The Downey Family

Celebrating turning the big 3-0!

2012-02-08T15:17:00.000-06:00

I turned 30 February 6th and celebrated all weekend long! Yes, it's a little weird not being in my twenties anymore. How could it not be...I spent the last decade with them. It's kind of like when there's a new year and you have to get used to writing the new date. However, I'm not sad at all about entering this new age group and feel as if I've more than earned it. My family has already grown to a family of four and I'm exactly where I want to be...maybe even a little ahead of schedule! I can already tell this is going to be a very good year!

My Birthday celebration started early Friday afternoon when Devin came home early to watch the girls. My parents sent me to The Crescent Spa for a facial (which was wonderful!) and then I went and had my nails done. My parents came in town Friday night and we got a babysitter and went to Urbano Cafe. We decided that it had been since before Kate and Lily were born that we all got to go have a nice dinner out. Crazy! Dinner was so good and I always love a place where you can bring your own wine. We brought a special bottle that we purchased at Elizabeth Spencer on our first trip to Napa. Well worth the wait. It was amazing!Oh, and my mom made me an amazing white chocolate birthday cake that was so good. I definitely finished the last half of the cake all by myself!

The clever card my parents got me. I actually did buy a bottle of wine on my birthday and didn't get carded. It's like the person checking me out could sense I'm 30!

So sad this wine is gone

My Mom and I at dinner

On Saturday morning Devin surprised me with a very special gift. I should turn 30 more often! He got me a beautiful blue topaz ring and I would love to show you a picture but it was one size too big. We took it to David Yurman to exchange and they ended up having to send it off for sizing. I won't get it back for two weeks. Sad face. It really is pretty though and I was pretty surprised. After that Devin and I headed to Fort Worth to celebrate my birthday together. We checked into our hotel and rented the Descendents which was a great movie. So glad we got to see it. Then we got ready to meet up with our friends Courtney and Robby for drinks. It was fun catching up and then Devin and I had dinner at Lili's Bistro on Magnolia. And the best part....sleeping in Sunday morning!

Courtney and me


Devin and me

Devin had to travel a lot this week and my actual birthday was Monday. I was able to get a babysitter again and my good friends Catherine and Jennifer drove over from Fort Worth to take me to dinner at Urbano Monday night. It was so much fun catching up with them and I really appreciated them spending my actual birthday with me! Unfortunately, no pictures. Guess we were too busy talking and eating...as usual.

I couldn't have asked for a better Birthday. Thanks to everyone who made it so special!

What's going on...

2012-01-24T15:07:00.000-06:00

I wish I had lots of fun pictures to post but the reality is I haven't been bringing out my camera much lately and Kate and Lily haven't been in the best picture taking moods either. Don't get me wrong, we've been having lots of good times and the girls are growing and learning new things like crazy. But, we've also had lots of really hard two year old moments that have been wearing this mommy out. Look how big these two are getting! One more thing....the girls are starting to consistently use the potty. We stayed home all day Saturday and let them wear underwear and they only had one accident during dinner. They slept in pull ups for their naps but they did excellent and I'm hoping after a few more weekends of staying home and practicing that they'll be out of diapers. I can't imagine. Fingers crossed!

Lily playing dress up

Kate

Kate taking care of her baby

Lily not having anything to do with this picture

The back of Kate's head...just added this to show how much hair they're getting!

Lily dancing (iphone picture)

Kate shopping (iphone picture)

December 2010 and December 2011

2011-12-30T14:54:00.000-06:00

Christmas in Redstone, CO

2011-12-30T14:50:00.000-06:00

We spent Christmas again this year in Colorado. It was a little challenging getting up there but we had a great time with Gans and Pampa (Devin's parents) once we finally made it. Side note- we will be flying next time we make this trip! The girls enjoyed the snow much more this year than last, especially riding down the driveway on the toboggan and Devin and I got to spend a day in Aspen as well as go snowmobiling. We ended the trip at the Glenwood Hot Springs pool. It was 10 degrees outside and we got to spend the afternoon swimming. Definitely the highlight of the trip!

Kate

Lily refused to wear her hat and would only wear my gloves...luckily Devin's Dad had an extra pair. Another side note- dressing toddlers in snow gear can be very challenging!

Kate in front and Lily in back

Playing with Poppie and Daisy (the dogs)

Christmas Card pictures..the ones that almost made it...

2011-12-13T14:04:00.000-06:00

We haven't sent out our Christmas cards this year because I just finally got a picture Sunday that I wanted to use. They'll be going out sometime next week..just in time! Here are a few cute ones I got while trying to get that perfect picture. Kate is in the white dress and Lily is in red.

Too bad its blurry!

Pictures from my phone

2011-12-02T15:01:00.000-06:00

Lily picking out our tree

Kate tasting the tree. She said it was yucky! We went with a table top tree this year so Kate and Lily won't be tempted to take the ornaments off. Good idea but they can still climb on top of the table.

Christmas dresses I made for Kate and Lily and their cousin Sloane.

The girls decorating the tree that goes in their room. All the ornaments are on the bottom!

Kate and the TCU tailgate. Go FROGS!

First haircuts

2011-11-17T14:16:00.000-06:00

Kate and Lily have been struggling to grow hair since shortly after they were born. They had pretty dark hair when they were born and then it all fell out shortly after. It then grew in a light brownish blond color. I don't want to cut bangs so we've been trying to grow them out for about two years now. The back of their hair has grown more so they pretty much have a mullet. Our good friend Alison who babysits for the girls time to time does hair so offered to trim their mullets. She came to our house and the whole process lasted 5 minutes. They really don't look any different but I'm hoping the trim will make their hair grow back longer and thicker. We'll see! We strapped the girls in their booster seats, turned on the television and gave them fruit snacks to sit still. It worked!

Alison with the girls pre-haircut

Kate clapping after her hair was trimmed

Lily

We decided to finger paint after since we were so good during our haircuts

Kate's masterpiece

What the two year olds have been up to

2011-11-11T13:45:00.000-06:00

Kate and Lily have been busy, busy little girls.

Kate

Lily

We converted our cribs to toddler beds a few weeks ago.

Kate

Lily

So far it's going pretty well. It gets challenging during nap time because they talk FOREVER before going to sleep and like to get out of their beds every once in awhile to play with each other. However, that's really not different that when they were in cribs because they both have been climbing out of their cribs for months.

Devin and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary October 28th. My parents took the girls to Shreveport for the weekend and we got to stay in Dallas child free. It was amazing. Can't tell you how many times we went out to eat over the weekend!

Unfortunately, Devin and I didn't take any pictures over the weekend so I'll post one of my 3 most favorite people in the world instead!

We celebrated Halloween with friends in the neighborhood. I have no pictures of this. The only reason I'm bringing it up is to note that Kate and Lily refused to wear their costumes. Kate was a bumble bee and Lily was a ladybug. Their costumes were adorable and they through fit after fit before I gave up and let them trick or treat in their regular clothes. Oh well. Maybe next year.

Kate and Lily continue to prove to me that they are the messiest eaters in the world. Here's Lily after she dumped honey mustard sauce in her hair from Chick-fil-a and told me she was "washing her hair with it". Disgusting.

And here the girls decided to throw their macaroni on the floor. If you look closely you can see a noodle stuck to the wall behind Lily. Hilarious.

So that's what's been going on over here. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Lily used the potty!

2011-10-14T13:23:00.000-05:00

The day after her 2nd Birthday but I'm just now getting around to documenting it. So now both girls have used the potty once. We're not quite ready to be potty trained but we're getting close! Another barrier we'll have to cross soon is moving to toddler beds. Their cribs convert so that part will be easy but I'm so nervous that this is going to mess up their sleep and nap schedules or worse that they might not even take naps anymore...the horror! About 6 months ago they started climbing out of their cribs occasionally but stopped. Lily decided she would start up again and I found her dancing in the middle of her room without pants or a diaper on. So we've basically moved from crib hopping to crib hopping in the nude. We have lots of new changes we need to make and I'm so nervous to bite the bullet and make them. Trying to keep Kate and Lily in their cribs for 2 more weeks so I can go to a good friends wedding next weekend while Devin watches the girls and so my parents can keep the girls at their house the following weekend while Devin and I celebrate our anniversary. Is that too much to ask???

Pictures from the Arboretum this morning:

Lily

Kate

Having a little picnic!

Kate and Lily love....

2011-10-05T15:02:00.000-05:00

Miss Courtney...she did all the decorating for our 2nd Birthday Party!

Uncle Jeff and Aunt Jenny

All our friends from school and play dates

Aunt Catherine, Aunt Jennifer and Baby Elise

Aunt Linda and mommy

GiGi and the super cool bikes she and Papa got us!

Jumping in our bounce house with our cousins, Grayson and Sloane

Birthday party pictures!

2011-10-04T13:37:00.001-05:00

Kate and Lily had their second birthday at a gym this year and had 10 children total show up for their special day. They had so much fun jumping on the trampoline and running around and ended the party with giant cupcakes that our good friend Courtney made. They were delicious and we had the best time with friends and family! Lily is in purple and Kate is in pink!

Happy, Happy Birthday!!! (two days late!)

2011-10-02T13:46:00.000-05:00

Kate and Lily are officially two years old! I can't believe what sweet, big girls they are turning into. Our favorite activities at the moment are playing dress up having dance parties. We have a very fun weekend planned filled with friends and family. Can't wait to celebrate Kate and Lily!

Birthday pictures coming soon!!!

Pumpkin patch pictures

2011-09-23T15:03:00.000-05:00

We took advantage of this amazing Dallas weather this morning and headed to the Arboretum. Catherine, Jennifer and little Elise met us and we had a picnic. It was so much fun and great to catch up with good friends!

Kate and Lily in Cinderella's carriage


Kelly & Kate, Jennifer & Elise, Catherine & Lily

Hate that we can't see Catherine and Lily better in this picture!

Lily

Kate

Jennifer and Elise

Me and my girls!

Lily and Catherine...it was SO nice having her help with the girls!

23 months

2011-09-16T13:46:00.000-05:00

Since we're getting close to Kate ad Lily's second Birthday I figured I would do a quick update on what we've been up to.

Kate: You used the big girl potty for the very first time last week! I picked you up from school and your teacher said you asked to go potty and went and sat down and successfully went. You're such a big girl! I'm so sad I wasn't there to witness it. However, you are clearly not ready to begin potty training. I brought out the potty seats after we got home from school because you said you needed to use the potty. You took your diaper off and ran from the bathroom to the living room and pooped behind the couch. We'll be sticking to diapers for the time being. You are becoming so social and love to make people laugh and laugh yourself. You're such a happy, funny girl!

Lily: Your teacher at school, Mrs. Collette, also asked you if you wanted to try the potty and you said "no-no" and ran away. Funny girl! You are more "suspicious" of things but seem to truly trust your sister and her judgement more than anything. Its so sweet that if you're scared to try something, you'll usually go after your sister does. How lucky are you and Kate to have each other?! You give the very best hugs and are becoming so sweet. However, you are equally sassy which cracks me up...most of the time.

I can't believe we're only a few weeks away from being two. You both have grown so much and are so much fun to be around. You go to school on Mondays and Thursdays and then alternate on Tuesdays. This is something new we're trying and so far it has been wonderful for both mommy and you. I get to spend one on one time with each of you, something I've never really done before. And my goodness it's easy only having one at a time. I wouldn't trade you guys for the world though!

Side note, I would LOVE to post pictures of Kate and Lily because they are so stinking cute, but my camera has been broken for over a month now. So frustrating! The Geek Squad at Best Buy better have it fixed before the big party!

This year and Last

2011-08-26T14:01:00.000-05:00

Why do I do this to myself...I can't believe how small the girls were when we went to the beach last year. What a difference a year makes. I don't even want to think about comparing the pictures next year!

August 2010: Lily and Kate

August 2011: Kate and Lily

August 2010: Kate and Lily

August 2011: Lily and Kate

Beach Pictures part 2

2011-08-26T13:47:00.000-05:00

Lily eating her snack

Building a sand castle

Devin with the girls

Making brownies!

Family picture: Uncle Jeff, Aunt Jenny, Papa, GiGi and Lily, me and Kate, Devin

Back from vacation

2011-08-23T13:34:00.000-05:00

We just got back from our annual beach vacation in Orange Beach, AL and it was so, so much fun! We stayed at the Phoenix West which is such a family friendly condo full of super nice people from the southeast. We went with my parents and my brother and his wife, Jenny. I got some much appreciated help with the girls and a pretty nice tan if I do say so myself! The weather was amazing, a high of 90 with a nice breeze and it didn't rain once. Here's a little preview of pictures. There will be tons more!

Kate and Lily in the Gulf

Family picture on the balcony

Lily wearing my bracelet

Kate...she LOVED getting her picture taken this day

The girls hunting seashells

***Special thanks to Uncle Jeff and Aunt Jenny for taking all these pictures, editing them and emailing them out. My camera broke 2 days before our trip and they saved the day!

All about July

2011-07-27T13:38:00.000-05:00

This month is just flying by and I can't believe I haven't talked about any of it. Well, here it goes...

One of my best childhood friends (we've been friends since 3!) got married July 4th weekend in Bentonville, AR. We had such a wonderful weekend with friends and family. I was in the wedding so a HUGE thanks to Devin, GiGi and Papa (my parents) and Aunt Jenny for helping out with the girls all weekend. Oh, and Aunt Jenny's friend Sarah who helped out as well. Thank you, thank you, thank you! It's not easy entertaining toddlers in a hotel!

Kate at the wedding

Lily at the wedding

Catherine and Sean Parks

Majority of the bridesmaids in Austin, TX for Catherine's Bachelorette party

Me, Jennifer and Catherine at Trudy's in Austin

The next weekend my amazing husband sent me to the Crescent Spa for a massage and some girl time with my friend Amy. Amy has a daughter Landry that is 6 months younger than Kate and Lily. They seem so far apart in age but in reality they'll be in the same class for school. We're hoping they'll be life long friends! Doug (Amy's husband) and Devin took the girls to the Arboretum and then back to our house to play. We joined them later in the afternoon and we enjoyed a new fun drink called Skinny Firefly iced tea. It's so good but I do recommend mixing it with a little lemonade. I've also been enjoying Bethenny Frankel's Skinny Girl Margarita this summer and highly recommend that as well.

Lily, Kate and Landry taking a bath

And then just this last weekend Devin and I got to have a "staycation" at our house. My parents live in Shreveport so we each drove an hour and half and met in Tyler. We ate dinner and then we left in my parents car and they left in our car with the girls. We had such a nice weekend but honestly, we missed the girls! Our house was SO quiet (and clean!) without them here. We ate some delicious food; Urbano was our favorite and then we saw Horrible Bosses one afternoon and it was well, horrible. But it was so nice to go see an afternoon movie, something we used to do all the time but now is a luxury.


Lily at GiGi and Papa's

Kate at GiGi and Papa's

So that's what's been going on in July. It's crazy hot in Dallas so we're all looking forward to the Fall already.

21 Months

2011-07-07T13:04:00.000-05:00

Kate and Lily are 21 months and only 3 months away from being 2. Time flies and my girls are getting to be so big!

Kate

We just started back to summer school and we are now going two days a week. Both girls enjoy school but are completely worn out when they get home which can make afternoons challenging. They have been coming home with lots of art work and their teachers said they're doing really well and are now the veterans in the class. Since they have September birthdays they'll always be the oldest in their class. I think that will be a good thing for them!

What's new this month:
-We bought our first potty after watching Elmo's Potty and showing a lot of interest in using our "potty words". I know the girls aren't anywhere near potty training but I like the idea of them seeing the potty and having access to it, and maybe even using it one day soon. But for now it's just a really cool chair that we sit on!

-We started time out this month and it's going pretty well. We're still learning the concept but the girls have stayed when put in time out and have learned the word "sorry" this month. This morning Kate kept turning on the bathroom faucet and putting toys in the water (a big no-no) so I asked her if she wanted to go to time out. She actually went to the corner of the bathroom and sat down for a few minutes all by herself. Kate has had time out quite a few more times than Lily so guess she's getting the hang of it. It was hard not to laugh when she put herself in time out!

-Meal times are starting to drive me insane! The girls love to play with their food and make huge messes. They seriously have got to be the messiest eaters in the world! We still throw our food on the floor if it doesn't appeal to us, we LOVE to put food in our hair and pretend like it's shampoo and we also enjoy using our fork to comb food into our hair. PLEASE MAKE IT STOP. We put our highchairs up in the attic this week and are using our booster seats at the table now. The girls enjoy it more and I'm hoping we can all act a little more civilized at the table. I'm sure this is wishful thinking but it's SO nice not having two giant highchairs in my breakfast room.

Kate on spaghetti night

Lily on spaghetti night

-We still really enjoy playing outside which is hard in this heat. Kate and Lily don't seem to mind the heat though and we're getting nice little sun tans from being outside so much. It's pretty cute and I can't wait to spend a week at the beach this summer with family!

Lily

-Kate and Lily still remain pretty much the same size. We're wearing 2T clothes and have gone up to a 6 1/2 in shoes. We bought new shoes a month a half ago and their toes are already almost at the end. I wear a 9 1/2 and Devin wears a 12 so guess it's safe to say Kate and Lily will have big feet like their parents! Their hair is getting so long now so we can do a lot more with it and it makes them look so old. We still haven't gotten our first hair cut but I think it's coming up. We also have all of our teeth minus the two year molars and that makes us look a lot older as well.

-The word NO has become our favorite and we just love to use it. We now know what we want, and more importantly what we don't want, and we have have the vocabulary to let others know. Luckily they've also started giving some pretty sweet kisses this last month and that makes up for the whole no thing...a little.

-And one last note on this last month...Kate crawled out of her crib for the first time (not sure if I documented this in a previous post). We were all ready to start moving to toddler beds (our beds convert) but she has managed to only do it that one time so we're holding off as long as we can.

Kate blowing her Daddy a kiss when he was leaving for work

Both girls look so much older to me now and have really lost their little baby faces. They love to point out other babies and talk to them and it's so weird to me because to me they're still my babies. But they really are turning into such big, sweet girls with very strong personalities. It's very hard having two girls that are so strong willed but it's so much fun to watch them grow and become closer and closer to one another. They kissed each other for the first time a few nights ago and it was probably the sweetest thing I've ever seen. Looking forward to more moments like that in our future!

Lily

The Babybel Cheese "incident"

2011-06-29T13:43:00.000-05:00

And because I'm on a roll downloading pictures, here's one last post for the day! Last week we made a trip to Sam's and I picked up some Babybel cheese. It's an easy snack to throw in my purse for the girls and I like them too! So, we get home and I'm putting everything away and then I realize that it's been very quiet for several minutes and I usually don't have this much "freedom" without one of my busy toddlers pulling at my leg. Right when we got home the girls saw the cheese and asked for a piece. I told them no because I would be giving them lunch in 5 minutes and they could have a piece then. Guess I left the cheese where they could reach and they somehow broke into the packaging and took a bite out of EVERY SINGLE PIECE. Apparently it wasn't appetizing since they were eating the red wax coating and then spit it out all over the floor. But they kept trying.....They went through $8 of cheese that afternoon in approximately 2 minutes. Do I laugh or cry? I laughed because it was pretty funny....

Kisses from Kate

2011-06-29T13:29:00.000-05:00

These pictures aren't the best but wanted to document Kate's first sweet kisses. Both Kate and Lily have started giving us kisses and Devin took a few pictures of Kate "playing hard to get tonight". These kisses can be so messy but sooo special!

And of course when Kate did finally give me a kiss, Lily's head is in front of the camera and the flash didn't go off. Oh well!

Sweet girls....(most of the time!)

2011-06-29T13:20:00.000-05:00

TCU

2011-06-11T12:33:00.000-05:00

Just got Kate and Lily their very first TCU apparel. Can't wait to see them in these cute dresses I found on sale through Zulily!

Arboretum with friends

2011-06-09T14:11:00.000-05:00

We met my best friend from high-school Jennifer and her daughter Elise at the Arboretum yesterday for a picnic. We had a good time catching up and Kate and Lily were pretty much obsessed with everything to do with Elise. Kate sat in Elise's car seat, Lily put Elise's pacifier in her mouth and then both girls insisted on helping Miss Jennifer push her baby stroller. The girls also got to play in the little frog splash area for awhile and that was a huge hit. I didn't get many pictures but luckily Jennifer did. We'll definitely be visiting the frogs again soon! Thank you friends for making the drive over to Dallas!

Kate eating her snack sitting in Elise's car seat that is upside down, of course

The girls helping Jennifer push her stroller

The funniest thing I've seen in a long time.....

2011-06-06T13:09:00.000-05:00

My friend Doug emailed this to me assuming I would have already read it, but I hadn't. It's a top 15 about twins and it's SO true. It's AMAZING how many people come up to us while shopping or playing and ask these random questions. I've been asked at least 10 of these. Enjoy!

The Top 15 Stupid Things People Say to Parents of Twins

15. “I could never do it.” (Oh really. What would you do? Are you suggesting I put them on the curb with signs around their necks that say, “Free to a good home. My mom can’t do it.”?)

14. “Do they have different personalities?” (No. They are the same human being divided into two parts.

13. Said by a stranger, “They’re identical, right?” Mom answers, “No. They’re fraternal.” Stranger response, “They are NOT!” (OK. You’re right. I have no idea what I’m talking about. These are not my children. I thought it would be fun to borrow them from a mom down at Baby Gap. It’s been more than an hour. I guess I should return them.)

12. “Are they ‘paternal’ twins?” (Yes. They have a father. There was only one virgin birth.)

11. “Just wait till they’re older. It only gets harder.” (Thank you. I woke up this morning hoping I’d receive a word of discouragement while pushing a cart of preschoolers down the cereal aisle.)

10. “When one cries, does he wake the other?” (No. Twins cannot hear each other’s cries because they all communicate with their special telepathic language only.)

9. From a perfect stranger: “Were they in the same sac?” (Hello. Nice to meet you, too. Will you be sharing your gynecological history with me as well?)

8. “Are they developmentally behind?” (Well, let’s see. They’re 3 years old and thus far, all their graduate school applications have been denied. We’ll get back with you on that.)

7. “How do you do it?” (Haven’t you seen the Nike commercials?)

6. Said by a dentist: “I was shocked that they didn’t have the same bite patterns.” (They are two different human beings, not clones.)

5. “You must be SO busy.” (Are you volunteering to clean my house?)

4. Said to a mom of fraternal twins who are different sizes, have different eye color and different face structure: “How do you tell them apart?” (I just look at them.)

3. “What do you do when they both cry at the same time?” (Sometimes I cry. Sometimes I go to Starbucks.)

2. Said to a mom of boy/girl twins: “Are they identical?” (Uh. Not exactly. One has a penis)

1. Only one comment could be voted No. 1. The choice was clear. Drum roll, please. After a stranger had been informed that the toddler boys were twins, she asked a simple question: “Are they brothers?” (Enough said.)

Let’s be honest. People are fascinated with twins. They don’t mean to say stupid things. It just happens. It happens to all of us. Saying stupid things is one activity that joins us all together as human beings. Learn to forgive the frailties of others and enjoy the laughs later. Life is a journey. Enjoy the double-stroller roller coaster ride!

It's Summer!

2011-06-03T13:31:00.000-05:00

We've been working on ways to keep entertained as the temperature is getting closer to 100 degrees. We went to a splash park Tuesday with some of our friends in the neighborhood and had a blast. Splash parks, yet another thing I knew nothing about before having children. The girls had a blast so we went back with another friend this morning and the water wasn't turned on because a part was broken. Splash parks, not so much fun without water. Oh well, we'll be back much more this year. Here are some pictures we took after coming home since the park was closed.

Lily riding her new tricycle from Gigi

Playing in our pool. Pretty sure we could use a larger one this year!

Kate rocking on our neighbor's front porch

Kate and Lily talking to the neighbor's dog

Pictures from Daddy's phone!

2011-05-31T13:13:00.000-05:00

I have been slacking in the picture taking department and am really mad at myself right now. The girls are just so busy and I keep forgetting to pull out the camera. I vow to do better. We had a wonderful weekend with family and friends (and I didn't take a single picture!) Devin was off Friday and Saturday so spent lots of time with the girls. I was looking at the pictures on his phone last night, while watching the Bachelorette, and he took some cute ones! Side note- not really liking Ashely as the Bachelorette...kind of boring this season.

Wednesday morning in pictures

2011-05-18T14:11:00.000-05:00

The morning started off great with a long walk and trip to the park. Things got a little crazy though when we got home....

The girls stomped in some mud puddles so I had to strip them down to their diapers and get them semi-cleaned up.

Then I got them a snack and tried to get them to watch a few minutes of Baby Einstein while I got cleaned up. I came back into the living room to this....

Fruity cheerios everywhere and I have no clue how they got stuck to their bottoms. That is until I started walking around and found them stuck all over my feet.

So I started to clean up the cheerio mess next. The girls were quietly playing in their room so I knew something was odd.

And then out came Kate in her doll stroller being pushed by Lily. Who knew it could hold 24 pounds?!

I went ahead and let them play their little game for about 20 minutes while I made their lunch because quite frankly I didn't have the energy to stop them. They ate their entire lunch consisting of a grill cheese and strawberries and went right to sleep at nap time. Looking forward to seeing what this afternoon brings. Girls, please be kind!

What's new?!?

2011-05-12T12:50:00.000-05:00

First off...HAPPY BIRTHDAY Uncle Jeff!

We've had a really nice week and wanted to share what's been going on. Our new favorite routine after bath time is to wear our hooded towels over our heads and run around the house like super heroes. Very fun and makes the night entertaining. I was thinking I should invest in real capes, but why when they have several towels to choose from and are just as content?!

We also came up with a new hairdo this week. The pony tail! Kate and Lily's hair is just barely long enough to pull this off and it might very well be the cutest pony tail in the world!

That's what's been going on over here....super heroes and pony tails. Great week!

Happy Mother's Day and Happy Birthday, Dad!

2011-05-08T14:09:00.000-05:00

Today is a very special day because not only is it Mother's Day, it's also my Dad's birthday!

I got to sleep in this morning while Devin took care of the girls. He then brought me breakfast from Einstein's and some beautiful roses. It was a great morning! After that we got ready and went to church. So far it's been an amazing day. Being a mother on Mother's Day is truly special and really helps you appreciate all the mothers in your life and how hard they have worked and sacrificed for you. I'm very thankful for my mother as well as my mother-in-law and all the other "motherly figures" in my life. I also feel completely blessed and honored to be Kate and Lily's mommy. They are truly the most special girls in the world. How did I get so lucky?!?

And just for comparison....

2011-04-25T13:33:00.001-05:00

Kate and Lily Easter 2010

(with Aunt Jenny and Uncle Jeff)

Kate and Lily Easter 2011

Why are they growing so fast?!?!

Easter in Shreveport

2011-04-25T12:51:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful weekend in Shreveport and spent Easter with my parents in Shreveport. Devin and I got to have a date night Friday night, we grilled Saturday night and then all went to church together Sunday. Kate and Lily also got a little visit from the Easter bunny!

Kate in pink and Lily in green

Lily

Kate

Practice hunting Easter eggs

2011-04-19T13:14:00.000-05:00

The girls had an Easter egg hunt yesterday at school so they got dressed up in their dresses my mom get them and came home with TONS of candy. We don't really keep candy in the house so the girls haven't had many sweets. I let them go a little crazy yesterday though and I think it's safe to say we love sugar. We took off our dresses to eat the candy so they wouldn't get stained. I didn't think we were ready for chocolate so I went ahead and took care of that and Elle, our dog, followed Kate and Lily around everywhere just waiting for something to be dropped!

Sweet summer swimsuits!

2011-04-12T13:24:00.000-05:00

The cutest thing in the world: sweet little girls with chubby thighs in swimsuits! We plan on doing this a lot this summer!

18 month stats

2011-04-12T13:09:00.000-05:00

We went to the doctor this morning and Kate and Lily did so well at their appointment and barely shed a tear after getting two shots. The doctor said they are doing so well and growing at a wonderful rate. Lily is just a little bigger but he said they're basically identical in their percentages. Lily didn't pass her hearing test but she had a little fluid in one of her ears, and since she's doing well developmentally the doctor said not to worry. They'll test her again next time she comes in. So happy to have two healthy, happy girls!

Kate:
Height: 33 inches (85%)
Weight: 23.4 pounds (35%)
Head: 47 inches (70%)

Lily:
Height: 33.5 inches (90%)
Weight: 24.4 pounds (50%)
Head: 48 inches (90%)

We're a year and a half!

2011-04-06T20:14:00.000-05:00

Here's what we're up to at 18 months and since I never did a 17 month post, I'll do my best to combine these two very crazy, hectic wonderful months.

Both of my girls are on the same sleep schedule and they are currently going to bed at 7:30pm and waking around 7:15am. They take one nap a day from 12pm-2pm, sometimes 2:30pm if mommy's lucky!

Sizes: The girls have been pretty much the exact same size from birth, an indicator that they are more than likely identical.
Diapers: size 4
Shoes: size 5.5; We got new shoes last month and had a fun shopping trip to Nordstrom. The girls got their feet measured and we realized that they were wearing size 4 shoes and needed to be in a size 5.5. Oops! We got two new pairs of shoes each (that's 4 pairs of shoes!) and Kate threw a tantrum when she couldn't try on the little boy cowboy boots on display. Good times!
Clothes: We can still wear our Fall/Winter18M but the length in our pants and sleeves are too short. However, they're getting us through this crazy Dallas weather which is nice. All of our Spring/Summer outfits are 24M and 2T.

Favorite Foods: We love chicken tettrazini and mommy hides zuchini and mushrooms in it. I also have to puree the chicken because they don't care for meat. We also really like egg casserole and tuna fish as long as I go heavy on the mayonnaise. The girls love pretty much any fruit and also like oatmeal and yogurt.Our new favorite snack is pretzels and we are going through a phase where we no longer like bananas, once their very favorite food. We're trying to eat as a family at the table one or two nights a week (hard when Devin travels a lot) and that's been fun. It means we have to eat earlier than we would like to accommodate their 5:45pm dinner time or we will have a complete meltdown, but it's worth it. I'm also letting the girls eat with
forks and spoons more at dinner and they're getting pretty good. We choose dinner so I can toss them in the bathtub afterward.

Miss Kate: You are truly a little monkey. You are crawling on everything and can reach so many new things now. Including mommy's phone while charging, the bathroom faucets, door knobs, and the list goes on and on. I am exhausted at the end of the day keeping up with you and your sister. You have learned how to jump really well over the last two months and you bounce around the house. Your favorite thing at open gym is the trampoline (when the big kids aren't on it). You play independently really well and still continue to watch after your sister at times.This morning she was crying and you brought her several different options to console her: her milk cup, her baby doll as well as finger nail clippers (no clue how you got those). It was so sweet and I hope you continue to love and take care of your younger sister (by 30 minutes) as you both get older. One last thing I would like to document...You have started telling your mommy
"no-no". I guess we can add that to your new word list!

Sweet Lily: Your favorite place to be is outside and I can't believe how dirty you get! You are so very sweet but can also be very sassy at times. You still bite your sister when you want something (and she still sometimes bites you). You love to read books and also enjoy your Baby Einstein videos. Your favorites songs right now are If your happy and you know it, clap your hands, Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes, and Old MacDonald Had a Farm.

This age is so hard but so fun at the same time!

Pictures from this weekend

2011-03-29T13:03:00.000-05:00

We had family in town this weekend and our cousin Jennifer got several cute pictures of the girls...together. Never easy and I'm so glad she passed them along to me. Don't they look like they play so well in these pictures??? Well they do...sometimes!

Lily on the left and Kate on the right

My mom and I

Pictures from the Arboretum

2011-03-14T13:33:00.001-05:00

Devin took a half day Friday and we spent the afternoon at the Arboretum. It's Dallas Blooms and my favorite time at the Arboretum because the tulips are absolutely amazing. We ran into some toddlers we see at Open Gym and had fun playing with them as well. Great weather and a great start to the weekend!

Lily sharing her milk

2011-03-10T12:55:00.000-06:00

The girls are really starting to play and interact with each other, and in a good way where we're not just biting and fighting over our toys. Most of which we have two of so why are we fighting? I digress...

Lily sharing her milk with Kate.

Our first ponytail...kind of

2011-03-10T12:44:00.000-06:00

I'm way behind on my 17 month post. Hopefully I'll get that taken care of this week! The girls are starting to get more and more hair so we decided to play around with a ponytail. Pretty funny!

Pictures from yesterday

2011-03-03T13:01:00.000-06:00

Friday morning at the park

2011-02-18T12:19:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful morning and took a nice walk to the park where we played for an hour. We would have stayed longer if it weren't for a desperate need for diaper changes. Side note- I finished the girls dresses and they are wearing them in these pictures.

This face Kate makes cracks me up. She loves to scrunch her nose!

16 Months

2011-02-17T13:01:00.000-06:00

I am SO behind and haven't updated my blog in weeks. And so much has been going on.We've had tons of ice and snow in Dallas, Devin took my to New York for my birthday and one of my best friends had a beautiful baby girl that I got to meet Monday. But let's get back to Kate and Lily turning 16 months.

Sweet Lily. This month has been a little tough but we've had some pretty special moments. You are very strong willed and have started throwing small tantrums when you want something and I can't seem to figure out what that is. I think it ultimately boils down to problems with communication and you get frustrated that you can't tell us what you want. We have been doing really well with sign language and you love to sign "more" and "all done". You must be going through a growth spurt because you do the sign for "more" ALL the time! We sure do love our snacks! This month your eating has been so-so. That could be in part because you've had a cold though. Fruit is still your favorite and you love to eat oatmeal in the morning. You also love whole grain waffles with cream cheese or honey and your absolute favorite meal is a peanut butter and honey sandwich. Your vocabulary is growing like crazy. New words include ball, shoe, sock, poo-poo (love that one!), nanna (banana), book and Gigi taught you pretty! I love to hear your sweet little voice and all your new words. You are so smart and you're really into shapes right now. Your favorite toy is a little box that has a place to put shapes through the holes. Unfortunately that is one of your sister's favorite toys as well and you two have been fighting over it for weeks. I can't imagine how hard and frustrating it is for you to have to learn to share at such an early age and I'm really trying to be patient with you two. I know it the long run that everything will pay off and you will be ahead of the game when you really start school. You're doing so much better at Mother's Day Out and only cry a little if any when I drop you off. You're still very much a mama's girl and I have the back pains to prove it since you now weigh 22 pounds. I still hold you and Kate at the same time sometimes (it's so hard for me to tell one of you no) and have realize that you both weigh 44 pounds and I won't be able to do this much longer. We'll figure something out though!

Sweet Kate. You are older by 30 minutes and sometimes I think you know it. There are so many moments when you are truly the big sister. You will walk around the house and find Lily's sippy cup and make sure and bring it to her. Also, if you find Lily's special baby doll in the house you make sure and give her that as well. You are so sincere and I can tell you love to take care of Lily at times. However, you are also very aggressive and when you want something, you get it. It has caused lots of tears in the house but again back to sharing. We're all learning together. You love to tell most everyone you see "bye-bye" and "hi". It's so cute and your sweet little hand waving makes me smile every time. Lately you've been waking up from your naps a little early and I love the alone time we get to spend together. Your vocabulary has grown so much this month as well. You've learned the same new words as Lily.You used to always say hi when you woke up in the morning and now you say poo-poo. Makes me laugh until I have to change your diaper and also makes me realize we could very well be starting potty training soon and that's scary! You're a pretty good eater and your favorite meal is a peanut butter and honey sandwich as well.

Clothes size: 12-18M
Weight: 22 pounds
Height: ???? I don't know but very tall! They are the same height as some 2 year olds!
Shoes: size 4 but we're moving to 5 soon. I can tell your shoes are getting too small.

What's New?!?

2011-01-25T14:21:00.000-06:00

Kate and Lily had their first cupcake from Sprinkles and they are in L-O-V-E! They actually just had a bite of mine but really enjoyed it!

We have also started eating with spoons and forks. It's a very civilized process as you can see. Sometimes we ditch the spoon and choose to eat cottage cheese with our hands. It's the fastest way to the mouth so that's the method of choice. Don't blame them! Side note- cottage cheese is extremely hard to clean up. Save it until the spoon is mastered!

Nothing like a good bath to clean all the cottage cheese off!

And if you've noticed the band aid on Kate's chin in the pictures above, it's because she got 3 stitches Saturday night. She took a fall face forward on our hard wood floors and her chin split. It was a pretty traumatic night (probably more for me!) Devin stayed home with Lily and I took Kate to an after hours emergency care place. They gave her several shots in her chin to numb it and then stitched her up. She's been fine ever since but I'm dreading Thursday when I have to take her to get them out. I almost passed out during the process so Devin will be handling anything dealing with bleeding our stitches in the future. Hopefully that won't be in our future!

Sewing

2011-01-21T14:26:00.000-06:00

I managed to sew a dress over the last two days during the girls nap time and I'm so happy with it! It's definitely not perfect and has some imperfections, but it's the cutest thing!

Confession of the day: I lost Lily right before nap time. I finished changing Kate's diaper and then went to grab Lily to change hers. Could not find her anywhere! Our house is 1800 square feet. Pretty hard to lose a toddler. Luckily Lily was still wearing her boots and I could here someone stopping around outside on our deck. Apparently she has learned how to use the doggy door and crawled right out in the 28 degree weather to play outside. Funny but not funny. I have a door for the doggy door, but they can take that off. Not sure what to do her but I'm sure we'll figure something out!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Aunt Jenny!

2011-01-20T14:22:00.000-06:00

Side note: Why on earth would I think my girls would sit still and hold two signs I made, even for their Aunt's birthday?!?!

We love our doll strollers

2011-01-18T13:58:00.000-06:00

Kate and Lily got doll strollers as well as new babies and mini diaper bags for Christmas. They are in LOVE and push their babies all around the house. Kate has even been known to give her baby a bottle and Lily makes sure to carry her diaper bag when pushing her baby around. The only time we get in trouble is when they sit in the stroller themselves and get stuck. Guess they just want to know what it's like to be a single baby and have a single stroller!

Resolutions for 2011

2011-01-12T14:56:00.000-06:00

I did this last year to hold myself accountable and I am proud to say I accomplished ALL of my 2010 resolutions. Here's to hoping I'm this ambitious in 2011!

1. Read more and watch less television. This one is going to be so very hard because I love vegging out at the end of the day after the girls go to bed and just being lazy. I really need to do something more productive than watching TV though and I do love to read. I'm planning on reading one book a month this year and that will also include books on parenting. No list of books, I'll just get them as I go! I did already finish my book for January though!

2. Finish my bedroom. My room looks great, but there are several things I want to do to it that will make it even better and more me, I mean us. I refinished our dresser last year and painted it cream and added glass knobs. It's very shabby chic and I'm happy with it. Now I want to refinish our armoire. I'm thinking about painting it robbins egg blue and making it look distressed. It's going to be a lot of sanding and that's why it didn't get done last year. The other two things I want to do include painting and new curtains. I'm planning on sewing the curtain panels myself.

3. Which brings us to number 3, SEWING! I'm embarrassed to say I bought a sewing machine in 2010 and haven't used it one bit. I took two sewing classes last year and then lost all ambition when I bought my first pattern. I've already bought material to make three dresses, one for Kate, one for Lily and one for their niece, Sloane. I've got to start sewing and I want to sew at least one new outfit for the girls a month, 12 a year. This could very well be my hardest goal.

4. Update the girls Baby Books. It's got to be done now or it won't ever be done because it will be such a mess. Enough said.

5. Go on two fun trips with Devin this year and another vacation with my family. I would love for us all to go back to Gulf Shores, AL if everyone can go again this year. It was so much fun and the condo we stayed in was very nice. The girls will take swim lessons this summer so I think they'll enjoy the water so much more. Just writing about it makes me want to go now....

6. Keep up with my yoga. I've been taking hot yoga at Sunstone for over a year now and it's been so good for me. Such a wonderful way to get rid of stress but it's a huge time commitment. I currently average about 2 classes a week and want to bump that up to 3 classes a week. We also just joined the YMCA as a family and I've been once. The girls really enjoy the nursery and I can see them while I work out, which is really comforting. They have one of those glass walls where you can see your baby but they can't see you. Very nice.

7. CHURCH. This is the last thing on my list but also the most important. We continue to "church hop" and have been doing so for several years. We have started attending a new Methodist church in Dallas called Munger Place and we're happy with it but I'm going to have to see if I can switch my mind set from a traditional service to a more contemporary one. I grew up going to a traditional service and it's just really hard for me. However, I really like the minister and I LOVE the nursery. The girls have been so happy there and that of course makes me happy. We also need to bump up our attendance. We were out of town a lot last year, or had family in town, and then Kate and Lily were sick a lot, but we need to make it a priority to go to church on days we can.

I'm sure this last will be added to throughout the year but those are my personal goals so far. All very attainable. Happy 2011!

Kate and Lily are 15 months

2011-01-07T12:31:00.000-06:00

I'm very behind right now and am having trouble getting motivated to transfer and sort through pictures as well as document what we've been up to. At 15 months the girls are extremely active and wearing me out! We traveled a lot for Christmas- Redstone, CO, Shreveport, LA, and West Monroe, LA. It was so much fun to see family but it was a lot of work. I'm documenting this now...we will not be traveling next Christmas. But back to 15 months....

This month has been the month of the molars. Lily has all 4 of hers! I can't believe how old she looks with all her new teeth. Kate has 2 of hers and is struggling with her last 2. They've been pretty painful for her and I just can't wait until all this teething stuff is over with. Both girls weigh 21 pounds and I'm not sure about their height. I do know that we have some very tall girls. Yesterday they were standing next to a two year old and they were the same height! They are still wearing a size 3 diaper, size 4 shoes and size 12-18 month clothes. They can still fit into their 12m dresses but the pants and tops are way too short. We've gotten a hair growth spurt and it looks like we have little mullets in the back. I'm in the process of scheduling their first haircuts.

Both Kate and Lily are going through a "mommy phase", again. Kate is a little more independent but both girls really want to be held, a lot. (See picture above) I find myself telling them "you are a twin..you do not get to be held all the time." Not that they know what I'm saying. They're getting so big and they're so strong that it's really hard for me to hold them at the same time like I used to be able to.

The girls were still a little confused about opening presents but they really liked the paper and ribbon and they really liked the bows. I can't wait until next year when they'll probably understand more. We went to a place we heard about from another mom of twins called Open Gym this last Tuesday. It was so much fun and I'm not sure why I haven't taken them before. I really have to work myself up to getting out and trying new things with the girls. It's so much work to leave the house but we also have so much fun once we do. Lily was upset that we had to go to the other side of the gym, where Kate had run off to. I went to pick her up and she threw herself on the floor and was screaming and flailing her arms. She's done that a few times and I'm trying to ignore it. She can be such a little drama queen.

We don't really have any new words this month. However, I did figure out what "go-go" means. Lily always says "go-go" to our dog and I figured out she's saying "good-girl" because we always say that to our dog. She pats her on her head when she says it. Very cute! The girls love to play peek a boo and they are very good at pointing out their nose. We're working on our eyes and mouth this week and I'm sure they'll have it by the end of the week. They also still love to clap and dance and are very, very busy little babies. We've worked on sign language off and on for the last 6 months and they finally have the sign for more down. I'm trying to focus more on teaching them the signs because they're getting more and more frustrated because they can't communicate. We'll see how it goes! Looking forward to month 16. Times flies!

Our new "stroller" in the mountains

2010-12-24T15:45:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we introduced the girls to a toboggan. We pulled them around and they really enjoyed it. Devin even pulled me with the girls. After the girls wake up from their nap today, we're taking them to another town that has more snow and more hills. I'll let you know how that goes!

Kate and Lily in Redstone, CO

2010-12-23T08:47:00.000-06:00

Hope everyone is having a good week!

Kate and Lily meet Santa!

2010-12-17T13:08:00.000-06:00

We headed to the downtown Neiman Marcus yesterday afternoon and took the girls to see Santa Claus. No lines and they did pretty well. Kate got upset but Lily could have sat in his lap all day.

Glad we got it done yesterday because we leave for Redstone, CO (near Aspen) tomorrow morning and won't be back until after Christmas. Hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Christmas and we'll be sure to post lots of pictures of the girls in their snow suits in the snow!

Last minute Christmas gifts

2010-12-15T13:31:00.000-06:00

I really didn't get the girls much for Christmas other than a ton of books and some bath toys. I know they are going to be incredibly spoiled by everyone else that loves them and they are still figuring out the whole gift thing. Example of being spoiled, our sweet neighbors next door gave them Neiman Marcus cashmere hats so their little heads will stay warm when we go to Colorado for Christmas. I want one!

Since the girls are currently obsessed with dragging anything with a cord around the house, I decided to get them a toy that will do the same function. And since they tend to fight over things they both want, I got them two!

Christmas has begun!

2010-12-14T10:30:00.000-06:00

GiGi and Papa came over Saturday and gave the girls their first Christmas presents. We won't see them until New Years this year because we'll be spending Christmas in Colorado with Devin's family. It was a short visit but we had a really good time. Kate and Lily got some new pajamas for Christmas that are absolutely adorable and they also got talking elmo and cookie monster dolls. They still don't really understand the whole process of gift giving, and of course can't say thank you yet, but it's still fun to watch them get excited over new things.

Petit Frere HOLIDAY BLOWOUT sale!

2010-11-30T16:13:00.001-06:00

I wanted to post details about a great warehouse sale by Petit Frere Wednesday, December 8th. Their clothes are so cute and a mother of twins started the line here in Dallas. I've seen their items in boutiques in Shreveport and Memphis while visiting family and they are pretty pricey. However, at these sales you can get precious applique dresses and sets for $5-$10. Obviously I'm shopping for girls, but they also have cute jon-jons and applique shirts for boys. If you're in or around Dallas, you should definitely check this out!

Details for the sale:
Join us for our final sale of 2010 and stock up on Holiday gifts for everyone on your list. We will have our $5 and $10 items with new things we haven't had at the sales before. Also, our Fall 2010 holiday items will be 20% off of already deeply discounted retail prices.

We hope you can make it and do your holiday shopping with us!

Address:

Central Falls Warehouse

3525 West Miller Road

Garland, TX 75041

***It is literally in a warehouse so don't be surprised when you pull up.

Kate and Lily are 14 months!

2010-11-30T16:01:00.000-06:00

I think it's safe to say that Kate and Lily are starting to become two little busy toddlers. They are into everything and are getting to be so fast! This last month was pretty hard because we were sick most of it. From the infamous hand foot mouth, to the stomach bug that wiped the whole family out the week before Thanksgiving, we've all been a little fussy to say the least. Oh, and Lily is getting all 4 of her molars at the same time. Kate is currently getting 2.

So what's new: The girls are starting to become picky eaters. I'm hoping this is just a stage or has to do with being sick. They used to eat whatever I gave them and now they have an opinion which means if they don't want it, they throw it on the floor. We're starting to learn the word "no" and we're not so sure we like it. We're also having a little trouble learning to share but I've been told they don't really learn that until 3 or so. If anyone has a good book on parenting/disciplining they would like to recommend, please share! As you can see in the picture below it was Kate's turn to get in the swing and Lily was not happy about it.

Both girls are truly mama's girls. They are all over me right now which is so sweet but makes things very hard when you only have two hands and one lap to comfort two babies.

Kate and Lily are really starting to babble and talk and it's so sweet! Our current vocabulary consists of mama., dada, ba-ba, dog, shoe and bye-bye. I love their sweet little voices! They also have some words they say to one another that we don't quite understand. Wondering if this is their own little language I've heard about?? Our most favorite place to be is outside. They love to explore and walk around and play in the yard. We've also started watching an episode of Baby Einstein once a day and they are really into it. I hate putting them in front of a tv at this age, but they really are learning from it. They can now point and play peek a boo and they picked that up from one of the episodes. Plus it helps me a ton so that I can make their dinner during their 5p-6p fussy hour. My most favorite thing they've started doing is hugging. It's not often, but it's absolutely wonderful!

We are now drinking from cups and it's been nice to pack away the bottles. We went cold turkey and it was a huge success. Kate caught on after 30 minutes and it took Lily 48 hours without milk to finally switch to the cup. It worked though and I'm a huge fan. This month I'm going to look at consolidating their naps. They are really good sleepers and currently still take two naps, one from 9:30a-11a and another from 2:30p-4p. I really would prefer for them to continue taking two naps so that I can have the free time, but they're starting to talk and play more and more at the beginning and I can tell it's getting time to consolidate. We'll see how that goes. Here's hoping for a very healthy next month!

Christmas cards from Shutterfly!

2010-11-16T10:31:00.001-06:00

I went Fort Worth last night to have dinner with Courtney. We started talking about how excited we are for Christmas and she mentioned that she had just finished addressing ALL of her Christmas cards before I got there. Made me feel behind! She ordered her Christmas Cards from Shutterfly and is so happy with them! I had already planned to order our Christmas Cards from them because their prices are so reasonable and they make it so easy. Here are a few that I'm in love with. Please help me decide! I'm currently leaning towards the first one and the last one from the options below. I plan on getting this super cute coordinating address labels as well.

There are so many to choose from and to make things even better, I will get 50 free cards for this post. That will put a huge dent in my list. If you're a blogger and are looking for free Christmas Cards or invitations for a holiday event, go here. Thank you, Shutterfly! Now all I have to do is decide what picture to use!

What's been going on.....

2010-11-12T11:26:00.000-06:00

I haven't blogged in forever and we've actually had a lot going on.

1. I was a soccer mom for Halloween and made myself a pretty cute shirt if I do say so myself. Devin and I went to an engagement/costume party for our friends Laura and Alex and we had so much fun.

2. Kate and Lily got hand foot and mouth at Mothher's Day out a few weeks ago and we're just now recovering. While getting the girls checked out, our Pediatrician examined Lily's ear and we found out she had an ear infection as well. We have had some very, very rough days/nights the last few weeks but are now fully recovered (I think!).

3. I got a sewing machine and just ordered my very first pattern. It's for a peasant dress and I'm going to attempt to create one this weekend. I got the pattern here and as you can see there are tons of other things I want to sew. Really hoping I've found some sort of calling here!

4. Devin got me a very special anniversary gift that really surprised me. It's this bracelet from David Yurman and he had a very sweet story to go along with it about how one part was Kate, one was Lily, and one was him, and I'm the part that holds everything together. Not sure if that makes sense to you, but it made perfect sense to me and was so special.

5. I have already started my Christmas shopping and am almost through AND haven't stepped one foot in the mall. Yay!

6. I'm so excited to see my family at Thanksgiving. We'll be in Memphis this year at my brother Jeff and Jenny's. Can't wait to eat some amazing food!

7. And last but not least, Happy Birthday Catherine Traylor!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Two Little Princesses

2010-11-02T10:13:00.000-05:00

Kate and Lily are too young to trick-or-treat, but we still dressed up and passed out candy to other kids in the neighborhood. We already had princess gear so the girls were set. Can't wait until next year when the girls actually get candy because I secretly want to steal some!

Happy 2nd Halloween and 13 months!

2010-10-30T10:17:00.000-05:00

Kate and Lily are another month old. Last year they were one month on their first Halloween. They were so tiny!

This year they are 13 months and ALL over the place. Kate is doing so well walking and Lily has been walking for over a month now. I can't believe how fast they are. They both love being outside and they also really enjoy taking baths now. We're currently working on no standing in the tub. I'm pretty sure they understand what I'm saying but are choosing to ignore me. We're having a little bit of a struggle weaning them from their bottles. They have been using a sippy cup since they were about 7 months old but have never really taken to it. I guess in part because I haven't forced the issue. Lily has been sick this week but I'm going to pack up the bottles next week and try going cold turkey. I already feel weak! Kate has drank all her milk from a cup twice now and Lily just throws her cup at me. It's hard because I can't give Kate a cup and Lily a bottle because Kate would prefer the bottle and gets upset. I got some advice from another mother of twins and she was able to make the switch by going cold turkey in a week. Wish me luck. It could be a very long week!

We are also starting to have lap babies on our hands, especially Lily. I secretly love it but it does become a problem when I can't get up to do anything because they want me on the floor holding them. As for food, the girls are really good eaters. They love sweet potato fries, salmon stix, chicken nuggets, cottage cheese green beans, apple sauce, strawberries, tomatoes, yogurt, cheerios and we just tried butternut squash last night and it was a hit. I've started letting them play around with spoons at dinner. It gets very messy so luckily bath time is next. As for sizes, both girls are currently wearing size 12M and some 18M, depending on the brand. They're in size 3 diapers and size 6-12M shoes. Here's another picture of Kate doing her hair. She brushes and then tries to put her bow in. Cracks me up!

This age is so much fun and I seriously can't wait to see what the next few months bring. Can you imagine having two little talking girls. I have a feeling things are about to get crazy around here!

Happy FOUR Year Anniversary!

2010-10-28T15:50:00.000-05:00

Today is Devin and my 4 year anniversary. I immediately think about where we were last year and things have gotten so much easier. Last year we had two one month old baby girls and we were getting about 3 hours of sleep a night, all broken up. This year we have big plans to grill a nice meal outside and enjoy the wonderful weather on our new deck. I bought all kinds of great food from Central Market and can't wait to cook! We already took a celebratory trip to Napa Valley last weekend. My parents babysat and we had such a wonderful relaxing time touring vineyards and eating amazing food. We are so lucky to have my parents so close. They are amazing!

Our first trip to Napa was for our 2 year anniversary and we pretty much just bounced around. This year I really planned where we would go and eat so we had reservations and appointments at a lot of places that you can't just walk in, hence the wine was much better! Here's a list of where we went...a little reference for when we go back maybe in another 2 years!

Cakebread Cellars was our first stop. They are known for their Chardonnay but we fell in love with their own special red blend called Rubaiyat. It's a blend of Pinot Noir, Syrah, Zinfandel and Petit Sirah and they make such a limited amount that you can only buy it at their vineyard. I think we might have this bottle with our dinner tonight!

We made a quick stop at Folie a Deux for a tasting. This wasn't on our agenda but we had some extra time. I don't remember much about this place but I do buy their wine at my local Tom Thumb.

We then headed for some sparkling wine at Mumm Napa. We really enoyed their Cuvee M, which is a little more sweet. It's very easy to buy this at our local liquor stores and I'm very glad I now know what kind of champagne I really like. By the way, you can't call it champagne unless it's from France. That's why it's called sparkling wine.

We ended our first day in Napa at Elizabeth Spencer, our favorite vineyard from our visit in 2008. We only have one bottle left from that visit and it's from here. It's a boutique winery located in the old Napa post office 2007. It's so cute and we met lots of nice people there like we did during our previous visit. We bought a bottle of their Petit Sirah and a bottle of their Chenin Blanc.

We then took a tour at Del Dotto Vinyards in St. Helena. This was by far the best tour we went on. They took us through their caves lined with Italian marble and ancient tiles. It was by candlelight and they got the wine for the tasting right our of the barrel. The caves were pitch black lined with small white candles. This vineyard was voted best tour and we agreed. Unfortunately, no cameras allowed inside but you can see a picture below of the outside.

While at Del Dotto we met some people from Texas that recommended Fleury, and we're so glad they did! We dropped in with no appointment and they managed to squeeze us in to one of their private tasting rooms. We had a lot of fun and ended up buying some of their wine. We left with their 2006 Lauren Bryce Cabernet (named after their children) and a bottle of their 2004 Port. I know most people don't like Port, but I love it!

We had such a nice trip and it was so nice to be away with Devin- even though we missed our girls so much and talked about them non-stop!

The Dallas Zoo

2010-10-25T10:31:00.000-05:00

I took the girls to the zoo last week and we had such a nice afternoon. We got a family membership to the zoo from grandparents (Devin's parents) as well as our Aunt Melissa, Uncle Chris and our cousins, Grayson and Sloane. Such a nice gift! The highlight of the visit was riding the carousel. I'm sure you're wondering how we were able to maneuver two one year olds on a moving ride with horses, but we pulled it off. A nice man with an older son helped and also took pictures of the girls on their first ride. Side note- someone asked where I got their outfits. The pants are from Petit Frere and Petit Souer. A woman in Dallas started the line and she distributes to small boutiques around the area. She has lots of warehouse sales where she sells her off season items. I'll post the next sale when I get the information for those in the Dallas area. Super cute things! As for the shirts, I ordered the solid shirt and had them monogrammed. However, I have an embroidery machine on order as well as a box of "blank" items waiting to be monogrammed. If all goes well I plan on posting things to customize at reasonable prices. We shall see!

Happy Friday!

2010-10-15T10:23:00.000-05:00

We're about to head to the Dallas Zoo for the first time...wish us luck!
Here are some pictures from this morning. Happy Friday!

Kate is trying to put a bow in her hair. She just started this and it's so funny!

Lily took a piece of string from Kate (not sure where they got string?) and you can see Kate's feelings are very hurt. Lily is definitely a little bully!

What we do during nap time

2010-10-13T17:32:00.001-05:00

Kate has learned to take off her clothes and after her afternoon nap, I usually find them on the floor outside her crib. Luckily she had a onesie on and she hasn't learned how to undo snaps. Last time we took our pants off, the diaper came off as well. It was a mess.

Pictures below:
#1- Kate in onesie.
#2- Kate's dress on floor.
#3-View of the dress removal.

Our Gigi made the dress Kate took off. Could it have been a dress malfunction???

12 month measurements and new clothes

2010-10-13T10:39:00.001-05:00

Here's where the girls are on the growth charts. I'm sure this is no surprise, but we have some very tall babies!

Kate:
Height: 30.5 inches; 90%
Weight: 20.4 pounds; 48%
Head circumference: 45.2; 52%

Lily:
Height: 31.5 inches; 97%
Weight: 20.5 pounds; 48%
Head circumference: 47; 90%

Lily's head is still on track to be rather large. It cracks me up because we have trouble getting her shirts over her head!

The day of the girl's birthday party my mom and I took a sewing class and learned how to make pillow case dresses. It ended up being harder than I thought, and there were some mistakes, but I think the dresses turned out really cute. I'm hoping to buy a sewing machine as well as an embroidery machine soon and start making the girls clothes. Yes, I'm crazy.

We also got some cute outfits from Aunt Jenny and Uncle Jeff. They're so cute and the girls look so old in them...little toddlers! Speaking of toddlers, Lily is walking everywhere now and Kate took her first two steps last week. Our little girls are growing up!

Our little pumpkins at the pumpkin patch

2010-10-06T09:53:00.000-05:00

I can't believe how amazing the weather is in Dallas right now. All I want to do is be outside. I took the girls to the Arboretum yesterday to see the pumpkin village. We had a picnic with our cousin Sloane and had a great time walking around and playing in the millions of pumpkins! And we love our new pumpkin dresses from Gigi!

Birthday pictures

2010-10-05T15:53:00.000-05:00

Kate and Lily had the very best birthday ever. They could not have been in better moods and really enjoyed all 40 of their closest friends and family at their party. We spent the majority of the time outside and the weather in Dallas was amazing this weekend! We grilled mini sliders and I made pink lemonade as well as adult lemonade. The bakery brought us cupcakes and the girls each had their own smash cake. Their cakes were so cute! Devin made a wonderful slideshow and the girls enjoyed opening their presents the next day (even thought we said no gifts!). They are in love with their new toys and books. It was perfect and so nice to spend such a wonderful day with people we love. Here are a few pictures. The first one is blurry because it's an action shot, but I had to add it because I think it's so funny that they push each other around the house on their new toy!

Happy FIRST Birthday, Kate and Lily!

2010-09-30T15:25:00.000-05:00

It is so hard to imagine that one year ago today Devin and I were in the hospital and I was being induced. We woke up at 5am that morning knowing that we would be meeting our two precious girls sometime that day.

I remember being very anxious, very excited and a lot terrified. Everything went very smoothly and at 2:33 pm we got to meet Kate Elizabeth. Shortly after at 3:03pm we got to meet Lily Elise. Lily gave us a little scare by not cooperating and not wanting to come out (almost leading to a c-section), but she came out on her own time and I have a feeling Lily will always be doing things when she wants, and when she's ready.

We have our one year appointment tomorrow so we'll be able to go over our stats then, but for now I just want to note (shortly) how this first year has been. It has been the longest and shortest year of my life.

I've never felt so happy, so exhausted and so blessed. Kate and Lily are big, strong healthy babies, and smart too! And I'm so happy they have each other.

I know they will forever be close and I'm so thankful my girls will always have a very best friend. Happy Birthday, Kate and Lily!!!

Side note- I am so glad I've decided not to take these chair pictures after 12 months. You have no idea how hard it's been the last few months to take their picture!!!

One year picture preview

2010-09-21T17:03:00.000-05:00

One year pictures at the Arboretum

2010-09-17T08:46:00.000-05:00

We took the girls to the Arboretum Wednesday morning to have their one year pictures taken by Suzi Neely.
The girls were truly on their best behavior and it was still next to impossible to get a good picture of both of them at the same time. They just move too fast! I feel confident though that Suzi got some great shots. Here's a picture Devin took on his iphone so you can see what a beautiful place the Dallas Arboretum is. It's magical and I can't wait to see what Suzi captured!

Lily takes her first steps!

2010-09-16T09:48:00.000-05:00

Lily took three steps Tuesday and then five steps today. She is very close to walking and it's so much fun to watch her!

Lily in stride

And we're down

Before and After

2010-09-16T09:32:00.000-05:00

We had draperies installed in our living room and dining room last Friday and they look AMAZING! I am so happy with them and am very thankful that Karen helped make everything perfect. She even helped me hang a few mirrors around the house that have been sitting on the floor for months. Truth be told, my husband and I are not very handy and would rather put off an argument over how to hang the darn things rather than get it done. So, not only did Karen help make our house more of a home, she also helped save our marriage!
Here are some before and after pictures. I borrowed all these pictures from Karen because hers were better than mine. Thank you, Karen for everything!

Living room before

Living room after

Close up of the fabric. I chose this bright blue to add color and Karen suggested adding the brown trim. Genius!

Dining room before

Dining room after

Close up of the dining room fabric

11 months, the best I can do!

2010-09-07T10:14:00.001-05:00

I am WAY late on this post and it was extremely challenging to get a picture of both girls looking at the camera, much less smiling at the same time.

Both girls have been very sick with some bug that they caught who knows where. We've spent the last two weeks changing sheets two and three times a night, giving multiple baths throughout the day and trying to shove pedialyte down their throats. Guess I'm going to have to get used to it taking a full month for everyone to get well when the girls catch something. One has it one week, the other has it the next.

Here's what the girls are up to at 11 months:
Both girls currently weigh around 18-19 pounds. I think this number would be much higher had they not been so sick the last few weeks. They're still wearing size 12 month clothes and I'm sure will shortly be moving into size 18 month. I can't imagine though because the next size looks SO big! Both girls are "cruising" from furniture to furniture around the house and Lily is very close to walking. She took her first two steps this month. I'm sure Kate will follow right behind her as she's a little more cautious. Their little knees are no longer red because they're spending the majority of their time now standing.

Bath time is our favorite time of the day. Ever since we got back from the beach, they are obsessed with splashing in the water and crawling around the tub. They're no longer in the infant bath tub and I can usually bathe them at the same time. I love watching them play in the bath tub together.

As you can see from the picture above, the girls are getting a little more aggressive with one another. Here Kate is trying to grab Lily's bow and immediately after, Lily bit Kate for pulling on her face. They steal each others toys and they're starting to realize that that hurts their feelings. I can't imagine how this will all be when they're two.

Kate is really starting to turn into a little ham. She loves music and she loves to dance!

Lily is quite the dare devil and truly has no fear when it comes to trying new things.

Here's the best picture I could get for 11 months. Weak, right? The girls have started Mother's Day Out. Lily went last Monday while Kate was sick and then it was canceled this Monday because of the holiday. It will be so nice to have that free time to go to the grocery store, run errands and work out. I'm so thankful for the time and hope we can stay well and take advantage of it. Plus, it will be good for the girls to get out of the house and interact with the other babies in their class.

Our first birthday is coming up. I can't wait for Kate and Lily to spend their birthdays with friends and family and I can't believe my little girls are about to be one!

Playdate with Mommy's Friends

2010-09-03T10:36:00.000-05:00

Two good friends came over yesterday to play with the girls and hang out with me while Devin was out of town for work. It was so nice to see Courtney and Lindsey and the girls really enjoyed all the extra attention. We've been sick with our first ever stomach bug this last week so it was also really nice to have extra help with them. They've been pretty pathetic but things are starting to look up and I got some cute pictures!

Lindsey rocking the girls

Kate showing Lindsey her favorite book

Courtney and Lily

First Birthday dresses

2010-08-25T21:11:00.000-05:00

I'm purchasing these this week. I had everything picked out and ready to go and now I'm changing my mind. I'm extremely indecisive and I want your opinion. I asked Devin and I'll show you what he picked. He just loves his girls in dresses. All outfits/dresses from Etsy.

This is the outfit I originally picked out. I love the cupcake and it looks really comfortable. I also thought it could easily be worn more than just for their birthdays and that the pants would come in handy for Fall.

When asked his opinion, Devin chose this dress. It's so cute and girly. I would have one made in bright pink and the other made in lime green. I would also see if she could add a cupcake applique to it.

I thought this looked SO comfortable and sweet. I would also ask for a cupcake applique of some sort. Not sure how easy that would be on this fabric.

And then this is such a precious outfit, also the most expensive.

Let me know what you think!!!

Our Family Vacation

2010-08-25T09:21:00.001-05:00

We just got back from Orange Beach, AL, our very first beach vacation as a family. It was so much fun and I'm so glad we got to share it with Gigi and Papa and Aunt Jenny and Uncle Jeff. We stayed at Phoenix West, a brand new condo with three bedrooms and 4 baths. It was a perfect set up with a perfect view. There was a pool with a great baby area as well as a lazy river. The beach was very nice as well- no oil or tar balls to be seen. Thank goodness because the girls immediately started eating the sand and Lily even managed to put several rocks in her mouth as well. The weather was also perfect, between 85 and 90 degrees with an amazing breeze. Devin and I also got to sneak away with Jeff and Jenny for a date night at a restaurant called Cobalt that Courtney recommended. It was so good! Oysters on the half shell and shrimp and grits. Enough said.

Devin and the girls

2010-08-10T22:40:00.000-05:00

I'm in vacation mode. We're headed to Gulf Shores with my family and I cannot wait. Here are a few pictures of Devin and the girls after church Sunday. So cute!

Can't believe we're 10 months!

2010-08-03T20:52:00.000-05:00

Kate and Lily celebrated their 10 month birthday last week. It's so hard to believe that they'll be a year in 2 months...but back to 10 months.

We are a mess! We are into absolutely everything and our favorite game at the moment is chase. We love for mommy or daddy (or both) to chase us around the house. Sometimes we even decide to do it when mommy is changing our diaper and that's always super funny.

We're getting so much hair and our bows that we showed off in our 9 month picture are becoming a permanent part of our outfits. But not for long- we really enjoy ripping each others bows off and chewing on them. Remember that we are still teething.

And speaking of teething, Lily has 6 teeth and Kate has 4 (with 2 others poking through). Lily started biting last month and Kate has decided to join her in the effort this month. I'm really pretty worried about this one and my method of saying no and offering a distraction isn't working. Guess I'm going to have to break out some parenting books. We start Mother's Day Out at the end of the month and we certainly don't want to bite our new friends.

As you can see we are very healthy girls. We love to eat and are pretty much eating all finger foods. If mommy offers us something with a spoon we will more than likely throw it at her. We've started eating salmon stix, sweet potato french fries, chicken, tofu, veggie chicken patties, corn and even regular old fish sticks. All organic, of course! I'm really pretty sad that I'm not "making" their food anymore. I still offer fresh fruits and vegetables, but obviously I can't make everything.

And the biggest, most fun development that has occurred over the last month is our ever growing friendship. We laugh a each other, pat one another on the back and our game of chase is so much fun. Tonight the girls started playing a little game of hide and seek behind the dining room chair for the first time. So funny! It's so amazing to watch them grow and really start to love one another. I know their friendship is going to be so special and I'm so happy that these girls have each other.

Family, more family and friends!

2010-07-30T09:21:00.000-05:00

We've had lots of visitors this last weekend and this week and it's been so much fun! Aunt Linda came and stayed with us last Thursday night on her way to Iowa for a family reunion. It was nice catching up the girls really enjoyed showing off for her. Then my parents came in town Friday night and stayed with us the rest of the weekend. Aunt Jenny and Uncle Jeff joined us as well making the drive all the way from Memphis, so we were all together and it was so nice. They all had a wedding Saturday night and I tagged along with them (or crashed) while Devin was kind enough to stay at home with the girls. We had a great time and I'm so happy that we've gotten to see family so much this year. I really want Kate and Lily surrounded by family and friends as much as possible and I know that they understand in their own special way just how much they are loved.

Yesterday Catherine came over for the afternoon and we made the girls first birthday invitations while they napped. They are SO, SO cute. I absolutely love them and cannot wait to send them out. And they are super special because they're hand made by a very special friend. And me- I helped cut the paper! Jen joined us after she got off work and we all went out for pizza after the girls went to bed. Again, so much fun and it was so nice of them to make the trip from FW to Dallas. My friends are so pretty!

Pictures from this week

2010-07-22T09:24:00.000-05:00

First of all we had a wonderful lunch with our good friend Courtney Black yesterday. We did a little shopping with the girls and ate at Bread Winners. It was so good and so nice to get out with a friend! The girls were pretty good as well and I think enjoyed all the people watching. Unfortunately no pictures from lunch, but here are some new pictures from this week. Enjoy!

Lily helping me with laundry

Kate all done with her banana. If you look closely you can see all her food on her bib. Half of it goes in her mouth, and the other half just hangs out for later.

Kate waking Lily up from her morning nap. The first thing Kate does is run to Lily's crib if she's still sleeping. It's so sweet.

Lily upset because she got woken up.

Kate's new way to travel with objects/toys. She likes to take Lily's bows out of her hair and chew on them. She also loves to crawl around with her dolly in her mouth so she can take it wherever she goes. Pretty comical but I think she's pretty smart for figuring it out!

The girls playing before bed. They love climbing on top of each other right now.

Party dresses

2010-07-16T09:41:00.001-05:00

Last night we went to a birthday party for one of Devin's colleagues and brought the girls even though it was past their bedtime. They were so good and had a lot of fun playing with the "big girls". We basically had little babysitters because the older girls there pushed them around in the stroller. It was pretty nerve wrecking at first as I watched Kate and Lily getting pushed into chairs, people as well as a wall here and there, but ultimately they had a blast and we're hoping they didn't come home with any bad germs!

Lily

Kate

The girls playing before we left

Kate and Lily with the girls. Kate looks terrified in this picture and sweet Lily hasn't learned that you can't do that with your legs when wearing a dress!

9 month check up

2010-07-14T15:17:00.000-05:00

We had our 9 month appointment this morning and it went very well. The girls are still right on track with all their measurements and development and we're so lucky to have such beautiful, healthy babies.

Kate:
Height: 29.25 inches, 90%
Weight:18.8 pounds, 48%
Head: 44.5 inches, 70%

Lily:
Height: 28.75 inches. 74%
Weight: 18.13 pounds, 48%
Head: 46.4 inches. 92%

So as you can see Kate is becoming a very long little girl and Lily's head just keeps growing. The girls were weighed two weeks ago (we had to go see the doctor when they were sick) and in those two weeks they have both gained about 1/2 a pound each. Looks like our new love of cheese toast is showing up on the scale!

I just don't understand how they've gone from this.....

To this...

Visitors

2010-07-11T14:48:00.000-05:00

I'm so bad about taking pictures when people come over to see us. Lindsay came over Wednesday to play with the girls and go to dinner with me. She's so good with babies and it was great to see her and have a night out with a girlfriend. We tried out little katana on Travis and it was pretty good.

We also got to see Catherine's new house in FW on Friday. It's so cute and she's done such a good job decorating. Unfortunately she had to redecorate after we left because I had to baby proof her house when we got there. I did manage to get a few pictures.

Now Catherine knows how hard it is to stage a picture with both girls. Not happening!

Here are some pictures of the girls in their high chairs:

Kate

Lily

And if you're wondering why Kate is smiling, it's because Elle is licking her hand. And if you're wondering how Kate gets her to lick her hand, it's by feeding her food. Not sure how to break this habit except locking Elle up while they eat.

Last, but not least, here's a picture from our girls trip to Sam's Club this morning. Thank you, thank you, thank you Sam's for the double shopping cart! It's the little things.....

Flash back in car seats

2010-07-08T09:44:00.000-05:00

Kate and Lily under 6 pounds each

Lily and Kate at 18 pounds each

Lily

Kate

9 months and hair bows

2010-07-08T09:34:00.000-05:00

The girls are 9 months as of June 30th. This post is a little late but we've been sick over here and we're just now getting over it. We're really starting to show our little personalities over the last month and we've had lots of changes. Most importantly we are now able to wear bows in our hair! This is a huge milestone for Kate and Lily and we're looking forward to not getting mistaken for boys anymore. Side note- if the baby is wearing pink it's safe to assume that baby is a girl.

Kate has been such a happier baby and her top teeth don't seem to be bothering her as much as the bottom ones as they're coming in. She has three teeth total, two bottom and one top. It's crazy how the top teeth make her look so grown up. Kate is a good eater and is really starting to be able to feed herself her finger foods. Sometimes I think she finished everything on her tray but then I take her out of the high chair, she's literally sitting on 20 cheerios. She's getting it though and it will be so much easier on me when she can feed herself. Kate has officially given up her "special crawl" and is crawling around everywhere. I think one day she just got it and she hasn't gone back. She's starting to become very vocal and crawls up to me and makes all kinds of noises until I pick her up. She's doing so well standing and pulling herself up but has trouble getting down. If I hear her crying and I'm in the other room, it's safe to say she's standing at a chair and needs help down. Poor thing!

Miss Lily has 4 teeth, two bottom and two top. She also has a 5th coming in. So happy that they all decided to come in at the same time (insert sarcasm). She's my bossy little girl and is really starting to know what she wants, and most importantly what she doesn't want. She prefers for me to feed her and will scream until I put the next bite in her mouth. Maybe that's why Kate is feeding herself better? She doesn't want to have to wait on Lily! There are several things Lily does not like including putting a bib on, not being able to drink out of your cup and getting her nose/face wiped after she eats. She absolutely hates that and will start flailing and has even hit me in the face a time or two. What?? Who knew a 9 month old could hit so hard. Honestly I try not to laugh because it gets pretty funny and I can tell she's going to be my strong willed girl. She's also got such a great sense of humor and has started to really enjoy music. She's my little dancer. We took the girls out to dinner at a mexican restaurant and Lily loved the music- so much that she hit her head on the table while dancing. Wonder where she gets her dance moves?

Both girls are standing very well and I'm guessing they could very well be walking in the next couple of months..scary. Lily has even started moving from furniture to furniture. She seriously has no fear. As for food, we're really starting to try more and more things. We've even started eating chicken. I'm really looking forward to us all being able to eat together, especially now that we can make it out to restaurants.

And this is the best picture I could get of the girls. It is SO hard to keep them sitting down and you can pretty much bet that they will always have their hands in their mouth because of their new teeth. So there it is, 9 months. Can you believe they're getting close to a year????

Our weekend

2010-06-24T09:05:00.000-05:00

We had a great weekend and had some guests come over Saturday afternoon. Annie is in town from Alabama and it was so nice to see her! Courtney Black, Sue and Annie came over to see the girls (and me!)

Annie and Lily

Sue and Kate

Courtney and Kate

Annie gave the girls the dresses they're wearing and I love them. They're also Devin's favorite- he likes the "preppy" look on the girls!

Sunday was Father's Day and we went to church in the morning with our friends Doug, Amy and their 12 week old baby girl, Landry. I'm SO glad we did this and the girls did very well in the nursery. They were absolutely exhausted when we picked them up and passed out immediately in the car. No tears though so I would call it a huge success. Later on we made the drive to Flower Mound and had dinner with Devin's family.

So it was a great weekend and now we're almost through the week, and unfortunately it hasn't been going as well. The girls are pretty sick and have high fevers- Lily got up to 102.9 yesterday. Devin and I were both sick 2 weeks ago, our cousin Sloane was sick last week and the girls were in a nursery with other babies Sunday- all several ways our girls could have caught a cold. Devin is out of town this week in San Fransisco for work, so things have been a little tough. Thankfully Motrin brings their fever down and helps them sleep so I'm hoping they'll be feeling better in the next day or so. When Devin and I were sick we took z packs (love those things) but antibiotics are very rarely given to infants so they pretty much have to tough it out. I would gladly take their place being sick any day.

So that's what's been going on with us. Hoping the girls have a good day today and start feeling better. Having 2 sick babies is tough!

One in the Same

2010-06-17T08:51:00.000-05:00

Just saw this book on another mother of twins blog: One and the Same:

My Life as an Identical Twin and What I've Learned About Everyone's Struggle to Be Singular

I'm going to get a copy today. I really haven't read any book on twins, other than what to buy for multiples and ways to make things easier when you come home with multiples. Whether I had twins or not, I think this book would be very fascinating. Here's a review I just read on Amazon:

I expected this book to be interesting (and it fully met my expectations), but I couldn't foretell how often it would make my heart ache. Abigail doesn't hold back, courageously revealing the sometimes painful longing she has for more closeness with Robin, her twin, while also discussing the wonderful aspects of their relationship. Although it isn't surprising to learn the strength of emotional intensity in being an identical twin, some aspects of the relationship are a revelation. Abigail tells readers that she has a life partner in her sister, someone with whom she is compelled to share her deepest thoughts and whose opinions she treasures. But there's another side to the coin: Abigail takes on any emotional distress Robin shares with her and is devastated by any spat with her sister. She also is frank about her sorrow in a certain recent distancing in their relationship, one emanating from Robin.

I think I've avoided reading these books because I don't want to hear about any of the "difficult times" my girls might go through because they have a twin sister. But in reality I'm sure they won't have any more than the other singletons out there, theirs will just be different. I suggest all my close friends and family buy this book so we can all discuss.

Halfway through 2010

2010-06-16T14:30:00.000-05:00

I can't believe we're already in the middle of this year. I decided to go back and look at my goals for 2010 and to see what (if anything!) I've gotten accomplished from my list. Oh, and this is pretty long and really just for me so feel free to skip over. I did however add pictures of the girls in their bathing suits this weekend so there's something to look forward to at the end of this post.

Let's recap this!

2010 Goals

1. Curtains for my living room and dining room. I'm thinking Tiffany blue.

I went to the fabric store this weekend with my mother in law and picked out fabric for curtains for the living and dining room as well as fabric to recover our couch in the living room. I also picked out a really neat camel and cream zebra stripe fabric for a tufted ottoman for our living room. I plan on using it as a coffee table since our current one has lots of sharp edges and is pretty much a hazard to the babies. I can't wait to get all this done but I have a feeling it will be another month or two.

2. Summer beach vacation. I want us to rent a beach house with family and bring the girls.
We rented an amazing condo in Gulf Shores for a week in August. It's brand new, close to all the shopping and restaurants and has a great pool. My parents as well as Jeff and Jenny are coming with us and we're so excited. One minor flaw in the plan- BP had an oil spill. Heard of it? I have my fingers crossed that it will still all work out but we're pretty nervous to head down there if there are a lot of tar balls and oil fumes in the air. We have time though so again, fingers crossed. I really want to take the girls to the beach!
3. Fun weekend vacation with Devin. Maybe Mexico??? Mom, do you want to babysit?
Check and check. Hmm. Go figure that this is the only thing on my list that I can officially cross off. Thanks Gigi and Papa for babysitting!
4. Find a church for our family with a good nursery.
I'm embarrassed to say that this one still hasn't been accomplished. My neighbor introduced me to her church and I really, really liked the nursery but I'm not sure about the actual service. This is still an ongoing process that we haven't spent enough time working on.
5. Find a reliable babysitter that we can trust to keep the girls every once in awhile so Devin and I can go out to dinner occasionally. Not sure of the best way to do this but I plan on asking my neighbors who they use. They're moving soon so maybe we can just steal theirs!
We get to check this one off our list as well. We have a new babysitter named Allison that my neighbor recommended. She's so sweet and good with the girls, even though she doesn't really get to spend time with them since they're asleep when we go out. Her older sister is also a children's photographer and we're pretty sure we're going to use her to take the girls 10 month pictures. I really like her work.
6. Reconnect with friends. Now that the girls are getting a little easier, I would like to start seeing friends again. Maybe even having some dinner parties. The girls go to bed at 7pm so I'm hoping friends can come to us!
I'm very thankful that we've made some progress here as well. Catherine and Sean as well as Jen and Ben all came over Saturday night for dinner. It was so fun catching up. I wish we all got to see each other more. I've also been able to go out more with girlfriends the last couple of months after the girls go to bed. Our friends Doug and Amy Walker just had a baby girl as well and named her Landry. Well I've kind of stolen Amy and made her my new wine buddy while the Dads babysit the girls. Sure we miss having them around but it's just so nice to get out and it's so nice that I don't have to feel silly talking about babies all night because she can talk about hers as well. Times Ten is a local winery around the corner from us and it's pretty much my new favorite place.
7. Frame some of the newborn pictures we had taken of Kate and Lily when they were 1 month old. I'm going to start a "Kate and Lily" wall and can't wait to fill it up. (I'm a procrastinator when it comes to framing pictures. I didn't frame any of our wedding pictures until after Jeff and Jenny got married and we went to their house for Christmas and they already had their wedding pictures everywhere. I had no excuse!)
Well I did frame some small pictures and they look great. I also got large canvases made of their newborn pictures and I'm just not sure that I'm crazy about them. They just look awkward on the wall. Some people have suggested I frame the canvas so I'm going to try that. Frustrated about that one.

Lily

Kate. We LOVE drinking out of cups right now but not the sippy cups that are for them- they like the big cups that mommy drinks out of.

Lily and Kate

What we've been up to....

2010-06-16T14:00:00.000-05:00

We've been pretty busy around here and I've neglected my blog and posting pictures of the girls. I'll try to catch up!

Kate and Lily are everywhere and into everything. It's a little out of control but they've both been so happy and content lately that I'll take it. Kate said "mama" a couple of months ago but never said it again. It very well could have been a fluke. She is now saying it all the time..."mama, mama, mama". She just says it over and over again. Music to my ears!

Lily and Kate racing across the room

Devin's parents were in town last week from Colorado! They moved in January and now live 18 hours away from us, close to Aspen. We've missed them so much and it's been nice seeing them. The girls have changed so much in the last 5 months and I can't imagine how crazy that is for his parents. We wish they still lived here but we are very excited about all the ski trips and white Christmas's in our future!

The girls are so much fun right now and really starting to work up an appetite. They've started eating finger food (though really not very good at it!) but it's a lot of fun making their meals. This morning they had pieces of a whole wheat bagel, very small cheese cubes and my homemade apple sauce. We tried peas this week and they weren't very fond of those and I can't blame them. I always taste what I make for them and they were pretty much awful. Tomorrow we're trying kiwi and I'm sure that will be a hit. Their favorites are still sweet potatoes, avocado and banana.

Sweet Lily. I love her eyes in this pictures.

Kate. She looks so happy and innocent.

Pictures from Memorial Day weekend

2010-06-03T08:36:00.000-05:00

We had such a nice weekend and had some company. Our nephew Grayson spent the night with us Saturday night. He's 8 and the girls are so infatuated with him, especially Lily.

Grayson and Kate

Grayson and Lily

Jeff and Jenny were also in town this weekend for a wedding. We met them at the pool at their hotel Saturday afternoon. It was actually the girls first time in a pool (other than our little baby pool) and I didn't get any pictures! We had a babysitter for the first time Sunday night so we could go out to dinner. It worked out well because we went out after the girls were asleep so she basically just sat here while they slept. Pretty easy job! We had so much fun with Uncle Jeff and Aunt Jenny and it was nice to have them help with the girls- they were in rare form Sunday night!

Aunt Jenny feeding Kate. Love it when other people feed my girls!

Uncle Jeff with Lily

Kate and Lily are 8 months!

2010-06-01T21:22:00.000-05:00

The girls are getting so old and very big! I would say both weigh about 18 pounds. They are getting so hard to carry around and their long legs are hanging off their carriers. I ordered new car seats today and went with the Britax Marathon. They're much bigger than the car seats I'm using now so I hope they both fit in my back seat. I also had to get a new stroller since we won't be using the snap and go anymore and the Bob is too hard to use to run errands. I'm not sure it could even fit it through most doorways!

The girls have been trying all sorts of new food: carrots, yogurt, green beans, cottage cheese, peaches and a whole wheat bagel! The bagel is pretty random but they loved it and I'm pretty sure Kate wanted to sleep with hers. I'm still making all their food, at least the food I can make and I'm still enjoying it.

Lily is crawling everywhere and she is super fast. She has started pulling up on things and can even manage to crawl on top of things. She is losing her chubby thighs and I think it's because she's constantly moving. She also started babbling more and loves to say ga-ga over and over again. She's even said da-da a few times which makes Devin very happy. She officially has her two bottom teeth now.

Lily with a pink face after our walk. It's so hot outside!

Kate is determined to crawl her own special way. She scoots around the house and it's actually pretty nice because she's not nearly as fast as Lily! I'm thinking she'll go from her scoot straight to walking. She's started pulling up on things as well but can't stand as well as Lily. She's just as strong (if not stronger!) but she just doesn't want to right now. She got her first tooth a few days ago and is such a happier baby now. Side note- I am not a fan of teething.

Kate playing airplane with Devin. She constantly has her hand in her mouth because her poor teeth hurt so bad.

Lily standing up. She loves to use us to balance.

Both girls are still very busy and very happy (when they're not teething.) They're still sleeping 7p-7a, or usually around 6:45a which we're very thankful for. They take naps from 8:30a-10a, 12p-12:30p and 2p-3:30p. I'm thinking over the next month we'll try pushing their morning nap to 9a and cutting out the 12p. We're also going to start eating more finger foods this month which will be fun and extremely messy! The girls still have their bright blue eyes and are getting much more hair. It still looks like it will be light brown and I cannot wait for all the bows we'll be wearing in the near future. This has been such a fun month and I'm definitely looking forward to the next one.

Here's the 8 month picture!

We had a visitor yesterday!

2010-05-28T10:06:00.000-05:00

Courtney came by yesterday afternoon because she was off work (or called in sick!) and brought us some very pretty flowers. It was so nice catching up. Kate was asleep most of the time but Lily managed to stay awake because I'm sure she just knew she was missing out on something.

Courtney and Lily

Our pretty flowers!

Lily playing with Elle's collar. Poor Elle looks defeated.

Devin feeding Kate. Check out that baby belly!

The chicken pox

2010-05-17T08:57:00.000-05:00

Last Wednesday afternoon I noticed Lily had a few spots on her back. I thought she was having an allergic reaction to a new food I was feeding her. They started to spread so I took her to the doctor Friday- she has the chicken pox! Somehow Kate has managed to be clear of them but we're pretty confident that spots will be popping up any day (any minute) now. Most kids don't even get chicken pox anymore because they have a vaccine for them now but you can't get it until 12 months. So far Lily is still her happy self and they don't seem to be bothering her too much, except for the occasional itch behind her ears.

Since it's so contagious we had to stay home all weekend. We went out and got a baby pool and spent a lot of time outside yesterday. It was a wonderful day and the girls had a lot of fun. I bought a cheap baby pool that is a piece of junk so if anyone reading this has any recommendations for a good pool, let me know!

Lily and Kate playing in their new bath tub

Playing with Daddy

The girls in their pool- Kate sticking her tongue out

Cabo for Mother's Day

2010-05-10T10:09:00.001-05:00

Devin and I left for Cabo at 7 am Thursday afternoon. My parents drove in to babysit and my Dad dropped us off at the airport. It was so hard to leave the girls but we had such a good time! We got to Cabo at noon and immediately hit the amazing infinity pool overlooking the ocean as well as the swim up bar. Devin asked me before we left if I wanted to do anything. I let him know that all I wanted to do was eat, sleep and drink...and that was the order of my priorities for the weekend. I ate Sea Bass, Hawaiian Butter Fish, Red Snapper, fish tacos. I also had sushi from their amazing swim up bar restaurant every single day for lunch. And don't forget about the best margaritas with fresh lime (all day long!) with some pretty amazing fresh guacamole and chips. I'm sure Devin is laughing right now because for some reason I like to tell him what I eat everyday!

It was such a fun trip but we were definitely ready to come back Sunday morning to see our sweet girls...plus it was my first Mother's Day! We woke up at 5:30 am to catch our flight and were back in Dallas for lunch. I got to spend the rest of the day with Kate and Lily after an amazing vacation. It was the perfect Mother's Day. Lily has even sprouted a tooth! There were several babies at the resort with their families and it definitely made me miss my girls. Normally I would be irritated that parents would bring their babies to a really nice resort, but I look at it totally different now. None of the babies were as young as Kate and Lily, they were between 12 months and 2 years, but they were all so well behaved and having a blast in the pool. We talked to one couple about bringing children on this type of vacation and they said they always travel with a set of grandparents. Sounds good to me! I can't wait until the girls are a little older and we can take them on family vacations. But for now I would like to freeze them in time at this current age and enjoy them being the perfect babies they are, and 100% reliant on their mommy!

Special thanks to Gigi and Papa for babysitting. Happy Mother's Day, Gigi and Happy Birthday, Papa!

The infinity pool overlooking the ocean

The first day I got to meet Kate and Lily! Happy late Mother's Day!

Kate and Lily are 7 months (30 weeks)

2010-04-30T14:03:00.001-05:00

We're officially at the 7 month mark. Lots of new things have been going on with the girls and they are so happy and curious right now. We started eating solids at 6 months and the girls are just now starting to enjoy eating. So far I've made all their baby food and it's so easy and even tastes good! We've had sweet potatoes, bananas and avocados. Unfortunately the avocados were not a hit and they're supposed to be the brain food. I'll try them again next week. Next on the menu is pears and peaches. Yum.

Lily has been crawling for a few weeks and she is into everything. Her favorite discovery is the dog water bowl. She loves to stick her hand in it and then lick the water off her hand. Gross. She also started sitting up last week. I mean straight up. Another first for Lily!

Kate has mastered a one arm scoot. She drags herself throughout the house using her right arm. It's pretty funny to watch. I'm convinced she knows how to crawl. I've seen her go a few feet the traditional way, but I think she gets around faster with this one arm so that's the route she has chosen.

It looks like our girls are going to keep their gorgeous, bright blue eyes. Most babies eye color changes as they grow but by 6 months their permanent eye color should be set. I LOVE their electric blue eyes! It also looks like we might have a couple of brunettes. Their hair is slowly but surely growing in and it looks like it's going to be light brown. Both girls like to feel their hair, especially when they're sleepy.

They are both very happy babies, sleep very well and we are very lucky that they are so healthy.

Kate and Lily: 7 months

Look how far we've come. They look more and more alike each month. Gigi made this fun collage. Love it!

Lily sitting up

Kate in the jumper

Miss Kate after bath time

Miss Lily after her bath

Kate and Lily's 6 month check up

2010-04-17T09:39:00.001-05:00

Kate:
Weight: 16 pounds and 2 1/2 ounces; 51%
Height: 26.5 inches; 75%
Head: 42.5 inches; 50%
-Kate said mama at 6 months
-She is starting to "scoot" everywhere
-She is wearing size 6-9 month clothes and still in a size 2 diaper

Lily:
Weight: 16 pounds and 3 ounces; 52%
Height: 26.25 inches; 73%
Head: 43.7 inches; 75%
-Lily crawled at 6 months
-She is wearing size 6-9 month clothes and still in a size 2 diaper

Both girls have started eating solids and really aren't very impressed with the new food. They are now sitting in their high chairs and ate bananas for the first time yesterday. They liked them more than rice cereal, but really just prefer their bottles over anything. They are really into toys right now and it's so much fun to watch them get excited about everything around them. Now that they're able to move around, they are much happier babies and are enjoying their new found freedom.

We were so surprised to find out Lily weighs more than Kate. Kate is visibly larger than Lily, but Lily's head seems to be the majority of her weight! It looks like both girls will be tall, but we all figured that!

We asked about the DNA test to find out if the girls are identical or fraternal and we found out they really don't administer the test unless something were to happen and we really needed to find out if they shared DNA. I noticed a few weeks ago that the lines on their hands and feet are exactly the same, and our doctor said that he's leaning towards them being identical because their percentages are so close at all our check ups. He said most of his fraternal twins have very different numbers. So we're going with identical for now! Keep in mind the chance of having identical twins is 0.4% or 1 in 250. Pretty crazy!

28 Weeks- LILY CRAWLED!

2010-04-14T15:38:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we went over to Aunt Melissa's and got to play with our cousin Sloane. While we were over there, Lily officially crawled. Not a scoot, or a crawl/fall...it was a crawl. And it continued when we got home. She actually made it the length of her bedroom.

Our other first is from Kate. Two days ago, Kate said MA-MA. She was in her swing and I went to pick her up and she very clearly said mama. Devin was in the other room and heard it loud and clear as well.

Lots of fun things at 28 weeks. We have our doctor's appointment tomorrow that I'm excited about. Who gets excited about doctor's appointments?!?

Kate and Lily

Kate growling at me

Lily in the front and Kate in the back

The view of our living room..I mean playroom

Lily

Kate

Your babies are the most active 6 month olds we've ever seen!

2010-04-12T15:48:00.001-05:00

The girls and I went to our bible study this morning. We meet once a month and the teacher is a child development specialist and it's so nice to get her perspective on things. The girls went to the nursery for the second time in their short lives and it was great to have some me time. They seemed to have a really good time-no tears when I left them and no sign of tears when I picked them up. Another success! The nursery workers said that Kate and Lily are the "most active" 6 month old babies they've ever kept. No kidding! I glanced around the room and all the other babies their age were in swings or bouncy chairs, just chilling. Meanwhile, Kate and Lily are scooting all over the place trying to eat things. After the bible study we met Bryanna, an old friend from Staff Care, at Mi Cocina for lunch. The girls were so good! I, of course, had anxiety about going out to lunch with them, but they really surprised me. They pretty much slept the whole time. We sat outside because the weather in Dallas is amazing right now. After that we came back home for a bottle and a long nap. It's been a really great day.

Backtrack to Saturday.... We took a field trip to Fort Worth for a going away party for Susanna at Courtney's house. It was so nice to see everyone but the girls were tired and fussy and Kate's diaper had a minor malfunction. It basically didn't work and I had to have a quick wardrobe change. Needless to say we left the party after an hour. Oh well....it happens!

Lindsey and Kate

Courtney and Lily

Lily

Kate

Kate attacking her dolly and Lily loving the camera

I love how happy Kate is in this picture

This picture cracks me up. The girls are ALL over each other right now. Love the chubby legs!

Kate and Lily's first Easter!

2010-04-05T16:10:00.000-05:00

What a very special weekend we had with our family in Shreveport. We drove in from Dallas and Jeff and Jenny met us there from Memphis. The girls were so much fun this weekend and were definitely showing off for their grandparents and Aunt and Uncle. No stranger anxiety with the family. I think they must just know how much these people love them. The girls did a little boutique shopping around Shreveport. There are so many cute children clothes stores and there was one super cute boutique with housewares. We all three shopped and didn't spend a dime. Lots of self control! Mom however bought us a little special Easter present that Jenny and I picked out. It's called Eyestea. I'll let you know if it works! We went to church Sunday..during the girl's nap time. They were pretty good but towards the end we had to step out. They were so tired and not too happy about so many people coming up to them to say hello. They looked absolutely beautiful in their dresses. Little angels! Both Kate and Lily had a few firsts on Saturday. They ate rice cereal for the first time and they also crawled a few inches. Kate is obsessed with the solid food and cries when I switch to Lily to give her a bite. She hasn't caught on that there will be more coming her way. Lily is still a little skeptical. She eats it but makes a funny face every bite. Looking forward to feeding them bananas, avocados and sweet potatoes next.

Here are a few pictures of the sweet girls from this weekend. Hope everyone enjoyed their Easter!

Devin feeding Kate who is grabbing the spoon and bowl to get some more of that yummy rice cereal. I'm feeding Lily who was a little unsure of the whole thing.

Kate reaching for more food. She is very serious about eating.

Lily wondering why she can't just have her bottle.

Papa and Lily watching basketball.

Lily with her Daddy.

Aunt Jenny and Kate with Uncle Jeff and Lily after church. We discovered that Lily LOVES getting her picture taken.

Gigi jumped in the picture.

Me and my sweet girls!

Lily once again excited about getting her picture taken.

Kate showing us how crawling is done.

26 Weeks...or SIX MONTHS!!!

2010-03-31T14:17:00.001-05:00

Kate and Lily are 6 months today! I can't believe they are half a year old. Everything is going by so fast. I just want to freeze these little chubby babies and not let them grow anymore. We have our 6 month appointment in a couple of weeks so I'll be able to give you guys all the stats. We're going to start rice cereal Saturday and plan on taking lots of pictures and videoing this fun experience. The girls are both on the verge of crawling and are already scooting and rolling everywhere. I've lost 3 pounds just trying to keep up with them. They are definitely the bosses of the house. Here are some pictures we took this morning. They are both such happy, healthy babies and we're very thankful for that. Enjoy!!

Kate and Lily. Lily loved taking pictures today...she was quite the ham!

I love it when they hold hands. My little Easter bunnies.