the crissman quads

picture overload!!!

2009-12-04T08:19:00.000-08:00

Ok, since we are now into December I thought I should probably get everyone caught up on our very busy November first. We have had such nice weather over the past month(with the exception of a few hot days). The kids have really enjoyed all the outside time and I love how all of that fresh air helps everyone to sleep so well:)

The Month started with a Party! Yes, we had Abby's birthday party (well one of them) on Nov 1st. It was a good time, she only had a couple friends over but they had a great time playing outside and eating a ton of cupcakes. I can't believe she is 4 already! She is so smart, a very talented little artist, great singer and dancer, and my best friend. I love her so much!!!
On Nov 5th (her actual birthday) Daddy and I along with the babies picked up Abby from school and went out for a great birthday dinner. That Sunday the rest of the family came over for yet another birthday celebration. Does this family know how to party or what! Anyways, here are some pics for you to enjoy.

My little daredevil on the swing

Birthday Princess

Yahoo!!! every girl knows, money=shopping

one of her birthday cakes

picking up candy

outside fun

Daddy with his big 4year old

Mommy with my favorite 4year old

Of course as always the babies are changing by leaps and bounds everyday. Tanner has finally decided to give up on crawling and is walking everywhere now. He is very jealous of the other babies and gets very upset if you are paying more attention to the others. He has started giving the best bear hugs and it is so cute because he tickles the back of your neck while he is hugging you. He talks allot, but by far his favorite things to say are "whats that?" he says this all day while pointing at different items and of course (every kids favorite) "NO-NO", he scolds the other babies when they are doing something he disagrees with and he also scolds everyone else whenever he feels it is necessary ( it is actually pretty cute:)He is looking more like a little boy and less like a baby everyday.

My handsome boy in bluejeans

Love my lion

Gimme your food!!!

Look mom no hands:)

One sleepy boy

Wyatt has been changing so fast these days, I can hardly keep up. And BIG NEWS, he took his first real steps this morning!!! He will be running around with the Tan man and Sophia in no time. He started standing on his own about 3 weeks ago, and has been cruising around on the furniture. He has started babbling a lot more as well.Most of it you can't understand, however the one thing he does say well is "watch ya got". He still likes to play on his own allot, but is getting better at interacting with the other babies. It is cute to hear all four of them playing and giggling together. He loves to play chase with us and especially his big sissy. I have to say that the kid can EAT like a horse! He will eat anything and everything you put in front of him. He is not picky at all which is great, seriousley he will eat everything(spam, mushrooms, all veggies ect....Everything). He is growing fast, I am not sure exactly, but I think he is around 22lbs.

Walking with grandma

Peek-a-boo

Standing on a chair:)

My sweet little man

Joel-my happy little boy! He is doing great as well. He can now stand on his own and is cruising while hanging on to furniture. He is still draging his foot a little, but therapy is helping. I think it will still be a while before he starts walking, but you never know with him, he likes to suprise you. He talks all the time and has the most understandable words of all the babies. He may be little but he is tough and just loves to wrestle and chase his sibblings. The nutritionalist started Joel on very high calorie formula last month. We are hoping this will help him put some weight on, he is so tiny(only about 18lbs). The good news is that he no longer needs speech therapy,as he is eating well, just not enough--he is VERY picky about what he will eat. He has started to get angry when he doesn't get his way and has started throwing major temper tantrums, and he is very stubbron (wonder where he gets that from--Great Grandpa Joel:). Most of the day he is smiling and happy and he loves to have dance off's with Sophia. It is the cutest thing to see them sitting across from each other and be just dancing away! I love Joel's smile, it just melts your heart. I am not sure if it is just his big goofy teeth or those big blue eyes but it is just the best smile. Here are some pics.

Beautiful Boy!

A new way of riding

Playing with Wyatt

I LOVE riding my horse!

Happy, Happy Boy!:)

My sweet Sophia is now running around all day:)She is always on the go, so much that it is hard to even get a good picture these days. She has no problem keeping up with her rough and tumble brothers, in fact she can sometimes be quiet a bully. She loves her big sister and likes to mimic the things Abby does. It is so cute to watch them at night when I tuck them in Abby likes to read a few books before going to sleep, and now Sophia must have her own book too. The two of them sit next to each other reading books until they fall asleep. So cute!!! Just like a girl, she loves to talk and dance all day. She loves to ask "what's that" and her other new word is "pretty". She is growing like a weed, I think she now weighs about 21 lbs. She has a ton of hair and unlike her big sis, she doesn't mind if I put bows and pig tails in it. She is still my early bird waking up everyday anywhere between 4:30am and 5:30. I wish she would love sleep as much as her mommy does:) She just got her first molar, which means she now has more teeth than the Tan man. I think she may be the class clown someday, as she just loves to be silly and make people laugh.

Walking with Grandma

Loving her brother (Tanner)

Playing

Mad at mom for dressing her like a boy!

Silly Sophia

Sleeping beauty

I forgot to mention that Abby is now attending a new school. She is loving it and making a lot of new friends. It has been hard for me because she is now going to school mon-friday and it is hard not having her at home with me. Her class put on the cutest show for Thanksgiving. Here are some pics.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with our family. Myself and the kids spent Thanksgiving at Doris and Chuck's house with the rest of the family. I was so happy that my Uncle Dan and Aunt Amy were able to make it here for the holiday. Thank you again everyone for such a wonderful day, and all of your help with the babies and Abby. Kevin had to work on Thanksgiving so we had a little celebration of our own on the following Sunday. It was a very nice dinner with turkey and all the fixings. We were happy that my Grandma and Kevin's dad were able to join us. I put some pictures of the events in a short video.

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Here are some other miscalaneous pictures from some of our adventures in Nov. My parents and I took Abby and the babies to Jungle Gardens for a visit. It was the first time the babies had been there and they just loved looking at all of the animals, especially the alligator that I got to hold right in front of them ( Tanner was even able to pet it:). Kevin and I also took all of the kids to the reading day at The Childrens Garden in sarasota. It is a magical place for kids, if you have never been there, I highly recomend it, your kids will LOVE it. After the childrens garden we took all of the kiddo's out to eat at the old salty dog in sarasota, the weather was beautiful and we had a great time watching all of the boats on the water.That same week my mom helped me to take all of the kids to a childrens festival in North port, Abby especially had a great time getting her face painted, jumping in the bounce house, and she even got to ride a horse! We were also able to get our christmas tree decorated and all of our other holiday decorations up the weekend after Thanksgiving. I just love having the house all ready for the holidays. I hope you enjoy all of the pictures, I know it has been a long time since my last post, Sorry!

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I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season!!!

Hugs--- Sarah and Family

Ps..Dont forget to leave us a comment, we love to hear from everyone:)

Been a long time gone!

2009-10-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, I know most of you are dying to see some updated pics of the kiddo's, so I will keep my updates short. With the exception of a few bumps we have had a great month. The kids are growing so fast everyday is somthing new. We had a few big events this month, the biggest of which is that Sophia and Tanner are now walking!!! Sophia started about a week before Tanner and is all over the place, now that she can walk she refuses to crawl anywhere, she may fall a hundred times,but she always stands right back up and keeps walking. Tanner on the other hand can walk, but he still prefers to crawl(it's faster and less work). Sophia is our little dancer, everytime she hears music(even my cell phone ring)she starts to wiggle. She has 4 teeth now and it is so funny,she looks like a little vampire because only her top two eye teeth are in and she loves to give you huge smiles to show them off. Tanner has 7 teeth now and they are deffinatly used alot, he eats everything in sight! He is now way off of the growth charts, he is 31 inches long and 27lbs, our Dr said that he is as big as a normal 2year old. Hard to imagine that only 15mos ago he was 2lbs 13oz. They are all getting bigger though, here are their measurements Sophia is 28in, 20.8lbs. Wyatt is 27in, 20.12oz (yes now bigger than Sophia!), Joel is still our little man at only 25.5in, and 18.7lbs. Joel and Wyatt are doing great in therapy. They are both now standing while holding on to somthing and they are both just starting to move around furniture a little. Wyatt is still our quiet man, he just loves to cuddle and not complain to much. He eats like a champ, he usually can out-eat Tanner which is amazing. Joel we have now found out is a complete daredevel and totally fearless, he doesn't let his size hold him back at all(I see many broken bones and stitches in his future). We had our first official play date earlier this month at a local water park. The kids all had a great time, but(and this is the short version of the story) Joel decided that while we were saving Wyatt from choking on a leaf, he would try out the stairs! Well as you can immagine that didn't go so well for him, I caught him after he had already managed to roll down about 6 stairs. You would have thought that he would be screaming, but he wasn't, in fact I think if I had let him he would have been happy to try to go down the rest of the stairs. He did get a large scrape on his forehead and some minor brusies, but overall he was just fine. Abby is doing great as well. We are looking forward to a few cool days so we can get outside a little. She is doing great in dance class and likes to show off all of her new moves. She is getting excited about her upcoming birthday. I can't believe she is almost 4! Wow how time flies---

On sept17th we celebrated the second Birthday of our beautiful son Ben. It was harder this year for some reason. We all went to the cemetery to bring him flowers. It was the first time the babies came with us. We are so blessed to have such a beautiful angel watching over us.

Ok now for all of the great pics( and there are alot of them ENJOY!) ps. There is a cute video of the babies at the end of the still pics:) Big Sis Abby and the babies having dinner My beautiful Abby My girls Wyatt playing with Papa Wyatt and Tan man He can't get enough of that thumb Happy Boy! Wyatt LOVES his bath time A puff party Silly Tan man It wasn't me:) I love the ball pit Yes he is! walking girl! what a smile a fit at the water park:) a good hair day gone bad! My brown eye girl Silly boy Joel Enough pictures mom After the stairs Playing at the park Love those eyes

Take care everyone! Sarah and the gang

Babies and Vacations!

2009-09-07T19:52:00.001-07:00

Ok,I know it has been a LONG time since my last post, so here it is(have a seat,and enjoy,this may take a while:)
Kiddo updates:
All of the kids are doing great, and growing so fast. I can no longer call them babies, as two are almost walking and they are all starting to look (and act) like toddlers.
Tanner is getting SO big! He is starting to thin out as he gets taller, but is just as cute as ever. He Is standing on his own without holding on for support, I know it will only be a matter of days before he is walking. He is still a bit of a bully, but he also likes to give the other kids big hugs and kisses (right before he tries to bite their face off!) It is so cute to watch him love on the other babies, not so cute is the biting, but we are working on that. He has even bit me a few times because I was not giving him my undivided attention, sometimes he forgets he is one of five children in this household. He has started saying a few new words- ball, milk(which in baby talk sounds like mik, but it works)and we are trying to teach them all how to say Abby. He now has 6 teeth and still Loves his food. He has a little issue with his thumbs which is making it hard for him to pick up finger foods, so we are working with a therapist to get that corrected. It doesn't bother him though, he discovered that he can just move the food to the edge of his tray and pick it up with his mouth, no fingers required. Smarty pants! Here are a few pics of the Tan Man!
Tanner trying his daddy's ice cream

His I'm soooo... cute grin

His hehe I just took Wyatt's ball grin (not so innocent after all:)

Ok lets face it, He is just tooo.... CUTE!

On to Her majesty, oops, I mean Sophia (hehehe). Lets just say my little angel is becoming quite spoiled. After all what the queen wants, the queen gets right? Wrong, and this can lead to some major fits, I am talking feet kicking, back arching, fist banging, screaming, alligator tear fits! I have to admit she is very much like me in that she has a temper and yet is sensitive at the same time, and boy is she stubborn! Now don't get me wrong, she is most of the time very,very happy and loving. She is very much a mamma's girl and is absolutely in love with her big sister. She loves to wave at everyone, it is so cute she always waves with both hands. She is a big talker, she talks all day. She mostly just babbles but she does say a few words, momma,Dada,and her favorite yeah-yeah-yeah. She has a VERY loud voice and can always get your attention. She loves playing with the other babies and her big sis. By far the cutest thing she is now doing is dancing! Every time she hears music or you sing to her she likes to wiggle her little butt (again just like momma:) It is just the cutest thing you have ever seen, I will try to get it on camera so I can post it on my next update. Tooth count for Sophia 3. Here are some pics!

chewing those fingers

My beautiful girl

Looks like the princess didn't get her way!

My sweet,sweet Wyatt. Is getting HUGE! He is now far from being the smallest at a solid 20lbs he is only 4oz less than Sophia. He is just the happiest baby you have ever met. I love walking in the boys room in the morning and being greeted by three huge smiles. He is now crawling on hands and knees which just started this week, up until now he was army crawling. He also has started saying so many new sounds momma, Dada,ummmm(when he likes his food), nini (which think is goodnight?), and he was the first to say ball, no shock because balls are his FAVORITE toy. No kidding I think he has some weird monkey gene because he does things with the ball that I have never seen any other baby do, even his therapist was impressed. He can pass the ball between his hands and feet at lightning speed he will lay on his back and bounce the ball with his feet and then throw it up in the air with his feet and catch it with his hands (amazing I know) he is also very good at just throwing the ball with his hands and catching it when it is tossed back to him, and how smart is this, when he doesn't have anyone to throw the ball to, he gets up close to a wall because he knows that when he throws the ball it will bounce back to him (baby genius? I think so!) I always feel like he doesn't get enough attention because he is just so darn good. He never cries, he avoids all of the sibling fights, he is just such an amazingly happy little boy. As for the ball thing I think the Harlem globetrotters may want to recruit him for his amazing talent. Here are some cute pics of the Y-man.

Am I cute or what!

Don't even think about taking my ball!

My best friend:)

Our little football player Joel, why football you say? Because he Loves to tackle people! Yes he may be little but he is mighty. His favorite thing to do at this moment is chase his big sister around and when she decides to give up and sit down he likes to go right up to her and pounce! He also likes to make silly noises and have others copy him, he thinks it is just the funniest thing to watch mommy and daddy blowing raspberries. He is also now crawling on his hands and knees, but when he gets tired he still goes back to army crawling. He has had a few big moments this month, the biggest, He stood up all on his own without any help!!!! I am so happy that I get to be at home to see all of these special moments. I came around the corner last Friday and much to my shock Joel was not sitting at his activity table, but standing! I am going to have to put this on the list of one of my greatest moments, I know I might be overreacting but after all that our little guy has gone through to see him standing on his own was a huge moment. Of course being the smart little man that he is he decided that standing wasn't grand enough so the next day not only did he stand again but he proceeded to climb up onto his activity table(not such a good habit). Then to top it all, today during therapy he was able to stack small blocks (one on top of the other) which is huge, considering he had such a severe brain bleed at birth, this is not a skill that most babies achieve until much older. I am one very proud and blessed momma! Joel now weighs 18.6lbs and has 1 cute little tooth. Here are some pics of our tough little man.

Look Mamma I'm Standing!

I did it all by myself:)

Tackling his big sis

could he get any more adoriable

My sweet sleeping boy

and last but not least my best friend Abby. Yes, being a stay at home mom I can now say that my best friend is my spunky three year old daughter, and I am darn proud of it:) Although she has her normal three year old moments she is normally so much fun to be with. She started dance class (jazz, tap, and gymnastics) a few mos ago and is just loving it. I am not able to go into her classroom with her, but the parents get to watch the class in the waiting area on a huge tv. There is nothing more entertaining than 30, 3year olds in pink learning to dance(LOVE IT!) She is also starting to play with the babies alot more now that they are bigger and more able to interact with her. She also is a huge help for me around the house. She loves to help with all the things I am doing cleaning floors, dusting, folding clothes ect... She loves to help feed the babies and likes to hand out the bottles as well. Some of the things she says now days just crack me up. And her immagination is taking off, ask her a to tell you about somthing and it will turn into an hour long tall tale. It's hard to believe that she is almost 4, where has the time gone.Here are some photos of Abby.

playing with mommy's sun glasses

Feeding Wyatt

Playing with the babies

One happy girl!

And what have Kevin and I been up to you ask? Well Kevin has been working alot, he is now working 24hr shifts with two days off, however he does work alot of extra shifts on his days off, so he is very busy. I stay at home with the kiddo's which is not an easy job itself, but it is a lot more fun. I do want to say thank you to my wonderful husband for working so hard so I can stay home with the kids, I really appreciate all of your hard work! We have a pretty busy home schedule, between Abby's school, and dance classes, Joel and Wyatt's therapy twice a week, and many dr's apointments, it keeps me running. Can you believe I have only had my van for 6mos and have already put over 10,000 miles on it(wow), yes it feels like I(and the kids) are always running somewere. However Kevin and I did get a little break this month. We decided to celebrate our 6th anniversery on a cruise to Mexico. Yes, thanks my WONDERFUL parents watching the kids, we went on VACATION!!!!!! I thought it would be hard to leave the kids, because I have never been away from any of them other than the time spent in the nicu, but actually it was sooo.....relaxing!
We had a great time. We headed out early on thursday so we could get on the ship as soon as we could. On friday we sailed to Key West, which we didn't see much of because I think we slept in until like noon! That night was formal night and we recieved a nice bottle of wine at dinner as a gift for our ann ( thank you Ken and Carolyn). Of course we spent a few min(HRS) in the casino, and many lounges (ok, bars) on the ship. But our favorite activity I am sad to say was bingo! I know I am going to take some hits about that, but it is so much fun, and Kevin did win a whopping $75bucks. The best day was our day in Cozumel. We decided to get wild and crazy and rent a Jeep wrangler for the day and explore the island ourselves. We found so many little beach bars, and scenic spots that we would never have seen on a tour. I also discovered my new favorite beer dos equis(so good). We had lunch at a tiki hut on the beach, found an turtle nest that had just hatched, found the mexican K-mart ( you will see a pic), and mostly just enjoyed being together. I can't wait till we can do it again!
Again, a HUGE THANK YOU Mom and Dad for watching all of the kiddo's so we could get away for a few days, we owe you big time! Love ya!
Here are some pics of our vacation.

Sorry this post was so long but things are happening so quick around here I just cant keep up! We would love to here from you, so if you are following our blog please feel free to leave a note for us by clicking on comments at the end of this posting.

Take care everyone!
The Crissman Family

I'm a big kid now!

2009-07-31T18:39:00.000-07:00

Wow I didn't realize how long it has been since my last update on the kiddo's. Well as you all know we now have 4 beautiful one year olds on our hands, and it does truley seem that in the past few weeks they are starting to look and act more and more like toddlers than babies. As much as I would love to hold on to that baby phase forever it seems that time has different plans...More on the Big day and Party later, first I want to skip back to the begining of the month and some short updates on all of the kids.
This 4th of July was so different than the last, for one I wasn't as big as a house waddling around with 4 babies. The other big change this year is that Abby wasn't afraid of the fire works. We actually got to see a big fireworks show the night before the 4th at a local church and it was so fun to see how excited Abby was, we also set off a few of our own(totally legal of course he,he:) it was a lot of fun spending a few special moments with Abby ( the babies were sleeping). Unfortunatly Kevin had to work on the 4th so that day was pretty uneventful.

Abby watching the fireworks

Updates:)
Abby- Is the most happy child I have ever seen! I am not just saying this because she is mine, but she really is. She does have her moments but for the most part she is just happy and funny and super cute! She is doing great in school and is a very talented artist. She is also learning how to write simple words which she is picking up very quickly. She also started dance lessons this month which she really loves. She is taking jaz, tap and gymnastics. She is always such a help with the babies, she helps to feed them, dress them, but she is very good at keeping them entertained with her many song and dance routines, as well as the best stories that she makes up herself ( she has quite an immagination!). This past saturday Kevin and I had a chance to go out with friends (Kelly and Nick, also the parents of quads)grandma decided that she and Abby were going to have a camp out in the living room, tent and all, Abby LOVED IT!!! She had sooo... much fun. Thanks mom! Below is a pic of Abby in her dance outfit.

Tanner- Is getting so big. He just went to the dr this past week for a check up and he now weighs 24lbs. He is a chunk! I decided that it was time to lower all of the babies crib matresses down and what a good call because within days of doing so Tanner was pulling himself up and standing in his crib. He is so cute in the morning just standing their waiting on us to come and get him. He is also claping and gets very proud of himself when he does, or discovers somthing new. He loves to stand at his activity table and play and loves to crawl around the house exploring. His new favorite toy- mommy's tupperware (Loves it!) He is still bulling the other babies but they are getting better at fighting back. Our big man also now has 5 teeth!

Wyatt- Is a little eating machine!He now has 2 bottom teeth! I swear he finally decided that he was done being the tiny one and is quickly trying to catch up to Tanner. He is getting so big, almost 18Lbs now! He has been in physical therapy for over a month now and we are seeing huge improvements. He is now army crawling everywhere instead of just rolling. He stands at his activity table(with assistance)which is great because before therapy started he wasn't even putting weight on his legs. And the biggest acomplishment is that he now sits up all by himself!!! He is still his normal happy self, smiling that huge smile from sun up to sun down. Oh, how could I forget- Wyatt finally said his first word MAMA, it was the sweetest sound I have ever herd!

Joel- My sweet boy. He is now the little one, but still growing fast. I think he is about 17.6lbs now so not far behind Wyatt. He is my little ladies man, always flashing that sweet toothless smile and using those beautiful eyes to get what he wants. He doesn't have any teeth yet but it wont be long. He has started pulling up in his crib this week, so it looks like we will have to lower his mattress as well. He is getting so strong, it seems like he is doing somthing new everyday. Therapy is going great, he has physical and occupational therapy once a week with Wyatt. He is eating very well and is starting to eat some finger foods! He is still army crawling and is like a little speed racer, he is soo... fast.

Sophia- Oh, the little princess! Her personality is just starting to really shine,it feels that she is making that change from baby to little girl. She is now about 19lbs, and about the same height as Tanner. She has two little bottom teeth. She is such a mammas girl which I just love. She is pulling up in her crib and on furniture and the baby gates along with Tanner. I think she will probably be the first to walk. She loves to play with the other babies and especially Abby. She is starting to giggle alot and LOVES to talk, it is so cute to hear her, it is like she is having a whole little conversation with herself or whomever else is around at the time. She loves playing with her little toy phone, she will put it to her and talk away. Her favorite word these days is daddy, when she wakes up in the morning she sits in her crib and screams daddy as loud as she can until I (mommy) come to get her, funny:) she is so cute and so happy ( most of the time) I just love being able to be home with the babies and watch all the changes they are growing up so fast!

Oh, one more big thing I forgot to mention-- They are all starting to drink out of sippy cups! Yahoo!!!!!

I am sure I am forgetting a ton of stuff that has happend since the last post, I promise to try and update it every week or so from now on.
Here are two video's I made hope you enjoy: the first is from the birthday party and the second is just general pics from July.

Hugs--- Sarah and family

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

2009-07-16T04:42:00.000-07:00

Happy First Birthday my sweet Tanner, Joel, Wyatt and Sophia. It has been an amazing year with both good times and sad. We are so blessed to have them in our lives. I hope everyone enjoys the special video I put together.
Ps.Don't forget to pause the music on the blog before starting the video

Happy Birthday Tanner,Joel, Wyatt & Sophia

Make a Smilebox slideshow

a few busy weeks!

2009-06-22T19:13:00.000-07:00

Sorry it has been so long since the last post but it has been a very busy few weeks. The kids are all doing great! Abby is loving summer and all of the fun that it brings. She got to go spend the day at the beach with our good friends Ken and Carolyn, they all had a wonderful time and she really enjoyed getting to play in the water and sand all day. Thanks again Ken and Carolyn for spending the day with her. We also got a wonderful gift from the Millers ( an early b-day gift for the babies). An great pool for the backyard. It is perfect for Abby and the babies, and the best part is that mommy and daddy can swim too which is wonderful on those days when the temp is over 100.
The babies are growing by leaps and bounds!We had a dr's appointment last week and there current weights are- Tanner 21 1/2 lbs, Joel 15 1/2 lbs, Wyatt 15 lbs 15oz, Sophia 16 1/2 lbs. I never thought Wyatt would catch up with everyone, but as you can see he is packing on the pounds and now Joel is the the smallest. Wyatt has hit a major growth spurt and is growing like a weed. It is amazing how much he has filled out. I can no longer make fun of his little chicken legs, he is even starting to get a second chin. The bigger he gets the more and more alike he and Tanner look.I don't know what I will do when they are the same size, I will have to figure out a way to tell them apart. He is still the sweetest little boy you have ever met, we call him quite Wyatt because he never cries and always has a smile on his face.
Joel has started getting in the crawling position these past two weeks so I imagine he will be crawling soon. He loves to talk and giggle all day. He has the funniest laugh I have ever herd out of a baby, I will try to get it on camera and post it sometime soon. Joel and Wyatt will both be starting physical and occupational therapy in the next couple of weeks. They are doing great, but are a little behind developmentally, which is very obvious when you com pair them to Tanner and Sophia. The therapist said they are just normal preemie delays and that it will just take a little more time and work for them to catch up, they are having the most issues with gross motor skills (sitting up, crawling, ect...) I know they will catch up in no time, they are tough little cookies. All I know is Tanner better watch out, because I am sure they will be paying him back for the bulling he is handing out now.
Yes, Tanner is a bully ( and yet sooo... cute!) he has decided that he is the king of the play area and because he can now crawl he has the advantage. The little boys get it the worst, he will push them, tries to sit on them, and has even been caught trying to eat Wyatt's ear (did I mention that he loves to eat!) He sticks his fingers in the other babies ears, pulls hair, and just this week has tried to bite a few times, he is testing out his new teeth. The little boys try to fight back, but for the most part mommy or daddy have to come to the rescue. He isn't mean all of the time, he can also be VERY sweet, he loves to give kisses and loving, he does also love on the other babies (usually right before he tries to steal there toy). The biggest thing that has happened in the past week is that the Tan Man has learned how to say Mama (the sweetest sound I have ever heard). Not only can he say mama, but he has figured out how to put his two favorite words together, can you guess what they are? Mama-baba which translates into mommy bottle, again did I tell you how much he loves to eat. His favorite meal these days is blueberries,blackberries and bananas mixed with whole fat yogurt and rice cereal(YUMMY!) For those of you that have babies, you should try this recipe, I swear it is like crack for babies, They LOVE IT!!!!!!!
Sophia is still our little princess. She is finding her voice and likes to see how loud she can sing all day. She has also started to really love music. Whenever I or Abby sing she just loves to sing with us and she has also started bouncing and wiggling when there is music on in the house. So CUTE! Because Tanner and she are so similar in size they do compete with each other quite a bit.She is very good at standing up for herself.Sophia is also starting to army crawl and is getting very close to cutting her first tooth.
It has also been a busy few weeks around the house. Kevin started his new job a few weeks ago and we are trying to adjust to his schedule. Last week we had a new patio put in the backyard along with a sidewalk leading to the front yard and a new front patio. It looks great, I don't know why we didn't do it a long time ago. Abby loves being able to ride her bike from the front to the back again, not to mention that her play house no longer has to be out in the grass. I have also decided to start a little side job selling Discovery Toys. I will put a link to my web page on here for anyone who might be interested in checking it out. Well I hope everyone is having a great week. I have to work on planning a birthday party, Can you believe the babies are almost a year old already!Hope you enjoy the pictures below!

Hugs-- Sarah
www.discoverytoyslink.com/sarahc

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

What a great week!!!

2009-05-29T10:46:00.000-07:00

Well this past week has been a great one!!! The big news first, all of the babies have been taken off of their apnea monitors (yahoo!!!) Which means no more wires at bed time and waking up to loud beeps. Another big step this week, Joel is no longer on oxygen :)at his dr's visit he did great and she decided he no longer needed it, which means all four babies are officially tube and wire free!!! It seems like they are getting bigger every day, I cant believe they will be a year old in only a month and a half. Tanner has gotten his first two (yes two) teeth. Both of his bottom front teeth came in within a day of each other, and he just loves showing everyone with his huge smile (see pic. below). We will be starting occupational therapy soon with the two little boys to help them build up strength. They are both doing great, Wyatt is now able to roll anywhere he wants to go and Joel has started pulling his legs up underneath himself so I think he will be crawling within the next month or so. Sophia is her usual cute self. She had a feeding evaluation this week at all children's hospital and will need a little speech therapy to help her learn how to eat solid food better. She does ok, but she sucks the food off the spoon as if it is a bottle. It is important for her to learn the correct way of eating now as to prevent any speech or feeding problems in the future.

As far as events this past week there have been a few. Kevin and I decided to take all of the kids out for dinner this week which turned out to be a total disaster! I have never felt so awkward my entire life. Kevin and I spent more time answering peoples questions than eating. Good news is that the kids were so well behaved the whole time. I got several comments about how good they were (every mother loves to hear that!) Kevin hates being stared at like we are some kind of freak show, but I know it isn't everyday people see that many babies together so we might just have to get used to it. Most people are very kind and just love looking at all of the kiddo's. We have had some funny comments and questions, here are a few
"how cute two sets of twins" --- I actually hear this allot I guess some people don't
understand what quadruplets means .
"You had a cesarean right" --- DUH!, sorry but I think this is a stupid question,
think about it people!
"Are they all yours" --- no actually I like to borrow my friends children and stroll
them around town, just for all the attention.
"were they born on the same day?"--- What! again think about it

The list goes on and on but my personal favorite is-- "are you going to have any more?" --- are you smoking crack! NO,NO,NO oh yeah and NO!!!!!!

Ok, sorry I got a little side tracked for a moment.
We had a wonderful holiday weekend. On Saturday Abby went up to my mom and dad's for a sleep over. Kevin, the babies and I went up to my parents house on Sunday for a cookout and some swimming. We had a great time and the babies and I ended up staying at my parents because Kevin had to work the next day. On Monday we headed out early to catch the memorial day parade downtown. We had a great time and were joined by my grandpa and our good friends from Scotland Ken and Carolyn. The babies did great and just loved watching all of the people. After the parade we went back to my parents for a cookout and some more swimming. Abby is turning into quite a little fish, it is hard to keep her out of the water, she just loves it! That evening we (my parents, Abby, the babies, Ken, Carolyn, and myself) all went to the Phillipe estate to enjoy a concert in the park. It was a great time. Abby had so much fun playing on the playground and the babies had a great time playing on the swings and a huge blanket we put down for them. Good music, food, drinks, family and friends = a perfect day! Well time to go pick Abby up from school, I hope you enjoy the pictures below. Don't forget to pause the music on the side bar before viewing the pics.

Oh, and I almost forgot. I wanted to again say a big thank you to my parents for all your help and support we couldn't do it without you. And mom, thanks for helping me make over 400oz of baby food this past weekend! Love ya!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

oops!

2009-05-20T11:01:00.000-07:00

Ok, can you tell I am new at this blogging stuff. I have no idea what happend to the video at the end of my last post, so here it is again (all of it, not cut in half).
Dont forget to pause the music on the side bar before starting the video. Enjoy!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

May Days

2009-05-20T08:07:00.000-07:00

I know it has been a few weeks since my last post, and what a crazy few weeks it has been. The kiddo's are all doing well,finally! We spent all of last week going back and forth to the hospital. That's right, poor little Joel was sick again. He had a major ear infection, which were causing very high fevers, which intern was causing him not to eat. He spent a long week on heavy iv antibiotics, but is now getting much better. He is getting so big,15.6 lbs now. Tanner is moving everywhere, he is very good at army crawling and has also learned to say Dada in the past week. We finally had to put up our big baby gate to help keep him in one place (aka-Tanner Jail) otherwise he is getting into everything (I know this is just the beginning:). At his Dr's visit this week he weighed 20.6 lbs HUGE! Sophia also has begun to say Dada this past week. She has somehow gotten herself off of our normal schedule and has started waking up at about 5:30am, not good because she is also waking up Abby at that time, so you can imagine how my afternoons are going with two grumpy girls. We are working on getting things back on track ( no more waking up before 7 would be nice:).She is now 15.4 lbs. Wyatt just started saying Dada this week. He is also going through a major growth spurt, so he is eating like a horse. I swear he has grown in just the last four days. He is starting to roll allot, and even though he is little he does just fine keeping up with the bigger kiddo's. He now weighs 14.6 lbs!

Earlier this month my Mom, Abby and I participated in the March for babies (march of dimes). With the help of our family and friends we were able to raise $270 for the march of dimes. We had a great time during the three mile walk and I am looking forward to doing it again next year. I would like to thank all of you who donated to our team, we greatly appreciate it, And A big Thank you to my mom for helping, and walking with me!

One of the best days this month of course was Mothers day! I had a wonderful day with the Kids and my family. We spent the day at home just relaxing, and enjoying a nice dinner. My parents and close friends came to spend the day with us. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful mother, I couldn't do it without her! Thanks MOM!

Well I will leave you with a few pics, then I am off to feed babies!

Mom, Abby and I during the March for babies

New baby Gate(aka. Tanner Jail)

Mommy with her kiddo's

Here is a short video with some more cute pics. Enjoy!!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Sick AGAIN!!!!

2009-05-01T18:58:00.000-07:00

ok, I know it has been a few weeks, so I will try my best to get you all up to date.

Abigail is loving school, she has a little boyfriend that she spends most of her day with. She only goes two days a week, but at this point it is perfect for her. She is also turning into a little fish, she is in the kiddie pool almost everyday and really loves going to grandma and pappa's house to go into the big pool. She is growing up so fast, it seems that she gets a little more indipendent everyday. Her biggest accomplishment this week is that she is now able to write her own name, and her handwriting is actually very neat. She is also soooo.. funny, I think she will deffinatley be the class clown, she is always making everyone around her laugh, including the babies, no one can make them laugh like her.

Tanner is now sitting up on his own. It is so cute to watch him sitting up like a big boy and playing with toys. He is teething like crazy, his poor gums are so swollen. I'm sure he will get his first tooth any day now. He is such a ham, always happy except when his tummy is empty. He is deffinatley the porker of the group, weighing in at a whopping 19lbs now. He just loves his food. I am making my own baby food, and so far they love it all. So far we have tried peas, carrots, spinach, green beans, pears, apples, squash, bannanas, and sweet potatos. Oh, I almost forgot the cutest thing that he is now doing. He army crawls, he can pull himself around the whole house with his arms, so cute!

Joel has found his VOICE! He is talking from sun up till sun down, and of course his first word was DaDa. I think it is just easier to say, so when he does decide to say mama he will actually mean it (sorry honey!). He is also turning into quite a lady's man, not kidding, he loves girls, he can totally work his good looks, batting those baby blues and giving them a big smile. It is so funny to watch. He is very close to sitting up as well , we have physical therapy every wed. I am hoping he will be off of his oxygen soon, or at least by his birthday. He is also loving real food, his favorite is bannanas.

Sophia, my little princess. I think she actually thinks she is a princess, she is slightly demanding, wanting what she wants when she wants it (I have no idea where she got that from he,he,he:)She would be very happy if she could be held all day. She doesn't cry alot but she does get a little cranky at times. She is also a little sensitive and gets her feelings hurt very easy. A total drama queen, everything she does is a big production be it talking, playing, or eating it is so fun to watch her. She is so beautiful (did I mention she looks just like me:) her dimples are fabulous!She is also sitting up and enjoys playing with Tanner. Sophia is having a bit of a hard time eating food so she will be having a swallow/eating test at all childrens hospital at the end of the month. I am sure every thing is fine she might just need a little feeding therapy to teach her how to eat correctley. I'll let you all know how that goes.

Wyatt, oh my sweet little pumpkin. I hate to report, but he is sick with pneumonia. We took him for an x-ray yesterday because he was coughing and when we got to the Dr's she told us he had pneumonia. He is actually doing very well, he is on antibiotics and is getting breathing treatments every four hours. Hopefully he will be better within a few days, I was happy that he was able to stay home and not have to go into the hospital again. He is the sweetest little boy, you almost never hear a peep out of him. I think out of all the babies I will miss his big toothless grin the most. He is always smiling and it lights up his whole face. He is really loving his baby food as well. He is finally starting to gain weight, at 9 1/2 mos he weighs 13.6lbs (tiny). I will keep you posted on how he is doing.

Kevin and I are doing well. Kevin will be starting a new job on the 13th, he is excited about that. He will be working as a paramedic again, which is what he is trained to do(and is very good at it). For those of you who don't know that is where Kevin and I met, in paramedic school. I started doing a little home health, but I am only working like 3 days a month, so it's not bad at all. On saturday my mom, Abby, and myself will be doing the three mile walk for babies (for the march of dimes) in honor of the babies. I am looking forward to it and will post pics soon. I hope you all are doing well. Got to run- hungry babies!
Sarah

I hope you enjoy the video, remember to turn the music down before you watch it!

My Montage 5/1/09

WOW HOW TIME FLIES !!!!!!!!!!!

2009-03-27T12:40:00.000-07:00

I can't believe the kiddo's are already 8 months old. Time is going by so fast and they are all growing by leaps and bounds. To look at them it is hard to believe that they were once only a little over two pounds and fighting to live, now they are happy, fun loving babies that just melt your heart. I am going to post a few pics of everyone and give you a little update on how the past mos. have been for each. I think that will be the easiest way to get everyone up to date. Hope you enjoy!

Tanner Matthew Crissman

JULY 15, 2008

2lbs, 14oz

16.5 in

NOW: March 27,2009

Tanner ( aka. Tan Man) Is such a happy baby! He always has a smile on his face and just loves to talk and laugh with his big sis Abby. Tanner spent 8 weeks in the NICU at sarasota memorial. He came home along with sister Sophia on Sept 19th. During his stay in the nicu he had no major complications, he just needed to get bigger and stronger before coming home. He is now, and has always been the biggest of the group, a big 18lbs and growing bigger by the day! As you can probably guess one of his favorite parts of the day is eating. The babies all started eating real food about three weeks ago and they just love it. Tanner is also rolling all over the house, and has just started sitting up on his own (SOOO... cute!) He unfortunately has had a few colds and had to have surgery to put tubes in his ears due to frequent ear infections(which is common in preemies)but overall has done very well. Oh, and did I mention that he gives the best kisses in the world (slobber and all):)He is going to be the class clown for sure,he is always doing something funny to get your attention, such a happy baby, he only cries when he doesn't get his food fast enough.

Sophia Flora Crissman

July 15, 2008

2lbs,11oz

15.5in

NOW: March 27, 2009

OH, my sweet Sophia. Such a sweet little girl, full of smiles and the biggest dimples you have ever seen. She also spent 8 weeks in the NICU and came home on sept 19th with Tanner. Her stay in the nicu was also for the most part uneventful, however on her second night her lung collapsed and she had to have not one but two chest tubes. They stayed in for a couple weeks to allow her lung to heal before they were removed. Now the only reminder of those tubes is two tiny little scars, they always remind me how lucky we are to have her and the others in our lives. Sophia has also had her share of colds after coming home, in January she along with Joel and Wyatt were readmitted to the hospital for RSV( a gift from big sister Abby). The boys fared much better than little Sophia, she ended up with a very bad ear infection as a result of the RSV which intern caused both of her eardrums to rupture. She had a very hard time hearing for a few weeks but after surgery to put tubes in her ears she is doing much better. She was such a trooper through it all, if it wasn't for the fever I wouldn't have even known she was sick.She and her big sis are already the best of friends, It is so cute to watch her face light up when Abby walks in the room. I call her my little drama queen, every thing she does from crying to laughing is VERY dramatic, it is so funny. She is also becoming a little sensitive and gets her feelings hurt very easy, which is also very dramatic, I'm talking quivering chin and alligator tears. So cute!Sophia has also started rolling over very well and is sitting up on her own.

Wyatt James Crissman

July 15, 2008

2lbs, 4oz

15.5in

NOW:March 27, 2009

My tiny Wyatt. What a tough little guy. He had quite a battle in the nicu, but he is a little fighter an came through it all just fine. His first few weeks in the nicu were uneventful, but slowly things started to get worse. It started with bad reflux, which let to pneumonia twice, his lungs became so bad that when you looked at his chest x-ray you couldn't even see his ribs, it was just solid white. He also had several infections, and became very sensitive to every thing around him, for weeks we were not even allowed to touch him because doing so caused him to stop breathing and his heart rate would drop so fast that the nurses had to stimulate him to breath. It is such a helpless feeling watching your child fighting for his life and not having the ability to make them better. I got to hold Wyatt for the first time in October, almost two and a half months after he was born, it was one of the best moments I had while the kids were in the nicu. Once he was off the vent he did very well and after a few more weeks he was able to come home. Wyatt and his brother Joel were sent home on November 7th after spending 115 days in the nicu. He has had some issues with weight gain and still remains the smallest at only 12lbs but he is growing fast. He did have a big event this week, he was finally taken off his oxygen!!! He is so adorable without those tubes in his nose. He did end up back in the hospital in Jan for RSV, he did ok, but did have to come home with a feeding (NG) tube for a few days until his weight started to go up. He also has had to have tubes in his ears. Wyatt is smiling from sun up to sun down. I swear his little cheeks must hurt from all the smiling he does, it is so cute. I call him quite Wyatt, because he doesn't make a whole lot of noise, but he is starting to coo and babble much more these days. He has started rolling over and loves to chew on his ( or whomever) toes he can get a hold of.

Joel Steven Crissman

July 15, 2008

2lbs, 2oz

15in

NOW: March 27, 2009

My little cuddle bug! Joel had a rough time in the nicu as well, but just like his siblings he is a tough little guy and a big fighter. For fear of running out of room, I will try to sum up his stay in the hospital. Joel had many of the same issues as Wyatt, very immature lungs, pneumonia's, infections, he also had a grade 2 (on the left) and a grade 4 (on the right) brain bleed. He initially came off of the ventilator after only 23days, but after getting pneumonia the first time he had to be put back on the ventilator and had a lot of difficulty getting back off . He like his brother came home on November 7th. He did come home with oxygen and several medications, but he no longer needs any meds for his reflux, and will hopefully be off of his oxygen by next month. The great news is that so far he shows no signs of any neurological problems from the brain bleed. He is being followed by a neurologist, but he sees no cause for concern at this point ( hooray!!!!) Joel also was readmitted to the hospital in Jan for RSV and you guessed it, he has also had tubes put in his ears. He is much more reserved than the other babies. He is very observant of what is going on around him. He is a huge cuddlier, he would be totally happy to have someone hold him all day (which I would love to do). He has started rolling over and loves to yell at himself in the mirror. He has also earned another nick name, little toot, I'll let you guess why he got that one:) Joel also has the most beautiful eyes you have ever seen ( the photo does no justice), they are such a deep shade of steel blue and his eyelashes are a mile long. With boys this cute I am in big trouble (lock up your daughters).

And Last but not Least, I have to tell you about the best big sister in the world!

Abigail Marie

11/5/05

3years old

By far the best big sister anyone could ask for! She has been through a lot in the past year and I am so proud of her. She is such a big help to me and Kevin. She loves to entertain everyone, especially the babies. She has a magical way of getting the babies to stop crying and is able to make them laugh with just a look. She tells me she is going to be a doctor someday and likes to introduce herself as Dr.Abby (LOVE IT!) she is so funny, she will sit down with you, give you a check up, medicine, and carries around a little chart to write her notes in. I swear she is the cutest thing ever!Of course, she isn't always good, after all she is 3 and is always testing her Independence. But overall she is a very good little girl, I couldn't love her more!

Well, I am going to try to catch some sleep!

Take care; Sarah