Anna and Audrey pictures

I have many pictures to put on the blog but not enough time today. So here are a handful (or more) of the things Anna and Audrey have been up to. They are at such a fun stage! Although...we are working on spoiling them less. I can't believe I've manage to spoil twins. Then I realized that having 3 older kids makes it where there's almost always someone to hold a baby. Even two babies! If I'm doing something and can't hold them right at that moment, they let me know they aren't too happy about it! So we are working on teaching them that they are ok by themselves once in a while! 

 Anna and Audrey LOVE playing with Nate's skateboard. The other day they spent so long getting on and off and then sometimes riding it together. It was pretty fun to watch.

 They spent a lot of time opening plastic eggs. They loved it. Today Audrey spent a long time with one piece of cereal in an egg. She kept looking at the cereal, tipping it out of the egg, putting it back in, over and over. I love how easily entertained babies are!

 Sweet sleeping babies. Still loving their shared crib.

 They pushed Nate's clothes baskets out and made a tunnel to go through. They were chasing each other around and around.

 Their birth mom and dad sent them these two tops and some shoes (but they hate wearing shoes so I didn't force those on). I wanted to take a picture so I could send it to the birth mom and dad. They also wrote the sweetest note to us. I will save it forever and am so glad that someday I can show these babies what sweet birth parents they have.

 Dave having fun with his babies.

 They were mesmerized by the sand.

 Fun big brother, Nate! The girls are taking tennis lessons. With beautiful weather of late, Nate and I take the babies to the park and play while the girls are playing tennis.

 Audrey couldn't stop laughing on the see-saw.

 Their first time on swings. They loved it for about 20 seconds and then they were ready to move on.

 The ripstik and skateboard are always being used by someone.

 Anna and Audrey have recently become very interested in drawing. We have discovered that Audrey is a lefty. Pretty fun since Dave and I are lefties. And so interesting that Ash, Sadie and Nate are all right handed! Audrey especially loves to draw with a pencil. She can sit there and draw for a long time. Lately it's common to find Audrey drawing and Anna flipping through books. It's been fun to see their differences come out a bit more.

 Cute Anna and I were outside enjoying the spring weather. They LOVE being outside!

They are always so happy in their crib...until we leave! Then they often cry for about 10 seconds and then start playing with each other. I love watching their little relationship grow.

They are both taking some steps but still prefer crawling.

Happy Birthday Brie

It's hard to believe it's been 10 years since we had Brie. We miss her so much!!!!!!!! 

We think about her every day. 

 I was so happy to hear that Mom was bringing flowers to Brie. She told me she picked a pretty bouquet with red, pink and yellow roses. I was on my way to the store when Mom told me this, so I grabbed the best I could find to match what Brie would have at her grave. I've enjoyed these roses all weekend and it makes me happy that Brie has these same colors to cheer up her special place.

As always, we had angel cake to celebrate our angel. Sadie helped decorate it to make it beautiful for Brie! 

Happy 14th Birthday Ashlyn!

 It's hard to believe we have a 14 year old! Ash chose a lime-coconut cake.

 Everyone was excited because it was time to start opening presents!

For years Ash has chosen sweet and sour chicken or orange chicken for her birthday dinner. It was a fun day celebrating Ashlyn! I can't believe it's less than a year till she will have her driver's permit.

Cousins Come to Visit!

 It was such a treat to have Scott, Emily, Beck and Gibson come visit for a long weekend! Anna and Audrey were so easily entertained by Beck and Gibson!

 I had to take a picture. What a nice uncle to sit on the floor and read to Audrey.

 Making Sunday dinner! Dave made the curry and the rest of us were making the naan.

Made me smile to see Dave and Scott skateboarding/ripstiking around the house. Thanks for coming! We had so much fun!

Ashlyn's Poem

We were heartbroken to get a phone call a few weeks ago from our very close friends that their 7 week old baby died of SIDS that morning. The kids could tell that something was wrong. As soon as I got off the phone, Ashlyn asked what was wrong. With tears flowing down her cheeks, she went upstairs. An hour later she came down with this poem for me to bring to our friends. It is beautiful.  

Gone For Now is Not Forever

The sun is setting,

The light is gone.

The world is resting,

Though something is wrong.

A sudden shock,

Without a warning

The precious seconds slip by,

The spirit travels home.

An overwhelming ache consumes the heart,

Though no attempt is made to suppress it.

The whispered question fills the thoughts,

How could this happen?  Why?

The memories of the loss and love

are treasured now forever.

Nothing seems to heal the sadness,

It echoes on and on.

But on the cold and lonely path,

A familiar friend reaches out.

He has felt the pain,

The lonely ache and despair.

He has paid the price,

The family will soon reunite.  

Filled with love and understanding,

He will help you through.

We were thankful to spend some precious time with our friends that day. Our hearts ached for them...and I think it made it tougher knowing a bit of the hard road they have ahead of them. We had some friends come in town for the funeral and it was wonderful to spend time with them and catch up a bit! I can't believe how few pictures I got with Keri and Jason here! 

 Keri, Jason, Anna, Audrey and I met Dave at lunch before they drove back home to Missouri. It was a short trip but so great to see them!

Anna just loved Jason! It was so cute to watch. She always reached out to him and wanted to snuggle. 

Sleepy Babies

Almost every night when we check on the babies, they are touching in some way. It's adorable.

They are obsessed with playing on the stairs.

After we say bye to Dave in the morning, we hurry to the window so Anna and Audrey can wave one last time. They get sooooo excited when they see Dave. They wave till they can't see his car anymore.

Nate better watch out next time he gets a banana out for a snack. Instantly he had two little girls trying to crawl on his lap for some bites.

It's hard to practice the piano with two little babies playing at your feet!

Happy Birthday to our miracle babies!

 I do realize that my blog sidebar is completely outdated. One of these days when I'm not busy with Anna and Audrey and school and everything in between, I will change it up. But don't hold your breath. 

Audrey on her birthday!

 Anna stopping to smile at Dave while climbing up the stairs.

 I'm not kidding when I say that Anna and Audrey like peppers better than cake, or most anything else. They did love Grandma Shelly's chicken divan casserole. They LOVED it in California so that's what I decided to make for their birthday dinner. They devoured it!

 Every big event with our babies is so much fun for me. One reason is because I never thought I would get to do 1st birthdays or any other "firsts" again. It makes me appreciate the big and little things so much more. Their birthday was no exception. As we were helping them blow out their candles, I had so much joy as I thought about the miracle this day represents. I can't express how much I love them. Not a day goes by where I don't feel so much gratitude for the blessing they have been to our family.

 Neither of them were very interested in their cake. I made them a chocolate zucchini cake.

 Audrey

 A few times Audrey put her mouth up to the cake but didn't want to eat much. They did have fun playing with it.

 This wasn't on their birthday...but it was a big day for our kids! We have a bean jar where they put in a bean every time they put something away without me asking. It took about three months to fill it and the prize was to go out to dinner. After trying to eat at In-n-out with my family in CA over Christmas, I vowed not to eat out with babies for a while. It was crazy and I don't think I tasted a bite of my hamburger. I ordered take out as we left so I could enjoy my dinner at home!

 We finally stopped and took a picture of our kiddos by the new temple being built. It is so fun to watch the progress!

 We were so excited to have Chris and Kate come in town...and even better, they were there to celebrate Anna and Audrey's birthdays with us! The kids played all day together. They played roller blade tag (thanks for carrying those all through the airport, Chris!). They worked on a movie. They stayed up late talking! Dave took them on a fun hike up our hill for a picnic.

 Anna. That angle looks scary to me!

 Cute cousins on their hike!

 Cute Audrey.

 I think balloons might have been their favorite toy to play with! Audrey kept saying "ball" when she looked at the balloons.

 Audrey's favorite thing is a ball. She loves to sit like this and pass the ball back and forth. I love it.

 Ash gave them a box of tissues for their birthday and boy did they have fun!!!

Anna especially loved Uncle Chris. She loved when he held him and even snuggled up a few times on his shoulder. So cute!