Messy, Messy, Messy!

Somewhat inspired by a book I recently read on parenting, and armed with adorable aprons they were given for their birthday, I tried baking with the twins. They have "helped" me bake before. But they were really just in the room, occasionally pouring something for me, but mostly just observing (or playing a beautiful drum solo on the pots and pans). This time they actively did everything possible. Not realizing the camera was 5 feet away, I didn't get any pictures of the twins in action (I'm so bummed. It was adorable). But here are some pictures of the aftermath.

There was one portion of time where I needed to take over (the mixing wasn't going well), and the twins filled that free time by emptying the spice drawer and making towers out of the spice containers. I thought that was a brilliant idea (and sort of wished I had been the one to come up with it)!
They very much enjoyed scooping and pouring flour. So much so that each of them (while I was working with the other) scooped and poured extra flour - on the counter, floor, each other, etc. It was a mess :) Lesson learned - always bake with the twins when the kitchen needs a good cleaning!

We made bread and a shortbread tart thing (I sort of made it up based on cookie recipes the twins could actually eat). They got so excited when we had this for dessert that night and they knew they had made it (and daddy was pleasantly surprised by how yummy it was)!

The best thing was that evening, in the shower, when they both were "pouring" various shampoo bottles into bowls and mixing the ingredients. LOVE it :)

The other big mess, from the last few days, was unintentional. Birthday cards have been an incredible source of excitement as they have come daily in the mail. Birthday cards with money have been even more exciting since we have let them put the money in the banks themselves! Allie was joyfully running her bank to the living room to get the money while Ryan was gleefully running the money to their room to get to the banks. The two met in the hallway and this was the result:

Allie was clearly distressed at the destruction of her beloved bank. She was comforted when they got the opportunity to put ALL of that money into the remaining bank! That fun activity kept them busy for quite a while. Long enough for Daddy to clean up the mess.

I always tell people they are welcome to drop in any time as long as they don't mind if my house happens to be a complete disaster when they arrive. Thank goodness I have learned not to be stressed by toddler mess, since we've had quite a few since they turned 2!!!

Ryan & Allie's Birthday

Like last year, I wanted to do something fun as a family on the day of the twins' birthday. This year we decided to go to the Hands On Museum, and we invited Cousin Cuppycake, Baby D, Uncle Logi & Auntie Min to go with us (since Cuppycake had been the only one who could make it to their birthday party). We had such a fun day with our cousins!

The first thing we tried was the water table. A BIG hit with all the kids!

Allie making a fishy face.

Ryan LOVED fishing. I almost couldn't get him to leave!
Cuppycake, so intent!

We tempted them away with the giant, foam stacking blocks. Cuppycake did a great job of stacking towers.

The twins preferred jumping into the giant pile of cushy blocks!

There was a display that made a tornado on a lighted platform (with fog). Allie loved being on this platform (I think she thought it was a stage).

Pretty soon Ryan joined her and I got a rare picture of the two together (a little blurry because I was rushing to catch it before someone moved away with lightning speed)!

Even more illusive - a picture of the 3 cousins together! Notice that 2 are on the move...

There was an ambulance to explore. The twins are in love with all forms of transportation, and Ryan is especially taken with ambulances and fire trucks. I managed to catch them each driving. Cuppycake didn't get to drive because some students on a field trip descended on the ambulance like locusts, and took over the cab just as I was lifting her in. Frustrated and overwhelmed by this group of kids more than twice her size pushing her away from everything sent poor Cuppycake into a fit and she and her daddy left us for a while. It was not long before the rest of us searched out a place to get away from the "locusts" who took over every area we moved in to get away from them!

Obsessed with "cool cars," Ryan spent a good amount of time playing with this.

Allie enjoyed the laser harp. All you had to do was stick your hands where strings would be and it played.

Their favorite thing might have been this little machine. When they pressed the button it activated a mechanism that moved a penguin up the stairs. When he reached the top he would slide to to the bottom to repeat the process. They have seen this toy on Baby Einstein, and were so excited to run it in person!

I almost didn't get Allie to leave...

They had one of those giant, floor keyboards like on Big! Ryan thought it was pretty cool, but only liked to play with one foot.

Unfortunately, I saw she was in the giant bubble thing after the giant bubble surrounding her was gone :(

I got in some quality time with Baby D!

We ended up escaping into the preschool lounge (which I knew was there and had been looking for - it was it's own separate floor in a different part of the museum...). This wonderful, enclosed room had everything they loved in the museum, and was only for kids age 4 and under! It was perfect and so much fun!

A smaller water table WITH aprons to keep them dry! Ryan & Cuppycake spent a lot of the time here. Allie was in the playhouse making lunch with a little friend she made.

Uncle Logi helped Ry-guy dress up to drive the fire truck!

We had such a fun day and were so excited to share it with out cousins! What a wonderful way to celebrate turning 2!!

Happy Birthday, Ryan!

My Little Man,

2 years already?! Where did the time go? I remember the first time I saw you. You had just been born and you were blinking, so surprised. Trying to take in the world around you. You seemed amazed by what you saw. You are still the same. "Oh, wow!" and "Cool!" are your two favorite phrases, and I love seeing the world - fresh and exciting - through your eyes.


You LOVE:

Cars. All day long I hear "Cool car!" You recently got some cars to play with and you would spend your whole day with them I think. You love to see cars driving by, and get in the car to go somewhere. You said that someday you will drive a cool car and take me for rides. I will hold you to that :)

Crackers. The first word out of your mouth almost every morning is "Cracker?" I might get a "Hi, mama!" but "cracker" will always follow quickly behind. You are a cracker connoisseur. You always have in mind what type of cracker you are craving at the moment, and staunchly reject any cracker that does not fit the mood. Thank goodness you now say "uh-huh" and "no" so I have a better idea of what cracker you want!

Bumble. The caterpillar that crawls out at the beginning of the Baby Einstein movies. You see him for 10 seconds, but you love him. You pray for Bumble every night. We have started collecting caterpillar things - a koosh caterpillar, a stuffed caterpillar, and caterpillar rhythm shaker. If it looks like Bumble, you love it. You've pulled your sister into this obsession as well!

Peas! This one cracks me up. You ask for peas at every meal. You beg for peas. I sometimes cannot get you to eat until I promise you peas! I've never met a kid who truly loves peas as much as you!

Animals. You, like your sister, LOVE animals and making animal noises. You get so excited to see a bird outside or a dog walk by. I cannot wait to take you to the zoo this summer because I know you will enjoy it even more!

You CAN:

Communicate! So well. Your sister loves letters and numbers and vocabulary, but you love conversation. You very quickly learned what you needed to say to get your point across and help us understand what you want. Thank goodness! I love being able to tell what you want, and communicate to you why you cannot have something (if that is the case), and have you understand as well! You are a conversationalist!

Run! You love to run. Your favorite game is running back and forth in the basement touching the walls. In high school, we hated this type of sprint, but you do dozens a day and think it is the best! You jump and climb, but you love to run.

Conduct! You love music. You are very into pianos, and like listening to music. But the best thing is that you enjoy conducting. You will hear music and you will lift your hands and sway them to the beat. You hate getting ready for bed at night, but I have started getting you to willingly comply by giving you a "conducting wand." I sing as you conduct - getting faster and slower or stopping depending on what you do. You think this is the most fun game, and you are actually quite good!

You ARE:

Jolly. I've said it since you were a baby - you have the jolliest laugh of anyone I've ever heard. It is so infectious. We can be other places and I will hear strangers say, "that little boy has the best laugh I've ever heard!" I think this is why your sister loves to make you laugh. And sometimes, if it has been to quiet for a while, I have seen you look around and then start laughing. I know you are laughing at nothing, but pretty soon I will be laughing and your sister will be laughing, and anyone else around will be laughing. You just like to spread laughter.

Focused. A good quality, to be sure. But currently it is this trait that ends in the most temper tantrums. When your mind is set on something, nothing else will satisfy. You become one-minded - throwing all your energy into that need/desire. Unfortunately, half the time I have no clue what that need/desire is! Daily, your ability to communicate increases, and this is getting better. But we also work daily to positively channel your focus.


Enthusiastic. When you get excited about something, you get so excited! You jump and scream and clap your hands! It can be something as simple as putting on your shoes or as big as having someone come to visit. seeing animals, hearing a favorite song, seeing a favorite toy you haven't seen in a while, discovering something new and "cool" - all these can cause the greatest of excitement. Your enthusiasm is contagious and it often gets your sister and I excited about even the smallest of events in our day.

You brighten every moment of the day. I can barely remember my life before you, but know it would not be near as great without you. We love you so much!

Happy Birthday, Ryan!

Happy Birthday, Allie!

My sweet Peanut,

I cannot believe you are already 2. There are moments when you act so much older (like when your brother is crying and you comfort him by gently stroking his head and saying, "Es okay, Buggy. Es okay." (translation: It's okay, Buddy). Or when you effortlessly identify every number, count to 10, and sing your ABC's. You frequently seem so old. But then, every now and then I catch a glimpse of my little baby. Usually when you wake up at night (which happens almost nightly) and just want to snuggle. You nestle in my arms, and I look down at your peaceful face, and, aside from being framed in tons of curls, it hasn't changed much since the very first night I held you.

You LOVE:

Letters & numbers, but especially the letter W and the number 8. Your eagle eye can spot these anywhere, and when counting or saying the alphabet you get to these as quickly as you can and shout them louder than any other.

Trucks. Big trucks, pickup trucks, semi trucks, delivery trucks, dump trucks. You can spot any truck in a book, movie, toy, or on the road. People are frequently amazed at how you distinguish between various types of truck. Boats have been recently added to your list of transportation that fascinates you and Papa & Gigi were shocked when he drew a picture and you told him it was a sailboat - not just a boat :)

Animals. You are obsessed with animals and animal sounds. This is one of the cutest things you do, and I LOVE teaching you new animal sounds and hearing you imitate them.

Singing. All of the sudden you have started singing along when I sing, and I frequently overhear you singing songs that you know (ABC's, Old MacDonald, The Doxology).

Dressing Up and Accessorizing. You love hats, bracelets, necklaces, scarfs, gloves, anything and everything accessory related or pretty. You turn EVERYTHING into an accessory, and I love seeing your creativity play out daily in this way.

Your Brother. You call him "Buggy" instead of "Buddy." I think it is adorable. You don't hesitate to steal toys from him when you want them, and you occasionally pest until he can't stand it anymore. But you love him so much. You comfort him when he is sad, entertain him when he is bored (you will do anything to make him laugh), give him a toy when he has none (provided it isn't a toy you want more), and hug and kiss him whenever he wants (or whenever Mama wants because it is so cute!). I love seeing how much you love him.

You Can:

JUMP! You are a little jumping bean. Ever since we bought the trampoline you jump like every surface is bouncy! You get incredible height and I am so amazed!

TALK! We have conversations now! I am consistently amazed at the sentences that come out of your mouth.

RUN! I would be shocked if you are not a runner when you get older. You run everywhere. You love to run! And you are fast!

You Are:

Stubborn. My dear one I think you got both of your Dad and my stubbornness combined into an uber-stubborn package. I know this has the potential to be an incredible asset someday, but it currently results in many tantrums. Girl, you can throw a tantrum! We work daily on channeling this in a more positive manner

Sweet. You love to give hugs and kisses. You frequently make Daddy and my day by starting it giving us good morning hugs and kisses. You work to make sure everything is fair. If we or brother say we are going to see Nana, you are the one who adds "and Poppy." or Let's call Papa "and Gigi." You try not to leave anyone out. You always want to be a good helper. You are the first to try to comfort someone who is upset (especially your brother). Your sweet spirit shines through every day.

Silly. You love to entertain and will do the silliest things to make the people around you (especially your brother) laugh. One of your favorites is to stop suddenly, jump up, and fall down on your bum. You think this is hilarious. You also have a great sense of humor. We love how often you laugh and the crazy things that make you laugh each day.

You are an absolute joy. Every minute (even during the tantrums) is a blessing. Your antics and laughter add so much to each day. We love you so much!

Happy Birthday, Allie!

Calling All Party Animals!

I cannot believe it is this time again. It feels like it could only be a couple of months since our last party, but somehow an entire year passed. Yikes! This year I decided to do a Jungle themed party - mostly because I knew what I had on hand and in my craft stock and I could pull this party off with the least money :)

I had a blast with the decorations - especially getting creative to see what I could find around the house to use. Things like:

Their "jungle" animals to welcome people to the party.

Jungle animals to decorate the table (and provide entertainment for the kiddos).
Leaves for borders and trees made out of things like

magazines
and gift bags!

Combined with felt leaf garlands, raffia vines, streamers, monkeys, and more animals I was able to create the "jungle" I had imagined :)

One of my favorite finds for the party was foam animal visors! Enough jungle animals for each kid to have one (and for a great price!!!!)

Before the party, the twins enjoyed playing in the decorated basement. The balloons were their favorite, and they had a blast letting them go...until they couldn't get them back!

Friends started to arrive and the kids gathered in the playroom. They had 11 friends who came to their birthday party!

This was H's first birthday party (aside from his own)!

Allie & E jumping in the trampoline.

An entire playroom full of toys and the balloons were still the clear favorite!

After the kids had a chance to run around, we played our party game - Safari Search! We hid hundreds of scraps of paper with animals on them. Each animal was worth a certain number of points and the team with the most points won!

Poppy helps Cuppycake find animals.

Calculators had to be pulled out to add up points :)

After the game, the twins opened presents. Opening presents turned out to be a group effort. I always feel badly (especially since 8 of the 11 kids at the party were within a 6 month age range of the twins) for little kids during the present opening. It is hard for them to understand why only 1 (or, in this case, 2) kid gets to open presents. So I willingly invited their friends to help (especially since the twins are young enough that they don't mind). Granted, it got a little frenzied, and I'm still finding presents that I didn't know they had been given...

Ryan and M open up the train to play.

These aprons were part of a gift and Ryan wouldn't take his off!

B helps Allie open a puzzle.

After presents we ate (things moved quickly with as little downtime as possible). I carefully planned an entire meal that was egg and dairy free so I could enjoy a party where I didn't have to follow the twins around to make sure they didn't steal something they were allergic to from someone else's plate. I enjoyed the party so much more. It was AWESOME!

After they ate - cupcakes!!!! After last year's disgusting cupcake debacle (the vegan mix at the health food store was not yummy), I researched and borrowed advice from friends to find a yummy cupcake AND frosting recipe. I can honestly say I could have eaten this frosting with a spoon! Funny moments: I forgot to put TWO candles on the cupcakes! I had a candle lit in each and was walking toward the table when someone pointed it out. Ooops!

Turns out that Ryan and Allie still do not know what it means to blow out a candle. They tried to touch the flame instead...mommy and daddy quickly remedied that situation!
Ryan dug right in.

After MUCH careful contemplation, Allie ate the bottom first (notice the green top behind the pink ball), and the top later!

The twins had a blast (and I hope everyone who came had just as much fun)!