Fall Update #2

In September we to the corn maze at Newton with the Angst family. It's a very impressive maze that took us about an hour to walk through. We then had a round of mini-golf before heading for home.
This picture is taken at the IPM in Teeswater. Zack is enjoying a ride on Papa Mark's tractor after we spent part of our afternoon watching the feature of this year's IPM, Tractor Square Dancing with 8 Farmall tractors.
Brycen LOVES Papa's tractor....and any tractor and he was all eyes at the IPM.
For Thanksgiving this year Geoff and I were both blessed to have both our entire families here to celebrate. Here our boys are enjoying unwrapping birthday gifts with their cousin Megan who they only see once a year or so since she lives in Calgary.
Zack and Brycen enjoyed sharing toys with their cousin Baby Mac. Their other cousins from Saskatchewan were also at our family gathering.
Uncle Josh Ireland got married on October 18th and Brycen was the ringbearer.

We had a lot of trouble getting any photos of him after the wedding...apparently two year olds think they need sleep in the afternoon!!!! Here he is with Uncle Josh, Aunt Marjan (who Brycen calls Aunt Manny) and his cousin Janessa who was the flowergirl.

The whole wedding party.
Tearing up the dance floor!!!
Cutting a rug with Aunt Manny!
Zackary dressed up as a Ninga Turtle. He's very surprised that mommy seems to know so much about the ninga turtles and doesn't believe me that the 'turtles' have been around since mommy and daddy were teenagers.

Brycen was an 'elephlant'. We had big hopes of having him in an adorable lion costume but everytime we asked him he told us 'I be a elephlant for Hall-ween...I no be a lion'. He still looked pretty adorable!

Here's the little helpers...helping themselves to our candy if we'd let them!
Brycen decided to put our hamster in a glass the other day and carry him around the house. Here he is giving kisses to Rufus!

We don't have any photo updates for you of our future family members but all is g0ing well with the twin pregnancy. We have learned that they are identical twins most likely and are in 2 separate sacs. I have yet to gain any weight but I sure look and feel pretty pregnant!!! I guess I could do a photo update of my growing tummy...but who needs to see that!!! We have our big (1-2 hour) ultrasound this week so we should have some pics to post after that and hopefully will know the gender of our babes then too...but we might just keep that to ourselves????

If you have found this blog and are reading it to learn more about our journey with TTTS this is the last entry I typed before we were diagnosed with TTTS. A few weeks after that I began using another site to document all that was happening to us. I cut and pasted our story from my Caring Bridge site to here and posted it in the next entry...June 2009. It's a lot of reading...I am sooooo wordy. Hopefully anyone who is looking for this info can find it now.

Fall Excitement

Zackary returned to Elma Public School for his second year this year. A big boy in senior kindergarten....he LOVES it!
His big excitement...his new lunch bag!
Our big excitement...the news we learned about 10 days ago...our family will be growing by 2 in the early spring. I am pregnant with TWINS!!!
We have learned that the twins are identical but are not sure if they are boys or girls yet.

We're praying for healthy babies born as close to term as possible with as little complications as possible. There is a chance they may be in the same sac which makes it a bit more of a concern and something that will be heavily monitored to ensure they don't tangle in each others umbillical cords. So far both are very healthy and developing well!

Summer Fun Part 6

I thought it was time I finished up my summer posts since fall is now here.
This is Zack after he had his top tooth pulled. He was pretty excited...so was mommy...I was tired of his redneck look! Now he's missing five all together...eating if loads of fun!
Blowing bubbles on a camping trip with our friends Cathy and John and their children Matthew and Emily.
Brycen tried it out too!
Swimming with daddy!
Zack attended vacation bible school in Monkton and enjoyed singing all kinds of songs! This one had some smiley actions!
We took a trip to Michigan to do some shopping and get away. Brycen's favourite thing was riding in the cool shopping cars...er carts!
Zack had a great time petting a goat at the Teeswater Fair
Brycen has lots of teeth so he got to enjoy tons of corn this summer!
Labour Day weekend we had a family shower for my brother Josh and his fiance Marjan...they are getting married Oct. 18th.
Back to the Teeswater Fair where both the boys enjoyed some rides with and without my dad.

Summer Fun Part 5

Zackary might be the t-ball star in our house but Brycen is planning on challenging him on who's the cutest player!!!
Zack is taking swimming lessons this summer and really enjoying himself. He's made great gains in his swimming since the start of the summer from a boy who wouldn't jump in unless you held his hand to someone who'll swim under water half way across the pool!
Having some fun in the park in Mitchell after swimming lessons.
Here's our budding t-ball star in action. The season started off slow and he wasn't real sure about playing but now that they get the bats out every game and play 'real t-ball' he's having a blast and seems to have quite the arm on him too.
Zackary and his friend Meredith enjoyed some time together on a hammock swing on our trip with them. This photo was too cute to pass up!
Brycen has taken to 'ridin the range' in the kitchen lately. He takes his horse for a short gallop and then as soon as the sound effects on the horse stop he drops to the ground on top of it. Poor old horse won't be long for the glue factory I'm afraid LOL!
Beware of shark...or snorkelers looking for them! Zack loved snorkeling in the pool the last time we camped. On Civic Holiday weekend we went up to a friends developing campground near Owen Sound and helped them get their camp ready to open for next season.
Brycen loved the 'trom-pan-nee' and asked to jump morning, noon and night...he never seemed to tire of it and even cried when we took him off for meals!
Zackary also enjoyed the trampoline with his friend Meredith.
At the end of a long weekend the kids enjoyed a movie and a rest in the trailer.

Summer Fun Part 4

We spent most of a week camping at Silver Lake with the Kinsmen and at Auburn Riverside Retreat with our friends the Angst and Nelson families. Zack REALLY enjoyed the pool and even began to swim without his water wings by the end of the week.
Brycen took a bit longer to warm up to the water but by the end of the week he was jumping in and splashing anyone in his way!!!

A serious moment wiht Brycen and Mommy.
The campground even has an Elk paddock and Brycen lived for the 'tracker' and wagon rides to see the 'funny elk'.
Here is one of the fish Zack caught at Silver Lake... he won a trophy for the smallest fish...1.5 inches!!!
Brycen did NOT like the fish and cried most of the time we showed him one...it didn't help that the fish jumped out of Daddy's hand and landed on Brycen!!!
In the week prior to this Brycen hated the water...but he soon got over this and turned into a little fish. He enjoyed splashing and digging in the sand at Silver Lake.
We also got to go for a boat ride with our friend Bill at Silver Lake.
Brycen had never been on a boat before but wasn't really sure if he liked it or not...he did a lot of snuggling with mommy anytime the boat went fast.