Pictures! Pictures!

Some pictures of things we have done this month.

Painting pumpkins on a really windy day= an activity that did not last long at all! And using washable paint means that the rain will wash it off too.



Princess in training-- although I think her training phase is complete! :)

I took out this old floor mat I used to have around when they were rolling and cruising around. They loved it! They loved pulling the pieces out and putting them back in. It was a new found toy.

Crib visit by Kaylie. She loves when I let her put all the stuffed animals they own in Ryan's crib. Ryan not so much. He was like, "What are you doing to MY crib?"

Picking pinecones in our backyard. Yeah, this was a mess. Who would have thought? Turns out the pinecones were sticky, sticky, sticky! BTW, baby oil helps get it off of skin and hand sanitizer helped get it out of their fleece jackets. Some good tips to remember there!

We've been going to the library for story time. They have it two days a week and have been making crafts. This made me realize that we need more practice using glue. I suppose learning to cut with (VERY DULL) scissors is in the near future for them too. Ryan has a hard time sitting at story time and this story time is interspersed with songs and movement too. It's not like they have to sit the whole time. He would rather wander around. Thankfully it is an enclosed room. We are working on it. Some days are better than others. Kaylie is the shyest girl you have ever seen. She takes a long time to warm up. I'm actually beginning to worry about what she will be like when it is time to leave me for preschool. It will just break my heart.

Mommy has gotten brave and started taking them to playgrounds that aren't fenced in! Can you believe it? The ones we have gone to have been very far from the road and lots of space to run around and next to no one there. That helps a lot! They pretty much just climb the play structure anyway. Now getting them back in the car when it is time to go is another whole issue.

In one of my posts I was hoping to take them on the carousel myself. Well, I did that too! No pictures of it but I did it and it went just fine. They did give me a frequent carousel rider card so I guess that means I have to do it again.

Well that's all I can think of for now. Looking forward to Halloween.

Pumpkin Picking

A few weeks ago, (yes it's been that long...I am sadly losing steam with this blogging thing) we took Ryan & Kaylie to Burjan's Farm for pumpkin picking. It has become a tradition now. They have gone for the last 3 years. This year they enjoyed their first hayride and got to pick their very own pumpkin. They enjoyed the toddler maze and sitting on the old tractor. It was a great day to go and I am glad we decided to go when we did, because we have been having horrible weather here.

Looking at all the pre-picked pumpkins.

On the old time tractor

In the toddler maze

On the hayride

Kaylie with Mommy

Ryan protected by his older cousin.


Oh, ok I'll slide over here.

In the patch, they kept tripping over all the vines. Every few steps, Ryan especially, was down and crying. Oh joy!

Back with the pumpkins. (They got 3 little ones. They had to be able to carry them.)


Here we are in 2007

2008

This year....and still no one looks or smiles.

They're creepy and they're croupy...

They're altogether goopy...

Yes, that's Ryan and Kaylie I'm talking about folks. We have croup in the house. It started with Kaylie and now it is on to Ryan. Recognizable by the fever and barking cough that goes with it. Lots of tissues being used. Lots of Tylenol and Motrin. Humidifiers. Ryan is very phlegmy but doesn't quite have the barking cough (yet!) so maybe not croup for him, but a bad cold nonetheless. This makes for some pretty grumpy kids and one worn out mommy. To top it off I wasn't feeling too hot either but I muddled through. Hope we get through this fast!

On Being Two

This was something I wrote up on August 3rd...I don't think I ever quite finished it. I wish I had. I was going to do another write up about what they are up to now so I figured I better just publish this one, seeing that this is my only vehicle for preserving my memories of them for them. I can see so many changes already, especially with speech.

Kaylie: Kaylie has really blossomed in the speech area. We are hearing a lot more mimicking and her vocab has grown. She's become quite a drama queen around the house demanding she gets what she wants. Sometimes I give in and sometimes I don't. Pick your battles right? Everyone I tell this to doesn't believe it because she looks so sweet and innocent. In fact Kaylie can be quite bossy, pushy, and DOES NOT share well at all!!! We have also entered a phase most kids go through. One minute I have to do something and the next minute Daddy HAS TO be the one to do it. At the same time she is quite a helpful and loving girl.

Likes: Dora, coloring, playdoh, chalk, dressing up, playing with dolls.
Dislikes: real cars/trucks/loud sounds, the ocean

Ryan: has also blossomed in speech this past month. He started shaking his head yes and has picked up mimicking and will fill in words that I leave out of a song. I just discovered this a few days ago. Who knows how long he could do it. His word list is growing by the day. For this, I am grateful.
Ryan likes anything he can manipulate--puzzles with hinged doors, trains, toys that light up and make noise/music. He loves to open and close things and try to figure out how they work. He enjoys being chased and tickled. He loves books and just started showing a real interest in coloring. Before that he would just eat the crayons or last about 30 seconds. He likes being outside. Jumping on the couch is a favorite too. He loves TV and demands that it be turned on. Again, sometimes I give in and other times no.

Dislikes: being told no, vegetables, ocean,

Potty Training 101

Well the first attempt at introducing the potty didn't go over so well. Try, try again.

Here's Ryan's reaction to the potty.

Ok, just kidding...but it was close. He would just sit and get up, take the bowl out, move potty, put bowl back in, repeat over and over. He of course wanted to be naked, but no real interest in the potty.

Kaylie had interest. She sat for a bit, then would get up and move the potty and do the same over and over like Ryan but she had a genuine interest. Nothing happened on the potty for either of them. Someone peed on one of their books but I don't know who. I am thinking it was Kaylie because it was a perfect circle and not sprayed everywhere. We watched Once Upon a Potty at least a dozen times and read through a few potty books. Hey, it's a start.

Then Kaylie thought this toilet ring made a good pool or hot tub I guess.


I think I need to wait a little bit more. Not all the readiness signs are there yet. I think I am going to focus on Kaylie first though. It's hard because Ryan wants to be in on the action too. Training two at the same time is a lot to handle. Have any of my readers with boy/girl twins potty trained before? Leave a comment with some tips PLEASE!

Brighton Beach Memoirs

We were on a family vacation last week. We rented a beachfront house at Brighton Beach on Long Beach Island, NJ. We stayed with Nana and Pop-Pop, Aunt Amy & Uncle Steve, and cousins, Rachel & Emily.

The weather was great until Friday and Saturday. We were able to enjoy the beach each day. Ryan and Kaylie did not like the ocean at all! They wouldn't even go halfway to it. By Thursday we were able to carry Kaylie and let the water hit our legs, but she wouldn't let us put her down. Maybe next year. They preferred the pool and playing in the sand. Throwing things in the garbage can was high on the list of things to do at the beach--go figure!

We had a first on this vacation, although I have no pictures of it. Kaylie and Ryan slept in twin beds! I bought bedrails and was really nervous about how it would go. I wondered if they would stay in them and if they would sleep well, etc. etc. As usual, worry for nothing. They did great! They never tried to get out and slept well. (One night Kaylie woke up, but otherwise was fine.) I'm not ready to make the switch at home however. In the cribs they stay until they are ready.

One evening we went to Fantasy Island Amusement Park in Beach Haven. The kids got to enjoy the carousel, a train ride, and a bumble bee ride. They had some cotton candy and a funnel cake. Daddy won them some stuffed animals.



We went to see Barnegat lighthouse. It's also called Old Barney. We took some family pictures there. It's not so easy to get toddlers to sit still for the camera and smile. Trying to get all 4 kids to look at the same time is even harder! (Those pics will come in a later post since Bob is still figuring out how best to "develop" them!)

On Friday, it was an overcast day, but we were able to go to the beach before the rain hit to fly a kite. The orange kite was not a success, although it looks like way in the pictures. It was not. We had purchased a striped one at a shop and that was more successful. I don't think Ryan & Kaylie cared too much about it. Maybe next year.

It was a nice, relaxing vacation. They really enjoyed playing with their cousins and being spoiled by Nana. When not at the beach they were painting shells, coloring, playing princesses/mermaids, and eating elephant ears among other junk.

We're already looking forward to next year, talking about things we want to do with the kids, like renting a 4 person bike, and possibly going for two weeks!

Here is the house:

Here is the view from the deck and the sunrises that greeted us each morning.