Well, so much for hoping that Fischer and I would stay germ-free.  Today, all 4 of us had a cold. Addison probably felt the best out of all of us, so hopefully we'll all be feeling better tomorrow.  Fischer was up at midnight last night... I knew as soon as I heard him cry that he was sick too. It was a different type of cry, and when I walked into his room, I could tell he couldn't breath through his nose. His crying woke Addison up and it took awhile to get them both back to sleep.  Hopefully tonight we'll all get some good sleep!

Fischer wasn't as fussy as I thought he'd be. He didn't seem to have as much of an appetite, but he still ate pretty well.  Here is a picture of Fischer with his first cold...

Fischer is now also pointing at pictures of dogs around our house and saying "dah."  Also,  we increased Fischer to 4 ounces of whole milk per feeding today, while we increased Addison to 3 ounces of soy milk! We are slowly but surely finishing up with formula.

We dropped off our donations from the party at The Ronald McDonald House today.  While I was hoping to take Addison and Fischer inside, and take pictures of us dropping everything off, that wasn't the case. With Addison and Scott being sick, we made it a very quick trip with minimal contact. Needless to say, those staying at The Ronald McDonald House don't need to be around any germs! The man we saw was very appreciative of all the donations, and said that they would be very useful. He said their house is completely full with a very long waiting list.  This made me sad, and very thankful that Addison and Fischer are so healthy.

I think Addison is almost back to normal today. She didn't have a fever at all today and sneezed much less than yesterday. Hopefully by tomorrow, she'll be back to 100%.  Fischer did sneeze a few times tonight, so we'll see how he is tomorrow. I'm pretty sure he'll be a much fussier sick baby than Addison was.

Today, Addison walked quite a bit behind her push toy. She acted as if she'd been doing it for a long time. I think her first unassisted steps are in our very near future.

Here are some pictures from today... the last two show that Addison and Fischer are mastering their sippy cup skills. Fischer, especially, LOVES his sippy cup and gets almost giddy when we let him hold it.

We managed to make it 1 year and 4 days without Addison and Fischer getting sick. Sadly, our lucky streak ended today. Just for Addison though.. maybe Fischer's will continue! She woke up with a runny nose and a lot of sneezing. She had a fever after her afternoon nap, but it was gone by bedtime.  She hasn't been fussy, just sort of out of it. And you can tell in her eyes that she doesn't feel so good. Luckily, she still ate and drank well today. We are fully expecting Fischer's nose to start running soon, but maybe we'll be lucky and that won't happen.

Of course, I took a picture of Addison with her first cold...

On a food note.. we continue to give Addison and Fischer all kinds of new foods. Last night, they tried some venison (deer meat) and ate it all! They also had basil-roasted carrots tonight.  Fischer is a serious bread eater (just like his Mommy) and always wants some right away if he sees us eating any sort of bread item. The doctor said that as long as we keep giving them different flavors and seasonings, they are less likely to be picky eaters. So far, they aren't picky at all! 

Last year, I got to (had to!) come home from the hospital. On one hand, I was excited to be able to sleep and rest in my own bed. On the other, I was very sad because I was leaving the hospital without my babies.   They were just 3 days old, and I was leaving them in someone else's care. But, both Scott and I knew it's where they needed to be. We quickly worked out a routine of going to the hospital each morning and afternoon and staying for a couple of hours each time. During that time, we got to hold, feed, and change the babies. Holding them was the best feeling, and made us feel like "normal" parents. Feeding them was stressful because they were supposed to eat their whole bottle within 30 minutes. Anything beyond that burned too many calories and defeated the purpose of eating. If they didn't finish, the rest would be given through their feeding tubes, which meant they couldn't come home yet. So yes, feeding them was stressful. Changing their diapers and clothes was interesting because of all of the wires and tubes, but it was also fun picking out their tiny little outfits!

This year, we took Addison and Fischer to their one year appointment! The Doctor seemed very pleased with their progress and said she'd see them in 3 months at their 15 month appointment.  As if they knew they were being observed, they started "performing" as soon as the Doctor walked in. Addison waved at her, Fischer crawled around (both army and regular), both were babbling, and Fischer said "uh-oh."  They also had fun playing with her stethoscope. Once that part was done, the shots came. They also had to have their little thumbs pricked. Addison didn't like it, but Fischer seemed quite content to watch them squeeze the blood out of his thumb into the little tube.  We aren't quite sure if this is a good thing... but at least he didn't cry. They both cried when they got their shots though...a lot. I think it was partially due to missing nap time and partially due to the pain.

We asked the Doctor a lot of questions, and she was very patient with us.  She said we are free to turn around their car seats at any time, although I want to wait until Fischer gains another pound.  She also gave us some pointers on how to handle Fischer's temper (aka hitting when he's frustrated).  We also asked about the dark circles that both babies seem to have under their eyes sometimes. She said they can be a sign of allergies, or can also be caused by teething.  They've been outside a lot more lately because of the nicer weather, so she said it could also be something outside (allergy-related). We are supposed to watch them and if it gets worse, let her know.  She said to also watch for excessive eye-rubbing, stuffy noses, etc.

Here is their information from today's appointment:

Addison:  19 pounds, 15 ounces (26%)
                 28.25 inches (18%)
                 Head - 17.5 inches (27%)

Fischer:    18 pounds, 6 ounces (1%)
                 29.5 inches (19%)
                 Head - 18 inches (27%)

Here are a couple "then and now" pictures:

Their preemie diapers were just a bit bigger than my cell phone.

I found two of these bibs (on the left) stuffed in a small pocket in their diaper bag today...they are such small bibs! 

And a few pictures of them playing in their new tent/tunnel...

Last year, Scott and I were still getting used to the idea that we now had two tiny babies! The doctors said I could go home, but also said I could stay another day if I wanted to since the babies would be staying. I, of course, said I wanted to stay as long as possible since they were right down the hall. The doctors did what they needed to do for the paperwork, and I got to stay an extra night. Addison and Fischer were in the Level 2 nursery, and their main issues were feeding and weight gain. They were being tube fed, and until they could eat all of their bottles by mouth, they couldn't go home.  The doctors and nurses were very careful not to give us an estimate of how long it would be before they could go home. As we soon learned, things could change very quickly causing it to be quite an emotional roller coaster!

By now, we had held, changed, and attempted to feed both babies. It was amazing to watch the nurses handle such tiny babies as if it was no big deal... Scott and I were scared to death that we were going to hurt them. The nurses kept reassuring us that we couldn't break them, but we were still very nervous. We got the hang of it though, and enjoyed doing some of the daily tasks that come with having newborns.

Today, we are the parents of 2 not-so-tiny one year olds. They are getting so big. We have their year check ups tomorrow, so I'll have official weights and lengths then!

At 12 months, Addison:

- Claps on her own and when prompted, and loves to clap when I say "yay."
- Gives kisses when asked, and sometimes on her own!
- Wears size 3 diapers.
- Wears 9 to 12 month clothes, and even 18 months in a couple of brands.
- Waves hello, good-bye and for no reason at all.
- Walks behind her push toy, when she feels like it.
- Has 4 teeth.
- Eats anything that we put in front of her.
- Is drinking soy milk.
- Says the sounds da, ya, ma, pa, ba
- Stands without assistance (I think she could take steps if she wanted to, but she doesn't seem ready).
- Has been paci free since January 1, 2010!
- Rocks back and forth when music is playing.
- Loves to be held.
- Still wakes up at least once most nights, but we aren't sure why.

I could go on and on....!

At 12 months, Fischer:

- Pulls up on everything and is cruising a lot more.
- Has 6 teeth.
- Wears 6-12 month clothes.
- Wears size 3 diapers.
- Likes to give kisses, when he's in the mood.
- Is drinking whole milk.
- Eats anything we put in front of him, although he's a slower eater than Addison.
- Doesn't like to be alone.
- Claps a lot, and especially loves to clap after hearing The Alphabet Song.
- Has a temper, and it shows when he gets frustrated with his toys.
- Says "uh-oh" in context.
- Says the sounds ma, ya, ba, da (he says deh when he sees pictures of dogs).
- Has walked behind his push toy.
- Has been paci-free since January 1, 2010!

As with Addison, I could go on and on about Fischer too!

Here are some pictures from Sunday and Monday - Addison and Fischer's birthday! It was so nice Sunday, so we spent a lot of time outside. Monday was rainy, but our plans were to go to the aquarium anyway, so that was good.

I think Fischer is eating grass in this picture...

Addison and Fischer love the wagon!!

On Monday, we went out for a birthday lunch...

Then we found the play area at the Aquarium...

Then we looked at some fish...

Then we set up their new play tunnel...

Playing inside the tunnel...

Then they got to enjoy a birthday cupcake, and even tried ice cream for the first time...

And finally, a birthday bubble bath...

Last year, I became a mother of 2. My water broke around 2:30 a.m., and Addison was born at 4:30 a.m., and Fischer at 4:31 a.m.  It was weird not being able to touch, hold or even see them right away. Scott got a peek at them as they were carrying them away, but that was it! It would be several hours before I could go see them in person (although Scott had gone to see them and showed me pictures on his phone). Thankfully there were no major issues, and both babies were doing pretty well! It was the happiest day of our lives, but also one of the scariest!

This year, we had a wonderful day celebrating Addison and Fischer's first birthday! After their morning nap, we went out to lunch and then to the Aquarium. It was a very rainy morning, so I'm glad our plans didn't involve anything outside. They both seemed to enjoy watching the fish, and especially loved playing in the play area. We came home and opened a few presents. Then, they enjoyed a birthday cupcake after dinner, followed by a nice bubble bath.  I'd say it was a pretty nice day for all of us!!

It's hard to believe that a whole year has gone by. I'm hoping that this next year doesn't go by quite as fast as this one did!

Here we are a year ago (I'm with Fischer and Scott is with Addison)...

And this morning...

Goodness, how things change in a year.

I took a lot of pictures yesterday and today and will be sure to post some tomorrow.