What a day, what a day

Everything is fine, but today started with a tummy bug and ended with a trip to the Orthopedic specialist.

Three-year-old twins make me THANKFUL yet TIRED.

Keeping it real, a little too real.

I really, really wish that I didn't have this story to tell.

Yesterday, I put Maddy and Libby down for their nap around 1PM. I came back downstairs and vacuumed our family room, and mopped the kitchen floor. After I finished, I checked email while waiting for the floor to dry.

Over the monitor, I could hear someone crying. It had gone from a little bit of talking to full blown crying. I broke my own cardinal rule and stepped on the wet kitchen floor so I could go upstairs and see what was wrong.

I opened their bedroom door to see Libby fast asleep and Maddy standing naked in her crib. Yes, you can probably guess what else was in the crib.

One dirty diaper, luckily with most of the contents in the diaper, but yes, there was poop elsewhere. On Maddy, on the sheets, on the blanket, on her little pillow, etc.

I got it cleaned up, sheets changed, and started a bath for Maddy. Oh yeah, and Libby is still totally sacked out through all of this. Amazing.

So, aside from the ick factor, I was thankful that she didn't "finger paint" or anything similar. I know you've heard the stories. I have to wonder ... could it be time for a potty, since she seems to want to strip down when she has a dirty diaper. I don't think I'm mentally ready to start, but maybe she's telling me that she is.

* Note: we typically use sleep sacks at night, but I usually don't put them on for naps. Maybe I should start.
* Another note: Maddy did have on a dress and bloomers that were pretty easy to remove and she has been known to take off her PJ's and run around after breakfast in just a diaper. She's free spirited that way.
* Yet another note: Thank God for cute bunny pillows that have removable bunny covers that can be rescued and washed during occasions such as this.

A break in our regularly scheduled programming ...

We had a great weekend - two surprise 40th birthday parties for two good friends. We were scheduled to attend our nephew's 16th birthday party today, but those plans came to a screeching halt around 8AM this morning.

Maddy and Libby had woken up around 7:30 and Hubby brought them downstairs for breakfast. Maddy had no interest in her food and he noticed that she was having a hard time breathing. We called our Pediatrician's office and talked to the triage nurse for a while. Instead of telling us to come to the office when it opened, she told us to go to the E.R.

WHAT???

I called a friend in our neighborhood who luckily was home to see if I could drop Libby off with her. She said yes, and we packed everyone up in record time. They went in their snowman pajamas and Widgeon fleece jackets, looking a little like Christmas elves.

Kudos to our local E.R. We had barely taken our seat in the waiting room and they brought us back. After an Oxygen check, rectal temperature check, a serious nose suctioning, a breathing treatment, and Chest Xrays, Maddy was one pooped girl. She took turns sleeping on our chests maybe drinking about 2 sips of water. It was truly pitiful.

After her labs came back, we found out that she has RSV. It is also extremely contagious, so we have been in Clorox / Lysol mode, disinfecting and taking away any toys that they typically put in their mouths, and wiping everything down with these super duper anti bacterial wipes that they gave us from the Hospital. From what they told us, it will last for about 5 days and we are hoping that Libby won't also get sick, but only time will tell. She currently has a bit of a runny nose, didn't eat much for dinner, but was still playful, and as my Mom would say, didn't have that sick look in her eyes.

Maddy took a good 3 hour nap when we got back home and has gone from eating a little and playing a little, to wanting "up" so she can snuggle. Even though the circumstances are bad, we had to enjoy the snuggle time, because Maddy normally won't sit still long enough to give you a hug, let alone snuggle with you.

So, I think it's safe to say that we are officially quarantined for a while and praying that we will have two well girls by the weekend.

The big red box

On Christmas Eve, we attended our church's candlelight service, took a drive to see Christmas lights and then headed home since it was nearing 7:15 and Maddy and Libby's bedtime.

When we got home, the girls were wandering around downstairs and Hubby and I were grabbing a few items that we needed to take upstairs.

Maddy walked back to one of the guest bedrooms and I found her patting a BIG gift wrapped box. Hmmmmm .... I know I didn't put that there, but I was trying to figure out when it arrived.

I told Hubby that Maddy had sold him out and led me to a surprise that I could only assume was for me. He just stood there and laughed. After moving it from the front porch to our mud room, then wrapping it, he showed it to Maddy.

This sucker would have been hard enough to wrap, but also to hide? Nearly impossible! I had to also laugh that he did this while I was out running a couple of short errands and was probably only gone about 30-40 minutes.

Oh, and what was inside? Not a refrigerator, but a new cubby/shelf with hooks to hang in our mudroom so there is a place to hang my purse, their backpacks, diaper bag, dog leashes, etc.

My little fashionista

Maddy, who won't leave a bow in her hair, happily found necklaces and a purse to carry around at the Santa party we attended tonight. So maybe she's destined to love accessories?

A little quiet time

Maddy and Libby have been "iffy" with their morning nap for a few weeks. When they are home, some days they take it, others they don't. Today, they both seemed a little sleepy (rubbing eyes, a few yawns), so I decided to give it a try.

We're all battling colds, so I thought it might do them good.

I could hear them chatting over the monitor when I cleaned up the kitchen, but nothing out of the ordinary. After a few more minutes, I could tell that no nap was going to happen, so I might as well go ahead and get them up and dressed.

So, I walked upstairs to find this ...

That would be Maddy standing in her crib, (non-recalled, thank God) with about 1/2 a box of wipes on the floor. It could have been much, much worse. I imagined what 1/2 a bottle of lotion would have looked like.

So, being the cheapskate that I am, I folded up each little wipe and placed them back in the box. Guess I need to make sure that the wipes go into the drawer from now on.

picky, picky, picky.

Maddy has always been the picky eater of the two girls. She's always been a slower eater and my Mom finally admitted that she used to scoop up Libby first because she was easier to feed. Even with her bottle some days, she'll just press her lips together and turn her head away when she's telling you "no!" She's finally eating applesauce, cheerios, and bananas. Maybe a few bites of oatmeal, sweet potato, and carrots, but those are few and far between.

I decided to try out blueberries and yogurt for lunch today. They both gobbled up the blueberries. My only "fiasco" was when I gave Maddy a bath this evening and noticed that she had a bruise on her arm. I nearly panicked trying to figure out what had happened to her, when the "bruise" washed off. She had dropped a blueberry inside her outfit and it left several "bruises" on her arm and tummy.

Anyway, Maddy loved the yogurt. It's the full fat plain Stonyfield. It makes me pucker a little, so I didn't have high hopes. Shockingly, she ate two servings today. Whoo-hoo ... I think it will be the new item on the menu.