Language Explosion

Ava has taken off in the last week in terms of her language. I finally feel like when I say things she really understands me. A couple of nights ago she woke up and said "I stuck" (her legs were tangled up in a sheet). It was so cute and I remember thinking, half asleep, "how does she know the word stuck?" Yesterday, she fell while we were outside and I asked her if she was okay. She replied, "I okay!" So precious and it just happens all of a sudden. I am off to prepare for my MoM Spring Sale. Who knew that tagging a few things would be so much work!

Weekend Fuzz

Do the weekends seem fuzzy to you? They just go by like a blur. I always want to relax and slow our pace down but instead we try to cram in as much as possible. One day!?! This weekend included a trip to pick up a playhouse (yeah!), a mall trip, and a trip to IKEA on opening weekend in Charlotte (CRAZY, I know!). Maybe next weekend will be more relaxing.

Well last week I ventured out to my first Mother of Multiples playdate. It was at Rolly Pollies (a place I would recommend). They had all types of gymnastics equipment and a bouncy house with a slide (the favorite). Ava and Jake went non-stop for an hour. By the end they were red faced and ready for a nap.Ava is so adventurous. She loved the slide and just wanted to climb back up so she could go down again.

Jake was a little scared at first (look at the face!!!), but he got the swing of it and loved it as well.

The squishy block pit was a second favorite. I didn't like it as much because I feel like the kids were going to get buried in the blocks. Once you were inside it was hard to push up on anything because everything was so squishy.

So after two solo outings last week, I learned that maybe it is okay to venture out alone with two. Hopefully it will only get better! Mondays are usually a drag but maybe I just need a different outlook. Here it goes!!!

Bedrest. The word brings back so many memories. Before I knew what it really was I would have called it heaven. Almost two years and two babies later, the memory of it being so bad is becoming fuzzy. I thought about this today after reading a post by Mames.

February 26, 2007. I remember the date with such clarity. I was put on bedrest due to severe cervical shortening. I think what made it so bad, in addition to the isolation and the toll on your body, was the fear. The fear that standing up or not lying on your left side or a bowel movement would hurt your two unborn babies. Bedrest was hard but it produced two beautiful, sun filled children. Like Mames, they were born at 35 weeks, small but perfect. No NICU, out of the hospital in three days. I was lucky. I am lucky.

I wish back then I had blogged or read blogs. It would have helped me to pass the time, to have documented my feelings from such a tumultuous time. On February 26, I will look back on that date two years ago and reflect on how far I’ve come.

Out Solo

Yesterday I went to storytime at the library with 2 kids by myself for the first time since they were 12 months old. You might think "what's so special/hard about this?" but for me i've always gone with someone else. At the age where the kids started to walk and wanted to get away from me, I always felt that I couldn't handle them by myself in a situation where I had to let them out of the stroller. Even thinking about it sent me into a panic. But things went better than expected. A little rough at the beginning, but they settled right in and did some sitting on my lap and some walking around. I am starting to feel capable. I am even attempting a MoM playdate tomorrow. I remember back when the babies were 10 or 11 months old strolling through the mall in disbelief that I was in charge of these two babies and could be trusted to take care of them. Wow we have come a long way. I know many are attempting going places stroller free letting yours walk by themselves. I am taking little steps as I am sooooo not ready for that!

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine’s Day!!! Craig and I celebrated last night by going out to dinner at a nice restaurant called the Prickly Pear. Everything was very yummy. My MIL watched the kids OVERNIGHT!!!! It was so nice to be able to sleep in this morning and extra nice to see my two after such a restful night. I was recharged!!!

Spaghetti

The new favorite thing in our house is spaghetti. Jake and Ava have always liked pasta and I always chose chunky kinds that they could really grab. Today I tried spaghetti and they love sucking it in. So much fun! A little messy with sauce.

Calling Pro Bloggers

Can any pro bloggers tell me why I always end up with that huge space at the bottom of my post? Whenever I try to rid of it in draft mode, I end up deleting a whole paragraph.

Dog....dog.....dog

Today I was in tears in our backyard because of what I saw and heard. First off I saw Jake with the top half of his body underneath our planting table. When I went to pull him out, I heard him softly saying dog....dog...dog. The funny thing is that this was what was underneath the table with him Clearly not a dog! It's out neighbor's cat. I got Jake out from under the table and out came the cat as well. What was even funnier was watching Jake chase the cat around the backyard chanting dog...dog...dog. He's obviously got his animals a little mixed up. I wish I had had my camera ready to capture the moment. By the time I got it, the only picture I could get was the cat running away.

Sick, Sick, and More Sick

We just got back from the pediatrician's office and it seems like we just have the common cold. Just brought Ava & Jake in to make sure they weren't having any wheezing or sneaky ear infections. Luckily we are in the clear. We've been sick since the beginning of January, catching one cold, passing it on. We get better for a couple of days and we catch the next. Ughhhhh!!!

Anyone have any immune boosting tip?????

5 Reasons I Am So Over the Top Excited We Moved to North Carolina

We moved to North Carolina about 2 1/2 years ago and although at first we missed friends and family, we have not regretted our move. These are some of the best reasons why I love North Carolina. 1. Umm the weather. It should be enough to say that it was 74 degrees yesterday. In February. While in New York it was freezing!!! North Carolina rocks. Someone was right when they said that after a couple of days of cold, you always get a nice warm up. 2. Ohhhh the stores. I grew up in Montauk, a town that was seasonal at its best (after the summer season was over, stores rarely opened). It was also a town that was far away from everything and anything (it is on the tip of Long Island, which is basically a long, narrow island. There were only things west of it). So coming to North Carolina where there is a SuperTarget, a Walmart, a food store, the hospital, the pediatrician's office, Babies r' Us all within a 10 mile radius is like heaven. 3. The parks/playgrounds. We have dozens to choose from. Like heaven 4. It is so baby/kid friendly. Around me it seems like everyone either has 3 kids or is pregnant. I think this leads to all the playgroups, gymborees, Little Me's, and other child centered activities. One of my favorite places is Birkdale Village where they have a gated in water fountain sprinkler that the kids can run through. There are too many to participate in and it warms my heart as a mom that needs to get out more. 5. I have to come back to the weather. If I didn't have anything else, this would be reasons 1-5. North Carolina rocks. Each month that I am here it gets better and better!

We are 20 months old

Dear Jake, Today you turned 20 months old. Boy have you given me a run for my money. You have become a quick little boy with a mischievious grin. You love to climb on anything and everything and to tell you the truth this makes your momma's heart stop at least 35 times a day. You do not like to stop for too many hugs and kisses because you are always too busy looking for a "car" or a "choo choo". Car seems to be your favorite word lately. We'll add that to mama, dada, bye, baby, dog. Words at this point are not your strong suit but you are adding to your repetoire every day. You love to play air drums just like your daddy; you'll be a pro any day now. Happy month my little boy. I love you bigger than what my heart can hold.

Dear Ava, You are nearly 2 years old, only 4 months away. You are such a sweet, gentle girl. You love to give kisses and hugs and gentle caresses when they are needed. You love to dance oh do you love it. You dance to all the music on Jack's Big Music show and any other tunes that happen to catch your ear. You love love love to eat blueberries or "blues" as you call them. You also love pancakes and any kind of dipping sauce. You are saying more words than I can keep up with and you've got lots of animal sounds down pat. You are a growing, evolving young girl and I love you bigger than what my heart can hold.

Our "Wagie Ride" for Tuesday

Today we took a "wagie ride" to be as close as we possibly could be to the Whitt family and Tuesday. Our prayers are with them.

Pictures

Some pictures. I need to practice posting them because they are just not coming out right.

20 months is sooooo much better than 17 months

I learned this at a playdate with a friend that has 17 month old twins. We went to a mall and strolled a little, let them play at the mall playground, and had some lunch. These twins brought back 17 month memories and not good ones at that. They were squirmy and cranky and you could tell they just wanted out of the stroller.... and with 17 month old twins this is just not a possibility at a mall. So it gave me a nice peaceful feeling that my twins are growing and becoming more content. When I go to a mall by myself, I need to keep them confined to a stroller. Otherwise I would pull my hair out. I am happy that they are getting to a point where it feels like they are understanding that. My next step is to continue to grow with my babies and make sure that I am allowing them the freedom that they can handle. Laura C had a great post about how sometimes twins can exceed your expectations.

Appreciation

I'm making a new resolution...yes I am about a month too late, but i'd like to be more appreciative. Reading back to the post about my mother, I realized how ungrateful I sound. I guess I was just caught up in the moment and I was mad. I think I need to work on taking help that I get and just appreciating that because I could have no help.

Teacher

In my previous life I was a teacher. It was something that I loved. Interacting with students, inspiring them to learn. However, it was also something that seemed to drain every last bit of energy out of me. Constantly planning, spending way too much of my own money, worrying too much about how I was going to improve each child. But I loved it, how all your hard work molded these young people. I haven't been in a school setting in a long time but today I returned. I visited an old teacher friend and took part in a reading celebration. It felt good to talk to students and inspire them to read. It is something i'd like to get into again, but I think for the time being I will work on molding and inspiring my own two little smurfs.