Wednesday, December 1, 2010

23 (Close Enough!) Months

In a few days, my babies will be 23 months. In exactly a month, there will be no more counting their age in months...it turns to YEARS. How have we gotten here so quickly?? I can barely remember when they were itty bitty newborns....




Though I miss those first few weeks and months terribly, I have to say...there is nothing like experience 21-24 months! A friend of mine had 2 year old twins at the time ours were born, and she was constantly telling me how much fun age two was, and all the cute and amazing things her twins were doing at that age. I didn't think anything could top the feelings I had of them being infants, but I see I was wrong! While all of the months have been oodles and oodles of fun, THIS age is a BLAST!!

I can't believe how smart Connor and Merasia are! I know that sounds bad, but really, as a first time parent, you never really know how amazing it is when your children start to learn things simply by observing their environment and people around them.

They both say tons of works to get things they want or need. Merasia knows there are always cookies on the counter or in the cupboard, and she points and asks "Cookie?" Connor knows he gets an m&m every time they go pee or poop in the potty, so he'll step in the potty over the little sensors that set the music off, and then start clapping like he went to the bathroom...only, we know better...and the fact that he does this when he is wearing a diaper or fully clothed is a dead giveaway that he's fibbing and just trying to get his treat! Very cute, and smart. You gotta hand it to the guy! ;-)

There was a time about 5 or so months ago when other toddlers the same age as the twins were feeding themselves successfully, and I thought we'd never see that day. They fed themselves certain things by hand but had no idea how to use utensils well like other kids their age, so I was still the one feeding them yogurts, soups, and applesauce to prevent huge spills and messes. That has completely changed. With every single meal, Connor and Merasia use their forks and spoons, and the mess is usually minimal. Of course, that definitely depends on what type of food being eaten. Soups and pastas of course are slightly messier, but it melts my heart and makes me so amazed when I see them being such big kids.

The twins experienced their first REAL adventures in snow the other day. (See soon to come separate post for that fun and pics!) Nothing could take the smile away from my face as I re-lived childhood winter time fun through the eyes of Connor and Merasia.

Every time the twins get their shoes and jackets on, they go for the door and try to open it, saying "Ba-bye!" They know that when they get those things on and they see mommy and daddy getting their coats and shoes on, it's time to go "ba bye!" So adorable. ♥

When bedtime approaches and we tell them it's time to go "night night" they repeat after us and grab their blankies, pacis, and seahorses, and follow us into their room to get snuggled and kissed and tucked in for the night. Or, if we aren't putting them down for a nap or bedtime when they are ready, they tell us they are ready by coming to us and saying "nigh-nigh" or going and standing by their beds with their blankies and/or seahorses, signaling that they want to be tucked in and catch some Zzzz's.

Every time Merasia trips and falls, she says "ouch!" She points to her bumps, bruises, and scrapes, and says "ouch!" She takes a bite of her food, and if it's still a little too hot for her liking, she says "ahhht (hot), ouch!" Or she goes up to the oven, points, and says "ahht, ouch!" Connor does the same, only he doesn't say ouch, he says "OW!"

Merasia LOVES her babies. She has many baby dolls, and is constantly walking around the house saying "baby! baby!" She cradles them sweetly in her arms, hugs them and says "Awwww," puts them on her shoulder and "burps" them (pats their back), and gives them lots of kisses. She also knows there is a baby in mommy's belly and is always coming up to me, rubbing and kissing my belly, and cooing, in her sweet girly voice, "baby, baby?"

Connor, on the other hand, comes up to my belly and says "ball!" LOL Everything round, to him, is a ball. Apples, oranges, grapes, olives, balloons, potatoes, onions...all of these, and many other things, are "ball!" We correct him, of course, but it's just so cute to not have a little giggle at his innocence. ♥

Merasia loves bath time and asks us at least once a day (most of the time way more than once!), "Are we taking bashsss? (bath)" Connor doesn't ask for baths, but he will stand at the bathroom entrance (blocked with a baby gate) and point and yell at the shower, signaling that he wants to get in. He also tells us he needs to go potty by going over and sitting down on the potty fully clothed, in which case we strip him down and take his diaper off and allow him to sit. Sometimes he goes, sometimes not, but at least he tries to tell us in time.

They aren't shy about telling us they are ready to eat either. They go over to the table and climb up into their booster seats and sit and wait until we get the hint and get them their food together. And when their cups are empty, they come and hand them to us to refill and say thank you when we do, or go throw them in the sink and wait for us to figure it out. They say thank you with almost everything. Almost every time we refill their cups and hand them back to them, when we give them a snack they ask for, when we give them breakfast/lunch/dinner, when we change their diaper, put on shoes, get them dressed, give them a toy they want, and so on. We are still working on please, but thank you is an AWESOME start! :-)

They greatly enjoy trying to help us clean up. If we give them a clean wash cloth or a baby wipe, they will go about wiping down the floor, table, their high chairs, walls...everything. They love the broom and always try to take it from us when we are sweeping the floor. (A pretend cleaning set is at the top of our Christmas list!) Oh, and they love, love, LOVE the telephone. The other night, Merasia talked to one of her grandma's (Frank's mother) on the phone. Frank's mother asked her if Santa was coming to visit her soon, and Merasia's reply: "Ba-byyye!" LOL How could you NOT crack up with that? She is the one that will definitely have a conversation over the phone with almost anyone. Hubs walked into the room the other day to find her on the phone, jibbering away to someone...who knows what number she ended up dialing, but hubs just quickly hung the phone up! Connor likes to talk on the phone too, but he gets this glimmer in his eye and a big smile crosses his face when he hears a voice on the other end talking to him. He is curious how it's happening and where it's coming from, and sometimes will reply back with something, or simply just giggle.

They both have got some awesome dance rhythm too! Hubs was listening to some old school music the other night, and he started dancing with the twins and snapping his fingers. It didn't take long for Connor to start bobbing his head to the music and trying to snap his fingers along with daddy. I wish I could have gotten it on video, but he stopped every time I came in the room to see him! Little stinker! Merasia has a load of dance moves that she breaks out with every time she hears a song that she decides she likes and is suitable to dance to. I must get these dance moves on video ASAP! :-)

I just can't believe how much fun these guys are at this age. I love experiencing everything through their eyes, and seeing how they experiment in the world around them and how they learn and grow every day. It amazes me every second of the day I am with them, and I never want it to end. ♥

3 comments:

Kim said...

They grow up so fast don't they? I can't believe that my little girl will be 2 at the end of the month. Your twins are absolutly adorable! Keep up the good work momma!

Anonymous said...

Aww what a cute post! My daughter is going to be 23 months in about a week. Ah time definitely has flown by! I thought that was so cute how your son called your belly a ball...how sweet!

Allie said...

I love that you have twins...My husband is a twin and they are the closest brothers I have ever seen...Congrats on the new baby boy that is on his way! How exciting! Following from Babycenter! Good Luck with the upcoming birthday and also the delivery of your next little one!!

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