Two!

We are now parents to a set of crazy little two-year-olds.  The past couple of years have really flown by, yet I also can't imagine our lives without Josie and Piper.  Each month that goes by, I feel like they are more and more on their way to becoming more tiny little humans that can communicate and have opinions and ideas (usually too many).

We celebrated last weekend with a fun party at New Bern Gymnastics with a bunch of other equally energetic two-year-olds.  It is crazy to set a bunch of toddlers free in that place.  Before the party, we had a little photo shoot on the front steps.  Here are some of my favorites.

And here are some of the best pics from the party.  Their friends that came to play are Emma, Emma, Reed, Owen, Ike, Alejandro, Stella, McKenzie, and Jack.

Then later this week, we had their two-year-old check-up.  All went well and they are still healthy girls.  I think I will worry about them being small until they are fully grown.  It's just one of the lasting effects of having preemies.  But Dr. Kafer assured me that they are just fine.  In fact, I think they've moved up to the 25 percentile for weight and 50 for height.  Here are their stats:

Josie
Height: 33 3/4 inches
Weight: 25 pounds
Head: 19 inches

Piper
Height: 33 1/2 inches
Weight: 24.4 pounds
Head: 19 inches

And then there is the "terrible twos".  There is a lot of naughtiness at our house - some hitting, some tantrums, some throwing food.  It is still exhausting.  But there is also an awful lot of sweetness.  Every time I walk into a room, one of them says so happily "hi momma!".  Before we put Josie down for a nap or for bed, she says "cuddles?" and snuggles right in with us for awhile. It is pretty much impossible not to take a break and sit there with her for awhile.  Also, Piper is very attached to her "bear bear" but we have figured out that the way to get her to put him down to eat, or to go somewhere, is to tell him he needs a nap.  She runs into her room, puts him in the crib or leaves him in her carseat and says "nap".  Such a good girl because I know what she really wants is to have him with her everywhere we go.

Also, every night before Josh gets home, I say "guess who is coming home" and they start yelling "daddy!!!" and run to the door to wait for him.  If daddy isn't around, he is automatically "workin".  If Blue isn't around, he is automatically in his "kennen".   We are headed home in a little over a week for Christmas and have been talking about everyone we are going to see there.  I hope Utah is ready for these crazy girls.

Happy second birthday my sweet girlies!

22 Months

There was no cooperation this month for a picture together.  The girls simply refused to sit in the chair together.  So this will have to do.  I never got around to an update for 21 months, and I think this will be my last until they turn 2.  Twenty-two months is a FUN AGE!  Yes, they are opinionated and tempermental, but they are talking more and more each day and always amaze us at the things they understand.  They started preschool last month on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.  According to their teacher, their class can all sit together and have their snack, they drink out of normal cups, throw their garbage away, and push their chairs in when they are done.  For circle time, they sit there quietly with their hands on their legs.  This amazes me!  I have not yet figured out how to make them do this for me, but apparently they are capable. 

Shoes and hats are still a big thing around here.  They love to run to their closet and pull out the drawer with their shoes.  This is the outfit Piper put together the other day.  They also love to play with their babies.  They put diapers on them, take their clothes on and off over and over again (or ask us to) and wrap them up in blankies. 

The girls also wore their Garber preschool shirts to school the other day.  Our girlies are still pretty small and the shirts were just way too big for them!  The firetruck came to visit that day so all the kids wore their shirts.  Piper loved it and Josie really hated it.  She is not a fan of big, loud noises and cries when it rains and thunders.

So far this update is all over the place ...

The girls still don't watch any TV with the one exception of Animal Planet.  When we get a little desperate for ways to entertain them, we'll pile onto our bed and watch some Animal Planet for a few minutes.  They are so fascinated by animals and lately have learned about crocodiles, walruses, and elephants.  We took them to the pet store the other day to get Blue's food.  There was a pet adoption fair going on, so we wandered around and saw the poor sad doggies and kitties. :(.  We went to a park the other day with a pond and the turtles swim right up to the edge, so now they talk about the turturs.  We still go running to visit the horses and the birbies (birds). 

We have been skyping with Bubba and Grandpa and they are to an age now where they really understand who is on the screen.  They point to the computer and say "bubba" and get very excited when we see them on the computer.  They will blow kisses, wave, and talk to them. 

I can't believe how close we are to having 2 little two-year-olds.  There are days I wish I could push the pause button.  They are growing up too fast!  My sweet girlies. 

Two-zero months

 Josie and Piper are 20 months!  Last month got away from us and I didn't write a monthly update for the first time since we started this thing.  Some of the latest from the last couple of months:

• Talking: There are more new words everyday.  Josie leads the way and Piper will eventually say the same words Josie does.  Some new favorites are ewsh (shoes), pease, birbie (bird),  wa (when they want to walk), wawa (water).  Josie says more phrases than Piper, like "there you go", "all done" and "all gone". The other day, I showed her an airplane and the very next day I was changing her diaper and an airplane flew overhead.  She was so proud to say "airplane!". 
• Reading: We read a lot of books.  And by "read", I mean that they bring us a book, reverse back and plop in our lap, then we read the first two sentences and they say "all done" and go get another one.  But they really enjoy this, so we do it over and over.  We can get Piper to sit still for awhile by asking her to point out objects in the book.  It's amazing what she has picked up on.  She doesn't talk very much, but she can point out random objects like ice cream cones and bicycles.  It would make me very happy to see them love to read as much as I do. 
• Animals:  These girls love animals!  They know a lot of animal sounds, including snake, dog, cow, duck, bird, tiger, lion, frog, horse.  During our morning runs with the stroller, we try to make it over to the neighbors' house with horses in the yard.  They are captivated by them.  Then when we get home, they say "neigh!" over and over.  We also talk about all the other animals we see - the birds, the squirrels, the horses, and of course the doggies.  They were not with me when I saw a bear a few weeks ago, but that would have made Piper very happy!  Her bear has become almost as important to her as her green frog lovey. 
• Independence: Both girls would prefer to walk now than to have us hold them.  They ask to walk and then hold their little hands up for us to hold.  Cutest thing ever!  We finally ditched the wagon for walking into the Y.  It takes us awhile, but we make it inside eventually. 
• Eating: Mealtimes can really be a little unpleasant around here.  I honestly have no idea what they are going to eat from day to day.  They love something one day, and then look at it like its vomit the next day.  Piper would really like to eat rice cakes for every meal.  Half their meals end up on the ground.  Every day I find dried smoothie in different spots.  It's exhausting.  
• Buddies: These girls are turning into very different little people, but they sure love each other.  They will hold each others hands and walk around the house.  They speak the same language.  The other day, I watched an exchange where Piper pulled out her play stroller, patted the seat and grunted at Josie.  That was Josie's cue to walk over and sit in it so Piper could push her around.  They make each other giggle, and they completely torment each other.

Here's evidence:

Six months to 2

Josie and Piper were 18 months old on June 5th.  It seems like they just turned one and now here we are six months away from their second birthday.  We are fully entrenched in toddlerhood and their personalities emerge a little more everyday.

Piper is becoming fiercely independent.  When she decides she wants to do something, she works very hard until she figures it out.  Until she wants our help, then she wants it RIGHT NOW.  And she has been known to throw a fit or two if things don't go her way.  She likes to push the grocery cart at the store, push her stroller (rather than ride in it), use a fork and spoon even if her food doesn't require it, and drink out of a big person water bottle instead of her boring old sippy cup.  She is so funny and so exhausting.  When she wakes up in the morning, she is honestly delighted to face another day.  It's like "oh YAY!  Here I am again!  Being alive ROCKS".  She scrambles over to grab her bear and holds it up to show me. 

Josie is a bit more laid back and tends to go with things.  She doesn't get quite as frustrated when we make her ride in her carseat, or take her to the grocery store, for example.  She likes to observe and watch and seems happy to be out and about.  She also really likes to sing and dance.  Turn on some turns and she shakes her shoulders and sings a few notes.  She is still really cuddly and when we go to put her down for a nap or for the night, she quickly lays her head on our chest to get a few minutes more out of us.  She is very polite and her favorite thing to say is "tank you".  She says this whenever she hands something to us.  She also signs "please" whenever she wants anything. 

We had their 18 month appointment and they are almost exactly the same size.
Weight: Josie was 21 lbs 6 oz and Piper was 21 lbs 8 oz (about the 10th percentile)
Height: Both were 30 3/4 inches (about the 25th percentile)
Head: Both were 18 3/4 inches around (about the 90th percentile!)

Not sure what kind of face Piper is pulling, but believe it or not, this was the best picture we go out of them.  

17 months

I am a bit late posting this and another month has gone by.  Josie and Piper are 17 months.  The changes don't come quite as fast and furious as when I started with the monthly updates at six months, but they are still changing every month.  Both girls now love to use a fork with their meals.  They don't quite have the hang of it, but they think they are so grown up!  Our meal-time routine now is give them a fork, then go over and stab the noodle (or sweet potato, or whatever), give it back to them, so they can then put it in their mouth.  Repeat this process for the entire meal.  And then throw the fork on the ground a few times and say "uh oh!"

Both girls are talking more.  Their favorite words are bye bye, bear, baby, uh oh, Blue, and daddy.  They have also discovered climbing.  I glanced over earlier this week to find Piper standing on the steering wheel of her little car, while balancing with one hand on the wall.  She had apparently worked very hard at this and was pretty proud of herself.  They also love to throw all the toys out of their toy box and climb inside.  Piper has attempted to slam the lid on Josie's head a few times. Not cool!

Here's some video I shot the other day:

Also, our regular storytime before bed has been replaced with a session of tearing around the house at full speed, climbing on the couch, repeatedly falling off onto all the throw pillows, then climbing up again, over and over. Sitting still for a book is definitely not happening anymore!  Here's some video of that:

We are having a lot of fun!  We are also really tired!

Sweet 16 Months: Things I Love

Josie and Piper are sixteen months!  We took this picture yesterday right before we headed to their friend, Ellie Kate's, first birthday party.  We had a great time - thanks for having us Larsons!

The girls are slowly starting to talk more.  Josie says more words and is more willing to learn and Piper is still content to point and grunt.  She gets her point across.  This month, I thought I would share some of the things that I love that they are doing right now:

I love...

• When they play with my hair
• To make them laugh, to listen to them make each other laugh, and when Josh makes them laugh
• When Piper points at things and says "dis!"
• When Josie "sings".  She just "learned" how to sing the other day and walks around singing her little songs 
• When they "pretend" to eat with a spoon and a cup
• Josie's recent interest cuddling
• Watching them explore outside, looking at pinecones and leaves
• When they pick up a book and turn around and reverse into our laps so we can read together
• Watching Piper's imagination develop.  She likes to sit her dolls on her chair and walk back and forth between them "talking" to them
• Listening to them play and talk before they fall asleep
• Having them show us their hair, their tummies, their ears and their nose

15 Months

Here we are again - another month gone by.  The girls had their 15 month appointment yesterday and they have moved fully into the toddler stage.  Walking, starting to say words, and showing some attitude! 

Here are some updates on measurements and what they've each been up to:

Josie Bear
Weight: 20 lbs 6 oz (10th - 25th percentile)
Height: 30 3/4 inches (50th percentile)
Head: 18 1/2 inches
Words: Thank you (sort of), mama, dada, doh doh (doggy), bye bye, mmmmmm (supposed to be moo for a cow)
Favorite things: snuggling, eating,  sticking out her lower lip when she's upset, showing us her tummy

Piper
Weight: 20 lbs 2 oz (10th percentile)
Height: 30 1/4 inches (50th percentile)
Head: 18 1/2 inches
Words: DOGGY (said constantly all day long), daddy
Favorite things: DOGGIES, her green frog lovey, pointing at things, showing us her hair (random!), pulling my hair, 'pretending' to eat with a spoon and a bowl ( because she thinks she's so big), riding on her Winnie the Pooh car. 

14 Months

Here's what happened when we tried to get a photo of the girls on Josh's chair this month:

There have been a few changes over the past month.  The biggest one is that we officially have two walkers!  Both girls really took off a couple of weeks ago and definitely walk more than they crawl.  They still occasionally resort to crawling, but for the most part, they toddle around.

Food is still an 'issue'.  One days they love a certain food and the next day they throw a fit.  Especially Piper.  They are officially done with formula and drink their morning and nighttime milk out of a cup. 

Playtime has become much more fun.  I've noticed that they really take the time to figure out how the toys work.  They concentrate very hard at stacking the cups, or putting the puzzles together the right way.  They have also starting really fighting over toys, which can be funny, and also cause tantrums.  Speaking of tantrums, Piper has started exerting her will.  She gets frustrated very easily and throws a fit when something doesn't go her way.  It is funny and exhausting!

We are headed to Utah tomorrow for a long trip and can't wait to visit everyone.  Then, hopefully we will come back to some nice weather and start to take this show outside!  We are all sick of being stuck inside and now that we have two walkers, they can tear around the yard.  We are also getting our new puppy at the end of the month, so the girls will have another playmate and we will have another baby to take care of!

13 Months

I am very late posting this and am going to have to post their 14 month picture soon, but by the magic of the blogger scheduling tool, pretending that I got to this on time. 

Josie and Piper were 13 months old on January 5th.  January 5th is also a big day because it's the day we brought the girls home from the hospital one year ago.  That was a crazy day!  Things are still crazy around here, just in a different way. 

Here's what's happened over the past month:

Piper

•  She took her first steps the day after Christmas.  Since then, she has made a little progress and taken up to five or six steps, but still seems pretty content to crawl. 
• Piper has her own little language.  For this reason, I wouldn't be surprised if it takes her awhile to talk.  She still does a little pointing and makes it clear what she's jabbering about.  The other day, she was very alarmed at the big flower on my headband.  She felt her own head to see if she had one too.
• She's not a fan of eating anymore.  Basically, she picks at anything we put in front of her, except peanut butter and jelly.  I think she's content on staying little.  
• Piper has become the less aggressive of the two and often gets her toys taken away.  She throws a little bit of a fit, but is still pretty easy going and gets over it quickly.  
• She can give kisses now, which are very sweet and slobbery.  She also finally discovered clapping.  Sometimes she sits there clapping while she cries. 

Josie

• Josie took her first steps a couple weeks after Piper, but now is right there with her and can walk five or six steps and sometimes doesn't need to be encouraged.
• She likes to steal toys from Piper and scramble away.  She's very sneaky.  
• Josie is getting closer to saying words.  She says Mama and Dada and Hi, which sounds like HAAAA.  She is also catching on to the baby sign language and can sign for eat and drink.  We are not very diligent about this, so it's good she's picking up on something. 
• Josie has made huge strides over the past few weeks and is becoming much more social.  She is getting better and better and even crawling over to new people to sit on their lap.  

Here's my favorite pic from the day the girls came home from the hospital - one year ago.  They were so sweet and so cuddly, but I have to say, I'm so glad we're through that!!  :) 

We're One!!!!

Josie and Piper turned one yesterday!  We can't believe how fast the past year has gone.  We have experienced pretty much every emotion during the past year: happiness, fear, stress, exhaustion, exhilaration, anxiety.  And of course we have been very very very tired at times.  There were times in the early months we didn't know how we would continue with the sleep deprivation and the exhaustion.  Thank goodness we are past that.  I don't think there is a day that goes by that I don't say a little prayer of gratitude that I don't have two newborns anymore.  One-year-olds are FUN!  They are doing something new and different every day now and it's always always funny and cute.  They are crazy little girls and zooming all over the place, getting into everything, and making lots of big messes, but they bring us a lot of joy.

Here's their one-year chair picture with the stats from their one-year doctor's appointment.  Getting them to hold still for this is getting more and more difficult:

Measurements for one-year and a little about each of them

Josie
Weight: 19 lbs even
Height: 28 1/2 inches
Head: 18 1/4 inches

• Josie has discovered clapping in the past few days.  About 20 times a day, she looks at you and spontaneously claps and smiles and is completely DELIGHTED with herself.  So freaking cute!  
• She carries around two wooden toys from an infant IKEA toy and bangs them together all day.  She would be fine with only these toys.
• She says mama and said "daddy" the other day very clearly.  I think she will probably talk a little sooner than Piper.
• She has stood on her own for a few seconds, but really isn't that interested in walking or doing much "cruising" although she can do it if she tries.  
• She is sweet and silly and very tender-hearted.  She likes to cuddle in and lean her head to "touch heads" which is her version if kissing. 

Piper
Weight: 18 lbs 3 oz (she has been dieting during her illness)
Height: 28 inches
Head: 18 1/2 inches (how is it possible that she has a bigger head?)

• Piper's latest thing is pointing.  She seems to understand what certain objects are in books and on her toys and will point to them and make her little sounds.  She still loves to read books at night and will sit in my lap and point out objects on her toys, puzzles, and books.
• Piper is more interested in walking, pulling up, cruising, and starting to practice standing on her own.  She doesn't like when we make her do it though.  
• She is still very independent and will sit and entertain herself with a toy with no problems.
• She is a little trooper, tough, spunky, and crazy!

Some pictures from a year ago

 Josie

 Piper

 Piper

 Josie

Happy birthday to my sweet, beautiful, funny, sassy, silly, crazy, adorable little girls!

11 Months!

Here are our sweet, sassy girls the day they turned 11 months.  We are getting so close to the big 1!  And so close to surviving the first year with twins.  These girls are moving all over the place, very curious, and into everything.  They are finally starting to 'get' the sippy cup, but only the one with a straw.  I see a very rough transition from the bottle in our future.  They also love to play together.  I'm going to start separating them for naptime because they won't lay down and stop 'talking' to each other.    I don't think there's a day that goes by that I don't think how lucky they are to have each other (and how lucky we are to have them).  Here are some updates on each of them:

Josie:

• Just really started pulling up on stuff about a week ago.  She is so proud of herself when she does it!  And still looks a little surprised.
• Loves to play patty cake and peek-a-boo.  I think sometimes she tries to say 'peek-a-boo'.
• Said da da today while we skyped with Josh.
• Used to be my good eater, but is trying to boycott all table food.  She sticks her tongue out and makes a gagging noise.  She would like to continue to eat baby food if I let her.
• Can be a little drama queen.  Every time I sit her down she loses it!  But calms down after about 30 seconds.  She really has a set of lungs on her and has this loud 'honking' cry! 

Piper

• Is pulling up on everything and starting to cruise a lot.  She's also getting more comfortable letting go with at least one hand.  
• Has turned into a pretty good eater.  She'll eat black beans, kidney beans, veggie burgers, etc.  All things her sister refuses.  
• Is pretty good at entertaining herself.  If I need to get something done, I put her in the play pen and she finds a toy and jabbers away.
• Likes to read books.  She will sit and entertain herself with a book for a while!  I hope she's a little reader.  

Ten months!

Josie and Piper are ten months!  The last month flew by with our trip to Utah grandma and grandpa visiting.  We now officially have two mobile babies and their little personalities become more apparent every day.  The girls are eating table food and great at feeding themselves their bottles, which helps me so much!  Here's some of what's been going on:

Josie:

• Finally has her bottom two teeth!  They broke through just a couple of days after we got back from Utah.
• Is crawling like crazy.  It took her a little while longer to get the forward motion going, but she is getting very efficient and moving around like crazy.
• Has been doing great with her table food.  She loves waffles, quesadillas, sweet potato pancakes, and pretty much anything we put in front of her.  She's a great eater.
• Loves to play patty cake and sometimes it almost sounds like she is trying to say "patty cake" when we play.  
• Is sweet and silly and funny and still a little shy, but getting better and better with new people.  

Piper

• Still just the bottom two teeth which she has had for awhile now.
• Is also crawling and has been pretty good at army crawling for a few weeks now.  She's also trying to pull up on things and very good at getting back to sitting.  When I go get her in the morning, she is always sitting up in her crib waiting.
• Is not such a fan of eating table food.  She throws a fit and scrunches up her lips anytime I try to give her anything new.  Sitting in her high chair is far too boring and lame for her!
• Is crazy and fun and sassy and constantly on the move. 

Here's proof of their mobility.  Usually they head in different directions, but the blinds must have lucked really interesting. 

Nine Months

Our sweet baby girls are nine months old! They had their nine-month appointment today and they are doing fabulously! We are so lucky to have such happy and healthy girls. Both are very close to being right on track for full-term nine-month old babies and are up to about the 20th percentile for height and weight. The big change this month was that Piper has actually surpassed Josie in weight! Josie still looks bigger and has been since birth, but today she was three ounces heavier. Josie is ahead with her verbal skills (lots of babbling) and Piper is a little ahead with her gross motor skills (army crawling). They are both going to be crawling any day now.

Here are their stats for 9 months:
Josie
Height: 27 inches
Weight 16 lbs 13 oz
Head: 17 3/4

Piper
Height: 27 1/4 inches
Weight: 17 lbs even
Head: 17 3/4

Here's how it compares to 6 months:
Josie
Height: 25 inches
Weight: 13 lbs 12 oz
Head: 17

Piper
Height: 25 1/4 inches
Weight: 13 lbs 5 oz
Head: 16 1/2