Our first Christmas

I never thought I would say that I enjoyed watching my 2 girls open up their gifts MORE than I enjoyed opening up my own gifts! Even though they are only (almost)6 months old, it seems like they knew that these things were for them! At one point, Addison shook her arm uncontrollably at one of her toys because she was excited. I took SO MANY pictures and TONS of videos, but its a moment that I want to remember forever so I felt like I had to catch a shot of everything. Here are some of my favorite ones...

A picture of the family before we open up our gifts



Addison enjoyed eating paper until it was her turn!



Addison was excited to see her new rattle(and so was I)!!!



Addison and Ashlyn looking at their new stuff



Our new overnight bags from MomMom (my mom)



Addison all wrapped up like a present



Our new Dr. Seuss books from Cousin Beck...with Daddy's eyes cut out--OOPS!!



Ashlyn wasn't too excited about the new clothes from Grammie (Ryan's mom), she liked the toys the best....actually she was crying through most of the gift opening!!!



Addison looking at the new flamingo puppet that the dog thought was HER toy!!



Addi checking out her new Glow Worm....I used to LOVE mine as a kid!
Then things turned really bad, very quickly!



Ashlyn taking a ride on her new pillow pet lion


Overall it was a great Christmas. I can't wait until next year when the girls will know a little more about what is going on. I didn't even put up the Christmas tree this year because it seemed like a lot of trouble for a lady with twins!!! LOL, I plan on doing it next year though! Throughout 2010, I hope the girls are really good so Santa will bring them even more loot next year!

the many attempts of a family picture

1. Ashlyn found her feet...RETAKE

2. Trying to take the attention off Ashlyn's feet, the hand of the make shift "rattle" got in the photo....RETAKE!!

3. This one is blurry...RETAKE!!

4. We weren't ready...RETAKE!!

5. Back to the feet for Ashlyn! RETAKE!!!

6. We finally get a good "blurry" picture of everyone--except me....RETAKE!!!

7. HEEEELLO FEET(again)...RETAKE!!

8. Here is the end result--when we accepted that we weren't going to get a good shot of the 4 of us! BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME!!
*Ashlyn's bow went "Rambo", Addison is not looking, and Daddy is smiling like a big goof...MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

First Christmas is a white christmas

I can't believe that we got this lucky!! It is so rare that we get snow in Texas, nuch less on Christmas Eve!! I think it is so special that the girls got to experience snow for the first time on the same day that they get to experience their first Christmas celebration! I took them out to "play" for a second(literally a second because it was SO cold!)








My little snow babies...they look like little Russian girls!!


The hat was too big for Ashlyn's head!

BIG changes...

I'm not going to lie....these last several weeks have made a BIG difference in the way I view twins! When the babies were younger I could just let them sleep and continue on with my daily routine(which consisted largely of getting on facebook). These days, my day is consumed with entertaining 2 babies that want to do completely different things!! I cry almost everyday out of frustration. I feel like I'm not doing enough to help them learn the things they should be doing(like rolling over, eating cereal, etc.) I'm just alone all day and its hard to teach 1 baby those things, much less 2. Addison is so patient and she can entertain herself, so I feel like I usually just leave her sitting by herself all day long while I take care of the high maintenance diva I call Ashlyn!! I keep telling Ryan to hold onto his hat, because Ashlyn is going to give us T-R-O-U-B-L-E!! She is so nosey and she never sleeps during the day. She wants to be with me no matter where I go or what I do. She sees EVERYTHING that goes on in this household. She stares at strangers intently. She makes friends no matter where we go...as if we need any more attention when we go out in public! As of the babies 5 month birthday...THIS HAS GOTTEN HARD--VERY VERY HARD!!

It is getting close to Christmas. When they were first born my goal was to have them rolling over(from tummy to back) and eating real food. Neither of which has happened yet. Addison has rolled over about 5 times but I have yet to see it. They still arent really laughing yet. They chuckle here and there but I am just dying to hear a real belly laugh! Addison has also eaten a little bit of cereal and sweet potatoes but Ashlyn screams when the spoon comes near her face. I bought them jumpers for Christmas and I put them together a few days ago...then I spoiled everything by letting them play in them(they won't remember!). Anyway, their poor little legs are still about 3 inches from the floor so we can't even use those yet! I just laugh about all of this. I know all of these things will come with time and I have to consider their corrective age(which is really 3 1/2 months). I think I stress myself out too much about things.

I am going to try to get better about blogging, but I don't want any of you to count on that! Ryan is taking from mid December until the new year off, so I am hoping that it will help having someone here 24/7 to help and give me some free time to do stuff like blog and facebook! For now(as I listen to Ashlyn screaming for attention in the living room) I just type really fast and hope they stay asleep for another 5 minutes so I can finish typing this sentance!!

Friday the 13th is a good day for Addison

She pushed up for the first time! I have been worried that they were falling behind of their tummy time skills. It seemed like everytime I put them on their tummy, they screamed and drooled all over the blanket! But today when I did it, Addison just popped right into position like it wasn't any big deal! I was so proud of her...she typically is the slower baby as far as the physical development goes but she beat Ashlyn! She has done it 3 other times since then...she's becoming an old pro!


HELLO, Peggy Pig!!

4 months have come and gone

We have survived our first 4 months as parents. It surprisingly isn't as hard as I imagined it would be...in fact you would think I was crazy when I told you I would like to have twin boys! My girls are growing so fast and learning so much everyday. They are still so tiny(about the size of a 2 1/2 month old) but to me they are HUGE and it makes me sad to look back at pictures from the day we brought them home! Their personalities are developing...Addison is going to be the dramatic one and Ashlyn is going to be the cuddle bug who is always in our lap. They are both pretty goofy and I think they will have a great sense of humor.

We went back to the doctor for our checkup and shots. The girls did good as usual! Addison is now 11 pounds 15 ounces and 23 1/4 inches(17th percentile). Ashlyn is 10 pounds 7 ounces and 22 1/2 inches(3rd percentile). They told us to start cereal from a spoon, so my mom and I rushed out and bought all kinds of baby food as well as rice cereal. The doctor said that we could start food after they have gotten used to the cereal. Anyway, long story-short--they gagged at the cereal and won't eat it! I have tried several days in a row and they just won't do it! I called the doctor to see if I could try a new approach and he said that since they are preemie's to give it another couple of weeks and try again. Here are some pictures from our visit with Dr. Davidson:

Addison



OUCH, THAT HURTS!! Addison


Ashlyn


OUCHIE!! Ashlyn might be the tiniest one but she's a trooper!


My mom and I are going to start a new tradition after every doctor's visit....Wendy's frosties and shopping!! This was our first time and Ash was taking it all in!

Night out at Lone Star Park

Ryan had a business event at Lone Star Park on Friday night so we left the girls with my parents. We usually eat at Silk's, which is up on the 3rd floor of the track and it overlooks everything...so knowing that I was going to get a good meal I was looking very forward to the evening! We got there and ate and started watching the races and I decided that I wanted to pull a "fast one" on Ryan. I told him that I wanted to start doing my own betting on the horses that I chose and he started giving me money for all the races. I don't know how he didn't notice and catch on that every time I would go bet, I would leave the table and never come back with my ticket in hand. Actually what I was doing was sticking the money in my pocket! He did ask me a couple of times what horses I bet and where my ticket was but I just told him that I lost and the waitress must have taken my ticket away with my dirty plate...and he believed me! It was a fun night and I ended up with about $60 in my pocket....in the end I was the only winner of the night!!

PEOPLE CAN BE SO RUDE!

I'm now realizing that no matter where we go I have to allow an extra hour for people stopping us and asking questions and stare at the babies. I understand its because I have twins and it catches people's eyes. But I have become the center of attention everywhere I go! Sometimes I have the time and the girls are in a good mood, so I don't mind it. Other times the babies are screaming and I have to be rude to people and run home! I just don't understand why people feel the need to come up and ask personal questions and bend down and breathe their germs all over the girls. I just want to say "STAY AWAY AND DON'T TOUCH MY BABIES"! People will even let their snotty nosed kids come over and get in their faces and cough and sneeze all around them. DO PEOPLE NOT HAVE ANY MANNERS ANYMORE?!? With me being a germ-o-phobe its difficult to take them out right now anyway...but with people doing this stuff day in and day out it really gets on my nerves!

Thanks for letting me vent.

Pumpkins, Pumpkins and More Pumpkins!

I changed my mind about taking the girls to a pumpkin patch for their first Halloween. My first thought was that it would be silly, seeing that they can't sit up or even hold their heads very well. But I changed my mind after my mom bought some cute Halloween outfits that we HAD to show off! We took them to a patch that is right down the street from our house. Ryan had to work and I didn't want to brave this alone so I invited my parents and in-laws to come with me for support(and extra hands)!!

They had several cute places to put children--not babies--but we came with boppy's in hand and a blanket to make the pictures a little prettier! I have now come to realize that when shooting 2 infants, it is nearly impossible to get the perfect picture. One will be posing perfectly and the other will have her tongue hanging out of her mouth! In our case, Ashlyn discovered her foot and the orange sock that was on it and decided to do nothing but stare at it! After we got a few pictures in the pumpkins we headed over to Green's Produce to take some pictures in the fall flowers. They actually had a better set up than the pumpkin patch and we ended up taking even more pictures over there. By the end of it all, the girls got VERY cranky and then fell asleep! The funniest part of the entire day was seeing my mom and in-laws making complete fools of themselves trying to get the girls attention to look at the camera. IF I HAD ONLY GOTTEN IT ON VIDEO!!



cuddling in the Jack-O-Lanterns








Right before Ashlyn discovered her foot...
FOOT...
FOOT!!







Photo shoots can make a girl sleepy!







the end of the day and they've had enough!



Ashlyn just HAD to get out of her clothes and back into her PJ's!

I can't wait until we get to do this again next year...except with our fairy costumes! I bought them to wear this year but they are HUGE so we are going to save them for next Halloween! It will be a lot more fun because the girls will be able to toddle around in the pumpkins and we get to pick one out to carve!

My crazy dog

I blogged a long time ago that I wasn't sure how our sweet but very spoiled dog, Claire would handle the babies. Well, she is doing fine but she has started doing the weirdest things. About 3 days after we brought them home I noticed her nursing a blanket that we keep on the couch. She had shoved it up underneath her and she had made a nipple out of it and was sucking on it and pumping her paws like she was trying to stimulate milk flow! It was the craziest thing! She still does that from time to time but now she has started stealing baby things. I have caught her stealing a pacifier out of Ashlyn's mouth several times. She ever so gently grabs it with her front teeth and sloooowly pulls it out of her mouth! She also will steal bottles if we leave them sitting on a table. I don't understand her one bit! She has always been mischievous, but now she is just down right BAD!! We need to call the dog whisperer! I try to punish her and tell her NO and that she is a bad dog, but how can you not laugh when you look up and see this....Its FUNNY, I don't care who you are....you can't NOT laugh if you see this! She knows it too and I think thats why she keeps doing it!

I have a twin?!?

The girls have discovered each other. A week ago I was feeding Ashlyn and Addison was down to my side on her boppy pillow and I caught her gazing at her sister. I held Ashlyn down over Addison so she could get a good view of her sister. They began to smile at each other and coo a little bit! It was SO cute to see them recognize that there is another baby in this house! Ever since that day I give them several chances to examine the other one and touch each others hands and feet. It is the sweetest thing to see.

YAY for new friends!

This week we introduced the twins to 2 new friends, Maddie and Brayden. Maddie is 3 months old. She is the daughter of a friend that I have known all my life, Whitney. When we were young, Whitney and her sister and parents moved to Lufkin and we lost touch over the years. Well, they recently moved back to Ovilla and we frequently meet up and have get togethers with our families. It is so nice to have such good friends and have the babies grow up together and become friends. We met for lunch at the shopping center in Cedar Hill and had mexican food at Matt's. It was really the first time that the girls had interraction with another baby of their age. My girls were awake the entire time and Maddie decided to sleep right until we were about to leave! We did happen to get 1 picture of the 3 of them...

We also got to meet Brayden for the first time. He belongs to my friend Amanda, who I have known since elementary school. I ran into her at the doctors office and our due dates were 5 days apart! We had our first sonogram on the same day. Ever since then we have been meeting up for dinner with our husbands and we have become good friends. We went to Outback Steakhouse in Grapevine...which was chaotic! Then we went back to their new house in Trophy Club so the boys could have a drink. Brayden is so cute and he had his "lock up your daughters" onesie on, so we felt obligated to put a girl on each side and make him look studly! There wasn't much cooperation and all the babies liked the mobile better than looking at the camera!

Last but not least we got to see Adam and Amy this weekend. Amy is almost 12 weeks pregnant with either Connor or Taylor(we won't know until late November)! It was the first time that Amy has held both babies. It started out great until Addison got hungry....and as you can see emotions ran high!!