Long, Long Overdue

Hello Bennett - headstand

sibling love - for now

fighting to get out of an open gate

chasing after an open door

sporting her Dora car and waving

cheese, mom

How does this thing work anyway?

Bum - he crawls and pushes it instead of walking

upside down paci

Waking up stance - really??

Sledful - not an easy feat pulling 90+ lbs! It was a short walk.

Bennett just wants a nap (yes, he is in pink and purple because he was too big for his snowsuit)

Laney liked the snow (and sporting her brother's snowsuit)

All boy

Look at that pose

Peek-a-boo from the cardtable barn door

Crazy girl!

All dressed up for church (and I didn't even mean to coordinate their outfits)


So if the last post was overdue, this one is long, long overdue. I should just quit saying that because it happens every time. Where does time go and how does it escape me?
Wow do I have some catching up to do. I better go read my last post to know where I left off.
January and February have been a whirlwind of activity. The babes continue to amaze me everyday. There is nothing I love more than to call Troy at work and tell him myself the new things they discovered or did.

Allison - is continuing to sprout like a bean. She is already out of some of the size 5 clothes I just pulled out this fall and into size 6, and she is still 3... She is a very passionate girl about what she is playing or activity she is involved in. She continues taking swimming lessons and is doing really well. Next week she starts yet another level. I can't believe she is swimming the (short) length of the pool lane all by herself already. She loves animals and her hurt aches when she sees an animal sick or worse, die at grandpa's farm. Her love of music is amazing. She picks up on the words quickly and if I start a song in a different pitch as her she will correct her pitch to match mine. I hope she gets the gift of music that my dad's whole family gracious inherited. She sounds a lot like me when I was young... She is talking a lot about going to preschool in the fall and can't hardly wait. Until then she is mom's big helper around the house. I am not sure what I will do when she is gone. I sometimes take for granted what she does help me with. If I ask her to watch the babies she genuinely does and starts yelling and screaming if they get into something they shouldn't be.

Bennett - He is a big boy and I think always will be. I was looking at him from the waist up the other day and noticed that he has a smaller waist and he angle up and out in a V-shape to his shoulders. I guess I have a line-backer on my hands. I took him into the doctor in early February and he was 25 1/2 lbs. He doesn't look fat, he is just all around a brute. He is using his size to his advantage (not in a good way either). He tends to bully Laney around. He will mow her over to get toys away from her. The other day Laney was standing by one of their activity tables and he mosied up to the table and stood next to her. Sure enough a minute later he started leaning into her and then just threw his hip into her and knocked her down. She came crying to me and because she wasn't at the table anymore he was no longer interested and crawled away!! I guess we have some tough lessons coming his way in not bullying. He has 8 teeth and smiles and giggles at almost everything. However, he is no longer my mild, jolly giant. He discovered that he can scream and loudly. He will scream when he is happy, sad, mad and everything in between. He is full throttle when he is awake but still loves to sleep. He will out-sleep any of the rest of us in the house (ok, maybe not Troy). He wasn't too sure about his first experience in the snow a few weeks back. He just wanted to go back in and have a nap. I have found him on several occasions as he is waking up doing a headstand in his crib and of course with an upside down paci (picture included above). He is a speed demon crawler and if he sees the gate or a door open he is there in a flash.

Delaney - is currently not feeling well. She has had a fever, runny nose and cough the last few days. I think it is her teeth coming through. I can see at least two she is working on. She currently has 3 teeth. Her top one is on the side (eye tooth) and not her middle ones. It looks hilarious! She typically isn't the one to be sick so she is very sad and needing lots of mom. Bennett is following suit (just because he can) and will whine and cling to me too. It is funny how much they do the "monkey see, monkey do" game with many things. She is a peanut compared to the other two but in reality she really isn't. She is going to be tall and skinny. She is a talker and I know immediately when she is awake from naps because she is jabbering. Her other telltale sign of being awake is shaking the crib rails so it knocks against the wall. She can operate on very little sleep and can wake in about two seconds. She loves to wave and she saw my mom across the room last weekend she smiled and waved until mom noticed her. Boy was that a proud grandma moment. She and Bennett seem to have switched roles. She is very smiley and happy and Bennett has been the one with a little bit of an attitude. Never a dull moment.

They weaned themselves off of bottles already and exclusively use sippy cups. I didn't even have a chance to be sad about it because it happened overnight. I got all emotional with Allison's last bottles... I pulled out their push cars last week and they immediately pulled themselves up and started walking behind them!! They have both mastered climbing the steps and went up the whole flight of stairs to their room for nap. I could get used to not carrying 45 lbs up and down the steps multiple times a day. The babes are off pureed foods and into soft cubes. I think they are a little orange from eating the 17 lbs of sweet potatoes I pureed (I think I got carried away buying). They aren't the most adventurous eaters (the total opposite from Allison) so meal times can be a little bit loud and hairy. Allison and I sing lots of songs to distract them while I put bites in. Seems to be a good tactic.

Our house is still on the market and the process is frustrating as ever. I feel like all I do is clean my toilets and vacuum these days. Then we get feedback from some of the showings and people can be downright nasty!! I love my house and am not willing to give it away so if that is the case, we will stay put. We are going to give it another couple months and if something hasn't happened by then we will stay put and possibly consider doing an addition. I makes me sick to my stomach knowing what we paid for the house 5 years ago and what we have it listed for.

Troy and I are headed off to Hawaii next week. He met his sales quota numbers and he has an expense-paid trip for two to Waikiki Beach. I can't wait to see sun and sand. I have a feeling my pasty self might get a little burnt... Could be a sight to see. They will know I am a tourist from the cold north in about two seconds of seeing my legs. The kiddos are going to my mom and dad's farm for the week. Allison thinks she has the best end of the deal (or so we have led her to believe). I am not sure my mom and dad know what is going to hit their house. I appreciate them courageously taking them on. I know they will be in great hands but mom hasn't been away from any of them for more than two nights. I hope I can enjoy the whole trip without getting homesick for my babes.

It was a year the end of January when I went on bed rest and no longer worked. I can't believe how much has changed in the last year. In only 3 weeks my babies will be one!! I am trying to plan the big party day and make it special for everyone (since the twins birthday is the 25th and Allison's is the 31st). I don't want to do a joint party but know it isn't possible for everyone to have their own party. I am still on the band wagon of another one but Troy is so not convinced. He thinks we will end up with more than one :)

So long for now. The next time I write it will be of birthday pictures (sniff, sniff).