21 Months and Oh So Fun!

I can't believe there are only 9 more days in 2016 and today Sophia & Savannah turn 21 months! They are getting so big and while we have our fair share of crazy days in our house, this stage is so much fun! Listening to them jabber and learn new words is so much fun! 

Sophia is still our little social butterfly ~ she will go up to (almost) anyone and let them hold her and she will have a conversation with them...meanwhile, Savannah will just sit quietly by herself and read a book, do a puzzle or build blocks. They are both so smart and uniquely different ~ I love it! One of my favorite things is they call each other "sissy" and will have conversations with each other in the morning or while they are in the room before bed. I hope they are always best friends <3

This month they have also had a few "firsts". Yesterday they started swim lessons...that was quite the adventure! They did amazing swimming last summer when we would go to the pool, but last night they were not having it! Towards the end of the class, they finally calmed down, but all Sophia wanted was to get out of the water and hold her little Christmas doggie and Savannah just wanted to play in the water, not work! LOL

And last week they both had their first dentist appointment! They did great, until they had to lay down on the chair! They pretty much freaked out the whole time until they got back out of the chair. But overall, everything went well and they had good reports from the dentist! They loved getting their pink balloon after they were done getting their teeth cleaned!

I love these two little loves! I can't get enough of them and their spunky personalities!

They loved helping decorating for Christmas this year! All the girls wanted to be outside while daddy put up our lights...unfortunately our inflatables for our front yard all broke this year, so we will have to replace them :( 

But the snowman across the street has also provided hours of free entertainment for the girls! We have to go over almost every day to say "hi" to "fowy" (as Sophia calls him).

The train around the tree is by far their favorite! That was probably the best investment ~ it has provided hours of fun for all three girls! We love building tunnels with blocks and watching the train go around and around the tree! Awwww...the simple things in life :)

The best is when we let them play with a TV remote and they think it turns on and off the train while we are really turning it on and off with the real remote. It's hilarious :D

 

It's amazing how you can grow two babies in your belly at the exact same time, deliver them the same day, feed them the same foods, love on them the same, parent them the same and yet they could not be more different if they tried!   

Sophia & Savannah ~ you are so loved! I can't believe you're already 21 months! The big TWO will be here before we know it! You bring so much love, fun, tenderness and joy into our lives! 

Let's enjoy every day before you turn another year older. 

We love you! <3

Jayden's First Christmas Performance

A few days ago, Jayden had her very first Christmas Performance at school! Since she sometimes doesn't do very well with large crowds, we started preparing her about a week in advance. Every day I would remind her that the performance is coming up and how she will be standing on stage in the church and all the families will be sitting down in the crowd. When the day of the performance came, I was so nervous for her, but I reminded myself it was her first performance and even if she just stands up on stage, that is a success and I would be happy with that! 

Jayden was the very last preschooler in line and was so excited when she saw me, daddy, Monnie, Memaw and Papa!

Even in her spot on stage, she was all smiles!

Once the singing began, she was doing all the hand motions and singing all the songs! I couldn't stop smiling! But for me, the best part of the performance was when Nate, her best friend at school, started getting nervous, Jayden stopped singing and started rubbing his back and comforting him!

In that moment, I could care less about her knowing all the songs and hand motions, I was overcome with joy that our little 3 1/2 year old was loving and comforting one of her best friends. 

After her concert, we met her back in her classroom to congratulate her on her stellar performance! Even Nate's mom came up to me and told me how Jayden loving on Nate was the sweetest thing she's ever seen and how it helped Nate get through the performance. We could not be more proud of our sweet Jayden...not only did she do an AMAZING job singing all her songs and doing all the hand motions, but her love for others was more than evident during the concert! 

I love her kind, gentle and loving spirit <3

Jayden and her amazing teacher, Mrs. Ross!

Our super star <3

First Daddy Daughter Dance

Last night was Jayden's first dance with her daddy and it could not have been more fun! A few weeks ago we picked out a new sparkly red dress and new shoes for her date and she waited patiently for her dance to come so she could wear her new dress! Last night was a little hectic getting her ready, but once she had her dress on, she was so excited to go and she looked absolutely perfect!

Our cute little lady in red <3

I signed up to work the dance (which was fun getting to watch them go around and do some of the activities) ~ Jonathan said I signed up to spy on them...which was partially true :) but overall they spent the night together and had such a fun time!

Jonathan said she was pretty much the only one wanting to participate in the arts and crafts...but I'm glad she did! They made adorable magnetic picture frames!

Being silly!

After their dance they went out for ice cream :)

Jayden showing off her blue tongue! 

I'm so glad they had such a fun time and I can't wait to get her dressed up for her next date with daddy! :)

A Few of My Favorite Things

It's been a while since I've caught up on some of my favorite things that Jayden says...and now that Sophia & Savannah are little chatter boxes, they have quite a bit to say as well! Mostly still jabbering, but they sure try to communicate!

Some of my favorite words the girls are saying:

Jayden (word count: LOST COUNT)
Animal - "Aninal"
Koala - "Kolala"
Hospital - "Hosible"
iPad - "Hi Pad"
Crocodile - "Crapadile"

Sophia (word count: probably around 15-20)
Please - "Pease"
Doggie - "Dahyee"
Papa - "Pawh Pah" (almost sounds like she has an Italian accent when she says it!)
Monnie - "Mawye"

Savannah (word count: probably around 10-15...she's a girl of few words, but lots of chatter)
Stinky - "Stink-key" (while waving her hand in front of her face)
Please - "Ease"
Sissy - "Sis-see"
Memaw - "Mi Mi"

The twins are also learning sign language in daycare. So far, they know:

Daddy
Mommy
Thank You
Work

Jayden's also learning some...interesting/funny...things in preschool. One of my favorites being nicknames. She loves to shorten words, names or phrases. So lately she's been calling Sophia "Soph", Savannah "Sav", Monnie "Mon", Memaw "Mem" and so on. Just when you think Uncle Al's name couldn't get any shorter, she said his name is "Ah" ... And she thinks it's hilarious!

Another one of my favorite things she's learning in school are the new Jesus songs. Randomly I'll hear her singing the song "Go now in peace" along with the hand motions. It seriously melts my heart, especially when she sings it LOUDLY in public. Today we were in the changing room after her swim lessons and she was singing "Jesus loves me" loud enough for everyone to hear. When people started looking at her, she got a little shy...so I just started singing it with her and she kept on singing! She is such a courageous and brave little girl.

Every day we sing in our home, and now we will randomly hear the twins humming "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" or "Wheels on the Bus". I think my favorite songs to sing with them are "The Itsy Bitsy Spider", "If You're Happy and You Know It" and "Head Shoulders Knees and Toes". Mostly because they LOVE doing the hand motions. When we sing "Head Shoulders Knees and Toes", we sing at regular pace a few times...and then we go as fast as we can! The girls think it's hilarious and crack up laughing while they try to keep up! It's so much fun!

These little love bugs are so amazing. Their smiles brighten my day! I hope their little light only gets brighter as they get older! <3

Halloween & Fall Festivities

This year we had so much fun celebrating Halloween ~ we pretty much did something fun each week with the girls! We visited the pumpkin patch quite a few times and to top it off, we had a blast trick-or-treating with the girls!

The beginning of the month, Jayden and I went on our weekly date to the pumpkin patch with our church group for a fun girls morning!

She went on all the rides and since she's finally tall enough to ride most of them by herself, I sat back and enjoyed watching her have fun!

Girls just wanna have fun!

A few weeks later, Jonathan and I took the girls to the pumpkin patch for a few hours. We had such a great time watching them explore and jump in the bounce houses!

We were so excited that Sophia & Savannah loved the jumpers! They didn't want to get out when their time was up! Jonathan and I are in agreement - we need to buy them a mini bounce house for Christmas this year :)

I don't know how people do it, but taking pictures with 3 toddlers is HARD! Trying to get all 3 to look (and smile) in the direction of the camera is nearly impossible.  We did our best, but of course there was always one of them not looking!

The girls were exhausted by the end of the evening! We had so much fun going on the bounce houses, slides and rides but I couldn't wait to get them home and bathed as they were filthy from the dust, hay and mud!

And finally, after weeks of the girls being super patient, it was finally Halloween! This year we went to the Erickson's to walk around their neighborhood and the girls had a blast! I was surprised Sophia & Savannah kept their ears and tutus on the whole evening! When we tried on their costumes to make sure they would fit, they kept taking everything off...so the fact they kept it all on for the night was a SUCCESS!

Plus, they looked so adorable! Cutest mouse, cat and Cinderella (or "Finderella" as Jayden says it) I've ever seen!

 

Finishing up last minute whiskers :) Sophia wasn't too happy about it!

After visiting the first house, Savannah was a pro. She was on a mission to go from house to house! Sophia just trailed behind and enjoyed hanging out with everyone. At one point, we had 11 adults walking with the 3 girls! :)

 And our little Jayden...she LOVED trick-or-treating this year! After every house she would run back and say, "LOOK WHAT I GOT!" and show everyone her new piece of candy.

Hanging out with dad <3

Trick-or-Treat!

So many great memories! <3