Big News Ahead

This weekend is going to be chock full of some hard work for the ‘ol Crew.  But, with the help of some of the most uh-mazing and supportive family, we’re going to roll up our sleeves and Get-er-done!  🙂  More to follow…  If I can lift my arms…

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Twins Update #1

Kayla and I had a serious fit of déjà vu when we walked into the Atlanta Perinatal Office today.  We had been there so much with Adalyn due to her CF, we felt they would surely give us a reserved parking spot or at least loyalty points we could use toward a free cup of coffee.  We weren’t there this time for CF though, we were there because we’re having twins.  Twins automatically puts you on the high-risk list, CF or not.  Luckily, the visit was all good news.  The twins are doing fantastic.  Actually, growing ahead of schedule.  Kayla is currently 13 weeks along and the measurements the nurse took put the babies at around 14 weeks.  We were thrilled.  The two little stinkers wriggled around, sucked their thumbs, and even waved hi a couple of times.  It’s a little early to tell the sex of the babies but during the ultrasound the nurse observed the kiddos at every angle and gave us her opinion.  🙂  But, we’re not going to be announcing it here until after we have the amnio so we’re 100% sure.  Speaking of amnio, we also had to schedule  that as well.  We feel it’s the responsible thing to do.  Each baby has a 25% chance of inheriting Cystic Fibrosis.  We’re going to focus on the 75% chance that they don’t.  We’ll say many prayers and keep our fingers crossed but we want to be as prepared as possible.  Today was a great visit and we look forward to many more to come.  We just love seeing the little squirts healthy and active.

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Memorial Day 2013

Here are a few snaps from our trip to the Atlanta Zoo.  We had a great time.  The weather was beautiful, the animals were lively, and Adalyn’s expressions were priceless.

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Sleep Training

The first step is to admit you have a problem…  Well, Houston, we have a problem.  Unfortunately, neither Kayla nor I necessarily want to get rid of this…problem.  You see, for the past year we’ve created a very mutually agreeable night time routine with our daughter Adalyn.  We draw her a warm bath, read her a book or two, and then offer her a nice, warm, bottle of milk before rocking her to sleep.  Typically, she’ll slip into a small coma until around  1 or 2 AM and then give us a little… “call”… through the baby monitor for one of us to escort her into our bed.  She somehow understands that Mommy and Daddy have to get up in just a couple of hours to get ready for work and that we’re just lazy enough to stick her into our bed instead of soothing her back to sleep in her own room.  When we put her between us, she sleeps like an angel.  WE sleep like angels.  Everybody’s happy.  So what’s the problem?  We never really gave it any thought until we received a scolding from our pediatrician, Dr. C.  Oh, Dr. C’s warned us.  Lots of times.  “The longer you wait, the harder it’ll be,” she says.  “If you don’t stop soothing her to sleep and letting her snooze in your bed, it’ll be that much harder to break her of the habit the older she gets.”  Whelp, turns out Dr. C’s right.  With the news of the twins we realize we’ll more than likely have our hands full, especially in the evenings.  So, we figure if we can get Adalyn to go to sleep by herself, putting her down right after her bottle but before she falls asleep, then things will be that much easier when we’re trying to take care of the other little rascals.  I guess we didn’t think to consult Adalyn’s opinion on the whole process before giving it a whirl.  The girl is not taking to it like we had hoped.  Although things have gotten considerably better now that a week has gone by.  The first bout lasted an hour.  I laid Adalyn down, kissed her good-night, and promptly left the room, closing the door behind me.  She, realizing what I had just done, immediately stood up and protested.  So, I went back in, laid her back down, told her “it’s time for sleep,” and promptly left the room.  This dance went on for what seemed to be forever.  She went through stages.  First, it was upsetting.  Then it was a game:  She would see me come in and try to run to the other end of the crib before I could get my hands on her, smiling the whole time.  Then, it was upsetting again.  After a while, she wore herself out and couldn’t stand.  So, she would sit there and call out.  Finally, exhausted, she couldn’t even hold her head up and went to sleep.  Kayla’s experience the next evening wasn’t any better.  Her bout lasted an hour and a half.  But after the second night things started to get better.  I think Adalyn now realizes Kayla and I are both serious about the new routine and we’re delighted to report that we’re now around the 30-45 minute mark.  Hopefully things will continue to get easier and our bout times shorter.  We sure will miss the snuggle time with Adalyn but we know this new routine is in the family’s best interest.  This whole experience has now got us thinking… what do we have to look forward to come potty training time?  Doh!

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Thank You

The Williams crew would like to thank all of you who donated and walked with us on behalf of our little girl at this years Great Strides event.  With your help, Great Strides Atlanta, was able to raise a stellar $1,375,000!  THANK YOU!  We are extremely excited to see what the Foundation does with these funds and we know, deep in our hearts, that a cure is right around the corner.  We had a blast at this years walk.  It sprinkled rain for the first few minutes but quickly gave way to sunny skies for the remainder of the event.  Adalyn’s training certainly paid off.  Not only did she complete the 5k, with the help of mommy of course, but afterwards she continued to play, chase, dance, and get into all sorts of trouble.  It was a blast.

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Great Strides 2013

Tomorrow is the big day!  The annual Great Strides Walk at the GA Tech campus will kick off at 9AM.  The Solid Giving Back team will be out in force at the GA Tech Campus walking our legs off to help raise money for the cure.  Last year Adalyn only made a brief appearance.  But, this year, she’s been training hard and is looking like she’s going to out walk us all!  🙂  We’re truly grateful for the kind folks at the CF Foundation for putting this together.  It gives families the opportunity to really feel like they are doing their part in fighting this disease.  So far, our team has raised $5,647.00!  It’s not too late to donate.  Just click here and give whatever you can.  No donation is too small!  We want to thank everyone who has given on behalf of our little girl.  THANK YOU!  Adalyn means the world to us and, with your help, we’ll look forward to enjoying a long and healthy life with her.  Also, feel free to come an walk with us.  You can find more info here.  We hope to see you there!

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