Surprise and Delight

On Wednesday, I came home and the girls were working on their homework.  I encouraged them to do a good job, and I told them I had a surprise for them at bedtime.  They couldn’t contain their huge smiles, and they began to guess what it might be.  “Pajamas???”  “A night-night story???”  “A new Christmas CD???”

They went back to their homework, and then we enjoyed a nice supper…but they were a little more anxious than usual to head upstairs for the evening.  They really wanted to look around, to see if I’d hidden something.  [I hadn’t.]

Once everyone had donned their PJs, brushed their teeth, and straightened their beds, I ran downstairs to get the girls’ treat.  Sure enough, it was a new bedtime story, a Thanksgiving-themed one, A Turkey for Thanksgiving.

The girls piled up on either side of me, their attention even more rapt than usual.

(I couldn’t help but be thankful that the girls’ routine still includes me reading them a story every single night.  They’ve been capable of reading to themselves for two years now.  I know this won’t last forever, but I sure savor it.)

I began to read in my best animated voice.  Mrs. Moose asked Mr. Moose to find a turkey for their Thanksgiving meal.  He set out and was joined, page by page, by other animals as they hunted.

The girls were on the edge of their seats…peering intently over my shoulders…I could almost feel them wincing as the animals cornered the terrified turkey. 

Of course I knew the ending to the story…that the turkey was the honored guest at the Thanksgiving table, all the animals talking about the joy of sharing the holiday with friends.

And when the ending finally revealed itself, I relished the girls’ utter delight.

Surprising my baby girls…enjoying a new night-night story…appreciating them, appreciating the story…it was such a wonderful night.

School-Day Morning Sweetness

Not all aspects of our school-day mornings are “sweet”. 

Nope. 

There’s the half-paying-attention syndrome that sometime plagues us, prompting Mommy to offer up more “reminders” than ideal.  There are the “you-fixed-her-hair-first-yesterday…it’s-my-turn-to-go-first-today” grumblings.  And there are the “why-didn’t-you-pack-my-backpack” accusations, one sister of the other.

Sigh.

But…

I’ve had some of the sweetest sleepyheads to greet me in the mornings.  Our girls are usually up early, and it’s a supreme treat to get to wake them on occasion.  “Good morning, Mommy,” they’ll mumble.  “I love you.”

Melt.

I get warm belly kisses from still-snuggled girls, one of my favorite things in the world.

And the sweet little voices who often read to me aloud as I’m getting ready.

And to end the morning, I sometimes get an over-the-shoulder look and wave as the girls enter their school.

That morning sweetness doesn’t begin to rival our weekend family time, nor does it touch the lazy mornings we spent together the girls’ first five and a half years of life…but it buoys my day, for sure.

Farewell, Old Friend

We said goodbye to a faithful friend this weekend...

...one we purchased when the girls were not quite 10 months old, and began using when they were about 15 months.

One that has seen us through a few leaky diapers and potty training...

...one spilled hot chocolate.

One that made trips as far east as North Carolina, as far west as St. Louis...

...as far north as Chicago, as far south as New Orleans.

One that kept them safely rear-facing until they were more than four (and I'm still pretty proud of that!)...

...and witnessed the AWE of four-year olds viewing the front of the car for the first time.

One that saw us through the first day of preschool, to preschool graduation...

...to the first day of kindergarten, to the end of first grade.

But the time has come to retire these jewels.

So farewell, Faithful Friends.  We thank you for your valiant service!

************************************************************************

We found convertible seats that should last us the duration, ones that will still allow 5-point harnesses until the girls are 57" and/or 65 pounds.  Score!!!  After their first ride, the girls complained that they weren't sitting up as high and that the seats felt "weird".  I guess so...a change after 6 years is a shock to one's system!

Picking Berries: Way Back When-esday

It was a couple of years ago that the girls and I first discovered a big berry farm and orchard about 40 miles south of town.  I'm a bit embarrassed to admit that I STILL have berries in the freezer we picked two years ago!  (We're  working through them slowly,  I promise!)  That didn't stop us from making another trip down a couple of weekends ago, though.

There's something just so picturesque about picking berries...and fresh beats frozen any day!

Of course a return trip meant breaking out the camera.   And of course that  prompted me to look  at the  pictures I just took in comparison to those from two years ago.  

The girls' intensity was very  similar...but those little baby cheeks aren't quite so round anymore!

2014

2016

Our first trip was just the girls and me.  After we  picked berries, we explored  the farm a bit.   I remember  Baby A,  in  particular, being absolutely consumed by a huge  field  of blooming clover.  The girls ran and  ran, and then they agreed to stop in front of  this beautiful  barn side.  It was such a great backdrop for a  picture!

Cuties!!!

This year we didn't see any blooming clover, but the girls were  awed with a romp through the orchard.   Here they were  checking  out  the  beginning of what I'm sure  will be  beautiful  peaches.

Still  cuties!!!

And  this year, Hubby accompanied us.  I sure miss those baby  cheeks, but at least I got a {rare} picture of the  three  of us together.

Day-before-Mother's-Day hugs!

Thanks, as always, to Cheryl at Twinfatuation  for  the prompt to dig  through my old  pictures this Way Back When-esday...even if  the comparisons get me  choked up now and again.

Super Stuff on a Saturday!

My sweet Baby A was sick last Friday, and she was nothing short of devastated that she couldn’t go to school.  Her spirits perked up, though, when we went downstairs to spend some time with the furry babies.  She covered up on the couch, and Miki and Alex immediately jumped to her rescue.  I snapped some pictures of them “taking care of her”.  That made her smile for the first time all day…and she was so excited to share the picture with her sissy when she got home from school.

The girls won ribbons in the display board contest!!!  Baby B got 2^nd place (for kindergarten and 1^st grade), and Baby A got 3^rd place.  They were so excited!!!  And I thought it was so sweet that, from Day 1, they talked about how they would share their gift certificates ($10 and $5, respectively) at the book fair.

By Sunday, Baby A was feeling better, and Mother Nature was giving us a beautiful taste of spring.  We had discussed going to the park, but we decided to play at home instead.  The girls rode their bikes and scooters, and Mommy and Daddy broke out the Frisbee.  It was such great fun to all be doing our thing!!!

Spring soccer season kicked off this week!  I surprised the girls with that on Monday morning, and they were stoked.  How great it was to see them running around on the field!

Baby A cracked us up with an extraordinary display of manners one night.  At the table: “I’m sorry to ask this, but could I please have some more guacamole?”  And when she played a wild card in UNO, she said, “I would like some green, if possible.”  HA!!!

The girls went out to supper with Daddy on Thursday night.  It’s sometimes hard to pull details from them, but Baby B came home and proclaimed, “We had the black and blue pizza.  It was so delicious!”  Her enthusiasm cracked me up!

And some previously-shared-on-FB-quotes that I couldn’t resist including here:

One of the kitties was eyeing the table tonight at supper. B said, "He thinks he wants to be human." And then she added, "He must not understand the things an average human has to go through." Ack! I didn't realize her seven years here as a human had been so tough so as to shape her views as such. Hahaha!

Baby B came up to me as I was getting this morning. She was holding two pictures, and she said, "Mommy, can you compare and contrast these?" I did not even know what to make of that, but it sure cracked me up out of the blue. HA!

Sharing a little bit of "awwwww" that my baby girl (A) randomly gave me as I tucked her in. "I'm always proud of you, because you're the best mommy in the world." I needed that today!

So thankful for this Super Stuff!

Heart Strings

Y’all. 

My heart strings. 

They are being tugged.  Pulled.  Stretched in uncomfortable directions.

I’m getting ready for the spring consignment sale.  And I’m struggling.

I tend to buy new clothes a bit on the big side, and we wear clothes for quite a long time.  A 4T sundress was likely bought when the girls were three…worn as a dress for a couple of years…and then worn as a tunic with leggings or shorts thereafter.

That means I’m just now parting with things the girls wore to preschool.  In the sale pile are the outfits they wore on their first day, when they were 3 ½…the outfits they wore for pictures…the outfits they wore for their year-end receptions.

Gulp.

Surely it seems like that was YESTERDAY.  Surely THREE AND A HALF YEARS can’t have passed since they plodded down the sidewalk in front of me, their cheeks still baby-chubby, since they came home from preschool and I laid them down for a nap in their cribs.

I really try to focus on the now…to enjoy each stage as we’re in it…not to mourn the passing time.  And I usually do pretty well with that.

But there’s something about holding these sweet little clothes that’s getting to me this week.  It may not just be that random prick of an errant safety pin that’s bringing a tear to my eye now and again.

What My Husband Said...

What my husband said this morning was one of the sweetest things he ever could have spoken.

Yesterday was a snow day.  I joked that my girls were fine with that, but my husband (a teacher) was the one doing the Happy Dance (yes, in caps) at our house.

I know they had a fun day together.  They did numbers...they tossed the ball in the basement...they went out to lunch...and B reported she read "A LOT".  Hubby said something about watching a soccer game, so I know he had some "quiet time" to himself.  And they generally hung out with the cats, and watched the cats watch the snow.

"These days are such a gift," Hubby reflected to me early this morning.  He said how the girls are at such a wonderful age...so much fun, so communicative...and he is so appreciative of having the extra time with them.  "I'd rather have a day today than have that day three months from now," he said.

Yep.  Three months from now, the girls will be three months older.  They'll have grown.  They'll be at least a little bit different than they are today.

How dear it was for me to hear my husband verbalize that sentiment.

Super Stuff

I haven’t been very diligent – sadly – about my “Super Stuff” posts.  Sure, I capture a fair amount of fodder on Facebook, but I know I’m missing some notes over the past couple of years.

This past weekend, as we took a quick trip to Sweet Home Alabama, I kept a slip of paper in my purse, and I jotted down a handful of sweetness from the past few days…

The girls have been so sweet – and so grown-up! – relating to each other at times.  Baby A asked B to bring her a pair of socks from upstairs.  It just struck me as so cute…and so mature!!!  B said, “Sure,” and that was that.  Sister helping out a Sister.

And I had a similar sweet sensation when the girls were talking with each other about their school library.  Baby A was describing a certain set of books, and B couldn’t quite picture what she was talking about.  “It’s in that section…” A elaborated, moving her hands about, and B nodded in response.  Again, it just seemed so grown-up!!!

We’ve been struggling with coughs the past few weeks, on and off, and one night I had to go upstairs to check on Baby B.  I settled her down, and glanced over at A.  From her deep slumber, Baby A mumbled, “I love you.”  How precious it is that that’s the first thing to come to her mind.

We checked into our hotel last weekend, which is always a fun treat.  Baby A accompanied me downstairs for a cup of coffee.  On the way, we both skipped down the long hallway, hand in hand.  She was tickled to press the elevator buttons, and I let her pick up a pamphlet in the lobby.  :)  On the way back to the room, she again started to skip down the hall.  I told her to go ahead, that I’d have to walk with my hot coffee.  I started to laugh at seeing her joy from my vantage point.  She heard me, and threw up the “I love you” sign, not missing a beat.  It made me laugh even harder, and my heart smile even bigger.

These baby girls have such dear hearts.

THREE DAYS at Home

We had a colossal snow (12”, which is huge for these parts!) on Friday.  I worked from home that day, and we spent the weekend snowbound, as well.  That’s THREE days I’ve been HOME with the family.

I’m just coming off a lot of holiday vacation, so a three-day stretch away from work isn’t a shock to my system.  It’s not leaving HOME those three days that I realized is such a new (old) experience.

I truly can’t remember the last time I was HOME for three days.  I know I spent a lot of homebound stretches when the girls were younger.  (And when they were infants, there were many stretches longer than that when I didn’t even leave the house to go to the mailbox!)  Surely this can’t be right, but my best guess is that it probably dates back to PRESCHOOL, maybe THREE YEARS AGO, when I last enjoyed such a treat.

Actually, back in the infant and toddler days, I’m not sure I would always have characterized three days at home a “treat”.  But it sure did feel like one these last few days.

Certainly it wasn’t a “vacation”…especially since Hubby hasn’t felt 100%, I’ve cooked and cleaned and done laundry and organized.  I’ve not had much “prop up” time…even after the girls have gone to bed, I’ve been tooling around most evenings.

But…

I enjoyed cooking a nice breakfast for the family every day.  I made creative lunches and yummy suppers.  AND I made homemade dessert a couple of times, too!

I PLAYED with my babies.  We snuggled and read and played games and built creations.

I WORKED with my babies.  By this, I mean that we did things in the house together…I involved them in the organizing, just the way I like to.  We weren’t rushed to clean up in 30 minutes.  We took an entire morning to organize the books in the house.  And another morning we made a giant color-coded list of all our toys, games, and art supplies (something for them to refer to when they seem to get in a rut).  And we went through their closet to pull all the too-small spring/summer things to get ready for an upcoming consignment sale.

I COOKED with my babies…a little bit, anyway.  The girls were ecstatic to peel eggs and help me stuff them.  They stirred guacamole, and watched me chop veggies for soup.  These last couple of years, that seems like a luxury.  So often I’m cramming in cooking amid five other things, such that I don’t take the time to involve the girls.  I miss that.

And of course we PLAYED in the snow!!!  There’s something completely exhilarating about donning our snow gear and setting out to tromp, stomp, run, jump, and wallow in all that white powder. 

Day 1 I took a few pictures here and there.  Day 2, we went sledding as a family, no camera in tow.  I would have loved to have recorded our antics, but we were all so in-the-moment.  Day 3 the girls and I had a lot of sledding fun…by that time the snow was beginning to pack a little more, and it was FAST!!!  We all played hard, and then I came in for the camera for the last 20 minutes or so.  It was a perfect balance for me of fun and picture-taking.

Judging by lamentations on the computer, there are a lot of folks who are ready for this snow event to be over.  Sure, I’m looking forward to a nice lunch out and a trip to the grocery to replenish a couple of things…but it wouldn’t hurt my feelings to have another day or two at home.

And this experience reminds me what a blessing it is to BE home for a few days.  I just might have to schedule that again soon.

***savoring the little things...for they really are the big things...***

The Sweetest Thing This Christmas

This was such a sweet Christmas.  It warms my heart how the girls have been excited over the dearest things.

…their Candy Cane Hunt.  They’ve been asking about it since Day 1 of their Advent calendar.  They were SO excited to finally get the nod on Christmas Eve.  And they were so good about taking turns reading the clues.

…Mommy’s Christmas breakfast.  I didn’t realize this made such an impression on the girls, but my A has been talking about Christmas breakfast for days.  The girls think it’s a huge treat to eat Mommy’s fruit tart – in the shape of a Christmas tree – and from holiday plates, too!  On Christmas morning, I was buzzing around early and I heard the girls upstairs over the monitor.  B: "I hear Mommy making Christmas breakfast!"  A: "I know! That's my favorite thing!"

…giving presents to Mommy and Daddy.  The girls have been working for weeks on presents for us.  They’ve asked for gift bags, which we discovered this morning were filled with special drawings and messages from them to us.  They wanted us to open our gifts the very first thing, long before they opened anything themselves.

Excited to give Daddy the mug they picked out themselves!  B spied this Superman mug and said, "It's Daddy!"

My heart is very full at these girls’ hearts…such sweet blessings we have at Christmas, and every day.

Rare Snuggles

I still don’t know what happened to Baby A on Tuesday.  She’s such a proud kid, she is even very reluctant to tell us if she tripped or fell.  When I got home from work, she did tell me she had “bumps” on her lip, though.  Sure enough, her top lip was a bit swollen.

[The best I can figure is that she bit herself somehow.  And when I was doing laundry last night, I saw a big dirty smudge on the arm of the sweatshirt she wore that day.  I’d guess those are related somehow.]

When she first told me about her lip, she was matter-of-fact.  It didn’t seem to bother her.  But within a few minutes, she started to complain that it hurt.  I had her rinse with water, and hold some cool water on it, but (after I called my nurse friend to confer) I told her she’d need to rest and hope it felt better in the morning.

Our girls are usually very quick to bed and to sleep.  My poor baby girl, though, was having trouble.  I got the feeling it was as much emotion for her as it was discomfort.

She was whimpering, tossing and turning.  She clearly couldn’t get her mind to settle for sleep.

For many reasons, chief among them 1) having twins, and 2) being a staunch advocate for sleep training and reinforcement, I have rarely ever slept with the girls.  As wonderfully cuddly as it is to have them climb into bed with us, for example, it’s just not something we do.  I don’t want to start that habit, as I know it would not be wonderfully cuddly for very long.

There are occasions where I bend my rules, though, and Tuesday night was one of them.

I knew my A just needed to relax.  I went upstairs and, without a word, I snuggled behind her in bed.  I whispered some “I love you’s” and stroked her hair.  She quieted and snuggled back against me.  She hugged my arm that was draped over her, and she kissed my hand.

We stayed like this for a while, her, gradually relaxing, and me, breathing it all in.

Of course I didn’t have my camera with me, but I’ll treasure this memory in my mind.  It was one of those precious times when Mommy really could make things better.

Precious Slumber

My girlies have been early to wake for most of their lives.  There was a {glorious} period of time when they were about two, when they slept until 7:30, or even a little later…but they’ve been waking up around 6:30-ish, give or take 15 minutes, for most of the past six years.

Thanks to their {wonderfully fabulous} “OK to Wake” clock, they were staying put until 7am, when they would call out, “Mommy!  My clock is green!  I slept well!” in perfect unison.  But…when school started last year…I had to wake them up at 6:15.  It didn’t take long before that was their new wake-up time.  And sometimes, particularly Baby B, would wake up even earlier.

[I can’t really complain, as the girls would stay upstairs, usually reading, until it was a decent time to rise.  But I hated that the girls were missing out on sleep that I feel strongly they need.]

I’m not sure what to credit lately…maybe it’s the darker fall mornings…maybe it’s our weekly soccer practice that keeps them up later one night a week…maybe it’s the rigors of first grade…but our girls have been SLEEPY lately.  I don’t know that they make it all the way to 7:00 on weekend mornings, but I’ve had to wake them up (now at 6:30) many of the last school days…

…and what a treat that is!  There’s nothing yummier than warm, sleepy babies!

I usually tiptoe into their room and pick a bed to join.  I snuggle up next to someone and begin whispering good morning to my “tinies”.  The girls will usually moan a bit and snuggle into me.  I sometimes pretend I’m stretching out on the bed, “…but it’s so lumpy!”  And then I call the girls my “lump-lumps”.  They moan and giggle and snuggle some more.

I raise their pajama tops and kiss their warm bellies.  And then I sit up and pull them to me in my lap.  They snuggle in against me, their heads still fitting remarkably well under my chin.  I often physically stand them up and send them on their way to the bathroom.

And…repeat with Baby #2.

There’s just something about bedhead and warm, snuggly babies that takes me back to when they were little.  And I love it. 

(Baby B, from our traditional first-thing-in-the-morning pictures on the girls' sixth birthday.)

Thank goodness for sleeping “in”.

The Time I Cried at Target

This is not one of those oft-shared posts about my twin toddlers throwing tantrums, causing me to lose my cool in the stationery aisle. 

No, actually, it was just yesterday.  And I was by myself.  I’d run in on my lunch hour, my girls six-and-a-half and no doubt having a blast with their first grade classmates at that very moment.

It wasn’t the sight of those precious little baby clothes…or, conversely, the fact that I made a quick pass through the “big kids’” section and didn’t see a thing I’d buy for my girls.  It wasn’t walking by the card section where my girls used to love to stop and point out pictures of cats and dogs.  I even made it past the SAHM with the cutest little kid in her cart, cooing to him as he rattled something at her.

No, I made it through the store, what I’d come for (and then some) in hand.  It was after I checked out that my eyes welled with tears.

The checkout line was oddly desolate, and my two favorite cashiers were working registers side by side.  “How are the girls?” they asked.  I told them how the girls were having a great time so far in school, and how they had their first soccer practice that night.  With smiling eyes they listened.  “Tell them we said hello!”

I made it partway to the door, when I decided to turn around.  The two ladies by then were chatting with each other.  “I’m sorry to interrupt you,” I told them, “but I just wanted to thank you.”

I made it quick, as my eyes were tearing fast, but I told them how thankful I was to have brought my girls in to see them since they were infants in their stroller…how I always appreciated their kindness and the way they engaged my girls so genuinely…how I was grateful to have shared my girls’ joy with them.

It’s one of those things I’ve thought many times, and I finally took a moment to say it aloud.  The ladies were very gracious, of course.  (And then I hurried on my way before my tearing up turned into full tears.)

It’s not just these two ladies at Target.  It’s the lady at the post office, the people who work in the produce section of the grocery store, the folks at the bookstore.  Living in a smaller town (and perhaps being a creature of habit), we have frequented many of the same places since the girls were born.  I love that the girls have grown to know some of these people in our little world.  I love the sense of community this illustrates to them, the kindness that often surrounds us if we only pause to let it in.

Yep.  I cried at Target.  And our sweet little ladies were there to witness it.  And that’s OK.

Baby Acrobatics, Then and Now

When the girls were tiny, I used to "fly" them on my legs all the time.  They loved it!

Baby A, about 7 months old.

Baby B, about 6 1/2 months old.

We still do this, although not as frequently (whew!), and not with quite as much levity (for obvious reasons).

It dawned on me on the girls' half birthday last weekend that we should recreate some pictures.

Baby A, 6 1/2 years old.

Baby B, 6 1/2 years old.

I'm cracking up now, looking at these comparisons.  How funny that A is wearing pink, and B, green.

I love playing with my baby girls, and I hope we can continue to "fly" for a long, long time!

Another Milestone in the Tooth Department

Although I'm tracking considerably ahead of where I was last year, I still haven't blogged to the degree that I'd like to.  When I glance through the {short} list of posts I've published over the last couple of months, there's definitely a recurring theme.  Teeth.  Specifically, the lack thereof.

Baby A lost her first tooth without me, at school.

Baby B lost her first tooth...FINALLY!

And Baby B lost her second tooth, with a great degree of nonchalance.

I'm writing today about Baby A again (which I just notice puts the balance back to 50-50...such a "twin mom" thing to think!).  A's front tooth has been on the cusp of coming in for a few weeks now.  Every day, I'd check to see if it had broken through.

On Sunday night, when we were in Alabama, it happened.  She was SO excited!!!  "We have to celebrate!" she said immediately.  (I didn't follow up on that one, though...if we celebrate both the loss of teeth and the addition of new ones, we'll be taking out a second mortgage before the girls hit third grade.)

Still, it's been really fun to see her tooth slowly make its way into the world over the past couple of days.  Fun...and (oddly?) kind of emotional for me.  It just feels like a HUGE milestone away from babyhood.  And it feels pretty groundbreaking to witness the emergence of this precious little [big] tooth that will be front and center of her face from here on.

It took me a couple of days to snap a picture of the evidence.  Here's what I got...

I guess if I get too sentimental and weepy, I can just look at that second picture.  No way can I keep from cracking up.  This kiddo is growing up, yes.  But the sense of humor that comes with that is a pretty awesome benefit.

Simple Pleasures

Just within the last couple of hours, I "indulged" in a couple of simple pleasures...ones I don't want to forget...

I got home from work this afternoon and I could hear Daddy and the girls have a large time in the basement.  They didn't hear me come in, though, so I changed clothes leisurely to the sounds of lots of laughter.  What sweet joy.

The girls eventually heard me and came bustling upstairs to invite me down to play ball with them.  We played for a few minutes, and then I came upstairs to get supper on the table.

The girls had gotten quite sweaty, and after supper I gave them the option of a quick shower or a bubble bath.  They agreed on the latter.

While I was getting the bathroom ready, Baby A yelled, "Can we have tall water, Mommy?"  I wasn't 100% sure I'd heard her, so I asked her for clarification.  "Tall water!" she said again.  And then, "T-A-L-L W-A-T-E-R!" she spelled.  Hee hee...I loved it!

I got the girls situated in "tall water" (which, as I'm typing this, reminds me of high cotton...HA!).  I could have used their soaking time to get some laundry rolling, or just sit down for a few minutes myself.  Instead, I decided to be in the moment with them.  I'm so glad I did.

"Can I join you?" I asked?  I had a book in my hand, and they didn't quite know what to make of it.  I sat on the side of the tub, my feet in the bubbles, and read them a few chapters of a cute little reader.  They were in little girl heaven.  So was I.

We finished our book before bedtime, and still had time for a night-night story.

So many fun little happies this evening.  I can't help but think of the adage, "Enjoy the small things...for one day you'll realize they are the big things."  #truth

Bath mit fun, taken a few months ago.  :) :)

So Thankful to Have Been There

I sure miss being with my baby girls every day.  I miss just hanging out, “being”.  And I miss all the fun stuff we did, the little treats we worked into our weekly routine, and the on-a-whim stuff we did when the mood struck.

I miss them so much it physically hurts sometimes.  But they are in kindergarten now, and I am working.  Ages and stages.  I know it’s all part of it.  And while I love-love-love seeing them grow (and I’m enjoying being back in the corporate world), I sure miss our carefree days together.

Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve gotten to have some super-sweet fun together…even taking their kindergartener status and my work schedule into account.

A couple of weeks ago, I got to attend their class picnic.  They ate their lunches outside, and then the parents got to play with the kiddos on the playground.  The girls were so excited to see me there, and how precious it was for me to be with them in their [new] element.

Last Friday, I spent a couple of hours with them during their Field Day.  I worked my way back and forth between the classes.  I cheered on their fill-the-bucket races, laughed at their hula hoop relay, and relived parts of my childhood Field Days as they engaged in a voracious game of tug of war. 

And yesterday I took a vacation day to accompany the kindergarten classes on a field trip.

The girls had a blast, and so did I.  How very thankful I am to have been there with them.

For weeks now, they’ve been talking about riding the bus…and on the INTERSTATE, they recently added.  HA!  After that adventure, they kicked things off at the park.  My A’s class had been grouped into partners, and A took that very seriously.  She held R’s hand most of the day.  I sometimes walked along, holding her other hand, and other times I followed behind, taking some pretty adorable pictures.

I attended the animal show with A’s class, and it was incredibly adorable to see the kiddos try to answer the zookeepers’ questions and ask questions of their own.  Then I went with A to feed the lorikeets.  I was amazed how brave she was!

From there, I switched to hanging out with B’s class for a while.  We walked through the bird area, and I ate lunch with B’s class, and then with A’s.  I did some running back and forth between the classes, trying to divide my time.  I was with A’s class for the sheep herding demonstration, and then I hurried to B’s class to walk through the kangaroo area.  It was pretty steamy by the end of the trip, and I was tired and thirsty, but it really seemed like the time just flew.

I loved seeing the girls with their classmates…walking along and holding hands with them…and seeing the delight in all the kiddos’ eyes as they experienced new things.

After the field trip (and tie girls' ride home on the bus, where A was all too excited to tell me she fell asleep!), I picked the girls up after school and we headed to Panera, what used to be a weekly hangout for us.  How wonderful it was to just “be” there, too…me, sipping my coffee, and the girls sharing a cook…talking about stuff.

This is my favorite picture, taken over A's shoulder as she watched the sheep being herded.  I took some cute ones of the girls feeding the animals...playing with their classmates...holding hands with their teachers.  But this was my real focus.  It wasn't the animals or the beautiful rolling hills.  It was appreciating the beauty of my baby girls...who they are...where they are.

These last couple of weeks were just what my heart needed.

The End of an Era

I remember very clearly from the night the girls were born, being alone in my hospital room.  A very kind nurse came and in brought me a breast pump.  She said I should probably try to start pumping.  "You may not get anything, but it will be good to try," she said.  

Everything felt so foreign.  I hadn't intended to have babies prematurely.  I had planned to breastfeed, not to get acquainted with a breast pump.

I eventually got things sorted, and I remember the nurse being so encouraged that I'd actually dribbled a little bit into the cup.  She offered to take it to the NICU, and promised she'd see that the girls got it.

All things considered, I was feeling very proud.  I pumped again later that night, and then in the morning.  At some point, a nurse brought me all the accouterments I'd need to pump, including collection cups and a miniature bottle of Palmolive dish detergent to wash all the parts of the pump.

(That quickly became Hubby's job, to wash the "dishes".  I remember how makeshift it all felt, washing things in the little sink in the hospital room, but we managed to make do.)

The washing routine quickly took on a life of its own.  We washed pump parts and bottles 6 to 8 times a day for a long, long time.  

And all the while, the miniature bottle of dish detergent was a faithful friend.  We had to refill it, of course (and during the first year we only did so with Palmolive, since that's what the hospital used), but it was so convenient [relatively speaking] to use.

When the girls graduated from bottles, around 15 or 16 months, we finally returned to using Cascade.  But we kept our dear little bottle.  SIX YEARS LATER, that bottle still sits on our counter.  We don't wash very many things by hand, but it's super easy to grasp when I'm hand-washing the pieces to the girls' lunch kits.

Just last night, Hubby broke some bad news to me.  The little bottle has a crack.  "We'll have to get something else," he said.  I honestly couldn't think too much about it.  "Just leave it there for now," I told him.  "We'll figure it out."

In truth, I wanted to make a picture of the little bottle that's been by my side through my girls' childhood to date.  We've long since discarded the bottles and the sippy cups; the miniature forks and spoons are no more.  This marks the end of another era.

Super Stuff on a Saturday!

So thankful to have recorded some of the Super Stuff from around our house the past couple of weeks!

The girls aren’t always in lock-step with each other, but it’s so sweet when they are.  A few nights ago, after supper, Baby A planted a big, spontaneous hug on Baby B as we were heading into the den to play a game.  Made this mama’s heart smile!

On the way to school, Baby A was talking about how old she would be when she can drive.  “I’ll be able to drive when I’m in college…but you’ll still pick me up, right, Mommy?”  Absolutely.

Our kitty Miki is famous for wanting to sit in my lap, specifically during mealtimes.  (He’s really good and doesn’t reach for food…he just likes being there!)  He was all comfy after supper one night, and A asked if I would put him in her lap.  I did, and he sat there for the longest time.  She was in furry baby heaven!

I took the girls for ice cream cones at the Dairy Queen last weekend to celebrate A losing a tooth.  Once upon a time, this would have been major anxiety for me.  I realized most of the way through, though, that the girls were eating their cones WITHOUT MAKING ANY MESS.  Wowza.

On the way to school one morning:
B: "Mommy, what if the earth is just a tiny little spec, like in Horton Hears a Who?"
Me: "Well, it really kind of is, in the scheme of the universe."
A: "Yeah, and it would take a thousand years to reach another galaxy."
...Little minds. Big thoughts. 

Last Saturday the girls wanted to play outside for a few minutes after we got home from some errands.  We messed around with a few different toys, and then B got out a small football she got as a prize at school.  I did my best to show her how to throw it…and she did a really good job!!!  There were even a couple of nice, tight spirals!!!

Serious about football!

We watched a few minutes of the Kentucky Derby last Saturday.  Right before the race, I was caught really off guard that the girls were singing along, word for word, to "My Old Kentucky Home".  At least they can also sing Sweet Home Alabama!

Different-height Twin Problem #17. I laid out the girls' clothes for the day, which happened to include matching sweaters.  Although their jeans were different, the girls happened to put on the wrong pair.  We were running out the door when I noticed A's jeans were high waters, and B's were dragging the floor. Hee hee!  Thank goodness they were conciliatory and agreed to switch.

Outta the mouths of babes, at bedtime last Sunday night: "Mommy, why is the weekend so short? It seems like it just started! I wish it could be 10 days long."  Credit to Baby A for this unadulterated insight.

Playing on Saturday...JOY!!!

The girls were playing with magnets last weekend. They came barreling downstairs to breathlessly tell me what they'd just learned. Then, "C'mon, Sissy!  Let's go see what else we can discover!!!"

She Lost It Without Me

Baby A lost her first tooth when she was a couple months shy of five.  She’s lost a few more since then, and I can’t say I’ve grown to love seeing those super-wiggly teeth.  I *try* to be excited and encouraging, but it takes a lot of acting on my part.

(I do have one rule, that you don’t wiggle your teeth at the dinner table.  I think that’s fair enough…and for the love of dinner…please…just don’t.)

Baby A has recently had a couple of relatively wiggly teeth, as has B (although B has yet to actually lose one).  On Wednesday, I came home to find A’s tooth VERY loose.  I encouraged her to get it out…it seemed ready…but she couldn’t quite do it.

Thursday passed.  And then Friday, I came home from work to see my A with a new twist to her smile. 

My baby girl lost her sixth tooth at school that day.

And I wasn’t there.

I knew it was bound to happen at some point, and I can’t say I missed the actual wiggle-wiggle-wiggle…POP!...but it was bittersweet.

Of course A was giddy.  Her tooth came out in art class.  What did you do, I asked her.  “I raised my hand,” she said, beaming.  The teacher told her to “wait a minute,” and then she got to go to the office.  From the health room, they got a pill bottle (???) and put her tooth in it.  She washed her hands and went back to class.  “Everyone wanted to see it!” she gushed.

I was very proud of A for being such a big girl, and – thinking back to my elementary school days – I can only imagine how *cool* it must have been for her to experience losing a tooth at school.  We celebrated on Saturday with a new bead for her bracelet and an ice cream cone at the Dairy Queen (a very rare treat). 

She even managed to tear into the cone with her snaggle teeth!

Lots of smiles surround this little milestone (some of them more crooked than others), but I can’t think too hard about it.  Loosing teeth is a sure sign of growing up…and handling it without your mommy there seems even more momentous.

Sniff, sniff!!!