Happy Thanksgiving

We had a nice long weekend. :)

Josh spent Wednesday and Thursday night with my parents and Wendy. I don't think he missed us one bit. I asked him if he missed us and he said, "No". :) I told him I was going to miss him (when we were leaving) and he just said, "It'll be okay". Blah!

Dad had knee surgery on Tuesday (they had to replace the liner on his knee). He got to come home on Thursday.

Phil, Josh, Wendy and I just went to Golden Corral for lunch on Thursday and brought dinners home for Mom and Dad from Cracker Barrel. We had a big dinner on Friday night since Scott could be there (Cindy was working). So, all was good.

Wendy went home on Saturday after she and Scott had lunch with us.

Tommy, Susan, Lane and Heidi stopped in to see us on Saturday. It was great to see them. They hadn't seen the girls since they were about 2 months old.

The girls are growing so much. They both want to be on the go. Callie can pull herself up to a standing position when she's in the crib. :) Emma just wants to roll all over the place - she doesn't even want to sit any more. LOL

It was tough getting back up for work this morning! Yuck!!

Weekend in Chattanooga

We decided we all needed a weekend away. :) So, we went to Chattanooga this weekend.
We went to the Children's Discovery Center (http://www.cdmfun.org/) - what an awesome place! We were there for 3 1/2 hours and probably could have stayed longer if Phil and I weren't starving (it was 2:30 and way past lunchtime)!!

Needless to say, Josh had a blast!!

After lunch, we made a stop at the candy store. Josh left the toy we bought him at the museum there...after a 20 minute drive around town, we finally figured out that was where he left it. Luckily, it was a very slow day and it was still there when I went back in to retrieve it.

We drove around for awhile and then found a room. We stayed at the Homewood Suites near the mall - very nice! We had lots of room and the girls could finally get out and play. :)

We watched Home Alone that evening and then went to bed early. We slept until almost 8:00 which was glorious! I guess we were all tired.

After breakfast and checking out, we went back downtown and drove up to Lookout Mountain. We were going to do Ruby Falls and/or Rock City, but we couldn't take the stroller to either place, so that was nixed. We wound up riding the Incline Railway (down the mountain and then back up it again). After that, we drove over to the Chattanooga Choo Choo. Santa was there, which thrilled Josh. He let us take a couple of snapshots with him (even though he was there to sell packages of pictures). :) We ate lunch there and then walked around for awhile. By that time, it was almost 3:00 and we decided to head back home - we were all tired!

It was definitely a fun weekend together. :)

P.S. If you're dying to see pictures from our weekend, click the link on the title. :)

Emma's OT/PT Therapy Updates

Emma FINALLY was able to go to her OT Evaluation today (after cancelling twice because of illness).

In a nutshell, she' doing great. The therapist gave us a few exercises to do at home that will help with some of her fine motor skills. She wasn't recommended for formal therapy at all because they felt she was right where she needed to be.

We had a re-check with the physical therapist and even though Emma was tired and uncooperative, she could tell that there aren't any problems. She gave us a few exercises to try with her that will help her sit up on her own from a laying down position (and crawling). Emma wants to skip the crawling business and go straight to walking. :)

Last night, she was standing up against the ottoman and took several side steps.

In my opinion, Emma is doing just fine. Callie is lagging behind her a little in some of her skills. Callie is rather unsure of herself, so isn't quite as aggressive as she could be.

We will be scheduling OT sessions for Callie (probably starting after Thanksgiving). I don't feel Callie needs much - she does need a little bit of encouragement. She doesn't seem to be as interested in crawling and moving as Emma is, but her fine motor skills are pretty good.

9 Month Appointment, Picture time

When did my girls get to be 9 months old? Where is the time going?

They're both doing great!

Callie is 19 lbs 6 oz and 29" long (50% for weight and about 90% for height).
Emma is 15 lbs 13 oz and 27" long (5% for weight and about 50% for height).

Both are where they need to be developmentally. Emma has a 3rd tooth coming in (this one is on the top)...no signs of more teeth for Callie yet.

I cannot believe I made their 1 year appointment today! This has been the fastest year of my life, I think.

We took the kids to get pictures last night...not a good choice (as Josh would say). They were all cranky. Josh wouldn't smile (but, he never does for posed pictures). :) Callie & Emma were both fussy. The photographer wasn't as good as the one we normally have...she missed alot of decent shots - maybe not GREAT shots, but at least the girls were looking up and not crying. HA! Oh well...we got a couple of "okay" shots. I bought mostly wallet size pictures to send out in Christmas cards.

After that, Josh insisted we go see Santa. Tuesday nights are a GOOD night to see Santa - there was NOBODY there. :) So, we walked right in. While I was getting the girls out of the stroller, I told Josh to go over and talk to Santa. He told Santa he wanted Batman for Christmas!

The Santa pictures were no better the the portraits. Josh and Emma looked pretty serious and Callie was crying. Emma was fascinated with Santa, though. She just kept looking up at him and trying to figure him out. Josh was really excited that he actually talked to Santa. :)

He is doing great with talking to people now. He's so painfully shy, but he's really making an effort. I don't push him into talking if he doesn't want to - he does it on his own and then is so proud of himself for talking to different people. :)

It's Tuesday, I think!

What a busy weekend!

Phil's birthday was Sunday - he was the big 47! :) This means he's now officially in his "LATE" 40's. :)

On Saturday, we went to my parents to make apple butter. The kids played all day while mom and I made applebutter. YUM ! Josh loved playing in the leaves and his sandbox ALL day. He had a blast!

On Sunday, I had a baby shower to go to. This was for a very special couple in our church. They've been trying for so long to have a baby and now it's happening! There were over 100 people at this shower - it was amazing! I was there for 3 hours and Aimee was still opening gifts. :)

Josh got a green card at school yesterday (and on Friday). He's been having a little trouble listening to his teachers lately, so a green card is major stuff (green = good). He said he was going to try really hard to get a green card today, too. :)

Both girls seem to be feeling much better! I hope they stay that way today. We're going to JC Penneys tonight to get their 9 month picture and Christmas pictures taken. I hope they smile. Evenings are really not their best times, but we figured it would be less crowded going on a weekday (keep your fingers crossed).

The girls have their 9 month well baby appt tomorrow...more shots! :(

No OT Eval on Wed!

Emma was suppose to have an OT eval on Wednesday. I mentioned earlier that she was constipated. Well, Wednesday morning, she was really in pain, so Phil took her to the doctor. They checked her and said she wasn't blocked, so that was good. However, she was running a 101 fever and had a double ear infection!!

Later that day, Phil called and told me to come home from work because Emma was bleeding from her bottom really bad...2nd trip to the pediatrician. Luckily, it was just broken skin where she had strained so much. :( It was bad, but not serious. We kept some antibiotic cream on her. She's starting to heal - she's still a little raw.

Her ears seem to be getting better. She's been on antibiotics for 2 days now. Her fever seems to be under control, although she still doesn't feel very well. :(

I did call and cancel the OT eval, for a 2nd time. They told me I had 3 times before they'd drop us. Well, what am I suppose to do? They said she couldn't come while she was sick - duh! Anyway, we have an appointment again next Friday. Hopefully, she'll be up for it!! I give up!

Halloween Pictures and Updates

Happy Halloween a week late. :) The girls were ladybugs (not too thrilled with that at all) and Josh was a Power Ranger. Josh had a good time trick or treating - he actually said Trick or Treat and Thank You - 1 time. :) He really is getting better about talking to people.

The girls went to a few houses, but they were not impressed with their ladybug outfits, so we took them home and put them in something more comfy. :)

I think all of the sickness is out of the house. Emma's been a little constipated (Callie was too for a couple of days after the tummy bug), so as soon as we get her regular again, all will be good.

Josh has been having some listening problems in school. He has a friend that he plays with and when they're together, they lose complete focus - they get totally out of control and forget to listen (they sound like a bunch of giggly girls). So, the teacher is keeping them separated as much as possible and that seems to be helping.

The girls are growing so fast - they'll be 9 months next week! When did that happen?

Emma has an OT evaluation today (Callie's already had hers). It will be interesting to see what they say. They want Callie to come in for therapy once a week for 3-6 months. I think we need to re-evaluate that - we just can't possibly make it that often for that long (especially since I don't feel her problems are severe). I do agree that there are some things we can work with Callie, but I don't feel she needs to be seen weekly - they can give us some at home exercises. Callie doesn't roll over very well (although she is getting much better). She also stiffens up when you hold her. However, over the last couple of weeks, she has gotten much better at cuddling. :) That makes me very happy!! Before, she would just stay stiff and wouldn't relax against your shoulder - now, she volutarily snuggles against my shoulder.

I don't feel like Emma's going to need much at all - she seems to be passing Callie up with her milestones (even though it started out the other way around). :)

Both girls are just blossoming.

Oh! Before I forget, Callie has her 2nd tooth now. :) So, both girls now have 2 teeth (bottom).