Hooray!
The twins find so much more to do with life now than eating and sleeping. It's a great age for Mommy, too, because I spend so much less time entertaining them and more time just watching them enjoy floor time on their big fleece blanket.
While they play with toys, I stalk them like the paparazzi, iphone poised to capture a cute smile or a new gesture.
Both love rattles, rings, and anything that big brother Devon leaves in their reach.
They're starting to get moving! Both can roll each way and scoot across the floor. Sometimes my heart stops for a second because I leave the room for a second and return to find one baby where I thought I left two.
The best part about having six-month-old twin is that they're now fully aware of it! In the newborn phase, having a twin was the-reason-Mommy-puts-me-down. Now they smile at each other, tap each other on the arms, suck each others' fingers, and chase each others' toes.
(NB: the auto-orientation on my iphone isn't 100% and I get an error message when I try to flip them manually, so I'm sorry for the sideways shots)
I'm looking forward to what's ahead: them chattering to each other in a language that only they understand and crying when the other one feels hurt. I got a taste of it last week. I was with Devon when a sharp cry from Carrie brought me back into the room. I looked down at them to see Carrie very upset by Melina, who was projectile vomiting all over the carpet.
Yes, all the kids were sick last week. It wasn't fun. Enough said.
They also take one or two pretty good naps every day. I stalk their sleeping poses with my camera as well. The hand-and-foot.
The half-spoon.
The V-is-for-victory.
Carrie was so proud of herself when she tipped over the box of floor toys. She was the first with a confirmed back-to-front rollover, and the pediatrician thinks that she'll be the first to crawl. She pulls up on all fours in a crawling crouch, now. I've been stalking the pose for a week, but every time I frame a shot she drops down on her tummy and laughs at me.
She has the one-eyebrow-lifted thoughtful expression that Devon had.
She's cheerful in the early mornings, just like Mommy.
She's also my thumbsucker! I'm able to nurse her first in the early evenings. When I put her in the crib for the night, her eyes roll back, her thumb pops in, and her eyes flutter closed. She's usually able to fall asleep on her own, which gives me time to nurse Melina and get her to bed.
Melina Mae still has the wide-open-mouth grin she had at birth.
It makes it especially easy for Mommy. I just say "Hey, Melina Mae!", she smiles, and in goes a spoonful of pumpkin and applesauce.
Melina scoots across the floor, too. Only backwards.
She's fond of sleeping, too, but still has a flair for the dramatic.
Now that the girls are more interesting, Devon has much more to do as a big brother. I'm sure for a few months he thought of the twins as the-reason-Mommy-puts-me-in-the-pen. Now the doors of the pen are open for most of the day, and he can invite his sisters in with him to stare raptly at whatever he shows them.
When he was their age, he would scoot up to an object, grab it with one hand, and beat it enthusiastically with the other hand while his head bobbed up and down in time. We called the gesture "ride-the-pony" after the 80's dance move in Billy Idol's "Monay Monay". Now, the girls come up to him and ride-the-pony as he shows them his "bus" (the Alphabet Town pad that Devon has nicknamed because it plays the song "The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round").
At four months, both of the twins were "Cowie" to Devon. Now he calls the first one he sees "Cowie" and the second one "Ina-May". I wonder how old they'll be when he can consistently tell them apart. He loves his sisters. He chatters to me about them in long monologues:
"Oh-it's-a-Cowie-it's-a-Cowie-baby-Cowie-baby-Ina-May-Cowie-and-a-Ina-May!"
Devon turns two in March, and is a very busy guy. People say they don't know how I do it, but I honestly think it would be harder to be pregnant NOW, with a very active toddler that needs his mind occupied and his body exercised for 10-12 hours a day. I'm so glad I've recovered and can spend Carrie and Melina's morning nap with Devon.
Devon's finding more Big Boy things to do all the time. He loves Play-Doh. He likes to make smakes, pancakes, and especially balls. Of course.
My goal is to have Devon eating his oaties all by himself by the time Carrie and Melina have morning oaties, too. Devon started practicing with a spoon a week ago, and he gets better every day. He's in the phase where letting him feed himself is harder than just feeding him, but we're looking forward to the day he'll find his mouth without finding the wall, the floor, his shirt, or his hair first.
As you can see, most of the time he eats with his left hand. He still switches, though, so Uncle Tim's early pronouncements about another lefty in the family may be premature.
We tried decorating cookies, and it worked until Devon realized everything tasted good. The row of gumdrops on the train car disappeared faster than it went on. Oh well. I bought the kit on clearance to fill an empty afternoon, and it worked. Devon and I had fun. I've never seen a person coated in that much frosting before.
Yes, we are one of THOSE parents. Our son eats dessert. Here he is after krumkake (traditional cone-shaped Norwegian cookies filled with chocolate pudding).
He also eats a donut on the occasional Saturday. We want our kids to eat healthy, but we want them to learn that treats are fun in moderation and on special occasions. I don't want them gorging on Froot Loops and pizza their freshman year of college to make up for a vegan childhood where all junk food was forbidden.
It would be hypocritical to not allow them to eat junk if I indulge myself, and I have no desire to give up Bluebell ice cream and Mint M&M's to set a good example. So, now that Devon has learned to drink from a straw, he asks for a sip of my soda.
"Bubble-sippy-Mommy-oh-it's-a-Mommy-and-a-bubble-sippy!"
I give him one. Yes, an hour later I sometimes have to deal with the consequences, but Hyper Devon isn't really that different from Normal Devon. He's a little boy. What do you expect?
Not so little any more, though. His 18-month pants are getting a bit short, and he's sprouted two inches in the last month. As you can see, it hasn't changed his manly physique. He may be skinny, but he's all muscle. He's the only toddler I've ever seen with a six-pack.
All the kids love to play in the screened porch in the afternoons as we wait for Daddy to get home. The girls bob in their Bumbos as Devon rolls his trucks off the slide next to them. Melina stiffens her legs, pops her little rear out of the seat, and rolls off the top onto the rubber mat. Devon sees the opportunity and sits in the Bumbo. The girls are highly entertained by him. They ride-the-pony and laugh, which makes Devon, the center of attention, beam back at them.
It's a perfect moment, one that makes the craziness that occasionally overwhelms me all worthwhile. We wanted our kids to be close in age so they could play together as siblings and enjoy a close bond.
It looks like it's working.
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