Happy 5th Birthday Atley and Carson!

Tomorrow, January 15th, the kids turn 5. I can't believe they have been a part of our lives for 5 years. I remember the day so well, being admitted to the hospital on Tuesday, the 13th and trying to stop the labor. Praying that they could hold on a little while longer. They made their appearance on Thursday, after 2 days of hanging out, and receiving the crucial lung development drugs that are given to babies at risk of early delivery.

At 30 1/2 weeks gestation,without any pain medication, and a natural childbirth at 5:22 a.m. our sweet daughter entered this world. She weighed a whopping 1 lb 15.3 oz and came out exercising her lungs. She was so little but already proving to be quite a fighter! After 6 weeks in the NICU and a few years of growth struggles and feeding issues, she is offically on the chart for her weight, it's only the 1% but we will take it. She is full of energy, attitude, a deep love for her parents and brothers. She wants to be a "Real Cinderella when she grows up"

Our sweet son entered the world 15 minutes later at 5:37 a.m. and was 3 lbs 14.3 oz and faced the most struggles during his NICU stay. He spent time on oxygen, on CPAP, and came home on an apnea monitor due to dropping his heart rate while he sucked his bottle. He spent 7 weeks in the NICU. Carson wants to be a fireman when he grows up, and informed us that "He is falling in love with Hannah", a little girl in his preschool class.

Those early months with them were such a blur, the feedings, the worrying, the sleepless nights turned into days that were foggy and overwhelming. The moments of pure joy when two babies giggled, or the assembly line of cereal feedings, one mouth to the next, while the other cried because you weren't feeding it quick enough for them. 5 years of moments, of hard moments, of joyful moments, funny moments, scary moments.

This year our kids will start losing their baby teeth, start all day kindergarten, they will no longer be classified as preschoolers but as school aged children. They are becoming little people who have completely stolen our hearts along the way.

Happy 5th Birthday Atley and Carson. Thanks for letting us join you on this magical ride called growing up.