6 Week Boot Camp O v e r !

So I mentioned a few weeks ago about the fit camp I was participating in with one of my BFFs Anna. After 6 weeks (minus 4 lazy days) of dreading the alarm clock and dragging my slow tired self out of bed at 4:40am I am glad to say it's over! Friday morning was our last day and I was happy to sleep in "guilt free" this beautiful Halloween morning!

The workouts were every morning Monday through Friday at 5:15am and ended at 6:05am, leaving me just enough time to get home and sleep for another hour or two before the babies got up. Each day varied as to what exercises we did and we covered all parts of the body from head to toe (although my poor abs might as well be non-existent, I swear nothing will ever help them). From working with resistance bands and ropes to LOTS of cardio and high intensity intervals I, no doubt, got the most exercise I have since my athletic high school days. My favorite part we did ZERO running! Other than that, you name it, we did it... jumping jacks, push ups, sit ups, squats, squat jumps, high knees, buttkicks, and who could forget those fabulous burpees. The jumping, oh my gossshh, the jumping. I had no idea there were so many ways to jump. I could go on and on, the workouts were intense and felt never-ending but left me feeling glad I went and super accomplished!

In my favor, my follow up measurements and assessment were this morning, Halloween morning.... just hours before my house would be filled with a ton of non-needed sugar and candy. Had Matt come tomorrow morning, I might have been in a bit of trouble! For now though, I'm sitting pretty and the scale is my friend :) Over a 6 week period I lost a total of 6lbs 6oz and approximately 8 inches! Whoop whoop! Worth getting up at 4:40am every morning, I think so! It's a good thing when your trainer measures multiple times, just to make sure what he was seeing was right!

I'll leave you with a laugh...well it had me rolling atleast...

Hope you all have a Happy Halloween!! Here's to me NOT eating my weight in chocolate over the next week...ahhh!

Playdate at the Dallas Arboretum

A few of my Mom friends and I headed to the Dallas Arboretum on Monday with our sea of children. 3 moms 10 toddlers ages 2 and under and a 4 year old made for a fun, BUSY day! Surrounded by what felt like hundreds of single strollers I think we broke our record with the "what daycare/nursery are you with?" question! Love this one below of the quads mixed in with the Tew triplets and big brother Britton. Amazing how quickly candy can settle them down!

The Dallas Arboretum is always beautiful an this week was no exception. The walkways were lined with a gazillion pumpkins and the flowers were endless. Absolutely gorgeous!

While Angela and Jenny chase a handful of kids running in the field I catch this group on the verge of testing gravity at it's best....ahhh get down!

Below we have Jenny and her trio Ronan, Maxim & Julien. Jenny says to me "Hey Heather, take a picture of us as we sit so sweetly together! I can take it and use it as my Facebook profile pic! Bla bla bla...." gag me. Jenny's babies are still sweet young innocent 15 month olds (despite that evil look Max is giving me as I take his pic). You just sit there, Jenny, looking all cute in your little black hat and matching halloweeny orange scarf thingy holding your three little babies... your days coming when you're dripping with sweat like Angela and I as you chase around those crazy rambunctious boys ;)

How do you get a set of quadruplets and 2 sets of triplets to pose for a group picture together? Strap them down, line them up, back up about 89 feet, jump up and down screaming and looking like a fool and click...wa-la you've got it!

Yes, this would be Kylee smooching a goat. Nice.

L-R Emerson, Everett, Emmett, Baxlyn, Korbin, Kylee & Brody

Smiley Kylee

Emmett. Oh Emmett, my lil' future son-in-law. When Kylee isn't talking about food, dogs or goats, she's talking about Emmett. A handsome lil' dude if I so say so myself!

Kylee holding a pumpkin and so proud of herself! (Hey therapists and docs...check out that left hand!)

Korbin showing off his muscles!

Another attempt at a group photo, 2 out of 4 not bad!

You locals who have not been to the Dallas Arboretum yet, GO! Until next time!

Awake Training for New Moms

I came across this online and found it pretty amusing. Being a member of several Moms support groups I constantly hear LOTS of talk about the struggles and exhaustion that comes with trying to sleep train infants. If you are currently trying to train a baby to sleep through the night you may not find this funny and you may leave this post questioning your sweet new bundle of joy's intentions and questioning his or her innocence. For those of you who are passed this stage... enjoy!

"Awake Training for New Moms"

Dear Fellow Babies,

OK, here’s my situation. My Mommy has had me for almost 5 months. The first few months were great – I cried, she picked me up and fed me, anytime, around the clock. Then something happened. Over the last few weeks, she has been trying to STTN (sleep thru the night). At first, I thought it was just a phase, but it is only getting worse.

I’ve talked to other babies, and it seems like its pretty common after Mommies have had us for around 5-6 months. Here’s the thing: these Mommies don’t really need to sleep. It’s just a habit. Many of them have had some 30 years to sleep – they just don’t need it anymore. So I am implementing a plan. I call it the Crybaby Shuffle.

It goes like this:

Night 1 – cry every 3 hours until you get fed. I know, it’s hard. It’s hard to see your Mommy upset over your crying. Just keep reminding yourself, it’s for her own good.

Night 2 – cry every 2 hours until you get fed.

Night 3 – every hour.

Most Mommies will start to respond more quickly after about 3 nights. Some Mommies are more alert, and may resist the change longer. These Mommies may stand in your doorway for hours, shhhh-ing. Don’t give in. I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!! If you let her STTN (sleep through the night), just once, she will expect it every night. I know it’s hard! But she really does not need the sleep; she is just resisting the change.. If you have an especially alert Mommy, you can stop crying for about 10 minutes, just long enough for her to go back to bed and start to fall asleep. Then cry again. It WILL eventually work. My Mommy once stayed awake for 10 hours straight, so I know she can do it.

The other night, I cried every hour. You just have to decide to stick to it and just go for it. BE CONSISTENT! I cried for any reason I could come up with:

-My sleep sack tickled my foot.

-I felt a wrinkle under the sheet.

-My mobile made a shadow on the wall.

-I burped, and it tasted like rice cereal. I hadn’t eaten rice cereal since breakfast, what’s up with that?

-The dog said “ruff”. I should know. My Mommy reminds me of this about 20 times a day. LOL.

-Once I cried just because I liked how it sounded when it echoed on the monitor in the other room.

-Too hot, too cold, just right – doesn’t matter! Keep crying!!

-I had drooled so much my sheets were damp and I didn’t like it touching me.

-I decided I was sick of all the pink in my room so I cried.

It took awhile, but it worked. She fed me at 4am. Tomorrow night, my goal is 3:30am. You need to slowly shorten the interval between feedings in order to reset your Mommies’ internal clocks.

Sometimes my Mommy will call for reinforcements by sending in Daddy. Don’t worry Daddies are not set up for not needing sleep the way Mommies are. They can only handle a few pats and shhing before they declare defeat and send in the Mommy.

Also, be wary of the sleep sheep with rain noises. I like to give Mommy false hope that listening to the rain puts me to sleep sometimes I pretend to close my eyes and be asleep and then wait until I know Mommy is settling back to sleep to spring a surprise cry attack. If she doesn’t get to me fast enough I follow up with my fake cough and gag noise that always has her running to the crib. At some point I am positive she will start to realize that she really doesn’t really need sleep.

P.S. Don’t let those rubber things fool you, no matter how long you suck on them, no milk will come out.

Trust me.

Sincerely,

Baby

Sometimes life sucks...

Back in January I shared with you my thoughts as a little girl and always wishing there was a "Doggy Heaven". We said goodbye to my sweet Coco 9 months ago and today I am forced to say goodbye to Rocky, my 11 year old Cocker Spaniel :( Can I just say it sucks... so so bad. My heart literally hurts and my eyes are fighting tears as I type this.

I'm thankful I got to have him and raise him as a pet and it's so so hard to say goodbye. His health, although never great, has really deteriorated over the past week. He hasn't eaten and has been very uncomfortable. A trip to the vet's office last week pretty much confirmed he has an enlarged liver and the chances of him "recovering" would be extremely slim and very pricey to attempt. Although I knew he wouldn't be with us too much longer, I never imagined a week ago today that it would be this soon.

My parents will come to take him and I, like I was with Coco, will be spending the day out and about with my precious babies and close friends, trying to keep my mind off of it. Tonight will be hard as I come home, the first time in my entire life, to no dog. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers if you could. For now, even as an adult, I'll continue to let myself believe that tonight Rocky will be pain free and back with my Coco in the glorious land also known as Doggy Heaven. Even though life sucks sometimes... God is still sovereign and for that I will praise him, even on the hard days.

Prayers for Lil' Madison

I want to share a special prayer request and ask that you add a sweet little 2 year old girl to your prayer list as well as any prayer chains you are on. A friend and fellow twin mom just recently found out one of her identical girls, Madison, has cancer. Wednesday, Maddie had an MRI which confirmed the Neuroblastoma. Good news is that they caught it extremely early! Please keep her and her entire family in your prayers as they move forward during this difficult time. With God all things are possible Matthew 19:26. Maddie is scheduled for surgery this coming Tuesday. Visit her Caring Bridge Site and let them know you are praying by clicking here: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/madisonwilliams1.

Maddie and her sister Abbie!

Feel free to stop over to the Steece Blog for more info and details.

Halloween 2011 - The Big Reveal!

Introducing The Cox Quads as... Fred & Wilma Flintstone and Barney & Betty Rubble!

A special thanks to Amy Horton Photography for the photo and to Heather Calvert for making our adorable costumes, we LOVE them!

More to come, of course :]

Tammy Labuda Photography

A few short months ago I was lucky enough to win a free session with a local photographer, Tammy Labuda. After looking through her awesome blog and seeing session after session of beautiful pics she had taken I was super excited to throw a curve ball at her, ahem... quadruplets, to see what she could capture for us. It was a challenge to say the least that's for sure! Even with 4 rambunctious two year olds who can't seem to sit still and two boys who had their serious game face on, she still managed to capture some great shots! We had our session at Chestnut Square in Mckinney, so so pretty and perfect for this time of year! These are just a few of the pictures taken by Tammy, to see more visit her blog by CLICKING HERE! Show her a little love and let her know you dropped by by "liking" her page just under the blog title!

A HUGE thank you to Tammy Labuda for her time and most of all her patience in photographing our crazy babies! We appreciate it and can't wait until our pics are ready for pick up!

Approaching Halloween!

After research, shopping and a Facebook poll,

Mom found the best costumes you'll love them we know!

Two years of animals it is time for a change,

this year, four characters with recognizable names.

We'll reveal them shortly, take a guess if you'd like,

stay tuned for a sneak peek and find out if you're right!

We hope your weekend you'll surely enjoy

we leave you today with a bubba-toothed boy!

Until Next Time!

Developmental Check Up - Brody & Kylee - Advice? Anyone?

First, I apologize for being distant the past week or two. Between doctors appointments, busy toddlers and 5am workouts I'm exhausted to say the least! I've deprived the poor things from play dates and all the regular outings we usually go on. Our near future surely consists of pumpkin patches, walks around the neighborhood and the zoo....gosh that zoo has been calling my name! One thing that business cannot get in the way of is our beloved doctor's appointments! This week Brody and Kylee had a check up with their developmental pediatrician. Unlike our "regular" pediatrician, our developmental ped evaluates them thoroughly and addresses developmental issues due to their prematurity.

Both Brody and Kylee did well, as always, and impressed Dr. Roberts with the remarkable progress they've made since their discharge from NICU. There were times we would have been THRILLED to know they would EVER reach the point where they are now...walking, talking, learning...thriving. They are both still a tad bit behind in some areas according to their adjusted age (28months) but are making progress we are all happy with! Brody's motor skills at this point are those of an 18-24 month old. Cognitive level was 27months, Receptive Language 30months, Expressive Language 30months and Fine Motor 27months. He weighed in at a whoppin 28lbs 4oz (25%) and is 36inches tall (50% - and to think a neuro said he would always be on the short side ;).

Kylee like Brody scored at 18-24months for Gross Motor, 28-29months Cognitive, Receptive & Expressive Language she's ahead of the game (no surprise there for those of you who know her) at 34months and Fine Motor she was also right at 28-29months. Our big girl weighed in at 27lbs (23-50%) and is 37inches tall (50%). Her head is still pretty low on the charts sitting in the 3rd percentile but Dr. Roberts isn't too worried and will just keep a close eye on her development. We've been faced with another therapy option for Kylee and I gotta tell you I'm stumped :( For those of you who remember our "on the fence" feelings about Brody getting a cranial helmet we're now feeling a little iffy on the new therapy the docs have mentioned to us on several occasions.

For those of you who don't know, Kylee suffered a bilateral brain bleed, grades 1 and 4, the 4 being on the right side of her brain. This brain injury has affected the left side of her body, her hand in particular, and has resulted in hemiparesis (a type of Cerebral Palsy). The therapists and doctors have asked us to consider Constraint Induced Therapy. The therapy would consist of constraining her right arm to where she is not able to use it, at all, for a long period of time (weeks) in hopes to strengthen and encourage use of her left hand. I've heard of this kind of therapy before and about how effective it is, however, most of what I hear is how well it did for adults after brain injuries such as stroke. The difference between an adult and a child, an adult can understand the point to the therapy, a two year old, not so much. I personally don't know of anyone who has been through Constraint Induced Therapy with a toddler. Obviously it would frustrate the crap out of her, not being able to use her one and only "good" arm/hand. I'm just having a hard time thinking about weather or not the frustration will outweigh the benefit. Who knows, maybe it won't be as bad as I'm imagining?? On the other hand I am fully aware that the sooner and more aggressive we tackle the problem the better the outcome we'll have as her brain is still "plastic" as the docs have always said. So I know it's a long shot but if any of you readers have been through this, please give us your advice on the matter. We'll be doing research of course, but to hear from someone whose been through it would be great. Thanks!

"Hey Chunky!"

Today is the day I regret saying that to Brody over and over in his little 2 years of life. Bret got them out of bed this morning, I went out to greet them and the moment he saw me he smiled and said "Heeyy Chunky!" Thanks Buddy, way to start my weekend.

You can bet your tail I'll be working hard at my 5am workout Monday morning ;)