Still snowed in

We are still snowed in today.  It is hard to believe that our street still hasn't been plowed, so we still  haven't ventured out.  I am adding some new pics and video.  Quin and Brian worked hard on a gigantic igloo.  It isn't often that we have enough snow to take on this type of endeavor.

12 inches and still snowing

I finally gave up on working at about 5:15 and decided to join in the fun.  A good time was had by all.

Quin started us off.

Then Leah decided to try.

Leah just kept asking to go for a walk.

Leah really is under all of that stuff.

Quin just hanging around. (He is literally reclining on a big pile of snow.)

Our streets haven't been plowe yet, so we will see if we can get out in the morning.  If not, we know that there will be plenty of snow to play in!

Leah is joining in on the fun!

Leah got up from her nap and immediately wanted to go out in the snow.  She first got dressed in her Sluggerr hat until I convinced her that wasn't going keep her warm.  Here they are, ready to go!

Snow, snow, snow!

I know it has been a long time since I have blogged, but since we are buried in snow and I have a fun video to share, I thought it was time to come back.  We are at at least 10 inches so far and counting.  Quin has been out twice already, and we promised Leah she could go out after a nap.

The video shows Quin and his creativitiy in sledding.

It has been too long...

I know, I have slacked, several of you have told me to get on top of this. This two kids and work thing kind of keeps me busy. So, enough with excuses, on to the important stuff...

Leah is now 13 lbs! At her four month check up 2 weeks ago, the doctor was thrilled. She was 12 1/2 lbs then and that put her in the 25th percentile in both weight and height for her actual age. So, she has officially caught up!

She tried to start at her school last week, but instead Brian, Leah and I ended up with the stomach flu. As a result, she didn't end up making it to school last week, but she was a trooper even not feeling well. So, Leah really started this past Monday and so far, so good. She has come home exhausted every night. Which hasn't surprised me, she is a noisy little girl, so I figured the other little ones would keep her on her toes! She seems to be adjusting just fine. The teachers say that she rarely cries and smiles a ton.

Quin is still loving school and enjoying hockey. Hockey seems to take over our weekends with a practice and a game every week. And since there are not a ton of teams, we are traveling all over the city to get to the games. He still adores Leah (thank goodness). Quin reads to her, loves to hold her and can quiet her down almost immediately. She also thinks he is pretty funny.

Halloween was very fun. Leah wore her costume for about 20 minutes; not to shabby and we got some great pictures in that time. Quin was Captain Hook and Leah was Tinkerbell. It may be the one and only year that I can get them to coordinate. Quin seems to think that he wants to be a ninja next year, and not so sure that there is a one-year old little girl costume to coordinate.

10 lbs.!

Leah hit the 10 lb. mark on Friday. She gains about a pound every week and a half. She continues to do well. She is smiling a lot now when you talk to her and generally a pretty happy baby. She still eats quite often even at night so we are still feeding her about every 2 1/2 hours (that is measured by the start of the feeding not the end) so you can see that she is up eating frequently and goes right back to sleep.

We had her "real" pictures taken last week and they are now viewable online. Luckily a friend takes them and she was very patient. Leah did great with the "awake" pictures but it took her a long time to get to sleep so that we could have some of the more newborn pics. It was definitely worth the wait though.... link to Leah's pictures.

Quin's hockey team has started practicing. They were invited to play between periods at the NHL exhibition game at the Sprint Center last week. Quin was quite excited! I posted a couple of those pictures.

We are all doing well. I am going back to work next week. The time has gone by fast and slow all at the same time.

9 lbs.

So, I know that I am a complete slacker for not updating the blog. Really, I am not sure where the days go. Leah is continuing to do very well. She keeps getting bigger and bigger. She had her two month vaccinations two weeks ago and did well. She weighed in over 7 lbs. Leah has done so well that we didn't need to schedule another appointment until October. She stays alert much more during the day, sometimes an hour or more at a time. She is smiling when touched a certain way on the cheek and she is very close to smiling when you talk to her. She knows what she wants and lets you know, but is mostly easily soothed. Leah loves to get a bath and is a cuddler. She seems to really like Quin. Quin can quiet her down pretty easily.

Since her doctor's visit, she has been spitting up more and having discomfort taking some of her bottles and lying down so we went back to the doctor yesterday. It seems that it is common for preemies to have problems with reflux. Her case doesn't seem to be severe, but nonetheless, they are putting her on Zantac to make her feel better. The doctor said that there really isn't any concern putting her on the medicine, but might as well do it so that she would feel better while eating and sleeping. I weighed her at home naked yesterday morning and she was 8 lbs. 11 ounces. They weighed her at the doctor's office with clothes and she was 9 lbs. 4 ounces. So, she is hovering around that 9 lb. mark. They continue to be pleased with her weight gain. She may catch up sooner that we think!

Quin is doing well with school. He loves it, which is great! Quin is also testing his mischievousness in the new school. On my way home from the doctor yesterday, I got a call from the school nurse, letting me know that Quin had stuck a little ball of bread up his nose at lunch. They couldn't see it and wanted me to come get him and take him to the doctor to make sure that it was out. (Keep in mind, I had already been to the doctor once already.) So, I pick up Quin and we try blowing his nose a couple of times and nothing, but he thinks that he still feels something. When I ask why he did it, he said a boy at his table told him to. That answer led to a discussion on thinking before doing. I head toward the doctor's office and hope that they can get us in quickly without an appointment (it is the lunch hour so they are not taking calls). Luckily, we get there and they got us in right away. The doctor couldn't see it, but went ahead and flushed out his nose a couple of times with warm water to make sure. This was very uncomfortable for Quin; I had to hold down his arms while the doctor flushed it out. He did well, but didn't enjoy it. As a result, Quin learned a valuable lesson about putting things up his nose. On the way back to school, I asked him what he was going to do the next time someone asked him to put something in his nose and he replied with a resounding "NO!"