First Half Birthday

Caleb and Joshua are growing and learning so well! They can now sit up independently and play with each other, they can grab and play with toys, they love bathtime (last week Caleb accidentally rolled head-first into a sink-full of water and he didn't even cry!), their teeth are on the verge of coming in, and they will mercilessly grab your hair and pinch your skin!

Caleb is still the shy twin. He is very cautious and insists on keeping tabs on whoever is holding him. He'll frequently throw his head back and stare up at you when you're holding him, studying your face quite intently, double and triple-checking your face every few minutes. Joshua is more carefree and would prefer to curiously scope out his surroundings when he's in your arms. We suspect that Caleb will have the task of keeping his younger brother in line when the two get older!

Both boys have been almost exclusively breastfed since birth. They've refused to drink formula since they were about 2 months old. It's amazing to see how big and fat they've grown just on breastmilk! Other than milk, we have only fed them rice cereal once or twice (and probably would more often if it didn't take extra time to prepare) and we've let them suck on strawberries, oranges, and other fruits a handful of times. This past week we introduced them to Gerber pears and peaches, which they seem to enjoy.

Both Joshua and Caleb love to jump, and they don't limit their jumping to the Jumperoo. Sometimes when we're holding them and they're standing up (they usually prefer standing to sitting), they'll just start jumping up and down on your lap while you hold them!

Joshua is our little kicker. He is constantly kicking his legs in the air. He also likes to lift both legs up in the air and thump them simultaneously against the floor, mattress, or wherever he may be. We think he's going to be a great soccer player/taekwondo chopper/butterfly swimmer.

Caleb is our little roller. He loves to roll over and sleep on his side or his tummy. When he's in his crib, he rolls onto his side and sticks his arms through the bars of his crib and hugs the bumper while he sleeps. Joshua, on the other hand, still prefers sleeping on his back on a big pillow in bed with Mommy and Daddy...

Speaking of sleep, the boys still have not grasped the wonderful concept of sleeping through the night or going to bed at a reasonable hour. These days we've been hard pressed to get them both asleep before 1 am... only to have them both wake up at least once or twice (often more) throughout the night. We've tried the "Ferber" method of letting them cry themselves to sleep, but it doesn't really work since they sleep in the same room and their cries will keep each other awake, and sometimes if we let them cry long enough they'll throw up! We're amazed by how big Joshua and Caleb have grown on so little sleep. We suppose they would be Amazon babies if they actually did sleep the normal amount!

All in all, we are so blessed and pleased with the boys' growth and good health. They are such sweet boys and we thank God for blessing us with them. We also thank Halmoni and Grandpa for letting us live with them these past 6 months. We seriously don't know how we would have coped on our own!