Rayleigh- 2 months

Rayleigh is a laid-back baby, she doesn't get in a rush to do anything. When she's taking her bottle she's slow as Christmas to even get started. She usually does pretty well once she gets going but you have to be very patient with her. The day she turned 2 months she weighed 6lbs 5oz and was 17.9 inches long. Now, she's almost 7lbs! Rayleigh's complexion is darker than all the other babies, she has brown hair and brown eyes. She looks like me (her and Mia look a lot alike). Rayleigh and Mia are the only 2 babies still requiring oxygen, Rayleigh needs the most. When they were born she did better than the others and did not have to be ventilated, which was good, however, the other 4 babies got a medicine for their lungs and Rayleigh did not, now she has more issues with her lungs. The nurses tell me she'll grow out of it, it'll just take time.

Gracie- 2 months

We did a good job of putting Gracie's first and middle name together because most of her nurses refer to her as Gracie Lou...it just goes together so well. The day she turned 2 months, she weighed 6lbs 4oz and was 17.9 inches long. Gracie has light brown hair and her eyes are blue. She and Brant look a lot alike and she favors Steven. She wasn't doing well taking a bottle, but has done a lot better as of the last few days. She also has stomach issues and makes lots of grunting sounds and squeals. She is becoming more alert lately. She likes her pacifier and does a good job keeping it in her mouth on her own. Gracie is a very sweet baby.

Brant- 2 months

I think someone forgot to inform Brant that he is 1 of 6 children! He is spoiled rotten! He loves to be held and knows exactly what to do to get his way... scream, a lot! The day he turned 2 months old he weighed 6lbs 11oz and was 18.1 inches long. He now weighs over 7lbs. I think Brant is going to be a lot like Brady, funny and full of energy. He loves his pacifier and is very good at taking a bottle. He enjoys to be in his bouncy seat. His stomach hurts him a lot (all of them take iron and that's tough on their tummies, they all also have acid reflux). Brant's hair has a reddish tint to it and his eyes are blue. He looks just like Steven. Unless something drastically changes, Brant will be the first baby to come home. I don't think it'll be too much longer before he leaves the hospital.

Tessa- 2 months

Tessa is a growing girl. The day she turned 2 months old she weighed 7lbs 1oz and was 18.3 inches long. She is now our biggest baby! She's a whole pound bigger than Mia (our smallest baby) and you can defiantly tell it when you look at them or hold them. Tessa likes to sleep. She isn't the best at taking a bottle, she'd rather be fed through the tube and sleep. She's very light completed and has light hair and her eyes are blue right now. Out of all the babies she looks like Brady the most. I think Tessa would be close to coming home if she'd start taking her bottle better; right now she enjoys being Sleeping Beauty.

Mia- 2 months

Mia is growing and doing so well these days. The day she turned 2 months old she weighed 6lbs 1.8oz and was 18.1 inches long. Since then she has gained a few more ounces. Mia is very alert; she'll look around for hours just taking in everything around her. She has been off the ventilator for a month now and is doing very well. She has some airway issues but instead of intervening just yet, the doctors are letting her grow & hoping she'll grow out of the problem on her own. She loves her pacifier and is working on taking a bottle. Because of her airway issues, she gets a little rice cereal mixed in her formula. Mia has big brown eyes and her occupational therapist says she has a sparkle about her. I think Mia and Rayleigh look a lot alike and they both favor me.

2 Months with the Quints

The babies are doing remarkably well. Three of them weigh 6 pounds and two of them are 7 pounds now. Looking back at the first pictures of them right after they were born, they don't even look like the same kids. A little fat on their bodies makes a big difference in how they look. It's crazy to think that at two months old they're finally the size of some newborn babies. (I'd be 38w5d pregnant now, if I were still pregnant; this is the exact point in my pregnancy with Brady that I had him.)

All of the babies are in open cribs now. The open cribs make it easy for me to go and pick them up. I change their diapers, feed them, bathe them, and best of all love on them whenever I want. I can't think of anything better than cuddling with a sweet baby and I'm blessed that I get to do it with five!

All of the babies have to start taking a bottle better before they will be released from the hospital. I have to admit, I'm starting to get impatient. I really thought some of them would be home by now. I've been a little discouraged at how slow of a process this has been, but I have to remind myself, they were born 11 weeks early and there were 5 of them competing for food and room in my tummy. When I slow down and put things into perspective, the babies are doing quiet well. And I need to remember to be patient! I can't wait for them to get home, but I certainly don't want them home before they're ready to be home safely.

I ask that everyone please continue to pray for the health of the babies. Please pray specifically that they will start taking their bottles. Pray that they will continue to grow and mature as they should. Please pray for Steven and Brady because I know this whole situation has been tough on them. We can't wait to all be home together and finally get our new life started as a family of 8! Please keep me in your prayers as well. Pray that I will remain patient and trust in God's timing. I know God has a plan for us and God never makes mistakes. I know we will make it through this phase, I just pray it's sooner rather than later. I miss being home with my 2 guys so badly.

Mother's Day 2014

I had a special Mother's Day this year. I celebrated 6 wonderful little blessings that God has entrusted me to teach, care for, and love unconditionally. I'm so thankful and blessed to be Brady, Mia, Tessa, Brant, Gracie, & Rayleigh's mama. I can't even begin to describe how much I love being their mama. Brady always makes me laugh. He's got such a funny and cute personality. It has been so fun to watch him grow and change over the past two years. Mia encourages me to fight through whatever challenges I'm faced with, she's such a little fighter and I really think she's going to be a tough little girl. Tessa is a sweet baby and is so cuddly. Brant loves attention. I think he knows my voice and he usually wakes up and yells for some mommy attention when I walk into the room. I hope he is a mama's boy. Gracie is laid back and so sweet. Rayleigh is quiet and a little sweetheart. 

It makes me so sad to be away from Brady. I miss him so much it hurts. I feel like I've missed out on so much of his life lately. I'm so ready to be home so I can be with him every day. On the flip side I wake up every day like an excited little kid on Christmas..I can't wait to get to the hospital and start loving on the babies. I look forward to watching all six of the grow up together. I hope and pray they will always be close to each other. I hope and pray I will do a great job of raising them to be honest, caring, and loving Christian men and women. I strive to be the best Christian example to them. I hope they always know I love them so much and I'm so glad they are my kids. I look forward to learning each of their unique personalities. I'm so excited about our future but I hope I will always remember to live in the moment and cherish each moment because I know they are going to grow up way too fast.

Being a mom is such a tough job. There's moments when I feel like I don't have a clue what I'm doing. Sometimes I have guilt and feel like I'm not doing a great job. And there are times when I'm frustrated, exhausted, and defeated. But I know how to fix all those insecurities... all I have to do is pray. God always gets me through any circumstance I face. My heart is so full of love and joy and gratefulness that I'm a mom. 

I'm also so thankful to have such a wonderful mama. She has taught me so much about how to be a great mom. And even though I'm 34 now, she is still taking care of me. She has helped me so much this past year while I've been out of commission with my pregnancy and having to be with the quints in Dallas. I don't know what I'd do without her.

I hope all you moms had a wonderful Mother's Day as well. Being a mom is the best job in the world! And my heart goes out to women who have lost their child/children or those who were never able to get pregnant or have had miscarriages, or if you have lost your mom. I know that Mother's Day isn't always a happy day for some...please know that my prayers are with you.

Nurses Week

When I graduated from high school, I was going to college to be a nurse. I had always wanted to be a nurse (well, when I was really young I wanted to be an astronaut, but that didn't work out), and I wanted to be a nurse in the nursery with the babies. So, I signed up for anatomy & physiology my first semester of college. I sat through the first class of A&P, afterwards I immediately went to the counseling center and changed my major and dropped A&P. And that was the end of my nursing dreams.

I've been around a lot of nurses lately and I've learned, it takes a very special person to be a nurse. I have been blessed to have had the opportunity to get to know so pretty awesome nurses. My nurses back at home are wonderful, they always take such good care of me. While on bed rest at Baylor I fell in love with my nurses. There aren't words to describe how awesome those women are, they took such wonderful care of me. The NICU nurses are angels from Heaven! They love on our babies and take such good care of them. I will forever be indebted to the nurses who have taken care of our babies.

Nurses have a tough job and at times a very nasty job. I felt so sorry for Tessa's nurse the other day, Tessa pooped all the way up to her neck, it was nasty! And it's so nice to walk in and see the nurses holding and loving on the babies. I have really enjoyed getting to know the ladies that love and care for the babies.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is.... Thank You Nurses! And to all the nurses who have cared for me and my kiddos in the past 9 months, you'll always have a special place in my heart.

Easter 2014

Easter is one of my favorite holidays. When I was young we had a huge egg hunt at my grandmother's house with all my cousins (first, second, and third cousins). It was a big deal. I loved waking up Easter morning to see what the Easter Bunny had brought me and I was pretty good at hunting eggs.

Now that I'm a mom, I want to make Easter a special holiday for my kids. I hope to come up with some fun activities that we can make into family traditions that will make wonderful memories for the kids to remember forever.

This year's Easter wasn't very eventful because of our current situation (babies are in the hospital). I originally wanted someone to bring Brady to Dallas so I could spend the holiday with him, but the more I thought about it, I decided it would be so hard for that to happen so I decided to go home. I got up early Saturday and headed to the hospital (my friend Paula made the trip with me). We checked on the babies and then headed home (to Maud). It was so weird to see Maud for the first time since Jan 31st. Even my house looked different to me (I couldn't figure out if it looked bigger or smaller). Brady was outside riding his tricycle when I drove up. He is such a big boy now, I can't believe how much he's changed over the past few months. We stayed at the house and took it easy on Saturday. I did clean out my closet and got all the maternity clothes out. Sunday, we woke up and went to church. It was so nice to finally get to worship with my church family. After church we went to my mom's for lunch and an egg hunt. Brady wasn't interested in hunting eggs at all. Then we went to my grandmother's house to hunt eggs. He hunted a little there, but still doesn't get the whole concept. After that, Paula and I hit the road again. We stopped by the hospital to check on all the babies then headed home (in Dallas). It was a quick trip home but it was so nice to see all "my" stuff for a change.

I look forward to next Easter when all our babies are home and we're all together.

Brady didn't want to hunt eggs, he just wanted to ride in his fire truck. 

It was so hard to get a 2 year old to cooperate for a picture, I can't even begin to imagine what it's going to be like when we have 6 kids to try to take pictures of.

Gavin, Makenna & Brady.... Gage was home sick.

Something crazy always happens when Kayla is around.