Happy Birthday Daddy

Last weekend we celebrated Daddy's birthday. The little monkeys got to go on their first overnight together and Grandpa and Grandma's house. They had some fun! Mama and daddy snuck away to Chicago for the night--a first! for some much needed sleep and relaxation. (Plus Mama got to see Daddy in Immigration court!)

Dinner at Les Nomades

Foodie Bliss

Little coffee after a full night's sleep

Brisk walk down Michigan Ave

Old New Towers

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Back to our regular scheduled zaniness….

Ladies and Gentlemen, let us present to you our favorite little monkeys….

Brotherly love...

All dressed up for their first wedding together!

Looks like they are taking the car out for a little spin…oh dear!

 Emmett is growing up so fast. Look at him being a big boy!

New bike! Thanks Opa!

Look who discovered the joy of slides!

Elias still obsessed with LEGOs!

So we went to Brickworld….

Mama, can we go outside? I think Spring is here!

First blossom on the first day of Spring….

Outside! No jacket!

Hello old friend! 

Getting to ride down for ice cream!

Since we are talking chocolate… These boys LOVE their chocolate. Especially the Nutella version expressed here in pizza form for dessert.

Breakfast with Dinos...

T-Rex is a vegetarian!

Come on Mama, can we have a dog?

Check Mate, Sir!

Up like a rocket, down like the rain,
around and around like a chop chop train

Comics with Daddy

Working on phonics

March is Hemophilia Awareness Month!

"I'm sorry."   "What if they get a scratch?"  "Will they bleed to death?" 

"Are they going to grow out of it?"  "How do you handle it?"   "You mean you give them shots in their  chest at home? Four days a week?" 

Meet Elias and Emmett. They both have hemophilia--severe and Type A. In other words, they are missing a important protein in their blood that helps give the "stickiness" when forming a clot when a blood vessel is broken. They do not bleed harder, but longer.

Please do not be sorry for our boys. With all the advances in medicine and technology over the past 30 years, they will live long and healthy lives as long as they keep up with being smart and healthy. No, they will not bleed to death with a small scratch, cut, or scrape. The scariest thing for these guys is internal bleeding. Bleeding into their joints is common and can be very destructive in the long run. And yes, if they bleed onto their brain or vital internal organs it can be life-threatening. And no, they will not grow out of it. At this point we pray for a cure. Overall, we all handle it pretty well. We try to keep the boy's lives pretty normal by letting them do pretty much anything, but they know that they have to get their factor, yes--four times a week. It adds a little more chaos to our morning ritual on those days. Check out our set up. Elias was glad to demonstrate how we rock the factor train….

Sterile field ready to go. First kid to go picks the cartoon!

Clean it up

Factor Up

Push in the caboose (heparin lock)!

KEEP CALM
and
FACTOR UP!

Cabin Fever

This has been the coldest, snowiest record-breaking winter for us here in Indiana. So unfortunately, we have no pictures of amazing snow and winter play. It's been too cold! So we have tried to make the best of things. We are so thankful to live in a city with one of the best Children's Museum.

Emmett LOVED the carousel. He rode it 3 times!

Being stuck inside has made us all a bit crazy with cabin fever…..

Brother love!

Who needs toys when you can play with mom's ladles and spatulas?

Checking out our Valentine's cards...

Rockin' some awesome bedhead!

Bubbles!

Mama, can I help with laundry?

School has been cancelled a number of times (blizzards + -40 deg temperatures), so we have gotten to spend an extra day or two with our friends….of course this has only fed our LEGO obsession (as has the new LEGO movie).

 The boys got to visit the brilliant hematologists last month and were very brave when they needed to get blood from a peripheral vein and not their ports. Elias was especially brave getting a shot in his arm.  Everything has been going great and we will continue with 4 times per week prophylaxis treatments for both.

Celebratory Cupcake face

Our current growth stats:

Elias-                                   Emmett-
Height: 3 ft 9 inches (97th percentile)  Height: 2 ft 9 inches (90th percentile)
Weight: 38 lbs (44th percentile)         Weight:  25 lbs (60th percentle)
Result: "tall & skinny"                  Results: "tall and muscular"

Our friends, Adelirim celebrated their 5th birthday this month and we jammed out in honor….

Then Mama and Daddy got to get out for a much needed date night to see the talented Trey Anastasio…

Hopefully Spring will come upon us soon. We are all pretty much over subzero temperatures and piles and piles of snow.