Jack's First Haircut

We finally made an appointment to get Jack's hair cut. Someone (OK, me!) was being a baby about cutting his hair off. I don't know why, but it was emotional for me. I'm having trouble dealing with the fact that the twins are almost two, and they aren't babies anymore. Every mom has trouble with that right? So anyway, we took Jack to Snips, which is a friend of the Anderson Family, and the woman who has always cut Matt's hair. We thought that would be best since we set up the tripod, and videotaped the whole thing! We wanted someone who would be OK with that! So here is the story in pictures of the big day for Jack.

Here is a before shot. His hair was so long in the back, long enough for a ponytail. Too long for a boy! Matt and I think he knew something was up at this point, and he looks a little apprehensive.

Jack sat with Daddy for a little while Judy got things set up. I tried to get some pictures of how long his hair had gotten.

Judy had a little chair for Jack to sit on, and he was happy to sit there. He didn't mind the cover up after Judy showed took his arms out from underneath. She also gave him some combs to hold. All is well at this point.

And then things went south! As soon as Judy sprayed Jack's hair to get it wet, he lost it. Then it got worse when she came at him with sissors! He was not a happy camper. Even a lollipop didn't soothe him!

Sophie was content to sit in a little chair, and eat her lollipop. She didn't mind that her brother was screaming his head off!

At this point I picked Jack up, and held him while he got his hair cut. It was a little less traumatizing while mommy held him. I'm a "mean mommy," and sometimes I had to hold his head still. Even though I was holding him, he wasn't happy.


After a while he calmed down enough that Judy got a snip in here, and a snip in there, and before we knew it, we were done!

After the drama of the hair cut, Judy gave the kids little bags of pretzels, and they sat and ate while we chatted. Poor Jack. But he looks very handsome with his new haircut!

I held it together, and didn't cry. And Judy cut his hair exactly how we asked for it to be cut. He looks so much better, and older without the shaggy hair! What a big boy! After Jack was done, Matt told Sophie that she was next, and she started crying hysterically! Mean Daddy. Not this time though, Sophie. She has some very sweet curls on the back of her head, and we are going to let them grow for a little bit. All in all, it was a very successful day!

Kangaroo Climber

We got the twins a new climber for the backyard! They love it! And the best part? It was cheap because we bought it used from Craigslist. Shhh! Don't tell the twins, they have no idea. Jack jumped right in, and climbed all over it, and used the slide. It took Sophie a couple of days, and then, on her own time, she slid down the slide. Now she loves it, and that is the first place she goes when we go outside. I love that summer and warm weather days are here. Jack loves to pick up his "steeeks." And Sophie loves hanging out in the breeze, and spinning in circles. Fun, fun, fun!

We've been busy!

Has it been almost two months since my last post? As my grandmother would say, "EEKKK!" In my defense, we have been super busy. I feel like I don't ever have a chance to sit down and take a breath, let alone write a blog post. Matt really started to bug me about getting back into writing posts, and he's right. I need to keep recording our life! HA! So, here is two months worth of posts. Get ready to go into picture overload. And maybe you'll be as surprised as me, as to how much bigger the twins look than two months ago. They sure aren't babies anymore, sigh. Enjoy the posts, and I will defintely get back into writing them!

Sophie's Ultrasound

Yesterday we had an ultrasound at the hospital for Sophie. It was her six month checkup. I was dreading the ultrasound, because I knew Sophie would hate it. After about ten minutes of solid screaming, the ultrasound tech had all of the pictures she needed. It wasn't TOO bad, but I would like to not repeat it any time soon! The Dr. said that Sophie looks great, and that she won't have to see him again for two years. Do you think at 3 1/2 she might not scream? Praise God for healing, and taking care of Sophie! We are so thankful that she only had to have one surgery, and that now her renal system is working!

Sprinkler Fun!

We had ninety degree weather two weekends ago, and we needed a way to cool off. We bought this big ball that hooks up to the hose, and shoots water out of little holes. After Matt and I passed out from blowing the ball up, and we covered our kids in sunscreen, we let the kids have at it. They liked it at first, until we turned the water up, and then it was too much cold water all at once. We turned the water back down, and they had tons of fun!

Too much water!

Getting reasurances from Daddy.

Playing Outside

It has been such a nice spring, and we have tried to get out as much as we can. The kids love being outside, and stand at the door everyday, hoping I will take them out! We have lots of outside toys for them, but they are most happy picking up sticks, rocks, and pine cones, and playing in the dirt.

Sophie feeling the breeze.

Is it just me, or does Jack look "grown up" in this picture?

Holding his "treasures," and getting covered in sap!

Sophie being assertive.

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?