Enjoying Nana's cookies...

Every year at Christmas time my Mom makes gingerbread cookies and I love them.  This year while she was gearing up to making us a batch (or two...) she asked if and what I wanted for the boys.  I figured cookies without icing would be best since I don't need two toddlers on a massive sugar rush.  The boys have been loving Nana's gingerbread cookies. They are always asking for them and since they know where they are, it's hard to deny what they want exactly.  The words "cookie please" (sounds more like cookie peas) are heard quite a bit these days.  They had lots of Grandma's awesome ginger snaps (much to Steve and my dismay since they are our favorites) while we were there for Christmas.  And now they have Nana's gingerbread cookies.  They will be sad to learn that these normally only come around at Christmas time.  But like everyone else in the families, it will give them another reason to look forward to Christmas!

Zachary showing off his cookie:

Nicolas showing off his cookie:

Time out

My mother-in-law bought us some "take out time out" mats last year for Christmas and we have been using them for about a month or so now.  They are awesome!  The boys have been taking to them and they have been very effective so far.

So, the boys were playing the button on the Wii Fit and we were asking them not to.  So, after their second warning, Steve told them that if he saw the blue light come on again, it would be a time out.  So, after teasing us a little, Nicolas finally decided to push the button.  So, he was sent over to the mat for his time out.  Shortly after Nicolas sat down, Zachary looked over at him on the mat and then looked at the Wii Fit button.  He took one look back at the mat before pushing the button.  Before we even had a chance to send him to time uot, he walked over on his own and sat down!

At almost 20 months he has already figured out that some actions have consequences.  He has also realized that he can weigh out those consequences and pay the price if he really wants to.  I guess the importance of pushing the button outweighed him having to sit in time out.  He served his full time out and then moved on to something else....

Potty Training...

Potty training has not officially started in our house but I am thinking about trying soon.  The boys are very aware of the big boy toilet and seem to have a pretty clear idea of what's going on.  The only thing now is for them to know when they need to go and not after they've already gone.

Nicolas has been a little constipated and he has gone 2 whole days without pooping.  When we finally got home yesterday, I realized he was trying real hard to poop.  So, I decided that since I know he is trying to go, why not let him go on the potty.  So, that's exactly what I did.  I brought him into the bathroom and he pooped for the first time in the toilet!  It was hard to tell if he was freaked out because of the toilet or the huge poop that finally came out of him.  But he did it!  He even brought Daddy into the bathroom to show him!  It was really cute.

For the rest of the afternoon, Zachary would point to his bum and then lead us to the bathroom.  He did not want to go, nor did he need to.  But I guess it's a start.  I am anxious to see if this will help move things along.  There is a first time for everything and Nicolas had his first today.

Christmas - Part One

This year we spent Christmas at home with the boys.  We had a wonderful Christmas Eve with them and had such a blast!  Nothing all that different from any other day except it just had this air of specialness to it.  It's kind of hard to describe.  Nothing really different but somehow a unique day.

It was beautiful outside so after dinner we took a walk with the boys and checked out the Christmas lights on the houses in our neighborhood.  The boys had a blast having Daddy pulling them in their sleds as you can see...



We woke up in our house Christmas morning.  The boys opened up a DVD and a DVD player so we hit the road and headed to Grandma and Grandpa's.  We were fewer this year than most but it was lots of fun.  All six of the cousins played so well together and I was lucky enough to have the older ones helping out with the boys.  I think they love being able to help and having my boys copy every silly thing they do.  My sister-in-laws girls are so good and lots of fun!  The boys got lots of fun toys and played with all of them before going to sleep that night.  They had a hard time falling asleep but it was the first night at Grandma and Grandpa's in a long time and there were lots of people and lots of noises.

The boys jumping on bean bag chairs with their cousins:

Opening a present:

The family eating dinner:

We got snowed in (well freezing rain actually) and stayed an extra night.  We were alone at the house with Grandma and Grandpa and the boys sleep like angels.  They went to bed without a peep and only truly woke up at 7:30 in the morning.  We are back on track and we're not even at home!  We are home now and quite happy to be.  As much fun as we had, there's still no place like home!

The boys' Christmas with Nana, Papa and Aunt Kiki was postponned from today to Friday due to the nasty weather and road conditions.  It's too bad but I guess it's to be expected since it is winter after all...

Boys being silly....

The boys were justfull of energy and giggles last night before bed.  They were running around with their hoodies up and laughing their heads off.  It was just too cute and funny.  Here is a little taste of what went on for quite a while.  (I love the hug... it's my favorite part!)

"Eating" pictures of food

Our friend Liz gave the boys the best book as part fo their baby shower gift.  It is an alphabet book where each letter is represented by food.  The boys love it and always want us to look at it with them.  When asked, they can usually point out almost every piece of food.

They also have a puzzle alphabet book that Nana gave them last Christmas.  We have yet to use it like a puzzle, but they love having us tell them all the names of the pictures represented by each letter.  One day I was in the kitchen cleaning up after lunch and the boys were relatively quiet except for the random giggles I would hear.  That usually means trouble so I quickly looked into the living room to see what they were up to.  This is what I found...



They love pretending to eat the food that is in the pictures.  Nicolas spent a good 15 minutes feeding Zachary the food.  It was so funny to watch.  They were haveing a ball!

All smiles and hugs...

The boys have had lots of visitors in the last few days.  My parents were up babysitting and spending some alone time with the boys while Steve and I went to his Christmas party.  Then Steve's parents were up for his brother's surprise 40th birthday party.  They used the event as an excuse to come up and visit everyone here.  They spent the afternoon with us and ended up staying overnight because of the bad weather and road conditions.  So, the boys have been getting lots of extra hugs and kisses the last few days.  This has made them very happy little boys.

Their new trick is giving a smile when asked for one.  So, I got to snap a few pictures of their new cheesy smiles...

Zachary:

Nicolas:

A cute moment between loving brothers:

Strange Question

While I was out with the boys today I was approached by many people complimenting me on my cute, well behaved boys.  We were walking in the mall and the boys were helping me push their stroller.  I was so impressed and happy with them because they stayed right by my side and never drifted off once.  They knew that it meant immediate return in the stroller and they really wanted to walk.  So, I let them... they were good and we were all happy.

One lady that approached me and started chatting with me asked if she could be blunt enough to ask if the boys were natural twins or fertility drug induced.  That was not quite how she worded it, but that was what she was asking.  As strange of a question as that is, I understand people's curiosity in the matter.  Twins were once such a rare occurence and now, due to modern medicine, they are no longer.  It may be a bit too personal of a question to be asked by a stranger but I am happy to answer.  The gift of my little boys came from my maternal grandmother.  She had two sets of twins in her 7 pregnancies, the first of which was a set of fraternal twin boys... my Uncle Ralph and Uncle Robert.  It was the greatest gift she could have ever given me and I wish that she were here now to talk to and compare stories with.  I would have loved to know what it was like for her to have twins back then...

I think those who have a problem answering that question are ones that do not have an answer that they feel comfortable with.  I love talking about the great gift my grandmother gave me and what a remarkable women she was handling so many children, let alone two sets of twins!  I am a proud mommy of twins and have no issues discussing my boys in any capacity...

First Snow Storm...

We are officially having our very first snow storm of the year.  It has been snowing since early this morning and has not let up.  We are expected to get around 25 centimeters (about 10 inches) today.  It's not very cold out but the wind is quite strong.  Thankfull, I knew the storm was coming and I ran all my errands earlier this week to make sure I didn't have to leave the house today.

By 10:15 this morning the boys were getting restless so I decided to venture outside with them.  It was quite daunting to get both of them in the whole winter gear but we managed.  They are never very happy with putting on new things (like wonter boots, jackets, and now snow pants) but the good thing is that it's been progressive.  We have been wearing the jacket, hats, mitts and boots a few times now and only the snow pants were new.  The next time, there should be no problems...

I snapped a few pictures of them "playing" outside this morning.  We took a run down the street in the sleds (with me pulling them) and they loved it!  Coming back wasn't as good since they had the wind and snow in their faces.  Hopefully the next time we play outside it won't be so windy.  They took a few spills trying to walk around in the heavy snow but all in all, they did great!

Walking in the snow:

Taking a ride in the sleds:

Zachary all suited up:

Nicolas all suited up:

Nicolas' teeth...

I was just filling in Nicolas' baby book with the dates his teeth have come in (I have been marking it on the calendar rather than pulling out the baby book each time).  I realized that he only has 5 more teeth to come in before he has his full mouth of teeth!  He has 15 teeth as we speak!  The last tooth to come in (other than his back 4 molars) should be in by the end of the week... maybe even sooner since it's almost broken through the gum already!  Nicolas got 5 new teeth in the last week or so.  It's been pretty rough on him but the good thing is that instead of spreading it out, we got it over with quickly.

Zachary is a little behind in the teeth department but he's been catching up quickly.  He has 9 teeth at the moment and always seemed to be about a month or two behind Nicolas in the teething department.  So, my guess is by the beginning of 2010, he should be all caught up.

I guess this milestone is almost over.  The next time I will be talking about teeth (once all the rest come in), it should be because they are starting to fall out!

Testing boundaries

The boys have really been testing boundaries and finding out what they can and cannot get away with lately.  I know it's all part of the growing up process but it's driving me a little crazy.  It seems that if I stop Zachary from doing something he knows he isn't allowed to do, Nicolas stops whatever he's doing to see if he can get away with it.  And vice versa.  So, my disciplining is doubled at the moment.  But, I refuse to back down and they will not win!  I am trying to be as consistent as possible and I have found that the best way to get my point across is to take away a toy and put it in "time out".  I have also put them in "time out" a few times but they don't seem to fully comprehend the concept yet.  But I am sure that will come with time...

It seems that both of our boys got mine and Steve's stubborness so it looks like we are in for a battle of wills.  Our future should be very interesting...

Sleep....

The boys have been waking up before 6:00am every morning for the last week.  I am not sure why this is, but if I had to guess it was teething and napping too much related.  I have been trying to keep them as active as possible and making sure they don't sleep too much during the day, but it's been hard.  Since we've been waking up so early, I am really tired by the time they go down for their nap and I need a break.  It's been hard to bring myslef to waking them up.  But I have been in the hopes that they will return to their normal sleeping pattern.

Thankfully they did this morning.  They slept in until 7:45!  I was so happy!  I finally got a really good night's sleep... and more importantly, so did they!  The only noise I heard coming out of their room was around midnight when Zachary went looking for his doggie.  He called out for him a few times and then finally I heard the excited "doggie!" and he was back to sleep seconds after that.  I am guessing he finally found him in his crib and could go back to sleep.

We are gearing up for the holidays and I am deciding when to get a tree.  I am thinking about doing so only in another week or so...

Big Shoes to Fill

Zachary and Nicolas have big shoes to fill.  They decided they wanted to try on their Daddy's shoes today and it was hilarious!  They looked so adorable in his oversized shoes.  It made me realize just how little they are and how big they are all at the same time...  I know that they are only going to get bigger until one day they fill his shoes..  My only wish is that they both turn out to be half as great as their father (sappy, I know but it's the truth)!

Zachary:

Nicolas:

Double Trouble...

I totally get the double trouble analogy when referring to twins.  I must say that when it comes to my boys, more often than not, it does not really apply.  And then they give me looks like this...

And when I see it coming from both of them.  I just know I'm in trouble!