New Daycare

We decided to switch day cares. Mia and Riley did all right in the big daycare center (I wouldn't say they loved it), but Ethan was a different story. I could tell a difference in his behavior right from the start. He was more aggressive and just plain naughty. I put him in time-out constantly.

His teacher, Allison, even sent me an email about him misbehaving in preschool. Allison said he was putting together a 25 piece puzzle and she told him it was time to put it away. He wasn't quite finished so he got mad and threw it. She said puzzle pieces went everywhere. Allison made him sit back down and put the puzzle back together. She said he's never done it again. :) (I absolutely love his teacher!) She said he quit participating in circle time and singing songs, which he's never done. He also started using the word poopy in preschool and said it constantly.

I wanted to pull them out the first month (after I received her email.) Mike convinced me to leave them there for a few more weeks to see how he did. Ethan seemed to get a little better but still wasn't loving it.

A school-aged kid started picking on him and started calling him all sorts of nasty names (fucker and told him he was going to kick his ass.) I told the daycare teacher, but Ethan didn't know his name, so it wasn't much help.

Ethan sobbed and threw himself to the ground when I'd leave in the mornings. I really think he was scared to be there. His teacher said he'd sob for an hour after I'd leave. I knew it was more than separation anxiety because Ethan isn't a crier.

I told Mike that I was putting our two week notice in. I didn't have anyone lined up to watch the kids, but I didn't care at that point.

I found an ad advertising an in-home daycare. I was kind of nervous because I didn't know her, but we went and met her a couple of weeks ago. I knew immediately that the kids would like it there. Mia and Riley made  themselves right at home playing with the toys. Ethan was more reserved and held my hand the entire time we were there.

There were some tears shed the first couple of days (by Ethan and Riley) but that didn't last long. In fact, the first day, Mia told me that she liked Traci's house and that it was fun. Ethan piped in, "yeah, I like Traci's house." The kids really like going there. Traci is really laid back about things. It's kind of like dropping the kids off at your sister's house.

She only has 6 kids so it's pretty small. She watches a couple of babies, so the girls are in heaven. There's a 5 year old little boy that Ethan gets to play with.

Ethan is so much happier. His teacher emailed me yesterday and said she notices a difference in his behavior since starting with Traci. It's so nice knowing my kids like going there and they're well taken care of. It makes going to work so much easier!

Family Picture

I feel so blessed to have such a great family! I know I don't say it enough, but I love them to pieces.

 I hope this next year will go as well as last year minus all the medical bills. :)

Merry Christmas!

 I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. I can't believe I'm a month late in posting this. Why am I always behind?

We hosted Christmas this year which is quite the feat since there's a total of 21 people in my immediate family. Half stayed at our house and half stayed at Sarah's house. It didn't seem that chaotic, but I should probably ask Mike since I'm used to it.

 We went to Sarah's church on Christmas Eve and went back to her house to eat soup and chili. The kids were chomping at the bit to open their gifts. I love watching the kids. It's my absolute favorite part. They get so excited.

 The best face award definitely goes to Mia this year. I got some really good pictures of her. I love her expressions!

 My princess, Riley, insisted on wearing a tiara. Isn't her hair growing back nicely? I can just get it into a pony-tail. She is still embarrassed about people laughing at her hair, so she always wears a headband.

 The kids adore Evan. He was tolerable of all the "attention." Though, he let us know when it got to be too much. He is crawling all over the place.

 Riley received a baby doll, doll supplies, and barbie dolls. She was happy with her gifts.

 Ethan is obsessed with Spiderman and Batman. Most of his gifts fit into those two categories.

 Mia and her "Monster Dollies." She has an obsession with them. She will watch them on youtube and likes to watch make-up tutorials on how to paint your face like the Monster High Dolls.

 Mia also loves Hello Kitty. Grandma and Grandpa bought her so much Hello Kitty stuff. She was in heaven.

 I found this brand of dolls that look real. Riley is obsessed with babies, so I had to get it for her. She better not draw all over it!!! She draws on every one of her babies.

 I love her face. She's so happy!

 Mia likes to pretend that she's a teacher, so Grandma and Grandpa bought her a pretend school set.

Christmas went by way too fast! It was fun spending time with family. We don't get together nearly enough!

Photo Session

 I did a couple of photo sessions with my kids. I was trying to get pictures for our Christmas card. I could never be a kid photographer. NEVER. I took over 900 pictures between the two sessions. I was happy that a handful turned out!

 They were getting so sick of taking pictures. I kept bribing them to smile.

This is my favorite picture. I'm going to get this blown up! I love it!

Happy 5th Birthday!

 Happy Birthday, Ethan and Mia! You two are so special to us and I thank God all of the time for choosing us.

Mike and I wanted to be parents for a long time. We needed help getting pregnant, and I thought it was never going to happen. We went through so much in terms of fertility treatments. We were on our last IUI (the doctor then wanted us to move to IVF.) I was blown away when I had a positive pregnancy test. I was nervous and happy at the same time because of the chance of multiples.

Going in for that first ultrasound was nerve wracking. I was only 4 weeks 4 days, but I could see two tiny black holes. I thanked God over and over. Not only did he bless us, but he gave us two. I also thanked him for not giving us anymore than that!

Their birth is such a special memory for me. I'll always remember everything that happened that day. Ethan was the first out and the doctor said, "it's a boy!" I was so happy when he started squawking. I saw him for a split second before the NICU team took him to the warmer.

I secretly hoped that baby #2 was a girl. Mia was born 9 minutes later, and I heard the doctor say, "it's a girl!" Mia squawked as well and the NICU team rushed her off. I couldn't believe that God gave me two perfect little babies!

Our patience was rewarded that day with two little babies. Little did we know how much our lives would change. We love you so much!

Thank you God for another year with our children!

Birthday Party Time

 We had a joint birthday party for Janai (born December 17th) and Ethan and Mia (born December 19th.) It was a small family birthday. My parents were unable to make it due to a blizzard. I guess that's the bad part about having a winter birthday!

We had a ton of good food. Mike's mom made a bunch of yummy appetizers and we had sloppy joes. The kids always have fun when their cousins come over. Ethan and Mia were beyond excited for their birthday party.

 I usually order a cake, but this year, I decided to make cupcakes. The kids were happy with them. They like anything with sprinkles.

 Janai turned 11 years old. It's hard to believe that she's this old all ready. She came to her party wearing make-up. I think she did a pretty good job putting it on.

 Uncle Billy gave Mia a princess accessory kit. The girls love playing dress-up.

 Of course, Riley and Jude had to get in there and help Mia open her presents.

 Mia is absolutely obsessed with Monster High Dolls. I'm not quite sure how she found out about them, but she talks about "Monster Dollies" all of the time. She was pretty excited about Uncle Mark's gift.

 Mike and I gave Ethan a castle for his birthday gift. He's really into action stuff right now. It has a jail for bad people. We also gave him some knights for his castle.

 We bought Mia the princess castle. She saw it on amazon and told me over and over how she wanted it. It's from Melissa and Doug. I really like their toys. It folds out and has many different accessories.

 Sarah and Steve bought Ethan this batman hoodie. He loves anything super hero so he was pretty happy with it!

 We gave Janai, "Just Dance 3." It's really fun. All of the adults tried it, and we looked pretty awkward trying to dance and keep up with moves. All of the kids tried it as well. It was really funny watching Ethan, Mia, and Riley dance. We got them on video so I'll have to upload that sometime.