The Fraser Family: April and May 2011

April and May were 2 amazing months for us. Let me start by saying we had a wonderful visit with Simon's sister Ingrid. She lives in Germany but came and visited us for a month. Her boyfriend Robert also came for that last 2 weeks of her visit. It was such a joy to finally meet Robert and to spend time with both of them, but the best part was they were able to spend quality time with Brynn and Mia.

Other exciting news was when Brynn got his body cast off! Yeah!! We were so excited for this to happen. It was a little difficult, because even though he was out of his cast, we still had to treat him as if he was still in it. We had to do this because, normally when kids get out of their cast after hip surgery, they are in a brace during nap and bed time for 3 months. Because Brynn's hip that was not operated on is so tight, there was not a brace that would fit him. Therefore, we had to be very careful and "baby" his hip, making sure it would not pop out of the socket. So.. after not allowing him to crawl, pull himself up, or go in his walkers for 5 weeks, we finally had an X-Ray and were told his hip was still in the socket and looked great! We were then given the Go Ahead to resume physical therapy and to allow Brynn to be a typical toddler! Since getting this information on May 19th, Brynn has been the happiest little boy. I can tell how much he loves his independence, being able to crawl and cruise around in his walker. Brynn is also making great strides in his eating. He has begun to to eat small amounts of baby food and will take tiny tastes of juice out of a cup. This is HUGE for us! Brynn is well on his way to eating and that is so exciting! Brynn just truly amazes me. He continues to learn new signs and is using the sign language he knows to communicate with us. These are the signs he knows: airplane, car, dog, milk, more, all done, please, water, eat, up and thank you. He plays peek-a-boo and knows everyone by name in our immedient and extended family. When shown 2 flash cards 9 out 10 times when asked to identify an object he gets it right! He has also started coloring, turning lights on and off and trying to say new words and sounds. While outside when he hears an airplane, he will sign "airplane" and point to the sky. My little peanut, what a amazing gift from God.

Miss Mia. Oh, Miss Mia. What can I say about my little princess. First of all she acts as if she is 3 or 4, so Simon and I have to remind our selves when we try to reason with her that she is only 2! Mia is talking in full sentences and just the other day used the word "I" for the first time! She fell and said, "I need ice, Mommy." I couldn't believe it! She also loves "driving" so she is always saying,"Me sit in daddy's car".. or mommy's, Ingie's, DeeDee's, or Omi's car, etc! The other day I asked her if I was a boy or girl and she answered, "Girl" I then said, "What are you?" and she said, "A Princess!" Oh my.. what have I started?! She is very curious about what things are and where people are going, so she asks a million questions a day! We are going to Germany this summer for a month and Mia will say, "Mia flying on an airplane to Bernkastel!" She still enjoys washing dishes and vacuuming the floor. She continues to help with Brynn and wants to help me change his diaper or get him dressed. She has even started washing her own body in the bath tub. Who knew a 2 year old could be so independent?! We are going to start working on potty training this summer after our trip to Germany but Mia has gone on the potty a few times which is really exciting! It is so fun watching her grow into a little girl and just watch her imagination grow. It is crazy how she entertains herself, and I cannot wait until her and Brynn really start playing together. A few weeks ago I bought their new summer clothes and I walked into the twins room and Mia was scanning the tags on her shirts on a computer and then took a gift card and was swiping it on the computer.. I asked her what she was doing and she said, "Paying with credit card!" Now every time we go shopping she says, "Mia pay," and I say, "Oh sweetheart, I wish you could!" Mia is my little angel sent from up above!

Other then enjoying family time together we have been visiting different schools and in the fall we will be sending the twins to Easterseals, which is a Developmental Disability School. The disabilities at the school range from prematurity all the way to kids that will spend their entire lives in a wheelchair. They have physical, occupational, and speech therapists that visit the classrooms throughout the week, which will be great for Brynn, and Mia will be a mentor in the classroom which is exciting for her! I am really excited for the twins to start interacting with others 3 times a week and I also think it will be really good for them to be exposed to children with different handicaps, so they learn at a young age that God made everyone different however, everyone should be treated to same way and be given the same opportunitites in life!