It's been a long time since I blogged! The summer got away from me and now the twins' mom is back teaching and our routine returns to normal! Summer was a special time for the girls to spend with their Mom. Remembering back to when I was a working Mom, I recall wishing I had gone into teaching so I could share the same time off as my boys. Whenever my daughter-in-law laments the poor pay teachers receive, I remind her the time off with her girls, especially when they start school, is PRICELESS!

You know, I never liked the name Meema and wondered what the twins would end up choosing to call me. They never grasped the "me" sound in Meema so I was constantly saying, "memememememe" to them. So that  morphed into "meeme" and now "mae-me". So if I spell it, "Meme" it can be pronounced either way! I like it so much better than Meema and best of all, they picked my name!

We had so much fun this summer! Papaw sold the big flashy cabin cruiser and bought a more grand-kid friendly pontoon boat. We lovingly call it the Koozie. The girls love to sit on Papaw's lap and drive the boat. Harper likes the water but Molly is still unsure. I accompanied them on a trip to San Diego as the Travelling Nanny, where I got to be part of their first ocean experience! They loved playing in the sand and when my son lifted Harper in and out of the waves, she would say, "wheeeee!" Molly, on the other hand, would say, "No, no Dada!" She was somewhat braver on the shallow step of Aunt Mary Kay's pool.

A trip to the San Diego Zoo (courtesy of Great Aunt Mary Kay) was a great day as well! Starting with the train and carousel rides in Balboa Park, the Pandas, Polar Bears, and Orangutans put on quite a show. It's a 7 hour drive to San Diego and these girls are such great travelers. They rarely complain and amuse themselves with books and toys.

At 20 months old, they are absorbing everything! They still love the flash cards and whenever I need to divert their attention, I just pick up the cards! They know all their shapes and colors (including the rhombus, aka the diamond). We are working on numbers now and they attempt to sing the alphabet song. You will recognize, "A, B, C ...." and the rest sort of muddles together! Whenever Papaw comes to visit, they are instantly in his lap with a book, or two, or three. They love to learn!

My son is not into the frilly girly things and has already influenced his girls with camo and cowboy boots!

We love our cowboy boots!

"Peek-boo!"

One of their favorite games

It's the obscure stuff that blows me away! We were looking at pictures and Harper had the same shirt on that she had on when the picture was taken. I watched her as she looked from the picture to her chest and when she touched her shirt and looked up at me. I realized she was making that connection.

Yesterday when asking Molly what color shirt she wanted to wear, she looked at my gray shirt and pointed to a gray one, saying, "Meme, shirt."

Netflix has been a great tool in support of the flash cards and learning games. I can always find an educational kid show that supports what we are working on and it is relaxing and entertaining for them. I really need to carry a notebook around with me during the day and jot down the things that make me laugh or amaze me! When I go to write the blog, I cannot recall half of what I've experienced with them. They love puzzles too, so if you are looking for great gifts for your grand kids, do check out inexpensive puzzles and flash cards at your local dollar store!

I can never get enough of the hugs, kisses and "luv yous". The greatest reward during our busy day is when on occasion, one will crawl in my lap and lay her head against my chest for a brief moment of unspoken love, trust and contentment. I just melt!