Even with all of the fighting lately the babies have been so very sweet. This week we had many sweet firsts that I want to remember. Shenzie’s first kiss. She now gives kisses when you ask. I ask all day everyday to get as many as I can because who knows how long this will last. Heaten’s first hug. I was sitting on the ground outside watching the babies play when Heaten came over and gave me the biggest hug. He pulled back, looked at me, and then leaned in for another one. He now gives me multiple hugs everyday. Sometimes while I am doing the dishes he will come up behind me and hug my legs. Sweetest thing ever! He also loves to hug Shenzie. The first time was on Easter and I was lucky enough to get it on film. My heart melted. Shenzie gives him kisses and tickles and he gives her hugs. What more could I ask for?!? Oh yeah, no fighting, pushing, hitting, biting, and scratching.

They love to wake each other up. When they get up from their naps they love to go barreling into the other’s bedroom and babble to them through the crib. I imagine it goes something like this:

‘Sissy, sissy - Did you have a good nap? I didn’t. I woke up after 30 minutes and cried until mommy came and got me. I sure worked her and I got to play for an extra hour! Neener, neener.’

‘Brother, brother - Get out of your crib so I can scratch your face and make you cry.’

Heaten got his first piggy back and loved it. While I was sweeping up all of the food he threw ALL OVER THE FLOOR he ran up and tried to climb up my back. We then hopped around the house until I flopped him on the couch where he laughed hysterically. I don’t know who had more fun, him or me.

Their new favorite game to play with each other is ‘Hide behind the door and even though I know exactly where you are I will scream and laugh every time you push it open’. They love this game and play it over and over. This version of hide and seek is a big hit, I can’t wait to play the real way!!

Daybed Fun Edition

It’s all fun and games until someone crashes face first into the daybed.

Relaxing while watching their new favorite cartoon ‘Big World’

I suspect I broke my right index finger, which makes typing no fun at all. Top off a broken finger with a ripped off infected nail and life gets really interesting. Regular posting to resume when the finger is not kicking my ass with pain.

**Update**

The finger is not broken like I feared, just really messed up. I never was so clumsy before I had babies that’s for sure!

I always said I would give my kids mohawks, but since I refuse to cut Heaten’s rock star hair I’ll settle for this…..

She says “Haha Brother, not so cool now with all of your hair are you?!?! I’m a rock star too!!!”

I packed up the winter clothes yesterday. It is officially spring here. Today is in the 80’s! I love the change of clothes…by the end of the season I am so sick off all of their clothes even though at the start of the season I can’t wait to dress them up. I am loving all of the cute summer clothes!!

We had a great Easter. The babies woke with Jeff (I got to sleep in….YAY) and had breakfast. After I dragged myself out of bed we gave them their Easter Baskets which had bath toys, a book, a color book, and a stuffed toy. They really could have cared less about the Easter Baskets. We went to my parents for a yummy bbq and had an Easter Egg Hunt. Again, the babies could have cared less. Shenzie feasted on bbq, peach cobbler, rice crispy treats, and ice cream. Heaten would only eat Teddy Grahams. I tried to tell him he was missing out, but apparently he didn’t care…all the more for the rest of us!!

It is becoming VERY challenging to get them in a picture actually looking at the camera. They are too busy to be bothered. And forget about getting them in a photo together, ain’t happening!!!

This weekend we moved the babies from highchairs to booster seats. Hallelujah!! They look like such big kids in their boosters. I love it because it frees up a lot of space in the dining room. The trays are much smaller as well so they are easier to clean. Slowly but surely all of the big baby items are gone, gone, gone!!! Swings, exersaucers, boppies, bouncies, highchairs and all the other baby items take up so much room. Times that by two and it seemed as if the entire house was one big baby zone. It is nice to have some space again.

Hamper Rides!!!

Weight Watchers Week 5 Weight Loss: 0 pounds
Total Loss: 9 pounds

Cheater McCheatalot is my new name. PMS hit with a vengeance and out came the Andes Mints. Dinner at PF Changs followed by the biggest piece of chocolate cake, ice cream, and whipped cream certainly didn’t help. An Easter BBQ complete with a pound of rice crispy treats, peach cobbler, and ice cream topped off the cheat week. I don’t feel too bad about not losing a pound. I can now officially fit in all of my skinny clothes…..and some of my skinny clothes are too big!!!

Covered in Blueberries…Sibling Love Edition

Heaten will not eat fresh blueberries, but give him frozen VERY MESSY blueberries and he can’t get enough

They follow each other down the sidewalk, it is so cute

Not so sibling love when she steals his bike pedal seat

Eva tagged me with the 7 random facts meme. I don’t normally do meme’s, but I thought this would be fun for a change. You would think it would be easy to list off 7 random facts, but surprisingly it is not. The title was a bonus random fact as 7 really is my favorite number.

The rules are:

1. Link to the person who tagged you
2. Post the rules here
3. Share 7 random or weird facts about yourself
4. Tag 7 random people at the end of the post, linking to them
5. Leave a comment on their blog so that they know they’ve been tagged

Drum roll please………..

1. I have 5 tattoos (and no, none of them are the ever so popular lower back tattoo). I have already designed #6 and I’m sure there will be more to follow (sorry Mom and Dad). My first tattoo is a gay flower on my back that one day I will get covered up with something of my own design. The rest have special meaning and were designed by me.

2. My husband and I dated long distance for two years before we were married. He lived in Canada and I lived in Las Vegas. He moved here two months before our wedding and is still a Canadian citizen which means our babies are little halfies. Half American/Half Canadian.

3. I don’t have many regrets in life, but one I do have is not going away to collage and having the whole “collage experience”. I wish I could turn back time and do it over again, coming out with a Photo Journalism degree. Then I would have traveled the world before settling down with my wonderful husband and crazy babies.

4. I am spoiled by my wonderful husband. Every single night he gives me a foot rub, plays with my hair and tickles my back before bed. Can we say pure heaven!!!!

5. I love all things dragonfly, except the dragonfly itself. The babies room is decorated in dragonflies. My bathroom is decorated with dragonflies. I even contemplated a dragonfly tattoo. I love them. Only I don’t. I am scared of real dragonflies. If one landed on me I would scream like a little girl and run away.

6. I have two boyfriends. Don’t worry, my husband is fully aware of this little fact. You must wonder where in the world I find the time for twins, a husband, and two boyfriends. My boyfriends are so low maintenance it is almost like they are a figment of my imagination….almost. My movie boyfriend is Matt Damon. Roar. My music boyfriend is M. Shadows, singer for Avenged Sevenfold. Tall, dark, and tattoos. Yum.

7. I like hardcore music (Old school Avenged Sevenfold, Atreyu, Zao, Throwdown). I once went to Ozzfest and stupidly got in the mosh pit with some BIG OLD DUDES and about died. I swear I thought my chest bone was broke, I think I might have cried after. Here is me, all of 5′2 and 115 pounds and all of these giant, beefy, mean heavy metal dudes ramming into each other. Dumb, dumb, dumb. I never did that again.

There you have it. All about me and more!!!! I am tagging:

Erica, Denise, Brandy, Laura, Brittany, Kristin , and Karen. Hop too it girls!!

And as an added bonus I’m tagging the wonderful Ang!!!!!!

Since the babies were very little we have had the same night time routine. If Jeff is home we each rock a baby and sing three songs…ABC’s, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Rock a Bye Baby…we then lay them down in their crib and leave the room. When Jeff is not home I do them one at a time, singing three songs and then down to bed. When they shared a room it was always Shenzie waking up crying which led to Heaten waking up. I try to keep them on the same schedule for the most part, but some days their sleep needs are different so I am flexible. Regardless of doing the EXACT same thing for both babies their entire lives they have very different sleeps. Heaten rarely wakes at night, sleeps 12 hours and wakes happy. However, if he does wake in the middle of the night it is NOT fun getting him back to sleep. Shenzie wakes crying multiple times a night and if she can’t put herself back to sleep we re-rock her and lay her back down. Most times she goes right to sleep with no problem. Since we never got in the habit of bringing them to our bed to sleep (I CANNOT sleep at all when they are in the same room as me), they do not like to lay in our bed. It is good that they don’t, but bad when they wake early I want to stay in bed and cuddle with them. Not happening. What I’ve learned this year:

* We do not make good sleepers, they are or they are not. While we can keep the bad habits away for the most part I think babies will either be good sleepers or not.

* White noise helps drown out the outside noise as well as another baby crying.

* Blackout shades on the windows really help, especially after day light savings time when they go to bed while it is still light out.

* When you’re in the middle of sleep hell it is hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

* Sleep deprivation sucks.

* When you are in the middle of sleep deprivation you get used to it. When you get sleep again and then it is ripped away it feels SO much harder.

* Coffee is my best friend. Espresso is my second best friend. Oh how I love thee.

* I am not one of the good sleepers. I can’t sleep at times because I am too busy worrying. I worry whether the babies are too cold, too hot, did we turn the fans off, if I wear my ear plugs will I hear them, did we close the garage, is the air temperature set to the right degree…etc. etc. I can’t sleep without ear plugs to drown out the outside noise (and Jeff’s snoring). I can’t sleep with the TV on, I need complete darkness. I can’t sleep with the babies in the room, I worry all night whether my tossing and turning is going to wake them. I have to concentrate on turning off my mind at night to sleep. I am not a morning person. I am not a night person. I am a day person. My goodness…sleep woman! Just sleep!

What do you all think? Are good sleepers made or born?

For months now Shenzie has been addicted to wearing hats. Everyday she finds a hat to wear. When we go to the park I always get asked how I keep hats on the babies, lucky for me I don’t….they do! It seems now Heaten has decided he likes to wear hats too!!

Weight Watchers Week 4 Weight Loss: 1.5 pounds
Total Lost: 9 pounds

Family Edition

The babies finally got to meet their Great Grandma and Grandpa Unruh. I am so glad that my grandparents were able to see all of the new grand babies. Here are a few pictures full of giggles and laughter (ok, maybe not full of laughter or giggles).

Happy Birthday Grandma!!!

We had a family bbq last weekend. I come from a BIG family. I have 3 sisters, two brothers, 2 1/2 brother in laws, 1 1/2 sisters in law, 4 nephews, 3 nieces, and of course Jeff and the babies. We are a VERY loud family (I’m right up there at the top being one of the loudest), so family get togethers are always lively and fun.

Ang, Marlee, Stacey, and Haylee

Big Baby Carter

Crazy cousin Trever swimming in the 60 degree pool when it was only 65 degrees outside!

Mama and Shenzie bear