• You both LOVE having baths in the big bathtub – Evan, you start splashing the second you hit the water and don’t stop until we take you out.
• Both of you yell ”AH!” at the cats, over and over again when you want to get their attention, and you also chase them all over the house even though they always run away.
• Evan – when we put you in your crib for the night, sometimes you hold onto your “Smoky Bear” and turn his face towards yours and babble to him for a long time.
• Both of you stand up at the baby gate by the kitchen, and when I’m talking to you from the other side you stick your tongues through the holes! Weird!

• Connor – every once in awhile, after swallowing a bite of food, you turn your head to the side and lick the side of your high chair.
• Evan – you are always so careful when you’re moving from standing to sitting - you ever-so-slowly bend your knees and very gently plop down to the ground.
• Connor – you are obsessed with turning the pages and lifting all the flaps when we read books.
• Evan - you like to push the power button on the radio and turn it on.
• Connor – you hate wearing socks, and almost every day you take your socks off and stuff them in your mouth – sometimes you also take Evan’s socks off (and you put his in your mouth, too).
• Evan – sometimes you’ll put a toy in your mouth and then just leave it there as you crawl around and go about your business – you look so funny!

• Both of you love playing peek-a-boo and you think it’s hilarious when we pop out from behind something and say “ROAR!!”
• Connor – it’s so cute when you say “mamamama” when you crawl over to climb on me or sit in my lap.
• Both of you hold your own bottles, but Connor, you almost always hold yours with just one hand – you’re so cool!

• When I chase you, Connor, you crawl away from me – but Evan, you crawl towards me! You like being caught!
• I love the way you both smile just as much when your brother is having fun as you do when you are having fun.

We took Evan and Connor to the zoo yesterday for an event called Boo at the Zoo, which is kind of like a Halloween party at the zoo – most of the kids were wearing costumes, there were Halloween decorations and sound effects, booths giving out candy, etc. etc. Since Evan and Connor aren’t really old enough to appreciate any of that stuff, it ended up being pretty much like a regular trip to the zoo with the exception that the boys were wearing their costumes.

We had a good time, especially at the aquarium and manatee exhibits – the boys really like being right up next to the glass watching the fish swim by. We also went to the petting zoo for the first time, which was cool because the boys are always trying to pet the cats and the cats always run away, whereas these animals were perfectly still and patient. Here are some pictures in their costumes:

Ryan and the boys and I spent most of this past weekend at my mom and stepdad’s house because my brother was in town, visiting from Kansas. My family is always excited to spend time with Evan and Connor, and of course, Evan and Connor are always excited to see them, too. Over the course of the weekend, my mom kept insisting that Evan was giving her kisses. Since my mom is prone to exaggeration (Mom – it’s true), Jeff (my brother) and I dismissed her, saying, “Yeah, sure, he’s giving you kisses. Whatever! He’s never given me kisses!” But she insisted, “He really is! He’s putting his mouth on my face, what else could that be??”

I didn’t really believe her until he did it to me, but it’s true, Evan is giving kisses!! His kisses are weird, granted – he opens his mouth really wide and he leans in and quickly touches your face with his mouth – and that’s it. But it’s a kiss! And being on the receiving end is just about the cutest, sweetest thing ever.

Over the past couple days, I’ve discovered that human beings aren’t the only recipients of Evan’s kisses. In fact, pretty much anything with a recognizable face qualifies, including stuffed animals, animals pictured in books, and even the plastic “Space Man” on his exersaucer. I kept track of today’s kiss recipients and they are as follows:

a bunny rabbit in a book

a kitty cat in a book

a kitty cat in a different (but similar) book

the monkey head on a security blanket

a teddy bear

and………. “Space Man”

Before Evan and Connor were born, if someone had asked me to guess what types of activities 9 or 10 month old babies would most enjoy, I would probably create a list something like this:

• chewing on things
• banging on things
• knocking things over
• peekaboo / pattycake

(And I would have been partially right because Evan and Connor are definitely interested in those things). But I probably wouldn’t have put “reading” on my list. I never would have guessed that a baby would get all that excited about books (other than chewing on them). So imagine my surprise to find that both boys love books and reading!

We generally read to the boys a couple times a day, 3 or 4 board books in a sitting. Recently Connor has developed a habit of CRYING when we get to the end of a book. Seriously – crying. The first time he did that I was like, “Dude, what is UP?” And then I opened up another book and his body immediately relaxed and he stopped crying. He’s always picking up books and chewing on them (of course) and he sometimes holds them right-side-up and stares at them and actually looks like he’s reading. The best part is when he actually starts babbling as if he’s reading out loud.

I love this picture which was taken during our (loooooong) drive home from Florida. At one point during the drive, Ryan asked me what Connor was doing. I glanced back at Connor and turned around and said, “Reading.” I don’t think Ryan believed me so I took this picture of him:

Evan really enjoys books, too. He especially likes any book with animal sounds in it (“Mommies Say Shhhh!” is a current favorite and “Moo, Baa, La La La” is another big favorite – he always laughs at the “mooooo” sound) as well as board books about animals that have little patches of synthetic “fur” or other textures that he can touch. It’s so cute when he reaches out to “pet” the fur!

Also, in the past week or so, Connor and Evan have both started helping me turn the pages while we’re reading – it’s the cutest thing! I prep the pages for them by making sure they’re not stuck together, so their little fingers can grab on and flip the page over. Sometimes they know when it’s the appropriate time to turn a page, and sometimes we have to say “Turn the page!”

With all this interest in books I think I’m going to attempt to take the boys to our local library for the “babytime” storytime. I’m imagining that most people only bring one baby to that type of thing, so who knows how it will go with two babies. Could be a huge disaster! Or it could be fun. We shall see!

Last week, Ryan and I took the boys to Florida for their very first beach vacation! We were lucky enough to have lots of other family joining us – my mom and Greg came for the whole week, and Ryan’s mom, dad, sister and brother-in-law were with us for several days. That meant Evan and Connor got LOTS of attention, which was great!

Our trip actually began with somewhat of a rough start. We drove straight through to Florida, leaving at 4:00pm Eastern time, and arriving at 4:00am Central time. When we got inside the condo we were staying at, Evan and Connor unfortunately thought it was time to start the day. All Ryan and I wanted to do was SLEEP, as we had hardly slept at all on the 13-hour drive down, but the boys were simply not going back to sleep, and therefore neither were we. We turned on Sesame Street (which apparently airs at 4:00am), tossed a bunch of toys on the floor, and did the best we could to stay awake and entertain the boys. Fortunately, a couple of hours later, the grandparents took over and Ryan and I were able to get a couple of hours of much-needed sleep.

When we woke up, and after several cups of coffee and some breakfast, we decided we were ready to make our first attempt at going to the beach with two babies. We put them in their swim diapers and their cute swim trunks, made sure they had hats and sunscreen on, filled the diaper bag with lots of toys, and walked down to the beach.

At the beach, Ryan’s parents had already set up a big 10″x10″ tent so that we would have a big shady area for everyone, and so that the boys could play outside without getting any sun exposure. We had a big sheet under the tent and we put out a bunch of toys for the boys to play with. We set the boys down on the sheet and they sortof freaked out – we’re not really sure why, but we think they didn’t like the unevenness of the sand underneath them, and the fact that it shifted around when they moved. But whatever the reason, they did not want to sit on the sand – they just wanted to be held.

Next, we carried them down closer to the water and tried to stand them up in the sand. This did not go over all that well. I guess if you think about it, sand IS pretty weird – it has a weird texture, and it sticks to you. So it’s understandable that it would be a little scary to a baby. After that, we tried to dip their feet in the water at the very edge of the shoreline. That did not go over very well, either. They seemed scared.

So at that point, we admitted defeat for the day and went back to the condo. At the condo, the boys were perfectly happy practicing their newfound skill of pulling up on EVERYTHING. They especially liked pulling up on their bouncy seat and then scooting over to the coffee table next to it. Also, there was a space created by two chairs situated close to each other, and they really enjoyed crawling through their “tunnel.”

That night, being too tired to do ANYTHING after the boys went to sleep, we ordered some pizzas, watched TV, and then went to bed.

The next day, we decided to try taking the boys to the pool instead of to the beach. Ryan and I carried them into the water, and after a brief moment of hesitation on Connor’s part, they seemed completely fine. Next, we put them each in a floatie and played with them in the water, and they really seemed to enjoy that. Yay – success! In the pool, they were even brave enough to a) go underwater (very briefly) without crying afterward, and b) sit on the edge of the pool and then jump in and be caught by mommy or daddy! We were so proud of them!

When we got out of the pool the boys got lots of snuggle time with grandparents and aunts and uncles to warm up and get all cozy.

That night, our whole group went out to a seafood restaurant for dinner. We brought food and snacks for Connor and Evan, and they sat in the little wooden highchairs provided by the restaurant and had their dinner right along with us. This was the first time we’d ever taken them into a restaurant without their car seats, and they looked so grown up sitting at the table with everybody! We were seated near a huge tropical fish tank and that was really neat because we could get up and go look at all the colorful fish.

On the third day of our trip, we tried once more to take Evan and Connor down to the beach. This time, we took them straight into the water, past the waves and out into the more calm water. There was some hesitation but after a couple minutes they started making happy noises and smiling. Yay – success again! They liked it when a wave came and we would jump up over the wave and say “Whee!!” Simple pleasures. I was so relieved at this point that the boys seemed to be liking the water, both in the pool and in the ocean. We also tried bringing their pool floaties into the ocean and they liked that, too. And eventually they got used to sitting on the sand so they spent time under the tent just playing with their toys.

That night we had spaghetti and meatballs and ice cream cake for Greg’s birthday. The “kids” (not Evan and Connor, of course) did all the cooking for that one. Go team!

One night, Ryan and I went out to dinner alone while grandma and grandpa stayed home to babysit.

And another night, grandma and grandpa went out to dinner by themselves and Ryan and I took the boys on a walk on the boardwalk. Turns out that grandma and grandpa could see us walking around from their table on the balcony at their restaurant!

The rest of our trip was a combination of hanging out in the condo playing with the boys, going on walks in the strollers, hanging out at the beach or the pool, kicking mom and Greg’s butts at euchre (and getting our butts kicked at Catchphrase) and feeding the ducks/swans in the lagoon. I don’t think Connor or Evan really grasped the concept of “feeding” the ducks – they were way more interested in trying to eat the bread themselves.

So overall, we had a GREAT time on our first beach trip with Evan and Connor! We will definitely go again next year and many years to come!

Hee hee.

I looked up from eating my lunch today to see this:

I did not stand Connor up like that, and this scenario happened multiple times today. I love how proud he looks, like he knows he’s such a big boy.

Not much time to write because we’re getting ready for a big trip to Florida (yay!). The boys had their 9-month well visit today and here are their new stats:

Connor:
Weight = 18 lb. (<25%)
Height = 29.75 in. (90%)

Evan:
Weight = 18 lb. 4 oz. (25%)
Height = 28.5 in. (75%)

Tall and skinny, again! Especially Connor - he’s a string bean like Daddy.

We’ll be back in a week from our trip with lots of pictures, and updates about other new things that are happening with the boys.

Have a happy and safe Labor Day!!

Here’s a photo journey through our world, as Evan and Connor hit the 8.5-month mark:

Solids have gotten a whole lot messier lately! Evan is doing much better eating a variety of foods, but the more he dislikes something, the messier mealtime gets. If he doesn’t like what we’re feeding him, he lets it dribble out of his mouth and then he puts his hands up to his face and wipes it all over the place. Also, he likes to hold the spoon himself, sometimes, which can be pretty messy. So we’ve got quite a few photos like this one:

I like this photo of Connor for comparison. He looks like a perfect little angel patiently waiting for his food. He will eat anything. ANYTHING.

We have a great park just around the corner from our house, so we have been spending lots of time at the baby swings! They’re a big hit:

More playtime photos. Dumping toys all the over the place is still great fun:

And so are books:

Connor deeply engrossed in his book:

Evan’s latest “thing” is lifting up the corners of every rug in the house. He does this all the time. He must think we’re hiding something really good under there:

Playing with pots and pans. Well, really just pots. And spoons and whisks.

Pool time!

Fresh out of the water is the perfect time to admire Connor’s “business in the back, party in the front” hairdo.

Business in the back:

Party in the front:

Both of the boys can stand up for a few seconds while holding onto something, like a chair, or the exersaucer, or… a beat-up laundry basket. Containing Evan.

Hmmmm, which DVD should we watch?

Now that they’ve figured out how to actually pull the DVDs off the shelf, their preference has become clear: Seinfeld. Yay! Good choice!

And for non-photo-related news, we have some traditional crawling going on, lasting several “steps” (?) at a time before they revert back to army-crawling. They’re definitely starting to get the hang of it!

Evan has 4 teeth now! His top 2 came in a couple of days apart. Connor’s upper gums seem a little swollen so I’m guessing his top 2 teeth will be before too much longer.

They’re getting really good at using the “pincer grasp” to feed themselves their puffs. Ryan thinks Connor will be a lefty (actually, he is hoping that one of the boys will be a lefty, like him) because he uses his left hand a lot to pick up his puffs. Evan usually uses his right hand. Is it too early to tell which hand will be their dominant hand? I really have no idea.

That’s it for now! Goodnight!

Here are some scattered thoughts for you:

Food News
We have been feeding the boys “puffs” (puffs are little pieces of cereal made by Gerber that melt in your mouth) at morning snacktime for awhile now. The last couple of days, both of the boys have been trying to feed themselves, and occasionally they actually get a puff in their mouths (which makes them beam with pride)! It’s the cutest thing! Most of the time, though, the puffs get stuck to the inside of their hands (but of course they still try to jam their fists into their mouths), and sometimes, the puffs get stuck to their faces, like this:

Cute!!

Sounds
Lots of babbling going on. The favorite consonant sound is “D” and we’re getting a lot of “da! da! da!” type action, which is so fun. Connor thinks it’s funny if you repeat his babblings. His first “words” were “blah blah blah.” I keep trying to reinforce the importance of the letter “M” and all the great words that you can say with it – milk, more, muffins, MAMA, etc., but it’s not happening yet. I can’t wait, though! Here’s some pre-sleepy-sleep babbling:

Crawling
Not happening, yet. Apparently, the army crawl is effective enough for their needs at this point. Their needs being gaining access to toys that happen to be on the other side of the room, attempting to touch the fan, and relentlessly trying to get near the computer cords so that they can eat them. What is so appealing about computer cords? I really have no idea. But the boys are really fast! I know that we need to baby proof but I don’t know what that entails, exactly. I guess we need to figure that out.

Games
We’ve entered the “Knocking Things Over and Dumping Out the Contents of Containers is AWESOME!” phase of childhood. Also, the “Playing with Things That Aren’t Really Toys” phase. Here’s Evan dumping toys on the floor and Connor playing with the fascinating crinkly-noise-making wipes container.

More Random Cuteness!

All my brain can handle tonight is bullet points, I’m afraid, but here are some random things that are happening in our world:

• Nobody’s crawling yet, but we’ve got all sorts of scooting and dragging going on. Connor does this thing where he’s on his belly, and he uses his arms to propel / drag himself forward. He doesn’t use his legs at all, they’re pretty much just dead weight. It looks funny but gets him where he wants to go! Kind of like my first car. Evan uses basically the same maneuver, but he seems to realize that eventually his legs will be involved somehow. He flails them all over the place (which looks hilarious) but his arms really do all the work. They are mobile enough at this point to get into trouble, so it’s starting to get a little crazy around here. Cats and computer cords are the most sought-after forbidden objects.
• Solid foods are going well. Evan has gotten the hang of eating from a spoon, and he opens his mouth for anything now. Even if he doesn’t like something, he opens his mouth for the next bite (maybe hoping it will be something better?). Connor still hates carrots but for the most part, happily gobbles up anything we feed him.
• Games / activities that are currently big hits: dropping toys from their high chairs and thinking it’s funny when I pick them up, knocking over towers of cups and blocks, laughing when we jump out from behind a door and “surprise” them, eating books, attempting to pull out tufts of the cats’ hair.
• A good way to make Evan laugh is to talk to him in a “hillbilly” voice.
• We got a baby pool this weekend! Evan did a lot of splashing and seemed genuinely shocked every time he splashed water into his own face, like “Where did that come from!?”. Connor behaved pretty much as he does out of water (chewed on toys). It was so cute!!

Pictures:

(Josie and Evan)

(Marika and Connor)

It’s bedtime – nighty night!

1) In regards to my previous post, wouldn’t you know it, we’ve already discovered a new Evan Food — pears! He loves ‘em. Yay! So he’s a fruit man, I guess. And for the record, no, I’m not a huge fan of pears, but it’s mostly a texture thing. In response to the person who asked me why I am so picky, my answer is “I don’t know,” although I like the idea of having a superpower, so I will happily go along with the SuperTaster thing (thanks, Mom!). Can I have a cape made for that? Ooh, and if Evan is a SuperTaster, too, I think I’ve found his first Halloween costume!

2) In regards to Oregon Trail, the computer game I “scored” at a garage sale last weekend: the 4th edition sucks. It’s way too fancy. It has video clips of actual people talking. Huh??? Now THIS is what I’m talking about — the low-tech, pixelated version:

Poor Mary.

3) Both Connor and Evan are very very close to crawling! They can move around basically anywhere they want to by rolling and sortof “scooting” around on their tummies. It won’t be long! In fact, Ryan predicts they’ll be crawling by the 4th of July. Boys, you’ve got less than 24 hours – better get working on it!

Have a happy and safe 4th of July, everyone!