One of the Best Days…

My husband is seriously the best. He knows how to make me feel appreciated, loved and like I’m the luckiest lady alive. I want to remember all the details of my day yesterday, so I’m going to write them all out—even if this post gets a little long (and it makes you a little jealous).

Mother’s Day weekend was good, but really busy. We celebrated with two sets of extended family and really enjoyed catching up with family members we don’t see as often. Our boys went to sleep around 11 both Saturday and Sunday nights. I made lots of food and cleaned up lots of messes. The usual. What was unusual was I didn’t hear a single word about a card or a gift for me for Mother’s Day from Ben and the boys. And I purposed not to ask. As we went to bed on Sunday night, a small rebuke was on the tip of my tongue, but I held back, not wanting to hurt Ben’s feelings. Boy am I glad I didn’t say anything!

Monday morning was normal—in my mind. Ben got up for work, and I was waiting for my alarm to go off so I could get ready in time for Wesley to come. While I was still in bed, Ben told me that he got a text from Raleigh, Wesley’s dad, that he was running a little late, so I could sleep in. I thought it was a bit odd that Raleigh would text Ben, but I was quick to accept a chance to catch some extra sleep! I dozed until I heard a car door slam. “Oh no!” I thought. “Raleigh’s here with Wesley and I’m still in bed!” I threw on clothes and rushed to the door. To my surprise, it was my husband, holding my favorite Starbucks drink and gluten free cinnamon rolls. I looked at the dining room table: a beautiful boutique of flowers, a pot of Gerber daisys, a card and a necklace. Ben was giddy with excitement and gave me a big hug. He explained that he thought I deserved a whole day just for me for Mother’s Day, so he took the day off work, and we were going to the beach as a family. Words can’t describe how special I felt. What a man I married! The kids weren’t up yet, so we enjoyed a slow breakfast out on our deck and he told me all the details of his grand scheme (including pretending that he had training so that I wouldn’t pack his lunch and breakfast, how he hid the flowers in the bottom of the barbeque and had been sneaking off to water them, and arranging with Wesley’s parents to have someone else watch him), and I told him how glad I was that I didn’t make any snarky comment about no gifts the day before.

It was a perfect day for the beach. The wind was freezing the first time we tried to get out and play, so we decided to shop around a bit and have some lunch. We let the boys linger and play at a couple of toy stores, and I browsed a Christmas ornament shop, finding cool sports ones for the boys for next year. Lunch was amazing at Rotisserie Grill in Canon Beach (they even had a gluten free menu!). I love that Seth and Sam are at the age where they can skip a nap without having a horrible day, and also can handle being at a restaurant for a slow meal together as a family. By the time we tried the beach again, it had warmed up considerably. We hunkered down by a log to block some wind while the boys dug in the sand. Then we played in the water a bit, running the boys until they were exhausted and freezing (but still happy). The candy shop was our final stop for the day before heading home. Seth and Sam quickly fell asleep (which was a bit of a bummer because it was 4:45, which meant night #3 of going to sleep at 11 pm). What a amazing day! My heart overflows from feeling so loved and appreciated.

So here’s our day in pictures. It truly was one of the best days of my life. Thank you God for the wonderful husband and family you have given me.

It smells as good as it looks!

Sam, Seth

   

Here’s the photos from actual Mother’s Day while we’re still dressed up from church. I LOVE the ones of the boys.

Sam, Seth—looking so grown up! This is our flower garden in the back! Looks pretty good :)

Our Little Oasis

Not many people living in a city can claim to host a beaver dam in their backyard.

One of the reasons we bought our house was because of the green space behind it; declared a watershed by the county, no one can build on it. So it will always be a green space. Recently, though, the landscape has been transformed by a beaver. I didn’t believe Ben at first. Early this spring he and the boys ventured through the gate to go throw rocks in what used to be a small trickling stream. What they found, however, was an enormous pond, created by a dam on our little creek. Ben started looking around and found a bunch of trees chewed down by unmistakable beaver teeth. One cannot ignore this type of evidence:

Truth be told, we are thrilled and fascinated by our little beaver family. We checked books out at the library on beavers for the boys (and us too!), and learned that they are nocturnal (which explains why we never see them). And although we’ve had to protect some of the trees closer to our home, we’re happy to share this area with another family. In fact, it has created for us a really beautiful oasis in the the middle of the city. Two families of ducks now reside on the pond, so the boys get to feed them bread frequently. Our neighbor even set out a bench for us to sit in the evenings and enjoy the ambiance of the area. And Seth and Sam are in heaven, because they can now consistently throw rocks in the water—a true passion for them.

  

Ben breaks up the dam periodically to drain the pond; the beaver rebuilds every night.

Look closely: there’s a duck!

Final Month of 2 two year olds

When I was pregnant, I read every thing I could get my hands on about twins. One thing I remember very vividly: in every book I read, only one, maybe two chapters would cover after the first year of twins.  I’d read about changing thousands of diapers, how much milk I would produce, what I should buy for multiple babies, etc…but I recall thinking: what about when they’re not babies anymore? How am I going to survive with 2 toddlers? Two going through the terrible twos? So, if I ever write my memoir about twins, here’s my final thoughts on 2 two year olds:

LIKES:

• Seth and Sam always have a playmate. True confession: I rarely play with them. They don’t need me. They’re sufficient with just each other.
• They have learned how to share and get along with others quicker and easier than other kids their age—because we practice it ALL THE TIME.
• Because they’re the exact same age, they are going through the same things at the same time (in contrast to a mom that has a three year old and baby at home).
• Having their clothes be all the same size…keeps things simple.
• Watching their social interaction with one another. Saying things like, “Don’t be controlling,” to one another.
• Having 2 little boys on my lap reading stories with me.
• Their language; I was sure that my boys would be slow to talk because all the books said that twins talk slow, and boys talk slow. However, their being twins has seemed to help them talk better. Seth and Sam are talking constantly and in complete sentences. I think it’s because they are always chattering to one another.
• Every “idea” they have of something to do or play with gets even bigger and sillier because they feed off one another.
• Seth and Sam being brave together; example, them holding hands to go touch the puppets at story time. I never worry about leaving them with babysitters or nursery because I know they have one another.

DISLIKES

• They go through the same annoying stages at the same time. Example: both really into opening and shutting the door. Translation in twin life: always fighting over the door.
• Playing referee a lot because I’m teaching them to share ALL THE TIME.
• The question phase x 2. Imagine how annoying it is to answer questions all day. Now imagine answering the exact same question twice in a row. They never listen to the answer the first time.
• Having to remember who’s turn it is—all the time.
• Constant chattering x 2. Add in lots of arguments and I go crazy!
• All the injuries and emotional outbursts x 2.

Summary for twin moms: If you’ve made it through the first nine months, 2 two year olds is a piece of cake. They have a built-in playmate. And in our case, we went “ugly early” or “strict early” as far as obedience in public places, parking lots, etc. (because who can run after 2 kids going separate directions). This has really paid off, because they are pretty well-behaved (although, we’ve heard that often times boys go through terrible 3’s not 2’s…so maybe this next year will be tougher). Also, I’ve enjoyed this phase because it seems that the public novelty of twins has worn off a bit. When they were babies EVERYONE noticed us in public; but now that they pick out their own (and mostly different) outfits and have grown into their distinct personalities more, we can blend in better. Or perhaps, I’ve learned to deal with all the twin comments better. Either way, I’ve gotten really used to this twin thing, and couldn’t imagine my life any other way. I love having my twin boys!

Seth, Sam

First Hike

Last weekend, Ben got the itch to get out of the city. Truth be told, I just kind of wanted to stay around the house and do yard work (we finally had nice weather!), but in the end, he was right—it was fabulous to get away. We compromised and went to Hagg Lake, which is only about 40 minutes from our house, so that I could have the afternoon at home.

We started out by getting the boys Krispie Cream donuts. They had earned them as a reward for working on obedience (first time, no whining, saying “yes mama.”) Over the past month I had been letting them earn a little ball into a jar when they obeyed correctly. It was a pretty fun way to reinforce obedience. We’re going to work on a new “habit” this month for a treat again.

So, the kids got a sugar high on the way—but no worries, they burned TONS of calories throughout the day! It was really fun to see how good Seth and Sam did on a hike. They were really cautious, looking out for branches and watching for holes in the ground. I really enjoyed observing them carefully navigate through the woods, following their daddy. We look forward to many more hikes this summer!

The morning was perfect: we hiked, played in the water, ate a picnic lunch and played in the water some more. And Ben was right, it was wonderful to get away from the city!

Sam, Seth

Sam, Seth (handsome boys!)

  Handsome Daddy!

Having fun in the water. I can’t believe how much braver they are playing in the water this year!

Easter 2012

A couple days before Easter we decided to go to Dufur and celebrate with Ben’s family (and they were gracious enough to host us last minute!) Ben’s work gives them Good Friday off, so we even had three days together.

Diane and I decided to do Easter baskets and egg hiding on Saturday morning because church service was really early on Easter. We couldn’t decide which was more fun: hiding eggs in really easy spots for Seth and Sam, or hiding them in hard spots for Caleb and Levi. It was a blast to watch them all searching around the house for their eggs. I love Diane’s tradition of giving money in the eggs and so did Seth and Sam! They thought it was very cool to have quarters to bring home and put in their piggy bank. I had gotten a couple things for the boys’ baskets (play dough tools, little fans that the boys always covet on shopping trips, Easter books, and my favorite Easter candy: mini eggs).

We stayed Saturday night at Nate and Holly’s in Maupin and then all attended their churches sunrise service on Sunday morning. It was earlier than Seth and Sam are used to waking up, so afterwards they quickly dyed eggs and then took an early, long nap. The timing of their nap was perfect, because afterwards we headed into Holly’s parents’ house for Sunday dinner at 1 o’clock. Jim and Nancy Love are wonderful hosts, served up an amazing spread, and I think enjoyed having surrogate grandkids for the day. Nancy let the boys play with play dough in her kitchen (using their new tools!) and then had an amazing Easter egg hunt for them (she filled the eggs with lots of fun little trinkets; their favorite of, course being the whistles…which was definitely not my favorite). It was a wonderful weekend filled with family all celebrating the Risen Christ together.

 

Seth, Sam

 

I love this picture of the boys…they were trying to figure out how to put their arms around each other and kept getting it backwards.

FYI, these fans only lasted about a week—not exactly quality

MINI EGGS! (I think I ate most of them :) Grandma is a great teacher!

The boys dressed in their Easter finest (Sam, Seth). They just woke up from a nap, so that’s why they look so cranky

Easter egg hunt at the Love’s house

Sam, Seth

  A decent family picture for the Morris’ (well, at least Ben and I)

My favorite edited photo of the boys on the Easter egg hunt

Catching up

My blogging this past month has suffered terribly. There have been many reasons; some quite valid, others quite silly:

• Ben went to Japan for a work trip and my dad came and stayed with us for the week.
• In honor of Ben being gone, I decided I needed something fun to do, so I decided to re-read the Twilight books which I became obsessed with finishing. Embarrassing, I know. I then I went over and borrowed all the movies from my 14 year old neighbor girl. Even more embarrassing. (Yes, this is the silly reason for not blogging.)
• The amazing sunshine the past few days has been magical. We’ve spent every possible moment outside. I’m trying to catch up on gardening, therefore my house is suffering.
• Beyond the fact I haven’t been spending much time cleaning, the outside play creates even more messes. And a TON of laundry. Each boy went through 3 pairs of shorts yesterday.
• Any time I’m spent cleaning has been sterilizing areas that we’ve found mouse poop in. Yuck. We’re having a bit of a rodent problem in our house—it’s so disgusting! Last night I discovered that somehow they are getting into our guest bathroom cupboards and shredding some of the blankets I have in there…and they destroyed the boys’ NICU blankets. I was so angry and officially declared war on the little mongrels.

Well, that about sums it up. Except for my final reason: I’ve been trying to learn my Photoshop software and start editing my photos more. I’m enjoying this, but it also adds to the time each blog takes. Time I often don’t have.

So, here’s to me catching up on documenting our memories on the blog. Hopefully I’ll have a couple postings this week on Easter, a little adventure we took this weekend, and eventually one on the kitchen renovation (that is pretty much complete!). But until then: here’s a couple pictures.

We didn’t have the pool blown up yet for yesterday’s 80 degree weather, so I just filled up an 18 gallon tote and “Ta da!” hours of play! (Seth, Sam)

And here’s my dad with the boys in the Blazer jersey’s he bought them. They had such a great time with their Papa here for the week!

Wordless Wednesday

There is endless fun to be had with Mr. Potato Head. Here’s Wesley, Sam, and Seth trying to wear the glasses.