This is 5!

I find myself apologizing, again, for lack of writing on this blog…but who’s it really for anyway? Probably my kids one day? They don’t care how often I write but I have really enjoyed reading past birthday posts so I’m going to do my best to continue this once or twice a year thing and keep making my list of blog topics in my daily journal. Oh, and I’m three days late on their birthday post, but our kiddos are now 5!!! Where did the time go? 

It’s incredible to think where we were just 5 years ago–3 days into a 78 day NICU stay, not yet knowing our little Neala would contract NEC, not knowing that Rylan would have surgery before being discharged, not knowing just how spunky and full of life these two little beings would become with lots of love, encouragement, fighting spirit, and the miracle of modern medicine. 

Without further ado, here’s the ABC’s of our two 5 year olds (and last year’s and when they turned 3, and 2): 

A: Ambulances. Thankfully, we’ve never needed one, but Rylan is especially obsessed with ambulances and any other emergency vehicles. We live across the street from a fire station and whenever he hears a siren, he runs to the front window to see what’s driving by and reports back to us. 

B: Ballet. Both kids started taking ballet back in August. It took a bit of coaxing to convince Rylan that he was ok with being the only boy in the class. After the first class, he stated, “It’s too hard.” We let him sit in the waiting room during the next class and it was just too boring, and he’s been working super hard at all his positions, moves, and vocabulary ever since. Neala, on the other hand, absolutely loved every aspect of the class from day one, especially the fact that her bestie twin girlfriend is in the class. 

C: Clothes. Neala is VERY particular about her clothing. She typically wants to wear a dress every day and when it’s cold, she has to wear pants too…and socks pulled up over the pants, and probably some patterned long sleeve shirt underneath, and JUST the right shoes, which are probably too big. Rylan usually doesn’t care what he wears, but if you tell him he’s the cutest little pumpkin when he’s wearing his jack-o-lantern shirt, be prepared for a dirty look. 

D: Dogs. I’ve posted before about how much the kids like the dogs and how much the dogs like the kids. Their bond seems to have grown in the last 6 months. I’ve been working on training Stella dog and it’s really improved her relationship with pretty much all humans, and most definitely including the kids. 

E: Eggs. Scrambled for Ry. Volcano (fried, over easy) for Neala. Or sometimes dinosaur eggs (soft boiled). 

F: Fairy. There’s the standard tooth fairy but we’re not there in our lives just yet, as no one has lost any teeth. Another useful fairy in our house is the “Halloween Fairy” who trades Halloween candy for things like books, clothes, or toys. We try to keep the post-Halloween sugar rush to a minimum. 

G: Go! It seems we are constantly on the go, but I don’t really know how to do life any other way. I’m trying to slow down and enjoy the small, quiet moments and to teach my kids to do the same. With a major life change coming for all of us (see letter W), we’re trying to slow down a bit and take in the day by day. 

H: House. This is not 100% kid related, but we’ve slowly been making improvements to our house…new front fence, new front door paint, updated bathroom, new roof, new swamp cooler…the kids have been champs with all the changes and have been super flexible with spending the night in various places while work is completed. 

I: I. Yes…I for I. In the last 8 or 9 months each kid has really started to identify with various characters in books or TV shows. They constantly ask each other, “Can I be….(name book character)?” The answer is 99.9% of the time yesyet they keep asking each other. It’s interesting to watch who they want to be or who they don’t want to be. 

J: Jack-o-lantern. I’m not a huge fan of pumpkin carving but I took one for the team this year and let the kids “carve” pumpkins. I am really taking way too much credit for this–we went to a friends house and had a twins pumpkin carving party where the dad of the other kids did most of the work–THANK YOU PETE! They really enjoyed drawing on their pumpkins and didn’t quite understand the cutting part, but they were super cute and original. 

K: Ketchup. As I’ve written over and over, mealtime is a struggle for us. Still. And our kids are still small. Very small. We’re hoping in their 5th year that they hit 35lbs, but Rylan still hasn’t hit 30 yet so…we’re not holding our breath. Ketchup seems to have some magic ingredient in it (sugar, duh), that makes most food edible in the minds of my kiddos. Thank goodness for Costco giant sized bottles. 

L: Letters. Neala has just about mastered writing her own name, and most other letters too. One day she wanted to practice writing the letter “R.” She drew 26 r’s on one sheet of paper! Rylan is much less inclined to draw, write, or practice his letters. He can identify all the letters but I’ve yet to see him write his name. I’m sure with a little more encouragement from me and his teachers, he’ll figure it out soon enough. 

M: March of Dimes. For the 3rd (or 4th?) year in a row, we participated in the March of Dimes March for Babies event in Albuquerque. This year, thanks to many of you, our family was the top fundraiser for the Albuquerque area, raising $3,907.55!

N: Neala! Our Nea Nea has really come out of her shell in the last year. She’s made some great friends in school, LOVES hanging with her cousins, rocked the Nutcracker performance, and is getting better and better at swimming with each lesson. Her favorite activity is soccer and her footwork and speed are really improving. 

O: Oxygen. The spring of 2015, right after the kids turned one, we spent several nights in the hospital with each kid. Some nasty viruses caused breathing issues that we believe were linked to their prematurity and small airways. Both kids required oxygen and Rylan required almost enough to intubate. At the end of his last hospital stay, Rylan was placed on controller meds and we were armed with emergency preventative meds to keep him out of the hospital in case of more breathing issues. After much discussion with the doc, we’ve decided to forego the controller meds this RSV season in hopes that both kids’ lungs and immune systems are strong enough to power through. 

P: Planets. Planets are a regular topic of discussion. Rylan’s typical favorite is Jupiter and Neala’s often changes from Neptune to Uranus…I think because Uranus is purple on the planet poster they have in their room. 

Q: Quiet. Something that is rare in our house. But we like it that way. 

R: Rylan! Ry guy is as full of spunk and personality as ever. He’s the smallest in his class (by a lot) but doesn’t let his size stop him from making friends and fully participating in all activities. His imagination runs away with him while he builds lego cities, plays with his PJ Mask characters, or builds with magnatiles. 

S: School. The kids have been at the UNM Children’s campus since March of 2017. They are now in the Pre-K program and loving every minute. They’e been with the same kids and the same teachers since they arrived. We are very fortunate that there was a spot for both of our kids in such a great school. They are excited about kindergarten next fall and have decided that they’d rather be in a classroom together but that they’d be ok if they were in different classes. 

T: Travel! Early 2018 was filled with travel for Patrick as he flew across the country multiple times interviewing for a fellowship position in total joint replacement. His travel was punctuated by a month-long rotation at the Royal London Hospital. The kids and I (and their auntie) flew to London to see him for the middle two weeks. We spent a few days in London and then took the train to Scotland for a very cold extended Easter weekend with family. We were able to see some family members we’d never met and spent lots of time with a few we hadn’t seen in quite some time. We said farewell to Aunt Jo who had to get back to the US, and returned to London for a week of visiting museums, riding double-decker buses, visiting the zoo, eating lots of chips, taking advantage of the super cool playgrounds, minding the gap in the tube stations, and riding the London Eye. 

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We also went on several trips to Ruidoso, New Mexico, took two trips to White Sands, went to Tent Rocks and Cochiti lake, and went camping in the Jemez once…and camping-not-camping once. It rained so much we had to drive home in the middle of the night to avoid sleeping in puddles. 

U: Unique. People constantly ask me if my kids are alike or different. Base answer: they are different. They are two unique individuals. Sorry to disappoint, but they do not have a twin language, they do not seem to be able to read eachothers minds, and they like and dislike different things. I find it challenging not to compare them to each other and have to remind myself that their little personalities are quite different, as are their interests, skills, and needs! 

V: Vocabulary. Their little vocabularies are ever expanding and their need to know what words means is fascinating. On the way home last night, Neala said, “Mom, do you know what a nebula is?” And then Rylan chimed in with an explanation (sort of) of a “neblia.” Their use of various words isn’t always correct but when they’re searching for the correct use or pronunciation, you can almost see their little minds working. My favorite incorrect word that I may never correct (sorry kids…) is saying “ourchother” instead of each other. 

W: West Virginia! After a rigorous interview schedule (see letter T), Patrick matched for fellowship (the same way the residency match works) at West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia. Fellowship begins August 1st and we are excited for our move in the middle of July. It is a one-year program and we’re not sure what the future holds for us when it’s over. Patrick will be done with the training portion of his career–after 10 full years of med-school, residency, and fellowship! 

X: Xanthocroic. Thank you, internet, for that word! It means having fair hair and pale skin. I’d say that fits both kids! Both kids are getting more and more blonde and their skin…well…it’s so pale it’s practically see through. 

Y: Yes. I read a blog post by a mom (I can’t remember which blog it was) that said that she did her best every day to say “yes” to her kids as many times as possible. It can be SO easy to say no. No to big things and no to little things. No is easier than yes. I remember, and try to live by, that momma’s mantra of yes as often as possible. I do have boundaries and always keep safety in mind, but why not let the kids jump in the puddle, paint their bodies, or wear shorts over their pants?? Who cares?! Let the kids be KIDS. 

Z: Zero. One of my favorite things out of my kids’ mouths, “Mom! Let’s play maths!” They’ve actually mastered the concept of zero and always know that anything plus zero is just that number!

So there you have it! HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIDDOS!