... and babies make four: Our life with twins. : February 2015

Okay mommies. I am sure I am not the only one that feels this way, so someone step up and make me feel a little less guilty. I BARELY remember what it was like when my children were babies – and they are only 19 months old! It seems as if it has all been a giant blur. I asked the Hubby if he remembered anything from when they were little and we had a few key points of memory – the 3am feeding conversations, the feeling of them being so tiny on our chests, the walking/singing/swaddling, and… well that is about it. Maybe we are programmed not to remember so that we will do it all over again?! The thing is I want to remember! This is (more than likely) going to be the only time we do “this” and I want to make the most of it. So, I have a new goal for myself of making the moments count. I am going to make the most of each day with them and try and “make a memory” for myself. I am going to take more pictures and more videos and simply just pay attention. There are a lot of specifics I want to remember right now so I am going to wrap them all up into your 19 month update. :)

Landon: He is currently attached to my hip, very much literally. I think I have been about 6 inches away from him at all times for the last 1.5 weeks – not sure if it is just teething or if this is a phase, but I am going to have one buff right arm. He even prefers the right arm, if I try and switch him to my left hip he gets upset. We have had a lot of bonding time over the last few weeks. He had a fever the first of February and it lasted for several days – diagnosed with another “viral infection”- we just had to wait it out. He did have a rash that developed after the fever so I think it was Roseola. (if you are keeping count that is fever number two for him this winter – grr) Landon is showing himself to be a bit more of a loner than his sister – so he truly is my little mini-me. Landon can also do the sign language for “more” and will do that without verbalizing the word so you have to pay attention at the dinner table. Overall, he is more quiet, but he has some pretty in depth “conversations” with me at times – I just have no idea what he is saying! Riley may have more specific words, but Landon does more “talking.” He likes to hold on to my hand/arm when we sit on the couch in the morning and watch Mickey Mouse. With Landon’s help, I will never have to push a button or flip a light switch again. Think of all the time I will save, except for the fact I usually have to lift him up to do so. He loves to play with remotes, cell phones, calculators – he is a little bit of a tech junkie. His other favorite toys are stuffed animals (he loves to cuddle them), his DocMcstuffins doll that walks, books, and cars.

MeMaw and PaPa came to visit!

Riley: She cuddles her arms underneath of her and sticks her butt up in the air when she sleeps. She even does this when she is asleep on your chest – which she did the other day. My first snuggly nap in a long time and I loved it! She runs all over this house saying “Lan-don” now and will call for him and bring him toys. She has a HUGE smile and says “cheese” as soon as the camera comes out. Her current favorite word is “no” and she will vigorously shake her head to go along with it; however, “no” is her answer to every question you ask her. She has so many new words it is hard to keep up! She can say “me-maw” and “pa pa” which has been a hit this week as my parents have been visiting. She repeats back just about anything you say to her and ask her to say. She recognizes most words and will get the correct toy when asked. She points to her nose, ears, and belly on demand. (Daddy is not a fan of her lifting her shirt up, but after some reassurance that it will pass he is good to go.) Also, somewhere along the way, Riley has picked up on the sign language for “more” and the hand sign will accompany the word when she is still hungry. She loves to dance and clap along with songs – “If you are happy and you know it” and “five little monkeys” are the current favorites. She has a mouthful of teeth. She can turn the tears on and off at the drop of a hat and has mastered doing so. I can tell when it is fake, especially when she starts to laugh when I tickle her and then goes right back to crying – I like to call it cry-ling. Riley still has the constant companion of a monkey pacifier and usually a cup as well. She loves to play with books, balls, and cars as well.

Landon loves the selfie...

Checking on daddy after his race.

Overall we are in a very picky eating phase and there are some days where I feel like they don’t eat a thing! Typically they want whatever you are eating, but do not want what is already in front of them. At dinner time it sounds a bit like those birds from Finding Nemo – ya know the ones that say “Mine, Mine, Mine.” Here you will here “bite, bite, bite” incessantly throughout the meal. They love smoothies, soft cereal bars, animal crackers, and Nila wafers. These are the “safe foods” that we know they will typically eat. They continue to love racing around the house with their push and ride on toys. I got them a baby doll stroller at the consignment sale and it was such a hit (think constant fighting over it) that we had to get a second stroller the next day at the sale. We have moved them to booster seats and they actually sit at the table with us now. They seem to like being able to lift up the tablecloth and look at each other from underneath – isn’t that what everyone does at the table?! I also bought step stools (they are getting so big!) and they love climbing up to the sink to “wash” their hands. They really enjoy story time at the library and are starting to “sing” along with the songs and interact more with the other kids. Books continue to be a hot toy in our house and they will bring me books all day long to read or sit down with a book themselves. They are starting to be more “helpful” around the house as well which is great! They help with carrying laundry to and from the washer/dryer, throwing their diapers away, putting some toys away (until distracted by other toys), and throwing their empty plates off the table so I know they are done. :) We had a lot of fun in this last month. My parents came for an extended visit due to the snow! Landon and Riley loved having them around and we went to the aquarium, Discovery Place kids, and did some shopping on top of all the time spent playing at home. We went to watch daddy race his bike on the warm days and were even able to play outisde some. I think I say this just about every month, but I think they grew up a lot in the past month and there have been a lot of changes... now enjoy some pictures.