Hello.....Is anyone out there?

It's a little before 3am and I am having trouble sleeping, so what better time to update the blog. I often wonder if anyone reads this anymore. I just spent the better part of an hour looking through my old posts, and I must say that I'm glad I have done this blog, I just wish I would have kept up with it a little better. To anyone out there who still visits the blog, my sincerest apologies!

So, I'm sure you are asking: What is going on with the cubs???

Where to start??? The cubs are potty trained and have been for some time. Even at night. I can't remember the last time we bought diapers or pull-ups, but this is now a diaper/pull-up free zone. Emily pretty much potty-trained herself over the summer and I was just a casual (and delighted) observer. Zach took a little more effort, but I think the peer pressure from preschool really kicked him into high gear. We started out the first week in September in pull-ups and by the end of September we were in our "big boys". AWESOMENESS!

The cubs are also in big girl/boy beds. I don't quite remember when that happened either. I do remember that it took 3 tries for Emily to accept the toddler bed, and that was a miserable experience in itself. Now she is in a twin bed (she calls it her "princess bed"). I held Zach's transition off as much as possible, and to my surprise, he did great! We converted first to a toddler bed, and then a twin bed for him as well, and I must say with great relief, that we had no trouble at all with it. Such a pleasant and unexpected surprise.

Our first visit to the Dentist was in February. Emily did fabulous. She let them take x-rays, clean her teeth, and do the exam with little fussing. Zach was a bit more trying. He started screaming when they tried to take xrays so they took us to a room for the Dentist to do an "infant exam" (inward groan). I tried my best to calm him down. Then the Dentist walked in. As she was starting the exam, I asked Zach one last time if he wanted to get his picture (xray) taken and he slowly nodded "yes". I am sure this big change of heart had everything to do with the fact that the Dentist was a very attractive blonde. FLIRT. So xrays, cleaning, and exam...DONE! Both cubs are cavity free. Emily is still missing her 2 year old molars on her right side, and Zach is missing both on top. They are there but haven't broken through yet, so apparently we have more teething in our future. Yippee (UGH)!

The cubs are still taking swim lessons. Last session was quite a test for us, especially for Zach. He would resist going and would cry often, even though he would do what they told him to once he was in the water. He would just cry as he was doing it. This session has been a complete turn around. He is excited to go, puts his swimsuit on without a fight, and is really making great progress. By looking at him this time you would never know the headaches we went through last session. I'm sure the fact that he thinks his instructor, Alex, is cute certainly helps. And yes, he told me "Alex is cute". Of course I just rolled my eyes at him. FLIRT!!! Emily is doing great in her lessons too. She always wants to be the first one to do anything. Last week her group got to go down the "big slide" and that's all I have heard about. They are doing great with their kicks and their "big arms", the only problem is getting them to do both at the same time. They hold their breath, blow bubbles, jump in and turn around to back to the side of the pool, and they do it while looking amusingly adorable in their little goggles!

Both cubs are still in speech therapy, both through the school district and TWU. We are making progress there too. Zach is working on his action verbs. He has a book with pictures of actions, and we go through it by me asking him "What is this girl/boy doing?" and he will tell me "the boy is fishing" or "the girl is running". Last week in the car, he took the book from me, held it up for his sister, and said, "Emily, what is this boy doing?". I was so proud of him. Emily is working on her articulation and she still has some trouble getting her words in the correct order. She sings a lot, which is adorable, but it always takes me a while to figure out the song, because she makes up her own words, and sometimes the tune is a little off. Pretty sure she won't be trying out for American Idol. Gotta love her.

Preschool is wonderful! The cubs run to class and barely look at me as I'm leaving. I practically have to beg for a goodbye kiss. Sometimes they surprise me with "Goodbye, Mommy" but most of the time I can tell they are ready to jump into the first activity and I am just in the way. SIGH. They really are growing up too fast. I love their independence but I love my hugs and kisses more.

Zach eating has been amazing. It definitely isn't because he is trying new things, because he really isn't, but when I look back at where we were two years ago, I am so relieved at the progress he has made. We still have our few select foods, but at least he is eating. He has added "quesadilla" to his food rotation (as well as his vocabulary - so cute to hear him say it). Just this week he asked me for a cookie. He ate two mini-oreo cookies (what mom can say they are excited that their kid ate a cookie?!?!) but of course the next day he had no interest in them. BUT, he asked for a cookie! AND he tried it! I will never complain about that! He loves pasta in almost any form as long as there is no red sauce of any sort on it. There must also be no ketchup within a mile radius of his plate. He still loves Bueno burritos and recently he ate a whole mini pizza by himself. He likes Chuck-E-Cheese pizza too! Can you believe it?? We are still supplementing his diet with Pediasure. I look forward to the day that he will no longer need it, it is quite expensive when he gobbles down 2-3 bottles a day. Emily is still dealing with her addiction to nuggets and fries. She still loves strawberries, bananas, and mandarin oranges, but refuses all veggies. Occasionally I can get her to eat a taco with meat only. Who knew this little monkey would turn into a picky eater. When she was a baby she liked everything except watermelon. Now she is on picky diet too - and of course it can't be anything that Zach likes. That would be too easy. I know there are those out there who feel that I shouldn't cater to them, but when you have a baby with eating issues, you will do whatever it takes for them to eat. Believe me, I have tried the "he'll eat anything if he's hungry" approach, and he will literally refuse to eat. All day. And it won't phase him a bit but it will make the rest of us miserable. I stand by the advice of my pedicatrician..."if you find something he likes, then feed it to him". Even if it is the same thing day after day, because right now, the important thing is maintaining his weight. He still gets his nutritional needs met by vitamins and Pediasure. I have no doubt that when he becomes a teenager I will need a second income to feed him, but for now this is just how things are going to be.

Zach still LOVES golf. Whether he is playing it or watching it on TV, he LOVES it. Which makes his Daddy very proud. He says "Titleist, number one golf ball" every night before bed. I should record it and then see if Titleist will endorse his future golfing career. I am sure that he and Steve will be glued to the TV this Sunday for the final round of the Masters.

My last day of work was March 31st. It was just getting too hard to work and maintain the cubs' "social schedule". Between school, therapies, swim lessons, family time, and my other household duties, I was having difficulty trying to manage work too. I was staying up late at night to work, or passing up on family activities to work, and Steve finally told me I needed to choose one or the other, and of course he was right. I am really thankful that I was able to work for so long, and I am grateful for my boss allowing me to have such a flexible schedule, but now I am thankful that I have one less thing on my plate. I will miss the income, but spending time with the cubs is more important right now.

Steve is still incredibly busy with work and we really enjoy the time when he is home. He is trying to golf once a week, but sometimes other activities keep him from doing so. Eventually we will get a schedule worked out. He has been really great letting me do all my "girl stuff" in the evenings. I still enjoy our neighborhood Bunco group and getting together with the girls for dinner and conversation. I served a year on the Board for my Mothers of Multiples group, but have decided this year to pass that torch on to someone else. Our neighborhood has started a Women's Association, so I've enjoyed meeting new friends and neighbors through that as well.

It's just a crazy, busy time of year for us at Cub Central. I can't believe that my precious cubbies are about to celebrate their fourth birthday. We love and appreciate all of you who have taken this journey with us. Thank you for remaining patient with me as I sadly neglect my blog. We have some exciting things planned this year. The cubs' first airplane trip is scheduled...not sure what to expect there, but we'll make the best of it. I'm sure I'll blog about it six months after it happens! Just pretend that we are in our own special time zone with a six month time delay!

Hugs and kisses from all of us!!

Comings and goings

Cub Central has been crazy busy as usual. With preschool, therapy, and playdates there isn't much time for anything else. Naptime is usually a toss-up each day, even though everyone in the house could use a little downtime. We caved and put the rails back up on Emily's crib, so things are going much better in that department. She is no longer waking up at 3 am, thank goodness.

I am still busy in the evenings with my GNOs, the neighborhood Bunco group, and my Mom of Multiples group. I am now the treasurer, so I have a board meeting to attend in addition to the regular monthly meetings. Dad even manages to go golfing almost every Wednesday.

Cubs are doing well. We are finally over the sniffles. We are still rotating through the usual foods...the cubs are reluctant to try new things even though I offer them constantly. Zach actually does a little better than Emily when it comes to trying new things. Who would have believed that I would ever say that Zach is doing better than Emily in regards to eating?!?! Wow, we have come such a long way with our little man. Not long ago we would worry whether he was going to throw up every time he coughed (and he usually did). We are so thankful we have passed over that hurdle.

We are all really looking forward to the spring so we can all enjoy some more outdoor time. This winter has been much colder/wetter than usual and it has been pretty depressing being cooped up for days and days. We are all experiencing cabin fever and are looking forward to some outside play. Bring on the warmth!!

I have a ton of pictures to upload but for some reason I'm having trouble getting them on the blog. I've tried for a few days now with no luck. URGH!! Don't worry, I'll keep trying!

Where have we been?

Hmmm, good question. Every day seems to be a repeat of the last. Naps are becoming fewer and farther between....EEEKKK! NAPS are very important to our well-being. Theirs and mine. I wonder if bribery would work....these are desperate times!

The cubs are doing well. We had a pretty bad case of the germies here at Cub Central. It seems that I was harder hit than the rest of the crew. We're going on two weeks of the dreaded cough...it has to end sometime, right? We have had our fair share of runny noses, coughing, and sleepless nights. Even Dad was a little under the weather.

Speech therapy at TWU starts again tomorrow. I am looking forward to it! The cubs really seemed to benefit from the sessions last semester. I can't believe the progress Zach has made with his numbers and ABCs. I will write them down and he will say the number or letter. I even mix them up and he still gets them. He still has a little trouble with M, N and W, but it becomes clearer each day....and he LOVES to do it. Emily is using two-word phrases and is repeating almost everything. Please sounds like 'fleas' which makes me laugh every time because it's so cute.

We have stalled in the eating department. Emily is on a strike. She hasn't really wanted anything. I place a plate in front of her and she turns her head, sticks her nose in the air, and adamantly says "no". GRRR! Things she used to love she refuses and when I offer new things she refuses that too. Whatever this phase is, I hope it passes quickly. Zach is now eating chicken nuggets, fish sticks and Ritz crackers. While this is huge (HUGE) progress, it makes me laugh that we have gone from one extreme to the other. Before he would just nibble microscopic bites and now he shoves the whole thing in his mouth, which makes mom very nervous. I would much appreciate a happy medium.

We now have a busy Spring ahead. With speech and preschool we now have something to do every weekday, so I'm hoping the days pass with less drama and as they get busier I hope their napping frequency increases back up. FINGERS crossed.

A look back....WAY back

Yikes, my last post was 10/22, the day before Grandma and Grandpa Bear were supposed to visit. Unfortunately Grandma Bear came down with a virus and they couldn't come, so now we won't get to see them until Thanksgiving.

We have been crazy busy here at Cub Central. On October 21st, after several days of unusually steady rain, we discovered a water leak in Emily's room. Actually, it pretty much announced itself. I walked into her room after dinner and found a "water balloon" making it's way down her wall. I had to take this picture because Steve wasn't home and I wanted him to see it before I "popped" it and drained the water into a bowl.



This lovely intrusion resulted in a week's worth of contractors coming in and removing the drywall, testing/treating for mold (mold test was negative but they treated anyway as a preventative measure), pulling up the carpet tack and base boards, repairing the roof leak, replacing everything, and repainting. I will say that our builder was very quick to get this repaired. We even had contractors here on Saturday. Thank goodness it was all covered by our warranty.

On Monday (10/26), the cubs received their seasonal flu shot and on Wednesday the cubs came down with a vicious case of the sniffles/coughs. UGH!!! Unbelievable. Fortunately they felt better by Halloween to go trick-or-treating for a little while.

I attended a baby shower on Sunday (11/01) for our good friends, Matt and Beth Ann. They are expecting a baby girl in December, and I was glad I got to see them again. It always seems that every time we try to get together someone (aka A CUB) gets sick. I just can't seem to get these cubs healthy. I'm sure it's because they are in preschool for the first time, but it just drags on and on.

We received approval for the pool from the HOA and had our preconstruction meeting on Friday, so we should be breaking ground as soon as permits are received from the City. VERY exciting.

Zach is still eating really well. Last night we took the cubs to CiCis pizza (original plan was to go to Chuck-E-Cheese, but it was packed) and there he ate the cheese topping from four slices of pizza. Emily, however, adamantly refused everything except black olives. It seems like they have swapped roles. Zach is doing well and Emily has become my picky eater. She turns her head and says "NO" very clearly. Can't believe this is the same girl that used to eat EVERYTHING except watermelon. Where did she go?

I will be sharing pictures of other recent happenings here at Cub Central...it's easier (and faster) to let the pictures speak for themselves.

Amnesia

When I wait too long in between posts I generally forget everything that has happened. Self-inflicted amnesia. Pretty true in tonight's case too, so this will be a short (and probably disappointing) blog.

It seems that everything has been going along pretty well. I had a dinner out at Gloria's with the THC girls last Thursday. We had to cancel the night in September because the cubs were sick and a couple of the girls were out of town, so it was really nice to see everyone again and catch up.

We met with our pool salesperson on Saturday to pick out the coping and tiles for the pool. I just received the plans for the pool yesterday, so I need to get those to our HOA for approval. I am crossing my fingers that we don't have any problems.

On Sunday (Oct 18) we took the cubs to the Pumpkin Patch. I would love to say that I had a great time but I would be lying stretching the truth. All I wanted was to capture the cubs in a photo together looking adorable. As soon as I got there and turned on the camera the battery light started flashing (just my luck). No problem. I brought a spare pair...if only I hadn't left them in the car. UGH. I made the right decision by not trekking all the way back to the car. Practically every picture that I took was of the cubs' backs as they were running away from me, most often in opposite directions. It was really a test of my patience. I hated it but I'll post some pictures anyway.

One good thing came from the Pumpkin Patch disaster. On the way back home, Zach took a bite (not a nibble) of a Mum Mum (rice cracker). He gobbled the whole thing!! I was so excited! He has been doing great lately and I am so very proud of him. He is finally eating fish sticks (HUGE accomplishment). He continues to try new foods, most recently asparagus. He didn't really like it but that's not what counts. He has started turning up his nose to his usual favorites in order to try something off of my plate. We ordered a pasta dish from Buca di Beppo's and he liked it. We took him to Red Robin where he had some grilled cheese and french fries....he even did better than Emily. Today the cubs ate all of my taco...I didn't get one bite. I can hardly believe this is the same Zach that was eating baby food a few months ago. I am praying that this trend continues. Way to go Little Man! We are SO proud of you!

Tomorrow Grandma and Grandpa Bear are visiting and doing a little cub sitting for us. We are always so excited to see them!! Hopefully it will be sunny and dry so we can enjoy some more kite flying!

Weekly update

We are getting back into our routine...finally. Zach has done great going to preschool...I even got a goodbye kiss when I dropped him off in his classroom on Wednesday. Therapy is going just as well, he now takes the hand of his Clinician and off they go, leaving me behind to follow. What a difference!!

When I picked the cubs up from preschool on Monday, the director told me that they were having a picture make-up day. Woo hoo. I was thrilled that Emily would be getting another chance to replace the stick figure I was going to have to put in her scrapbook. I dressed her up on Tuesday, went to school, and was thrilled that the photographer was able to get a cute picture of her. Unfortunately the cubs wouldn't sit together well and I gave up as soon as the fussing started, so no sibling pictures, but at least I will have an individual picture for each of them. SUCCESS.

I am still working with Emily on the potty training. She is doing pretty well. Tonight she finally indicated "poo" to me BEFORE she actually did it. Usually she cues me after she's already gone, so this was huge. Hopefully she will keep up the forward progress. It is difficult though, since we are gone every morning during the week. I think I am going to start working with Zach. I'm not expecting anything yet, but maybe the little man will surprise me.

Zach has been doing very well with his eating with the exception of the week he was sick. This is also huge progress. He has been trying some new foods...fish, broccoli, scrambled eggs, and hashbrown potatoes. He even ate some cheese toasty and tried a few bites of roast beef. AWESOME!!! He still LOVES Taco Bueno refried beans. Today I gave him some burrito at lunch and I took him out of his booster seat when I thought he was finished. Silly me! I was amazed when he looked at me and crawled right back in his booster seat. I offered him the remaining small bites of the burrito and he ate it!! WOW!! He absolutely despises ketchup. I put a small drop on a hashbrown potato and he immediately spit it out and started screaming. SCREAMING!!!! Emily, on the other hand, can't eat things without it. She would not touch her fish until I put ketchup on it (which was a little gross to me...baked fish with ketchup, but if she'll eat it then I won't complain, and I'll keep offering it to her). She won't eat her fish sticks, french fries, scrambled eggs, or chicken nuggets without ketchup. It is so funny watching her with nuggets. She takes one bite out of each one...as if she is checking to see if they are all alike...and then she will go back and start over. Silly cub.

Steve and I have met with a pool contractor. What should be easy has started becoming difficult thanks to all the HOA/City regulations, but we are not giving up. I have financing lined up, now all we have to do is get the pool we want to fit in our yard. We'll know more next week. Until then....

Chew Chew (as opposed to "Choo Choo")

I've been very hesitant to write about this because as soon as I do, I will jinx it....but I am so excited that I decided to risk it anyway. Little Man has finally figured out the art of chewing! He still isn't tackling crunchy foods yet but at least we are seeing progress. The big event happened last Thursday at lunch. I made Emily some Eggo french toast sticks. I gave one to Zach simply to entertain him while I finished making the cubs' lunch. Twice he took big bites with his back teeth and CHEWED it. One bite was big enough that I was worried that he would choke on it, but he chewed it up. He even fussed when I tried to take it away from him. Amazing. That evening he ate several small french fries...and taking bites, not just the microscopic nibbles that we are used to. He now eats rice and scrambled eggs too! Woo hoo!!

Always playing catch up!

Cub Central is trucking along. Zach is still attending the feeding clinic at TWU. Tomorrow is our last day. It seems that we take one step forward and two steps back. Every time we make progress we seem to always have a small relapse. Now we're on the uphill again and I am thankful for that. He hasn't wanted to eat much in the last week. I think he may be teething and that has really affected him. He is so very fussy...to the point that when he doesn't get his way he attaches himself to my leg. So annoying. Today was a better day. We finally got to go outside to play (cold front has brought the temperatures down a bit) but he threw a grand hissy fit when he had to come inside. Emily threw a fit because we went outside, Zach threw a fit because we came inside....could these cubs be any more different?

Feeding the animals cubs has become a challenge, even with Emily. Foods she liked last week are left on her plate untouched this week. Zach still sticks with his standard foods: yogurt, taco bueno refried beans, mac and cheese, and the cheese topping off of pizza. He is on strike with his chicken and rice....WHAT a bummer! He still takes Pediasure and I still give him pureed veggies and fruits since that is the only way I can get him to eat them. He does like the tostada toppings from Taco Bell and he even eats the lettuce and cheese, but not the shell. He has improved on trying foods. He actually tried some rice-a-roni and a leaf from a brussel sprout. He'll try spaghetti but doesn't like spaghetti sauce. He is using his spoon/fork more even though I don't complain if he eats with his hands because at least he is eating. Emily is a mixed bag. She enjoys eating Dad's sloppy joe, but refuses (screaming refuses) to eat it off of her plate. The girl still LOVES bananas. Monkey. She likes fresh strawberries, grapes, and even shared a peach with me. Mandarin oranges are a favorite of hers too. She is a total fruitarian. Veggies are another story. She is on strike with the potato unless it is in french fry form. Yesterday she had some chicken fried steak even though she generally refuses meat. She is also on strike with cheese slices. WHAT??? No cheese??? This can't be my cub.

Last week I hosted an informal play date. I had four little guys come over to play. It went really well. Emily, always the hostess, wanted hugs from everyone as they left and then she would watch out the front window as they drove away. So cute. She was totally outnumbered but it didn't bother her a bit...she is quite the little tom-boy.

Emily is still keeping up with her routine at nap time. Zach goes to bed first as Emily blows him a kiss, waves, tells him bye, and closes the door. I love getting them up in the morning, except when it is unbelievably early. Since moving into their own rooms they have been sleeping pretty well. Emily is usually the first up (which is a surprise) so I get her out of her crib and we walk into Zach's room together. She is always so excited to see him. She always bursts through the door with a big smile and says "HI" and runs over to Zach's crib. Zach always jumps up and looks down at her with the biggest smile. It is so sweet! They are also playing together now. Zach follows Emily everywhere. They were running through the house holding hands earlier this week. Too cute for words!

I still enjoy my nights out with my friends. Things are calming down enough around here that Steve even gets to go to the golf course every now and then. He tries to get out at least once a week depending on the cubs' moods. You never know how their afternoons are going to go.

Just a little behind

So I am a little behind on my blogging. I am totally aware of this and yet I still haven't done it. That makes me a very bad blogger. It also means I have been a very busy non-blogger.

Zach's therapy.
Zach is attending a feeding clinic at a University in Denton (see blog dated 5/19 for more information on the clinic). There are three clinicians, one for each child. We have had two sessions and the other children have not shown up. So little man has had the total attention of three pretty college girls and their instructor. He is pretty much "eating this up"...pardon the expression. What a flirt. After the first session, he hugged his primary clinician, Leah, and then blew her a kiss. Are you kidding me? Zach blew his very first kiss to me on my birthday, and here he is blowing kisses to another girl just 8 days later. Kind of makes my kiss feel a little less special. The sessions are going ok. Play time is fun, but anytime they put him in the booster seat screaming ensues. Not pleasant to watch. (I am on the other side of a one-way mirror so he is unable to see me). The instructor says he's doing well with the different textures. Pretty good for the first week. She's had kids gag at the sight of food, so for Zach to play with his food is a good thing. He did actually pick up a piece of macaroni and cheese up and put it in his mouth all by himself. The next day he picked up a piece of rice. It's only been a few days and he's started using his fork all on his own. PROGRESS!! I am so proud of our little man.

Emily's therapy.
Emily's therapy has been going pretty well too. Her clinician, Kelly, says she is saying words. Why is it that I can't understand her??? She is starting to mimic and she is making a lot more sounds. I have a feeling my little cubs will be talking in no time, and then I'll wonder why I put them through all these sessions. Either way, I think it's good that Emily is getting some one-on-one therapy/attention. It is so hard to do that at home because the cubs are always together.

Grandma Bear.
Grandma Bear is visiting for the next two weeks. I am so excited to have an extra set of paws (hands) around the house. I was actually able to schedule a physical exam at my Doctor's office that is long overdue. The next two weeks will be very busy.

Mommy's GNOs
Mommy still has her GNOs. Over the last few weeks I've been to Gloria's, Campania's Pizza, and Blue Mesa Grill. I love that we pick new places to go each time so I get to sample new restaurants. Yummy!

Our landscaping project.
Still in progress....although we have the cutest little helper (and cutest little supervisor).




Emily supervising:


Stopping for a water break:



Love for Husky.
Emily loves her husky. So much so, that lately she has been putting him in her booster seat and strapping him in. He must be secured. The other day she took a facial wipe and wiped his little face. He must be clean. This weekend she gave Husky a drink out of Baxter's water bowl. He must be watered. What a spoiled Husky. We can't leave home without him. He even attends Emily's therapy sessions. Can you say "attachment issues"??







Potty training.
I postponed Emily's potty training because every time I would try working with her she would scream and cry. Grandma Bear has worked with Emily one day and already she has used her potty, both for #1 and #2. Makes me look like a potty training failure. I guess Grandma Bear can't leave until Zach is potty trained too.

They still fit.
Great Grandma Betty handmade these outfits for Emily and Zach last year when they were not even walking. Zach can still wear his but it's getting a little tight. Emily's was a dress but don't you think it looks just as cute as a top? I paired it with some shorts and she can still wear it throughout the summer. Awesome!

To eat or not to eat.

There hasn't been much going on here at Cub Central. We've had a few playdates since Mother's Day. We went to Jessica's last week and then Kelli and her girls came over yesterday. It seems like it has rained every weekend, especially if it happens to be one of Steve's days off. We spent this weekend putting flooring in the attic so we can store some things that we don't need right away. I have been putting off the unpacking because I just don't want to do it anymore. It seems like I spend more time moving boxes than unpacking them. We have been trying to spend more time outside. I have taken the cubs on a few walks this week. It is really nice to be in a neighborhood where I feel safe to do this. I didn't feel comfortable taking the cubs for walks around the apartment because of all the crazy drivers speeding through the complex and there were no sidewalks. I never felt safe taking them for walks at the old house either. SAD. I'm really happy that they have done so well in their stroller lately. I'm sure it is only because we are walking outside. If we are inside a mall or department store, the stroller is not very well liked by the cubs. Inside our house it becomes a playpen, they can't stop crawling all over it. Silly cubs.

Zach had his first therapy session with the new speech therapist for his feeding aversion issues. I'm a little irked that they have only scheduled him for two half hour sessions per month. However, today I received some encouraging news. Zach was accepted into a summer feeding program at Texas Women's University. Specifically, it is a group feeding program for toddlers with sensory-based feeding disorders. He will be introduced to a variety of foods with different textures, tastes, and temperatures to increase sensory experiences and improve oral intake. The sessions are led by master’s level graduate students under the direct supervision of a licensed speech-language pathologist. It runs for 6 weeks, from June 16 to July 23, on Tuesday and Thursday mornings for 1.5 hours per session. Each session is planned around a weekly theme and includes circle time, rotations through non-food sensory exploration, sensory exploration with food, and language enrichment activities. I am so hopeful about this! As an added bonus, Emily will receive individual speech-language therapy at the same time. Can it get any better than that?

I haven't updated in ages about all of the new foods we've introduced. Lately (because it will probably change tomorrow) Emily likes black olives and broccoli. She recently started eating steamed carrots but stopped eating potatoes. She likes the small frozen individual pizzas. She likes toast but not bread. She loves fish sticks, especially when she can dunk them in ketchup. She doesn't like sandwiches, but will dunk her toast in jelly. She likes waffles without syrup. She loves to share cereal and milk with Mom. She loves burritos but not mexican rice. She likes chips and hot sauce from Taco Bueno. She loves mandarin oranges. She will eat a whole banana but doesn't like it if you slice it up. Silly cub.

Zach's list is much shorter but at least it consists of things other than baby food in a jar. He still loves refried beans from Taco Bueno. I still add sour cream to them for the added calories. He still likes macaroni and cheese. I give Emily a chicken and rice meal and he will eat the rice, but not the chicken. He likes potatoes but no longer seems to like McDonald's fries. He will eat the cheese from the individual pizza but not the crust. He tried the sauce from Mom's chicken enchilada casserole. He still eats his daily yogurt and Pediasure. He thinks crayons, books, and chalk are meant to be eaten. Foods, however, are not. Silly cub.

One last update before pulling the plug (temporarily)

Saturday was a very busy day. I had scheduled three painters to come to the new casa to give us estimates. One was a no-show which made the afternoon even longer. I was definitely going to need a margarita and I was not disappointed. Saturday night we helped our good friend Matt celebrate his birthday at Joe T. Garcia's. I had never been there before but it is quite a popular little establishment. The line to get in was ridiculous and they don't take reservations, but it wasn't bad because we were in good company. The pitcher of margarita didn't hurt either. I think there was 14 of us in our group and Steve and I had a very good time. We dropped the cubs off at an hourly daycare. This was the first time we had ever done this so I was a bit apprehensive. I was not too worried about Zach. I knew as soon as I put him down he would be off and running. I was right. Little man didn't even look back. I was worried that dropping off Emily would be a little more difficult. She's been pretty clingy and I thought there would be some tears. HA! Could I have been more wrong?? I must admit that my feelings were a little hurt. They didn't even seem to notice us as we left. Emily joined a big circle of older kids (she's not shy at all) and the rest was history. Three hours later we went in to pick them up. Not only did we have to work at getting their attention, they didn't even really want to leave. OUCH!

Sunday was a blur. I was planning on taking the cubs to an Easter egg hunt but it was just way too cold and windy. We have had the craziest weather lately. I think we even had temperatures below freezing one night. That afternoon we met up with Matt and Beth Ann at the house so they could see it for the first time. We had a nice visit and then did a little grocery shopping before coming home.

The first seminar class was Monday night. I'm hoping to learn some very useful techniques for dealing with my Cubs when they are exhibiting some less than angelic behavior. I know it's hard to believe but it does happen on occasion where a little demon takes over.

Tuesday morning I met with the painters for a final walk-through to make sure that everyone was on the same page. I'm pretty excited to see what it looks like when they are finished. It is so hard to select colors from such a small sample card. That evening I met some friends for a much needed (aren't they all??) GNO (girls' night out). I showed a little restraint and did not order my usual (raspberry margarita) but I did break down at dessert time. One last dessert before the big DIET. Steve and I have decided to start eating better after we get moved in. It will be so much easier when we can enjoy the evening on the patio and grill our dinners. During the spring, summer and fall we usually grill most of our meats and vegetables but we haven't been able to do so here at the apartment. We are both craving a good steak.

Emily came down with "pink-eye" minus the pink yesterday afternoon, so this morning I dragged my poor little puffy raccoon face to the Doctor. We have had more Doctor appointments this year than we did for all of 2008. What in the world is going on here? This time it turned out that Emily probably has a small virus mixed in with a huge batch of allergies. Poor baby....she looks absolutely horrible. Her face is puffy and she has red bags under her eyes. This mess had better clear out by Saturday. We are supposed to go on an Easter egg hunt and I want to take pictures. In case you were wondering, yes, it is supposed to rain. My luck in action.

Zach has been doing really well. He ate one half of a Mum Mum today. It is a crunchy type of rice cracker. I couldn't believe it and I couldn't stop watching. This is progress in action. The other day we didn't feed him any baby food. WOO HOO. He still likes mac and cheese and the refried beans from Taco Bueno. He has even started eating rice if it has a little sauce or gravy on it. I honestly can't remember the last time we had a Mt. Vesuvius eruption and I am thanking God for that!

Tomorrow morning the movers come and I am excited but dreading it at the same time. I just know that it is going to be a very long day and I'm not sure how the cubs are going to handle everything. Emily did help pack a box of toys today. She is such a good little helper. It turns out that she also packed her shoes and Zach's sippy cup. OOPS.

Walk-through to closing.

Monday we had our walk-through of the new casa. It's our opportunity to point out things the builder has missed. Steve and I spent two hours with the Manager and we went through the house room by room. We go back again tomorrow morning to verify that everything has been corrected before we head to closing. I still can't believe that this is really happening. The stars have aligned for us. We managed to sell our house just in time to buy the new one. We are a lucky bunch.

Zach had his last therapy appointment today. Steve and I decided to switch to ECI so that Zach could have his therapy sessions at home. I can't help but think that this will work better. At this rate it can't be any worse. I was late this morning because traffic was horrible (due to the races this weekend), so we had a 15-minute $40 session which consisted of me feeding Zach the same exact thing I feed him at home (for free) while the therapist watched. That pretty much sealed the deal and I voluntarily discharged Zach from the program. His evaluation with ECI is on April 17.

Zach has been doing pretty well lately. He had some loaded baked potato and some mashed potatoes this week. He ate almost half of Emily's chicken with rice (minus the chicken). The rice has far more carbs and calories than the chicken so that's ok with me. Steve told me that we could all go to Chuck E Cheese once Zach starts eating pizza. Yesterday our little man ate the cheese and sauce from a frozen pizza. He didn't eat the crust but that was good enough for me. So we are going to Chuck E Cheese. I am so proud of him for trying something new. Then today he tried some salisbury steak. So so proud of our little man!

Emily has been Emily. A bundle of energy who is so fun to play with. She loves playing peek-a-boo with her brother and I love to watch them. I'm a lucky girl!

I have been crazy busy coordinating things for the new house. Setting up the utilities, scheduling painters to give us estimates, and just trying to keep things running here at Cub Central. Mom is exhausted. I wish I could go to sleep and wake up tomorrow morning in the new house, with everything in its place and no packing or unpacking to do. **sigh**

Things that happened in between fevers....

Tuesday night was my monthly LCMOM meeting. We had dinner and a white elephant gift exchange. I always enjoy getting out for an evening. The Doctor had given the "all clear" for Zach to attend his therapy session on Thursday even though he still had the lingering fever. She said as long as he wasn't exhibiting any other symptoms it should be ok. One of the moms from my LCMOM group graciously invited Emily over to her house while I took Zach to his appointment. Emily played with Kim's boys, Nathan and James, while I sat with Zach in his therapy room while he screamed at the top of his lungs for 30 minutes. Emily obviously got the better end of the deal. This was the worst session yet. Last week he managed to eat his yogurt in the middle of all the screaming. This week was nothing but screaming. Except he would stop screaming if you put a toy on the table. Of course afterwards he ate his yogurt up in the car without any problem. So frustrating. On Thursday night I went to dinner with the girls from THC. We went to Rio Mambo for mexican food and a nice strong Margarita. A desperately needed Margarita after that therapy session. My dear friend Debbie invited us over for lunch on Friday. She took time off for the week because her daughter was out of school for Spring Break. Sydney is seven and just the most beautiful little girl...Debbie is going to have her hands full when those boys start knocking on the door. We spent most of our visit outside. I'm glad it was pretty outside because I was very nervous that the cubs would break something if we stayed inside. The cubs are very curious and have to touch everything. On Friday evening we took the cubs to the Cotton Patch for dinner. It is pretty loud there and even with all the noise I think Zach's squeals were still the loudest. He loves to hear his echo even when the rest of us don't love it so much. Matt and Beth Ann came over on Saturday. It has been too long since we saw them last. We all went over to the old house together for one last look. It was a bit sad. I remember being so excited when we first bought the house and now I am so excited to sell it. I actually gave my keys and garage door opener to Steve today so he could give them to our realtor for closing. Closing is scheduled for 1:00 on Wednesday. Zach did impress me this weekend by trying some new foods. He ate a Pringle potato chip. It sounds silly to blog about that, but it really is huge for him. It was only one half of a chip and it took about 10 minutes, but he ate it on his own and that's all that matters to me. On Sunday he actually put a Mum-Mum (a rice cracker...Emily loves them) in his mouth. He didn't really eat any of it, but he put it in his mouth numerous times. Even Steve had to admit that it was exciting to see him do this. We had Taco Bueno for lunch on Sunday and Zach gobbled up his refried beans. I even added some sour cream just for the added calories. Last night I made chicken with pasta for dinner and he tried some of the pasta too. He has learned to push things out with his tongue if he doesn't like it. This is huge progress because before he would try to swallow it, gag, and throw up everything. I'd much rather he spit it out than throw it (and everything else) up.

Zach's eating evaluation

Zach had an eating evaluation yesterday. The therapist watched him eat things he normally eats, and how he reacts to several things which he always refuses. He obviously has an aversion to crunchy things...cheerios, puffs, goldfish, etc. My favorite moment was when the therapist asked Zach if he could kiss the cheerio. She held hers to her lips and kissed it. I was sitting right in front of Zach and he leaned over and gave ME a kiss! AAAWWWWW, such a sweet little guy!! He later put the cheerio to his lips but that was as far as that cheerio was going to go. She said that he had some good skills, but he needs to work on his lateral chewing, so we will be going once a week until I decide if it is helping or not. She sees toddlers with aversions far worse than Zach's...some children gag at just having the food put on their tray or having their face washed. Thank goodness Zach's is not that severe. He's been doing really well lately. He's now eating the #3 Gerber's food with the soft chunks. He'll eat small pieces of french fries and even tried a small piece of onion ring, although he didn't like it. He eats Kraft Mac and Cheese and LOVES LOVES LOVES the refried beans from Taco Bueno (he's my cub after all)! He'll eat mashed potato and very small pieces of shaved ham. So although it is slow progress, at least it is progress!

Stopping a roller coaster with your face is not recommended.

Last Thursday I bravely took the cubs back to Paradise Pond. I find this task simply exhausting but well worth it to get the cubs out of the house so they can burn off some of their endless energy. It is impossible to keep my eye on them every second since they absolutely refuse to hang out together in public. So while I was tending to Emily, my friend (who also has twins) was bringing a bawling Zach to me. The flood of guilt overwhelmed me because I knew my little man had gotten hurt and I wasn't there. Apparently he had been playing by the little roller coaster. It is similar to the picture below.

It's large enough for toddlers to ride on and has a little ramp. According to my friend, a little girl was playing on it and Zach decided to lie down on the track. Of course there was no way for the little girl to stop and she ended up running into Zach's head. Poor Zach had a nice little red spot on his face for several hours. We're very thankful that Zach wasn't seriously hurt and hopeful that he has learned a very important lesson. Don't try to stop a roller coaster with your face...the roller coaster will always win. Now there's a phrase I never imagined I would ever say.

We think Emily picked up a little bug at Paradise Pond. During lunch she was so tired she could hardly hold her head up. I just figured that she was exhausted from all the playing, that was the whole point of going. When she woke up from her nap she was burning up. I took her temperature and it was 103.1 so I called the Doctor and her nurse gave me some instructions to try to relieve her fever. She asked me if Em had any other symptoms and she did not. At least not until I hung up the phone. Then she threw up all over me and her Husky. This is alarming. I am very accustomed to throw up...Zach has made me an expert on this...but when it's Emily, that is different. Other than the normal baby formula spit up, Emily has never thrown up. So I called the nurse back and got a different set of instructions. We alternated between Infant Tylenol and Infant Motrin every three hours and then tried to get her to drink and keep down 2 teaspoons of Pedialyte every twenty minutes. This was going to be a long night. Luckily we managed to get her fever down and by the next morning she seemed perfectly fine, so I guess she just had a 6 hour stomach bug. Which she gave to her Daddy. Just great. Thank goodness Daddy can take care of himself.

On Monday I received a phone call from Baylor to schedule Zach's feeding evaluation for this Thursday. After explaining Zach's behavior to the therapist I am optimistic that they may be able to help us. At least she said that there was something else going on other than reflux, wich I had tried unsuccessfully to convince the other therapist of. Hopefully our new Doctors and new therapists will be able to help.

I went to my LCMOMs meeting on Tuesday. We elected the new board so I am looking forward to passing on my position to one of the newer moms. I didn't run for a position this year. With Steve working so much it is impossible to make any commitments. Especially since he works most weekends and we never know his weekend schedule until the Thursday before. It makes it so difficult to plan anything.

Emily has been very fussy yesterday and today. She has refused to take her naps even though she is obviously tired. I finally just let her cry herself to sleep since nothing I did was calming her down. She would take a short nap and wake up in the same mood. Then she would cry and fuss some more. It makes the afternoon drag on forever and I literally count the seconds until Daddy gets home, and then she's fine. Daddy thinks she's an angel. He sees her at her best, I see her during the time she has her halo off.

Potty training has also been put on hold. She did awesome the first two days. She was successful three times and I was so very proud of her. On the third day she started crying each time I took her in to the bathroom. I don't know why this was suddenly different but I decided to put off potty training for now. Maybe we'll try again after we get back from Grandma and Grandpa Bear's this weekend.

Tonight was my monthly dinner with the girls from THC. Patti was able to join us for the first time and she always makes me laugh. Mom loves the adult conversation and the absence of temper tantrums.

Some more catching up.

I just realized that I have been neglecting my blog...again. So far so good on the bottle elimination. We have been getting him to drink his Pediasure from his straw cup which is good news. I washed the last of the bottles and have packed them all up. Good riddance.

Last week we had a play-date with Kelli and her girls Maddie and Izzy. They recently moved towards the Dallas area, so it was a little further drive than before, but it was pretty driving through some areas that haven't been over-developed yet...there were still some trees! We spent the entire day with the girls and had a lot of fun. We love our play dates!

Matt and Beth Ann came over last weekend for a visit too. We always enjoy seeing them and the cubs love them. Emily Bear crawled all over them, she's such a funny monkey.

We have tried some new medications with Zach and none of them have really worked. We tried Nexium and what a disaster that was. It came in a powder that I had to add to a tablespoon of water, let it sit for two minutes to thicken, and somehow get Zach to drink it. I eventually used a medication syringe but I still had to put him in a wrestling hold to get it down him. Not going to work here. At $50 for 15 days worth of medication, I was happy to try something different. Or so I thought. Next we tried Prilosec. It came in a capsule that I could open up and put the "seeds" in a small spoonful of applesauce. Also created a horrible experience. I had to force him to take it in the morning and then he refused to eat anything off of the spoon after that. I guess he associates the spoon with his medication. It was HORRIBLE. It made him extremely fussy, he started skipping naps, and was just not fun to be around. So we stopped that too. I'd rather he eat and possibly throw up, than be fussy and refuse to eat at all. Now I am trying to re-educate him to eat again from the spoon. He still pushes me away without even trying the food first. So frustrating. I have finally contacted an eating clinic at Baylor to see if he would qualify and now I'm waiting to hear back from them. There has to be something someone can do to help him eat. It baffles me that he won't even try cheerios or Gerber Puffs, yet he knows to feed them to his sister. He has no desire to try new foods (or basically any food for that matter). Yet he'll put toys in his mouth, and things that obviously don't belong there (like cat hair). The other day I caught him playing with a strand of my hair, and of course he put it in his mouth just as I was trying to get to him, but I managed to get it back from him. I guess it's time for Mom to get a haircut. WHY???? Why would he eat hair and not food??? For the first time ever today I put him down for his nap without lunch. I tried three different foods and he wouldn't try any of them. I can understand if he tries it first and then pushes me away, but he won't even take a taste. I'm starting to think that going back to work and putting the cubs in daycare may not be a bad idea. Maybe he'll do better for someone that is not me.

I found a preschool for September but registration is not until March. I hope we can get in. It would be twice a week from 8:45 until 11:45. They have another class that ends at 2:45, but that would require someone else to feed them, and I can imagine that after a day or two, the preschool staff would be calling me to come pick Zach up. Non-eaters not allowed. Emily could do that one but I hate to split them up. I guess we'll just have to think about our options.

No more bottles!

Mom made an executive decision today. No more bottles for the Z-man. I packed them up and put them all away. The problem is Zach refuses to drink his Pediasure from anything but the bottle. He'll drink juice and water from his straw and sippy cups, but absolutely refuses his Pediasure. I don't know why, it drives me crazy trying to understand the little man. Unfortunately Pediasure is one of Zach's main sources of calories and I will go nuts if he skips a day, so we're crossing our fingers that he will start accepting his Pediasure from a cup like the big boy that he is.

Too tired to think of a title.

How sad is that? I can usually think of something but sheer exhaustion has taken over.

The house is now on the market. While we still have some minor things to finish up, the sign is now posted and we are officially listed. Steve and I have been incredibly busy trying to get everything moved out of the house and into the apartment or into storage. We have been taking alternate turns, one staying to cubsit, and the other going to the house. The process has gone much slower than we would have liked, but at least we are making some progress. The housekeeper should be coming this week and the carpet cleaners are scheduled for Wednesday.

The cubs have been handling everything pretty well. With the exception of Emily's molars coming in. She has been a real handful lately. At the last tooth check, she has three molars coming in. They haven't yet broken through but they must be causing some extreme pain for her because we are all feeling it. Too bad she isn't following Zach's example. He has a molar that has already come through and he didn't fuss a bit. He is such a trooper. Emily is not. She wakes up screaming in the middle of the night and won't calm down unless one of us is in there with her. So Steve and I have been taking turns sleeping on the floor in their room because we are afraid that her screaming will alert the neighbors, who will in turn alert CPS. It has been miserable. If I ever needed a back massage, it is now. I seriously doubt that there is any carpet padding installed in this apartment. I feel like Wilma Flintstone sleeping on a rock slab. Yabba Dabba Do. It will sure make me appreciate the upgraded carpet padding we are having installed in the new house.

We did drive by the house this weekend. Things are progressing very quickly there. It now looks like a house. I'm a little overwhelmed by how fast this is happening. It is exciting, but ulcer inducing as well, at least until the house sells. Steve's friend Brian has helped us move some of our really heavy furniture and we are very thankful to him. We have really great friends and family who have helped us with this huge transition. Many many thanks to all of you!!

Emily and Zach have been trying some new foods lately. Emily had some pineapple. She also had fruit cocktail which the first time she ate the whole serving while the next time she totally refused it. Fussy monkey. Zach has tried scrambled egg. I don't think he liked it very much but at least he tried it. That was huge for him. He also ate #3 Gerber spaghetti. This is the first time he has eaten a #3 food and been able to keep it down, so we are very proud of him. It's been slow going but at least we are seeing some progress. He has even started drinking some of his Pediasure from his sippy cup. I'm starting to feel a little less discouraged and a little more optimistic that he will be eating something other than pureed foods before he enters preschool.

The weather has taken a major downturn. Yesterday the temperature was in the 70s and today the high was only in the low 30s. It is sleeting and the overpasses and bridges are icy and dangerous. They said the temperature last night dropped 30 degrees in 30 minutes. I believe it. I had made a grocery run and stopped to fill up the car and the change was unreal. CRAZY weather. By Thursday the temperature is supposed to be back up near 70. No wonder everyone is always sick here.

Amazing Zach

Sometimes the little man amazes me. After our disastrous yesterday he decided to eat some brand new foods today. For lunch he tried some cottage cheese. I was amazed! I don't think he liked it, but he took three or four spoonfuls. He also had some deli-shaved chicken. Way to go Z-man!

After nap time the cubs and I went to the house to pack some more. I had the logistics all planned out on how I was going to get the cubs to and in the car safely without the use of the stroller. Zach is a runner. Perhaps I should say Zach is a sprinter. He is a quick little scamper. If you don't have a firm grip on his hand he will be off and running. VERY SCARY for mommy. So I decided the best way to accomplish getting this done was to put Zach in the car and let him stand in front of his car seat and shut the door before he can escape. Then I take Emily to the other side where I get her all strapped in. After Emily is safely secured, I go back to Zach's side and secure him in his car seat. Perfect plan! I must admit it worked rather well. The impressive part of this, and the reason I am sharing, is that while Zach was standing in front of his car seat all alone, he pulled himself up and crawled in and sat down in his seat all by himself! Mommy was so proud of him!

For dinner Zach tried another new food. A Gerber Graduate macaroni and vegetable something-or-other. It doesn't really matter what it was. What matters is that Zach ate several bites. Then he followed up with some applesauce. In case you weren't counting, that was four "table" foods in one day. Perhaps my 'swallow study scare tactic' is working after all.

Zach's swallow study

Zach's swallow study was yesterday. Obviously I misunderstood the purpose of this test. I thought that it would allow for us to see what happened as he swallowed food and it traveled down to his stomach. Apparently it only allows viewing of his swallowing function, which of course was perfectly normal. Sometimes I just want to scream to these people...why aren't they listening to me!? He doesn't have trouble swallowing the food....it's what happens in the following sixty seconds that is the problem. UGH!!!!! We ended up with the same therapist that performed Zach's oral/motor test back in May. She is still convinced that his whole problem is reflux. Funny how the Doctor keeps telling me it is not. What a colossal waste of time and money. Shame on me for putting Zach through yet another unnecessary test. I just started crying in the hospital parking lot. I am so frustrated that we don't have any answers. Not to mention that the test was scheduled right in the middle of his nap time so he was just miserable the entire time. Maybe I can use this as a scare tactic for little boys who throw up their food....another test with more barium. It must have worked because today he ate much better!!