Pregnancy Update (33 weeks)

Since I haven't talked about this pregnancy much on this blog, I thought I'd give a little update. I visited my midwife today (33 weeks) and confirmed my suspicion that the baby is still vertex (head down) and posterior (his back is aligned with my spine). My mission is to try to get him to flip so that he will be facing my spine. My midwife showed me some exercises I can do to help achieve this goal, and also suggested visiting a chiropractor familiar with the Webster technique. I am amazed by how my midwife can tell exactly how my baby is positioned just by feeling my belly. She keeps me in the loop and gives me so much more useful information and advice than my ob-gyn doctor ever gave me when I was pregnant with the twins. I'm so glad I'm seeing a midwife this time around!

My belly has been measuring at least 2 weeks ahead throughout most of this pregnancy (at one point it was 5 weeks ahead!) and the same remains true today. I'm curious to see if it's just b/c my belly is stretched out from having twins, or if it's because of the way the baby is positioned, or if it's because he's going to be a whopper. My mom, who is much more petite than I am, doesn't let me forget that I was 9 lbs. 7 oz. when I was born, so it'll be interesting to see if this baby will follow in his mommy's footsteps!

I am thankful that this pregnancy has been rather uneventful overall. I thought my twin pregnancy wasn't all that bad, and now I can speak from experience and say that being pregnant with a singleton is definitely much easier than being pregnant with twins, even with a couple of toddlers thrown into the mix. I can still walk around, take the boys shopping, cook dinner, vacuum, etc., without much discomfort. I'm sure glad I had my twins first to help put things into perspective!

Caleb and Joshua are anxiously awaiting the arrival of their baby brother, whom they still refer to as "Baby Moses". They always look forward to our midwife visits, and when it's time to hear the baby's heartbeat they become very excited. At our previous visit, Caleb was standing outside the door when I laid down on the bed and my midwife pulled out her ultrasound equipment. Joshua knew that meant it was time to hear the baby's heartbeat, so he called out, "Caleb! Come here and see baby brother! Come here, Caleb!" Their enthusiasm is heartwarming. Throughout the day they are constantly hugging and kissing my belly and saying, "There's a baby in there! Baby brotherrrr!" Both boys are always happy to see their friends' baby siblings so they can gently stroke the babies' hair and give them kisses. I am confident that they will be loving, nurturing big brothers!

Joshua in the 3rd person

Joshua has picked up on my habit of referring to myself in the third person, i.e., "Don't say 'no' to Mommy... It's ok, Mommy is right here" etc. When Joshua is trying to convince Caleb to give him something, the conversation often sounds something like this:

Joshua: "Caleb, give me Edward."
Caleb: "No!"
Joshua: "Caleb, don't say 'no' to Joshua!"
Caleb raises his hand and takes a whack at Joshua, who then shakes his finger at his brother and says, "Caleb, don't hit Joshua!"

When we first separated the beds and insisted that the boys sleep in their own bed, they would often whimper, try to convince me to come sleep in their bed with them, or try to sneak into bed with me. Now that they are used to falling asleep in their own bed, while we are all lying in bed trying to fall asleep, Joshua will often call out in the darkness, "Mommy, stay there. It's ok, Joshua is right here!"

3-Year Checkup

This morning we took the boys in for their 3-year checkup. Joshua was very cooperative and even cordial with the doctor and nurse. He let them do whatever they wanted as long as he could hold my hand. Caleb, on the other hand, decided to literally kick and scream his way through the entire appointment, shrieking, "No! Stop it! I don't want it! Good boy!"

As we suspected, Joshua is significantly heavier and a little taller than his older brother. Ever since birth and at all of their previous checkups, the twins have been within mere ounces of each other. Caleb tends to be a slower eater, though, and therefore ends up consuming less food than Joshua, so we aren't surprised that there is now a noticeable difference. Caleb is 3'2" tall (50th %tile) and weighs 33 lbs., 12 oz. (75th %tile). Joshua is 3'3" tall (78th %tile) and weighs 35 lbs., 4 oz. (90th %tile).

Both boys are perfectly healthy and on-track developmentally. The one thing we need to work on is potty training. The doctor suggested tapping into the wonders of peer pressure to help get the boys trained. We kind of doubt that will work with our boys, since, for instance, seeing hordes of other children sitting on Santa's lap did not motivate them to follow suit. And they've seen a couple of their friends use the potty before, too, but it has never made a difference. But that's ok with us. While peer pressure may reap positive benefits at this young age, it's not exactly something we want them to succumb to when they're teenagers.

After the visit, Joe and I questioned the sense in taking the boys in for these well-child visits. Sure, finding out how much they weighed satiated our curiosity, but honestly we could have used the $40 co-pay to buy a scale of our own. Oh well. We are just thankful that God has blessed us with two healthy boys!

Thanks for Dinner!

Whenever we go to visit Mimi and Papa, we usually leave with full bellies. "Thanks for dinner!" is almost always included in our farewell as we head home for the evening. Joshua picked up on this and has been saying, "thanks for dinner!" when we leave, too. When we visited Granny and Babo for a couple days over Thanksgiving, Joshua said "thanks for dinner!" as we loaded ourselves up in the car for the drive home.

Yesterday I took the boys with me to the bank. They still attract a lot of attention whenever we go out, so as we were making our exit, we had quite a few friendly bank staff and patrons bidding the boys farewell. The boys politely waved back and said, "bye!" to their admirers. Despite not having received any sort of sustenance at the bank, Joshua decided it would also be appropriate to add, "thanks for dinner!"

1, 2, Guitar

The boys are fascinated whenever I bring out my guitar.  Joshua likes to strum the strings and point out the location of the capo (which is clipped onto the headstock) while Caleb prefers to whisk his fingers up and down the fretboard.  Their favorite activity, though, is counting different parts of the guitar--strings, tuners, pegs, fret inlays, etc. (Note that when I say "counting" I really mean "begging me incessantly to count something so they can count along.")  Even though counting hinders me from using the guitar for its intended purposes, I'm nevertheless proud of my boys' mathematical inclinations, especially since their favorite things to count are the frets, all twenty-two of them.  The boys do a pretty good job of counting along, actually.  They cruise through one to twelve; "thirteen" eludes them, but they typically find their bearings by "sixteen" and confidently power through to "twenty" where a premature "twenty-twooo..." is soon followed by the true and glorious "twenty-TWO!"  After a few rounds of this they'll let me play my guitar in peace.

The boys also enjoy playing with my guitar case.  If it's lying flat on the floor, Caleb, for reasons beyond my understanding, is compelled to walk back and forth on it; I tend to avoid putting it in that position.  I do, however, like to sit the guitar case upright, lengthwise along the floor, which creates a makeshift ramp for the industrious Joshua to push his toy cars down.

I'll Give You Chocolate

Prior to this past Halloween, the boys had no idea what chocolate and candy were. I specifically remember a few days before Halloween, Caleb saw one of those little candy-dispensing vending machines full of m&m's and he said "look at all the vitamins, Mommy!"

Oh, how things have changed in less than 2 months! While Joshua doesn't seem to have as much of a sweet tooth, Caleb is now a certified chocoholic. He is now sporting one of the best haircuts he's ever had because I used m&m's to bribe him into sitting still while I snipped away. Chocolate also came in handy while we took our family Christmas picture, and the boys also get an m&m if they pee on the potty.

Well, sometimes the boys say things that make us step back and re-evaluate our parenting practices. On Tuesday Joshua became very attached to a certain toy black car he had found at my midwife's office. He threw a mini fit when we had to say "bye-bye" to the midwife and her black car. Throughout the day, Joshua asked if we could go back to see the midwife and her black car, to which I always replied, "No, we'll see the midwife again in two weeks, and besides you have a ton of cars at home you can play with." Finally, Joshua became desperate. He said, "Mommy, let's go see the midwife and get the black car... I'll give you chocolate!"

When you are futilely trying to reason with a pair of stubborn 3-year-olds, bribery presents itself as a very attractive option. But when your 3-year-olds start to behold chocolate as something that can magically shift circumstances in their favor, you know you've gone overboard. All I can say is that there will be a lot less chocolate bribery going on around here from now on!

Favorite News "Celebrities"

During the presidential election season, the boys saw a bit more of the news on TV than usual. If someone on TV caught the boys' interest, they would ask, "da-da?" which means, "who is that?" and we would tell them. Interestingly enough, the boys never asked us about Obama even though they probably saw his face just as often as (if not more often than) any other. I thought it would be noteworthy to mention the news "celebrities" whom the boys did ask about, and a couple months later can still identify by name.

President Bush
McCain
Brit Hume
Bret Baier
O'Reilly
Fred Barnes
Hannity
Alan Colmes
Greta

They also frequently asked about Charles Krauthammer, but I guess his name was too much of a mouthful for the boys to commit to memory!

Santa Claus is Sad

Yesterday on the way home from my midwife appointment we stopped at the fancy upscale mall (the one with the huge snow globe that emits fake snow) so the boys could meet Santa Claus. The mall's elaborate Christmas decorations put the boys in a delightful mood. They were completely enthralled with the winter wonderland scene featuring enormous life-sized stuffed animals, including tigers, polar bears, and a giraffe that is probably 2 stories tall. Despite their good mood, I guess I was being overly optimistic when I dressed the boys in their cute new green Christmas sweaters and waited in line for a visit with jolly old Saint Nick.

As soon as Caleb caught a whiff of what was going on, he clammed up. "Do you want to sit with Santa Claus?" I asked him. "No, no, NO!" was his adamant reply as he cautiously backed away. Joshua was not as decidedly opposed to the notion, and actually crept as close as 5 feet from Mr. Claus before deciding that a polite wave and a cordial "hi" was as friendly as he would be. Of all the kids who were waiting in line with us (and the line was quite long), Caleb and Joshua were the only ones who outright refused to even sit with the man. Sure, not all of the other kids smiled, but they all sat. As we were leaving, I told the boys that they had made Santa Claus sad. Throughout the rest of the day, Joshua kept saying "Santa Claus is sad," and sticking out his bottom lip. Caleb couldn't have cared less that he had made Santa Claus sad.

While I was disappointed that we didn't get a cute picture of the boys with Santa, on the bright side, we saved $17, the price of the most inexpensive photo package. And more importantly, we probably don't have to worry about the boys ever being lured away by even the friendliest stranger!

It's Mary!

With Christmas quickly approaching, we have recently been reading the boys a lot of books about Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus. The other evening we were at the drugstore when Caleb suddenly became very excited and exclaimed, "Mary! It's Mary, Mommy! See Mary? It's Mary!" At first I was confused since Caleb doesn't personally know anyone named Mary. I quickly scoped out the area he was pointing towards and didn't see any Nativity scenes on display, but Caleb continued to insist that he saw "Mary". Then it struck me-- he was pointing to a young Muslim woman a few aisles over whose headcovering resembled the attire that Mary the mother of Jesus is usually seen wearing in the boys' illustrated Christmas books. I couldn't help but chuckle as I made this connection, causing Caleb to become visibly embarrassed and concerned that his assessment might be incorrect. So I assured him that he was right, he had indeed found Mary. He was clearly quite proud of himself for making such an important discovery :)

Candle Thomas and the Towel

When the weather was warm and the boys were wearing shorts while playing outside this past Spring and Summer, we ended up with quite a few skinned knees. Joshua would become particularly distraught at the sight of his own blood. One time I put a towel on his knee to soak up the blood, and every time he skinned his knee after that, he asked us to give him a towel cover his injury. A lot of times he would limp around bent over with his hand keeping a towel in place over the boo-boo on his knee. Ever since then, Joshua has considered the towel to be some sort of healing remedy, and almost always asks for one when he gets hurt.

Joshua became very attached to the Thomas the Train candle on his 3rd birthday cake, which, of course, is made of wax. In the days after his birthday, "Candle Thomas" never left his side. Later on that week he took it along when we went to visit some friends (who have a propensity to chew on toys), and Candle Thomas came home with quite a few boo-boos. Joshua was most distraught over Candle Thomas' injuries. They had chewed heavily on the "smoke" coming out of Thomas' funnel, disclosing the blue wax underneath the white smoke. When we got home, Joshua found a white colored ink pen (which of course did not write with white ink) and tried to use it to fix Candle Thomas' boo boos. He assumed that since the pen is white, it would have white ink. When that didn't work, he found a leaf and tried to use it to rub the boo boos away, but the leaf crumbled. Then he asked for a towel, so I gave him a small baby washcloth and he pressed it tenderly against Candle Thomas, saying "this will make it better, Candle Thomas. The towel will make it better".

I felt so sad for sweet, empathetic Joshua! To try get his mind off of this traumatic turn of events, as a treat I put on a Thomas DVD and he sat watching it, clutching Candle Thomas in the towel the entire time. Three weeks later, Candle Thomas is still wrapped in the same little washcloth. Whenever the washcloth becomes undone, Joshua becomes very concerned and asks me to wrap him back up. I just think it's so sweet that even at this young age, he shows such great empathy for others, even inanimate objects made of wax.

Studying the Thomas Catalog

One of Joshua's favorite things to do is study the catalog that comes with each new Thomas train and pick out which trains he would next like to add to his collection. He usually begins by prompting me to ask him, "Which one do you want?" Today I thought it would be fun to record part of my conversation with Joshua while he pored over the latest catalog.

Joshua: (patting his hand on the floor next to him) Mommy, come and sit down. Which one do you want? How 'bout this?
Me: You want Fergus?
Joshua: Ok, Mommy, ok. How 'bout this one?
Me: Emily? Emily is too big.
Joshua: Yeah, Emily is too big.
Me: How about Salty? (Mimi has already bought Salty for the boys, so I thought it wouldn't hurt to try to spark interest in him)
Joshua: (launching into a lengthy monologue) Salty is too big. I don't like that one. No, I don't think so. How 'bout Trevor for Christmas? How 'bout Trevor? Ok? Come on, let's go. How 'bout Rusty? No, I don't like that one Rusty. You'll get Trevor for Christmas. How 'bout Terrence?
Me: You want Terrence for Christmas?
Joshua: Ok, Mommy, you be a good boy, you get Terrence for Christmas. How about Edward?
Me: You already have Edward.
Joshua: How 'bout Thomas?
Me: You already have 5 different Thomases.
Joshua: How 'bout this?
Me: Neville? (Joshua leans over to study Neville, decides to pass).
Joshua: How 'bout this?
Me: Culdee and the Apple Orchard Cars?
Joshua: Yeah, Culdee. It's like, Culdee.

We have these discussions a lot. I think most parents of toddler boys would agree with me when I say that the people who market these Thomas trains are geniuses... pure geniuses.

Particular Caleb, Part 2

Our Caleb is just as particular as ever! The boys have a matching pair of RL Polo Sport jeans that have a small round patch with an American flag print on the lower left leg. This flag is barely noticeable--less than a half-inch wide, mind you. One of the flags has faded over time, but the other one is still a vibrant red, white, and blue. A couple months ago when we went to have my ultrasound, we were all sitting in the waiting room at the doctor's office when Caleb suddenly burst into a fit of hysterics. He flew off the hook, crying and pointing at his pants leg. We asked him what was wrong, but for the life of us couldn't figure out what the problem was. Then, it hit us. We had committed the grave error of dressing Caleb in the faded flag pants. So right there in the doctor's office waiting room, we switched the boys' pants. I'm sure anyone else who might have been paying attention thought we were nuts, but we knew it was extremely important to Caleb. Joshua, of course, couldn't care less and was cheerful to oblige to his brother's whims.

This sort of thing happens all the time! When we are putting them in paper diapers, Caleb always requires to have an option. "Zoe or Grover?" he will ask himself out loud as he scrutinizes each diaper, "Grover or Zoe?" It literally takes him several minutes to decide which diaper he wants sometimes, even though he's seen all of the designs hundreds of times before. When offering the boys apples to eat, we know it's wise to give Caleb the first choice, especially since he refuses to eat apples that are missing their stems. Going to the pumpkin patch was a nightmare, trying to get Caleb to hurry up and decide upon a pumpkin that suited him. I could go on and on...!

The funny thing is that there's no doubt about whom Caleb inherited his particular tendencies from. If you've ever gone shopping with me, you can attest to the fact that I am likely to deliberate amongst 10 of the exact same red shirts in the same size, in an effort to select the very best one. Ever since I was a little kid I have always been determined to pick out the prettiest pumpkin, the most well-shaped Christmas tree, etc. I have been known to linger in the produce section of the grocery store for forever and a day, selecting only the most perfect grapefruit and apples. Joe has pointed out that I must have applied the same philosophy in my quest for a husband ;) So while Caleb's particular tendencies may drive us nuts at times, I think it's a trait that will serve him well, especially when the time comes for him to start thinking about getting married :)

Mini Mommy, Part 2

I thought I should make a note of Joshua's more recent Mini Mommy behavior. Wheras earlier his "mothering" efforts were mostly focused on correcting his older brother, he has recently blossomed into quite a nurturer as well.

For example, on Sunday morning when we left the boys with Mimi in the toddler room at church, Caleb was crying and Joshua was quick to rush over and comfort him, gently assuring him that "Mommy will be right back". Then that evening, Mimi and Papa volunteered to babysit the boys so we could go out on a date. And by "date" I mean take our laptops to Panera so Joe can do homework and I can waste time online without feeling guilty about neglecting the boys... we are so romantic, aren't we? ;) Anyway, Mimi said that as soon as we left, Joshua, fighting back tears, rushed over to Caleb and put his arm around him and said, "Don't worry, Caleb. Mommy will be back soon. When the car comes, Mommy will be back," even though Caleb clearly wasn't feeling nearly as upset about our absence as Joshua was!

Joshua is also very generous with his compliments. If I put on a nice outfit, he will tell me, "Oh Mommy, you look so CUTE!" This past Sunday was a rare occasion on which I wore a skirt and tights to church, and both Joshua and Caleb made a huge fuss over how "cute" I looked. Joshua often strokes Mimi's hair and tells her how cute she looks, too. Somehow, Joshua knows better than to tell the men in his life that they look cute :)

Goodnight, John Boy

When the lights are out and all four of us are lying in our beds at night, it's not uncommon to hear Joshua's husky voice call out into the darkness, "Caleb, are you okay?"

"I'm 'kay," Caleb cheerfully responds. "Joshua, are you okay?"

"I'm kaaay," Joshua replies. "Mommy, are you okay?"

"I'm okay," is my dutiful response. "Caleb, are you okay?"

"I'm 'kay," Caleb chirps. "Daddy, are you okay?"

"I'm oh-kay," enunciates Joe, in an effort to encourage proper pronounciation. "Joshua are you okay?"

And so it goes on and on until it has been determined that all of us are indeed okay. So there you have our version of the Waltons' bedtime adieus. Good night!

"Arguing" with Joshua

I find myself having many ridiculous arguments with Joshua these days. For example, here is one we had this morning while I was getting him dressed:

Joshua: I wearing jeans!
Me: No, these are khaki pants.
Joshua: No, Mommy, I wearing jeans.
Me: Joshua, don't argue with me. These are not jeans, they are khaki pants.
Joshua: Mommy, these are not khaki pants. These are jeans!
Etc, etc, etc.

Joshua always maintains a good attitude while arguing so I'm sure he's just doing it for the fun of it. Who knows, maybe he will join the debate team in high school. It can get to be pretty annoying, though, when it's completely obvious that he is wrong!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Caleb & Joshua!

Today the twins turned three! Wow! Last night Joe and I were reminiscing about what our lives were like exactly three years ago. We remembered that we'd gone to the Korean buffet for a big lunch, which was the boys' final in-the-womb meal. In the evening I treated myself to a frapuccino and Joe treated himself to some Hot Pockets. How typical that all we can remember about that day is what foods we ate! Then we went home to bed, knowing that the very next day we would wake up, go to the hospital, and in the blink of an eye our family would double in size. What a strange feeling that was!

Fast forward three years.... Today our little party animals celebrated their big day with not one but two parties! First, their friends came over to our house for cupcakes and play time. I'm very thankful that Mimi had the day off from work and could come over to help me get ready. She even took the boys for a drive to make sure they'd take their nap early. Once their friends arrived, we lit six candles on their cupcakes, three for each boy. Caleb, who is usually fascinated with birthday candles and had been singing "Happy Birthday" to himself all morning, suddenly became very distressed. He kept yelling "No! No!" so took him out of the dining room, where he was content to observe from a distance while we all sang to him and Joshua. He then licked all the frosting off his cupcake and then decided he was done (I can't really blame him, though... homemade chocolate whipped cream frosting... mmm). Joshua wasn't interested in eating his cupcake at all. They would have nothing to do with their party hats, either. Why succumb to conventional birthday party traditions when you can run wildly around the house screaming with your buddies? I couldn't help but notice how properly their friends Faith and Elizabeth sat at the table, wore their party hats, sang the song, and ate their cupcakes. The differences between little boys and little girls never cease to amaze me, especially now that I have been bestowed with the privilege of having not just two but three boys! :) Anyway, we all had a great time, but it was a bittersweet celebration since it was the last time we would get to hang out with our dear friends Faith and Mary Jane. They are moving across the country at the end of this week and we will miss them terribly!

After their friends party, we went over to Mimi and Papa's house to have a family party! The boys were excited that Uncle Chris and Uncle Bob could also join us in eating the boys' favorite meal, spaghetti. We hung up the "Happy Birthday" banner that I'd made for their 1st birthday party, and Mimi decorated two cakes, one for each boy. Joshua's cake had a Thomas candle on it, and Caleb's cake was decked out with mini American flags. The boys were completely enamoured with their personalized cakes, and this time did not object at all to singing, being within blowing range of their candles, and posing for the camera. Afterwards they opened their presents. They each got two Thomas trains, but Mimi put several flags in Caleb's bag for good measure. Good thing, too, because Caleb could not dump the trains out of the bag fast enough to allow easier access his precious new flags! And Joshua, of course, was perfectly content to have all four new trains to play with all by himself :)

The boys couldn't have asked for a happier third birthday. Happy Birthday, Caleb and Joshua!

5 weeks ahead!

This past Thursday at my midwife appointment, I was surprised to learn that my belly measured 31-32 weeks even though I was only 25-26 weeks along! Yes, I'm a whopping 5 weeks larger than average, and we know it's not because of excess fluid because my midwife also said I am not drinking enough water. In the back of my mind I couldn't help but wonder if the ultrasound technician had failed to locate a second baby during my sonogram a few weeks ago, although in reality I know that with today's modern technology it'd be pretty impossible for a 20-week baby to hide from the cameras! Anyway, it looks like I'm one of those lucky women who is destined to have a huge whopper of a belly regardless of the number of babies I have growing inside of me :)

Halloween

Our trip to New York sidelined my Halloween costume planning, and I was at a loss as to what Joshua and Caleb would wear to Ryker's costume party on Monday. Much to my surprise, we discovered that the lion costumes they wore the previous two years still fit! I used my neglected eyeliner to paint a nose and whiskers on their faces while they napped, since I suspected they'd have nothing to do with having their faces painted if they were awake. I cut a pumpkin face out of construction paper and taped it to my orange-shirted belly, then we headed over to Ryker's house where Miss Susan had gone all-out with her expansive menu of yummy Halloween-themed treats. The boys and I had a great time with our playgroup friends. When we got in the car to go home, Caleb caught a glimpse of his painted face in the rear view mirror and expressed grave concern. He fought back tears as he pleaded with me to wash it off. Joshua reacted similarly when he caught sight of himself in a mirror later on that evening. I am constantly amazed that face-painting is such a popular feature at most children's festivities, considering how averse our boys are to the concept.

I surreptitiously painted their faces again during their naps yesterday afternoon, and when evening rolled around the boys donned their lion costumes once again to go trick-or-treating. We stumbled upon a Halloween block party just a stone's throw from our house, complete with complimentary hot dogs and lemonade courtesy of our neighborhood's citizen's association. Neighbors also offered hot cider, marshmallows for roasting over a huge pit of fire, and other treats. The boys were most excited about the spider cookies, which were oreos with black licorice "legs".

At first Caleb and Joshua were wary of taking candy from other people, but they quickly caught on, preferring to select their own pieces rather than receive what they were offered. They were very polite all throughout the evening, amusing candy-distributors by saying, "Thank you, woman! Thank you, man! Good-bye! See you later!" at each house. Many people seemed surprised that such little boys who are not yet 3 years old would have such good manners (although if we were doing a really good job parenting we would have taught the boys to say "ma'am" and "sir" instead of "woman" and "man"). They were also quick to observe if someone had a ceiling fan in their house, in which case the boys would also say "Good-bye, ceiling fan!"

I am optimistic that with a few minor alterations, the lion costumes will make a fourth appearance next Halloween. And who knows, maybe by then the boys will actually want to have their faces painted! I'm not counting it, though.

Our Bite of the Big Apple

This past weekend we went on a big adventure with Granny and Babo to New York City to visit Uncle Patrick (aka Uncle Truckit). We drove to New Jersey and hopped aboard a train to Penn Station. The boys were thrilled to see the railroad tracks and ride on a real train, just like their beloved Thomas. When we disembarked in the city on Friday evening, we were overwhelmed by the crowded sidewalks and streets. The boys held our hands tightly as we forged through the masses, only asking to be carried when utterly exhausted. After some authentic NY-style pizza and a quick jaunt to Whole Foods with Aunt Frances, we decided to call it a day.

On Saturday we rode the Subway to visit the Central Park Zoo, where we enjoyed seeing strutting penguins, monkeys eating pumpkins, and a polar bear swimming laps. Then we walked to FAO Schwartz, only to discover that for some reason Mr. Schwartz was not interested in making bokus of cash by selling Thomas Trains. After getting lost trying to find the Subway stop, we finally made it back to Uncle Patrick's apartment, devoured some Lucky burgers, then the boys and I crashed for a much-needed nap.

A couple hours later we awoke to darkness and pouring down rain, but nevertheless braved the crowded, wet sidewalks on our mission to find the Toys 'R Us in Times Square. Upon our arrival, we were greeted by a huge indoor ferris wheel, a T-Rex that gesticulated wildly and roared, and a most impressive Thomas display. Dorothy and her gang must have felt similarly when they finally reached Oz. Since the boys had been on their best behavior the entire trip (and thankfully so, since anything less would have been disastrous considering our unfamiliar and rather chaotic new environment), Granny kindly promised to get each boy a special toy as a reward for being so good. It didn't take Joshua long to decide upon Diesel 10 as his toy of choice. Joshua became somewhat frustrated with Caleb, who, in his usual fashion, was taking his sweet time deciding what he wanted. At one point Joshua grabbed a random train and thrust it at Caleb, saying, "Here, Caleb, want this one? Want this one?" because he knew the sooner Caleb made up his mind, the sooner Diesel 10 could come out of his package and play. Caleb finally settled upon a flashing orb of light on a plastic stick with a picture of a taxi cab and the words "Times Squares" emblazoned upon it. Leave it to Caleb to go into a toy store and come out with something like that! We then ventured out into the rain once more, this time to a cozy little diner for some delicious salad, spaghetti, and cheesecake, then back to the apartment where the sounds of car horns and sirens lulled us to sleep.

Having learned our lesson trying to maneuver luggage and two toddlers along the crowded sidewalks on Friday night, on Sunday morning we took a cab to the train station (I unintentionally hailed the cab myself, but felt like quite a city girl having managed to do so). At Penn Station, we bade Uncle Patrick farewell, thanked him for his hospitality, and boarded the train back to New Jersey. When we got home, Joe laid down on the street in front of our house and kissed and asphalt. We had a wonderful visit to the Big Apple, but it sure did feel good to be home in sweet Virginia!

Caleb on the Big Potty

Today Caleb peed on the big potty for the first time ever! He was extremely proud of himself, as you can see in this photo. Until very recently, the boys outright refused to even sit on the potty, so this is a big deal.

Caleb developed a bad diaper rash over the past couple days, so today I decided to let him go diaperless in an effort to air things out down under. In the absence of a diaper, he sat on the potty several times today. While sitting, we read books, played "where's your nose/wrist/eyebrows/thighs/etc.", and I even complied with his peculiar fashion specifications, including wearing a bib and blue socks on top of red socks.

Even as I was sitting here writing this, Caleb told me he needed to go so I sat him on the potty and he went pee again! Wow, twice in a row! Let's hope he'll keep this up!

Edited to add... Caleb peed on the potty again tonight! He wore a diaper briefly this evening when we went out to get dinner, but it was dry when he took it off when we got home, so that means he didn't wet his diaper at all today. What a big boy!

Birthday Wishlist

Joshua, in his endless pursuit to acquire more Thomas trains, ever-so-sweetly asked me this morning, "Wanna go to the store and look for Duck? Wanna go to the store and look for Toby?" I said no, but that if he was a good boy he might get Duck and Toby for his birthday next month. "Be a good boy, get Duck for happy birthday!" Joshua chanted happily. Caleb, upon overhearing our conversation, was quick to add his request to their birthday wishlist. "Happy birthday get fire?" he asked, his eyes glowing. "Yes," I assured him, "you can have fire on the candles on your happy birthday cake". Caleb was so excited he could hardly contain his glee. In these uncertain economic times, it sure helps to have a son like Caleb!

The Baby Game

Caleb and Joshua have invented a new game that sounds something like this...

Joshua: Baby toys
Caleb: Baby toys
Joshua: Baby Mommy
Caleb: Baby Mommy
Joshua: Baby wash your hands
Caleb: Baby wash your hands
Joshua: Baby happy birthday
Caleb: Baby happy birthday
Joshua: Baby fork
Caleb: Baby fork
Joshua: Baby macaroni
Caleb: Baby macaroni

Etc, etc.

They have a special "voice" they use when they play this game. It's kind of a nasal monotone. They sound a lot like robots, actually. The boys take turns taking the lead, and the other twin is always happy to echo whatever nonsense his brother comes up with. We have no idea how they came up with this game. Maybe it's all the recent talk about the baby in Mommy's belly? Who knows. Anyway, it's always amusing to hear what words or phrases they'll tack on to the end of "baby" each time they play.

Stickin'

Here is a common conversation we have with Caleb on an almost daily basis:

Caleb: What are you doing, Caleb, Mommy?
Me: What are you doing, Caleb?
Caleb: Are you stickin' your _____ in the _____?
Me: Caleb, are you stickin' your _____ in the _____?

That's right, he prompts me to ask him what he is doing, then insists that I repeat back to him the question asking him what he is stickin'. Fill in the first blank with finger, hand, foot, or some other body part. Fill the second blank with any household object. For whatever reason, stickin' stuff in various places seems to fascinate Caleb.

This morning he stuck his hands through the bars of the crib (which we never took down after our friends and their baby visited us a couple months ago) and prompted me to ask him if he was stickin' his wrists in the crib. The other day during dinner he touched his toe to the table and prompted us to ask him if he was stickin' his foot in the table. He always sports a proud grin whenever he sticks something somewhere.

"Stickin'" is just another quirky phenomenon that occurs all the time in our house, and I felt it deserved a written record before Caleb stops doing it and we forget that he ever did.

4-Piece Nuggets

The other day while we were at Mimi and Papa's house, I was sitting at their desktop computer when Joshua stepped up to the computer case. He spoke into the glowing blue power button and air vents, saying in a deliberate monotone voice, "four-piece nuggets". Hmmm... I think I'll go hide under a McDonald's bag while I contemplate making fewer stops at the drive-thru from now on!

Cookens

Lately Caleb has become very interested in meal preparation. The moment he hears me turn on the stove fan, he comes running, asking to "see the cookens." Last weekend he and Joshua helped Granny make popcorn, and then this past week I let him "help" me bake apple muffins and spinach lasagna. Caleb has always been the more detail-oriented twin, and seems intensely curious to observe the process of how things are made. He loves to observe eggs frying, water boiling, even bagels toasting. While Joshua sometimes likes to see the "cookens", too, he is mostly content just to eat them!

Big Brothers

After measuring 3 weeks ahead at my last appointment, all suspicions and worries were put to rest yesterday when the ultrasound machine revealed that we are having another boy... just one big one! That's right, I am officially outnumbered 4 to 1 by the men in this household :) We are all very excited about the new Wolf cub who will be joining us in early February. Big brothers Caleb and Joshua like to hug and kiss my belly and proclaim their love for the baby, whom they have been known to refer to as "Baby Moses". We have also trained them to be very conscientious about being gentle with the baby in Mommy's belly, and now whenever they take a whack at each other, they will scold each other, saying, "Be careful! There's a baby in there! Don't hurt the baby!"

As novel as it would have been to have two sets of twins, the news of a singleton has ushered in a sense of peace, lifting a huge weight off of our shoulders. Finally, I will get a taste of the blissful newborn babymoon experience that I often hear other mothers speak so fondly of. I am personally looking forward to the luxury of getting more than 45 minutes of sleep at a time and feeling more like a mommy than a milk machine. Compared to the newborn twins experience, I daresay that taking care of a newborn singleton is going to seem like a vacation!

Joshua's Ali Agca

Last Sunday morning Joshua was trying to engage Caleb in some playful tumbling shortly after they had woken up. Caleb, still groggy, was not quite as chipper and responded to Joshua's playful romps by kicking him squarely in the face. Time stood still for a few seconds as Joshua formulated his response. Would he kick back or burst out in tears? Neither. Instead, he planted a big kiss on his brother's offending foot.

A couple hours later we were sitting in church and Pastor Steve was talking about Pope John Paul II and how he readily forgave his would-be assassin, Ali Agca. He asked the congregation, "How many of you have an Ali Agca in your life?" and Joshua raised his hand. Pastor Steve said, "I see that Joe's son has an Ali Agca!" Joe turned to me and whispered, "his Ali Agca is Caleb!" Fortunately, at the tender age of 2 and a half, Joshua already seems to understand a great deal about the power and importance of forgiveness.

Waterpark

A couple weeks ago we took the boys to the new waterpark at Massanutten while we were visiting Granny and Babo. After a rocky start, and me fearing that Joe would vow never to attempt such an excursion with the boys ever again, we all ended up having a great time.

The drama began when both boys refused to have anything to do with the wristbands they were supposed to wear as evidence of their paid admission to the park. You would think we were trying to attach tarantulas to their wrists. Actually, they probably would have preferred tarantulas to the wristbands.

We quickly gave up on the wristbands and headed over to the lazy river. The boys were delighted to get in the water, but screamed bloody murder when we attempted to put them in rafts. So, we thought we'd hold off on that for a while and check out the wave pool. The only problem was that they had to wear a floatation vest in the wave pool. We eventually convinced Joshua to wear one, winning him over with the buckle fasteners that resembled the buckles on their car seats which they're thoroughly obsessed with. Caleb, on the other hand, regarded the vest as an instrument of torture, so Joe gave him a stern lecture on dry land while Joshua and I bounced around in the waves.

Later we all headed back inside, and by this point Caleb decided that the rafts in the lazy river weren't so bad after all. He and Joe made several circuits while I wrestled with Joshua, who was still under the impression that the raft would eat him alive. Knowing how stubborn the boys can be about something before they actually try it, I was determined to make him realize that the lazy river was actually fun and not the least bit scary. I miracuously managed to contain him on the raft and we made several rounds as one big (mostly) happy family, Caleb giggling merrily the entire time while I held a screaming Joshua in a strangehold to prevent him from jumping off.

Next, we proceeded to the giant water castle, where our same child who was terrified of the lazy river voluntarily embarked down a huge adult-sized waterslide all by himself. Joshua screamed the whole way down, and the look of terror on his precious face as he rounded the first curve--at this point speeding down head-first on his back--will be forever seared into my memory. When he reached the end of the slide--by this point head-first on his belly--Joe rescued him and calmed him down. Naturally, Caleb did not dare follow in his brother's brave footsteps, and the remainder of the evening was enjoyed in milder aquatic pursuits.

Despite a little drama here and there along the way, we all had a wonderful time and the boys have been asking to go back to the "water paht" at least once a day ever since then!

Dark vs. Duck

The boys like to inform us that "it's dark" when the sun goes behind some clouds or we pass under some thick foliage. The other day we were driving along and the boys were gazing out the car windows when darkness fell, prompting Caleb to announce, "it's dark!" Keep in mind that when Caleb says "dark" it sounds more like "dahk". As usual, Joshua felt compelled to immediately correct his brother. "Caleb," he said, "it's not a duck, it's a bird!"

Be tough!

The other day the boys were outside riding their bikes. Caleb zoomed down our neighbor's driveway in his usual fashion (a little too fast) and tumbled over the handlebars onto the asphalt. Joshua hurried over to survey the damage. He planted his hand on Caleb's shoulder and said "In Jesus' name, be healed... be tough! Amen." Joe and I often tell the boys to "be tough" when they fall and get a boo-boo, so I guess it only seemed natural to Joshua to tack that on to the end of his prayer.

Signs

While Joshua is happily kept preoccupied with the usual boyhood interests of trains and cars, Caleb's interests tend to be much more eclectic. One of his chief obsessions is signs. When we go to the playground, he makes a beeline for the playground rules sign. The swings, slides, and sandbox are all secondary to this glorious sign that evokes such deep passion, causing Caleb's eyes to widen with wonderment and his limbs to twitch gleefully as he studies it intently. When we are out on a walk, we must stop and examine every sign... crosswalk signs, stop signs, no parking signs, you name it. They all command Caleb's immediate attention as he demands to know what each sign represents before performing a celebratory prance around the pole. The grocery store is yet another venue offering a plethora of signs for our information-thirsty toddler. The other day we were strolling down an aisle at Whole Foods when Caleb stopped dead in his tracks and exclaimed with grave concern, "Uh oh! The sign is missing!" We looked up, and sure enough the sign that should have been displayed above the yogurt section was absent, leaving only the sign-hanging apparatus dangling lonesomely in its place.

Calling us by our first names

If Joshua and Caleb's need for my attention is urgent, or if they perceive that we are in a place where I am not uniquely "Mommy", they will drop all formalities and call me by my first name.

"Katie! Ewww, there's a big spider!" About 75% of the time when I hear the boys call me by my first name, it's because they have happened upon a malicious-looking bug, usually a spider or a cricket, and want me to come resolve the situation immediately. If it's an ant, they will simply stomp on it, if it's a mosquito they will try to slap it, if it's a bee they will (unwisely) swat at it. But spiders are Katie's responsibility... lucky me!

When we are at a playground where there are lots of other kids with their moms, they have figured out that it's easiest to get my attention if they call for "Katie!" instead of "Mommy!" I personally think it was pretty smart of them to have figured this out.

They also like to call their daddy by his first name on occasion. A lot of times it's when they can hear him approaching the front door after being away at work all day. They will hear his keys jingling at the door and will happily call out, "Joe! Joe! Joe!" in eager anticipation of Daddy's arrival.

Bird, want some apple?

Not that the boys don't enjoy Summer's bounty of peaches and plums, but when you consider the juicy mess factor, crisp Fall apples are the preferred fruit for our little chowhounds. So this morning I was thrilled to see that bulk bags of organic Fuji apples have made their seasonal debut at our local Trader Joe's.

When we got home from the grocery store, the boys played outside while snacking on their apples. I was amused to hear the following "conversation" between Joshua and a bird perched atop a nearby wire:

"Bird, want some apple?" asked Joshua, offering his partially-eaten apple with his arm extended into the air towards the bird on the phone lines high above. No response from the bird. "Why not?" Joshua demanded to know. Still no reply from his avian friend. "Tweet tweet, bird, want some apple???" Joshua asked again, becoming exasperated with the bird's indifference. He then offered some apple to the neighbor's cat "Kitty, want some apple? ... why not?" etc.

I thought it was generous of Joshua to offer his delicious apple to his animal friends considering how heartily he seemed to be enjoying it. He even ate the stem and half of the core, then proceeded to devour Caleb's discards!

The King and the Priest

The other night we were driving home from Mimi and Papa's, and Caleb was upset because the amount of time we had allotted for him to attempt to buckle his seat belt had not been sufficient, and we were forced to buckle it for him. Our strong-willed son proceeded to scream and holler the whole way home. Along the way, we passed a couple of churches, and as we drove past Caleb continued his defiant screaming while Joshua, upon noticing the crosses on the church buildings, earnestly exclaimed, "Thank you, Jesus!" We couldn't help but giggle at the stark dichotomy between the two boys at that moment. Joe remarked that the boys should henceforth be referred to as "the king and the priest".

Red Shoes & Mommy's Toilet Paper

I know I've mentioned before how strong-willed Caleb can be, but sometimes it is just too much! The other day he threw a fit because I wouldn't let him wear his red Crocs in bed during his nap. So of course naptime was postponed a good hour while he screamed in protest, despite all of my best disciplinary efforts. When he woke up from the nap, he hadn't forgotten about the red Crocs, but unfortunately by this time Joshua was awake and already wearing them. I won't get into the gory details, but let's just say that Caleb's nap was merely a brief respite from another full-fledged red Croc tantrum. Remind me never to get the boys non-matching shoes again!

Caleb has a sweet side, too. We have finally gotten the boys to sleep in their own bed at night, granted that bed is still juxtaposed right up against ours, and they usually insist on "holding Mommy's hand" as they drift off to sleep. Well, the other night I decided I'd had enough of the double-hand-holding and wanted to fall asleep in a normal non-contorted position. So when Caleb begged to hold Mommy's hand, we did not cave in. "Caleb, do you want to hold Mommy's toilet paper, instead?" Joe offered. "Ok!" chirped Caleb as he accepted the roll of toilet paper which I had in the bed in lieu of a box of Kleenex. Then Caleb proceeded to cuddle the roll of toilet paper and coo, "Aww, do you love it toilet paper? Awww, so sweet..." and he fell asleep clutching it in the cradle of his arm.

Mini-Mommy

Joshua has recently decided to assume the role of Mini-Mommy in our household. No, he does not do laundry, cook, or maintain this website. Instead, he focuses his energy on bossing around his big brother!

This morning the boys picked out the shirts they would like to wear today and were each holding a shirt while waiting for me to help them get dressed. Caleb dropped his shirt on the ground. Joshua sternly instructed his brother, saying "Caleb [insert dramatic pause], pick up your shirt". Caleb picked up his shirt. Joshua somewhat reluctantly offered his approval of Caleb's obedience with a mildly enthusiastic "good boy".

This was not an isolated incident. If Joshua perceives that Caleb is eating too fast during a meal, he will point his finger at his brother and sternly say, "Caleb, chew." If Caleb is throwing a tantrum, Joshua will tell him, "Caleb, stop screaming. Do you want to go to your room by yourself?" The thing that amuses me most is the tone of voice Joshua uses when he's dishing out these commands. His voice drops a few decibels and he utters his commands and threats in a firm monotone. I guess that must be what I sound like to the boys when they perceive that I mean business!

Sweet Caleb has been humoring his brother's Mini-Mommy tendencies pretty well. Although, I do wonder if Caleb's occasional outbursts against Joshua are partially rooted in his frustration with always being bossed around by his upstart little brother...

Want it. Say, "I don't want it!"

Joshua got the idea in his head that when he doesn't want something, whether it be a half-eaten plum or Skarloey the train, he should hand it to someone else and say, "Want it!" He would become very frustrated when we didn't understand why he would claim to want something he clearly did not seem to want. We eventually figured out that he probably got this idea because I would often offer him a piece of fruit or whatever and say, "Want it?" Maybe he thought that every time I offered him something, it was because I didn't want it? Who knows.

We naturally corrected him each time he professed to want something he didn't want. "Want it!" Joshua would whine. "Say, 'I don't want it'" would be our rejoinder. This went on for several weeks. Now, whenever Joshua gives us something that he doesn't want, he will rehash this oft-spoken conversation, even mimicking our tone of voice when we correct him, saying, "Want it. Say, I don't want it!" And as you might imagine, we are reluctant to correct him yet again for fear that he might start saying, "No, don't say want it say I don't want it, just say I don't want it" every time he doesn't want something!

Two fans... no! One fan.

The boys are always counting things these days. In their fervor, however, they usually will either skip a few of the items they're enumerating or count more items than actually exist. For example, Joshua was in the habit of counting 2 fans when in fact we only have one. We would correct him each time, saying "No, one fan." So now, whenever Joshua feels the urge to announce the number of fans we have in our house, he always says, "Two fans... no! One fan."

Swimming

The boys love going to the pool. Caleb will often bring me a pair of his swim diapers, hold them up to his crotch, and beg "pool? pool? swimmy pool, Mommy?" Upon arrival at the pool, the boys only get so far as the through the gate and onto the deck before they hurriedly kick off their shoes and make a dash for the pool's edge. Our tradiiton is to first go in the "big pool" and then when break is called, we migrate (reluctantly, and often not without a screaming fit), to the "baby pool".

Joshua started off the Summer as the more adventurous fish-like twin, but at this point Caleb seems to have surpassed him. In fact, Caleb doesn't even like for us to hold his hand when we are in deep water. Instead, he prefers to have us help keep him afloat by grabbing the back of his swim suit, leaving his arms free to paddle and his legs free to kick. Joshua will tolerate this, too, but generally prefers to have us hold his hand while he treads water. Neither of them are yet comfortable with being fully submered, although they do love being splashed in the face.

Today we discovered that the boys are tall enough to stand in the shallow end of the big pool, making my job significantly easier, since juggling two squirmy 30-something pound toddlers in the water is not an easy task. They can climb out of the pool all by themselves, and are learning to jump in by themselves, too. When we are in the baby pool they will put their hands on the bottom of the pool and practice kicking their legs behind them, and are very proud to show off their skill. If we can only teach them to not swallow water when they put their heads under, I am optimistic that they will be swimming before the end of Summer.

Prophecy Fulfilled

Yesterday I was lounging on the couch when Joshua pounced on me unexpectedly. "Oww!" I exclaimed, "you gave Mommy a boo-boo!"

Upon hearing this, Caleb scurried over, planted his hand on me, and with the utmost confidence said, "In Jesus' name, be healed!"

What you may not know is that when Joshua and Caleb were infants, Pastor Steve prophesized that they would be like bold lions, and that they would lay hands on their parents and they would be healed. So, in a small way, prophecy was fulfilled yesterday, and I'm sure it's only just the beginning!

Parrots

Last week we enjoyed a week at the lake with Babo, Granny, and the rest of Joe's family. The boys had a great time taking naps on the pontoon, swimming, eating Granny's delicious food, playing "pillow" with Uncle Jay, and watching Umpa Truckit (Uncle Patrick) and Cousin Nolan play Wii. They were so much more social and friendly than last year, which was a great relief.

I'm not sure where they get it from, but Joshua and Caleb are blossoming into social butterflies. We will be walking along the sidewalk on the way to the pool or wherever, and they will wave to total strangers and say, "Hi! How's it going?" People are usually slightly taken aback by our pair of gregarious tots, responding, "Uh, hi... what a friendly little fella!"

In case you have ever wondered what it's like living with 2.5-year-old twins, it's how I would imagine life would be like living with a couple of parrots- they make a huge mess and they repeat every single word you say. If Joe or I had a foul mouth, you would know it by now! Thank goodness in our home it doesn't get much worse than "Oh Shoot!" or "Oh my goodness!" I won't bore you with the mundane details, but they literally repeat almost everything we say.

If Caleb is misbehaving, Joshua is now likely to point his finger to their bedroom (aka the room they have never slept in and contains zero beds) and say in a stern, disapproving voice "Caleb, do you want to go to your room all by yourself?" Caleb likes to hold a phone to his ear and mimic my conversations with Joe: "Hi... Ok... uh huh... Ok, ok... ok... ok... Love you, bye!" If Joshua gets hurt, Caleb will gently pat him on the back and say "It's ok, Joshua. Don't cry, don't cry". Today Joshua did something praise-worthy and I said "Good job, Joshua!" but that wasn't enough. "So smart?" he asked. I assured him that indeed he was :)

Oh, this is unrelated but the other day we went to Toys 'R Us in an unfruitful search for a certain Thomas train. Can you guess what the boys' first words were as we passed the threshold into the toy-filled wonderland? "Ceiling fan! Ceiling fan!" they exclaimed as they hopped up and down with glee and pointed to the fans hanging way up above. Nevermind the aisles upon aisles of toys. It took them a good 2 or 3 minutes before they even noticed any of the toys. So maybe for their next birthday, in lieu of toys we will just request contributions to a ceiling fan fund and have one installed in our house :)

Dirty Bananas

Caleb has recently gotten in the habit of eating bananas the same way he eats corn on the cob- he holds the banana horizontally and nibbles only the periphery of the fruit. Why, you ask? He has decided that the core of the banana- the part with the seeds that sometimes turns brown when ripe- is dirty. Yes, his exact words were "It's dirty!" Because it's brown, we assume. When I give the boys a banana to eat, I usually break it and give them each a half. Upon receipt, Caleb will now promptly inspect the broken end to see if it is brown. If it is, he will sometime refuse it altogether. I have become quite skilled at breaking bananas in such a way that a minimal amount of brown is exposed. Caleb certainly is the most particular child I have ever met!

Younger than they look

Today as we were walking into Trader Joe's a man came up to us and said "Let me guess- identical twins?" I didn't feel like launching into my typical explanation that we haven't had them tested, so we don't know for sure, so I just said "yep!" He said "I have identical twin girls. They're 23 now. I'll tell you, if you can survive raising twins, you can run General Motors" :) It's always nice to meet parents of adult twins who have indeed survived the sometimes arduous journey and can truly sympathize with our current plight. Anyway, this father of twins then went on to ask, "So how old are they? 4 or 5?" I thought to myself, are you serious? People usually guess that our boys are a little older than they are, probably based on assumptions that all twins start off as preemies and are therefore runts throughout early childhood. But 5 years old? This nice man was quite shocked to learn that the boys are actual half the age he guessed!

Logo Love

As a graphic artist, I have always admired a well-designed logo. But the marketing value of a truly unique and memorable logo did not fully sink in until just last week when Caleb saw a shopping bag lying around the house, pointed at it, and proudly proclaimed "Lord and Taylor". That's right. The first store logo that Caleb learned was not Safeway, McDonald's, or Toys 'R Us. Instead, he has revealed a fascination with an upscale department store. Needless to say, I am so proud that my boy has such good taste!

In the weeks leading up to this revelation, Caleb would always notice the "Lord & Taylor" sign at the mall, point to it, and ask Joe to tell him what it said. And the boys do enjoy their visits to Lord & Taylor. Not only do they find Lord & Taylor to be a suitable napping environment while I relish the occasional opportunity to leisurely browse the clearance racks, they also find great satisfaction in riding the escalators, looking at the fancy "clocks" (watches), and trying on $90 sunglasses, while passing through on our weekly lunch dates with Joe at Chick-fil-a.

And speaking of Chick-fil-a, tonight as Caleb watched me use the laptop he saw the Chick-fil-a logo on the screen. He pointed to it and said "Nugget! Chicken nugget! Fry!" Fashion and food... what can I say, he certainly is our boy!

Cereal Surprise

I was giving the boys their pre-bedtime Cheerios snack the other night and I had accidentally left the cereal box on the table they were eating at.  Joshua, after quickly polishing off his pile of O's, began to grab and tilt the box in an effort to get more cereal out (which is why you don't leave the box at the table to begin with).  I scurried towards the table to snag it from him when, much to my surprise, he pulled a toy car out of the box. "Car! Car!" was his half exclamation, half request for me to remove the red car from its wrapping. 

We managed to get into bed and turn the lights out before Caleb made his attempt to take the car away from Joshua.  He grabbed it, and defended it mightily in the ensuing brawl.  Joshua, realizing he would be unable to get the car back under his own power began crying for assistance. 

Sometimes I have the energy to be a good father, but at that time of night, I decided to take the lazy approach and open up a second box of Cheerios and get another car for Joshua.  He loved his new white car more than the first, and peace was restored to the Wolf household.

You know, I wish I had known sooner that the boys would enjoy free car toys from cereal boxes before sinking a hefty dime into Thomas trains.

2½

Happy ½ Birthday, boys! At 30 months, they are very well-coordinated and fearless, as proven by the follwing fascinating feats they have achieved. They can now kick a soccer ball while running, slide down tall slides all by themselves, climb to the uppermost parts of the elementary school playgrounds, and swing in the big kids' swings.

Joshua is overall more of a chatterbox, but Caleb has some lines of his own that are uniquely Caleb, such as, "Oh my gosh! A bug!" Hmmm... I wonder where he learned that? ;) The boys have also learned to embellish their interactions with actual English dialogue, so instead of simply hitting and pushing each other, they will hit and push while exclaiming, "No! Don't do that!" They also like to tell us if someone is funny or if someone is sad. For example, while playing with their trains Joshua might say "Oliver funny!" and if Joshua is crying, Caleb will say "Brother sad. Brother, don't cry." If they want something, they will say "Open! Open!" which seems to have replaced its longstanding predecessor, "Ajibah!"

The boys are empathetic and polite, for the most part. If one of us is coughing, Joshua will pat us on the back and ask, "Are you ok? Are you ok?" Both boys will say, "God bless you!" if you sneeze, and "Excuse me, sorry!" if they want you to move out of their way so they can squeeze by. Joshua loves to give kisses, and will announce his intention to kiss someone or something, saying, "I'm gonna kiss it, I'm gonna kiss it... mwah!" Caleb will sob softly, fight back tears, and reach out for an embrace if he realizes that he has hurt our feelings. I'm probably beginning to sound like a broken record on this blog, but they really are such sweet boys and we are so thankful that God gave them to us 2 and a half years ago.

(marriage+boys) > (marriage-boys)

Joe observed last night that at this point in our marriage, the amount of time that has passed since the boys were born (2 years and almost 6 months) is greater than the amount time we we were married beforing having kids (2 years and 4.5 months). What on earth did we do before we had kids? We aren't quite sure...

"Hi, Man! How's it goin'?" and more

"Ok, let's pray!" - Joshua as we sat down at the dinner table with Mimi, Papa, Uncle Chris, and Cousin Tae earlier this evening.

"Go! Go! What's your problem? Go!" - Caleb and Joshua when I suddenly slammed on the brakes while driving yesterday. They were talking to the car in front of me that came to an abrupt halt for unknown reasons.

"Hi, Man! How's it goin'?" - Joshua to our neighbor Kevin. We are still working on teaching the boys to use proper titles when addressing adults.

"Hey! Come back! Get over here!" - Joshua and Caleb to our neighbors' cats. I think they are pretending to be me and the cats are their children.

Tandem vs. Side-by-side: Defying the odds

Back in the day when we were in the market for a double stroller, I read many reviews that warned against tandem strollers b/c the children would fight over who gets to sit in the front seat since it offers the best view, the jealous child in the back seat would pull the front seat child's hair, etc, etc. Well, for lack of side-by-side double strollers in our price range that also accomodated two infant car seats, we settled for a tandem stroller- the lovely Graco Duoglider.

Fast forward 2 and a half years, and we have yet to witness a fight over who gets to sit in the front seat. Joshua and Caleb rarely quarrel over stroller seating arrangements, but if they do, the most hotly contested seat is the back seat. And the twin sitting in the back seat has yet to pull the hair of his brother sitting in the front seat. I have, however, on several occasions seen the boy in the back seat lovingly stroke the hair of his brother sitting up front!

That's ridiculous, Mommy!

This is one of Joshua's new favorite phrases. For example, here is a conversation we had this morning:

• Me: Joshua, if you had pooped in the potty, I wouldn't have to change your diaper right now.


• Joshua: That's ridiculous, Mommy!

Oh, the Irony

Last night I arbitrarily decided that today would be a good day to embark on the journey of potty training. The boys have been watching "Elmo's Potty Time" off and on for the past week or so, and as a result have expressed a slightly elevated interest in sitting on the potty. Prior to being enlightened with the knowledge that the revered Elmo uses the potty, they would outright refuse to have anything to do with it. "Caleb, do you want to sit on the potty?" I would ask. "No!" would be his aloof response as he bolted off in the opposite direction as quickly as possible.

To prepare for Potty Training Boot Camp, I rolled up the rugs and dragged them into the lightly-trafficked dining room. When the boys woke up this morning, I removed their diapers and let them attack the day bare-bottomed. I brought the little potty out into the living room and coerced them to sit on it a few times, just to familiarize them with the concept. After breakfast, Joshua began to fidget then laid down on the floor and pleaded, "Diaper! Please diaper!" but I refused. Well, about 5 minutes later he peed on the hardwood floor. I had been watching both boys like a hawk all morning and immediately grabbed him and plopped him on the potty, but it was too late. "Good thing I rolled up the rugs last night," I thought to myself.

Later in the afternoon, Caleb had requested an orange so I was at the sink washing and peeling one for him. I had instructed both boys to stay with me in the kitchen so I could keep an eye on them and their bodily functions. I lost track of Caleb for no more than 15 seconds, only to discover that he had absconded into the adjoining dining room and peed squarely on one of the rolled up rugs. Oh, the irony!

Empathetic Caleb

I find great joy in that Caleb always wants me, instead of Mommy, to take him out of his car seat.  Katie's attempts to get Caleb out of the car when I'm around are typically met with sharp resistance.  Flattered, I'll come over to unbuckle my child, who quickly changes the tone of his "Daddy! Daddy!" cries from pleading to that of rejoicing.

That's how things are supposed to go, but they didn't go that way last night.  We had just pulled into the Safeway parking lot and I opened up the car door to get Caleb out, but instead of being greeted with his typical enthusiasm, he twisted away, crying out for "Mommy! Mommy!"  I was taken aback slightly, but I figured, at least, Joshua would welcome the opportunity to have Daddy get him out of the car.  Nope.  Both boys were begging for Mommy to do the honors. 

Now I was really bummed, so I thought I'd express my displeasure by sticking out my lower lip and hanging my head.  The boys, both being held by Katie now, began to notice my sullenness and a sincere expression of remorse came across Caleb's sweet face, complete with quivering lip and welling tears.  He looked at me, then away briefly as if pausing to think, and then writhed out of Katie's arm towards me.  I gladly accepted Caleb into my arms, but only held him for a few seconds before he wriggled back towards Mommy again, as if to say, "I'm sorry I made you sad, Daddy. You know I love you, but I just want to be with Mommy right now." 

Caleb was right.  I should have known that this single instance of rejection wasn't an indication that they boys no longer loved me.  How silly of me to take it so personally.  Sometimes you just want Mommy, and there's nothing wrong with that.

Flippin' Sweet

[Note: This post is by daddy.] 

One of the joys of twin toddlers is their willingness to wrestle with dad despite having a notable height, weight, and strength disadvantage. This permits me to emulate professional wrestling maneuvers that would otherwise require muscle mass extrinsic to my body. The boys' (and my) favorite moves involve me flipping them, such as with the "360 Daddy Bomb" that I debuted today.  I pick them up as in a typical jacknife powerbomb, but instead of dropping them immediately on their backs, I rotate them 360 degrees before plopping them down onto our pillow-covered couch. 

But our flipping fun goes well beyond that single move.  Sometimes while the boys are playing on the couch, I'll position myself on the floor so I can flip them over the edge when they lean towards me.  Or I will lie on the floor with my legs on the couch for the boys to climb onto; once aboard, I'll raise my legs, causing them to slide and flip onto my chest.  In both cases, the boys immediately jump back on the couch to repeat the process, laughing the entire time.  Also, when we play "One, two, buckle my shoe" I'll give them a good flip when I reach the "nine, ten, do it again!" part.  They love that.

Although these aformentioned moves are the most thrilling, the most nostalgic maneuver in my repertoire is something I dub the "Daddy Attack."  Down on my hands and knees, I lock my eyes on a boy and begin to slap the ground with my right hand to notify them that the Daddy Attack is imminent (after all, with a move this devastating, it is only fair to give them warning).  Then, with a sudden burst of speed, I lunge towards them and tackle them with my shoulder.  For added effect, I'll pull their legs towards me as I push them over.  That classic, which I've employed since they could barely stand on their own, always brings a tear to my eye.  And someday, when the boys grow up and redefine "Daddy Attack," I may end up with more than one tear.

Let the deception begin!

Sometimes people will marvel at how remarkably identical our boys appear to be, and predict the great fun they will have when they are older, swapping classes and tricking their teachers and classmates into thinking they are the other twin. Well, it's already started! Joshua, in particular, will often point to Caleb and say "Joshua!" and giggle mischeviously. Caleb will sometimes do the same, although he does not seem to be as susceptible to silliness as his younger brother. I'm sure the boys will figure out soon enough, though, that Mommy and Daddy aren't their ideal audience, and that they should take their tricks elsewhere!

M! Please M!

These days we cannot make a quick milk 'n bananas Safeway run without Joshua begging me to lift him up and turn him upside down. "For what reason?", you ask. You see, the mere sight of the "w" in the name "Safeway" riles Joshua up and prompts him to passionately plead "M! Please M!" which transaltes, "please lift me up and turn me upside down so I can see the 'W' as an 'M'!". We encounter the same scenario if he sees the letter 'M': "W! Please W!" he will beg. Even if the word/sentence/phrase contains both an M and a W, he will insist on being dangled upside down so that he can see each letter upside down as its respective mirrored character. Do any other 2-year-olds do this? I can't imagine that it's a chore faced by most other mothers of young toddlers...

Say my name

After exclusively referring to each other as "brother" for the longest time, Caleb and Joshua are finally saying each other's names. While we respect the Berenstain Bears' decision to name their son "Brother", we had always thought it would be nice for our own children to have slightly more original names. So we were quite delighted when, in the past week or so, the boys have started using the names we picked out for them. The majority of the time they still refer to each other as "brother", but if we really push the issue and specifically ask "what is your brother's name?" they will say "Caleb!" or "Joshua!". We now sometimes hear Joshua saying "Oh Caleb, wake up!" or "Oh Caleb, where are you?" and vice versa.

They ate raw spinach: take 2

Something fishy has been going on with our blog. My raw spinach post disappeared, along with the comments on "The End of Two Eras". Oh well, for the record, the boys now eat raw spinach, which they fondly refer to as "leaf", and I am very happy about it!

The End of Two Eras

After 2 years and 4 months, Caleb and Joshua are now officially weaned. The last time they nursed was exactly one week ago. Many of you are probably surprised to learn that I was still nursing them up until one week ago. I haven't openly shared this with a lot of people, since in the United States it's culturally unacceptable to nurse past 12 months, and I am not the kind of person who likes to stir things up. I've had a pediatrician roll her eyes and practically scowl at me when I made it clear that I didn't intend to wean the boys at 12 months, and I know that most other people think I'm pretty crazy for nursing them for so long. What you may not know is that compulsory weaning by age 1 is a cultural phenomenon specific to the U.S. The World Health Organization recommends breastfeeding until at least age two. And my mom has told me that when she was growing up in Korea, it was perfectly normal to see young children running around and playing, occasionally taking a break to have a drink of their mama's milk.

So, why did I do it? Well, first of all Caleb and Joshua showed no interest in weaning when they turned one, so I saw no point in denying them something that was so healthy for them. Also, they have been extremely picky eaters and up until recently have shown very little interest in fruits and vegetables. By nursing them, I could make sure that they were getting a diet of healthy food, albeit indirectly. Furthermore, a child who is breastfed beyond 12 months is:

• Less likely to develop food allergies.


• Less likely to get ear infections and other illnesses.


• More likely to maintain their emotional attachment to a person rather than being forced to switch to an inanimate object such as a teddy bear, blanket, or pacificer, setting the stage for a life of people-orientation, rather than materialism.


• More likely to have a higher IQ. Since a child’s brain is dramatically growing during the first few years not just months of life, some believe that this could account for the differences in IQ between breastfed and bottle-fed children. Numerous studies show that breastfeeding boosts IQ in children regardless of the income or educational status of their mothers.

Most research doesn’t currently look at children breastfed more than 24 months, because sadly most American women don’t nurse for more than just a few weeks, and most surveys indicate that only around 20 percent are still breastfeeding at 6 months. Here is an article that explains the benefits of extended breastfeeding in greater detail, in case you're interested.

The other "era" that has come to end in our home is cable TV. It was also cut off last Thursday. Without cable, we can't even get the networks or PBS. We hardly ever watched TV, anyway, and figured this would be a good way to save $42/month. We decided to seal the deal when we realized that's approximately 3 Chipotles or 2 Old Country Buffets each month :) The boys have a few Thomas the Tank Engine and Old School Sesame Street DVD's (well, the Sesame Street DVD's are technically Joe's) that they enjoy watching, but now that they are at the age where they can figure out how to work the remote, we didn't want them to get addicted to any shows, be bombarded with commercials, or catch a glimpse of any questionable content.

So there you have it- the end of two eras. Now do you think we're freaks or what? ;)

Uh oh! Water spilled. Why, WHY?

The boys are now 2 years and 4 months old, and are talking up a storm! I know I say that a lot, but recently their vocabulary seems to have increased exponentially, and they are definitely speaking in sentences now. Some recent quotes:

• "Uh oh! Water spilled. Why, WHY?" - Joshua, after spilling a cup of water on our bed. I wonder where he picked up the angry "why?" at the end? :)


• "Uh oh! Shoe come off." - Joshua, after taking off his shoe when he knew he wasn't supposed to.


• "Excuse me!" - Both boys have learned to say this when someone else is in their way and they wish to pass by. What polite young men!


• "Lamb sleepy. Sweet." - Joshua, when he is pretending to rock a stuffed toy lamb to sleep. He will cradle the lamb in his arms, sway his hips, and gently pat the lamb with his hand. It is the most precious sight ever.


• "Go outside? Bike, bike? Stroller? Alright, let's go!" - Caleb, when he wants to go outside and ride bikes and/or go for a ride in the stroller.


• "Hello, this is Katie. Alright, bye!" - Joshua, pretending to talk on the phone.

Also, Joshua practically has Dr. Seuss' book Hop on Pop memorized. Seriously, it's pretty impressive. He and Caleb both have certain lines from The Cat in the Hat memorized, too. They can also almost count to 20. Sometimes they will skip from fifteen to seventeen, etc., but they get the main idea.

Particular Caleb

It's becoming increasingly evident that Caleb is the more detail-oriented and particular twin. When handing out sippy cups, spoons, etc., we have learned to always ask Caleb first which one he wants; Joshua, on the other hand, couldn't care less, and will take whatever we give him. Same goes for when we're picking out their outfits in the morning. Caleb always prefers to wear blue pants, preferably jeans, and a top that has a picture on it. This morning I asked him which snowman sweater he wanted to wear (we have 2 sets) and he deliberated carefully before deciding. And of course if on a rare occasion they must wear non-matching outfits, I would be irresponsible not to ask Caleb first which he would like to wear. Thank God Joshua is so flexible... I don't know what I would do with two picky twins!

Last weekend we went to visit Granny and Babo, and when we crawled into bed the first night Caleb became very cross. We asked him what was wrong, and he pointed to a pillow in a plaid pillowcase at the head of the bed and angrily muttered at it. "Oh, you want us to move it?" we asked. He said yes. So I moved it to Joshua's side of the bed. Caleb continued to vehemently express his discontent. So I removed the pillow from the bed altogether. Yes, that was a suitable solution, Caleb was now willing to rest his head (on a non-plaid pillow, of course) and go to sleep. Apparently Caleb is not a big fan of his Daddy's favorite print! I suspect that Caleb inherited his Mommy's rather particular fashion sense ;)

Brave New Tastebuds: Vitamins & Beans

Today Caleb ate 2 children's vitamins! I was so proud of him. He has always been fascinated with vitamins and frequently asks for "VITAMIIIIN! VITAMIIIIN!", but he would usually just spit them out. I suspect he is finally coming around because he wants to be just like his beloved Papa!

Then at dinner tonight, Caleb ate several green beans! Even Joshua, after putting up a mild fight, ate a couple green beans, although not before telling us they were "snakes" and "bugs"! Caleb has nibbled on green beans before at Old Country Buffet, where they are of the soft, salty canned variety. But these were frozen organic green beans steamed just until tender and seasoned with only a tiny dash of soy sauce. Way to go, boys!

Face plant

This afternoon the boys were scooting around outside on their bikes. After we'd been outside in the cold for several minutes, Joshua scooted past me and I felt compelled to put up his coat's hood, fastening the velcro closure which incidentally covers his chin and mouth. Not ten seconds passed before he rolled down the driveway toward the street and the tip of his shoe got stuck on the pavement, causing his bike to flip forward, sending him face-first into the street. These kinds of accidents happen every once in a while, but I'd never seen one happen at such full speed, as the foot of our driveway has a rather steep slope. I rushed to help him up, shocked to see blood gushing from his mouth! Ok, so maybe it wasn't gushing, but as I unfastened the velcro, blood mixed with saliva dripped copiously from his mouth as he cried, and his teeth were covered in blood, too. Thankfully our neighbor who is an aspiring nurse was home on her day off and she reassured me that it looked as though his teeth and tongue were intact, he had simply bitten his lip. Joshua, being the tough kid he is, was unscathed by the sight of his own blood and stopped crying only a minute or two after the accident. I couldn't help but think how much worse the damage might have been if his coat hood hadn't been fastened shut across his mouth, protecting his teeth. I'm sure it was the Holy Spirit telling me to fasten Joshua's hood right when I did... I normally wouldn't have bothered since he was already wearing a warm hat. Thank you, Lord, for looking out for our boys!

Oh, sorry!

Joshua's latest maneuver has been to run towards one of us (usually Caleb), shove us, and then flippantly apologize with a quick "oh, sorry!" We have tried to explain to Joshua that you generally only tell someone that you're sorry when you hurt them by accident, whereas he is clearly consciously being aggresive for the sole purpose of having an excuse to use the latest addition to his rapidly expanding vocabulary. Silly boy!

Mozart = Baby Einstein

This week I finally got around to replacing the Christmas music CD that has been playing in our car for the past couple months with a Mozart CD. The first couple days after putting in the new CD, Caleb kept saying "Baby Einstein! Baby Einstein!" whenever we went for a ride in the car. I finally realized that some of the pieces on the CD are also the background music on their Baby Einstein DVDs (which, by the way, they haven't viewed for several months). We thought it was funny (and maybe a little sad) that in Caleb's mind, classical music masterpieces are simply "Baby Einstein" music!

Elmo's cast - trash or treasure?

This evening I was tossing something in the kitchen trash can when a flash of bright orange caught my eye. Upon closer inspection, I beheld the leg cast that Granny had crocheted for an Elmo doll that she and Babo gave to Joshua after he broke his leg. I quickly retrieved the dainty web of orange yarn and asked Joe if he had thrown it away. He said no, of course not, but that earlier Joshua had brought Elmo to him and asked him to take the cast off of the doll's leg. Then Joshua must have thrown the cast away himself! They boys have shown an interest in disposing of things in our household trash cans lately, but up until now they have been very good about discerning trash from treasure and not throwing away anything important. I'm sure that in Joshua's eyes, Elmo's cast was indeed trash, since he had witnessed his own cast being sawn off and thrown in the trash at the orthopaedic doctor's office a few months earlier. But Elmo's little Granny-made cast is definitely too cute to throw away, and I'm sure that someday Joshua will appreciate that we rescued it for him.

Tomato Staking

I haven't been updating this site much recently because I have been really working on training the boys to be more obedient, with the expectation that as they grow their hearts will be obedient to God, His Word, and His will for their lives... and also to try to improve their behavior! We are making progress, slowly but steadily. Right now we are trying something called "tomato staking", which basically involves keeping the boys next to us 100% of the time, so that we are able to see everything they are doing and can encourage or stop their behavior, as desired. When they disobey, or display a bad attitude, or do anything a godly child would not do, we correct them promptly and require them to repeat what they did in godly manner. Once they have obeyed us with a pleasant attitude, we go back to nurturing, teaching, and enjoying them as we were before. Of course we don't always tomato-stake perfectly, but we are already beginning to see the fruits of our labor. The boys are now saying "Please", "thank you", "Yes, mommy", "Yes, daddy", and "I obey". They are also much more helpful about putting their books and toys away, retrieving their shoes and coats when it's time to go somewhere, not taking all the cushions off the couch all the time, and keeping their socks on their feet throughout the day. I know these things may sound trivial to you, but it's a huge deal to us as parents! The boys are still stubborn in some areas, particularly where eating is involved, but we have faith that that they will come around in due time.

Associating Places with People

Today as I pulled into the mall parking lot, the boys inquisitively chirped, "Megan? Megan?" It's no wonder, since at least half of our visits to this particular mall involve scouring the clearance racks for ridiculously cheap designer jeans with Aunt Megan. We just met her there for this purpose last week, as a matter of fact. Today we had even more important business to attend to- we were meeting Daddy for lunch, followed by bargain-hunting for winter clothes for the boys to wear next year. Since hearing the tragic news that Talbots is discontinuing their children's line, Mimi and I have been all the more vigilant about scouting out bargains on cute boys' clothes, which are a lot harder to find than cute girls' clothes. Anyway, the boys' association of the mall parking lot with Megan got me thinking about all the other places we frequently go that the boys associate with the people in their lives.

• When we pull into the parking lot at Old Country Buffet, the boys will call out "Mimi! Papa! Mimi! Papa!" because they know that whenever we go there, we meet Mimi and Papa for dinner.


• When we drive by the local Roy Rogers, the boys will say "Babo? Babo?" because the last couple times Granny and Babo have visited, we have gone to Roy Roger's for lunch.


• When we pull into the church parking lot, the boys will exclaim "Daddy! Daddy!" because they know that we always see Daddy at church. Daddy always has to drive separately because he has to show up early for worship team practice. The boys will also sometimes say "Branden? Branden?" asking if their buddy will be there to play with them.


• When we drive by a certain stop light on one of the local main roads, Joshua will say "owl! owl!" because one time when we drove by there he saw a large bird which he must have thought was an owl.


• This doesn't involve a particular place, but when I wake the boys up in the morning and immediately get them dressed, they will ask, "Michael? Michael? Baby? Baby?" because the only occasion for which I ever get them dressed in a hurry first thing in the morning (other than Sunday morning church) is when we go to playgroup, where we see their friend Michael and his baby sister, and more recently their friend Elizabeth's new baby brother who also happens to be named Michael.

There are probably more examples but I can't think of them right now!

Our little parrots

Here are some new phrases that the boys have been spouting out lately:

• Stop it!


• Go away!


• No! Uh-uh-uh! Uh-uh!


• I said no!


• Let's go!

And spoken as an internal monologue:

• This, or this? Ok!


• Milk, or juice? Milk! Alright.

You have no idea how often you say certain phrases until you have two young toddlers who follow you around all day and repeat everything you say like parrots. At first I was taken aback when they started saying "go away," wondering from whom they had learned such harsh language. Then I realized that I was to blame! Whenever I'm in the kitchen trying to load or unload the dishwasher, they will flock to it and I have to repeatedly tell them to "go away!" so that they won't grab a knife, break a glass, or get soaked with water, etc. 

The inflection and tone of Joshua's voice when he says "Uh-uh-uh! Uh-uh!" is hilarious b/c he sounds exactly like I do when I am warning him against doing something naughty. And by the way, the boys don't say "No! Uh-uh! Stop it! Go away" to us or even each other, but rather when they are off playing on their own, as if they are incorportating these simple dialogues into their imaginative play. They do, however, say "let's go!" when they actually do want to go somewhere.

Sadly, the boys aren't picking up on more edifying language, which I presume is because it isn't spoken nearly as often in our house these days. Just think, by now the boys could be memorizing scripture if we spoke it to them all day long! I guess I should at least try to start by weaving some more uplifting language into my daily dialogue with them.

One edifying thing the boys have learned is to ask each other to "share!" when they want something that is in the other's possession. They usually take this peaceful approach first, and if it doesn't work after the first couple attempts, they resort to taking the coveted item by force. It's interesting to see how strategies employed by twin toddlers are mirrored by world leaders on a global scale!

In other news, the boys can now not only identify, but also sing their ABC's! They can also count to 10, and whenever they have an opportunity to count how many of something is in their presence (like how many people wearing eyeglasses are in the room) they will.

And last but not least, Happy Birthday Papa! :)

Coveting & Sharing

Since I will never have an only child, I can only imagine how nice it must be to not have to constantly referee sibling fights. Maybe I'm giving myself too much credit, but my suspicion is that twin fights are the trickiest because you can't tell the older sibling to go easy on the younger since they are evenly matched- physically, emotionally, and mentally.

Lately Caleb has decided that he MUST have anything that is in Joshua's possession. For example, today each boy had the exact same blue blanket on their laps in the car (they have recently decided that they always want blankets on their laps while in their carseats). Well, they weren't sitting but for 30 seconds before Caleb flippantly cast his blanket on the floor and angrily demanded to have Joshua's blanket instead. Pointing out that both blankets were literally the same did no good. Today alone I had to referee similar skirmishes involving identical spoons, sippy cups, and the list goes on.

Fortunately Joshua has become very good at sharing. This evening he asked for juice so Mimi escorted him to the fridge to get a juice box. He first selected one, paused thoughtfully, then took a second box. When they came back to the living room, Mimi asked Joshua what he was going to do with 2 juice boxes. Joshua grinned and gave one of them to Caleb with an outstretched arm. He is also very good about finding things that he knows Caleb likes, such as his Thomas (or more recently, Sir Handel) train and giving it to Caleb. Sometimes Caleb is a gracious recipient, and other times he hastily chucks the gift and tries to grab whatever Joshua is holding in his other hand. *Sigh* I know that Caleb will come around evenutally!

In other news, the boys now like to say "sorry!" all the time, even when they haven't done anything wrong. They also say "yes, Mommy!" and "yes, Daddy!" so I'm hoping that we are making some inroads in cultivating polite young men. Oh, and they have continued to expand their fruit repretoire by developing a taste for clementines, which of course makes me very happy. For the longest time I would offer them a wedge and they would take a bite, suck the juice, and spit everything else out, but as of yesterday they have started eating the whole thing! "More orange?" they will ask. It goes to show that persistence is the key to breaking the habits of picky (and in our case, stubborn) eaters.

2 years + 2 months old

The boys just love their daddy and miss him terribly when he's at work. The first thing they do when they wake up in the morning is ask for him. They will walk around the house calling out "Daddy, where are you?" and I will try to explain to them that he is at work. Yesterday Caleb must have been feeling particularly lonesome for his daddy because he started going through Joe's closet and pulled out various shirts and pants and said "Daddy! Daddy!" and then he did the same thing with Joe's shoes. Their favorite shirts from their own wardrobe are their striped button-down shirts which they call their "Daddy" shirts, because they look like the shirts that Joe wears and they want to be just like him.

When Joe and I get sodas when we go out to eat, the boys will usually insist on having a sip. When they do, they will pucker up and say "spicy!" and not want to drink any more of it. They also think that their Emergen-C multivitamin drink is "spicy".

Joshua has grown quite attached to Oliver, one of the Thomas trains that Uncle Chris gave the boys for Christmas. He takes Oliver everywhere with him, including the car, bathtub, and bed. The other night he lay in bed and screamed "Oliver!" over and over again and refused to quiet down and go to sleep until Joe finally found him.

"Uh oh, what'd you do?" is a phrase that we often hear the boys saying to each other these days. It's amazing the words and phrases they pick up just from hearing us talk to them. They can also often be heard requesting the following foods: "nugget! fry! pizza!" I promise we actually do feed them healthy food, too!

I got Joe the Old School Sesame Street DVDs for Christmas, and now the boys frequently ask to watch "Ernie". Even though we have been forewarned that these older episodes from the late 1970's "may not meet the needs of today's preschool child", we would rather have the boys watch these episodes than modern Sesame Street shows. The boys twitch with excitement as they scream out the alphabet, and they think that The Count muppet is their "Babo". So much for not letting them watch TV... it seems like we always let things slide when someone gets sick. Oh, and speaking of associating characters with their grandparents, they also think that the teacher in the Brown Bear, Brown Bear book is "Mimi".

Apples, Nutcrackers, and Noah

• Apple? Is there more apple?

Joshua's sweet voice posing this simple question is music to my ears. Up until this past week he has been a frustratingly stubborn eater, refusing any sort of fresh fruit in favor of a strict diet of refined carbohydrates. In the wake of his recent illness, however, his body must be telling him that he needs more vitamins, because he has suddenly decided that he loves apples and wants to eat them all the time! Instead of asking for crackers, he will ask for apples. It really warms my heart.

• All better! All clean!

The boys will say this after I kiss and/or pray for a boo-boo. It's interesting to me how they associate healing with being clean.

• Two nutcracker... brothers!

The other day Caleb was admiring a pair of nutcracker oraments on Mimi and Papa's Christmas tree when he made this sweet observation. The boys (especially Caleb) love pointing out two of anything. They can now count up to 6 and they know their numbers 1 to 10.

• Jesus! Noah!

As far as the boys are concerned, any man with a brown beard is Jesus. Any man with a white beard is Noah. The one exception is that they think that Santa Claus is Jesus, which I am quite content to let them believe!