Cookies & the Park

The other day, we made cookies.

And then we quickly realized that G & V were going to need to burn off some of that sugar at the park.

It was a good day.

Photo Shoot

Our fall 2011 photo shoot pics are in! I'm in love!

Brandy's Birthday

A couple of weekends ago, we celebrated our good friend's (Brandy) birthday at our house in Harrisonburg. Brandy, her husband, Iad, their son, Carter, and our other friends, Steph, Tony, and April were all in attendance. Usually, I would have taken this opportunity to take a gagillion photos of everyone (since we're rarely in the same place at the same time), but I only got photos of Steph, Tony, and my kiddos.

We had a "dip party" on Saturday with 5 different dips (hot and cold) and several things to dip into the dips. It was a hit with everyone- especially the kiddos. Saturday night, we ate lasagna and chocolate cake. Once the little ones all went to bed, the girls and I attempted to make a craft we found on Pinterest- a cuff bracelet that you make out of lace. Let's just say that I still have all of the cuffs here and I'm still periodically spraying them with fabric stiffener in hope that they will work.

Love you Brandy and I hope you enjoyed your little birthday weekend here as much as we did!

He's Nutzo

Gavin is crazy. Let me explain.

For some reason, we have these small square holes in the floor of every room in our house. The good news is that each one is filled with a small square block of wood. The bad news is that Mr. Gavin has figured out that these little square blocks of wood are capable of coming out of the floor.

Well, Gavin now enjoys taking these blocks out and then either sticking things (toys, pacifiers, Wes' keys) down the hole or staring down the hole and telling us what he can see in the basement (yes, the hole goes straight through the floor to the basement).

He's nutzo.

Coasters

A few months ago, I made these coasters for one of my BFFs, Stephanie. I found the tutorial on Pinterest and I think they turned out great!

He's a Sportscaster

We already know that Gavin's repetitive, but he's also a sportscaster. He gives anyone who will listen a play-by-play of his life. He is constantly talking and talking and talking and talking; usually telling us what he's doing at the moment.

For example, the other day, Gavin was playing with a book on our bed. He dropped it over the side and then picked it up to bring it back onto the bed. And, this was what he was saying (very quickly, with little breaks between sentences) during this process.

"I got my book, Mom. I got my book. Oh, I drop my book. I drop it. I get it, I get it, I get it, I get it. Hooray! I got my book back. I got it back! My book! I got it, I got it, I got it!"

Another example is when you ask him to find items in a picture book (which he loves to do). I'll tell him, for example, to find the window and he'll say:

"I do it. I'll find it. I'll find it. I looking. I looking. I looking. I looking. I FIND IT! THERE IS! I did it. I did it."

This kid is hilarious.

Apparently, Viv really wanted to color

Yesterday, I blogged about the twins' 2.5 year checkup. When we were there, we had to ask G & V all kinds of questions to "test" their development. Last night, Wes and I decided to ask both of them more questions like the ones from the doctor. Here are some of their responses.

What do you do when you're scared?

Viv: "Run!"

Gav: "Hide, monster coming."

What do you do when you're bad?

Viv: "Time out now!"

Gav: "Sorry, Mom."

What do you do when you're sick?

Viv: "Cough."

Gav: "Bless you!"

What do you do when you're sad?

Viv: "Cry."

Gav: he put his head down and pretended to cry

Then, we asked just Viv the same questions from the doctor.

What do you do when you're hungry?

Viv: "Eat mustard."

What do you do when you're tired?

Viv: she made a snoring noise, closed her eyes, and said, "Sweep."

What do you do when you're cold?

Viv: "Put on jacket."

Apparently, she really just wanted to color the other day. She can totally do it.

2.5 Year Update

The twins went for their 2.5 year checkup last week. Based on our previous terror-filled interactions at the doctor (mostly with Miss V), we decided that we needed a new approach to the dreaded doctor's office.

Early that morning, we started talking about going to the doctor. At first, Gavin was okay with it ("Okay, Mom.") and Vivian was not ("No, Mom. No doctor!"). But then we told them everything that we were going to do at the doctor and made a big deal about it ("When we go in the back, you get to get naked! Yep, you get to take ALL of your clothes off!"-- they lurve being naked). This seemed to get Vivian more interested in the experience. We talked about all kinds of stuff related to the doctor's visit all morning. And then, we pulled out the big guns- "And, if you're good at the doctor, you'll get a prize when we leave." Their eyes lit up. 

Gavin yelled, "I be big boy, Mom." And then Vivi chimed in, "Yeah, Mom, I nice."

We kept talking about how much fun we were going to have at the doctor for the rest of the morning, making sure that we included all of the steps that needed to be taken and the potential prize they were going to receive at the end.

It. Worked.

We got to the doctor and both kids were happy and calm (Side note: for some of you, this is your norm, but for us, it's not. Far form it. Vivian usually screams her f-ing head off the ENTIRE time we are at the doctor, taking a break for only a few minutes here are there.)

We went in the back, they each took their clothes off and stood on the scale unassisted. And when the doctor came in, they both let her do everything that she needed to do. It was amazing. Wes and I both felt like we were in the twilight zone.

At the end of the doctor's appointment, they had to get their flu shots. Unfortunately, this did not go over so well. It wasn't in the plan we had talked about all morning and shots f-ing hurt. They both screamed for a while after that. But, we couldn't blame 'em. We left the doctor's office, walked over to the 7-11, and let them each pick out one prize. They each chose a small bag of sour cream, cheddar chips. Whatever. They each gobbled up their chips and passed out when we got home.

During the visit, we learned a few things about their growth and development. Both kids are right above or right below the 50th percentile for everything (their height, weight, and head circumference). Gavin weighed in at 30lbs exactly and Viv was 27lbs 5oz. Gavin was a 1/2 inch taller than Viv (sorry, but I don't remember the exact numbers). And, Gavin's head was about an inch bigger than Viv's.

At our doctor, we have to fill out this development form since their 18-month check up. There are a lot of questions (all of which are answered with a simple YES or NO) about all kinds of motor and language skills. At 18 months, most of the questions were answered with a big fat NO. Then at 2 years, they give you the same form and you are supposed to go back to each NO and see if it's become a YES. We switched several over to a YES at their 2-year appointment. But this time, when we went back over the list, we switched almost all of them over to a YES for Viv and ALL but three over to a YES for Gavin. It was interesting because we didn't think they could do most of it and they totally surprised us.

For instance, one of the items told us to ask our child 3 questions and to write down their responses. Viv answered like this:

• What do you do when you are tired? Color
• What do you do when you are hungry? Color
• What do you do when you are cold? Color

But, Mr. Gavin answered like this:

• What do you do when you are tired? Lay down and take nap
• What do you do when you are hungry? Sit down and eat snack
• What do you do when you are cold? Go inside or jacket

Wes and I were totally shocked. Now, Viv does have coloring on the brain most of the day, so maybe she was just hoping that she would get to color if she responded that way. But Gavin, what the hell? The sheet only expected kids to answered with 1 or 2 words and Gavin, well, you can read.

So what did Gavin miss? Well, he couldn't jump over the piece of paper when we put it on the floor, he couldn't make a fist and stick up only his thumb while wiggling it, and he couldn't copy the drawings (a straight line and a circle) provided on the sheet (Miss V could do all three of these things). 

While we learned that we need to practice a few more things with both of them, we also learned the promising prizes for good behavior is a must at the doctor.

Movie Night

We recently tried to have a movie night with the twins. We rented Cars 2, made popcorn, and put down some blankets and pillows on the living room floor. When we talked about it, the kids were REALLY excited. But when the movie started, they were no longer interested in the idea. They ate their popcorn and then went on their merry way. Wes and I watched the large majority of the movie by ourselves. They didn't really care. I guess Movie Night is for older kids.

slipper boots