Exploring

Zoo Day

The zoo made our itinerary for the holiday weekend. The babies' first trip! Actually, Dad took a free day from work and we went on Tuesday.  It was like our own private zoo day... only a few other people there.

This particular zoo is a rather sad state of affairs, but it serves well for being close to home, inexpensive, small yet with variety.   Josie was pretty happy feeding the goats.  I kept hand sanitizer close by. Yuck, if you ask me.

Alivia and Annalise voiced no opinion either way on anything at the zoo ;).  I think they were happy for the change of scenery for the day.

In fact, even when face to face with a goat - Annalise didn't even seem to notice the strage creature before her. I would have thought I'd get some reaction, given how excited they by our cats.

Good Times

I love the weekend. The weekend means dad is home from business travel. We can all go out and about with two able adults - it's just so much less stress and exponentially more fun (I get more sleep when dad is home too!) We found our way to hiking trails, some shopping, and lots of outdoor fun. 

Alivia's first thoughts on being in the pool

We've quickly gone from begging for a warm day to hot hot days! It was in the 80's yesterday, and seeing that I had just bought the twins new bathing suits and sun hats - what would be the most obvious way to spend the afternoon?  One of the smartest things we did when building this house, years before we even thought of kids, we added an outdoor spigot for warm softened water.  This means we can fill up pools with warm water instead of bailing hot pots of water from the kitchen to warm things up. 

Josie had her own pool to play in that was much bigger, much deeper water - but certainly had to be part of the festivities in the baby pool.  The babies are finally sitting up very well unassisted - so the timing was just right to plop them in the pool and see how they liked it.  While Annalise was on hour 2 of her nap, Alivia and Josie played. 

Josie lost interest as you'd expect, and three became a crowd in the little pool once Alise was plunked in.  Annalise was equally delighted as Alivia to be in the pool.

They splashed, a lot, and laughed until they cried.

my sweetie 'lise.  love those round bellies

Alivia



Annalise



And crying there was...

Good times.

Nine Months

Alomst two weeks ago now, that's how far behind I am, Livie and Alise turned 9 months old.  The 12 month mark looming on the horizion, so I'm trying to be extra vigilant in soaking up the baby-ness

as frequently as possible.
 

Alivia Left, Annalise Right

It's a riot now that they're starting to recognize each other, starting to interact - and usually not in the most friendly of ways.  Why is it that when one has a toy the other automatically wants it?  They go back and forth snatching things from each other, especially the pacifiers, and that in and of itself provides them entertainment for a bit. 

We had our 9 month checkup, and they're both right at 17lbs.  On the adjusted growth chart (their adjusted age of 7 months), they're right in the middle.  If compared to a full term 9month baby, they're behind.  But something funny happens when you go from your first to your second (and third in this case) child, those numbers don't really mean a whole heck of a lot anymore.  We're in no race to be earlier talkers, walkers, etc...  all I want is happy healthy babies and that's I've got.  So lucky for those things. When I see other 9 month babies standing, or even walking...  I know these two will catch up soon.  I'm happy to have immobility for a little while longer. 

Because the truth is, once they start getting around, I'm really in trouble.  I'm already exhausted just about every minute of the day and I'm not having to chase them around yet! For now I can plop them down to play in one spot and they don't get too far.  Just the last week they've become strong enough to sit on their own, and sans a little backwards scooting (while on their bellies), they're not crawling yet. 

SLEEP! By golly, we're starting to feel what it's like to sleep more than 2 hours at a time!!!!  I've read all the books, tried all the methods - and while those tips and trick work in a perfect world, they don't make accomodations for the stomach bug, the colds, then stuffy noses, growth spurts, etc...  We'd had a tough go of the stomach bug, the entire house.  There's only one thing worse than a sick baby, two sick babies. It took quite a bit of work to get everyone back on a good sleep schedule.  Even still, it always seems one baby needs something during the night while the other is not a peep.  I say a prayer before bed for hopes of a good night.

Annalise smiles

Annalise, if there was a distinction to be made, is going to be the life of the party.  She always has a "who's ready for fun?" smile, and is maybe a tad more easy going than her counter part.  She remains to be every so slightly cubbier than Alivia, and just a tad shorter too. 

Alivia, oh Ms. Tempermental. Kidding, for the most part ;) Almost always, she's equally as happy and playful as her sister.  I tend to think of her as my little peanut, but really she's only ounces different from Annalise. 

Alivia 9 Mo

the garden: 2013

Every Fall I fill my garden beds with tulip bulbs for cuttings.  It's a thrill each year to cut and bring in armfulls of tulips.  When they're all cut and spent (100+), I pull the bulbs out of my beds (and put away in dry storage) to ready the raised beds for the main event, our summer garden. 

We learn so much each year.  From what we can and can't grow, what we do and don't eat, and what we especially want more of.  Ed, the first to turn his nose up at a vegetable, was all over the plans for this year, building a greenhouse in the basement to accommodate bigger seedlings.  He says this will be the year he eats a tomato, afterall, he's cared for these seedlings since February.

Black Beauty seedling, a purple heirloom tomato

And adding a fourth raised bed to our collection. The temps are supposed to spike into the 80's today, so I excitedly anticipate the growth spurt we'll see this first full week of planted seedlings.  I'm on the fourth year of asparagus roots and so far I'm getting a handful of shoots every day - the heat will really make them pop up!  Truth told,  I don't schlep all the kids out around town much these days, it's just too much. Caring for the garden this year will be a nice break in our sometimes monotonous daily routine.  

 It may not look like much yet, but give them a few weeks in the Spring sun and showers and we'll be on our way to piles of tomatoes, zucchini, squash, beans, peas, cucumbers...

And of course, my two best garden helpers :)

Our Mother's Day

I'm starting to realize Mother's day is almost as good as a birthday.   

Alise :)

Only now as a mom do I see how great it is to spoil and celebrate other mom's, for this is one tough job! My girls and Ed surprised me with new charms for my bracelet and a Mother's day lunch with my extended family before cake and ice cream in the late afternoon with our extended family to celebrate some other birthdays. I did not get to sleep in, I still had diapers to change and bums to wipe, my house still got dirty and there was still plenty of whining and crying to go around.  Someday I'll get that relaxing carefree day... but not yet. 

Same time last year I was still laying in bed all day, nauseous, worried... and here we are now, mom to three and hands fuller than ever.  I should have taken more pictures of the day, but this is about all we got out of it, not a single "perfect" picture by some standards... but if you were to hodgepodge them all together, they tell a good story...

And make me laugh because this pretty much sums it up.