Catching up..Again (April)

Huh, so here it is the end of June. I had great intentions of keeping up with this blog. Now I feel I am going to have to do a summarized-long-bullet blog to get caught up. With once again a goal of keeping caught up in the future. I am writing this in a word doc. I think that now as we do things, go places, or I just feel the need to write, I am going to write in here on word and that way it will be saved and easier to transfer over.

So, I think I have to go all the way back to April (good thing I jot down everything in my calendar). The Twins turned 8 months in April. Zayne weighs about 14# 15oz. I know Zayne’s up-to-date weight more than Zoe’s because he gets weighed at his speech therapy appointments. Zoe is around the 15 ½# mark. They continue to be doing great.

Two little bunnies. Great Grandmas Sweaters. 

My mom and Jocelyn came out to visit over Easter, Andy had to travel to CA- So I needed the help. My mom and Joc got into SLC. They came to our Apartment and we had a little Easter egg hunt for Joc. The bunny had already stopped by and left the twins some gifts.  The bunny was good to Jocelyn also and she even got a special little “golden egg with a secret message.” We later made dinner and then took the twins to their hotel and took them swimming. Zoe loves, loves the water and Zayne is quickly becoming a fan. Overall I had a great visit with my Mom and Jocelyn and it was so nice to have the help. My Mom likes to joke that she came all this way and her first job was getting Klyde’s haircut.

Easter family photo. 

Cool Dude. 

April 11^th- April 11 is Andy’s Birthday. I am so fortunate for his amazing group of friends as 3 of his high school buddies made their way to SLC to spend Andy’s birthday with him. These guys are such a riot to be around. They never change. We went out for dinner for Andy’s bday, Maureen watched both of the babies for us. Andy’s friends surprised us with a card and a check. They did a surprise fundraiser for us. It was quite emotional to receive the gift of money. I know it really touched Andy as all the donations came from Jamestown friends, families, co-workers, coaches, teachers etc. Please know that we are forever thankful and grateful for your kindness and willingness and generosity to help out a family in a difficult time. We will pay it forward.

This was another good weekend had by all. We hung out, relaxed, BBQ’d, ate good food, We had many good laughs, and the boys had a good time reminiscing over a few cocktails. I love these guys and this amazing group of friends they have.

April 13^th- Andy and I got invited to join the U of U in their Suite at the last home Jazz game. We were uncertained if this is really something that we wanted to do. But, we found somone to watch Zayne- His buddy Jace, and we took Zoe with us. We are glad that we went and were given this opportunity to do so. We were invited because Andy had wrote a letter to help the U of U get a grant in order to build a family center in the NBICU. And because of his letter they were awarded the grant. We also like to joke that after a 164 day NBICU stay this is what you get. Completely Joking!

April 25- April 27-  Well it didn't take long for us to decide to take a visit to Bozeman. Once we took Zayne off of High flow and had a couple good nights with him, we decided we wanted to take the trip back and be at home for awhile. We left around 5pm, Z&Z did great. We made one stop for dinner, and they had one minor melt down prior to falling asleep. They really are great travelers. It was great to get back to Bozeman, be in our own home, and visit with our friends. Andy and I also said had we not known we rented out place out we never would of known we had renters in there, they took great care of our house. 

Me, Zoe, and Zayne caught a little cold while we were home, go figure! Mine didn't last more than a day and half...Guess that's the power of being a Mom. Both Z&Z are still fighting a cough, they thought Zoe had croup but after taking her medication with zero improvement I feel she just has a general cold. Either way sleep has been minimal over the past week or two due to this dang cold. I am ready for it to go else where. 

We got to enjoy some hang out time with many of our friends while home which was very nice. I also got to go up to my work and visit everyone there, I took Zoe and Zayne with and they got to see the Doctor who originally was seeing us, I was glad I got to show her them.

We put together the double jogging stroller that my Dad bought for us, it was nice to take them out in that stroller vs. the Limo stroller we have been using here in SLC,
Zoe started to become very vocal while we were home. She is growing and changing everyday. I truly cherish the moments. It does go fast, so fast. But I continue to remember what nurse Nona said.. "She always enjoys the stage that they are in, never wishing for it to be earlier or later." One day (April 29) while Andy was at work Zoe spent the day saying "Da-da, da-da" just making the sound not knowing it really meant something... Later the evening we had friends over and Andy was grilling us burgers and she started doing it again, I brought her over to Andy so he could hear "Da-da." The look on his face was priceless... she has since forgot that word.

We stayed in Bozeman for a little over a week. It's a bit emotional for me going back. It's so hard to reflex on all that we have been through. Then to get home and see their room that they have never got to use, to realize there is not much normalcy for what we have been doing the last year. Sometimes I feel like we are missing out or they are missing out. But, then again I look at what we have done and gone through over the past year and I am amazed. Sometimes I have a hard time explaining it all, mainly cause I still think I am trying to process it all- but, right now is just a emotional time for me in general.

Love his smile and happiness. 

Zoe and Zayne turned 9 months on May 2nd. They spent it in their Montana home :) They both continue to be such happy babies and over all content. They are slowly starting to interact with each other. Zoe loves pretties (necklaces) her friend Stella got her a teething necklace that I can wear and she can chew on. Zoe has a lot of personality but can get quite around others Andy and I joke that she loves to be in Zoe land (when she met my ob Dr. she was very vocal and my Dr. says "It's good to have personality Zoe.") At 9 month Zoe still only had one tooth, this past week she got her 2nd one.. again she wants everyone to know that she has something to cry about. She got her 2nd tooth on May 13, started to scoot on May 14, and started to sit on her own on May 15. I guess she has been eating her wheaties when we aren't looking. She continues to be so funny and full of laughs. Zoe currently weighs 16# 5oz and is 26 1/2 inches long as of May 9.

So happy.

Friends, Maybe?

Just love this face.

Zayne is also doing great. He has 2 teeth. He also is so happy but recently hasn't been afraid to show his little temper that he has. He also is the sweetest little guy despite that temper, he loves loves to give kisses, especially to his Mama. He decided too that he wasn't going to let his sister get too far ahead of him as he too can pretty much sit on his own, a bit wobbely but he can do it. He doesn't scoot and doesn't really roll over, he has rolled 1-2 times. We joke that he is just really smart and knows that it's not comfy on his g-tube. One of Zayne's favorite activities is sitting on the couch with his Dad and relaxing before bedtime. He loves his jumper. He continues to be doing great on just nasal cannula. They both love bath time, we took them swimming again today which they both absolutely love.

 I have to include this photo. As we were home in Montana, we stumbled upon our white board that we used for weekly updates of the twins during pregnancy. It was kindof emotional for both Andy and I as we saw this white board and our last update was 23 weeks, It was only a few days after that we took the flight to SLC not knowing what was in store for us and not ever expecting it to be one year later that we would return to Bozeman. 

We are in the process of getting ready to go back to Montana. I am working on transferring all Zayne's medical records, setting up Dr appts, and getting therapy and home health and equipment all set up. We will be heading back to Montana in the near future. That too is bitter sweet and has me emotional. It's been a journey and we have created a family down here through the University... Many who have impacted out lives, who we will never forget... who we can never thank enough. 

I am going to make my last post on caringbridge when we get home to Bozeman. I will then continue to post and journal on our personal blog. Many have asked for that web address. Please email, text, or message me facebook for that address. We want to keep in contact with those from the university who have came into our lives. Thank you for being a part of this journey. 

More updates to come. Hopefully sooner than Later. I have a big goal of getting caught up soon. 
If you were following us on caringbridge, please follow us here.  Oh, and I need a new name for this blog. Input welcome.. Thanks.