What Our Life is Like:
Holden normally wakes up first between 6:45 and 8am. We normally have to wake Emma Cate up. We change diapers and eat breakfast. Breakfast is usually a carb (waffle, veggie muffin, oatmeal pancake, cereal (which is your absolute fav but we don't serve it much), a fruit (banana, strawberries, or a pouch), and eggs with cheese (and sometimes we add some spinach and peppers). Gigi gets to our house around 6:55 and helps change morning diapers while I prepare breakfast. You both put your dirty pajamas in the hamper and we are so proud of you! Daddy usually finishes unloading the dishwasher and taking the dogs out. I normally eat with you guys and head to work around 7:20. You leave the house with Gigi at 7:30-7:40.
You play at Gigi's school until its time for your school. Gigi walks you downstairs to your classes or across the parking lot depending on the day. On Fridays, either Gran or a babysitter come or Mommy or Daddy stay home with you.
On Mondays and Wednesdays, Daddy picks you up from school and walks you over to Gigi's school. On Tuesdays and Thursdays your teachers take you up to Gigi's classroom. You play in Gigi's room until 2 and then she takes you home for nap. Depending on the day, you'll either nap at her house or in your cribs. On the days I get home early, you sleep at our house. Sleeping is tricky! Holden is good about being transported from his carseat to crib and continuing to sleep. Emma Cate usually wakes up. Sometimes you'll go back down but a lot of times you have "quiet" time in your crib until you get too loud.
You both are normally up by 4:30 and we try to squeeze in some playtime before dinner. A lot of times you'll sleep until 5pm and that doesn't leave us much time together. I'm excited to be at home for maternity leave because you'll be able to go down earlier. You have a small snack when you wake up but I'm trying to take this away because it spoils your dinner. Trail Mix is Emma Cate's favorite! Holden loves bananas. You both normally play (ie take everything out of the cabinets) while I fix dinner. I also put you in your seats and let you watch me prep dinner. You find it so fun to smell and touch the different ingredients. I love your faces when you smell onion! Your teachers have all commented that I must cook a lot because you play in the kitchen area at school and "wash" all the plates and silverware. You also always say "HOT" when you get near the stove or a pan!
Dinner is hit or miss. I do a ton of casserole type dishes because you'll eat a variety of things if they are all blended together. Neither of you like veggies by themselves which makes it hard! We do a lot of mexican casseroles and casseroles with quinoa. Spaghetti is a favorite as is mac and cheese. You always drink milk with dinner.
Depending on when we eat, we can usually squeeze a little playtime into our schedule. We head to the basement where you bounce, slide, cook, and play with trains.
Every other night you take a bath. We start bath around 6:40 and let you both splash around for awhile. Holden is a wild man in the tub! You both HATE when we pour water over your head. Swim lessons should be super fun next month! At 7 we head back to the nursery. You both get lotioned up and diapered. We take turns reading you books. One baby will sit with me and read a book and the other will sit with Jay and read. You both have different interests when it comes to books. Holden could read choo-choo books every night! It has been sooo fun for me to read The Little Engine That Could to you! It was one of my favorites as a child. Emma Cate LOVES the book, Hello Twins. She chooses is EVERY night. I am so glad we went with two gliders in the twins' room. Its nice to be able to cuddle with each baby individually before bed. We finish books and put you both in your cribs. We say our nighttime prayers and Emma Cate always does "prayer hands". You both say Amen (very loudly!) and we tuck you in for the night. Most nights Emma Cate will cry but only for about 15 seconds then you are both off to dreamland.
Emma Cate:
Nicknames: Cate, Sassy, Tay, Tay-TayWeight: Not sure- Maybe around 24lbs?Height: Not sureHair: The sides and back are long. We are having issues with the top. It's a very light brown color.Eyes: Have turned pretty blue!Clothes: You are wearing most 18 month clothes without a problem. I've started to get you 2t for next year but I think a lot of it is going to be too big! You are a tiny little thing!
Eating: You eat like a bird but have a major sweet tooth. I try really hard not to give you too much processed food or sweets. You could survive on fruit and milk. You also love shredded cheese. Likes: The bounce house, the Y bike, you Boo dog, being held, running outside, swinging, sliding (you are pretty fearless), bouncing/jumping, reading, animals.Dislikes: meat (except for ground beef), when someone leaves the room (separation anxiety), diaper changesDevelopment: Talking, running, can find objects and bring them to a specific person, can repeat most words, can put two words together (all done, get down, more please), drawling lines and dots, can use a spoon and fork (it's pretty messy though!), throws a ball, helps around the house, loves to pick up things and straighten the rug, can tell you when she needs to go poopy (we are working on making it to the potty instead of the diaper), working on walking up stairs, can do down stairs on her tummy, names pictures in booksWords: Outside, yes, no, ball, doggie, pop pops, gigi (pronounced Gee Gee) mommy, daddy, allie, bo, boomer, sophie, riley, mac mac, fry fry, milk, sippy, down, up, vacuum, hot, bow bow, read, bess you (bless you) and lots more!Teeth: They are almost all in! Just waiting on a few more molars. Dare I say that teething has been a breeze! I'm glad you waited to start until you were 11 months!
Extra: You are still our little pistol. You throw some epic tantrums and I have lots of photos of you throwing a fit on the ground. Luckily, with your improvements in communication, you are throwing fewer major fits. You have strong personality and are determined. You have started running away from mommy but a quick time out and you learned your boundaries. I am proud of the strong determined girl you have become. You are so sweet and loving at times. You also let us know when you don't want to be messed with (we have to work on your hitting Holden). You are getting better at sharing but it is not your strong point. You are such a good helper around the house. You find things and put things away like a champ! Your facial expressions crack us up. You know exactly what you want. I'll read a book and you give me a definite no when it is time to move onto something else (same with food and singing songs). You can be super clingy, especially when you are tired. I still carry you a lot. I'm a little worried about your reaction when Shep gets here. You have just started wearing bows again and it makes this mama sooo happy. You are adorable in bows! You do a little dance when you run and it's pretty freaking cute. You like to climb and explore. You are a gift to your daddy and I!
Holden:
Nicknames: Holdy (that's what Emma Cate calls you)Weight: Not sure- Maybe around 26/27 lbsHeight: Not sure but a good 2-3 inches taller than Emma Cate.Hair: It hasn't really grown in length but it's very thick and still white blond. You have a little patch that sticks out from the back of your head. Eyes: Such a gorgeous blue!Clothes: You are in need of 2T. We pretty much skipped the 24 month clothes. I have ordered you a bunch of new things and can't wait for them to get here. You're growing like a weed and a lot of your longalls are too short.
Eating: You still like to shove food down! Your absolute favorite is mac and cheese but you will eat pretty much anything with the exception of veggies. I'm trying to get sneaky with those!Likes: Mama, Gigi (you CRY when she leaves and it is so sad- its like Geeeeee Geeeeeee, all drawn out), running, dancing (you LOVE to dance), watching tv (you don't sit still but you'll lay in weird spots for 3-4 minutes while watching and then change to a different spot), bath time, playing outside (collecting sticks, and rocks are your new favorite), riding in your car, pushing cars/trucks/trains around the house, airplanes, choo-choos, and type of truck or bus, going for walks (you like to walk yourself), reading books, waking up Sassy, finding Sassy, playing "Boo" (hiding), playing in the dog's water bowl, throwing food/cars/sippys/anything really.Dislikes: leaving Gigi, going to bed when you aren't tired, teething, time out (unfortunately you go there a lot), not getting out of your high chair fast enough when you are done eating. Development: Talking, running, can find objects and bring them to a specific person, drawling lines and dots, can use a spoon and fork (it's pretty messy though!), throws a ball, helps around the house, loves to make messes, destroy towers/blocks, dump dog dishes, can kick and throw a ball, working on walking up stairs, can do down stairs on his tummy, names pictures in books, flies an airplane, opens doors, likes to pick up heavy things, can sign more but often uses it for please. Words: Definitely a work in progress! The past month has been amazing to hear your vocabulary grow! You always say mama instead of mommy and you say it a LOT! Other words: Gigi, Pop-O, Allie, Bo, Sew-E (sophie), Bmer (boomer), ball, ahpane (airplane), up, down, truck, car, baby, Shasshy (Sassy- this is a favorite, you will run around looking for her screaming Shasshy!!!), bess you (bless you) and a bunch moreTeeth: You are missing a few and teething is NOT our friend!
Extra: You are my sweet little flirty boy. You know the rules and sometimes you choose to follow them and sometimes you don't. You are a grumpy little thing when you need a nap. You sit in time out at least once a day. You will walk over to the dog's water dish, give me a smile and then proceed to dump the water. You then head to time out on your own and take a seat. It drives me crazy that you know what you're doing is wrong but you do it anyway and take the consequence! You love all things transportation. You have made me stop and notice every airplane, fire truck, police car and ambulance. Even when I'm not with you and I hear a plane it always makes me think of you and miss you! You LOVE to throw and we have a "balls only" rule because your will hurl anything. Your poor sister ends up being the target sometimes and she does NOT like it. You give great kisses and hugs. You are quick to say sorry and give a hug when you hurt someone on accident. You love your sister so much and always wonder where she is when you don't see her. She isn't always receptive of your affection. You are so kind and sweet but can be so mischievous. It is so fun being your mommy and daddy. You are truly a gift to us!
Eating: You still like to shove food down! Your absolute favorite is mac and cheese but you will eat pretty much anything with the exception of veggies. I'm trying to get sneaky with those!Likes: Mama, Gigi (you CRY when she leaves and it is so sad- its like Geeeeee Geeeeeee, all drawn out), running, dancing (you LOVE to dance), watching tv (you don't sit still but you'll lay in weird spots for 3-4 minutes while watching and then change to a different spot), bath time, playing outside (collecting sticks, and rocks are your new favorite), riding in your car, pushing cars/trucks/trains around the house, airplanes, choo-choos, and type of truck or bus, going for walks (you like to walk yourself), reading books, waking up Sassy, finding Sassy, playing "Boo" (hiding), playing in the dog's water bowl, throwing food/cars/sippys/anything really.Dislikes: leaving Gigi, going to bed when you aren't tired, teething, time out (unfortunately you go there a lot), not getting out of your high chair fast enough when you are done eating. Development: Talking, running, can find objects and bring them to a specific person, drawling lines and dots, can use a spoon and fork (it's pretty messy though!), throws a ball, helps around the house, loves to make messes, destroy towers/blocks, dump dog dishes, can kick and throw a ball, working on walking up stairs, can do down stairs on his tummy, names pictures in books, flies an airplane, opens doors, likes to pick up heavy things, can sign more but often uses it for please. Words: Definitely a work in progress! The past month has been amazing to hear your vocabulary grow! You always say mama instead of mommy and you say it a LOT! Other words: Gigi, Pop-O, Allie, Bo, Sew-E (sophie), Bmer (boomer), ball, ahpane (airplane), up, down, truck, car, baby, Shasshy (Sassy- this is a favorite, you will run around looking for her screaming Shasshy!!!), bess you (bless you) and a bunch moreTeeth: You are missing a few and teething is NOT our friend!
Extra: You are my sweet little flirty boy. You know the rules and sometimes you choose to follow them and sometimes you don't. You are a grumpy little thing when you need a nap. You sit in time out at least once a day. You will walk over to the dog's water dish, give me a smile and then proceed to dump the water. You then head to time out on your own and take a seat. It drives me crazy that you know what you're doing is wrong but you do it anyway and take the consequence! You love all things transportation. You have made me stop and notice every airplane, fire truck, police car and ambulance. Even when I'm not with you and I hear a plane it always makes me think of you and miss you! You LOVE to throw and we have a "balls only" rule because your will hurl anything. Your poor sister ends up being the target sometimes and she does NOT like it. You give great kisses and hugs. You are quick to say sorry and give a hug when you hurt someone on accident. You love your sister so much and always wonder where she is when you don't see her. She isn't always receptive of your affection. You are so kind and sweet but can be so mischievous. It is so fun being your mommy and daddy. You are truly a gift to us!
