... and babies make four: Our life with twins. : This is 8.5

Did you miss me? It has taken me awhile to get into a groove with 12 hour shifts and then every time I think I have a routine figured out something comes up and things change. I did not anticipate how mentally and physically drained I would feel when I got home. Most days I can only find the energy to shower, eat dinner, and stare at the television until I go to sleep. I get frustrated with myself for not feeling more productive and I am hopeful I can come to terms with myself on that one. My challenge of late is my hip. Since the last time I wrote (which wasn't about me anyway - ha ha) I have developed some pretty intense hip pain. After a few doctor's appointments it was discovered that I have a torn labrum (again) and I am working with that now. I have found an amazing massage therapist and a great PT and we are working together to keep me moving - and to avoid a surgery right now. The recovery time for surgery would be about 12 weeks and I just don't have time for that right now! I promise if the need gets too great I will go for the surgery, but right now I can maintain. I will maintain better (hopefully) after a steroid injection and some more strengthening.

Other than that - nothing new to report on my end. I have been trying to make some changes in myself and feel like I have improved upon how I handle my anxiety. I have learned to be better about going with the flow (a year of therapy has helped with that), but I still struggle at times when I feel like things are "off schedule." I keep pretty busy as I work full time (plus), still do some contract work/trainings with my previous job, and hold positions as the PTO President and co-chair of my local district for the Charlotte Mothers of Multiples. My hobbies haven't changed much - I still love to read, watch movies, and play games with the kids. At the instruction of my therapist, I also make it a point to carve out activities that make me happy that are just for me - like pedicures. :) I am trying my best to keep myself a happier and healthier (physically and mentally) so I can lead by children by example. Speaking of them - want to know what they have been up to? Let's be honest - they are the starts of this show.

Landon has recently decided that he can communicate with me using only his eyes. We are not yet in sync on this one, but he must be my child if this is his plan as I cannot hide my face. He does have some big brown eyes and long eyelashes, so I don't mind looking into his eyes one bit. He loves to tell jokes and offer up some brain teasers. He asks a lot of questions about how things work, but he does more of explaining to us how things work. He is a giant sponge of knowledge and nothing gets past him. Early in the school year, we received a contact from the AIG teacher at his school wondering if he could be tested for placement in the program. We agreed, but didn't talk to him much about it until the day of testing - I know what my anxiety is like and I didn't want to bring that on him. I should have known better though as he wasn't nervous at all, flew threw the testing, and scored so high they almost don't know what to do with him. He is the only second grader to be leveled in Math meaning he gets one on one time with the teacher which she has been using to teach him about how the 3D printer works and he is in love! He is an avid reader, and once he gets into a book, he doesn't put it down. I once got him three books from a series he liked at the library and had read them all by that night! We have been trying to find him books at his level and of his interests (robots, dragons, Minecraft). He is into Harry Potter and he does okay with the books - just becomes frustrated with the names. He has this habit of just reading the word he does not know very quickly so by the time you realize he missed it he is already 5 sentences ahead. He would probably stay up all night reading if I didn't go in there and cut him off.

His favorite past time is video games. His current favorite is a Lego version of Harry Potter that he asks to play about 10 times a day. I honestly don't hate video games and I acknowledge the influence on hand-eye coordination, but we still try to rotate electronics throughout the day and encourage free play. A few months ago, we sorted and organized his Legos and I bought a shelf that has become "Lego World" as he has kept most of his sets together sitting on the shelf. Honestly, the mismatch of Legos used to give me anxiety and I think it was too much for him also. Once we got them sorted, I find him playing with his Legos on a daily basis. He still likes to play with his Beyblades and was super proud of himself when he picked one out for his friend for Christmas and now they can battle each other. He loves sorting and organizing his Pokemon cards into his binder. He likes to build forts out of my couch cushions and play pretend. He LOVES to play board games and card games. He likes to curl up next to me and watch a movie. I don't know that he has a favorite show, but he will usually choose to watch Science Max, Pokemon, or Teen Titans. His favorite song is "Big Love, Small Moments" by JJ Heller and he has his own choreographed dance to the song. He is still a picky eater, but his favorite food is the cheese dippers the school serves for lunch. He will also eat mac n cheese, but only if the noodles are shaped "like the kind you can make a necklace out of." He has recently learned how to make his own peanut butter and jelly sandwich and that has become a lunch of choice - next I am hoping he learns to clean up the mess from said sandwich. He is in Boy Scouts and Breakdance right now - this boy loves to dance and is not afraid to bust out his "moves." He is extremely hopeful that he will grow a few more inches by this summer so he can go on some of the bigger roller coasters at Carowinds - I am just grateful I don't have to ride with him for anything anymore.

Riley loves hard and is unfortunately full of anxiety. I worked the Santa Shop at school and when I came around to her classroom she wanted to buy a gift for every single one of her classmates. She was worried about the one friend that forgot his money and reminded me over and over again to return the next day so he could buy something. In the end she ended up picking out a toy for him and about 10 other people. She wants to be a friend to everyone and does not understand why it is not always reciprocated. She needs reassurance often of our schedule and what we will be doing for the day. She wants to be involved in every conversation and her current word of choice is "Seriously?". She says "Thank you" for everything - which is a great quality to have. She makes sure that Pat and I know our efforts are not unappreciated. She was excited for every Christmas activity I had planned and we did a lot of different things! I attempted an activity advent calendar and we did something different almost every day of the month. They also asked for toys for each other this year - which warmed my heart - other than the fact that the toy Landon asked for - a Magic Mixie- was difficult to find. I got super lucky and was able to get one for each of them with a little help from my sister.

Riley is getting into a groove with her reading also and is starting to find books she enjoys. Her favorite thing to do though is draw and no piece of paper in the house is safe. I recently found her "dairy" and it was filled with pictures and many phonetically spelled words. She loves animals and any type of animal toy. She plays with Barbies and Rainbow High dolls - especially the new additions from Christmas. She also wants to wear make up though and have her nails done - if only I could get her to brush her hair more willingly! She likes to play board games with the family and make popcorn and watch movies together. She and Landon make up games and stories together and I absolutely love watching their imaginations. She recently filled out a survey so I know her favorite movie is My Little Pony and she does not have a favorite song. Her favorite food is mac n cheese - but not the same kind of mac n cheese that Landon likes. She LOVES to ride her bike and we recently had to upgrade her to a larger bike. She is doing Girl Scouts and Pom right now. She started out doing softball and she will say that is her favorite sport. She did okay, but she definitely has some room for growth athletically. As a team cheerleader though, there is no one better than her. She loves the roller coasters at Carowinds and only has a few more inches before she can ride everything in the park - not sure my stomach is going to be able to handle the anxiety of her on some of those big ones!

The kids were vaccinated in November and mom and dad have been vaccinated and boosted. We wanted everyone to stay healthy while still staying active. We wash our hands and wear our masks and keep ourselves as safe as possible while still having fun. We did ALL the things in December - rode the Polar Express, checked out the lights at Knights Stadium, walked through Christmastown, checked out the lights at the Botanical Garden, drove through the Speedway lights, Winterfest at Carowinds, laser light show, Christmas parades, seeing the trees in Belmont, and many other activities at home! In November, we went to the Renaissance Festival, visited Carowinds with my parents, and shopped on Black Friday/Small Business Saturday. October was Trick-or-treating, a visit to the aquarium, seeing the moon in Belmont, corn mazes and pumpkin patches, more Carowinds, and apple picking. September brought the kid's first plane ride when we went back to Illinois to visit family, soccer, softball, and school! In August we visited the ocean and took the kids on an adventure filled trip to Atlanta that included the zoo, the aquarium, and the Coke Museum. No wonder I feel so tired. :)