Forgot to post... Surgery Pics

Forgot to include these cute pictures of MacKay in his surgical smock/robe at the Surgery Center. These are from Chris's phone so sorry if they aren't super clear - it's all we had to work with at the time.

The first is a picture before the surgery of MacKay and Chris, and the other is after the surgery with MacKay on my lap playing with a bottle cap and the nurses stethoscope that he wouldn't let go of.

Surgery Yesterday..... 11 months Today..... and Anniversary Tomorrow.....

Well - everything went VERY well yesterday for MacKay's surgery. He was a little trooper through it all. I even went back with him to the OR until he was asleep (from the oxygen mask - they put the IV in after I left) and he was a real champ. The surgery did, infact, take over an hour - unnnnghh. So the Surgery Center was right and the urology nurse (who told us 5-10 minutes) was not. But it all went well. He didn't even cry like they told us he would. He was a little cranky here and there, but got some giggles and smiles out of him too. We are SO proud of him.

Yesterday he only seemed in pain a few times, and those time were quite obvious as he would just squeal. Usually if something was pushing on his sore area like when he was in his high chair or sitting a certain way, or just when he needed a diaper change. So far it looks good too - he's got a lot of bruising and swelling..... but we're anxious for it all to clear up and go back to normal diapering again (got to be SO careful now). And he slept through the night so well last night too - which I was a bit worried about cuz he didn't nap well earlier in the day and ended up napping on me in the recliner. He was just DRENCHING wet, I think working out all the anesthesia. I woke him up a couple times to give him Motrin/Tylenol but he went right back to bed each time.

Grandma Bonnie and Grandpa Dean came up early Monday morning (they were troopers too) to watch Oscar while we were at the doctor's. Apparently we had nothing to worry about with him too, cuz he didn't seem phased at all that his brother and parents weren't there when he woke up. But he was in good hands, so really no cause for worry anyway. Gma and Gpa said they had a blast with him.

AND - Today they are ELEVEN MONTHS. One more month to go until their first birthday. Can you believe it? I can't. Time has just flown... but then again I feel like this has been my life forever and cannot remember my life before them. We've decided to just do something very low key with the boys for their birthday, just the four of us. And next year, when they are older and can partake in the activities, we'll do it up big at a water park or something. But this year..... just all about messing up their faces with cake and frosting in a low key way.

Tomorrow...... is our 3 year Anniversary. Yep - 3 years ago tomorrow Chris and I got married and it was 80+ degrees out. Hard to imagine in MN eh? That seems like forever ago. And this weekend Grandma Chris is watching the boys while we hit Minneapolis for the weekend. We have reservations at The Capital Grille on Saturday night, but also want to hit a sushi joint, have heard that Fogo de Chao is excellent (may hit that for lunch), maybe do some shopping at the MOA, and drink some good wine. Very excited for my first weekend away from the boys to see if I can survive...... if it goes well I may need to book our Vegas trip for this Spring before I chicken out :)

Not much new with the boys.... they are both standing on their own for long periods (when we prop them up), and Oscar is walking to us from about 3-4 feet away. MacKay has started making motorboat sounds by pulling on his bottom lip and humming (been teaching him that one for a while) and are mimicking me when I say "Uh-OH!". They also are starting to wrestle. Well.... I should say that MacKay is taking Oscar down. It usually starts with MacKay becoming interested in the diaper sticking out of the back of Oscar's pants and trying to pull on it (wedgie? - oh he better not become one of those kids) and when Oscar tries to get away from him he just hangs on tight and wrestles him continuously to the ground. The three of us just laugh the entire time until it comes to the point where Oscar gets sick of being beat up, then we break it up. But it is so hilarious to watch cuz they are both having such a fun time. Check out the pictures below of them, I tried to catch them in the act.

The boys wrestling last Saturday. MacKay pretty much had Oscar pinned the entire time. I love these shirts that look like Tshirts over long sleeved shirts. So adorable

Some pictures taken today of them playing WWF again. They actually sat still for a picture sitting next to each other when they were taking a breather - I can't remember the last time I was able to get a shot of the both of them smiling and sitting right next to each other - they are just too mobile now. But poor Oscar is just getting worked over in all of these. I think maybe he knows that he's bigger and doesn't want to hurt his little brother.... the gentle giant.

And lastly just to make up for all the pictures of Oscar getting beat up, some cute ones of him. First is right before bath time, and the other is a picture of Oscar frustrated cuz he crawled over/into the bottom of one of our bar chairs and couldn't figure out how to get out.

More to come later... probably after our weekend getaway. Hope everyone is doing well

Poor MacKay.... Surgery Monday Morning @ 7:30

Well we just found out the details for MacKay's "procedure" on Monday. We need to have him there by 6:45am and the surgery starts at 7:30am. One of us can go into the operating room (all scrubbed up) if we want to be with him for a while before he is put under. And the procedure is...... well.... I'm a bit unsure of that. The Surgery Center person told us it is 1 1/2 hours..... WHAT? We were told it was at most 5 minutes he would be under. Also told us that after post op we can see him and to expect that he will be screaming for an hour - not cuz of pain, but cuz they don't like the feeling of "coming out", apparently it feels like they drank a 12 pack of beer and they get confused and all out of sorts. Apparently this is normal... but unnnghh. I haven't stopped crying since the call.... I so don't want to do this anymore.

But anyway, I called the urologist to talk about this discrepancy between the 5 minutes we were told about and the 1 1/2 hours we are hearing about now, and the nurse told me that we were misinformed by the Surgery Center, that it will probably be like 10 minutes. So who the heck do you believe now? Either way, this isn't something I want to go through with anymore. This is going to be sheer chaos. So please think of us Monday morning and send us some positive thoughts/vibes/prayers... whatever you are in to.

On a positive note, some cute pictures I snapped right in a row of the boys the other day in their adorable little striped long sleeve shirts and jeans. There is just something about little boys in jeans that is so adorable. Maybe it is the way the butt looks (sorta saggy yet puffy) or the way they are too long and get wrapped around their feet. But again, as always, playing with our cordless phone - which by the way, I have been missing a ton of calls cuz they keep turning the ringer off when they are playing with it. Not sure if at the end MacKay is leaning in to get a better look at the phone since Oscar has it, or to bite Oscar.... either way, sorta cute how they are all snuggled in.

Wish us luck on Monday. Will fill you in how it went next week.....

Wedding Down.... Surgery Around the Corner....

A couple weekends ago we had my cousin, Shannon's, wedding up in Duluth. It was a long time to be away with the boys, but my parents and Terri were troopers and did a great job with them. Had a great time seeing people I don't get to see very often and the wedding was very nice, Shannon looked beautiful ...... and I even got to play photographer a bit (something I love doing). Kept finding little details to shoot here and there, and when Shan's photographer left early I jumped in a took a ton of pictures of the cake cutting and dances. You can see some of my favorite shots below.

I just got back from MacKay's pre-op appt for his surgery on Monday and he looks great and everything is a "go". Now just waiting for a call on Friday to tell us when the surgery will be on Monday. Grandma Bonnie and Grandpa Dean are coming up to watch Oscar while we take MacKay to the surgery center. It should be interesting as we've never had them apart before, they always go with for each others appts etc. And funny enough at my MOMs group the other day (Mothers of Multiples) they were talking about just that..... taking one with you and leaving the other behind here and there so they get some time away from the other and one on one with mommy or daddy. I guess we're being forced to do that.....

We also just booked a weekend for Chris and I to go down to the twin cities and celebrate our 3 year anniversary. We're staying at a luxury hotel and planning on doing some shopping and fine dining (which includes a good consumption of wine as well). This will be my first time away from the boys - for TWO NIGHTS. YIKES. Grandma Chris is going to watch them and is excited about it (does she know what she's getting herself into?). Chris keeps saying that maybe we should bring one of their monitors along with us that weekend cuz he's SURE I can't sleep with out the loud hum of that during the night - what a smart alek. And a couple weekends after that we have visitors coming up for the weekend - the Wadman's and Matt Johnson and his new fiancee Jill who we absolutely love and think is PERFECT for Matt. Can't wait for that wedding - man, I should start looking into a sitter now for that :)

What else...... let's see. Shortly before we went up to Grandpa Gary and Terri's place in Duluth, MacKay started walking with his little push toy. So now we have two boys fighting over that cuz they both love to walk around with that. And he is SO fast when he crawls - it's like lightening speed. We knew that was going to happen too cuz he is just a ball of energy. Oscar has recently enjoyed a game where you stand him up and get him balanced and let him stand on his own.... and now is starting to take a few steps forward to you before plunging into you. He's so proud of himself and I think we could have a walker sometime soon here - definitely before he turns one. They both love giving people high 5s, feeding Angus (throwing finger foods on the floor or putting their hands over the side of their high chairs and letting Angus lick them), biting (better curb that one), and both are real snugglers - even MacKay has come around and become a real teddy bear. And I just noticed today that MacKay's right lateral incisor (the 2nd tooth out) on the top has broken through - so now he has 5 teeth (Oscar still has his 6). Real vocal fellas too - playing with sounds and volume..... our house is just plain noisy.

Well as always - a ton of pictures for ya.

The boys up at Grandpa Gary and Terri's in their new outfits from Grandma Chris. The boys had fun with all the toys we brought up for them to play with for about the first hour.... then had more fun with Grandpa's spatulas, magazines (they had a whole crate there for them), and rugs. I refuse to buy them another toy :)

Pictures of Shannon at her wedding - just some of my favorites. (Note: the man she is with wearing the maroon tie/vest is her dad, my uncle Denny. You should have SEEN him on the dance floor - the man can move like he has no joints.)

The boys at the reception. They were wearing the new shirts that Grandpa Dean and Grandma Bonnie got for them recently. Super studly. One is of Dennis and Oscar - yes Oscar is playing with a plastic beer cup. :) They weren't there long, just long enough to be fed their dinner and of course for MacKay to shriek constantly through the dinner - so loud that we at the head table could hear it. That's my son....

Pictures of the boys with their new BARRIERS (gates). We now can keep them in the living room... and with the hexagon shaped one we have a place to put them while we have dinner so we don't have them (and Angus) right in our faces while we try to eat. Dinners are so much more enjoyable now :)

I LOVE these shirts and they are ALMOST to the point where they are too big for them so I am getting as much wear out of them as I can. There is something about those little striped arms that is just so adorable to me. They were Xmas gifts from Grandma Bonnie and Grandpa Dean.... are 12 months sized (they are currently wearing 18 months) but for some reason they still fit. And of course they are yet again playing with our cordless phone again.

Some miscellaneous pictures. First two are Oscar - playing with his stackable bowls (they really like those) and frustrated cuz he was walking with his push toy and ran into the wall and couldn't go any further. Third, MacKay and his best buddy (other than Oscar), Angus. He LOVES Angus and is constantly following him around, pulling on his ears, playing with his tags, etc. Which leads us to the next picture where he is demonstrating his new found skill of opening up the latches on Angus's kennel. I had put Angus in there for a time out and next thing I know Angus is out - little MacKay has learned how to unlatch the locks. Smart little guy. And lastly, just a picture from the other night where MacKay learned how to lift his big bouncy ball above his head. Smart AND Strong.

Weddings Galore and More......

Well.... one wedding down, and one more to go. Two weekends ago we headed down to Annandale for Shannon Bishop's wedding (high school friend of Chris's) and it was by far the most beautiful and elegant wedding I have been to. No details were spared and it was a lovely ceremony and fantastic reception. The bride and groom also did everything "green" which I thought was such a nice touch. Got to meet a lot of Chris's high school friends which was fun, and when the boys woke from their nap (their schedule got thrown off with the ride down to Annandale) ~5:30ish, Dean and Bonnie drove the boys over to the reception for us to show off to everyone. They did really well at dinner (considering we totally forgot to pack their sippy cups or any toys for them to play with while there) and enjoyed crawling around in the grass once they did get a little rammy at the table. MacKay really was hamming it up with Shannon (bride) as well when we introduced them... what a flirt. Then Dean and Bonnie came back to pick them up a couple hours later to bring them home and give them baths and a bottle before putting them to bed - to which they TOTALLY conked out immediately for - they were exhausted. I should note, Dean and Bonnie were grandparents on steroids that weekend... not only were they watching the boys and carting them to/from the wedding for us, but they also had Stella to watch as well. I was quite impressed :)

Last week I had Kelly over (niece) for the day to help and visit with the kiddos. School didn't start for her until Thursday, so Jolene dropped her off on Wednesday to hang out. That was fun and the boys enjoyed having someone new to play with. We took them swinging and for a walk in their wagon, and Kelly had fun taking TONS of pictures of them.

This past weekend we laid pretty low and relaxed (god, how we love those chances) and Grandma Diane and her friend Dave popped over on their way back down to Monticello to see the boys. They were in good moods so they were giggly and cuddly - so that was fun.

Some new things with the boys.... well, first off I am proud to say that both the boys have learned to feed themselves (hand to mouth). They completely shocked us (me the most) at Dean and Bonnie's the other weekend while having lunch. We put out their puffs for them to play with and apparently we weren't putting them in their mouths at a fast enough pace cuz MacKay just grabbed one and crammed it in his mouth and did so a few more times after that. The very next day Oscar did it as well - and this was all unprovoked by us. It is great - they are learning something new practically every day. Speaking of which.... MacKay learned how to open Angus's kennel early last week as well. I had Angus locked in there (probably for either barking for no reason, or for stealing one of the boys toys) and MacKay went over there (as he usually does) and couldn't get in so he played with the door until he unhinged one of the locks on his kennel. Couldn't believe it. That MacKay just LOVES Angus and is constantly going in his kennel with him. Oscar is still pushing around his walker like crazy - I love the proud grin on his face when he does it. Oscar also stood (alone) for about 4-5 seconds the other day. I was playing with him and trying to make him stand and/or walk a couple steps alone, and he did stand for a while. He was laughing SO hard the entire time we were doing this (probably cuz I was giggling the entire time) I wish we would have gotten it on film (kicking self). And MacKay now has his first real boo boo. The boys love to pull on one of our plants that is sitting on an end table.... we weren't watching close enough and he pulled the plant right onto him and it fell on his foot. So he has a little "egg" and black and blue mark on his foot now. But it doesn't seem to be getting him down as he is standing and walking around (assisted) just fine on it.

We also booked MacKay's surgery for Sept 29th. AHHHH - I totally need valium for this - I don't think I can bring him in.... very nervous about it. But Gma Bonnie and Gpa Dean are coming up to watch Oscar when we take him in. They assured us MacKay would be under for less than 5 minutes as the procedure takes only a couple minutes... and they only put him under really just to keep him still. Scary all the same to put an infant under anesthesia - I hate it. But apparently he is supposed to all healed and back to 100% within 2 days - much faster than the healing time for a normal "circ" - so that is good. And we have our 1 year photo session booked with Mandy Birdwell for Sunday Nov 2nd (my birthday) - so I am trying to figure out what outfits the boys should wear for those. They are still in 18 month clothes but outgrowing some of it already (crazy).

Well, I better get going as I need to get more stuff packed and organized for our big trip to Duluth on Wednesday for yet another wedding. Another Shannon (weird eh), but this one is my cousin, for which I am the matron of honor. Heading up Wednesday for the bachelorette party, and staying through the weekend. Grandma Chris is popping up here tomorrow night so that I will have someone to ride with me and the boys to Duluth, and she is going to stay at my Dad's (or 2 doors down at my Aunt/Uncles) to help out with the boys while I am doing pre-wedding stuff. Will fill you all in on how that went in the next post - until then, take care and check back again.

Just some funny pictures of Oscar. The first is what he does very often to us. He chomps down on the spoon and won't let go with his jaws of steel. Then he plays with it in his mouth and makes it go up and down and giggles until you finally wedge it out of his mouth. The second is a VERY tired Oscar who just couldn't wait until lunch was over to start his nap.... poor little guy.

Some picture of the boys at Grandma Bonnie and Grandpa Dean's the other weekend, playing with some balloons left over from Sarah Rasset's bridal shower. I love these little button up shirts on them - they look so studly. Tried to get them to pose together but these days they are just a little too active to sit still for me like they used to before.

Here are the boys (and Stella) playing with the riding toys that Dean and Bonnie have at their place. They have a little John Deere pedal mower, and an electric car that can be controlled with an attachment. So the boys and Stella had fun riding around on the driveway in these.

Here is some proof of MacKay feeding himself.... tried to get one of Oscar but he is much more shy about showing this skill... but great at giving those big toothy smiles.

The boys' radio flyer wagon from Grandma Diane. They love riding around in this. They really liked making noises and shouting in it cuz I think they could feel the bumps in the road and vibrations and were liking the way their voices sounded when they were bumping along. It was a bit chilly (what happened - it went from 90 to 60 in one day?) so we put these adorable terry hooded sweatshirts on them that were also from Grandma Diane.

Just some miscellaneous pictures of the boys that I like. The first is where I constantly find the boys... playing with Daddy's chest and looking out the window. Second is just a cute picture of MacKay looking out at the big outside world through the window and giggling. Third is a picture of MacKay with yet another favorite toy - the wireless phone. Chris actually picked it up the other day after they were playing with it and it showed that the boys had dialed a number (probably not valid) and was connected/on for 20+ minutes. Nice. And lastly, just a cute picture of Oscar and Daddy.