Family Update #2

Having twins has been so much fun, but so much work. John & I are finally getting some sleep, but we are having trouble finding time for each other. Spencer & Kate have been SUPER with the babies & help us out every day. We are slowly learning how to get other things accomplished in a day, like laundry, cleaning up & family dinner time. We have survived 6 months!

Spencer & Graham taking a break

Graham posing on the bed

Carson & Graham...They are starting to look more & more alike. Carson is slowly gaining weight & Graham is looking like a little chunk. Of course, they have blue eyes & very little (almost none) blond hair. They are definitely Downings!

Carson & Uncle Stacy at the Mopps house

Graham & Carson at 5 months old

Graham has acquired the nickname Buster or the baby baby & Carson is known as Peanut. The boys are really good & are very happy babies. They love to get baths, are great snugglers & Spencer says they are "awesomely cute" !

Graham grinning while hangin' with his big brother

They are smiling more & more every day. I can't compare them developmentally to my other 2 kids, but they are progressing well for preemies. Our doctors & specialists seem to think they will be caught up by the time they are 2-3 yrs old. We are very fortunate to have great support & help from family & friends. They are truly a blessing.

Family Update #1

We celebrated Kate's birthday on Feb 18th. She turned 11yrs old. She requested a homemade strawberry cake with cream cheese icing & chocolate shavings. She continues to be my social butterfly. It is hard to get her to focus on anything else, but she does find time to do piano & help with the babies. She is a great BIG sister & makes us laugh every day. She may be more funny than her dad! Kate also got braces in April with another expander. The first few days were torture of all of us, but she is doing great.

Kate was able to celebrate her birthday with a visit from Aunt Maureen, Tamera, Jill & Bea. We are so lucky to have them spend time with us & meet our new additions to the family. We had a good time & wish we could visit more often.

We were also able to bless the babies while everyone was visiting. I am so grateful that John has the priesthood & was able to give our boys their blessing. He did a wonderful job & the boys were great during the blessing too!

We had Easter dinner at my mom's house along with an Easter egg hunt. We got together the Saturday before Easter & had beautiful weather. We brought a dozen eggs each & mom had another 10 each for each child. It was about 100 eggs, but the kids had a fun time trying to find them. There are still a few unaccounted for in the backyard.

The boys are about 3 1/2 months old here. They are good babies & we are starting to see more of their personalities every day.

Family picture on Easter Sunday 2010

We had the NCAA Final Four visit Indianapolis this year. We went downtown Indy & took in some of the family festivities. We were able to watch the All-Star game & we went to Bracket Town. The kids got pictures with the NCAA trophy, played games & other sports activities. It was crazy busy, but a great experience for our sports junkie, Spencer.

Speaking of our sports junkie, Spencer turned 13 yrs old in March. He had an ice cream cake for his birthday, but it wasn't as good as we hoped. We went shopping & bought some new basketball shorts, an IU t shirt, and went to dinner at Noodles & Co. He has decided that he wants to be a sports journalist or sports announcer. He hopes to go to BYU, but is thinking about Ball State University in Muncie. He helps with the boys & loves watching sports with them.