Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas y'all.

For the first time in my 43 years, I found out that Santa has a southern drawl! If for no other reason than he was at Phipps Plaza in Atlanta. He must just fit in everywhere...I bet he has an English accent in London, too.

The girls got to see Santa for the first time just before Thanksgiving. We made a guess who would cry first when they were put on Santa's lap...we both lost. Neither of them made a peep, let alone cry. I was so proud and can't wait to see the actual pictures.

Here is one I took, don't they look like dolls? After about 20 seconds though they were squirming and flailing unlike any doll I've ever seen. Oh what fun.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Lil' Pumpkins



Here are some fun pics of the girls at the pumpking patch.

For years I've heard about Half Moon Bay-"The Pumpkin Capital"-being great fun so we thought we'd give it a try. Of course we had to go the weekend of the Pumpkin Festival.

It took about an hour to get from the freeway to the first pumpkin patch...we went to the second. They even had a petting zoo and pony rides.

The popular patches were the next ones down the road so after we got the pics and our pumpkins we walked next door...what a freakin' zoo!


They were packed and the reason it took an hour to get into Half Moon Bay was because they were stopping traffic so pedestrians could cross between the 2 main patches. What a mess.

We'll stick to our little patch.




Meow.

These black cats can cross my path anytime!

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Ever wake up and wonder what happened?

On Wednesday we celebrated the girls 11th month. I can't believe it's gone this quickly. They are both walking now. Poppy is a pro as she's really been walking since the beginning of September. Tilly has been quite content to walk on her knees for about a month (I guess...time is a blur!) but she is beginning to realize it's quicker to actually get up and take a step. She started walking well on Thursday. She'd been getting up and taking 2 or 3 steps for a short while, even making a few jaunts with 5-6 steps, then Herminia took the girls for a play date and BAM! she's walking distances. It may only be 10 feet in a not-so-straight line, but she gets where she wants to get. Her confidence is building.

When the girls first arrived, I had the distinct honor or deciding who received what name. It wasn't the least bit difficult to give Baby A the name Matilda and Baby B the name Poppy based solely on how they were in the nursery. Both girls were crying, having just left the warm confines of Mommy, but Baby A looked more "classical" and seemed a bit serene. Baby B on the other hand was half a pound lighter, almost spindly, with a more distinct look and seemed agitated. The names were as different as the girls and the decision was easy..

In those early months both were happy babies but Tilly was happy to take a nap while Poppy seemed to fight it. Fortunately they both take to sleep relatively easily, now. Still Matilda is the first to wake up, like she's going to miss something. I just heard her screech...I guess she wants to get up!

For months Poppy has been ahead of Tilly physically, doing most things first, especially climbing, which earned her a nickname that is derivative of monkey.

Okay change of subject...more of a detour actually. I just got the girls up and they're changed and relaxing with their bottles while they watch "Classical Baby". Poppy got up and walked over to the couch with her bottle because she wanted to get on the couch and sit with Daddy...now so does Tilly! AND I DON'T HAVE A CAMERA!!! Oh well, back to the story...

So Poppy not only learned how to climb onto things like the couch and ottoman, she even flipped out of her crib once, fortunately Gina was there to catch her front end while I had a leg. More impressive to us, and more important, was that she learned how to climb off of things feet first. Gina and I sat there amazed, which seems to be our mental state so much of the time with these children.

Tilly seemed just seemed top be content...until she became mobile! Now she plows over her sister like a monster truck over a pile of junkyard cars. And when she was crawling and Poppy was walking...let's just say speed bump! Oh, before I forget...Tilly clapped her hands last night for the first time.

Well all this is leading up to some folks saying that the girls would probably switch roles/personalities...I don't know if that has happened, but Tilly has definitely become more Poppy-like in her behavior. I guess that's mostly a product of being mobile and learning how to do things. And Poppy has become more Tilly-like in her ability to relax and sit with us.

Both of these girls are such a delight to be around. It's almost enough to say that the sleep deprivation was worth it!

Friday, September 21, 2007

I am so far behind! Every time I sit down to write something, my brain just goes...huh?

The lack of sleep, though it's not as bad as it has been, still makes me feel like I can't see straight sometimes. Nonetheless, much has happened since the last time I did this.
After a practice trip to Long Beach to see how the girls did (and they were awesome!) we took the girls back to Orlando to see Grammy & Grandad, and Big Daddy and Granny. They were great on that flight, too. Other passengers told us how good they were and one woman was surprised when I told her there were 2 babies...she couldn't believe it.


Gina had to work so they put us up at the J.W. Marriott. What a great hotel. the staff was wonderful but the icing on the cake was the "lazy river" that connected all of the pools together. We got innertubes for the girls and we floated them around the river a few times and they loved it. Who am I kidding? I loved it!

While we were going around once, I asked Gina if we could move here.
"Florida?" she asked.
"No, the hotel!"

Floating down a river...add lunch and a cool beverage poolside...we should all live each day like this!



The first morning the maids made up the room they made up the Pack and Plays, and arranged their toys, too.


How I didn't want to leave.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

In a word...Trouble.

There we were, Gina in the play yard with the girls and I was relaxing on the couch...okay I like to say relaxing but it's really my lack of sleep. We both happened to be watching the girls (I know...unbelievable) instead of checking email or searching craigslist for some incredible value we can't live without, at the exact moment that Poppy let go of the little play table she'd been interacting with. Guess what happened next? If you said she fell down you'd be right...and wrong! She did fall down but only after she stood on her own for a split second. If we blinked we'd have missed it, but we didn't.

she did it a couple more times during the day. I've already had dreams about both of them walking but please, Lord, let them crawl for the next couple of months and take their time walking! Amen.

I love seeing them learn new things, but I'm afraid I'll forget all the steps they've already learned to get where they are.

I guess that's the way it goes.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

You asked for it.

Or maybe you didn't, but you're getting it anyways! Pictures, pictures and more pictures!!! This is just the first half (and not all of those, either!) With any luck, I'll have the rest up this afternoon.