Catching Up

Ugh. Did I really let a 2nd, 4th and 6th birthday pass without so much as a blog post?! I'm not even sure the best way to catch up, especially since so many things have changed since each birthday, but here goes nothing!

DYLAN
Little Dilly Boy is incredibly amazing. He is probably the most adored brother of the bunch and best buds with Garrett. He is obsessed with Thomas the train and Curious George and wants to do just about everything on his own. His new favorite saying is 'No, I do dat!' He potty trained in less than a week, he loves to jump off the steps and into the pool, he loves to color, he calls dumdums 'poppops' and he is still a champion sleeper. His first day with all the boys at school led him to ask 'Where my bubbers go?' all day long. He uses no less than five utensils for every meal, loves to give hugs, loves to chase the boys all around the couch and makes a funny eye-roll face that cracks all the boys up. Two is a big year for this little fellow!

GARRETT
Garebear is a lover. He's sensitive and kind, giving and gentle. He loves to help and share and spend quality time with us. He's an attention seeker, highly dramatic, a giggler and will do anything that Owen and Eli ask him to do. When you ask him to do something or share something he'll respond 'Sore Mom, sore thing!' His teacher told me today that he makes her want to have another little boy because he's so sweet and kind. He has recently mastered his 's blends' that he couldn't say even a month ago. He loves school and learning, I suspect because he loves one-on-one time with me and having his own thing apart from the boys. He is in love with Dylan and 'pets' him all day long; hugging him, touching his cheeks, putting his arm around him, including him in his games and pulling all the blankets and pillows off our bed to jump into. How is this little blue eyed boy FOUR already!?

ELI & OWEN
These boys that turned us into parents six years ago are turning into little men more and more every day. They are so smart, remember the smallest details about things, are thick as thieves together, 'forget' to meet other friends at Grapevine Faith so they can stick together, are obsessed with art, books, dinosaurs, ocean animals and legos, stay up way to late talking and playing together in their rooms, can't sit still for any meal, both lost the same bottom tooth within two weeks of each other and love Wild Kratts. Eli can be strong willed, especially when it comes to school and doing the nasal rinse that they have to do for allergies. Owen is more laid back in a lot of ways but also the more competitive of the two. It's hard to believe that after six years I can still basically lump them into the same paragraph because of how similar they are in their interests, personalities and milestones. We're so thankful that they are each other's best friend and love watching their relationship strength day by day. These six years have been a wild ride!

Owen & Eli Turn(ed) FIVE (2 Months Ago!)

This post is a LONG time coming, but I couldn't let a milestone birthday like this go by without a photo collage ; ) 

From the minute we found out we were pregnant, and then multiplied by two when we knew you were twins, we have love you both more than we knew was possible. Your love, concern and attachment for each other is amazing to watch - you're inseparable and both thrive together. You just want to be near each other all the time - it's a bond that we are so thankful to witness.

The last five years have been so full of excitement, milestones, memories and love. From the sleepless nights to the milk comas, from the first toddling steps to the first comprehensible words. From the first belly laughs and games of tag to the times we spend telling you about Jesus and His love for you, we have loved it ALL! You are both so special to us and we love love love you!

Happy (belated) Birthday Big Boys!!

Garrett turns THREE

Dear Garrett,

You are our spunky, chunky monkey! This was a big year for you - you did a lot of growing up from a toddler into a big boy and we're so proud of you. This year alone you transitioned into a big boy bed, were potty trained and stopped sucking your fingers. That's huge! We thought it would have been harder for you to quit the fingers, but you were a trooper and wore a glove to bed for a month and you never looked back. Good boy!

You are definitely our most dramatic son. You get excited easily and frustrated easily. Your tantrums are pretty epic, but we know that it's hard to be in the middle, especially when you're not quite as skilled as Owen and Eli and not the baby like Dylan. You have a squealy cry right now that drives us crazy and will say the same statement (I want some milk) ten times even as we're pouring it for you. You know what you want and when you want it, which can be a great quality to have... but we're hoping that the 2 year old drama that goes with it will be behind us this year : )

You're about to start preschool for the first time and you're really excited. Like anything, it will be an adjustment, but we're so excited for you to 'have your own thing' and some friends of your own. This will be your special time and we can't wait to see how to grow and develop this year.

You are the sweetest little boy. You wanted to tell everyone you met all about your baseball birthday party and invited most people too (even people like the men at Home Depot). You are really great at sharing with your brothers and love to help Dylan by finding his paci or giving him more cereal. Even when Owen or Eli wrongs you in some way, you're always the first one to want to give a hug or a high five and will go along with any idea or game that they come up with. You take your job as a little and big brother very seriously.

You're adventurous and brave! You do things earlier than Owen or Eli (like edging your way around the swimming pool) and do things that they still don't do like getting pushed high on the swings. You rode two roller coasters at Sea World this summer before you were even three!

You love cereal, Octonauts, riding your tricycle (pushing with your feet), swimming, Amy, wrestling with daddy, doing puzzles with mommy, baseball, rolypolies, checking on the garden, anything little (like the little lego man), legos, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, singing and dancing and being included in anything by Owen and Eli. You give great hugs, still love naps, only like peanut butter (not jelly), hate taking potty breaks, wear the same size clothes as Owen and Eli and only weigh 1/2 a pound less than them. You're our little chunker monker GareBear, and we love you so much!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Big Boy!

Forget-Me-Nots 01/13

It's been a long time since I've written one of these posts but there is so much going on that I want to remember. This installment is all about Garrett...

• He's potty-trained! 2 years, 5 months old and a pro! We had to transition him to a bed because of it and mornings begin way earlier, but we're so proud of him!
• If you start a sentence with 'Hey Garrett!' his first response is always 'What? What Mommy?' except it comes out as 'Vut?' like he's Russian : )
• Anytime you ask him if he can do something (can you put your dishes in the sink? tell mommy when you have to go potty, ok? can you go get your shoes on?) he always says 'ok mommy' as a whisper like it's a secret mission.
• He calls his shoes his shoes-on. I think it's because I always say 'Go get your shoes on'. It's the best when he says 'I get my shoes-on on!'
• His favorite thing to do together is puzzles. His cutest request is 'I do pubble me mommy?'
• When Garrett prays for dinner he always includes 'and the baseball game.' It comes out as 'a hitball game'. We have no idea when or why it started but it's pretty cute.
• Owen comes out as Own, Eli is E-I, and Dylan is Baby DinDin
• His most favorite show is Curious George. He calls him 'Durge'
• His most favorite food is cereal. He wakes up and the first sentence out of his mouth of 'I want more ceyul peas' and then he proceeds to ask for and eat it practically all morning long.
• He has the best giggle of all time!
• He still sucks his fingers and loves his blankie, which he calls his 'night night.' He holds his night night looped around his index finger and makes it into a point, then sticks the point just inside his nose while he sucks his middle two fingers.
• He weighs as much as Owen and Eli but is at least 3-4" shorter, which makes him perfectly squishy and cuddly. 
• He is a champion fit-thrower. It works well to hand him his blankie, put him in his room or the laundry room and tell him he can come out as soon as he's done crying. He makes himself quit crying and starts whimpering 'I all done, I all done!'
• He loves his brothers. Even when they do something that hurts him and we ask them to apologize, he's always the one to hug them first.

Love love LOVE this boy!

FOUR Years Old!

Dear Owen and Eli,

It's so hard to believe that you, my first babies, are already FOUR years old. It makes my heart so happy to watch you play and grow up together. When you're asked who your best friend is you both say each other and it's definitely true. You're inseparable, you watch out for each other, and you play great together. You have learned so much this year and I know this upcoming year will be even more amazing for you. You both love playing imaginative games and generally take turns coming up with the current game to play.

Eli, you are obsessed with ocean animals. You have an incredible ability to remember facts about animals and insist on every animal being called by its full name - for example, it's not a whale, it's a humpback (or sperm or blue or orca) whale, it's not a lizard, it's a basalisk lizard. You love playing 'Who Am I?' and giving clues about the animals you're thinking about. Your first clue is almost always 'I live in the ocean'. You are so energetic and happy, but you're also very sensitive and stubborn at times. You're tenderhearted, have a fantastic memory and love to play pretend. Your favorite thing to do with Daddy is play ocean animal games, pretending to be a manta ray and a killer whale, or a colossal squid and a humpback whale. Daddy always has to make sure he gets the rules right because you have a very specific agenda for these games. Your attention to detail is so impressive!

Owen, you are fast! You want to race your brothers all the time, and though they are more than happy to play along, you almost always win. You're so used to winning, in fact, that any time either of them pulls ahead you get pretty bent out of shape. Your favorite things to do with Daddy are racing and wrestling. You're a ball full of energy all day long! You're very artistic and have a long attention span for coloring, playdoh, and our letter of the week projects. You are very good at color-by-number activities and like to follow the directions. You also love puzzles, and I mean love puzzles. You can put together a jigsaw puzzle in a matter of minutes only to tear it apart and put it together again immediately. You're really getting into legos and following the direction sheets to assemble the item, whereas Eli would rather use the pieces to create something from his mind. You love being read to and looking at books on your own. Most days when I peek in on you during nap time, you're looking at books instead of sleeping. 

You are both great big brothers! You help out in any way you can with Dylan, and both like to keep me informed about whether he's asleep or awake in the van. You're both a great example to Garrett too, who is a much better helper and more advanced little boy because of you both. He has learned to put his dishes in the sink when he's finished eating, how to somersault and jump off the steps, how to build train tracks, how to climb into his carseat, and so much more because he watches you everyday. He refers to both of you as 'zaza,' even though he can say 'brother', 'Owen' and 'Eli'. We're not sure what it means, but it's pretty cute.

You're starting preschool in just a few days and I can't wait to hear about all the new things you're learning. I'm not sure how to get ready to not be with you all day every day, but I know that you'll love school because you both love learning new things. I'm praying for you and the men you'll become as you grow older. I am so proud of you and pray that you'll always say that you're each other's best friend. The bond you share is so incredible, but I'm so thankful that you willingly include Garrett too. You are my first babies and, though I know you're turning into big boys right before my eyes, I'll always think of you as my little boys.

I love you both more than I thought was possible and I thank God every day for the gift of you both (and your brothers!) in our life. 

Happy Birthday Big Boys!

Love, Mommy

Forget-Me-Nots v2.0

Back in November I wrote the first installment of Forget Me Nots. The boys had just started talking more and saying some super cute things, and that has just continued, progressed and expanded 100 fold.

Here are some new ones:

** "Wot Ouch" - as in 'Wot Ouch, here I come!' Also used in this sentence by Owen 'OK Cars, wot ouch, Owen's comin' to peepee!'

** Improper use of the word 'be' - as in 'my feet be wet' 'my pants be wet' 'I be comin!'

** Flip Flops = fot bots

**Any time they are doing something exciting or new, they start yelling 'Wook a me, Wook a me!"

** When one wakes up before the other from a nap, which is pretty much every day, they will not talk above a whisper until the other one wakes up too. Not so much out of respect for the quiet, but because I think they really don't know how to act when the other one isn't around. Owen has actually stayed completely silent for over an hour just waiting for Eli to wake up!

** 'Inna' = I want to. 'Inna hugum' = I want to hug him (usually Garrett) 'Inna go getum' = I want to go get him (they've slept long enough already!)

** Almost anything that ends in 'er' gets translated into 'way.' Instead of 'shower,' they pronounce it 'showay' instead of 'tower' (like of blocks) it's 'toway'

** All colors are referred to in reference to the movie Cars. Anything red is 'red like red lightning' anything green is 'green like chick hicks.' They have started doing the same for orange (like Hot Rod), yellow (like Tex), blue (like blue chick or blue lightning) and black (like sheriff). When you ask what lollipop Eli wants, he says a red lightning lollipop.

** Red Lightning is still an indispensable item for Eli. He is basically never without him.

** Owen calls everything 'tiny tiny.' This is a big change from November when everything was 'reeeally big.' Owen calls all airplanes 'tiny tiny airplanes', the train tracks that he builds 'tiny tiny circles' and his ankle, just yesterday, was referred to as his 'tiny tiny knee.' That one was my favorite by far!

** They have a playlist of songs that they request every night at bedtime. The first is always We Three Kings, then Hark the Harold, then Angels We Have Heard on High. Silent Night, Twinkle Twinkle, ABCs, Jesus Loves Me, Jingle Bells and Deck the Halls. We need to branch out from Christmas carols! They can sing all of these songs almost in their entirety!

** On March 8th, Eli declared 'I wanna go pee,' took off his pants and diaper and never looked back. They are both doing great with the potty!!

There you have it, the second installment!

Forget-Me-Nots

These little boys voices are saying the cutest things these days! I'm sure this is just a glimpse of what's to come, especially when it comes to them talking to each other.

Right now, as of 26 months old, here are a couple of my favorites...

** Both boys always say 'I don't know' when you ask them where something is, who someone is or what something is. Eli says it 'I doot know I doot knowt'. No, the T isn't a typo!

** When Owen leaves the room, Eli will call after him 'wait Owie, come back!'

** They both call each other Owie. Eli has called Owen 'Owie Boy' too, just like we do. They also call each other 'Ya ya', which I think is their variation of Eli.

** Owen's new thing is to say 'Hey Ma' 'Hey Da' when he comes up to us, like he's starting a conversation. He has started adding 'Dat Uuu?' The funny thing is that it's when he can see us! I was sitting on the couch talking on the phone and he was eating lunch behind me and he said 'Hey Ma, Dat Uuu?' Last night at Chik-fil-A the cow was walking around and he kept saying 'Hey Cow, Dat Uuu?' We have a see-through fire place that looks into the playroom. The boys will crouch on either side of the fireplace and Owen will say 'Hey Owie, Dat Uuu?' to Eli!

** Every time Charlie leaves, the boys think he's on an airplane.

** When you tell Eli to come with you, he'll run to catch up saying 'okokokok' or he'll count to himself to starting running - '8, 9, gogogo!'

** Owen loves to sing the Clean Up song. He gets the tune spot on, but it sounds more like 'Kee Nup' when he sings it.

** When Eli wants to go outside, he'll say 'Ki a big ball? Bye wide?' saying that he wants to kick a big ball and ride his bike.

** When emphasizing that something is really big, Eli will drop his voice really low and say 'beeeg' almost like he's growling the word. I think that makes it sound bigger to him : )

** Eli's new thing is to claim that everything is his. He'll change the way his voice sounds when he say 'my' to make it more high pitched and squeaky. For example, 'no my seat' 'my bike'.

** Owen loves to help in the kitchen. Anytime I'm cooking anything, he drags a chair over to the counter, goes in the utensil drawer, pulls out measuring spoons and asks about the eggs - even if we don't need any eggs. At least 10 times while preparing anything, he'll ask for a taste.

** They like to say whose turn it is 'Owie tuwn' 'Yaya tuwn', especially if you're doing something with one that the other wants to do. They love getting neckrides and will often say 'Owie tuwn up high!'

Just a glimpse into their word-filled world right now!