Looking out for one another...

It seems like every day the bond between Madison and Riley grows stronger. They act like best friends with a twinge of something deeper. Many times during the day they will just look at each other and smile or giggle. If the kids are playing, they keep their sibling in the corner of their eye. I think they want to make sure they are there and ok, but also want to make sure that they are not missing out on something more fun than they are currently doing!

Today we had a thunderstorm roll through in the afternoon. Riley and Madison raced to the window to check out the action! They were both just standing there and then Riley put his arm on Madison as if to say, "don't worry sis! I will protect you!" Talk about melting their momma's heart...

Hangin out and exploring new things!

It has been an interesting couple of days. The kids got sick for the first time. Boo hoo! Madison has a very stuffed up nose (she is currently snoring in her crib! :) ) and Riley has flu-like symptoms as well as a stuffy nose. The poor guy even threw up a couple of times (on me of course!) So, as a result, we have been hanging around the house kind of taking it easy. Well, as much as you can with these two!

The newest discovery for Madison is the closet! She loves to crawl in there and close the doors! Then, she peeks her head out and smiles! It is the cutest thing!

Riley continues to be a monkey! He will climb anything. I had him sitting in the rocking chair in his bedroom, but that did not last for long...

Riley and Madison are also having a blast in the newly totally childproofed downstairs play area. ie: the Dovenberg Preschool! HA! It really is a great space for them and it is so nice to just let them play and not say "no" all the time! They are totally into pushing things and "walking" behind them. Walking solo is not far off I believe. Today they were totally enthralled with their push and ride toys. It is so much fun to hear them screech in excitement when they are "walking!"

I'm Done!

Both Madison and Riley are wanting to take more and more control during meal and bottle feeding times. When they are done with their bottle, they immediately flip over and move onto the toys. Madison usually sits up and grabs her bottle from me and puts it down somewhere else as if she is "clearing the table!" Riley had taken to removing his bib as an indicator that the is "all done." He began doing it with the smaller bibs we use when feeding them bottles and now he has started to do it with his food bobs too. Check him out...

Madison loves to just watch her brothers antics and giggle!

Great Grandpa's Birthday!

Today was Bob's Grandpa's 87th birthday. WOW! So, the 4 of us trekked over to his parents house to join in the celebration. What fun we had! Bob's mom brought out a whole bag of toys for the kids and they were in heaven! They were giddy! We were all smiling just watching M and R!

Then, it got even better. The Great Grandparents got on the floor with Madison and Riley and started playing. Could there be anything sweeter? I know Grandpa was supposed to get gifts for his birthday, but this was a gift for us. Seeing the eldest members of our clan hanging out with the youngest.

Even Bob got into the fun...Riley was loving hangin out with his Daddy!

A Quick Trip!

After a morning filled with playtime as well as running errands, I thought it would be fun to spend some of the afternoon strolling a nearby nature trail and going to the park. I called my mom to see if she wanted to join in the fun, of course, she was game! So, when the kids woke up from their afternoon nap, I fed them a bottle and hung out for a little while so they could get their jiggles out before we hit the road.

It had been a gorgeous day, sunny and hot! When I looked outside before we left there were a few dark clouds on the horizon. So, we packed up to go so we would get our fun in before any weather hit.

When we got to the park, the black clouds were moving in, but we figured we had some time for a quick stroll and then would hit the swings. Well, after a couple minutes of walking, we decided the clouds were moving in a bit faster than we thought and we should probably not be walking AWAY from the car.

So, we headed back toward the car and put the kids in the swing for a bit. OH MY, do they LOVE to swing. They were all smiles and giggles! Madison would wave "hi" at my mother every time she went close to her and Riley would shake his legs and giggle when he got close to me. Just watching the joy in their faces made my day.

New Treats, New Toys

We are always on the search for new foods the kids can try. This week, we had a second go on watermelon, tried ravioli and found some new toast biscuits. All were a hit, the biscuits were the messiest by far. Of course, at our house, messy is fun! We all laughed!

My Grandparents are still in town and stopped by with my mom this afternoon. My Grandma brought a first birthday gift for the kids now cuz she wanted them to have the whole summer to enjoy it! It was a kiddie pool! Oh my, Madison and Riley are going to LOVE it! My mom also brought over a couple of bouncy balls for the kids. They were a total hit! Luckily, they each got one...we are in the process of learning to share and discovering it is tough!

Father's Day!

Well, it was Bob's first Father's Day celebration as a dad, and I think it was a good one! For starters, the weather was awesome, finally! Mild and sunny. Perfect!

We spent the morning hanging out, reading the newspaper and hanging out as a family. After the kids had their lunch, we all trekked to the grocery store. I know this sounds TOTALLY lame, but I was thrilled I could take a cart! I am normally by myself with the kids at the grocery and I have to try and push the stroller and carry a basket at the same time. Well, today, Bob pushed M and R in the stroller and I was able to have my very own cart! HA! We were a totally efficient shopping team. We got everything we needed and I think the kids actually had fun! They were both all smiles and loved all the action going on in the store.

We had a pretty active afternoon. Bob went rollerblading and the kids had a little playtime. I then took them in a walk in the neighborhood while Bob assumed lawn mowing duties. When we got back from our walk, it was so nice outside that I decided to get a blanket and hang out in the yard with the kiddos for a while. What a hoot! We had so much fun! When they saw Bob come around the corner from mowing the backyard, they screeched with joy! So sweet!

Madison and Riley both had their "goofball" moments today as well. Madison decided to try on Bob's glasses and thought it was the silliest thing (it was!). Riley was causing mischief but when I called his name, he gave me the "I didn't do it" look. Priceless.

Chillin' with Mom and Dad!

Yahoo for Saturday! It is so nice to have a day where you can totally relax and hang out as a family.

In the morning, we went back to the path I mentioned before to take another look at the Bald Eagle and her baby. We saw the baby "testing" out his wings! Precious! We had a wonderful stroll (still lovin' the new stroller!) and made a stop at the park to swing before we went home. :)

In the afternoon, we had a few errands to run so we decided to divide and conquer. I took Riley with me and Bob took Madison. I think they were a little thrown off by that because they are hardly ever separated. Hey, some mother/ son and daddy/daughter time is good, right?

We regrouped with some playtime on the front lawn and the kids were so happy to see each other. We hung out with our neighbors for a bit and soaked up some sun!

Before bath time, we decided that the kids were already kind of wound up, so we let them do their favorite "wild" activity...jumping on the couch! The laughter coming from M and R is priceless. Bob and I got some good laughs as well. They especially love the big pile of pillows on the couch. It is a sectional, so they have lots of room to jump!

Bob and I were kind of kicking ourselves for the wild afternoon later as the kiddos were a bit wound up and crabby. We had a bit of a hard time getting them to calm down when it was time for bed. Maybe the couch jumping should be saved for morning time! HA!

Out on the town!

The sun finally came out this aftenoon, so the kids and I threw the stroller in the car and headed to the local coffee shop on the lake. We met my mom and grandparents and grabbed a great table! Just as we were chatting about what to order, Bob's mom showed up too! The whole gang was there. Too fun!

The sun was warm, so I took off the kids socks and let them go barefoot! Oh my goodness, they were lovign that! They let their toes hang out and spent some time "eating" them as well. It was so nice to be out and about!

Choo Choo!

Madison and Riley have added a new toy/activity to their repertoire...a Winnie the Pooh Choo Choo Train! HA! Here is the deal...they are standing and "walking" along furniture all the time. They have also taken to pushing their walker around and actually prefer doing that to walking in it! Whate-v-e-r! So, I got them something that they could push around and eventually ride on and push with their feet. The Winnie the Pooh Train got the most smiles when I played some of the music on it at the store. The upside...they love it! The downside...there is only one toy! Geez! We have had a small amount of hair pulling and screeching, so I have developed ways to make sure they take turns! Sometimes it is putting one in an exercauser or walker while the other can have some play time with the train OR one can push the train while the other one rides. Sadly, a lot of time and thought goes into figuring all of this out, but it is worth it in the end as it creates fun and peace!

Great Grandma and Grandpa Visit!

I feel truly blessed to have my grandparents continue to be a big part of my life and now they are a part of my children's lives as well. We have a small family and have always been very close. To have them visit and play with my children is priceless.

Their visit was a gift in and of itself, but they brought some things for Madison and Riley as well! Books and adorable outfits! My Grandma spent a ton of time looking for just the right books as she knows Riley and Madison LOVE story time! How sweet!

We all just hung out this afternoon and enjoyed each other's company. It is like M and R can sense family or people that love them as they snuggled right in with Gram and Poppy (as I call them!)

My grandparents we so excited to see all the things they could do and loved watching them explore their environment. They stayed to help feed the kids dinner (always an experience!) and then headed back home with my mom for the evening. The kids were pretty wiped out after the visit so we took a little neighborhood stroll in our stroller and chatted with our neighbors. Then of course, bath time, bottles and off to bed!

Another day awaits...who knows what joys it will bring!

New Discoveries

We had some people at our house today working on our deck. As soon as the kids heard some banging, they crawled over to the patio door as quickly as they could! Hey, action like that beats the same old toys any day! I had the patio door half open and Madison and Riley promptly took a spot on one side of the door. It was the funniest thing to watch when they discovered they could see each other through the glass. They were putting their hands up to each others and giggling like crazy! It was a hoot! Their attention became divided between their twin on the other side of the glass and the people working on the deck!

When watching their new "friends" became tiresome, I took the kids for a short walk in their new jogger stroller. They love it! Hey, I think it looks cozy and relaxing! I had to take advantage of the sun shining as it seems to be a rare occurrence lately!

This afternoon, we made our weekly trek to Target. I picked up a new push/ride toy for the kids so I am sure there will be reports about that soon! I think the kids are ready for something like that as they are happier pushing their walker around than being in it! Look out!!!

A Family Day!!

Ahhh, Saturday! A day to relax and hang out with family. We started the day by hanging out in our jammies and playing! The toys were definitely second fiddle to daddy! Riley and Madison were thrilled to have him home. (He was traveling most of the week...) I think Bob was happy to hang with the kids too!

After lunch, we all headed out to a local nature path with our new "Bob" stroller. (We love it!! It is so light and great for all terrain!) It was pretty muggy, but I will tell ya, the warm weather was very welcome. I snapped a pic of the kids when Daddy was pushing them. We had stopped because we saw an amazing sight...a bald eagle sitting by a nest! in the nest was a baby eagle! Not something you see every day...

On the way back to the car, we stopped at a playground and put the kids in swings for the first time. It was a total HOOT! They loved it, and Bob and I loved watching them! It was so sweet because in one of the swings, both kids could be in it at the same time! Their faces showed pure joy!

After of fun, the kids got a much needed bath before bed. I think the fresh air was good for all of us! I wish the "summer-like" weather would last...hitting the park to swing will become more of a regular activity!

Homebound...

Well, I made it! We spent an entire day at home. Sounds like no big deal right? HA! It is a huge deal! Trying to keep Madison and Riley happy and occupied inside the house all day is a trick to say the least. They are at an age where they can totally play with toys, explore their environment and such, but their attention span is so short and as soon as an activity becomes tiresome the move to one of two things....1) Trouble causing 2) Whining. Now I do not mean to complain because in between those things a lot of fun was had! We played in every room in the house (or close) and spent some time listening to and watching the rain fall. So by dinnertime, the kids were ready for a little chill out time, so we pulled out an old favorite..."biter biscuits!" The kids have not had them in a long time, mainly because they are so messy! It is essentially a thick graham cracker. They LOVE them, I like watching them eat them, not a huge fan of the clean up...oh well, they get a bath every day anyway and at that point, it was only an hour away!

YUMMY!!!

After along bath time, we spent 30 minutes reading stories. We read so many books! I could not be more thrilled that my children love books as much as I do. We always end with "Goodnight Moon." Could there be more of a classic?

Through all the whining, messiness and boo-boos, I love these children more than I ever thought was possible.

Rainy Day, so we will Play, Play Play!

Rain, Rain, go away, come again another day! I do not know how much more of this dreary weather we can take. Holy cats! Today it was about 58 degrees and misty. Nice...not! Well, with two babies that wake up with a huge smile on their face if the sun is shining or not, how can you not enjoy the day anyway!

Every morning when I walk into the kids room to help them greet the day I sing the same song. "Good Morning, Good Morning, Good Morning, it's time to rise and shine. Good Morning, Good Morning, Good Morning, I hope you're feeling fine! Get up, get up, get out of bed. Get up, get up you sleepy head. Your day is looking bright and new and I LOVE YOU!" It is difficult to describe in words the kids reaction of pure joy upon hearing those words in the morning. They laugh, smile and shout with joy. So sweet!

So, despite the rain, Madison and Riley were up and ready to go, so we hit the ground running! Our morning was filled with playtime, breakfast and fun. After their morning nap, they had a yummy lunch and then dove into the toys. It was a hoot! Some days they could care less about them, today the could not get enough of them! Madison took all the toys out of the toy box and was investigating each one. Instead of digging into the pile of toys, Riley went straight for the toy box.

After that grew tiresome, we took a break to get dressed. Hey, that it the good thing about a rainy day...you can stay in your jammies til noon!

The next point of interest was the swing! The kids would rather be outside it and pushing it, then in it enjoying the relaxation! Whatever!

We (especially I) needed some air, so we made a quick jaunt to Target. Where else do you go on a rainy day? HA! We actually had quite a list, so we were on a mission! The kids were great! I must say, I was not the only mom with that idea. There were strollers and carts with infant seats everywhere. There were also screams and screeches coming from the isles...however, not from my gems! they were lovin' every minute of the trip!

Another day where we are all exhausted as night falls. Can't complain about that though...I just gave my sweeties a goodnight hug, and told them how much they are loved. They are snoozin peacefully now...