My puppy...

I swear I did not pose him. Sometimes he is just too precious for words.

Breakfast

Hi Ollie... want some of my pancake?



Here's a little piece...



Big brother patiently waits to see if she will share another morsel.

Ada (heart)s Oliver. Oliver (heart)s Ada. Mama (heart)s her Nikon.

Ugh

(I stole this picture from our friend James who took it and posted it on Facebook.. pretty cute huh?)

Awwwww what a sweet family moment that was. Everyone was well.. happy.. adorable......... and now that we have (hopefully) warmed your heart.. let me just say that the last week has been the complete opposite of all of that. Tuesday afternoon, Margot had a temp of 101 and woke up at 4am with a fiery forehead at 104.5... to the doctor we went... with a white count of 28K (really God.. really!?) and a red throat full of ulcerated sores we were officially ordered not to leave town (no big family Thanksgiving as previously planned) and to come back on Friday for a recheck. By Friday Ada had spiked a high fever too and they were officially diagnosed: "hand, foot, and mouth disease" + a potential ear infection for Ada Grey = 10 days of antibiotics for A.G. and days of writhing in pain on the floor for both. Insanity. They both have extremely painful sores in their throats/mouths/ on lips/ and diaper areas. They are starving but it is nearly impossible to find something they will/can eat. We spent all of Stephen's break trying to cuddle and snuggle and love the sadness away.. poor sweet little babies. Now Stephen is back at school and I am here with a migraine trying to manage the two of them as best I can.. sigh.

In fairness.. despite the sickness in our home.. we had loads to be thankful for. My daddy drove over on Wednesday night with a car full of Thanksgiving goodies since we would be missing the big family meal. Since Ada was not yet showing signs of illness on Thanksgiving morning, she and I made the trip to High Point and enjoyed spending some time with the fam.. despite missing Stephen and Margot ... the meal was delish as always and it was so nice to see everyone. Oh Friday.. despite our diagnosis.. Pam and Diana came over and braved sick and sad babies for a few hours while Stephen and I went to see "The Blind Side" which was so heartwarming. THEN on Saturday I got to go to Handel's Messiah as performed by the Carolina Ballet with Joyce and the fam since Carolyn had to work. It was so delightful to be included in such a special family event. Then that evening Joyce and I went to Target and took advantage of some of their 2 Day Sale. FINALLY on Sunday evening Stephen brought us home a lovely Christmas tree which is now lit and decorated... and protected with the baby corral around it. So I guess you could say our break was pretty great despite shedding many tears with our little ones as we watched helplessly as they told us in no uncertain terms just how uncomfortable they were.. are..

Still, the Lord is good and faithful and we believe that all of this sickness lately is happening for a reason and they will be well soon. We will keep enjoying the giggles when they appear and drying the tears as they fall... and looking forward to braving the next adventure with a little more fortitude and a few more knowing smiles.

Jingle Bells

Well...it has begun. I couldn't wait to start decorating for the Christmas Holiday ... yeah I know we haven't even eaten the turkey yet. I made my first wreath today! What do you think?



Remember that tree skirt I made from old sweaters a few years back? Well I still have quite a few left. I am currently working on stockings for our family out of these but while I am working on those.. I thought I would try my hand at some door decoration. I got a grape vine wreath yesterday at the craft store. My idea was to cut strips of sweater and wrap it around the base and tie it in the front. I think it turned out pretty well!



Now for the best part of all :) As Margot and I were browsing in the store, I found some clip on birds.. a cardinal and my absolute favorite.. the chickadee. I think they look just perfect! I also got some red jingle bells and sewed them to the open spot in the wreath were the birds are perched. I think they look like lusciously ripe berries, don't you? Such a fun project. It took me about 1 1/2 hours this afternoon and cost me about $13. I have found about 57 reasons to step out onto our front porch this evening :)

Parade

We all bundled up and headed downtown this morning for the Christmas Parade. We live close enough to walk so walk we did. The weather was just perfect. Cold, but perfect nonetheless.



We met our buddy Josie, who brought her parents along just for kicks.



We all took turns holding various babies. Here Margot is enjoying a ride on Mr. James.



Ada was extra happy that Daddy is so tall, it made it easier for her to see the jump ropers.



Josie bug and her sweet mama.

There were so many people this morning - supposedly around 60K. It started at 9:30am and we were there for the very first police car. Two hours later we finally gave up on waiting for Santa and headed home for lunch. The girls, all three of them, spent the entire time being so sweet and were mesmerized by all the action. Those are some pretty good attention spans for such little girls. They squealed at the horses and ponies and clapped for the marching bands. Waved back at the beauty queens and firemen. It was a delight. They were a delight. I am so glad the Holiday Season is here. Definitely the most wonderful time... of the year :)

29

Stephen turned 29 on Saturday. We took a mini break and went to Pilot Mountain for the day/night. The weather was perfection.



I am not sure we have been back there since we first met.. maybe once since then.. at any rate we talked about how incredible it was that almost ten years ago we were there with campers and other staff and now... we were back.. married..with twin baby girls at home. Time flies when you are in love.



We climbed out onto a ledge and shared a picnic lunch of hot soup, avocado, herbed goat cheese with crackers and sweet/spicy pecans. The soup was still boiling hot courtesy of the vintage picnic bag with matching glass insulated soup and coffee thermoses. It was so good.



Hot coffee on a mountain peak. It was just a wonderful day. As the sun started to set we headed to our little getaway at the base of the park. Our room in this bed and breakfast was beautiful and cozy with a fireplace and a whirlpool tub for two... wink wink. It was spectacular. Geez... sounds like it was my birthday or something! We even got to go star gazing that night on the grounds of the place we were staying. The sky was so clear and the stars were magical. We saw 4 shooting stars. Happy Birthday, hot stuff.



So what were the babies doing while we were away? Why playing with Nana, Papa and Aunt B of course :) Here is Papa reading to them before nap time. There is something about seeing my dad read to my kids in the rocking chair that belonged to his father that feels so special.

On a completely unrelated note, we are all sorta shakin' around here tonight. We are praying with/for a beloved, treasured, cherished family member who had surgery today to remove a malignant tumor. Our family is banding together in prayer on this one, please join us.

Uniquely Margot

Rainy Sunday

What do you do with two little wild things on a rainy Sunday? Hug 'em till they giggle :)

Boo!

State Fair

This weekend was the last weekend of the North Carolina State Fair. I got to go twice. Once last night with my BFF Joyce.. and once this morning with my family.



Joyce and I spent some time looking for Funnel Cakes that were made without eggs or dairy.. no dice. Poor Joyce. We went and had some Krispy Kreme instead.



This morning we took the babies. They got to see all sorts of animals. Margot was very cautious around the goats.



A good time was had by all. More soon.

Tutus

Twin baby girls in tutus, excited to see that their daddy is home.



Twin baby girls in tutus, within our reflection.



Twin baby girls in tutus. My heart overflows.

Margot is feeling much better... in case you couldn't tell.

Margot

I am taking our tiny little girl to get tubes put into her ears tomorrow morning at 6:15am. This chronic ear infection has survived the nuclear bomb of antibiotics for a couple weeks now and after her 3rd round of tummy destroying meds, the ear nose and throat doc said tubes were a must to relieve the pressure in her little ears. She has been such a trooper through all of this. I just hope I have her courage when I hand her over to the nurse tomorrow morning at the Surgery Center. The procedure only takes about 15 minutes but I have a feeling it is going to feel like 5 hours to this mommy's anxious heart. The fact that I can't be with her when she falls asleep upsets me to no end. Oh well... it's the second most common procedure in the country and I know she will feel so much better afterward. Shoring up my courage tonight. How pathetic is that? I'm not even the one going under the (very tiny) knife! My own sweet mama is here, spending the night so she can be here in the morning to keep Ada company while we are gone and help tomorrow while I help Margot recover. They say by the evening we won't even be able to tell anything happened to her. As common as this all is.. we would still appreciate your prayers for tomorrow.

Boone

..smiling babies in the kitchen..



...making chocolate chip cookies with Mama on a cold and gray day..



..a small girl in a pink shirt helping to make said cookies.

Boone is friends who greet you on the porch when you arrive after 10pm with sleeping babies. It's friends who hug you tight and help you set up your twin cribs .. help you put your babies down to sleep in their own room..that they let you stay in while they camp out in the guest room.. it's friends who share their homemade dinner with you after they have helped to unload your car.. friends who prepare the most delicious food imaginable.. who make pancakes with bacon in them for breakfast.. who keep a hot pot of coffee going at all times.. who stay up after all the babies have gone to bed to drink a few beers, talk passions, and kick your tail at Wii. Boone is familiar belly laughs and comfortable silences. A place where Oliver can run free and chase field mice. Boone is our haven. We love you guys.

Twilight

This evening we went for a walk as we often do after the girls eat dinner.



Before we went for our stroll, we decided to explore our little piece of world outside the front door.







The fading sunlight made their curls and eyelashes glow golden.



Ada struck out on her own and we watched with fascination to see which path she would choose.











Her first fall leaf and she was so excited she wanted to share it with me. The thrill. The thrill of being here to witness another human beings firsts.. first discoveries.. first looks..



Cautiously she tripped towards me along the sidewalk.



With reckless abandon she scuttled toward the open road to discover the curb, the street signs, the house in the distance. I held her sister close as I watched Stephen head her off, keeping her safe from dangers that do not exist in her tiny world. I whispered that I would always hold her close, as close as this moment. I will remember this moment.