A fitting end to a sleepy day...

So, the babes decided to meet the day at 4:45am this morning. Needless to say, I was dragging. By bath time I had to psyche myself up to get them in the tub instead of putting them in their hammocks with clothes covered in carrots and teething biscuits and all:)

So, there they were in the bath tub, happy as can be. I was holding a coffee cup of water over Amelia's head getting ready to get her hair wet to wash it. Right before I poured it I saw something in the cup and I thought, "Is that poop?" Yes, it was. I looked down and it was everywhere. So after draining the tub and washing them again I was more than ready to start bed time. I picked Sam and as I was heading to the nursery and as I passed the (open) kitchen window I froze and thought,"Why don't I have any pants on?" I quickly walked to the nursery (passing not one, but two more open windows) and sat there so puzzled and totally scared that someone had seen me! I had my jeans on when we went into the bathroom and then they were off when we went out and I still am not completely sure why. When I went back to get Amelia (the back way where there are no windows) my jeans were hanging up neatly on a hook and my socks were there too! The only thing I can think of is that in my sleepy state I took the babies clothes off and then just kept going and started taking mine off?!

Oh my. I better go to bed really early tonight! Hope you had a good one, Jen

" They are both endearing, just in different ways. I mean, like, really endearing."*

*Quote from Joelie while we were eating lunch and talking about the babes, of course.

It's true. It seems that they grow more endearing each and every day. Do you know what that means dear readers? Yep, even more pictures are being clicked to try and capture their little quirks, their personalities, their uniqueness. So here is a slide show for you with a fraction of the snapshots we have taken lately as we watch, as our love grows, as we learn more about these gifts we have been given.


How sweet it is to be loved by them

He thinks she's funny...

In which Amelia proves that she is in fact moving forward...

Practice makes perfect! For the past couple of weeks Amelia has spent her days tirelessly practicing her crawling skills. Even when she figured out how to scoot backwards she refused to give up on her forwards crawl. Well, her efforts paid off! A few days ago she went forward for the first time in front of her papa. We couldn't believe it!

Well, she was using her new skill in no time! I was feeding Sam on the futon mattress on the floor. Amelia, who was sitting on the floor playing saw us and immediately got jealous. Nursing envy, which is common in twins, is in full swing here! So, she started fussing. I usually either try to distract them with a toy or just feed them both at the same time. This time, though, Amelia took action before I could. She moved from a sitting position onto all fours and started crawling towards me. She got to the futon mattress and used my jeans to help her climb up into a kneeling position in front of me. She then reached up, pulled down her side of my nursing tank (it was already unhooked), leaned in and started nursing! I started cracking up laughing, but this was no joke to her and she nursed kneeling in front of me for her whole feeding.

I hope you can imagine that because it really was so, so funny. I am sorry that I cannot supply you with a picture of that one:) Here is a very short clip of her in action, though.

A childhood hero.

Larry Norman was a Christian rock singer in the 70's and my mom and dad, being new Christians and longtime hippies played him all the time when we were little. We loved him and I love him still. He was a very outspoken lover of Jesus. His songs were simple and I could understand them as a kid. We would have our own little ragamuffin rock shows belting out his music and as I grew older the meanings grew and grew. In high school one of the members of our church would sometimes sit on the stage with just his guitar and simple voice and sing some of Norman's songs...it was so comforting to me, so real.

So, like Bob and Judy said in their comment, it was with both sadness and joy I felt when I found out that he went to Heaven today. I know you will be resting in the most complete peace today Larry. Or probably rocking to it! Here is a video for you guys....

Click here to read his bio.

Beautiful baby Echo....

Oh how happy I was to get an e-mail today with new pictures of my baby brother, his Tara, and their beautiful girl Echo! I can't wait to hold you in my arms again little niece and give you kisses all over. I miss you three dearly.

Snippets of our day: day two

Amelia's attempts in crawling usually result in her scooting backwards on the hard wood floors or a combo roll/scoot on the carpet. She gets stuck in the craziest places. So, this little snippet is dedicated to this "Help, I'm stuck!" phase.

When I found her like this she was just acting like all was normal. She starting playing with every part of the flower pot she could. Then she got annoyed because she couldn't move on the next adventure and started squealing for me to help. I couldn't, of course, because I was very busy. Very busy taking pictures. So, she then just started scooting backwards with it attached to her. I guess she thought, "Well, if no one will help, I'll just bring it with me:) Soon after, I did make myself put down the camera and free her. I promise.

"Mooom, help me!"

"Okay, guess you're coming backwards with me you big, green weird thing."

Moving on to Sammy. One of our favorite quirk of his is that when he's playing he likes to have one toy dangling from his mouth and another toy that he is playing with. It cracks us up every time.


It was a good day with these little ones, hope yours was as well! Jen

A little reflection.

That's what has been going on around here lately (at least with the adults in the household). We have just needed a bit of time stop, take inventory of where we are and where we want to go and things we want to do differently and things we want to stay the same. I have made a pact to myself to rest more and be on the computer less when I am able to. So, my words will be few for the next week or so but I will try to keep the pictures coming for ya:) This little snippet of our day I call...

"Revenge"

Everything was going nicely. The babes had finished eating and were each caught up in their own world of play..

Then, Amelia sees the lense cover to the camera and lunges for it and immediatley it goes in her mouth.

Sam sees the coveted lens cover and decides to go for it.

Amelia can't believe it! She tries to reach for it but S. says, "No way sister, I have been passive long enough." Look at those eyes!.

Of course, I had to step in and give it back to Millie. She was once again a happy camper

Sam sighs and says to Amelia, "Well, I betcha can't do this!"

This ends this little snippet of our day. Hope yours was great!Jen

Deep into the night...

Papa's arms around his son. Mama wakes to this sight and gasps at the beauty.

Poor,poor little Sammy...

Constipation, horrible sore throat, a rash all over his little body, and two new teeth breaking through. This equals him being pretty needy. He really does try to be happy and still gets a big smile on his face after nursing or (sometimes)when we sing his favorite songs, but it is so sad to see my mellow fellow get so upset!

Sammy says, "Man I am so tired. Again!"

"I'm trying to be happy mom, I really am!"

"Thanks for trying to make me laugh sister, but I just can't!"

"Dad, you wouldn't believe how hard my day was!!!"

It is so pitiful. We are all a mess.A big, tired mess. Well, Joel and Sammy and I are.
Amelia has been such a trooper. She is quite busy scooting around, getting herself stuck, finding things on the floor to play with like this fruit snack bag, etc.etc. I was so thankful for my Miss Independent today so that I could focus on Sam as much as possible. Here are some pictures of her in action...
Amelia says, "Oh hi Mama,look what I found! It's OK if I play with it, right?"


"It's really fun to get to do whatever I want. I promise not to get stuck more than 5 times today because I know you're really busy with brother:) "
.

Anyway, hopefully our little guy will be on the mend soon. Oh how it hurts to see your babies feel so yucky. I'll leave you with a few recent pictures of happier times:) There have been two days warm enough to sit in the back yard for a while--yay!! Amelia loved playing with the grass(it was her first time!) and Sam loved looking at the lights and shadows. The picture with Willow makes me smile. She likes to be around us but still doesn't know quite what to do around the babes. So, she often gets close enough to feel part of the group but turns around and stares the other direction:) I love the pictures of them in their gowns. It looks like Amelia is saying, "Sam, what are we wearing?!" I thought they looked so adorable in them--thanks Granny and Papa! Hopefully Sam will be back to this playful self soon. Hope you all are having a great weekend, Jen

"Can you even imagine having just one baby?"

I hear this question a lot and the answer is, actually yes I can! I hear lots of twin mamas say no, but I just don't feel the same way. I mean, I can't imagine life without Sam or without Amelia. But, honestly, I can sometimes imagine having them one at a time! For instance, when one is crying and one having a great ol' time, I want so badly to be able to enjoy that joyful moment with the happy one. Or, when trying to get out the door. Or, when trying to put them to bed or naps and one isn't ready. Or, when I am trying to comfort one and distract the other by making faces or literally throwing (soft) toys to them across the room hoping it will be the one to make them happy! You get the picture.

Now, having said all that I must say that "Double the work, double the joy" is a very accurate quote when it comes to twins. There are many,many moments that I feel what I know to be true. God gave us an extraordinary gift when he gave us Sam and Amelia together. To watch them interact and to have double of what I have longed for for so long--little souls to nurture, cheeks to kiss, giggles that make my heart melt.......there is just such joy. So, here are some recent pictures that remind me what joy there is in two. Happy Valentines guys, may you have lots of love in your life whether it be from your sweetheart, one baby or two, your friends, family or even from a special pet (Willow is is looking at me like "What about me!?". Love, Jen
P.S. Happy Birthday to my sweet mama!


I love this one because it is so representative of their personalities thus far. Amelia trying sooo hard to crawl, to explore, to reach, to grab and Sam laid back on the boppy using her as a footstool. :) So funny those two are!


Splish splash, we love watching them in the bath!



We got quite a kick out of them fitting perfectly inside Joelie's new grocery holders for his bike (and no, grandmothers, he did not take them for a ride!:)


My very favorite....
"Sam? Are you in there? Stop napping and come play!"

Attention photo lovers....

The January album is ready for viewing:)

January 2008

The Boys.

For Joelie's birthday Sammy gave himself a onesie that says, "My dad recycles more than your dad." Now, I usually wouldn't condone these "bragging" clothes, but come on, this one is too cute. Plus, Joel is a recycle nut. He has literally come out of the kitchen holding up a sticky note he saw in the trash can and said, "Jenny, do you hate the earth?!" So, when I say this little onesie I knew I had to get it.
The funny thing is that Joel had bought himself a recycle shirt and was waiting to surprise me by wearing it on his birthday because he knew I would think it was funny. So it was double funny when he opened the onesie and then ran downstairs to put on his shirt. A photo shoot was in order, obviously. My earthy boys, I love them so.

The girls.

Gift cards from Christmas were spent last night. A dress for me and a dress for her. A photo shoot was in order, of course.

Be thou my vision...

*
I was rocking Sammy this afternoon.He had awoken after 20 minutes of napping and was inconsolable. Imagine this times 10 times 2 babies and you can imagine what the past two nights have been for us. We think they must be constipated again and Joel is on his way to Wild Oats as i write this to get more prunes. The point is, though, that I was was sitting there feeling exhausted, frustrated, at a loss. I looked over at my magazine rack and saw a little portion of a hymn I had copied to sing to the babes. This portion was sticking over the top of the magazine rack and as I read it tears came to my eyes....

Be though my Vision, O Lord of my heart:
Not be all else to me, save that Thou art
Though my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

It was one of those moments that makes you remember you are not alone. He is there, in the midst of the night, in the early morning darkness, in the bright of day. He is there. He is waiting to help us through our trials. To give us peace when we feel out of control. To give us hope when there seems to be no end in sight. To give us patience, understanding, compassion when we feel none of those things. He is our victory when we feel defeated. His presence my light. I believe with all of my heart that that little portion of a hymn was sent to me, straight to my heart. To remind me that mothering is, of course, just as spiritual as any other activity. One that we need to draw on His strength for. And one that, in the end, is not a test of how quickly our babies sleep through the night, but an opportunity to please the Lord with our repsonses to the many joys and trials that come our way. And with that, I took a deep breath and held Sammy a little closer and looked at him with a little more compassion and eventually helped him back to sleep.

Now, this is not to say that I enjoy feeling sleep deprived or do not have plans to keep plugging away at our attempts to help the babes sleep longer. It just means that I am going to try to remember not to go it alone, and not to feel like it is the end all be all of my success or failure as a mama, and to find the many joys that can still come when He is my vision. Thanks for sharing this journey with us, Jen

*This picture is of the babes napping in their hammocks. And yes, Sam has a pink blanket over him. We just can't always be color coordinated around here:)

And they partied like there was no tomorrow...

Okay, so maybe not quite! We did have a great time together,though, while the early morning light streamed through the windows. More party pictures soon. If you didn't know it was Joelie's birthday, make sure to see post below with his birthday video. Love, Jen

With a thankful heart for another year with you,

Happy Birthday Joel!