Stewart

Stewart! What do I say? He is joy in our home. This little guy has the same personality he had the day he was born. It is hilarious. He is hilarious. He still makes the funniest faces. He still can be smiling one minute and screaming the next. Oh but when he smiles, he melts our hearts...it is huge! And we love him to pieces.

Things he is doing...

• rolling from back to front
• holding his hands at midline
• reaches for toys
• puts everything in his mouth
• smiling at mommy, daddy and sister
• cooing and laughing out loud
• sitting in the bumbo seat for about 10 minutes at a time
• trying to roll from front to back (he makes it to the side but just can't get all the way yet)
• recognizes his bottle and holds it (sometimes)
• sleeps through the night

we are so blessed.

d

Sunday Afternoon

The weather was beautiful and we were all feeling better (for the moment) so we headed to the park. Anna loves the park as much as her daddy. She loves the swing and slide. We had a fun family day.

Anna later ran a fever and we learned on Monday that her right ear is infected. Joy. But she is already sleeping better and feeling better.

For those that do not know, we were all sick about two weeks ago. Not fun when the family of 5 keep passing around stuff. Thankfully we are all feeling better. I pray we all stay healthly the rest of the season and through winter.

d

Happy *Halloween*

Our Three Punkins

Our little lady bug
Our sweet boys

Oh the joy of trying to photograph three children under the age of 2.

Good Times.

so blessed

d

A Big Weekend

I took the three kiddos to my parents in East TN this past weekend. S&S's first visit to nana and papa's house! All my aunts and uncles got to meet the boys. I wish I would have thought to take a picture of all the stuff packed in the back of the sequoia*. I think we packed half the house. :)

Hannah and Anna painted pumpkins.

We celebrated Hannah's 10th birthday a little early!

A bike from Aunt Donna and Uncle Wayne!

It was a good weekend with family. Lots of kisses from uncle wayne.

And my cousin got married.

so blessed

d

All Dressed Up

My parents are crazy! What is up with this outfit?

Seriously? I love this outfit!

This is their "3 Month" Picture minus an animal. I AM crazy!

Our friend, Suzie, made these onesies for them. They are so cute! Jeff and I can't stop laughing at their expressions in these pictures.

so blessed

d

S&S are 3 Months Old

Yesterday Stewart and Silas turned 3 months old! I think we are slowing moving out of the fog of having three children under 2 years of age.

Stewart is still the serious one. He is laughing out loud and smiling. He tries to talk back when we talk to him. He has great head control and is rolling from his belly to his back. Stewart loves napping on his belly but he really favors being held.

Silas is doing great. He is smiling and cooing. He is much more vocal when he is ready to eat. He too has great head control and rolling from his belly to his back. He loves playing in the jungle gym, kicking at the toys.

Anna is a great big sister and is so hilarious with them. I wish I could video her all day. I've missed some really sweet moments between her and the boys because I was feeding one and couldn't get to the camera. Even if I could get the video camera, she wouldn't do half the stuff that is so sweet.

Happy 3 month Birthday, Stewart and Silas. We love you!

Another Great Night

OF SLEEPING! The boys slept until 4:45 a.m.!!!!! Please let this be the norm going forward.

Days are still crazy. Anna has started school two days a week so that helps a little. She cried the first day. She cried the second day. She hesitated the third day. Today she kissed me and reached for her teacher...all without lovey. Lovey stayed in her bag until after lunch! That's my girl. :)

She is so funny these days. She loves singing. Jeff is working on a video to post here. I've turned her monitor back on since the "climbing out of the crib" incident. I love it! I get the hear her have little conversations with her babies and bunny and lovey and sing along with her glow worm baby. It is the sweetest thing ever.

so blessed
debra

Little Milestones

A quick update.

Laid Stewart on his belly last night. Came back and he was on his back! What?

Laid Silas on his belly this morning. Came back and he was on his back! What?

Jeff fed them last night around 11 p.m. I woke up at 3:45 and they were still sleeping peacefully. They woke me up at 4:30! Please let this become the norm. Please!!!

These boys are doing amazingly well!

Anna: Put her down for a nap on Sunday. Blaire went back to get her because she was crying and refusing to sleep. She was standing beside her crib. Yes, she climbed out of it. We didn't hear a thump so we are hoping she landed softly. She forgot to take lovey on her little adventure and was crying for lovey. As a result, out came the beautiful bumper pad. Hopefully we can keep her contained for a few more months. :)

Mom and dad are surviving. Three children under 2 is a challenge to say the least.

The porch is finished!!!!!!!!!! We LOVE it. Now we have to furnish it. But we love it!

No camera yet. Hoping to get it this week. Will post pictures as soon as I do.

God is so good!
Debra

Two Months on Sept 1

And our camera is not working! Ugh!

Sorry, no pictures of our sweet boys or their adorable big sister.

We can not believe the boys are 2 months old. So many changes.

They had their 2 month check up and both looked great. The doctor was pleased with their weight gain and their muscle tone considering they were born at 32 weeks.

Stewart: 8 lbs 5 oz and 19 3/4 inches long

Silas: 8 lbs and 19 inches long

Anna Rose started preschool. I think she is going to love it. She cries at first but is playing happily after a few minutes and then does not want to leave when I arrive to pick her up.

Hopefully, I will have a working camera soon and can post pictures. You will not believe how much the boys have grown.

Jeff and I are hanging in. My mom was here last week and we are hoping she will come back in a few weeks. I think the schedule is catching up with us but we will adjust.

tired but blessed,
d

All three kiddos are sleeping so I thought I'd post a little update. Sorry is has been so long!

Stewart and Silas are doing great. They are sleeping really well during the day and most of the time at night. We have had a few rough nights. We are still working with the schedule, trying to determine what works best for everyone. The boys will be 40 weeks (full term) on Aug 23rd!

Stewart continues to make his funny faces. He is very expressive for his age. Anna was the same way. Several people think that he looks like Jeff but as he grows, I think he is starting to look like my baby picture. We will have to wait for him to gain a few more pounds as I weighed almost 10 lbs when I was born. (sorry mom!)

Silas has started making his own unique faces. He has the sweetest smile. Now that he has gained weight, he is looking a lot like Anna did when she was born.

Anna is our little helper (most of the time). She is very busy with her own activities around the house...reading her books, stacking her blocks, watching the contractor build our screen porch...but she does find time to help me feed the boys and give them lots of kisses. She is a great big sister. She continues to show us her personality. She celebrated her 18 month birthday yesterday! Happy Birthday, Sweet girl!

AFA Silas...we met with TNEIS on few weeks ago. They will send someone to do an assessment on both Silas and Stewart and determine what type of therapy, if any, is needed at this time. We will probably have an early intervention teacher start coming to house in September. This teacher can provide us with activities and strategies to strengthen their development and work directly with them on such activities; however, there is a strong emphasis on educating us. Early Intervention Teachers also help us monitor their development. We can then determine when to start speech and physical therapy. We are very lucky to have speech therapy friends who have provided us with much needed support and advice.

Jeff started school on Aug 6th and had the first day with students on Aug 13th! The transition has been a little difficult but we know it will take a few weeks to settle into the nightly routine.

And as I mentioned above, we are having a screen porch built. It is going to be fabulous! We can not wait to use it this fall. I'll post pictures once it is done.

Sorry...no pictures this time, but I'll try and post some soon.

so blessed,
d

New photos...

Have I mentioned how difficult it is to photograph 3 children?! Wow! Here are few that we took this past week.

Best Buddies
Sweet Stewart

Sweet Silas
All three!

blessings,

d

One Month...

August 1, 2009

Happy 1 month birthday, Silas & Stewart

We can not believe our sweet boys will be six weeks old on Wednesday! They are continuing to amaze us. We are so blessed (tired, but blessed).

d

Sorry...

We are tired and behind on posting pictures.

Here is a picture that Blaire snagged of the boys. They are doing great. I took 1 month pictures this past week. I hope to get them uploaded this weekend. Big Sister is starting to feel the effects of having two new little ones in her space by testing mommy and daddy.


So blessed
d

From a Friend...

Brennan Manning wrote in a book about an Epsicopal priest named Tom Minifie who had a Down Syndrome daughter. While conversing with another couple who's child had Down, and they were obviously upset by his behavior in church, Tom said, "We have four other children, so we know the blessing that kids can be. Yet the most precious gift we've ever received in our entire lives has been Sylvia. In her unihibited expression of affection, she revealed to us the face of God as no other human being ever has. Did you know that several Native American tribes attribute divinity to Down's children because in their utter simplicity they're a transparent window into the Great Spirit? Treasure this child, for he will lead you into the heart of God."

Just Thinking...

Life is perfect with the boys home and Anna home. It is crazy, but perfect.

Millions of thoughts and "to dos" are rushing through our heads. First, just trying to schedule the days and make sure all three are fed. :) Second, trying to think about the next steps regarding Silas and his maturing.

What I have found is that it is difficult to put into words all the emotions that were felt the first few days (and even now in silent moments) after learning that Silas has Down Syndrome. Friends have been so encouraging and we have learned we are not alone in our new journey. We received emails about friends of friends who have children with Down Syndrome. While at the hospital, a friend's sister delivered a son and like us, found out he has DS. A week later, friends called and they had friends in town visiting friends who had delivered a son at Baptist and were told he has DS. Isn't God gracious?! He has put us on this journey and introduced us to parents who have just started the same journey. He provides in all circumstances.

We met with one of the couples this past Monday. They are precious people and we look forward to living life with them as a result of Silas and their sweet son. They sent us this link of a couple in Memphis who have a son with DS. Andy is a pastor in Memphis. Their story is a little different than ours in that they knew of the DS before the birth and their son experienced complications that fortunately Silas has not. However, their words and emotions are ours...exactly! I haven't been available to speak to many of you, our dear friends. If you get a chance to watch this video, you will get a glimpse into what Jeff and I have been feeling and thinking. (it is about 10 minutes in length) Cooper's Story

We are costly to our God; we have nothing to offer Him; And He loves us completely and gave everything for us. (Andy's words)

so blessed
d

Brothers

Finally Together!

Stewart

Silas

Stewart and Silas are doing great! We changed their schedule last light from 3-6-9-12 to 2-5-8-11 as those eating times work better for our way of life. Big Sister is amazing and adjusting to having two new little ones in the house. God is good.
so blessed,

d

Welcome Home, Stewart!

July 27! Just one day after Silas came home, Stewart was discharged. Finally, our family is together.

Our three blessings!

so blessed,

d

Welcome Home, Silas!

One down, one to go!

Silas came home today!

Anna is not so sure about him. She doesn't realize there is yet another one to come. :)

so blessed,

d

S&S Update

Quick update. I'll try and post a few pics from last night later today.

They were three weeks old yesterday. CRAZY!

Silas is doing great. He will probably come home this weekend. He is now 4lbs 3oz! He is catching up to Stewart b/c they are still adding calories to his milk. UPDATE: Silas may come home on Sunday!

Stewart is doing ok. He is taking the bottle more often but still has been tube fed at least once in a 24 hour period. Last night he had a choking incident while taking the bottle which caused him to get a "fair" grade on the feeding. He must get all "well" grades on eating in order to come home. Please pray for sweet Stewart. He is trying so hard. While he was the bigger one, he was not ready to enter this big world. He was sitting pretty and thinking he had several weeks before making his grand entrance.

UPDATE: We met with the dr. this morning and feel much better about Stewart. The "choking" incident was really a "feeding incident" that happened last night when we were feeding him. The dr. thinks he was tired from taking mostly bottles. Anyway...he has to first be 100% bottles and then they want him to feed with no "incidents" for several days. He may be home by Wednesday of next week.

We are little frustrated and confessing our selfishness in wanting them both home. The trips to the NICU at 7:30 p.m. is really pushing both Jeff and I to our limits. We are tired. We are praying for strength and for clarity and peace. God has blessed us with two healthy boys and we want to be thankful every day.

Anna Rose is doing great. She is very busy and into EVERYTHING. Pray for mommy and daddy and their patience in correcting her.

blessings for TODAY.
d

The Boys

Quick update...

Silas moved to a crib last night! We think he will be coming home in a couple of days.

Stewart is taking more bottles. We hope he will be home by the weekend or over the weekend.

OR...we would love for them to come home together. We are praying for that! Thanks for praying with us.

d