Zzzzzz.....

The girls are so busy that they wear themselves out these days. I haven't felt the need to have an 8:00 bedtime for myself since they were wee babies. :)

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Crazy Busy

I can't even describe how insanely busy we've been lately. Yesterday was the first time in a long time that the girls and I did NOTHING on my day off. That's right...nothing, zilch, not a thing...didn't even take a shower! Shh!!! Don't tell. :)

So what have we been up to...besides being fabulous and seriously sassy? Well, my dad has been visiting from S.Korea. He got here in early March and is leaving next Thursday. It has been a wonderful visit and unfortunately Thursday is already creeping up faster than I would prefer.  We've also been very busy enjoying the B-E-A-utiful spring weather (alright, prelude to summer weather....I am trying to be optimistic Texas people...). Teddy Bear Parades and Library time have filled up our calendar; as well as birthdays, zoo trips and BBQs. :)

Here are a few pictures to enjoy until I can get back on track with routines and normalcy....

Love,



Jillian, Momma and Jenna planting seeds     



Jenna, "Papa Marnie," and Jilly enjoying grapes after nap (all 3 napped for a good 2 hours!)

Getting the girls in on chores early... :) Just teasing, they like to play with bubbles

Dancing Queens

The girls are dancing to a Wiggles song..."Can You Point Your Fingers and Do the Twist." They love to sing and dance right now. You may have to turn your volume waaaay up to hear the music. :)

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For Grandpa Marty

Jenna (L) and Jillian Praying Before Breakfast. Jenna Looks Serious Because She is the One Praying. They Initiated This All On Their Own By Their Way. I Was Just Fortunate Enough to Have My Phone Nearby to Snap a Picture.

Jillian (L) and Jenna. They Were Caught Sitting on the Table, Which is a "No, No." :)

Jillian Enjoying Some Strawberry Limeaid Ice Cream :)



Jenna Doing EXACTLY the Same Thing!

There are days when I sit back and stare at Jillian and Jenna thinking, "Good Gravy!! There really are two of them!" The fact that I have twins can still blow my mind even to this day. A lot of strangers we meet think they have unique wit when they label my girls "double trouble." The response in my head (the one I would like to give but withhold due to manners) involves lots of eye rolling and letting them know just how many times I've heard that...which is to say I've heard it A LOT! P.S: It gets more annoying each time people say that. No, the response I give them is merely a polite correction, "No, not double trouble. Double blessings, " and we move along encouraging the girls to wave "Bye Bye" as we go.

These days we truly are in a phase of double blessings. Now that Jillian and Jenna (and depending upon the day, Shelby) are BFFs (best friends forever), everything is truly in twos. Seriously, if I read Brown Bear, Brown Bear to Jillian, I also read it to Jenna. If Jenna gets a horsey ride, Jillian does, too. If Jillian gets tickled, Jenna is right there as well. If Jenna is upset, so is Jillian. It seems like all of these twinkee-isms happened overnight. The girls have always played near each other but up until recently they played side by side but separately. Not engaging each other but rather observing one another. Now, they play together all the time, very rarely playing on their own. Which brings me to something I've been longing to brag about....for the first time ever in my child rearing days I can safely say that there are times (which is to say about 5-10 minutes here and there) when having twins is sooo much easier than having a single baby.



Jillian Sitting in Her Baby Doll's Stroller



Jenna Sitting in Her Baby Doll's Stroller, Too

So now that the girls can entertain each other, I am left to simply observe and oversee. Acting as a referee, if will, of "who had that toy first." Anyhoo, now that I have all of this extra time on my hands (enter sarcasm here) I've made one other observation I feel obligated to share. It isn't just any observation either, I find it somewhat frightening and disgusting all at the same time.... I am noticing more and more how teething toddlers can sometimes be compared to puppies.

Here me out now: In my home I have a husband, two toddlers, an overly excitable dog, and myself. I am quite certain that Jared and I aren't the culprits of what I am about to reveal; and while I do admit Shelby is a dog with "issues" she is far beyond her puppy hood days of chewing things up and destroying household items (with her teeth, not her fur and slobber, Jared). After all, Shelby did turn 6 this year so we are safely in the adulthood phase of her life. So riddle me this: Why then, am I finding household items, like books and remote controls, with gooey teeth marks all over them? I'm just sayin'....all other culprits have been ruled out.



The Evidence: You Can Clearly See the Bite Marks on the Bottom Controller on the Left Side. The Top Controller Hasn't Been Eaten Yet. The Controllers are Exactly the Same, Except the Rubber Overlay Has Been Stripped Off the Bottom Remote After a Little Some One's Teeth Shredded it to Pieces. That is Why the Bottom Remote is so Much More Shiny.



Another Angle of the Damage

Anyhoo, I will leave you to make your own judgement on the puppy comparison. I did want to post the below video for my Dad though (taken tonight during bath time). One of the things I remember most about my Dad was being tickled by him all the time. I smile looking back on those times. My sister and I would pester my Dad until he started his tickling shenanigans, we would keep coming back for more and more until we were both in tears looking for Mom to report Dad's harassment to. Dad's classic response to us while we were ratting him out? "If you mess with the bulls you get the horns!" Tee Hee...I am laughing just thinking of it. Anyhoo, there was always a certain "way" Dad tickled and a lot of times it was the "Roly Poly Way." If I am not mistaken, my Grandma (Dad's Momma) did Roly Poly to Dad, Dad did it to Teri and me, and now, I do it to the girls (even Jared gets in on the fun!). Roly Poly tickle was a simple rhyme but with a menacing finger spiraling above your head and making a slow decent throughout the rhyme towards the middle of your ribs or back:

Roly Poly Shot a Bear

Where'd She Get Her?

RIGHT IN THERE!!!

You knew the closer Dad got to "Right in There!!" the sooner the tickles would be upon you. Crazy fun and good times. It would be neat for the pattern to continue. Clearly in the video the girls already Roly Poly each other...I wonder if perhaps in many, many years to come when Jilly and Jenna have their own kids if they will carry on the Roly Poly tradition?

Until Then....

P.S: I love you Dad. Sometimes Korea is too far. XOXO

Fun at the Park

Sharing some fun Jilly and Jenna had at the park. Other than a random pre-schooler saying "Hi" and Jenna shouting "Poo Poo" it is pretty self explanitory. :)

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Epic Fail

I know every parent has their Moment. You know what I am talking about, The Moment where you fail miserably. My Moment was today. I fear that because of my Moment, my poor Jillian may be frightened of snow for the rest of her life. Allow me to enlighten you:


So, it snowed today! Where we live we typically get just a handful of snow days in a year. Today was the first time it snowed for us this season. Last year the girls weren’t even walking during the winter, so the snow in our yard was sadly left pristine and untouched. Which is why I was so excited that it snowed today. It is Sunday, we are all home together, and there is snow on the ground begging to be played with. Now that the girls are old enough to play it I couldn’t wait to get them out in it.

After Jared and I got the girls bundled up we ventured out into the front yard (less dog poopie than the backyard). At first, the girls weren’t completely sure what to do with everything. Jillian did as she normally does and braved a walk out into the middle of the yard. Jenna stood still in the spot Jared set her down on and didn’t move for quite a while. So, Jillian and I are out walking around. I am trying to show her exactly how magical all the white stuff is and how exactly it works. You know, on second thought…I think the video can better describe it from here (sorry for the lack of sound, the video was actually shot by accident as Jared thought he was taking a picture and was in fact filming…but the volume on our camera doesn’t work. In any case, I highly doubt you need the sound, just imagine a lot of crying…and apologizing):

Yes, you saw right. I smashed Jillian in the face with a snowball. I absolutely promise with all of my heart that I was trying to aim for her tummy. Really and truly I was. And even tho it was a really soft toss, I don’t feel any less guilty that she had snow in her nose and mouth. ). Unfortunately, my aim (even from a VERY close distance) is unreliable at best. Just ask my co-workers who repeatedly witness my embarrassing attempts at tossing trash into the waste basket several times a day. I felt awful, apologized to Jillian over and over, and tried to explain that Momma made a “boo boo” and that snow really is fun. None of that worked tho and despite my very best efforts Jillian is not only petrified of snow (really….she won’t even walk in it now, only look at it from the safety of a window inside) but she has suddenly become a Daddy’s Girl (she has been permanently attached to my hip for the last month to two). Anyhoo, our first attempt at playing in the snow can officially be characterized as an Epic Fail.

In other news, we had a great Christmas. Busy as usual but the girls did well and even managed to open a present or two themselves on Christmas Day. ;) The Terrible Twos are continuing as well….just in case you are curious. The will of a two year old is a mysterious and mighty thing to behold; a little tiring as well. :)



More to Come,

PS: We are wishing all of our friends and family a wonderful 2011, filled with the love and peace that can only be found in our Savior, Jesus Christ.

A Set of Twos

Look at that Slide Hair! So funny how both Katie and Jenna's hair stuck straight up!

Yumm-O. What could be better than a cupcake with pink glitter?



Proof that the cupcakes were good...at one point all of the little girls there were sitting on this curb eating cupcakes. It was adorable!



Jillian and Jenna got Pillow Pets for their birthday. They were very excited, as soon as they were opened Jenna shouted "Pill Pet, Pill Pet!"

Jillian playing with her balloon

Jillian had a great time at her party :)

And so did Jenna Bean

Jillian with Mom, Dad and Jenna

If the pictures of above aren't clear; let me make sure you understand: The girls are now 2...and they are everything you would expect a 2 year old to be. Other than being a bit small for their age still, Jillian and Jenna are pretty much caught up with other kids their age when you consider milestones; which can either be good or not so good...depending on the day. Allow me to exaggerate:


GOOD- Jillian can count to 5 with only the tiniest bit of help

NOT SO GOOD- Jillian throws tantrums almost every time her diaper has to be changed and about half the time when getting in her car seat

GOOD- Both Jillian and Jenna know their colors and like to tell you when they see colors they know (and they will continue to tell you the color they see until you acknowledge their accomplishment)

NOT SO GOOD- Both girls know how to say "No" in the right context and unfortunately like to say "No" a lot

GOOD- The girls pretty much know every animal sound there is to make, including a skunk. AND they know what Santa says...Ho Ho Ho. :)

NOT SO GOOD- I am seriously considering tearing down the Christmas Tree as I type on this 22nd night of December...3 days before Christmas...just because the girls won't leave it alone.

I could go through a whole list of GOOD/NOT SO GOOD things but I think you get the idea. We've entered the stage where the girls want to do things for themselves, have an idea of what they want to do and get really frustrated and angry when they can't voice it. Thus...we've entered the Terrible Twos. Hopefully this stage won't last as long as the teething has (one thing we are still behind on and currently working on).

Anyhoo...
We had a "Princess in the Park" party for the girls 2nd birthday party. Immediate family and a few of the girls' "friends" were invited. It was so much fun! We had pink and purple cupcakes, balloons, sippy cups and princess crowns (with their own names) for our young friends, and the all important snacks at the park. It was nice and sunny, even if it was a little chilly from a cold front that had just pushed through. After the park ended family went back to the house for pizza and presents. I have to admit that I was a little disappointed the girls didn't want to open any of their presents. I figured this year they would be all over unwrapping the gifts themselves. That SOOO didn't happen. I pretty much unwrapped all of them, except for a few Katie took of. Granted, there was a lot of excitement happening and a lot of people. But, I am keeping my fingers crossed they'll be into it a little more at Christmas. I will be sure to let you know how it goes.

Until Then....

PS: We wish all of our friends and family the most Merriest Christmas ever!! Be safe and we will see you in 2011!