Saturday, May 30, 2009

Yea for May!

The month of May has a lot of birthdays for Team Taylor. Matt and Danny share their birthday month with both of their Uncles. Today the whole Taylor crew celebrated our May birthdays at Adventure Island (an outdoor water park). Brian and I were a little hesitant when Grandma and Grandpa suggested this. Brian gets very nervous about the boys near water (they love it a little too much! and these boys are fast) and I knew it would entail a lot of planning and packing. Luckily, we decided to be good sports because it was so much fun!

My camera isn't waterproof, so I didn't get to document the whole day... but I did get some nice pictures of our day!

My parents bought the boys really nice, Coast Guard approved life jackets for their birthday. My friend Tiffany, who was a lifeguard for many years, recommended we skip the life jackets. She thought it would impair their ability to learn to swim. After talking to her, I agreed and was about to say "thanks, but no thanks" to my mom's offer. THEN I saw the boys near their pool... and said "what a great gift!" The reality is, some things are different with twins. I would rather be the overprotective, silly mom who makes my kids wear life jackets until they are on the swim team then have to spend the entire summer with knots in my stomach worrying. They were very appreciated today!


The boys really enjoyed more birthday cupcakes!


(Did you notice both those pictures were of Danny? Hehe... they were both so cute I wanted to include them... Sorry Matt, I didn't catch your cupcake experience today!)


Kirsten had an awesome time today! She went on just about every ride at the park! ...AND she got to hang out with Uncle Jeff all day... what could be better?


I've always loved pictures of Brian and Kirsten from behind... He's so big and she's so little... there is something about their image holding hands in front of me that I just adore.


Kirsten also had a lot of fun spending time with Aunt Amber today... She was really cute copying Amber's every move!


We had such a great time! When we were walking across the parking lot to go home Danny said, "Mama, fun. Me fun. Like water fun." ...I couldn't have said it better!

Can I Have A Bite?



Who am I to discourage sharing?

Friday, May 29, 2009

TWO Times the Fun

My little boys are two years old!!! I just can't believe it. TWO two year olds! We had a great time celebrating with a playground party. I was very nervous about the weather (worried it would be too hot, worried it was going to rain...) but it was PERFECT.


It was a very relaxed, fun party. All the kiddos ate when they were hungry and played non-stop. The grown-ups even got to talk a little thanks to the fences and gates that kept all the little ones where they were supposed to be!

I don't know where Kirsten and Malia were when this photo was taken... Here are all "the guys" hangin' out.


Matt and Danny enjoyed a pizza picnic!


I worked very hard to make Elmo and Cookie Monster cupcakes for my little Sesame Street fans... not too bad for a first attempt!


Daddy and Danny thought they were delish!


"Yummy!"


Everyone knows my boys love birds! It was nice of this egret to stop by for the party.


Kirsten enjoyed helping the boys open their awesome presents.


...An all-star event if I do say so myself!



Happy Birthday my sweet boys! You are my joy today and everyday!

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

The Happiest of Beginnings

**Disclaimer: This post is very long, and I am probably the only person who finds in interesting. Feel free to skip ahead to the adorable pictures at the end while I remember.

...So after the worst day of my life I started a waiting game. Baby A (Matthew) had a ruptured sac and really "needed" to be born. Baby B (Daniel) did not have a ruptured sac and would be in great danger if he was born. The doctors actually said that if they boys had been fraternal twins they may have tried to deliver Matthew and wait a few weeks to deliver Daniel... since both boys were okay I'm really glad we didn't have to do that!

I was kept in the hospital in a high-risk pre-partum room. My legs were both in pressurized boots, my arms had IVs (for fluids and antibiotics), and my stomach had 3 monitors 24 hours a day. It was not comfy! Each morning I was taken for a sonogram to check Matthew's fluids and a decision would be made for the day as to if I needed to be induced.

On Sunday (Memorial Day) my doctor was on vacation and I saw an associate from another practice. During his 30 second stop, he said that my iron levels had changed dramatically overnight and I needed an iron therapy treatment. I guess if I had delivered at that point there would have been a great risk of hemorrhaging. An oncologist came in mid-afternoon to start the 4- hour IV treatment.

Apparently it is very rare to have an allergic reaction to the iron... BUT if you do it can be deadly so they go over all the side effects in great detail and warn you to page them immediately if you have a problem.

About 20 minutes later I had one of the worst pains in my back I'd ever felt. Brian burst out laughing and said he could have called it. While calling me a hypochondriac he paged the nurses, who paged the oncologist, who ordered a Benadryl treatment, but since my breathing was fine everyone agreed it was in my head. I swear in retrospect, I KNOW it was a contraction of some sort. However, at that moment, I was embarrassed about overreacting and trying not to complain too much.

Over the next 12 hours I started having a lot of pains in my abdomen and getting very uncomfortable. I was told this was to be expected with the iron therapy. By 5 am I was in pain. Again, I was told this was a very common side effect and to "hang in there". The same doctor from the day before stopped by at 7 am. I told him about the pain I was having and he said, "Right. We explained to you that the iron therapy could be painful," and walked out... thanks for the reassurance.

I called Brian at about 8 and told him not to come visit that morning. I was in a horrible mood. I didn't feel good and couldn't stop crying. I told him I wanted to just "feel sorry for myself" that morning and that he should spend the morning outside with Kirsten. At about 10 I decided to watch The Notebook. This is my favorite "cathartic, cry your eyes out movie". I thought it would give me a reason to just sit and cry (which is all I wanted to do) but I couldn't concentrate and soon turned it off.

I paged a nurse shortly after that and spoke to her about the cramping and pains I was having. She said it would be fine to take off my monitors (remember I had THREE monitors on this whole time) to get up and use the bathroom. I was again assured that this was common with the iron treatments I'd received.

My dad came to visit at about noon. My poor dad. I was in a horrible mood by that point. I remember tearfully telling him to "just go" a few times and being frustrated when he didn't. I told him I didn't feel good and wanted to be alone. He said he'd just sit in the corner and read the paper and I was totally annoyed. (Sorry dad.) Sometime within the next hour he could tell something wasn't right and convinced me to page the nurse again. The nurses had changed shifts by this point and someone new came into the room.

I explained the pain to her and she sat down and asked a few questions. She looked at my monitors and mentioned it was "possible" that I'd had a few contractions. After a few minutes she asked my dad to step out of the room so she could check me. This is where it all gets crazy!

She did a quick exam and then started pushing buttons on the wall, paging the nurses desk. She said to page my doctor. Now my dad says that in the hall people started running around, he heard an intercom page someone saying "32 week twins about to be delivered", and that a nurse ran past him saying "We're having babies!". I didn't hear any of this.

I knew they thought the babies were coming but this was about the 5th time they thought the babies were coming. I really didn't get that this was the "real thing"... plus I was in a lot of pain and wasn't really processing things very well. I was wheeled out in the hall to see my dad's tearful face and I told him to "cut it out" and that "everything is going to be fine. It will be fine." He was frantically calling my mom and Brian during this time.

Soon I was in an operating room and my mom and my doctor arrived. Everything was happening very, very fast. My mom kept saying over and over "the dad's not here yet,". I was annoyed thinking obviously... but apparently my mom was afraid he was going to miss the whole thing...

Brian walked in and asked if I'd had an epidural. I said no and the doctor told someone to page anesthesiology. Then she said "Never mind, don't page them,". I swear I thought that meant it wasn't really happening... not that it was much too late. My mom says I sound crazy when I say I didn't know they were going to be born, but I really didn't. It was just too much to process all at once. No one ever told me "this is it," and there had been so many false alarms.

I was told to bear down during the next pain and with one push Matthew was born at 2:00 pm. Danny was born with two pushes at 2:05. I kept asking Brian over and over if it was our boys that were crying. I started to get really upset when he didn't answer me. Later he said he thought that was a rhetorical question, "who else would be crying in our room"... but I'd been told so many times how they wouldn't be able to breathe without assistance... how they would be rushed to the NICU at the children's hospital next door... how I would get to see them later that night... Then suddently I was holding the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen.


Brian brought Danny over for me to peek at and then they boys were hurried out of the room.




The neonatologist explained that they were breathing and were doing very well. "For the moment" they would stay at the special care nursery... but to expect a NICU trip soon. It was a good sign that their lungs could work but they would not be strong enough to continue breathing on their own for long. The criteria for staying at the special care nursery was 32 weeks gestation and independent breathing. (If the boys had been born 12 hours earlier they would have been 31 weeks 6 days and would have been rushed to the NICU).

My strong babies never stopped breathing... they never missed a breath... and they never went to the NICU. They stayed at Bayfront for 18 days and then they came home to us... almost 6 weeks before they were supposed to be born. Matthew Dean Taylor was 2 lbs 14 oz and 15.5 inches long. Daniel Ward Taylor was 3 lbs 3 oz and 16 inches long. PERFECT.

 

 

 
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It's Still A Blur! (Year 2)

I think the second year with my beautiful boys has been a little more of a blur than the first... or maybe I'm still in the thick of it so I don't have the "looking back" perspective. Either way there are a few stand-out memories from this year.

-Ear Infections, Sinus Infections, Croup... Repeat! Ear Infections, Sinus Infections, Croup... Repeat! Over and over and over and over...

- The look on the boys' faces when they came out of surgery. Matt was fighting like a grizzly bear (do they fight hard?) and Danny just wanted to cuddle in and sleep. It was so sad. Nothing is as sad (or as memorable I guess...) as sick babies.


- The Hand, Foot, Mouth episode... I'll NEVER forget that. Danny's little voice screaming "HELP Mama!" for hours... and I couldn't help. Heartbreaking.

- The Halloween party we went to at Great Explorations. Another mom looked at me and said "I don't know how you do it! I could never manage twins!" I actually smiled at her and said, "No, they are such good boys. It's really fun." And I meant it! I think it was the next day that they turned into wild, CRAZY, unmanageable toddlers.


- The night I watched Matt climb into Danny's crib, bend down to give him "a boost" and help Danny climb over, then happily climb back into his own bed. Brotherly love at it's best.

- Jumping on the couch. The month I set up gates around all the furniture and created "grown up island" in an attempt to break this habit. Silly Mommy.

- The traumatic haircuts. My boys HATE haircuts.

- The screaming and panic that ensued every time the boys heard the garbage truck. Apparently, that is one scary truck.

- A million trips to the playground. I did my best to give the boys an outlet for all their physical activity. It didn't work... but they had a lot of fun at the playground!

- The day (very recently) that I explained to Matt bottles were for babies and we were going to give his bottle to Baby Luke soon. Matt looked me straight in the eye and said in a very grown-up, serious voice. NO baba Luke. Baby Luke NO! No baba."
My boys LOVE their bottles. My attempt to get them off the bottle by deciding to only put water in the bottle was a complete failure. On the upside, they LOVE water now.

- All the time we spent looking for birds. These boys (especially Danny) love birds.


- Matt's Halloween determination. As we left my parents house to head down the block trick or treating Matt put his head down and TOOK OFF. He walked, and walked, and walked... such determination! And the cutest little puppies I ever did see!


- The countdowns. In this house when you hear "Five, Six, Go!" you RUN. You run FAST... because that is the only warning you get that the boys are about to do something very, very dangerous.

- Counting down to share. For some reason we've started counting to six and then yelling "Time to share!"... and for some reason it works. It's very strange... but I'm going with it!

- The laughter. The hugs. The kisses. The sentences. The lack of sleep. The utter exhaustion. The fun. The love.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

It's All A Blur! (Year 1)

I can't believe my babies are turning two. TWO!! That is officially not a baby anymore... I just can't believe it. I've been thinking about it a lot. Time is so strange. In some ways I feel like I was pregnant yesterday. It is all so new and going so fast! ...But in other ways it seems like Matt & Danny have always been a part of our family. It's hard to remember life before three kids!

People always say the first year is "a blur" and it was! ...But the second year was too! (Maybe that's just life...) So I decided to indulge myself in a little walk down memory lane as my boys close in on the big T-W-O.

These are the moments (well, some of the moments) that stand out for me during my first year with my boys!

- The nurses I loved. We had some amazing nurses that made such a difference during the long 18 days the boys spent in the special care nursery. I'll never forget many of them and I hope they know what a difference they make everyday.

- The one nurse I didn't like. (Isn't it mean of me to highlight her 2 years later? ...Whatever it's my blog and my memory!) She was YOUNG. I told Brian I thought you should have to have some life experience before working in this type of environment. I guess I just felt like she was just coming to work (which in fairness... she was...) and didn't "get it". She wore lip gloss around her neck. 3 tubes... around her neck. I don't know why this irritated me so much but it really did. Actually, it was probably because she was the one who told me about Danny's first (and only) heart episode and while she was talking about my 3 lb baby's heart she was wearing lip gloss around her neck. She wouldn't let me hold the boys for their PO feedings (even though every single other nurse did) and she called Danny's chart his "bad boy record"... seriously? Not professional.

-The "baby cages" (or isolets) and how THRILLING it was when they no longer needed them. I cried the first time I got to the hospital and saw both boys snuggled together in a cradle.


- Kirsten's face the first time I saw her look at the twins. She got to see them for a moment as they were wheeled out of the delivery room... but I didn't see that. I'll never forget the way she looked peering through the window of the nursery.


- The incredible feeling of pride I had as I wheeled the boys out of the hospital to TAKE THEM HOME! It was amazing. Nothing compares to that feeling.

- The first night they were home. I thought I'd be so relieved to have them home... I didn't realize I would worry every single second of that night. I was TERRIFIED they were going to stop breathing.


- Their 2 month doctor appointment... specifically, when the doctor told me the possibility of SIDS started at 2 months. Information that would have been nice to know all the nights I counted their breaths during the first two months.

- The sharpie mark that I left on Matthew's foot for the first 2 months, looking for "the vein" to tell the boys apart, and tickling them to see who had a dimple once they got hair.

- The morning when they were almost 4 months old that Brian got up to see me crying in a sleep deprivated haze on the couch. I remember yelling that I hadn't slept more than two consecutive hours in 4 months. I spoke to my mom that morning who tried to be comforting and said "It'll get easier soon,". I started yelling like a maniac, "WHEN? Not tonight! Not tomorrow night! The next night? Is THAT when it's going to get easier!!! That's still 72 hours away!!!!!"

- The day they hit 10 lbs. I read somewhere that at 10 lbs a baby can physically sleep for 8 hours without eating. (I think... maybe I made that up...) Either way they were 4 months old and we started to SLEEP. It's when it got "fun".

- When I worried how I'd manage both boys when I couldn't "palm them" anymore. (They were so tiny that I could easily wrap one hand around each baby to lift them at the same time.)

- The day the twins were Christened. It was one of the happiest days of my life. I was so proud of my beautiful family. So grateful. So blessed.


- Admiring Danny's gums. That baby had the most beautiful, "gummy" grin. I cried when I found his first tooth.


- The afternoon Sarah and I tried to stage Christmas photos. It did NOT work. There is a reason people pay professionals to do this.

- The reflux. It's AMAZING how much vomit can come out of a 6 lb baby. No one was safe. Sarah still looks at the boys funny when they get too close. I remember holding one of the boys in church on my shoulder. I happened to glance at the man behind me and wondered if he knew how great the chances were that he would be covered in vomit at any second.

- When I thought crawling was dangerous. Isn't that cute? ... The ignorance was bliss.

- The day that Matt started choking on a carrot at about 8 months old. Brian was very upset and declared, "That's it! I'm not feeding them any more!". He was serious too.

- Their first steps. It was hard to "call" the first steps because there were several days of wobbly "trying to let go" steps... but on Mother's Day they each took a "good" step and we clapped and made it official.

- Their First Birthday portraits. God bless my mom. The mess... you can't even imagine the mess.

...As I type this a hundred more memories blur together... their first Christmas, their first bath, and their first words ("uh oh" ... that should have been a warning of what was to come from these crazy guys!)

Monday, May 25, 2009

My Favorite Holiday

is Memorial Day Observed. It may sound like an odd choice but it's been a very special day to me for many years.

Memorial Day 1999 - 10 Years Ago
In Love

Brian and I were at that magical part of our relationship. We'd known each other for years, we'd been very close friends for almost a year, and dating for several months. Brian went to Orlando the first part of the weekend to visit friends. He came back Sunday night and we planned to spend the day together Monday. I always say that was my "perfect day". We went to the beach, enjoyed perfect weather, and cold drinks. We walked on the beach talking and laughing. That was when I knew. I knew this was the "real thing". I knew I was totally in love. It was perfect.

Memorial Day 2001 - 8 Years Ago
Engaged!

He planned it perfectly. Amazing dinner, great wine, a beautiful ring, and a perfect proposal.

Memorial Day 2002 - 7 Years Ago
The Church Was Booked

... So we spent the day canoeing with a large group of friends. Lots of laughing and looking forward to the big day!

Memorial Day 2003 - 6 Years Ago
Canoeing Again

Same group of friends... not quite as much fun. Apparently the "experienced" river should be left to "experienced" canoers. While it was not my favorite Memorial Day it holds lots of funny memories. I even coined the quote of the day, "I'm dirty and I'm scared." It's much funnier now than it was then.

Memorial Day 2007 - 2 Years Ago
TWO BABIES!

The most special Memorial Day of all! Our beautiful boys were born on our special day... Eight weeks early! I think they knew it was a family holiday and wanted to be a part of it!

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Fishy Fun

The Pool Party we planned to go to today was rained out. Darren and Corrie had the great idea to take all the kiddos to the aquarium... unfortunatley so did everyone else in the Tampa Bay area. It was REALLY crowded. We had a really good time visiting the animals and playing in the outdoor water area.

Here are my happy boys!


I think this picture is really funny. Noah does NOT look happy to be dumped in the middle of this photo! I love the rays swimming over their heads in the background.



Danny was SO cute. He had such a good time. He was waving and talking to all the fish and animals. This is the look he had on his face all day... so cute!


Matt is always full of smiles too! He was a little less interested in the fish but could not wait to "play water".


Brian and his boys


A "fishy kissy"!

Kirsten and Malia were WAY too busy to pose for any pictures. They had a great time playing together all day.

Poor Matt and his determination... Matt was SO determined to climb this rope net. I kept trying to distract him and pull him to other areas because I thought it would be too hard for him. Finally Brian said to let him try, that he would go rescue him if he needed too. Well, Matt did not need any help at all. He was shivering and worked SO hard to climb this net. He made it about 80% of the way up when the lifeguards saw lightening and had to close down the water area. Brian had to pull him off the net kicking and screaming. We felt so bad! After working so hard and using so much focus it must have been sooooo frustrating not to finish!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

The Worst Day of My Life

was exactly 2 years ago.



I've been known to exaggerate a little (shocking, I know!). I am not exaggerating at all when I say it was the very worst day of my life. I am very blessed. I have not had very many traumatic days/times in my life. There was a very bad car accident when I was 16... some rough moments fighting for finalization of the adoption, deep sadness when my grandmother passed away... overall a VERY blessed life...

That's not what this post is about. This post is about the WORST day of my life. (Which still ended in blessings... but it was a BAD day.) I'm going to write about it here because I don't have a journal and have never kept baby books. It's probably not interesting to anyone except for me (so feel free to stop reading here) but I'm going to remember it and write it down.

May 22, 2007 was the last day of school for teachers. My LAST day before summer and maternity leave... I had been counting down for so long. I couldn't wait to have time for naps and nesting. I planned about 2 weeks of "down time" and figured after that (the 33 week point of my pregnancy) I'd have to be "ready to go" at any time.

...So May 22 I went to work and was very uncomfortable. I didn't have any pain but I was very uncomfortable every time I moved. At about 11 am I thought something just wasn't right... I called the dr. to try to get an appointment for first thing the next morning. Instead the nurse wanted me to come in for a non-stress test. I tried to negotiate for the next day... but she wasn't having it. So, I told my principal I'd be back "in about an hour" after a lunch break and ran to the doctor. I left my desk a huge mess. I didn't turn in my lesson plans for the year. I didn't turn in my keys or end of the year checklist. I didn't even pick up the National Board mentoring logs (worth $4500!) that were due the next day. I just went.

I sat in the comfy chair, reading a magazine, being monitored for 15 minutes. When the nurse came back I knew it wasn't good. Apparently I was having contractions I couldn't feel. Next came a meeting with the doctor where I was instructed to go straight to the hospital for steroid shots (to develop the twins' lungs in case they decided to come earlier than expected.) Fine. Scary, but fine.

I tried to call Brian... no luck. Tried to call my mom... tried to call my dad... finally started to get a little nervous and had Monica page my dad at work to meet me at the hospital. I got hold of him just as I was parking in the hospital garage. (** On the TOP floor of the garage. With the broken elevator. That no one told me about when I was pulling in to the garage. So I walked down 8 flights of stairs. Having contractions. Alone. Crying. Cursing the garage attendant. Seriously... how do these things only happen to me??)

Okay... so I get into triage, my dad meets me there, I talk to Brian, he meets me there, I get my steroid shots, I get a shot to stop the contractions (which I was warned would probably make me panic due to the increased heart rate and "rush" I'd experience... but I LOVED it... wish I could bottle that energy!) ...Overall I was feeling good. Until the doctor told me I had to stay overnight. Ugh. I had a child at home in her last week of kindergarten! I had a classroom to pack up! I didn't even have a toothbrush with me... NOT convenient... but I was assured it would only be overnight.

It was a LONG night. I had to move rooms twice. I eventually wound up in a room that was "not designed as a double" with a very young, very scared girl who was so close to me I could touch her through the curtain. This poor girl had a condition which required her urine to be collected. So there were bins of urine all over the bathroom and room. YUCK. I felt really bad for her while I listened to her cry all night... but at 6 am I decided "overnight" was over and I was signing myself out. They couldn't MAKE me stay. I had stuff to do!

I climbed out of bed and was MORTIFIED as my water broke all over the floor. The thing is... when you are only 30+ weeks pregnant, feel great, and carrying twins... you don't know what's going on. I wasn't sure if this was really "it". I tried to page my nurse and thought I lost all my shame when I had to describe the problem over an intercom to the entire nurses station. I was wrong. I really lost all my shame when she walked into the room, then stepped back into the hall screaming for a mop.

Want to hear how sick I am? Sick. When the sweet nurse, who had to test my puddle, announced it was amniotic fluid I, for a split second, was SO relieved that I hadn't peed on the floor. Nice maternal instinct right? Want another chuckle? My dear friend Charlotte and I had the same doctor. Charlotte was scheduled for an induction at 7 am that morning. The nurses were thrilled to find my doctor on the floor and I was seen immediately. A month later, as Charlotte and I traded stories, I listened to her irritated account of how late the doctor was and had to admit it was all my fault... something we laugh about now.

The next few (36) hours are the bad part. The doctor came in and I was checked. I was rushed to a Labor and Delivery room, called Brian and my parents, and started meeting with doctors. So many doctors.

The worst part... the worst moment of my life... was listening to Dr. Stone the neonatolgist come in to tell me what to expect. I remember the words "brain bleeding", "permanent blindness", and "underdeveloped lungs". I remember crying like a four year old. Sobbing, snotting, totally out of control. She stopped speaking, handed me a tissue, and waited for me to compose myself. When I managed a breath she said "mental retardation" and "death".

I asked her what decisions I had to make... what my choices were and I was told there were "none". Her team would do whatever was necessary to try to "save the lives" of my babies. I was just being "informed" and asked to sign a lot of paperwork. I guess I checked out for a moment because I remember staring at her really hard. I remember thinking it was strange that someone so pretty could be so mean. I really thought she was just being mean. She didn't say one encouraging word... she never said "maybe they'll be fine" or "maybe they won't need these interventions". She did say "you need to control yourself. Your heart rate it much too high." Then a cardiologist came in and sternly reprimanded me. It did not help.

(*** On a side note, Dr. Stone was an EXCELLENT neonatologist. She was the expert I wanted taking care of my 3 lb babies. I didn't want a "smiley" "feel good" doctor doing procedures on my tiny sons... I wanted a scientist. I wanted someone who wouldn't flinch or second guess herself. I'm grateful for all she did for us! ...But that day I though she was mean... okay back to the story ***)

Then we waited. We waited for hours. We kept waiting and waiting for the labor pains, for the inevitable, to start... which it didn't. We just waited. I was hungry (SO SO SO hungry) and tired and terrified. I cried and prayed. I talked to Brian and my parents and tried to act "normal". I refused to let my best friend come visit. I just waited. It was the worst day of my life.

...But then the next day came... and eventually the worst day of my life led to two of my life's greatest blessings... more about that in 5 days.

Friday, May 22, 2009

The Gold Medal Goes To...

Kirsten Taylor! I guess it's not actually gold... maybe pewter? BUT Kirsten won the first place metal for her gymnastics class!



Here is our little gymnast with her very proud father.


Everyone in the class received a trophy. The medals were reserved for the first, second, and third place gymnasts. (This is not the group that Kirsten is usually in. Her class was rained out tonight. We had the choice of joining another class for Awards night or waiting until next week. Since Brian was off today we joined this class... we didn't want him to miss Kirsten's big moment! Her class is much larger. She has 27 children ages 6-11 in her class... first place was QUITE an accomplishment!)


Kirsten's friend Johnna was the third place medal winner. I love how thrilled the girls look in this picture.


After the award ceremony Brian took the twins home to relax (they worked very hard trying to escape our grasps and get onto the gymnastics mats to join the big kids!). Johnna and her mom invited Kirsten and I for an ice cream celebration!


My girl is an super student, a great girl scout, a marvelous musician, and a great gymnast! Who has time to sleep?

Thursday, May 21, 2009

My Little Star Doesn't Twinkle... She Shines!

Shore Acres Elementary had their Spring Concert last night. I must say that Kirsten performed the BEST rendition of 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' I've ever heard! It's hard to tell who was more proud... Kirsten or her family! (I think it was us!) If a teacher's job is to educate and inspire it is easy to see why Mrs. Zeoli is the Music Teacher of the Year for Pinellas County!


**I've been trying to upload a video of Kirsten playing for almost an hour and it won't work... UGH! I'll keep trying. If you'd like to hear her beautiful violin skills check back later tonight!**