CHARGE Weekend

Just wanted to remind everyone that the Inaugural Joshua Kurby Charge for CHARGE 5K run/walk is coming soon...August 1! I am so excited, and very nervous, for this day. We will definitely be breaking the 100 mark for participants which is so exciting for a first year event! I will be posting pictures after the race, so check back in another week.

This weekend we are attending the CHARGE conference. When Josh was first diagnosed in the NICU we were quick to get online and learn all we could about CHARGE. Right away we saw that the CHARGE conference, a biannual event, was going to be in our backyard- Bloomingdale! We thought it was a sign for sure, since years prior it was much further away- California and Florida.

We are very excited to go to the conference, be surrounded by the comfort of the CHARGE community that we have grown into, step back for a moment and see the world we have become so involved in, appreciate once again all of Josh's accomplishments and success as well as valiant obstacles he's overcome, and definitely learn a lot more about what Josh's life on earth may have been like, and what we'd be working towards now, and in the future.


***On a quick Joey note...Joey has been walking on his own now! He is consistently taking 16 + steps all on his own, sometimes trying to run, but that lands him on the floor pretty quickly. He is getting more confident every day!***

Joshua's Journeys #7- The Popeye Face!

A lot of you may have heard about, or even seen for yourself Joshua's "popeye face." Josh rarely if ever complained. He was so tough it truly was amazing. I was reminded of a perfect example yesterday when I took Joey for his 1 year appointment. When I would take both boys to the doctor for their shots Josh was always the tough guy. Since Josh and Joey were preemies they got an extra shot every month from October through March (also April for Joey) in addition to the other shots that they still had to get. Joey would scream sometimes as soon as the nurse would walk in... I think he knows what someone in scrubs means to him. Josh would be the big brother and not even flinch. Once he got his shots he would make his Popeye face for a brief moment, sometimes not always cry for less than 2 seconds, and then return to his normal demeanor. He was amazing. Phil and I would call him a manimal. He could take anything! He definitely proved to be tougher than his younger brother.
Even at home, if he'd get frustrated with a toy he would make a Popeye face (sometimes for a bit longer than he did when he got his shots) but he was always quick to calm.
His Popeye face started in the NICU with all of his heel sticks, not to mention vein pokes. Josh did not have the most cooperative veins, but boy was he patient. Bethany was the first one to coin the Popeye face phrase, and boy was she right on with it! We felt bad for the poor guy, but we couldn't help but laugh during some of his frustration. He was so patient, brave, and always making us smile.

Here is a quick picture of Josh's Popeye face. I think some of the videos we have are much better at portraying the look, so once Phil is back from his trip I will see if I can get him to try and upload a short clip.

4th of July

After a hard day celebrating his birthday, Joey was up and ready to go for the 4th of July parade. Joey did pretty well in the beginning of the parade with the loud noises, Aubrie kept him content through the sirens and horns. After a while though he got tired so he fell asleep on Daddy's shoulder and then was set up in the wagon for a nap. It was a pretty funny sight. Dad has the picture on his phone so he can upload it later, Joey didn't flinch once he was out.

After his long nap Joey was ready to party hop again. So we stopped by Aunt Gerri and Uncle Joe's 4th of July party. It was great to see them, but we wish they had better weather. (Aunt Gerri, I will definitely post Josh's Popeye face for you.) We then headed over to see Uncle Chris at the country club. We had dinner there and then the rain cleared up a bit and Joey was able to go on his first pony ride. Joey loved the ponies from afar. He would wave and get very excited, but whenever Dad put him on one he got a little worried. Andrew tried out an obstacle course moonjump with Auntie Christy and decided he'd rather be in the open blow ups where he can jump around. We ended the day with a golf cart ride before heading home.

Birthday Bash

Here are some pictures from the birthday party. Aunt Brooke took over 300 others (thank you!) but here are some from our camera, starting with the night before setting up the canopy (we do have the best neighbors!). Crystal, thank you for the kind words about the party on Eva's blog. You are way better at photography and blogging than I am, and we were honored to be on her blog! (And we know that Josh was blushing from above seeing Eva at the party- even if she did want his balloon!)
The party was a lot of fun. The weather was perfect, the kids seemed to enjoy the moonjump, and Joey had a great party! We had a balloon tied to the top of our deck that said Happy Birthday Joshua, and later that night we sent it up to Joshua. We also had banana cupcakes (thanks Auntie Christy for making them!) and a jar of banana baby food displayed with them since those were Josh's favorite! Auntie Christy also made Joey's personal Elmo cake. Unfortunately I don't have pictures of those right now, but once we have them we will post those, or once Daddy comes home from his business trip we can see if he'll post the video!

Catching Up

Here is the last month in a nutshell. Sorry we've been so lazy with posting. So much has been happening with the boys' birthday and all the summer activities. Here is a synopsis of what's been going on up until July 3...
June 14- Joey went for a his first bike ride on the back of Daddy's bike. He hates hats, so the helmet was nothing he was too fond of either. We'll keep trying though.

June 15- Joey got some gifts from Auntie Marie and Auntie Joanie's softball tournament. A cool bandanna for summer and a ball that he loves rolling around.

June 17- Joey, Andrew, Auntie Christy, and I took a trip to Cosley Zoo for the day. It is a small zoo in Wheaton. Both Joey and Andrew seemed to enjoy it. Andrew showed a bit more interest in being able to name animals, while Joey just kinda stared and was more interested in his own feet.

June 20- Joey had his first sleepover. We were able to watch Ben and Abbey overnight and everyone had a fun time playing!

Happy First Birthday!

It is amazing that one year has gone by. Many people say that the first year goes quickly and is a blur. There are so many moments and memories we have of this first year that will never be forgotten. This past week Joey has decided to take his first few steps on his own and we continue to grow in amazement at all that he does. We also celebrate Joshua's time with us and take comfort in knowing that he is in Jesus' arms. Talk about pride, Joshua made our hearts grow with pride with every milestone he hit and allows us to celebrate all the Joey's does that much more. We are so thankful for all that we have been given. Twins truly are a double blessing.

Happy Birthday Joshua and Joseph!
Here are some of our very first moments meeting Joshua and Joseph in the NICU.

Happy 1st Birthday!

It is amazing that one year has gone by. Many people say that the first year goes quickly and is a blur. There are so many moments and memories we have of this first year that will never be forgotten. This past week Joey has decided to take his first few steps on his own and we continue to grow in amazement at all that he does. We also celebrate Joshua's time with us and take comfort in knowing that he is in Jesus' arms. Talk about pride, Joshua made our hearts grow with pride with every milestone he hit and allows us to celebrate all the Joey's does that much more. We are so thankful for all that we have been given. Twins truly are a double blessing.

Happy Birthday Joshua and Joseph!