Say Cheeeeeeessssseeeeeee!

Claire loves to get out my video camera or any of my cameras and she puts it up to her face and says "cheeeeseeeee" and smiles as big as she can!!!!!

Madelynn photo bombing the photo!

Maybe we have a future photographer! 

Wordless Wednesday: "Help me Momma, I'm stuck!"

Last week I heard Claire crying the from the other room and when I went in to find her, she was stuck in the walker. The girls think it's so funny to try to get in it and then they normally can't get out by themselves. Over and over. Over and over. Ya think they would figure it out!

And she was not happy I was taking her photo instead of getting her out of the darn thing!

Silly girl!

Claire's ER Trip!

Last Wednesday the twinsies were at my mom and dads house while I took Natalee and Emily to the doctors. My mom took the girls outside to play for a few minutes until she noticed the girls were getting eaten alive by mosquitos. She immediately brought them inside and when I got there she showed me where Claire had been bitten. It didn't seem to bother her much so we went on with our evening. The next morning I noticed the bite but it wasn't much of anything. When she woke up after nap, the bite had become red and hot and was greatly swollen. It felt like she had a tumor hanging down from her ear to her chin. She was itching it and clearly it was bothering her. I gave her some bendryl and put some hydrocortizone cream on it to help with the itching but it just kept looking worse and worse. I put a call into the doctor and she said to come in the next day but if Claire developed a fever to take her to the ER.

I thought it would start looking better and I asked my MIL to come over and take a look at it too. When Tim got home he even said how weird it looked and how he didn't like it all, which of course made me way more nervous because he always seems to never freak out about anything so since he was worried, I became ten times more worried!

The next few hours, the area got worse and worse and by 9pm, Claire had developed a low fever, but a fever none-the-less. I called the doctors answering service and waited for the doctor to call back and she said to go to the ER. We just couldn't take the chance that it wasn't a big infection and could be possibly affecting her breathing since it was right on her neck/throat/lymph nodes. Claire was acting fine other than the occasional itching at the site.

We arrived at the ER a little before 11pm to a packed waiting room and it wasn't until five minutes before 1:00AM that we were brought back. By this time the redness was all over her chin and inching up to her other ear and spreading down her neck. She had scratched it so badly that she now had marks from that too.

Finally when the doctor came in he felt the area, looked in her throat and felt all around in her mouth and determined that her breathing was okay. He confirmed that the bite had developed an infection and was most likely cellulitis. He said he couldn't believe how much swollen tissue was infected...lovely, rihgt!? He put her on an anti-biotic twice daily and said to keep giving her the benadryl and tylenol to stay comfortable. He also said that there have been so many cases of just really bad bug bite infections this year and she just may be prone to them! :(

Playing with Grandma in the wee hours of the morning in the ER....

After a few days, she was back to normal. However, on Monday night we went outside to do chalk and go for a walk (of course had plenty of bug spray on) and when we came inside Claire had 9, yes NINE, bug bites on her! Three on her face, 2 on her arms, 2 on her leg and 2 on her hand!!!

By Tuesday morning they were all red, hot and swelled up! I couldn't believe it! I called the doctor and since we have an appointment already for today (Wed) scheduled for flu shots, if she doesn't get a fever before then, the doctor will take a look.

Last week we were at the doctors twice, the ER once and now the doctors again today! I told them they should just put a room in our name. I swear I don't go three days without talking to either the nurse or a doctors about something...and trust me, I am NOT the first one to freak out about every small thing, it's just having four kids makes so many issues that come up!

My poor girl! I hope she is not going to be one of those little one's that just gets eaten alive while playing outside. What do ya'll use for bug spray on little ones? Anything good out there? I have been told that Avon has a really good one with no deet in it...? Apparently the stuff I have isn't nearly strong enough to keep the bugs from not wanting my sweet girl! I kept telling her the bugs bit her because she is constantly biting her sisters still...but apparently that didn't scare her because she is still biting them and the bugs are still biting her!

Popsicle Love!

My girls LOVE popsicles and they are getting so good at eating them all by themselves! Such big girls!

Claire especially just eats them right up!

Madelynn, Claire and Natalee: You are 14 Months Old!

Phew! 14 Months! It's been so fun with you guys this month! You are constantly babbling and interacting with each other! I just love watching you play with one another and  it's so cute to watch your relationships with one another blossom! What a blessing it is to have each of you! We love you all so much!

{ This Month at 14 Months }

You all have started biting more and more, especially when you are really frustrated at one another. Claire you bit Natalee and left a huge mark on her arm for the first time today, 02.23.12.

You are all so funny and crack us up! I love your little personalities!

You are all so happy all of the time!

You all had your hearing tested (a preemie thing) on 02.21.12 and you all passed...even though I knew you could hear just fine!

We moved into a new wonderful home! You have all adjusted so well! No set-backs or anything. You love the new wide open space you have to walk and crawl everywhere!

You all became BIG SISTERS! You have adjusted to that pretty well too. Most days you all have tried to dig Emily's eyes out but so far we have saved her from your true wrath! Natalee, you did bite Emily's toe on 02.22, and she screamed. That wasn't very nice but I know you didn't do it to be mean, you are just expressing your frustration. 

{ Madelynn }

You are completely walking!

You have 7 teeth. 4 on top, 3 on the bottom.

Your hair is light brown.

Your eyes are blue.

You wear size 3 shoes.

You wear size 9, 12 and 18 month clothes, depending on the brand.

You wear size 4 Pampers Cruiser Diapers.

You love to eat your feet still!

Your favorite foods are applesauce, pancakes, scrambled eggs, waffles, graham crackers, cinnamon toast sticks, cinnamon toast, cheese, bologna, turkey, bread, peas, green beans, carrots, corn, ect. You love vegetables so much and you are a great eater. You shovel everything in your mouth, so now we only give you a little bit of something at a time. 

You still love your ba-ba (bottle).

You love to drink out of your sippy cups all day.

You sleep through the night from 7:30PM - 9:00AM.

You love to dance and listen to music. You rock back and forth on your feet as soon as you hear music of any kind. It's so cute.

You love to clap and wave.

You can do two signs...all done and more. You are a very fast leaner and pick up things super quick.

You are constantly laughing!

You love ripping your bibs off, no matter how many times we put it back on you.

Your favorite time is bath time. You love splashing so much. You splash with your hands and now you have learned how to lean back in the bath seat and kick your legs so hard and splash that way.

You are still the bully of the bunch. You think everything is yours and only yours!

You still growl. Everyone thinks it's so funny!

You wear shoes everyday and love them!

You can say Momma, Dadda, baby, me and baba (bottle). But you babble constantly!

You can climb the stairs all by yourself, and faster than your sisters.

You are very determined and do not like to be told no.

You love Elmo so much and light up when he comes on TV.

Your favorite toys are your blocks, princess car, books and really anything, because you think everything is yours anyway!

You sleep with your lovie, blue bear, soft tag book, binki, pink ellie and a blanket. You love to put your lovie over your face as soon as you lay down with your bottle.

You have started jumping in your crib and running back and forth from side to side!

{ Claire }

You have 7 teeth. 3 on top, 4 on the bottom, the opposite of Madelynn.

You wear size 3 shoes.

Your hair is light brown.

Your eyes are blue.

You wear size 9, 12 and 18 month clothes, depending on the brand.

You wear size 4 Pampers Cruiser Diapers.

Your favorite foods are yogurt, pancakes, scrambled eggs, waffles, graham crackers,  cinnamon toast, cinnamon toast sticks, cheese, bologna, turkey, bread, peas, green beans, carrots, corn, ect. You love vegetables so much and you are a great eater. You have a little issue still with textures but you have improved so much! You don't get any baby food at all.

You love your bottle!

You love to drink out of your sippy cup all day.

You love taking your bows off.

You sleep through the night from 7:30PM - 9:00AM.

You love to clap and wave!

You have an obbession with cabinet doors. Anything that can be opened and shut, you have to do it one hundred times, even when you pinch your fingers constantly.

You have a sweet soul. A little more laid back than your sisters.

You can climb the stairs all by yourself!

You love ripping your bibs off, no matter how many times we put it back on you, even the ones that go over your head, you can take them off too.

Your favorite time is bath time. You love splashing so much. You splash with your hands, and of course your tongue sticking out!!! Silly girl!

Daddy is your favorite person, even when you get hurt, you prefer Daddy to cuddle you.

You can say Momma, Dadda, and baba (bottle). But you babble constantly!

We still call you Lola, Lola Mae, Lola Claire, and Claire-bear.

You love Elmo so much and light up when he comes on TV.

You are taking about 3 steps at a time on your own. You can run around the furniture like a mad woman but you like to hold on. 

You can stand without holding on to anything for minutes at a time.

Your favorite toys are your blocks, princess car, books and the pretend cookie jar that makes noise.

You sleep with your lovie, beige cow, glow worm, binki, pink ellie and a blanket. You love to put your lovie over your face as soon as you lay down with your bottle.

{ Natalee }

You have 4 teeth. 2 on top, 2 on the bottom.

You wear size 3 shoes.

Your hair is dark brown and very straight.

You eyes are a very dark brown, like your Momma and Daddy's eyes. Everyone comments on your eyes, ever since you were born. You have a deep soul, sweet girl and your eyes haven't changed since the day you were born.

You wear size 9, 12 and 18 month clothes, depending on the brand.

You wear size 4 Pampers Cruiser Diapers.

You can stand for long periods of time without holding on!

Your favorite foods are yogurt, pancakes, waffles, graham crackers, cheese, bologna, turkey, bread, peas, green beans, carrots, corn, ect. You love vegetables so much and you are a great eater. You are such a great eater, but for some reason you are not a big fan of eggs. 

You love your sippy cup!

You have completely switched over to pedi-sure and never even noticed the difference! You love the vanilla and strawberry, but I haven't tried the chocolate yet. You have gained the most weight ever this month on the pedi-sure!

You sleep through the night from 7:30PM - 9:00AM.

You clap and wave!

You constantly sit on your knees.

You took your first steps alone last week and I bet you walk before Claire!

You love Mommy so much and have a very hard time separating from me, but as long as you don't see me, your fine!

You can climb the stairs all by yourself!

Your favorite time is bath time. You love splashing so much. You love to get on your knees in your bath seat and try to stand up constantly. You are so tiny in the seat so you can move so easily.

You refuse to sit in the tub, you only want to stand! You will not sit in your bath seat at all!

You have a very determined personality. You like to have what you want and when you want it!

You can say Dadda, but I have not heard you say Momma yet. But you babble constantly!

We still call you Na Na, peanut, string bean and puppy (because you sometimes still sound like a little puppy/piggy when you sequel).

You love to be chased, and will crawl away sooo fast!

You love Elmo so much and light up when he comes on TV.

Your favorite toys are your blocks, princess car, books and Daddy's cell phone.

You sleep with your lovie, pink bunny, glow worm (glowy), binki, pink ellie and a blanket. You are the only one who could care less about your lovie. You love your glowy, especially the ears. You rub the ears of glowy between your mouth and your nose all of the time.

{ Here are all of you playing this month...}