Wordless Wednesday

I know this is "Worldless Wednesday", but this picture is just so precious, I had to explain it just a bit.

Ella and Aidan woke up from their naps about 1/2 hour apart. Ella and I were cuddling on the floor watching Baby Einstein. When Aidan woke up, I went upstairs to get get him, brought him down, and he walked over to Ella, crawled under the blanket and curled up next to her!

PS - Notice the pink and blue bunnies - their "loveys"!!

Twins are simply priceless!!

Fire Truck!

We had a very special visit from Daddy this morning!

Aidan is ALWAYS on truck "alert" and keeps watch over the front windows. All day long I hear "tuk, tuk" as delivery trucks, mail trucks, etc drive by.

But today - look what pulled up in front of our house!

And even better, he watched his father exit the truck and walk up the driveway to our front door.

Being married to a firefighter has the most wonderful fringe benefits! Who else can get a fire truck to come visit whenever they want?

Wordless Wednesday

Quiet = Bad News!

I went upstairs to put some laundry away this morning and realized that it was oddly quiet downstairs. No fighting, no screaming, no whining for my immediate return.

This is why:



Aidan ran the other direction when he heard me coming down the stairs. Ella, well she just smiled and continued to play!

Fall Fun

Last Sunday was a gorgeous day (and was also my Mom's Birthday!!) outside so Mike and I had intended to have some fun in the leaves after Ella and Aidan got up from their nap. Well, Ella was the only one who got up in time before it got too chilly outside. Poor Aidan slept through the entire time we were outside (he needed the rest though).

I got some fabulous pictures of Ella. She had the best time tossing leaves and having Mike toss them over her head! I just hate that Aidan missed out on all of the fun, but I wasn’t about to go wake him up.

Wordless Wednesday

My Favorite Outfit

For some strange reason, Aidan is still able to wear what quickly became my favorite outfit on him last fall / winter. It is a size 12 months (Carters) and for the life of me, I cannot figure out how he still fits into it! Well, the pants are a bit short, and the top a bit snug...but maybe no one else will notice!

When he was just 7 months old, we captured a random moment with him in one of Mike's Fire Department caps. I thought it would be fun to take the same picture of him, in the same outfit, at 17 months.

7 Months

17 Months

Could he possibly be any cuter??

18 Month Stats

We took the kids to the pediatrician on Friday for their 18 month check up.

Here are the stats:

Ella:
Weight: 24.6 pounds (50-75%)
Height: 34” (97%)
Head Circumference: 19” (90-95%)

Aidan:
Weight: 28.2 pounds (75 - 90%)
Height: 34.25” (95%)
Head Circumference: 19.14” (75%)

They are the picture of perfect health. Developmentally on target, no signs of autism (we had to answer a questionnaire about both of them that served as an autism screening), and way ahead of the curve in terms of language skills.

Aidan
Words: Truck, Bubble, Mama, Dada, Baby, Tree, Uh-Oh, Car, Off, That, Cup, Ball, Shoes, Clock, Bear, Duck, Bye-Bye
Signs: More, Eat, Baby, Bath, Tree, Milk, Swing, All Done

Aidan is so very introspective. He is very calm and very laid back in nature (unless he is teething). The poor thing will often have a particular toy and Ella will come up and just snatch it from him. Maybe one day he will decide to fight back, but for now, he simply moves on to something else. While quieter, he definitely expresses displeasure when he feels the need – he can become very intense – gripping his hands and scrunching up his face. He is constantly in motion and is very daring – the little man has no fear of anything!! Such a sweet boy – loves his dad and his Opa.

I have called Aidan the silent learner. You may not realize that he is paying attention, for example, when we are working on words or signs, but then later, he will all of the sudden say a certain word or make a certain sign that I had no clue he knew.

He is literally obsessed with trucks. It is his first word each morning and his last word each night!

He loves to dance and does this cute little stomping of his feet and gets an excited look on his face when we dance or sing! He has an infectious laugh – such a deep voice for such a little man!

He still has just 12 teeth - needs to get in his canines and 2 year molars.

Ella
Words: Mama, Dada, Baby, Flower, Go, Teeth, Nose, Clock, Bear, More, Eat, Oh Wow, Uh-Oh, Cup, Dog, Cat, Ball, Shoes, Car, TV, Video, Bubble, Off, No, Thank You, Please, Bye-Bye, Sleep, Me
Signs: Baby, More, Eat, Table, Tree, Ball, Sleep, Bath, Blanket, Phone, Book, Milk, Swing, All Done

Ella is such a little diva! She is very clear about what she wants, and when she wants it! She throws huge temper tantrums that sometimes last for at least 30 minutes. She throws herself on the floor, hits, screams and thrashes about. She is a bully to Aidan – often waiting to see what toy he selects and then promptly taking it from him and running off. She can also be very coy and shy, but is finally working out of her stranger anxiety.

She is very vocal, and constantly talking – if she is awake, she is talking! She is even putting together two word sentences, such as See Dada, and Go Car. She is also prone to giving us lectures – long rants that we really cannot understand verbally, but clearly understand her displeasure or her directives for us to do something. She is very bossy (wonder where she gets that from!!). She says an exaggerated “Oh Wow” when she finds something extra interesting or exciting. She has also started pointing to herself and saying “me”. She calls Aidan “EEE”.

Like her brother, she loves to dance. She has recently started stomping her feet, but she also does this move in which she bends over and sticks out her rear end – very cute!

When she watches anything on television, she gets this funny “tv breathing” where it seems like she forgets to breath and all of the sudden makes little gasps for air.

She has 16 teeth….all she is missing is her 2 year molars

Both
Can identify the following body parts: Head, Hair, Ears, Nose, Eyes, Teeth, Mouth, Belly, Feet, Toes, Knees
Make the following animal sounds: Dog, Cat, Horse, Sheep, Owl, Lion, Monkey, Cow, Snake

Where did my babies go??

Life is definitely a challenge with twin toddlers in tow these days. They no longer accept the stroller as a mode of transportation and insist on walking everywhere. I took them to the bookstore a few days ago and it was mass chaos. However, it is imperative to me that they appreciate their new independence, and that they begin to learn boundaries and discipline. I know that I often set myself up for frustration, but in the end it is all a part of teaching them to be well mannered little toddlers.

They are obsessed with socks and shoes, and know just where we keep them – often taking it upon themselves to go into the cabinet and bring me their shoes. Once they have shoes on, they automatically assume we are going somewhere, and head to the door saying “car” and trying to get outside. Once we come back inside, they both sit down as soon as we walk in the door and say “off” to ask for assistance removing their shoes.

Doors and cabinets are a huge hit these days. They both LOVE to close doors, even with someone still in the doorway!

They understand so much more then they can yet communicate. They both nod their heads yes and shake their heads no when asked questions. In a sense, we are actually having mini-conversations! Especially when Ella answers with her adorable little “no, no” (which I am sure will graduate to a more adamant form as she gets older!!!

They are fantastic at pointing to animals / objects in their picture books when asked, and also like to do it in reverse by pointing and saying “dog, cat, etc”. They can identify individual family members both by pointing or saying “mama, dada, etc”. They also love to throw and kick balls around. They learned to throw the ball a while ago, but just recently grasped the concept of also kicking the ball.

We have recently noticed that they no longer need us to point at an object that we ask them to bring to us. A few months ago, if we asked them to being us the truck, we would need to also point at it to show them its location. Now, we can simply ask for the truck and they search the room until they find it – they are so darn smart!

Both are wonderful sleepers and typically sleep through the night, barring any illness or teething. After dinner when asked “Are you ready to have a bath / go to bed?”, they both head to the gate!

Meals have become a much more pleasant experience since we moved them to seats at the table. They generally do not throw their sippy cups or food on the floor anymore. In addition, they are both getting more adept at using bowls, plates and utensils. Unfortunately, those DO end up on the floor if we don’t keep an eye on them! When they are finished eating they love to make the sign for “all done”.

When asked “Are you ready for breakfast / lunch / dinner?”, they both head to their respective chairs at the table and wait to be seated.

They both love to be in the kitchen. Preparing meals has become a challenge with them underfoot. They also know the sound of the freezer drawer opening, and love to play in the ice tray.

Overall, life is wonderful these days. They are growing up much faster than we ever anticipated! We just have to take a moment now and then amongst the chaos to stop and soak in every moment!

Happy 18 Months Ella and Aidan!

A pictorial look back at their 17th month.....

Atlanta Visit

Well, we just cannot seem to sit still these days! We packed up and headed to Atlanta for a long weekend to visit my parents and to see their brand new house.

The house is simply stunning..I could live in the kitchen!!

We had a wonderful time! The kids slept like a dream, ate well (despite their colds), were generally happy litte munchkins and into everything! I think that the theme for the weekend was "explore". They explored every little nook and cranny of that house!

Opa and Grandma Suzy took such good care of all of us! Grandma Suzy had all of our favorite foods on hand...more fruit that we could imagine! She even had our very own basket of plates and spoons! And Aidan, well, he was (as usual) attached to Opa at the hip!

We miss you Opa and Grandma Suzy - thank you for a wonderful weekend and we cannot wait to see you at Thanksgiving!

Wordless Wednesday