I guess Fischer didn't want to feel left out of all the clapping that Addison's been doing! He started clapping yesterday and has been doing it more and more. I just love seeing both of them clapping at the same time! :)

He has also started fake sneezing. Yesterday he sneezed for real, and I said "Bless you."  He smiled, then "sneezed" again.  So now if I do a fake sneeze, he will sometimes do one back. It sounds more like "Aaaaa-chi"... sort of... it's really hard to write the sounds that they make! He has also been repeating the word dog.

A friend came over today to watch the babies for a couple of hours, and when she was leaving today and saying "bye-bye" they both waved and said their version of bye back. So cute!!

We have really decreased the amount of baby food that they've been getting. They don't seem to miss it too much. They've been having toast along with something else in the mornings, and we've been doing different things for lunch and dinner. Tonight for dinner they had macaroni and cheese, with ham mixed in.  I don't think I've ever seen them eat so fast! We are very lucky because we have yet to come across a food that they won't eat... hopefully it stays that way!

Official Birthday Countdown:  4 Days!!

Yesterday, we took Addison and Fischer to get their First Birthday pictures taken. I wasn't quite sure how it'd go since we have two very  mobile babies who don't like to sit still for anything.  I was pleased with how the pictures turned out though, and we managed to do it all without one single tear! She took about 130 shots (many are similar poses) and we loved them all.  Here are just a few (I couldn't figure out how to rotate the first picture on here):

Official Birthday Countdown:  5 Days!!! 

A year ago today was a big day. I had my 34 week (we were so happy I'd made it this far!) doctor appointment, and I was allowed to remove the terbutaline pump.  I was very scared though, because I was very used to doing my monitoring twice a day and knowing how many contractions I was having.  No terbutaline pump also meant no in-home monitoring. I was so worried I wouldn't know when I was going into labor since I really hadn't been feeling the contractions I was having.

At the appointment, I was still 4 cm.  The doctor said we could remove the pump whenever we felt comfortable. So, that evening, we took it out. And waited.  The doctor said some people went into labor immediately, and some went several more weeks, sometimes even having to be induced! So, I had no idea how much longer I'd have to wait. The waiting was very hard and nerve-wracking.  I was still on bed rest, but it was nice to not have to worry about the pump anymore.

This year, we are gearing up for Addison and Fischer's first birthday party! Today, we are going to get their year pictures taken. I can't wait to see how they turn out!

Fischer has started crawling on his hands and knees! He is still army crawling, but using his hands and knees much more. He started doing it out of nowhere on Sunday, and continued to do it all day yesterday.  I also got him to say "uh-oh." I said it when he dropped a ball, and then told him to say it. It came out more like "uh-uh" but he did the same sounds as I did with his voice. So of course I kept asking him all day yesterday to say "uh-oh" because it's so cute to hear him repeat something! He also has the very beginnings of his 5th tooth. It has barely broken through but it's there. This tooth has been his worst so far for teething. He has had pretty much every teething symptom, except for fever.  I don't think Addison's 5th tooth is far behind, because she was pulling on her gums yesterday.

Addison used her car/walker several times yesterday to walk through the kitchen.  She usually takes about 5 steps then sits down. I've also noticed that she won't do it as much if she thinks I'm watching. If I seem to be busy doing something else, that's usually when she does it. Maybe she doesn't like the pressure of people watching! She has also started clapping a lot more...both when prompted and on her own. She's even clapping hard enough sometimes to actually  make the clapping sound!

Official Birthday Countdown:  6 Days!!

We had a nice Valentine's Day. Addison and Fischer were ready to go in their Valentine's Day outfits!

Official Birthday Countdown: 7 days!!

Just a couple of updates before I post some pictures... Addison still seems to be doing great on the soy milk.  We increased Fischer's whole milk to 2 ounces per feeding so we'll see how he does with that. Also, they had their first piece of toast this morning for breakfast and LOVED it. They didn't want their bananas, which they normally love, after tasting the toast.

Here are some pictures of Addison and Fischer playing in the snow. Addison wasn't happy at first, but then wanted back down and discovered that she liked eating it. Fischer didn't like how cold it was when he ate some.  The first picture is of the babies when the power was out - they were in their sleepers and jackets, and we had a propane burner going for some heat.  The second picture is our back yard!

Official Birthday Countdown: 8 Days!! 

We actually got snow here in Charleston, which was fun.  However, we lost power for 12 hours last night, which was not fun. Addison and Fischer woke up around 11:30 last night because of how cold their room was (we lost power around 9:00). We had a fire going, so we brought them out to the living room, which of course got them pretty excited because they thought it was time to play. After settling them down, Scott slept with Addison on the couch and I slept with Fischer on the big chair.  Scott and I each got about 2 hours of sleep so we are pretty tired tonight. Hopefully the babies don't think they will get to come out to the living room tonight to hang out with us again. :)

We did let them play in the snow for a little while today, so I will be posting pictures of those soon (hopefully tomorrow).

I took Addison to the doctor yesterday morning because of her milk issues.  The doctor suggested trying soy milk, so we started that today. We are doing one ounce at a time again and things went well today. We will see what tomorrow holds. If soy milk doesn't work, we'll try rice milk.  The doctor didn't seem to think that she'll have any trouble with other dairy products and we are definitely hoping that's the case.  She said we can try whole milk again in 6 months or so. When they weighed her at the doctor, she was 20 pounds, 7 ounces with clothes on. WOW!! She is a growing girl.  We'll be back in a little under 2 weeks for their 1 year check up.

Scott  stayed home with Fischer while I took Addison to the doctor. Since we had a little extra time after the appointment, we met a friend for lunch... I think Addison really enjoyed her girl time. I know I did! I never get to spend time with just one of them like that, so it was really nice. I think Fischer had fun with his Daddy too.

Official Birthday Countdown: 9 Days!! I can't believe we are into single digits.

Yesterday I wrote about how Fischer would only kiss objects and Addison wouldn't kiss anything.  Well, that all changed today. Fischer has been kissing things, including me, all day! Anytime I ask, I get a kiss from him. He also gave Scott a kiss tonight. Addison started giving objects kisses today, and then gave both me and Scott one tonight!  Then, the sweetest thing happened... they kissed each other! I am going to try to get it on video tomorrow if they'll do it again.

It's funny because their kissing styles are so different, just like their personalities! Addison's are closed mouth and sort of tight-lipped. Fischer comes at you with his mouth wide open! It it so fun to watch how their personalities come through in everything that they do.

All of this kissing is just in time for Valentine's Day. :)

Official Birthday Countdown:  11 Days!