All Kinds of Fun!

So, this week has been really fun. I know that many of you have been waiting for a whole week to read what is happening, well, your wait is over! In fact, I even put a slide show at the bottom so you can see who all has been visiting lately. So, if you want to skip the reading, just jump down to the bottom and have fun watching.
So, last week Elizabeth started getting a little wheezy. She didn't sound too good which, if you have ever seen her lately, you know she struggles to breathe b/c of her small nostrils. Hey, maybe I should take a picture so you can see that too. Anyway, she was struggling to breathe and we broke down and went to the doctor. Turns out, she had some funk in her lungs so we got to put her on some breathing machine - like an asthma machine. Nice right - my 3 month old on an inhaler. Try telling a kid that small to take a deep breath and hold it.
Moving along, Ansley didn't sound bad, but the doctor told us to keep an eye on her just in case. Well, it hadn't been 24 hours until she started to get a little funk in her nose, sinuses and lungs. OH GREAT!!! So then, Elizabeth was getting better and Ansley was getting worse. By Sunday she (Ansley) was running a fever and we were thinking that it would be bad. She woke up at 4 am on Monday (I Know - many of you would love for your baby to sleep that long). So I woke up with her and slept with her on my chest for a couple of hours. Of course, there wasn't much sleeping b/c of the labored breathing on her part - but I didn't mind the Daddy and Me time.
So, long story long, she had an ear infection and we had to put her on an assortment of drugs. She seems to be getting better, so we are happy for that.
Also, we have had a lot of visitors lately. As you will see in the pics, Uncle Calvin and Aunt Lane came in last Friday to visit with Aunt Jackie. What fun we had of course. Then, on Monday, Heather's parents (aka Mee-Maw and Pee-Paw) came in for a visit. You can hardly tell that they love the twins. I can't get a second to hold them anymore, but that is OK.
So, we love having all of this fun and all of the visitors lately. Especially since they all feel like they have to spoil the girls rotten. Anyway, life is great and we are loving spending time with MeeMaw and PeePaw. Other than that, same old same old happening.
We love you all and can't wait to see some more visitors VERY soon!
Love
EACH Knies

And Heather says I am a bad influence!

So, we are back. It must be Tuesday again. Since last Tuesday, the same has been happening. Girls still continuing to talk to me much like they did last week. However, they are talking for longer. They are cooing for twice the time and really focusing on lots of fun things. In these pictures, Ansley is focusing on her favorite thing, a monkey, and Elizabeth is focusing on her favorite thing, her bib. Now let me explain Elizabeth. Elizabeth loves her bib - or loves to throw up on it that is. She isn't throwing up as much, but she does like to fill it full to make herself happy.

Now, I don't want anyone to worry though about them eating. We had them weighed this week and Elizabeth has grown 3/4 of a pound in 17 days!!! She is one ounce shy of 12 pounds. Ansley, on the other hand, is still growing like crazy. She is now 12 pounds 3 ounces. Yep, they are now on the percentile map. Hooray!!!

Other pictures for now (since I got in trouble for not posting enough of those) - Here is what we have been doing lately. These are pictures of us at the park. We went with our friends the other day and played golf and fed the ducks. Here is a sequential turn of events when Isaac got to feed the ducks. He started out just fine until he started to get swarmed. Then he got scared and asked for help. Obvoiusly, he only really felt safe in Brad's arms.

Avery, on the other hand, had a blast even though they were right on top of her.




So, what else do the girls like to do? I think that these pictures say it all.




But, you may ask, what does the title of this blog mean? Well, mom always says that I am going to be the reason that these girls are trouble. She thinks that I am going to be a bad influence. But really, who thinks the opposite? Me. Today, the guys at her work asked her to eat a doodle bug.

That's right - a Roly Poly. AND SHE DID IT!!! Now, I will give it to her for this. She did manage to get $100 buck for it which is pretty darn good. My question is, who wouldn't eat it for that. But, I do think that it says that I am not the only one that is going to teach these kids bad habits. She wants them to eat bugs for money. Gross!!!

Anyway, that is what we are doing and eating this week. Hope you all love the new pics. Love you all

Each Knies

Hooray for me!!!

So I made it back and it is Tuesday! That makes two weeks in a row I have made a post on Tuesday. Now, I am not as good as Sarah and my Besty, but hey, I am trying.

But I do feel sad about something. Both of them have conversations that go back and forth with people. I tried to come up with some sort of conversation that I found funny this week, but I am at a loss. The only conversation I have that makes me smile went as follows:

Me: Hi Elizabeth and Ansley

Girls:.........

Me: I said Hi girls. Do you see me?

Girls:.........

Me: Hoobadeedoobadee Coobababa

Girls: Heeeee and Coooo (while smiling)

Wow, maybe they don't know English just yet.

But I did want to tell you all about something fun that happened to me this week. Ok, so we all know that I am a home-maker right now. That being said, I usually do laundry on a daily basis for the girls and for us on a 3 - 4 day basis. Then, to make sure I don't shrink anything, I hang it up and let it air dry. Then, it goes into the "To Be Ironed" pile. You may know this pile. It is the one that is ALWAYS there. I love my stuff to be ironed, but it seems to build so fast that I have to spend hours doing all of it.

So, my friend told me about her fun gadget this week. It is a steam iron. She told me about it and unfortunately, it is all I could think about for the next hour. So, I borrowed it. WOW is it fun!!! I even took down shirts that were hanging up just to press them again. I know, I am a loser, but hey, it was the high point of my week. (Wow - that sounds fun). So, now I have to figure out how to get one of my own so I can have that much fun always :)

So, yes, I am a dork and love to iron now. That is my post for the week. But, just so you don't think it was all about me this week, here you go...

I call this one "Study Time with Dad." Yeah, it looks like they get as much out of studying as I do.

Love you All

EACH Knies

Super Tuesday!!

Ok, so I decided last week that I needed to have a goal for the blog. I know how much people love to see the girls, but I was having a really hard time finding the time to update the blog. So, I am making a goal to always update on Tuesday. So maybe today wasn't so Super, but the blog is going to be updated and that is pretty good.

So there are some things that HAVE to be updated and said. First I will talk about Halloween. We went as country folk with our two peas in their pods. Ok, so maybe Heather and I don't win any prizes, but how cute are these girls?!? Their outfits don't show too well in this photo, but believe me, they are cute!!!

So that is our happy family on Trick-Or-Treat night. Boy did these girls score some candy. Amazing what people will give a baby.

Now, this next picture to me was much better for Halloween. I mean, it was their first one and this says how much fun they are having.

If you notice in that second picture, the girls are just chilling. Obviously Elizabeth feels much more relaxed in this one. But What are they looking at, you may ask. Well, we have found that the girls love to watch re-runs of Friends. So, they are watching their favorite TV shows. Now I know that they should be watching things like Baby Einstein, but they don't laugh as hard at the hand puppets as they do at Chandler and Joey. How do you argue with that?

So, other things that I have found fun and interesting lately. Well, we decided that the girls need to wear bows in their head a little more. We don't like people coming up and saying, "So, you have a boy anda girl?" Now, how stupid are people when they say that to a pair of kids in PINK car seats? Anyway - we started using bows. However, Ansley doesn't like bows that much. But, boy does she love to play hide and seek!

How CUTE is that? But on a different note, many of you have not seen Elizabeth after her surgery. Some have even asked what it looked like. So in an effort to be "Fair and Balanced", here is a picture of Elizabeth.

The scar looks much better now and she seems to be doing much better. That having been said though, she still likes to puke like crazy. Every time we feed her it is like shaking a can of soda and waiting for it to spew. Just without the shaking part I have to say!!! I don't want a social worker to come to our house - not that social workers aren't very helpful...

But on a greater note, we did have the babies blessed a couple of Sundays ago and boy was that a great experience. They were able to wear a dress that I was Christened in. Now that is pretty cool, but the best part was that my dad and his siblings also wore it when they were christened. Even cooler, my Grand-dad also wore it for his christening as did his mother!!! The dres is from 1875!! So that was a great weekend for us. My siblings all came down for it as did Aunt Tootsie and Uncle Virgel. What a great weekend.

Other visitors in recent history. Aunt Blair. Now, the reason this is so funny is because it is her first experience with a Wii. Nintendo should have her perform for their website! She loves boxing by the way because she can kick some booty! But yes, if you are asking, I was worried about the TV surviving the bout - and Blair for that matter!

Our last fun visitor was Uncle Beau and his girlfriend Heather. Beau came prepared for the adventure to meet his Knies nieces.

So, that is our Super Tuesday report. Thanks for being so patient with us as this having 2 new kids really does a number on our free time...Who knew! We love you all -

Each Knies

Finally, some pictures

Ok, so I wanted to get you some pictures so you can see how good the girls are doing. So, here they are. Here are the girls taking a bath and in their fun Froggy Towels. Aren't they cute!!

Here was our first sleep over. We had Addison and Marcus over for a few nights while they were waiting to go home. Boy was that a house full of fun...

Super Dad Turns Super Dud

Yeah I know, it has been a long time since my last posting. I have heard from many of you that I am such a loser for not updating the blog and I am extremely appologetic for not updating sooner. However, we have been REALLY busy lately and that is the excuse I have. I know - excuses are like Butt-Holes; I have one and it stinks!!! Oh well, here is the update.

The girls are now 2 months old and growing like weeds. As many of you know, we were very blessed this weekend because Elizabeth had to go in for emergency surgery. Now, before you freak out, everything seems to be fine. She had a problem known as Pyloric Stenosis which means that she would throw up A LOT!!! Well, for those of you who have visited in the past few weeks would exclaim a resounding, NO DUH!!! So, our pediatrician called Texas Children's Hospital and got us into the hospital on Friday night. Well, let me tell you - ER is not the place to be on a Friday night in Houston at the most popular children's hospital in Houston.
So, we waited for a few hours before getting in, but then we saw the doctor, had an ultrasound and scheduled surgery for Saturday morning. Our pediatric surgeon was one of the coolest guys I have met and did a great job. However, Elizabeth had an apnic episode and had to be sent to the NICU again. What that means? That meant that Heather and I had to go home without her. We never knew how easy it was to just have one baby, but boy, it was easy. Not to dog all of you who olnly have one, but having two really keeps both people hopping.
Anyway. Elizabeth is out and doing just fine - well, except the 4 mm ASD in her heart. If you really want to know what it is, look that one up. We are going to the cardio doctor for her some time over the next few weeks.
Not to leave out Ansley, but she is doing great. She weighed 9 1/2 pounds at her last appointment. Holy Smokes! That is 2x her original birth weight.
They are both starting to smile at us and boy, that makes life fun. I never knew how much time I could spend saying, "Hello Beautiful" to the same person, but boy can I do that for a long time for a few seconds of smiling satisfaction. Ansley is still more active, and you can ask her Aunt Alden if you don't believe me.
But as for any new stuff, there is not much else going on. Life is still great and we are having a blast with our little bundles of fun. Thanks for all of the prayers and the well wishes for our rough weekend. We know that that is the reason she did so well with surgery.
We love you all so much
EACH Knies

5 Weeks Old

We are now 5 weeks and loving life. We went to the doctor's office this week and were weighed...
So, how much did we weigh? Ansley weighed 7 pounds 9 ounces and Elizabeth weighed 7 pounds 6 ounces. So, we are really gaining weight fast. Must be all of those midnight, 2 and 4 o'clock feedings.
But, mom and dad have some good news. We are going to whisper this part and knock on wood when we finish -
The girls are starting to make it from midnight till 4:30 am for the past 4 nights. Hooray! Again, knock on some wood and cross your fingers for that to continue.
As for other stuff in our life, not much is really interesting. Mom and dad have learned that babies and beer are very similar - THEY CAN SPEW!!! Both A and E have learned to spew seriously despite all of our efforts to burp them and get them to release the bubbles. But apparently, the girls don't understand what we are trying to do. But the way we see it, the girls are still growing like crazy only now, they are making more laundry for daddy to do. Well, they must be trying to tell me who is the boss around the house. The girls!!!
But honestly, as much of a pain it is to clean up after them and wake up all night with them, they are more than worth it. Every time mommy and daddy pass the bed, we have to look in and see what the girls are doing. Most of the time they are just sleeping, but they are so cute when they sleep that we find ourselves just watching them sleep. Sometimes we even get them out of bed to let them rest on our chest. WOW!!! That is a great feeling. Even if it is two in the morning, it is still a great feeling to have them rest on our chest. Who knew that life could be this great. Boy do we love it.
Well, TTFN - love always
EACH Knies

Four Weeks of FUN!!!

Well, yesterday was our Happy Birthday!!! We just turned 4 weeks. I know, it isn't really a birthday, but it was fun to note the occasion. So, sorry we haven't updated the blog for several days, but for some reason, we are having to sleep all day because we are staying up all night. You know, before life with the girls, we would stay up late "For Fun!" Now, we stay up late and it is not so much fun. Of course, we wouldn't trade it for anything - well, maybe for more sleep...
So this week went well for the girls. They started to sleep a little longer - Hooray!!! OF course, they think that the "Sleep Longer" idea means that they should sleep longer during the day so they can stay up at night. Not Hooray!
Heather got her first chance to wake up through the night this week. She has been working really hard over the past couple of weeks and didn't realize how much fun it was to take care of the girls in the middle of the night without adrenaline. So, Friday morning she was asking what the license plate number of the Truck was that ran her over. That was a rough night for her, but she has adjusted nicely. Last night, when the girls refused to sleep, she did well to make it up for most of the feedings and asked for the license plate of the pick-up that ran into her. So, hey, that is quite the improvement.
Other than that, not much is going on. We are doing great and loving life. We can't imagine how we lived life without the girls. Of course, we still longingly recall the days of sleep, but those seem to be long gone. We have a doctors appointment this week so we can all see how big the girls are getting. My bet is 7 1/2 pounds judging by the amount of food that they keep eating, but we will see then. I swear, they are trying to eat us out of house and home.
Oh, and this in, Heather is a great chef. I know, you all knew that, but it was confirmed this week. Our little niece Avery was watching Heather mix the formula and exclaimed, "Oh, YUMMY!" So, apparently, Heather is not just a good chef with regular food, but also formula. Who knew?
But that is the update from our neck of the woods. Hope all is going well for each of you. Hope you had a great Labor Day weekend and that you stayed safe if you were in Louisiana. We love you all ten sky billions.
Love Always -
EACH Knies

Daddy's Day Out

Today was our first adventure into the world as a daddy daughter(s) trio. We went to the doctor to get Ansley checked out (don't worry, everything is just fine). So, I piled the stroller into the little Civic and piled the kids into the car. I thought ahead and fed the girls before leaving, but they didn't plan ahead too well and decided to make me special presents in their diapers. Wow! Those were special.
Anywho - since we did take Ansley in, she had to get weighed. So, last Tuesday she weighed 5 pounds 14 ounces. Today she weighs 6 pounds 8 ounces. HOLY SMOKES!!! No wonder she screams so loud at night for food. The poor kid is starving all the time. You don't grow this fast if you don't eat enough apparently. In fact, apparently you need to eat ALL THE TIME!!! Not that I am complaining, but these girls have got to learn night and day. They did a four hour stint last night with no sleeping. Well, if it was just one baby, that wouldn't be a problem. But when the babies are in stereo screaming, it tends to not be as fun...
So, back to the doctor. I got to the hospital at 10:01 (our appt was at 10:00 so not too bad for my first time) and got to wait in the waiting room for about 40 minutes. That is when I started to notice that the waiting room started to smell a lot like baby poop. Amazing how that happened. It just started to stink. Hmmmm. Where would that smell be coming from?
So, we finally get in and go to get weighed. Here is the fun part - TAKE OFF THE DIAPER TO WEIGH!!! NOOOOOOO! Well, you know the rest. So we get to the room and the doctor came in and checked her out before leaving to consult with another doctor. About that time, the babies decided that the all-you-can-eat buffet needed to begin again. So, we got to eat in the office and the doctor finished us up. So I am feeding Elizabeth as I walk through the waiting room, sign out, and pile them back into their seats.
And off we go again. So we got back home at about 1:45 after leaving at 9:00 - I made it and so did the girls. Whew!!! What an adventure. I know, it probably isn't too adventurous for most of you, but for me, it was quite a day.
Anyway - that is about it for now. We are loving having the girls - missing lots of sleep - and LOVING being called Mommy and Daddy!!!
We love you all and hope to see you all very soon (that is from Ansley and Elizabeth). They said that they look forward to seeing you soon.
Love
EACH
(Wow! that one was inventive - can you get it?)

Here we Grow!

Well, this will be a short post, so don't think you have to set aside an hour to read the blog. I just wanted to update you all.
First - Dad is still alive. I made it through mom's first day back at work and so did the girls. So, we are looking good.
Second - The girls are growing like weeds. I know that Kathryn has grow-mo, but apparently, so does Similac. The girls have been growing, A LOT!!! Of course, they have been eating non-stop it would seem. So we took them to the pediatrician yesterday and they got their 2 week weight. They both gained 12 ounces!!! I know that that doesn't sound like much (especially considering I can give or take 5 pounds on any given day = 80 ounces), but for them, that is a huge gain. That is about 15% gain for the girls (not for me though). They also grew an inch and 1/2 inch (Ansley and Elizabeth respectively). And while we were there, the peditrician said that they are growing and doing so well, we don't have to go back for 2 weeks instead of our usually 1 week check-up. IN other words, they are doing great. I know you are probably saying, "I knew they were great before the check up!" but this just reaffirms your presumption.
So - TTFN (ta-ta-for-now)
Love You All
The Non-Stop Eating Family

2 Weeks Old and Still Growin' Strong

Well, we are two weeks into our new and exciting life and we are having a blast. Now if you didn't know, the word blast is synonymous for "sleep deprived and exhausted." The girls are doing very well, as you would expect. They are eating tons (more than a lot of full term babies) and pooping and peeing even more. It is a blast and we are loving being parents more than we could ever have even imagined. It is the best thing we have ever done and the most exciting experience of our lives to date.
As for the week, it has been full of family. We had all of my family (Chandler's that is) over during the week. Well, almost all of them. We still have one set of family that hasn't visited, but they call often just to check in. So, you may see lots of pictures with little kids and lots of extra people. Well, that could be any number of people from my family. You can also see several of the girl's cousins as well. What is funny to note is the fact that the two baby boys that you see are going to be in the girl's same class. Yeah, that is right, those huge boys are close to the girl's age, but definitely not their same size as you can tell. Harrison and Jeffrey are the super-sized version of cousins for the girls. But, I am happy to have them super-sized because that is less that I will have to worry about when boys come calling.
Also in the pictures are pictures of Aunt Tootsie and Aunt Jackie. They are Heather's aunts and came by this week to proclaim their name, "The Treasures" and to start spoiling the three girls. Yeah, I said three because they spoiled Heather too. It was great to see them and judging by their faces, it was fun for them too.
But, we are still having fun and that is the most important to us. We get to go to the doctors office this week and see how much they have grown. I think that they have grown a lot, but that may be just me. As for me, I get to play Mr. Mom this week as it is Heather's first week back to work. So, I will be flying solo this week and the girls will learn the real meaning of being Daddy's Little Girls. Ok, so maybe those of you who said that I will be wrapped around their fingers are right. And maybe they will be spoiled by Daddy too. But hey, aren't they worth it? We think so...
Love You All
From a little Testosterone among a Heap of Estrogen

SuperDad to the Rescue...

So, sorry I couldn't get online over the past few days. I know that many of you have been monitoring the site daily (or more) to see the newest updates, but I had no accesssince Friday. So, I am really sorry about it, but duty called.
So, Thursday the doctor told me that we were going to move the girls to Family Care. That is where they move the mom and dad into a room with the baby to see how they do. It is to help see what the parents need to know while you still have some help (nurses). On Friday, they moved us upstairs and I was super worried. It wasn't so much that I didn't know what I was doing, it was just that I was on my own - No Hoo-Hoo!!! So anyway, we moved upstairs and I had the first night of my life as a parent (or the first one where I was responsible fore someone else's life - in this case, 2 someones). So apparently, the girls like to wake up about every 3 hours. That isn't abnormal for babies to wake up that often, but it does make it a little difficult when there are 2. See, if you normally take 30 - 40 minutes to feed and change the baby, you have to multiply that by 2 to have twins. I know, that is probably redundant, but it came at me like a freight train. So, after waking up every 1 1/2 hours throughout the night, I was exhausted by Saturday morning at 7am. It just seemed like I was going through the motions - and I had only been going for 1 night. Oh boy, what are we in for?
But then, the help arrived. Aunt Sandra was nice enough to come up and help me and the girls out. She came up from Oklahoma and rescued me. It was great to have her because it made those feedings go in 1/2 the time. Well, on Saturday, the doctor came in and said that the girls were doing so well, they were thinking about discharging us on Sunday!!! Woah! So, they were scheduled to get out in only 1 week even though they were super premies. Normally they would have taken at least 2 weeks, but in the case of these little girls, it was only 1/2 the time. But wait, how was I gonna get discharged with no Hoo-Hoo - No Mommy - NO HELP!!!
Well, I told Heather what was going on and she decided to get up early and go to the airport and see if she could get on an earlier flight. At the same time, Sandra and I double-teamed the twins and were taking care of business. Heather managed to pull off one more miracle on Sunday and got to Wichita by 11am instead of her original time of 9pm.
About the time that Heather comes in, the doctor also walks into our room and says, "You guys are free to go." So, a whole new level of panic fills our minds and we gather all ofour stuff to be discharged. Holy Smokes - we are really parents.
So we pile all of our stuff into the little Civic (by the way - a Civic is not a family vehicle if you have two car seats inthe back) and off we go. First stop, OKC. We stopped in Oklahoma for our first road trip feeding and apparently, there are places in the city that you shouldn't stop - EVER. Guess which place we stopped. So, about 5 minutes into the feeding, we have 2 police cars pull up behind us. They walk up to the car and see that we are feeding. I told them that we were headed to Texas and they told us that we needed to feed the girls quickly because this was a bad part of town. Then, they left! Ok, so if this is such a bad part of town, at least stick around for 10 minute so we can get out of there too!!! It was as if they wanted to say, "This is a bad part of town and you guys need to leave quickly. Here, we will show you how to run!"
We pull into Kathy's house about 9pm and are excited to be there. Of course, I think that Kathy and Cameron were even more excited. Now, I didn't know this, but apparently Kathy has learned some words from Switzerland since her dad is over there. She said that the word Grandmom translates into english as "Fav-o-rit." Wow, that sounds very familiar to a word in english, but her name instead of Grandmom is "Fav-o-rit." Boy, I hope I am spelling that correctly. Cameron was also great because as soon as he walked up to us, he asked us how our 2nd and 3rd children were doing. I tell you what - the way he looked at the girls helped me to know that he is gonna be a great big-brother. So after the night at Kathy's (where Ansley decided she didn't like the bed spread if you know what I mean) we left for home.
Our next stop was safer than our first as we stopped at one of those rest stops along the way. That is when I introduced the girls to Texas. Well, we pulled into the driveway and finally welcomed our little baby girls home. Boy, it has been a long journey - and I don't just mean from Kansas. We have had some huge ups and downs along the way, but it is all worth it now.
Our first day back consisted of a few people coming over and a trip to the pediatrician. Our first night was great because Grandmom and Granddad stayed with the girls. They were up most of the night because apparently premies don't like to be over-stimulated. Who knew? But we got the girls back in the morning and they did a great job of sleeping for 45 minutes. Not what I would call a record. But now they are sleeping soundly (hopefully) and will not be out of bed for the next few hours.
Whew! That was a lot of information for just one blog. But, that is the long and the short. We are all doing great and loving life. But, before I go, let me give you 4 more stock tips
1 - Huggies - something tells me we are gonna use a lot of those.
2 - Similac - these girls are like bottom-less pits now
3 - Germex - our pediatrician said that we should have it in every room in the house times two.
4 - Baby laundry detergent - Ok, the bottomless pits also have a regurge button.
Love you all so much. Hope the update was fun -
Love Always
The Texan Quad

Holy Smokes!!!

Ok, so I am so sorry to each of you who check the blog for the fun-facts, but the last few days have been a whirlwind to say the least. We have been all over Kansas and had all kinds of stuff happen to us and the girls. So, where to begin...
Yesterday we went before the judge to make sure he thought that we were suitable parents. Yeah, I was a little worried. I mean really, should I be trusted with kids? Don't answer until you talk to my swim lesson students. Some may think that it isn't such a good idea. BUT, the judge said that we are good to go and signed the papers to make us official parents. So, when you look at the slide show and see Heather and I in a court room, don't think we did anything wrong. The judge just thought that it would be fun to take a picture of us in the courtroom. Now, I do have to draw your attention to our outfits. Yes, those outfits were special "Court Room Outfits" because Grandma and Aunt Jean Ann thought that we needed to look better to go to court. So, I am not saying that the outfits made up the judges mind, but it sure didn't help. Cause dang we look good...
Now that I have talked about the boring stuff, I have to go on about what you have all come to the site to read about - the Girls.
So, Elizabeth had a little trouble eating. She apparently likes to "Enjoy" her meal even if it is just Similac. She likes to look around while eating and forgets that she needs the energy to grow. So, yesterday I had a talk with Ansley and told her that she needed to have a pep-talk with her sister. So, last night Elizabeth started eating much better. She ate more than what she needed 4/5 feedings and was happy to do it. So, now she is doing great at eating. She did have a couple of apnea episodes last night, but she seems to be doing better. The doctor told me that he would have to give her some caffeine if she had another episode. So, we will hope for the best, but otherwise, you might want to invest in Dr. Pepper for a little while.
Ansley, on the other hand, has been eating like a champ. In fact, any time you even disturb her she thinks that it is time to eat. It has become a little bit of a problem because when she eats too much, she throws it up after we put her in bed. So, not only is she not keeping the food down, she is having to have her bed changed because of the puke. Oh well, it gives her another opportunity to try on more fun outfits. Something tells me that she and her Aunt Alden may get along way too well. So, in addition to Dr. Pepper stock, you may want to invest in White House - Black Market for Kids if they have such a thing.
But, as you can tell by the picture, they love being together. This morning, Ansley was sporting a new hat and Elizabeth got a little jealous. So, we put them both in fun hats and they are loving those. However, I am not sure who loves the hats on the girls the most; them or everyone else. I know I loved seeing them in the hats, Heather loved it, and I know you all love it, but so do the nurses. One of the nurses took a picture of the girls sleeping with their hats on and put a copy of it on their crib. Boy, the nurses sure will hate to lose the girls.
That's right, the girls are moving. Not home just yet, but enough to make my palms sweat. The doctor told me that since they were doing so well, they would have to move them up to the family rooms. That means that Heather and I would be taking care of the girls all by ourselves starting tomorrow. I told the doctor I only had one problem, NO HEATHER!!! So while she is back in Texas doing the catering jobs, I have to be Super Dad all by myself. So, needless to say, I am going to bed early tonight so I can get ready for the rest of my life!!! But really, it is great news and we are so happy to hear that they are doing well. The doctor also said that they may be released early next week. So those of you in Texas may be seeing the girls earlier than we had thought. Great News.
Other than that, I can't think of much else that is going on. (Like I need anything else to be going on). Hope you all are doing great. Thanks so much for the prayers. It seems like angels are coming down directly from heaven to help just because all of you are sending up so many prayers. So, the four of us thank you for that. Now, I say that but I am not going to lie. Since the prayers are working so well, you may want to start praying so that my palms stop sweating from being nervous about flying solo starting tomorrow. Just send a shout out for Super Dad if you find you have nothing else to pray for tonight...
Thanks tons for all of the support and Love
Love
2 Healthy Girls, a Happy Mom and a Freaked out Father

3 Down...

Well, we are on day three in Kansas and so much has happened.

Today the doctor came by to tell us that the girls are in great shape and very beautiful. Like duhh. Like we didn't already know that. But he also made some adjustments. He let Ansley go to the all-you-can-eat buffet. She was only able to eat 12 mL on each feeding before but today he told her to eat away. BOY DID SHE!!! At every subsequent feeding she has eaten over 30 mL. So, she obviously knows that her family loves to eat, A LOT. He also put Ansley and Elizabeth on a new schedule. The are now on demand feeding instead of 3 hour feeding. That means that they get to cry for their food when they get hungry. Now, I am not a very smart fella, but wouldn't I rather them not cry? I thought that that was what we ordered; the non-crying babies.
Anyway, so the babies are doing great eating. Also, no more tubes. They took out their IV tubes today. They still have their lines in to make sure they are eating well, but they are no longer connected to the pump. That is really good and it makes everyone very happy.
And last but not least, they get to be together again. That's right. Tonight they get to start sleeping together again. Hooray!!! They will be sleeping in the same crib starting tonight. Elizabeth is like her mom and stays really warm and Ansley is like her dad and stays cool. So, we are hoping that putting them in the same bed will make them both - JUST RIGHT!
Lastly, they are hoping to move the girls upstairs over the next few days. So, no more NICU for them. Keep those fingers crossed for that one.

The other good news is that Grandma came with Aunt Jean Ann. Now they have read the postings of every one's comments and are thinking that they are pretty high on the totem pole of favorites. No offense to those of you who didn't travel 9 hours to see the girls, but hey, Jean Ann is 7 months pregnant and drove all morning just to get in for their 5 o'clock feeding.

So, below is Grandma and Aunt Jean Ann holding the babies. There may also be some other pictures of the cuties thrown in there, but hey, we have waited long enough to see them. They told us that they want to be on everyone's lips (chapped or otherwise). Can you believe it? They are already quoting movies...these are our kids.

So, until tomorrow - so long suckas. We love you a whole bunch.
Love Always
3 girls and a Happy Daddy

Day 2 on Earth

Well, the babies are doing great. Thanks to all of you who are visiting the site. It is a fun way for us to be able to keep you all updated on the progress of the babies. So, if you are here for the info, keep reading. If you are just here to see how cute they are, there is a slide show at the bottom of the page. Ansley is the 1st half and Elizabeth is the 2nd half. Except the last 2 are Ansley again because they were just to cute to leave out...
First and Most Important -
We are now officially parents of these two little angels. That is right, we became parents some time around 3:30 today when the birth parents entrusted us with their children. We are so very thankful to them for giving us the greatest gift of all - the gift to be Mom and Dad. Yeah, we are still trying to get used to calling ourselves that, but it is coming quite quickly.
So, thanks for all of those prayers because today it finally happened. I have to admit, there may have been times when I was skeptical, but I guess someone was looking out for us and just wanted us to wait until the right ones were ready to come to our family. What a blessing it is to have them already.
Ansley Alert - Ansley is off of her tubes and is eating like a champ. She definitely belongs to our family because she can put down her whole feeding in less than 3 minutes. Doesn't look like she will be missing any meals around the house. She is also 1 ounce heavier today than yesterday. We find that hard to believe with all of the poop she has created (or should we say - black tar). She is doing a great job of eating and pooping - well, aren't those things that babies do?
Elizabeth Extravaganza - Well, she may have come out a little heavier, but she is a little slow in the eating department. I guess that it is because she is eating twice what her sister does. We got to hold and change them both today and it was great. Boy, I never thought that I would say that changing a diaper would be "Great!" She is still doing very well and is doing everything she needs to be doing to get home really fast. Obviously, we can't wait either.
So, that is the long and the short of today. Hope you all are enjoying the pics as much as we are enjoying making them. We look forward to seeing you all and getting to spend time with each of you. In the meantime, keep those prayers coming. We know hat that is what has gotten us this far.
Love
Three Gals and a Guy

Welcome to Earth!

So, we are in Kansas right now and going through the paperwork and other stuff that we need to do to make these two little princess our very own. We are very excited and will try to keep everyone updated as much as possible. I am not sure what will change, but the girls are in the NICU right now. What does that mean.
Well - Ansley was a little small. Since they were early, she needed a little help. They put her on oxygen for a couple of hours and then took her right off. She was doing so well that they didn't think that they needed to do it anymore. They wer going to try to feed her through a tube this morning and we are hoping that that went well. The nurses also told us that since she is doing so well, they will likely be putting her and Elizabeth together very soon. Hooray!!! We don't want them to get lonely.
Elizabeth is doing a little better. She was put on room air almost immediately. That is really good news. She was also getting fed this morning with a bottle. If that works and she gains some weight, they will both be on their way home soon.
SO, thanks for all of the prayers and well wishes. We all look forward to seeing you all very soon.
Love The FOUR of Us!