Ambassador Family newspaper article

The fundraising is going well and we are having a blast being the Ambassador Family this year for the March of Dimes WalkAmerica. We've given a couple newspaper interviews and also a radio interview. THAT was a lot of fun! Here is a picture of one of the newspaper articles, a full page spread. Very cool!


We are still trying to reach our goal. $2, $5, $10 - it all really goes a long way to saving babies! Click Here to Donate

I'm off to get some arch support for my shoes. Seems I'm having a problem with fallen arches and need to get orthotics. These will have to do for now. I'm a little nervous about all the walking on Sunday, but I'll get through. It's going to be a great day!

Thanks so much for your support!

Please, the March of Dimes needs your HELP!

On Sunday, April 29, 2007, our family will be participating in the March of Dimes WalkAmerica event to help save babies from premature birth, the #1 cause of newborn death. This is our fourth year walking as The Niehaus Twins Team and this year we were selected to be the Ambassador Family for our walk location. We are very excited to share our story and have been busy giving radio and newspaper interviews. It's been a lot of fun and we are looking forward to walk day!

Some of you may or may not know that our daughters, Lindsey and Sydney, were born 16 weeks early, weighing only 1 lb. 1.5 oz. and 1 lb. 2 oz. at birth. This picture is an example of how very small they were. It is a copy of Sydney’s footprints taken at Thanksgiving when she was about seven weeks old! We couldn’t get footprints before that, as they always had some kind of IV in their feet. Lindsey and Sydney are now happy, fun-loving preschoolers, thanks to the March of Dimes. The March of Dimes funded the research that resulted in the development of artificial surfactant...used to help mature the lungs of premature babies. Without artificial surfactant, Lindsey and Sydney would not be here today.

America’s babies need your help. Please visit our personal Web site to make a donation and learn more about the March of Dimes.

ANY donation is greatly appreciated. We CAN make a difference! By helping fund research that will help with preterm labor signs, education programs, and tools to help health care providers find better ways to detect risk, we can be a part of the solution.

Fifty years ago, your dimes conquered polio…PLEASE give us a hand with preterm birth. Thank you!

Easter 2007

Oh what a difference a few years makes!

Easter 2003...


Easter 2007...


Easter 2003 - Lindsey and the girls this year, 2007:


Sydney was sick with a bad cough so just Lindsey and I went to church. Then later, we had brunch at great-grandma's house, but we didn't stay too long. Lindsey started getting sick too. They did enjoy their baskets this year!

Thanks for looking!

Reflections...

The girls had an appointment with the NICU Follow-Up Clinic on Tuesday. They GRADUATED! It was our last one and a LONG one. They both met with Child Psychologists who administered IQ tests. Lindsey was done in about an hour, but apparently Sydney was just getting a lot right, so kept having to answer more questions. She ended up taking a couple breaks in the TWO hours and then we left to go upstairs for the weighing/measuring/eye/ear stuff. Then we went back so she could finish the last section.

Sydney was 39.5" and 30 lbs. 15th percentile for both.
Lindsey was 38.75 and 27.5 lbs. 7th percentile for height and <3rd for weight. Still following her own curve.

Back to the IQ test...we just got the raw scores on that day, and they will be sending out a detailed assessment going over all the subtests. BUT, we were told they did very well. The neonatologist said they wouldn't expect to see scores this high. All I was told was that anything over 100 is good, because 100 is average.

Lindsey - 119
Sydney - 133

I went home and looked up this IQ test to see what it really meant and 110-119 is High Average, 120-129 is Superior, and 130+ is Very Superior! I'm anxious to see the details and see where their strengths are. I know there are still issues that can come up. I'm definitely not naive about that, but this is just so much more than I ever expected.

I almost don't know what to think about it. I'm really not that big into tests and assessments. I mean they have always had them and I think they've been a good guage for us, but what does it really mean? I was very reflective about this on my drive home that day. I guess just because the things that my girls have done I just was not expecting, given the fact they are 24 weekers and how their stay was in the NICU. Their whole life to me is just amazing. Those long weeks on the ventilator I thought for sure would cause tons of lung damage, months on oxygen, breathing treatments, illnesses, asthma, etc. None of that happened. They didn't even get so much as a cold until they were 17 months old. I expected all sorts of issues, possibly delays in walking or speech. Nothing. No OT, ST or PT., and meeting all their milestones, etc.

On my drive home, I just kept asking myself why? Why them? Why not others? I meet a lot of preemies through my volunteering and there are so many with so many issues, especially early ones like L & S, but also ones born bigger and further along. Why don't L & S have these same issues? Is it something Brian & I did? Is it due to their genes? Is it the care they received in the NICU? Or is it God's grace, God's plan? I know I'll never figure it out in this life. I guess it's probably all of the above.

It just makes me wonder though. You know, nothing at all has ever been normal about my reproductive life, not getting pregnant, staying pregnant, or delivering. So, I sometimes wonder if maybe God isn't just trying to give me a little "normal".

Things to think about...

Tagged myself!

I saw this on a friend's blog. I love doing things like this, so I tagged myself! Feel free to do the same.

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have medium extroversion. You're not the life of the party, but you do show up for the party. Sometimes you are full of energy and open to new social experiences. But you also need to hibernate and enjoy your "down time." Conscientiousness: You have medium conscientiousness. You're generally good at balancing work and play. When you need to buckle down, you can usually get tasks done. But you've been known to goof off when you know you can get away with it. Agreeableness: You have high agreeableness. You are easy to get along with, and you value harmony highly. Helpful and generous, you are willing to compromise with almost anyone. You give people the benefit of the doubt and don't mind giving someone a second chance. Neuroticism: You have low neuroticism. You are very emotionally stable and mentally together. Only the greatest setbacks upset you, and you bounce back quickly. Overall, you are typically calm and relaxed - making others feel secure. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is medium. You are generally broad minded when it come to new things. But if something crosses a moral line, there's no way you'll approve of it. You are suspicious of anything too wacky, though you do still consider creativity a virtue.

The Five Factor Personality Test