Swimming Summer Fun and More

The summer is rapidly flying by. It seems like things have been in turbo speed since the girls' birthday. Here is a quick catch up on pictures for a few things we have been up to. These first two are of the girls one year photos. These two are our favorite of them together. I haven't decided on my favorite individuals but when I do I will post those. What can I say, I am one proud momma. It was really difficult trying to get both of the girls to look in the same direction and we never succeeded at getting both of them to smile at the same time. I thought they turned out great anyways. I can't believe how big they look. My friend Crystal made their dresses as a baby shower gift, aren't they cute?
Our Little Serious Ladybugs.
Big news for our Miss Renna...our first topknot ponytail! I was super excited to be able to put this in her hair....I can't wait for more hair adventures. It seems like it is taking forever to grow. I was glad to see she can do the ponytail because she refuses to keep on the headbands anymore and mommy loves bows! Look at that silly grin! Renna has officially started say Dog this week. We were really proud of her, of course having two veterinarian parents what other word do you expect? She excitedly says it at Laney (our Maltese) as she chases her around the house. Renna now has four full teeth and two more on top working their way out! She has bitten me three times now...those teeth are sharp! I am sure it is only a matter of time before she turns them on Reagan.
My sweet little brown eyed girl Reagan, trying to make a quick escape thru the baby gate. Our living room has become a baby fortress of play. Any chance the gate is open they do a turbo crawl to get to freedom. Here she is caught in the act. Reagan started saying UH-OH this week! She doesn't always use it properly but it is adorable. She is becoming such a momma's girl lately and I love every minute of it. No ponytails for her yet, her hair isn't as long on top. Reagan has two full teeth and two on top that are beginning to make their presence known. No walking from either girl yet but they are standing on their own for about 10 seconds, I think any day we may have some walking girls on our hands.
Here are the girls sitting on the new deck Daddy put it. They are eagerly awaiting their first swim in our pool. This was over a month ago, but what can I say we have been a little busy. I will post pictures of the finished back porch area with outdoor kitchen soon. My husband is one handy guy and did it all himself. We are very proud of him.
Reagan modeling her swimsuit.
Renna not too sure about the water at first.
Reagan loves splashing in the pool! These floating crabs are a lifesaver when you swim with twins...or any little ones for that matter. Don't worry, I don't take them swimming by myself.
Swimming with Daddy.
The three girls getting some sun. Well that was a quick catch up for what we have been up to. We are just trying to enjoy this summer, play outside, and just be grateful we aren't where we were last year at this time. What a difference a year makes! God is so good.

Our Little Ladies are One!

Yes it is hard to believe but our Little Ladies turned one on June 11!! Wow! It seemed like such a huge milestone for us, it even made Mommy a little sad that they aren't babies anymore! What a year it has been. We started out with over two months in the NICU at 2lbs. 15 oz. and 2lbs. 10 oz and now they are thriving. Renna weighs a whopping 18lbs. 3 oz. with Reagan close behind at 16lbs. 6 oz. I never thought they would be growing into 12 month clothes but they soon will. We had an amazing Ladybug birthday party and cookout. The girls actually had coughs, runny noses, and ear infections but enjoyed the party anyways. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family who have supported us all year with visits, encouragement, and prayers it was nice to have everyone together for the first time. Thank you to everyone who came. Here are some pictures from the girls' big day. We actually were so busy we didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked but we had several friends who stepped in and helped with pictures. Aren't our little Ladybugs cute in their tutus?
Allison, Owen, and Stacey with me and the girls
Moose, Amber (baby Gil on the way), and us
Renna wasn't so sure about all the new faces in her house, it makes a girl a little nervous.
Reagan wanting to investigate the presents.
Reagan, Natalie (she wore her ladybug outfit too), and Renna
The girls each had their own individual cakes to eat. Aunt Lindsay made them and they came out so cute! Thanks so much Lindsay, we loved them so much I hated for the girls to dig into them.

Reagan enjoying her cake.
Renna got covered in her cake head to toe.
This is the only picture we remembered to take of all four of us, after the girls had their clothes off.
Presents, presents, and more presents. What fun! I think I am enjoying the new toys to play with as much as they are.
The girls' favorite NICU nurse, Kathy, came to their party. We were so lucky to have her take such wonderful care of our girls while we couldn't. Thanks so much for coming Kathy, it was great to see you again. Reagan wanted to touch her face!

Teething and everything in between

The girls are both now pulling up on everything! It has always been pretty busy around our house but now it is never a dull moment. It is amazing how much they can reach and get around by pulling up on furniture. They are definitely having to try and learn the concept of no! Here they are having a little fun in Reagan's bed after nap time.
Our living room is now a fortress of gates! The girls hate when the gate slams shut and are constantly at the gate trying to figure out their next escape. It has been fun to watch them start to play with each other more. The other day they were playing peekaboo together...priceless! It really warms my heart to see them enjoying each other.
We visited my parents house on my birthday and got to see baby goats for the first time. They really enjoyed patting him on the head. And cousin Sara loved teaching the girls all about the baby goats.
We got to meet some more of our cousins for the first time. What fun! It is hard to get a good picture with that many little kids, but so cute.
We now have two swings in the backyard. This was a birthday gift for me from Adam's parents. Thanks Grammy and Papa! I am pretty sure I was more excited about it than the girls. Now it is their favorite past time to go out and swing. I love watching them giggle and kick their feet. We are out swinging at least a couple of times a day. Here is Renna for the first time in her swing.
Here is Reagan in her swing. Notice she is pulling on her hair. It is just starting to get long enough that she notices it when the wind blows it....so adorable! I can't wait to be able to put bows in their hair. Both girls now have two bottom teeth that are poking through. Teething has been a little rough, but mostly because they have had a cold for two and a half weeks. It has now turned to a sinus infection and they are feeling better with antibiotics. The poor little ladies have been so uncomfortable lately. It breaks my heart to see them feeling sick. We look forward to them feeling back to their old selves soon. I would also like to report both girls are now saying Mama. It doesn't happen very often but when it does it makes my day. The developmental specialist came yesterday and the girls have officially passed all of their 9 and 10 month milestones and are starting to work on their 11 month ones. They are rapidly catching up to their actual age. Way to go girls! Such an answered prayer.

March of Dimes Walk

Mother's Day after church
The Laughlin Family
My sister and her family
My friend Michelle and her son Atticus
Chandra, Me, Shelly (and baby on the way), Lilly, the girls, and Piper
Amanda, Ava, and Me
Stacey, Amber (and baby Gil on the way), and the girls
The fabulous Four
Reagan
Renna
Brittney, Adam, me, and the girls
Team Laughlin Twins!

As you can see our first March of Dimes walk was a huge success! We had a wonderful team of family and friends who came and walked with us in honor of Renna and Reagan. We had 24 adults, 11 kids, and two babies on the way!! Adam and I were very pleased with our numbers for our first year and even more excited about how much money we raised. Together we all raised $1950!! Yeah!! What a huge accomplishment. The kids all did really well in spite of the cool weather. They were all troopers. I couldn't have been given a better Mother's Day weekend. What a great gift for so many people who we love to come walk for healthy babies. Thanks so much to everyone who helped or donated. We are so blessed. We are all doing good here. The girls have been a little under the weather this week and Reagan is getting her first tooth!! So I guess we are in for a welcoming to the wonderful world of teething babies, I am sure Renna isn't far behind. I had to post the picture at the top of the girls in their sweet little dresses after church on Mother's Day. What more could a momma ask for?

Our busy life!

This past month has flown by. Since being out of quarantine we have been a busy family. Both girls are now crawling and constantly on the go. We have had several fun play dates and family outings. Here are a few pictures for a quick recap of what we've been doing.
We had our first official visit to a park where they actually got to swing like big girls instead of just ride in the stroller. Thanks for the beautiful bows Amanda!
We went on a trip to Sonic and the park with the girls' boyfriend, Owen! Isn't he so cute? I think he was a little overwhelmed by his high maintenance ladies crying in the car, but he never made a peep. We have such a good time walking with him and his mommy, Allison.
We made our first visit to a restaurant as a family of four! The girls did quite well. It is surprising how many people stopped to talk to the girls. They were a big hit.
Play date with our friends: Molly, Reagan, Lilly, Sophia, and Renna. It was so fun to get together with some girlfriends from college and let our daughters play. Lilly and Sophia belong to one of my best and oldest friends Chandra (high school and college friend) and Molly belongs to Amber who is a dear friend from college. Maybe all our daughters will go to college together one day.
Reagan started crawling! Here she is showing off. She is keeping me on my toes now.
Renna is now pulling up on the furniture and her favorite place to hang out is here on the fireplace. Can you tell by her face that she enjoys making her momma nervous about smacking her chin on the brick? We have officially fenced in our living room as a safe play area...it looks like a fortress. We will post some pictures of that soon.
My very best friend Sonya has a little girl, Natalie who is only three weeks younger than the girls (their gestational age anyways). We got together for a long awaited playdate. They had so much fun. We hope they become lifelong friends just like their mommas. The girls just love it when Natalie comes to play. We also took a fun trip to the zoo with Natalie as well.
Reagan, Natalie, and Renna
We went to the zoo with my friend Michelle and her two kids, Frannie and Atticus. This picture was at the end of our journey and they were all really tired.
And finally we went to our first birthday party. My neice Sara turned five so we had our first party experience! The girls loved playing with the balloons. We had a wonderful time. The three oldest kids on the left are actually triplets who are now seven! Wow! I pumped their mom for some good advice. Well, that is our quick update. As you can see we have been very busy but enjoying getting out. It is very exhausting for all of us involved but worth every minute.