October 30, 2011

Pumpkin Butts



Happy Halloween from our precious pumpkins!








Who needs creativity now that we have Pinterest? 
Idea credit here.

October 28, 2011

She's 2!

Happy birthday, Miss Laney Bug! May your day be as special & wonderful as you are. You are so loved.

October 25, 2011

Bug is Almost 2

I've been so bad about taking pictures. And worse about blogging. I'm to the point of just throwing some pictures of Laney out there so you can see what she even looks like. She is turning 2 this Friday. I feel like I say, "I can't believe so much time has already passed" all the time. But...two years old? Are you serious?

Just yesterday, the twins were about to be born and I was waddling down the driveway after Laney to get this picture of her when she was 19 months old:



Now, she looks like this:





Why didn't anybody tell me that they grew up THIS fast?

"The Boys"

P & B are growing so fast I can hardly believe it. They're already 4 and a half months old. Cooing, laughing, and holding those heads up are among their many "tricks." Brooks is even rolling over (and shows off to Parker quite a bit). It's so nice that Brooks is not the least bit behind Parker because it eases our minds and lets us know that the time he spent in the NICU didn't phase him developmentally. If anything, Parker is a little lazier about making those milestones. It could just be that Parker is two pounds heavier, though. I mean, that's 2 whole more pounds to get rolled over! Quite a job...haha.

Just like I knew I would end up doing, I refer to them as "the boys" all the time. I know they'll probably hate that, but there's just no getting around it. Hopefully they will forgive me over the years for all the times I make them dress alike, call them by each other's names, and refer to them collectively. I mean well.

In all seriousness, though, my boys are so very different already. It's crazy.

Brooks weighed in at 14 pounds 11 ounces at the last appointment. He is so STRONG. He squirms all day, can't stop rolling over, and literally looks like he's trying to do "the worm" most of the time. We call him "Brooksie String Bean" because he seems so skinny to us (compared to Parker and Laney). Nothing gets past him. He's alert and aware and always on-the-go. He's been out shopping with me several times because he's always the one who is awake when I head out. I don't know if it was his stay in the hospital that toughened him up or if it's just his personality, but he's rough and tumble. Brooks has always been our fighter. And he likes to save his smiles for Mommy & Daddy, which makes us feel special.

Parker is such a sweetie. He's a big teddy bear. And he seems HUGE. Weighing in at 16 pounds 11 ounces at the last appointment, he dwarfs Brooks in baby chubbiness. We lovingly call him "Chunky Parker Man." He's in no hurry to roll over, sit up, or do anything for that matter. He's perfectly happy just sitting back and taking it all in. His personality is sensitive and he'll break into a smile for anyone who simply looks at him. Pure sweetness. People eat him up because of his smiley-ness and CHUB.




Neither of the boys are consistently sleeping through the night, yet. Laney slept through the night from about 3 weeks old, so this is new to us. Our schedule usually looks something like this: hope to be in bed by 9 pm; each of us wakes up with a baby once during the night to feed; we both wake up for good by around 4:45 or 5 am. It's not awful, but it's crazy to me that this has become "normal" to us. For two people that love sleep so much, we don't get very much of it at all. I keep reminding myself that this won't last forever. The boys keep us up during the night, but have no problem going to sleep once we're up and taking our morning showers, of course. :) Here's a picture I snuck of them the other morning while getting ready for the day. Both conked out. Why, again, can't they do this during the night?




And just like it always has been with Laney, bath time is special. We usually don't bathe the boys at the same time. We do more of a tag team approach. When we do bathe them together, one has to sit in the pink hand-me-down bath seat. I try to make them switch off. Ha. As you can see in this picture, they are almost acknowledging that each other are there. I cannot wait for them to really start interacting. It won't be long at all! It's going to be so neat. I can't believe I get to experience these two miracles and all the neat "twin" things that come with them.

I. Love. Them. So. Much.

October 8, 2011

Our GiGi

Marshall's sweet grandmother, Gaye Morris Griffith, passed away at 72 years old last week unexpectedly after suffering from a short illness. She had become a huge part of our lives over the past 2 years. We looked forward to our weekly dinners with her and her husband James. I grew really close with her this past summer when she spent most of her time with me at my house helping take care of the boys. She was a twin herself, so she had a special place in her heart for them. All three of my kids absolutely loved her and I had grown to adore her, as well. She kept up with my blog all the time, so I wanted to remember her on here. Our hearts are aching from this sudden loss, but we are glad she did not suffer long. GiGi, we'll miss you always and remember you often. You mean the world to us.