My brave little guy!

I didn't cry (very much) when they took Brayden back for surgery. I wasn't sure how it was going to go when they took him back for surgery, but my friendly little guy reached right for the doctor without looking back. As soon as he was out of sight, Jared & I quickly made ourselves busy with a potty break & trip to get something to drink to keep our minds busy for a few minutes before going to the family waiting room.

Surgery lasted an hour, the doctor came out & explained exactly what happened. Just as they he had thought from ultrasounds & exams, the blood supply to one of his testicles was cut off at birth or shortly after. The testicle was essentially "dead" & needed to be removed to avoid it possibly becoming cancerous when he's an adult. They made two incisions, one to remove the dead tissue & one to make sure this doesn't happen to the good one. They stabilized the good testicle so it won't move around & the blood supply cut off to that one as well. We were able to hold him while he was in recovery. Recovery was a little tough - as expected, he was irritable. He was also running a fever, which is normal for the first 24 hours after anesthesia. After few hours in recovery, we were sent home with an exhausted little guy.

Jared & I were pretty tired after a long day. We were assumed Brayden would be tired & cuddle up so we could all take a little nap. Quite the contrary, our little man was playing as if nothing happened. He was all over the house & loving being the center of Mommy & Daddy's attention. After an hour or so of playing & laughing, we finally got our nap. It was so nice to cuddle up & nap with my baby who never stays still long enough for me to hold him any more. I'm so glad the day is over.

Thank you to everyone who kept us in your thoughts today. Here are a few pictures from todays events.

My brave little guy right before surgery

I just love this picture

Just after surgery in the recovery room

Mommy is pretty nervous

Tomorrow we go for Brayden's surgery. Payton & Aaron are at their Mimi & Poppa's house (my mom & dad) & Brayden is sleeping in his room. We had a lot of fun before he went to bed, jumping in his jumper (he can't jump in it for 3 weeks after surgery, so I let him get it all out tonight), tickling, playing peek-a-boo with Daddy. It was bitter sweet having only one child here tonight. Bitter because I missed AJ & Payton so much, but sweet because it's always so nice to get alone time & bond with just one of the kids.

We leave VERY early to arrive at the hospital at 7:30AM, so we should be home in the evening. I'll update when I can.

TwinHappy Member of the Day!

Recently I joined a group of twin mommas through TwinHappy.com. TwinHappyJen, is a mom of 4 year old identical twin girls who survived TTTS (Twin To Twin Transfusion Syndrome - a serious & sometimes, fatal disorder that occurs in identical twins and higher order multiples who share a placenta). She has done so many things to bring twin parents/grandparents together & offers a ton of information. If you follow me on Twitter, you'll see #TwinTuesday on many of my posts, this is also something created by TwinHappyJen.

So....(drum roll please)....I am the TwinHappy Member of the Day!! If you get a chance, click the TwinHappy link above, you'll see a picture of the boys!

Thanks TwinHappyJen!

Twinstock '09

August of 2009 is the 40th anniversary of Woodstock & Jen at twinhappy.com (@TwinHappyJen -Twitter) is throwing a party!! It's a 31 day celebration of twins!! "Peace, Love, & Twins". I saw a "tweet" from @TwinHappyJen on Twitter this morning & I instantly thought of my favorite new onsies that the boys just got from their Mimi (my mom) the other day, which they happened to already be wearing. What a perfect picture to start out the Twinstock '09 blog party!!! Here is my attempt. Keep in mind, it is nearly impossible to get two 9 month olds to stay still long enough to get a picture, let alone get a picture where you can read their shirts.

My babies are growing up!!

I find myself once again apologizing for being such a horrible blogger. I often think to myself during the day, "hmm, I should post something tonight", but alas, when the house settles & everyone is sleeping (this is the only time I can dedicate myself to something for more than 2 minutes), I am at times, too mentally exhausted to put a post together. I know, not a very good excuse, but that is my excuse & I'm sticking to it. :)

So here is an update on us: Payton is very much enjoying the summer & is so excited to start Kindergarten in just a little over 6 weeks. I cannot believe my little girl is going to be in school all day, everyday very soon!

The boys are doing great. Their personalities are really starting to come out & boy are they different. AJ is what we sometimes tease as "Momma's boy", we only call him this because he is a cuddler & is all about Mom. Brayden is so curious, so busy getting around..he's really showing that he is the independent little guy. His brother sits back, lets him get into everything & then follow when he sees that it's safe. I love that Aaron cuddles, but I also love to see Brayden being so independent. They are going to be 9 months old in a few days, I am so glad that their different personalities are showing, but at the same time, a little sad to see my babies growing so fast.

In a previous post, I talked about Brayden having surgery to remove one of his testicles that had the blood supply cut off at some point. This surgery was scheduled in June, but due to the doctor needing to be out of the office on the day of his surgery, it was rescheduled for this Thursday (July 23rd). I am very nervous about my little guy having surgery. The surgeon will remove the undeveloped testicle (if not removed, it could become cancerous when he is an adult), as well as check the developed testicle to make sure that the same thing doesn't happen to it as well. With one testicle he will still be able to produce the appropriate amount of hormones when he reaches puberty. At some point if he requests it (and as the doctor advises) he will be able to have a prosthetic. The doctor is say that during his mid to late teens is when he might notice/question that he is slightly different than his brother.

Both boys are teething like crazy. As I previously posted, they each have their lower central incisors, their lateral incisor on the right side have broken through the skin & their upper central incisor on the right side has also broken through. Apparently, identical twins teeth at the exact same time. I'm really not sure if this is a good thing or bad. Do I really want two teething babies at the same time or would I rather them teeth at different times & have it stretch out twice as long? I really don't know what scenario is more ideal. But either way, I wouldn't change any of it for the world. I am so thankful that God has blessed me with these three perfect little ones. I am not saying it's easy, but it is worth every minute of it.

I am adding a few pictures of all three kids. I just cannot believe how fast time is going by & how much they are growing.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to my Dad. I could not have asked for a better father, role model, & grandfather to my children. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful Dad. Thanks Dad, I love you!!

Dad walking me down the isle, being silly in one of Payton's hats,

Mom & Dad at my brother's wedding

We're standing....with some help.

In my last post, I commented that the boys were crawling, could pull themselves up on their knees, & were showing signs that they were trying to stand. Well, they are standing. Wow, June has been a busy month for my little guys!! Next step, cruising......oh, I am not ready for this!! Here there are standing in their pack 'n play.


And a bonus pic of Sissy after playing on the Slip & Slide!