Ice Cream Cones

We gave the kids their first ice cream cones a few days ago. They weren't sure what to do with them at first, and tried to use their hands. After some visuals from Daddy (I think he wanted to eat the ice cream!) they figured it out! They ate down to the cone, nibbled on the cone, and then handed them over. They didn't get too messy, which was just fine with me!

18 Month Well Visit

I'm not sure how it happened, but my kids turned into eighteen-month-olds. I think I blinked and it happened. The Dr. was really happy with the twin's growth. Sophie is still a peanut at 18.13 lbs, and 30 1/2 in. She is following her curve though, so the Dr. is happy. It is a little unerving to see that your child is "below the curve," but then I watch what Sophie eats, and I see her little belly, and I know she is healthy! Jack was 23.7 lbs, and 32 1/2 in. He dropped a little in % for weight, but jumped up to the 50% for hieght. The kids speech is coming along, and they are saying tons of words. Some of them sound exactly like what they should, and some of them are out there. "Bah" means that someone got hurt...I have no idea where that came from. Sophie said it one day, and it stuck. They call each other "Daaa," because that's how Sophie says "Jack" without the "ck" sound. Now Jack says it for Sophie too. They do a lot of copying of each other, so some words are confusing, and are "Twinspeak." They are the only ones who know the symantics of that language! Other times they come up with words like "dollar," and surprise the pants off of me. We are just trying to surround them with language and hope for the best. We will revaluate our plan in six months if they aren't talking more. They just started taking one nap a day about a week ago. No one really asked me if I was ready for that ! HA! But they seem to be doing well, only a little bit of crankies. They are getting terribly close to the "Terrible Two's" and I am not looking forward to it. Jack is interested in everything around him, and that gets him into trouble. Sophie is downright stubborn. She doesn't like it to much if she doesn't get her own way. We have also been able to "do" a lot more lately. I can take the kids out and about, and I can do more activities with them. It is so much fun! I am looking into joining some kind of Mom's group, but I haven't found any yet in this area. They definitely need to interact with children other than themselves! Matt and I are still loving every minute of this adventure, and are hanging in there for the ride!

Shooting Hoops

How Matt likes to spend his afternoons!

Keeping Cool

We've had some really hot days this summer. To beat the heat, we put the watertable outside on the porch, and let the kids have at it. It was a great way to keep them cool!

Easter

We had a very busy Easter weekend! Grandma and Grandpa A came on Saturday, and brought the kids chairs and some clothes. We had dinner, and a nice time out in the backyard.

Easter Baskets for the kids. We didn't do anything last year(I know, I'm a bad mommy!) So this year, I made them little baskets with a book, a whirly-gig, tadoodles markers, new sparkly cups, and little windup chickens that jumped. The chicks were by far their favorite!

Ok, their favorite after the chocolate. Matt I hid chocolate in eggs after the kids went to bed on Saturday night. The kids ran around and found them. And tried to eat ALL of the candy. Why didn't that occur to me, that they would want to eat all of it? Matt I quickly ran around and took the chocolate out of the eggs before they could make themselves sick!

All dressed up for Easter Sunday. On our new couch I should add!

Sunday we spent with Grandma and Grandpa P. I know the pics are horrible, but someone(Laurie) messed with my camera settings, and I didn't get one good pic. But you can see the baskets my mom weaved for them if you look closely. Sophie knew exactly what to do with the little farm animal eggs in the basket, and Grandma had to quickly pick the chocolate out so that Sophie wouldn't eat it all! We spent the day with the whole Perini family, and had lots of fun, and ate lots of good food!

All in all, it was a great (yet exhausting) weekend!

Conference Calls

Jack's early morning conference call over breakfast. He doesn't look too happy with the person on the other line... And yes, we use calculators as phones around here!

Helping Mommy Unpack

The twins helped unpack...or rather they tried to get into all of the boxes.

Standing on our Heads

Helping Mommy Pack

The twins were such a huge help during packing! They even loaded up their toys into boxes!

Vitamin D is Good for the Soul

What an amazing day! We had a family day today, and spent as much time outside in the sun as possible! It was gorgeous out, and we didn't want to waste a second of the sun! We went to Paneras for lunch, and Sophie gobbled up everything in sight, as Jack munched, and watched everyone around him. Then we went to the park. The first place we went was really nice, with lots of walkways, castles, and fun things for the kids to do. Alas, our kids are too young, so after a few quick photos we decided to leave. We went to a different park, and it was much quieter and more relaxed. The kids played on the playground for awhile, going down slides, climbing up the play structures, and walking around. Then, we loaded them up in the double, and took them for a walk. We let them out on a soccer field, and watched them run all over. They loved the openess and freeness of being able to go wherever they wanted. Last, we went to the dog park to watch the dogs. The kids got to pet a few of the little dogs that came up to the fence. Then we were lucky enough to meet a golden retriever named "Maggie." She was very gentle, and let the kids pet her. Next, we went to watch the big dogs. None of them came that close to the fence, and I think Matt and I were fairly happy about that. They were well, scary, for lack of a better word. The kids were happy to just watch, and play in the grass. We loaded the kids back up in the stroller, and by the time we got to the car, they were just about asleep. So much fun, and so nice to be able to spend a peaceful, blessed day together.

*CAUTION: Picture Overload!*

Totally exhausted after a fun day outside. They like to sleep close to each other.

Go ahead and laugh. I won't be mad.

I'm sure by the end of this story you will be laughing at me. It's OK, because in most situations, you can laugh at yourself, or cry. I am choosing to laugh this time. Yesterday morning, Sophie woke up, and had lots of clear stringy things in her diaper. I didn't think anything of it, and chalked it up to the fact that I had switched to a package of Huggies that we had(instead of the normal Pampers). Sometimes diapers leave wierd things on babies' skin, so I just assumed it was this. When I saw it again later, I panicked. It looked a lot like tiny, little, clear worms. But dead worms, because they weren't moving. I called the Pediatritions, and they said it could be pinworms, which is a common childhood illness. It's sorta like lice. Sometimes there are outbreaks among kids. She told us to do this check by shining a flashlight in Sophie's diaper area at night, because that is when they "come out." Ok, ew. EW, EW, EW! At this point, my sking started to crawl, but I wasn't convinced, and had the nurse set us up with an appointment for today. I called Matt on the phone sobbing out of worry for Sophie. I called my mom, because I knew she would calm me down. I had visions of strange worms in her belly, and places where she could have gotten them. I was worried. We did the "worm check" last night and there was nothing, this morning, nothing. I had saved the diaper from yesterday, but figured that the doctor probably wouldn't have wanted to deal with a day old diaper, so I put some of the little "worms" in a baggy. They looked suspiciouly like something else. I'm sure some of you can guess where this is going. The Doctor took one look at them and said they weren't worms. He wasn't sure what it was, but then I said maybe elastic, and he stretched one, and said that yes, it did look like that. Then he said, "Wow, she must have eaten a lot of it. How did she do that?" At this point I wanted to hide my face in shame. What kind of a mother lets her seventeen month old eat handfulls of elastic???? Where was I while she consumed this delectable substance? So, in light of everything that has happened, and all the stress I felt from imagining Sophie with huge African worms inside of her, I am choosing to laugh at myself. And to catalog it away for the grandkids. Because really, what else could I do?

Dear Sophie, Seventeen Months

Dear Baby Girl,

I love having a little girl so much. You are so sweet and you love to sit and cuddle with mommy all day. Every morning when Jack wakes us up way too early, you and mommy sit on the couch underneath a blanket and relax while watching Jack run around. You are such a social butterfly. You love to be part of the mix, and you are happy to sit with mommy, and hear stories, or talk. You are so curious, and you like to have everything named for you. You like to tell us what names you know. You talk constantly! You like to make the sounds for animals, and we aren't sure why, but when you see a cow, you blow raspberries. Where did you learn that one? You are so spunky, and some days you keep mommy guessing as to what you want and need. Mommy has to work for your giggles, but once I get you going, it's hard to get you to stop. You love to read. All day long, you look at books, or ask for other people to read them to you. You watch all of the trouble that Jack gets into, and try to look innocent when he convinces you to join in. Your beautiful, impish smile always makes me smile back. I can't help it, you are just too cute with you scrunched up you little nose and you look at me like I am crazy. I might be crazy, but I am your mom! I love that you seem to like to do things that might make you dirty. You like to do what Jack is doing. Mommy would love to have a little tomboy that loves to play soccer and run around outside, but if you choose to do something girly, I will love you just as much. You love to eat, and it makes mommy so happy to see your cheeks all filled out. Mommy and daddy were so worried about you this summer, but God took care of you, just like he has always done. We are so happy that he helped the surgeons fix you, so that you don't ever have to worry about it. I'm going to ask your brother the same thing, but maybe you could slow down the rate at which you are growing? We could just stop at this age for a little bit. It's a fun age. Really. We could try at least? I hope you always keep your strong and determined attitude. I hope you always fight for what you want. But I also hope you always remain sweet and kind.

I love you forever and always,
Mommy

Dear Jack, Seventeen Months

Dear Baby Boy,

Can you please slow down? I mean really, do you need to grow so fast? Did you need to start walking and be so independent at such an early age? Mommy can't keep up with how much you change every single day. You amaze me when you run around the house with such zest. Exploring and taking in everything that you possibly can. When you came up to me this morning, and asked, "What is this?" as clear as day, I couldn't answer you because my words were stuck in my throat. My baby is speaking in sentences! I miss my cuddlebug. The little baby who used to snuggle and fit on my chest. Some days, you give me little glimpses of that cuddley little guy, but then right away you are off again, zooming around the room. I love those quick kisses, and little cuddles, almost as much as I love your laugh. You are such a happy little guy. You laugh at everything. Something so small will send you into fits of laughter. Kisses on your belly, and under your arms always get you going. You love your cars, and you love to open the drawers and spew their contents all over the room. Taking a look at each little toy you find in them. Then you climb into the empty drawer, and have a ball. Sometimes we have to get an extra one out for Sophie because you don't always like to share. After you run around like a mad man, you will sit quietly on the floor and look at a book. That's the time when I know I can snuggle with you, and you will listen to a story that I have to read. You are such a rough and tumble little boy. You fall down, or get hurt, and after a quick inspection, and a few hugs and kisses, you are on you way again. You are all boy. You love your milk. You drink and drink and drink. At least we know you will always have strong muscles! You like most foods that mommy makes, but you are just like me, and you don't really like breakfast. You are just like daddy, that you don't really like sweets. Ice cream is too cold for you. Your daddy and I love you to pieces. We can't get enough of your free spirit and infectious laugh. Your little goofy grin. I hope you never loose those things. I hope you always keep that wonder you have for everything in this world. My little toddler. I know I can't freeze you at this age, but maybe we could work on just slowing down a little? Please? For mommy?

I love you forever and always,

Mommy

Videos of Our Lives

Instead of pictures, I made a few posts with videos of things that the twins have been up to. Our days are getting more fun, as well as crazier, busier, sillier, more exhausting, and filled with love!

Daddy Teaches Jack to Dunk

We finally brought the basketball hoop down from the attic, and the twins loved it! Matt taught Jack how to dunk the basketball, and he has been dunking anything and everything since. Blah Blahs, stuffed animals, blocks, you name it, it's gone through our hoop.

Working together to build blocks

The other day, Jack was building his "blocks" into a tower, and Sophie was helping by knocking them down. He gets pretty frustrated, but she loves it!

Jack Gives the Dog a Bone

The kids love dogs, and last week when we went to my parents house, Jack was very excited to feed their dog Kalli, bones. He also wanted to feed her everything else he was eating! I'm sure now he has a friend for life!

Rachel Reads to Sophie

Two weeks ago, we were lucky enogh to have the opportunity to visit with the Fredrick Andersons. Sophie loved that Rachel read her books.

Spring is on its way!

We caught a cute little bunny hopping around our house this morning. That must mean spring is almost here!

Happy Valentine's Day Daddy!

For Valentine's Day the twins and I surprised Daddy by picking out new shirts with our messages of love for Daddy on them. Jack's says, "I love Daddy," and Sophie's says, "My heart belongs to Daddy." We then had a little mini-photoshoot, and I took a lot of pictures and made Matt a scrapbook to take to work. Just a little reminder of how much we all love him. Here some of my favorites from the shoot.

A New Obsession

Things with wheels. Jack did this for at least a half hour on Wednesday. He's not particular about what kind of moving vehicle it is, as long as it has wheels, he can provide the sounds.

I love...

• That the kids love to read books. They do this all day long. Especially Sophie. And they have this silly "reading voice" that is very dramatic. I wonder if they are copying me?
• That the when comes home from work, the kids run to the gate to greet him. Jack pulls on Matt's jacket to make sure that he is staying for a while. Then chaos ensues as they enjoy "Daddy Time."
• That the twins kiss and hug each other all the time. They are also starting to play together much more often than before. They play peak-a-boo, read together, and other games that I really don't understand.
• That they are talking like crazy, and picking up new words all the time. It never ceases to amaze me when they say something new. They say things like, "quack", "ball", "bubble", "flower", "no", and many others.
• When Sophie has her "Incredible Hulk Fit" as Matt and I like to call it. Well, we don't encourage it, but it's pretty ridiculous when Sophie gets so mad she bites things...like a cabinet. So, like I said, she gets in trouble, but it is so silly.
• That they are such good eaters. There are very few things that they won't eat, and they love their veggies. They love enchiladas, salsa, white chicken chili soup, cantalope and rice.
• They aren't big fans of kid friendly foods like pizza or grilled cheese sandwiches.
• That they laugh all the time. It makes stressful days less stressful.
• That they love to go places. Everyday they try to get me to take them somewhere. Matt and I are really excited to have a backyard to let them roam in this year.
• That they love going for walks and being outside. This is sort of mandatory to be part of this family! We love to exercise and relax outdoors!
• That they are our little growing, exploring, sometimes getting into trouble, toddlers. We love being parents!

Finger Paint Mess

Since I have been on a mission to give my kids a chance to experience as much art as possible, Tuesday night we broke out the finger paints to give the kids a chance to do some art. They loved it! They didn't get too messy, but of course some ended up in their hair, and a very little bit in their mouth. The kids liked to spread it all over their paper, and the table too. We didn't let them get too messy, but maybe next time! Here are some shots of the excitement:

Sophie's Finger Painting

Jack's Finger Painting

The Little Things

This morning, I was sitting with Sophie on the couch, having our morning cuddle time. Matt came over to pick her up, and her lovey fell on the ground. She looked at it, and said "uh-oh" clear as day. It was the cutest thing ever! We made her say it a few more times, until we got our fill of her cuteness. What a great way to start the day!