I think we've started teething

I've been trying hard to get Andy to pose for a picture but all he seems interested in doing is chewing his arm, hand, Katie's tail, Ben's foot or whatever is close.

Who Am I?

Only one of the boys was interested in taking pictures yesterday. Can you guess which one I am?

Vet Cake

I made this cake a couple of weeks again for a veterinarian. A couple of cats and dog just chillin' on the couch is a typical day in the office.

4 Months

The boys are going to be 4 months old this week. I can't believe how big they are getting. We are getting closer to everyone sleeping through the night. That has been my #1 goal since day one. We are averaging about 8 hours now which has been quite delightful.

Here is Andy (left) and Ben in their fancy ties. I dressed them up to go to church but then they both decided to take naps.

This picture sums up what the boys are up to the majority of the day. They love to roll and scoot all over the living room.

Two Month Pictures

I finally got a new camera and decided to practice using it on the boys. Here are a few of my favorite pictures.

Ben on the left and Andy on the right. It's a little deceiving. Ben looks bigger than Andy which isn't the case. Ben is still over a pound smaller.

This is Ben looking at me with those huge loving eyes.


Andy is always really smiley. In the mornings I have a hard time feeding him because he won't stop smiling to eat.


Ben yawning. I think he was getting board of the photo shoot.


Here's Andy before he broke out of the swaddle.

Baptism Cake

I finally made another cake. It's been far too long. This cake was for my friend Shyler's baptism. Her mom wanted something elegant. I'm not sure if this cake is elegant or not but it the colors reminded me of Shyler.

I haven't made a cake for so long I feel like I forgot how to use fondant. I had some trouble covering the larger tier. I guess that means I need to start practicing again.

How to stop the crying???

The last week has been a little tough for the boys. They both have stuffy noses and are sure to tell us how they feel about it. We figured out a few places that always seem to calm the boys down. They love to be outside. Now that the rain has stopped, we spend a lot of time laying on blankets in the shade.
They both really love bath time too. After their baths, they love to hang out on the counter top and look around.


Here is Ben during his first bath.

Hedgehogs and Hermits

I tried to get some pictures of the boys today. But it ended up being a lot harder than anticipated. I couldn't get either of them to look at me. Or if I had a decent shot of one the other one would cry, yawn or spit up.

So here is the only opened eyed, non fussy picture I was able to get of either of them.


Here is Ben posing with his hedge hog bean bag. Poor kid has been on oxygen for the last couple of weeks and the adhesive to hold on his cannula has been really harsh on his little baby cheeks.


Ben again in his bouncer.


Here's Andy in his matching bouncer. Don't worry Ben, you are not the only one with complexion problems. Andy hit puberty at age 3 weeks and has full blown acne.

Andy with the hedge hog. I know, I know what a silly prop. I have never claimed to be a photographer and my ancient camera doesn't help either.


It's been great to finally have the boys home and healthy. Ben got the approval to take his oxygen off during the day. Being tied to an oxygen tank and a monitor has been exhausting. It's been great for all of us to be able to leave the first floor of our house. I feel like we can finally have a normal life now that we aren't complete hermits.

The Whole Family is Together

Ben made is home on Sunday afternoon from the NICU. Here's our first picture together as a family.

Andy's sleeping on the left with Ben wide eyed on the right.

Ben's first day home was pretty exciting. While in the NICU Ben had problems taking deep breaths while he was sleeping. He hadn't had any problems for a few days so his doctors sent him home with a monitor to measure his oxygen levels and emergency oxygen just in case. Unfortunately he started having problems again so back Ben went to the hospital.

Ben is now home but he is on a small flow of oxygen. He's doing really well but we can't wait until he's not hooked up to tubes and wires.

Andy's Home Coming

Andy came home Wednesday afternoon. We were hoping Ben would follow the next day. Unfortunately he had a few problems with his oxygen levels so he has to stay for a few more days. It was really hard to bring Andy home while leaving Ben in the NICU. One of these days the whole family will be home trying to figure out how we are going to make everything work out.

Here is Andy on his first day home sitting in the bouncer Aunt Kimber bought for him.


Andy's first excursion to the pediatrician and then to Target to buy him a pillow to hold his head straight in his too big car seat.

Dave and Nick changing Andy's diaper.


I can't wait to post pictures of Ben's coming home day. Keep your fingers crossed for this Sunday.

First Photo Together

Both Andrew (left) and Benjamin (right) are off oxygen and IVs. Every day they are getting closer to coming home. Little Ben has a hard time finishing his meals so they have him on a feeding tube. But he eats more and more on his own every day. Today was the first time I was able to hold them together. You can definitely tell they are brothers.

More Pictures of the boys

Here is a better picture of Andrew. As you can see he is now off supplemental oxygen.

Here's the proud Dad with Andrew.

Ben hanging out under the warming lights. He will hopefully be off the oxygen soon too.

Ben and Andy

Andrew Blaine and Benjamin Alan officially joined our family early on Saturday morning. Andrew was came at 4:07 weighing 6 lbs. Benjamin followed 6 minutes later weighing 4 lbs 10 oz.

Their little lungs weren't quite ready to work without assistance so they were rushed to St. Mark's NICU. It was a challenge to find a NICU in the valley with two openings. They originally wanted to split them up, but thanks to the wonderful pediatricians at St. Marks they made room to keep them together.

I was able to be discharged from Alta View early so I could go see my little boys on Sunday. They are beautiful and doing so well. They are breathing much better and now they are focusing on learning to eat on their own.

Here is a picture of Ben at the NICU.


Here's me holding Andrew. I don't have any close shots of Andy on this computer. I'll take more pictures when I go visit them this morning.

The Nursery is Done

I think I can finally say that I'm done with the nursery. My favorite part is the little knitted animals on the white shelves. I blogged about a pattern that I saw on Etsy and my mom asked a women that she works with to make them. They turned out so cute.

The collage of pictures on the wall is a collection of artwork from Etsy, vintage children's books and a couple of illustrations by me. My friend Kristin gave me the rocking chair which I think couldn't be more perfect. On the wall above the dresser I hung alphabet memory cards designed by Charley Harper. The mobile above the cribs is a collection of scrap booking chipboard animals found at Michaels.

I had so much fun searching for different woodland creatures for the boys. I was thrilled when I found cribs sheets to go with the theme. And the silly hedgehog beanbag from Ikea makes me giggle a little.

The only things it's missing are Baby A and Baby B. Katie is going to be heartbroken to find out the nursery wasn't designed for her. She loves to go in there and look around and lay on the soft rug. Luckily I haven't found her in the cribs yet. But she does think that the red changing pad is hers. No harm there I guess.

White Cake | Black Flowers

Last Wednesday I made a couple of birthday cakes. One for my sister-in-law Debbie and one for a good friend at work. I haven't had much energy lately, so they both got the same cake. I hope that they didn't mind. I really wanted to add a huge flower or a red ribbon to the top of the cakes but "the boys" told me that I was done.

I had another ultrasound today and everything is looking great. Both boys are head down and growing really well. Baby A is 4 lbs 4 oz and Baby B is 3 lbs 12 oz. That's a lot of baby!