Christmas 2008

This post is going to be a little mixed up. Christmas day is first and then Christmas Eve.
Matt and I decided that we really enjoy having Christmas morning at our own home so we stayed here. Christmas morning Eston woke up at 3 am asking about Santa. Matt got him back to sleep and we didn't hear from the kids until 8:30 am. It was nice to sleep in a little. The kids were so excited to see what Santa left. When they ran in their eyes lit up. Santa had gotten them SOME of what they wanted. We checked their stockings and also to see if Santa had gotten his cookie and milk.

Matt helped Eston check his stocking. He found a baby Jaguar and a fire truck inside along with an orange and some fruit snacks.



Sammie got some binoculars, Dora slides (for the binoculars), an orange, and some fruits snacks.



Santa left Eston a police car, that when shaken will drive across the floor. He loved it. He also got a book, a game, and a few other small items.



Santa brought Sammie a microphone that she has wanted for a while. She also got a book, a game, and a other small stuff.



Grandma Brenda made both of the older kids some quilts to cuddle in. They spent most of the following week in them.



Papa Dallas and Grandma also gave the kids this huge ball that shrinks down to the size of a soccer ball. Even us adults have a blast with it. Eston was excited when he realized he could fit inside of it.



The twins got some, diapers, socks, and other little items. They didn't need much this year. They mostly slept and would take a peek once in a while. Sammie and Eston were happy to help open Logan and Lucy's gifts.



Later that morning we went to Nana and Grandpa Jim's house for a half Pajama Party Brunch and to open gifts there. We had a lot of fun and enjoyed watching the men install Nana's 46" TV. It was funny to watch them talk in all of the big lingo.



CHRISTMAS EVE. . . .

We went over to Nana and Grandpa Jim's house for dinner. Jana and Mark along with my cousins and Gram and Grandpa Burke where there. We had some good food, and then went for the Nativity. We call it the traveling Nativity. This year we had 3 Mary's, 2 Joseph's, many baby Jesus, and all they did while we read Luke 2 was walk around the room. It was very entertaining.



Eston left his Joseph costume on for about 30 seconds. I am surprised Matt was able to snap a picture.



Before the Nativity took place we had a Christmas Carol sing along. Sammie decided that she needed to dance since she was all dressed up in her princess costume. She asked Matt and they danced to the hymns. It was precious.



What would Christmas be without having a princess or 3 running around yelling "CHEESE". We had a wonderful holiday.

Home Sick

Monday night started out normal. We put the kids to bed at 8:30 and did a little cleaning. At a 11:30, just as my head hit the pillow, I heard Matt yell that he needed me now. I went upstairs to find that Eston, my little boy, had thrown-up for the first time in his life. He is just about 2 1/2 years old. He had no clue what to do with himself. After Matt had taken him and cleaned him up, along with all of the throw-up, Sammie tells me that she feels sick and barely made it to the bathroom to visit the toilet. A little side note, I don't do well at all with Throw-up. Matt is amazing and takes care of 99% of anything that happens with that.

Matt took both kids downstairs to care for them through out the night. Now, you might be saying to yourself right now, "That is so sweet for him to let Brynn get all of that sleep." Oh no, the day before our washing machine broke. So I went with Lucy to my sister's house to do puke laundry until 4:00 am. Matt and I were both haggard by the next morning. Matt even stayed home from work to continue looking after Sammie and Eston, so I could keep the twins seperate from the action. I love that man!!

Here are a few pictures of the patients.



Eston just never quite caught on to the idea of a "throw-up bowl."



He also felt so sick, but wanted to play.



It has been quite the busy three days. We still don't have a washing machine, but at least we don't have stinky throw-up clothes laying around.

Sunday Afternoon photos

On Sunday while we were getting ready for church, Sammie asked if she could wear a flower headband like Lucy. Apparently, we are starting the dressing alike stage. They looked so cute that I had to take their pictures after church; which of course led us into a full blown photo session. I had fun and we got some cute pictures of the twins. Sammie and Eston were so excited that we let them hold Logan and Lucy all by themselves.

2008 Christmas Card

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR to our family and friends! 2008 brought many fun experiences and changes to our family. We went on several family trips to: Bear Lake, Arizona, Yellowstone, Jackson Hole, Park City, and the always fun trips to American Falls, Idaho, where Matt’s family lives. We moved from Salt Lake County to Davis County, and added two new family members. We found out in May that we would be expecting Twins. Logan James and Lucy Mae joined our family on Oct. 29^th.

Logan and Lucy – At 7 weeks, continue to grow and are doing great. Logan is pretty laid back. He loves his pacifier, cuddling as close as he can to Lucy, and sleeping. Logan loves to smile at everyone and is content just lying around. Lucy is very alert. She looks just like Sammie did as a baby and has a very similar personality. She doesn’t like to be confined and when she is awake wants to be where the party is. Although she is a good sleeper, she loves to be awake as much as she can. Lucy likes her food and is gaining on her brother. Logan and Lucy are well loved by their older siblings, and are very patient with all the attention that they receive.

Eston - 2 years old; he is our little love bug. He must hug and kiss everyone upon them entering or exiting the room. Eston has a big heart and is instant friends with anyone. He is the first to share what he has if he knows that it will make you happy. Eston’s interests lie in 3 things: cars, animals, and books. Any mixture of those and he is over the moon with excitement. He is very HIGH energy, but when it is time to go to sleep he is more than happy to go and jump in bed (even if I forget to put him there). His favorite phrase as of the last 3 months is “No, self”. Anyone that has heard this is probably ready for him to move on.

Samantha - 3 years old going on 13. She loves her younger siblings and is constantly playing mother to them. Sammie is our little drama queen and has an imagination that would amaze you. We are always surprised at the things that she had learned and she tells us that she learned it in school, now, if only she actually was enrolled in school. Her current loves are anything princess, dress-ups, dancing, and cooking with mom. Sammie is a big help to our family and wants to make everyone happy.

Brynn – would describe our home as a very happening place. She is busy raising 4 kids under the age of 4 and there is always something to do. Her biggest outing is going to her parents’ home for the day. It just is not possible to do much more than that with all 4 kids. Brynn says has always worked better under pressure. It keeps her motivated and fills her day. It’s hard to be lazy with this level of responsibility and we would have it no other way than Crazy. There is never a dull moment!

Matthew – currently working at MHTN Architects. He has been taking his Architecture exams over this last year and working hard towards being a licensed Architect. He will finish his internship in Fall of 2010. When Matt isn’t at work he is kept busy playing horsey, wrestling, playing hide and seek, reading books, changing diapers, feeding bottles, or whatever crazy ideas he has come up with to entertain the troops. He is an amazing husband father and makes Brynn’s responsibility as a mom really easy.

We hope that this Christmas season finds everyone well. We have felt very blessed this year with great family and friends. We have had a lot of support and would like to thank all those that have continued to give your support.

Thanksgiving Pictures!!!

When the twins were only a week old we took them to have their newborn pictures done together. It was a lot of fun. These are two of the shots we had taken.





For the last 3 years, Matt's parents and siblings come down and hang out on the day after Thanksgiving. We take family photos and eat good food. These are a few of the shots that our family had taken. I won't post the actual family ones since they are probably going to be used for Christmas Cards.







Four kids is a lot of work, but I love the chaos that it brings. I think I will keep them.

Temple Square tradition

Tonight we went to Temple Square to see the lights and the multiple Nativity sets. I asked Sammie if she was excited to see all the lights and her reply was, "Actually, I can't wait to see Jesus in his stick nest."

It's nice to know one of us is focused on the right things.





It was nice to spend time as a family and talk about the true meaning of Christmas!!!

Nap time

I have always loved that Eston will go put himself to sleep if he is tired. It really is funny and kind of nice. Eston also is an amazing help!! He loves to close drawers, put things in their place, and his favorite is helping me with the laundry. Today I left him to unload the clothes into the hamper. When I walked back into the room, I found him curled up snuggling with the warm laundry. I'm just glad his sister didn't find him first.

Isn't he just adorable!!!

4 weeks and counting. . .

Tomorrow these 2 angels are 4 weeks old . . .The time has gone by so fast, but it feels like they have been with us for months.

(Lucy and Logan)


At their 2 week check-up Lucy weighed 6 lbs 13 oz. and was 19 3/4 inches long. Logan weighed 8 lbs 3 oz and was 20 1/4 inches long.

They are both really great babies. They still love laying right next to each other. Somehow they close 2 or 3 inch gap between them during the night. I think that the only time I really hear any crying from them is when they are hungry. Occasionally they will have an upset stomache, but the are very happy babies. I don't know what I would do if they were fussy.

Matt and I constantly remark on how we are functioning like robots. We go through our days in a trance and on little sleep. I nurse one baby while the other one takes formula from a bottle. For me to feed both babies it takes about 40 minutes, add changing of diapers and clothes and I am into this for an hour. Matt is amazing. He sacrifices his own sleep by getting up every night with me to feed bottles and change diapers, so that I am not up forever by myself.

Everything we do with these two is a production. Going out of the house requires at least 3 sometimes 4 trips to the car, just to get everyone and everything loaded up, plus the same amount of trips to unload. We currently only go to my mom's house. I don't think that I would be able to go anywhere else at this time with all four kids together. It's hard enough going out with all 4 when Matt is around to help. Bath time is another fun endeavour, but I think we have it finally figured out. The first step to a successful bath time is make sure that the older two kids are not around, after that, the process takes us about 30 minutes. Lucy loves her bath and will just stare at you the whole time without making a peep. Logan HATES baths. He doesn't like to be undressed and definitely doesn't like the water.

(Lucy, Logan)


It is fun to see the personality differences in the two already and wonder what those traits will turn into later.

You can see the size difference in Lucy and Logan in the picture below. He is a big kid.



This post would not be complete without something on the older two.

Eston is the proud big brother. He is always excited to show off his brother and sister to anyone that comes over and is constantly talking about them. However, Eston still hasn't figured out who is who, especially if they aren't dressed. He has more energy now than he did before they were born. You can get tired just watching that kid move, but he is still just as kind hearted as ever, and loves to help. The phrase that frequents our home lately is "self." It's just a little annoying now, but fun to see him try and be so independent.



Sammie is so in love with the Twins that we have to watch her carefully. She is constantly trying to hold them on her own and literally will smother them with kisses. Sammie tells me everyday how "darling" they are. I still find it rather humorous that she thinks she has one baby in her tummy and that she will put her other dolls under her shirt. I don't know if she is trying to nurse them or if she is pregnant. Sammie is always ready to help me when needed. Everyday she comes up with some knew idea or phrase that leaves us laughing. The most recent phrase was taught to her by my sister Carly. When you ask Sammie how dad gets to work she proudly replies back with, "The Short Bus."



Thanks for every one's help and well-wishes. It was and still is greatly appreciated.

The Twins Arrival!!!

We went into the hospital on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008 for our scheduled c-section. At around 8:00 they took us back to the O.R. to begin the procedure.

Logan James was born at 8:31 a.m. He weighed 7 lbs. 12 oz. and was 20 in. long. When the doctors got close to pulling him out it looked like he was trying to push his way through. I think their comment was that this baby was eager to make his appearance. The first reaction from the doctors after pulling him out was that he was a big baby for a twin. He was bigger than a lot of singleton births. It kind of left us wondering how big his sister would be.



Last of all came Lucy Mae who was born at 8:33 a.m. and weighed 5 lbs. 13 oz. and was 19 in long. Upon pulling her out they were surprised that she wasn't as big as her brother. However, she was still a good weight for a twin birth. Lucy's cord had a knot tied into it. It was determined that it was probably due to the fact she was never in the same spot whenever they did an ultrasound. She was and still is a squirmmer.



Matt went over to see his new babies while they where finishing up the procedure. They handed both babies to Matt to come and show me. While Matt was showing me the babies, he looked up and the nursing staff had all left. The look on Matt's face pretty much said, "now what." He carried both babies back to our room, and you could see the relief on his face. The pressure of carrying around two was a little much. He is now a champ at it. I still have yet to try. I am still healing from the surgery.

Sammie and Eston came to the hospital later that day to see their new siblings. They both love babies and where excited that they got to hold them. Eston just had a huge grin on his face the entire time.



Eston was so excited to get to hold the babies, however, he kept saying that their names were Sammie and Eston. He is in for a reality check when he gets back from Idaho. After holding the babies he kept telling me bye-bye so that he could go to Grandma's house.



Sammie would hold the babies so carefully and then give them a kiss. She then would get down and come over to sit with me. She kept going back and forth between me and the babies.



She finally couldn't take it any longer and asked where HER twins were. For those of you that don't know, Sammie has been expecting twins for the last 9 months as well. Their names are Christine and Daisy. Once her twins made an appearance, Sammie never gave Logan and Lucy a second thought.



We were released from the hospital on Sunday and Matt took the week off from work to help me establish some sort of schedule with these cute babies. Sammie and Eston have been in Idaho for over a week and return home on Saturday. We miss them and are excited to have the 6 of us together again.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Love, The Cat & The Ghost
(2 days old)

NEW ARRIVALS

29 October 2008

Logan James
7lbs 12oz
20in
8:31 am

Lucy Mae
5lbs 13oz
19in
8:33 am

More to come later...

BUMP REQUEST

Due to the high volume of requests to see what a TWIN BELLY looks like. . .I am caving in and posting. All I have to say is be nice, because I feel huge and extremely uncomfortable. This is me 2 weeks ago at 34 weeks preggo.
TA-DA!!!



Just under 2 WEEKS left!! Oct. 29th is not soon enough!!

Holiday Greeting Cards

My cousin Summer makes awesome Holiday greeting cards, or cards for any occasion. Check out her website and see what she has to offer.

Check it out!!!

Conference Weekend and a Halloween preview!!

For Conference weekend this year we headed up to Park City with Matt's family to enjoy a relaxing weekend. We arrived on Thursday night and had the Condo all to ourselves until the following day. There were so many beds the kids couldn't decide where they wanted to sleep.

Sammie loves spending time with Grandma Brenda and her aunt Kim. They include her in a lot of big girl things. Sammie got to help make dinner while we were up there and thought she was pretty neat stuff.

Saturday night, Matt's Aunt Lori and her family came up to hang out while the men went to Priesthood session. While the men were gone, we gutted and cut faces into the kids pumpkins. Eston was so excited and loved pulling out all the guts and seeds. He is in this big "self" (do it myself) phase. Sammie would only touch the outside of the pumpkin. The inside of the pumpkin was too gross and she couldn't believe everyone would get that dirty. I ended up working on Sammie's pumpkin.



The kids had a lot of fun and the Pumpkins turned out really cute. I'm glad Grandma Brenda brought pumpkins, because I don't think my kids would have gotten to do this otherwise.



Halloween is going to be crazy at our house this year. The twins will only be about 2 days old and we might still be in the hospital. So I have tried to get the kids' Halloween costumes put together so they are ready for the 31st. Sammie has decided that she wants to be a Bride. My sister, Lindsay, was great and took the time to make Sammie a veil and a bridal bouquet. Sammie is so excited.



Matt and I decided that we were going to try and use what we had around our house for costumes. Eston was going to be a cowboy again this year. I only needed to acquire a hat. However, when his uncle asked him what he was going to be for Halloween, Eston excitedly said, "Superman" while he was holding his arm in the air. Eston has never really watched Superman are seen Superman (to my knowledge). He has a Superman/Batman costume, but he only uses the Batman side. We quickly had to come up with a Superman costume. It turns out the only thing that I need to buy at this point for Eston's costume is RED underwear to put on top of the blue thermal underwear. How often does a little boy get to wear TWO forms of underwear in public for all to see. Eston is pretty excited.



As for the TWINS, Baby girl will be a cat and Baby boy will be a ghost.



I will post a pic of them all together, hopefully, around Halloween. If not then you didn't miss out on the fun costume party.