Happy New Year! It's hard to believe the twins will turn one this month. This year flew by and it seems like just yesterday their Dad wheeled them out of the delivery room in that plastic bassinet. He wore the biggest grin and they wore two tiny pink beanies as they rolled past us. From 5 lbs to running behind their walkers, they are now little girls on the move and out to discover the world!

Christmas was wonderful with toys under the tree for the first time in many, many years! The family gathered on Christmas Eve to celebrate. None of us expected the girls to show much interest in their first Christmas but they soon figured out there were toys under the tree and they wanted them! They climbed over packages and squealed with delight as they discovered their goodies. We all had a blast watching them! Children trully make Christmas magical!

The next big event will be the big birthday bash planned to celebrate their first birthday. As for Meema, I have enjoyed my 2 weeks off while their Mom took over. However, I was surprised to find myself missing our daily routine and will be more than ready to go back to work. Starting my day with their smiles is priceless and I will never take that for granted. Harper just started walking and Molly is not far behind. As soon as they figure out this mode is faster than crawling, they will be bipedal and unstoppable! I look forward to sharing more of our adventures in 2014!

We had so much to be thankful for as we gathered 4 families for Thanksgiving dinner! It was the girls' first Thanksgiving and we are gearing up for their first Christmas and then their first birthday! The year has flown by and they change daily. Each day brings new facial expressions, sounds, personality traits and tentative steps and words. I swear they will be walking by Christmas! They stand independently but then take a knee as soon as they step. They crab-walk everywhere and although we try, they are not easily contained to the designated play areas. When they do escape and see you coming, they go into warp speed on all fours to avoid the interception!

Our days are filled with food, sleep, play and learning time. Shhhhhhhh ... they think the learning is just part of play-time. If you don't think flash cards work at this age let me tell you, they retain more than you give them credit for! I went to hand Molly a ball the other day and she looked directly into my eyes and said, "ball".  Her auntie was witness to this and confirmed what I heard! They love their flash cards. We practice alphabet sounds, colors, shapes and numbers. When I bring out the cards, they scurry over to sit in front of me an their attention span amazes me.

They say" Mama" occasionally, "Dada" all the time and "Da" (dog). Today, when Harper got mad at me, (like when the food was all gone or I wouldn't let her pull her sister's hair tie out) she would scrunch up her face and pretend to cry for "mama". She has the makings of a true drama queen. Molly has her own fake-laugh that is contagious!



We started a ritual of waiting by the window when Mom or Dad is expected to arrive. The smiles on their faces is precious when they see them walk by the window. At that point, they are done with Meema and I am off the clock!

To my surprise, they leave their Christmas tree alone but we do have to keep other treasures out of reach. They are so curious and active and my day flies by. My mantle now has two additional stockings on it and looks so full! Christmas will be exciting with toys under the tree. It's been a long time. There is a greater sense of magic that children bring to Christmas.

Play time is fun!

Jacks is smiling at something Molly said.

Rodeo queens-in-the-making!

Rockin' to the "Pony Girl" song.









Learning to share!

Yeah, this pony is all mine now!

Good 'ol paint.

Now, let's eat!

Mastering our fine motor skills with Cheerios.

Crab walking around the house and teething on the fireplace! Yes, it's worse than chalk on a chalkboard!

Houdini looking for a way out.

Do you think Meema can be bribed?

How many blocks are stacked up in front of me?

Well, there was three but someone stole one!

Thanksgiving Day 2013, with Mom and Dad at Meema and Papaw's.

Fall is in the air and I've never been so glad to see summer go! It's been a very tough summer here, with forest fires, the loss of our brave Hot Shots, torrential monsoons and now the loss of my beloved big brother, Mike. My mother used to tell me that God only gives you what you can handle and so I am respectfully requesting a respite from further mayhem, disasters and sadness for me and my loved ones.

The Holmes and Rahe Stress Scale assigns numeric value to "life change units" and calculates stress levels based on the accumulation of units (points). Holy Cow! The babies parents have, over the last 2 years, accumulated quite a score! Between moving to a new community, taking new jobs, living with us while buying a home, having that new home burn down one day after moving in, moving back in with us while rebuilding their home, having a baby (turns out to be twins), losing 19 fellow firefighters, having their home flood in last month's torrential monsoon, moving back in with us while the house is once again repaired....... I believe their stress points are off the charts and I pray for their sanity and resilience.

The bright spot in all of this is of course, the twins! The day of the flood, my son waded into his home looking totally dejected. As I stood their in ankle deep water holder the girls, they looked at their dad and gave him a big smile. He told me later, those smiles saved him that day. Their brave Mom was only concerned for their safety and although her heart was breaking at the sight of their beautiful home, the girls are always the focus and the reality that everything else is insignificant. They are strong kids and I know they will once again, rise above this latest challenge.

The wonderful thing about them being here at our house is we get to see them from the time they wake up until they go to bed. Our home has taken on the facade of a day care center, with swings in the living room, and the family room blocked off from the dogs and strewn with toys. The kitchen counter is covered in baby bottles and I type this with strains of the Baby Channel Color video playing in the background as the girls snooze in their swings. Chaos? No! This is a precious, rare and fleeting heartbeat in time, when we get to be a part of their lives. Just this morning, we saw Harper crawl on all fours, finally getting off her belly! Every day they change and grow, discover new sounds, make new faces and develop new interests.

Chillin' at Meema's and P-Pa's house

We sit up now all by ourselves!

Yay! Our toys are all here!

On the go!

Wait for me!

Poor Reagan, banned from the family room!

I could get used to this place.

Yeah, it will do for now.

Hmmmm, what does Harper have that Molly wants?

This used to be our grandparents' family room ......

but it's ours now!

School is back in session, Mama has returned to teaching and Meema is back on duty! The girls will turn 7 months on the 29th and I cannot believe the changes in their routines and personalities. They are no longer sleepy little cuddle bundles. Every day is filled with energy, sound and exploration.

The Baby channel rarely keeps their attention any more. They seem to prefer the vivid colors and music  of Nick Jr and Disney Jr. They recognize theme songs for certain programs and will stop what they are doing when the Octonauts sing the "Creature Report" or when Jake and the Neverland Pirates sing "YO HO!"

As I type this, they are fighting their nap time and shouting at each other in their swings.  A quick check identifies the problem. Both have tossed out their pacifiers and their burp cloths. They like to hold the burp cloths over their eyes as they fall asleep. Cousins Jamie and Seth bought the girls a second swing and those of us who care for them will be eternally grateful! Two swings are a must for twins! The morning routine is typically eat, play and nap. Then we venture out in the stroller to see the flowers, birds, mailboxes, trees, clouds, cars and red stop signs. Yes, we identify each of these along the way!

Play time is so much fun now because the girls are nearly crawling (lots of scooting and rolling) and can go pretty much wherever I allow them to go. They recognize the alphabet song and it always makes them smile. They also recognize counting from 1 to 5. We are working on colors. When they do pay attention to what is on TV, I explain what they are seeing. They love story time and like to touch the pages as I read. Molly desperately wants to eat the books.

They are now big enough to sit in the play disks which is fabulous! Of the 2 disks, they both prefer the Baby Einstein over the evenflo ExerSaucer. I think because the seat in the Baby Einstein offers more snug stability for babies not quite able to sit up on their own. They both put their feet down and this is building very strong legs and great balance. Play time is divided between these and floor exercise. They love the toys that produce colors and sounds when touched or moved. The picture below shows a few of their favorites. The Baby Einstein toys really appeal to them.

Baby Einstein on left

How do I get into this thing?

Yay! I did it!

Molly says, "this is way cool."

They love the toys that flash lights and play music!

1, 2, 3, red, blue, yellow!

Coolest toys ever

Molly travelled across the blanket to claim her prize

Victory!

That was exhausting!

Harper practicing sitting up!

If I smack this hard enough, it plays music and talks to me!

And this ball rolls around by itself....makes it hard to capture and eat.

Hellllooooo?

I love this thing!

Shhhh ... I'm listening to my tunes

I thought I'd never get my turn with this thing!

Although they play side by side, they usually ignore each other. However, lately they are expressing more interest in what the other is doing and often wriggle their way over to steal the other's toy or tug on hair. ... and so it begins! It's fascinating to watch them as they discover new things and they are almost always in great moods!

There certainly seems to be enough to go around for everyone!

They are still mainly drinking breast milk but have begun to eat oatmeal, sweet potatoes and bananas in the evening. All of this makes for more interesting diapers   :(      but they are loving it! I'm sure as they begin to eat more and more solids, I will have the opportunity to include the standard, messy-face photos. For now, their mom gets to deal with that mess.

Have I told you this is the best job .... EVER!