Ev & Wes: 18 Month Recap

I refuse to come to terms with the fact that my second and third born babes are 18 months old. Just 6 months away from being 2 years old. When I say it like that it makes them sound even older; which I just can't handle right now. Heck, I can't even handle the words "one and a half year olds". Nope, for now I'll just have two 18 month old babies because that is slightly easier on my aching heart. 

To celebrate their milestone we snacked on a sweet treat outside- vanilla ice cream with sprinkles, per Tenley's requests.

Weight:  21lbs (20lbs at 12 months)

Height:  31in (29in at 12 months)

Clothing Size: 12-18 months

Shoe Size: 4

Weight:  28lbs 8oz (24lbs at 12 months)

Height:  33in (31in at 12 months)

Clothing Size: 18-24 month or 2T

Shoe Size: 6

These two are absolutely unrecognizable from when I did their last monthly update at 12 months old. 

Evie is such a sweetheart that just talking about it brings tears to my eyes. She has such a fascination for the world and is always looking at it with her big, beautiful blue eyes. You'll almost always hear her "oohing" and "awing". It's very rare that she isn't smiling or releasing the sweetest soft sounding giggles. She so petite, but very strong; which has earned her the nickname 'Ant'. It's also like she has ants in her pants because girlfriend can't sit still for more than 5 minutes. The only time she is still is when she's watching a movie. She'll watch pretty much anything you put on, but her favorites are Winnie the Pooh and Frozen. She is totally opposite of her siblings because she is very shy and reserved. She's definitely the kid that you'll see playing by herself, but be totally content with it. She's little Miss Independent; which I think is a really good quality to have. 

Wes is the boy version of his big sister, Tenley. He is wild, daring and ALL BOY. He is always hollering, giggling, climbing and jumping off things. He is obsessed with any type of ball and has such an arm on him already. He is such a sweet and loving boy, but sometimes he can be a little bully and thinks it's funny to smack his sisters (we're working on that). When he's not causing a ruckus, he does like to relax. He enjoys cuddling and reading books, especially Mickey Mouse books. He loves his doggie and really likes chasing her around while yelling, "BA!" (bad!) when she steals his food or even when he gives it to her. He loves to throw Pearl's ball and scream, "GO!" He is very vocal and let's you know what he wants with his words or by showing you, but he definitely speaks more than Tenley did at this age. His favorite word is "mama" and every time he says it my hearts melts.

There's something about your "youngest" that is so precious. Maybe it's that you savor every milestone with them because you know this is it. This will never happen again. This is the last time we will celebrate their 18 month birthday; which makes it that much more special. I feel so, so blessed that God blessed me with two angels to experience these "lasts" with. I've really been trying to savor each moment with them, but it has been hard...really hard. How do you say good bye to something you don't want to end? I find myself squeezing them longer, watching them nap or kissing their lips while they sleep so much that I nearly wake them. I want to remember them like this forever...the 50 pounds of babies that falls asleep snuggled in my arms every night. How do I ever quit nursing when nursing two babies has been the sweetest thing EVER? People saying nursing is a bond with the mother and baby, but not with us. It's always been for them. They just stare into each others eyes until they fade away or there are the times when they poke each other and tickle each other so much that they let out the sweetest giggles. How do I say goodbye to that? Can they stay this age forever? I'm having such a hard time with my babes getting older. They say babies need their mommas, but I need them even more. They are my lifeline. Some people are meant to be doctors or financial advisors, but I feel that I'm doing what I was meant to do, too- being a mom to my three kiddos. They are my #1's and I love them so. I think I'm going to work up a way to stop time so I can keep them this way forever because I don't know how I'll function any other way. Stay sweet forever, my babies!

Happy 18 month birthday, Everly and Wesley!! 

Ev & Wes: 12 Month Recap

When people warned me that the twins would turn one in the blink of an eye I actually didn't believe them. I thought that this would, for sure, be the longest year of our lives, but they were totally right. 

BLINK. OF. AN. EYE.

My babies are full-blown toddlers now. So much has changed in the past twelve months and it is absolutely mind blowing to me that we now have T-H-R-E-E toddlers.

Weight: 20 lbs (Birth: 6 lbs 13 oz) 
Height: 29 in (Birth: 19 in)

Clothing Size: 12 month

Diaper Size: 4

Evie is doing so many fun things this month. Everything from trying to do somersaults like her big sister to taking her first steps! She isn't walking yet, but she's taken steps to and from furniture and walked to Ed and I or to something she's really wanted, but not quite "walking" yet. She loves to clap and wave when she sees others clap or wave and gets SO proud of herself. She is also proud of her recent climbing skills and has acquired some bumps and bruises from that. If she hears music she will start bouncing up and down on her knees and waving her arms, especially when it's music from 'Frozen'. Unlike, her brother she is such a good sleeper at night. She still loves to be swaddled and will stay snug for at least 6 hours, unless she's teething. When she is teething (like she is right now) she is very hard to un-latch and just wants to be held. Although Evie is technically the "middle child" I'll always consider her my baby because she is such a lil' peanut. Don't let her size fool you though because girlfriend has finally started to eat solids this month and apparently grew a wooden leg. She went from spitting any type of food at us to not getting enough. She only eats what we eat and her favorite foods are broccoli and pasta and she will absolutely not let you feed her. She will sit at her high chair until everything is gone and point for more until she is full. She is definitely a girl who knows what she wants. She is peaceful and watches Tenley and Wes cause chaos. She will definitely be the tattletale when she is older or the one who secretly gets away with everything because she is so innocent looking. I can't even put into words how sweet my Everly Jean is. She is truly one of a kind. She has this fragile vibe about her, like a porcelain doll. I swear she will have magical powers because when her sweet little fingers touch my face I can feel this energy radiating from them. Maybe it is her love beaming out. I don't know, but it is powerful and I just want her to hold my face in her hands forever.  

Weight: 24lbs (Birth: 7 lbs 15 oz) 

Height: 31 in (Birth: 21.25 in)

Clothing Size: 18 month

Diaper Size: 5

This boy is so wild. He is just like his big sister, Tenley (if their lives had theme songs it would be Aerosmith's 'Living on The Edge'). He is walking everywhere already because he would just take off without any fear of falling on his face. Boy was very determined and didn't care if he caused my heart to stop in the process. Needless to say, after bumping his head on the tile a few times he is now walking like a champ! He loves to clap, wave and mimic what you're saying. I have a feeling he's going to be a parrot soon because he copies all the sounds he hears and says, "mama", "dada", "baba", "bye-bye" and for some reason whenever you say "zucchini" he cracks up. He goes crazy for eskimo kisses and neck nuzzles. Although he's such a lover, he is such a boy and gravitates towards cars and planes. He gets so excited when he sees a plane fly overhead that he starts grunting, bouncing up and down, and waving his hands. It honestly takes him awhile to calm down after seeing a plane- it's too funny. Wes is such a big, solid boy compared to Ev. He has also started to dabble in solids this past month, but doesn't eat as much as Ev. He also doesn't eat pouches or baby puree's, just whatever we are eating and his favorites are also broccoli and pasta, but he also really likes puffs and mum-mums. The food does nothing with helping his sleep at night because big boy still likes to party at night. We typically have the kids in bed by 8pm and after that he is on a schedule of waking up every hour, unless he is nuzzled up in our bed. Call me selfish, but I at least like to have a few hours in bed to myself. I've tried everything to get that boy to sleep longer in his crib, but nothing seems to work for him. Total momma's boy. He is truly such a good snuggler, though.

Ev and Wes have grown so much this past year and watching them grow together has been so special. They're always searching for one another. If I'm putting one down for a nap and the other makes the slightest noise in the other room the other will perk up and want to go see the other. I love bringing whoever is last to wake up to see the other because their face always lights up when they see each other. They also love to rough house, too. Wes is always taking things from Ev and she is left crying so we encourage her to take it back, "get your brother, Ev!!" They always come back to playing nicely together and jibber-jabbering in their little "twin-talk" that only they can understand. They are seriously just the cutest little babes.

There is nothing more valuable to me than watching my children grow. Their bonds strengthen daily and sweet Baby Jesus when Tenley introduces her siblings as her "Best Friends" I could literally squeeze her guts out. I remember finding out that I was pregnant with twins like it were yesterday. I cried so much. I've never been more terrified in my life. I knew having two kids was going to be an adjustment, but going from 1 to 3? How was I going to be a good mother to all three? I was so nervous, but looking back on it I think about how grateful I am that God chose me to be their mommy. I don't know how I got so lucky, but I truly have the sweetest little crew!

Happy 12 month birthday, Everly and Wesley!!

We love you to pieces!

Ev & Wes: 11 Month Recap

(The only semi-normal picture I got of these monkies!)

How is it possible that my youngest babies are one month away from being ONE year old?! How did this happen? It just breaks my heart.

Weight: 22 lbs (Birth: 6 lbs 13 oz) 
Height: 28.5 in (Birth: 19 in)

Clothing Size: 12 month

Diaper Size: 3

Evie has changed SO much this month! Although she is still the quiet and reserved one, she started to bring out her goofy self a little more. I've noticed her bonding with her brother more. She likes to rough house with him by pulling on his teething necklace, yanking on his pants, biting his ears, but most of the time she is super sweet on him and tries to hug and give him sloppy kisses. Her kisses are really sloppy because she got another tooth this past month and now has 6 teeth (4 top teeth and 2 bottom teeth). She is always cheesin' and showing off those pearly whites, too. She loves to chomp on everything she can get her hands on, especially Daddy's hand-me-down velcro kitchen vegetables and for some reason she's always finding cardboard and eating it. She absolutely will not eat baby food. She insists on only eating what we eat and will only eat if she can feed herself. Watching her eat is hilarious. She will grab the food from your hand or pick it up, inspect it, tilt her head back and forth, then put it in her mouth and chew. I swear you can see her processing a million thoughts when she chews (maybe she'll be a food critic?). Besides being into fine dining, she is obsessed with 'Frozen', just like her big sister. She can recognize any part of the movie and it will instantly stop her in her tracks and she will stand there and stare up at the TV. She could stand and watch the entire movie if I let her and she literally could because girlfriend is seriously amazing at standing. She has yet to take any steps; which I think is because she is very calculated. I don't think she will attempt to move from the standing position until she knows she could walk a mile, but we'll see!

Weight:  24lb 8oz (Birth: 7 lbs 15 oz) 

Height:  31 in (Birth: 21.25 in)

Clothing Size: 12-18 month

Diaper Size: 4

Then, there's this boy. He's been a goof ball since day one, but I swear he wraps me around his finger more and more each day with that cheese ball grin! He is such a momma's boy and comes crawling to me whenever his sisters are bugging him. I love it, but his Daddy says he needs to toughen up. This cheese ball has had it really rough in the teething department this month. Little man got his molars! I know, right? He skipped his canines and got his molars first. This poor kid is a serious teething machine and now has 12 teeth. All of the teething really got him attached to rattles. He constantly had to be holding things in his hands because he always wanted to bite on something to relieve the pain. Speaking of biting, he is much less picky than Ev in the eating department, but there's no sense in making separate meals for each of them so he eats what we eat, too, and loves it. I mean, boy has so many teeth that we can practically give him a steak, right? He is getting so big and strong. He has actually hit a major milestone this month- he's taken his first steps! Four steps to be exact. He isn't as good at standing like Ev is, but he has no fear so he just takes off and tries to walk. He also climbs onto everything. He's a daredevil, that boy.

Both babies can walk well while just holding one of your hands. They can also stand up on their own and then squat back down. Their movement is very good and there's no doubt that they are everywhere and in everything. This is exactly where Tenley was at this age in her development so it'll be interesting to see how they develop in these next few weeks. And what an emotional next few weeks I have ahead of myself. My babies will be 1!! Ughhh, please excuse me while I begin the month long crying parade...

Happy 11 month birthday, Everly and Wesley!!