The FitzGerald Family

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-07T14:13:00.001-07:00

So it's been a decade and a half since I've posted to this blog. Hopefully I get back into it more as we get the hang of having three kids, but in the meantime, look me up on facebook if you want to see some more pictures!

This week, some of Tucker's family CA are visiting and we visited a pumpkin patch this morning. The weather was awesome and the lighting was so good that this shot looks like we are in a studio. I promise we are really at the pumpkin patch.

Aunt Emily, Cousin Landon, Uncle Angel

Katelynn, Uncle JT, Aidan, Tucker, Jen, Evan

Aidan and Evan riding in the horse train

And THREE years of Katelynn visiting this farm: Today

Last Year: 21.5 Months

Year One: 10 Months

Family

2010-07-09T20:41:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, we got to spend a Saturday morning with Katelynn's sister Makayla, her grandma Pam (Nana), and her grandpa Wes at the Everette Children's Museum. It's a pretty cool place and I think the girls had a good time together.

Riding the horse

Construction Zone

What should I build?

Big Hug!

Barber Shop Time

Wes, Pam, Makayla, and Katelynn

It was great to see you! And Katelynn loves her new lunch box.

30 and 6

2010-06-29T22:39:00.001-07:00

So much to say, so little time... here are a couple pictures but check back in a few days for a written update. :)

Miss Kate is two and a half

And the boys are 6 months!

Rolling, Sitting, and Cooking

2010-06-10T14:29:00.001-07:00

One rolls...

One sits...

And one is covered in flour!

Memorial Day Weekend

2010-06-01T21:23:00.000-07:00

Grandma Sue and Grandpa Ben came to visit this weekend. In addition to keeping our three kids alive and fed, we went swimming twice, out to eat three times (no small feat with three kids), visited the Seattle Aquarium, and had a great holiday BBQ. Plus, Evan learned to roll form his back to front! Needless to say, it was an eventful weekend in our house. Some pics from our weekend...

JT decided to play with Aidan just after he'd had a bottle.
Woops and gross!

Aidan has been teething and having a very rough time getting to sleep. Finally grandpa had the magic touch.

Katelynn loved the aquarium, especially the jellyfish and "Nemos". She was not much of a fan of touching the starfish. Here she is posing for the camera.

Our friend Stefanie was able to join us for our BBQ and we finally got a family picture of all 8 of us. :)

29 and 5

2010-05-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Katelynn turned 29 months old (almost 2 1/2 years!). I totally forgot to take pictures until bedtime, so here she is in her pjs. This month, Katelynn is up to about 24.5 pounds. Her last 2-year-old molar broke through, so she now has all 20 of her baby teeth. I love listening to her talk in complete sentences. She also likes to sing songs and add her own words, especially when riding in the car. "Old McDonald had a ...(pause to think)... tractor. E I E I O. Old McDonald had a ... carseat. E I E I O." We played a game of memory this month with the pictures face up, and she did a great job matching them. Katelynn continues to love her pixar movies (Toy Story, Wall-E, Nemo), and is really enjoying getting out on walks and to the park in the nice weather.

With her Bros

Evan and Aidan: 5 Month

Evan and Aidan are 5 months old today. And I finally got a picture of them both smiling! Evan is about 16.5 pounds now. He has recently found his feet and loves to sway back and forth on the ground holding them. When he's in his bouncer without the seat belt on, he frequently rolls over to his tummy and nearly falls off the thing. His reflux meds were increased at his last appointment, and he seems to be fussing a little less with eating, but still will only eat 3-4 ounces at a time.

Aidan is up to about 20.5 pounds! He is such a big guy. He has finally discovered his toys and now loves to reach for and chew on anything he can find. Due to his size, I think it'll be a little bit before he's rolling over, but he still has his contagious laughter. They both have been enjoying walks. And they have started to show some interest in what we are eating so rice cereal will be making it's appearance shortly.

Katelynn was napping when we took photos today, so no group shot. But here are the boys enjoying some tummy time.

Big Boys!

2010-05-15T20:29:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful Seattle day, so we had our first walk with our big kid double stroller. They can't sit up on their own yet, but enjoy being strapped in upright so they can look around. And Katelynn brought her new Jessie doll along for the journey.

Must have been a good walk. :)

Swing Time

2010-05-03T02:49:00.000-07:00

Sharing the swing on a nice Saturday evening at the park :)

4 Months

2010-04-30T11:21:00.000-07:00

Aidan and Evan turned 4 months old yesterday. Evan is almost 15 pounds now. He is a very active little guy (which he was inutero too!) and is always kicking and squirming and playing with his toys. Evan make incredible eye contact. He has also discovered his hands and loves to suck on them. His reflux continues to make eating a chore, but we are making progress, and hope to up his meds a little more when we go for our 4-month check-up next week.

Aidan is over 18 pounds now! He definitely has a more passive personality (also the case inutero) and is more interested in looking around at what's going on than playing with his toys. Aidan is easily startled by his roaring sister, but he has the most incredible laugh that will make anyone smile. He continues to eat like a champ, and has learned to go to sleep on his own and take good naps. It also appears that his umbilical hernia has gone away.

And for the delayed update on Miss Kate... She is now 28 months old and weighs around 24 lbs (Aidan will pass her soon I'm sure). She got another molar this month, putting her teeth total to 19. Just one more to get until kindergarten. This past week, we finally fully transitioned to her toddler bed. She's getting up a little earlier than before (6:30-7 as compared to 8ish) which is not my favorite time of day but the boys are usually up anyway. Katelynn continues to be very active and loves to go on walks and play outside. She has befriended the 11-year-old neighbor girl and always to go play with Abby and her dog Buster. She still loves music and books, and has really enjoyed taking bubble baths lately. And of course, she always wants her picture taken with her brothers.

Matching

2010-04-27T11:14:00.001-07:00

So I've been totally digging coordinating outfits for the boys lately. If I'm lucky, we can go a whole day without ruining it with puke or poo! Some striped onesies...

Aren't these pj's um... awesome. Spacesuits?

One of the benifits of living in the big city is huge twin club rummage sales. These were one of our best finds this weekend! Maybe one day I'll catch them both smiling at the same time.

And of course big sis always gets in on the action!

28 Months

2010-04-21T22:02:00.000-07:00

This tired mom does not have time to write a real update today (maybe tomorrow), but here is our cutie at 28 months! And of course, she always insists that we take photos with her brothers, too. Thanks to Auntie Anna for the coordinating onesies. :)

Miss Kate

2010-04-06T16:32:00.000-07:00

Helping with some yard work at Casen & Spring's

She found her swimsuit (with built-in floatation device) and insisted on wearing it all day, including on several outings. I'm sure we were quite a sight!
Katelynn and Ali decided laying on the rocks sounded like a good springtime activity.

3 Months

2010-03-29T16:21:00.001-07:00

Evan & Aidan: 1 month old

Evan & Aidan: 2 months old

Evan & Aidan: 3 months old

The boys are three months old today! I don't think they look very different than the two month photo. In some ways it feels like we just started this journey and in some ways like it feels like it's been forever. Other twin parents swear it gets easier around around the three month mark. I sure hope they are right!

Evan had a doctor appointment today for his reflux and he is weighing in at 13 lbs 7 oz (53rd percentile). Despite his difficulty eating, he is staying right on track with his growth. We are getting a different kind of medication on Wednesday, so hopefully he'll start enjoying eating more. Evan is holding his head up well and has been enjoying upright entertainment such as the exersauser. When he isn't cranky with his eating, he's got a face full of smiles.

Today Aidan weighed in at 16 lbs 4 oz (about the 90th percentile). He loves to eat and sometimes takes 7 ounces at a time (compared to Evan's max of 4). Aidan is generally a content little guy. He's started to drool quite a bit, which is an early sign of teething. Hopefully he's got a couple more months before anything actually pops through. He is also getting stronger and learning to enjoy his toys more.

Big sister Katelynn is still a little jealous of losing mommy and daddy's undivided attention, but she sure loves being photographed with her brothers!

Easter Bunny

2010-03-28T13:58:00.001-07:00

Yesterday when we saw the Easter Bunny in the mall, Katelynn was all excited to get her picture taken with him. Today after getting all dressed up, not so much. So we went with the family photo...
Tucker, the bunny, and I look the same, but our family sure has changed in the past year.

The Cousins

2010-03-28T13:36:00.000-07:00

We spent a week in Montana in March. Of course Aunt Anna got all the kids matching outfits to attempt a photo shoot. Unfortunately Evan and Aidan were sleeping for this one on St. Patrick's Day.

Ivey, Tithen, Alivia, and Katelynn

Attempt number 2 a few days later when both boys were awake: Evan (2.5 months), Katelynn (2 years), Tithen (3.5 years), Aidan (2.5 months), Alivia (14 months), and Ivey (20 months).

27 Months

2010-03-28T13:32:00.000-07:00

It's getting harder and harder to get a monthly picture of miss Kate. She insisted that blankie be in the photo with her this time. This past month Katelynn got two of her two-year molars and learned to climb out of her crib. Other than that, not much is new. She continues to love music, movies, mac n cheese, pears, the park, and being the center of attention. :)

Pics

2010-03-13T22:01:00.000-08:00

Katelynn shares her sunglasses with Aidan

Evan gives us a smile

Bubble bath in the sink

Making a slide in the living room

Hanging out with uncle

2 Month Check Up

2010-03-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

The boys had their 2-month check up today. They are doing fabulous! Evan got some zantac for his reflux and Aidan's umbilical hernia should go away within the year. Getting shots with two-month-olds is way less traumatic then getting shots with a 2-year-old who says "No shots, no shots" for the entire doctor visit. Here are the stats for the boys:

Evan
Weight: 12 lb 2.5 oz (57th percentile)
Length: 23 inches (48th percentile)
Head: 16.2 inches (76th percentile)

Aidan
Weight: 13 lb 1 oz (77th percentile)
Length: 22.25 inches (20th percentile)
Head: 15.75 inches (46th percentile)

And for comparison, Katelynn at 2 month:
Weight: 9 lb 7 oz
Length: 22.5 inches
Head: 15 inches

2 Months Old?

2010-02-28T13:17:00.001-08:00

Since there is no February 29th this year, I decided to call today the boys' two-month birthday. This month's photo shoot was much more successful than lasts!

Evan Tyler & Aidan James: 2 Months

Remember the 1 Month Photo...

With their big sister and her awesome bedhead!

They've both changed so much. In the past month, they've started smiling and cooing. We've got the Eat-Awake-Sleep cycle down pretty good. Feedings are every 2.5-3 hrs in the day, and usually 3-4 hours at night. Sometimes we are lucky and get a 5 hour stretch at night. Infants are hard work, but I'm happy to be the mother of three.

Evan is about 12 pounds. He can lift his head up well when on his belly and hold it pretty steady when upright. He's also rolled over a couple times from front to back. He eats about 27 ounces a day, but has started to fuss a lot during feedings. We are going to talk about trying some reflux meds at their appointment on Wednesday.

Aidan is about 12.5 pounds. He is easy to feed and eats about 34 ounces a day, which explains why he now weighs more than his brother! Aidan is not quite as strong, but he's been holding his head up nicely during tummy time the last few days. Aidan also has an umbilical hernia (google a picture if you've never heard of it). It should go away on its own, but we'll have it checked out at their next appointment.

Katelynn's Window

2010-02-27T14:36:00.000-08:00

Katelynn asked to put on the "princess" dress one of Jen's co-workers bought her. Then she asked to color with her markers. She proceeded to color herself pink. I then bribed her with stickers and M&Ms to sit in the window where there was actually some light so I could document her today.

8 Weeks 2 Day Old

2010-02-25T21:33:00.000-08:00

Evan: 11 lbs 11 oz
Aidan: 12 lbs 5 oz

Pics

2010-02-25T13:28:00.000-08:00

Such a good helper...Tired Boys

26 Month Old Punk

2010-02-23T15:24:00.000-08:00

Katelynn was not too excited to get her picture taken on Sunday for her 26 month b-day. Apparently she is growing tired of this monthly routine!

Take 1: In a cute dress courtesy of her friend Wren.
No, I will not look at the camera!

All you get is my rear end.

Whack! Get that camera away from me.

Take 2: Before bedtime, new outfit because
the other one got soaked at dinner.
You think I'm going to sit still for you?

Or sit where you want you me to?

Ok. Out comes the bribe. "Katelynn do you want an m&m?"

(This is the best shot we could get.)

Better follow through with that promise, mama!
(Note the green candy in her mouth and hand.)

Needless to say, 26 months has brought on a new fiercely independent streak.

6.5 Week Chunkers!

2010-02-11T20:48:00.000-08:00

Evan Tyler: 10 lbs 6.5 oz
Aidan James: 10 lbs 7 oz

The Kiddos

2010-02-05T22:41:00.000-08:00

Getting ready to go on a walk on a chilly February day. The newborn sized outfits won't fit much longer!

JennClarkPhotography.com

2010-02-01T21:49:00.000-08:00

Grandparent Visits

2010-02-01T12:20:00.000-08:00

Enjoying her brothers

2010-01-31T11:08:00.000-08:00

(In case you can't tell them apart yet, Evan has dark hair and Aidan is the bald blonde.)

1 Month

2010-01-30T10:53:00.000-08:00

Evan and Aidan turned one month old yesterday. It's really hard to get a happy photo with two infants!

Well, at least one of them is calm in this one...

We had an appointment with the lactation consultant yesterday and Evan is up to 9 lbs 7 oz, and Aidan is 8 lbs 15 oz. So both have gained over three pounds in a month! They are hardy eaters on the bottle, and we are working hard to give breastfeeding a go. Tucker and I are quite sleep deprived, but enjoying the boys. Katelynn is settling in to being a big sister. She enjoys the boys but is also learning to be a little more independent.

Like mother like daughter

2010-01-23T21:00:00.001-08:00

Katelynn's 25th month on the planet

2010-01-23T20:57:00.001-08:00

First Family of Five Photos

2010-01-18T18:04:00.000-08:00

January 4th: Heading home from the hospital

The proud big sister.

Katelynn Meeting Her Brothers

2010-01-18T17:55:00.000-08:00

Photos

2010-01-02T15:04:00.000-08:00

One Hour Old (Aidan on left, Evan on right)Day 3 (Evan on left, Aidan on right)

Day 4 (Evan on left, Aidan on right)

The Boys

2009-12-30T12:00:00.001-08:00

Evan Tyler - Dec 29 - 8:41 AM - 6 lbs 7 oz - 18 inches
Aidan James - Dec 29 - 8:42 AM - 5 lbs 11 oz - 18 inches

Thanks to JT...

2009-12-28T16:17:00.000-08:00

2 Year Check Up

2009-12-28T10:15:00.000-08:00

Katelynn had her two year check up today. Same old, same old: tall and skinny with a big head. :)

Weight: 23 lbs 4 oz, 9th percentile
Height: 34.25 inches, 62nd percentile
Head: 19.09 inches, 76th percentile

Three More Days

2009-12-26T17:49:00.000-08:00

My c-section has been scheduled for Tuesday, December 29th. For sure this time! Check back later next week for pics of the boys.

Happy Birthday!

2009-12-21T21:35:00.000-08:00

Katelynn is two years old today! Can you believe it??? She is amazing and growing up so fast. Her language skills continue to impress me, and I'm sure her vocabulary is several hundred words. She currently likes to give out orders like "Mommy do it" or "Go away uncle." She also has a good independent streak going: she wants to dress and undress herself, take herself to the bathroom, put away the dishes, etc. Now if only I could get her to want to clean up her toys!
Katelynn has learned all of her basic colors and has been working on counting. She is also interested in the alphabet, and she frequently says "ABCDLMNOP" when she sees letters. You can tell her attention span is growing too because she'll request and sit through much longer books. She still loves music and loves to sing. She is currently obsessed with Barney's "I Love You" song. She also likes Twinkle Twinkle, The Itsy Bitsy Spider, and Christmas music. It's super cute to listen to her serenade herself to sleep.
We have her 2-year check-up next Monday and we'll find out how much she weighs and how tall she is then. I'm sure she's met all of her developmental milestones, but she still is not a huge fan of eating. Pizza and mac & cheese seem to be the staples of her diet. Her top two canine teeth finally both popped through this month, so she now has 16 teeth! Four more molars and then we should be done with teething for a few years. Time for me to make her a dentist appointment.
Katelynn has been gearing up for the arrival of her brothers by playing with all of their toys. A couple of days ago, she got a baby doll and a stroller to push around. She proceeded to put the doll up her shirt so that she could be pregnant too! Thanks the delay in the twin's birth, we got to spend today with Katelynn instead of in the hospital. Tucker, JT, and I took her to Chuck-E-Cheese for lunch and she enjoyed it. We had a carrot cake after dinner to celebrate, but she was not a fan of the flavor!Katelynn, thank you for an awesome two years. I'm looking forward to watching you grow and change over the next twelve months!

Not Today

2009-12-20T15:56:00.000-08:00

Um... change of plans... no babies today. My labs, non-stress test, etc, were looking good today so they want me to try to hang in there for a little while longer. We may not get those Christmas babies after all.

Pregnancy Update

2009-12-16T20:29:00.000-08:00

For those of you who aren't on Facebook, it looks like we're having a c-section on Sunday December 20th! The pregnancy has gotten a little complicated with preeclampsia and severe hip pain. We'll be most 36 weeks by then (which is average for twins) and the boys are both estimated to be over 6 pounds already. So it's time to come out. Their birthday will be just one day off from Katelynn's! Family of five here we come.

Abbie's Birthday

2009-11-24T07:00:00.000-08:00

Two weekends ago, Katelynn got her first experience at Chuck E Cheese. That place was a little overwhelming to me on a Sunday afternoon, but the kids sure had fun. Abbie (Katelynn's cousin) turned 7, and not only did we get to celebrate her birthday, but we got to see a bunch of Katelynn's other relatives too, including her birthmom Tonia, her sister Makayla, and her grandma Pam. The lighting wasn't the greatest, but here are some our best photos...

Grandma Pam, Katelynn, Tonia

Katelynn and ToniaSisters

Tonia, Makayla, and Katelynn

Miss Abbie - The Birthday Girl

Makayla and Katelynn climbing in the slide

Tonia helping Katelynn ride with Barney

Grandma and Grandpa

2009-11-23T07:00:00.000-08:00

Back in the first weekend of November, Grandma Sue and Grandpa Ben came for a visit. Katelynn had a great time playing with them. She even got BOTH of them to give her a ride on their backs like a horse! Grandma and Grandpa also helped us get a van for our expanding family and Katelynn is very excited that it's green (her favorite color). We can't wait to see them again at Christmas.

23 Months

2009-11-21T22:02:00.000-08:00

Ugh, I am so behind in posting, but I'll have to back track later! Katelynn is 23 months old today. I can't believe she'll be two in a month. Katelynn continues to be very talkative and surprises us all the time with words and phrases she says. She is still obsessed with monsters, but she has started to learn about Christmas and Santa and is beginning to recognize those things when we are out. She is doing well with learning her colors, and we've started working on some counting. This weekend, she started singing the ABC song to us, which we've never tried to teach her. She must have picked it up from the daycare at the gym. She's also started watching some movies, and her favorite so far is Monsters Inc. The big news of the month is that we started potty training and she is doing so well. She hardly ever has accidents at home and we are about to start venturing out more in big kid underwear. (She picked out some horse, Dora, and Elmo ones.) Hopefully she'll have it all down before the boys come. We've enjoyed visits from Grandma Sue and Grandpa Ben this month, and we got to see a bunch of Katelynn's relatives at her cousin's birthday party, but those will come soon!

Pumpkin Patch

2009-11-14T19:40:00.000-08:00

So this post is long over due, but the weekend before Halloween, we visited the pumpkin patch. Here's my cutie trying to find a good one.

Tickling Uncle JT

"Cheese"

There were lots of animals to see too. Apparently this horse was a little hungry because it bit Katelynn's hand. It was a little traumatizing and now she says "Neigh bite!" whenever we talk about a horse.

Aren't we cute.

I'm not sure their chart is measuring just right because she was almost three feet at the last doctor visit.

Last Year...

... was much better weather!

Halloween Party Yesterday

2009-10-25T13:41:00.000-07:00

22 Months

2009-10-23T14:41:00.000-07:00

Katelynn turned 22 months old on Wednesday. I forgot to take her picture and realized it 5 minutes after putting her to bed, so I got her back up and did a quick snap. Thus, Katelynn is in her "meow jamas" as she likes to call them, and the lighting is horrible. The picture at the bottom is from the next day. Much better. :)

Katelynn's bottom left canine is all the way in, and the right one is almost completely grown. I don’t think the top two have popped through yet, but she is not very cooperative when I try to check, so I’m not sure. I think Katelynn’s new favorite food is an ice cream cone. We get them sometimes when we go by McDonald’s, and now every time we drive by she asks for one!

Katelynn continues to be very verbal and uses lots of three words phrases. Right now she is obsessed with pumpkins and monsters, and she loves visiting Target to see the Halloween decorations. She is still working on her colors and has blue, green, and pink down; and sometimes she gets yellow, orange, and red correct. She also continues to be very active, and people always comment on how we have a gymnast or an athlete on our hands. She’s a bold climber, and loves to jump, do somersaults, and do the splits. She can climb in the pack-n-play without help, and I'm sure she'll be climbing out of her crib in no time.

22 months +1 day

The Boys

2009-10-17T21:57:00.000-07:00

We had another ultrasound yesterday to check on the twins. Everything is going well.

Evan Tyler (Head is on the right)

Aidan James (His head is on the right,
with his hand coming up to his mouth)

Recent Photos

2009-10-03T21:55:00.000-07:00

Curious and cute.

Katelynn's first experience with sidewalk chalk.

Always a daredevil. Her latest motor accomplishments have included somersaults, jumping, and doing the splits.

Katelynn has taken after me in her love of ice cream.

In other family news, the twins are doing good. They are moving a lot lately, and I'm expecting Evan to be the more active boy based on how much they kick. We have another ultrasound on the 16th to see how big they are getting, but judging by the size of my belly they are doing just fine. Katelynn has been pretty excited to see baby equipment (car seat, swing, bouncers, etc) return to the house. Hopefully she won't mind it in three months when she has to share them with her brothers!

21 Months

2009-09-21T17:28:00.000-07:00

Little Miss Kate is 21 months old today (and as cute as ever)! She continues to talk up a storm and use lots of three word phrases. Some of her new big words are necklace, ambulance, and curtains. We've started to work on learning colors, and she's decided she loves the color green. She always wants the green spoon, the green straw, the green fruit loops, etc. Katelynn also loves vehicals of all sorts. She loves to point out airplanes, buses, tractors, etc, and she is especially eager for Tuesday mornings when the garbage trucks come through. Lately I've been amazed at her memory. Sometimes when I get home from work, she'll tell me about going on a walk with dada and uncle. She's even started remembering her friends' names and will say them when we drive by places we've hung out with them at. We're trying to get her to learn the twin's names, but whenever I bring it up, she just says "Max, Max" over and over. Aparently he is her favorite friend.

She continues to love cereal and mac & cheese, and she recently started liking blueberries a lot. Her bottom right canine tooth finally popped through. I'm not sure about the top ones because she just bites now when we try to feel her teeth. We're in the earliest stages of potty training as she is starting to express lots of interest in it. We put her on a few times a day and sometimes she goes. One of these days we're going to have to get serious about it so we can get her trained before the boys arrive.

Dinner

2009-09-14T14:29:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, Katelynn's Aunt Stephanie, Aunt Jocelyn, and Cousin Abbie came over for dinner at our new house. We ate some good brats and hot dogs off the grill, and Katelynn had a good time showing off for her relatives!

The cousins...

Stephanie, Katelynn, Abbie, and Jocelyn

Similar photo from about a year ago.

Thanks for helping us break in our new place!

Photos

2009-09-04T14:25:00.000-07:00

A is Evan. B is Aidan.

Evan Tyler

Aidan James

Can you believe they looked like this just 10 weeks ago?

The Names

2009-09-02T22:10:00.000-07:00

So we've decided on names: Evan Tyler & Aidan James. Ultrasound pictures to come very soon. :)

20 Months (Mom, this timely post is for you!)

2009-08-21T20:48:00.000-07:00

Katelynn is 20 months old today. We have a dr appointment for next Wednesday, so we'll see how big she's getting then. Her bottom right canine tooth is just about through the surface. I feel like these four canine teeth are taking forever to come in! Her current favorite foods are still cereal (especially fruit loops) and chicken nuggets, and she's really liked pears lately. She is a non-stop talker and has so many words, I'm sure way over 100 by now. Some of her big words are garbage, hammock, video, and cereal. She uses two-word phrases independently all the time now, and occasionally gets three words strung together, like "more cereal please" or "daddy up please". She loves swimming, playing with other kids, going to parks, petting animals, and driving by the giant blow-up gorilla at the car dealership by our house.

We are having TWO BOYS!

2009-08-21T16:53:00.000-07:00

The boys were very active and not shy at all. They both appear healthy and are measuring right on target. Check back in a few days for photos and names!

Friday

2009-08-16T08:40:00.000-07:00

Friday will be a big day around here. Not only does Katelynn turn 20 months, but we also have an ultrasound to find out the genders of the twins! Boy/Boy? Boy/Girl? Girl/Girl? Two stubborn children who won't cooperate with the ultrasound tech? Register your guesses now.

Summer in Montana

2009-08-15T14:40:00.000-07:00

We spent the last 2.5 weeks traveling to Montana to see friends and family. When we got home, I had over 340 pictures to download! Here are some of the best that tell of our adventures.

We started off by driving to Coeur d'Alene for a Schmitt family reunion. It's a long drive for a 1.5-year-old, so of course we had to stop a couple times to play.

We had a good two days with the Schmitts, including spending some time at the lake.

After Coeur d'Alene, we continued to Helena.
Luckily we got some of this:

Is that my 6-month-old cousin Alivia who is almost as big as me?!?
Katelynn loves playing with 3-year-old cousin Tithen.
Grandma Gale was in town from CA and someone had the bright idea of trying to get 4 kids and 1 adult to smile and look at the camera at the same time.
The Helena carousel is full of animals native to MT. We took at least 3 trip there for a total of more than 10 rides. Katelynn loves it!

Matching outfits AND a photo shoot? We are out of control.
Ivey - 1 yr, Alivia - 6 mo, Katelynn 1.5 yrs, Tithen - 3 yrs.

The wives (our husbands are the brothers) and the girls.

After a trip to Glacier with the FitzGeralds, we got to stop in Sealy Lake and see our friend Ryan and his daughter Lana.
Plus Lisa, my college roommate and good friend, was in town so we got to hang with her and her boys a few times. (Nate, age 3, is below.)
And thanks to the Sheehys, Katelynn has discovered her love of sandboxes.
Grandma Sue, I appreciate all the toys you have for me, but this is even better!
Grandpa Ben and Uncle JT built Katelynn this swing set while we were there. Katelynn decided she was old enough to try out the big kid swing.
It was a busy trip seeing everyone. And our trips are bound to get crazier because next time we are in Montana we'll have three kids!

19 Months

2009-07-23T20:40:00.000-07:00

Katelynn turned 19 months old on Tuesday. Upon last check almost a month ago, she weighed 21 lbs 3.3 oz and was 31.25 inches long, and we'll visit the doctor sometime in August for new numbers. Still a skinny little girl, but she's such a cutie! Katelynn's bottom left canine tooth came in this month, and the other canines will pop soon, I'm sure. Her language just continues to explode, and I'm sure she's got more than 75 words now. This month she started to say two word phrases such as "up please" or "bye-bye balloon" or "got water". She has learned to say my and mine, and she is working on other possessive words, like pointing to a water bottle and saying "mommy's". Some words that she's said for a while are also getting closer the correct pronunciation, like water isn't "wa-wa" any more, it's "wa-er". Language development is an amazing thing to watch.

Katelynn has been earning the reputation lately as being a daredevil. She is so active and confident. When we go to parks, she is not afraid to climb to the highest points and go down the biggest slides. She's always on the go, and loves to climb in or on anything. Hopefully we can keep Uncle JT from teaching her how to climb out of the crib any time soon! Katelynn has been sleeping great with 11 hours at night and a 2-3 hour nap. She is almost completely on grown up food now, though we still throw in the occasional oatmeal for the nutrients. Lately she has been really enjoying cereal and chicken nuggets.

She continues to be an incredible social butterfly, and she loves any chance to interact with other kids. What an amazing little girl we have on our hands!

Camping

2009-07-22T14:31:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday, we spent the night camping with uncle JT and our friends the Rices. The Belks were also able to join us for the evening. We had a good time talking, cooking over the grill, playing in the river, and just hanging out. Though I'm not the biggest fan of sleeping without the comfort of my bed, it was nice to get away for a day.

Josiah and Katelynn hanging by the river.

Katelynn Chilling

Uncle Bud slept in the great outdoors all night!

River fun

Our Family

Uncle Bud hanging with the kids

David, Wendy, and Josiah Rice

Paul, Anne, Hannah, and Baby Girl Belk

Looking back at the calendar, we realized that this was the same weekend we went camping last year with the Clarks and the Belks. Katelynn was just 6.5 months old then!

Summer Cuteness

2009-07-21T21:38:00.000-07:00

Enjoying some watermelon at our last
house dinner with our housemates.

Katelynn's friend Aaron turned two last week.
She got to play on this bike at his party.

A few weeks ago, we went to a BBQ for adoptive families.
This motorized tractor was the hit of the day.

Heartbeats

2009-07-17T21:49:00.000-07:00

Today we got to hear the twin's heartbeats for the first time. It was pretty cool! Even though I'm super sick, the babies are doing well. :)

Katelynn's Awesome Vocabulary

2009-07-12T20:49:00.000-07:00

mallow=balloon
mukik=music
gawgies=glasses
baka=grandpa
nonut=donut
kackie=cracker
iah=Josiah
goggie=doggie
nama=grandma

Fun News

2009-06-29T13:28:00.000-07:00

Katelynn is going to be a big sister. Times 2. That's right folks: Tucker and I found out a few weeks ago that we are pregnant with twins! I am 11 weeks along today, and due January 18. We've seen their little heartbeats 3 times now. The picture below is from our second ultrasound at 8 weeks. Besides feeling miserable, everything seems to be going well. We are trying to explain it to Katelynn, so hopefully she'll understand a little 6 months from now. (She wasn't too keen on her infant car seat coming back out for test driving bigger vehicals that can hold our new clan.) If the babies are cooperative, we'll find out the genders at our ultrasound on August 24th!

Crib Recall

2009-06-28T15:24:00.000-07:00

Thanks to a friend's blog several months ago, I became aware of several crib recalls by Jardine Enterprises. At the time, our crib wasn't on the list, but I just checked the list again and it's been expanded. Our crib has now been recalled as well. So all you mothers out there, please check this list (http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09207.html) and make sure your baby is sleeping safe at night.

18 Months

2009-06-24T17:21:00.000-07:00

This cheese ball turned 18 months on Sunday. At a doctor appointment on Monday, she was 31.25 inches long (about 50th percentile) and weighed 21 lbs 3.3 oz (about 10th percentile). She now has all four of her molars, and I suspect the eye teeth are on their way. She has started to enjoy more grown up food lately, her favorite being mac and cheese. She also has liked pizza, muffins, grilled cheese, and canned pears. Her vocabulary is growing out of control: she is up to about 40 words! I've been trying to keep a list on the side of the blog, but Tucker says this will be an impossible task soon. Some of her newest words are sock, mac (as in mac and cheese), blankie, cracker, bus, and Elmo. We also had the milestone this past month of getting rid of the pacifier. It was actually much easier than I expected it to be, though when we are playing at her friend Josiah's house, she likes to suck on his all evening. She continues to be a very active, confident, social little girl. Plus she's such a cutie!

Memorial Day

2009-06-24T17:15:00.000-07:00

This post is long over due! Way back over memorial day weekend, my parents came to visit. Katelynn loved all the extra attention, and mom and dad loved the help. The zoo is much more manageable when someone else is chasing your toddler around! We had a good time eating pizza and seafood, and visiting the zoo, a couple parks, and the children's museum.

Katelynn's Bath

2009-06-14T22:26:00.000-07:00

I got this lovely picture on my camera phone this morning :)

17 Months

2009-05-22T13:54:00.000-07:00

Miss Kate turned 17 months old yesterday. She was up to 21 lbs 3 oz earlier this week when we visited the doctor because of a rash. Her two bottom molars are completely in, and the top ones are working on it. She's decided she loves to climb and can even get on top of the kitchen table. Scary! Katelynn's language skills seemed to have hit a turning point this month. She is saying all sorts of new words and loves to try to copy what adults say. Some of her new words are Ah (Anne, our housemate), ha (hat), moe (more), peas (please), eye, and nose. She also is able to point to a bunch of her body parts including her eyes, ears, mouth, teeth, tongue, nose, chin, cheek, chest, toes, feet, fingers, hand, arms, hair, and head. And of course she still likes making animal noises and can now do a dog, cat, sheep, cow, horse, pig, bird, and lion. She is even learning some matching skills with her animal fridge toy. If you show her one half of an animal, she will find the other corresponding piece. What a smarty!

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-12T13:54:00.000-07:00

We had a good Sunday around here. Tucker cooked us up some brunch and then Katleynn took a good nap. We spent the late afternoon trying to find animals at the zoo with the Belks and the Lukaarts. And JT surprised me with homemade lasagna (from our mom's recipe, of course) upon our return. Katelynn even got me a gift card so I can go out on a date with her daddy. Happy Mother's Day!

Dr Visit Stats and some Photos

2009-04-29T12:55:00.000-07:00

Katelynn had a check up this past Monday. At 16 months 6 days she is:

Weight: 20 lb 11 oz (12th percentile)
Height: 31 inches (53rd percentile)
Head Circumference: 18.7 inches (83rd percentile)

Skinny little thing; big big head! Her development is all on target or a little ahead. She was tested for allergies and a few other things to try to find out why she dislikes eating so much, but the results were all negative. Her weight is hanging in there, but not without a lot of struggle to get her to eat. Our new pediatrician (whom we really really like) is referring us to a feeding clinic at Children's Hospital where a team including a nutritionist, an SLP, and some other folks will evaluate her eating. Sounds like it could be helpful, or at least reassuring that we are doing all that we can. Here are some recent photos...

She was pretty freaked out by this giant thing!

Katelynn loved the flamingos' squawking.

Mommy's favorite animal to visit at the zoo.

She must have a thing about birds. She did not like this activity any more than the peacock, and she was terrified of the ducks at the park the other day.

We started attending a swimming class for tots (6 months-3 years) on Tuesday evenings. She is really enjoying it, but could definitely use some more body fat. We usually only make it through 2/3 of the class before we head for the hot showers.

Katelynn and I are in the upper right hand corner. We sing lots of songs, and she is learning how to kick, paddle, and blow bubbles.

16 months

2009-04-21T21:13:00.000-07:00

This cheeseball is 16 months old today! The weather has been gorgeous lately so she got to be in shorts. (The funny part is that these are size 3-6 months shorts that she wore last summer. My skinny little girl...) She weighed 20 lbs 6 oz three weeks ago, and we'll see how tall she is at her check up next week. This month, teeth #9 and #10 made their appearance. She has learned to say a few new words like eye, up, ball, and Puh (for Paul). She is learning how to unzip and remove clothing, she's learned how to scribble with crayons, and she loves to play outside.

Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-12T12:55:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, we took Katelynn to her first Easter Egg Hunt. We thought we just barely made it on time, but then we had to stand around with the other parents in the 0-3 area waiting for the guy to say go. Katelynn is trying to be patient...
Look at the crowd on the sidelines of the football field just waiting to push people out of the way for a little candy!

Finally, we got to go.

Score! She got a lot of fruit snacks and roll-ups.

Katelynn's pal Josiah got one lone egg. It was a little too wet for him to crawl around getting more.

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

We tried to get a picture of just Katelynn with the Easter Bunny, but it was not to be. She started sobbing the first time she saw him, and even after he played peek-a-boo with her she was not going anywhere near his lap! So we settled for the family picture. She did fine with Santa back in December... what a difference 4 months makes.

The Snow

2009-04-09T13:23:00.001-07:00

While it's not exactly what you wish for over spring break, the snow in Montana was beautiful for our trip. Here we are trying to not be blinded by the sun.
Katelynn had her first experience of playing in the snow while we were there. The snowsuit is a little big because I had purchased it weeks ago in preparation for next winter. And the boots were a little small because we had to borrow some from Cousin Ivey.

Yum, yum.

JT has much better aim than I do!

I had to post this great picture of Tucker. The reflection of the sun on the snow was super bright, so Tucker asked JT to grab him a hat, and this was the result. :)

Sledding...

This tumble was the end to our fun that day!

A little different from our spring break trip to Texas last year...

For Comparison

2009-04-08T14:48:00.000-07:00

Last spring, we took a trip to Montana at about the same time of year as we did this year. Both times we got to spend an afternoon with Katelynn's Great-Grandma Pam. Here are the Four Generation Photos from both times. I think Katelynn is the only one who's changed at all...

March 16, 2008

April 3, 2009

Spring Break

2009-04-07T13:56:00.000-07:00

Tucker's brother Andrew and his wife Crystal had a baby at the end of January, so we went to Montana for spring break to meet her. At two months old, Alivia is already 13 pounds and she'll be giving Katelynn a run for her money in no time! Katelynn liked meeting her cousin, but she's a little jealous of mom and dad holding her, and we still need to work some more on being gentle!
We also got to go to the Helena Carosel with Katelynn's other cousins. It's really hard to get a good picture when the thing is spinning, but her are me, Katelynn, Aunt Spring, and Cousin Tithen enjoying the Montana wildlife.

Since Christmas, my dad (Grandpa Ben) has been busy hand carving a rocking horse for Katelynn. Isn't it awesome! Also thanks to Grandma Sue for the bridle and mane.

Katelynn looks pretty silly in this photo, but I wanted to show the size of this beast. She loves to rock back and forth on the horse, but she might be 5 before she can climb up on it herself!
Katelynn took an interest in Grandpa's golf stuff while were there, so he bought her a club and ball of her own. Probably won't be much longer before he's taking her to the driving range.
One day, she decided she would crawl through the railing. After discovered her hips were too wide, she couldn't figure out how to get her shoulders back through. Luckily I was sitting right by the camera. :)

Spring Break, Montana Style

2009-03-29T11:45:00.000-07:00

Fancy Katelynn

2009-03-25T20:53:00.001-07:00

One of my coworkers recently spent a couple weeks in Indonesia visiting family, and she returned with this dress as a gift for Katelynn. She liked it until she tripped and bonked her head. :)

15 Months

2009-03-22T18:54:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Katelynn turned 15 months old. Her 8th tooth came in this month, and her two bottom molars are on their way. She has giant puffy spots where they will be, and she is definitely showing us some crankiness today! I think she is nearing 21 lbs, but we don't have a check-up for another month to find out for sure. She continues to LOVE books, especially the baby sign language book she got from Grama Sue for Christmas. She can sign more, please, water, eat, all done, dog, cat, night night, bottle, mama, dada, book, and diaper. As far as talking goes, she is saying dada, mama, bottle (bawbaw), Uncle bud (bu, which is JT's nickname), dog (gawgaw), and no. She loves to go to our playgroup 2-3 times a month, and enjoys having other kids over to play. A social butterfly for sure!

Happy St Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T20:51:00.000-07:00

With a name like Katelynn FitzGerald, how could you not celebrate today?!

First Zoo Trip

2009-03-17T20:45:00.001-07:00

For my birthday a couple of weeks ago, I got a zoo membership! I love zoos and I'm very excited to take Katelynn a lot this summer. We went for the first time March 1st, and though 1 1/2 hrs is about all a 14 month old can spend in there at a time, I think she enjoyed it.

The Giraffe

The Lion who was very noisy

They have a great indoor playground for kids.

At first she was afraid to crawl through.
She warmed up eventually.

Sign Language

2009-03-04T08:34:00.000-08:00

Katelynn is slowly but surely learning a few verbal words (mama, dada, bottle, dog), but she is really doing good with sign language. She knows more, all done, please, bottle, diaper, water, and eat. Her motions might not be exactly like ASL, but she's close!

Body Parts

2009-03-04T08:31:00.000-08:00

Katelynn has been learning her body parts! She knows belly button, ear, nose, hair, tongue, feet, hands, and sometimes eyes. Here's a sample...

14 Months

2009-02-21T10:39:00.001-08:00

Katelynn is 14 months old today. Before I know it, she'll be graduating from high school! Her current loves are reading books, playing with anything that makes music, and getting into the kitchen cabinets. I think she's just under 30 inches tall, and she might be over 20 lbs, but we don't have another check up for a while so I'm not sure. We've just about finished transitioning from formula to milk, and she is officially down to one nap a day. She continues to love other kids and Hannah the dog, but is not so fond of babysitters in this separation anxiety phase. :)

Cute Pics

2009-02-17T18:47:00.000-08:00

The other day, this bright yellow truck was doing some work on the cable lines, and Katelynn was just fascinated. She kept running back to the window to watch.

It also happened to be the day she was in a dress, which is a rarity and not the most functional attire for a very active 1 year old. But she was sure cute.

After Christmas we ordered another big kid car seat so that we could have one in each car. But obviously the best part of the package was the box.
She has figured out how to get on and off of her new horse, and she loves to push it around the kitchen, but she still doesn't get how to make it move while she's on it. :)

New Year, Same Outfit

2009-02-10T07:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, in honor of Katelynn Day, I decided to dig out the outfit she wore the day we brought her home in...

7 weeks old - about 9 lbs

7 months old - about 15.5 pounds

1 year & 7 weeks old - about 19 pounds

It's a little short in the sleeves and pants, but she could totally get away with wearing it. :)

Happy Katelynn Day

2009-02-09T08:00:00.000-08:00

One year ago today marks what I'm pretty sure is the most important day of my life: the day I became a mom. I'm teary as I look at these photos, remember that day, and realize how incredible it is to have my little girl. What an awesome gift we received. It's been a challenging year with all that comes with being a first time mom, but Katelynn is the joy of my life.

Katelynn's Birthmom Tonia bringing her out

Tonia passing her to me

Katelynn, meet Mommy

And Daddy

Hanging out for a bit

Grandma Pam, Us, Tonia, Aunt Stephanie

Saying goodbye to the James' Family who lovingly

took care of Katelynn for her first seven weeks

A very peaceful ride home

Contentment

Joy

Katelynn Joy, you are incredible, and I love you so very very much.

Christmas Pictures

2009-01-31T22:18:00.000-08:00

I am so behind in posting! Here are some pictures of Katelynn enjoying her Christmas in Montana.

Her new leapfrog toy from Grandma Sue and Grandpa Ben

Her new pig that she loves to snuggle with and now sleeps with

Us chillin' with Crystal and Andrew on Christmas Eve

JT fixing up Katelynn's new ball popper (that thing is crazy!)

Christmas morning at the FitzGeralds

Let's take apart the tree!

And pull apart the ornaments!

Hanging with Cousin Ivey and Papa

Anna, that must be a very interesting book.

Sunshine

2009-01-21T17:57:00.001-08:00

We had gorgeous weather here in Seattle on MLK day, so Tucker, JT, Katelynn, and I took a walk to the playground at the local library. Four months ago when we moved here, there wasn't much she could do at this park, but now that she's highly mobile she loved it!

First Birthday Party Take 2

2009-01-06T11:37:00.000-08:00

We spend about two weeks in Montana with family for the holidays. So Katelynn got to have a second first birthday party! Thanks to Casen and Spring for the use of their house, and to all of the grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and Mollys who attended. This time we went for the red velvet cupcakes...

And Katelynn enjoyed another round of presents:)

One Year Old

2009-01-05T20:32:00.000-08:00

One Year Check Up Stats from Today:

Weight: 19 lbs (14th percentile)

Height: 29 inches (41st percentile)

Head Circumference: 18.3 inches (84th percentile)

Visit to Santa

2008-12-21T09:00:00.000-08:00

Our first trip to Santa was a success. No big smiles, but no tears. What a cute little girl!

Birthday Party!

2008-12-18T19:57:00.000-08:00

Since we'll be in Montana for Katelynn's actual birthday, we had a party with friends and family here in Seattle this past Saturday. I can't believe she is almost one! It was a great few hours filled with pizza, presents, cake, and conversation. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day.

Checking out a book from Aunt Stephanie, Aunt Jocelyn, and Cousin Abbie

Thanks Matia for helping to unwrap everything.

Intently looking at something...

Bows, yum.

Yea for the legos and all the gifts.

Time for (cup)cake. Mommy and daddy had to blow it out before I caught myself on fire.

Hum, not to bad.

Not even any tears.

It was a really special day because a bunch of Katelynn's birthfamily got to join us! Here's Katelynn with her birthmom Tonia.

Cousin Abbie, Sister Makayla, Mommy Tonia, and Miss Kate

Playing with Grandma Pam (Nana)

And the three girls again :)

Thanks Tonia, Makayla, Pam, Stephanie, Jocelyn, Abbie, JT, Paul, Anne, Wendy, Josiah, Heather, Trapper, Sophia, Craig, Beth, Matia, Aaron, Jen, Stephanie, and Clinton for an awesome day!

Snow!

2008-12-14T17:26:00.000-08:00

It snowed last night! And morning we had an appointment to see Santa. So because Katelynn was all dressed up already, we took a couple pictures on the freezing porch.

In exactly one week, Katelynn will be a year old. I can hardly believe it. We had a great time yesterday with friends and family having an early birthday party in Seattle. Pictures from that to come soon!

Christmas Memories

2008-12-11T22:50:00.000-08:00

Jen, 10 months old, Christmas 1980

Katelynn, 11 1/2 months old, Christmas 2008

Thanksgiving Weekend

2008-12-01T16:20:00.000-08:00

We had a really nice thanksgiving weekend with family and friends. Katelynn was in pretty good spirits throughout the day despite the fact that two more top teeth are making their way through.
Our house was filled with 13 adults and 3 kids for a great dinner. Grandma Sue and Grandpa Ben even got to come out to see us!
On Saturday, we went to a cultural festival at the Seattle Center, and Katelynn took her first Carousel ride. She liked it!
We also got our Christmas tree on Saturday and had to have a mini modeling show with some of Katelynn's Christmas outfits.
And of course the stockings were hung by the chimney with care. Katelynn, Anne, Jen, Hannah, Tucker, Paul, and JT. :)

For Your Viewing Pleasure

2008-11-23T20:48:00.001-08:00

Trouble

2008-11-23T20:41:00.000-08:00

Time to start shutting the bathroom door...

Fun new "toy"

More and More

2008-11-07T21:02:00.000-08:00

Can you believe she is only 10 1/2 months old?! I bet she is walking instead of crawling about 50% of the time already. Sorry this video is so dark.

More Walking

2008-11-04T12:55:00.000-08:00

Boy, does Katelynn love to walk. And she is so proud of herself when she does! 31 steps is her record so far.

But watch out for the dog!