Fall Fun and Wedding Celebrations!

What's more exciting than holidays and weddings? We have been celebrating both! Alison and Jayce had a gorgeous wedding in Ocotber and Mike and Mom had a beautiful wedding in November.  Both had perfect fall weather.  Cheers to the happy new couples as our families continue to grow.  We are blessed!

As for our two 15 month olds, they are walking and talking up a storm.  Grayson started walking first, but Hallie was very determined and mastered her new skill before Grayson. He followed closely behind and both were on the go by 14 months. Surprisingly,  I find walking easier than crawling.  Their vocabulary is growing everyday, and their little voices fill our home with the sweetest sounds.  No, cow, moo, what's that (merged into one sound), ball, dada and baby are some we here most frequently.  Grayson said Pop for Poppy (Mike) which melted all of our hearts.  Hallie has 7 teeth and is working on her 8th. Grayson is getting his eye teeth at the same time.  Both sleep from 7-7 on good nights, when teething and colds don't interfere.  We are still taking two naps most days, but the transition is near.  As with everything baby related, change is the most constant part of our schedule.  Grayson is opening doors and learning to love books like sister.  He is really into balls and Tupperware right now. Oh and the dog dishes, nice...  Hallie has her nose in a book and 'reads' out loud to us.  It's mainly babble with cow and dada thrown in here and there.  She loves to get in and out of her car, until Grayson tries to join her.  They get along and play well aside from the occasional stolen book or toy.  Both really love their baths, grandparents and Mickey Mouse.  Neither like getting dressed, doctor visits or diaper changes.  They have decided to boycot eggs, but devour fruits and vegetables. A win in my book!

The holidays are among us and we are soaking in every special moment. Our second Halloween with Grayson and Hallie was much more exciting than our first (still on doctor orderd lockdown last year). We went on a hayride with friends and our family dressed as cowboys and Indians. The babies weren't sure what all the fuss was about but are always happy outside on a new adventure. They were cute as could be!

We spent Thanksgiving with the Clarks and Thomas'.  Grandma cooked the entire meal herself, aside from cranberries and desert. She is truly is Wonder Woman and insisted we come empty handed. We had a second dinner with Mom and Mike Sunday.  Aaron fixed his first turkey and did a fabulous job. We were all impressed!  Unfortunately, the babies and I all got sick, but, we were still able to enjoy our time together as a family. H&G really dug into the turkey, stuffing and cranberries!

Pumpkin patch fun. 

Christmas is around the corner. We have had so much fun watching Christmas through the eyes of Grayson and Hallie.  They love taking walks through the neighborhood to see the festive lights and have been great about the no touch rule for the Christmas tree. Hallie takes it seriously and calls the tree, 'no-no'.  Tonight we are taking them to the parade of lights and Wednesey they will meet Santa Clause for the first time.  I can hardly contain my excitement!

Helllllo October. You've been missed!

You know I love a particular month when I sit down just to write about it!  The brutal summer has come to an end.  We are finally enjoying cooler temps and we are no longer trapped inside. Big Daddy built an awesome swing for the backyard and the babies really dig it!  We have plans to visit the zoo, the pumpkin patch, the park and all the other places we avoid during the heat of the summer. I so wanted to do all of this last year, but we were still restricted to the house.  I fully intend to take advantage of our freedom this fall.
Aaron has been enjoying football, and I am gearing up for fall gardening.  The house is decorated and Halloween costumes are in the making.
Aaron and I joined friends in beautiful Broken Bow for a relaxing weekend. We nearly had the lake to ourselves.  The water was crisp and refreshing and the temperature was perfectly set in the mid-eighties.  Broken Bow never disappoints!

View from our cabin.  I am strongly considering a move. 

13 Months

So much to report as these little 13 month olds think they are all grown up.  We have officially entered the walking stage!  They aren't full blown cruisers yet, but are testing the waters.  Grayson was first.  Aaron looked over and G was squealing like he does when he's playing and took two steps towards him with his arms out, trying to get to Daddy.  I wasn't home, bummer!  I got home shortly after and was able to see two more steps.  He is now up to three at a time.  He is very cautious and prefers to be on his own versus us trying to stand him up and encourage him.  Who's surprised by that?  Not me!
Hallie took her first steps almost two weeks later, and guess what?  I missed her's too!  I walked out of the room and asked Aaron to supervise for two minutes.  And she did it!  I saw her take one step shortly after.  She seems to be more methodical about walking and standing.  You can see her wheels turning, whereas, Grayson just goes for it.  This is one milestone that I am not dying to hit.  I was so excited for them to sit, crawl and pull up, but as we leave the baby stage and head in the direction of toddlers I have to admit I am a little sad.  I'll get over it, and in the meantime, enjoy watching them master this skill individually and uniquely.
It has been fun seeing them interact with one another more frequently.  They 'talk' to each other, follow each other and play together now.  A few nights back I was cooking dinner while they ate in their highchairs, and looked over to see them reaching for eachother's hands.  They held hands for about 5 minutes.  It was precious!  They laughed and jabbered back and forth the entire time.  Big Daddy built a swing set (HUGE HIT) in the back yard.  The first time they swang Hallie just looked over at Grayson the entire time with a huge grin, as if to say, isn't this fun, G?   Grayson is pretty rough with all of us, and while we are teaching him not to hit and bite, Hallie doesn't yet understand his way of play.  He grabs her hair, pushes her, you know, like brothers do.  While I don't think he means to hurt her, he is so much bigger and stronger, that we are having to carefully watch them together.  In total Hallie form, she loses it and throws herself backwards (or forwards) on the ground, while he laughs. I can't imagine what the older years will bring considering, I am already play referee at 13 months!

See what I mean?

New Swing Set!

 

GRAYSON
25.12 pounds
31 inches
8 teeth
Learning to drink out of a sippy cup, although he nearly drowns himself every time.
Drinking from straw
Eating just about anything we put in front of him.  Loves salmon, asparagus, papaya, pancakes, grilled cheese.
Favorite toy right now is the new play kitchen and kitchen accessories, perfect size for little hands.
Loves baths, this isn't new, but trying to stand the entire time is.  "Sit down, sir," is played on repeat.
He may be getting new teeth as he has been waking up fairly consistently over the last week.
Says, toes, dada, dog, Jet, MAMMA and is making other news sounds that I believe are 'th' noises.
G is still mellow, fun loving and all around a happy guy.  He laughs constantly and usually isn't fussy other than when he is first waking up from naps and when he is overly tired.

HALLIE
20 pounds
29 inches
4 teeth currently, but her top two front teeth are coming in now.  About time!
Learning to drink out of sippy, but prefers straws and bottles.
Learning to climb.  She climbed onto mom's brick hearth.  Determined little lady.
Kisses her baby doll with opened mouth kisses.
Says, toes, dog, mamma, dadda, nana, uh-oh and I think she tried to say Mickey today.
Also eats just about everything we give her.  She may even have a better appetite than G these days!
Sleeps well, but is hard to rock to sleep.  We have been giving her a bottle to go down.  Not in the rule book, but it works so we go with it.  I would love to rock her to sleep, but if we are with her she will stay up until she passes out on us hours after her bedtime.  She is still camped out in the play room pack and play.  We had her in the nursery with G and they did fine, but for naps they both go longer when they aren't in the same room.  For now this works.
She is sweet, funny and so expressive.  Her determination is really shining through as she gets older.  For example, she loves to push her walkers, but if they get jammed or stuck on something she cries and throws herself face first on the floor!  It's wild.  She must have gotten that from Aaron.  Ha!

Both are ecstatic when Aaron comes home from work.  They squeal, drop what they are doing and race to him.  I am not sure if I have witnessed anything sweeter in my life.

Grayson's First Haircut

My SWEET little man had his very first haircut. After some resistance from Dad, I was finally able to convince him he needed a little snip. His bangs were hanging in his eyes and over his ears.  I want to see his whole face!
Sarah squeezed, us in Tuesday night.  Luckily, she is a short walk down the street. Perks of a neighbor She sat Aaron in her chair with Grayson in his lap wearing his tiny little, blue smock. Oh so cute! He was curious and full of smiles for her the whole time. He did GREAT. Proud mamma moment!
His hair is trimmed up but, we left some of his curls in the back without creating a mullet, dad made sure of that. He looks more and more like a little boy rather than a baby. As with all stages, it's bitter sweet.

Here are a few pics of our dashing little man!

 Handsome little devil post hair cut

Lately in Photos

ONE YEAR OLD!

It's hard to believe Grayson and Hallie are one year old.  I'm not sure how it happened so fast, but here we are.  Time can be such a thief, can't it?!  There are days I want to slow everything down, but honestly, if I could I wouldn't.  I love this stage, I love watching them learn and grow.  I love reminiscing about what we were doing 12, 11 and 10 months ago.  I would bet that every mom takes a trip down memory lane as their children approach their first birthday.  I remember our excitement and anxiety leading up to delivery, bed rest (how could I forget my glorious days on the couch!), being wheeled into surgery prep, hearing their sweet little cries and the relief that washed over me when I knew they were healthy.  All I wanted were two healthy babies, and our prayers were answered.
We had a perfect first birthday party the day before their birthday with our closest friends and family. The theme was an ice cream social, Two Scoops are Better than One!  Mike and Mom loaned us their new home, thanks guys!  We had hot dogs, sliders and of course, ice cream!  Karlos made their smash cakes, which were cute as can be.  They dug in, made messes and were perfectly adorable as expected.
Aaron took the day off on their birthday so we could spend family time together and Mom joined us.  We had lunch at Rainforest Cafe and then to Sea Life.  We had a blast and the babies really seemed to enjoy it.   All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better birthday and celebration for our loves.  It was a special weekend, making memories that will be cherished forever.

Now for the good stuff.  Here is what my munchkins are up to in their twelfth month.

Grayson
25 pounds
28 inches
8 teeth
Still in helmets, but will be out next month.  HOORAY
Hair is getting long and curly in the back.  Daddy says no to cutting it for now.
Sleeping from 7pm to 6-7am.... can we get a round of applause!?
Says, "Jet" constantly.  Jet is Mom and Mike's dog.
Standing for a few seconds with no support.
Walks with push toys, loves this.
Eating pancakes, pork, cheese, yogurt, broccoli, cantaloupe.  LOVES puffs.
Loves to be outside on the patio.
Blows bubbles and mimics mommy when I make funny noises.
Thinks Daddy is the funniest person in the world.
Loves being around his grandpas.
Overall, he a silly, loving little man, who brings us joy that cannot be put into words.

Hallie
19 pounds
27 inches
3 teeth - her right eye tooth is the most recent.  Left is close behind.
Also still in helmet.
Has new pink glasses that are to be worn all day.   Also, has patching she must do for an hour.  The glasses come off often, and the patch is not her favorite, but all-in-all, she is doing well with both.
Hair is growing, a little awkward phase.  She has a little tail that hangs from her helmet and cracks me up.
Sleeping in the pack in play in our play room.  She tends to go to bed later, but sleeps well through the night.
Says, "uh-oh" all day.  It's the cutest!
Turns pages of her beloved books.  Always looking at her books.
Loves to dance to music.
Loves Mickey Mouse and grins from ear to ear when we ask her if she wants to watch it.
Walking with push toys.
Pointing.
Startling when something unexpected happens.
Eating same as Grayson, starting to like finger foods better. For both we are transitioning out of pureed foods.

They are starting to play and really interact with one another.  I watched as they played in their tree house almost as if it were hide and seek.  They were both squealing and laughing the whole time. MELT.

They are changing so fast.  Everyday I notice something new.  I am sure I am a bit bias, but it has been fascinating to watch them learn and develop.  I promised not to be the parent that thinks their child is the smartest, best looking ect, but I can certainly see how parents are completely in awe of their children, because I am.

Here are two of their one year old photos.  I have many more to upload, but will have to do that later!

Love, Nicole

11 Months!

I feel like I've barely finished last month's post and it's already time to post for the next month.  Needless to say, they are just growing up too fast!  This months post is short, but sweet.

Grayson
24lbs
8 teeth
Likes to eat broccoli, turkey, chicken, beans and a variety of other fruits and veggies.  Such a big boy!
Sleeping through the night again after some time spent sleep training.  It was easy and he's getting much needed sleep at night and during nap time.
Loves to pull things out of drawers, open cabinets and get into anything and everything.  Starting to play paddy-cake. Still loves to watch

Hallie
19lbs
2 teeth, but I think she is working on more.
Likes to eat, but isn't swallowing her food unless it's pureed.
Sleeping well, other than teething. 
Loves to chase brother, grab his toys, splash in the bath and is also into everything.
Finally saying, 'Mamma'!