thanksgiving

Alex, Max, Reggie and Maya

Grandma Patsy and the babies

Our newest cousin Kalia.

Baby push-up contest.

Aubrey, Marci and Maya.

Marianne and Maya.

Great-grandpa and Max

We had a wonderful time with family over the Thanksgiving holiday. It seemed like the parties never stopped. The kids loved the attention but were a little overwhelmed with the constant partying. I am afraid they will be bored with just me at home now. Thank you to all of you for making our holiday so memorable. We miss you and wish the distance between us wasn't so far.

goopy eyes, snotty noses, crappy bums and then some.....

We are sick...all of us. The babies started getting congested a couple of days ago. Lonnie and I had a very long night on Saturday as we took turns taking care of our poor little snotty nosed kids We decided to stayed home from church on Sunday because of their coughing and whining. We actually had a nice relaxing day taking care of the sick babies.
Then very late Sunday night I started to feel rumblings in my tummy. I thought about getting out of bed and getting some antacids but I was too tired to do anything about it. Soon enough I was out of bed and worshiping the porcelain god. Monday the kids came down with the stomach flu too. We heard from other friends that we had seen in the past few days that they also were sick with the stomach flu.
As of this morning all four of us have had this terrible stomach flu and Lonnie and the babies are congested. Thankfully Lonnie and I were able to somewhat stagger our illness, my worst day was Monday and his has been today. Hopefully we are all on the tail end of a rough 24 hour flu. The babies have been great sports about the whole ordeal. They seem quite happy most of the time but their poor little runny noses and upset tummies along with worn out mom and dad make us into quite the sorry looking bunch.
Maya has had a hard time going down for naps. I have had to carry her in a sling to rock her to sleep. Here she is passed out on her bed, still wrapped up in the sling.

On a much happier note.... My dear friend Jessie was in town visiting her sister for Thanksgiving and she was kind (and brave) enough to come and spend a couple hours at out house. Jessie is a sweet city woman, now living in Palo Alto. She and I lived in the Laird House with two other great women in Salt Lake before Lonnie and I meet. Jessie taught me what real wind is, how to see art in everyday life and about Billy Collins, among other things. She brought love, tenderness and macroons into our home. Thanks for being a wonderful friend Jess!

on a roll

I'm a winner, again. First Obama, then the Utes....now this....I think Maya and Max are good luck.

Thank you to everyone who helped save our sweet little babies' heads.

The Obama, Utes reference is for you, Emily. You know you secretly love them both.

Go Utes!

No, I didn't go to the U...but Lonnie did, and that is what is important here. I had never attended a college football game or even really watch one on TV until I started dating Lonnie. Since getting married I have managed to learn to enjoy a good football game (as long as I don't have to sit out in the freezing cold). Our home is a much happier place when the Utes win....so go Utes!

(thanks Lee Mercer for the great photoshoping)

we love daddy, yes sir'e

six month check-up

The kids did great at their 6 month check up. They have both grown more than 10 inches in the past 6 months as well as gained over 10lbs. They have almost quadrupled their birth weight. Lonnie had a meeting planned so I took them myself to the doctor's appointment. Thankfully they didn't even cry much when they got their shots and they eve feel asleep waiting for the appointment.

The kids are growing like weeds. Max now has two teeth and the doctor said she thought that his top teeth wouldn't be far behind. Maya has one bottom tooth that is just starting to poke out and the second one is almost there too. Max out weighted Mays for the first time. We were also all quite surprised to find out that somehow Maya is also in the 90th percentile for height. The doctor even did a second measurement just to make sure.

Maya-
height: 26 3/4 inches 90th percentile
weight: 15 lbs 1 oz 25-50th percentile
head: 17 inches 75-90th percentile

Max-
height: 26 1/4 inches 25-50th percentile
weight:15 lbs 41/2 oz 10-25th percentile
head: 17 1/4 inches 50-75th percentile

(the percentiles are different for boys and girls)

First Half Birthday

The twins just had their first half birthday last Friday. It seems like they've grown so fast, and yet it seems that the last six months have comprised a huge chunk of our lives. Funny how life is that way. Anyway, we put together a short video of the twins to mark the occasion. Enjoy.

Or you can click on this link to youtube and watch the video in higher resolution, if you select the option below the video.

the list

Emily had this on her blog and I thought it was a fun and interesting quick post.
The things that I have done are green.

1. Started your own blog

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland

8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sang a solo

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown your own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitch hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person

50. Been to the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten caviar

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the changing of the guards in London

77. Broken a bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Visited the Grand Canyon

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Had a baby

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee

clarification...#3 I didn't play in a band but I sang in a blues band, once. They didn't ask me to sing again. I got a lot more nervous than I thought I would.

71 out of 99...not bad, but I am still glad that I have a lot of life left. If I were making my own list I think it would add a couple of other things like visiting a country where I don't speak the language, falling in love, been in a parade, climbed the tallest mountain in your state or country, run for public office, etc...but that would be another post. What about you guys, what have you done? What would you like to do? Leave me a comment about your list.

mommy time

Ian and Maya playing together.

Max and Maya thrilled to be able to jump to their heart's content.

The kids had their first time hanging out alone with out Mom or Dad. Emily watched the babies for an hour and half while I tried to get done some of the projects that I stopped working on about 12 months ago. It looks like the kiddos had a great time and didn't even realize that I was gone and I finally started to paint the back entry way.

Thanks Emily for documenting the important event!

kicking my brother

One of Maya's favorite activities is kicking, especially her brother. Now that she has gotten better at rolling she likes to use him to help propel her even further. Thankfully Max doesn't seem to mind too much and just enjoys his sister's attention.