Sunday, June 28, 2009
Dog Torture
Finn thinks he's "playing" with Sedro. For Sedro, it's just pure torture.
(Be warned, the squeaky toy is just about the most annoying sound you've ever heard!)
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Hot Summer Days...
...call for a nice cool down!
Monday, June 08, 2009
New Tricks
D: I was not expecting this one. Really it came out of no where.
Last night, around 12:30am, I heard tiny voices talking about farm animals. Once I figured out I was not dreaming about tiny mice on a farm, I realized that those voices were my dear children reading one of their favorite books to each other. At 12:30am. But how?
I opened the door... "HI!" they both said cheerfully to me, sandwiched together in their over sized rocking chair with the light on.
Trying very hard not to crack a tired smile, I put on my mean face and point to their beds. Finn ran full speed and jumped under the covers. Ollie had several other ideas in stead of going back to sleep ("glass of milk", "ba-ba", "hit golf ball", "ice cream") all of which I politely refused him, and finally he fell back asleep.
1 hour later... "Hi!" Lights were back on and this time they both where running around their room like madmen.
By the third try it was clear that Finn had grown tired of his brother's shenanigans, and I was awoken 3 more times throughout the night by Finn telling Ollie to leave him alone and go back to sleep.
All because Ollie has discovered how to turn on the lights at night.
Last night I chalked it up to the full moon. They certainly act a little nutty on a full moon. However, he has done it twice tonight. The second time the light switch got a nice coating of duct tape, however, as I post this I am hearing them tear their room apart. If this continues, I'm going need a new game plan to try to get my little werewolves to sleep.
Great Park Action
Sunday, May 31, 2009
We love Doe Bay (Summer's here!)
Gelato Heaven
W: Last night D had a gals' night out, so the Deuce and I decided to have a guys' night in. The weather was perfect for some outdoor dining, and Finn made the call for -- you guessed it -- pizza. I paid.
Finn's tastes are highly refined, and while he will eat just about any type of pizza, he prefers the good stuff. And since we were ordering the good stuff, Ollie politely suggested that a bit of gelato was in order on account of the good weather and alfresco dining. Plus, he said he loves a good gelato after a hefty pizza binge.
I'm pretty damned sure that they were working as a team on this.
On to the photos...as you will be able to see from my little photo essay below, the Deuce are highly conscientious of the rare, but wonderful gelato; they take every precaution and all means to use every part of the gelato. And what they can't use, well, they let the dog share in the spoils.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
A mothers day celebration
Last weekend we took a very impromptu Mothers Day trip to a nearby state park, Camano Island. It was everything I wanted my Mothers Day weekend to include (besides having to work a 10 hour day on Saturday). Immediately after I returned from work on Saturday, Walker had our newly inherited Shasta camper trailer (thanks Dad!), all packed up and we were all set for a 1.5 hour drive up the coast to Camano Island State Park.
It was a weekend of many firsts... first time camping with the Shasta, first time ever staying at this camp ground, first time camping with the twins, first time camping with the kids AND both dogs. etc. And like most firsts, they may not have been very easy (as you can probably imagine, there was not a lot of sleeping going on). But that was OK, we were just happy that we were away, with our family and enjoying getting started on the rest of our lives together.
I know it sounds corny (and maybe it had something to do with being centered around a holiday that celebrates motherhood and family) but I could not help myself from dreaming about all the adventures that we will have together, in each stage of our children's lives. It's pretty exciting to think about!
Instead of gushing over every detail of my short 24 hour Northwest family vacation, here are my favorite pictures, briefly narrated.
Once we set up camp, we took a short walk around the campground. This is the view from our trailer, overlooking the Puget Sound.
The boys loved playing inside our camper together.
And reading books while cuddling up on their big boy bed before bedtime.
The next morning we played in the camper with play dough... (who says play dough isn't messy?)
We explored the campground and made many wishes on the dandelions.
Then we packed up camp and headed down to the beach.
And the best part of the Mothers Day trip... I got to spend it with MY mom! Since we were so close, they drove up on Sunday to spend a few hours with us on the beach.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Pictures speak for themselves
D: This was a trip to the Tulip Festival, the day after our first day of toddler beds. Needless to say, we had some pretty cranky boys on our hands!
Besides the tears, we still managed to enjoy the beauty, and the boys loved seeing the farm animals and playing in the muddy fields.
Friday, May 08, 2009
Getting the hang of it
D: All right, so I admit that sometimes I can get a little panicky. When times are tough, I tend to think that they will ALWAYS be tough. Which of course, is NEVER the case.
We are well into our second week of the boys' transition to their toddler beds and things have gotten much better. The boys turned the corner, actually only a few nights into it, but I've been putting off writing this post, since I really didn't want to jinx it.
But I must say, since introducing the toddler beds, bedtime has come much more peaceful. Once they got the hang of it, we haven't had a single night where they have 'cried it out'. They just seem to understand the routine better... which has become a little more 'sleepy-time' centered, with long quite reading and then laying with the boys next to their beds in the dark whispering quite "goodnight, I love you"s.
There are still a few nights here and there that they will get up, no matter how much time we spend with them before we leave. But I just go back in, quietly, tell them that it's bed time and they need to sleep in their beds now and put them both back to bed. Usually they are hiding in the closet, or (recently) I found them both under the rocking chair. It's still a little mischievous, but at least it's not crazy, full of energy antics. More like quite giggles.
However, as I said, I'm not holding my breath on this one. I've definitely learned that sleep is not something that I can count on. And like all transitions, they Deuce are just going to be leading the way while I follow blindly, scratching my head in confusion and calling out 'mercy'!