The Raymond Family: June 2008

Monday, June 30, 2008

Birthday Cakes!!

I just posted Jonas & Nolan's birthday blog and forgot to put a picture of their cakes!! I made these myself- one for each boy! I was so proud of the way they turned out, that I had to share!

When people told me that my boys would grow up too fast, I never gave it much thought! Especially the first few weeks when I was EXHAUSTED!!! But oh how I'd love to hold my boys like I did a year ago- when they weren't so busy and would lay on my chest for hours! The times I could lay them in bed with me and admire them for hours! (as I start to cry!) Jonas and Nolan are growing so fast! I cannot believe they are already a year old! How I try my best to savor every single moment I have with them only to realize that these are the moments I will long for 20 years from now! I have been blessed beyond words with 2 beautiful, healthy, amazing boys who I fall in love with more and more each day. Becoming a mother changed my life forever and each new day is an adventure! Nolan is walking everywhere and has facial expressions that make me cry from laughing so hard! He is my loving little boy who wakes up smiling and ready to give me a hug! And they are the best hugs ever! Jonas is my laid back lil boy whose smile melts my heart daily. He is a flirt, a talker, and a complete joy to be around! I am still in amazement that God saw me fit for such an amazing blessing- my twin boys! Here are some pictures from their first birthday party- we had it here at our house. Sandbox & kiddie pool for the young ones, wiffle ball for "young at heart", and enough food for an army! Enjoy!

Jonas and Nolan diving into their cakes!

Nolan going head first!

Jonas loved the icing!

Chris & I helping the boys open presents!

Their play house... they LOVE this thing!

Here is a slideshow of some more pics. I took way too many to post them all!

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Birthday Invitations!!

Here is a scan of Jonas and Nolan's 1st Birthday invitations minus the address and RSVP number- for privacy reasons. Are they not the cutest things you've ever seen?!? So as you can tell, we're having a construction/excavating party- You didn't really think I'd do it any other way?!? I'm really excited and stressed all at the same time! I never knew their birthday party would be so much work! Moe- you did an amazing job on their invitations! I love them! I hope to post pictures of their party soon!

Warning- this will cause you to smile :)

My boys are turning 1 this Saturday!! And while I am filled with mixed emotions (sad that they are walking, becoming independent, and growing up so fast but greatful that they are happy, healthy, and such good lil boys), I had to laugh when my brother-in-law sent this to me. Moe (Leann's husband) is a graphic designer, so I asked him if he would design the boys birthday invitations (I will post one soon). Moe sent me 3 different options to choose from and this one made me smile, scream, and laugh myself to tears! I had to share it! Hope it has brought a smile to your face!

Monday, June 16, 2008

Happy Fathers Day!!

Words will never be able to express what a wonderful husband I have been blessed with. He has wanted kids since the first day I met him- while I'm sure he no longer wants 5!! We never dreamed we would be blessed with twins- and boys- you can't imagine Chris' excitement! Jonas and Nolan have Chris wrapped. And they adore him so much! Babe- I hope your 1st fathers day was all you dreamed and more. You are an amazing daddy! Nolan and Jonas are blessed to have a father like you. I know you will always love them endlessly. I hope they are just like you when they grow up! Love you!

Daddy's little hunting buddies :)

Daddy's mini- me's

Daddy and Jonas in the NICU

Daddy and Nolan in the NICU

Daddy taking Jonas to the pool!

Fathers Day weekend!

Fathers Day was a busy day! We stayed at the campground which is always so much fun. Saturday night, Dad, Barb, and Cindy came up to our RV and we played games until late. Sunday morning, I made breakfast for my daddy. We all enjoyed breakfast by the lake. Its such a relaxing place! We took the boys on a walk, let them swing at the playground, and took a nap! We went to dads for a cookout for lunch. The boys loved getting to feed the ducks that wondered up from the lake. After that, we packed up and headed home. While the boys napped, Chris and I unpacked and got to spend some time together. We loaded up once again and went to Chris' parents for another cookout. We ate, swam, and stayed late to play games. We had such a wonderful day and hope our fathers did as well!

Nolan wanting in the pool!

Daddy and Jonas feeling the water- it was like bathwater!

Aunt Neenan and Leann

Jonas swimming to mommy!

Jonas loving the pool

Nolan swimming with daddy

Jonas swimming with Aunt Bethanie

Daddy and Nolan

Playing at Nanas before bedtime while we played games

Pops and Jonas taking it all in!

Jonas going to give aunt Cindy kisses

Nolan smiling

Pops, Barb, and the boys...

Happy Fathers Day!!!

Chris and I are blessed to have 3 very special men in our lives! We wanted to take a moment and thank each of you for being amazing dads and heros to both of us!

Dad- you are amazing in every sense of the word. Your love for me has never been anything short of endless. You have accepted my husband as your own son and he admires you in more ways than you'll ever know. You love my boys to depths that I never knew possible. And you have been the greatest dad ever to me and Cindy. I am so proud to call you my daddy!

Greg- you mean more to me than I'm sure you've ever realized. It was almost 10 years ago that you came into my life and I loved you from day one. I was so excited when you told us you were going to ask mom to marry you! And I was so proud to stand next to you and mom as you did just that! You have brought my mom so much happiness, made her smile when I wondered if she ever would again, and loved her with a love that I knew I wanted in my marriage. You took Cindy and I in without any questions and have always treated us like we were your own. From always making sure my car had the oil changed, tires rotated, and plenty of gas to dropping everything you had planned to help me, you have always been someone I knew I could count on. You have been a father to me in more ways than you'll ever know and I'm blessed to have you in my life. Jonas & Nolan love their Poppy!

Jot- from the first day I met you, I knew you were a ball of fire! And your son is a spitting image of you! He is so proud to call you dad. He has learned so much from you and continues to daily. We all love you! Hope you had a wonderful Fathers Day!

Free time....

For the first time in 20 years, I'm not currently in school! Since the nurse practitioner classes are only offered during certain semesters, I am off from school until January- which is when I will go back to finish- I'm 3 classes away! So I have started working 2 days a week in the ER to keep up my skills and have adult conversation! I will say this- I have DEFINITELY missed working and I'm so glad to be back! And the money is always a plus! But I was bored to tears the rest of the week while the boys were taking their 3 hour naps! There is only so much housework I can do! So I took up a new hobby- sewing! I invested in a Husqvarna Viking DI sewing and embroidery machine (see above picture) which I LOVE! My stepmom, Barbara, has come over a couple times to give me some lessons (anyone who knows me knows she is a pro at sewing- I can't begin to count all the things she has made for me over the years, much less what she's made the boys!!) After a day of lessons on my machine and several weeks of practicing on my own, I decided that I would make some burp cloths for a good friend of mine that is having a little girl in August! They turned out so great! Of course, there is room for improvement, but that goes with everything! Keep posted as I will update everyone on my creations! Click on pictures to enlarge.

My dining room has turned into my sewing room- its a mess in this picture but I have since bought some stuff to organize it (my OCD kicked in!!). And the boys eat their lunch and snacks in here while I sew- Its perfect!

The monogrammed burp cloths that I made for Rachels lil girls

Monogramming on a boppy cover for miss Janelyn

The burp cloths are ready to be delivered!

The final products!!

Chris' Birthday Present...

For Chris' Birthday, I bought a big canvas for the boys to paint on and Chris could hang in his office! Since the boys love to paint- I knew this would be a good idea! I've had them painting, drawing, and being creative since they were really really little and they usually enjoy it all! So here are pictures of them creating their master piece! Enjoy!

Nolan starting out with blue and orange...

Nolan got very messy!

Jonas not sure what to think about it as he tried grean and yellow

"Mom, I LOVE this!!!"

The final product with a touch of mommy in the middle :) The boys just couldn't reach that far!

Homemade Babyfood!!

Everyone has asked me to post a blog on homemade babyfood so they can either start making it or tell their friends- so here it is! Making the food is very easy and contrary to what people think, its not very time consuming. I would pick one day a month and make enough to last me until the next month. The great thing about making it is that you can give babies a variety of foods that you cannot buy in babyfood! In fact, my boys favorites are broccoli, mangos, pineapples, and corn! Just remember to always allow 4-5 days between trying new foods to make sure that they don't have an allergic reaction! If you have any questions at all- email me. Here goes-

Broccoli, apples, pears, colliflower, carrots, peas, green beans, prunes: Simply steam these foods until tender then puree!

Squash: Cut in half and remove all the strings like you would a pumpkin (which they can also eat!). Put 1/2 inch of water in bottom of baking dish. Put the squash in the pan of water cut side down. Bake at 400 for about 45 minutes. After cooling a bit, puree!

Sweet potatoes & Baking Potatoes: Wrap in foil and bake until tender. Remove skins & Puree

Bananas, Watermelon, Pineapples, Mangos, Blueberries, oranges- just puree! The watermelon will have to be mixed with something with consistency after its been tried once. Otherwise, its a watery mess!

After trying all the foods (and I'm sure there are foods that I have forgotten to mention)- I made my own combinations. Prunes, pineapples, and mangos are great all mixed! Broccoli & colliflower are good mixed. And there are many many fruit combinations!

When you puree, you may have to add water to get an acceptable consistency. Peas and carrots are very thick. Squash can be too!

After pureeing, put the food in ice cube trays and freeze! When frozen, but into gallon freezer bags and label (for all the husbands like mine who have no clue which green food is grean beans). You can keep the food for up to 3 months, tho its best if used by 1 month! Enjoy! I know your babies will love the food! My boys are not picky eaters at all! I make them foods that Chris and I don't eat so they won't ever be picky eaters! It has worked so well for us. Now that the boys are off baby food, they will eat anything you give them!

Chris' 30th Birthday Party!!!

For Chris' 30th Birthday- I had a murder mystery party at his parents house to celebrate! His closest friends and family all came and it turned out to be a huge success! Everyone had so much fun- in fact, I'm still having people ask when we're doing it again! Thanks to everyone who came to make this a special day for my husband! He really deserves it! Love you babe- and Happy happy birthday!