Potty Training

After much debate as to the best method and timing to potty training, and months of asking babies if they want to sit on potty and showing them the potties we finally decided, well mommy decided we are going to start the process. We are not forcing the twins to potty but strongly encouraging them to at least sit on the potty. The other day keaton woke up with dry diaper so I put him on potty in family room with Mickey mouse on TV and then fed McKenna breakfast. Twenty minutes later went to check on him and he went pee and poop. I started screaming in excitement and scared him a bit I was so loud but I was so proud. He got a tootsie roll and has continued to poop and pee some on potty chair although he still is going a majority in his diaper.

Mommy has been putting Mickey on the potty too but until tonight she just sits on potty begging for a tootsie roll. Tonight though she went a tiny pooh and a very tiny pee. We made a big deal out of it, gave her a tootsie roll and called grandma deb so she would receive a lot of affirmation.

It's the new year and our goal, well mummy's goal is to have twins potty trained by their third birthday. That is only three months away so hopefully they will catch on quick. The end of this week or the beginning of next week mommy will try putting them in big kid undies to see if that helps. I'm a little worried about the mess but hopefully by next Monday they will be going enough to not want to walk around in wet underwear. We will see. Nothing ever goes as planned. Smiles.

Great Christmas

What a wonderful Christmas. My dad came out to spend a few days with us. The twins didn't remember him but by the end of his visit you can tell they are attached. My dad played with them, went with us to eat and shop, sang and read to them. Was just wonderful. Our last night with grandpa Steve here so we decided to eat at touch...a nice restaurant. Kyle stayed home to take care of some stuff around the house but the children did great and when we were leaving I got the best compliment ever from the manager. He came over to our table and said "your babies did great. You have raised them well and that's evident in their behavior." I often am blessed with people saying I am a good mom or patient or work hard etc, but it's usually geared around everything involved with Mckenna not eating. This was because the babies were truly sweet, pleasant and well behaved. And I'm one proud mommy tonight.

Tomorrow my dad heads back to MT and I will be excited to clean and straighten the house but sad as the house will for sure seem quieter. Keaton will play with his train from Santa, McKenna will play with her microwave and mommy will patiently wait for more of her family to plan a trip to come visit again.

The Voice of a Toddler

The only thing sweeter than the voice of a two year old is the things that come out of his/her mouth. The twins have been saying the funniest things lately and I find myself laughing uncontrollably out loud. I text my parents to share with them all the cute little comments, but a text is read no doubt the same way a blog entry is read, with little enthusiasm and without the squeals, laughter, high pitches etc that my little ones share when talking. So in an attempt to recap and remember just a few of the most comical sayings the past few weeks, here I go.

Keaton had a dirty diaper. Mommy laid him on the floor, opened the diaper and said, Pee Ewe. Keaton smiled really big and said, "Merry Christmas, Mom."

McKenna is really into babies and always wants to change them. Whenever I change Keaton, McKenna sits beside me and says penis over and over. Lately though she sits beside me and says, "Keaton's penis, hahaha that's funny." and she starts fake laughing.

Both the twins are into singing Jingle Bells and looking for their Elf on the Shelf - Pheneous. Keaton tells anyone that he talks to not to touch Pheneous, or he will lose his magic...just like the show and book taught him. And Keaton is always asking if it's going to snow so Santa can come.

While in the car the other day McKenna was attempting to rhyme while Keaton does. Keaton like to rhyme by changing words to start with a d, so momma domma, mickey dickey, candy dandy, etc. So Mck was attempting to rhyme and Keaton got really frustrated and yelled, "What are you saying, McKenna? I CAN'T UNDERSTAND YOU."

Keaton wanted McKenna to talk to him and she was giving the silent treatment so he asked mommy to say something to McKenna. "I love you, McKenna" was my response. "No, you don't talk like that" was Keaton's.

Keaton loves to play chase, but he calls it wrestling.
McKenna wants you to pet everything, so she pretends she is holding bugs or animals and tells you to pet them.
When McKenna wants to pray she says "Jesus" then whatever she wants to pray for. So an example and the thing she says most often is "Jesus Grandpa" when she wants to pray for Grandpa Bernie.

McKenna calls my dad Grandma Steve. She is able to say grandpa because that's what she calls Bernie, but for some reason my dad gets the female title.

In an attempt to stall and not have to go to bed Keaton will try to get you to stay in his room as long as possible. So when mommy leaves the room lately he will say, "Wait mommy, I have to tell you something. I love you." So I go back in, say I love you too, good night. Then he will say, "wait, I have to tell you something, Have a great day at work." It's so cute!

Yesterday Keaton wanted to call Grandpa Bernie who was working, so he left him a message. "Hi Grandpa, It's me, Keaton. Don't forget to close your garage door. K, bye, Have a great day at work."

Oh the things the kids say. Wish I would have saved all the texts I have been sending but hey, at least was able to remember a couple.

Weaning, Talking, Playing

OH how I love being a mommy. I love waking up and singing "Good Morning to You" with and to the babies, and there stinky morning breath and the way they look at you with their half open eyes debating if they really are ready to get up. I love the fun things they say, the way the process the world and the way they try to manipulate. Kids are such a blessing.

Keaton is rambling all the time about something. He is really excited about Halloween (three days away) and keeps announcing to everyone that he doesn't have a costume yet, which is true. He walks around screaming, "We are going to go trick or treating and get lots of CANDDDDDYYYYYYY." And he loves reading the Halloween book and watching Charlie Brown's Halloween show with daddy.

Keaton is also really excited about Christmas. He goes from room to room singing Jingle Bells and talking about opening presents. He puts soap suds on his face and calls himself Santa.

He is really into music time and always asking daddy to play music on his Ipod. He loves the alphabet and wants to play with letters continually. He still insists on sleeping with his frog and sucking his thumb during naps. He has no interest in potty training. He has become quite the unhealthy eater but does enjoy fruit. He loves taking lids on and off things -Tupperware, bottles, etc. He loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, and Dora. And he gives great bear hugs when you tell him to squeeze.

Keaton squeals and screams when he gets really excited about things. He lately has been scared of the dark and starts saying, "mommy, I can't find you, where are you?" He does okay with strangers and waves at everyone at stores and screams "who is that guy?" But if a stranger is standing by us he screams "Noooo, he's too close to me." It's embarrassing but so adorable.

McKenna still is sleeping in mommy and daddy's room. She makes a clicking/sucking noise to put herself to sleep and requires her stuffed bunny to fall asleep. Actually, she always wants the bunny - in and out of bed. Mommy has been trying to teach her that she doesn't need bunny to be confidant - it's not working.

McKenna is a very shy girl, clings to mommy and daddy, and doesn't like strangers. She is aggressive, temperamental and knows what she wants. She bats her eyes, gives grins and little smirks and mommy melts and gives her whatever she wants - a habit mommy needs to break quickly.

McKenna is currently going through wean attempt number two. She has lost 1 1/5 lbs so far and can lose up to 2 1/2 lbs before she would have to go back to tube feedings. She is a careful eater, taking long periods of time to chew before swallowing and she insists on bites being completely mutilated before swallowing.

McKenna loves to dance and will put fist in air, shaking it and say dance, dance, dance. McKenna is very into animals, especially puppy dogs. She practically hyperventilates when she hears or sees a dog and starts screaming and squealing saying puppy puppy.

McKenna is afraid of the dark, thunder, lightening, storms, rain, snow, ice, vacuums, strangers. She is great at cuddling, dancing, stacking blocks. She loves Keaton's play lawnmower and will spend over 20 minutes a day pushing it from room to room, or in circles between the family room and kitchen. She likes to build houses with the blocks and throwing toys. McKenna will come up to you randomly and offer kisses and hugs. She will rub your back if you are sitting on the ground next to her. She offers you bites of her food and is good at sharing (for the most part). She has been attempting to count and sing nursery rhymes.

I love having twins. They are a lot of work, but they interact and are built in playdates. Keaton for sure plays the role of big brother. McKenna is one hundred percet the little sister. Oh how blessed I am to be a mom!

Minor Concussion

While mommy was in the kitchen washing dishes she heard a thud and then Keaton screaming. He ran into the kitchen and out of no where had a huge bruise and welt on his forehead. I went into the family room to see what happened and the box of cars was next to the table and it looked like Keaton either fell of the box and hit his head or McKenna pushed him off and he hit his head.

Because of how quickly it bruised and the swelling started I freaked out and immediately called our pediatrician hot line since it was after office hours and was told to watch for signs of concussion, one which was Keaton puking 2 or more times in the next 36 hours.

Within ten minutes of the accident Keaton seemed fine. He wasn't screaming or crying, his eyes weren't over dilated, he wasn't pale or acting odd, so I figured we were in the clear. Then yesterday, 12 hours after it happened, Keaton puked all over in the car. He did only puke once but he also acted odd throughout the day and was not very active. He didn't show any signs for a major concussion, so we are just marking it as his first minor concussion and keeping an eye on him. Man oh man, it is one big bruise. Poor guy!

The Imagination of a Two Year Old

I didn't realize that a child's imagination kicks in at such an early age. It is by far my favorite thing to watch with the twins. Keaton wakes up every morning and pretends his blanket has "tiny winy dinosaurs" all over. He pretends to smash them, play with them, touch or pet them. He also says there are porcupines and hippos eating watermelons, or he will act like he is eating the animals. It's so funny to watch his expressions and hear his voice inflictions.

Today McKenna started pretending as well. She got on the ground and jumped like a frog and then started to act like there were little frogs on the ground that she was smashing.

I am not sure if McKenna quite gets what she is doing or if she is just copying Keaton, as that seems to be her favorite activity, but either way it is adorable and fun to watch.

Swim Time

What a great afternoon. My friend Shannon joined me and the twins for a day at the neighborhood pool, and unlike the time daddy took Keaton, both babies loved the water.

We were only there for two hours and of course right when it is time to get out so we can feed McKenna is the same time the twins started really enjoying the pool. Keaton was really into climbing in and out of the kiddie pool. He would only go to the first step (ankle deep) but Shannon taught him to kick his feet in the water which convinced him it was okay to sit on the first step while his legs were completely in water. He would get in, sit down, stand up, get out and then repeat it all over again - over and over.

Fifteen minutes before we got out of the water I held him in the water to his chest and he kept crying and saying he wanted to go to the stairs, so I said, "Okay Keaton, put your feet down and you can walk to the stairs and play on them." He agreed. He put his feet down, stood for a second and then saw a leaf floating in the water and decided to chase it instead, which lead to him walking in the water and he LOVED it. He was laughing and giggling and talking and chasing throwing the leaf to go get it. Adorable. He didn't want to get out.

McKenna did well in the water last time but preferred the big pool. Today was the same. She really didn't want the kiddie pool, but that's where Keaton was and she likes to be by his side if possible. For the most part she stood on the first step or right outside the kiddie pool. And then like Keaton the last fifteen minutes she actually started playing in the pool, going to the big pool and walking back and forth on the steps and at the very last minute agreed to stand in the kiddie pool which goes up to her chest. She did great.

We are excited to take the kids to the pool again next time. Although next time I will be bringing their swimming wings to make mommy feel a little more comfortable.