Em & M at 11 months

Mia and Emma at 11 months. Think they're teething?

We're nearing the one-year mark! Lots of changes this month. The girls are becoming more and more active, and so are we, as we have to chase them around now!

Getting them dressed and changing their diapers these days is an aerobic workout; they're constantly trying to crawl away. They love chasing each other around the house and playing games with each other.

They babble constantly. They both have tooth #2, and are still teething and chewing on everything in sight.

We're preparing for some significant changes in the girls' routine at daycare next month, as they'll transition to the Toddler Room after their birthday. They're down from two naps to one at day care, but they're tired on the weekends so they still take two to catch up. They're practicing drinking with sippy cups, as that's what toddlers do apparently. They need to be able to feed themselves, so we're not doing jar food anymore; just practicing with finger foods. It's a lot of change for all of us, and is probably harder on Matt and me than them. They're troopers.

Here's what's happening with the girls:

Emma
What's new: crawling!! (you can tell she feels completely liberated now that she can catch Mia), pulling up on furniture

Likes: yogurt, pears, Cheerios, crackers of any kind, finger painting, playing the maracas and tamborine

Dislikes: shoes and socks



Mia
What's new: pulling up on furniture and sitting back down (with only one hand!)
Likes: peaches, Cherrios, crackers of any kind, dancing and bopping her head to the music, playing the maracas and tamborine
Dislikes: finger painting

Mia's First Tooth!

After a week of relative fussiness and not feeling so hot, we finally realized the culprit of Mia's uneasiness this morning.  Mia has her first tooth coming in!  Same one as her sister - bottom front right.  It's so exciting to see the girls reach these milestones!

Speaking of milestones, Emma took her first forward crawling steps today.  She's been going backward and has a tough time reaching forward, but she's getting there.  Great progress today! 

We had a fun day all around today. Great Aunt Janis (aka Nanny Janny) came up to visit from Olympia, which is always fun.  Matt went to the Husky basketball game (Go Dawgs - Pac-10 #1!) so the girls relaxed at home and then ventured out to do a little shopping.  Nanny Janny got the girls some early birthday gifts they already adore!  They got a toy cell phone and keys since they love Mom and Dad's sets so much. And some musical instruments which they love to play.  They love to shake their hands and bob their heads to the beat - it's so cute!

We all met back at home for a nice dinner of smokin' Pete's BBQ.  After a long week, it was nice to have a relatively carefree Saturday.  

Flu Outbreak

The girls have been sick all week.  Emma came down with the flu last Saturday, and then Mia on Monday.   Both had lingering symptoms all week which kept them home and out of daycare.  It's been a bit of a juggling game, but we survived and they both seem to be feeling better.  Here's to a healthy weekend an upcoming week!

Emma's First Tooth!

Finally, after 6 months of showing "teething signs" (or so we thought) Emma has a tooth coming through!  I went down to visit the girls at lunchtime yesterday, and the teachers said Emma has been especially fussy that morning.  I had a hunch it might have been her gums, and when I reached in to check them out, I could definitely see and feel a tooth!  It's her bottom, front right tooth for sure, and maybe the left one too. She doesn't let us peek for too long, so it's hard to tell.

She has been a bit fussier than normal during the day, but still sleeping well during nap time and at night.  We're keeping the cool teething rings and washcloths coming, and tried some Baby Motrin, which seems to help with the pain. She also likes teething biscuits. 

No photos yet. (See note above about her not letting us peek.)

2008 in Review

We had a quite a year, and recently reminicsed about all that happened.  I figured I'd capture it for posterity... 

We started the year by checking into the hospital on January 3 to wait for the girls' arrival. Matt moved into the hospital with me, and walked to/from work each day.  We sampled Capitol Hill's local fare and watched TV and movies.  It was a stressful time, but we were also grateful to be in the great hands of the doctors and nurses who took care of all of us.

 

The girls arrived on February 28, which was our goal birthdate for them.  We proudly introduced Emma and Mia to family and friends! After a brief stay in the NICU, the girls graduated to the ISCU nursery. Megan used this time to recuperate from her C-section, we moved our stuff back into our house, and tried to get some sleep. After three weeks the girls were eating on their own and strong enough to go home.  They came home (for the first time) on March 18. 

On March 20, we made our first 911 call because we found Mia choking in her bed.  After spending the night at Children's, she was dismissed with a sleeping wedge to help with what they determined to be reflux problems. The next night, March 21, both girls had choking episodes and we made our second 911 call.  About 20 emergency workers showed up at our home, and neighbors gathered outside.  An ambulance took all four of us to Children's Hospital, where we stayed on and off through the end of April.  On April 28, the four of us came home for good. This was a big relief after spending the first 1/3 of the year living in hospitals.

While we were at Children's, our basement flooded.  We were fortunate that Grandma and Grandpa Lund were staying at our house, and noticed the problem and helped us take care of it.  While not the greatest timing for many reasons, we took the opportunity to replace a very old pipe under our house to prevent future problems, paint the rooms, get new carpet and tile.  As a result, it's a much cozier space for the girls and us.

Finally at home on our own, we faced new challenges and anxieties and sleep deprivation caring for the girls. But we took advantage of the summer to get out and have some fun.  We met up with friends for playdates and went on lots of walks in the neighborhood. We had family and friends over for a Syttende Mai celebration on May 17.  Megan surprised her mom (Grammy) with a quick trip to San Diego for her retirement party.  And we made two family trips to San Diego to spend time with Megan's family and be part of our friends' wedding over Labor Day weekend. The girls got to meet many extended family and friends, including their great Grandma and Grandpa Goodson.

In August, Megan returned to work, Matt started up with school again, and the girls started daycare. This was another big adjustment, but we eased into it and were ecstatic that the girls' started sleeping through the night after their long days of playing with other kids. We were feeling good enough to make a road trip over to Richland.  We were able to visit Grandma and Grandpa Lund and Uncle Pete over Grandma's birthday weekend.  

When fall arrived we took advantage of the festivities and took the girls to a pumpkin patch and farm.  Grammy and Bob were in town for this, and before she left Grammy told us she and Bob were in engaged! We're very excited for them and look forward to celebrating in May.

November 4 was an historic day that we will never forget!  We elected Barack Obama the 44th President of the United States.  What an exciting time in history!  We felt lucky to be a part of it.  

The girls' first Thanksgiving was lots of fun.  We had a full house and were thankful everyone came to see us.  And that we had plenty of extra hands to help out over the long weekend!

December brought a big snow storm in the weeks before Christmas.  Grammy got to experience it with us, as she came to town to celebrate Christmas early.  While it altered plans a bit, we had a great time being snowed in.We were lucky that the weather didn't keep Matt's family from joining us for Christmas Eve & Day.  Grandma and Grandpa, Uncle Pete, Great Aunt Janis and cousin Cary all joined us to celebrate. The girls loved the ornaments, lights, paper and ribbon.  What fun to see their smiling faces!  

Over the course of the year, several friends and family celebrated weddings and new babies, and we congratulate all of them. On the flip side, we were sad to lose three important people in our lives - Megan's Grandpa George, Matt's Aunt Bernice and Megan's longtime family friend, Curt. They will all be missed.

It was a dismal year for Seattle sports, with Husky Football going 0-12, the Mariner's and Seahawks not doing well, and we lost the SuperSonics to Oklahoma City.  With a new Husky football coach and a promising husky basketball team, it's bound to improve in 2009!

The most important thing to us this year was the tremendous support we received from our family and friends. Our family doesn't live in the immediate area, but all of them traveled to be with us and help out.  Friends volunteered to help out with errands, chores at the house, and even brought us lovely dinners.  We are so grateful! 

As we close a monumental year in our lives, we're looking forward to 2009 and the exciting milestones and events it will bring. Happy New Year!

The Lund Girls are 10 Months Old!

It's getting harder and harder to get the girls to sit still for a picture on the chaise lounge. Emma was happy sitting in her spot, but Mia was on a mission to grab the camera.

Today Emma and Mia reached the 10-month mark.  It's hard to believe how close they're getting to the 1-year mark!  We didn't do much to celebrate, although they went on a walk with their dad and stopped for frozen yogurt, which they loved!  I was home with them earlier in the day and they both showed off their new skill of holding their own bottle.  I have to say it was a beautiful sight!

The girls continue to be a total joy for us.  They are the best of friends and it's just about the cutest thing ever when they look at each other and start giggling.  They also have times of conflict, however, when they both want to play with the same toy.  For the most part they pass the toys back and forth without issue, but sometimes one of them gets upset. 

At 10 months old, their hair seems to finally be growing faster.  It looks golden blonde in the sunlight, and a little darker otherwise - just like Dad.  Their eyes appear to be brown like mine.  Time will tell!  Matt keeps swearing they look exactly like me, but I don't usually see it. I finally popped in our wedding montage DVD (thanks, Christine!) which had pictures of me as a little girl. There were a couple where I could see the resemblance.  We could also see the resemblance to Matt and his brother Pete. 

The girls' personalities are so distinct and different from one another. Emma is the talker.  She babbles all day and is starting to incorporate new consonant/vowel combinations. She seems fairly content to stay in one place to play. She moves around while she's on her tummy, and tries to pull up from sitting.  But she doesn't yet get around like her sister.  

Mia, on the other hand, is the mover.  She has been army crawling for quite some time - mostly backward. Now she easily gets up on all fours and moves forward.  Today she pulled herself up on some of our living room furniture. It definitely is not as easy to park them in the living room to play and walk away for a second.  She can cross the room quickly! 

The interesting thing is that in the womb, Emma settled early and was content, while Mia was constantly running around.  It's funny how that has carried through to their personalities today.

EMMA

New tricks - playing ball (she'll roll the ball back and forth with us), playing games while she's eating (she tries - and succeeds in - slapping our hands when we're feeding her with the spoon), holding her own bottle

Likes - teething biscuits, carrots, sugar cookies (her Christmas treat), yogurt, Dad's remote control, reading (okay, looking at) books in the bath tub

Dislikes - Cheerios, peas, green beans, rolling over without being prompted

Close-up of Emma playing.

Emma can feed herself!

MIA

New tricks - crawling!, pulling herself up on furniture and us, blowing raspberries like crazy to get a laugh (she's quite the comedian!), holding her own bottle

Likes - splashing in the bath tub, banana and strawberry yogurt, carrots, her binky, bouncing, Mom's camera

Dislikes - peas, green beans, eye drops

Mia is poised to take off on all fours.

Mia holds her own bottle.

More Christmas Fun!

Emma is excited to open this gift.  Now she just needs to take it away from Mia.

Mia (who traded her Santa hat for Dad's Norwegian hat) wonders what her present could be?!

Emma loves her new shoes!

What a compromise - Mia gets the wrapping paper; Emma gets the neat new book.

Mia loves to bounce, and lucky for her, cousin Cary was happy to oblige. (While Grandpa snoozes in the background.)