Sidewalk Chalk

Ella and Aidan have really been missing their Daddy lately, so we decided to break out the sidewalk chalk and leave him a little message:

Swim Time!

Ella and Aidan had their very first swim lesson this morning – day one of an eight week course at Charlotte Aquatics. I cannot say enough about how much fun we had, and well executed the class was!  Gigi, our instructor, is from Brazil and has a wonderful accent!  She is great with the kids and we felt comfortable with her right away!

We had been talking to the kids about going swimming for a few days, and both Ella and Aidan were so excited to finally put on their bathing suits and head over to the pool.  As soon as we entered the facility, both of them ran right in yelling “water-swim, water-swim”.  We had to wait  a few minutes while the earlier class finished up, and they stood captivated by all of the activity.

Ready to go!

We are here!

Patiently waiting:

Pretty girl:

Once our class began, Ella had absolutely no fear, and went right down the steps into the water (which was heated – so nice!). Aidan was a little more hesitant, but did just fine within a minute or two.  

We did lots of little games designed to get the kids into various swimming positions – picking up floating balls, tossing a toy and “swimming” after it across the pool, and sitting on the edge and hopping off into our arms.  

We even did a little trick with a hula hoop in which the kids had to “swim” from us to Gigi and put their heads under the water.  Ella did great and loved every minute, even asking to do it again and again! Poor Aidan, he was pretty mortified – but we expected that as he hates to get water on his head in the bathtub.

Ella and Aidan had such a great time!  We are so thrilled with the class and the facility – and even more happy that we are doing this for the kids.  It is so evident that these classes will make a drastic improvement not only in their enjoyment and skills related to swimming, but also in their overall knowledge of general water safety.

Splish splash!

Hanging out with Daddy in the pool:

One cute little frog:

So cute in their hooded towels:

Wordless Wednesday

The Best Ever Playmate - Your Twin!

Ella and Aidan have recently discovered the pure joy of playing chase with each other.  We have now removed all of the gates downstairs with the exception of the computer area and the top / bottom of the stairs. With this new freedom, they quickly realized that they could make a loop from the kitchen, through the dining room, through the entry hallway, through the living room and back through the kitchen. 

Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat…..

They will do this for at least ½ hour at a time, screaming and laughing with glee, until they are both panting like little dogs and simply cannot go anymore.  

It is wonderful! They literally wear themselves out!

The fantastic duo in action:

March of Dimes Walk

What a great morning!

Today we met with thousands of our "closest" friends in Uptown Charlotte to participate in the March of Dimes 5K walk.  In addition to the thousands of other participants, we gathered with the Charlotte Mothers of Multiples (CMOMs) team and had a fantastic time! There were about 10-12 families on our team - each with twins - and one with triplets! 

It was a gorgeous morning and we all had such fun getting to know one another and sharing stories - it was like a huge playdate - with exercise for the parents! 

We could not have asked for better weather, or for better behaved children!  As for Ella and Aidan, neither one pitched any sort of fit, or complained at all, for the entire walk.  That is a pretty big deal - the poor things were in that stroller for close to two hours!  Lots of snacks and plenty of water (well, and eventually a pacifier or two!) will buy you a decent amount of time before true boredom sets in with our little toddlers!

A HUGE THANK YOU to all of our friends and family who made donations on our behalf!  Mike and I reached our goal and raised $300 for the March of Dimes foundation!

Our family before the walk:

Ella and Aidan just after crossing the finish line:

After the walk getting ready for the CMOMs ice cream social:

Flashback Friday

March / April 2008 - 10/11 Months Old

Oh how they adored sweet Ripley...and Ripley adored them back!

PS - Check out how wet Aidan's shirt is from all of his drool!

Trip to the Carolina Raptor Center

Poor Mike typically works six days a week, with one day off to franticly get all of the yardwork done and hopefully squeeze in a little family time. He had the day off yesterday, so we decided to take advantage of the family time and head up to the Carolina Raptor Center for the morning. Both Ella and Aidan just love owls, and today proved to be no exception.

Welcome!

It was a wonderful morning and there were not too many people there, which made it even more fun for us. It is comprised of a series of trails through the woods with various habitats along the way. All of the birds are either permanent residents or being nurtured back to health for a future release back into the wild.

We got our own private little session with one of the bird handlers. She had a hawk, a barn owl and a horned owl out in a separate area and was getting ready for a session of some sort that was being filmed for television. She gave us great information on the birds and the kids were entranced getting to be so close to the birds. The hawk was very talkative and Ella and Aidan squealed with delight every time she would screech.

The Hawk                                                                The Barn Owl

The Horned Owl                                            The Horned Owl with Her Head Backwards!

We saw all kinds of birds, from many species of owls and hawks to bald eagles (amazing!) and even vultures!

Bald Eagle

For Ella, the trip turned out to be more of just a walk in the woods. She saw the first birds and then decided that she was done. She would run up ahead of us saying “Aidan, Come on” and “All Done”!

Aidan, on the other hand, was in heaven. He ran along the trail shouting “Owl, Owl” (every bird was an owl in his mind) and would go up to each habitat and ask for Mike to hold him up to get a better look.

This place was well worth the ½ hour drive. Out on the trails all we could hear were the sounds of the various birds and the wind through the trees. It was simply wonderful – Mike and I learned a few things about owls and hawks from the trainer - and what a great place for the birds to live and rehabilitate.

Off They Go!

Wordless Wednesday

Strawberry Pickin'

Sunday was Mike's only day off last week and despite the lousy weather, we were determined to do something fun as a family.

It was a cloudy and chilly morning with rain predicted, but we were lucky enough to have the showers hold out just long enough for us to make a trip to a local farm and take the kids strawberry picking!

With it still being fresh off the heels of Easter, both Ella and Aidan are still in the mode of finding things and putting them into baskets.  Sure enough - they had a blast and enjoyed getting to sample some of their "treasures" along the way.  They also enjoyed playing in a little kids "maze" and watching a tractor plow the field.

Ella and her Daddy being silly:

Silly twins:

Ella picks strawberries:

Aidan picks strawberries:

Twin strawberry pickers:

Ella eats a sample:

Aidan eats a sample:

Flashback Friday

April 2008 - 11 Months Old

Ella and Aidan loved their first little "cars" and had both learned how to make them go backwards and forwards. They were so easy to photograph together back then - today, it is such a challenge!

Ella had just entered a phase of making this funny grin when having her picture taken.  She is making this face in nearly all of the pictures I have of her from April of last year!  She still loves to have her picture taken and nearly always poses for the camera and says "Cheese!"!

Aidan was such a ham back then as well.  Today he is much harder to photograph with a smile on his face, as he is such a serious little man who is always on the go and usually deep in concentration on the task at hand.