Special Visitors!

All in all it was a great Saturday at our house. This morning my mom came over and helped out with the kiddos. (Bob had to run to work for bit...) She helped me with lunch for the kids. We made fish and green beans, yummy! M and R loved it. Yes, that is fish in the top of Riley's ear...goofball!

After lunch,my mom helped me to keep M and R entertained while the carpet cleaners came and did their magic! Everything looks great!

When the kids were napping, my mom and I went on a weed pulling, get ready to plant flowers mission. Bob pulled out the lawn mower and got to work. It was a gorgeous day and it felt really nice to get some fresh air and feel the sunshine on our faces.

When the kids got up, Bob's grandparents, Grandma and Grandpa S. came over for a visit. It was so wonderful to see them, they were all smiles as usual! They totally enjoyed seeing the kids and Riley and Madison loved spending time with them!

Madison did some reading with Great Grandma S. and hung out on the couch with Great Grandpa and Dad! How sweet!

Riley was fascinated with his Great Grandma's glasses! He also spent some time goofing around with "the boys" on the couch!

Off to the Doctor (not to worry!)

Today we had a pretty normal morning, although it was spent indoors as the weather was dreary again! We are really getting our money's worth out of the toys we have! HA!

Riley has proven that he is part monkey for sure. This boy can scale anything in record time. How someone that small can a) reach the things he can and b) climb the way he does without climbing equipment. OMG! Madison is keeping her title of the happiest baby on the block! She spends most of her day giggling and smiling. The little things bring her true joy!

This afternoon we made a trip to the doctor. Madison has had a dry patch near her eye for a while and I just wanted to get it looked at. My gut said eczema, but I wanted to be sure. My mom met us there as going to the doctor with 2 active babies is nearly impossible. So nice of her! She managed the monkey, I mean Riley, while Madison and I chatted with the doc. The doctor thinks my theory is correct, but we will watch it over the next week and see if the treatment helps. If not, it may be some other sort of dry skin we can treat another way. Nothing serious or a big deal, but worth checking out.

While at the doctor, both kids got weighed...Madison is up to 19 pounds and Riley is at 17 1/2 pounds. They did not get their height, but I have a feeling Riley has taken a bit of a lead in that department. We will see...

When we returned from the doctor, the kids were ready to RUN! Well, crawl and climb anyway. Riley immediately found a box that was delivered to the house today and Madison hit the ground crawling.

Yahoo! Tomorrow begins the weekend! Daddy Days! We hope to get some stuff done in the yard and the carpet cleaners are coming...yikes! I will have to take the kids out while they are here as they are totally scared of the vacuum, I cannot imagine what they would think of the big carpet cleaning deal...I am sure there will be good stories tomorrow!

The Pacifier Game

I have got to try to figure out how to put videos on this blog because I took probably the best one ever today for Madison and Riley! I caught them sitting facing each other and "chatting!" They were then stealing pacifiers from each others mouths and putting them in their own! It became a game for them... in one mouth, plunked out of the other! At one point, Riley grabbed both of the pacifiers, held one in each hand and shook them up and down as if to say, "Hey, Madison, ha! ha! I have them both!" She put out a pouty lip and promptly grabbed one back!

I know it is a drawn out babble of a scenario, guess you really have to see it to believe it! I will try to get it online...

After their "conversation" they had about a half an hour of goofy time! They were just silly! I snapped a couple pics of the smiles...

We had a lot to get done today, so we were out and about a lot. I do not know if it was that or the fact that it was another rainy day, but the "fussy twins" activated! Yikes! It was a rough afternoon for mom! Oh well, tomorrow is another day and I am sure the happy twins will be back in action!

Good Day Sunshine!

So, we finally were reassured that the sun can shine in Minnesota! YAHOO! It was not too warm, but hey, I will take sunshine any day! I think it puts us all in a better mood. :)

This morning we spent some time with a neighbor. Such a sweet person. Last summer, their home was hit by lightning (luckily they were not home) and caught fire. It was quite a loss. They have spent a great deal of time rebuilding, de-smoking and refurbishing some of their belongings. The kids and I went to see all that is done and chat. Our neighbor finally seemed at peace and I could not be happier about that.

So after all the visiting and fresh air, the kids were wiped out! They had a great nap and when they woke up were a total comedy act! Riley's "bed head" hair was hysterical! Check it out!

Madison did not have wacky hair, but was looking at her brother with a skeptical eye...

Well, Riley wanted none of that, so he went on an attack towards his sister..she thought it was too funny!!

Of course, I had to join in the fun..a tickle fest followed! Then, we were off to the grocery, oh joy!

Where is Spring?

I feel as if I sound like a broken record when I say this, but it was ANOTHER awful weather day here. It was cloudy, breezy and barely made it into the upper 50's. It was even to brisk to take the kids on a walk in their stroller. Ick, ick, ick! So, you say, just stay inside and play. Well, you can only keep 10 1/2 month olds entertained for so long before they begin to lose it, and quite frankly, I get stir crazy myself! Even I get bored with the toys and such! He...he...

So, about an hour before the kids afternoon nap, we piled in the car and went back to the home improvement store that we had to leave over the weekend due to the sever weather. We all had a blast! I was able to pick up a few things and the kids loved looking around.

When we returned, they were pooped, as was I and they had a super nap! I had two happy campers in the afternoon! When they wake up in the afternoon, they get a bottle. Afterwards, they love to hang out with each other and their bottles! Whatever floats your boat I guess!

After afternoon snack bottles, we hung out and played for a while. I had a huge smile on my face just watching them, they were having so much fun with each other and exploring their environment. I am amazed at the new things they can do every day and I am not just saying that! Each day is like a new beginning. :) How cool!

Walks, playtime, adventures out and about, time to chill, that is what good weekends are made of! Ours has had all of these things already and we get a bonus day tomorrow...yahoo!

Yesterday we hung out in the morning and literally played with every toy we own! So, a walk was a much needed out for us all! Fresh air, and wind! Holy cats it was windy! You could tell some sort of front was moving in. The temps were pretty mild and out need to get out was strong, so we put the kids in their sweatshirts with hoods and hit the road!

Later in the day, we met my mom at Home Depot to gather a few random things and look at patio furniture. The kids love Home Depot~so much to look at at once and bright lights! We made it through there pretty quickly, so we were feeling bold and decided to make a quick Target run after that! Too fun! The kids were great and loved the outing!

Today was another unique day to say the least! This morning, Riley was a maniac in the walker (a total hoot!) and Madison was an attentive audience for her daddy while he played the guitar!

It was super muggy outside and felt like it was gonna rain, but the radar indicated it was going to hold off until the afternoon...so Bob slapped on his rollerblades and hit the pavement and I strapped the kids into the stroller and took them for a walk. They were really "commenting" on everything they saw when we were walking! It was so sweet! When we returned, they were in such a good mood! I grabbed the camera and snapped a few pictures...

Funny Story...later in the day, I asked my mom to run out with me to buy new car seats for the kids. I needed help getting 2 car seat boxes in carts and into the car. I cannot believe M and R have grown out of their current seats! We decided on the Britax Boulevard seats and I think we will be happy with them. So, my mom and I felt like we were on a roll, so we swung by the house, dropped of the car seats and went to a local home improvement store to look at garden stuff and patio furniture. While we were in the store, Bob called my cell phone and said there is a tornado warning, do you hear the sirens? WHAT? YIKES! So we had to make a call, stay at the store and risk being there for a really long time, or gun it home....we chose gun it home (we were close) so we each had a baby in a cart, so we pushed them straight to the car, drove like crazy home and hung out int he basement for a while.

Don't think there is such thing as a normal day around here...love it though, and luckily, the storms passed and we are all safe. (and tired!!!)

Fun Friday!

It was a super fun Friday around our house today! Madison and Riley started the day with some playtime in their room after breakfast. I try to have them pay in a bunch of different areas of the house throughout the day to "mix it up!" They like the toys and books in their room, but they like looking out the window the most! Madison wanted the best of both this morning so she climbed into the toybox to look out the window! Riley watched her climb!

Later in the afternoon, we were hangin out in the living room. Madison found her favorite thing, the book box and was "reading!" Riley headed over to the swing and was working on pushing it back and forth!

Honestly, it was a no whining day! I am probably going to jinx myself by saying that. We played, laughed and smiled a lot!

Today, almost at the same time, Bob and I looked at each other and said. Wow, these kids really look bigger. They do! My mom said they are beginning to look like toddlers! (We met her at a coffee shop by the lake and the kids had a blast! They watched people and trains! They were "talking" to people walking by and Riley was flirting with a young girl! HA!!!) Ahhh, there have been moments that time stood still, but all in all, time is flying by!

So, So lucky!

Just feeling lucky today. I feel so lucky to have a wonderful husband, 2 great, happy, healthy (and goofy!) kids and an amazing extended family. I know, be quiet Miss "I think I am the Walton's or the Huxtable's!" It is true though.

Riley and Madison were having a great time exploring the couch today. They have been pulling themselves up to stand by it, but have not had a lot of chance to crawl around on it. I had to watch them so carefully, because, I swear they both almost scaled it! Yikes! Here they are during their adventures. (PS How cool would it be if hanging out on the couch was still an adventure!!)

I did mention that they are goofballs, too, right! Well, after they ate their lunch of a turkey and cheese quesadilla and some baby food, they hit the toy area running. One toy was not enough, they had to dump the box...yes, that is Madison under the box! Looks like fun!

Monkey See, Monkey Do!

Riley and Madison are beginning to enjoy copying each other. It is so cute, but, I suppose it could be my doom when they are older! Ha!



A neighbor of mine just opened a children's clothing shop in our area (ironically she has twins too!) and I was there the other day. She showed me some new onsies she ordered, and well, it was an instant "must" purchase. One had pink trim and the other had blue trim. The saying on the front was "Monkey See, Monkey Do." Um, could the timing of that be any better?



The kids wore them today! They looked SO adorable and they kept up with the copying!

It is hard to see the writing in the picture, but it is pretty funny! As are these two, I might add!

We all put in a full day of play, crawling, errands and storytime. The new schedule seems to be working very well! Thank goodness! What will tomorrow bring?

Tweeking the schedule again...

So, Bob and I decided to tweek the kids schedule a bit. Today was yet another "day one." We were having trouble getting them to eat some of their food at given times, so we needed to mix it up a bit. Now, instead of giving them a big bottle right when they wake up, we are giving them "breakfast." Today it was pear strawberry granola (baby food) and eggos with butter. We then gave them their bottle before their morning nap. We also decided to push back their dinner time a little bit. All of our ideas actually worked out really well! Yahoo! The kids were happy, ate well and had a great day. All equals happy parents! The new food schedule did not go without messiness though...but at out house we know messy is FUN!!!

Madison and I went to swimming class again this morning. It was really fun! Get this...Madison went underwater two times! You go girl! She actually liked it and came up smiling! What a trooper.

While we were away, the boys will play! Riley learned how to go down the stairs! (He can already go up in the blink of an eye!) Good or bad? Not sure yet...he...he

We met Grandma at the store (my mom) and picked out some fun stuff. The lines were long, so she helped squelch the fussiness that comes from waiting in line. (Both moms and the kids...ha!) Then Grandpa (Bob's dad) stopped by and hung out for a bit.

We can really pack in a lot of fun and adventure into one day! I thin we will all sleep well tonight!

A "Daddy Day!"

Around here we call Saturday and Sunday "Daddy Days" because Bob is around during the day. It is kinda funny because, each weekend, the kids look at him like "oh, you are still here? Cool!"

It was a wonderful day sent with family. We hung around this morning and played. Fun fun! For lunch, the kids had Mac and Cheese and then some wonderful (ha, ha!) baby food. They are really liking the "real" food more and more. Wouldn't you? I am sure the baby stuff is really bland! Anyway, they chowed!

By the end of lunch, however, Madison was showing us she had had enough...

This afternoon we trekked to Lowe's (Like Home Depot) and picked up a few odds and ends as well as checked out some patio furniture. (We need new stuff as in the last storm we had our glass table blew over, shattered and crushed the umbrella..lovely!) We got some things to hang Bob's guitars...guy stuff!

When we got home, the kids and I headed inside and Bob was doing a few things in the garage and front yard. The kids were watching him from their bedroom window and it was priceless.

Happy Babies!

Wow, no one can say the Dovenberg twins are not happy! These kids smile most of the day! Yes, they have their fussy moments, but don't we all? They totally enjoy exploring, playing with toys, going out in the car and their stroller, and even sleeping!

The cool realization I came to today, was that M and R are really beginning to enjoy each others company. They are seemingly more tuned into the fact that this other "being" around them can be a playmate! Sometimes, they share toys, sometimes, they, well, don't! HA! A few squabbles have occurred over house favorites. It seems, though, that whatever toy the other one has, is the one they want. It does not matter that there is bucket full right next to them! Today, I gave them some new toys to play with. As you can see, Riley already has one, but clearly wants the one Madison chose. She was not about to give it up!

In the afternoon, we were able to open up the windows and let some fresh air in the house. I think it put us all in a happier mood, in fact, the kids were almost, dare I say, giddy! It was too cute! They would look at each other and laugh, follow each other around, and literally copy each other. It was a hoot! Riley even decided to push Madison in the swing! She laughed the entire time!

Always exploring and trying new things...

Yes, it rained AGAIN today! YIKES! How do you keep 2 babies happy and occupied on a rainy day, you ask? Well, you create new experiences, that is how! In this photo, Riley demonstrates his new found tunnel...

Madison suddenly became interested...

So, the fun did not end there! I fed the kids Pasta marinara for dinner. One of the messiest things we have ever had, but also one of the most fun!

They actually managed to get most of it in their mouths (well or around them anyway!) They had "red" faces for the rest of the evening even though I really washed their faces. Good thing they get a bath every night! Tonight, we had extra bubbles!

Melting Momma's Heart

What a big day it was around here! Madison and Riley are having more fun together every day! It is amazing to see the bond that they have, I know I have said it before, but I am in awe when I see it in action. Today, when they were in their high chairs, (waiting for their twice baked potatoes to cool off! he...he) and Riley looked over at Madison, reached out his hand to her and she brought her to his. They sat there smiling at each other and holding hands...talk about melting their momma's heart. I was able to snatch the camera and catch the moment.



In the afternoon, the kids got a package from their cousin Declan! It was so funny to see them checking out the package and wondering what was inside. Aunt Kirsten sent pacifiers that close when they fall down so they don't get dirty. How cool is that!!! Can't wait to give them a try!