Quarterly Update! ha ha

The girls outside for the first time with shoes on.


The girls enjoying some nice weather and getting ready for summer time!


Where have we been, you might ask? Ha Ha Well, all four girls are walking, or should I say running? I rarely see them on the floor now. Sandra is the only one that can not stand up in the middle of the floor still. So we've been a bit busier running with them. It is so much fun watching them play now!

A break down girl by girl;

Makaila has grown up so much lately. I am so proud of her. It is so hard to believe that on her birthday I was so worried about her. At that time she rarely rolled over. Now she is running and full of personality. She is so funny! She has caught up and is doing amazing! She is doing so well in PT that she will soon only have PT twice a month instead of twice a week. She has been wearing a TOT collar to help straighten her neck, something I heard about from a fellow quad mom. Between the collar and her running around she has made huge progress. She has the most teeth with 12 and her smile lights up a room!

Hannah is still the most vocal. Whether be happy or upset she'll let you know with her voice. She likes to repeat (in her own version) what I say. One of my favorites is when I say; "Hannah, Hannah, Hannah". It is so darn cute! She has the best arm! What does that mean? She throws her food and sippy cups the furthest. Most of the food on the lower three feet of our walls is from her throwing food. She actually got pasta stuck on the window the other night. And she is proud of herself for doing it.

Samantha last June was diagnosed 100% deaf in her left ear. Then after further testing was diagnosed hearing impaired in both ears. Well, she had yet another test that showed minimal low frequency loss in her left ear ranging to normal ranges. She should not have speech delays or troubles hearing. Alright long story short; she is normal. We are canceling her audiology impairment therapy. The teacher was the only person that she refused to talk to, silly girl. However we will retest in three months to confirm the new findings. On a more personal note; she is a "mini me". Anything I do she imitates me. It is very cute most of the time. However if I clean something she follows behind and rubs her toddlers hands in what I just cleaned adding cute adorable hand prints to what I just cleaned. She also is such a good helper. She hands me things; spoons off the floor that they all have thrown. She is very sweet with her sisters. One day Sandra was not feeling well and I allowed her to have her favorite stuffed frog downstairs (a rarity). Sandra had left it in the living room and Samantha picked it up and brought it to her knowing it is HERS.

Sandra was the last to walk but she didn't do it for long. She perfers to climb and run and always with a huge giggle. She is full of spirit and loves life. If she is upset she just needs her frog and her thumb while the others need more attention. So you say oh she is the easiest. Nope! She is the hardest to change a diaper, clean ears, bathe, dress, get in the feeding table, you name it! She is so darn wiggely! And you can't get mad at her because she is grinning from ear to ear while being a stinker!

One of my favorite times of day is when I hold somebody let them lean back and the oher three will run up and kiss the one I am holding. It is so precious! They giggle and giggle! They love their kisses from their sister! I think it is one of their favorite times of day also.

The last few days have been actually nice outside. We have taken them out back and let them loose. They love it! Today I was having them attempt shoes again. They are not big fans of shoes (not surprsing as I am not either). So we brought them outside to get their mind off of their horrible shoes. It worked for every one except Hannah. She hates socks and now she has socks and shoes on, not a good mix for her.

We have a big road trip coming up soon. So there has been a lot of planning and alright I'll admit it; stressing! There is so much to think about! But we will get through it and it will all be worth it. Look for lots of pics next time and find out where we ventured to.

15 1/2 months

Opening presents with Daddy


Visiting with Yancy from out of town!


Little miss climbers!

Birthday cake time!

The girls turned 15 months on January 17th. They had their pediatrician appointment and they are all doing good. Their current weights and heights are:

Makaila - 20 lb 9 oz/28.75 in

Hannah - 21 lb 13 oz/29 in

Samantha - 21 lb 8 oz/29.75 in

Sandra - 18 lb 2 oz/28.75 in

Makaila's favorite thing right now is to practice walking. During the day I put her back up against a couch and she walks from the couch to me and back. She gets upset when I stop and have to attend to other business. Makaila still has physical therapy twice a week with little results. So they have ordered her a neck collar to wear during the day to hold her head in a neutral position. And then she will wear an arm brace at night to prevent her from sucking her thumb. It is going to be very noisy at night here as her thumb is her best friend.

Hannah has really picked up walking on her own. She does not stand up in the middle of the room yet. But walks most of the day. She not only graduated from OT she also graduated completely from Early Childhood Intervention.

Samantha is showing more independence lately. She cracks me up when she is walking around holding a book and pointing at it and talking. It is the cutest thing ever.

Sandra, Sandra, Sandra, will be either in time out or the ER most of her childhood. She has learned to climb and loves it. She climbs up the ottoman, stands on the rocking chair arm and "surfs" back and forth and then flies onto the chair. She also loves to climb on the oven and push buttons. If she is doing something naughty and I tell her "No No" she just giggles and continues what she knows is naughty. She is taking steps but would rather climb.

The girls have been using spoons and forks lately. Yes, it is a lot messier but they enjoy it and eat so much better. Makaila and Hannah were not fans of dinner but now that they have utensils they will eat without problems. I have tried putting bowls in front of them and they just get thrown. Right now I put food on their fork and then give it to them. They also enjoy putting their spoons into pudding and getting their own. Did I say mess!

Josh celebrated a birthday and the girls helped him open presents and eat birthday cake. The girls just love Birthdays. Josh had a buddy in town visiting so he was able to go to a basketball game with him. We have been taking the girls on errands during the weekend, which actually has been nice. It is so much easier in the minivan so I'd like to continue to take them more and more places.

On December 10th, I fell down stairs. Last week I found out finally that I snapped off the bottom half of my tail bone. Luckily, my mom and Josh's mom came in for a few weeks to help out. They were here for Christmas which was a great gift. This was the first Christmas we were able to celebrate as a family. It was so fun to watch the girls opening their presents and playing with their new toys.

Samantha has been walking for a while now. Hannah is taking a couple steps and wants to chase after Samantha. All four crawl upstairs by themselves when it is nap or bed time. I just take one to the stairs and the rest will follow. It is so cute! Makaila, Hannah and Samantha each have 10 teeth while Sandra has eight. So far they eat whatever I put in front of them for the most part. They all love breakfast, lunch and both snacks. Samantha and Sandra eat the best at dinner time. Makaila and Hannah aren't huge fans of their veggies.

Makaila graduated from her cranial helmet and Sandra still is wearing hers. Hannah and Makaila are going to graduate from occupational therapy next week as they are doing great developmentally. Makaila's physical therapy for her neck has increased to twice a week and Samantha still sees an audiology impairment teacher once a week. I have had to duct tape more around the house in order to child proof. Gotta love duct tape.

Josh is starting his last semester of his MBA next week. Oh I can't wait for him to graduate. His work load with alleviate and will make more time for everyone. This semester he is taking two classes and teaching one so it should be easier than last one.

Thank you everyone with the generous gifts for Christmas! The girls are looking adorable in all the new clothes playing with all thier new toys!

I know we haven't had an update in a while. So, here are some pictures to make up for it.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Sandra Mae

Where do I start with little Sandra Mae? From the moment I heard it was quads, Sandra was a concern. I was told in the beginning that we would lose her though she kept having a heart beat. Throughout the entire pregnancy she was asking for more attention by taking vacations from growing. She grabbed and touched many peoples hearts even before she was born. She is a fighter. Starting off only at 745 grams, anything under 1000 grams is considered a micro preemie, she was so small. I get choked up even now thinking about her birth. She had a long 84 days in the NICU. She struggled with Brady's (stopped breathing) which was later corrected with reflux surgery. She also struggled with anemia and premature bowels. She was the only one to pass her hearing tests in NICU. She was the first to climb out of her diaper. She was and still is feisty. The pediatrician likes to say that she did not read Baby 101. She does things at her own developmental pace. She was the first to be able to stand at furniture. She is so very strong. She hated to cuddle until her birthday and now loves to cuddle. She is so sweet! She loves animals. I often find her cuddling with the dog and petting her. She love pats us and her sisters. Her grin goes on forever and she is the most ticklish baby I have ever seen and she loves to giggle. Even though she is the only one of the four that has not caught up growth wise, she is so smart. She catches on to games and gestures quickly. She loves music and to dance. I think she has not caught up growth wise because she is a wild woman in constant motion.

Sandra you are an inspiration! You are a fighter and a true lover! It has been sure an immense joy having you in our family and we look forward to giggling, tickling and dancing with you in the years to come.

One year ago today was the first time I was able to hold all four at once, a day I will never forget. It was something I wanted to do for 84 long exhausting days. And I still love to sit on the floor and have all four girls on my lap. they have all grown so much and still find a way to make it work.