Dotzler Quad Squad

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

2012-02-14T15:08:00.001-08:00

Hope your day has been full of love! :-)

Christmas 2011

2012-01-27T15:55:00.000-08:00

Although it's been a month since Christmas, and most people are already thinking about the time left until Spring, I thought I better write a little about our Christmas with the kiddos this year. I am realizing that having kids (or maybe it's having 4 at the same time) can really do a number on your memory! The blog helps me remember all the big events in our lives!

We truly had an amazing Christmas this year! It is so fun to see the joy in your kids' eyes, especially during the holidays, and I'm sure next year will be even better as they really start to understand what Christmas is all about! We decided not to attend Christmas Eve service this year due to the fact that the church wasn't offering a nursery, and the thought of 4 toddlers at a candle light service sounded pretty scary! :-) We spent Christmas Eve at my Grandma and Grandpa's house with most of my relatives, and then headed to James' parent's house for more fun! Christmas day was spent at James' parent's house in the morning/early afternoon, and my Mom's for dinner.

Papa bought the kids a new snowmobile sled that is enclosed. The kids had a blast riding with Uncle Caleb!

Sophie, Brady, & Uncle Caleb

Brady checking out the snow mobile trailer!

Max & Emme testing out Daddy's ice fishing sled (good enough for sledding)!

Sophie

Max, Emme, & Uncle Caleb

Max

Emme

Christmas Eve family picture!

(L to R) Brady, Emme, Max, Sophie

Daddy helping the kids open presents at Great-Grandma Mick's and Great-Grandpa Lee's house!

Sweet Brady

Back at Nana & Papa's for more presents! Sophie decided it was her party and she could throw a fit if she wanted to! Gotta love 2 year old melt downs!

Sophie was happy once she got to open her presents by herself!

Max checking out his new vacuum cleaner!
Ripping into more presents on Christmas morning!
Elmo was a HUGE hit this year!
Emme, Max, and Brady helping Uncle Caleb open presents!
Mommy & Emme

Emme

Sophie

Brady

Max

2 year update

2012-01-26T12:00:00.000-08:00

Here is our long overdue update on the kiddos since they turned 2! Our house has never been busier! It actually makes the newborn phase (when they stayed in one spot until we moved them) seem like a piece of cake! :-)
Sophie Marie (as of 12/2/11)
Height: 34" (52%) Taller than her sister now!
Weight: 24 lbs (15%)

As you can see, Miss Sophie is really not so tiny anymore! She is finally on the growth chart in height and weight! She has had a major growth spurt in the past 6 months, which would explain her eating habits these days! She eats all the time, and is not picky at all! Most nights she will eat her dinner, and then help Mommy and Daddy eat theirs as well!

Sophie has also developed a VERY sassy personality, and has decided that she will not let her siblings have anything she is playing with without a fight (including her favorite yellow blankie). In fact, we often find her hoarding toys or snacks, and hiding where her brothers and sister won't be able to find her. She occasionally tests Mommy to see if her new found attitude will work to get what she wants, but has learned very quickly that the end result is often a time out. She is very independent, and definitely knows what she wants! She also has a very loving and sweet personality, which is what we see the majority of the time.

Little Miss Sophie is really not a girly girl at all, and 9 times out of 10, would choose to play with tractors or tools over baby dolls; however, she LOVES to dance! If we turn the radio on or she hears music on TV, she almost always starts dancing, and actually has pretty good moves for a 2 year old!

Emme Lee (as of 12/2/11)
Height: 33 1/4" (32%)

Weight: 25.2 lbs. (29%)

Miss Emme Lee is the princess out of the group, and loves all things girly! She loves to hear how pretty she is, and gets so excited about wearing dresses and skirts. She also loves shoes! Emme loves to play with baby dolls, and always notices babies when reading books, watching TV, or out in public.

Emme has the sweetest, most gentle, and nurturing personality, and LOVES her brothers and sisters! She is honestly our easiest child out of the 4, and hardly ever gets in trouble. She is so laid back, and carefree! She loves to be silly, and has the most adorable giggle!

Max Edward (as of 12/2/11)
Height: 35" (64%)

Weight: 29.2 pounds (64%)

Mr. Mischievous Max knows how to get a reaction out of everyone in our house! :-) He often spends his days stealing toys, snacks, blankies, and pretty much anything he thinks someone else might be interested in! The majority of the time he doesn't even want the item he is stealing from his siblings, but would rather get a reaction! Max is OBSESSED with his blankies, and has to have them at all times. Max is so strong that he has figured out how to move the kitchen table around, flip end tables over, and tip shelves of toys over! Mommy and Daddy have had to move furniture in safe places, so that nobody gets hurt!

Although Max has a very mischievous personality, he also has a very sweet and loving side. Usually in the mornings, and right before bedtime he will crawl up in Mommy or Daddy's lap for some cuddles. He absolutely adores his siblings (especially Emme), and loves on them constantly! Sometimes he tends to "love" on his sister Emme a little too much, and she ends up smashed on the floor or against a wall. We are working on being gentle! :-)

Brady James (as of 12/2/11)

Height: 34 1/2" (50%)

Weight: 26.8 pounds (34%)

Sweet Brady is a ball of energy! He is usually running around the house, being silly and giggling with his siblings. As long as nobody takes the things he is playing with, he is usually in good spirits! However, if somebody takes his stuff away from him, everyone in the house (possibly neighborhood) will hear about it! He has gotten much better about using his words instead of screaming, but it is definitely still a work in progress!

Brady has a very sweet personality, and gives the best hugs and kisses a Mommy could ask for! :-) He is the most sensitive out of the four, and is usually very remorseful if he gets in trouble. He has a pretty pitiful sad face, which always makes Mommy feel bad!

The kiddos are learning so much each and every day! I am so grateful to have such healthy and happy kids, but have to admit that it's a little sad to see them growing up so fast! They are getting so independent, and don't always want any help from Mommy and Daddy. I really can't believe how fast the times flies by when you have kids. I am trying to enjoy each and every moment at home with my kids because I know I will blink and they will be heading off to kindergarten! If only we could stop time every now and then to slow down this process a little..... :-)

Is it really January?!

2012-01-05T12:36:00.001-08:00

I have lived in Iowa most of my life, and do not ever remember having beautiful weather like this in January! The past couple of years have been terrible with snow and ice, so we will take this gorgeous weather! I think the temperature today is at 63 degrees! The sun is shining, and very little wind, which makes it a beautiful day!

The kiddos are enjoying having Papa down. They have already gone for a ride in their choo choo wagon, and will be playing outside until dark! I'm sure we won't have too many more nice days like this, so we are taking advantage of it!

Sophie

Brady trying to pull the wagon!
Emme and Max going for a helicopter ride!

Max wondering where the snow is for his new shovel!

Papa and his tribe!

Merry Christmas!!!

2011-12-31T20:21:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas with our families, and had so much fun watching the kids open gifts this year! They cheered every time they got to open a present. I'm sure next year will be even more fun! I'm working on a blog post with the hundreds of pictures we took over Christmas, so hopefully it won't take me a month to get it done! :-)

It's hard to believe that 2 years ago we spent our first Christmas together as a family in the NICU! I was looking back at pictures, and cannot believe our kids were ever small enough to fit inside their stockings! I did a comparison this year to show just how much they have grown. They truly are miracles!

Our little peanut who had to fight so hard in the beginning is now a fiesty yet sweet 2 year old!
Emme was first to come home from the NICU the day after Christmas, and is the sweetest little girl with an amazing sense of humor!

Max was a stinker even in his NICU days, and hasn't changed much since then. He is our mischevious little boy who definitely leads the pack!

Sweet Brady has a loving smile and personality that melts your heart, but is quite the fireball these days! He is wild and crazy most of the time, and makes us laugh all the time!

We have truly been blessed with amazing kids, a wonderful family, and awesome friends! Happy New Year from the Dotzler's!!!

Overdue Birthday Post!

2011-12-19T10:57:00.000-08:00

I seem to be having a terrible time keeping up with the blog lately! Our crazy life seems to be much crazier now that we have 4 two-year olds! Everyday is an adventure to say the least! :-)

We are so blessed to have so many amazing friends and family members who helped us celebrate the kids' 2nd birthday! We lucked out with awesome weather, and a great turn out! It is so hard to believe that 2 years have already passed by with our kiddos!

Dinner at Bass Pro Shops with Trista, Brandon, Taylor, Liam, and Caleb!
Taylor
Liam
We started out the big birthday with special doughnuts for breakfast, and we were even brave enough to light candles (don't worry no one was injured in this stunt)!

Sophie enjoying her doughnut, but not sure why Mommy is taking her picture!
Emme is the sweets lover of the group, so she was all about doughnuts for breakfast!
Max giving his a try!
Brady had to check his out to make sure it looked good enough to eat!

Both last year, and this year I decided it would be a fun tradition to try and make the kids' birthday cakes each year. I must have forgotten how much work is involved, but I was pretty happy with the turn-out!

We decorated the garage (thanks to our amazing friends Trista and Brandon for their help) in a farm theme complete with hay bales, and a cute cardboard barn that Daddy made!

Mommy made a farm birthday banner too! Our foursome enjoying their cake!
Sophie
Max

Brady

Emme

Our awesome new helicopter from Nana and Papa!

Fun in the backyard....the bounce house was a gift from Mommy & Daddy!

Daddy with the boys (Max in blue, Brady in green).

Scarlett & Wyatt

Jack, Caleb, & Taylor

Our little friends, the Etter quads!

Jenny & Emmalyn

Opening presents (notice our cute shirts Nana made us that say, "baa baa, moo moo, oink oink, cock-a-doodle-do, we are 2)!

More presents!

Brady

Max

Sophie

Emme

Great-Grandma Farmer's Dairy Farm!

2011-11-28T19:59:00.000-08:00

In my last post I mentioned that we went out to the farm after trick-or-treating at the nursing home. The kids had so much fun at the farm! We really wish we lived closer, so they could visit more often! It is so fun for Daddy and Nana to see the kids explore the farm where Nana grew up! Sophie wasn't sure about the baby calf!

Brady and Emme weren't the least bit afraid!
Daddy and Max checkin' out the calf!

Max was ok until it sucked on his hand! :-)
Emme LOVED them!

Driving the tractor is Max's favorite thing about farmin'!
Brady had to drive too!

Hold on Brady!

Hangin' out on the hay bales!
Daddy showing the girls the baby kittens!

I think Emme is going to be a veterinarian when she grows up because she LOVES all animals! Such a sweet picture!

Halloween 2011....Better Late than Never!!! :-)

2011-11-28T18:30:00.000-08:00

I just realized that it has been one month since Halloween, and I have yet to post anything on our blog! Our life seems to be getting much more chaotic now that we have busy 2 year olds! Better late than never...... :-)

The whole weekend of Halloween was a little crazy, but very fun-filled this year! On Saturday, we loaded the kids up, and headed to Lansing to see Great-Grandma "Farmer" in the nursing home! We took the kids' Halloween costumes, and did a little trick-or-treating while we were there! The kids had a blast, and I think Great-Grandma "Farmer" was pretty surprised to see them!

After the nursing home, we headed out to the farm for some more fun (pictures will be in next post)!

Monday (the 31st) we took the kids trick-or-treating in Clear Lake for the first time! We only went to a few houses in Great-Grandma Mick and Great-Grandpa Lee's neighborhood, but the kids had so much fun! I think the adults were just as exhausted as the kids when it was all over with!

(L to R: Brady the duck, Sophie the sheep, Max the cow, Emme the pig, and Great-Grandma "Farmer")

(L to R:) Brady, Sophie, Max & Emme

Back Row (L to R): Caleb and Emme, Jackson, Taylor

Front Row (L to R): Max, Brady, Sophie

Brady the duck!

Max the cow!

Daddy and Emme the pig!

Sophie the sheep!

The whole crew!

Everyone worked up an appetite after all that hard work!

They made out very well for their first year of trick-or-treating! :-)

We are 2!!!!!!

2011-11-17T22:01:00.000-08:00

Wow! I have always listened to my parents say how fast the time goes as you get older, but I had NO idea how fast it truly does go until having children of my own! Our sweet kiddos are 2 today, and we really couldn't be more blessed!

Happy 2nd Birthday Sophie, Emme, Max, and Brady! Mommy and Daddy love you more than you will ever know, and are so thankful that we were chosen to be your parents!(L to R) Sophie, Max, Emme, Brady

I promise I will be better about blogging soon! I still haven't posted about Halloween! :-)

FaLl FuN oN tHe FaRm!

2011-10-18T20:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took our first trip to the Center Grove Apple Orchard. Despite the freezing cold weather, it was a blast! Since it was so cold and a weekday, there weren't a lot of people there, so we were extremely brave, and went stroller-free (another bittersweet reminder of how big our kids are getting)! All-in-all it went really well with only a couple of melt downs! We will definitely be making this a yearly tradition! There is so much for kids of all ages to do!

Like always, I took a TON of pictures..... :_)I thought the entrance would be a great group photo opportunity....Max had other ideas...

Take 2....I LOVE this picture! Where did my babies go?!

Max was not a fan of the corn pool!

Emme thought it was pretty fun!

Brady and Sophie digging in the corn!

Max was in heaven as soon as he saw the tractors!

Daddy giving Emme a little help!

Brady looks like he is "fixing" his tractor!

Sophie enjoying her turn!

Brady couldn't quite figure out how to get out of the house, so he was banging on the window to get Mommy's attention!

Sophie and Emme peeking out of their house!

Sophie loved the 3 Little Pigs' houses!

Max checking out the house made of straw!

Brady thought the pig who lived in the house made of sticks seemed nice enough to kiss! Such a sweet boy!

Max thought he better give his pig a kiss too!

Checking out the chickens!

and the goats!

Grandma Farmer would be so proud to see our future little dairy farmers!

Who can find the biggest pumpkin?

Hay ride to the pumpkin patch!

The boys thought they were in charge of the wheel barrow!

Snack break!

Bye Bye Quad Table!

2011-10-07T19:37:00.001-07:00

We decided it was finally time to get rid of our quad table, and eat like a normal family at a kitchen table! The kids (Max especially) were getting too big for it, and it was becoming a huge struggle to get them in their seat, so while Max, Brady, and Emme were at Nana and Papa's, we made the switch!

Like everything, this too has been an adjustment for us all! It's not quite as easy to clean the mess up under the chairs, but every day it seems to get a little less chaotic during meal times! It is nice to sit down as a family instead of feeding the kids with an assembly line! :-)

Bye Bye Quad Table!Sitting at the table like big kids!

Sophie's Surgery!

2011-10-07T19:05:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday Sophie had surgery to have her tonsils and adenoids taken out. Her tonsils have been giving her trouble for a couple of months now, and were really enlarged, which made it hard for her to breathe at night. While she was in surgery, her doctor also noticed that she had a lot of fluid in her ears, and decided she needed tubes as well!

All in all she did really well. She almost spent the night in the hospital because her stubborn little personality made it impossible for us to get her to drink fluids while in recovery. Once she was admitted, and took a nap with Mommy, she decided she would start drinking. Her doctor let her go home around dinner time! :-)

Once we got home she did really well, and continued to drink until day 3. Our stubborn little princess almost had to be re-admitted once again because she refused to drink. Luckily, Nana and Papa had the other kiddos for the weekend, so Sophie got lots of one-on-one snuggle time with Mommy and Daddy, and finally decided to drink again! I am finally noticing today that she seems to be almost back to herself. She seems to feel worse in the evenings when she is tired, and she is also fighting a cold (along with her sister and brothers)! Hopefully none of the other kiddos need to have this surgery!

I took the kids to have their hearing tested last Monday, and everyone passed except for Sophie. I am hoping all the fluid is what caused her to fail the hearing test, and that the tubes will correct the problem! I have to take her back in to be tested again in a couple of weeks.

Daddy and Sophie before surgery! Her cute little hospital scrubs were huge on her!
Look at that sweet little face! Once she was in recovery she wanted her Daddy!!

Finally getting some sleep in her comfy hospital bed!

"I guess that wasn't so bad if Mommy is going to let me eat as much ice cream as I want!"

Balloons from Grandma and Caleb!

Brady's First Haircut!

2011-09-29T08:15:00.001-07:00

Just a month and a half shy of being two, and Brady finally had enough hair for a hair cut! He was growing a slight mullet! :-)

Bye Bye Mullet!
"Mom, what is this lady doing to me?!"
No more mullet!
Such a handsome boy!

2011-09-29T06:48:00.000-07:00

The kiddos got to go on their very first tractor ride a couple of weeks ago! What better way to kick off fall than with a ride in a big green tractor with Uncle Cory! Everyone had a blast, and Max's obsession with tractors is much greater now! :-)

Max went first of course (with Uncle Caleb)!

We had a McDonald's picnic in the back of Papa's car while we waited for Max's turn to be over!

Brady and Sophie got the next turn!

It's hard to see, but Sophie has the biggest smile on her face!

Last, but not least, Emme got her turn (Max came along for a second ride)!

Uncle Cory and Uncle Caleb with the kiddos! :-)

22 Month Update

2011-09-28T10:10:00.000-07:00

I have been a horrible blogger lately! We have had issues with our Internet, and finally have access again! I am hoping to catch up on blogging, since we have had lots of fun lately! Here is a little update on our very busy toddlers...
Brady James is our sensitive, but very outspoken little boy! He has such a sweet and loving personality, but has a very loud voice and is not afraid to use it if something does not go his way! He is a ball of energy, and loves to be very silly! Brady is such a Mommy's boy, and really prefers to be at home! We are really working on getting him used to other places like Nana and Papa's house!

He is really into the Wiggles, Elmo, and anything with music! He has a beloved blankie that he will not sleep without. He also loves to get dirty! He gravitates to rocks, sand, dirt, etc. We are also pretty sure that he is a lefty!

Max Edward is such a big boy these days, and has really developed a laid back personality. He never used to have time for cuddles with Mommy, but now he will crawl up on my lap and sit for short periods of time!

Max loves his siblings, but also has a tendency to be a bit of a bully. I really think he enjoys getting a reaction out of his brother and sisters because he will take something away, hold it for a few seconds, and then toss it on the floor once someone is screaming. He even laughs a little about it!

Max has become very accustomed to the time out procedure in our house! I sometimes think he enjoys time out because he will do something naughty, get sent to time out, come back from time out, do the exact same thing he was in trouble for, and then willingly sit himself in time out again without being told to do so! His infectious smile makes it impossible to be mad at him! Max has also become the boss in our house, and will be the first one to tell his siblings, "No! No!" if they are doing something they shouldn't!

He is absolutely OBSESSED with tractors! They are on his mind at all times! When I go in his room in the mornings, the first thing he says is, "where tractor at?" I swear he must say tractor at least 1,000 times each day! Nana and Papa let him bring all of Daddy's tractors that he played with as a child to our house! He plays with them all day long!

Emme Lee is the most laid back, sweet child I have ever met! She is perfectly content cuddling on the couch with books! She is so easy going, and loves her siblings so much! She does have a bit of a stubborn side to her, but it doesn't come out very often.

Emme is such a little mother hen, and loves all things girly! She is obsessed with shoes, hair pretties, babies, stuffed animals, and books. She loves it when we tell her how pretty she is or what a good girl she is! I could honestly sit and cuddle with her all day (if I only had one child)!

She also loves looking at pictures, and always wants us to tell her who is in the picture, so she can repeat the names! She is the talker of the group, and talks non stop! She has really picked up on body parts, and animal noises.

Sophie Marie is also a ball of energy! She is our most stubborn child, and will probably give her Mommy a taste of her own medicine! If she decides she isn't going to do something, you might as well forget it!

Sophie is the biggest Daddy's girl, and absolutely adores her daddy! Her face lights up when he comes home from work. Daddy has his work cut out for him because his little girls have him wrapped around their little fingers!

Sophie is also a very silly little girl, and loves to dance! She is really into the Wiggles, and loves anything with music. She has the cutest dance moves, and knows how to entertain!

I have to say, I think the terrible two's are in full swing at our house! This age is the most exhausting so far, however, it is the most rewarding. We have so much fun with the kids, and find that it gets easier and easier to take them places with us which makes it seem like our life is getting more normal!

How can it be that our tiny little miracle babies are growing up?! In less than 2 months, we will have 4 two year olds! Time is passing by so quickly!

Sophie's First Haircut!

2011-08-30T12:06:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago we took Sophie in her her first haircut (well bang trim actually)! She wasn't exactly crazy about a stranger messing with her hair, but she sat in the chair all by herself, and was such a big girl! She was the third kid out of our crew to get her hair cut. Brady might need one in the near future?! :-) "Mom, what is this lady doing to me?!"
Sitting still like a big girl!

All done, and still not sure what just happened! :-)

A Long Overdue Update! :-)

2011-08-30T11:33:00.000-07:00

We have had a great summer, and it has been so nice to get out of the house with the kids and try new things! This summer we have gone to carnivals, parades, splash pads, swimming pools, the zoo, to visit relatives, birthday parties, family picnics, and have had a blast making memories! Sadly though, summer is almost over! I cannot believe September is almost here, and before we know it, we will have 2 year olds! Does not seem possible!Having fun in the back yard with Papa!

(L to R) Max, Sophie, Papa, Brady, Emme

Sophie LOVES to fill things up with water and pour them out!

Emme is very cautious about trying new things, and really doesn't like to get overly wet!

Daddy is a kid at heart too!

Apparently nobody told Brady that the lack of rain we have had means we don't have to mow the yard! :-)

Max watching an airplane fly over our house!

Enjoying our very first Popsicle!

Max

Brady

Sophie

Emme

This picture melts my heart! Although our kids fight like crazy, they already have an amazing bond with each other, and are truly each other's best friends! I hope they always stay close, and look out for each other! Watching the bond that these little stinkers have is one of my favorite things about having multiples! There is no better sound to me than hearing my kids giggle, and love on each other without being prompted! :-)

Our busy little life!

2011-07-13T11:26:00.000-07:00

I am trying to play catch up on the blog! This is really my way of documenting events in the kiddos life, so that someday when I get some time to scrapbook, I will have a place to find each milestone that the kids accomplished and the dates. Lately, I am not keeping up! :-) Here is an update on what we are up to in our crazy little life...

We gave the kiddos sweetcorn for the first time this week, and they did pretty well with it! Of course it became a toy to throw on the floor eventually!
Sophie Marie has come so far! She is walking all over the place now! She is also trying to jump, and LOVES to dance! She is such a happy girl, and usually goes with the flow as long as nobody gets too physical (Max) with her! She adores her Daddy, and lights up the minute she sees him!

Emme Lee is our SASSY little girl who has learned how to throw MAJOR tantrums! Papa and I took the kids to the mall last weekend thinking it would be a good inside activity since it has been ridiculously humid and hot outside. Boy were we completely off base with that idea! Emme had a couple of melt downs over sunglasses, which resulted in Papa buying everyone a new pair. The end of our trip was hands down the worst experience I have had with my kids in public! We decided to let the kids ride the little merry-go-round before we left. There were only three little cars, which meant Sophie had to wait until the next turn. When the ride stopped, Emme started having a major melt down! She kept banging her head on the steering wheel of the boat she was riding in and screaming. All because the ride stopped! She then threw an even bigger fit when we put her back in the stroller. Needless to say, poor Sophie never got her turn, and will most likely get to go back to the mall by herself! :-) I am sure all the spectators thought our life was normally that hectic! Note to self....the mall is not the best place for toddlers who have learned to throw temper tantrums! I'm pretty sure we are getting close to the "terrible twos!"

Although Emme has her sassy moments, she is still such a sweet little girl. She loves to cuddle, and had a great sense of humor. She is constantly making us laugh! She recently decided last week that she could walk. I really think she was able to do it a long time ago, and let her stubborn personality get in the way! She is off and running now, and not looking back!

Max is amazing us all the time! He learns things very quickly, and loves to "help" mommy! He has a very loving and sweet personality, and especially loves to play with Emme. They play so well together and are constantly giggling at each other! This is such a fun age!Max and Emme LOVE to wrestle on the floor! :-)

Brady James is a very sweet and sensitive little boy, and is a HUGE Mama's boy! He loves to sit and cuddle with Mommy! Brady is pretty much caught up to Max, and won't need to attend physical therapy much longer! He has been walking for about a month now!

Brady fractured the growth plate in his wrist the middle of June. Poor guy must have done it when learning to walk. The doctor figured he fell and landed on it wrong! Here he is sporting his neon green cast! Luckily he only needed to wear a cast for a couple of weeks. We will take him back to the orthopedic doctor in 6 months to make sure everything is growing correctly!

We have really been working on eating with forks and spoons lately. I have to say, this is not my favorite stage! What a mess! Everyone does pretty well to start, but then they get bored, and decide to make a huge mess! I'm sure this will be over before we know it, but for now we are cleaning LOTS of messes up!

Max before
Max After....Notice the bowl is gone(on the floor)!
Brady Before
Brady After
Emme Before
Emme After
Sophie Before
Sophie After...she is really into making big messes with her food these days! This picture really doesn't show her abilities too well! :-)
It is almost ALWAYS bath time after supper!

FuN oN tHe 4th!!!

2011-07-12T11:14:00.000-07:00

We had a great 4th of July in Clear Lake! We got to spend lots of time with our families, and had so much fun making memories! The entire weekend was pretty jam-packed with stuff to do, which was exhausting, but so much fun! Here are some pictures from the weekend!All of the great-grandkids (and Caleb)
My grandparents
Taylor with Sophie, and Jackson with Emme.

Uncle Jeremy, Becki, and the kiddos!
Max and Uncle Caleb watching the parade!
Nana and Papa with the kiddos!
Uncle Cory and Brady.
Taylor and Emme!
I think Sophie was enjoying herself!
Grandma, Cory and Rachel
Emme likes to pretend she's shy!
Brady and Daddy checking out the slip n slide!
Sophie and Brady
Brady, Sophie, and Max

Uncle Jeremy, Nana, Papa with Emme, and Grandpa Kevin

Hope everyone had a great 4th!

Adventures with Nana and Papa!

2011-06-11T19:37:00.000-07:00

A couple of weekends ago we headed up to Nana and Papa's house, so James could go on his annual fishing trip to the Boundary Waters. We always have so much fun with Nana and Papa. Here are some pictures from our trip to East Park!

Uncle Caleb feeding the ducks.

Max and Uncle Caleb feeding the deer.

Max

Sophie

Brady

Emme

Brady checking out the tunnel.

Emme

Uncle Caleb and Max

Sophie

Sophie walking like big girl!

Brady walking like a big boy!

Watching Uncle Caleb ride the go kart.

Go Uncle Caleb, Go!

2011-06-04T15:55:00.000-07:00

We surprised Uncle Caleb at his track and field day at school a few weeks ago. Last year we went, but it was too hot for the babies, and we didn't get to stay long. This year the kiddos LOVED watching Uncle Caleb! The cheering section!
Brady and Papa

long jump

Silly Sophie

Brady checking things out!

Go Caleb, Go!

Princess Emme

Enjoying some lunch!

Sophie LOVES chicken nuggets! :-)

FINALLY....18 month update!

2011-06-04T15:53:00.001-07:00

The kiddos had their 18 month check up on the 1st, and did really well! They each had to have 2 shots, so we brought helpers along (Great-Grandma, Grandma, and Uncle Caleb)! Since everyone is mobile, it is harder to keep them entertained in a small doctor's office room! How in the world can we be 18 months old already?!

(L to R) Max, Brady, Emme, Sophie

Current Heights & Weights:

Max

Height: 32" (50%)

Weight: 26 lbs. (50%)

Max is as busy as ever these days! He pretty much runs everywhere he needs to go, and tends to be the bully of the group. Max is overall pretty laid back, and always has a sweet smile on his face. He has become a Mommy's boy, and wants me to pick him up all the time (I can't help but love this)! Max is really talking, and comes up with the cutest phrases like, "hi, Dad!" or "Hi there!" He is also SUPER attached to his blanky!

Brady

Height: 30 1/2" (20%)

Weight: 22 lbs. 8 oz. (10%)

Brady is officially a walker! He has been SO close for weeks now, but was never too interested in walking. That is not the case anymore! Now he is all over the place. Brady is happiest when outside, and is usually not happy until we let him out to play. Typical little boy, huh?! Brady has a very short fuse, and often gets angry with his siblings (especially Max) if they take something from him. He is still going through the biting stage, but it seems to have gotten better. Brady also has a very sweet and sensitive side to him, and loves to cuddle. He gets his feeling hurt pretty easily when in trouble! He is also picking up on LOTS of new words! Some of which are not ones we would like him to say. The other night he yelled "shut up" to the barking neighbor dog! I'm not sure where he could have heard that (Daddy)!? OOPS! It was a good reminder that the kiddos are listening to EVERYTHING Mommy and Daddy say! :-)

Emme

Height: 29 1/2" (10%)

Weight: 22 lbs. (20%)

Emme is our little princess, and chooses to do things on her own terms! With that being said, she is not walking yet, nor is she even trying. She has been going to physical therapy, and they are not at all worried about her, but I'm beginning to wonder when the little stinker will decide she wants to try walking! Emme is super laid back, and such an easy child! She really seems to have a close connection to Max, which is interesting for us to watch! She has a very silly personality, and loves to entertain us and make us laugh! Emme is also saying a lot of new words and phrases!

Sophie

Height: 30" (10%)

Weight: 19 lbs. 4 oz. (<3%)

Sophie is also walking!!! She is not quite as steady as Brady yet, but is getting better each day! She can also stand up without holding on to anything! She is such a little go getter, and amazes us more and more each day! Sophie is also very easy going, and like her sister, is a very sweet little girl! Sophie also has a very silly personality, and loves to dance to music. Like her siblings, she is also saying a lot of new words and phrases!

I cannot believe how fast time flies by! I sure wish we could slow things down a bit! Before I know it, my babies will be turning two!

Loving this weather!

2011-06-04T15:37:00.003-07:00

We are loving this weather, and are finding that the kiddos are much happier when we can play outside! Lots of fresh air sure does help them all sleep well at night too! :-) Here are some pictures of what we have been up to so far this summer...How many toddlers can you fit into a swimming pool?! Our friends the Etter quads came over for a play date a few weeks ago. The only way we could get them in one spot to take a picture was in the empty swimming pool! The kids all played well together! We can't wait to get together with them again soon!

We made a surprise visit to Great-Grandma "Farmer" in Lansing a couple of weeks ago! The kids were in the car for a LONG time, but did great! Grandma Farmer sure was surprised too! :-)

Great-Grandma Farmer with the boys

Nothing like a little brotherly love!

Great-Grandma Farmer with the girls. Sophie was a little ham if you can't tell!

Sweet Emme and Silly Sophie!

We had a little going away/pool party for Uncle Jeffy on Memorial Day. Uncle Jeffy moved to Texas last weekend, and boy are we going to miss him!

Uncle Caleb and Jack

Jack catching tadpoles!

Uncle Jeffy with the girls.

I think Daddy and Uncle Caleb were having just as much fun with the water table! ;-)

We hope everyone is having as much fun as we are this summer!

FuN iN tHe SuN!!!

2011-05-15T11:09:00.001-07:00

The weather was SO nice last week, so we really enjoyed getting outside! Here are a few pictures from the week...We finally got the kids' play house put together from Christmas!
Max talking on the phone, and using a hammer.....might be a dangerous combination! ;)

Brady checking out the play house!

Max working hard!

Emme thought the box was much more fun!

The boys

Sophie

We put outdoor carpet on the deck, so the kids could play without getting splinters. Apparently Sophie doesn't like to crawl on it! This is her new way to get around on the deck!

Sophie checking out the water table!

Daddy with the kiddos at the zoo.

Emme LOVED the zoo! She pointed at everything, and never sat back in the stroller the whole time we were there!

Checking out the fish aquarium!

Watching the giraffes. They loved them!

So Cute!

Sophie

The boys

Emme's 1st Hair Cut!

2011-04-30T15:30:00.000-07:00

Emme's bangs were starting to get really long, so we decided to take her to get her hair cut last Saturday (April 23). She was such a big girl, and didn't move the whole time she was getting her hair cut! She looks so grown up now! :-)Sitting very still like a big girl!

Such a big girl!

Easter 2011

2011-04-28T15:23:00.000-07:00

Last year we celebrated Easter at our house since it was so much work to load the kiddos up for a weekend stay. This year we decided to spend Easter at Nana and Papa's (James' parents) house, and the kids had a blast!

We decided to go for dinner and church with my family on Saturday night thinking it would be less chaotic with the kids. Not exactly what happened! At dinner, the kids were too preoccupied with everything going on, so they pretty much ate nothing. We then went on to church where the kids lasted about 5 minutes! I guess they will be spending church time in the nursery from here on out! :)

We had a nice dinner at Nana and Papa's on Sunday afternoon before we headed home. The kiddos also got 4 wheeler rides from Papa on Sunday, which they absolutely loved! They would throw a fit if they had to wait their turn! The Easter bunny was very nice to the kiddos this year too! :)

Like always, I took a TON of pictures. Enjoy!

Emme riding the new pony at Nana and Papa's house! He was loved by everyone but Sophie!
Brady trying to figure out how to get Max off the pony so he could have a turn!

Brady loved the new pony!

Max checking out his Easter basket! It's hard to believe that the kiddos fit inside their basket last year! They are getting so big!

Brady with his basket.

Max was trying to "help" Brady with his basket!

Emme was very excited about her new book, and the yogurt melts!

Sophie wasn't sure about the Easter grass inside the basket!

Max was pretty happy about his new sippy cup!

Brady with his jelly bean filled eggs and sippy cup!

Sophie

Emme "reading" her new book! :)

This is the best group shot we could get!

(L to R) Sophie, Max, Emme, Brady

Papa and Max

Brady

Sophie

Emme

Brady with another basket from Nana and Papa!

Emme

Sophie

Emme modeling her new sunglasses and bunny ears!

Max

Brady

Sophie

Uncle Jeffy with the boys!

and the girls!

Brady and Papa being silly!

Pretty girls!

Going for a walk with Nana and Papa!
New wagons at Nana and Papa's house!
Max was so excited!
4 wheeler rides with Papa!
The girls' turn!
Daddy and Brady (I LOVE this picture)!

Emme & Sophie

Max
Brady

We hope everyone had a great Easter! :-)

Better Late Than Never!!!!

2011-04-26T10:56:00.000-07:00

I have been terrible about keeping up on the blog lately! Our Internet has been acting up, which means I have a hard time uploading pictures. I could write blog posts with no pictures, but what fun is that! :-)

It appears that the terrible two's have already arrived in our house! If not, I hate to see what chaos we will have in a few more months when they officially begin! The kiddos are fighting, pulling hair, hitting, screaming, biting, climbing, getting into EVERYTHING, etc. etc. Need I go on???? :-) This is such a fun, but challenging age. They are learning so much every day, but tend to think they are a bit older and more independent than they really are! So for all the times that I heard, "it will get easier as they get older.....that is not exactly true!" They are sleeping all night (as long as we are free of teething, and sickness), which is a huge blessing, and we are able to get out of the house a lot more. However, we have four VERY busy toddlers who think everything in the house is free game, and nobody, I mean NOBODY should be able to play with the item/toy they have! Their personalities are really starting to shine through, which has been fun to watch(I'll give an update on that below).

Overall, we are having so much fun with the kiddos, and are learning how to adjust to this very active toddler stage! Although all the kiddos are very active, Max is still the only one walking. When we went to our last developmental follow-up appointment at the NICU, it was suggested to us that we look into physical therapy to help with strengthening. Of course this is not what we were wanting to hear, but knew it was important so the other three did not fall behind. These guys have come so far in their short 17 months of life, and when I look back at pictures of them in the first few days of life in the NICU, I cannot help but think my kids are pretty darn AMAZING! What a blessing they are!

After our first visit with the physical therapist, our minds were put at ease. She told us that they will most likely not need much physical therapy at all. She was surprised at how well they were doing for being born 10 weeks premature (especially considering they were multiples). As of now, we are still trying to work out a set schedule for the summer, but they are planning on seeing them each once a week until they start walking. Miss Emme's shirt says it all in this picture! She is a silly little girl, but definitely not wild! Emme finally started pulling herself up to stand a few weeks ago. I always thought it had a lot to do with her personality. She is our extremely laid back child, who would be content all day long sitting on your lap, or laying on the floor looking at books. She is very timid when it comes to trying new things. I think she is scared she will fall. The physical therapist agreed with us at the initial appointment, but since then Emme has come a long ways all on her own. I think she finally realized her brothers, and sister were passing her by and having a lot of fun! Now she does pretty good at keeping up with them!
Max is definitely our wild boy who really isn't afraid to try anything! Sometimes it ends with bumps and bruises, but he keeps on going! Max is such a happy little guy, and loves to dance! He has figured out that running gets you somewhere much faster than walking, which is usually a dead give away if he has something he is not supposed to have!

Miss Sophie has come SO far! We are so proud of the progress she has made! She is one determined little girl! Sophie is pulling to stand, walking around furniture, walking behind push toys, and Sunday night she stood all by herself for at least 20-30 seconds (before she realized what she was doing)! She is going to look like such a little peanut when she starts walking! :-)

I have a feeling Mr. Brady is going to be our mischievous little man! He is sneaky when he wants something he isn't supposed to have. He will quietly crawl back to a bedroom that was left open, and get into EVERYTHING before Mommy or Daddy even realize he is missing! He is also a MONKEY! He climbs on EVERYTHING, which scares this Mommy to death! Brady has a very short fuse with his siblings, and has learned that if someone takes something away from him, he can scream at the top of his lungs, slap, or bite them! We are really trying to break him of this because he even thinks it's funny to hit Mommy and Daddy. Although he can be a bit of a stinker, he is the sweetest little boy, and gets his feelings hurt very easily if he is in trouble.

Enjoying the warm weather!

(L to R) Max, Brady, Sophie, Emme

We are patiently waiting for this weather to warm up a bit more, so we can get back outside and play! We are all so sick of being cooped up in this house! I will try get an Easter post done soon, so watch for that! Hope everyone is having a great week!

And the list continues...

2011-03-21T18:09:00.000-07:00

About 6 months ago I made a list of all the things that really surprised me about becoming a mom. I have been thinking about that list lately, and all the things that I could now add to it! My list is a mixture of things that I have learned throughout the past 15+ months.

1. NEVER buy white clothes! I am very anal about the kids' clothes, and stains drive me CRAZY! I think James' new entertainment is to tell me that he switched the laundry, while he waits for my automatic response, "Did you check ALL of the clothes for stains?!?!" He then tells me no, and waits for me to freak out a bit. He then laughs, and tells me that he did indeed check ALL of the clothes for stains. He has ruined quite a few clothes, so I think he is starting to learn about what the dryer does to stained clothes! ;)

2. Always have tylenol/ibuprofen (several bottles) on hand....you never know when you will need it! I swear we shoud've bought stock in the companies who make tylenol and ibuprofen. I never knew it was possible to go through so much, but we have gone through so much sickness this winter, and have needed lots! We get some very interesting looks at Target when buying 4+ bottles of ibuprofen at a time!

3. Toddlers are fast, and can get into "trouble" even faster! I have several friends who have kids, so I know that kids get hurt, and accidents happen, but I had not prepared myself for that reality times 4! We have had our fair share of scrapes, bumps, bruises, fat lips, etc., and a lot of the time it feels like absolute craziness in our house! No amount of "baby proofing" is enough when you have 4 mobile toddlers roaming the house!

4. I cannot get over the fact that all 4 of our kiddos share a birthday, but are so unbelievably different. They look so much different from each other, and have completely different personalities. It really is amazing!

5. People are crazy. I mean that in the nicest way possible, and I know it is a bit shocking when you see a lady pulling 4 kids who are usually dressed similar, and appear to be the same age in a wagon that resembles a train....the comments I get are hilarious, and often make me wonder if I heard correctly. The most common comments are...."Are those 2 sets of twins?," "Wow! You must have your hands full!," "I'm glad it's you and not me!," "You must have help everyday!," "I don't know how you do it!," and "Are those quadtriplets?"

My favorite comment/conversation would have to be with a lady in town who saw us walking by with the choo choo wagon. The conversation went something like this....(Lady)"What's the deal here (pointing at the kids)?" (Me)"Huh?" (Lady) "What are they?" (Me)"Ummm...huh?!" (Lady) "Are they like triplets or something?" (ME) "Nope. They are quadruplets." (Lady)"You have got to be kidding!"

6. Toys are overrated! Our kids have SO many toys, and really could care less about all of them! As long as they have kitchen utensils, tupperware, pop bottles, etc. they are as happy as can be! Who would've thought!

7. "Me" time went from shopping, going out to lunch, hanging out with friends, etc., to taking a shower! :-)

I'm sure there are tons more things that I could write about, but this will do for now! It will be fun to look back at this when the kiddos are older!

RSV has hit!

2011-03-08T21:33:00.000-08:00

I meant to finish my last post and publish it almost a week ago, but just when you think your life can't get any crazier, it does! I apologize for the pictures below. They are not very good quality, and were taken with my phone, but you get the idea...

After Brady tested positive for RSV last Monday, we were pretty certain that everyone would end up with it. Brady was a trooper the entire time he was sick, and got over it with a few breathing treatments. By Wednesday, Sophie had all the symptoms, followed by Max on Thursday, and Emme on Friday. All weekend we have struggled with getting the girls to take fluids, and Sophie seemed to be having issues with her breathing, so Sunday evening James and I headed to the E.R. with both girls.

When we got to the E.R., both girls' oxygen levels were good (Sophie-94% & Emme 96%). Neither of the girls had taken more than about 4-5 ounces of fluid in the last 48 hours, and Emme was very lethargic. After several tests, we found out the girls had RSV(who would've thought)! Sophie's oxygen levels dropped to 88% while she was asleep, so she was admitted to the hospital. Poor Emme had to be poked 7 different times before the nurses were able to get an IV in her! Since she was so dehydrated, and wouldn't take any fluids orally, they admitted her as well. Emme's oxygen levels dropped below 90% Sunday night, so both girls have been on oxygen for the past 3 days.

Luckily my mom, and grandma came down to help late Sunday afternoon, so they stayed at home with the boys while James and I stayed with the girls. Our poor girls have been so sick! I think James and I got a total of 15-20 minutes of the sleep Sunday night because both girls were so uncomfortable and wanted to be held all night. The pediatric floor isn't set up with oxygen for two kids in a room, so they each have their own room.

James' dad came down yesterday morning to help out, so my mom and grandma could head back home. James stayed at home with boys last night, while Papa and I stayed with the girls.

Sophie started feeling a little bit better yesterday, but is still struggling to get off oxygen. Poor Emme has had some really rough days. RSV has hit her like a ton of bricks! She was extremely lethargic yesterday, and pretty much slept the entire day in her crib! Today, she seems to be feeling a bit better, but is still exhausted. Sophie started taking some formula today in her bottle, but we are still struggling with Emme. I did finally get her to take a little over an ounce of pedialyte tonight, so hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Nana came down today, so that she and Papa could stay with the boys tonight, while James and I stay with the girls. I had never really thought about what a nightmare a hospital stay would be for us as a family. The logistics of this are insane. It takes an army to help at home, while being here at the hospital for our sweet girls!

Although this has been an extremely exhausting ordeal, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! We are hoping that both girls can come home tomorrow, however, they would both have to be off oxygen for at least 12-24 hours, which isn't looking too likely for poor Sophie, who is still on oxygen tonight. Both girls would also have to start drinking enough that they won't become dehydrated once being discharged. They have a ways to go yet, but we're hoping they won't have to stay more than one more night if that!

If you get a chance, please say a prayer for our family's health! We have been battling sickness for about 6 weeks now, and are really ready for a break! :-) Also, please pray that I do not catch anything. Somehow I have managed to stay healthy through all of my family's sickness!

Here are some pictures from our hospital stay...Poor Emme was exhausted after 7 attemps to put an IV in her!
Sophie snuggling with Daddy!

Emme

First time Emme had been awake for more than 10 minutes(yesterday).

Yesterday was the turning point where Sophie started to feel better!

Sophie reading stories with Papa in hopes that she would go to bed!

Sophie thought Daddy's hat was pretty funny!
I have never been so glad to see Emme's smiling face!
Daddy cuddling with his girls!
While trying to wean the girls from their oxygen, we were able to have them in the same room!
Starting to feel better!

Spring, where are you?!

2011-03-02T09:52:00.000-08:00

The past couple of weeks have been complete craziness in our house, and it would be an understatement to say that we are desperately wanting spring to be here! I have never in all my life dealt with so much sickness, and am really hoping that we are on our way to being healthy!

I wrote in a previous post towards the beginning of February about our kiddos and daddy having strep throat and double ear infections, but that was a piece of cake compared to the last two weeks! Daddy ended up getting Influenza A, which took him a good 5 or 6 days to start feeling better. Within a couple of days, the kids were all sick as well. Thankfully, we were all on Tamiflu, so they didn't have Influenza A! Sophie had another ear infection, Brady and Emme had very red sore throats, and poor Max had a terrible time with croup again.

Just as we thought everyone was starting to feel well again, Brady started running a temp. and developed a horrible cough with a runny nose. I took him back to the doctor on Monday, and he tested positive for RSV! I was shocked when I heard that! The insurance company denied the kids for synagis this year because they were over a year old, so of course its possible for them to get RSV, I just thought with us keeping them away from public places and washing hands all the time, we would avoid it! He has been pretty fussy, but overall it has been pretty mild, and we are very lucky that he hasn't had any breathing complications with it, but like everything else, when one gets sick, you can count on the other three to get it too! Now the other 3 have terrible coughs and runny noses, alone with temps. Needless to say, the nebulizer and bulb syringe are our best friends right now! Poor kids!

Tuesday the 1st was the kiddos 15 month check up. Luckily, Papa was here to help! It seems like each check up gets a bit more challenging to entertain the kids while we wait for the doctor and nurse! Food seems to work best, so we had lots of snacks to hand out! We started with toys, but the minute the kiddos decided to start playing the game where they throw their toys on the floor, this Mama decided it was time for something else (considering I have become quite the germaphobe)!

The kids are all doing GREAT, and growing like crazy! Little Miss Sophie still has some catching up to do, but is continuously gaining weight each time we go in for a check-up. She may always be our little peanut, but is doing great considering what she has had to overcome!

In the midst of all this craziness, we also decided it would be a good idea to take the morning nap away, and surprisingly we love it! The boys were boycotting afternoon nap, so we thought it was time to try something else. The girls were still quite content with their 2 naps/day, so we were a little worried about how they would handle it, and how we would balance everything if the girls still needed the 2 naps, while the boys were only taking 1. Luckily everything seemed to fall into place, and it seems to be making bedtime a lot easier for us too! The kids usually eat lunch around 11:00/11:30 and lay down from 12:00ish-2:30/3:00. They are also usually ready for bed by 7:30, which makes life easier for Mommy and Daddy, who finally get a chance to have some quiet time! I probably shouldn't even say this all out loud in fear that I might jinx myself! :-)

Here are a few pictures of the kiddos at the doctor with their current heights and weights...

Sophie Marie

Height: 29 1/4" (25%)

Weight: 16 lbs. 14 oz. (<3%)

This little peanut is still eating anything and everything! We have to be careful with how much food we put in front of her or she will put every single piece into her mouth at once! She has all of her teeth now, until her 2 year molars come in! Sophie is the sweetest, and most easy going child! Her smile is contagious! Sophie is really into playing with balls lately, and is pretty coordinated with throwing a ball! She is a HUGE Daddy's girl, and keeps her eyes on him at all times! She is also very attached to Papa! She has come so far in the past month, and is now crawling, and pulling herself up to her knees. She can say...Mama, Dada, Papa, Nana, baba, cracker, ball, and bye bye.

Emme Lee

Height: 29 1/4" (25%)

Weight: 20 lbs. 6 oz. (6%)

Emme is our princess, and loves anything girly! She absolutely LOVES jewelry, hats, headbands, etc. She gets the most precious smile when someone tells her what a pretty girl she is. Emme is a very sweet and laid back girl like her sister, however, she has a VERY sassy side to her as well! She loves to "talk" on the phone, and makes us laugh when doing so. Emme is Papa's girl, and lets it be known whenever he is around! Papa has been teaching her how to dance, and it really is pretty hilarious! I have a feeling that Emme will be 100% girl! Emme recently got her top molars, and is still working on the bottoms. Luckily it doesn't seem to bother her much! She can say...Mama, Dada, Papa, Nana, baba, bye bye, Max, and much more that we haven't figured out yet (we need a translator)!

Max Edward

Height: 31 1/4" (50%)

Weight: 24 lbs. 4 oz. (50%)

Max is our big boy, and he knows it! He likes to make sure his siblings know who is boss! He tends to be a bit of a bully, but shows his siblings that he really loves them by giving kisses all the time! Sometimes when giving kisses, he forgets how much bigger he is! Max has a great personality, and loves to be silly! He is really discovering his voice, and loves to scream at the top of his lungs! He doesn't do it to be naughty, but because he can! :-) After a few days of warm weather and choo choo wagon rides, Max has decided that it's a lot of fun to go "bye bye!" Anytime Mommy and Daddy have to go somewhere, and he sees that we are putting our coat on, he instantly thinks he should go too! I have a feeling he will be the one who screams when he has to come inside this spring/summer! Max also likes to play with balls, and is getting good at throwing a ball! Max has all of his molars now until the 2 year ones come in, but is still working on a couple more teeth. Like Emme, we could use a translator to help us understand what his conversations are about, but he can clearly say...Mama, Dada, Papa, Nana, baba, bye bye, cracker, car, moo (when asked what the cow says), nice, bath and up.

Brady James

Height: 30 1/2" (50%)

Weight: 20 lbs. 5 oz. (5%)

Brady is our sweet boy, and has a smile that literally melts my heart every time! He loves to give kisses, and tends to be a big Mama's boy! He loves to cuddle, especially when he is sick! Although Brady is usually very sweet and laid back, he also has a temper that can be triggered at any moment! :-) He gets extremely angry when his siblings (usually Max) takes something away from him, but is starting to fight back! Brady LOVES our dog, Gunner! When asked what the puppy says, he will say "woof woof" in the softest little voice! SO CUTE! Brady recently discovered that he has a hole in his nose! We are hoping that he doesn't make that a habit! :-) Brady is working on his molars, and so far only has one on top. He is having a tough time with teething, and gets pretty fussy. Brady can say....Mama, Dada, Nana, Papa, baba, bye bye, uh-oh (his favorite), and woof woof.

We hope you are all staying healthy!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T11:00:00.000-08:00

We hope you have a happy Valentine's Day!

The day our family was complete at home!

2011-02-13T13:31:00.000-08:00

On February 13, 2010 (exactly one year ago today), our sweet Sophie FINALLY came home from the NICU. I remember feeling so relieved to have my entire family under the same roof. I always felt a tremendous amount of guilt having to leave her in the hospital by herself, although she had some amazing nurses and doctors taking care of her.

This little girl is such a fighter! When I think about how much she has overcome in her short little life, it amazes me! She was by far the sickest when she was born, and had many setbacks during her stay in the NICU. She was on a high frequency ventilator, which was an extremely difficult and scary thing to watch! She had high blood pressure, which required her to be seen by a cardiologist and nephrologist after leaving the hospital, as well as take daily medications.

Once home, she had to be monitored every few days by a home health nurse due to coming home on oxygen. She had a difficult time adjusting to being at home, which caused her to not eat her minimum intake amounts, and had to spend her first 2 months in her bedroom where it was quiet.

Today, she is a healthy and happy girl who brings so much joy to our lives! She was released by both the cardiologist and nephrologist, and no longer takes medication for high blood pressure! She is getting stronger and catching up to her siblings more and more each day! We are so proud of you Sophie Marie, and love you more than you will ever know!

All good things must come to an end!

2011-02-07T09:30:00.000-08:00

We have been having some internet issues lately, so it's been a while since my last blog post! It certainly hasn't been because things are boring at our house right now! HA HA! For some reason, I don't think I will even know what that term means for AT LEAST another 17+ years!

We are really starting to feel the cabin fever take over! Where are you Spring?! I have been hearing lots of talk lately about nasty sickness spreading like crazy, so we have tried to keep the kiddos away from germs as much as possible. We have had a pretty good run lately with no sickness in our house, but like everything else, all good things must come to an end!

Emme started running a low grade temp last week, but we thought it was more from teething, and she seemed to feel ok. On Friday, Sophie woke up from her nap with the same low grade temp. and didn't seem to be herself. By Saturday night, I noticed that Sophie was breathing a little fast, and was drooling like crazy! She has two teeth trying to pop through, which would explain the drooling, but obviously not the fast breathing. I gave Sophie a breathing treatment before bed, but both girls decided that they did not feel well, and were up most of the night. Thankfully Nana and Papa were down for the weekend, so both girls got a lot of TLC from Mommy and Nana! I decided to take the girls to the doctor Sunday morning, and I am so glad that I did! Our poor girls both had double ear infections, and Sophie was a little congested with very swollen glands. Both are on antibiotics now, and seem to be feeling great!

Of course, I coudn't get off that easily! James came home from work Monday not feeling well. He had the chills, a temp., and a sore throat. Monday night was the boys' turn to be up most of the night, however this time I was alone! :-) The minute I would get them both asleep, one would wake up when I opened the door to lay the other down. This went on for about 2-3 hours, before I finally gave up and slept on the couch with Brady! James went to the doctor on Tuesday and found out he had strep throat, along with the stomach flu! Since the boys had been up in the night, and James had strep throat, I thought I better call the doctor to see if he could call in a prescription for the boys too. Thankfully, he didn't make us bring them in to be seen (I'm not really sure how that would have worked)! Thanks to my good friend, Tanya for running to Walgreen's to pick up the boys' prescription! Today was the first day that James came out of the bedroom, so needless to say, I am starting to know what it would be like to be a single parent with 14 month old quadruplets.....NOT FUN! I am also realizing that kids handle sickness much better than adults do! :-)

After the week I've had, I think I deserve a nice vacation to some place warm! That is, if I can manage to not get sick! A girl can dream, right?!

This is the best group shot I could get!

(L to R) Brady, Max, Sophie, Emme

Max and Brady fight over EVERYTHING these days! Brady used to give up and let Max have whatever he wanted (with lots of screaming), but now he puts up a good fight!

Our sweet girls!

(L to R) Sophie, Emme

Happy girls!

Miss Sophie is CRAWLING! We are so proud of her! She is finally strong enough to scoot herself all over the house. She took off much faster than everyone else once she finally realized she could do it. She must realize that everyone was leaving her by herself!

"Here I come, Mommy!"

"I made it!"

Sophie has 14 teeth now! Teething doesn't seem to bother her at all. We have never noticed any fussiness from her. The last two teeth that she'll get before her 2 year molars are almost ready to pop through!

Miss Emme Lee is such an easy going little girl these days! She has also become a Momma's girl! She is definitely going to be our girly girl, and loves to play dress up. Everytime we put bows in her hair, hats on her head, etc., she starts smiling and laughing. She LOVES it when we tell her what a pretty girl she is!

Pat-a-cake Pat-a-cake!

Pretty girl!

Papa and Emme taking a nap after a long night!

Emme LOVES to ride on Papa's shoulders!

Emme still has 6 teeth. I'm beginning to wonder if she will ever get more teeth. She doesn't get fussy though, which is nice considering it is taking so long for them to pop through!

"This is our new game.....see who can pinch their fingers in the closet door first!"
Big boy Max is WALKING! He is still pretty wobbly, but he can take anywhere from 15-20 steps at a time, depending on how many distractions there are around him. He still prefers crawling since he can go so much faster that way!
"Look how big I am, Mommy!"

Max could care less who is in his way! He crawls over anyone and anything that gets in his way!

Max has 12 teeth now. The molars have bothered him a little, but over all he isn't too fussy!

Sweet Brady boy!

"I'm going to get you, Mommy!"

Brady has developed quite the temper! He can be so sweet, and then the minute something doesn't go his way, he flips his switch, and this is what happens! Most of the time he is pretty sweet though! :-)

Can you BELIEVE we are 14 Months Old Already!?

2011-01-18T20:57:00.000-08:00

I can't seem to wrap my head around the fact that my babies are growing and changing so fast right before my eyes. They are turning into toddlers! How did that happen?! How could 2 months have already passed us by since their first birthday?! I guess the only positive outcome of the time going by so quickly is we are that much closer to spring, and we are all ready to get out of this house!

Just when we thought our life couldn't get any crazier, or more chaotic, crawling took over in full force! Brady and Emme are crawling all over the place now, and Sophie is scooting herself backwards, so I know she is working hard to catch up with her siblings. Max is getting very brave, and has taken 3-4 steps on his own.

This age is so much fun! Everyone is really starting to talk and repeat things. They talk to each other in their own little language, and babble things that make perfect sense to themselves, but we are completely out of the loop! :-) They love to play with each other and give kisses. They all learned how to blow kisses a couple of weeks ago too.

Here is a little tid bit about what each baby has been up to lately, as well as lots of pictures!

The kitchen is the favorite hang out spot. Every time I try to put them in the living room and shut the gate, they scream and cry. They have hundreds of toys, but prefer to play with Tupperware and other miscellaneous kitchen utensils!

Miss Sophie is working so hard to catch up with her siblings. We are really noticing how much stronger she is getting. She has had to fight so hard in her short little life, but always has a sweet smile on her face. She is such a Daddy and Papa's girl, and has both of them wrapped around her finger as tight as possible. Although she is by far the smallest of the group, she LOVES to eat, and eats way more than anyone else! She is not picky at all! Sophie just cut her two top eye teeth, but no molars yet!

Emme is our goof ball! She always has a silly smile on her face and thinks EVERYTHING is hilarious! She wrinkles up her little nose and gives a fake laugh out of blue for no apparent reason! She is so silly and loves to make us laugh. Emme is also very sassy, and isn't shy to express herself when she is mad! She is extremely picky when it comes to eating, and usually has to examine and smell the food before she will let it come anywhere near her mouth!

Wild Max doesn't stop for anything! From the time he wakes up until he goes to bed, he is on the go! His new favorite hobby is picking on his sisters. He loves to pull their hair, and then looks to see if Mommy saw what he did while flashing his mischievous little smile. He knows how to make you laugh to get himself out of trouble, and I have a feeling we will battle this in the future! Max just cut two of his top molars and wasn't too fussy at all! Max loves to look out the living room window and wait for Daddy to come home.

"Mom, I swear I'm NOT tired!"
Brady is our cuddly baby, and a big time Mommy's boy! He has decided that since he is too big for the swing now, he doesn't like the idea of sleeping in his bed. It usually takes us about an hour to finally get him to sleep at night. Nap time is getting better, but started off taking over an hour and a half to get him to sleep, and then it was about time to wake up again. Brady loves to give hugs and kisses (even when you don't ask for them)! He is not crazy about Max getting in his space, and usually lets him know about it! Maybe he is scared his little bit of hair will be pulled out by Max! He is trying to cut his molars, but not having much luck. He is pretty miserable and doesn't do well with teething.

My attempts at getting a group shot were unsuccessful! Needless to say, I think my days of photoshoots are over! :-)

I am so blessed to get the opportunity to stay at home with our kids and watch all of their milestones. I couldn't imagine missing out on one of their firsts. Although it can be exhausting, I have the best job in the world!

Way to go Sophie!

2011-01-06T19:18:00.000-08:00

Since leaving the NICU last February, Sophie has been having routine echo cardiograms every few months to check the left side of her heart. She started off in the NICU on meds for high blood pressure, which likely caused some thickening on the left side of her heart. Her blood pressure has been great for the past 5 months, and the thickening has shown some improvement, however, the cardiologist and nephrologist wanted to keep an eye on her heart to make sure it continued to improve.

Today was a big day for Miss Sophie! She was released by the cardiologist, and does not have to go back unless we have concerns! Her echo cardiogram looked great! We are so relieved that we do not have to worry about her having a heart condition that could effect her long term. This girl is such a little fighter! It's so hard to believe that she hasn't even been home with us a year yet! This is a great way to start off our new year!

December 31, 2009

2010-12-31T15:01:00.001-08:00

On December 31, 2009, we took our two handsome little boys home with us! We were so excited that we were getting so close to having our whole family together at home! It was also a scary time for us as well since Brady came home on oxygen. What a blessed year 2010 has been for us! Happy New Year!

Our family minus Sophie.

Max

Brady

Sweet Brady today!
Wild Max today(getting into trouble as usual)!
Our big boys!

Max's First Hair Cut!

2010-12-30T14:50:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday we decided that it was time to get Max's crazy hair cut for the first time! He was such a good boy, and sat on Papa's lap. He looks like such a big boy now!!!

Sitting in the chair like a big boy waiting for his turn!

Before his hair cut!
It was getting really long in the back!
Sitting still like a big boy!

I look so big now!

Looks much better!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-29T12:30:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a very blessed Christmas! I wanted to write a blog post on Sunday when we got home from Mason City/Clear Lake, however, I knew it would take me FOREVER to upload all the pictures I took. I guess I got a little carried away! :-)

We had an amazing weekend with our family, and are so incredibly blessed! It was so much fun to watch our little miracle babies, who were so tiny and fragile last year at this time, rip into their presents/eat the paper! They had a BIG weekend, but did really well.

We were so excited that the pediatrician gave us the OK to start taking them out into public more, which meant we could actually go to church on Christmas eve as a family. It has always been a tradition on my side of the family to go to church on Christmas eve as a family, and then head over to my grandparents to open gifts. This year, we weren't sure how smoothly that would go, but thought we'd give it a try. The babies did great! In fact, after the service was over, a lady sitting behind me said, "Wow! Those are the best behaved babies! I never thought you would make it until the end, but they were so well behaved!" I think they were in awe of all the lights and music. They were also fascinated with the candles at the end. Of course, we made sure nobody sitting near the babies had candles.....just in case!

After church we went to my grandparent's house to open gift/eat, and then back to James' parent's house to open more gifts. Everyone did great, but poor Brady got a bit tired. He slept during our gift opening at Nana and Papa's house until the end, when he got his second wind. Christmas morning, we opened more gifts from Santa and had a yummy turkey dinner!

I apologize for all the pictures, but I couldn't seem to eliminate any. They are all so cute, and so many fun memories were made! Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Also- we would really appreciate it if you would say a prayer for James' grandma Dotzler. She had a heart attack over the weekend, and is not doing well.

Testing some of Mommy's sugar cookies!
Brady
"Two thumbs up, Mommy!"

Emme

"Why can't we have these for supper?!"Max

"I'll take another one please!"

Sophie

"These are good!"

We had Christmas with the Watters' family the night before we headed north for Christmas!

Emme and Grandma

Our family!

The babies with Uncle Caleb!

The stockings at Great-Grandma Mick and Great-Grandpa Lee's house!

Santa fills them for all the grand kids and great-grand kids!

Sophie checking things out!

Daddy and Max opening presents!

Mommy and Emme opening presents!

A pillow pet!

Grandma and Sophie.

Great-Aunt Kris and Brady.

Nana and Brady.

Poor Brady was exhausted!

Emme

Sophie thought the wrapping paper tasted pretty good!

Uncle Jeffy helping the girls open presents.

New baby dolls for the girls, and teddy bears for the boys!

Uncle Jeffy and Emme.
Papa and Sophie.
Can you tell how excited Max was?!
Peek-a-boo Max!

Uncle Me Me and Emme.

Daddy and Brady after Brady's nap.

Brady

Brady opening his new teddy bear!

Papa and Emme. A big present from Nana and Papa!

Brady

What can it be?!
A new slide!

Sophie

Emme

Max

Santa brought us a new play house!

Sophie and Emme.

Sophie

Emme

Brady

Sophie

Max and Sophie.

All the fun at Nana and Papa's house wore poor Brady out!

Brady and Emme playing with their new race track!

Brady playing with the new kitchen!

1 Year Ago Today....

2010-12-26T20:05:00.001-08:00

Exactly 1 year ago today, we brought our first baby home from the NICU, our sweet Emme Lee. Neither James or I slept much that first night, but we were so excited to finally have her home with us, where we could hold her whenever we wanted with no wires hooked up to her. What an amazing Christmas present!

Today, Miss Emme Lee is our sweet and sassy little girl, with a smile that melts your heart. We are so blessed and lucky to have you in our lives Emme Lee, and are having so much fun watching your big personality shine through in your little body!

Daddy and Mommy getting ready to take Emme home!
Sweet Emme Lee!
Our 13 month old, Emme Lee as sweet(and sassy) as ever!

Merry Christmas!!!!

2010-12-23T06:38:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas from the Dotzler's!

The secrets to a clean house.....HA!

2010-12-20T11:49:00.000-08:00

Whenever I post pictures on the blog or Facebook, I always seem to get comments like, "Wow, your house sure looks clean for someone who has 4 babies!" Every time I hear this, I seriously laugh out loud! James and I were just talking about how we should take a before and after picture of the living room. Before meaning after the babies go to bed for the night, and after meaning from the time the babies wake up until they go to bed for the night.

When the babies first started getting mobile, and could get the toys out on their own, I would always try to keep stuff picked up. I guess it's the preschool teacher in me. My classroom always had a place for everything with a picture, so the kids knew where to put everything when it was clean up time. Having your own kids at home sure gives you a quick reality check! Anyways when they are little it does! I have finally learned that I have to pick and choose my battles, and keeping the toys picked up all the time is definitely not a battle that I am going to win anytime soon! My living room can look like a tornado went through it faster than it takes me to get everything put away. I still like to have stuff picked up at night, but it doesn't always happen now. I took some pictures today just to prove that my house is definitely not neat and tidy by any means. We wouldn't have it any other way though! :-) I even posted a picture of our beautiful tree that Max has re-decorated all by himself! At least the top of the tree still has ornaments on it!

Here are some pictures to show you what our little munchkins have been up to lately...
Our nice and tidy living room before the kids woke up this morning.

Our not so tidy living room after they layed down for their morning nap at 10:00 a.m.

Our "beautiful" Christmas tree (including the lovely gate)

Apparently Sophie thought her peaches were too slimy to pick up today!

It's much easier this way!

Brady is soooooo big!

Max watching Daddy leave for work this morning.......or possibly pondering how he could get the trash can that is sitting outside the door.

Happy girl Emme!
Brady is so close to crawling, but can't quite figure out what to do next.....

or someone gets in his way!

Sophie is always such a happy girl!

Somehow Max managed to get stuck in a tote full of toys!

Smiley Brady

Emme has figured out the army crawl, and could crawl on her hands and knees if she wanted to. She is so laid back and content with watching her siblings.

Sophie is getting there too.....it won't be long!

Our sweet girls with little ponytails

Happy girls! Emme is on the left and Sophie on the right.

What a week!

2010-12-14T16:24:00.000-08:00

I meant to write a blog post after the babies had their 12 month check-up with the pediatrician, but things have been a bit crazy around here! James spent the weekend of December 3-6 in Lansing for opening deer season, so the babies and I visited Nana and Papa for the weekend. For some reason everyone thought it would be fun to stay up all hours of the night, and not let anyone get any sleep! Not a fun game if you ask me! :-) Needless to say, we were all ready to get back home and into our routine.

This last week has been exhausting to say the least. Last Thursday, poor Brady started acting like he was getting sick. He woke up with a low grade temp, so I gave him some ibuprofen and put him back to bed. Later in the afternoon, his temp started to get higher and higher, and he was a bit lethargic, so I got him in to see the pediatrician. He had a sore throat, but no strep. The doctor was concerned about his high temp and decided to test him for a urinary tract infection. Of course Brady wouldn't pee in the bag that they use for urine samples in babies, so they had to use a catheter, which made poor Brady very upset. He screamed and screamed until this Momma was ready to cry herself! All of that for nothing! They couldn't get a sample. They put the bag back on him and sent us home. As soon as he peed in the bag, we had to take it to the hospital lab for testing. They started him on antibiotics just in case, and as it turned out, he did have a urinary tract infection. He has been very miserable, and wasn't back to himself until today!

Next was Mr. Max's turn to get sick on Friday. He hadn't been sleeping well at night, and kept pulling at his ears. Turns out he had the same sore throat that Brady had.

Trip #3 to the pediatrician was on Saturday with Brady again. He was still extremely fussy from the urinary tract infection, so the doctor suggested that we bring him back in to the clinic to get a shot of antibiotics to help speed things up a bit. Needless to say, he was not excited about seeing the doctor again, and knew exactly what was going to happen as soon as the nurse pulled his leg out of his pants for the shot!

Somehow I managed to throw my back out Saturday morning too! Not a good thing to happen to a mom who takes care of four one year olds!

Sunday morning I woke up to what sounded like an animal breathing in the boys' bedroom. I was pretty sure that he had the croup, but wasn't sure if we would even be able to make it to the doctor's office due to the blizzard conditions outside! Luckily roads cleared up and the wind died down later in the afternoon, so Max and I (with the help of Papa who thankfully came down to help out) headed out for our fourth visit to the doctor in four days! They gave Max a steroid shot to help with the croup, and me some muscle relaxers to help with my back. As of today, both boys and myself are doing much better! We are keeping our fingers crossed that the girls stay healthy. Especially since the holidays are right around the corner!

(L to R) Sophie, Brady, Emme, Max

Here are the current heights and weights for each baby as of November 30 as well as what everyone has been up to lately. It seems like they are really starting to change, and act so much older. I wish I could slow things down a bit!

Our first born, Miss Sophie Marie is as sweet as ever! She is such a happy baby, and has the most contagious smile! She is an absolute Daddy's girl, and has found that she can whine a bit and Papa melts too! She knows how to get those guys wrapped around her tiny little finger! Sophie eats anything and everything. I haven't found a whole lot that she doesn't like. We tried strawberries for the first time today, and she wasn't crazy about them. It could have been the fact that they were something she had never had before. Her favorite healthy food is bananas, and junk food is Cheetos's (thanks to Papa for introducing these to the babies)! :-) She is rolling all over the place, but still no crawling. She is really starting to babble a lot in her own little language, but the words we can understand are ba ba, da da, ma ma, and pa pa.

Current Height: 28" (15-20% on the full term growth chart)

Current Weight: 15 pounds 4 ounces (not on the full term growth chart, but growing nicely on the preemie growth chart) I think she may always be our little peanut!

Miss Sassy Pants, Emme Lee is so full of personality these days! She makes us laugh all the time! She has mastered the fake laugh and does it all the time to her brothers and sister! It is adorable! She is very sassy when she wants something she can't have, and can also give quite the attitude when she doesn't want to do something (eat, go to sleep, etc.). Although she can be sassy, she is a very good baby, and loves to play with her siblings. She is very laid back and easy going, and often entertains herself for long periods of time. She is still our picky little eater, but has gotten better. Her favorite healthy foods are yogurt and bananas, and junk food is Cheetos. Emme is rolling everywhere also and is about 90% crawling (when she wants to). She is army crawling like Max, but seems to want to get to her hands and knees, so we'll see which way she prefers once she really gets going. She says ma ma, da da, and ba ba, but babbles all the time in what we call Emme language! She is such a silly little girl!

Current Height: 28 1/4" (25% on full term growth chart)

Current Weight: 18 pounds 9 ounces (15-20% on full term growth chart)

Wild Mr. Max Edward shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon! He is still our go getter, and keeps us on our toes at all times! He can spot something interesting to get into from across the room, and usually b-lines it wherever he needs to go before we even realize what he's into! He has a very sweet personality too, but like his sister Emme, he likes to be silly too. He is normally a good eater, but lately has backed off a bit. It could be because he has been sick. He is talking up a storm lately. He says ma ma, da da, pa pa, ba ba, hi, sis, hi sis, nice, and lots of other things that we can't quite understand. Since turning one, he has really taken off on talking! He is walking around furniture while holding on, but no walking yet. Max is a bit of a bully lately, and really likes to pick on his siblings by pulling hair, and hitting. At first we didn't think he knew any better, but lately are finding that he thinks it's funny when you tell him no no. I am sure if you look up the work mischievous in the dictionary, you will find a picture of Max! We have really been working on teaching him what nice means. Now he gets close to one of his siblings, and looks to see if we are watching. If we are watching and close enough to stop him if he does something naughty, he'll get his stinker smile on his face, pat whoevers head he is next to, and say, "nice" in a very sweet little voice. Sometimes it's followed by a slap or handful of hair.... :-) Max is also learning to throw a bit of a fit lately. If I try to pick him up and move him away from something he is not supposed to have, he arches his back and kicks his legs in protest! I can't believe how early the attitudes start, and can only imagine what it will be like in a couple of years!

Current Height: 29 1/2" (45% on full term growth chart)

Current Weight: 22 pounds 5 ounces (50% on full term growth chart)

Sweet Mr. Brady is a big time Mommy's boy! In fact, since he has been sick he has wanted to be rocked by his mommy, and also likes to sleep with me. I know this is a horrible habit to start, and I swore I wouldn't do it, but it's so hard when you have three other babies sleeping soundly! As I type, he is asleep in his bed, so I'm crossing my fingers that it will stay that way. Brady is a very good eater as well, and likes pretty much everything we have given him so far. He really likes bananas, and of course the Cheetos's! Brady has learned how to throw fits lately when something doesn't go his way. He dropped his Cheeto on the floor today, and decided he would scream at the top of his lungs and pound his hands on the table! It's hard to look at that sweet face pictured above, and believe that he would do such a thing, huh? :-) Brady is so close to crawling!!! He gets into the crawling position and rocks back and forth. He will even move his hands forward or his knees, but can't seem to coordinate everything yet. I'm guessing it will be very soon though! He can say ma ma, da da, pa pa, and ba ba.

Current Height: 29 1/4" (30% on full term growth chart)

Current Weight: 19 pounds 4 ounces (8 % on full term growth chart)

(L to R) Brady, Max, Sophie, Emme

It is so much fun to watch them play and interact with each other! I hope they continue to have a close bond as they get older!

We continue to be absolutely amazed at everyone's progress. Especially considering they haven't even been home from the NICU a year yet! It is a true miracle!

1st Birthday Party Fun!

2010-11-30T14:30:00.000-08:00

I meant to post these pictures from the babies birthday party last week, but with all the chaos of traveling for Thanksgiving I didn't get around to it. Everything turned out great, and the babies had so much fun. It was very entertaining to watch each of them with their cake and presents! I made almost everything for their party myself, so I was a little nervous that I would forget something, but everything turned out amazing! :-)

Family Photo....The babies were too busy to look at the camera!

Brady and Max playing with their new toys!

The cake table.
Our favorite nurse from the NICU, Betty with Emme.

(L to R) Emme, Brady, Sophie, Max
Their cakes!

Max dug right into his cake, and of course made a huge mess! He thought the cake was pretty tasty!

Brady's reaction was hysterical! He never really ate any of the cake, but thought it was fun to destroy it, and make a huge mess! The more everyone laughed at him, the bigger mess he made. He was totally showing off for the audience!

Sophie preferred to eat hers face first in the cake! I guess you get less messy that way! She really liked the cake too!

Miss Priss, Emme wanted NOTHING to do with her cake! You can see her examining the tiny bit of frosting on her fingers. I had to put her hand in the cake, and she was not happy about it!

Our quad friends that we met while I was pregnant!

Happy 1st birthday to our little miracles!

2010-11-18T08:52:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my 4 sweet miracle babies!

I cannot believe that my babies are 1 today! This has been such a whirlwind of a year, and the time has flown by. I have been looking back at pictures, and thinking of when we first found out we were having quadruplets. At that time it was impossible for us to even imagine what God had in store for us, or what it would be like. It was such a scary time with many unknowns, several weeks of bed rest (both at home and in the hospital), surgery to prolong my pregnancy as long as absolutely possible, and a long and tiring stay in the NICU. This year has certainly not been a walk in the park, and has come with many sleepless nights, and very busy days, but today, I can honestly say that this has been the happiest year of my life! I'm sure James would agree with me that there is no greater joy than becoming a parent, especially times 4! It is overwhelming to think of how incredibly blessed we are. I am absolutely amazed at how far our sweet babies have come in a year, and look forward to watching them grow. I just wish it didn't have to go so fast!

We have been very busy getting ready for their big party, which is on Sunday. I'll post pictures next week. Here are some cute 1 year pictures of the babies that were taken at Mercy for an upcoming Health Matters magazine that Mercy publishes every couple of months. They turned out great!

Smiley Sophie Marie is such a Daddy's girl these days. It is priceless to watch her face light up as soon as she sees her Daddy. She definitely has him where she wants him, and will get anything she wants I'm sure! Sophie is very laid back and easy going. She is the best sleeper at night, however she has discovered that she can fight the going to sleep process now like everyone else. Once she is in bed, it is usually for the night though. She hasn't gotten any new teeth lately, and is a very good eater! I haven't found too many things that she refuses to eat. She is rolling all over the place, but no crawling yet.

Silly Emme Lee...Emme thinks EVERYTHING is funny these days. She is pretty laid back, but has figured out how to be a little sassy to get what she wants. She loves to play with her siblings, and giggles like crazy at them. She especially loves it when Max crawls on top of her. She is rolling all over the place, and getting a little closer to the army crawl. She is the pickiest eater EVER! She is smart enough to smell whatever it is we are trying to give her to see if it is something that she likes. She loves yogurt, and would probably eat it for every single meal if we would let her. Most of the time, she bats whatever it is that we have out of our hands, or wants to do it herself. She hates to get dirty as you can see in the cake picture below. She wasn't sure what to do with the frosting once it was stuck to her fingers. I think she is going to be very stubborn and strong willed (she may get that from her mama)! She now has 4 teeth on top and 2 on bottom. Wild Max Edward.....Max is in to EVERYTHING these days. Nothing is safe when Max is around. He is still army crawling like a crazy man. I don't think he will ever crawl on his hands and knees although I have noticed him doing it more often lately. His favorite things to get into are the trash can, which has to get moved to the deck every morning, the vertical blinds in the kitchen, and most recently, the drawers and cupboards in the kitchen. Max is a very happy baby, and makes us laugh all the time. He is pulling himself up to everything now, and loves to crawl over his brother and sisters. There isn't much that he won't eat, and he hasn't gotten any new teeth lately either.
Sweet Brady James is a big Mama's boy lately. He is by far the cuddliest baby, and loves to be held. He learned to give kisses, and gets the cutest smile on his face before he gives you kisses. Brady has such a sweet personality, but is also going to be very strong willed and stubborn. He has quite the temper when one of his sisters or brother takes a toy from him, and has already mastered how to throw a fit! Brady likes to play by himself most of the time. I suppose that is to ensure that nobody steals his toy! :-) Brady is a very good eater too, and likes most everything. He is getting very close to crawling, and will probably be the first one to do it the right way on hands and knees. He is getting really good at getting himself from the sitting to crawling position, and then back to the sitting position. He really doesn't care too much about rolling around like everyone else, but I'm sure he'll figure out that he can get into more that way!

We are having so much fun watching our babies meet each milestone, and develop such strong bonds with each other. They have so much love for each other already, and it absolutely amazes me! There is no greater sound than hearing your children giggle at each other without any help from mom and dad!

Sophie, Emme, Max, and Brady, you have brought so much joy to our lives! I am so glad that God chose me to be your Mommy, and I can't wait to see what the future has in store for us! Mommy and Daddy love each and every one of you more than you will ever know!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2010-11-10T19:12:00.001-08:00

We celebrated James' 29th birthday on Monday, so we thought it would be fun to let the babies test out a little cake before their big day. It is so funny to watch their reactions, and shows how much different their little personalities are!

Brady did not waste any time at all. He dug right in and got his hands dirty! He mostly played with it though, and didn't really want to eat any.

Max put his right to his mouth. He loved it, and kept saying, "mmmmmmm."

Can you tell how excited Sophie was about her cake! She might be little, but she LOVES food!

Emme does not like to get dirty. I love the look on her face in this picture She looks absolutely disgusted that we would put something so messy in front of her!

Max made the biggest mess by far! He looked like a Smurf, and was covered from head to toe!

Sophie didn't do too bad. Her face and hands were messy, but we obviously expected that.

Brady got rid of any evidence by pushing all the crumbs to the floor.
Our prissy girl Emme makes me laugh. She didn't know how to get the cake off of her hands, and ended up with it all over her face!

Needless to say, the kids all needed a bath when we were done, but it was fun while it lasted! We had to change out the bath water after each baby even though they were only in the tub for a couple of minutes each! Their party should be interesting since we are having it at the community center. No bath tubs there!

Our 4 "Roaring" Lions!

2010-10-31T21:08:00.001-07:00

We were planning on attending the Halloween parade in Clear Lake on Saturday, but we have been dealing with ear infections and colds, and poor Sophie has been taking breathing treatments for her breathing, so we decided it wasn't a good idea to take them out in the cool weather. Nana bought the babies costumes last year, so we had to at least dress them up, and snap some pictures. Dislike doesn't even come close to describing how the babies felt about their costumes! They were literally "roaring" with disapproval! I think dress up lasted for about 10 seconds, and these are the only pictures I was able to get. They still look cute, but hopefully next year will go a bit smoother. Sophie looks shocked that we would make her look like a lion! :)

Emme didn't really care too much.

Brady looks disgusted with his new look!

Max was not happy at all about his costume, and let it be known to everyone around!

I hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween!

RSV lockdown is here to stay for a while!

2010-10-22T15:12:00.001-07:00

We have been hearing about a lot of sickness that has been going around, and the babies are getting over a cold, so we decided it was time for "lock down" to begin. We haven't heard anything about RSV synagist yet, so my guess is that the insurance company will not cover it this year. Our pediatrician told us that we should know no later than November, so we're still holding on to hope. We knew we would still have to be careful, and try not to expose the babies to any unnecessary germs, but it stinks now that we are used to being able to take them out and about. Last winter was so long, and the weather was horrible. We are praying for a short and mild winter this year (wishful thinking, huh)!

Two weekends ago we had so much fun getting together with a triplet family that we met while in the hospital. The triplets are a little over a month older than our quads. James met the triplets' dad, Joe, when I was on bed rest, and we met up again at the NICU reunion. The kids all had fun, and it was nice for us adults too! :)

We are SO excited about our new choo choo wagon! While I was on bed rest, I read all sorts of blogs of families with quadruplets, and every single one of them raved about the choo choo wagon. I knew that we would want one as soon as the babies were big enough to sit in a wagon, but was super disappointed to find out that the company no longer made them. I found a couple on eBay that were way over priced, and by the time you paid for the shipping, it was definitely not worth it. About a month ago, I was looking on the Step 2 website for birthday ideas for the babies, and found that they were going to start making the choo choo again this fall. Of course there were no dates as to when they would go on sale, and how much they would cost, but after much waiting, we finally have one! We were too excited to wait until November to let the babies ride in it, and knew it would probably be too cold by then, so last week we took it for a spin. The kids LOVE it, and look so grown up sitting in it! Makes me sad to see how big they are getting, but know that life is getting easier all the time!

Here are some pictures of our play date, and our new wagon!

Group shots are not easy with 7 kiddos age one and under!
Poor Sophie didn't last long!
Our New Choo Choo Wagon!!!!
Max

Brady
Emme

Sophie looks very relaxed! :)
Gunner had to get in on the action too!

11 Months Old!

2010-10-18T07:31:00.000-07:00

We are now one month away from the babies birthday! Where has the time gone?! I have started planning their party, but am still in a bit of denial that they will actually be one soon! It was kind of hard to come up with a birthday theme for babies that can be for girls and boys, but I think we have decided on Mickey and Minnie Mouse. I am making my own invitations, and decorations though because I didn't find much that I really liked.

We have been having so much fun lately, but that fun is going to end really soon. RSV season is fast approaching, and we will have to go back to obsessive hand washing/sanitizing, and keeping sick people away. We haven't heard yet if the babies will be approved by the insurance company for RSV synagis this year, but we are praying that they will. We definitely don't want the babies to get sick with anything this winter, especially RSV. We took the babies last week to get their flu shots, and they did really well. Both Max and Brady never even flinched when they got their shot, which really surprised us. The girls cried for maybe 30 seconds and were fine. Now Mommy and Daddy need to get theirs!

Here is an update on the babies at 11 months...

Sophie Marie

Weight: 14 pounds 11 ounces (with clothes on)

Sophie is such a good baby. She still sucks her thumb to fall asleep, and sleeps around 12-14 hours a night. We are starting to think that she might be a bit like her brother Max once she gets to crawling. When she sees something she wants, she starts kicking and squealing. She can say ba ba ma ma, and da da now, and has learned how to shake her head no. She is sitting up all by herself now, but is still a bit wobbly at times. Her favorite foods are applesauce and yogurt. We have tried giving her small pieces of carrots, green beans, peaches, and pears, but she isn't a fan yet.

Emme Lee

Weight: 18 pounds 5 ounces (with clothes on)

Emme is also a very good baby, and has a very laid back personality. She is our silly little girl, and thinks everything is funny. She is always laughing at her siblings, and loves to play with them. She usually sleeps about 12 hours at night also. Emme is sitting up on her own, and rolling all over the place now. She learned how to wave bye bye, and can play pat a cake now as well. Emme got her first top tooth at Nana and Papa's house on Saturday, October 9. Her favorite foods are applesauce and yogurt like her sister, and she finally decided last week that she kind of likes small pieces of carrots too. I think she will be our picky eater. Emme can say ma ma, da da, and ba ba.

Max Edward

Weight: 21 pounds 11 ounces (with clothes on)

Max is our wild man, and is into EVERYTHING these days! He has mastered the army crawl, and is trying to crawl on his hands and knees. I don't know if he'll ever crawl that way. He is starting to try and pull up on things, but is not quite there yet. He loves to play in the walker, and can pretty much run around the house in it. Max usually sleeps around 12 hours at night, but often times wakes up for a bottle around 3 am. He is very independent, and will not let you hold him when giving him a bottle anymore. He likes to have his bottle in his bed even though you are not supposed to do that. We have tried giving him his bottle on a boppy pillow in the living room, but he is very easily distracted, and never finishes more than a couple of ounces. He is finally sleeping in his bed and not the swing anymore! We haven't found much that Max doesn't like to eat. He loves to eat pancakes, yogurt, peaches, and mandarin oranges. Max can say ma ma, da da, ba ba, bye bye, and he is trying to say puppy. He can shake his head for yes, and no. Max just got his seventh tooth (bottom) this weekend.

Brady James

Weight: 18 pounds 11 ounces (with clothes on)

Brady is such a sweet little boy, and loves to cuddle. He can say ma ma, da da, and ba ba, but his favorite is definitely da da. He says it all day long. Brady can sit up on his own, play pat a cake, wave bye bye, and play "so big!" Brady usually sleeps about 12 hours at night, but occasionally wakes up early for a bottle. He absolutely loves our dog Gunner, and gets super excited when Gunner gives him kisses. Brady is also a good eater, and likes pretty much everything. Some of his favorites are peaches, carrots, applesauce, and yogurt.

A Day in the Life of Max!

2010-10-14T12:16:00.000-07:00

Since Max is currently our only crawler, I thought it would be funny to document what he is up to these days! Max is definitely our go getter, and by that, I mean he gets into EVERYTHING! :) He loves to "help" with anything that I am doing, and follows me from room to room. I cannot even begin to imagine what it will be like with four busy little crawlers, but I know it isn't too far off! I will be one busy mommy! These pictures were all taken within about 5 minutes."I think I will help you load the dishwasher, Mom!"
"Hmmm...this looks interesting!"

Busted! :)
"Look at me, Mom!"

Visit to northeast Iowa

2010-10-12T11:05:00.000-07:00

Since RSV season is right around the corner, and we will be in "lock down," we decided to surprise James' grandmas with a visit from the babies. Both of James' grandmas live in northeast Iowa in nursing homes, so it is hard to get there to visit with the babies. Nana Jean and I headed out early Saturday morning, and really enjoyed all the beautiful trees on the way. Both grandmas were very surprised to see us! Here are some pictures from the weekend...

Fall Fun

2010-10-02T19:08:00.000-07:00

It was a little windy and cool on Saturday, but we decided to bundle the kids up and take them to the pumpkin patch while Daddy was working. My mom and James' dad both came down along with Uncle Caleb to help out, so we had plenty of help. Of course I couldn't resist snapping TONS of pictures, so here ya go....

Papa pulling the babies and Uncle Caleb around the pumpkin patch!

(L to R) Max, Brady, Sophie, Emme

Sophie

Emme

MaxBrady

Love this one! :)

What I Never Knew About Becoming a Parent!

2010-09-30T07:46:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been thinking a lot about how much our lives changed the day that we became parents (X 4). We tried for so long to have a baby, and then planned and prepared for the four that we were blessed with. However, there are SO many things I was not at all prepared for! I decided it would be kind of fun to come up with a list of the things I wasn't expecting with parenthood....

1. I had no idea that you would feel guilty about EVERYTHING! I spend most of my time trying to be the best parent possible, and enjoy every minute of the babies while they are little, but I still find myself feeling like I didn't pay enough attention to them today, or didn't get them outside today like I wanted, etc. Although there is only so much time in a day, and lots of other household things that need to be done. I would much rather spend my time playing with the babies!

2. Becoming a mother to quadruplets has been quite the experience for me, and despite how much you try to mentally prepare yourself for the challenge, there is no way I could have prepared myself for all the crazy things I get asked when people find out that I have quads. I often hear, "Oh I bet you have your hands full!" or "Wow! I'm sure glad it's you and not me!" or "Did you know you were having quadruplets?" or "Are they identical?" and my favorite...."Can you tell them apart?"

To answer the first question, I ordered a t-shirt from a fellow quad mom at Designed for Babies that says, "YES I DO HAVE MY HANDS FULL!" I love the shirt, and wear it quite a bit when I am out and about with the babies. I think another shirt should be made to answer the second statement as well. I hear it all the time. The shirt could say, "I'm glad it's me and not you too!" The third question still gets me every time! I think that question comes when people don't know what else to say about the shock that they are looking at quads. I don't have any other explanation because if you thought about it for longer than a couple of seconds, you would know that there is no way you could show up on delivery day and not know you were carrying quadruplets! :) All four of my kids look so different from each other that I don't know how anyone could not tell them apart, but then again I am around them every day.

3. I also had no idea that becoming a parent would make me so emotional! I never used to cry much at all, and now all I have to do is watch a show on TV about kids, and it makes me tear up.

4. I did not know it was possible to love someone so much, and certainly had no idea how much you could love 4 babies equally. In fact, when I was pregnant I worried all the time about how I was going to be able to love 4 babies the same amount. It was love at first site, and all those fears went out the window the minute that I saw my four precious babies for the first time!

5. I was certainly not prepared for the amount of worrying you do as a parent. Before I go to bed at night, I always check on the babies to make sure they aren't too cold, too hot, are breathing, etc., however it never fails, the minute I lay down, and am almost asleep, I get this anxiety that tells my brain I need to check on them one more time just to make sure they are OK! I cannot seem to shut my brain off long enough to go to sleep!!

6. The biggest shock for me about parenthood is how fast your kids grow up. I remember when they were tiny newborns coming home from the NICU for the first time. We were so sleep deprived, and scared that something would happen to our fragile little babies that we worried ourselves sick most of the time. At that point it felt as though time were going so slowly, and we would never know what it's like to be rested again. I swear it feels like I blinked for a few seconds, and my babies grew up. How can they be almost 11 month old already?!

I'm sure my list could go on and on forever, and maybe I will update it later as the babies get older. I thought it would be a neat reminder to myself to look back on! Here are some cute pictures that were taken last week of the babies!

It looks like we forgot to feed them before pictures! They thought the leaves looked tasty!

Emme Lee

Sophie Marie

Brady James

Max Edward

Our Little Dotzler Quad Squad!

(L to R) Max, Emme, Brady, Sophie

NICU Reunion 2010

2010-09-26T09:46:00.001-07:00

On Saturday we attended our very first NICU reunion. We had so much fun catching up with the nurses and doctors who took such amazing care of our babies. We also got the chance to catch up with some of the families that we met while in the NICU. We will forever be grateful to each and every person who took care of, and supported us throughout this journey. We continue to be amazed by our four blessings, and are so thankful to God for choosing us to be the parents to Sophie, Emme, Max, and Brady!Our Family

(L to R: Emme, Sophie, Max, Brady)

Our Sweet Girls!
Our Handsome Boys!

The babies with one of their amazing NICU doctor's!

10 Month Update

2010-09-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

First of all....how in the world can we have 4 ten month olds already?! This first year is going by so quickly, and I have mixed emotions on how I feel about the babies turning one. It is so exciting to watch them learn new things, but also sad to know that they won't be babies much longer. We aren't planning on having anymore children, so I wish things would slow down a bit. I am so thankful that I have been able to stay at home with the babies, and haven't missed out on any milestones yet. I know that had I only had one baby at a time, I probably wouldn't have had the opportunity to stay at home. I look forward to all the fun that we are going to have with our quads. They are already developing such a special bond with each other, and I absolutely LOVE watching them interact with each other each day. I hope they have a close bond forever! :)

Here is an update on our little stinkers! The pictures are from their first time eating/playing with pudding with their fingers! It was hilarious to watch their reactions!

Miss Sweet Sophie is such a good baby. The girl loves to sleep! She is still going to sleep around 9:00, and doesn't get up until about 10:30 in the morning. If only she could teach her brothers and sister how to sleep like that! We would have it made! She has six teeth, and looks so silly when she smiles because her little fang teeth show more than the top middle teeth. She is loving the jumperoo these days, and is trying to sit up on her own. It shouldn't be too much longer and she'll be sitting without any help! Sophie also LOVES to eat. We have been giving the babies more table food, and less baby food, and so far Sophie likes applesauce, yogurt, pudding, bananas, and carrots. She was not a fan of mashed potatoes, which surprised me.

We got some good news last week on Sophie. You may remember that Sophie has been going to a pediatric nephrologist since leaving the NICU due to high blood pressure. She has been on a diuretic to help keep fluid off her lungs, and keep her blood pressure down. After leaving the NICU, the nephrologist ordered an echo cardiogram to check her heart, and found some thickening on the left side of her heart. Since then, she has been going every couple of months for check-ups with the nephrologist. We have also been monitoring her blood pressure from home. The nephrologist ordered a repeat echo cardiogram to check her heart for improvements, and was happy with the results. He told us that the thickening is still there, but has improved. Her blood pressure has been really good too, so he is releasing her from his care, and said we can try to ween her from her meds! We are so happy for Sophie, and can't wait until she is medicine free! The pediatrician wants to see her next week to check her blood pressure, and electrolytes, but as long as everything looks good, she will only have her blood pressure checked at regular check-ups.

***Sophie was not sure about the pudding at first, but eventually learned that it was really fun to make a mess!

Miss Emme girl is also as sweet as they come! She has turned into a little goofball lately, and thinks everything (especially her siblings) are very funny! She is such a good baby, and entertains herself the majority of the time. She loves to watch TV, jump in the jumperoo, and play with toys. She has 2 bottom teeth now, and is sitting up all by herself. Emme has decided that she likes to be a night owl, and usually ends up sleeping in the swing in our bedroom. She is a big daddy's girl, so I think most nights, she is just waiting for her daddy to rock her to sleep! Emme is not liking table food much at all! The only things she seems to like are yogurt, pudding (if fed from a spoon and not her hands), and sometimes applesauce. She doesn't like anything with a weird texture, and usually ends up gagging, and throwing it up! I think the poor girl would be content with eating baby food forever!

***Emme was not into the pudding at all! She did not like getting dirty, and acted like she was disgusted by the pudding!

Mr. Brady boy has a very sweet personality, and loves to cuddle. He can also be very vocal if he wants something! He gets very angry when one of his siblings takes a toy away from him, but also loves to smile and play with his brother and sisters. This little boy is so smart! He LOVES to watch Baby Boost, which is a free show we found that our cable provider offers. He is a very quick learner, and loves to play pat-a-cake, and "so big!" If he sees someone clapping on TV, he always has to mimic what they are doing. Brady is fascinated by our dog, Gunner, and loves to get puppy kisses. He has four teeth now (two bottom, two top), and likes most of the table food that we have given him so far. His favorite are yogurt, pudding, and applesauce. He is sitting up all by himself now, and loves to play with toys that play music! He also loves the jumperoo.

***Brady thought the pudding was tons of fun! He slapped his hands on the table, and splattered pudding everywhere!

Mr. Mad Max is as high energy as ever! He learned how to crawl over the weekend, and thinks it is so much fun to get all the things that he couldn't get to before like the computer cord, vacuum, left over snacks on the floor, etc. He is definitely going to be our wild child, and most likely the leader. He LOVES to eat, and isn't very picky. So far he has eaten pretty much all the table foods that we have given him, but like Brady, his favorites are yogurt, applesauce, and pudding. Max is finally sleeping in his crib, and hasn't been in his swing all weekend!!!! I think he has finally figured it out that his bed is much more comfortable than the swing. Max is very vocal, and likes to yell as loud as possible to let you know that he needs something (usually more snacks)!

***Max loved the pudding, and wanted more. He definitely made the biggest mess!

I was very brave on Thursday, and attempted to give all four babies a bath at the same time by myself!!! I was nervous, but they did really well. They all had so much fun playing and splashing with each other. It really made bath time go much faster. I cannot believe how big they are all getting! Time flies when you're having fun!!! :)

Wedding Weekend

2010-09-13T16:54:00.001-07:00

This past weekend we traveled to Decorah for James' cousin's wedding. James was in the wedding, so he had to be there for the rehearsal on Friday. He left Friday morning for Decorah, so Papa and I decided to take the kids to the homecoming parade in Sheffield. The babies had so much fun. They all love to be outside, and were perfect little angels!

Saturday morning we got up, and got the babies bathed, changed, and fed before we hit the road. They all looked so adorable for the wedding in their new outfits! The girls even had a black and gold hair bow that I made them since we couldn't watch the big Iowa vs. Iowa State game.

It was so great to see all of James' family at the wedding. Many of his aunts, uncles, and cousins had never met the babies before. The babies did so well in church and at the reception. Especially since they really didn't have much of a nap. James comes from a very large family (his dad has 17 brothers and sisters), so the babies were entertained the entire time by someone!

Here are some pictures from the day....

Group shot with Great-Grandma Dotzler. I don't know how in the world she raised 18 kids!!!!

(L to R: Uncle Jeremy and Brady, Daddy and Emme, Mommy, Papa and Max, Nana, and Great-Grandma Dotzler is in the front with Sophie)

How cute are we?!

(L to R: Max, Emme, Brady & Sophie)

Daddy and Uncle Jeremy with the girls.

James' Aunt Michelle with Sophie.

Max was a ladies man!
Family Photo
Nana and Papa with their grandkids!
Back: Nana and Emme, Mommy and Max

Front: Papa and Brady, James and Sophie

Miss Emme also got her first tooth this weekend(one on the bottom)!!!! I was beginning to think the poor girl was never going to get teeth! Brady got a top tooth this weekend too! Must be something about going to Nana and Papa's house. The last time we were there, Max and Sophie both got new teeth! :)

Happy Grandparent's Day!!!

2010-09-08T12:37:00.000-07:00

Since we will be traveling to Decorah this weekend for a wedding, I thought I would write a special blog post for Grandparent's Day a little early. Our kids truly have the best grandparents ever! They are so loved by our families, and without them our lives would be so much more chaotic! Thank you to our families for all the love and support you have given us this year, and always! Our kids are so lucky to have you all!Thank you for spoiling us!!!!

Brady

Max

Emme

Sophie

First trip to the zoo!

2010-09-08T12:02:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday, we ventured out on our first trip to the zoo! Although the weather was kind of rainy, it was lots of fun! My good friend Tanya, and her little boy Jack invited us to go with them. The best part was finding a place where our beast of a stroller will fit through doorways! We didn't fit through everything, but it was so nice to get out of the house for a while, and have some fun! Here are some pictures from the zoo......

Good thing Jack got a map.....we wouldn't want to get lost!

Checking out the goats.......
Sophie was not a fan!

Jack thought it was so much fun to feed the goats!

Where has the summer gone?!

2010-08-31T11:26:00.000-07:00

We have been so busy the past few weeks trying to enjoy the last of summer. I cannot believe that it is already September! We even have trees starting to change colors. I love fall weather, but am not at all ready for another long winter!

Last week when the girls were napping, I took a couple couple pictures of the boys. It was cool outside, so we took advantage of wearing their cute jeans that will most likely be too small by the time winter rolls around! They look like such big boys in this picture! We took the babies to their 9 month check-up with the pediatrician last Wednesday, and everyone is doing great! This was a fun visit considering they didn't need any shots! We did find out that Miss Sophie needs to have some tests this week to make sure there isn't anything going on with her kidneys since she had a urinary tract infection at such a young age. Hopefully everything checks out OK! Other than that, everyone is gaining weight good, and will hopefully soon be on the growth chart! I know Max has made it on the growth chart, and I think possibly Brady too. The girls still have a bit of catching up to do! :) Here are their current heights and weights......

Sophie:
Height 25 3/4" Weight 13 pounds 3 ounces

Emme:
Height 26 3/4" Weight 16 pounds 1 ounce

Max:
Height 27 3/4" Weight 18 pounds 5 ounces

Brady:
Height 27 1/4" Weight 16 pounds 9 ounces

We absolutely love the babies' pediatrician, and his nurse Heidi! They are so wonderful with the babies!

Cannot believe they are 9 months old!!!

We took advantage of some of the cooler weather last week when James was off work, and went for a little picnic as a family for the first time! The babies absolutely loved it. There is a nice little lake in town that has a side walk around it, so we loaded up the stroller.

Even Gunner got to come!

Brady
Sophie

Daddy and Emme (notice any resemblance?)

Max

This past weekend I made a trip home to Clear Lake with the babies to surprise uncle Caleb at school. My mom, aunt Kris, grandma, and I picked up lunch, and ate with Caleb. His reaction was so cute, and he was so excited to show the babies off to all the teachers! I knew if I was going to make it to school to visit, I better do it now before we get into RSV season again.

Caleb and Brady

Max testing out the big kid toys at Nana and Papa's house!

Brady riding the horse!
Jackson and Emme
Taylor and Sophie
We also made a trip to the nursing home to visit a neighbor of James' when he was a kid. She was always like a second grandma to James, and he mowed her lawn for many years. She was so excited to see the babies, and introduced us all to her friends in the nursing home. I think it made everyone's day to see the babies. Hopefully next time James can come along to visit!

Sophie and Max both got a new tooth at Nana and Papa's house too! Sophie now has two fang teeth on top (4 teeth total), which looks very silly, and Max has both front top teeth (6 teeth total).

Where have the last 9 months gone?!

2010-08-18T10:41:00.000-07:00

Once again, I have some catching up to do! I cannot seem to stay caught up with this blog, but am determined to be. In a way, this is a form of a baby book and helps me document everything that is going on in our crazy little world!

Two weekends ago, James and I headed to Marion for a wedding. We had so much fun hanging out with friends, but I missed the babies so much! This was the first time I had left them over night other than when they were in the NICU. James' parents kept the babies at their house for the weekend, and let me just tell you what AMAZING in laws I have! We headed to their house Thursday night since we would be leaving pretty early on Friday. It had been a pretty stressful week because sickness hit our house! Poor Brady had bronchitis, and of course Max ended up with it too. Sweet little Sophie got a urinary tract infection, and was a very sick girl! Emme was the only one who lucked out, and stayed healthy. After dealing with sick (and teething) babies all week, Nana and Papa must have known that we really needed a break! James went fishing with his brother, which he never seems to get to do much anymore, and Nana and Papa sent me to get a pedicure! I really don't know what we would do without them. They keep our sanity in tact for sure! I couldn't ask for a better mother and father-in-law, and am extremely grateful for both of them! The weekend went well, but poor Nana and Papa looked exhausted when we got back!

For Mother's Day, James' parents got me a ticket to the Keith Urban concert at the Iowa State Fair, so last Friday night Nana and I headed to the concert, and had an AMAZING time. This was the 3rd time seeing him, and he was great as always!

On Saturday, James headed to Lansing for a bachelor party, so Nana and Papa stayed at our house to help me out (Have I ever mentioned that they come down EVERY WEEKEND to help us out! Love them!) We had so much fun!

Uncle Jeffy came home from a summer in Arkansas where he was completing an internship, so we went to dinner at Outback Steakhouse, followed by yummy ice cream, and even a little bit of shopping! We did all of this with the babies along! They were so good, and had a blast! We always get lots of looks from people, but most people are very positive, which is nice!

Although Emme was lucky enough to stay healthy while everyone else got sick, she is now sick with the same stuff, so hopefully it won't last too long. I feel so bad for her, but she is such a trooper and always a happy girl! For some reason, Max, Brady, and Sophie woke up yesterday morning with runny noses too, so I'm not sure what is going on! We are praying that everyone gets healthy soon, and can stay that way throughout the winter months. We were so fortunate to stay healthy during RSV season last year! I cannot believe this summer is almost over already, and our babies are 9 months old today!

Here are a few pictures to go along with this lengthy post! One of these days I will stay caught up on things (I hope)!

Max and Brady trying to get each other. The new favorite game in our house is see how fast we can try to bite each other!

The girls were both laying on their tummy, so I thought I would get a quick picture, but they are moving too quickly these days. Within about 2 seconds they had both rolled over!

Sweet Sophie girl can sleep anywhere! The girl absolutely loves to sleep! She usually goes to bed around 9:00 and almost always sleeps in until 10:00 the next morning. If only she could train her brothers and sister to sleep that long! Sophie also has another tooth. She got one of her top "fang" teeth last week, and looks so cute! We started giving her fruit puffs, and yogurt melts, and she seems to like them!

We like to call this little stinker "Mad Max!" He is definitely our most outspoken of the four, and does not hesitate to let us know exactly what he wants. His newest thing to do is scream at the top of his lungs for no apparent reason. He LOVES to eat too. He ate 3 biter biscuits last night, and wanted more. He also loves to eat fruit puffs, and yogurt melts. Max has five teeth now (3 on top and 2 on bottom).

Sweet Emme girl is as laid back as ever! She is such a good little girl, and doesn't get too upset about anything. She is content with wherever we put her, and looks exactly like her Daddy. She isn't crazy about fruit puffs or yogurt melts, but is learning to like them. Emme still has no teeth! I'm beginning to wonder if she will ever get any!

Sweet Brady Boy has learned that he too has a voice. I think he is learning some traits from Max! He has figured out that if he doesn't want to do something, or wants us to pick him up, he can scream too! It's usually followed by the sweetest smile ever (like the one in this picture)! He hasn't gotten any other teeth besides his two bottoms ones, and is not crazy about fruit puffs or yogurt melts. He gags on them, so we will try again later!

I cannot believe how quickly this summer has flown by, and even more cannot believe that we have four 9 month olds! It feels like I blinked for a couple of seconds, and all of a sudden our tiny little babies are big! It will be RSV season again before we know it, and we'll be in "lock down" again, so I guess we better really enjoy what is left of this summer! Next week, the babies have their 9 month check-up with the pediatrician, so I will post their current weights then. Hope everyone is having a great summer!

4th of July in Clear Lake

2010-08-01T12:44:00.001-07:00

Better late than never! Here are some pictures of our 4th of July trip to Clear Lake. I have always spent the 4th in Clear Lake, so I am super excited to start that tradition with my own family! We spent the weekend at James' parent's house. The babies had a blast at the parade, and my grandparent's annual picnic. Such fun memories! Daddy with sleeping Emme, and Mr. Max!

Uncle Jeremy and Sophie with her shades on!
Jackson, Toni, and Taylor
Jeremy, Toni, and Taylor

Papa and Brady

Great-Grandpa Lee and Sophie

Uncle Caleb and Emme

Great-Uncle Alvaro and Max

Papa & Brady, Great-Grandpa Lee & Sophie, Jackson, Great-Grandma Mick & Emme, Caleb

Clear Lake's fireworks were great this year!

Caleb and his friend Adam before the fireworks started.

Summer Fun!

2010-07-30T20:21:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe how fast this summer is flying by!!!!! We have been having so much fun with the babies this summer, and have been very busy! Here is the latest update on what we have been up to in quadville! :-)

Little Miss Sophie is so happy and smiley all the time these days! I love going into her room in the mornings to get her out of her bed because she has the most precious smile on her face every time!!

She is such a good eater, and loves to eat just about anything! Since she is the tiniest of the babies, and not on the growth chart yet, we are adding a little bit of butter to her vegetables to give her some extra calories, and the little peanut LOVES it!

She has two bottom teeth now, and loves to chew on the spoon when eating baby food! She is also trying to say bah-bah, and is rolling from her tummy to her back!

We are so proud of our little fighter! She has come so far since birth, and truly amazes us more and more each day! I think she is determined to surprise everyone!
Little Miss Emme is as sweet as ever these days, however, the poor girl is having a terrible time with teething lately! The poor thing cannot seem to get any teeth to come through, and is a little cranky, which is very unusual for her. Hopefully this won't last long, and she'll go back to her easy-going self!

She is a pretty good eater, but likes to take her sweet time when eating! She really isn't too picky about what she eats, but she has figured out that the vegetables don't taste as good as the fruits. Usually she will eat her veggies for a while, and then decide she is done with that. Once you get the fruit out, she is one happy girl! We just started giving her graham crackers, biter biscuits, and fruit puffs. She loves the biter biscuits and fruit puffs, but is not so sure about the fruit puffs yet.

Emme has become a big time Daddy's girl, and loves to say da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da all day long! Despite the fact that I have been teaching her ma-ma since she was born! :) It is so sweet to see how much she loves her daddy!

Due to the fact that Emme is EXTREMELY laid back, she is still not rolling from her back to her tummy yet! It is so funny to watch her play on the floor because she could care less about going after the toys that are out of her reach. I think she has figured it out that Mommy and Daddy will eventually let her have those toys, so why bother wasting the energy on trying to get them herself! She is so close to rolling from her back to her tummy, and we know it will soon come. Before we know it she will be able to go wherever she wants to! For now, we are enjoying these moments of sitting still! She is also very close to sitting on her own. She can do it for quite a while with her Boppy pillow behind her, and most of the time will sit without a pillow as long as there is something in front of her that she is interested in looking at.
Mr. Max is into EVERYTHING!!!!! He has mastered rolling both ways, and uses that to his advantage to get wherever he needs to go to get what he wants. I swear the boy can get from point A to point B in a matter of seconds! Since Max is such a go-getter, Grandpa is working on building a gate for our stairs. He is also getting closer to scooting everyday. If you put something out of his reach, you can see the determination in his eyes to get to it! I'm pretty sure he will be the first one to crawl, walk, run, etc. :-) He hasn't quite mastered sitting on his own yet, but is very close. He is always checking things out around him, which makes it difficult for him to balance himself while sitting! He is so much fun to watch as he discovers new things!

Max has two bottom teeth, one top tooth, and two more top teeth working on breaking through. He has done pretty well with teething, and hasn't seemed to be any fussier than usual, which isn't much. He is definitely our outspoken baby, and isn't afraid to let Mommy and Daddy know what he wants or doesn't want! I can't wait to see what the little stinker learns next! :-)

He is also a very good eater. In fact, most of the time, we can't get the food in his mouth fast enough! For the past couple of weeks, we have been giving him biter biscuits, graham crackers, and fruit puffs. He LOVES them! He isn't quite coordinated enough to get the fruit puffs in his mouth on his own yet, but does really well with the biter biscuits and graham crackers!
Sweet Brady has had a terrible time lately! He had a rough time with teething, but now has two bottom teeth. He is just now getting over bronchitis which came on extremely fast! He woke up Tuesday morning with some discharge and redness in his eye. We kept an eye on it until Wednesday, and were going to make him a doctor appointment if it didn't get better. On Wednesday he had a tiny bit of a cough, so we thought maybe he just had a cold in his eye, and didn't think much about it. Emme had a cold in her eye a while back and the doctor said to keep wiping it out with a warm wash cloth. By Thursday, poor Brady was so sick! Daddy took him to the doctor, and found out that he had bronchitis. We couldn't believe how fast it moved to his chest. After a couple of days of antibiotics and an inhaler, he is now feeling much better, and back to his happy, sweet self!

Brady has a personality much like Emme, and is very laid back. He is also not rolling from back to tummy yet, but is so close. I think he could do it if he really was determined to get a toy, but he is like Emme and will wait for Mommy and Daddy to give it him. He is also very close to sitting by himself. If he has his Boppy pillow behind him, he feels more secure, and can sit for quite a while on his own.

Brady is a good eater as well as everyone else. He loves all of the baby foods that we have given him. We are also adding some butter to his vegetables to help him gain some more weight. He isn't quite on the growth chart yet, so hopefully by the time we take him and Sophie to their 9 month check-up they will be on the chart! He loves graham crackers and biter biscuits too, and does a great job getting them into his mouth. He isn't real sure about the fruit puffs yet though!
One of my absolute favorite things about having multiples is watching them interact, and learn to love each other! They are so sweet with each other, and love to play side by side. I hope that as they grow up, they will love each other and continue to keep a close bond! Here is a picture of Brady and Sophie sitting in their table having a discussion about something very important! If only I could understand baby talk!

Max and Emme hanging out in their table. They look so big here! It is hard to believe that they will be 9 months old soon! Where did the time go?!
We just introduced all the babies to their swing set in the back yard. They weren't real sure about it at first, but realized it was a lot of fun! I'm sure they will spend a lot of time in the back yard playing!

Brady had just as much fun chewing on the straps as he did swinging!

Sophie couldn't figure out if she should laugh or be scared! Such a cute face!

Max loved it from the beginning! He is our wild man though, so that is not much of a surprise!

Emme loved having her daddy push her in the swing! Look at that big smile!

This picture was taken a few weeks ago when Papa came down to visit. I thought it was really cute, so I had to add it. The babies love their Papa! He always takes them outside in the stroller when he is down. They are so happy when they are outside! Hopefully they will always have a love the the outdoors. I know their daddy can't wait to play outside with them!

Despite the fact that we are sleep deprived, with teething and sick babies, we are loving our life at home with our family. We are so incredibly blessed, and couldn't imagine our lives without these sweet angels! It is absolutely amazing to watch the babies grow and learn new things, and feels so surreal to think back to the NICU days when they were so fragile, and only weighed 2 and 3 pounds each. God does pretty amazing things!

Mommy is getting a little anxious as we get ready to head to Iowa City next weekend for a wedding that Daddy is in! This will be the first time I have been away from them over night since they came home from the hospital. I know it will be good to have some time away, and they will be in very good hands with Nana and Papa, but it will be very difficult!

Sorry for such a lengthy post! I will try to post again sooner next time! :-)

I almost forgot this last picture! Mommy took the girls to get their ears pierced! They look so darn cute. Thank goodness for my good friend Trista who held them both while they had it done. I am certain that I would have chickened out!