Fun with the iPad

Kyle got an iPad for Christmas and he has been having lots of fun figuring out all the interesting things he can do with it. Apparently you can make comic strips! Here is his first creation, it's pretty funny! Click on the image to make it bigger.

Pictures from Christmas

Warning: there are a lot of pictures, and they are out of order...sorry!


the duct tape dress, made entirely from duct tape and tissue paper!


our new bibs from Grammer and Gramps


playing with our walker from Uncle Brett and Courtney


first sippy cup


modeling our Christmas pj's





Man, this Christmas stuff is tiring!





lots of presents


Christmas morning bottle in front of the stockings


playing at Aunt Allison's Christmas Eve





love our new blocks from our cousins


Mom, I told you I'm not a big bow kinda girl!


Okay, that's better


the three kids


playing with our big sister


watching Daddy and Carter play volleyball in the backyard


opening our first present before we left

Busy, busy week!

We had a busy/long week of being out of town. We went to Midland last Sunday and didn't get back till yesterday! The weather was nice last Monday, so I took the babies for a walk around my mother-in-law's neighborhood while Kyle and Carter did some last minute shopping. The twins loved it, of course, and ended up falling asleep. Monday night I had a wine exchange party that I went to at a friend's house. It was so fun and I loved talking with all the girls! Our husbands grew up together, and now I hang out with them when I am in town and they have a girls night. They are all so much fun and I always have a great time. Tuesday and Wednesday we didn't do much, just hung out around the house. Wednesday night we had dinner with Kyle's dad. It was very close to their bed time, but Marshall and Presley did pretty well at dinner. I did get a couple of "looks" from people towards the end when Presley started doing her loud bird noises!

Thursday morning we packed up and drove to Lubbock to visit with Kyle's grandparents and his cousins (they are Carter's age). The girls had so much fun playing and running around, even though it was cold. The twins charmed everyone as usual and got some new toys for Christmas. Unfortunately, Presley had a rough night and did not fall asleep till 9! I fed them this organic Mac and Cheese with veggies for dinner and I think it gave her gas. Friday morning (Christmas Eve) we packed up again and headed back to Midland. Christmas Eve we went to my sister-in-law Allison's house to have our Christmas with Kyle's dad. We ate a lot of good food and opened presents. The babies wore their Christmas pj's and we put them to bed in their pack n plays at Alli's house. After we opened gifts, we played LCR, which is SO MUCH FUN! Everybody has 3 one dollar bills, and you roll 3 dice that have a dot, an L, an R, and a C on the sides. If you get an L, you have to pass a dollar to the person to your left. An R means you give a dollar to the person on your right, a dot means you get to keep your money, and a C means you have to put the money in the center pot. The last person with a dollar wins the money in the center. In never win anything, so imagine my surprise when I actually won a game!

Friday morning we watched Carter open her gifts from Kyle and I, then around 4 the rest of the family came over and we opened up presents and then ate dinner after the babies went to bed. Carter and her friends like to make things with duct tape, so Brett got her all kinds of different colors and patterns. She and his girlfriend, Courtney, made a dress out of duct tape and it looked so cool!

It was a long, but fun day! Sunday we were getting ready to load up the suburban, and we couldn't find the keys. We looked everywhere! Carter had just gone home, so we called her to see if she knew where the keys were...she had accidentally put them in her bag after she got some stuff out of the car that morning. So we get the keys, and we load everything up, all the while the babies are over due for a nap. Finally around 1:45 the car was packed and we were ready to leave. We said our goodbyes, got in the car, turned the key...and nothing happened. Our battery was dead! At that point I figured let's just stay in Midland another night, so we did. Kyle and the guys changed the battery and the babies went down for a nap. It ended up working out because Kyle and I were exhausted any way. So, we left yesterday morning bright and early! We had a great time, but were definitely glad to be home. For some reason my computer isn't reading my camera for what ever reason, so I will post pics later!

Merry Christmas!

Sorry I have been absentee from blogging. We have been very busy and I haven't gotten a chance to sit down at the computer! Once things settle down I will fill you in on all our fun stuff. Unroll then, I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

Done.

With spit up, that is. I am so OVER smelling nasty and having stains on not only MY clothes, but theirs too! I am tired of living in t-shirts because everything else gets spit up on and I don't want it ruined. Now that they are eating baby food, it's not just white spit up, it's a rainbow of colors. So much for trying to sell their clothes at the resale shops. My burp cloths are all stained too, so they pretty much always look dirty even when they are fresh out of the washer! Ever since Sunday, Marshall has been spitting up even MORE than normal. I'm guessing it's because he is teething and producing more saliva. I"m sure the twins are tired of it too, so it's not just me being selfish. Who wants to wear something around their neck constantly? AND something that is always wet! The poor kids LOVE getting up on our shoulders, but EVERY time we do that, Kyle and I get spit up on...and not just on our clothes, hair is not discriminated against.

Sorry, just had to vent. Grrrrrrrrr

Baby Legs

I bought these pink ribbon baby legs for Presley before she was born. I put them on her for the first time this morning, and she looks so cute! I might need to get her some more, these are a little tight on her chub chubs!

I guess it was bound to happen...

Presley fell off the couch today. I was feeding them in their boppies and using the bottle holders, and I realized I didn't have any burp cloths. I went to the laundry room to get one out of the dryer, not thinking it would be a big deal since both were chilled and content with eating and not wiggling around. Half way back I hear Presley start crying. I first thought, "oh the bottle must have fallen out and she can't reach it". That is until I came into the living room and see the bottle in the holder on the couch...and an empty boppy! My stomach dropped. I run up to her and she is laying on her back on the ground/rug. I pick her up and pray that she hasn't hit her head on the table, which was my fear. I looked her up and down and she has no red marks or any signs that she hit her head. She is crying, but not "oh my goodness I'm dying" crying. I walked around the room with her and she cried for about two minutes, then was done. She didn't even have tears! Okay her eyes were watery, but nothing fell! I guess it scared her more than anything. She went back to eating her bottle and has been her happy go lucky self since then. Needless to say it scared the poop out of me! And yes, I know...note to self...ALWAYS have your burp cloth handy. I get the bad mom of the day award! :(

So close!

One of my best friends, Stori, came in town this weekend and we went Christmas shopping on Saturday while Kyle watched the babies all day. It was so nice to have some girl time, although I did miss the babies a little bit. :) Kyle got these pictures of Presley up on all fours, her tum tum off the ground! I think she'll be crawling by the New Year for sure!

Seven Months

No, that's not a typo...Marshall and Presley are already seven months old! They are a blast right now because they can sit up really well, but can't crawl...yet. Both of them can move from sitting up to being on their stomachs, although now it's on purpose and not because they fell over. :) Presley scooted back on all fours yesterday and her stomach was lifted a little bit off the ground, so it's a step in the right direction. The twins crawling will be a double-edged sword: for one, they will be in to EVERYTHING and I'll be running around constantly, but on the other hand I'll finally be getting some aerobic activity!

They are in stage 4 diapers, and have been for awhile now. They probably could still be in stage 3 but Presley's round tummy calls for stage 4. :) They have almost outgrown all their 6-9 month clothes. All the 9 month pants are too short for Marshall, but the 12 months are too big! So we are kind of in between right now. Presley still has the tiniest feet you've every seen on a 7 month old. She doesn't even fit into size 2 shoes, even the 0-6 month soft sole shoes are too big!

The jealousy thing is definitely showing it's ugly head. Whatever toy Marshall has, Presley wants...and takes. In the past couple of days however, Marshall has been fighting back. Yesterday they played tug of war with this piano thing and it was so funny to watch. I just sit back and let them, until bibs and shirts started being pulled. Presley's new thing is kicking, which Marshall thinks is hilarious. Whenever she is on her stomach she kicks her legs and swings them in the air like she's laying around bored. I have no clue why he thinks this is so funny, but I love his laugh so it's fine with me! She kicks in the bath tub too...enough to where I get wet! She just laughs and laughs when the water splashes around!

They still eat really well, and I have decided that bananas are the magic food for them. My friend April was so sweet and gave me some of her left over stage 1 and 2 organic baby food. Peaches by themselves the twins are not fans of, but the peaches and bananas mixed? Love it! Same thing with avacados. I pureed some the other day, and not so much. My other twin mom friend, Sarah, suggested I mix it with bananas. Sounds gross, right? They LOVE it, and I have to admit it is pretty tasty. I try all their baby food just because I want to see what it tastes like. Except the peas and the squash...no way!

We are very excited for their first Christmas, not like they will have any clue what is going on, but hopefully they will have fun unwrapping gifts.

Kyle took the pictures this month, and didn't put a bow in Presley's hair so I labeled them for you in case you can't tell. :)



Presley and Marshall



P and M



Presley



Marshall

Yummy for my tummy

A lot of people have asked me what foods the twins are eating these days, so I thought I'd let you know. So far Marshall likes everything, but Presley is not a fan of peas. Neither one of them will be making any requests for peach pie in the near future either, as peaches are "just ok" to them. Marshall is a very messy eater, as he puts his right hand in his mouth after EVERY bite, while Presley is quite neat. We switched from rice cereal to oatmeal this week just to try something new, and boy do they love it! So far they've only had stage 1 foods, and I am going to attempt to start making their food next week. Here is what they've had so far, their favorites being bananas, sweet potatoes, prunes, and mangos.

rice cereal, oatmeal, pears, sweet potatoes, peas, carrots, apples, green beans, bananas, prunes, squash, peaches, mangos

Happy place

I can say without any hesitation that I am the happiest I have ever been right now. I have a husband who I love more each day, and works his tail off to provide for us. I have two of the most beautiful, happy babies I've ever seen. When I look at them and they smile at me, my heart literally melts. There is no place I'd rather be and no two children I'd rather be with every single day. Thank you, Sarah, you have enabled me to get to my "happy place", and I am forever grateful to have a friend like you who could do the most selfless act I can think of, carrying someone's child(ren) for them.

I am enjoying every second of being here, and I hope some day everyone finds their "happy place."

Meeting Santa

This morning my mothers of multiples group hosted a "Breakfast with Santa". One of our members' dad dressed up as Santa, and they had him in a room so you didn't have 50 people staring at you when you went up to talk to him. Of course, ours are not scared of Santa yet. I think Presley was upset she wasn't up there long enough to pull his beard! We had a good time and the babies did too. They tried a mum mum for the first time and LOVED it. Needless to say I picked up a box of those today while I was running errands! Here is our pictures with Santa. :)

Six Month Pictures

My friend, Stacy Hamilton, has a photography business and takes AWESOME pictures (her website is www.stacyhamiltonphotography.com) I asked her to take six month pictures of the twins and she did a phenomenal job! For one thing, has three year old twins, so she knows how difficult it is to get them both looking and happy at the same time. The day of our shoot, the babies were not in a good mood. I don't think Presley smiled for even 10 seconds the entire time. I found myself apologizing over and over again, as I didn't want her to think that my children were not happy babies. She said it would be no problem to try again another day. So a few days later we tried again, and they were perfect! Here are a couple of my favorites. The last picture is classic: it was the very end of the shoot, Presley was tired, and Marshall thought it was HILARIOUS that she was crying, which they both do to each other here at home. I just love my babies!

Thanksgiving Post...finally

We were traveling fools last week for Thanksgiving and the babies did great, considering. Monday night we drove down to my parents' house in Ellinger. My sister and 2 nieces had flown in from Missouri on Saturday so we were excited to see them! Tuesday we drove over to Austin to see Kyle's cousin, Liz, and her 2 girls Lillie and London. Wednesday morning we all packed up and headed down to the hunting lease in South Texas, south of Falfurrias (not that any of you know where that is). Thursday we drove over to another hot spot, Realitos (near Hebronville...you don't know where that is either) and had Thanksgiving lunch with my mom's dad's family. Everyone just loved the babies. Friday a cold front came in so we hung out at the hunting camp. This was the first year in I don't know how long that I didn't go bird hunting, so I was kind of sad about that. But I loved being at the camp with the babies so it was a good trade off. Kyle and my dad took my niece, Sophia, hunting and she had grand time. It was weird/cool to see her with them because it reminded me of when I was her age (and younger) going out hunting with my dad and my sister. I can't wait for the twins to share that time with my dad. Saturday we packed up again and drove back to Ellinger, which is when I started getting my cold and as an added bonus a migraine! My sister and the girls left early Sunday morning and we left a little after lunch. The babies went on their first mule ride at my parent's house and seemed to like it. They weren't able to go on the polaris, but hopefully next time we can make that happen. All in all it was a joyful time to spend with my wonderful family. I am truly blessed beyond words!


Sophia and Emmie love helping with their cousins


helping Daddy drive on the ranch road


our attempt at a family picture, note my dad's gynormous truck in the back ground...oops!


Lillie, London, Presley, and Marshall


ready to go hunting...if only I could!


Presley and Nana


Marshall and Papi


our make-shift bath tub at the lease, Marshall LOVED the water coming out of the faucet and kept trying to grab it


first mule ride!

Still taking a break

My blogging break is being extended as I caught a cold last week and it's kicking my behind. I am trying not to kiss my babies' chubby cheeks but it's so hard! We had a great time at Thanksgiving and I will post later on this week, hopefully I will get rid of this cold soon.

Okay so I lied...

Since I am taking a week-ish break from blogging in order to enjoy my family and Thanksgiving, I thought it would be nice to leave you with a few videos of the kiddos. The first one is Marshall laughing hysterically while Kyle throws the football at him, second is Presley laughing from a couple of weeks ago (excuse me in the background), and the last one is the two of them at dinner time. They love to grab each other's hands and it is so cute!

Random thoughts

-I'm taking a little break from blogging (after this post)

-The twins have only been sleeping in 45 minute intervals this week...not cool. (supposedly it's called the 45 minute intruder...it needs to leave ASAP)

-Presley has started an interesting new thing where she licks your face and your neck. Strange.

-They are interacting so much right now, and have started "talking" to each other in their cribs.

-Presley hates peas, but other than that the food thing is going well and they get really excited when you put them in their bumbos and they see their bowls.

I hope every one has a wonderful, relaxing Thanksgiving!

Tooth Fairy

Dear Tooth Fairy:

Anytime you would like to make the tooth that is brewing somewhere in Marshall's gums appear would be awesome. He has been waking up in the middle of the night fussy, and is not his happy go lucky self. He is giving you signs that he is ready, drooling constantly, chewing on anything and everything...what more do you want? If he could talk I'm sure he would tell you "Hurry Up!" so he won't be in pain any more. I don't know if you're a mom yourself, but it is very hard to see my little guy so uncomfortable. I know you make a lot of money taking teeth from kids, but you need to come on with it and give him his! Okay, that's all.

-Marshall's Mommy

P.S.-Don't make me write one for his sister too!

6 months stats

Presley: weight 17 lbs 11 oz (85%), height 26.25 inches (75%)

Marshall: weight 18 lbs 1 oz (55%), height 27 inches (75%)

We are chunky monkeys!!! :)

Horse Show

My step-daughter, Carter, rides equestrian and had a horse show this weekend in Las Colinas. Kyle and I love watching her ride. but since she lives in Midland, we don't get to go to many of her shows. We were excited that she had one not only semi-close to home, but we could bring the babies to as well. Carter is an extremely talented rider, and is also very passionate about it. Her goal is to ride in the Olympics, and with her skill and determination it wouldn't surprise me if she made it some day! This weekend she placed in each of her events and she was competing against 25 other girls. We are so proud of her! :)

It was a gorgeous day, but a tad cold with some wind. Which was okay because the twins got to wear their new hats and they look super cute in them! We got there at 11 and stayed till about 3:30 which is the longest the babies have been A.) outdoors and B.) away from an environment where they can nap in a crib/pack n play. Let's just say that my arms are already sore from holding sleeping babies! All in all though, they did great and it was a fun day!

Family Photo



Marshall loved her hat



One word...adorable!



Sleepy boy



Action shot



Carter and her horse, Oliver