Ode to my Cole

So far it may seem that this blog is more heavily focused on Summer.  For now the excuse is that she has been sick for 2 1/2 months straight.  However I know that as time progresses there very likely will be more stories involving her.  This is not an intentional favoritism.  The reasons for this are two-fold. 
1. This child is always on the go...  She is constantly talking, questioning, investigating, etc.  Cole on the other hand is much more laid back.  Don't get me wrong, he is happiest when he is running laps around something but he is much happier to just be quiet.  And will tell you "No talking" when he is unhappy with the chattiness of the girls in the house.
2.  Summer is more like my clone than my child.  So far we have not succeeded in finding any part of Jim in her.  I find it quite intriguing that you can put 2 completely different people's DNA together and get my identical twin born 27 years later.  I am extremely fascinated to watch what I must have been like as a child.  It's definitely a bit weird and kind of scary, but awesome at the same time.

Now about my boy!   Cole has had a rough week dealing with Summer's surgery.  He is definitely a Momma's boy and has been getting all 4 of his 2 year old molars in the last week or so, which is not making him extremely happy.  He had a super fun sleepover at Mom-mom's since Jim & I had to leave early with Summer on the morning of her surgery to head to Delaware.  When he came home later that day he was not happy that Summie was sprawled out on my lap clinging to me for dear life.  He tried hopelessly to crawl in my lap and push her away claiming that I was HIS MOMMY!  He had a cranky week, but it now happily back to himself which coincidentally happened as soon as Summie was not being so clingy.  I promised Cole all week that on Saturday we would do something special just us.  Since we are getting ready for Disney we couldn't make it an all day thing, so we just went up the street to Starbucks with a coloring book and some crayons.  I got my coffee and he got his favorite chocolate milk box.  We sat for awhile just us and had a nice time.  He really craves/needs this kind of one on one time because Summer is so dominant of him. 
Here is Cole in a nutshell...  He just loves to sit with me on the couch and cuddle, hug and kiss me.  He sleeps with so many stuffed animals (2 dog pillow pets, 2 cats, a penquin, a turtle, a pooh and a little Tigger) in his bed that I don't know how he fits in there (he takes after Aunt Chele with this one).  He runs, falls and cries about 100 times a day and then he gets back up and starts all over again.   He loves his chocolate milk (which when we make it is milk with one drip of chocolate syrup, then we do our shake it up dance!).  He does not like cookies (complete opposite of his sister here).   He loves the train table that we got handed down from one of my co-workers.  He loves all things "Buzzy" (Toy Story - Buzz Lightyear).  And he is currently extremely excited to be going to Mickey's House (Disney World) next week.    Be sure to check back for details from our trip!   Good night!

Summer's Surgery

Today was the long awaited day of Summer's surgery to put tubes in her ears and remove her adenoids.  Cole had a sleepover at Mom-mom's because we had to leave early to drive to Delaware.  Everyone at Dupont did a fabulous job making all 3 of us (Summer, Jim & I) feel comfortable with the entire process.  She had tons of fun planning on the school bus slide that was in the waiting room .  Once we were taken back to pre-op, she was given some medicine to help calm her and make her ok with her being separated from us and going back to the OR.  Once it kicked it... it was actually kind of humorous (which made it easier for me to leave without crying).  She was hopping around in her little hospital bed watching TV and every now and then she would just topple to her side giggling... and we'd have to hoist her back upright!  The anesthesia nurse handed me his card on my way out to the waiting room and said "Thank you for letting us take care of Summer".  I thought this was interesting... here I had been thanking every one that I came into contact with for being so nice and making Summer comfortable and now this kind nurse was thanking me for choosing to trust him to take care of my precious little angel while I couldn't be there to protect her.  It instantly put me at ease as we waiting to be re-united with her.  For those of you who know how I absolutely freak about anything doctor related.... this was a big thing for me. 
Her procedure was quick and went very well.  She was a bit cranky and trying to rip her IV out of her arm when we went back, but after some pain medication and her Mommy rocking her she calmed down and fell asleep.  After about an hour we were able to take her home with us.  Summer was really excited the we took Cole's carseat out so that Mommy could ride home in the backseat of the car & watch Mickey with her on our way home.  She was zoned out for a few hours at home and then was back to her happy, playful self.   She was such a trooper today and we are so proud of her.

Now on to my boy!  Cole had some trouble when he got home because Summie was sucking up all of his Mommy's attention.  I need to schedule a Cole/Mommy date stat!

The games that we play...

I LOVE watching how the minds of toddlers work and what they come up with on their own.  Summer and Cole have created cute little games that they regularly play that I find incredibly entertaining to watch.  The favorite one is the "Hi & Bye" game.  To play this game Summer fills up her stroller and Cole fills up his shopping cart and they grab bags, etc.  They start in the living room where I usually am and give me kisses and say bye-bye Mommy.  They then take off for the kitchen, which is their destination (school, Mom-mom's house, wherever they decide they are headed).  Then they return and greet me with Hello Mommy & we start all over.  I love the parts of this game when they yell "Kisses!" to me. 

Tomorrow morning we are headed to the aquarium so hopefully I will get some new pictures to post!  Good night!

Pink Bear

Cole has always had many "friends" that he plays & sleeps with throughout his life...  he currently has 2 dog pillow pets, 2 cats, a penquin, a turtle and tigger.  Summer however only has Pink Bear or "Pink" as she is so lovingly referred to.  She started out as just a sleeping buddy, but has become a very dear friend to Summie.  (In fact, after a close call... I scoured ebay for a backup Pink Bear.) The first time I realized this was as we waited for one of our many doctor's appointments this winter.  Summer was playing with the toy table in the waiting room and suddenly stopped and said "Pink's turn" and went and grabbed pink and guided her tiny hands to play with the toy.  She would then sit Pink back on the chair and say "Summer's turn" and this alternating went back and forth several times.  So cute!  I also have caught her several times playing "Ring Around the Rosie" and "Patty Cake" just with Pink. 

Unfortunately, I have also had to use her love affair with Pink as a discipline tool as nothing else seems to phase my stubborn little girl.  She's been having on and off biting problems at school and a friend from my twin club finally recommended that I take Pink away when she bites at school.  It definitely started getting through to her when I would get to school at the end of the day and she had bitten someone.... she would hand me Pink and say "Here Mommy".
One thing I know for sure... Pink is one lucky bear to be so loved by my sweet girl!  I hope she is with us for a very long time!

Welcome to our blog!

I've been trying to decide for some time whether blogging is for me... well I've finally decided to give it a try.  We'll see if I can get into the groove and actually keep this up to date.  The kids are constantly doing things that I want to document and let our friends and family know since some are far away.  I really enjoy reading what my friends are up to on their blogs and hope that you will enjoy reading our stories as well.  We have a lot of fun and excitement on the horizon. 

First on the list...
Since we started daycare in September, the kids have been sick pretty regularly.  Since the first week of December, I have made at least a weekly trip to the pediatrician's office with either Summer or Cole and on occassion.... BOTH!  While Cole has recovered from a couple of ear infections and PNEUMONIA!  Summer has had constant sinus and double ear infections for about 2 1/2 months straight at least.  No amount of medication has been able to clear them up. At the end of January we went to Dupont with her and the ENT made the decision for her to get tubes in both of her ears and to take out her adenoids.  Her adenoids are so enlarged that they are not allowing her sinuses to drain properly, thus causing the ear infections.  Since the tubes will only remain in her ears for 6-18 months (they fall out on their own), the doctor hopes that by taking out her adenoids at the same time that she will not need a second set of tubes down the road.  Summer had her pre-surgery appointment today and was such a good girl.  She did everything the nurse asked her to do as well as performing her own exam on "Pink Bear" (for those of you who don't know who "Pink" is... I will have a future post about her).  Surgery will take place this coming Monday, so please keep Summer (and me if you know how much I freak out about anything involving doctors, needles & surgery!) in your prayers. 

Again... welcome to our blog and we hope you come back!