Steal my kisses

Greetings! Summer vacation is here! We had our first weekend of true northwest summer weather and made the most of it! Elsa and Jonas ran all over our back yard and we tried our best to prevent them from eating grass, spiders, and ants. We were, for the most part, successful.

Jonas and Elsa have been learning a lot the past several months. They are talking and saying "mama" and "dada" and several other one syllabel type words. They really good at throwing things...especially things that splat and require clean-up. Jonas loves to point with one finger at pictures in books--Elsa just started doing this too. They both know where their noses, ears, feet/toes, mouth, tongue and, of course, their belly buttons are located. Lots of learning and we see something new every day!

I've included a video of Jonas "stealing a kiss" from Elsa. Two seconds before the camera was rolling they were giving each other big smooches. This is a nice contrast to the hair pulling and wrestling matches that are usually going on:)

Elsa has her surgery on Thursday and we pray for healing and rest. The next week will most likely not be a ton of fun but we feel really confident that the next several decades will be a joy!

God Bless,

Mari & Dan & Elsa & Jonas

Happy Father's Day

Greetings!

Happy Father's Day!

We had a great weekend. Enjoy the pictures...we are still a bit sleepy. A great week of healthy babies, lots of playing, and the occasional naps.

It is always so humbling to hear that people are still thinking and praying for us. We are continually awed by the power of prayer and love. Jonas and Elsa are too...they may not say it as much and they might try to steal your glasses while they're talking to you...but we know they fell the same way too.

God Bless,

Mari & Dan & Elsa & Jonas

G-tube for Elsa

Greetings!

The sun is out and the kids are almost asleep! All is relatively quiet around the Lysne household. We have had a great week...with the sun just starting to arrive for summer we have finally got the kids back outside for some fun in yard.

Our meeting with the GI specialist went kind of how we expected. Elsa did an awesome job and gained eight ounces even with a cold this past month. That being said, it just isn't enough. After lots of thinking and talking about it, we have decided to have a g-tube placed in Elsa's tummy to help supplement her daily caloric intake. The good news is that she can continue to eat anything and everything she wants. This includes but is not limited to blueberries, cheesy rabbit crackers, Alfredo sauce, and any crumbs from last week's meal that are still on the floor. This was not an easy decision to come to but we are determined that this is what she needs. My weak attempt at a comparison would be if your kiddo broke her arm you would get her a cast...no questions! Elsa needs some help with gaining weight...let's do it!

While this decision dominated the early week, once we made it we were able to really focus on having fun as a family. Elsa and Jonas love Dan's guitar and love Mari's book reading. We have had a lot of joy this week.

Pictures: Jonas having an allergic reaction to hummus (not funny--he turned bright red within ten seconds of it); Elsa asleep (I don't know how she fell asleep like that either).

God Bless,

Dan & Mari & Elsa & Jonas

Weigh in number two

Greetings.
Wow...an interesting week. Jonas and Elsa had colds this week. Runny noses, some coughs, fevers. We had to take the kids into the doctor to make sure it wasn't too serious and then received some hard news. Elsa had only put on a couple of ounces since last month. We think that she had put on some weight and then had lost it while she got over the cold. Regardless, we were a little shocked to see such a low weight number. We have our follow-up weigh in and conversation with the GI doctor this week to decide if a g-tube might be the next step for Elsa. We are waiting to see the actual weight number on Tuesday but are anxious for the week ahead.

That being said, the kids have rallied quite nicely from the colds and are seeming to be back to their old jovial selves. We've added a video of Jonas streaking throughout the house...Elsa does too...we haven't caught it on camera yet. The kids had a great time yesterday in the sun and ran in the front yard for a good chunk of time.

We are praying to make a wise decision on Tuesday.

God Bless,

Mari & Dan & Elsa & Jonas

Memorial Day Weekend

Greetings!
We are just waking up on the last day of a four day weekend! We had a blast!

Dan's birthday was the past week and we celebrated "Danivus" (a ten day celebratory period in lieu of a single day birthday celebration). Jonas and Elsa sampled some of Dan's mom's world famous coconut cake and kept coming back for more.

Elsa and Jonas also got to play with their friends Joshua and Sofia this weekend too. Joshua, another December 12th birthday baby, was great to see. Whenever he comes over, he always seems to teach Jonas and Elsa something new. Last time he was walking all over the place and the next day Jonas just took off walking too. Sofia just turned two and was a gracious host and let Elsa and Jonas chew on a lot of her toys.

When Joshua was over, Elsa tried and liked some pulled pork that Jen (Joshua's mom) brought over. The next day we had a slow roasting pork loin cooking! After many hours, it was melt in your mouth done and we added a little barbecue sauce to it. Elsa looked at it curiously for a second or two and then popped a small bite in her mouth. Way to go Elsa! Jonas, curiously enough, was a little indifferent to it.

When the camera is located (the camera has been found!), we will add some goofy pictures and movies from the past week. The picture of the dolls is a favorite...the dolls are wearing Elsa and Jonas's old preemie clothes!

God Bless,
Mari & Dan & Elsa & Jonas

Syttende Mai

Greetings! Elsa and Jonas enjoyed for the first time some delicious krumkake this week in honor of syttende mai (Norwegian Independence Day). They were a little unsure what to do with it but each kiddo got a little chunk or two.

We also made it two weeks in a row to church and almost made it through the whole service. The kids want to start taking little walkabouts during the announcements.

Otherwise, this was just another great week. A weekly check in with the feeding specialist for Elsa gave us some more ideas to try with her for solid foods. Elsa had a couple of throw-ups during the week for reasons we aren't sure. However, her overall volumes continue to be really good. We are keeping our prayers of growth and healing for her as we try to put more weight on her.

God Bless,

Mari & Dan & Elsa & Jonas

A nice quiet week!

Greetings!

After such a big week last week, it was nice to have a relaxing week for Jonas and Elsa. They played, crawled, walked, and laughed a lot this past week. We sprinkled in little naps here and there to round out the week.

Elsa continues to have solid numbers on her eating. She has acquired a taste for Nutella...so have Mari and Dan. Jonas has started to really enjoy the eating process. He will carefully pick up and inspect each piece of food before chomping on it. Parmesan cheese is hands-down the favorite food group for both kids.

Dan was a bit under the weather this weekend but he rallied for our first trip as a family to church. It was such a blessing to see so many supportive faces at our church and for the kids to feel the love in the sanctuary. God is great!

Such a great week! We should probably get back to our naps.

(Pictures: Jonas and Elsa with their first basketball; the kids enjoying their newest toy?; big smiles!)

God Bless,

Mari & Jonas & Elsa & Dan