Shannon and Euan's Celebration

Well what can we say but we have been slacking in posting to the blog. But with new arrivals on the way as I write what better time to catch up. So we will do our best to get everyone up to speed but first to talk about Shannon and Euan's Celebration.

We were in Arizona back in April as you can see in our last post, but the main reason we were there was to celebrate Shannon and Euan's new life together. We started the day by decorating which entailed flowers, candles, table clothes, etc.

Once the venue was set it came time to getting all dressed up. Shannon and Euan looked amazing as did the rest of the family.

Relatives came from near and far to be a part of this special day that brought so many smiles and happy tears. The toasts were spectacular and the cake was gorgeous.

What a great day for an amazing couple. The girls were so excited! We danced into the night with love all around.

Botanic Gardens

Yesterday we went to the Botanic Gardens and everything was so incredibly beautiful! The girls were strolled around in their luxury stroller Auntie Shannon and Uncle Euan found for them so they could live in comfort while in AZ. It seemed like everything was in bloom and the colors were as vibrant as ever.
We also walked through the butterfly garden where the girls stared in awe and pointed to everything they saw.
It was a great day!

Arizona!

We are in AZ for the first time visiting Auntie Shanny and Uncle Euan. The girls did great on the 3.5-hr plane ride. We left fairly late in hopes they would be tired and sleep most of the time on the plane and they did just that. Auntie Shanny, Uncle Euan, Yaya, and Papa Joe picked us up from the airport. When we got to the condo we are renting, the girls were so tired and cute. They went to bed right away without a peep.
Today we went on a nice walk on the trail by the golf course. Payton and Rayla were very interested in rocks, they stopped every couple of minutes to pick them up.
On our walk we saw hummingbirds, geese, baby geese, a blue heron, turtles, and small ponds. Payton kept inching closer and closer to the water. I think she wanted to swim with the geese.
Later in the day we went swimming in the pool. Auntie Shanny and Uncle Euan got the girls swimsuits with mini built-in life jackets. Thank goodness they had those on because mother-of-the year (moty) over here missed catching Rayla one time when she jumped from the edge. She went under and i of course panicked. But she was fine, maybe a little stunned but she held her breath while she was under and she didn't even cry when she came back up.
Payton showed off her skills at blowing bubbles and swimming. She kicks and moves her arms so well.
Tomorrow is a big day at the Botanical Gardens. Can't wait for them to see the butterflies.

Gymnastics

Today marked the girls' 3rd week at gymnastics. They would still rather run around at their own will, but they have gotten so much better at following the direction of the obstacle course. Today they crawled under a mat, did somersaults, rolled down the slanted mat, and swung on a bar while they flipped their whole body over. We are so proud of how much they've learned in such a short period of time. In addition to gymnastics, they have a favorite word now, it's "buckle". They love to say it and to be buckled into their car seats, high chairs, and stroller.

Navy Pier

Yaya, Papa Joe, Payton, and Rayla posing for a picture in the flower garden.

Yaya and Papa Joe

Yay, they arrived in Chicago this afternoon. The girls were already having a blast with them.

New videos!

Check out the new videos!!!

Just click on the purple videos button.

Resignation

Yay, I handed in my resignation/2-wk notice this morning. I am giving myself a few days to relax and get some errands done before I start my new job. I'm excited for this new adventure in our lives.

Discoveries

Today was hilarious. They learned how to say popcorn, clunk their heads against the wall to make a big sound, and they learned how to play the kazoo. 
Payton calls popcorn "cah-coe" and Rayla says "pa-cow".
Bumping their heads against the wall is not our favorite thing for them to do but they laughed for about a half hour. So far no bumps have been found.
Here are pictures of their kazoo adventure.

And happy birthday to their favorite youngest aunt Kristi!

Gymnastics tryouts

Payton, Rayla, and Niko went to their first gymnastics class today. In Kristi's words, Payton is on her way to becoming an Olympic gymnast, Rayla is on her way to becoming a cheerleader, and Niko is headed for the slide. Payton ran through each of the obstacle course many times, rarely stopping for a breath; Rayla watched the older girls on the beam and imitated their arms raised in the air; and the first thing Niko saw when he walked in was the slide. That was the greatest thrill for him. They all went up and down the slanted padded mats, they "jumped" on the trampolines, and they tried their hand at the parallel bars, rings, foam pit, and hanging from one bar. They seemed to have a blast once they were comfortable with their surroundings.
We will start actual classes in April. This should be a fun adventure :)

Bedtime

Our routine consists of their last milk around 6, play in their room until around 7, then bedtime. Just recently both girls started demanding kisses from both Mamo and Mom before they will lay down with their fish and blankets. They stand up in their cribs hanging on to the outer rail and pucker up. They are so stinkin cute!

The Shedd Aquarium

Today we met up with Jenny and Becky Smith at The Shedd. We saw so many different kinds of fish, turtles, and sting rays. It was a very fun full day. Thank you awesome ladies for a great time!

Right before bedtime, Payton discovered she can climb on top of the toy chest and from there she can climb on top of the changing dresser. Then she "turns around to go down" and basically jumps off from way high up there. This girls has no fear! (It's too high to let her jump off herself, so we are right there to easily guide her down).

Rayla clearly says many words now like outside, eyes, nose, again, please, apple, baby, and Mamo.

Sickness continues

It's official, Payton had parent-diagnosed Roseola. On top of that the whole household has a cold with a nasty cough. Let's hope this all passes before Yaya and Papa Joe come in a couple weeks.

New videos!

Check out the new videos! Just click on the purple videos button.

Post-Florida vacation

Hi everyone, we will write later about our first family trip to Florida and we will include pictures. But for tonight, it's about poor little Payton. She is sick. She's had a fever almost all day and night and she barely lifts her head to look around. Our baby is crying/whining from being so miserable.

Rayla seems to be doing well, so let's hope the sickness passes over her. But Rayla was upset because she wanted to play with Payton. She kept signing "sleep" and pointing to her sister.

It is a sad night in the Hyem house. Hope Payton gets more rest and that she feels better tomorrow.

Yaya's Birthday!

Yesterday we had a wonderful day celebrating Yaya's birthday. Payton and Rayla gave Yaya a wonderful Skype session for her cake! They stacked blocks, danced with their radios, played peek a boo and most importantly ended the night with big kisses to Yaya. They are so cute they actually kiss the laptop just as though Yaya was right their. So thankful for technology to help with distance.

Love you Yaya!

New videos!

We have been slacking with updating the videos on the blog so we are trying to get better so check them out.

Superbowl Sunday

We spent most of the day today at the park. We hung out with Zen for a while just throwing the frisbee. then we walked over to the play area and both of the girls went straight for the Fire Engine slide. The crawled up the stairs and "turn around to go down" and then all by themselves, they slid down, smiling the whole way. Rayla went back a couple times but Payton went on to bigger things. And I do mean bigger. This girl climbed up the big stairs, walked across an open criss-cross patterned walkway and sat at the top of the big spiral slide. I, of course, freaked out because I couldn't get to her in time to have her go down on my lap, and I was so scared she was going to fall off the side of the slide. i ran underneath the slide just in time to "catch" her at the bottom. The problem with this is that she didn't need catching. Her face was beaming from being so proud and she scooted off the slide and climbed right back up all to do it again, but this time she went down the very steep straight slide. Oh my poor heart. She is going to be a daredevil.

Rayla likes the slide but she LOVES the swing. She says "mooowre" when she needs to be pushed higher and she pumps her little legs in excitement.

Then we headed home for lunch and naptime (too bad they didn't want to nap when Mamo and Mom wanted to).

Dinner was full of excitement too. We had tacos and they both enjoyed the tortillas and beans, so much so that they plastered it in their hair and all over every part of their body. They thought this was hilarious.

The night ended with Payton and Rayla running laps on the couch and then sitting on the window sill while saying "Bye Bye".

Another great weekend!

MoMs Meetup

I met up with a few MoMs (Moms of Multiples) yesterday. We originally met online at thebump.com, then we moved the group to Facebook and that is where we keep up with each other. There are over 200 of us and the group has incredibly diverse personalities. It's such a great way to connect with women who understand what it's like to care for at least 2 kids at the same time (and same age).

The women here are from the chicagoland area (a few couldn't make it).

Erin, Shannon, Jacki, Susie, Marissa, and me.

Heart Day

Payton and Rayla wearing Red for Heart Day in honor of a few of our friends: angel baby Wyatt Gard (his Mom is in my Moms of Multiples online group), Catie Newsome (her mom was my labor buddy), and Shawna (who is in my November Moms online group). Thinking of all of you especially on this day.

Rock on!

Tonight was filled with the girls kickin t-shirts that we couldn't wait for them to try... a dance party...a mosh pit...and smiles in the end. Our girls are purely one...two of a kind!

Hanging out

Here they are hanging out watching Baby Signing Time.

Just a regular night at the Hyem's

We made turkey meatloaf (thank you November Mom's Pinterest Board) and Payton loved it. Rayla ate it for about 30 seconds. But the one who couldn't get enough was Brogan.

Payton thought it was hilarious to turn he light switches on and off. Kind of makes for a difficult evening for cooking.

And then here is Rayla cleaning the floor. Have to start em early, ya know?

It's been a day

Let's call this day Sunday and hope for a better tomorrow with happy babies.

But the end of the night was amusing. Payton decided to put meatloaf in between her toes while dangling them from the high chair. Why you ask? So Zen would come lick them. Eww and hilarious. She also crawled up on the couch and would flip the closet light on and off. Each time she did it though, she would turn to look at Brogan who was sleeping on the couch. Payton was looking for approval or waiting to get in trouble. And lastly, Payton runs to the other side of the couch and turns the tv on and off. She's such a cute little stinker.

Rayla's trick of the day was to taunt Brogan. And then she wonders why Brogan meows and swats. But she goes back for more after each time.

Date night

Yay, we had a date night tonight. Alyssa and I went to a murder mystery dinner show. It was pretty cute and of course we figured out who the murderer was. The picture is a list of suspects we had to choose from. We learned about theory roles throughout the night and then had to out the pieces together.

Thank you to Uncle Todd and Aunt Olivia for babysitting (and for Grandma and Papa Mike coming to visit).