Little girls bearing gifts...

Last week was our church Christmas program. Lindsey & Sydney participated again, more involved, and this year, they had friends! It really is their first year in Sunday School and there are two other little girls in their class. They were very excited for their part in the program.

Before we left the house, I had to get a couple pictures of my beauties. At first Sydney was not happy about the picture taking, and I caught her pouting! But then, she lightened up!







The Sunday School walked into the sanctuary while "O Come Little Children" was played. It's a tradition.



Then, it was time for their cue...and the four little girls brought gifts to baby Jesus and said:

"Oh come to my heart, Lord Jesus, there is room in my heart for thee."

And then a big finish...singing, "Get all excited and tell everybody that...Jesus Christ is born!"



It certainly was fun for them (and all of us there)! Afterwards, we proceeded downstairs for cookies and all the kids, well, the whole congregation, received the traditional apple. Ah...such wonderful memories...

I still remember my very first Sunday School program in this same church. I can still recite my piece:

What can I give him, poor as I?
If I were a shepherd, I'd bring a lamb.
If I were a wiseman, I'd do my part.
Yet, what can I give him? Give him my heart.

Merry Christmas!

The Holiday Dance show was a Success!

Lindsey & Sydney participated in their holiday dance show last night. They are part of Just for Kix program here in our town. It's a great show from the Tiny Kix class (Lindsey & Sydney's class) all the way up through 8th grade, and then special performances by the Junior Varsity and Varsity High Kick Dance teams. Our Varsity Dance Team has won the State Championship for three years in a row, so these girls work HARD! It was really fun to see.

But back to the show, Lindsey & Sydney did just awesome! I am SO, SO proud of them. If you remember, I was concerned earlier in the year, because their history with this program isn't good. I wasn't as concerned with Lindsey, but Sydney has a really hard time being in front of people. Lots of times, she won't even dance for us or a few family members! I was worried about her in a gym with hundreds of people. Even in her dance class, their coach lets the parents come in at the end of each class to see how they're progressing, and many times, I'd see Sydney just standing their with her head down.

Alas, I was worried for naught! She did just fine...concentrating and performing, just like her sister! Without further ado...some pictures of the night!

First all ready to get going...posing, smiling, acting goofy!




They first danced to "Magic Tu Tu" (they are 2nd & 3rd from the left)...


Their entire Tiny Kix class...


We do jete'...


...and releve'...


...and then we strike a pose!


Next, they performed with the other Tiny Kix class, "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"


Afterwards, watching the rest of the show...


It was a wonderful night, with lots of family there to share in the joy of watching these two little girls, who five short years ago, we sat and looked in their isolettes, wondering what kind of life they'd have and at times, wondering if they'd even live. Thank you, God.

Merry Christmas!

Long lost entry...(plus more on Disney World!)

I know. It's been too long. I don't know what my problem is and why I can't seem to put a few words down now and then. But, instead, I wait and wait and then I have entirely too many things to say and then it just seems harder and harder to write about everything.

So, trying to get back in the swing of things...because I miss writing and updating and sharing about what's going on in our lives.

I can't believe it's been almost two months since our trip to Disney World. It was a really fun trip, made all the more memorable, because cousin Corrie lives in Orlando, works at Disney and was able to spend some time with us each day! We are so thankful for her, helping us, and guiding us through the parks, etc. She was able to get us into the parks each day for (can I even say this?), FREE! I didn't even realize how much of a savings this was until after we got back home! THANK YOU CORRIE!

B was in Orlando for work, left on Tuesday, and then the girls and I followed on Thursday. We stayed at our timeshare, The Fountains, right on International Drive and close to the parks. We got settled in and then met some of B's coworkers for dinner at Downtown Disney. It was a nice evening, but we were tired. The girls fell asleep on the way back to our place.

We were up and at 'em on Friday, met Corrie at Downtown Disney, where we then proceeded to follow her to our parking area (free parking for us too) and then we went to
It turned out to be a great day, a little cloudy, but nice, and I LOVED that it was cloudy, otherwise, it would've been too HOT! The girls did fantastic! They loved all the shows, the rides. They liked SEEING the characters, but not MEETING the characters. We met Mickey Mouse and that was it! Sydney's favorite thing was The Teacups:


and Lindsey's favorite was the Little Mermaid show at MGM Studios. I loved all the shows too. I think I liked Finding Nemo the best.

Here is Dad and Lindsey on our first ride, the Rollercoaster!


The second day Corrie took us to Animal Kingdom and while the park was fun, the day (weather) was miserable! Crowds, HOT, HUMID, ready for a storm and we did get a downpour on our way out of the park! We were soaked and had to dry our shoes in the dryer when we got back to the condo.

The girls loved going on SAFARI though...


On the third day, we headed back to Magic Kingdom for most of the day and then over to MGM Studios for a bit at the end of the day. It was a sunny day, less crowds, as it was Sunday and I think everyone was flying home.

Dad and Lindsey watching the main show at the Castle!


Corrie, Sydney and Dad on the Flying Dumbos...


Here are Lindsey & Sydney waiting for BEAR at Playhouse Disney! Fun!

They really had a great time seeing Bear, Stanley, Jo Jo and Pooh!

It was really the perfect trip for us, just the right length to give us a taste of Disney! The girls were troopers and walked all three days. We didn't even need a stroller! WOW! Of course, Corrie has invited us back anytime and we'll probably be taking her up on the offer! Thanks again Corrie! We miss you and love you!

To view all our Disney pics, please go HERE. Thanks for looking!

Thanksgiving traditions...

I love Thanksgiving.

It's my favorite holiday. Oh, I love Christmas too, but there is something about Thanksgiving. I just enjoy the day spent with family and friends, making memories and remembering days gone by, just being. This holiday always seems less hurried, quieter, more relaxed. Oh, I'm still busy, don't get me wrong!

We are hosting my extended family for dinner tomorrow. I will be up at the crack of dawn, oh wait, probably before dawn...to get that turkey stuffed and start working on those potatoes. B went all out this year and got a 19 lb. turkey! Yes, you read that right! It probably doesn't seem all that big to many of you, but I have a small family.

Today I was busy preparing my home and ran over to my grandma's to pick up some dishes that she gave me! I'm so excited about these dishes. They aren't anything all that special, but I've started collecting them and it's so nice to have some of the actual pieces that were hers. You know the kind...purchased inexpensively at the local Super Valu. But I got sidetracked here. When I got to my grandma's, I had forgotten that she and my aunt were going to be making Lefse today.

I just love Lefse. What a wonderful Thanksgiving tradition for us. We have it at Christmas too, along with the Lutefisk, but I don't get all that excited about that. I snapped a couple of pictures at grandma's. Please forgive the quality of the pictures. I did not have my camera with me, so I took these with my phone!

My grandma's recipe...yellowed and faded with age:


Some of the tools of the trade...


Mmmmm....fresh Lefse. Nothing better.



I'm thankful for many things, one of which is, family traditions. Oh, and it's snowing and it's beautiful! I'm also thankful for first snowfalls.

Still to come: Disney pics and pictures of my new (old) dishes!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Yes, today is the day...a nice day to pop back on my blog after a long hiatus. I'm another year older and closer to 50!

I was woken this morning by two little girl's yelling, "SURPRISE!", like I didn't know it was my birthday. Very cute. I had cards and candy awaiting me, as well as, lots of hugs and kisses!

We headed to the pediatrician the morning for the girl's Well-Child check now that they are FIVE (still can't believe that!). They also received five shots each today. Boosters and then the flu shot. UGH! It was tough. Troopers they are, for sure! Lindsey didn't handle it well at all, but the office did a great job of taking one while the other was getting their shots. Lindsey went first and she was already worked up before she got up on the table. That didn't help at all. She was seriously almost out of control when it was over and only calmed down when Dr. Heidi came and took her for a walk. Then, Sydney came back in and she handled it really well, still tears, but nothing like Lindsey, and I really didn't even know when she was done. I could've had them do the shots in two different visits, but I said, no, just get them all over with. It's such a tough decision. I was debating in my head about it, but I could tell Lindsey was getting worked up already, so I decided to just spare her another day of shots. I think it was the right decision.

As for their stats, still teeny-tiny for five! Sydney was 40.5" (12th percentile) and 32 lbs. (3rd percentile) and Lindsey was 40" (7th percentile) and 30 lbs. (0.7 percentile) LOL...at least she's actually ON the chart now, if you can call .7 on the chart! I think it's the first time ever for her weight.

Really, no worries though. We are past the tracking of all the calories and cals/oz. Believe me though, we have been there, done that. It's very strange to think back to that time, because when you are in to the day to day stuff, you really wonder if it will end. I thought I'd always be worrying about their intake, etc., but eventually, I just made a decision to let it go. It was hard. Very hard. It was something I could control, not really control, because obviously I can't control what they ate, but I was all about keeping track of everything, writing everything down in my notebook...and I just stopped. I stopped tracking. I stopped the Pediasure. I just decided that I need to trust the girls a little more with their eating, that they would eat if they were hungry, if I actually LET them get hungry. Prior to that, I don't think they ever felt hungry. Anyway, it was just time for us. It was stressful, but it was even more stressful, all the tracking and counting and worrying. It took awhile to really let go. It's actually kind of hard to remember what it was like sometimes. I guess that's just what a little time does. Anyway, back to the doctor visit...

Dr. Heidi also still heard a heart murmur on Lindsey. She heard it last year too and we were going to do an echo, but I never scheduled it. She said we could still do the echo or she could just write a referral and I could take her to Sydney's cardiologist and schedule it at my leisure, which is what we're going to do. I'm sure it's probably just an innocent murmur, but we're going to get it checked out.

After the trauma of all the shots, we went to the store to pick up some Tylenol and get a treat, and then it was off to McDonalds. Back home, change clothes for dance and we were off again.

Now we are just waiting for daddy to get home and we'll be heading out to dinner! YAY!

And I have SO MUCH to tell you all! I can't believe it's been almost a month since I posted anything. We have been busy. I went on a trip to Cape May, NJ and then we all went to:



I've started a new business. We were sick. Yadda yadda yadda...

Some happy news last week though...the Packers won AGAIN! Yay! Here we are sporting our favorite Brett Favre jersey's!



I still need to get my vacation pics uploaded and then I'll share with you all. Lots to talk about. It's good to be back.

Down the shore, I go...

Tomorrow I am off the the Jersey shore to hang with some girlfriends. We are friends from all over, brought together by a common bond, having twins. We've made this an annual trip and this is our fifth year. It's something that I look forward to each October. I'll have lots to report when I get back (as well as some secrets!).

Tonight was hard. As the girls get older, it's actually been harder and harder for me to leave. Not to actually leave. I'm still getting on the plane tomorrow morning, but emotionally hard. I think, because, they are so articulate in telling you how much they'll miss you and love you and crying and on and on and on...

I had to spend about an extra 45 minutes with them tonight at bedtime because they just kept telling me over and over about how much they'll miss me. I think we got it worked out though. They just got tired and fell asleep! No, seriously, lots of talking. I told them they can call me when they want to talk to me and that Dad had all sorts of fun things planned (I hope so!). No, they are going to visit his parents and that's always fun! They don't get to see them that often. I told them that it was okay to miss me and that I'd miss them, but we'd all have fun. I told them that when they were missing me, then they should give their sister a hug and kiss. I told them that I was bringing their pictures with me so that I could look at them when I was missing them. We had LOTS of talking. Now they are sleeping, which is where I should be seeing as I have to get up in four hours.

I'll leave you with a couple pics of my lovely girls from the past couple weeks. Lindsey is so proud of her "apple face" and Sydney was having a great time at the orchard!





Goodnight!

Wordless Wednesday

A view cool shots from our summer vacation. Do you all know what bridge this is?







Another hint...the view from "Arch Rock".



Check out more Wordless Wednesday

They are FIVE! (Wordlessy Wednesday)

Happy, happy birthday to my precious daughters, Lindsey Faith and Sydney Paige! You two girls are the light and joy of my life. I love waking each morning to your smiling faces and "Good Morning Momma!". You are both my 'I Love You', as one of our favorite book's says.

My Lindsey Girl: You are still my girl of extremes! From the first days in the NICU, 'boring' was not the word for you! You were either leaping forward three steps or crashing down. You are still the same, either so mad or frustrated, but then also, my little lovable Lindsey, who just wants to cuddle with her momma or daddy. I love how you draw! What a fine artist you are! I know you love to color and write...oh, and I'm so glad that you enjoy momma's favorite pastime too: READING! I'm amazed at how you've taken to riding your bike this summer! At the beginning of the summer, you didn't even want to get on it and now I can't get you off it! And what a dancer! You make such a beautiful ballerina! You make my heart so happy, Lindsey Lou!

My Sweet Sydney: Easygoing, go-with-flow...you too, from the early days in the NICU, just plugged along, never alarming us too much, just making consistent strides every day. It's so interesting to me to see your personality develop and have it be so much like how you were at a few days old. You have such a warm and caring way about you, Sydney. Always concerned about your sister, and really everyone. I love how you are so interested in animals. I think you would make a great Dalmatian! Boy, are you a good dribbler! You've been practicing, haven't you? And juggling too? Awesome! I'm glad that you are developing such a love for sports! You just keep on running, kicking the ball, and flipping off the couch. Full of smiles, you make me smile all the time, Sydney Sue!

I know that my words here will never fully express what you mean to me, how I feel so blessed to be your mother, how every day I look at you and think that I can't believe you are even here, alive, and yet you continue to surprise and amaze us with your outcomes and abilities.

I'm so happy and proud that you chose me to be your mom! You two are exactly who I would've chosen to be my daughters if I could have. I look forward to watching you grow from little girls, to young women to adults. I hope that I can be the type of mom that some day you will want to be like.

God Bless you always, my little girls.

I treasured you then...I treasure you now...I treasure you always.















and today...


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