75 baths and counting...

So we had an appointment today for Harper... she has been in the band for 9 days... I have started to see a difference every night at bath time, and today her Therapist Josie confirmed her head is rounding out! :)
They have a mold of her head from where she started so we are able to compare at every appointment. They put a pantyhose on her head to smooth the her crazy hair so you can really see everything. We also started Physical Therapy today as well for her head tilt, doing this physical therapy will help her ears align as well and loosen her tightness. So as much as it sucks that she has to wear this stylish band for 23 hours and have a head that smells like gym socks... it is SO WORTH IT! She is going to have the best looking head AROUND:)

84 Baths!!!

So I am sure you are wondering about the title... this is the amount of baths Harper is going to have over the next 12 weeks, while she is in Doc Band Treatment.... I know you are all wondering what is a Doc Band??? Well I always wondered too... you see little infants rocking helmets and wonder WHY??? You think something is really wrong with them... you fear the worse and feel bad for staring... I know I have.

So back in February I woke up one morning and I was feeding Harper and I noticed that she had a very odd shaped head and that it was REALLY FLAT???? I showed BJ thinking am I crazy??? He thought it was a little weird and we both decided to wait until she had her next Dr check up. At that appointment, I ended up pointing out Harpers head to him and asked him to evaluate... He did notice that her ears where not aligned and that she did have an area that would need to be looked at. He recommended that we see a Physical Therapist. I waited for a week to hear from a physical therapist, and in the mean time I started to do my own digging and found Cranial Technologies, I did there online evaluation and made an appointment with them for a week later. We brought Harper in and found out she has a Moderate form of Plagiocephaly... What is Plagiocephaly???? It actually means Oblique Head in Greek... it is when your ears do not align , you can have facial asymmetry and also a bulging forward. Harper did have some of these things.. so we moved forward with her Doc Band. This can be cause because she was a Twin and she was in crammed quarters and it could have also been caused because of her sleeping on her back. Apparently it is on the rise since The Back to Sleep campaign has began.

We did find out that our insurance was not going to cover a penny... BYE BYE summer family vacation... Hello Drs appointments every week and of course Hello Perfect Round Head for little Miss Harper:)

So May 10th Harper got her Doc Band, the first 24 hour was an adjustment for her and us. The person most concerned with her HELMET was Helena, she was worried her "baby sister" was hurt. We reassured her she was ok and now Helena thinks of it more as a hat. We found and awesone sign company that provides wraps for the bands Pro Bono, so BJ was able to design Harper's rocking band.

All I can say is she will be getting a 84 baths ... her poor little head smells like sweaty socks, she has to wear her Band 23 hours a day, it leaves me one hour to clean the Band with a toothbrush and alcohol and get her into to the tub, she loves baths so this is a fun hour for her as well:)

3 Cookies to 5 Cookies in 2 days!!!

So my mom was pointing out to me that I have been a very very bad blogger for these babies.... Harper and Gunner, mommy is sorry, but with work and your sister, moving and over all just being plain tired I have not been as up to snuff for you 2! But I would like to THANK YOU for being such good babies and over all giving me a GREAT pregnancy! Dr O'Hara's says if you were not breech and he did not have to take you via c-section you 2 would probably stay put until your due date! I do not know HOW I would be able to do that... Your Grammies Clark has been here for a week and I have been taking it pretty easy.... I am extremely swollen, gaining 10-20lbs of water weight a day, my belly is 48inches around. I am sleeping for 2 hours at a time and I waddle EVERYWHERE!!! I feel so blessed that I have not had to go on bed rest and I was able to work until my 36th week. All and All and AWESOME job babies.... I hope when I meet you on TUESDAY that you are perfect visions of health just like your sister was!!! PS I am very curious to know what you guys look like.... We have been able to see Gunners profile a few times, however Harper is always facing my back. My dr explained this week she is just trying to be polite to her brother since he has his BALLS in her face!!! He is already trying to show his true colors:)

So we have made it to 38 weeks, this Tuesday November 9th. This is the day our babies will be born, we are scheduled for a c-section at noon! This has been my most trying week of pregnancy for sure, I am swollen, short of breath, and so tired! The Dr thinks they are going to be 6 to 7lbs babies, that is very good sized TWINS:)
The only thing left to do is repack our hospital bag ( I had to throw one together since I thought I was having back labor and ruched to TRIAGE! FALSE ALARM) and finish the bookshelf in the babies room! All and all we are as ready as we are going to be! I have been talking to Helena a lot about the babies and that they are coming, I know that one baby would rock a toddlers world, but Helena will never know the difference, she is getting 2, the best of both worlds a BROTHER & SISTER.

The last couple of weeks have been great, i have been done working and I have been able to get ready for the babies! I also have had lots of time to snuggle and love Helena! I have been taking her to school, reading with her, coloring with her, playing playdoh:) I just love her so much, she is such an amazing little bean:) She is saying so many things and trying to put things together, she still jibber jabbers, but repeats all the things we say to her. My favorite thing she does is, she loves POPSICLES... and when she is eating meals or gets hungry she says "POPSICLE?" We respond, "lets eat dinner or wait until your finished eating." Helena then responds " 2 Popsicles" Totally disregarding anything we just said! TOO FUNNY! She loves playing on the I-pad, BJ has gotten a lot of educational games and she LOVES THEM! It is super cute to watch them play together. She still loves singing and dancing! It is so fun having dance parties every morning:) I love that she LOVES THE BEATLES:) THATS MY GIRL... oh and Kelly Clarkston, thats my fault too!!!

We got to truly experience Halloween this year, Helena had a festival at school that just her and BJ attended, I need to stay home and relax due to just being HUGE! She got to ROCK her Rainbow Brite costume, she loved it and looked adorable wearing it! The festival was Friday, Saturday we carved pumpkins and Sunday we went Trick or Treating, she was a PRO! She said Trick or Treat at every house, she also said Thank YOU, and she did want to go and check every ones house out! It was funny watching her try to bust in!!! I made it a couple blocks and then I switched with my mom, and I stayed back and handed out candy. We ran out of candy in an HOUR!!! I can not believe it... 5 bags next year for sure:) Helena is not a sweet eater but we found out she loves suckers.... I was tempted to count and see HOW MANY LICKS DOES IT TAKE TO GET TO THE CENTER OF A TOOTSIE POP :) She sucked on hers for almost an HOUR, got to the center and declared she was done!!! We had such a great Halloween, such a fun fun night!

Something that is so crazy is that on November 3rd, I had my last drs appointment and we went to the park after. It ended up being over 100 degrees that day and we busted out the swimming pool! Helena had so much fun.... but who is swimming in NOVEMBER! WE ARE.... it was over 100 degrees for 3 days straight, so hot and does not help a 9 month preggo with her swelling at all.

We are so grateful for every ones kind word and prayers during this pregnancy, we did it, we have made to the end!!! I look forward to sharing our journey as a family of 5!!! BJ will be in charge of pictures, he will be uploading them to facebook and then to flickr a few days after there arrival. I will do my best to update before Thanksgiving! We have so much to be THANKFUL FOR:)

Wow.... 35 weeks Preggos with Twins....

Well.... I am the worst blogger ever... These poor babies do have not blog records like Helena does:( I have no idea how I had so much time to blog with her. But here goes nothing.


We are all moved into to the house... we still are making it OUR cozy home, I know that will take some time and I know we will get there. The house is going to be filled with Baby stuff starting this weekend... the swing and pack n play are going to get set up and I am going to have BJ put the finishing touches on the babies room. Over all I am not prepared at all like I was with Helena... I do have nightmares that they come early and we get home and BJ can not find anything and he is so MAD at me!!! AHHHHH the pressure, not to mention that I do not have a bag packed or anything. I just let the babies know that we should wait a few more weeks:) As of right now we are scheduled November 9th at Noon. I would like to make it this far for many reasons, #1 they will be 38 weeks, #2 Dr Ohara will be delivering them, #3 my mom will be here. I am a planner and I would just like everything to go as I know it should:)

I started this blog last week and we are now almost 36 weeks.... the nursery is done, I have a little bit more laundry to do and put away. Things are coming together.... BJ and I have decided that I have DROPPED which means I now really have to TAKE IT EASY! The pressure on my hips and legs after an hour of running around is INTENSE!!! We are both doing our best to hold out until the 9th. He has been great HOUSEWIFE:) At last weeks appointment I was not dilated just very soft and Harpers feet are very much planted in my pelvis. At this time it looks like she is smaller then her brother, but we will see about this.... They thought Helena was 8lbs, she was not even 7lbs when she was born!

Helena has gotten another sinus infection, so she is currently on antibiotics. Bummer for her, but so glad I took her in, with in 24 hours of being on them, her nose cleared right up! This means good night sleep for all of us, and a little less clingy toddler. WHO AM I KIDDING... this kid has been glued to me for a week straight.... I do love her to pieces and snuggling with her is my FAVORITE thing to do, however I am 300 degrees and HUGE, so it is hard to have a 30 lbs little person draped over me! But we are making it thru!
Helena loves her minivan and is very ready to make the move to the 3rd row, her carseat will go there this next weekend... she always vlines for the back seat and driver seat when she enters.... future Danica Patrick on our hands. Speaking my lovely van, I have had it for ONE MONTH today and it is RECALLED! I have to take it in for its brakes... REALLY HONDA.... come on! Like I need one more thing to worry about!
I am getting excited for Halloween this next weekend, I think Helena is really going to enjoy Trick or Treating even though she is not a candy eater. But she loves dressing up and I know she will love being outside in the dark:) We also have her fall festival at school this week, excited to dress her up and see her with all of her friends!
We are also picking my mom up from the airport of Friday night! So we are going to have an extra set of hands in the Cook house! We are all looking forward to this and I think a little nervous, since she really marks the fact that we are going to be having the TWINS really really soon! Once she is here, it is the 11 day count down! CRAZY, EXCITING, SCARY!!! Well I will do my best to update later this week after my appointments.
Other things..... Helena is saying so many words and trying to put things together. Sometimes she gets very stubborn and her emotions get the best of her so she points, grunts, cries, and rolls around on the floor, she thinks we will break down and give in to her.... CONFESSION... sometimes we do! All and all though, she is doing a great job communicating, I love hearing her little voice! She is also an amazing dancer and singer, this kid sings every song in the car! SO CUTE.... I got her a little microphone for the car and we have singing dance parties A LOT! I just can not believe that is going to be 28 months, she is over all such a HAPPY little girl who truly LOVES life.

August!!!

So it is now August 23rd, I am almost 27 weeks pregnant, I have 2 year old and we are moving in 5 days!!!

Helena is 2, can you believe it! Grammies, my Aunt Cheryl drove from Minnesota to spend sometime with us! They got her on August 8th! We found out on August 9th that we got the house we wanted in Tierrasanta... it is 4 bedrooms, 1 full, 2 half baths, garage, washer and dryer, office area! All good things and a great space for us to grow! We also have a yard!

While grammies was here, we celebrated Helenas Birthday 2 times. She went to Seaworld on her actual bday. My cousin flew down from Sacramento to see us and her mommy... from the pictures it looks like she had a great day! She even got a SHAMU button and got to skip the lines for all the rides at Elmos World! We had dinner with her and a cupcake! We then had a little birthday party on Saturday for her! She loved seeing all of her friends and playing, eating, blowing out her candles and also eating her ice cream cake! It was a great BIRTHDAY!!!

Helena is now 2 and continues to amaze us with all of the word she is learning and trying to say, my favorite is OH SHEET!!! you all know what that means and she does say it from time to time! She says so many things that I could fill a blog of just words... my favorite thing she says is HA-PER.... with a Boston Accent! Another adorable thing she does , when she wants to watch one of her shows... she lists them... WOW WOW WUBBZY... KAI... LIVIA until you pick one or she gets lucky and we put one on! She also loves to help her self to FOOD, whether it is in the fridge or the pantry nothing is safe from her!

We are living amongst boxes right now! There are so many I can not even count! We have been getting lots of stuff done... We really only have a few things left to pack, I should be doing that right now, but instead I am blogging and about to upload pictures! I will do a little each day after work! Before I know it, it will be FRIDAY... we will head to the drs and then come home and pack the final things, clothes out of the drawers and all of the electronics!

Harper Laine and Gunner Reid
In case you had not heard those are the names of our beautiful babies... it is so crazy to think they will be here in a MAX 11 weeks!!! So excited and so nervous all at the same time! Every appointment has gone well! My last appointment I had my diabetes test and that was negative. I also got to see the babies again, Helena and my mom came along. My OBGYN informed me that my cervix is TEXT BOOK! In all of his years of practice he has never seen anything like it... IS THIS A GOOD THING! It was so funny, my mom and I laughed all the way home! I have a feeling that I will be carrying these babies until the 38th week... NOV 9th, we have not decided on whether we are going to go thru with a VBAC or have another csection. We have decided to see what happens!!! Since my appointments have been going so well, I am going to continue working, this means Helena James is going to start preschool September 7th, she will be attending a German Preschool 4 days a week and I will be working 4 half days:) I pick her up by 2pm and get to go home and NAP!!! I am hoping to make it to the end of October.... so wish me luck! Other baby news is just that I am going to start getting the nursery ready, and getting all the baby stuff set up! This way Helena gets use to it. ( 25 weeks pregnant)

I also want to make sure we get her big girl room ready.... I have purchased a daybed, dresser and a adorable book shelve... all we need is some curtains. I have not decided on a color for those, but I am going to get them at Target since they have cute ones that keep the room dark. As for the babies room, we are doing Brown, Baby Pink and Baby Blue... with a few cute jungle animals on the wall:) It will be warm and relaxing in there! My friend Natalie is throwing me a Diaper Drizzle at the end of September, It will be so good to see friends and maybe some family... I feel so out of the loop, from working, packing, vacations, dr appts, house hunting you name it I feel like it has been on our plates... so I am not ignoring you FRIENDS and FAMILY... I just truly am scraping by!!! Well the next post will be from our new HOUSE! Wish us luck!

JULY

July 2, 2010, this is the day I turned 29 years old! Also I had my big doctors appt to see if we could see Baby A's sex. BJ was meeting me at the appointment. I drank some lemonade and a huge bottle of water. I HAD TO PEE SO BAD!!! BJ was not there when they called me in and they got started right away. Before BJ could get there, the tech had the sex of Baby A and so badly wanted to show me because she had a clear picture. So I said what the HELL its my birthday, she told me IT WAS A................. GIRL! I started to cry... I told her I am having a HARPER LAINE:) I was overjoyed to be having one of each. BJ walked in a second later and we kept him in the dark for a about 15 minutes. Harper did not go back into position so I ended up telling him we were having a GIRL! Just Baby A's ultrasound took forever... I had to pee like a race horse, she was moving everywhere and kept kicking my bladder! Finally after over 30 minutes of holding my pee I got to go to the bathroom. Then we got to look around at Baby B for a while... He looked awesome and was so calm and relaxed! We got a great picture of his profile. He looks pretty cute:) It was a great day... so glad I got to experience that on the big 29!

We had date night on Saturday night for my birthday weekend and saw Twilight Eclipse and had Dinner. On the 4th of July, we brought Helena to see Toy Story 3! She had such an awesome time, but DEAR PIXAR... 7 previews before a kids movie is TOO MUCH! Bring on the movie already! It was her first kid movie in the theater and she loved it and did a really good job!

So the rest of our month was our family vacation to the East Coast. BIG THING... Helena got her first pedicure with MOMMY!!! We left on July 15th, it was a red eye... BJ and I did not sleep, however Helena did right until we landed for our layover in ATLANTA... that is a HUG airport and we had to TREK across it! We got some breakfast and then headed to our gate. We got on the next flight and BJ and Helena both took a little nap! We made it to the Philly Airport just fine and headed to BJs moms for some much need R and R! Helena stayed awake for a few hours and then we headed upstairs were we watched the portable dvd player and both passed out for 5 hours!!! Helena got her first haircut ... not as traumatic as I thought it would be, but there were tears! Good thing her Mimi did it!

That weekend we were off to Ocean City NJ... Mimi had rented a beach house. We all were there for a week. The house was full, MIMI,Buddy, Auntie Nicki, Uncle Ian, Cousins Taylor and Evan. It was a great big house we all had great space! Helena slept on a twin mattress in our room and did really well! The week was full of beach days, nights at the boardwalk, ice cream, rides, good food, and great company. We had so much fun! Helena did develop the worst diaper rash she has ever had... we ended up treating it like a yeast infection. There were lots of sand castles and trenches built, also some good naps on the beach! Helena loved playing in the water... it was so warm and refreshing! The weather was HOT, which lead me to swell a little and there was night which I had some serious braxton hicks, and later my belly looked different, so I am guessing that the babies changed positions. We had a great trip, Helena loved playing with her cousins, she was afraid of Evan... AKA BEAST... he would come toward her and she would jump up on the couch or into your arms. She also loved playing games with Taylor, they played Hullaboo and Elefun! Helena loved them... I am going to have to get games this year for Christmas!!! We made it home safe to find our house FILLED with cat hair! BJ and I cleaned for 45 minutes and then relaxed the rest of the day!

By the end of July, BJ and I did find a house... and applied... that leads us to AUGUST......

The rest of June

Well the last time I updated was right before my trip to MINNESOTA.... We know what one of the babies was not both.... and we were dealing with a super fun 22 month old:)

Minnesota.... The trip started off on a Thursday, I went to work for 1/2 day got home and off to the airport we went! This is the first trip I had brought anything to check at the gate and it was not to bad... I am glad I had the stroller.... Carrying Helena and a giant belly does not work in an airport. BJ came home to take us to the airport and also brought us in to make sure we got situated.... We get to the counter and the plane is VERY VERY FULL.... only middle seats available.... this is not ideal for a 18 week pregnant lady with a toddler on her lap..... so BJ FORCED us to upgrade to first:) HE HE.... I really did not plan for this, but I booked this trip and the east coast trip at the same time! And reserved seats for the East Coast trip not MINNESOTA... OOOOPS! So Helena and I rode 1st class... we got a row to ourselves and she got her own seat in 1st... this is a big deal so much room for us both. In a matter of minutes Helena was pants less on the plane... She is always soaking thru her diaper and of course the wonderful forgetful mother I am forgot to pack and extra outfit! Helena did awesome on the plane, portable DVD players are amazing! She never cried and was the only kid in 1st and all the other passengers in 1st complimented her on being such a BIG GIRL :)

The trip to Minnesota was great and a little hot. Helena ended up running a fever for a few days so I did not get to see and do as much as I wanted but all in all we had lots of fun. She got to go the park, play with friends, swim NAKED in the backyard in her very own pool! Grammies also put up a swing in the yard and she LOVED that! We spent time with Robyn and her girls... Helena and Auriana switched rolls this time... last time we say them Auriana was smothering Helena with Hugs and Kisses and Helena wanted nothing to do with it... this time Helena was to be on top of her... hugging her, kissing her, tickling her.... Auriana was not so sure, but the last day they bonded at the park going down the tunnel slide and also found that they both had a love for SWINGING. We took the girls to my dads band concert... this is not a rock band, it is a community band, he plays trombone, Helena was dancing for an hour straight! She loved it... we also got to celebrate Kaposia Days, which is So St Pauls yearly celebration, Helena won lots of prizes at the kiddie carnival and she got a button!!!

I also headed to Iowa with my dad to see my friend Jaime for the day and her new little bundle of joy Lincoln... he is such a cutie. It was very nice to see them! Glad we made it down there:)

So again all and all a good trip... also started to get a few things for Baby Boy.... got to love buying clothes and it is tax free!!!!

17 week Doctors Appointment

(Below is both babies head to head, Left: Baby A grabbing its little toes)

So today was our big Dr's appointment. I remember very much that I was so excited to find out whether Helena was a girl or boy.... but today, maybe because I knew I was pushing my luck, I was very calm:) As usual we had a very good appointment. The babies look great, they are so big and active.... Baby A is a show off, always moving around and being crazy. Today it was curled up with its feet above its forehead and grabbing its toes with its hands. However because of the position, Baby A was to close to my hip so we could not get a gender:( Its OK.... I have 2 weeks and 3 days and I will know. Plus the time will fly because for 10 of those days I will be in in Minnesota!!!

B was relaxing as usual.... not the most active one at the ultrasounds, so I made a comment about how calm it was being and IT got mad and started moving everywhere... and then Dr O'Hara yelled " WHOA, I think its a boy.... " Baby B moved back in to position and low and behold a BOY :) Could not be happier....

So Baby A will be determined on July 2nd, my 29th birthday:) What a great present besides the fact that I have 3 healthy babies, and an amazing husband!!!

(Left Baby B and his little manhood) I know he will kill me when he is older:)

PS ALL night I was trying to get Helena to say BABY BOY..... she just keep saying TICKLE TICKLE and laughing... at one point as we were saying BABY BOY again and she laid her head down on the babies and sighed..... I think she knows that there is TROUBLE in there:)

BIG SISTER HELENA JAMES

So Yesterday Helena turned 22 months.... SHE IS THE MOST AMAZING LITTLE GIRL! I feel so blessed. We take the good with the bad, I think she is a very normal tantrum throwing little lady:) She has her moments of pure meltdowns, but then the next minute she is hugging you, kissing you, playing with my hair! She is just so sweet!

Helena understands that was are having babies, we ask her how many babies are you having.... she responds with 2 fingers in the air and states DO.... toddler word for TWO:) Know does that means she really gets it??? Not sure, but she is trying... I am sure she will freak and 2 really do come home!!!

She is such a big helper, she loves to help put dishes away, she cleans up when we sing the CLEAN UP song.... she feeds the cats, she puts all the shoes in the house away. BJ tells me she likes to organize his shoes for him!!! She is really good at making PAIRS! She has been trying to help us get her dress which is fun and exciting. I think the biggest girlie thing that is happening in Helena life is she has officially gotten to wear a ponytail and pigtails! That's what big girls do, so I guess my baby is gone!

She does something new everyday..... she is doing really well with me being at work and her and BJ have an amazing bond now that they spend so much time together in the mornings. Helena loves to get up at 5-6am.... BJ IS NOT A FAN of this... however he does get up, he has officially made us a hotel, since he chops Helena a fresh fruit salad every morning.... Apparently I did not get that memo that we are CASA de la Cook.... I have very high standards on the my mornings to fill.

Helena is saying many words, however she says them once or twice then stores them somewhere... we ask her to say it again and then she jumbles a few words together! Cute, but BJ and I are very ready to hear her little voice, we both know once she starts talking though there will be no going back:) She will talk from the minute she wakes until the minute she goes to sleep! I think she gets that from BJ!

BJ has also started a blog about Helena and being a dad... I recommend reading it, he is such a great writer and it melts my heart to hear what he thinks about all the crazy stuff we do:)

http://www.dadsarerad.com/

It is hard for me to think that we are having 2 more babies, I just look at Helena and wonder how am I every going to love these babies as much. I know I will, but she is just my BABY.... and I just feel so blessed to have her! Im excited to continue to watch her grow and flourish into a little girl. I have started to realize that I do not have a baby any more, she is my LITTLE GIRL or as BJ would say she is a MINI LADY FRIEND:)

I promise to be better about updating, I just get busy with Helena, work, sleep, eating, ..... all the stuff , but this is important so I can remember all the amazing things my family and I are doing!

GUESS WHAT TWINS!!!

13 weeks 5 days preggers!!! Below: BABY B was partying on its head and also was showing off its feet:)

BABY A (ON LEFT) Waving at the camera, already not shy and has Big Sisters profile!!! Ultrasound 13 weeks, 6 days
BOTH BABIES: 10 weeks, 6 days

I started this update back on MAY 17th...... at that time I was officially 13 weeks pregnant... and we had found out we are having TWINS...... so I think I am going to have few different posts.... This one I will just fill everyone in .... Ultrasound Both Babies: 8 weeks, 6 days

On March 17th, HAPPY ST PATRICKS DAY... BJ, Helena, and I found out we were going to have another member of our family! We were all very excited! I knew I was pregnant from the get go... we had been trying and a week later I was feeling sick, tired, cranky... I waited until I was one day late and before work took a test and low and behold, our St Patricks Day did not include Green Beer, but a really pretty PINK plus sign!

At almost 9 weeks we went in for our first appt, I believe the date was April 19th, I had a weird weekend and thought I was feeling movement, so I looked up when do you feel TWINS move??? Yahoo answers had moms feeling them as early as 8 weeks, so I thought.... HMMMMM could there be 2???? At the drs appointment, BJ and Helena were with, the first half I was on my own and I let the nurse know that I was curious if there was more then one. I felt this way because of the early symptoms I was having and because of the weird movement from the weekend. So I asked her to PLEASE look in every nook and cranny of my uterus. The second half of my appointment, Bj and Helena were present and it was time to meet the FETUS! and with in ONE MINUTE she confirmed my motherly instinct and said there are 2!!!!! We were excited, scared, shocked.... no words can truly describe that moment. Good thing BJ was holding Helena because had he not was would have been picking him up from the floor!

I was feeling pretty good up to week 10 and then I started to become VERY ILL!!! This is why you are all just getting the blog update and I uploaded over 3 months worth of pictures last weekend:) I was lucky to keep one meal a day down, I was not sleeping even though I was beyond tired. We had another appointment at the almost 11 week point, we all went again, it was crazy too see how much bigger they were. They did a little wave to Big Sister! We also were then informed of all the good, the bad, and the ugly of what was to come with a Twin pregnancy. The Good.... I see the babies every appointment... The Bad, I go to the doctor every 2-3 weeks, The Ugly, I could end up on bed rest, the babies could come early, at some point I should not carry Helena, the list goes on and on!!!

So that appointment sent me in a TIZZY.... I ended up with almost a week off of work because I was having mini panic attacks... my heart would start racing and I would get so sick.... We figured it out...ONE DAY AT A TIME.... MIND OVER MATTER..... I have decided to tackle what has to be done. And as for bed rest and babies coming early, I just tell myself that it is not an option.... so that means that I am going to do what I can to keep them in until November 9th, that would put us at 38 weeks.... as for all the other craziness that has come along with twins. We are dealing... we plan to move in August, we are in search for a house, with a yard and some storage:) We are debating preschool for Helena..... but hey she is only going to be 2.... I figure lots of other people have done this.... SO CAN I!!!

We had our last appointment right before our 14th week on May 24th, I went to this appointment alone, again I was lucky to keep a meal down so I was actually a little worried about the appointment, but they say the sicker you are in your pregnancy the BETTER! I had not gained any weight in the 1st trimester which is normal and when we did the ultrasound on the babies, they had gotten so big that they did not fit on the screen together! They were both doing well... Baby A has a higher heart rate and is very active.... Baby B was chilling and had a much slower heart rate. This appointment lead me to believe we have one of each....

So today is June 12th, I am no longer feeling sick, I have my days that a smell gets me gagging and I lose it. I am still pretty tired, however I pee every couple of hours so a good night sleep is not happening, I also love sleeping on my back, which makes me not be able to breath and its not good for the babies!!! So we are working on that:) The good news is that I go to the DR June 14th..... we will be 16 weeks 6 days and Dr Ohara said he will take a look for us to see what the babies are.... please babies let us take a look:) If not I have an appointment on my birthday July 2nd, not a bad birthday present RIGHT???

18 Months

I was suppose to write after Christmas and guess what THAT DID NOT HAPPEN... so the time is now to catch you up on what the Cooks have been up to and it is A LOT!

So the Cook that is the most important and has the most updates is, you guessed it HELENA JAMES!

Helena just turned 18 months... really she is a year and a half. Where has the time gone. She is not a baby anymore, she is getting longer hair, she is talking, signing, singing, marching.... you do it she mimics. SHE IS AMAZING. She has lost her baby features to and totally looks like a little GIRL! There is so much she is doing so bear with me while I share with you and document it for us....

• Helena's vocabulary is growing here is a list of things she loves to say: cracker, car, read, bubble, woof, kitty, puppy,yummy, Blues Clues, plane, truck, ROAR , I did it, mama, dada, fish
• She also is in love with the show Blues Clues, from this show she has learned to say, Blues Clues, Hi Steve, and sing "EIEIO" She also does all the dances to a perfectly and begs us to watch it DAILY!
• She is also signing very basically. She signs more and says it too, signs milk, all done, help, and we are working on Thank you.
• She also tells us when things are hot by waving her hand and blowing on it and she like to tell us when things are yucky by saying "ish"

Other milestones that she is reaching:

• She is in her big girl bed... she has been since the New Year and is doing AWESOME in it.
• She loves her body parts, she points to all of hers and yours as well. She likes belly, teeth, and tongue the most right now :)
• She is very independent she likes to pick out her clothes, wash her hair and body by herself. She also like to pick out her snacks and food for herself!
• Something that is funny... we take a lot of pictures of her from our phones, she now takes our phones and holds it towards us and says " CHEESE" like she is taking a picture:)
• She tells us NO of course, but she also started to shake her head YES, and shrug her shoulders for I Don't Know.
• She tells us OH OH if she did something or I DID IT... very funny especially if it is something she is not suppose to be doing.
• She hit a huge milestone at the park, she climbed a ladder after she watched 2 other kids do so.... she was so proud she could not stop smiling or clapping.
• She also loves jumping.... we say 123.... she squats then tries to jump up, she usually gets one foot off the ground, its pretty cute!
• OBSESSED with BUBBLES.... to all the moms out there GAZILLION bubbles from Target ROCK and they just came back out.... stock up now!
• The other big thing she is into is pointing at things and wanting us to tell her what it is... its like she is an encyclopedia that just stores every word sometimes she will try to mimic. Most times she will just go back and forth between 2 or 3 objects.

On a negative note..... Helena is a TANTRUM thrower and WHINER some days are awesome and others are very challenging. I just keep telling myself that she will be talking soon and that will help both of these things.

Grammies was just here to visit and Helena liked that very much. As I called Grammies THE ENABLER..... its funny, I love having my mom around,but all rules go out the door! Grammies allows ALL:) HA HA Helena and Grammies had an awesome visit. BJ and I got to go out a few times since it was our 3rd Anniversary and I also got some just Sarah time. All and all it was a great trip .... 11 days went by so fast though :( Glad she made it home safely and I am sure in a week she will be begging to come back to the 70 degree weather!!!

As for the last big change in the Cook house..... I am going back to work part time. Starting in March I will be working 3 days a week. We have hired a nanny to come in and help with Helena, this is going to be a huge transition for us since I have been home with her everyday for 18 months. I went in a few times when my mom was here and I am looking forward to interacting with adults. Even though I am working I guess it will be time I am working on myself. I'm very nervous about going to work and missing out on things Helena maybe doing. However I will be with her Friday thru Monday and working Tuesday thru Thursday from 6:30-3.... so it will really be about 18 hours a week that I am missing..... I know it is going to be a tough transition but a very good one.

BJ's business is growing rapidly and it sounds like there is a lot of new and exciting things in store over the next few months. Well I hope everyone has a very Happy Valentines Day..... again I say that I will try to blog more GOAL at least once a month:)

I almost forgot, Helena had her 18 month check up..... 25lbs 62 %, 32.5 inches tall 66%, 19 inch head 90% :) and she is developing fine:)

Dadpreneurship - Balancing Family, Business and BJ

So I've only had the time to write once on our family blog here. So I decided it was time to "make the time" to give my side of what's been happening so far the past few months :)

(I started this post about 2 weeks ago and like most things that fall into the "BJ" bucket; I am finally getting around to it)

What I like most about this post is that I don't have to do any research, see what types of topics people are interested in reading about currently or make sure I've got keywords present throughout my post; I just write.

What is Dadpreneurship?

Well it seems to be the act of being a dad. Also seems to be about a dad that assembles resources available to him to ensure that he addresses the goals of his family and business, while balancing the organization of his life to also meet his personal goals. Those goals being: 1) staying healthy 2) growing one's knowledgebase 3) being in touch with one's values and so on. The end goal with all these really is balance at the end of the day and if you can achieve that, well then you've got a great formula and I wouldn't mind borrowing it sometime.

Knowing that I've got people reading this who are my family, colleagues and complete strangers; I hope you find little nuggets that may help you or just feel up-to-date on what we've been up to.


What a year I have to start off with ... 1) Started a new business 2) Moved to a new place 3) Watched Helena James learn and grow everyday 4) Helped Sarah start her own entrepreneurial endeavors 5) Discovered that balance was harder than just doing it.

Helena has moved into her big girl bed (I hear Sarah telling her why standing in her bed is dangerous), started saying words like "bubbles", "fish", "kitty", "dada", "mama", "i did it" and "ball" and battled her first real cold that lasted about 2 weeks. The kind of cold your child gets where you can't really give her anything, you give your spot up to her in your bed so she's comfortable, she wipes her nose on everything and she learns that coughing makes mommy and daddy run to see what's wrong ... kind of like strategic manipulation.

Christmas was way different this year for me because not only was I thinking about what I needed to get for my family, I was also thinking about the other 10 people in my business. So this year we did the DOoeys 2009, where each person was recognized for their own special superlative. I happened to get "Mr. Late Night." We had Ryan and his mom make custom wooden-bases with springs that held a corrugated cardboard DO logo. Fully sustainable of course! I think it went off well and we'll be taking it to another level next year. The little things you put into place in your business are what make all the difference in the culture you try so hard to maintain and communicate the importance of to the people around you.

So for 2010 you might wonder?

Well, I'm looking forward to finding a better balance this year to 1) Spend more time with Sarah/Helena 2) Find the right people to put into place at Digital Operative to distribute responsibility 3) Splice out more time for training/exercising for myself and 4) Set goals for my 40th birthday that span both family, personal and career.

That's all for this year! I'm going to go kick my feet up and enjoy my vacation time. Blackberry on silent, unplugged and recharging for 2010.

Merry Christmas

Well again.... story of my life I have not written in over a month! HA HA it is Christmas Eve... presents are wrapped, BJ is at work, Helena is taking a nap and I am BLOGGING... one day Helena you will read this and laugh because I hope you know how excited we are to see your face tomorrow once Santa comes. I told him to not bring you coal this year... you were a good girl:)
Helena has been quite the comedian lately, she has been trying to talk to us... I am not sure what she is saying... but she does say, GOOK or COOK when asked what her name is. She says CA CA for cracker. She says I did it... for when she does things... I love when she tells me that and she is doing something when she is not suppose too!!! This is 99% of the time! She has been battling a cold for almost a month and it has dwindled down to a cough. So I would say she is on the mend and getting back to herself. However this means I have had a month of no sleep! I have been getting 3 to 5 hours of sleep a night again, not ideal but hey I signed up to be a mom... so Ill take it:) I promise to write more after Christmas. I have a list of things to update so my next blog will be LONG, with lots of Christmas pictures of Helena and all of her gifts. I hope everyone has a WONDERFUL Christmas. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! (The picture is of Helena and I at the San Diego Zoo... we participated in a show and got red noses just like RUDOLPH!!)

NO MORE BOOB!!!

Well I know it has been a long time coming... however after 468 days of breast feeding we are done!!! Helena has been putting herself to bed at night with out MILK from a cup or from the boob! Now lets see how I hold up. I have been wanting to be done for some time... however I have felt fulfilled that I have been able to keep up with her for this long! We have been down to 1 to 2 times a day for awhile and she has not been asking any more so I figured why not give it a try. And what does she do, she sleeps all night! Man she is really a big girl now:) This is a good thing for me too, I get to have 3-4 morning workouts along with a afternoon run a few days a week. I am going to participate in a half marathon on Valentines day and I am really looking forward to training and also doing most of my training pushing Miss Helena!
Helena was working on her cheering this weekend while we cheered on the 3 day Breast Cancer Walkers in San Diego (she cheered so much she passed out.) What an amazing experience and San Diego is so welcoming and there were lots of horns honking, whooping and howling going on for the ladies and gentleman participating in the 60 mile trek. My favorite shirt was from the guys I saw walking "We are busting our balls for BOOBS!!!"
I hope everyone had a great weekend... I am sure most of you are looking forward to a short work week and a nice long weekend! I am looking forward to starting and finishing all my Christmas shopping and taking Helena to see Santa. I am also thankful for having a nice relaxing 4 day weekend with my HUBBY... putting up Christmas decorations and making our new place nice and Christmas like.... and figuring out how to make our stuff child proof and safe... SHOULD BE INTERESTING!!!

Lots of New Stuff.... Helena is 15 months!

Well we have been having major Internet issues so I am so sorry for not updating. First things first.... Helena is now 15 months old! Where has the time gone:( She went in for her check up and she is 32.25 inches tall, 25 lbs, and her head is 18.5 inches..... she is between the 80th-90th percentile. She is just getting SO big. Here is a list of stuff she is doing now...

* She is now an expert climber at the park. She can do almost everything on her own including going down the slide all by herself!! She loves it and she laughs all the way down:)
* She is getting better at eating with a fork or spoon on her own, she would still prefer to use her hands, so I just give her a utensil so she gets use to it.
* She loves drumming on everything. She uses anything and everything as in instrument. I love it. (Helena got to play a grand piano on Halloween.... I think she is going to be better then me. Look at the way her fingers fly across the keys!)
* She also is an expert car singer and dancer. I have the same CD playing in the car and when #5 comes on she is singing before they do! It is awesome that she knows what is coming.
* She is still saying the same words... ( DADA, MAMA, Bubb Bubb (bubbles) ball, kiki, wuff, pup pup) are a few. I feel like she is trying to mimic things we are saying but a lot of the time she stares at us and watches our lips instead.
* She really like to mimic her dad. Pretty much anything he does she does. She does not do that with me. If I say Helena can you do this.... NOTHING. BJ asks and she does it on command. He loves it.... Helena always makes him laugh. I think it needs that especially after a stressful day at the office:)
* A negative thing is that Helena is a very picky eater and will not try new things! We are trying to get her to but no luck so Avocado, Bug Mac n Cheese, Cheese Sticks, Pasta, Oatmeal, Fruits.... those are out staples at this moment.... oh wait DON'T FORGET PUFFS:)
* A positive thing... she has been sleeping almost through the night... we had a whole week with no waking up. I have not been getting her in the night when she does... I need her to know and understand that night time is for SLEEPING! Another positive thing about this is that I get up early around 515am to head to the gym! I love it and it really jump starts my day!

So in October Helena and I were in Minnesota. It was very nice to have some fall weather, see family and friends, and drink Caribou Coffee everyday! We also went to the apple orchard picked some apples and played with the barnyard animals. There was a baby cow who was 4 days old that kept mooing at us.... so cute. We were there with Grammies, my bff Robyn,Auriana her daughter, and Robyns Mom Sue. It was an awesome girls day:) We had lots of fun and I think we took over 100 pictures:) I also got to spend time with my family it is always nice to go home. I hated that it rained almost all the days I was there, however there were about 3 really perfect fall days. The last day I was there I woke up to snow on the ground so I knew it was time to get out of there! Helena loved having a yard to run in and a pup pup to throw a ball too! She was very funny around Ava, our black lab. At first she was really into her and then Ava knocked her down for her cheese stick... for that moment on she would scream and crouch down when Ava would walk by. Then she got a little braver and would back herself up against the wall and sneak by her. This was too funny... Ava is the biggest baby in the world and would not hurt a fly... maybe lick you to death so to see Helena so cautious was very funny.

Well we made it home safe and it took us awhile to get back into the swing of things... but we are back in normal mode. We made it to a pumpkin patch to get ready for HALLOWEEN:) We had a great Halloween, we were at a birthday party that evening for my CA grandma Alice. She had an amazing party with her friends and family. Helena had the best costume... for those of you that did not know she was a LADYBUG! She enjoyed dressing up and got to eat some M & M's. We did not go trick or treating this year. But next year we will be up for that.... I guess I better start thinking of some costume ideas to top this year!!!

So we are into November and I can not believe that holidays are around the corner. With all of this crazy flu stuff, we have not been doing to many organized indoor kid activities. We go to the park daily and swimming once a week. I just get nervous.... some parents are just so irresponsible and I do not want Helena getting these nasty viruses since she can not have her shot until next month. I lost a friend from high school last week from H1N1, she was only 29. I do not want to be paranoid.... but I am a little!

We have been battle the temper tantrums here... a lot of screaming has been happening. I am thinking this is because she really wants to communicate to us and just does not have the right words to say yet! She has also been on a biting kick, this is not good and I do not like that she does this! I ended up putting my teeth on her arm after she bit me 3 times in one day.... good news is she has not done it since. Helena has a very bad temper.... somethings that really make her mad are, diaper changes, getting dressed, and getting cleaned up after eating or her hair washed! SHE HATES THESE THINGS..... however she really loves the bathroom and is very curious about what BJ and I do in there. Is it time for a potty? I think at the start of the new year we will get one for her to try... She is really growing into her own little person. She is very funny, energetic, silly.... she is developing a very unique personality.

13 Months

Well Helena is already approaching her 14th month!!! Where has the time gone? She is always doing something funny! I would have to say that she is a very active little lady! She never want to sit still for a minute! She wants to be outside and on the GO!!! We almost go somewhere everyday. Between the gym and park or out for a run she must get out of the house at least once.... did I tell you she loves TARGET!!! HE HE

Some of the things she has been doing...

* Walking on her tip toes

* Talking from the moment she wakes up and her feet hit the floor.

* Saying bubble and ball

* Climbing the steps at the park and goes down the slide

* She has been eating more things... she always wants to steal my spinach put it in her mouth and then spit it out QUICKLY:)

* She loves when we build her nesting blocks... they stand about 3 feet tall and she knocks them down and yells BOOM or OHHHHHH. She loves throwing things down and making them crash!

* LOVES LOVES LOVES brushing her teeth

* She also loves reading her books to herself.... if we read them she like to walk around and come up and turn the page. Again there is no sitting unless she is very sleepy.

* She loves doing her ABC flashcards while eating breakfast and also her sign cards. Still not a big signer but we are trying!

Helena is the queen of silly faces!!! She always keeps us laughing.... never a dull moment :)

We are currently in Minnesota, I was looking forward to a nice fall vacation and we are having a FLOOD:( We got to the apple orchard on the only day it did not rain. I will post pics soon but the one above should do for now. We are doing some fun stuff for the next few days... I am hoping we get to fly out on Saturday... there is talks of snow!!!

It is SEPTEMBER???? REALLY? COME ON!

Ok so I am the worst blogger ever.... and I have not written in almost a month which means I have a lot to catch everyone up on!!!
THE MOVE
If you did not know, we moved, no more beach living for us, we are now living on a golf course! That's right we are now golf course people ( whatever that means) HE HE... We made the move on August 14th. It was a Friday night and it was LONG!!! We moved from 4pm-3am or something like that! The next day we got some stuff put away and finished getting stuff from the old place! Thank god for my parents they were troopers... they let me boss them around and we got things in to place in no time! Now for those of you thinking... man Sarah is a slave driver... I AM:) however I do feed you and provide beer and whatever else you may need! So I am very nice to work for! HA HA We had my parents here with us from August 10 thru August 20th... we got almost everything done before they left so it was very live able in the new place! We love it and it is really starting to feel like HOME!!!
HELENA JAMES
Well Helena James turned ONE!!! Can you believe a year has gone by... I can not! I understand why people have their babies close, because once they do turn one you forget about the craziness of a newborn and you think MAN I could totally do that again! (Don't tell my husband this... he would freak...) We are not going for #2 just yet but I can see why so many people go for it! Man it does go by so quickly.... it is so funny what they learn and do. A funny story, when Grandpa was here he said Sh*@ sometimes, and for those of you that do not know that was my first word. So one day Helena is playing with her toys and I hear "SHEET".... and disregard it and again she drops or throws something on the floor "SHEET" this time it was used in the appropriate context... I am know laughing and thinking this is soooo funny. I tell my mom and BJ they do not believe me.... she say SHHHHH a few more times and then she lets it fly "SHEET" Oh my little mimic... she is smart and when she hears something she remembers it and lets it fly! Helena is very good at mimicking... she meows, barks, clicks her tongue. She also tries to mimic words or sounds you make. This is not something she does everyday... she has to be in the right mood. I have been doing flash card with her and she gets so excited when we get to certain cards, she then waits for me to day the letter and object... you can see the wheels turning and she babbles something:) So there is always a good effort made! (Picture of her eatting a cupcake on her offical 1st Birthday!)
WALKING
Helena is walking. She started walking right after we moved in. We got it on tape so I will post the video! She is still very cautious however is cruising on the carpet from object to object. Tonight she went from sitting to standing with out any help from anyone or anything. We all clapped including her:) She was very excited! So we all went for froyo to celebrate. It has been in the 90's so special cold treats are a must these days!
MORE HELENA
So there is so much going on with Helena, she is truly an amazing little girl. She is over a very sweet and happy little girl and she LOVES me very much. She is really started to love her some daddy time so it is a nice break. We are currently weaning from breast feeding. This is very exciting for me. I have exceeded my expectations and am so glad for her and me that I was able to provide her with breast milk for this long. However I would like to preserve my nipples for #2 and with 8 teeth sometimes that is HARD! She did have her shots and at her appointment she weighed 23.5 lbs and was 30.25 inches tall. She is in the 80th percent tile. She did cry pretty hard for the shots and ran a fever for a few days. But all and all a TROOPER! Our pediatrician told me to watch out.... he was testing her on lots of things and he wanted me to not be surprised if maybe the TERRIBLE TWO's arrived a little early in our house. I told him not to worry I have already experience tantrums, her shaking her head no. Now I am just waiting for the day she throws her hand on her hip! I know it is coming.... it was one of my signature moves:)
We did have a party for Helena.... it was lots of fun and I loved watching her eat her cake! I am glad we had 3 different parties for her.... I got to experience ice cream cake, a cupcake, and a butter cream cake! She got lots of books and some fun toys. I had to get her a new bin to hold everything!
Well I am getting tired and I hope this is enough to start catching everyone up... I am sure there is more! I will do my best to go back to writing once a week so I do not forget stuff. I want Helena to be able to read this when she is older and laugh at all the crazy stuff we did together as a family! We did get her 1 year pictures taken. They are on the slide show on this blog or go to our flickr page! I am looking forward to coming home in OCTOBER! Excited for some fall weather and CARIBOU coffee!!! OH AND FRIENDS AND FAMILY OF COURSE:)

LONG TIME NO WRITE

I am going to post a very long blog over the next few days.... Good news... we are all moved and have thrown a successful 1st birthday party. I have tons of pictures to post and so much to write about between Helena and the move:) Talk to you all soon!!!

CHANGES CHANGES CHANGES

I have not written in quite some time... I have been between homes. We got the keys to the new place we are renting and we have making it COOK worthy every since! We have started to paint and clean up to our standards. We will be making the move on Saturday. We have a lot of work to do in 4 days before we get all the furniture and small stuff in. Really looking forward to the move and the new place:)
As for Helena... she is going to be ONE TOMORROW! Where has the time gone? I do not know.... I remember what I was doing a year ago today... I actually blogged that day it was the day before knowing I was having a baby the next day. The last day of being pregnant and the last day of it just being me and BJ. Having Helena James is one of the greatest joys I have ever experienced. I am still in awe of her everyday.
New things she is doing... she says UP, MOMMA,DADA, NIGH NIGH (NIGHT),COOL(She mimics this) and she is mimicking other sounds or things we do. She is still not walking but showing signs that it is not far away.
We are picking up my parents tonight.... and just going to ENJOY Helena's big day tomorrow by spoiling her rotten!

July is already here???

Well it is already the middle of July and I have not blogged in over a month:( SORRY! Things that have been going on.... we have all been sick:( It started with BJ, he was sick for almost 3 weeks. During his 3 weeks, he did however win his first volleyball tournament of the summer and he did finally get some anti-botics for and URI and Sinus Infection. Then he passed it on to me the day we were leaving on VACATION! So I was sick through out our trip and have been under the weather since we have returned! I have horrible allergies, so I do attribute most of my symptoms to that. However it has know been 2 weeks, of stuffy nose, runny nose, sneezing, ringing ears and MIGRAINES! Oh well, life goes on :)

So in the last month, I celebrated my 28th birthday. Which was a great day, I spent the day with Helena. BJ got me an amazing handbag that is big enough to carry all of Helena's stuff and Helena got me some personalized picture coffee mugs:) We enjoyed a family dinner and I got to come home and watch movies in bed! For the 4th we were just getting ready for our trip, so we had a relaxing weekend of beaching it and packing.
We left for vacation on July 6th, it was a red eye flight, which was very interesting with Helena, all and all she did great, she stayed up 3 hours past her bed time and passed out during the take off. She had a few outburst throughout the flight, and she really melted down during the landing, it was 3am CA time and 6am East coast time. I would have melted down too! She was attached to my BOOB for a majority of the flight I think for comfort, the negative part of this was that the plane was 1000 degrees and we were all sweating. We slept off and on the first day of vacation to try to catch up on sleep and get adjusted to the time. BJ's mom made the most amazing soup and also a fish dish for dinner!
Our vacation was based on spending time with family, which we did and we loved it! We got to see our niece and nephew a lot and BJ's sister, her husband, and mom. It was so great to spend time with them since we only see them a few times a year. We also got to have Dunkin Dounut's coffee, Water Ice, and East Coast pizza. BJ, Helena, and I also went in to Philly for a day and did some historic site seeing. It was a quick trip since Helena's attention span is a little shorter then ours.
Helena also had a little birthday party that Mimi and Aunt Nicki through her. They had some of BJ's oldest friends surprise him. She had a great day with everyone, she got some fun gifts and also got to taste her first ICE CREAM CAKE! Helena had many food firsts on her trip, Water Ice, Pizza, Ice Cream Cake, Fish,Spinach. It is good to know that she will pretty much try anything:) Helena also was practicing climbing the stairs. She only did that a few times, but she did a great job! Helena also got to meet her Great Great Mum Mum, she is 90. It was fun visiting with her, I am glad that we got to spend sometime with her! Vacation was amazing, I wish we could have had a few more days.
So we have not even been back a week and most of you know that our lease on our apartment is coming up and we have had some issues here so we are MOVING! We looked earlier this year and have been looking for this last month. There have been somethings we have been interested in, however there is always a catch.... so I called the place we were interested in before and it seems that the price is doable and I will have a washer/dryer, nice heated pool, and gym. We are happy to have this crossed off our list. Now it is time to pack.... we have less then a months time to get everything ready! Good thing is though that my parent will be here help with Helena and to get situated!
I think the last really cool thing that has happened since we got home.... I took Helena to swimming this week. She has not been for 3 weeks and I was so amazed how much she REMEMBERED! She is jumping in on her own, kicking like a champ, back floating, she also blew bubbles..... and the coolest thing was that I got to wear goggles while Helena swam to me under water. She did everything perfect, she was holding her breath with her EYES wide open:) It was so cool to see her kicking her way to me. I was so proud of her! She is really is turning into a fish! I hope everyone's summer is going well. The next month for us is going to be crazy, getting ready to move. I am training for my RKC, planning Helena's 1st birthday! Lots of fun and exciting things happen with the COOKS!

This is a picture of Helena on the way home! She never once fussed for the 5.5 hour trip home, she napped and read and played with us and DID AWESOME! We are very lucky parents to have such a good little girl on our hands!