Monday, April 29, 2013

Brookfield Zoo!

 On Friday we went to the Brookfield Zoo with some of our friends!  It was such a nice day and was so much fun to do a fun activity, out in the warmth, with some good company!

Laura, Kate and Tyler (stroller); Ashley, Maggie and Lizzy (stroller); and me, Daci and the babies (stroller)
Our first stop, the lion. Daci asked if it was Mufasa :)

checking out Mufasa

Kate and Daci with Mufasa in the background

Kate and Daci checking out the sloth bear

The tiger

Daci, Maggie and Kate watching the tiger

Daci loved looking at the map and telling me where to go :)

The rhino

Daci and Maggie and the rhino

Liv and Street just chillin'

The black rhino

The pigmy hippo

Me and my doodle

The girls in the kangaroo pouch :)

Zebra

Giraffes

Me and my littles

Daci the wolf

Brown Bear

Polar Bear

Turtle

Parrots

Creepy lizard thing :)
 In the monkey house we couldn't take the strollers so I strapped Liv to my back and Laura was kind enough to carry Street on hers along with watching Tyler!  SO nice!

Laura, Street and Tyler






The Gorilla was Daci's favorite part


On our way back to the car there was a big peacock just chilling on the side of the sidewalk.  The kids were super excited but we told them they had to stay back :)


Liv LOVED the carrier, I would jump up and down and she would giggle and laugh. SO cute :)

Friday, April 19, 2013

15 Months!

Street:
25 lbs 9.5 ounces
31 inches
18 inches head circumference

-He says, "Ma Ma", "Da Da", "Nigh Nigh", "Ba Ba"
-He has his own little language.  He "talks" all day but its with his mouth closed so its these muffled gurgly noises.  He also points to things and says, "mmm, da!?" like he's asking "What's that?!". He likes to have us label everything.
-He is fascinated by lights on the ceiling
-He likes to read stories with us
-He loves it when Rick plays catch with him.  He has a great arm!
-He loves to play fetch.  Rick will throw it across the house and he will go get it.  Liv usually joins in on that and chases after him.
-He loves to play fetch with cars too.  We will zoom them and he will go get them
-We have a shape sorter that each time we put a shape in he jerks his head up and does a big "O!" with his mouth like it is the coolest thing ever :)
-He LOVES to dance and has amazing rhythm
-He is happy almost all day long.  But when he gets mad/sad he screams like a banshee.
-He has become really picky.  He knows what he likes and he won't try new things.  Even the veggies he used to love, he won't eat now unless its pureed.  Such a little diva.
-He does the cutest thing, if I have left the room for a few minutes and then walk back in he yells, "MAMA!!" like he is so happy to see me.  When Rick comes home from work and walks in the house he yells "DADA!" Such a fun welcome home :)
-Likes to sing along during the hymns in church :)



He LOVES to stick his tongue out and giggles so hard when Daci sticks hers out at him :)




Livvi:
28 lbs 13.5 ounces
31.75 inches
18.75 inches head circumference

-Says: "Ma Ma", "Da Da", "Nigh Nigh",  "Ba Ba", "Allll Done!"
-She points to everything she wants and says, "Ooo, Ooo!" until she gets it
-She adores Daci and wants to be just like her already.  She is always bringing me Daci's headbands and sunglasses and wants me to put them on her.  Of course, she refuses to leave her own headbands on.
-If I say, "What does the Bear say?" She growls :) It's really cute :)
-She can sing the Ariel scale "Ah, ah, ahhh!" Daci taught her and within a few times of hearing it she picked it up.  She loves to sing when we are driving in the car.
-She has the funniest little walk.  She swivels her hips as she walks and she swings her right arm back and forth as she walks.  It is so cute!
-Her thighs are deliciously enormous and don't fit in jeans that Daci wore at even 2 1/2 years old.  They are so tight that she can't bend her knee, so she tries to take a step and falls flat on her face. Ha!
- She loves to fake laugh.
-She almost has all of her teeth in.  They have all been trying to rupture for weeks now so when she smiles you just see this mouth full of swollen gums with little white spikes pointing through :)
-She loves her food! But she will also tell me when she is "Allll done!"
-She is really in to hair pulling right now, she thinks it is hilarious.  She loves to hear whoever it is (usually Daci) squeal and cry and she loves to see my reaction.  Ugh, its been a trying two weeks with the hair pulling. The worst is when Daci has a friend over and she yanks on their hair!
-She is always trying to figure out ways to get around the gate at the bottom of the stairs
-She is a mama's girl and has stranger anxiety.  She is okay with strangers as long as they don't try to hold her :)
-She loves her binkie
-She claps
-She waves
-She will give kisses, but only if its her idea. If we ask for them she will not do it.
-She is really good at building towers with our big legos
-She loves Daci's hair and makeup toys
-She loves to back herself up right into our laps and wiggle right on in there as close as she can to us.  So cute
-She loves to read with us
-She loves to play on the couch
-She is a climber.  Daci was never a climber and neither is Street (yet). It makes me nervous!
-She will follow simple commands like, "Bring me your blankie!"
-She likes to dance, she does lots of twirls like Daci when she dances










 The last three months have flown! I can't believe my babies are 15 months old! Since their tubes they have FINALLY started sleeping through the night! They sleep from 6:30pm-7 or 7:30am every day.  They transitioned from two naps to one at 14 months.  At 13 1/2 months they stopped sleeping for their second nap so they were going from 11:30-6:30 without any sleep and they were SO cranky!  I tried for two weeks to keep the nap and it wasn't happening so I moved them to going down at noon.  The first week they only took an hour nap and I was dying!  One hr of sleep during the day for them is NOT enough, and definitely NOT enough of a break for me.  I heard though when you first make the transition their nap shortens but then they adjust so I stuck it out and a week later they got on a good schedule.  They now sleep from 12-2:30 or 3pm every day. They still take a bedtime bottle :-/ We are going to start weaning this week.  Im a little nervous.  They LOVE their bottles!  Daci was so easy to wean and wasn't attached at all but these two love them.  They drink about 16 ounces of 2% milk a day.  We were on Whole Milk but Liv was growing at astronomical speed so they had me move them to 2% :) They are the bestest little friends and play so well together.  They also get in little tiffs here and there but are quick to forgive :) Here's a little recap of the last 15 months:
They are OBSESSED with the vacuum!  They love it when I chase them with it and as soon as I turn it off the squeal for more.  Its getting annoying because when I'm done, they want me to turn it back on so they yell and scream at me. Sometimes I just run it standing up right because they are so fascinated with it :)

This is Liv's famous Sumo Squat.  She squats down like this a lot, whether she is watching tv,  playing with toys, or just taking a break and watching the action around her :)

I almost always find her like this after her naps.  She likes to try to pull her shirt off.  She is always successful with these particular pajamas.

Poor Street only has 3 pair of pj's, so if I'm behind on the wash, he gets stuck in some girl pj's.  His face shows how much he appreciates it.  Haha!

Liv LOVED this Elmo (well for the first year of her life she was terrified of him, then she became fascinated by him), unfortunately, she loved him to death.  He broke and she has really missed him :(

She is way too cool for school :)

One day the babies were screaming and I walked into the kitchen to Rick rocking both of them :)

They love to "help" me load the dishwasher

Liv is always talking on her phone and sucking on her bink.  I try to only let her have her bink in her bed, but when she is teething she really likes to chomp on it.

They love to play dollhouse with Daci

Shows their personalities perfectly

Street LOVES boy things (balls, cars, wrestling) but he also loves baby dolls.  He is so sweet and tender with them! Haha!

When we have our cousin Eleni over, they usually have a blast running around and playing

They love to look at my scrapbooks with Daci

They like to tickle each other and find each other's belly buttons

Typical Liv, chilling in her bumbo, next to the piano, talking on the phone :) (they always pull out clean diapers and trail them around the house. ugh!)

Street is a PICKY eater and quite often refuses to eat what we have for dinner.  We get so frustrated, but then he lays his cute little head on the high chair and gives us an innocent little look and we can't help but laugh.

Liv loves to play in the bumbo but her thighs are waaaay to big for it and she gets stuck.  This is a how to get out of the bumbo when you have thunder thighs :)
They are much happier and love to play, but they still love their mommy to give them attention, and quite often they want it at exactly the same time.

They love their sister!

Liv got her first haircut and was amazing.  Sat still the whole time!

This girl is ALL rolls

Street randomly got a 103.5 fever, Daci wanted to comfort him too :)

Sunday afternoons after church is usually meltdown central.  When they are extra sad and tired they just want me.  Rick caught their begging (be glad you can't hear the screaming) on camera

Street likes the dollhouse more than any of them!

Street figured out where the broom is and how to get it out and he carries it around everywhere!  Unfortunately he whacks people and my walls with it so I can't let him do it.  We hide it in the bathroom and shut the door but occasionally the door gets left open and he goes right for it!

Professional mess makers!

We have a climber!  She started three weeks ago at church.  She can climb up on the chairs in the chapel.  The next day I found her on top of these boxes!  how did she do that!?

Liv got a dang ear infection! Even after tube surgery!  She was in so much pain :(

This is their favorite book.  They want me to read it over and over. 

They LOVE it when daddy pushes them on the train, he goes really fast around the corners and they squeal with delight :)





They are TROUBLE MAKERS! About once a week they figure out how to get through the gate.  Ugh!  Then I have to figure out a new way to secure it.  It is frustrating!

Like I said, TROUBLE!  They get into EVERY drawer, cabinet, and closet possible.  THey can reach on top of our dressers, desks and counters now.  We have to be so careful!

Rick took them on their first bike ride and they were terrified when we put them in.  They grabbed each other's hands and started screaming.  But they liked it once they got going :)

Little stinker loves to hide under the closet and try to pull our cords out.  UGH!




Their new favorite thing is to play on the couch.  They love it!  They have fallen off a few times but always want to get right back up.  I have to watch them carefully though because they are wild!









Liv loves to talk to herself in the reflection of the oven

Street blows the cutest kisses

Street HATES shoes!  If I put them on him he screams and screams and won't stand up.  He crawls and then will stop and claw at them and screams so more. Haha

All three of them LOVE to play together. It is so fun to watch!

Liv LOVES to play dress up and always wants to wear Daci's stuff.  She loves glasses and headbands. 

During the last hour of church we just shove their faces with snacks to keep them quiet and happy :)

Begging me to pick them up