Leigh, Ally, Kendal & Lyla: One Year

I wrote most of this post around the girls' first birthday--but was waiting to get their stats from the doctor's appointment. We weren't able to get in for their one year appointment until this past week.

This past year has been the best year of my life. So many things have happened and so many emotions have been experienced. I have been reflecting on May 19th and the following weeks of last year and it brings so many emotions, sometimes it is like I am reliving them again. Some memories are incredibly difficult and saddening, but many others are joyful. Some days I feel like we are so far gone from the NICU, but other days I am reminded of Kendal and Lyla's beginnings. Even though the girls have come so far and are doing fabulous, there are still lingering effects of being born at 31 weeks 5 days that show up every now and again. I don't want the girls to be defined by their prematurity, but we always have to have that in the back of our minds as they grow older and we may see those long-term effects.

Having a baby premature and spending 7 weeks in the NICU is an experience that I hope to avoid in the future, but it has helped me grow as a person, mother, and wife. I am so grateful that we have two smart, beautiful, strong, wonderful one year olds that have gone through more in the first year of life than many people ever have to go through. I feel extremely blessed and proud to be these girlies mommy.

These are some of the special moments from the NICU:

One of the first pictures taken of the girls. I have trouble remembering them being this tiny.

My first time holding both of the girls. I can remember their little expressions and the wonderful skin to skin cuddling.

One year later...

Kendal...

20 lbs. 2 oz. (52%!!!)

28.75 inches (23%)

17.5 inches--head circumference (31%)

Kendal is...

-walking! & practically running

-loves pushing things around (walker, push car, stroller) and has figured out how to turn them around herself so she is moving around the house constantly without any regard to what she runs over--including her sister

-definitely a mommy's girl

-waves and claps all the time

-helps with laundry (this girl usually wakes up from naps before Lyla, so she helps me get the laundry in the washer). I put the basket on the floor and she hands me a piece of clothing and I put it in the washer. She loves it and even though it takes 10 times as long, I love it too.

-communicates with a series of "uh"s, she uses different strings of "uh"s and high/low pitch

-has become quite the cuddler, which is funny because she was NOT a cuddler when she was a newborn

-has figured out how to climb up on our rocking chair: uh oh!

Lyla...

19 lbs. 5 oz. (37%!!)

27.25 inches (1.5%--our little munchkin)

18.25 inches--head circumference (82%--w/ a huge head)

Lyla is...

-getting more confident with walking--she will walk along furniture with one hand and has figured how to get down from furniture more smoothly

-will only walk with us hold both hands and she won't walk with any of our walkers--due to a traumatic experience involving a mean older sister that kept pushing her away from them :(

-figured out how to clap with hands together and now does it all the time!

-loooooves other kids and screams at them over and over to get their attention

-very sensory oriented--she loves to grab, bite and run hands over things and she also has been hitting her head again things--which we only encourage because we think it is kind of funny

-bear crawls outside to save her knees

-an excellent sleeper

-so smiley: which is SO cute with her two little bottom teeth

Kendal & Lyla...

-Eating: We are trying to phase out formula and jar food. We got the okay to start whole milk, which I am loving--no more bottles or mixing formula! The girls are pretty good eaters and love lots of different kinds of food.

-Teeth: We finally got teeth!! Lyla has her bottom two. Kendal has her bottom two and is cutting four on top at the moment. They have done fairly well while cutting teeth, but we have been having difficulty with sleeping through the night which I think may be due to Kendal's new teeth.

-LOVE: dancing & singing (seriously--ANY type of music is on and they are dancing or any noise that has some sort of beat, they are dancing), being outside, watching people/kids, chasing each other around the kitchen, baths, pool time, the sidewalk, and of course getting in to things they aren't supposed to.

-SCARED of: garbage truck, loud noises, men, the doctor's office scale and table

-Language: mama, dada, bye bye, hi, thank you. They are starting to repeat some things sometimes after we say them. I am working on some sign language with them with little progress--but I think we may have 'all done' down. They are both understanding more and more of what we say. But, Kendal is having difficulty with not being able to communicate what she wants/needs. She has learned to throw herself on to the floor and cry when she wants something--oh the joys of what is to come. I am planning on teaching just a few, simple signs and hoping their language progresses as well as it has been.

-Funny story: While at Church the girls were making their farting noise with their mouths super loud, at the same time forever. It was funny and embarrassing. Then Kendal heard some other child scream really loud somewhere in the chapel so she decided to scream back as loud as she could. Needless to say, Church is a challenge.

-We are loving how the difference in their personalities continues. They have always had distinct differences in their personalities and they have stayed fairly consistent. As they grow older the different traits play on how they react to different situations. Kendal is an adventurous, dramatic, strong-willed, demanding child. I think that is why she is walking first, gets extremely upset when she doesn't get what she wants right that moment, and is a risk taker. On the other hand, Lyla is our laid back, observing, expressive, social child. And I think this is why Lyla likes to sit and just watch what is going on around her without needing to be a part of it and has wonderful facial expressions, especially when seeing or interacting with other children.

-There is about 1.5" difference in height between the girls and about a pound in weight--while at the doctor's office I had a woman ask me how far apart the girls were (Kendal was walking around and I was holding Lyla, which made a difference too I think) and I was very confused. She was shocked when I said they were twins.