23.5 Weeks

down by the bay

Rosier Visit

Linda (Wes' mom) and Philip (Wes' brother) came down for a visit this past weekend. We went out to dinner, did a little shopping, and played lots of games at the house. But the highlight of the weekend was Sunday when we went out to breakfast for Wes' birthday (which was actually today). The kiddos ate pancakes and scrambled eggs and loved every bit of it.

The best part was when they brought out an ice cream sundae for Wes' birthday and sang a loud birthday song with lots of clapping. We thought the twins would LOVE it, but they were really in shock the whole time.

They weren't shy about eating the ice cream and feeding it to other people.

Come back again soon!

Canned Ravioli

We recently gave G & V a can of ravioli to split at dinner. They LOOOVED it. In fact, this was Gavin's exact response:

G: "I so proud of you, Mom."
Me: "Why?"
G: "I really like this dinner. It so good. I so proud of you."
Me: "I'm glad you like it."
G: "It my favorite. This my favorite ever in my life, Mom."

Sticker Mania

Our house has been invaded by stickers. They are everywhere.

And we can pretty much guarantee that the little Miss Viv is to blame.

Construction

Our house has been under construction for the last 3 weeks or so. You see, our basement was flooding just about every time it rained, so a trench (or something) had to be built in our back yard up against the back of the house. This also meant that our back deck had to be torn down (tear) and then put back up (yay!). Well, it's done now and we love the finished product!

Shockingly, the best part about this construction has been that Gavin and Vivian (but mostly Gavin) have been watching the "guys" do their work everyday. Gavin is completely fascinated by them. 

Every weekday morning, he runs to the window and counts how many guys are working. Then, he proceeds to tell us about it, "Guys breaking boards, Daddy" and "Guys getting more nails in their truck" were common reports. He waved at them (and they sometimes waved back), talked to them through the glass, and reported on every single thing they did. He loved it.

Vivi, on the other hand, would sometimes yell at the guys, telling them, "I see you! You breaking deck! You bad boi! You go time out!" She was interested from time to time, but not like Gavin. He would spend hours a day watching them out the window.

Now that they're gone, he asks us, "Where my guys? Where they go?" Poor kiddo.

Recent Loves

G & V love all kinds of things and they tend to love a lot of the same things. Lately, they've been in love with:

Kiwi

Chef Boyardee Ravioli

Dancing

Playing hide-and-seek

Watching Dora the Explorer

Popcorn

Playing matching games

Raisins and dried cranberries

Reading to one of us at bedtime instead of listening to us read to them

Helping with dinner

Icing

G & V were heard whispering in the kitchen this morning by Wes. Specifically, Vivi was telling Gavin to "be quiet... shhh!" When Wes asked what they were doing, they both yelled, "nothing!" He went in the kitchen to find the freezer open and each of them sucking down their own individual package of toaster strudel icing. Of course.

Little Helpers

G & V have been really into helping me make dinner lately. They ask every night if they can help out. We bring in two chairs from the dining room, they climb up, and I give them a job.

The other day, we were making a shrimp dinner. So, I had the kiddos rip off the tails for me. They took this very seriously and actually did a really good job.

They also got ahold of two lemon slices. Gavin immediately made a sour face and gave it back to me. But Vivi really liked her piece, almost eating the entire thing.

Ponytails & Barrettes

Luckily, Miss Vivian has recently shown some interest in letting me do her hair. This is a completely new experience for us. Vivian has never liked having her hair done. Sure, she's let me put her hair in a ponytail before, but she rarely keeps it for longer than 10 or 15 minutes. Well, it looks like times are a changin'.

Not only has she kept her hair style (whatever it may be) for hours and hours, but she even asks me to do her hair on a regular basis! Here are a few of these "hair-dos" (as Viv likes to say).

Later that day, her barrette and ponytail turned into just a ponytail...

And here she is with her hair in a ponytail with multiple barrettes. (FYI: She's pretending to be a baby here, which is why she's sucking her thumb. She's really a paci-kind-of-girl.)

I just hope that her willingness to let me do her hair continues.