Park Swinging

We took the kiddos to a park today. A's favorite thing to do at the park is swing on the bar at the top of the sign.

E swung a little too, but was more into driving with the steering wheel.

Memorial Day Shenanigans

We took the kiddos to a Memorial Day parade this morning. They had a good time, but were exhausted before it ended. We left the parade and got them some ice cream. They sat and ate their ice cream as we enjoyed an adult beverage. During the parade, Eiley's chair flipped over and she fell into a metal pole. I picked her up and comforted her, but didn't think she was hurt because she barely hit the pole. Later, I noticed that she had burn marks on her face. I feel horrible because the pole must have been hot and we didn't realize it at the time, so no one put cold water on her face. 

After a much needed nap, the kids played in the pool Cork had set up for them. I think he thought they would put their feet in because it was a little cool. Before long, both kids were all the way in the pool. They had a ball and we had so much fun watching them.

We cooked out for dinner and had grilled pineapple with Nutella for dessert. Arya thoroughly enjoyed this, as you can see. I'm not sure if she got more Nutella in her mouth or on her face.

Blue Tongues

The kids and I ate a blueberry sucker today while Cork changed diapers in the car. We were all delightfully blue afterwards.

Get Your Head Out of the Oven

We bought the kids a new play kitchen last week. It's one of the super old ones from when I was little. A friend of mine spied it at a resale shop and sent me a message about it. Cork went and picked it up for the huge sum of $2.64. It's in great shape considering its age. It doesn't have the chairs or the coffee pot that originally came with it and it's missing two of the oven dials, but besides that it's practically new. The kids love it, but I think they may spend more time in the oven and dishwasher sections than they do actually playing it.

Out of a Job

Just because it's so cute.

None of these are in focus, but I think it's adorable to see Eiley trying to diaper herself. Maybe she'll figure it out and I'll be out of the diapering business before they are potty trained.

A Step Up

This is how the kiddos get onto the counter. They either use the chair arm as a step, or if the chair is too far from the counter, they will crack open the cupboards and use the door as a step.

Eye-Sh

This is what happens when I decide to throw in a load of laundry and the kids are on the loose. Both have stolen my chapstick. You can't see it, but Arya has Burt's Bees chapstick all over her face. I think ALL OVER may be an understatement.

Today was Cork and my 9th wedding anniversary. We planned on going to a local custard shop and having burgers, french fries and ice cream for dinner. I told the girls this morning that we were going to have ice cream for dessert. They kept running to the freezer all day long begging for "Eye-sh".

Identical But Not Equal

We have 2 pairs of the exact same shoes. I was putting them on Eiley today and both kids threw a huge fit. She was moving and screaming so much that I couldn't get the first shoe on. Arya was sitting right next to us freaking out. Apparently I had the wrong left shoe. I don't know how I'm supposed to know which left shoe is the correct one since they are identical, but I guess a lot of people could say that about my kids as well. As soon as I grabbed the other left shoe, both kids quieted down and happily let me put the shoes on them. I've heard other MoMs talk about how their kids know which identical item belongs to each kid. I have no clue how they knew, or how they decided without talking, but they simultaneously threw and stopped their fits. Weird!

Because I Can

I made each kid an outfit like this. I think they are hilarious. Sort of clownish, but I feel like they can still get away with them since they are young. I can't wait until they grow into them a little bit.

Safety

We went to a safety thing yesterday and got free helmets for the kids. They love them. Apparently I didn't take a picture today. I thought I had, but can't find one on my phone, ipod or camera. Go figure. So this is from yesterday and that's why they have the same clothes on as the bounce house pics.

Roller Coaster Bound

We went to a graduation party today and there was a bounce house there. Both kids loved jumping in it. Both also tried going down the huge slide. Eiley went once, sliding down feet first on her tummy, and that was enough for her. Arya launched herself from the top and loved it so much that she just kept climbing the inflatable ladder to slide again. The slide was almost a straight drop and she kept landing in a bouncing, out of control, heap at the bottom. I eventually made her stop because she was getting wilder and wilder and I was afraid she would hurt herself. The minimum age listed on the bounce house was 3, so I figured the slide isn't made for 21 month old bones. I can't wait until I can bring Arya on a roller coaster with me. She's definitely my daughter.

Cracker Stealers

The kids and I played outside most of the day today. Our neighbor brought out crackers and watermelon as snacks a little close to dinner. Both kids plowed through as much as they could get their hands on before I could stop them. Arya managed to dump another kids orange juice all over herself and Eiley got a nice big swig of diet coke. We were so busy that I didn't snap a shot until it was time for bed.

Cat Feeder

Eiley wanted to help feed the cats this morning. I let her carry the food from the office to the kitchen. She was so excited. I tried to put the camera down and was goign to help her put it in the bowls. She dumped it before I could help and actually did a really good job. It really needed to go in 2 bowls, not one, so the one she dumped in over flowed and it went everywhere, but her aim was really good.

If Looks Could Kill

Eiley kept shutting the dishwasher door today when I was tryign to load it. I kept being nice and explaining why I wanted it open and she kept ignoring me. Finally, I told her "No". I don't use that word often and it's very effective when I do. This is the look she gave me. She was not happy with me.

Watering Cans

We gave the kids watering cans for Christmas. They've played with them since then, but I put water in them for the first time today. Neither understood that they should pour the water out of the spout. Instead, they dumped the water right out of the top, which was fun for all of us. Their shoes were soaked and the water didn't go where I wanted it, but they didn't care, so how could I.

Drink Up

Eiley was trying to drink of out this cup this morning. She was doing okay and then started to choke.

Then, she tried to give Arya a drink. I got my camera out and sat on the floor so I could get a picture. Eiley turned and tried to give me a sip from the cup instead. 6:30 is way too early to get soaked with cold water.

Express Yourself

This is another example of what happens with a child is allowed to pick out her clothes. LOL. She is wearing pajama bottoms over her jeans. We were planning on being home most of the day, so I didn't care what she wore. My main accomplishments for the day was getting the lawn mowed and the garden planted. I only mowed a couple times last summer and once the summer before. It was so nice to be back outside doing some work. Hopefully I can stay on top of our garden this year. We've gotten a lot of food out of it the last two years, but not as much as we could have. We got busy both summers and neglected thinning and weeding the garden. If we keep up on it, we should get tomatoes, peas, green beans, beets, leeks, radishes, cucumbers, carrots, lettuce, basil, spinach, cilantro, cayenne peppers, fennel, parsley and dill. I also have sage and lavender around the corner from the garden. The sage has been there for a couple years now and does really well every season. Hopefully the lavender does just as well. They are close to where the dryer vents from the house, so it stays warm during the winter and I can get sage all year round.

Window Climbing

Eiley refused to eat her breakfast this morning. I knew she was hungry and that she would like what I made, so I gave her the wooden spoon I'd used to cook her cereal. She happily dug in and finished a couple bowls of cream of wheat, pears, & almond milk with a little dab of butter. Yes, butter. My mom always served cream of wheat with butter. It's so good that way.

The kids learned how to climb into our front bay window today. They could have done it ages ago if they'd tried, but I was not encouraging them to play behind the couch. The diaper pail and clean diaper hamper blocked their way from one end and toys were by the other side. They got back there this morning and Arya scrambled up as fast as she could. Eiley wanted me to put her up there, but I wouldn't. She climbed up when she figured out I wasn't going to assist her.

21 Months

The girls are 21 months today. I saw 4 month old twins at the museum yesterday and a friend asked if it brought back memories. I half jokingly told her it brought back nightmares. Newborn twins are not easy, especially colicky twins. All the sleepless nights and long days are worth it when I see the two of the interact now. They are so goofy together. Arya loves to ask for food and when I try to give it to her, she says "I-E" because she actually was asking for it for Eiley. Eiley does the same thing. For example, Eiley loves yogurt, but Arya won't touch it. Arya loves applesauce, but Eiley rarely eats it. They both ask for the thing they don't want and I know they don't want it.

The Chaos that Is

We had an awesome day today. It was supposed to be stormy, so we made plans to go to the children's museum downtown. It was so nice that we met at a friends condo and walked to the museum. We spent a few hours there between the exhibits and the toddler class. Then, we walked to the downtown market and had lunch and then were off to our friends house for a short time before leaving. By the time we got home, we'd been gone for 5 hours and I was sure the girls would crash hard. They were up about 60 minutes later. Arya was in a great mood when she got up, but Eiley was not.

I bathed the girls last night and Arya peed on the floor before I could get her into the tub. That made me think about how they used to urinate every time we took their diaper off. In the middle of the night we'd always miss it and not realize that their sleeping gown was wet until we picked them up. Of course since I thought about it, Arya did it today. I took her diaper off after her nap and she peed on the changing table. I saw it before she got it on her clothes. I assumed she was done when she stopped and put her on the floor. Her diaper was not on yet, but I didn't want her laying on the changing table. I grabbed an insert for her diaper and when I looked back, I found her watching herself pee. She starting laughing and was so proud of herself. Eiley was screaming during all of this since she wanted to be picked up. I feel like it's always chaotic around here, but at least it stays entertaining.

Self Chalk Drawings

I saw Arya laying on the patio today, wiggling around, and couldn't figure out what she was doing at first. Then I cracked up. She had a piece of chalk in her hand and was trying to trace around herself.

Chalk Drawings

The girls were high energy all day, only sleeping for 40 or 50 minutes. We spent most of our afternoon outside watering plants, drawing with sidewalk chalk and doing random things to stay entertained.

I traced each kid and at first thought it turned out really cute. Then I had to laugh because it looks a little like the chalk drawings you see on tv and in movies that depict where a dead body was found.

How cute is this?