Indiana Family & Friends

While I was in IN, I also celebrated my 30th birthday. We didn't do anything special b/c it was one of the only days that we stayed at my mom & dad's & enjoyed some relaxation. Tera, B & B, our cousin Taryn, and my cousin's son, Luke came over to swim & play with the twins. My mom was sweet enough to have cake & icecream pool-side for us! I wasn't real happy about turning 30, so I was ok with not doing much. Here is a picture of Braylee & Brynna with my cousin, Taryn.
Here is a picture of me enjoying my cake & icecream....the twins were inside taking a short nap.

A few evenings while we were in Indiana, we had dinner with my brother & his family. Although him & Heather only have 2 kids, I think Travis loves babies enough that he would have more! Ely liked holding them too, as long as they weren't fussing ;-) Saturday evening, a several more of my high school buddies got together for dinner at Lenny's in Bloomington. My cousin, Broc & his wife Sara were the ones that got all the plans pulled together for all of us to meet up. I was so happy to get to see them & baby Coen once again. Thankfully, several others made time to hang out as well. BJ & his wife had their daughter, Eliza the day after the twins were born. Heather & I actually had the same due date and due to both of us having preeclampsia, we both delivered 8 weeks early. Crazy!!! Josh & his wife, Laura Beth recently moved back to Bloomington so it was great seeing them, plus Jeremiah, his wife, Jamie & daughter Brylee were able to come too. I'm not sure that I have seen them in 2-3 years or more so I thought it was wonderful that we all got to visit a short bit. Although, we did get numerous odd stares in the restaurant as we tried to juggle fussy babies, feed babies, change diapers, & eat dinner ourselves. It was all worth it though...it was a great time! A few people even questioned if they were quads!
Here is a pic of everybody And here are those of us that went to WRV together. From left to right: Jeremiah w/Brylee, BJ w/Eliza, Broc w/Coen, Me w/Hadlee, and Josh w/Kooper (he rented OK for the night b/c Nick was still in SC due to work) Nick was able to fly into IN the following Wednesday. He was definitely excited to see his babies once again! We went straight from the airport to Los Bravos to enjoy dinner with our favorite E-ville buddies, Barb, Tommy, & Emilee. I'm not sure why I didn't get a picture, but I really wish we had. We could spend every night out to dinner with them, we always have so much fun! Then on Thursday afternoon, we headed down to Henderson, KY to spend some time with the Dixon family. Here is a picture of the twins with Hunter, Gunner, Bailey, & Travis. On Friday, we met up with Nick's high school friends. Once again, I don't have any pics, unfortunately, but I think I saw Jason taking pictures so I need to get them from him to post. We all met at Andy & Audrey's, which worked out great b/c they have a wonderful patio for entertaining, plus Audrey is a fabulous cook! I cannot wait to meet their newest addition to their family....she should arrive this fall/winter! We ended up having a really rough night because poor Hadlee was up sick. She was running a fever, had a runny nose, & had some caughing. Thankfully we were still able to make it to my Clifford family reunion for the first time in over 10 years! I loved getting to see pics of my Gramps as a young boy! Also, my Uncle Tom, Aunt Jeanine, & their 3 girls got the chance to meet/spend some time with the twins. They just recently moved from Maryland to Virginia so we don't get the opportunity very often to see them. Once we returned to SC, we took Hadlee to her pediatrician & found out that she had a double ear-infection. Thankfully, after 2 weeks of anitbiotics, she started feeling better and started sleeping better once again!
Spending 2 full weeks in Indiana was absolutely great! I know that Nick & I would dearly miss our wonderful friends here in SC, but eventually, I think we will make the move back. I definitely want the twins to know their cousins, grandparents, aunts & uncles just like I did. I cannot imagine what my life would be like if I hadn't been raised around my family.

1st Trip to Indiana

I know this post is out of order b/c we visited Indiana prior to the twins turning 6 months, but I've had a hard time getting all the pictures to upload properly. So I'm just now publishing it. For the last 2 weeks of July, me & the twins drove up to Indiana to spend some time with family & friends. So much of my family still had not had the chance to meet the twins & of course I always love the chance to spend time with great friends! Nick & I had planned for a quick visit to IN the last weekend of July, but the night before my Mom, Boo, & Josh were going to head back from their visit at our house, I decided to beg my Mom to stay a little longer so that she could ride to IN with me. I have drove back & forth from SC to IN numerous times without Nick, but never without Nick with the twins. Having them go along would turn a 5 minute gas stop into an hour ordeal. Thankfully, my Mom had already taken time off from work, so she had extra time to stay. It normally takes us 9 1/2 to 10 hours to drive to my parent's house, but with the twins & stopping in TN to pick up Trista's boyfriend, our drive ended up taking 12 1/2 hours! I drove it all & the twins did excellent with the exception of about 30 minutes while we were driving through the mountains with road construction. Needless to say, when we arrived early Saturday morning, all I could think of doing was nursing the twins & heading to bed. I managed to get 3 hours of sleep & we rested most of the day at my mom & dad's.
Sunday was my Granny's birthday, so we decided to visit her before heading to Grammy's for Sunday dinner. Tera, Alex, & their girls were also visiting Granny so it was great to get a picture with them....too bad Emi & Ely weren't there.
Grammy was having dinner for everyone at her house b/c my cousin, Tomi and her husband Brad & son Noah were home from Texas. It was the first time that most of them got to meet the twins. It was emotional for me, as I couldn't help but regret that Gramps never had the chance to meet the twins! Here is a super cute picture of Grammy getting to hold Hadlee for the first time!
My brother, Travis and his wife, Heather & my niece & nephew (Emi & Ely) had also never met the twins. Nick & I both love spending time with them b/c they are so much fun & have lots in common with us. Heather was taking advantage of loving on Hadlee while Kooper was passed out in my cousin Tomi's lap.
This was the first time that all of Grammy's great-grandkids were together, so we had to try our best to get a picture of her with them. It wasn't easy, but here are a 2 of the hundreds we took in attempt to get a good one of everyone.
From left to right: Ely, Emilee with Kooper, Grammy with Hadlee, Luke, Lane, Noah, and Brynna & Braylee sitting in the front.
Tera's girls go to the same gymnastics gym that I trained at, so we met up there to watch them Tuesday morning. The gym looks the same & my coaches are still coaching! Afterwards, I went with Tera & her girls to meet Abbie & Max for lunch. Abbie was one of our college roommates & Tera & I both love spending time with her. Of course Tera does this a lot more often than I get to. Here is a picture of all our kiddos together at Abbie's mom & dad's house.
On Wednesday, we all headed down to Evansville to run a few errands...mainly shopping stuff. We went to Busy Beads to make Hadlee a few adorable bracelets and of course we had to eat at Hacienda. Yummy!! Hadlee was nursing, so she missed out on this photo.
Then on Thursday, a few of my BFF's from college met up at my parent's place for lunch, conversation, & a short dip in the pool. Kastonia's little girl, Addison was born in January, so she is only a few weeks older than the twins. Erin brought Whitney with her, but her son Reece stayed at his Papaw's for the day. They were so sweet & brought me balloons, cupcakes, & a birthday gift! They are all always quick to remind me that I'm the oldest....but it was still such a sweet thing!
Hadlee with Erin's daughter, Whitney
Erin loving on the twins before we headed out to the pool! By the way, Erin is expecting her 3rd baby in December!
A few of the days that I was home, Emilee & Ely stayed at my mom & dad's too. Emi was a great help with the twins. Ely watched them while I took a quick shower once and he let me know that it was a lot of hard work, ha ha! Funny since this is coming from a 10 year old boy who knows how to run my Grandpa's farm.
I also got the chance to have dinner a few times with several high school friends, but some how we did not get any pictures!?! One evening, the twins & I met my friends Sarah & Patricia along with their husband's & kiddos for Mexican in Linton. We had a great time catching up & Jake did a wonderful job putting Kooper to sleep. Then another evening, we all met up at the Lyon's Mexican restaurant. My friend, Autumn wasn't able to meet the first night we had dinner, so she was glad we were able to get another nigh planned. She was so happy to meet the twins! Autumn, Anthony, Sarah & Nathan and their daughter, Audrey, Nathan & Angie and their boys Hayden & Jackson, along with Patricia & Jake all had a wondeful dinner together. It is just too bad that we don't get to meet up more often!

6 Months & Counting!

Hadlee & Kooper~
Just 6 short months ago today, you were brought into our lives. It has not been an easy 6 months by no means, but it has all been well worth it. We are amazed daily with how our lives have changed for the better. The long, scary days spent at the hospital and in the NICU are just a blur now. We both love you very much and cannot imagine what our lives would be like without you two.
At this point, you both are very curious and a little bit nosey. You have a hard time nursing unless I place you under the cover because you become easily distracted by the sounds and movements around you. Although there are still a few developmental delays that your physical therapist is concerned about, over the past 4-5 weeks you both have made great progress! Both of you are putting full weight in your little legs, reaching out to grab toys, smiling at everyone that talks to you, rolling over more and more or at least attempting to roll, and you have even started babbling to us. It is so much fun to watch you explore your surroundings (including reaching out for Marley & Gage)!

Little Miss Hadlee, You have the sweetest little smile & bright eyes. You are definitely more shy at this point than your brother. It is so cute when someone talks to you & you turn your tiny head to the side & look out at them through the corner of your eyes. It is so sweet! Your hair is finally starting to grow in everywhere except your lovely bald spot on the back of your head. Everytime you get upset, you toss your head back & forth; therefore, you have a bald spot. :-) You weigh 9 lbs. 6 oz. and you are a great eater, so I know you will continue to grow & catch up to Kooper. Hadlee, you have the sweetest little giggle! Your dad & I love to tickle your little tummy & hear your sweet laugh.

Big Little Brother Kooper, You're a big flirt! You have been smiling at people for a long time now. You really enjoy watching the fish in our salt-water tank, you love to play & be entertained, and you especially love sucking on your thumb! You are a champ at rolling around in circles and flipping over to your belly. My oh my how your hair has grown! You have a full head of brown hair and the brightest blue eyes! You tend to fight falling asleep heaven forebid you would miss something. You have the funniest belly laugh and you enjoy kicking and splashing in the bath tub. You are weighing a whole three pounds more than Hadlee at 12 lbs. 6 oz!

You two are amazing and we LOVE you to pieces! xoxo, Mom & Dad

More Summer Visitors

Friends of ours opened an Italian Ice & Custard shop called Rita's. I love it! These 2 pics were taken by one of their daughters during one of our visits. I thought they were cute so I wanted to share them.


After Nick's family visited the weekend of 4th of July, my Mom, Trista, and Trista's boyfriend came down for a visit. While Trista & Josh tried to catch-up on sleep after driving down throughout the night, my Mom & I headed to the Greenville Mall.

Our main mission at the mall- to get Hadlee's ears pierced! As you can see in the picture, she wasn't real happy about it, but she was quickly over the scare and pain. She only fussed a minute or two afterwards & has never seemed bothered by them since, thankfully!

I love Hadlee's first set of ear rings. They are gold hearts with a tiny pink crystal in the center. Plus, Mamaw purchased her a second set that are small crystal butterflies- my favorite!!!

Aunt Boo Boo has them spoiled already :-)

Most of the weekend, we shopped, ate out, road the 4 wheelers, stayed up way too late, & even got to hike to Twin Falls again. Our cousin, Bret currently lives abour 3 hours south of us in SC. He finally made it up for a visit as well & was able to hang-out, meet the twins, & sleep in our new camper.



Here we all are towards the end of our hike at Twin Falls. From left to right- Josh, Boo, Bret with Hadlee, Me, and Nick with Kooper. (My mom was our photographer)


While they were all visiting, we also went to see Despicable Me at the movie theater. It was super cute & the twins did really good. As you can see in this pic, Kooper LOVED the movie! He stayed awake & watched the entire movie from my lap or Mamaw's lap.

A few people have asked if Nick is helpful since we have 2 to feed, change diapers, get dressed, entertain, etc.... Here is Nick's way of double-fisting ;-)

This is a great help early in the morning when I'm trying to get ready for work; however, over the past few weeks the twins have started nursing faster, thank goodness!