Jesus' Birthday

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!  I love all the traditions that go with it.  I love making cookies.  I love dipping Ritz crackers and peanut butter in chocolate.  I love all the Christmas parties.  I love the lights.  I love the colors.  I love decorating the tree. I love shopping for gifts.  I love watching the kids open their presents!  I love it all!!!

This year was as busy as ever.  It was a bit easier going from place to place since the babies are off formula and more mobile.  Christmas Eve we went to Walter's parents' house for lunch.  My grandparents came and celebrated with us too.  We had Karla's yummy percolator punch and then opened presents.  David was overjoyed with his Terrain Twister.  The babies weren't too interested.  They were all over the place.  Dillan did take the time to open a box of clothes and then throw them all over the floor.  Then they watched David play with his Terrain Twister.  I thought he was going to take out the clock with it.  Thankfully it was safe!  After present time we had lasagna and bread.  Did I mention I love lasagna??? 

We left after lunch to come home for nap time.  Dillan and Daniel slept while we rested for a brief moment.  My Dad and Dale came over that afternoon to have Christmas.  We exchanged presents again.  This time, they all got ride on toys.  David got a new bike and D & D got a Little Big Wheel each.  Everyone enjoyed watching the kids play.

David and I made cookies and chocolate milk after they left and sat them out for Santa.  Walter, David, and I read Luke 2 in the Bible and then a Christmas book.  We looked on the computer to see where Santa had been and where he was headed.  At that time, he was going to Canada, so we had to get to sleep. 

David awoke us at 6:00.  Walter looked at me and said "Shouldn't there be a rule that he has to wait until daylight?  That was the rule for me."  I was just happy it wasn't 4:00.  That's what time Josh and I got up when we were kids.  I know because I would set the alarm clock!!!  Anyway, we rolled out of bed to see what Santa had brought.  He had brought TOO MUCH!  We played with the Santa toys and then Daniel awoke.  Dillan wasn't too far behind.  We all enjoyed Santa presents and then opened presents to each other.  I got 2 special presents this year... a bracelet with all three kids' names on it and a picture of a manger made out of David's footprint with baby Jesus in it.  I got other things too, but it's the sentimental things that make you smile.  Anyway, Mom came over a couple hours later.  David got a motorized scooter from her and the other 2 got little motorized 4-wheeler things.  So far, David hasn't hurt himself or the vehicles!

We went for lunch at Mom's with her, Mawmaw and Pop, Karla and Jim, and us.  We ate too much again!  Presents from and to Mawmaw and Pop were exchanged and then guess what we did?  Played some more!  Daniel and Dillan's new thing is dancing.  Walter says Daniel has Mexican in him because he gets his little feet to going so fast!  Dillan is a little slower with some tippy toe action and sometimes he adds a split at the end.  Love my children!

The Month of Christmas

The month of December is always so busy.  The business is usually a good busy.  We get to enjoy parades, parties, school programs, and Christmas lights.  All of this for one reason, the birth of Jesus. 

We started the month by decorating a Christmas Tree for David's class competition.  David and I worked hard on it and had a good time together.  We decided to make a Christmas Tree Person with a face, arms, and a bow.  Of course, David really, really, really wanted to win... and he did... 3rd place!  His tree got a green 3rd place bow and he got a Christmas game. 

My favorite is always Christmas on the Coosa.  Wetumpka knows how to celebrate Christmas.  My Mom, Aunt Nana, and I took the boys to walk around that morning.  David enjoyed the bungee jumping, slides, and bull riding.  Dillan and Daniel enjoyed the ride.

We went home for the boys to get a nap and made it back in time for the parade.  David rode on the BAMA Boosters float again this year. 

We decided to go to the zoo this year to see the lights.  Karla and Jim went with us.  It was a beautiful night with perfect weather.  There wasn't a crowd either.  The best part was feeding the birds. 

We celebrated Jesus' birthday at a Happy Birthday Jesus Party!  What fun!  The children played 3 games, jumped on inflatables, sang Happy Birthday Jesus, ate cake, and dressed up for the reading of The Christmas Story. 

The last day of school finally came on December 21st.  David's class had a Christmas Party the day before.  The children ate way too much sugar and played with their new goodies.  Mom and Dad were there to play too. 

Christmas is only in a couple days!  We wish your family a very Merry Christmas!  Remember the reason for the season!

Why Eat Food When You Can Have Plastic?

Let me just start by saying, Walter and I have both gained a lot of gray hairs since the birth of Daniel and Dillan.   David was such an easy baby and child.  The same can't be said for them!

After the hospital scare last week, you would think we could catch a break... WRONG!  Friday morning we woke up as usual.  Walter got the babies up and gave them their milk.  I made David's breakfast and started getting dressed.  It was still pretty dark in the living room.  Walter had Daniel in his lap giving him his breathing treatment.  He told me he stunk and something was in his hair.  I walked over to check it out.  At the same time, Daniel threw up.  After a minute, I put him in the sink and gave him a bath.  Five minutes later, he threw up 3 more times.  By this time, I was running way behind. 

I gave Walter instructions of staying home with him and off Dillan, David, and I went.  Not even five minutes later Walter called and said there was tiny white pieces of plastic in his vomit.  WHAT?!  When, where, and why in the world had the child eaten plastic? 

I called Dr. Carlile as soon as they opened.  I don't think they are EVER surprised to hear from me.  We probably would receive the "Most Valuable Patient" award if there were one.  Dr. Carlile gets a lot of our mullah!   Anyway, he said for us to go have an x-ray asap and then come to his office.  Walter did just that.  I was very proud of him!  No large pieces were seen on the x-ray.  God blessed us AGAIN!  If it had been metal, he would have gone straight to surgery.  He said the body would reject the plastic and throw up until it was all out. He only threw up one more time but was puny they rest of the day.  Today, he is back to himself... into EVERYTHING!!!

Trip to the ER

Friday came and I was ready to bee off of work for a week.  I had so much planned for the kids and me.  David and I went to the Alabama game Saturday.  Sunday, we had to stay in the 2 year old room at church.  Monday, my Dad, David, and I were going to venture off to Noccalula Fall for the day and enjoy some time hiking and playing putt putt golf.  Cowboy Camp Tuesday.  Wednesday was gymnastics.  Thursday, have Thanksgiving.  Shopping on Friday. 

Those plans were canceled when Daniel started running fever Sunday evening.  I talked to David about it and explained to him why we couldn't go.  He took it pretty well.  I know I probably would have been more selfish when I was his age and mad about not going.  Not him.  He said he wished we could go, but understood that his brothers need me.  I told him we would attempt to go Wednesday when his Pawpaw would be off work again.

By 1:30 Monday morning, his fever had shot up to 104.  I gave him a bath to try and bring it down.  He screamed the whole time.  About an hour later, it was down some and we went back to sleep.  First thing Monday morning, I called their doctor and took them in.  My Dad went with me to help.  Dr. Carlile said they both tested positive for RSV and Daniel was wheezing already.  Dillan was not quite as bad.  They did a breathing treatment in the office and we left with lots of prescriptions.  They were both put on breathing treatments every 4-8 hours as needed, antibiotics, and predisone.  The antibiotics were supposed to keep them from getting bronhiolitis and pneumonia. 

Let me go ahead and say breathing treatments are a dreaded thing.  We had to do them last year due to RSV, and now again this year.  So if they get 4 a day, that's 8 treatments we have to force.  They refuse to put the mask on.  When it is closer than 6 inches to their face, they start squirming and moving their face side to side.  Walter found that if you take the mask off and just let it blow in their face, they do better.  They still get tired of sitting still for 10 minutes and so do we.  To get them both done, it takes about 20-25 minutes. 

Back to the story... Tuesday morning they looked and acted better.  We took David to Cowboy Camp down the road.  BTW, he had a blast!  We went back and picked him up at 3 and they were still doing great.  Things went on as normal.  All the children were in bed by 7:15.  Dad, David, and I planned to make our trip the next day.  This time we would be going to Cheaha Mountain because Noccalula Falls was closed. 

I fell asleep around 9:30.  Walter stayed awake in our bed watching tv.  At about 11:00 he woke me up saying Daniel sounded funny.  He always over-reacts so I rolled over and went back to sleep.  The next thing I know he has Daniel in his arms and is yelling "Jessica, something is wrong with Daniel!"  I jumped up and grabbed Daniel.  He was on fire and grasping for air.  With every breath, he grunted.  I pulled out the breathing machine and gave him Tylenol.  His temperature was 104.5.  I called the Nurse Hotline.   After we were finished with the treatment, she returned our call.  She listened to him and said we needed to hang up and call 911 if he was breathing like that with every breath or do another breathing treatment.  We started the treatment and I got dressed.  The treatment didn't work, so I put him in my lap and headed to Baptist East.   We arrived around 12:00.  My Mom met me.  After a while, they did a chest x-ray.  The diagnosis was pneumonia in both upper lobes and in the right lower area. 

An IV was started.  I was so nervous and the nurse was too.  Thank God she got it on the first try.  Daniel watched her and didn't even cry!  Then we were told we would travel by ambulance to Baptist South to the Pediatrics floor.  The ambulance came, strapped Daniel's car seat onto the stretcher and then put him in it.  He was so sleepy and he was screaming.  He screamed for a while and then finally went to sleep.  We got to South and he woke up screaming.  It was about 5:30 in the morning at this point and none of us had any sleep.  We got settled in and Daniel went to sleep.  Mom and I didn't.  We saw about 7 Residences before we saw the real doctor.  I didn't know how to take Dr. Scott.  He is very... ummmm, bossy...controlling????  Anyway, he said we would be there at least until the weekend.  Yep, Thanksgiving was the next day.  It was canceled. 

The next couple of days entailed a lot of breathing treatments, little rest, a nose cannula for oxygen, wire on his toe to monitor O2 levels and heart rate, soaked diapers from the IV fluids, fighting sleep, lots of worry, tangled wires wrapped around Daniel, and God showing us how loving people can be.  I think I had flashbacks of when Daniel was in the NICU and my other two angels were home.  I needed to be in 2 places at once, but had to rely on others to help. 

Thanksgiving night, a new doctor came around and decided to do an xray.  He came back and said it hadn't improved or worsened, but he was letting us go home and do all the treatments there!  That was some awesome news! 

We got home around 7:30 that night.  We are still here and completing all the meds and treatments at home.  We will go back to see Dr. Carlile Monday.  We will also see a specialist in Bham later for a small kidney problem that was seen too. 

Thank you for all the messages, calls, and visits.  We know that God always has a plan.  We are sometimes put through "storms" to be drawn closer to God.  Our family, friends and Santuck Church family definitely showed us love.  Thank you!

49-0, Roll Tide!

I love spending time with my buddy.  He is fun to be around.  Saturday, we headed to T-town to watch Bama stomp Western Carolina.  There isn't much between here and there.  We finally found a gas station.  We stopped to get us some hot chocolate.  For some reason, road trips and gas stations go together.  It's the perfect time to eat junk.  It's the memories, right? 

We found our parking space a couple hours before game time.  Off to the Quad we went.  Pre-Game activities are David's favorite part of the game.  Straight to the inflatables we went.  As you can see in the picture above, David had fun on the giant slide. 

Then we went and looked at the statues.  Nick Saban was too crowded to we just took a picture with him in the background.  His head and hands seem a little big compared to the rest of his body.  I guess it doesn't matter when you have winning teams like him. 

 

We went into the stadium and bought us some food.  I think it should have come with gold for the price we paid.  :)  I guess that's how they pay Saban.  The trip wouldn't be complete without some Dippin Dots.  After half time, the score was already 42-0.  We watched the band and headed back home just in time to catch the Spear twins birthday party. 

The Curls are Gone

At 14 months old, Dillan and Daniel finally got their first haircut.  Walter has been wanting them to get one, but this time around I loved the curls.  They flipped out around each ear and I thought they were so cute.  After we were asked a few times if Daniel was a girl, I decided it was time.  Jennifer Law cut David's hair fr the 1st time, so we decided to go back to her.  They were both so well behaved.  I think it was because they didn't know what was going on.  They didn't move, look, smile... nothing!  Afterwards, we took a family photo, but David decided to hide behind me! 

Happy Halloween

Halloween was a busy time for the Quinn Family.  David had strep throat until the day before Halloween so he didn't get to join us at the Wetumpka Candy Walk.  Daniel and Dillan suited up as Big Al and we went ahead to get David candy.  Uncle Josh, Jackie, and Madeline met us there to make the walk even more exciting.  We had to keep Goldfish in Daniel and Dillan's mouth to keep them happy.  Uncle Josh was concerned that we were messing him up with the ladies!  :) 

 

Halloween Night was fun.  We suited up again.  This time, David was a professional hunter, Dillan was Eeyore and Daniel was Tigger.  We took the opportunity for photos before we went Trick or Treating.  Daniel and Dillan was more into the pumpkins on the front porch than the photos.  David laughed at them and Walter and I chased them around trying to get them to be still for pictures. 

We left home and met my Mom and Dad at Waffle House for supper.  Then we headed on over the River Oaks to get some candy.  We made a deal with David.  He had to say thank you to everyone who gave him candy.  If he didn't, we got to eat the candy.  It worked because we didn't get a single piece of candy!  After all the fun was over we went home for bed. 

HHS Class of 2002 Ten Year Reunion

It's been 10 years. Yep, 10 years since I said goodbye to Holtville High School. There are so many memories of that place that sit out in a field of cows.   In Mr. Willi's Economics class, Ashley Steverson Hammock plucked my eyebrows. At break, we all hung out around the gas tank. Skipping Coach Broom's class to go have lunch in Wetumpka. Man, I drove so fast to make it there and back before the next period. Playing volleyball for Coach Libby Collier. We would lose, and she would take us in the loker room and give us a good, serious talking to and I would be laughing in the back of my head becaue although I wanted to win, I didn't think it was THAT serious. Sorry, Coach Collier. There were weekends riding around with Jenny Steverson, Natasha Glasscock McMillan, Ashley, and Amber Brooks. Girls' trips to Christmas City and Six Flags. Sorry Jenny for asking you to stop for us to go to the bathroom. That wasn't the right thing to do. I think my head still has a peice missing from were she bit some off. :) Then, I met Walter during Spring Break of my Junior year on the strip in Panama City riding with Amber and Natasha. What were our parents thinking letting us go to PC? Well, I am glad they did. There are so many more memories... both good and bad.

I was so happy to graduate and leave all the drama of high school. I never was into that kind of thing. Saturday night, I was excited to get back with all of those people I was waiting to leave 10 years ago.

We had all had so many exciting things to happen in those years. College, marriage, kids, jobs... and some divorces. Things and times had changed, but seemed to be the same too. I talked to people and it didn't feel "odd." It was almost like we were all together last week. I laughed a lot that night (mostly at Natasha and Ben Anderson). I am really thankful for such a great class to graduate with.

Many thanks goes to Natasha and Ben for working so hard to get this thing together. I don't think people realize how much work goes into things like this. That is something I have learned throughout life... be grateful for all things. 

The Zombie Walk

It's the last day of summer and it sure has flown by!  God continues to bless our family.  Our 3 boys continue to grow and be healthy.  David is 6 1/2 and Dillan and Daniel are 13 months old. 
The big boy is in the first grade and doing so well.  He loves his teacher, Mrs. Holley.  She is so sweet, patient, and soft spoken.  He definitely don't get any soft spoken voices around this CRAZY family!  :)  He has made a 100 on all his reading and math tests so far.  I think he gets the brains from his Mama! Just don't ask his Daddy.  He is reading on a 3 rd grade reading level too.  He loves to read and I hope that continues.  Writing... well that's not his favorite.  He wants to know why the words will be wrong on a spelling test if he writes a "s" or "p" backwards.  They know he spelled it right. We are very proud of this handsome boy.
The small fries are doing well too.  Both of them are now walking.  Daniel has been walking since around 10 months old.  Dillan is now walking too.  He looks like a zombie when he walks... hands are up in the air and legs are stiff!  It is cute sight to see.  He still speaks German.  When it is feeding time, they talk the most... enough to drive ANYONE crazy!  They love to eat bananas, peaches, strawberries, yogurt, eggs, chicken nuggets, and anything they can beg from people.  They are little beggars.  Daniel still gives a good "mean mug".  I have to say his Mama can give the same looks, but only when you need it.  :) 


From what we can tell so far, Dillan is going to be like his big brother and tall.  Daniel, however, is looking as if he may be a little shorter.  Dillan acts a lot like David too.  He will sit and let you read to him.  He cuddles and sits in your lap.  Daniel always has to be on the go.  Instead of reading the book, he eats it.  He can throw a mean curve ball.  Actually, he just throws everything in sight.  He doesn't like the vacuum or a car wash.  The look on his face for either one of them is priceless.

Last Beach Trip for the Summer

We had to have one last trip to the beach before school starts... or should I say David and I had to have one last trip.  Walter wasn't too excited about the beach.  David left Wednesday with his Papa J and Grandma for the beach condo.  They wanted to visit the Pensacola Aviation Museum before the beasts (Daniel and Dillan) arrived.  :)  While in Pensacola, they decided to go ahead and wonder to the Lighthouse also.  David was pretty excited because he said he walked up 177 steps to get to the top.  Of course he didn't get tired, but he had to stop because Grandma and Papa J needed to rest.  I'm sure he didn't need to catch his breath too.  Walter, Dillan, Daniel, and I left Friday after work.  Let me just say, I have rode to the beach 2 other times this summer ALONE WITH THE TWINS and those trips were much easier.  Daniel decided he wanted to whine, cry, and make loud noises the whole entire ride!  Dillan couldn't help but join in.  Finally, I made Walter pull over for a sanity break and to get them out for a minute.  Anyway, we survived the ride and pulled in at the condo around 8:30 that night. 

















Saturday was a busy day.  We were awoken by two hungry midgets at 6:15.  These 1 year olds are some hungry 1 year olds.  They can't go five minutes after waking up without having milk.  We fed them and had our Vi Shakes and out the door we went.  The beach was much cleaner than the last visit.  I took a blow up pool... waste of time!  Neither one of them stayed in it longer than 5 minutes.  Karla and I held them and sat at the edge of the waves.  Then we handed them over to Walter and Jim while we dumped the 10 pounds of sand out of our suits.  We pretended we forgot about them and played in the ocean with David. 

After the beach, we went to the pool.  Much easier.  The babies chilled in their floats and we played volleyball (David was the ball), Olympics, and had other competitions.  The babies went up for a nap, Walter and David went fishing, AND I GOT TO LAY OUT BY MYSELF!  How great that was!  Walter and David ended up catching pin fish, croakier, and crabs.  I caught sunburn. 






Saturday evening we ate at the Original Oyster House, had Dippin Dots, and bought lotto tickets.  The babies went home and we took David to the track.  This was a surprise for him and he was so excited.  He chose to ride with me on the Go Carts.  Not sure if that's because I treat my personal car as a race car or what, but we came in 1st place!  We smoked Daddy and everybody else.  Walter even wrecked a little boy trying to catch up with us.  Walter beat us a t Putt Putt.  Then David rode the Bumper Boats and soaked a woman with a white shirt on.  Good thing he's too young to notice!  Hahaha! 

Here it is Sunday, and we are on the ride home.  We have been up since 5:30 whis morning.  Can you guess hwy?  We have been to the pool and out to eat for lunch.  The drive is going a lot better than the ride to Gulf Shores.  Daniel is asleep and Dillan is attempting to do the same.  David, well he has his game. 

Once again, an eventful weekend. 

1 Year Olds, Oh My!

 On August 4, 2012, Dillan and Daniel turned one!  One year prior, I was in the hospital prepping to birth them.  Walter and I were both nervous about how healthy they would be since they were arriving 5 weeks early.  Dillan came faster than we (Dr. Martin included) expected and at 8:18 he entered the world.  Daniel was more stubborn and didn't want to turn head down.  After his heart rate dropped, a C-section began.  He blessed us 12 minutes later at 8:30.  One baby stayed to learn how to breathe better and the other came home with us.  The journey began.
Here we are, a year later!  Their birthday happened to fall on a Saturday, so we were able to celebrate and have their party on THE BIRTH DAY! 
The book The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle was the party theme.  My BFF, Natasha, made the cake.  She is so talented and always does a great job on everything she makes.  She even made fruit and caterpillars out of fondant for the 2 tiered cake.  The smash cakes were jut as cute with their names and a caterpillar on them.  Both Dillan and Daniel loved them!  We sang "Happy Birthday" twice, once for each of them.  They dug in and took their time enjoying all the icing.  While they ate, we caught David licking the icing off the candles and fondant pieces.  BUSTED!!! 
 Neither one of them were too happy when I took the cake away.  That put me in the "bad mommy" category. 
Other than cake, the party guests also enjoyed ice cream, watermelon, grapes, oranges, and strawberries just like the very hungry caterpillar.  A slide show was also played full of pictures from their first year. 
At the end, Walter and I helped Daniel and Dillan open presents.  A few of the things they got were cute watermelon outfits, new swimming trunks, Mega Blocks firemen, tub books, and money.  We are thankful for all the friends and family who were able to come and celebrate with us.