The Twins are One

Yesterday was the big day....but it was off to a very, very rough start.

Starting Thursday, then all day Friday the babies were fussy and then came down with a cold.  Runny noses, not able to sleep, crankiness, wanting to be held constantly.  This isn't easy with one baby but with two....disaster zone!

Friday night the babies were up til 1130.  Then Ammon was back up at 119 and just fussy and miserable.  Dallin took him for a car ride - nothing.  Then Miss joined the party at 230.  At 330, there was no choice but to let them fuss it out because they were both so overtired!  Ammon fell asleep in about 10 minutes, Miss ...well, I worked with her for almost an hour before she crashed.  Dallin slept on the couch since I had Miss in the playpen in our room.  I was just falling asleep when Ammon woke up.  By this time, we're pushing 4am.  I told Dallin to take Ammon and I'll deal with her.  She slept til 7 and I wearily got up with her and Dace.  Zade miraculously slept til 815.  Dallin got up around 930 but we were all cranky, overtired and worn out.  By 230, both babies had finally taken a 2hr nap and were in decent spirits for the party and I was somehow able to pull it all together, having way too much left to do and feeling like the walking dead.

But it was a hit!  The kids had so much fun, the cakes were much enjoyed and then the babies both had a much, much better night....and we slept too.  They were back to normal this morning.

No more baby in the Dean residence.  The last of the baby birthday parties.  Moving on to the next phase of life.  We love birthdays around here.  Well, at least the kids and I do.  I think Dallin could care less about them but I think life should be celebrated, birthdays and holidays should be celebrated!  Especially in this day and age when everyone is too busy and go!go!go! all the time.  Yes, 1yr olds don't need a party but its not about that.  It's about having friends in our home, its about celebrating triumphs, taking time out to socialize, laugh and enjoy each others company, its about making smiles and laughs and joy a priority.  Not to mention, it gives me a great excuse to bake and decorate cakes.  ;)

In the beginning of this twin journey, everyone who had twins told me, just get through the first year and everything will be okay, it will be better.  And so I leaned on that...alot.  Not to mention, adding in 2 other toddlers under the age of 4.  It has been a chaotic circus.  It's been hard.  It has been stressful and frustrating and sometimes unbearable.  But it has been worth it.  And it has gotten better.  We are finally over the first year hump (yippee!) and the fun is just beginning.  Happy Birthday babies!  We love you so very, very much!

All party decorations brought to you by Pinterest.  :)

12 month timeline

Carrot cake w/ cream cheese frosting, the birthday cake is white vanilla with buttercream and then double chocolate. 

Some serious eating.  

A little bit of pink surrounded by all that blue!

BEFORE

And then AFTER -

A Change of Opinion

3 words - 

Yo Gabba Gabba.

I have always hated that show.  There is nothing to it.  It saddens me how most of the cartoons these days look and sound like a last minute art project.  No thought in the story or songs, everyone looks scribbled and created seconds before the business meeting with the network....i could go on.

At the top of my list was Yo Gabba Gabba.  I mean seriously, have you ever sat and watched a couple minutes of it?  Ugh.  Well, I was all anti-Yo until this happened...

All four of the kids LOVE the darn show!  Miss, I kid you not, watched it for the next 7 minutes.  They were all completely engrossed and captivated by it.  Perhaps the artistic level is just beyond my understanding and maybe it is nothing short of shear genius that babies and toddlers alike can't get enough of.  This is the one flip-flop I am granting myself for this election.  

our morning ritual

Part of our morning walk around the block.  Always a stop on the bridge to feed the turtles and fish and a stop at the clubhouse to race down the ramp...

Week in review in photos

We LOVE climbing stairs!!

 First taste of spaghetti and garlic toast.  It was a hit!

sneak peak at party prep!

Zade loves his sweet potatoes!  or any kind of potatoes for that matter

cheerios before church!

Last Sunday as babies!!!

Teach them while they're young

The boys love to vacuum.  It's been called a vacuum party for a long time now.  This week I handed the reins over to them.  They love the responsibility and I get a kick out of hearing the vacuum going and knowing it is not me or Dallin using it.  Oh!  so this is why people have kids - to clean their house!  ;)

After this video, Dace continued vacuuming for another 5 minutes.  The front room never looked so good!

Beach babies

Now that the weather is calming down to humane, bearable temperatures here (welcome, Fall!  We love you and have been waiting a long time for your return) me and the 4 babies have been spending a lot of time at the beach.  The boys always pick friends to play with as soon as we hit the sand and the babies love to crawl, eat sand and Miss, well...she is really a little mermaid.  She gets cranky if I keep her away from the water and then she loves to crawl into the waves, I pick her up and take her back to the edge, she turns and goes back in.  This goes on over and over and over.  She loves the water!!

Little Miss Mischief

The birthday question

Two weeks and counting.

Two weeks until the end of an era.

The end of babies within the Dean household.
The end of the "baby phase" of life.
No.  More.  Baby...Babies.

It is a sad moment and I am sure there will be times where I will suffer from IWAN (I Want A Newborn) but we are ready to move on to the next stage of life....and catching up on 4 years of deprived sleep.

I took some pics of the twins today.  See?  No more baby....

Well here is the answer to the question that I have been getting a lot of.  There is no expectation with this post.  I just wanted to put this answer out there to everyone who has been asking -

what do the babies need?

Nev needs clothes.  12months and up.  She needs pjs, onesies, church dresses.
Both babies need new car seats.  Here is another end.  The end of buying car seats!  We are so excited!  i can get 2 of the ones we want (GRACO nautilus 3in1) on Ebay for about $300.  Any cash gifts will be put towards this purchase.

The party is going to be great.  Not so much of a party as a "stop by and eat some cake" hour.  But I am still so excited to bake and be hostess.  two weeks!  two weeks......

Steps

Last night, Ammon took his first steps- five in a row!

Now today, he's starting to really get confident.  He will just stand up on his own and take a couple steps.  He is ready to go!

Today he and LilMiss discovered that they can open drawers...and pull out all the towels.  A popular favorite for these youngins.  But then I turn around and Ammon climbs in, I take one picture then he gets really bold!  Showoff!  ;)

This morning, the boys had a fun dip that Dallin had bought them.  Here is the result:

The popcorn gene

Growing up, Sunday night meant 2 things - The Magical World of Disney and popcorn.

With 7 kids, we had to make a lot of it.  We had this huge, huge stainless steel bowl that we would fill.  It usually took 3 batches in the air popper to fill it with popped kernels.  Real butter.  Salt.  This was our Sunday dinner and we loved it.

Since then, popcorn has always been a comfort food and one of my favorite things to eat.  I think that may have been adapted into my DNA for it seems that all these kids LOVE popcorn as much as I do.  We have it at least once a week and it always goes quickly.

Look, mom! I have an identical twin too!