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!

Moo, Baa, Putt Putt

Saturday we went the Farm Show in Harrisburg with Grandma and Grandpa P, Aunt Laurie, and Uncle Matt. It was fun, and the kids loved seeing the animals. Of course, every animal was a, "woof!" We saw goats, cows, and sheep. Jack was even brave enough to pet the goats and the sheep. Jack also ran around and scoped out the huge tractors, while Sophie scarfed down lunch. They had a hot dog and french fries. A huge treat for them! Later, they had some of Grandma's ice cream, and some of my dill pickle. Yes, they are definitely my kids! They also tasted maple candy. I was exhausted! It's hard to carry a stroller up and down multiple stair cases all day! All in all, it was a fun day!

Look it's twin goats!

Did You Know, 15 Months

Here's a fun game to play, add the words "Did you know" in front of all of these statements, and quiz your knowledge of our now fifteen month old kids. And by the way, who took my babies and replaced them with these walking, talking little munchkins?

• Sophie is finally walking by choice. She has been able to walk for a long time now, but she wasn't too keen on letting anyone know that.


• The twins have been skipping their morning nap lately. Let's just be honest, I'm not ready to go to one nap!


• Sophie calls her lovey "La-Ya." She is very protective of her, and doesn't like other children to play with her. This is the only toy I let the kids not share.


• One morning the four of us were sitting on the couch, and Sophie started babbling about something, and we had no idea what she wanted. Jack got down off of my lap and found her lovey to give to her. It was exactly what she wanted. I have no idea how he knew this! It goes to show you that they do have their own secret language. I wonder how much they are talking about me? Now, if you say, "Jack, get La-Ya," he gets her lovey for her.


• Jack gives everyone kisses. He kisses Sophie on her face, even when she isn't too sure about it. He gives kisses with his whole mouth open wide, but Sophie gives very soft pecks. You might miss it if you don't pay attention.


• The twins love books. Sophie will sit and cuddle for a long time with books. She especially likes to have someone read to her. I made them a little book corner in their room with lots of soft pillows, and a bookshelf of books.


• Jack calls me "mama" now, and says it when he wants me. He came tearing into the living room one day yelling, "ma ma, ma ma, ma ma," and when he turned the corner, and could see me, he looked, smiled, and softly said, "ma ma." It melted my heart right then and there!


• The twins get so excited to see Matt come home from work. After their second nap, they wander around saying, "Dada," and check the stairs constantly.


• The twins are talking a lot now. They say all kinds of things. Jack came up with "ball" tonight all on his own. He got the biggest smile! Both babies have also said things like milk, more, snack, grandma(gma), woof(for every dog, and animal they see!), and some others that I can't think of right now.


• They are starting to fight like siblings, and some days it drives me nuts. They just pick at each other. Jack will pester Sophie by touching her on her head, or following her really closely when she is walking/crawling. Sophie will cry hysterically if he gets near her, or she will offer him a toy, and then cry when he takes it. Some days I want to draw a line down the middle of my house, and make them stay on opposite sides!


• The twins love to leave the house. We visit a friend and her sons Christopher and Jacob once a week, and the twins love it. Note to self: Join a MoM's club!


• We are having so much fun with the twins. I feel like this is the perfect stage for kids. The discovery is amazing. I love to see their little faces when they see something new. They giggle at Matt and I constantly, and the littlest things set them off! It's amazing how just when you think you can't love them anymore, because your heart is bursting, you somehow find a way to love them more.(Hmm...must the way God feels about us, his children!) We have been so blessed, and are so thankful for our little cuties!
  

Buffalo Recap

I could go on and on about Buffalo, but instead I am going to give you a recap of the week bullet-style, and add in pictures where appropriate. Bear in mind that some of the pictures are fuzzy because the lighting was low no matter where we went. *Hint, Hint Matt* Valentine's Day is coming up, you could get me an external flash! ;) Here goes:

• The kids were great in the car. We stopped once in the middle of the trip to let Jack run around. When they got cranky we turned on kids music, with just the back speakers on, and let them go to town.
  
• We stayed at the "York Estate," and it was beautiful, and we were well taken care of! The kids slept ok, but Jack did wake up two nights, and was unable to fall asleep for a long time. I became a very tired mommy! We lost power for a few hours one night, and the kids got to eat by candlelight! Also, the Yorks have a dog, Cocoa, who was so sweet, and even let the kids pet her.




• The kids had lots of new yummy foods, like Bison dip, an Anderson favorite, cheescake, cookies, Aunt Jean's special cinnamon rolls and icing, and of course wings(barbeque!).




• We saw the Keller's on Sunday, and the kids met their ten month old cousin Monalisa. She was very excited to meet the twins, but the twins played shy. The twins also really took to their Great Uncle Dan, and followed him around and asked to be held constantly. I think at a couple points they were even fighting over him! HAHA! Sophie also conned her great aunts and cousins into carrying her around.




• On the Anderson side, the twins got to experience their first gag gift exchange. To be honest, most of the jokes went over their heads. ;) They loved playing with thier great grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. And yes, Sophie conned more people into holding her, even cousin Peter, who took very good care of her.





• We came home completely exhausted. At least I did! HAHA! I am at this point, declaring vacations "unvacations!" At least for me anyway! ;) But we did have tons of fun and were very glad to make the trip, and very thankful to the Yorks for inviting us, and giving us a place to stay. I sure hope Aunt Jean didn't regret that choice at 3:00 in the morning, after Jack had been up since eleven!

Family

Other things may change us, but we start and end with family.

~Anthony Brandt

Happy Birthday Matt!

On December 30, Matt turned 27. Happy Birthday! We celebrated with a trip to the Anchor Bar, the home of the Buffalo Wing, and coffee cake with family.

Simply having a Wonderful Christmas Time

Christmas is supposed to be fun and exciting for kids right? Well let me just say that I think Matt and I were more excited to wake up on Christmas morning than the kids! We didn't get a lot of "stuff," but just a few neat things. A little table and chairs set, some play food and pots and pans, and some stocking stuffers. The table was a hit. The twins sat it in for at least an hour, and just played with their new food and pot and pans. Matt and I just sat back and relaxed. We video taped them opening presents, but didn't take any pictures. What in the world was I thinking? I never forget to take pictures!

After the twin's first nap (which they tried to skip), we left for Grandma and Grandpa A's. The twins opened presents when they got there. They got some neat things, including a ball popper, and a shopping cart. Jack like to stick his head over the hole where the air comes out, while Sophie presses the button to start the popping. Too funny! Uncle Rick and Kim were there also, and the twins had fun playing with them. Jack was especially fond of Kim. Rick got them some books, which my kids adore, alphabet blocks and a multicultural cd. Here a few pictures from the day. After that, Sophie gorged herself on food, mostly mashed potatoes, her favorite. She is becoming such a little piggy! I love it! Jack ate a little food, but really just wanted to play with his asparagus.




Next, we drove the hour to my parent's house in the car while the twins slept. We got there, and started opening presents again. I think the twins started to get the hang of opening things by this point, but they were just really very excited about the gifts inside! The kids got some really great things from Grandma and Grandpa P including a kitchen (No, I know for a fact my parents didn't pay that much!) and a water table. The twins also got stuffed animals and DVDs from Uncle Matt and Nikki, which Jack carried around all day, and books from Aunt Laurie. The twins ate on the go at my parent's house, and had ham, red beet eggs, veggies, cheese, and clementines. Oh yeah, and the occasional m&m that Grandpa P snuck them! HA! After dinner we set up the water table, and the twins covered themselves in water. Here a few pictures of this part of the day.




We left at bedtime, and let the kids play a little when we got home. Then we put the kids to bed. We sang a few songs like "Silent Night," "Jesus Loves Me," and "Happy Birthday" to Jesus of course! I talked with the kids about the true reasons for the holidays, and I know that even though they don't know everything that I am saying, that they are still understanding some of the things I tell them about God. Next year we are going to do a lot more things in this area, and I can't wait! I have ideas already! When the twins were all tucked in, Matt and I worked on constructing the play kitchen. Two hours later, and lots of sore muscles from Matt, we had a kitchen. I will say that Matt was extremely patient, even when I didn't help him in the best way! The kids got up today, and ransacked the house playing with each and every one of their new toys.


I would say that the kids were spoiled, but I then I would have to admit that Matt and I are too! But the very best part of the day was spending time with each other, and with our families. The twins have lots of "stuff," but they are mostly spoiled with love. It is very nice to see just how loved these two little peanuts are! Merry Christmas, and I hope your day was wonderful also! We are off to Buffalo for a few day to visit the Anderson and Keller Clans. Wish us luck, and two pleasant babies!

Silent Night...

Merry Christmas!!!

I've Been Tagged

Alicia Anderson tagged me with a few questions about Matt and I. so here goes. Maybe one day the kids can read this! ;)

1.How long have you been together? November 26, 2001, so seven years.

2.How long did we date? About 2 1/2 years

3. How old is he? Matt will be 27 in two weeks! Happy B-day!

4. Who eats more? Matt. But I have been known to eat more when it comes to things like ice cream or brownies.

5. Who said, "I love you," first? Matt. I remember EVERY detail to this day. It was the day before Valentine's Day.

6. Who is taller? Matt, I am a shorty.

7. Who does the laundry? Me. Laundry is my favorite chore.

8. Who does the dishes? Me.

9. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me. And no Matt, I am not giving it up. You picked your side when we got married, and that night made it final. ;)

10. Who pays the bills? I physically pay the bills, but without Matt and his million and one jobs they wouldn't get paid.

11. Who mows the lawn? Ahhh...the lawn. The tennent downstairs used to do it. Then Matt's dad did it for a little bit. Thank God it is winter, although Matt was thinking about paying a nice boy who lived down the street. ;)

12. Who cooks dinner? I do. I'm not sure Matt knows how to use the microwave! HAHA!

13. Who is more stubborn? That could go either way

14. Who kissed who first? Matt kissed me. I was very shy. Should I admit that I remember EVERY detail of that kiss too?

15. Who asked who out? Matt asked me to a Saves the Day Concert.

16. Who proposed? Matt, although I bugged him like crazy until he did it.

17. Who is more sensitive? Me. I am overly sensitive.

18. Who has more siblings? We have the same number. And our older and younger siblings are the same ages.

19. What were you doing ten years ago? I was in high school. Playing soccer, running, being a typical high schooler. Wonder what Matt was up to at his high school?

20. Five things on my to-do list: get ready for our Buffalo trip, finish Christmas presents for the Grandparents, get my hair cut, finish the laundry, pay some bills.

21.Things I would do if I was suddenly made a billionaire. Too funny! Matt should answer this one, because I am sure he has a detailed plan. Like down to the penny. ;) I have some places in mind that I would love to donate lots of money to!

22. Three of my bad habits: biting my finger nails, eating too many sweets, being anxious.

23. Five places I have lived: Birdsboro, PA; Shippensburg, PA; Harrisburg, PA; West York, PA; Wrightsville, PA. All in PA...I'm a homebody.

24. Five jobs I have had: Washing hair at a hair salon(ICK!), Working in an office with my mom, waitressing at Bob Evans...the tips were horrible!, Being a substitute teacher...too much stress!, Working as a preschool teacher. I loved it!

25. Things people don't know about me: When I was younger, my brother and sister said I sang like a dying cow. I have the nickname "Amy Bean Head" and other variations because I had to go to the hospital when I was little for sticking beans up my nose. Yeah, I was a wierd kid!

Don't we look young?

I tag Heather.

Snowy Day

We got an inch or two of snow the other day, and when Matt got home, we decided to take the kids outside to play. Who in the world came up with the idea for snow suits? My kids were just like the kids from "A Christmas Story." Jack refused to walk anywhere, and Sophie just sat on the ground. She took her glove off, and then got mad when her hand got wet. Matt put it back on, and then she was mad it was on again! We were lucky if we made it fifteen minutes outside, but it was fun (for Matt and I!), and long enough to snap a few pictures.

Tie-dye

When the twins were born, Uncle Rick bought them tie-dye shirts. If you look back at the blog, you can see pictures of them in their tiny little tie-dye shirts here. Here is a picture of the twins with their Uncle Rick this past weekend. My have they changed!

O Christmas Tree

We put the Christmas Tree up yesterday, with the lights and some garland. The kids were excited. Last night, after they went to bed, Matt and I put up ornanments. We decided not to risk the beautiful ornments that we have collected over five Christmases, and to put up unbreakable bulbs instead. I guess I should mention that (of course!) Jack found a way to break them! This morning when they woke up, we turned on the lights, and they were thrilled. Of course Jack has tried to take all the ornaments off of the tree several times, but their reaction was priceless. Now it feels a little more like Christmas around here.