were born. Hopefully I will be able to keep it up. I may have to take Trevor some days, so we will see how that goes :)

Trevor passed his swim lessons! He now goes onto preschool 3. Way to go Trevor! He loves the water. A complete 180 from last year where we had to force him into the pool. He loves everything about the water. We will try and put him in swim lessons in a couple months so he doesn't lose his interest in the water.

Trevor is loving preschool. He talks about his new friends all the time. He loves playing outside on the swings, and the fun art projects they get to do. Of course he loves snack time too! His teacher says he is doing very well and is a good nurture.

Trevor is looking forward to Halloween. He will be a bumble bee this year and his sisters will be pumpkins. Hopefully it will not rain. They have warm costumes, so I am not too concerned about it being cold.

Allie is now officially walking!!!

As of Oct. 3rd Allie is officially a walker! She has been walking everywhere in the house! Every once in awhile she'll start crawling to get somewhere faster. She is so proud of herself and she should be!

Kara is officially walking!!

As of Sunday the 13th, Kara is officially walking! She was taking a few steps at her birthday party, but the next day she wanted to walk and do nothing else! Even though it takes her longer to walk somewhere she would rather do that than crawl. She is so proud of herself, and she should be!

Trevor's in preschool!

Today was Trevor's first day of preschool! He is such a big boy now! First we had MOPS in the morning. He loved it. Especially seeing all his old friends he hadn't seen since May.

After MOPS was over I walked Trevor to his classroom. I took some pics and he kept asking why? I told him that he will never have another first day of preschool and I wanted to always remember this day. He kept asking when he could go in and play with his new friends :) We got inside and he sat down next to all the ABC's of course!

He got to finger paint in pudding. Make a 'Trevor' tree, play on the playground and eat snacks! He asked when he got to go back. I'm so glad he had a great first day!

It's twice the fun when twins turn One!

Happy Birthday to my sweet baby girls! They are one today! The time has gone by so fast, it seems just like yesterday we brought them home. They were so tiny they could both fit into a bouncy seat together. They even shared their swing, and slept in the same bassinet for a couple months.

In the morning we had their one year check up. Yes, I had them get shots on their first birthday, bad mommy... But hey, they won't remember it, right? Allie is now 18lbs 15oz and 28.5" long. Kara is 19lbs 4oz and 28" long. They have more than tripled their birth weight! Hard to believe a year ago they were only 5 lbs.

After morning nap we met up with our friend Sarah and we took the girls to lunch. We went to Boston's Pizza. The girls and Trevor were awesome at lunch! After lunch we came home and played a little. We took the girls' afternoon bottle away today and they didn't even notice.

Later in the evening we went to Grandma and Grandpa A's. for dinner. The girls had a preview of what was to come on Saturday for their party. We gave them cupcakes and they did great! They got nice and messy. Wait until they have a whole cake for themselves this weekend! Pictures to come!

Happy Birthday Allison and Kara. Mommy and Daddy Love you!

Zoo

Today Trevor and I went to the zoo with some of my family. It was a crazy day. When we left it was sunny and actually felt kinda warm out. By the time we got to Seattle it was pouring down rain! Luckily I brought Trevor's rain coat so he stayed dry. Well at least until he found the mud puddles! Him and Dominic enjoyed tromping through the puddles. So much for keeping their feet dry! It was raining so much we decided to take the kids into the play area until the rain stopped.

After lunch it had cleared for the most part and we seen most of the animals. Trevor's favorite part was the monkeys! We went into the day and night exhibit and he thought all the little animals hanging from the tree were monkeys. We just went along with it, it was much easier than explaining what they really were.

Trevor enjoyed feeding the birds. You can buy a popsicle stick with birdseed on it to feed the birds. Trevor had a bird land on his stick, but by the time I got my camera out to take a picture the bird flew away.

While at the zoo his Grandma bought him a cute little sun bear.
Trevor cuddled it and was talking to him. I overheard him say "I'm going to take you home and put you in my bedroom so you can play with friends "

Kara and Allie stayed home and played with Daddy all day. They loved getting all the attention to themselves for a change. I'm sure Daddy enjoyed it when they took two naps during the day:)

Happenings of the past week

Trevor has been busy riding his bike to the park everyday. The girls have enjoyed going on walks in the evening. They still fit into the infant swing together! The rain will start up again before we know it, so we have been trying to get in a lot of park time. We took Trevor to the Jetty for the first time, he loved it! Of course it closes in a couple days, so we will have to wait until next year. All three can enjoy it then. We asked Trevor what he wants to be for Halloween, a pink butterfly, not just a butterfly, but a pink one!

Allie has been playing peek a boo. She is so cute when she does it! She puts her little hands over her eyes and smiles. We ask "Where's Allie?" and she moves her hands and has the biggest smile on her face!

Kara has been practicing her walking. She will now take 3-4 steps, stop and take a couple more before falling down. She still prefers to crawl, but that is okay with me!

The girls will be celebrating their first birthday next week! I can't believe my babies will be one!

Allie

Not to be outdone by her sister, Allie has taken her first step today! She had the biggest grin on her face! She was so proud of herself, and rightfully so. Before I know it they will both be off and running.

Kara

Kara has taken her first step! In fact she has done 3. Last night she was standing on her own when I watched her pivot her right foot. She did this a couple times, then decided she would see if her left leg could get off the ground! It worked! She was so pleased with herself! After a couple minutes of this she went back to crawling. I've tried to get her to do it again, but she would rather crawl. That is okay. I am not ready for them to walk yet!

Trevor's latest adventures

Trevor starts preschool in 4 weeks! I can't believe my baby is a preschooler now! He loves being a big brother to Allie and Kara. He is a great protector of them. He loves to try and hold and carry them around the house. It makes me a nervous. But I watch him carefully. He does a great job with them.

Trevor has been taking swimming lessons. He now has no fear of the water. I'm not sure if that is a good thing or not yet. He has also taken a couple lessons in karate. At first I didn't think it would work out at all. He spent most of the time laying on the floor goofing around. By the end of the 2 week trial he was doing great. Although at this time he is not going to continue. He said he loves tumbling best so I think we will stick him in that in the fall.

Trev's latest phrase is "Our you kidding me?" It is so funny to hear him say it. He also has been repeating the radio stations tag lines. I guess their marketing strategy is really working!

We are still struggling with potty training. Recently at his 4 year check up we found out that he was severely backed up. That has been taken care of and now hopefully we can get back on the road to potty training. He still will not poo on the potty, or in a pull up. He has 4 weeks to figure it out or he won't be able to go to preschool. Knowing him he will hold it during class time and wait until he gets home.

Trevor is learning to count to fifteen. It goes something like this... 123...13,14, five teen.

Kara's latest adventures

Kara is getting so big! Her 1st birthday is fast approaching! Only 3 weeks away. Where did the time go? She is getting her 7th and 8th tooth. I'm sure she will be much happier once they both finally come in. She loves to play "SO BIG" by putting her hands in the air. This will entertain her and her sister for quite some time.

Kara is great at standing alone. She is up to about 20 seconds now. Kara and Allie will entertain each other for long periods of time. You always here laughing and talking in the playroom. Although we have no idea what they are saying :) She can wave "bye bye" and has even said it a couple times.

Allie's latest adventures

Allie is getting so big. I can't believe she will be one in 3 weeks! Her 7th and 8th tooth came in a couple weeks ago. She has gotten a lot of confidence when it comes to crawling now. Allie and Kara love to chase each other around the house. It is so cute to watch them!

Allie has been practicing standing on her own. She is up to 5 seconds. She loves to play "SO BIG" by putting her hands in the air. That keeps Allie and Kara busy for awhile. Allie also loves to climb on things. She is our little dare devil. She loves to laugh and cuddle. She can wave "bye, bye" and she has even said it a couple times. We are still working on that though.

Trevor's 4 yr checkup

Trevor had his 4 year checkup. He is getting so big! He now weighs in at 38 lbs and 41.5" tall. New for him this year was a hearing test and vision test. During his hearing test they asked that he raise his hand every time he heard a noise. He would only raise it once. If asked if he heard more noises he said yes. But he didn't catch on to raise his hand each time. So the nurse told him to tell her if he heard the noise. Well, that didn't work either. So I told him to give me a high five every time he heard a noise. He must of liked that one, because he caught on right away. Yay, he passed!

Onto the vision test. They asked him different shapes from the lines. They got to the moon and asked what it was. Trevor said "Crescent" I was shocked he even knew that word! He is so smart! The nurse decided to ask him about the plus sign since he knew the word crescent. He said it was a 'poomf' which is his made up word when he doesn't know what something is. The nurse thought that was funny and went onto other shapes. Yay, he passed this one too!

When it was time for shots, Kara and Allie had enough sitting around in their car seats so I was holding one and the Dr. was holding the other. I was trying to sit next to Trevor to comfort and hold him for shots. He did great! He didn't even cry. What a brave boy he is!

He had to have an xray done because he has been complaining of tummy and back pain for the past few months. He has had other tests, but they haven't shown anything. The Dr. called right away to let me know that he is very backed up, and to give him medicine to clean him out. So this weekend will be a lot of fun! Now we know what are plans are going to be this weekend!

The crazy things I do just to get out of the house

The girls woke up early from their afternoon nap so I decided to take all 3 to Costco by myself. Everyone did great! The girls smiled at everyone and played with each others shirts. Trevor bounced from one thing to the next. This trip went so well I decided to go to the pet store near by. The kids loved looking at all the animals!

It was getting later and Scott was at softball so would not be home until late so I decided to take all 3 to IHOP by myself. Kids ate free so why not? We got there and got seated right away. I asked for two high chairs then they seated us in a booth? I wasn't sure how that was going to work so I thought they knew what they were doing. It didn't work. We moved to a table. While doing this, Trevor slipped and hit his chin on the table. Now I have a screaming 4 year old and two very hungry 10 month olds. I calmed him down then started to scoot Kara to the table. I didn't see her hand in the way and I smoosh her little hand! Now I have a screaming baby! I can feel everyone looking at me! I comfort her and put her back in her high chair still crying. I get out the cheerios and all is good!

The kids were great through the whole dinner! I was so impressed! The girls ate pancakes, bananas, and cheerios. Trevor and I were able to share an ice cream sundea! Trevor even helped feed the girls. Maybe I'll try something like this by myself again :)

Trevor is 4!

Trevor is now 4! Happy Birthday Trevor! I can't believe he is 4 already, where has the time gone? So much has happened this past year. He had a seizure right after his 3rd birthday, got staples in his head a couple weeks later, then had two new sisters. I hope 4 is a lot less eventful!

Sunday was his birthday and his party. We had planned an outside party as it is always nice in July. The weather has been perfect for weeks. Saturday was in the 80's but Sunday was a different story. It started raining around 10am then the thunder and lightning started. I prayed for the rain to go away by 1:00 but that was not in the cards.

We had about 50 people at the house and it was a very tight fit. The thunder and lightning had stopped so the kids played outside and got nice and wet :) We did the pinata out there and had cake and ice cream outside. We all crammed into the house when it was time for presents. We were not prepared to do this stuff inside. His party went by so fast but everyone had a lot of fun! Trevor is excited to be 4 and he likes to tell everyone!

Happy 4th of July

Cruising, strawberries and the Alphabet

Kara and Allie are now able to cruise along the furniture. They are still a little slow at it as they have just begun. It won't be long until they are both walking and then the real fun will begin! Kara likes to crawl from one end of the playroom to the other. She is also our little climber. She will try to climb on or over anything! Allie is mostly content with sitting and playing with her toys. She loves to stand though. They are both getting good at standing and holding on with one hand. If we hold their hand they can take a couple steps. They are getting so big!

I took all three kids strawberry picking yesterday. It was a lot of fun. We came home with a lot of strawberries to freeze. Now we should have strawberries well into winter like we did last year. Trevor did a great job of picking strawberries. He even picked some to take home. I think most ended up in his belly :) The girls did a great job too. I wore one of them in a front pack and a friends daughter wore the other in a moby wrap. We had to be careful though as the girls liked to pick the leaves and try to eat them as we were picking strawberries.

On Tuesday Trevor surprised me by showing me that he can write the whole alphabet in both upper and lower case! He can also write up to number 13 without any help as well as counting that far. He knows his shapes and colors. He can spell his name and mom and dad. Trevor amazes me everyday! He will be four in a couple weeks. He is definitely ready for preschool. Now only if we could get him to go poo on the potty for us. He has been doing great going pee on the potty. Only two accidents so far since I put him in big boy underwear. Yea Trevor!

Fire Station Tour

Yesterday I took the kids on a tour of the Fire Station in Arlington. We went with a group from MOPS. Trevor had a blast! The kids got to see and touch everything. The captain told the kids that if they broke something or moved it out of place that was okay because they could fix it after the kids left. Now that is Trevor's kind of place. They got to go on the ambulance and fire truck. Trevor loved playing in the work out area. Especially the treadmill, since mommy doesn't let him touch hers. :) Even though the captain said the kids could touch everything, I had to stop Trevor when he went to the giant exhaust hose hanging from the ceiling and put his face in it yelling "hello, anyone there?" It looked just like the ones at the Children's Museum. Why is it always my kid doing these silly things? Of course it makes good stories for blog land! At the end of the tour the kids watched the fire truck drive away, then come back with the lights and sirens on! Today I got a call from the fire dept. and they forgot to give the kids their fire hats and coloring books, so they came by in an ambulance to deliver the stuff to us. Trevor thought it was pretty cool for the ambulance to come to our house. Just like last time he said. Only this time it wasn't because Trevor was sick. He got to tour the ambulance again in front of our house. The girls hang out in their stroller the whole time. I tried to get them to nap, but of course there was too much excitement. They napped well when we got home though.

Reflections

Today Allie and Kara are 9 months 8 days old. This was the exact age of Trevor when he had his open heart surgery. It is hard to believe he was this young when we had to hand him over. We didn't know it would be 5 days before we would see him open his eyes again or be able to hold him. Or that I would be living at Children's Hospital for 2 weeks. They thought it would be a straight forward surgery and we would be out in 4-5 days. He had other plans. If you know Trevor he never does anything by the books. He likes to do it on his terms :) Looking at Allie and Kara I just can't imagine handing them over for such a huge surgery, but somehow we did with Trevor. Maybe it is because we knew from the time he was 4 hours old that he had a heart defect and surgery would soon follow.

Allie's Fall

Yesterday after the girls woke up from their nap I put them in the same crib. They were all smiles as they love this. They love to stand up and hold onto the rails. They can't get into a standing position yet, so I stand them up. We have done this many times, but yesterday it all went wrong. I had just stood Allie up and she was all smiles as I was standing her sister next to her. As I did this, the bar fell down I caught Kara but Allie tumbled out and bumped her head on the crib and scratched her face. She screamed for a couple minutes then snuggled in. I think it was more traumatic for Mommy than Allie. I called the Dr. and she told me things to watch for. So far she seems to be doing great. I had to wake her every 4 hours last night and make sure she could fully wake up. So at 4am she decided this was kinda fun and stayed up for a couple hours and played and giggled. I was so exhausted today as I could not get a nap in. With 3 kids those are far and few between. Talk about Mommy guilt. All day I have been checking the side rail to make sure it is securely in. I think I will be checking that for a very long time. We never experienced this with Trevor. Keep Allie in your prayers that she continues to do well. We have to observe her until Wednesday morning.

9 month checkup

Kara and Allie had their 9 month checkup today. They are growing like weeds! Allie is now 17 lbs 10 oz and Kara has surpassed her sister this month in weight and is up to 17lbs 14 oz! They are both 27" long. They are getting good at eating finger food. It won't be long before they are eating what we are! They both have tripled their weight already!

Fun in the sun

Never a dull moment

So I got the courage to take all 3 to water aerobics by myself. We got there and everything was going smoothly. Trevor was playing in the kiddie pool (There was a member of the staff watching him) and I had the girls in little boats as I worked out. Kara the little monkey was trying to climb out :) Allie was all smiles and splashing in the water. They had a lot of fun! At the end of class I took them out one by one so I could play with them in the water. I had Trevor helping clean up the toys so I could get Allie and Kara dressed. I had gotten Allie dressed just then a teacher comes in the locker room telling everyone to get into another room NOW! It was during school so I didn't think she was talking to us. About a minute later, Emily, the lifeguard at the school brings Trevor in and says there is a bomb threat we have to leave immediately. Of course everyone is soaking wet. I found a nice lady and asked if she could help us out to the car. The girls were not happy as they were nice and wet in there car seats. Trevor wanted his shoes, and I told him I didn't know if we had time to get them (he had left them in the pool area.) We were told we had 5 minutes to get out of there or they could make us come back. The teachers were not sure if they were going to lock down the school or not. Of course I had no food for the girls if they did decide to go into lock down mode. So needless to say I am practically running in the pool area with the girls in their stroller get Trevor's shoes. The nice lady held onto Trevor and I put the kids in the car and left as fast as I could. Once I got away from the school I made sure all the kids were safely in the car. One adventurous day after another :)

Kara's new tricks

Kara crawled for the first time today! I remember Trevor crawling around this same time so I looked into his baby book, and he crawled on the same day 3 years ago! How exciting is that!?! Later in the evening I put Kara in her crib sitting so she could play with her fish aquarium while I got Allie. To my surprise when we got to her room she was standing! So not only did she crawl today she got herself into a standing position! This girl is on a roll! Our life is going to get crazier when these girls are on the move. Kara also loves to babble and say "dada".

Allie is now starting to enjoy her tummy and can scoot all around on her tummy. She is very good at her fine motor skills. She can pick up almost anything and get it to her mouth. She is very fast and accurate! She was the first one to start babbling all the time. Although she has slowed down a bit as she is working towards crawling. Allie is also starting to bang objects together. She is always such a happy baby.

Trevor is doing great at using the potty. He still won't poo in the potty, but we will work on that later. I am just so happy that he is no longer in diapers and not wetting his pants anymore :) He loves to draw and play music. He has learned to spell his name and Dad. He still loves letters and numbers. He can count to 13. He has such an imagination it is awesome!

The last few weeks we have been very busy. We recently went on a field trip to the Pizza Factory and the kids got to learn to make pizzas. We have been going to the park and to the lake a lot as the weather has been hot. I love it! We have been having a lot of play dates. Now that the girls are starting to move around more there will be a lot of fun adventures to share. So be sure to stop by and see what the kids are up to.

Jackie

3 ring circus

Here is a glimpse of my morning with Trevor and the twins...

This morning when the girls got up I went to change them. When I got to Allie I changed her diaper, but it was completely dry! Now if this were Trevor I would have been ecstatic! But since it was my 8 month old, I knew something wasn't right. I called the Dr. and they wanted to see her. It was 7:50 am when I called. They asked to bring her in right away at 8:20. Of course we were not dressed nor had we eaten. The Dr. is about 20 minutes away. So we left in our pj's and I was going to change later at my moms house. We got to the Dr. right at 8:20 I was so proud of myself! We get into the exam room and of course Trevor must start playing with everything. He is not happy there are no children books in the room (This is a pediatric Dr.?) Well, I get Allie out and they weigh her, she is down a couple ounces from Monday. (Both girls have ear infections so we were just in two days ago!) Then as the Dr. is examining Allie, she finally decides to pee! Right on the Dr. So we clean Allie up get another diaper under her and she pees everywhere, a lot! Now if she could have done this last night, we wouldn't have to be here :) Anyways, Trevor decides at this time he wants to see what is in the hall, so he starts to leave. Luckily the nurse stopped him. A couple minutes later he announces he has to pee and starts walking out of the room. Luckily the nurse helps him to the bathroom. In the meantime, I forgot the girls' bottles since I was in a hurry. The Dr. Office had pre made 2oz samples, so I was using those. I was so scattered at this point from keeping Trevor away from everything and trying to listen to the Dr. that I didn't put the lid on right for Allie's bottle and I gave her a bath in formula! So we had to clean her again! Poor girl is not feeling well, and now she has had a pee and formula bath all in 10 minutes. Trevor in the meantime is now playing with the paper they put on the exam table. (the rolled up part behind the exam table) I am sure they were so glad to see us leave! I told the Dr. I understood if she told her staff what happened. I am sure someone needed a good laugh today. I was so stressed by the time I left. It was only 9:30am. The rest of the day was much better thankfully. We went to Kindermusik, the park and played in the water. We are loving this hot weather! Oh yeah, it ended up that Allie was getting dehydrated. So we are giving her extra water and pedialyte. She is doing much better today, and plenty of wet diapers. Just a little glimpse of life with twin babies and a 3 year old :)

Survivor: Potty Training... Outwit Outplay Outlast... Contestents: Mommy and Daddy Vs. Trevor

A couple weeks ago I decided that Trevor is way too old to be in diapers. So I told him that they no longer made diapers or pull ups in his size and he had to wear underwear like a big boy. I told him we had to save what we had left for night time use. After a week of him going in his underwear and soiling himself constantly I was about to give up. I told him that he was responsible for using the potty and cleaning himself up. If we was dirty then we would help him. Then last weekend we had people over to help us put up our new fence. It turned out that Trevor just needed an audience! He started the morning off by peeing on the deck. I wasn't sure if I should be mad or laugh :) Then on Sunday he started peeing on the grass. He thought it was the coolest thing to do. I was getting excited as the thought of only having two in diapers sounded great! I took him to the store with me on Monday in underwear. We were shopping at JoAnn's when he told me he had to go potty. After much convincing on my part he decided to go use the toilet there. What a big boy using a public restroom! Of course I was so excited that I bought him some candy right away for his accomplishment. Then later while at Fred Meyers he had to go again. Since Monday he has been using the potty everday. He has only had one accident. He has not wet his pants since last week. We are still working on the other. He is doing so good! It looks like mommy and daddy may win this survivor contest afterall.

Jackie

The latest adventures

Allie and Kara enjoyed their first trip to the swimming pool. We went for water aerobics and the girls did great floating in their little boats! Trevor was able to be in the kiddie pool. Allie has gotten her top two teeth in now. That is four teeth already! Kara's top two are starting to poke through also. Kara now likes to roll onto her tummy and scoot backwards. It is so cute to watch her! Allie has just learned to roll onto her tummy. At first this would make her mad but she is getting used to it now. They both are tummy sleepers now. The girls had their first trip to the lake last Friday. They slept for the 1st hour which gave me time to play with Trevor. Later we went down to the water. Trevor played in the sand while I was feeding the girls. Everyone did great, which is good because Scott was not their as he was working. Trevor has been taking tumbling and he is enjoying it. The girls will be 8 months old on Saturday! Trevor is now enrolled in preschool for next year. I can't believe he is already for school!

Jackie

Sleepover

Trevor had his first sleepover at our house on Friday night. We took the boys to the park to wear them out. While there they were telling the other kids they were having a sleepover and asked if they too wanted to spend the night. It was so cute to see how excited they were. We let Trevor know that only Ryan could spend the night. The boys played hard. Later that evening we put in a movie and had popcorn. The boys wanted to both sleep in Trevor's car bed so we let them start there. They stayed up until 10:30 reading books in bed. It was so cute! We had to move Trevor to the floor, once we did that they fell asleep. They did wake early. Later the next day we celebrated Scott's birthday and Khloey's birthday. Trevor loved having cake and ice cream twice in the same day!

Allie has gotten her second tooth in. Kara is starting to roll onto her tummy now. She still gets upset if we don't roll her back, but at least she is working on it. Allie is fine laying on her back playing. They can both sit up for about 15 minutes.

Double Trouble

This afternoon while the girls were suppose to be napping I heard a lot of giggling coming from their room. I went to check on them, and Kara had rolled onto her tummy giggling at Allie, while Allie was giggling back. I rolled Kara over and told them it was nap time so they just smiled at me. I checked back a few minutes later and Allie had a hold of Kara's leg. They were busy playing. They are starting to interact with each other more. It is a lot of fun to watch them together as they have recently discovered each other. The other day Trevor had crawled into their crib and was laying in the middle during their nap time. He loves his baby sisters so much!

Jackie

My babies are getting so big!

Tomorrow Kara and Allison will be 7 months old! Where has the time gone? Kara's two bottom teeth came in last week. While Allie has had one bottom tooth come in, we are waiting for the second one. Both girls can sit unassisted for about 10 minutes. Trevor started tumbling today. He loved it! What a difference a year makes. He paid attention to the teacher and did what was told of him, while last year he usually wondered off and wanted to do his own thing. The last couple weeks he has been trying to give up his naps. I think it is harder on me then him. We have been enjoying the sunshine going to the parks for lunch, and having picnics in the backyard.

Jackie

Cardiology appointment

Trevor had his annual card appointment today. He was such a big boy! He now weighs 36lbs and is 40.5" tall! Overall everything looked good, not much change from last time. His right ventricle is getting a little bigger so he will need a valve replacement in the future. But we already new that. Dr. Portman said we had at least 3-4 years before surgery. I asked about valves via the cath lab, but he said he was not a candidate as he has a patch instead of a conduit where his valve used to be. He did say though, that they are currently doing a lot of research, so who knows what would be available by then. Although I know he needs to go through surgery again it is hard to hear. It could be longer than 3 years, but that just seems too soon.

Jackie

6 month appointment

Allie and Kara here. We had our 6 month appointment today! Allie weighs in at 14 lbs 9 oz and Kara weighs in at 14 lbs 8 oz. We had to get shots too and that was no fun! We have been a little fussy today but that just means more cuddle time with Mommy and Daddy, we love that!

We have been very busy learning so many things. We are starting to eat rice cereal, drinking from a sippy cup. Laughing at our big brother. He is always so funny! We have even rolled over a couple times from our tummy to our back. We do not like tummy time. Allie loves being in the jumperoo, she will bounce all day if Mommy and Daddy let her. Kara likes being in the exersaucer. Mommy and Daddy bought us some fish to look at. They are so bright and colorful.

We had a photo shoot at home today. Mommy made us wear dresses, even though we have never seen her in one. We were freezing today. What was she thinking! We'll have Mommy and Daddy post pics soon!

Trevor's First Crawl - June 4, 2006

Previous Adventures, July 2005 - November 2008

11/15 - Hey, get off the keyboard, it's mine! Ouch!.....Hey everyone, Kara and Allison here! Wait until we get a little older, Trevor, you keep picking on us now, but there are two of us and we WILL gang up on you! He is nice and sweet one moment then poking us and hitting us the next. At least Mommy is there to help protect us. We slept for 7 hours two nights in a row, Mommy & Daddy were so excited. Tomorrow night, we'll wake up really early. We have to keep her on her toes!

11/10 - The babies had their 2 month old checkup today. They are getting big. They now weigh 9 lb, 10oz and 9 lb, 11 oz.

10/27 - Picture this if you will....me, 2 babies and my Mommy all at Red Robin. If my math is correct, the kids outnumber Mommy's hands. How does she do it? I don't know how, but I am glad she does. I love you Mommy for still doing fun stuff with me even though I know the babies are a real handful. It's too bad you don't have any help from you-know-who.

10/25 - Grandma & Grandpa Sassy throw a killer (HA, get it!) Halloween party. I also went trick-or-treating with my sisters, Allison & Kara and cousins, Kenzie, Khloey & Ryli. I dressed up as Tigger.

10/15 - Bounce, bounce, bouce. There was an awesome bouncy house at the pumpkin patch where my Mommy took me. They also had a train and a hay ride.

10/11 - It is hard to run fast with an eyeball on a spoon. Trust me, I know. It sure is fun though. Allison and Kara had their one month doctor appointment today. Allison is now 7 lb, 7 oz and Kara is 7 lb, 11 oz. They no longer need to have high-calorie formula anymore. I would love a high calorie candy diet.

10/10 - Apple picking sounds like fun, but I was ready to go as soon as I got there. I would rather play "Mommie's bed, Trevor's bed" and puzzles today. What is that you say? That game is where I run through the house and jump on Mommy's bed, then run back through the house and jump on Trevor's bed.

9/24 - I helped introduce my new sisters to my Daddy's work people. There sure was a lot of commotion around the twins. People, people, look down here. I'm here too! I was glad Sue was there to play ball with me.

9/20 - Daddy took me to a bowling birthday party. I almost bowled a 300 game...my bumper bowling score was 74. That's pretty close.

9/14 - Our little "party of five" had our first outing today. We went to church. I didn't feel like going to Sunday School, so we all stayed in the lobby.

9/12 - Mommy's Home! Oh yeah, Allison and Kara too! I was thinking that since they were 4 weeks premature that they probably would have to spend some time in the NICU, But they didn't. They do need to be bundled all the time to keep their temperatures up.

9/9 - T-Day has arrived. No, not Trevor Day, but Twins Day. My sisters, Allison and Kara were born today at 9:36 & 9:37 am respectively. I've got to admit it...they are really cute. Here's the rundown of the stats: Allison Joy, 5 lb - 7 oz and Kara Elizabeth, 5 lb - 11 oz. Happy birthday to them. Now back to me. I got to have a sleepover at my friend Ryan's house. What a blast!

8/30 - Since my Mommy has been on hospital bedrest, alot of nice people have been bringing us dinner so Daddy has more time to play with me. Thank you to everyone who has helped out. I love that I get to spend more time with my Daddy, but I miss my Mommy too. On weekends, I take her on wheelchair rides outside. I also help my mommy eat her dinner when they bring it to her. She orders extras since she knows I will be there to help.

8/28 - My Mommy had a doctor appointment today, but she never came home. My Daddy says that she needs to stay in the hospital until my sisters are born. She needs her blood pressure monitored. I don't know what that means, but it sounds really important.

8/23 - I had a sleep over at my friend Ryan's house today. I found Christi's secret candy stash. Ha. I have been going to many different people's houses over the past few weeks since Mommy was put on bedrest. At first it was fun, but it is proving to be rather difficult being on my best behavior all the time.

8/15 - My Daddy snuck my Mommy out of the house today to go to dinner for their 10th wedding anniversary. Shhh...I'm not suppose to tell anyone that she left the couch.

8/11 - I got a new baby cousin today, Ryli. There sure are lots of babies lately. My Mommoy got put on bedrest today because of high blood pressure. She gets to lay around on the couch all day. Looks like I get explore the house on my own...

8/6 - Baby genious in the hizzy! I can write all of my numbers and letters. In fact, that is all I like to do. Write them over and over and over. I can count backwards from 10 to 1. I also am into puzzles. I have a 50 piece letter puzzle and several Mickey Mouse puzzles that I can do all myself.

8/4 - Here's a public service announcement. You must drink smoothies slow. If you drink them too fast, you will get a major brain freeze. Boy, I do love those "moozies" though.

7/29 - More doctor visits for me. I was goofing around with my friend and fell into the corner of a bookcase in my closet. It split the side of my head open. The nurse got out what looked to be a Craftsman stapler and put 2 shiny metal staples in my head to close the wound. I kind of looked like the Terminator. "Hasta la Vista, baby!"

7/22 - Weird day today. I woke up with a little fever. Around 5:00 pm, my fever spiked really high and it caused me to have a febrile seizure. Very scary stuff. It lasted for a couple minutes. The ambulance came and checked me out. There was lots of lights flashing outside. My Mommy almost gave birth to the twins right then and there. It turns out that the fever was caused by Hand Foot Mouth disease. It is very contagious so I need to stay inside for a week.

7/15 - I am a very independent little dude. I like to get my own water, wash my own hands, dress myself, put on shoes, open doors, brush teeth, perform rocket science...just checking to see if you were paying attention.

7/13 - My Daddy's softball team was in the championship. Unfortunately they lost, but I am still very proud of him. After the game was over, I ran around the bases and pretended I was my Daddy hitting and catching all the softballs.

7/12 - Happy Birthday to me!. I had an awesome party today. I want to thank all my family and friends for thesuper cool gifts. Hope you had as much fun as I did. Good cake, too.

7/11 - "An M says mmm, an M says mmm. Every letter makes a sound. An M says mmm." I know all my letters and all their sounds and I'm not afraid to sing this little ditty all day long.

7/5 - I went to a Mariner's game at Safeco Field with my Uncle Tim, Auntie Paula, Grandpa Griffey, Mommy and Daddy. What a great game. They won.

7/4 - "Ooooh. All the colors of the rainbow!" "Whoah, fireworks. All the colors of the rainbow!"

6/28 - Today I went to the Little Gym for my friends Hannah and Caitlin's birthday party. It was awesome (my Daddy taught me that word)! I even started jumping off the big mats. My Mommy and Daddy said they were so proud of me! Afterwards we went on the Mukilteo ferry to cool off. In case you didn't know...a ferry is a biiiiig boat.

6/25 - Strawberry picking is perfect activity. When you get hungry, there is food all around. You can just start eating and eating and eating strawberries. The only down side is that when they are freshly picked, they are very juicy and it runs all down your face and clothes.

6/16 - I started a month of swimming lessons today. I can dunk my own head under water, blow bubbles and float. I like to practice these things even when I'm not in the pool.

6/15 - Happy Daddy's Day. I love you!

6/10 - Even though today is my Mommy's birthday, I like to tell her that her tummy is huge. Well, it is!

6/7 - I walked at the Relay for Life with my Daddy's team again this year. There were pirates there and they gave me stickers. Arrrrrr.

5/31 - I stayed up at my friend Ryan's house waaaay past my bedtime. We sat in sleeping bags, watched the "Letter Movie" and ate popcorn well into the night. That's as good as it gets.

5/28 - Mama Mia, I be tossing pizza. I toured the Pizza Factory with some friends. My favorite part was tossing the dough way up high.

5/23 - Daddy was home when I woke up this morning. I sure did miss him! My Mommy showed me where he was on my globe. She also showed me where Mickey Mouse lives. Cool. Mommy also had an ultrasound of the twins to check their hearts. So far, all is good with them.

5/17 - My Daddy is way up high and many, many miles away. He is in Boston at the HOW Design Conference. Grandpa went too. I get to stay home and take care of Mommy and the cats while Daddy is galavanting around New England and Fenway Pahhhk.

5/11 - Happy Mommy's Day. I love you!

5/7 - "Trevor guess what? You're gonna have two baby sisters!" That is what my Mommy told me today. Sisters?....that's pretty cool, I guess. Although there is no way that I'm gonna share my toys with them. Just kidding, Mommy!

4/18 - For my Daddy's birthday, he took the day off work, took me to Jungle Playland and out to lunch. He's the best Daddy in the whole wide world. I made a cake for him that he loved.

4/9 - In the bathtub, my Daddy showed me what I like to call "Daddy Magic." It is a combination of a pitcher and water and actually making foam letters float above the surface of the tub's water level. It truely is magic.

4/4 - To answer my Daddy's age old question of "Where are your socks?" I simply reply, "Off."

4/1/ - Dude. The pet store is cool. I toured one today with some friends. You would not believe some of the weird animals that there are out there. Weird.

3/27 - Springtime brings flowers, birds and...snow? What' s up with that?

3/25 - Whoa...........! My prediction came true. I has said all along that Mommy was having 2 babies. Her doctor confirmed it today. Twins. Mommy still doesn't believe it! See, I only speak the truth. Why did Daddy fall on the floor?

3/20 - Cardiologist appointment day. My Mommy prepped me for the heart echo test. I stayed laying down on the bed and the nice nurse did the ultrasound. I watched the movie, Toy Story, and was very still for 30 minutes. Phew! I helped with the stickers for the EKG. My cardiologist, Dr. Portman, says my heart looks great and we'll see ya next year. YES! I now weigh 33 lbs and I am 37" tall.

3/17 - "Don't squish 'em!" That is the phrase of the day. I learned this useful phrase when I got to hold a real snake. My Mommy did too. I also got to touch a turtle, alligator and an iguana. "Don't squish 'em!"

3/15 - What is the deal with Easter Eggs? They are fun to hunt, fun to hide, fun to color and fun to eat. Regular eggs are not this way. Hmmm.

3/8 - I went to Izzy's 2nd birthday party today. It was at the Children's Musuem in Seattle. I told Izzy what I got her before she even opened it... heehee.

3/5 - Today, I got to play in the pool while my Mommy did water aerobics.

3/4 - My mommy has been prepping me for my big dentist trip today. I let them clean my front teeth, spray water in my mouth, and apply flouride to my teeth. I go back in another year, maybe I'll let them do all my teeth next time.

3/1 - Here's my latest goings-on. I love to watch the numbers switch on a digital clock. How does that work? Every night I like to sleep with 2 Little People in my hands and 3 books in bed with me. Ya know, in case I get bored. I enjoy going to "school" every Tuesday. Playing ball in the gym and snack time are my favorites! I am starting to write letters now, my best ones are Q, O, T, E, F and U. Now that the weather is getting nice, I like to take wagon rides to the park. I meet so many new friends everytime I go, it is so much fun. I have been going to a tumbling class twice a week. I get to bounce on a giant trampoline, walk on a balance beam and do somersaults.

2/29 - My friend Nicolas and I were playing around in a big bowl of water. Splish, splash. We were both soaked head-to-toe and there was water everywhere. Our Mommies were not very impressed with our mischieviousness (is that a word). They said that the toilet is not for splashing, but why is there water in it then?

2/25 - Daddy's garage is a wonderland of tools, sharp things and No-no's. It is so much fun out there. He put up a basketball hoop so I can shoot hoops. I'm getting pretty good.

2/23 - My friend, Ryan, let me borrow his fridge phonics magnetic letter set. It tells you what each letter sounds like. Now I go around the house saying "S" says "ssss"  "M" says "mmmm" "Q" says "qua" and many others.

1/31 - My Mommy & Daddy say that I'm going to be a big brother in September. I don't know what that means, but they sure seem excited.

1/28 - Snow day, snow day!

1/24 - I am learning so many things. I can count to 10. I know many shapes. I have learned the majority of my ABCs. I like to paint and stamp and use scissors for art projects. I know tons of words and I am still as sweet and adorable as ever.

1/20 - After Mommy laid me down for a nap, I started yelling "poop in bed." Mommy came in and found quite a surprise. I had taken my clothes and my diaper off and flung them onto the floor and I had wiped my you-know-what all over the sheets and the crib. Needless to say, I got an afternoon bath.

1/19 - Two raccoons have set up lodging under our deck. I got to see them one night. They are so cute and fuzzy, but Daddy says they are not to be played with. Oh man.

1/14 - My Mommy took me to Rising Stars Gynastics today. I got to run and jump and climb. My three favorite things. Stay tuned...this may become a weekly event for me.

1/11 - I went to Friday Night Live at the Children's Museum. I was able to pet snakes, alligators and turtles. Oh my.

1/10 - "Poop on the Potty" is what I say after I soil my diaper. My Mommy and Daddy get really excited. I wonder how excited they'll be when I really "poop on the potty!"

1/4 - Grandpa A took me to the Children's Museum and I got soaked. Good thing my Mommy knew to pack extra clothes for me. She rocks!

1/3/08 - What is it about quesadillas that make them soooo good. That is my new favorite word also. "Kay-sah-dee-ah"

12/25 - Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight. Now I need to get back to playing with my new toys.

12/19 - Today, I made gingerbread ornaments to hang on the tree. The batter sure did taste good!

12/14 - I went to a Christmas party and Santa showed up. He gave me a Little People book. How did he know I love Little People books? I made crafts and took cookies while mommy and daddy weren't looking. Ha.

12/1 - I took my Grandpa A to Seattle for a fun day of riding the carousel, watching the "snow" fall in Pacific Place and just plain old fun in downtown Seattle. It snowed all night which made it exciting, but very cold.

11/10 - My Daddy was raking leaves today and I was jumping in them and throwing them all over. I had to keep him busy.

10/28 - I went to the Seattle Aquaruim for the first time. "Fish, fish, fish!" Dressed up as a dinosaur, I went trick or treating on the Seattle waterfront.

10/23 - It's a rare 70 degree day today. At another pumpkin patch, I went into a bouncy house all by myself for the first time.

10/19 - Today, I picked out my very own pumpkin at the pumpkin patch.I am into the more exotic shapes of pumpkins, not the standard round ones.

10/11 – 10/14 - My Mommy is in Portland for a Women of Faith Conference. That means me and my Daddy spent the weekend partying. I don't even know what that means...but we did it!

9/30 - Here's a basic rundown of all the stuff that I like to do now. I like to hang on everything, especially the treadmill bar. I love the singing and dancing to the Wiggles. Playing Guitar Hero with my Daddy is the coolest. "Daddy rocks!" At night, I like to sing Twinkle, twinkle, little star. When I wash my hands, I sing the ABC song. Actually, my Mommy sings it and I kind of just mumble along with her.

9/26 - Guess what I tried today. Rollerskating. I went with my pal, Nicolas. What we did was basically copy each others moves, sliding, falling, rolling, whatever.

9/16 - I tried bowling for the first time today. That is fun. Boy, I would sure hate to drop that ball on my foot.

8/28 – 8/30 - My Mommy and Daddy took me on my first vacation to Ocean Shores. Wow there is tons of water there...and sand too...and seagulls. I tried to pet them, but they were not too keen of that idea. My Daddy got a $1.99 kite that was missing several pieces up into the air. He must be the smartest man alive. My nap schedule got sort of messed up during this trip. I let my Mommy and Daddy hear about it on one of the evenings. It's not my fault that I wanted to see and do everything. I am an inquizitive lil' dude.

8/5 - I went to the Stanwood Fair and rode on the big carousel. I got to play the animals there...and by "play," I mean look at.

8/4 - My Daddy's work party was at the Aquasox game. I got to stay up late and play out in the field behind the grandstands.

7/19 - My Great Uncle Elton passed away today. I will miss him very much.

7/15 - Now that I am two, I get to do "big boy" things like seeing the Mariners at Safeco Field. I pointed out to my Mommy and Daddy that there was a baseball game going on and there were choo choo trains and airplanes. I mentioned it to them quite
often so they wouldn't forget.

7/14 - My Big Hawaiian Birthday Party. Yeah. I had a blast playing at the Lake Goodwin Community Park and eating cupcakes. Thanks to everyone for coming and partying with me. Also, thanks for the wonderful gifts. The weather was perfect for swimming and splashing.

7/12 - Happy 2nd birthday to me! My Mommy took me to Forest Park to play in the new water park area. My Daddy met me there for lunch. I had a bbq at my house that evening. I snuck a cupcake when my Mommy wasn't looking and she said I was lucky that it was my birthday...so she let it slide. I like these birthdays.

7/5 - I went to my first movie, Happy Feet, in the theater today! I enjoyed the movie for the first 1/2 hour, then I wanted to get out of my seat and walk around. Mommy really wanted to stay to watch it but I won out in the end...

7/4 - I watched fireworks at Mike and Trina's house with my Mommy and Daddy. I didn't like all the loud firecrackers, but I liked the pretty ones that lit up the sky. It got pretty intense with all the fireworks going off all around. My Mommy and Daddy let me stay up until 10:30!

7/3 - It has been very hot, so I have been spending a lot of time in the pool. I love being outside.

7/1 - I got my hair cut today. Ouch...just kidding!

6/30 - Today I went to my friend's, Hannah and Caitlin's, 2nd birthday party. It was held at the Little Gym. I got to run and climb and jump. All my favorite things to do!

6/25 - I started swim lessons at the YMCA today. I had so much fun splashing, singing songs and jumping into the pool! I love the water!

6/20 - Today was an excititng day. The fireman got to come to my house and I got a trip to the ER. I fell on some glass and cut my knee and got scrapes and scratches on my back, arms and legs. They glued me up like a puzzle! Now, I'm feeling better! They said I was acting all boy! They said they were sure they would see me agian, as this is where boys go a lot! Now I'm home and resting. I have to be on antiobiotics for a week.

6/17 - Happy Daddy's Day, I love you!

6/16 - We went to the Strawberry Festival Grand Parade tonight. I didn't care for the loud police cars and fire trucks so my mommy and daddy plugged my ears when they went by. The pirates were a little loud too. I really liked the drill team and the horsies and big colorful floats. I danced to the music when the floats went by.

6/15 - Today, I went to the Trike races. As the trikes went by I would shout "go, go, go!" I think they went faster when I did this. My daddy tried to take me to the carnival, but those carny people are a little too loud and crazy for me...maybe next year Daddy.

6/11 - Today I got to go with my friends Emma, Caitlyn, Megan and Katie to go see minature horses. I got to feed them carrots and pet them! They weren't much taller than I was. They kept coming up to me and trying to eat my shirt! I loved running in the pastures, but I had to be careful if you know what I mean! On the way home, I kept saying "horsie, horsie."

6/10 - Happy Birthday Mommy! How old are you?

6/7 - My parents are trying to instill a new bedtime on me. 8:30, as if, I have too much to do.

6/1 - We went to Pump It Up for my friend Jackson's b-day. It was so much fun. I got to bounce around on everything, except the slide. It was scary.

5/31 - The weather has been hot so we have been playing in the pool all day!

5/24 - Today was my first two word sentence! We were watching my baby cousin, Khloey, when her mommy came to get her. So I said "bye bye baby"

5/13 - Happy Mommy's Day, I love you!

5/12 - Today was Katie's birthday party. We went to the Lake Goodwin Park. After much persuasion (I am good at that), my mommy finally let me in the water! I am so glad summer is here, I see spending many days playing in the water.

5/11 - My friend, Izzy, came over to play with me today. We played in my backyard. I even shared my toys with her! It was so nice, we decided to walk to the park. Later that night, my parents took me to a party where I got to taste my first s'more! I can't believe they haven't shared this with me before! I also got to go on a trampoline for the first time. I like to lay on my stomach and... bounce, bounce, bounce.

5/1 - My bottom two 2 year molars are coming in, so I have decided that I want my mommy to stay up at night and play with me. They hurt a lot, maybe in a few days I'll let her sleep.

4/28 - I got to spend the night at Brenda's. It was tons of fun, as always! My mommy and daddy hosted a charity poker event that raised $515.

4/25 - Today I went to an Everett Explosion Basketball game.

4/22 - My mommy says I'm silly, she came into my room after my nap and found me lying in my crib making elephant noises and gestures. What can I say…there are elephants on my crib sheet. I pointed at them and made noises like they do! Doesn't everybody do that? I am adding many new words to my vocabulary including dinosaur, cow, night night, shoes, basketball, slide, outside and many more. All the things I like.

4/20 - I can't believe it has been a whole year since my surgery! My Mommy and Daddy had a party just for me to celebrate. We had our family and friends over for a Celebration of Life potluck! Thanks everyone for being there for me and my Mommy and Daddy!

4/18 - Happy Birthday Daddy! We went to Red Robin to celebrate....YUMMMM. Do you know how old my Daddy is? Really Old.

4/14 - My cousin Khloey finally arrived! I can see the two of us getting into lots of trouble together in the future. Whoops, did I just say that.

4/8 - We had Easter dinner at our house. It was tons of fun! Grandpa Carl, Auntie Amy, Uncle Steve, Jessica and Jayme came over for dinner and festivities.

4/3 - Cardiologist appointment today. Everything looks super duper! I don't have to go back for one whole year! My ASD is almost closed, but they are keeping an eye on my PDA. If it is not closed by this time next year, they will close it in the cath lab. My sats were around 92. They did a sedated echo of my heart. I did not like the sedation medicine at all! I had a bad reaction to it and it caused me have a horrible temper-tantrum for over two hours. My Mommy says she will never let them sedate me like that again! I now weigh about 28 and a half pounds. Did I mention I don't have to go back for a whole year?

3/29 - I went to my friend Dayson's b-day party today. It was at the Skagit County Children's Museum, I love crawling and climbing on stuff!

3/28 - I had a true excellent adventure today. You'll have to ask my Mommy about it. All I can say is...I'm sneaky!

3/14 - I have the triple crown on infections. A sinus infection, an ear infection and a eye infection. Phlegmy mucus be gone!

3/10 - My CICU buddy, Izzy, had her 1st birthday party at Tutta Bella's pizza in Seattle today. The cake was yummy.

3/7 - I am a very lucky lil' guy. My Mommy has decided to stay at home with me full-time. Today was her last day at work.

3/4 - My Mommy and Daddy went the heart support group at Children's. They had a panel of people that had grown up with a congenital heart defect. I guess it was very informative since my parents said they were glad they went.

2/28 - Snow again? Yup. It's still cold. I have been showing my parents that I know lots and lots of words. My favorite one today is "cra-koo" I don't say "cracker" because it's so much cuter to make baby talk.

2/13 - Feeling much better, I finally fought off the rotavirus. A good tummy always prevails over an evil tummy.

2/6 - I have somehow been infected by a rotavirus. It makes my tummy feel bad and gives me the runs, but I will not let it get me down. It sends a lot of kids to the hospital with dehydration, but not me. Hey, I have been through heart surgery, so I can kick this little virus's butt.

2/3 - I like to make animal sounds. My favorites are the cow, duck and elephant. I have also added the words "hi" and "buh-bye".

1/28 - My friends, Hannah and Caitlyn, and I went to the Children's Museum and had a great time. Ooops, I got soaked in the water play area.

1/24 - My Daddy has taught me how to juggle. I am not going to be one of those weird juggler guys, but it is a neat skill to have.

1/18 - I have become quite a climber, kinda like Spiderman.

1/6/2007 - I had a Tumbling Tots class today. I practiced climbing, jumping and rolling. I even did a somersault (with help).

12/31 - I went to a New Year's Eve party at a friend's house. My parents tried to get me to go to sleep several times, but I fooled them and stayed up past midnight. Happy New Year. I hope 2007 brings no hospital visits. Cheers.

12/28 - When I see a duck, I like to make quacking sounds.

12/25 - On Christmas morning, I climbed on all the presents instead of opening them. I also like the bows and sorting them.

12/23 - Went to a Christmas Party at my friend's house.

12/22 - Went to the Lights of Christmas at Warm Beach. I love the holiday lights.

12/12 - "Ball, ball" is my first real word. I also like to blow kisses and give high fives.

12/10 - Pics with Santa today. He smells like eggnog.

11/27 - Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow... and lots of it. We had over 13" of the white stuff.

11/23 - Thanksgiving Day. I like the pumpkin spice bread that my Auntie Cristy made.

11/17 - My Mommy took me to her water aerobics class today. I floated around in a 'lil boat.

11/3 - My Auntie Corinna past away today in her sleep. It is a very sad day. Although I only met her a few times, I will miss her.

10/31 - I was a spider for Halloween.

10/28 - My Mommy and Daddy are in New York City today, so since they didn't take me with them, I decided to start walking. I got to stay with my friends, Brenda, Ben & Harriet. It was a blast!

Nov. 3 - My Auntie Corinna past away today in her sleep. It is a very sad day. Although I only met her a few times, I will miss her. My Daddy will be heading to Montana to attend her funeral.

Oct. 28 - Step.......step........step...step...step..step..step. Hey this is cool.

Oct. 24 - My Mommy and Daddy are heading to New York City. I get to stay with Brenda, Ben & Harriet.

Oct. 21 - I took my first step today.

Oct. 12 - Great News. I had an appointment with my Cardiologist and he did several tests. My heart is doing great. My right ventricle is growing well. My sats were 93. I do not need a catheterization to close my PDA and ASD. My doctor thinks they will close naturally on their own. I get to stop taking all medication. Basically, I am doing exceptionally well. My next appointment is in April.

Oct. 2 - I heard some great news. My Auntie Christi and Uncle Joe are expecting a baby in April. How cool is that.

Sept. 30 - I went to a Everett Silvertips hockey game today. What a blast. It was really noisy when we scored. It startled me at first and almost made me cry. My Mommy says I did really well. I was compelled to always be looking at the action. As if it was genetically engineered into my being to enjoy sports. Yeah!

Sept. 28 - I stood by myself for a whole minute this time. I love walking around with a walker toy of mine. I can steer it, go backwards and go all over the house with it.

Sept. 8 - 5 seconds seems like a long time to me. My mommy and daddy sure did make a big fuss over just 5 little seconds. That is the amount of time that I stood all by myself. No chairs, tables or couches were needed. I still prefer crawling as my first means of transportation, but I guess if I am to learn to walk, I must first be able to stand.

Aug. 19 - My mommy and daddy let me stay the night with one of my friends. This was the very first time I slept somewhere without them. I did miss them at times, but it was fun to play with Beefy, Felicia and Caitlyn. I love to crawl all over their house and up and down their stairs.

Aug. 13 - Lake Goodwin is the coolest place to go when the weather is hot. The small community park has sand and is very shallow so I can go walk out, with the help of my daddy, quite a ways into the water. Then I get to float on this really neat floaty thingy. I get to sit in this floaty thingy, but my legs are free in the water. I can see myself spending many days here to cool off.

Aug. 6 - My Heart-to-Heart support group had a picnic today. It was at this really nice country club. I got to play in the pool and meet a lot of other heart kids with zippers like mine.

July 17 - I met with my Urologist today. He wanted to do a check-up on my kidneys. They are absolutely perfect. Yeah! Thank goodness I don't need to go see any more. That is one less doctor in my life, plus he kinda smelled funny.

July 15 - I had a humongous birthday party today. There were balloons and streamers and presents and food and family and friends and sunshine. Thanks for all the gifts. Thanks to Mommy and Daddy for letting me eat cake. Check out the pictures, it was a lot of fun. I want to have a party like this every year.

July 12 - Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday dear me, happy birthday to me!
I made it! I am now 1 year old. That sounds weird, doesn't it? It is not proper grammar to say "1 years old" but it sounds better when you say that instead of "1 year old". Maybe it's just me. But what do I know about proper grammar, I haven't even started school yet.

July 4 - People are nuts. I heard loud booms and saw explosions and blazing rockets. Wait a minute...that's my Daddy. He's a pyromaniac. You would think that my Aunt Christi and Uncle Joe wouId be concerned that there house might burn down, but they weren't. I must admit...I was sorta drawn to all the lights. Maybe I have some pyro in my blood. Very cool. Light fuse and get away.

July 1 - NOTICE: A 9:30 p.m. bedtime is now strictly enforced. My days of staying up late are over. I let my parents know that I didn't agree with this new rule. I cried and cried for over an hour, then I got worn out and fell asleep. This epic battle has just begun.

June 27 - Today, I got cut.... a haircut. Actually, I got them all cut. Hah. I was surprised that it didn't hurt at all. The scruffy-look is out. Being clean-cut is in.

June 21 - Today was a very sad day. My Grandma Caryl passed away. I am very grateful that I got to spend some time with her before she went to heaven. I will miss playing peek-a-boo with her. When I'm older, my Daddy will have to tell me all about her.

June 18 - For Father's Day, I took my Daddy out to The Keg restaurant. I don't know how people can see what they are eating in that place. It is very dark in there. I could barely see my Cheerios. I dropped some off of my highchair and it looks as if they disappeared into the dark abyss. hee hee

June 17 - What a long exciting day. My Mommy and I were in the Strawberry Festival Kiddie's Parade. After that, my Daddy joined us to watch the Grand Parade. I fell asleep during the end of it. I can only handle so much excitement in one day.

June 10 - Boy, oh, boy. If you thought crawling was a big accomplishment, check this out. I can now pull myself into a standing position all by myself. All I need is a table or a chair or a couch. My physical therapist is surprised by all the things I can do. She thought that I might be a little bit behind in the motor skills department because of my heart surgery. I guess she hasn't been around many go-getters like me. There's no stoppin' me.

June 4 - Today, is a milestone day for me. I saw a balloon...I wanted to play with the balloon...The balloon was across the room...I really, really wanted to play with the balloon...I crawled to the balloon. WHAT A RUSH! This opens tons of opportunities for me. I can now get to all the things that Mommy and Daddy had kept away from me. All sorts of buttons and wires will now be mine. Haa Haa Haaaa.

May 24 - I met with my regular cardiologist today and he says that I am doing terrific. I don't have to go back again until October for a check-up. My sats are in the mid-to-upper 80s and should continue to climb over the next few months. I have regained all the weight that I had lost during my stay in the hospital. I am now a robust 22 lbs. 4 oz. I eat all sorts of regular solid foods now, not just the jar stuff.

May 14 - For Mother's Day, I gave my Mommy a card with my footprint in it. That way she will have a momemto of me when I was a 'lil guy. She got other gifts too, but I am sure she liked my gifts the best. Sorry Daddy.

May 12 - My latest achievements are clapping and waving. I have always been good with my hands as far as grasping things and playing, but now I can clap with the best of 'em. Sometimes I do it for no reason at all just so that my Mommy will give me a funny look. I can pull myself into a kneeling position, which by my calculations means that I am close to being able to pull myself into a standing position.

May 8 - I had a follow-up appointment today. The doctor said that I look like I'm doing great. They are very pleased with my progress. My Sats are now in the 80's, which is good. They should continue to climb. My fun thing to do now is to clang any two toys together to hear what sound thay make. I have found out through this process that my socks do not make a sound. Who knew! I am back to old self again. I can scoot on my butt around the room. I like to stand and hold onto the couch and coffee table. I like to eat again. I like to be near my Mommy and Daddy the most.

May 3 - What do ya know...I have started to eat better. I guess I was just tired of being in the hospital.

May 2 - Home, Sweet, Home. I have lost a total of 1 lb. 2 oz. during my hospital stay. When my Mommy got me home, we both took a 3 hour nap together. It was nice to be home and see the kitties again.

May 1 - I want to thank all of the people who visited me, prayed for me, brought me gifts and brought food to my Mommy and Daddy. I am humbled and very appreciative of the amount of support that my parents and I have been given. You helped us get through this difficult time. Thanks again.

Apr. 30 - My third tooth has came in today. Maybe that is why I don't feel like eating very much. I am a complex little guy, ya know. I have started to sleep on my right side, usually I like to sleep on my back with both arms out to the side.

Apr. 29 - My eating is gradually getting better, but not good enough to go home yet.

Apr. 28 - I have been trying to eat some more normal foods today, such as bananas and pears. My Mommy and Daddy suggested to the nurse to get him some powdered formula like I have at home instead of the regular premixed stuff. I like my powdered stuff much better. This actually tastes good. Maybe I'll eat a little more.

Apr. 27 - I still have some issues with eating and keeping it down, if you know what I mean. They want to test my poo for a gastrointestinal infection. Possibly rotavirus. So I have now been quarantined into my room. No more stroller rides for a few days. The nurses have to wear smocks and gloves when they anter the room. Hee hee. I almost got to go home today, but I threw up when the doc was in the room. Big mistake. They want me to stay for more observation. My heart and lungs are doing great. My scar is healing very well. I just need to get my stomach healthy. I was visited by an Occupational Therapist today and she said I have torticallis. It is not related to my eating, it has to do with my neck and shoulder muscles. They will give me some exercises to do when I get home.

Apr. 26 - The doctors diagnosed me with an ear infection. Maybe that is why I do not feel like eating very much. My Mommy and Daddy are now able to stay with me in my room. They have a sofa that folds down into a small bed.

Apr. 25 - I got the ok to move down to a regular room today. I will still have my Sats, weight, input and output, temperature and blood pressure monitored every 3-4 hours, but I no longer am connected to any machines. Just an IV remains in my ankle, but it is blocked off. I have not been very hungry yet which is weird for me. I usually love to eat. I heard the nurse say that I can go home as soon as I eat good, but for some reason I just don't feel like it.

Apr. 24 - Trevor was moved to a two-person ICU room today. His old room was needed for a prospective heart transplant patient. Wow, now that's serious. His ventillator was removed today. A few hours later he really perked up. Playing with toys, laughing, smiling and babbling. Now the goal for him is to start eating and peeing regularly and then we can get out of the Cardiac ICU and down to a regular room. Now able to eat normally, all medications are given orally. This did not make Trevor very happy.
Wait a minute, Trevor wants to tell the story from this point on.
Thanks Daddy, but I'll take it from here. Wow, what a trip! I have no recollection of the last few days. That medicine that they are feeding me tastes absolutely terrible. There were not any fruity flavors at all. I am only connected to an EKG machine, a Sats monitor and lasiks now. I am glad that my Mommy and Daddy are finally able to pick me up and hold me now. It has been a long time. My Mommy was VERY tired, so she slept in the ICU sleeping room. My Daddy stayed in the room with me and held me all night. I couldn't sleep unless I was being held. We watched the movie Madagascar. I liked the "movin', movin'" parts. If you haven't seen it, you probably think I am nuts.

Apr. 23 - The fluid from around his lungs is gone. We are now waiting for him to be more alert before removing the ventillator. He had been on so much medication to keep him sedated, we had to wait for it to clear his system. The ventillator is not helping him breath at this point, it is just there for "just in case" purposes. When awake, Trevor can slightly open his eyes, but is very groggy. I handed him a giraffe toy and he grabbed it and held on for a long time. We brought many comforts of home for him. A blanket and all sorts of small toys. The nurses are keeping an eye on a low grade fever that he has devleoped again. A fever is a sign of an infection. The rest of the day we are waiting for him to shake off the groggyness (Is that even a word?). Trevor was given a heart pillow and we have had all the doctors and nurses sign it.

Apr. 22 - Trevor is still in the Cardiac ICU with 24 hour care. He is still on muscle relaxers so not able to eat on his own. They put a feeding tube down his nose and to his stomach to feed him. They gave him high calorie formula through the tube, but his body did not tolerate it very well. Yes, diarrhea! The nurses were the lucky ones to clean him. Needless to say, they then gave him normal formula. His red blood count was low, so he received a blood transfusion. They stopped the muscle relaxer that night and tried a non-narcotic alternative, hoping that they would be able to remove him from the ventillator.

Apr. 21 - Overnight Trevor's fever spiked to 104 degrees, but the doctors still said that this is nothing to worry about and they were right since later it started going back down. Trevor's saturation levels (sats) were in the low 70's, but slowly rising. They should continue to rise for the next few months. At 11:30, his chest tube and pacer wires were removed. The doctors were hoping to remove the ventillator today, but he has some fluid around his lungs. He was put on lasiks to try to help his body get rid of excess fluids. He was still moving his head around too much, so the nurses gave him a muscle relaxer to basically paralyze him. That finally made him stop moving around. He had to stay on the ventillator until the fluid around his lungs worked its way out. Lucky for Tanya tonight, we were able to sleep in one the ICU sleeper rooms. There is only a twin size bed and a nightstand. Big whoop.

Apr. 20 - It's my big day! We got to Children's Hosiptal at 6:15 a.m. and admitted at 7:00. I got a kid's version of "Happy Juice" which will make me forget the next several days. It sounds like something out of Star Trek. Let me tell ya, this stuff is great. I couldn't stop giggling and laughing. I had doctors that were walking by stop and look in at me to see what was going on.
From here on, my Daddy will tell the story since I don't remember what happened next. I'll let ya know when I'm back.
Hi. Trevor's Daddy here. After giving Trevor the "Happy Juice," the nurse took him back for the surgery at 7:30. By 9:15, Trevor was on the heart/lung bypasss machine. By 9:45, the repair was completed and Trevor was off the heart/lung machine and they started to close him up. At 11:30, he was finished with the surgery and in recovery. Dr. Permut talked to us and said everything went perfect. No surprises. The patch used was taken from the pericardium (heart lining) of a cow. Moooo. Sorry...just to lighten the mood. Now you know where Trev gets it. At 12:30, we got to see Trevor in the Cardiac ICU. It was quite an overwhelming site, but we were so glad that he was ok. The nurses wanted to keep him sedated for at least 24 hours so that he didn't try to pull out the ventillator or any of the tubes, but the sedation narcotics were not able to keep him completely still. He was still moving his head around and his arms as well, some of this is just reflex movements. So they had to tie his wrists to the crib to try and keep him from moving. He developed a fever that evening which is normal for heart surgeries. There were no rooms available that night for the parents of Cardiac ICU kids, so Tanya offered her apartment for us to stay the night. This was great since her apartment is very close to Children's Hospital. We were given a pager, so the doctors contact us for any reason.

Apr. 19 - I will have open heart surgery to have a right ventricle outflow patch put in my heart, tomorrow. Yup, I will be a member of the zipper club. I have the upmost confidence in my pediatric cardiac surgeon, but it is still kinda scary. Take a look in the "My Heart" section for a good visual of the surgery. Don't worry, it won't make you queasy.

Apr. 16 - Oh yeah! I found all the eggs during my first Easter egg hunt. View my pictures for all the exciting egg action. I have almost figured out this crawling thing. I like to roll around, but it will be lots easier to get into trouble, oops...I mean get around, once I start to crawl.

Apr. 6 - Today, I had my last synagis shot. Yeah! I weigh 21 lbs, 10 oz. That means I get to switch from my baby car seat to my big boy car seat. I am doing lots of big boy stuff now. I can feed myself all kinds of finger foods, such as cheerios, fruit puffs, real sweet potatoes, avocados and other small easy to eat stuff. I love to stand and bounce while holding the coffee table or the sofa. I also like to make clicking sounds with my tongue and lips. Click, click, click.

Mar. 12 - I am 8 months old today (my Daddy says I am 2/3). I weigh 20 lbs, 10 oz. I am able to stand on my own while holding onto the coffee table or the couch. I am not walking yet, but soon. To get from point A to point B, I scooch on my back kinda like a worm.

Mar. 10 - My open heart surgery has been postponed since I have a little cold. It is rescheduled for April 6. I met with Dr. Permut, the pediatric cardiac surgeon who will be performing the surgery. He is a very skilled and experienced surgeon. He is also very friendly and answered all the questions that my Mommy and Daddy had for him.

Feb. 19 - I have been babbling for months, but today I said "Dada." My Daddy says that this is my first word. Mommy swears she heard me say "Mama" weeks ago.

Feb. 12 - I got to play with Cheerios today. I was able to pick them up, but had a hard time getting them between my thumb and forefinger so I could put them in my mouth. When I finally got one and moved it towards my mouth, I was expecting my Mommy to snatch it from me, like she does with other toys. To my surprise, she encouraged me to eat it. I only have two itty bitty teeth, so I gummed the Cheerio and let it dissolve in my mouth.

Feb. 5 - Superbowl Sunday. My Daddy keeps saying the Seahawks "got screwed!" I am not exactly sure what that means, but it must be true.

Jan. 29 - My first 2 teeth came in today. These chompers are beautiful. I can sit up very well now and have good balance. I love to shake my head back and forth. Ask me a question and I'll shake my head "no." I like to blow raspberries and if you get to close, I'll grab your glasses right off your face and try to eat them.

Jan. 22 - My favorite team, the Seahawks, are going to play in the Super Bowl. I took a nap during the first half of the game, but I watched the final quarter and got to see Hasselbeck raise the NFC Championship trophy. Maybe my Daddy should draft him next year for his fantasy football team. I will have a talk with him.

Jan. 20 - I am on my way. I rolled over from my tummy to my back today. See my six months pictures to watch me.

Jan. 17 - I have been enjoying solid food for a little while now. My favorites are peaches, sweet potatoes and pears. My Mommy says that I also need to eat my vegetables too, so I have also had carrots, peas, green beans and squash.

Jan. 7 - The NFL playoffs started today. I can't believe Eli Manning struggled against the Nickel defense of the Redskins. Even I know to check down from the Z receiver to the X receiver or the Tight End against the Stunting 4-3 Zone Blitz packages. Eli should try playing Madden '06 like my Daddy does.

Jan. 4, 2006 - I can sit up, on my own, a little now. My upper body wobbles around like a bobble head, but I will keep working at it. My Mommy taught me to keep my legs straight and use my arms for balance. When on my tummy, I can almost roll over, my stinkin' arm keeps getting in the way. I will keep working on that too. I weigh around 18 lbs and 5 oz just in case you were wondering and I know you were.

Dec. 31 - I tried to stay up to midnight to welcome in the New Year, but I could only make it until 10:00 pm. I got to play with Mommy and friends all night. My Daddy won a poker tournament. He is good. I want him to turn pro, but Mommy just laughs. heehee.

Dec. 26 - We went to Grandma G's house and had dinner today. I got to hang out with more family again and guess what...more presents. I have gotten pretty good at opening them now. I wore a tie-dyed onesie that was given to me by my Aunt Cristy and Uncle Tony.

Dec. 25 - Christmas morning with my mommy and daddy was fun. I got lots of cool stuff. I think my favorite, not including the wrapping paper, was a crinkly book. I love crinkling it and chewing on it. Too bad it wasn't snowing or it would have been perfect.

Dec. 24 - I spent Christmas eve at my Grandma A's house with family. What a fun time. This was the 1st time opening presents for me. My mommy and daddy helped me a little. I scratched my nose and it kept bleeding and bleeding. My mommy put a bandaid on it and it stopped.

Dec. 12 - My gums have been hurting lately. My mommy says I'm teething. I do not like this. My good sleeping pattern has been messed up a little because of it. Also, I can't stop drooling. Bucketloads of drool! I get to slime up my mommy's and daddy's shoulders. heehee.

Dec. 11 - Today was my baby dedication. I was a little nervous about being up on stage in front of all those people, so I fussed a little until Pastor Rick said a prayer for me. Then I calmed down and smiled.

Dec. 9 - He must be real. I tugged on his beard and he screamed. Hopefully, this won't affect my quantity of presents. I have still been a good boy. If you couldn't guess, I got my picture taken with Santa today. What a jolly fellow.

Dec. 4 - FINALLY! I got to eat my first solid foods today. Do I get a burger...no. Do I get pizza...no. How 'bout some Fritos...no. I get rice cereal. Oh well, I got to sit in my high chair which was really cool. I could get used to this.

Dec. 1 - I had my first in a series of 5 synagis shots today. These are to help keep me healthy throughout the winter. I am more susceptible to RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) since I am a heart baby. Basically, it helps keep me from getting pneumonia and bronchiolitis. Today, I weigh 16 lbs. 13 oz. and I am 27 1/2" long.

Nov. 24 - My first Thanksgiving. First, I went to my Grandma & Grandpa A's house for dinner and to watch some football. Then, I went to my Grandma & Grandpa G's house for dessert. I don't know what all the hubbub about Thanksgiving is. I got no pumpkin pie, no turkey, no sweet potatoes, just formula! Although it was great to see all my family together.

Nov. 22 - Not much happening today. Just wanted to say "hi." I have recently discovered how much fun tummy-time is. Up until now, I have really hated it with a passion. But, you know what, when I stop crying and just lift my head and look around, it is fun. I had my first big belly laugh while on tummy-time. I sometimes move around alot while I sleep and wake myself up. Then, of course, I wake mommy and daddy up too.

Nov. 10 - My parents finally let me sleep in my own room for the whole night. It was great. They were happy too. They told me that I am now a big boy. Well, duh! Now, I am able to grab my legs and roll onto my side and I weigh around 15 1/2 pounds. I've got some good news...I just saved a bunch of money on car insurance. hahahahaha. Now, seriously, my mommy will be spending more time at home with me. She is reducing her time at work to part-time starting after Thanksgiving. She must really love me!

Oct. 31 - Halloween night, I got to dress up as a tiger. Grrrrrr. Be sure to check out my 3 month pictures to see me. I went over to my friend's house and over to my Auntie Christi's and Uncle Joe's place. I shared my candy with everyone since I don't have teeth yet. One of these days, I'll be able to eat a Butterfinger.

Oct. 21 - Today, I got to come home from the hospital. It's good to be home. I am getting good at grasping things, especially my giraffe. My mommy and daddy are making me have lots of tummy-time. I do not like it very much, but I will keep trying it for them.

Oct. 20 - I went back to Children's Hospital today for my balloon valvuplasty. It was tough to not be able to eat for 6 hours prior. My doctor ballooned my pulmonary valve and the stent in my PDA. Everything went wonderfully. I had to stay at the hospital overnight so they can monitor my saturation levels. My mommy & daddy stayed with me, too. My doc says I am good-to-go for at least another 3 - 6 months. He is very pleased with my heart's progress. There still is a chance that I will need a minor open heart surgery, but it all depends on my progress. The nice nurse who helped me when I was born remembered me and came by to say hi.

Oct. 12 - Happy 3 month b-day to me! I have been doing many things these past few weeks. My hands and fingers are just the coolest. They are fun to look at, suck on and move. My mommy tries to give me other toys to play with, but my hands are just too exciting. I like to use them to grab stuff...especially long hair and shirts. I had actual tears this morning for the first time. No more dry-eye crying for me. Funny thing is, my mommy cried when she saw me cry. Who knew. I have been sleeping up to 9 hours at a time at night. I like to talk and coo to the animals on the wall in my room, especially when my mommy and daddy change my diapers. Hey, I need something to do to pass the time.

Sept. 20 - I visited my Cardiologist today, Dr. Portman. I now weigh 13 lbs. 1 oz. I like to eat almost as much as I like to poop. :) My second cathiterization procedure is scheduled for October 20. That will be at Children's Hospital in Seattle. Dr. Tom Jones, who will be doing my procedure, is a world renowned Pediatric heart specialist. I am very lucky to have him.

Sept. 12 - Mommy started back to work today. It was tough for me to see her go away for soooo long. I know it was hard on her too. At least I am in the good hands of my Grandma Kathy. I get to hang out with my cousins Mckenzie and Dominic during the day. Occasionally, I will get to be watched by Brenda and Harriet. This is a lot of fun for me. Oh, by the way, I am 2 months old today. I have been cooing for awhile now and I have outgrown most of my newborn clothes.

Sept. 9 - I had to go to work today. My daddy needed me for a photo shoot for his work. This picture was used on a brochure and a banner. Look closely at this picture and you can see me and my mommy and daddy. This is the last time I do modeling for free. I need a new agent. :) My mommy and daddy were thrilled since I slept for over 7 hours tonight. I don't want them to get used to this, so I might only sleep for 3-4 hours tomorrow. Heehee!

Aug. 30 - I have been eating like a champ. I now weigh 12 lbs. 1 oz. at 7 weeks old. I went to see my cardiologist today. As of right now, my right ventricle is growing so good, I won't need surgery afterall. My pulmonary valve has enough blood flow going through that they will close the stent that was inserted earlier. Unfortunately, I will need another balloon valvoplasty to enlarge the pulmonary valve. Don't worry, it is a simple procedure, since I am now a big boy. I do not need to take amoxycilin anymore for my kidneys, since they are fine. I could possibly be medicine free by the end of the year. I have been taking a quarter of a children's aspirin daily to help my heart. On another note, I've been smiling for mommy and daddy. They love to see me smile. :)

Aug. 26 - Today, I went to the Evergreen State Fair. It was so much fun. I got to see all the animals and I can't wait until next year when I can go on the rides! Also, my mommy and daddy tell me they are so proud of me, as I have been sleeping at night for as long as 5 1/2 hours at a time. Hey, when I'm swaddled up good, it's easier for me to stay asleep. Take note.

Aug. 13 - I went to my first baseball game today. I slept for most of the time, but the whole experience was awesome.

Aug. 12 - I am now 1 month old and doing great. I now weigh 10lbs. 5 oz. My doctor says that this is really good, since some kids with heart problems do not gain much weight. I see my cardiologist weekly, just for monitoring. As it stands right now, I will need to have another procedure with my heart. I do not know when or what type of procedure. It could be another balloon valvoplasty or even open heart surgery. Only time will tell. They want me to get as big and as old as I can before any surgeries, since the success rate is much higher. Overall, I feel great and have no limitations. I can't wait to get a little older so I can sleep and hang out in my own room. Bath time is my favorite time of the day. I am going to talk to my mommy & daddy about getting a TV in my room. Wish me luck.

July 28 - I had my first professional pictures taken today. I slept through the whole thing. Yeah.

July 18 - We FINALLY got to go home around 5:00pm.

July 17 - I found out that we would be able to go home as soon as I started feeding on a regular basis. How cool. I was slowly weaned off my IV and in the afternoon, started to drink formula.

July 16 - I was doing so good that I was moved from the IICU to the pediatric ward. I was still hooked up to an IV and a few heart monitors, but I had my own room and both my mommy and daddy were able to stay in the room with me overnight instead of staying in a sleeper room.

July 15 - My mommy was released from the hospital after her c-section and came straight to Children's hospital where my daddy had been the whole time.

July 14 - I had a 2.5 hour heart procedure at 11:45am where I had a catheter inserted into my heart and then a balloon inflated to open the abnormal valve. Then a stent was inserted into a vein near the top of my heart to keep blood flowing through the pulmonary artery until my right ventricle relaxes and fully heals. Everything went great. I was still in the IICU, but my stats were improving. At 11:45pm that night, they were able to remove my breathing tube (extibate).

July 13 - I had an IV and a breathing tube inserted (intebated). Then had testing and was diagnosed with Critical Pulmonary Stenosis, a congenital heart defect. Basically, I had a abnormal valve exiting the pulmonary artery, this drastically reduced the blood flow to my lungs and made the right ventricle become stressed.

July 12 - I was born at 1:25pm by c-section. I was sent to the NICU for observation at 5:00pm. Transferred to the Infant Intensive Care Unit (IICU) at Children's Hospital in Seattle at 11:30pm.