Santa?

So the other day TJ said, "Mom, what color is Santa?"

Anyone? Anyone?? (I'll accept any and all responses.) :o)

Here are some of our Santa photos from this holiday season.

Life

has been rolling along. Crazy how busy things get when your kids start school. Yes, even preschool. We have been doing play dates, trying not to catch swin flu or any other type of flu, I've been busy with the 2 businesses, and Kevin has been busy working on his television ideas for kids' shows. One show is going to be pitched to Disney in a week or so. Yes, Disney! So we'll see. He has been working his tail off to make sure we can make ends meet and can move one day. :o)

In addition the Mothers of Multiples board I am now part of the board for a foundation that is raising money to buy additional RV's for families to stay in while their child/children are in the NICU. Even though our drive was a good 30 minutes each way, there were some families we met that lived hours away! I can't imagine what we would have done. Here's a link to the foundation if anyone is interested. They are looking for fabric, people who know how to knit/sew/etc. So if you know how to make any of the NICU items, most have patterns online, it would be a wonderful gift to pass along the info so that we can receive as many of these items as we can to share with the local hospitals and families. http://alybooandizybee.org/

Let's see what else has been going on... TJ is slowly learning Spanish. Hee Hee Hee I heard her yelling "E-u-da-may!" "E-da-may!" At first it just sound like "Eda May" and I kept wondering who "Eda May" was! I looked around the corner and saw her pretending to be stuck and needing help from Noah. She was actually saying, "Ayudame" which is Spanish for "help me". LOL It was pretty funny. She'll also speaks nonsense words whenever we go through a drive-thru and the person is Spanish "looking". Then she'll say, "adios!" It is pretty funny.

They are continuing to grow and learn and could not be more inquisitive. TJ drives me bonkers with her "why" questions and other traits however I know that I used to do the EXACT same thing when I was younger. Ah karma... gotta love it!

The kids are SOOOOOO excited for Chrsitmas. They already informed me that our house was "NOT cool" for Halloween so I definitely have to step it up this year! I cannot have two 3 year olds thinking our house is not cool.

Well, it's official, the holidays are here! My favorite Christmas music radio station is on and the kids and I LOVE it!!

Well, my 'free' time is over for now. We are off to the library! Hugs to you all.

Fall

is upon us and the change in weather is fabulous! Love all of the leaves changing, love all of the changes in my kids, ... life is certainly changing.

The kids are LOVING school and they are both growing and developing in such a way that the director noticed it and mentioned it to me. Noah is completely comfortable with his body now and his movements and is taking a lot of risks. WONDERFUL news for him!! They both love being able to paint their arms/legs/etc. and make body prints or just let it dry and run around painted. They love coloring eggs at school. They love painting pumpkins. They love climbing on the pirate ship. They love working with a friend to get the ship from one side of the yard to the other. They love climbing across rope mountain to get to the zip line. And they LOVE spinning around as fast as they can on the indoor swing.

For those of you with swings, put little bells at the top that will jingle/chime as the kids swing. Make sure to get some that have a light, ethereal sound. It's so relaxing!

I will work on getting pictures uploaded and posted. I am still getting used to a different format on this computer.

I am also working on a Halloween post.

College Here We Come!

If only it were that easy to get them $$ for sitting and looking pretty. :o) (No, I'm not biased at all.) These were taken at a local photo contest an acquaintance does every year. Apparently she's not that good of "friend" since the kids have never won.


Not much else is going on. Kids are LOVING preschool. TJ got to take apart an old radio the other day with various tools. Last week they both got to dissect some salmon. TJ especially enjoyed taking apart the salmon eggs. Let's see what else... TJ is going to be a mermaid for Halloween, Noah can't decide but his latest idea is Nemo and I have to be Dorie while daddy gets to be a puffy fish. So we'll see what comes up next week for ideas.

Well, TJ is feeling a bit under the weather. We had our flu mist this past Saturday and are working on getting that bit of virus out I guess. Night to all and hope everyone is doing well!

Say What?

TJ went to walk by me earlier and I had my legs in her way. She paused and said (in a British voice mind you) "excuse me sir."

Hoping to "Get By With a Little Help From My Friends"

and FAMILY of course!!

http://CaliforniaUsborne.com/

Here's the link to my new 'store'. I hope that every single one of you will take a few minutes to look around as there are FANTASTIC books for kids of all ages. I also hope that you will all be able to help support my children through college by purchasing a few books here and there. :o) If you would like to receive double free books for hosting, we can set up an e-show. ( It's as if I was right there in your home to promote the books but it's done all online!!) PLUS, who couldn't use free books! You can use them as gifts, for your own children, or donate them to a local hospital/charity. If you could pass the link around to other friends/family I would appreciate it greatly. I am very excited as I have used these books in my classroom and they are wonderful. Now to be able to share them with you all as well as with Noah & TJ is special.

Thank you very much!!
Love to you all,
Jill

wow!

I didn't realize how long it has been since I last posted. We have been busy so this will be a LONG post. Lots to tell about!

Our first big item to discuss is the trip to Ohio that we took a few weeks ago. It was the kids' first plane trip and they had a BLAST!! It's so nice to have others compliment your children on their good behavior. We went to Ohio to surprise my family - especially my Aunt Katie for her 80th birthday celebration. Success!! The kids had a terrific time in Ohio. We visited the Columbus Zoo, the very cool COSI museum, and had fun meeting new family members. For the majority of our family, it was their first time seeing the kids. The kids were so excited about all of their "grammies" they couldn't see straight! Not to mention Kevin and I had our first taste of "Corn Hole". Is that right? It actually is a fun game and we can't wait to share it with our CA friends. Maybe we'll start something out here!

Yes we took pictures of family (not a group shot though - duh!) but they are on Kevin's camera and he is out of town so those will be added later this weekend.

Our second big news is that the kids began preschool!! Can you believe it?! They are in a parent co-op preschool 3 days a week for 2 1/2 hours. It's not a traditional type of preschool and they absolutely love it! They have cried quite a few times when I pick them up because they do not want to leave! The school has a zip line, a huge pirate ship they can paint a new color every day, a giant garden to investigate and find yummy fruits/veggies to pick/eat, a huge sand mountain with various hoses to create channels, floods, swamps, etc. a fantastic indoor art center, lots of niches with pillows and comfy blankets to hide in, etc. It is so much fun for them and for me. Once Kevin gets his paper work completed, he'll be helping out also.

Our 3rd recent adventure was our trip to Indio (near Palm Springs). We drove down to help celebrate Riley's 4th bday! I went to jr. high with his mom. The party was a Cars themed party complete with swimming, pizza/cake, and a pinata! Everyone had a great time!! I also got to see another friend from jr. high and her family. (She also has twins but they are now almost 8.) We had a really cool timeshare down there with several kiddie pools, adult pools, play areas, and a lazy river! We pretty much had the pool to ourselves on Monday. Which the kids loved!) To finish off our trip we were able to see my dad/Gloria for lunch. The kids LOVE seeing Grandpa and spending time with him. Especially when he draws cars and fairies on their new drawing boards. Grandma Gloria had some more beautiful clothes for TJ's dress-up collection and a neat project for me to do with the kids. *Pictures to come on those. The visit with Grandpa and Grandma Gloria was the perfect way to cap off a lovely trip.

The kids are enjoying life. They have definitely entered the "sibling/fighting/challenge" phase. They sure realize they are individuals and are not liking sharing and not being the only one getting attention. Yet another wonderful phase in the journey to adulthood. But they are loved dearly by so many. Thank you to EVERYONE that made time for us in the past few weeks. We had a TERRIFIC vacation and enjoyed seeing so many friends/family.

Mama's Bringing Home the Bacon!

Or at least trying to help out a little bit! :o)

I have a new job selling Usborne books! If you aren't familiar with them, they are FANTASTIC!!

With the holidays approaching, now's a good time to take advantage of online specials!

http://www.myubam.com/ecommerce/main.asp?sid=E3707&gid=86420445

If you need any children's books, please keep me/my site in mind! I'd love it if you could forward the link on to family/friends as well.

Thank you so much!!

I Used to...

So Noah is always telling me stories about what he "used to" do and how he "used to" be and what not.

For example:
Tonight he started telling me about how he "used to be bigger and he had a different room. It was diamond shaped and my bed was bigger. I used to have a cat that would sleep in a cubby. That's what I used to have, mom."

He has also told me about how he "used to" have kids that came out of his... yep - uterus. He will go on and on with details.

Interesting...

"Just Keep Swimming"

As the kids get older, I really miss not having my mom around to ask questions about the things Todd, Julie, and I did as kids. Doesn't help that I can't ask them either. I cherish the stories I do remember and am working on getting them written down for Noah & TJ to hear one day. One particular story that has always stayed with me is about Todd. Our neighborhood pool growing up had a children's pool. This wasn't anything fancy like they have today but your basic, rectangular pool that's about 18-24 inches deep and was as warm as can be. Todd LOVED being in the water. He was like a fish. One particular time my mom had been chatting with some other moms when she noticed Todd face down in the water floating. She jumped in and grabbed him only to be scolded by Todd. "MOM! I was FIMMING!" And back he went head first to "fim."

Noah definitely is a "Todd" in the water. He can swim about 5-9 feet between Kevin and me!! Two days ago he was doing it but it resembled more of an underwater "run". But today... a full-on swim. Kevin and I are SO excited and proud of him. He could care less. The second he comes up for air, he catches his breath, turns, and pushes off to "fim" back to the other parent. He will do this repetitively until Kevin and I MAKE him stop. He also does this with his eyes open. And if Kevin and I are standing too close to one another, Noah will pause just in front of us so he can continue blowing bubbles and look around underwater. It is GREAT! He just cracks us up! TJ enjoys going under the water as well but is still working on combining all of the necessary required skills. She will be joining him soon enough and then we'll be in big time trouble with 2 fish! Maybe I should start reading "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish".

Hoping to have pics/video soon...

Budding Artist

Here are a few of Noah's latest drawings. Why is this so exciting? Because up until the past week, he didn't have any interest in drawing anything specific. He is so proud of his artwork! In case you are wondering, he drew pictures of WALL-E, the robot. He said the first one has "2 eyeballs and a nose" and the second one "it just has eyeballs, mom. But it has legs."

Stike a Pose!

I wanted to capture a shot of TJ before they left with Kevin this am to run some errands. Little did I know that my index finger would cramp up from the photo shoot TJ was about to put me through. That girl is so aware of the camera, where it is, and how she looks. She was cracking me up! Not to be left out though was Noah who jumped up and said, "I want to give TJ a hug, mom!"
Enjoy.

Birds & Bees? At 3???

So the other day the kids and I were in the pool relaxing and escaping the 100+ temps.
Out of the clear blue Noah says, "Mom, you can go in my uterus and Daddy can go in TJ's."
I was like, "SAY WHAT??"
He repeated it for me.
So I said, "honey, you don't have a uterus. You were both in my uterus at the same time."
He said, "well, I can go to the store and buy a uterus then."
So then I said, "boys don't have a uterus, just girls."
He emphatically said, "when I get bigger and am a daddy, I can have a uterus!"

And so the conversation began...

The things kids say!

'N' is for...

Napping - Nauseous

Nutty

Nautical

Nerdy

Noah

(his first 'N') He usually doesn't care to write his name and he came up to me on Sunday and said, "Mommy I wrote my name. Do you want to see?" You can see the 'o' and the 'a' below the 'o' and we're still working on the 'h'.

Phew! Only Two!

So I tried various times to get a pic of the kids the other day. You can see that it is a bit

difficult to get them both to look at the camera AND give a 'decent' expression. I don't know what I would do if I had more than two kids!

I will take what I can get! PLUS, I LOVE their 'natural' experssions.

OWs & Eyeballs!

That's pretty much all the kids have said for the past week. It all started with their love of our neighbor, Cody. Whenever he "falls", goofs around, etc. he'll say, "ow!" So the kids began saying it. ALL THE TIME. I had a discussion about "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" and how we use words like "help" "ow" "fire" only in emergencies. So the kids ditched the word "ow" and began using the word "eyeball" in it's place. NOW they use "eyeball" ALL THE TIME. Not sure why but that's THE word to use.

At the store, "Hey little girl. You are a cutie. How are you?"

TJ: "eyeball!"

Noah: "eye-ball eyeball. eye-ball eyeball. eyeball eyeeee-ball eyeball." (aka "Jingle Bells")

He also does it to "It's a Small World" and just about every other song he wants to sing.

TJ: "Hey eyeball!"
Noah: "What eyeball?"

TJ: "Do you want to eyeball?"

Noah: "No, you eyeball. I eyeball eyeball yesterday."

And so on... good thing they are cute!

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing

1st Family Pics

We were fortunate enough to have won a free family photo session!! This link will take you to the photographer's blog where you can view a bunch of shots. We had SO much fun with the photographer and she really captured some terrific pics. Enjoy!!

http://www.torreyjamesphotography.com/blog/

Damn Good Salsa

I had the kids running errands with me today and we decided to stop for "chips & salsa" at our favorite Mexican restaurant. Both kids INHALED the salsa which has quite a kick! Not to mention it has chunks of tomatoes, onions, and peppers which I can't get Noah to eat at home but he chows down on when in salsa.

In the middle of his "mmmmm's" and "yummy yummy's" he looked at me as serious as one can be and said, "Mommy I'm sorry."

I said, "Oh sweetheart, why are you sorry?"

He said, "For crying mom."

I said, "For crying? When honey?"

He said, "I'm sorry for crying the other day, mom. I'm sorry."

I said, "it's okay Noah. Thank you though."

He then said with the biggest, sweetest eyes, "I wuv you mom."

Then he returned to devour more chips & salsa.

Now THAT'S some DAMN GOOD SALSA!!

We are Family!

So we finally got around to having some real FAMILY pictures taken. This is a sample photo. The rest should be available to view sometime in the next week! We are looking forward to seeing what Torrey captured! She definitely appeared to catch the kids at their finest!

Really? REALLY??

It's June?

It's possible to pee through a name brand nighttime diaper?

It's June and we won't hit 80 degrees today?

I don't have any photos on our Kodak site for June?

It's JUNE??

My kids are 3?

Their original due date was in June. 3 years ago this month.

It's June! So many thing to celebrate and be grateful for. Loving life and my children. It's June!

Good Times

TJ said, "mom when I get my wand I'll do a magic and make grandma not sick anymore. Then she can come from heaven to visit us and ride in our car. We can go all over then." Noah chimed in, "and I will give her yellow flowers. She can sit right here, mom."

I overheard the kids telling each other to, "Rock it out!" the other day as they jammed with their toy instruments.

Noah: "TJ, wanna play with me?"
TJ: "nope"
Noah: "TJ, wanna play trucks?"
TJ: "nope"
Noah: "TJ, wanna play trains with me?"
TJ: "nope"
Noah: "TJ, wanna play blocks with me?"
TJ: "nope"
Noah as SAD as can be: "I'll just play by myself then." (lip out and all. )
Finally TJ said, "really? you want me to play with you?"
Noah: "yes!!" (with much excitement)
TJ: "um, nope." (with an evil smile)

The other night TJ did something rude to Noah so while he is telling her "how sad he is feeling" she says to him, "Noah - it's nothing to freak about! Gosh!"
And then while I'm trying to talk to her she just says, "but Mom - he shouldn't be freaking about it."

TJ just came up to me with her harmonica and said, "I can't do it. My humming isn't working and I can't do any probwem sawving. Can you help me?"

Does this count as a Mother's Day gift: Noah came up to the bathroom door and said, "Mommy, when you are done I will wipe YOUR butt! OK?"

A few weeks ago I asked TJ to come here. She ran in saying, "I'm coming Ms. Miles!" Noah says it now too.

Noah crying because TJ took a toy from him. She said, "I'm sorry noah as they hugged." He said, "it's ok sweetie."

Any time they hear the ice cream man, they run to the window and yell, "Wait ice cream man! I have to eat all of my dinner and then I can come out and get some ice cream!" Then they hum/sing/etc. the "ice cream truck song" over and over and over until they move on to soemthing else. lol


And finally, here is a link to the photographer's blog where you can preview some shots of the kids from last month's shoot. You have to scroll down until you get below the "stroller fit" segment.
http://claycombphotography.blogspot.com/

Enjoy this beautiful life!

TJ Tells A Joke

TJ was playing with a toy saw and held it up to Jill, balanced it on her finger and moved the ends in an up and down motion, then exclaimed, "Look, mom. A See Saw." A 3-year-old who uses conceptual metaphors and visual puns to deliver a punch line? I know she's my kid, but damn that's impressive...

Pic Preview

Here is the first glimpse of the kids' photo session. Just a little teaser of what's to come!

TJ's "On Color" Commentary

This evening during dinner, TJ made the following revelation:

"Noah and dad's shirt are both red. Mom's shirt is bluish and my shirt is greenish."

Suffice it to say, there's never really any gray area with the colorful Ms. TJ.

Our March for Babies Event!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
to everyone who helped with a donation as well as with your inspiring words. We had a walk recently and had a terrific time. It is so rewarding to meet other families and to share their struggles and success stories with their babies. The kids had a fantastic time seeing all of the families and other kids on the walk. It was a beautiful day that we filled with memories to last a lifetime. This was our 3rd year doing the walk and we look forward to continuing that tradition for many years to come.