time to update you all

I am so ashamed to state that we haven't blogged since September! First things first you all probably want an update on Hailey. I successfully cut out milk, it was pretty simple, and it really forced me to eat less processed foods, which we should all try working toward anyway, and in general I felt more healthy. But unfortunatly Hailey only got worse, which was not the effect we were going for. Finally sick of it, I set up an appointment with a pediatric allergist-thankfully our insurance doesn't require a referral since I was sick of trying to get the pediatrician to see this as a necessary step. Thankfully we did, Hailey is allergic to eggs (the yolk and egg white) and peanuts. So he gave us an Epi Pen and instructed me on how to administer the shot to her if she goes into anaphalactic shock. Peace of mind is everything, now I know what she's allergic to, and now I know that if she were to have a severe reaction, I have the medication to help her. The doctor also put her on daily Zyrtec which has been amazing at stopping her constant itching, fussiness, rashes, etc. She is happy, and generally itch free. Our daily routine involves: zinc medication (to increase appetite and help with itching), morning lotion (basically a vasoline product), night lotion (same vasoline), and night Zyrtec. We also give her a prescription hydrocortizone as needed for the rashes and itching. She's basically pretty high maintence, but I'm so glad she's feeling better, because basically when Hailey is happy so is everyone else! The doctor says she'll most likely out grow her allergy to eggs, but only one in 5 outgrow their peanut allergy. I'm just glad those two are more simple things to avoid her eating than milk and wheat! Here's a cute picture of our precious girl!

Day 1

Look at this face. I can't look at this face and say she's not worth it.
Yes, I'm about to make a big sacrifice for Hailey- outside all the other normal sacrifices we make to be moms-- I'm cutting dairy out of my diet. Now I know a LOT of mother's do this-as well as cut MANY other things out, and my hats are off to them! This is nothing easy. A little background: Hailey has had ezcema since birth, which continues to get worse as well has having various allergic reactions. Itching itching itching is what Hailey does all day long. Here is a picture of Hailey (that's a little hard to see) during a typical allergic reaction which happens at least a couple times a week (on top of the daily itch, and red rashy skin)
So at the twins' 9 month appointment wednesday the doctor prescribed Hailey a medication and told me to cut dairy out of my diet. I guess I could just put her on formula but honestly that costs money that we don't have, plus it's more dishes than I want to do, and it would kill me to nurse Brady and feed Hailey a bottle. So I'm giving it a try!
The night before day one I decided to go out with a bang and Mike bought me a peanut buster parfait from Dairy Queen, I felt like a kid!
Day 1- I haven't bought soy milk yet so for breakfast I ate two pieces of toast (thankfully we had some bread with no milk in it) with peanut butter and fruit spread. I also ate ice water and a peach. So far so good
For my snack later I ate a banana. For lunch I ate a sandwich with meat, lettuce, tomato, mustard, and dairy free mayo. I ate a few chips, but most chips in the house had dairy in them. Then it was off to the store. Gosh I hate grocery shopping when it takes forever, and when you have to read EVERY label it gets old fast. I had read that I could find margarine without dairy, but after reading 8 labels I was sure the store didn't have it. Then I tried the last margarine on the shelf and it was dairy free- finally. Then I had to compare soy milk prices and picked one that looked good. I got a few other essentials and tired to find some good snacks to keep me full.
For dinner Loni made bratwursts and pasta salad. I couldn't eat the buns so I used the other bread we had, the pasta salad had dairy in the sauce so Loni had to put a bowl of pasta to the side for me which I found a salad dressing without dairy to pour on.
For my snack after dinner I had two pieces of toast with my new margarine-which surprisingly is the best margarine I've ever tasted (maybe I was just craving butter), jam, and a glass of soy milk which I was also surprised to find that I liked!
So for a first day it wasn't bad at all. I did learn a few things: reading every label is sooo annoying, and I'm terrified that I'll forget to read labels or just forget in general and eat some cheese or butter. I also discovered that dairy is really in EVERYTHING: chips, salad dressing, margarine, sauces, some breads and pastas, french fries, and basically most processed foods. I also learned that there are many ways to say a food has dairy in it, if it contains: butter, cream, casein, whey, caseinate. So it's possible that I didn't go all dairy free and didn't know it since I found out all the details about different ingredient names later that night, but I'm pretty proud of myself so far. The doctor said we'll know within one week if it's helping Hailey. And I hope it does, since doing this is worth helping her be less miserable.

Our Anniversary

While we were in D.C. Mike and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary by going to the Melting Pot. It was such a great night, my mom was in town and was able to watch the babies while we went out to dinner for 2 1/2 hours. I don't know how best to explain the night other than it was one of those experiences that is worth every penny as an investment in your marriage and reminds you once again why you married such an incredible person. We obviously don't have the time, money, or freedom from the kids to go on a second honeymoon or private vacation, but while we wait for those days to come this was a great substitute. We had a private dark corner booth, it was fun to experience a fondue restaurant for the first time, cuddle, talk and laugh, and enjoy great food! I felt like we were falling in love all over again and flirting like old times! :) We talk all the time about going again. It reminds me of the importance of weekly dates and investing in your marriage. When I think back to my masters program and doing counseling with couples I am reminded of the sadness and depression that can enter your life because of a poorly invested-in marriage. I'm thankful everyday for the amazing person I married! He is my best friend, I love you Mike!
We also got a carrot cake (the cake we had at our wedding) which was from a German Bakery and was delicious! If you're ever in Arlington I totally recommend stopping by Heidelberg Bakery.

The rest of our trips in DC

So this is our final week in DC, and while we'll miss it, it will be good to get back home. We miss family, sleeping the twins in their cribs instead of playpens, and the dry air of Utah. Here's the rest of our saga in DC, plus some really cute pics!

Because Mike usually would work late (till about 8) I started picking him up from work so he could avoid an hour long commute home (it takes us 10 minutes to get to his work when it's not rush hour) and we could spend more time with him. One day I decided we'd pick up Mike from work and then have dinner at the park across the street. The twins were mesmerized by the squirrels. This is a cute picture of them in their pjs and dad in his work clothes staring at the squirrels. :)

The following weekend we planned to go to the zoo! Which we knew would be more for us than the babies. But we tried to see things that were either big, moving, or brightly colored. The babies enjoyed it! We saw all we wanted to right before they fell asleep. After their nap later that night we took them to the pet store, which they really really enjoyed! No crowds, they could get up close to the animals, and we didn't have to pay to park. :)

The following weekend we planned to go up to New York to visit Teenie. Teenie suggested taking the bus, which in hind sight would have been a MUCH cheaper trip, but the bonus of driving was that we got to stop in Philadelphia and get cheese steak! We LOVED it! My mouth waters to this day, I keep begging Mike to take us back!

To give a little history, one day Mike and I were watching UnWrapped and learned about these two philly cheese steak restaurants that are across the street from each other and both claim to have the best philly cheese steak: Geno's Steak and Pat's King of Steak. Mike decided right then and there that we one day had to go and try both. So once there, Mike bought a cheese steak from both places, plus the cheese fries I had been craving for weeks, and we sat on the sidewalk (since we feared the wrath of eating a cheese steak from the other restaurant at one of their benches) and had a delicious dinner. We both decided that Pat's King of Steak was our favorite, has anyone else taken the challenge and have a favorite?

One of the hard things about going to NY was that instead of taking us 4 hours, it took 9 since we had at least 4 hours of stop and go traffic just to get out of Maryland. Plus any stops to nurse and change twins, plus dinner. We also spent at least $30 in tolls (some bridges cost $11 to cross) and another $35 to park our car for 24 hours. There were times when both Mike and I looked at each other and said, should we just turn around and go back home and come a different day? But in the end it was totally worth it, since we got to see Teenie and the big apple!

The subway was a fun adventure, I think the babies were both fascinated by the sights and sounds in the city!

Here's Brady and aunt Teenie right before Brady is instantly lulled to sleep by the rocking of the subway.

We didn't do much in NY, but we loved going to Central Park, laying out on a blanket and letting the twins play and nap.

Brady is sporting his new mohawk (which we had recently discovered he had) in honor of Teenie. :)

The next week my family came from IL to visit. They got to see the temple, The Holocaust Museum with us, and go to a delicious German Backery in Arlington that we love.

The babies love it when extra people are around to give them all the love and attention they could EVER want!

This is one of the reasons baths have become almost a daily event here. I think Brady knows that the messier he can make himself during feeding, the more likely we'll put him in the tub to splash around! :) But how can you resist such a cute face?

The following week we met up with my good friend Dara from BYU. We went to her parent's home and took the twins swimming. It was sooo much fun. I think all their baths prepared them for it. Hailey laughed the whole time, maybe she thought it was funny that she could only see our heads above the water.

It was such a fun day. Hope you enjoy!