Our Neglected Blog is Back!

It has been a very long time since I posted here on our blog. I have had many friends and family members comment on how they miss reading our posts and hearing about what the Kangs are up to. So, we are back...and I am committing to keeping it going. :)

I am amazed at how quickly our girls are growing up. I love watching them learn new things and grow each day. I love to watch them play together...they truly are great friends. The laughter that radiates from our house as they run through the halls is priceless! Here is a quick update on each of our monkeys...it is long over due.

Ella, our not so little toddler, is already 18 months old! We just had her 18 month checkup and we will just say that she definitely takes after the Lichtenberger side. Ella is almost 34 inches tall (98th percentile) and weighs almost 27 pounds (80th percentile). She is the "big little sister" in our house. She is fearless and climbs EVERYTHING! She will move chairs, small tables, etc and use them to climb to reach things she wants. She loves to jump, dance, sing and run. Ella is definitely a princess in the making. She already LOVES to dress up. On a daily basis Ella will demand that she wear her tutu, gold boots, and sunglasses (sometimes she even has a wand to go with it). She is talking a lot and the infamous "NO" has become a favorite in her vocabulary. She adores Madi and also loves to take anything Madi has from her. I love how she only refers to Madi as "sis" or "sissy" even though she can say her name. Ella loves to be outside and will stand at the front door and beg to go "owsigh"! She is constantly mastering new skills and is growing up way tooo fast for this mama!

Madison is already 3 and a half and is turning into quite the little lady! She LOVES preschool and is completely thriving there. Madi is talking so much now and most of it is without prompting. She often still signs while saying the word as well. She loves the alphabet right now and sings her ABC's all the time. The other day Madi and I were playing with her alphabet magnets and she recognized and correctly named 12 of the letters by herself. She can also recognize and name 8 colors, and most shapes. She is even doing a great job at matching shapes and successfully matches fruit on a memory game on our ipad. I am so amazed and proud of all of her accomplishments! Madi still loves music and dancing. She also still loves mirrors and I will often catch her practicing all sorts of things in the mirror (saying new words, dancing, signing, laughing, making silly faces). she loves reading books and will sit and "read" to herself for long periods of time. We have not fully committed to potty training yet but Madi successfully uses the potty multiple times a day and even tells me (sometimes) when she has to go. We are so proud of our girl!

The Kang Girls

I can't believe how quickly time continues to fly by us. As cliche as it sounds I truly can't believe how quickly my girls are growing up. I absolutely love watching them grow together and begin to create the amazing bond between sisters that will last them a life time. Madi LOVES her baby and continues to smother her with hugs, kisses, love pats and even licks. Ella is completely enthralled with Madi. She loves to watch her and laughs easily when she sees Madi. It has been so long since I posted so here is a brief update on each of the Kang girls:

Little Baby Ella,

You have become a sweet and mellow baby. You really only fuss when you are tired or hungry but that fuss can quickly turn into hysteria if you don't get what you want. You still are not the best sleeper but I am not sure if that is because you truly are hungry or you just want a little private cuddle session with Mommy. You usually go to bed around 7:30 or 8, wake up at 2 and 5 to eat and then are up at 7 for the day. Although last night you only wole up at 4am to eat...mommy is praying that this will continue! You like to take cat naps in the morning but will take a 3 hour afternoon nap (at the same time as sissy...mommy loves this). You eat every 3 hours during the day and have finally begun to take a pacifier. You are now 4 months old and are growing so fast. At your 4 month checkup you weighed 13lbs, 4oz (50th percentile) and were almost 26 inches long (95th percentile). You are very long and are finally starting to fill out.

You adore your sister and watch her every move during the day. You love to sit in your bumbo chair and exercauser and take it all in. You are constantly sucking on your fingers or chewing on toys. You are a very smiley baby and love to be snuggled. You are a chatty little one and make all sorts of sounds. You are the perfect addition to our family and you bring so much joy to us all. Having you has been a completely new experience for us. We have been able to just enjoy you and not worry about weight gain, heart issues, feeding issues, and all the health issues that had become our reality. Your birth was a breath of fresh air for us. I was able to keep you by my side from day 1 and never had to leave you at the hospital...something I had dreamed about. I fell in love with you the instant I met you. I am amazed at how our love as a family just grew the day you were born. You truly do complete us. I love spending each new day with you...slowly learning more and more about you. Many people have told me that you seem to be a very wise baby...an old soul and I couldn't agree more. I love you sweet baby girl and am excited to get to know you more every day.

To my Madi,

You amaze us each day with all that you have accomplished. The most exciting news is that you are now walking...everywhere. We waited TWO years for you to reach this milestone and the long wait seemed to make it that much sweeter. When I sit back and reflect on all that you have endured, all the setbacks and extra struggles, I am even more amazed at what a strong and independent little girl you have become. I sometimes forget that a year and a half ago you were recovering from a complicated open heart surgery. It wasn't that long ago that you needed the help of oxygen to drink your bottle...and now you are walking! It truly blows my mind. You had a rough start my dear and yes, compared to your typical peers you are a very late walker...but that is okay. The most important thing is that you are doing it! You are happy, healthy and learning new things everyday. You are doing it all at your own pace ans we couldn't be more proud of you.

You hit the infamous "terrible two's" a little early and (knock on wood) it seems that you may be through the tough part. You still have your strong opinions, tantrums, and sassy moments but you have a heart of gold that shines through. You truly have the sweetest spirit I have ever met and bring so much joy and laughter to everyone you meet. You love to say Hi to EVERYONE and are always the greeting committee anywhere we go. You make so many people smile...complete strangers constantly comment on what a sweet girl you are.

You were a picky eater for a few months but are now back to the old Madi...eating lots and loving just about everything. Here are some of your favorites: berries of all sorts, oranges, grapes, ham and turkey, hummus, cottage cheese, avacado, cheese, eggs, rice, pasta, edamame, asparagus, bananas, pizza, goldfish crackers, pirate's booty...the list could go on. You love to sing songs and know the hand motions to: patty cake, itsy bitsy spider, 5 little monkeys, if you're happy and you know it, the more we get together, and row row row your boat. You love reading books, stacking blocks and playing with your play kitchen. You like to play with your baby dolls and make them dance and clap their hands. You still love to empty out your toy boxes and throw your toys across the room...I'm patiently waiting for that to get old. You have quite a few naughty things you like to do on a daily basis when mom is tied up with Ella. A few that come to mind are: playing in the toilet, pulling out all of the baby wipes from the container, dumping out the diaper bag, climbing on the fireplace, getting into the pantry.

You have become a very independent 2 year old. You hate to have your diaper changed and try to swat at me every time I lay you down to change you. You demand that you feed yourself with the fork and spoon and get very angry when I try to help you which usually ends with food being flung on the wall. You quickly swat my hand away when I try to help you walk. Although it may be frustrating to me sometimes, I love how independent you are. I love that you want to do things for yourself and although it may take you longer and may not be very graceful, you are always very determined to succeed. I love you so much Madi Lou and can't wait to see what you have in store for us!

Guess Who's 2!!

Our little Madi girl turned 2 on October 29th. I can't believe it has been 2 years since she came into our lives. She is turning into such a big girl and brings so much joy to our lives. I truly can't imagine life without her. We celebrated her birthday at the Tacoma Children's Museum surrounded with friends and family. Madi decided that she would fill the role as a 2 year old and was a little grumpy at the beginning of her party but cheered up as the celebrating went on. I think she was enjoying all the attention I was able to give her since there were plenty of arms to hold Ella!

We are truly enjoying this stage of Madi's life. 2 definitely has it's challenges...Madi has perfected throwing tantrums when she wants something and has definitely learned how to test the waters when we tell her no. She is sweet and sassy...all rolled up into an edible little girl. She makes us laugh constantly and loves to be the center of attention. She loves music and whenever she hears it will break into some sort of jig...and I must admit, the girl has rhythm! She loves to read books, throw balls, stack blocks, play with her baby dolls, talk on the phone, Skype with Nonna and Papa, push her wagon around, pet (sometimes hit) our dog Oliver, play outside, cruise the furniture, climb our fireplace, empty all the baby wipes out of the container, imitate us and give her sister kisses! She is so much fun and it is so amazing to watch her learn new things each day. She has accomplished so much in her short 2 years of life and is such a blessing to us all. We love you Madi and I am so proud to be your Mama!!

Here are a few pics from her party:

Catching Up With Some Photos

We had a fun Halloween with our monkey and banana! We took the girls up to Proctor where all the shops and restaurants hand out candy.

We also went to the pumpkin patch a few days earlier. Madi had fun playing in the patch and Ella slept through the whole thing!

She's Here!

Our family of three is now a family of four and we are loving every minute of it! Ella Lynn was born on September 17th and weighed in at 8lbs1oz and 20.5 inches long. She is absolutely perfect! She is a mellow baby who really only cries when she is ready to eat. Ella is a nursing champ and is quite the little piglet! She is now eating every 2 to sometimes 3.5 hours so Mama is able to get a little more sleep at night.

Madi is adjusting to this big change pretty well. She gets very upset when Ella cries and ends up having a small tantrum herself. She has always been very sensitive to other kids crying so this was to be expected. She is slowly getting better with it but we still have a ways to go. It will be nice when one baby crying doesn't turn into two babies crying! Other than that Madi loves to hold, kiss and hug Ella. She tries to be as gentle as she can but we still have to watch her every move. A nice touch quickly turns into an eye poke around here! Madi does get a little jealous when I am nursing Ella and my lap isn't all hers anymore but she is already adjusting to that as well. My parents are staying with us for 3 weeks and have been a huge help! Madi is getting very spoiled with all the attention and is having a great time with Nonna and Papa.

Here are a few pictures from the past week.

Ella meets Mila (my best friend's daughter born on 9/23...Ella is on the right)

Loves giving her sister kisses

Catching Up

I am way behind on blogging these days. I often have things that I want to write about but by the end of the day (when I actually get time to sit in front of the computer) I am way too tired to blog. Life is great here in the Kang house. We are enjoying summer and all that it entails...walks, playing outside, swimming, bbq's, picnics, the farmers market, and spending time with neighbors and friends! We are definitely busy but I wouldn't have it any other way. We have added water therapy to Madi's list of appointments and she absolutely loves it. She is definitely our little fish!

I am now a full time stay at home mom. After Madi was born I went back to work (pharmaceutical sales) part-time. It was a good balance for me and I didn't mind working 2.5 days per week. Ever since Madi's heart surgery she has struggled with separation anxiety. She is so social as long as mom or dad are in sight. So I knew it was good for Madi to get used to being away from mom a little bit. We have an awesome nanny that came to our house on the days that I went to work and Madi LOVES her...it only took a month or so of crying to get there! In the beginning on June, the pharmaceutical company I was working for had their first lay-off (something that is super common in the industry). They laid off over 30% of the company and I was one of those to go. They actually laid off 70% of my district here in Seattle...it was crazy. As weird as this may sound...I wasn't too bummed to be let go. It was perfect timing for me as we are getting ready to add another little one to our family next month. So, I am home and loving all the extra time I get to spend with Madi before her sister arrives. It is also allowing me to add more therapy and playgroups into our already busy schedule.

We spent the last week of June on a cruise to Alaska. We went with my parents, brother and his family, my uncle and aunt, and some close family friends. We had a great time together and the cruise was absolutely beautiful. We went to Glacier Bay, Sitka, Juneau, Ketchikan and Victoria B.C. Madi did really well on the ship. She is a very busy girl so it was a little tough as there wasn't a lot of space for her to freely crawl around. We enjoyed all of the port towns we stopped in and spent most of the time walking around and enjoying the scenery. Glacier Bay was amazing. The water was so clear and the glaciers were enormous. We saw tons of whales, seals, sea otters, bald eagles, and dolphins. It was definitely a relaxing trip...something that was much needed.

Madi and I also made a quick trip down to Sacramento to visit my family. We had a great time as usual and Madi enjoyed spending time with her Nonna and Papa. By the end of the week she was waking up every morning asking for her Papa...my dad loved it!! We also were able to meet up with local DS group of babies and moms (The Sisterhood) that we always see when we are in town. We even got to meet Sofia! For those of you that remember, Sofia was an orphan with Down Syndrome living in Ukraine. She is now home with her awesome family...and she is sweet as can be! I absolutely love getting together with this group of moms and genetically enhanced kids. I know we will stay close with them through the years and watch our kids grow together! I just wish we lived closer to them so we could see them all more than a few times per year.

I am now in my 33rd week of pregnancy and still feeling good. I am definitely tired at the end of the day and the baby seems to enjoy squirming around once Madi is in bed and no longer climbing up my belly. She literally tries to climb my baby bump when I am holding her...she thinks it is the perfect step for her to get a little higher in the air. It is definitely getting a little harder to carry Madi and chase her all over the house. The is keeping me busy!!!

Here are a few photos from our cruise to Alaska

Celebrating my brother's birthday at a bar in Sitka

A shot of one of the glaciers

Relaxing on the deck

Orthotics

Here are Madi's Jump Start orthotics and shoes that her PT recommended she wear while working on standing. I am not the best at using these but we do try to put her in them each day for a bit while she is standing. The shoes are pretty heavy and solid so she has a hard time pulling to stand in these. She does have quite a bit of pronation in her feet when she is standing so the orthotics help to properly stabilize her ankles. When she is barefoot, she is now pulling to stand on EVERYTHING and (dare I say it) starting the beginning stages of cruising while holding on to the furniture. This is a big step for her as until recently, it seemes that Madi thought her feet were cinder blocks that were not to be moved. So, we finally have some progress. I was originally hoping that Madi would be walking when the baby is born (in September) but given how BUSY this girl is that may not be such a good thing! :) It's all on her time and I am totally fine with that! Until then, we will keep working on getting stronger and enjoying every minute of this sweet girl!

Showing me how big she is