We're Hungry

Christmas Tree

Sasha Came To Visit and We Nearly Went For a Hayride

Sasha and his Daddy came to visit Meghan for a little this afternoon and then we went to see what the hayride around the neighborhood was like.. but they had no horse (just a pickup truck and a cement covered trailer) so we got a hot chocolate (spilled a little) and walked around a little only to find Santa landing a small plane on someone's lawn..

Meghan Dresses Up

Parents Night Out

Mum and Dad went out for the evening, leaving Grandma at the mercy of Meghan, Cara and Caitlin.. she survived, we had fun and children were fine.

Dancing Toddler

Meghan couldn't resist dancing along with Grandma's music.

Rocking Her Sisters

Meghan wanted to help her sisters sleep so she rocked them both at the same time:

Thanksgiving

We enjoyed Thanksgiving and had a houseful of people, some of them adults. Meghan played hostess to Mimi, Coco, Nora and Henry. The older people played with Trish, Ravi, Natalie, Larry and Jennifer. Food came from Cowboy Chicken and the good food was supplied by Grandma and Trish.

Here's some pictures:

Meghan and her Sisters

Here's a nice video of Meghan making sure that Caitlin and Cara are put together properly:

What Really Happened

Let's see what happens when Meghan decides that riding in her Radio Flyer is no fun anymore..

Sea World and San Antonio

We loaded the minivan and all headed down to San Antonio for a couple of days before Thanksgiving. Chandra and family drove up from Houston and we had fun together. The weather was great and we got to see dolphins, sea otters, whales, penguins and other creatures in shows and displays.

Here are some pics:

Cara and Caitlin Get Weighed

Cara and Caitlin went for their one month check today and were weighed, measured, poked and prodded. Everything was fine; Cara has now caught up with her sister and they are both 7lbs and around 20 inches.

Mama is tired but doing well with lots of help from Grandma and from Dada and Meghan

Mini-Cook

Meghan was trying to help Grandma prepare lunch so we gave her a blunt knife and let her join in:

Halloween Witch

Here's a picture of Meghan before she goes out trick or treating. She spent part of the evening sitting on the front porch giving out candy to anyone who asked.



Here's one of Meghan and Mia who lives down the street. They seem to enjoy spending time together. MIa is dressed as Elmo but because it was so warm she had the head off..

Caitlin waiting for sleep

Here's a nice picture of Caitlin as she thinks about going to sleep after a good feed and a bath. Cara was already asleep when I took this.

More Lego

Meghan doesn't have enough Lego yet so while we were visiting the new Toys'r'us near the house (they have been sending coupons for a month so it would have been rude not to go), we picked up a cement mixer figuring it had strong play value.
It goes well with the box of Lego that she got from cousin Geoffrey.

Really, we were at the store to pick up some extra supplies for the twins..

Sasha Came To Visit

Meghan had a little break today from the usual routine; Sasha came to visit and they had lots of fun. They tried out Meghan's new chairs, played with the water table, checked out the bicycle trailer. Dada didn't take a lot of pictures but Asel did..

The Tanning Beds Are Gone

We took Cara and Caitlin back to the hospital yesterday for another checkup and their jaundice is now down to normal levels so the tanning beds have gone home. They have also been eating so well that Cara put on 4-5 oz in one day! Caitlin put on 2-3 oz which is very good but still less than her little sister.

Tanning Beds

The twins have a little jaundice and have their own tanning beds to help them get over it.

Mini-Nurse

Meghan was home from daycare today and helping to feed her baby sisters:

Mini-chariot

Meghan got a chariot and is zooming around the neighborhood, spurring on the horses with cries of 'Dada, ride!'.

We bought a trailer for the bike and Meghan loves it - she climbs in, straps herself in and then calls for me to come and ride around the neighborhood. This thing is well made, light-weight and has cup-holders! It also has a 5-point harness system for twins and can be converted into a stroller.

I was asleep on the couch (up late helping with babies) and she came and woke me up to tell me we were going for our second ride of the day..

Of course, being the helpful mini-engineer that she is, I couldn't just put it together and inflate the tyres without some sort of helpful assistance.

Mini-sisters

Look what I found!

Mini-Cook

I was trying to occupy Meghan this morning so I said, "Let's make a cake" so Meghan replied "Egg!" and walked to the fridge. She can also say butter but not sugar..

It's Late..

It's late and everyone else is asleep. As I type that, Caitlin wakes up behind me because she's hungry or needs changing. It's only been two days but I can tell them apart by their noises (Cara makes higher-pitched noises) and their feeding habits (Caitlin eats more and protests more when hungry).

The Little People Are Going Home

The twins are going on their first road trip today.. all the way from the hospital to the house.

Meghan Met Her Sisters

It was a long day but I remembered to pick up Meghan from daycare and then we went for a dad-daughter meal at Chick-Fil-A where, while we dined on chicken nuggets, I explained the new family order, got her saying 'babies' and 'antiseptic handwash' then took her to meet her sisters.

She seemed ok until one of the worms with heads started crying. She was comfortable pointing at noses and eyes but not holding them and looked a little distressed when we got too close. She was happier after we went for a walk to the jello fridge and we used the antiseptic handwash a couple of dozen times.. she actually wanted to check Mom's tummy to see if the babies were still in there.

On the way home, she asked about Mum and Grandma several times.. and as she falling asleep, she was asking about the babies.

The Twins Are Here

Cara (5 lbs, 11oz) and Caitlin (6lb, 4.7oz) were born today around 12.50 and took turns to cry. So far we think they look like each other but only some of the time. Everything went well and Mum is feeling lighter.

Here's a picture:

Today is the Day!

Today is the day that Meghan gets to meet her two baby sisters.

We are waiting in the hospital at the moment, Aey is sleeping and her Mum is watching tv, all of us getting some rest while we can.

The nurses have been and done their thing, the OB dropped in to see if everything is ok and now we are just waiting.

So far, the favorite names are Caitlin and Cara.. that may change.

Pictures later!

The Morels: Sasha and Meghan in the sink in Allen

Asel has some great videos of Meghan and Sasha playing together on her blog, take a look -The Morels: Sasha and Meghan in the sink in Allen

Grandma, Surgery and Sea Horses

It's been a long week and a lot has been happening. Grandma arrived from Thailand last Sunday (along with Aunt Than) without incident (apart from all the computers in the arrival hall crashing as they stepped off the plane) and Meghan is loving the extra attention.



She has had a bunch of bites from the mosquitoes that came out in the cooler weather during the week and in the aftermath of the hurricane and has been telling everyone who smiles at her about her booboos.

After a recent visit to the ear doctor when we discovered that her hearing is degrading because of a long-standing ear fluid problem, we decided to go ahead and get the tubes put in so Wednesday, we took her in for surgery. Even though it is a routine operation and only minor, it still had us on edge. Happily things went smoothly and now our little chatterbox is even more chatty.

Yesterday, Hurricane Ike rolled past nearby and we got lots of rain and wind.. so we decided to drive to the Dallas Buddhist Center to fix Aey's passport. Fortunately, Dallas was spared the full force but Houston did not fare so well, nor Galveston.

We went to Ikea this afternoon to buy a new bed for Meghan so we can move her into her own bedroom upstairs when the twins arrive which will be soon. They had some fun furniture and Meghan enjoyed climbing on most of it. We came away a new junior bed, mattress and covers and a really night light in the shape of a seahorse that is about 3 feet from head to tail.

This evening Aunt Than and Meghan played video games together. At least, Meghan thinks that they did and probably enjoyed it just as much as if she had any idea how to play Mario Karts.

Lego Architect

Uncle Neil and Cousin Geoffrey sent Meghan a big box of Duplo Lego which she has been playing with and enjoying herself. Here are some photos and a video clip where she constructs a monument to their generosity

Mini-van

Mum and Dad decided that it was time for a mini-van. The twins are arriving in October and Grandma and Aunt Than are coming to visit in September so we need more seating than the Honda Accord was allowing us.

We started looking a few weeks ago and started pricing up the available models with the features we wanted and ended up at David McDavid in Frisco. After some hard bargaining, we struck a deal and drove out in a new Honda Odyssey.

Sasha brought his family over on Sunday and the toddlers took us all on a road trip. They enjoyed a nap and we enjoyed the smooth ride and amenities of the van.

Sasha's mum took some nice pictures and sent them to us:

New Lens

I bought a new lens for the Rebel XTi with a fixed focal length and it takes great pictures but I need to get used to it.

Meghan likes it when we cook and enjoys being part of the mess.







Sheba looking majestic and patient:

Landscaping

We have had some landscaping done by Garrison Gardens after getting some trees from Treeland and the yard is looking nice. Next week, we will get the patio covered by Precision Pavers and then we will be done with the upgrades.

Mini-Gardener and Mini-Cook

Meghan has been helping in the yard and we have been taking pictures. We planted new trees in the back and new flowers in the front and they all need extra water and care and a little gardener.






I was making a cake and Meghan wanted to help: