Christmas festivities!

We had a fun weekend and got into the Christmas spirit. Friday night we went to Frisco Square and saw the light show. The boys had fun, but not as much fun as Sunday night at Frisco's Safety Town! They had a blast! (Safety Town is a miniature little Frisco with a Wal-mart, hospital, etc. all in tiny houses just made for little people). They thought they died and went to heaven and were literally running into every little house to open and close doors! They also got to go on a fire truck. It was a warm night and we had great help from Grandma and Grandpa! We all got a workout running after them... I believe one of the policemen said to Sean "Boy, they are some livewires!...

Here are some pictures. As you can see we are somewhat restraining Collin to take a picture.. He had lots of things he wanted to do and sitting still was not one!

So much fun! I highly recommend it!

Out of the mouths of babes...

As many of you know I spent my previous life as a speech therapist specifically working with little ones. Loved my job and loved having success helping little ones start talking. Well, when I found out I was having twins, I knew they would be a little delayed in their speech. When I found out it was two boys I tacked on a little more delay (sorry guys, little girls just mature faster). When they were ten weeks premature, I jokingly said they wouldn't talk until they were 3 (half-serious). Even though I know all of this, it still was getting a little hard that they are getting so big and still weren't saying much. Well, thank goodness we have some words now!! (this also helps reduce the whining and my bleeding ears!). It is so sweet to hear them talking, it really just makes me so happy! Collin is really taking off and says lots of words. He particularly likes "up" and "out" because they are so multi-functional and can get him just about anything he wants. He also imitates lots of words! Jack started saying "up" and "help". It is very cute when they start to cry/whine and then suddenly realize there is a faster way! Very proud of my boys!

Gym Class!!

The boys went to their first gym class today and had a blast! I was a little nervous taking both by myself, but they really did great! They jumped on the trampoline, went on the bars, climbed, and went through numerous tunnels . They also had a car that goes on a ramp thing which Jack was obsessed with the whole time!! Most importantly, it wore them out! It is now 2:30p.m. and they have been in bed since 12p.m. The tuition is definitely worth it! We will go to class once a week and a free play once a week. Also, when Miss Caroline gets ready, she is very cheap since her brothers go! The upsides of having a big family!
Thank you My Gym!

more pictures

Okay, apparently you can only post 5 pictures at once! I learn something new every day!

Here's 5 more I just had to put on here from our great trip!

Scanlan Family Road Trip!

We were very adventurous and headed down to Houston for Thanksgiving to visit my dad, Ellen, and aunt claire and Katie. I was worried that this would be our first and last attempt at a road trip! But, everything went really well! The way down was a breeze! We got up at 6 and just woke the kids up and threw them in the car! We drove as fast as we could without stopping until we made it almost to Houston! I packed tons of snacks which kept my boys very happy. Jack figured out that I was sitting behind him (next to Collin) and would just put his little snack cup up in the air for me to refill about every 10 minutes!!

The boys loved, loved, loved Houston! My dad and Ellen have a great backyard and the boys loved to run free. They played in the sandbox and pushed lots of wagons around. The toys Ellen got for them were a huge hit as well! They were big boys and ate their meals at a table. We only ran into some screaming about sleeping in the playpens, but they adjusted quickly!

Caroline also was a trooper and slept all the way down and back and slept great in Houston! She loved her swing which was so nicely provided by Ellen's sister Corrie!

Ellen cooked fabulous meals, as always, and we drank great wine! The girls played entertained the boys as well, so Sean and I felt like we were on a mini-vacation.

They asked us to come back at Easter so I'm thinking we didn't wear them out too much!

We really all had such a wonderful time and I"m so glad we went! Thank you Owen family!

Bear with me, but here are lots of pictures of our great time!

Here's a little synopsis of the pictures , hopefully in order

** Collin and Katie in the sandbox

** Claire and Collin in the backyard

** Grandpa Gary and Jack on the riding mower (Collin had no part of that!)

* everybody on a walk

** Claire and Katie and Jack and Collin

** Jack in the wagon

** Collin in his pajamas

** Caroline in her pretty dress

** mom and her 3 kiddos

** Grandparents and grandkids

And, as an added bonus, my mom comes on Tuesday which always makes me so happy! So nice to have company and we have lots of things on our to-do list! I love the holidays!

Cute pictures

Really nothing of note, just a few cute pictures of my kids! Jack's is priceless and so him! I hope all his teachers love his zest for life as much as we do!

We were down, but not out..

Well, Monday was quite a day for our little family as we all got a stomach bug. When I heard Sean get sick, I began fervently praying that we would not get sick at the same time, but God had other plans. Taking care of 3 kids while sick is no easy task. Luckily these things only last 24 hours. Caroline is the only one who escaped it. At one point, she was happily playing on her play mat, while Sean and I lay on the floor next to her with no energy to even move! (Boys were sleeping)
We are slowly returning to normal. It's amazing how behind I get just having less energy for a couple of days!
It seems that we will be hit with all the viruses this winter as my pediatrician informed me. I did such a good job keeping them healthy last winter that now they have to get everything at least once! Oh joy! I told her that I may not survive until March... Snotty noses and coughs have now just become a way of life around here... We'll make it though!

Two months old!

Miss Caroline is 2 months old as of Saturday! I am loving watching her grow! And grow she is! She is close to 12 pounds and quite the chunker! She has many rolls on her thighs!

She has started smiling, mostly at her mama, and still loves being on the go! We like our Tuesdays and Thursdays which are our girl days! We go run errands and take naps together...

She loves, loves, loves her bath! She would stay in there forever. She just stares at herself in the mirror while she's bathing! Typical girl...

She was sleeping really well, but then she got a double ear infection and thrush, so has pretty much been miserable for a little while! We are on antibiotics now, so hopefully things will return to normal soon!

She has a very sweet disposition and loves to be held up high and walk around with her Daddy when he gets home!

Here are a few pictures .. one with her friend Carter (who is two days younger), one in her Longhorn onesie and some in her swing (which she loves). She's got big puppy dog eyes and the cutest nose!

Oh, and she has already survived a couple of "run-ins" with her brothers who sometimes get a little too friendly!! Collin tried to push on her face to get up from the floor (mommy stopped him and informed him that his sister is not furniture)... and Jack keeps trying to pull her hands and feet off.. not sure why??

Halloween.. finally!

This is how long it takes me to get to things... Here are some Halloween pics

Actually, they are several days before Halloween. The boys refused to wear their lion costumes, so they were Appalachian state football players, courtesy of uncle Kyle!

On this day, Haley (she's 14 and helps me a couple days a week.. the boys think she hung the moon!).. and I tortured them as evidenced by the photos! We put the costumes on and tried to bribe them with cookies, but pretty much failed miserably! At least I have some very funny photos.. Oh how we torture our kids! Maybe they'll wear these next year...

thank you, thank you!

Thank you to Miss Caroline who has slept through the night for the last 3 nights! I am still in shock and feel like it's a fluke! (the boys didn't do this until they were about 9 months old!). Last night she went 9p - 6a.! Amazing!
We told her she gets a pretty car when she turns 16 for being so nice to her very tired mom and dad!

Fun at the park

We tried a new park last weekend and here are a couple of shots of the boys. Jack loves the steering wheel and Collin is, of course, in a tunnel!! He loves little spaces! They really had fun. Collin was very sad when we left. We think he felt like he didn't quite conquer the whole park yet, so we promised him we'd go back. Afterwards we went to Rudy's and had some yummy bbq! I love eating out with the boys since I don't have to clean up afterwards! Sorry Rudy's!!

We are trying to make ourselves go out as a family at least once a weekend. We know there are about a million things to get done at home, but they can wait. The boys need outings and it's nice to go all as a family. We've really got it down pretty well. People give us funny looks sometimes and wonder why the crazy people ventured out in public, but we just smile and keep going! Thanks to the Vroonlands for giving us the great Land's End bag to bring when we have the whole crew. I could fit all the kids in it if I wanted to! It's awesome!

There's also a picture of Miss Caroline in one of her Halloween outfits... ( she had 3, of course).

More on Halloween to come (very funny pictures)....

You've got your hands full...

I hear this statement at least a couple of times a day from people I come in contact with! ( those I know and complete strangers). And we do have our hands full, definitely! I know everyone is curious if we are surviving 3 kids under 2 and the answer is yes, we are making it!! It is VERY chaotic, but there are moments of peace. I would describe my day like a roller coaster, mostly peaceful, times of calm when everyone is happy, playing, or sleeping. And then, BOOM! Everyone is crying, needing something and it's complete madness! I just handle them one at a time (easiest first), and we get through it!


I'm really surviving because I have several things...


First and foremost (i know i've said it before), but I have the best husband! He works so hard at his job, and then comes home and works twice as hard here! He has been switching off nights with me so that I can get some sleep, which makes all the difference in the world! With a good 6/7 hours, you can accomplish anything! He is so sweet with Caroline and so much fun with the boys, and helps out with anything around the house!! I'm so grateful for him!



I also have wonderful in-laws! They are a HUMONGOUS help! They will run pick up and drop off for me with the boys at school and take them to their house a few times a week for some fun! The boys love being there. It's like Disneyland to them. Sean and I are perfectly happy with the fact that the boys would rather be with Grandma and Grandpa than us! In fact, we encourage it!

Seriously, though, we tell them this often, but we would not survive if they didn't live around the corner. We are so thankful and grateful to them.



I also have my mom who helps with my sanity and lets me call her at least once a day so that she can give me a pep talk! She listens as I go on about various illnesses and things the kids are doing! I know no one else would be as interested as she is! (or at least pretends very well to be!). Also, when she comes to stay it is like a mini-vacation for me! I love it! ( Only about 30 more days until the next visit!)



Also, Mother's Day out 2 days a week for the boys... Need I say more??



Finally, and most important, lots of prayer. Let's see, I pray for patience about 50 times a day and I especially pray to remember to be joyful and present even through all the chaos! I know it's going to go by so fast and I will be sad about it!

It took us so long to have this big of a family, so we really are thrilled! So, in the end, yes, our hands are very full, but my cheesy response is, our hearts are even more so!

Pumpkin Days!

We went to the pumpkin patch in Celina last weekend! We had the most beautiful weather and our favorite company of Grandma and Grandpa! The boys had little colds, but still had fun. They loved looking at the animals and eating hot dogs! Collin could not understand why we had to sit on the hayride, so I spent most of the time trying to distract him (not very successfully!). They also loved just walking around on the porch at the little house! I guess I could have saved some money! We got some good pumpkins and some good pictures. I still can't quite believe when I look at the one of the five of us! How we've grown in a few years!

OOps!

Okay, two of my pictures didn't upload. Here they are... Jack wasn't playing on the climby thing when we were taking pictures! He'll have his moment later!

Up, up, and away!!

Thanks to our granny, we have a new, very fun climbing place!! It has a slide and everything! The boys love it and now love to go in the backyard! Here are some pictures!

Here's a new one of Caroline too. She's almost smiling...

Also, a HUGE thank you to Grandpa Neil for accompanying the whole crew to the pediatrician! The boys had their 18 month checkup and Caroline had her one month! It was quite the ordeal! We made it out alive though.. shots and all... Grandpa was so patient and great with the boys, as always! What would we do if they didn't live so close???

Caroline is 9 1'2 lbs.! Growing, growing and my monsters are about 25....

They've grown quite a bit since their 3 lb. start!

Baby Caroline Picture

I think we finally snapped a good one with her eyes open. Go Horns

Football!

Here's some pictures of the boys in their Appalachian State jerseys that their uncle Kyle sent! They look like little men in these! And yes, the one picture of the two of them shows a typical play session. Just your usual toys, a costco box, a spatula, and a random star!! The most fun!

Collin and Jack are still loving school and have learned to pray. It is the cutest and sweetest thing. They will put their hands together and Collin says "Amen!". They will do it with me before meals and before bed. They love it! I'm so thankful to their teachers for this wonderful lesson. I pray they keep it up lifelong...

Caroline is a month old tomorrow! She is getting so much bigger! She is so strong and can already hold her head up when she lays on me and turn it side to side!

A very special name

My sweet Caroline is named after another very special Caroline. Her mother, Monica, (in picture), graciously let me use the name after her precious daughter. My mom and Monica grew up together in San Antonio and have known each other for many years (dating back to high school pranks and all!). We lived in San Antonio for 3 years and became very close with Monica and her family. We spent lots of time at their house, took vacations together, and blended our two families alot! Monica has 4 children and Caroline is the third in line. I so remember when she was little just falling in love with her. I held her ALL the time and just played with her like she was my own little doll. She loved this as well and we were very close. We moved away and we would see the family about once a year as we got older. Caroline grew up in to quite a young woman. She was very active in church, volunteered, and enjoyed her friends. She also had a gift for reaching out to others, particularly those who were hard to reach. As I understand it, in high school when everyone forms cliques, Caroline's only requirement to be her friend was that you were genuine. Very sadly, Caroline died in a car accident several years ago. It still just breaks my heart to think of her pretty smile and sweet demeanor. God has a very special angel by His side. Sometimes I think He thought Caroline was too sweet for this earth of ours.

Her mother, Monica, is also very special. While this is extremely difficult, she always manages to smile and have kind words for others. I'm so glad she got to come visit last weekend and meet "baby Caroline." It was so sweet and I treasure seeing them together.

There's a picture of the two of them and my favorite scripture for difficult times...

Psalm 23: 2-3

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.

On my own...

I'm very sad this morning as I just dropped my mom off at the airport. She's been here a month and has been a tremendous help. Not really sure how I'm going to do this on my own, but we'll manage! I'm so thankful that she can come and stay so long and is such a big help! Not only did she help me recover at the hospital, took care of the boys, and took care of Caroline, but let me list a few of the other tasks she tackled while here... organized the garage so we have space to actually walk in the house, put a fence up in the backyard to separate a place for the boys and a place for the dogs, hung pictures, redecorated my downstairs bathroom, found a climbing plaything for the boys, hung a ladder, made me install a laundry system, did about 400 loads of laundry, grocery shopped, picked up food, the list goes on and on. I know I'm forgetting things! She also made me go through some "dry runs" of picking the boys up at school by myself and taking care of everybody the last couple of days on my own so I could feel like I could do it! That's really what a good mom does.. does things for you and then shows you how you can do it on your own! I"m so thankful to my mom and so glad my kids have her for their granny!

Now the real fun begins.....stay tuned...

I'm going to try to post a couple of new pictures too! All right, I'm still learning and posted my picture twice! I'll get some more of the boys soon too!

Two weeks

Caroline is 2 weeks old and weighs 7 1/2 lbs. as of today. She made quite a jump, as a week and a half ago, she was only 6.2! Obviously, I don't have to worry about if she's getting enough to eat!
Everything else looked great! She's as sweet as can be!

The boys played tee ball in the backyard yesterday. "Played" is a very loose definition! More like walked around with the bat and ball... They are liking playing in the backyard though. We are currently searching for a climbing structure! The stuff never ends!
Okay, Collin is crying, so that's all I've got!!

Backyard Shenanigans

The temperature has finally calmed down here in North Texas. With help from their Grandma Melissa the kids played in the Garden of Eden known as our back yard (work with me here)

Still trying to figure out how to make these blogs easier to read...hope everyone is doing well

Three carseats!!

I definitely had one of those reality moments when I saw all 3 carseats with the kids in them strapped in the minivan! Could not quite believe they are all mine!!
I am glad to be home, although the hospital was wonderful and really like staying in a hotel!! Caroline and I got some quality bonding time!
I am really enjoying her. The second baby (or third) is so different since you are much more relaxed! You can really just stare and enjoy and love on her! She's been very good so far and I am getting some sleep and good naps thanks to my mom. My favorite thing is taking a nap with her in the room in the bassinett next to me!
The boys are adjusting well. They are so young, if it doesn't directly affect them, they're not interested. Jack laughs every time she cries and Collin just does his typical Collin stare at her. He keeps trying to get people who come to visit to take her home.
Thank goodness for my mom! I'm not quite sure how this is all going to work when she leaves, but we'll just go one hour at a time. ... I'm trying to really be present and notice the moments when all 3 are quiet and happy. It really does actually happen quite a bit during the day, but it's much easier sometimes to get caught up when they are all fussy!!
Like right now I'm savoring that Caroline is sleeping in the playpen and the boys are playing in their playroom without fighting. I'm drinking some coffee and publishing this post! And my nice mom is doing my laundry! A very nice morning!!

A baby, some friends and a Jackie

Caroline is home and enjoying herself. Grandma Melissa is doing a great job helping with the boys and Lindsay. Lindsay is doing a great job feeding Caroline.

Our boys were so glad their best friend Haley came over to see them. I hope I am spelling her name correct

Jack is wondering if he can fit in this box. "No Jack, you cannot"