Baker Twins

Sunny Day!

2012-02-22T19:29:00.000-08:00

{Sweeping the clouds away!}
What a beautiful day it turned out to be. Camden asked me if it was summer again - and it felt like it. High seventies, breezy and bright. We met Rene and Nicole at the zoo (with Colin, Lucas, Megan, and Katie). We toured the zoo together and then ate at the Children's Zoo and let the kids burn some extra energy on the playscape there. Favorite quotes of the day: "Mommy! Gorillas have people toes!" (Grayden) "If the giraffes don't want their salad, I'll eat it." (Camden, upon getting lettuce to feed the giraffes)

Today is Nicole's birthday, so some of the mommies got together for a movie and drinks this evening. I love my friends. Adam was on baby duty - he made them tacos for dinner and when I got home, the kitchen was semi-cleaned. I love my husband. A great day all around!

Fat Tuesday!

2012-02-21T22:05:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Mardi Gras today with an awesome group of friends for a dinner playdate. Oliver's daddy is from New Orleans, so every year they bring an authentic Mardi Gras celebration to Texas - complete with beads and prizes from all of the floats, decorations from years of NOLA parades and parties, and a King cake from the best bakery in New Orleans. Check out last year's Mardi Gras playdate {HERE}. Or this cute baby Mardi Gras {HERE}.

Stacie's the hostess with the most-ess!

The big girl table - Ella, Addy, Cam, Evie, Gray - chowing down

The kiddos played, ate dinner, made feathered masks and dressed up in boas and beads. At dusk, we went outside and broke open an alligator piñata. The kids all got to take home a bunch of fun prizes - beads, trinkets, and float-thrown stuffed animals. What a great party - I wish I'd taken more pictures, but we were too busy having fun!

Ella in her crown --- Addy, Oliver, Blake
Showing off my bling from sweet Oliver --- Jack's awesome mask

Cam hitting the piñata, Grayden knocked it to the ground!

The whole crew - Happy Mardi Gras!

Adam's Phone

2012-02-19T12:50:00.001-08:00

After doing my own phone dump, I thought it would be fun to steal the pictures off of Adam's iPhone. It made me laugh, since he lets the girls take pictures from it - there were hundreds of blurry pictures of the dogs and other things they like to point the camera at. There were some definite categories on his phone:

'The Fun Parent':

Bowling while mommy runs errands

Eating frozen yogurt after a movie with Daddy

Snack, daddy style - pudding with strawberries, whipped cream, and sprinkles!

He is their own personal jungle gym... and nap mat.

Sports-Related:

Our tiny Tebows

At a family outing to the Ballpark

Camden practicing soccer

When daddy dresses his girls... he must like this picture, since it's his screen saver.

Portraits by Camden and Grayden:

Camden (by Grayden)

Grayden (by Camden)

Daddy & Mommy (from the perspective of short people)

Parental Neglect:
This is one in a series of 40 or 50 pictures - most of Adam sleeping, some more of the twins tearing up the playroom while being 'supervised' by their daddy. We got a good laugh, and I got to see what Adam does... hard at work with the twins while I am away! Haha!

Rainy Day

2012-02-18T13:17:00.000-08:00

Stir crazy twins with no place to go. No playdates today. Too wet to go to the zoo, park, arboretum, or even walk from the parking lot to the museum or store. We are stuck inside. If I didn't have kids, this would be the kind of day I would nap through. Too bad 3 year olds don't put much value on a nap. So, we have changed Barbie's outfits 300 times, spelled some words on our magnetic easel, played with the iPad, snuggled while reading books, made some crafty necklaces, and had an indoor picnic in the playroom, which the girls thought was super fun. We also touched up my toenail polish - Cam and Gray's too! Now, we are out of ideas and are resorting to television. Hooray for cute kids that don't make me want to throw myself into the pond.

Alright... we've had lot's of indoor, rainy-day fun. I'm ready for the rain to stop.

Zoo Day

2012-02-16T20:51:00.000-08:00

We hit up the zoo with a few friends today. It was slightly overcast and chilly (but not cold), so we had the entire place to ourselves! To our delight, the elephant trainer was having the elephants practice some 'tricks'. Apparently, it is so they can cooperate while getting vet exams, not really tricks. The zoo had a crew out doing a photo shoot of the trainer and pachyderms, and asked if Camden, Grayden, and Addy could be in the pictures! One of the trainers was asked to talk to the girls while the elephants lined up behind them. In the picture below, the girls are handling an elephant tusk.

This shot will likely be used in the zoo newsletter - Cam, Addy, Grayden

Some of the animals were inside because of the chilly weather, but lots were out enjoying the brisk air. The bears, big cats, prairie dogs, and otters all seemed to be enjoying the cool weather. The girls especially enjoyed touring the MOLA, where they got to handle a beautiful African lizard.

Timid at first, they loved this guy!

We walked the entire zoo, ate lunch with Addy and Ashley while feeding some cute (fat) squirrels, and saw lots of interesting animal behavior, including a bulimic chimpanzee. Super gross, but he came right up to the girls, stuck his finger down his throat, and regurgitated his lunch. Is it still bulimia if they eat it again? Ewwww.

Exploring with Addy

A few of our animal friends

As usual, we had to go through the children's aviary, where the girls got to feed some pretty birds. It seemed like all of the birds were paired up and snuggling with a partner... perhaps they celebrate Valentine's Day a few days late. Camden and Grayden are getting much better at being still and luring the birds onto their seed sticks.

Our Valentines!

2012-02-15T10:47:00.002-08:00

This was too cute to just tack on to our Valentine post yesterday... I love interviewing the girls. Usually, the interviews end up being (unintentionally) hilarious. This one is just sweet (and tells a lot about the girls by how they answered).

Heart-shaped sister kisses! I couldn't have planned it better if I tried.

We made lots of Valentine's Crafts yesterday. While doing so, I asked the girls to tell me who their Valentines are and why. Their answers were sweet and funny (and time-sensitive). Some of their answers might have changed had we seen different friends recently, I think. I am listing them exactly how they did:

Camden Adelaide (Age 3)
What is the meaning of Valentine's Day?
"When you get lots of love."
Who are your Valentines, and why?
Mommy, because you love me so much!
Daddy, because he lets me ride on his shoulders.
Grayden, because she is my best friend and she shares her snacks - even the yummy ones.
Dennille, because she lets me play with Evie.
Ferg, because he cooks me chicken.
Baby Evie, because she lets me play with all of my old baby toys.
Boppo (the hippo), because he loves me to hold him.
My house, because it is where I live.
Audrey, because she is fun to play with and is never mean.
Grandad, because he builds me a house.
Grandmom, because she likes to make me happy.
Grandpa and ShaSha, because they wish they could see me.
Stacie, because she makes me pink cookies.

Grayden Victoria, Age 3
What is the meaning of Valentine's Day?
"To share and give gifts to all of my friends."
Who are your Valentines, and why?
Ella, because she is my friend.
Avery & Atticus (dogs), because they are so cute and soft.
Camden, because she shares with me and loves me.
Aunt Jodie, because she sends me fun cards.
Mommy, because you read with me.
Magnus (my aunt's giant dog), because I'm his best toy.
Oliver, because he plays with me.
Colin, because he lets me be the princess.
Daddy, because he gets me lunch and kisses.
Grandmom & Grandad, because they take me to Cracker Barrel.
Audrey, because her house is fun and she has a baby.
Addy, because she lets me hug her tight.
John Austin, because he lets me sit on his lap even though I'm big now.
Baby Evie, because she's our baby.
Aunt Macee, because she makes me fancy hats.
All my friends, because they are so fun! (Listed: Ella (yes, again), Avery, Adam, Laurel, Olivia, Evie, Jack, Blake & Layna, Megan & Katie, and Holly)

I think each interview says a LOT about each kid. Camden's is almost all adults, and it is very organized in the way she thought of people. Grayden's is sporadic, very detailed, and included lots of her friends. Funny how Adam and I were kind of stuck in the middle somewhere.

A few of the cards we made

Celebrating L-O-V-E

2012-02-14T21:05:00.000-08:00

We did Valentine's Day big for the twins this year... mostly by accident. I have picked up things for them all month - some princess dolls, stuffed dogs in purses that I knew the girls would go crazy for, new snack cups, and some edible treats. When Adam arrived home last night, he had also gone out and bought a bunch of stuff for them - a puzzle, some hooded blankets, Winnie the Pooh on DVD, some hair clips, chapstick, and a cd of princess songs. I think someone might be wrapped around two tiny little fingers... We set gifts up along the path that they take when they wake up - their bedroom doorway, the stair landing, their rocking chairs in the living room, and the kitchen table. Their little faces were priceless this morning as they discovered their treats. We heard Grayden on the monitor this morning shake Camden awake, saying, "Sister! Wake up. Happy Holiday!" (We had read a bunch of Valentine books last night and talked at length about what Valentine's Day was all about) We ate heart shaped waffles for breakfast and played veterinarian and pet store with the new dogs all morning. The girls also made some cute Valentine crafts and I did a Valentine's Interview with them asking them about who they'd want their Valentines to be, and what they mean to them. Super cute - I'll post that tomorrow if I have time!

Wearing their new blankets and holding their puppy purses - excuse the jammies!

This afternoon, we joined some of our favorite friends at the park for a Valentine exchange. The kids ate tons of Valentine treats, handed out Valentines and hugs galore, and ran off some sugar energy. Oliver gave out little 'I Dig You' shovels, which Cam and Gray put to use right away, digging in the mud, making 'birthday cakes' with Avery and Ella. Adam came with us, so he got a big group picture of all of the moms and their tiny Valentines.

Our buddies

Girlfriends!

Some of our cutie-pie Valentines

Modeling our latest hats by Macee!

Upon leaving our buddies, we headed home. The girls played out by the pond while Adam ordered Italian for dinner. We ate at home to avoid the Heart Day crowds. After lots of hugs, snuggles, kisses, and some more Valentine books, we put our sugar-high kiddos to bed!

My beautiful Valentines - Gray in her hat, Cam in her braids

Playing in the backyard - I love the last one... they were jumping off the ledge - looks like they are flying!

I hope everyone's Valentine's Day was as filled with love as ours!

iPhone Dump

2012-02-08T09:39:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd 'steal' one of my friend Andrea's old regular posts, and pull out some of the pictures I have sitting on my cell phone. I am rarely without my Canon, but the iPhone comes in handy when I'm packing light, might miss the moment going to get the camera, or have let the battery packs die. Cell phones are not known for their photo taking quality, so most of the photos are duds. Here are some of the gems, if you excuse the grain, red eyes, and blur:

Little chefs playing at Grandmom's house

Cam and Avery napping

Sister hugs on Sunday morning

Dogs make great pillows! Cam and Atticus (top) and Gray and Avery

Best buddy Ella at an after-church lunch outing

Finally big enough to wear Uncle Stephen's Georgetown t-shirts

Gray's not normally one for drawing, but she was proud of this family portrait.

They LOVE their cousin, John Austin!

Kiddie park boats are their favorite ride

Loving on the pups

At our neighborhood playground - Cam on the rope ladder, Gray on the slide

One of their favorite pastimes - sister slide races

Camden is the only one who will nap in the car. Boppo makes a great pillow.

Eating 'sopapeople' sopapillas - they thought they were hilarious

Lame ride at the stock show - Gray made this face the ENTIRE time.

Aunt Jodie

2012-02-07T20:30:00.000-08:00

Aunt Jodie came through town on her way to Mardi Gras and we got in a good visit. She came bearing gifts, which the girls appreciated. But even better... she brought her enormous 'puppy', Magnus. Magnus is an 18 month old Irish Wolfhound, and the twins (particularly Grayden) are crazy about him. Every morning for three days, the girls have gotten to play out in the back yard with Magnus. He is rambunctious, so he knocked them down a couple times. Grayden thought this was hilarious. Camden, not so much. But once she learned how to assertively (in her baby squeaky voice) tell him 'NO!', she warmed up to him too.

BIG puppy!

Camden, Magnus, Jodie, Grayden

In addition to playing with the big dog, the twins conned Aunt Jodie into taking us to Cracker Barrel (their favorite breakfast), spent an entire day at the Dallas Zoo, and met some old family friends at Lazy Bones for lunch. We loved our zoo trip - the weather was perfect, the animals were out and showing off, and Aunt Jodie let the girls each pick a gift from the souvenir shop. Cam chose an alligator on a leash and Gray chose a green tiger cub. We've loved having Aunt Jodie around, and the girls will be sad to not have her around tomorrow.

Dallas Zoo with Aunt Jodie

Super Bowl Fun

2012-02-05T19:30:00.000-08:00

Some of our friends invited us over for a Super Bowl party. A kid-friendly family party - at which most of the twins' favorite friends would be! It was wonderful. I spent hours with a group of women I adore. The twins ran amok with bunches of their buddies. And Adam got to watch the game with some of his friends. Wins all around.

Missing Oliver and Rome, but this was at halftime, and the kids were too excited to pin down.

Men vs. Women - The guys sat in front of the game while we bonded elsewhere. Was there a game on? :)

The twins' friends' mommies = my best friends

Tea for Twelve

2012-02-04T22:38:00.000-08:00

One of our friends' babies celebrated her 5th birthday today with a fancy tea party, and the twins were lucky enough to get an invite. The girls picked out some dresses that Aunt Cammy had given them for Christmas to wear to the party, so when they were asked at the tearoom if they wanted to choose a princess dress to change into, they politely declined. Once all of the other little guests arrived (and put on princess gowns), the party kicked off with a little group makeover - eye shadow, blush, and lip gloss. I LOVED Grayden's response to the question 'Do you want pink or purple eyeshadow?' Grayden replied sweetly, "No, thank you. I'll wear that when I grow up." I could just eat her up. Camden chose pink. Then, all of the little ladies were served tea. With lots of sweet snacks - chocolate mousse, fruit & marshmallow kabobs, jelly sandwiches, a cookie, and a cupcake. While they ate, they had a fashion show and told what they wanted to be when they grew up. All of the little girls wanted to be princesses. Not the twins... Gray wanted to be a diver and Cam wanted to be a singer. You can imagine how those little girls were acting after all of that sugar! Luckily, it was then that the girls were taken for an outdoor fashion parade around the town square. A quick photo on the gazebo steps and a big hug for the birthday girl, and we were out the door. What a fun idea for a birthday party - we had a wonderful time celebrating Bailey's big day!

I think they look like little old ladies - so cute!

Raspberry Tea - pinkies up!

Birthday girl, Bailey - Gray and her cupcake - Cam's fancy water glass

Camden Adelaide

Grayden Victoria

Post-parade pic. Cam, Gray, Avery, & Bailey front l-r. We didn't know the other 'big girls' there.

Stock Show

2012-01-31T22:38:00.000-08:00

We headed out to Fort Worth for the stock show, where we met up with Mieke & Ella and Leska & Avery. Our first stop was the children's barn, where I had to get Camden & Grayden's picture taken with the baby goats again. Last year, Grayden's goat chewed on her hair the entire time she held it. This year, Grayden's goat chewed on her hat string. She must taste as sweet as she acts! Here are this year & last year's goat pictures:

2012

2011

We walked through the pig and cow barns on our way to the fair grounds, and the girls loved hearing all the animals making their noises. They also got lots of attention - four cute little cowgirls walking along holding hands. These pictures make me laugh - Cam and Gray squishing Avery in a twin sandwich. Trying to convince Ella that she should be in the pictures too (she wanted nothing to do with a photo op), and finally convincing her to stand there, but she wasn't going to look happy about it (can you tell her mommy threatened her with leaving if she didn't stand next to her friends?) Haha. Gotta laugh when they act like 3 year olds!

Once we got to the fairground, it was smiles all the way around. We spent a fortune on tickets and then let the girls choose the rides. They took turns, and each picked two... so they all rode 8 different rides. And they remembered the order they were supposed to choose in. They had a blast! Once we were out of tickets, I took Cam & Gray to the petting zoo. By the time we had finished there, it was getting dark, and we had to head home to eat dinner with Daddy and Grandmom (who had been painting the playhouse while we were out having fun).

Waiting for our turn (tall enough to ride alone!) ---- On the little train (Cam, Avery, Gray, Ella)

Swings, Flying Elephant, Teacups

We had a wonderful time exploring the stock show with some of our favorite friends. We can't wait to do it all again next year!

Raindrops on Roses...

2012-01-30T21:57:00.000-08:00

Today, Grayden had a hard morning. She fell twice and got sent to time out twice. All before 10 AM. So, after her fourth bout of tears, I sat her down in the brown chair for some hugs and cheering up. I started singing her 'My Favorite Things' from The Sound of Music (one of MY favorite things). And, for kicks, I thought I'd ask her to make me a list of things that made her happy. I am SO glad I did. She made a beautiful list (probably better than my own, had I been on the spot). It cheered her up, and we had a great day (no more tears). Without further ado, Grayden's 'Happy' List:

Ice Cream
Christmas Lights
Avery & Atticus (our dogs)
hugs
painting
jewels (I'm guessing she means her dress up jewelry, but I loved the way she said it)
Reading books
Snuggles with Mama
Fairies
Bubble baths
Tickles
Slide races with Sister
Dolls
Real babies
Reindeer
Riding on Daddy's shoulders
Snacks

Just reading her list makes me happy. Makes me realize how grown up they are getting! I'm pretty sure that had I tried this when they were two, she would have just picked things that were in her direct line of sight.

I tried it with Camden, but she totally wasn't into it. Oh well. Go make a happy list!

OVERHEARD:

2012-01-26T20:23:00.000-08:00

The girls got tiny 'Magic 8 Balls' in a party favor last week. We were trying to explain what it was for.
Daddy: "You ask it questions and it will answer them."
Grayden: "Who's there?"
Good question, Gray! :)

It has stormed heavily for the past two nights. At bedtime:
Camden: "Be quiet, outside! We are trying to sleep!"

Geography, according to the twins:

We went looking for supplies for a play date:

Mommy: "We'll go to Target. If we don't find everything we need, we'll have to drive to Party City."

Grayden: "Is Party City in Texas?"

Haha! It ends in city... she thought it was a city.

On our way to Dennille's house:
Camden: "There are 3 stop signs and a red light between our house and Dennille's."
I had to think really hard, but there are! Wow...

Our friend Casey lives out kind of in the country, and has farm land all around their neighborhood. Anytime we pass a tractor or cows, the kids will say, "We are by Casey and Audrey's house!" And on the long way out to visit them, I often hear "Are we still in Texas? We've been driving a long time!"

Gray

Cam

Love these funny girls!

Gung Hay Fat Choy

2012-01-23T13:33:00.000-08:00

Happy {Chinese} New Year! This was always one of my favorite days to celebrate with my first grade class, especially since I always had at least one Vietnamese or Chinese child in class who celebrated it with their own families. We always made a huge dragon that the kids could walk under and we had a dragon parade for the rest of the school. Our dragon parade even made the paper one year. Obviously, a dragon parade is a bit ambitious for a bunch of toddlers and preschoolers, but we celebrated with a chinese playdate and craft. The kids made adorable dragons (this is the year of the dragon) out of egg cartons, construction paper, and tissue paper. We ate chinese noodles, rice, and vegetables. And they made as much noise in Stacie's house as any fireworks display and parade. What a fun day with friends!

Making our dragons!

Jack, Gray, Oliver, Cam, Katie, Megan, Adam
ROARING like dragons (and showing theirs off!)

Here are some Chinese New Years past:

Last year - toilet paper roll dragons

One of my dragon parades - some of the cutest first graders ever. :)
We had to practice a lot to be able to round those corners with 40 feet of dragon to wield!

High Flying!

2012-01-22T18:19:00.000-08:00

Today, after church, we headed to the park. Today is a beautiful, sunny, blustery day - perfect for flying a kite... another first for the girls. They received a kite from their friend Aidan at their birthday and then several more from Aunt Jodie for Christmas. They were very excited to pick a kite and fly it... with Daddy's help. They enjoyed holding the kite, but had much more fun chasing it as it swirled and dove with each gust of wind. Adam and I also had fun, rediscovering this simple childhood pleasure, and getting to enjoy it through the excited eyes of our daughters.

Helping daddy fly the kite. Camden in pink, Grayden in purple

Our butterfly can go high!

After we tired of the kite, Cam and Gray suckered us into spending some time on the playground. What a beautiful Sunday!

Cinderella Sleepover

2012-01-20T18:09:00.001-08:00

Casey and Audrey invited Camden, Grayden, and me to a play put on by a high school near their home. The production: Cinderella - perfect for our little princesses. Since the play was to let out after bedtime and because the Barkers live fairly far away, they also offered to let us stay the night... our very first sleepover away from home. We arrived early enough for the girls to play for a while and expend some energy. Then we ate dinner and headed to the show. The highlight of the evening was a horse-drawn carriage ride with hot cocoa before the show. The girls loved the ride! I wish the show was as magical as the carriage ride. Casey and I giggled our way through the show to intermission (envision teenagers dressed up like mice crawling around onstage, only to be outdone by the 'horses' - prancing and pawing in white panty hose, under which there were only boxer briefs). We polled the girls on whether or not they wanted to stay or leave, and it was unanimous... we left at intermission. So, the production got 10 thumbs down, but the company couldn't be beat, and we had fun anyway. When we got home, Barker pulled out the trundle in Audrey's room, and she, Cam, & Gray all slept side by side in one 'big bed'. It was adorable, and they miraculously slept soundly throughout the night. The only sleepover participants who stayed up talking to the wee hours were Casey and I. This morning, after breakfast and a little more playtime (and baby snuggling with little Hudson), we headed back to our part of town. I left the sheets on 'my' bed... I think we'll be doing this again soon. :)

The Baker and Barker ladies ready to go!

Camden, Audrey, Grayden

The sleeping arrangements for our little pajama partyers

Thirteen

2012-01-18T19:24:00.000-08:00

That's how many years it has been since my mom died. She would have been the best grandma in the world. I know, because she was the best mommy.

She always put my brother and I first. She tried to expose us to new places, experiences, cultures, and foods. She was fiercely independent but had a rock-solid marriage with my daddy. She was graceful even in the face of terrible illness and loss. She laughed a lot. She cried when I did. She held me on her lap when I was much too big to be doing so. She loved unconditionally and helped me fight my battles. She talked about wanting to be a grandmother... all of the 'good stuff' and none of the 'work'. I wouldn't trade the 20 years I had with her for anything.

But, I would give just about anything to have her back with me. To have her hold Camden and listen to her read. To hug Grayden and listen to her sing. To share the struggles and amazing triumphs and milestones that go along with motherhood. To hear anecdotes of how I used to do the same thing when I was their age. She would be so proud of her beautiful, clever, well-behaved, articulate, exceptional granddaughters. And, I believe she would be proud of me, too... of the woman I have become, the mother I am because of her example.

I wish we could be in a photo together, but it's fun to walk in her footsteps:
Me with Twins (16 months) ; Mom with me (16 months) same place at the SA zoo

Thirteen years seems like such a long time. Time has made it easier for me to exist without her. I don't fall to pieces when I see mothers and daughters out and about. But on days like today, when I allow myself to think about what I've lost, I cry. And that's ok.

Link to Ten Years... the twins were so small. The sentiment was the same.

Swinging Deja-vu

2012-01-17T21:08:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, the twins had a heart-melting moment on the swings.

And it totally reminded me of this heart-melting photo from 3 years ago.

Alternative Family Day

2012-01-16T20:30:00.000-08:00

When the girls were little, we used to joke that they might think they had two mommies. My friend, Dennille helped me out with every aspect of parenting twins. She went with me on outings, watched them when I needed to get away, came over in the wee hours of the morning when I couldn't get them to stop crying without being in someone's arms. To say she 'helped out' sounds so trivial compared to how important she was during those first years. Since Dennille had her own baby, we don't get to see her as often, especially during the school year, as she is a teacher.

Today was a national holiday. We enjoyed our Martin Luther King Day with Dennille and Evie (14 months). We took them to the Science and History Museum in the morning. Evie loved the children's portion of the museum. Cam and Gray loved playing tour guide for one of their favorite places. After the museum, we headed to lunch as a 'family'.

Poor little Evie was ready for a nap after our big day, so we said goodbye until late afternoon, when we went to her house. We all walked to the playground near their house, where the three little girls ran off some extra energy. Camden and Grayden each got to hold Evie on the slide, which she is getting too big for, but they love. The twins spent a big portion of the afternoon climbing up and flying down a HUGE purple slide. The kind of slide that would have made me very nervous a few months ago, which made me realize how big they really are. Near the end, I held the girls on the swing the way I always do (facing me, hug style). When they wanted to swing alone, but there were no baby swings, I had an idea. I had them face one another, Cam on Gray's 'lap'. It was the cutest thing ever, and they were secure enough pinned in by one another that they felt safe enough to really have fun. Lots of giggles, lots of kisses, and lots of admiration from their mommy.

Brave girls on a TALL slide!

We love spending time with Dennille and Evie, and can't wait to do it again!

Perfect Sunday

2012-01-15T20:41:00.000-08:00

What a spectacular, family-filled Sunday we have had! After church and Sunday School, Adam and I took the girls to one of our favorite Mexican food restaurants. After too much queso, we took a quick bathroom break at home and then headed to the movies. We took the girls to see Beauty & The Beast. It is out in 3D, but we don't think the girls are quite ready for that, so we opted for the 2D version (and had the theater pretty much to ourselves as a result. Cam and Gray sat through a super-cute Tangled short and the entire movie really well. They were helped along by popcorn and candy... We finished the evening off with lots of playtime and books. I love my sweet little family.

Alley Cats!

2012-01-14T17:21:00.000-08:00

Organized Chaos in Rented Shoes!
Adam, Katie, Megan, Gray, Ella, Cam, Lily, Evie

Today, the girls tried bowling for the first time, as one of their sweet friends (Adam) turned four. His birthday party was a blast. Three lanes of two, three, and four year olds chucking the ball down the (bumpered) lanes was quite a site. I never would have thought to let such little kids bowl, but they all loved it. The twins alternated between throwing 'granny style' and using the tot ramp to help guide the ball. Adam showed the twins some bowling basics, which was almost as fun to watch as preschoolers bowling. After bowling a couple of games, we headed to a party room for pizza, cake, and ice cream. We sang 'Happy Birthday, Dear Adam' twice, since our friend Jack missed the first rendition and was very upset. What a great birthday party! Adam and I will likely take the girls back to this (clean, smoke-free, sensory-overloading) bowling alley.

'We get to wear these cool shoes?'

Camden

Grayden

With some of their friends:
Lily; Ella squeezing the life out of them;
Evie, Adam, Lily, Katie, Gray; Megan

I got to hang out with some of my friends, too! Rachel, Me, Stacie

Not bowling stars, but about as good as I could do.

Tired bowlers - Cam, Oliver, Rome (escaping), Evie, Adam, Lily, Katie, Gray, Megan

Happy birthday, Adam! Save us a place at the four-year-old's table... we'll be joining you in a few short months!

OVERHEARD:

2012-01-09T16:09:00.000-08:00

I've been collecting these - we've been too busy to post an Overheard post during the holidays.

Grayden: "I'm going to call Daddy 'Daddum'. It is like Daddy and Adam squished together."

Funny little girl. It wouldn't be the first time to abandon 'daddy' as her moniker of choice. She went through a phase of calling him by his name when she was two.

Grayden Victoria - my little green monster!

As we were leaving Dennille's house:

Dennille: Come give me a hug. I'm going to miss you.

Camden: (taking D's face in her hands) "Don't worry. You won't be alone. You have Evie."

Ferg was there too. Funny that she didn't mention him.

Camden Adelaide - pretty in pink!

Looking for matchstick carrots at the grocery store in a sea of carrot products:

Grayden: "Don't worry, Mommy. I'm peeling my eyes for them."

Sitting in the girls rooms after they were supposed to be asleep:
Camden: "Grayden! Be quiet. I'm trying to sleep."
Daddy: "Shhhh!"
Camden: "I hope you're talking to Grayden, because she is snoring!"

Upon trying to force Grayden to eat leftover baked ziti that I slaved over the night before, since she refused to eat anything but her vegetables (weirdo):

Mommy: "Just eat two more bites of pasta."

Grayden: "But mommy, eating too much pasta isn't helfy. Pasta should be eaten in moderation."

Don't you hate it when they use your words against you... and outwit you?

The girls like to play 'fashion show'. We sit and clap while one of the girls puts on some accessories or clothes. This time, we were trying on sunglasses (they have many pairs):

Camden: "Oh, Grayden! You look lovely. We can't see your eyes!"

Grayden: "Can you see the rest of me?"

Haha! She thought maybe she'd gone invisible.

Same fashion show:

Camden: (to audience of me, grandmom, and Grayden) "Ladies and sisters! We are about to begin."

GRRR! My little monsters.

I forget how very literal small children are...
When we were unsure if Kiddie Park was going to open in the rain, I called to see.
Grayden: "Who are you talking to?"
Mommy: "I'm on the phone with Kiddie Park to see if it is open."
Grayden: "Kiddie Park can't talk can it?"

And after having complaining of her tummy hurting for a couple of hours, I wanted to make sure she felt ok:
Mommy: "Gray, is your stomach still upset?"
Grayden: "How can a stomach be upset?"

Credit for the cute hats goes to my talented cousin, Macee. She makes all of our precious knit hats. We loved these monster ones so much that we had to have a little photo shoot in Grandmom's backyard. I love taking pictures of my pretty babies.

Vegas (And Other Anniversary Stuff)

2012-01-05T19:38:00.000-08:00

Adam and I celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary on New Year's Eve. His gift to me was a surprise trip to Las Vegas, one of our favorite pre-twins travel destinations. He also left two dozen roses for me to find when I woke up. And he reminded me of one of the many reasons I adore him... he got flowers for Camden and Grayden too. He always buys his little daughters flowers when he gets them for me. It still melts my heart.

We dropped the girls off at their grandparents' house on Monday morning and headed to the airport. We are not gamblers (and in fact didn't do so much as drop a quarter into a slot machine), but love Vegas for the shows and food. As always, we stayed in the Bellagio. It always trips me out to stay in a room with three bathrooms. We only had a few days, so we wasted no time having fun. We ate a late lunch at the Harley Davidson Cafe, where we had gotten a photo taken just after marriage. We look a whole lot older and more tired in this one.

Monday night Adam got us fantastic seats to Phantom of the Opera. We saw it on Broadway when we got engaged in New York, and I've seen it several other times. Nothing can compare to the Venician's version... it was amazing. The theater was built specifically for Phantom, and it really made the show better!

On Tuesday, we proved our old age when we tried desperately to sleep in but were up by nine. We hit the town and saw the Bodies Exhibit at the Luxor, the new Shark Aquarium at Mandalay Bay, and rode the roller coaster at New York, New York... another Vegas tradition for us. This picture made me giggle out loud for the remainder of the trip. Can you tell that one of us LOVES roller coasters and the other only rides them out of love and devotion? Poor Adam!

Then we went and got changed for dinner reservations at Ferraro's - our FAVORITE restaurant in Vegas. After a spectacular dinner, we headed to see Ka, one of the few Cirque de Soleil shows we haven't seen. It was great (and the theater was spectacular), but Adam and I still agree that O is our favorite (and this is the first trip in which we haven't seen it.

We returned late last night, and picked up the girls this morning. While we were enjoying some adult time in sin city, Cam and Gray were happily spoiled at Grandmom's house. Grandad took them on some tractor rides, they ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel (and suckered Grandmom into buying them a stuffed raccoon), and they colored about a million pictures. Adam and I brought them back some little stuffed dogs with Vegas tags and sent them some postcards. I'm pretty sure they didn't miss us much!

Tractor rides with Grandad. Grayden LOVED this!

Grandmom's house is fun! Playground, coloring, and gardening!

While I loved the wining and dining in Vegas, and got some much needed alone time with my sweet husband, I'm pretty sure I enjoy the shows here as much or more than those in the fancy casinos. Camden and Grayden took turns walking outside on the porch (the stage) to sing and dance. The other would sit in their rocking chairs on the other side of the window and cheer on her sister along with the rest of the audience (their new stuffed animals and our dogs). So cute!!!

As an aside, I finally got copies of some portraits the grandparents had taken of the girls last year. I backdated them. If you want to see them, click HERE.

2011 - A Year in Review...

2011-12-30T10:08:00.000-08:00

Since the twins are still too little to remember most of what is going on around them, here is my re-cap of the year for them. You can see last year's HERE. The economy of 2011 carried on in the same sad state of affairs as 2010, with food and gas prices surging. The economic and social inequality didn't go unnoticed... The 'Occupy' movement (expected to die quickly) started in New York City's financial district and went viral, with offshoots in cities nationwide, including here in Texas. Osama Bin Ladin was killed by American forces. The most popular movie of the year was Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows, and ranks as the 3rd most successful movie of all time. Other top grossing movies included several Marvel Comics films - Thor, Captain America, and X-Men: 1st Class... so I guess this is an era of comic book revival. Music chart toppers included Adele, Lady Gaga, and the twins' current obsession, LMFAO. Notable deaths included young Amy Winehouse, old Andy Rooney & Betty Ford, as well as pioneer Steve Jobs. Texas A&M officially left the Big 12 for the SEC (after quite a bit of controversy and some funny shirts emblazoned with 'SECede'). Little girls (and big ones) all over the world watched as Prince William married Kate Middleton after a celebrated engagement. The Kardashians remain the annoying piece of pop-culture that won't go away, Michael Jackson's doctor was found guilty of his part in the legend's death, and Pinterest may have surpassed Facebook as the most prevalent time-waster of the year.

In Our Little World...
2011 brought about big changes in our household as well. The girls got their very first haircuts in January (yes, they were two and a half - don't judge!) They discovered Disney Princesses thanks to a friend, and the obsession has strengthened throughout the year. Cam and Gray took their first trip to Texas A&M, and enjoyed their first hotel stay there in College Station. We were snowed in for a week in February in a very unusual-to-Texas snowstorm. Our babies officially grew out of the toddler phase, and turned three with a HUGE circus themed party. We started attending and joined a new church, and the girls began Sunday school, which they love a whole lot more than a church nursery! We dropped our afternoon nap, started writing our names, and reading sight words and predictable texted books. The twins {finally} moved out of cribs and into 'big girl beds', giving them more freedom and independence - we are glad we waited. Cam gave up nighttime pull-ups and sleeps in big girl underwear... never had an accident! We all visitied Uncle Stephen and Aunt Sarah in New York City, taking Cam & Gray's very first airplane ride. Cam and Gray took official swimming lessons, and swam like fish in Aunt Dennille's pool, attended (and loved) a summer dance clinic with two of their best buddies, and joined a soccer team (where Grayden kicked in her first goal). The girls enjoyed their first fireworks and our family expanded in July when Grandpa married Chelle (the girls call her ShaSha) in South Carolina. We had our first (and hopefully last) call to poison control when two little girls decided to eat toothpaste. Cam & Gray chose their own Halloween costumes for the first time this year (as well as Mommy & Daddy's) and helped carve their first pumpkins. We attended more than our fair share of sporting events, tea parties, craft days, 5Ks, theme parties, and play dates with family and friends. We ended the year with our first visit to Sea World, Thanksgiving in San Antonio, a shelf elf named Zadigan Kelf, and a truly magical Christmas topped off with news of a brand new cousin... due July of 2012. We have a lot to look forward to next year!!!

Winter chill

2011-12-28T06:53:00.000-08:00

It has been cold! The girls have two favorite weapons to ward off the chill... lounging by the fire and snuggling with Avery and Atticus, who are tiny balls of furry heat.

Avery, Camden, Atticus

Grayden warming herself by the hearth. Her favorite perch.

Today, the sun came out. It was still chilly, but a beautiful day. We headed up to check on Casey, who is out of the hospital, to bring them food and get Audrey out of the house for a while. She is an awesome big sister, but any three year old housebound for a few days needs a break! I took the girls to the park in Casey's neighborhood. They ran, climbed, and jumped for an hour before my friend Jane (who lives nearby) joined us with her kiddos. Then they ran climbed and jumped for another hour. We left the Barker house (after some baby snuggling) with two exhausted twins.

Noah, Grayden, Marshall, Camden, Chloe, Audrey

Yes, We Realize Christmas is Over.

2011-12-27T06:29:00.000-08:00

It is so hard to let Christmas go, especially in a house with little children. Our tree is still up, as are many of the decorations. We are still nibbling on Christmas cookies and humming carols. And Camden and Grayden still talk about Santa like he may magically appear again tomorrow.
I'm not helping matters. Yesterday, we went to see the Christmas village in Grapevine one more time. It stays up until New Year's, so it still feels like Christmas there. The girls ran around looking at all of the animated displays (and I got our annual picture of Adam holding the girls in front of the reindeer one - pretty soon they'll be too big to hold). We watched the Christmas tree lights 'dance' to music one more time, and then said goodbye to Christmas and headed out to dinner. Tomorrow, I'll start hauling holiday paraphernalia back up to the attic. Our mailbox will be filled with junkmail and bills instead of colorful photos of our friends families. We'll go back to normal. Sigh.

Christmas Morning

2011-12-25T22:04:00.000-08:00

What a magical Christmas! Santa was here, and the twins made out like bandits. I guess the big guy knows what I know... Camden and Grayden are sweet, well-behaved, golden hearted little girls. The little angels slept past their normal 7:45 wake-up time, so Adam and I were able to make them a special breakfast - Christmas tree waffles (with bacon trunks). Santa had set up the zoo they had asked for in the living room, so it was the first thing they saw. They are so sweet, they didn't realize that there was more. We actually had to walk them over to the sitting room (after breakfast) to show them that there were more presents under the tree! Boy were they excited!

Last year took all day to open presents, because they had to stop and play with each gift before being persuaded to abandon it to open another. This year was a whole different story. They excitedly opened their gifts, oohed and ahhed appropriately, and then asked for another gift. Several of their gifts were 'To Camden AND Grayden' (gifts that they would share) and they did really well opening those together.

We lazed around for the rest of the day and then headed to Adam's parent's house for Christmas dinner. It was a good crowd this year, with my dad, Chelle, and aunt, The Fergusons, The Coxes, and the Bakers. We had a spectacular dinner of Mexican food, played Christmas trivia (I'm safely the reigning champion), stuffed ourselves with desserts, and then tackled a ridiculous pile of presents... the twins may have gotten more on Christmas night than Christmas morn. Cam and Gray had a wonderful time running around playing with their cousins and baby Evie. We finally loaded the girls up (in new pajamas) about 2 hours past their bedtime. No books, stories, or baths for these tired Christmas babies!

John Austin, Camden, Evie, Grayden, Peyton

Gifts

Chilling with ShaSha & Grandpa; Cam reading with her daddy

Grandmom & Grandad with their grandkids

New Jammies on cousins

The haul...

Santa must have gotten some pretty good reports from our elf, Zadigan Kelf. He brought them the big zoo they wanted, the 'peeping' dogs they've been asking for (pink poodle for Cam and a flipping yapping dog for Grayden), a Hide & Seek Safari Monkey and seeker wand set, Hippo, rhino, and safari jeep for their zoo, play food, and the cupcakes they asked Santa for. In their stockings, they got some Barbie sisters, princess gloves, metal princess water bottles, new underwear, some M&Ms, and Camden got her tiny yellow monster. It is an Ugli doll figurine that glows in the dark. Santa is so resourceful! We didn't figure she'd get that wish.

Mommy & Daddy gave the girls some play food, a big singing princess doll (Jasmine for Cam and Mulan for Gray), princess nightgowns, a voice changer, some new books, and 3 Laurie Berkner videos.

Uncle Stephen and Aunt Sarah mailed the twins the much coveted Bullseye to complete their toy story friends.. He's pretty amazing and surprisingly large. They also sent them a huge case of make your own snow!

Aunt Jodie sent them their first dolls that aren't baby dolls, along with some handmade rodeo queen outfits for them - complete with leather boots and hats, a gigantic kite and some real old fashioned paper dolls!

Aunt Dana brought them a kangaroo and koalas set for their new zoo... she's pretty intuitive, knowing that Santa would bring them the zoo they asked for!

Aunt Cammy & Macee gave them 5 beautiful dresses, a HUGE hippo for Cam and monkey for Grayden, lots of perfectly precious hand-knit hats from Macee, and some new Barbies.

Aunt Courtney & Jeff got them a set of gold leaf Disney books and a huge princess tent with a tunnel.

John Austin and Peyton got them a set of princess Squinkies (that they bought with their own money - aren't they the BEST cousins in the whole world?) Camden, of course got Jasmine, while Grayden got Ariel.

Dennille & Ferg gave the girls a safari set for their city zoo, princess crowns, and the set of princess books the girls have been wanting.

Great Grandmother gave them each a charm from James Avery with their initial on it. I think I'm going to have to start a charm bracelet for them, as they now have 3 each. I had several as a child and lost them all. Hope they are more conscientious.

Grandpa and ShaSha brought them the 'smoothie maker' they asked for to go in their play kitchen. They couldn't help themselves, and also got them a mixer, toaster, coffee maker, and food processor. All of them make noise and have an action. And a cute keepsake plate, cup, and bell set to put out for Santa every year. They also deposited money into the girls college funds!

Grandmom & Grandad outdid themselves in the spoiling department. They gave the girls a huge castle for their 12 inch princesses (which will be living in their house until we find room for it), 8 new princesses (which will be living with the castle, since we have most of them), two new ornaments, new flannel pajamas with matching slippers, monogrammed duffel bags (with monogrammed scarves inside!), big beanbag chairs for the playhouse (pink for Cam, purple for Gray), twelve new puzzles (yes, 12!), and best of all, Shang-Li ('Mulan's friend who is a boy', to quote Grayden).

Merry Christmas from the Family

2011-12-24T22:54:00.000-08:00

Since I didn't want to ruin the surprise for our Christmas cards, I never posted our family portraits or the twins' Christmas session.

Merry Christmas from the Bakers!

Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T22:13:00.000-08:00

We are a little behind schedule on Christmas preparations. I had to choose between baking cookies and cleaning up for my family or spending time helping out Casey in the hospital. My sweet friend won out, so when my family arrived today, I was nowhere near ready. We let the girls open one present on Christmas Eve. They chose one from Stephen and Sarah - it turned out to be the much asked for Bullseye (he neighs, clip clops, vibrates, and plays music) to add to the Buzz, Woody, and Jesse they already love. They also sent a big package of 'just add water' snow. Bullseye kept the girls busy until my Dad, Chelle, and Aunt Dana arrived. Luckily, they were able to keep the twins busy as I threw together some last minute things together. Grandpa, ShaSha, and Aunt Dana helped the twins make a gingerbread house, which lasted about 35 seconds before Cam and Gray started to nibble on it.

I was really excited to go to our first candlelit Christmas service at our new church. It was a big tradition in my house growing up (all the way up until the twins were born) to go to the midnight service on Christmas Eve in my home church in San Antonio. I'm excited to carry this on here in our new church... obviously not at the midnight service for a few years. So, I dressed the babies up, and we headed out to the 6:00 service. Aunt Dana came with us, and we left my dad and Chelle behind to add the final ingredient to dinner. The service was beautiful, but contemporary (I'm used to the traditional). The best part was the Living Children's Nativity, in which Camden and Grayden were the cutest angels I've ever seen. I didn't get any clear pictures, so you'll have to trust me.

After church, we rushed home to have dinner together, decorate Santa's cookies, and put the reindeer food we made out on the lawn. Two very excited little girls were exceedingly hard to get to sleep tonight! I'm sure they'll be listening for jingle bells and reindeer hooves...

Decorating cookies (thank goodness Aunt Dana brought dough)

Spreading food for the reindeer

A Christmas Miracle (And a Christmas Scare)

2011-12-22T20:22:00.000-08:00

I've started this post a few times and haven't known how to even begin.
I almost lost one of my best friends. One of Cam and Gray's best friends was nearly left motherless. And I was a witness.
Let me back up. I was asked to photograph the birth of my friend Casey's second child. I was honored (and more than a little excited to get my hands on a sweet little newborn). Casey was scheduled to be induced on Wednesday morning, so I met her and her husband at the hospital at 9 AM. Her time kept getting pushed back due to people who were actually in labor, so the three of us sat in the waiting room for nearly 5 hours. Is it awful, that I really enjoyed that time - hours talking with two of my favorite people?
It was about 1:30 when she was told a room was available. We got her situated and the doctor broke her water. No pitocin was needed - she progressed quickly (and was actually in labor while we were sitting in the waiting room and didn't know it). By 3:30, they said she was ready to go. She's my hero, and was joking about wanting spam and eggs (eww) and telling the nurses to make sure she went home within 24 hours in between pushes.

Their baby boy, Hudson was born at 3:48 in the afternoon. 7 lbs, 10 oz. 19 inches long. He is beautiful and perfect, and delivered quick and easy. No one expected problems. Proud daddy cut the cord. They put a goo-covered Hudson on Casey's chest and then took him to weigh, measure, and clean him off.

Brand new; Weighing in; Proud big sis, Audrey!

While taking a million pictures of sweet Hudson, I assumed the doctor would be stitching Casey up or whatever doctors do after the baby is born. Instead, there were 'complications'. Despite having had an epidural, she was in immense pain. For some reason, the placenta was attached to the uterine wall, and when the doctor tried to pull it out, he inverted Casey's uterus. She started losing MASSIVE amounts of blood. While she was still conscious, her doctor actually had to pull her uturus out of her body. I'm pretty sure I'll never get that image out of my head. In the words of my husband (who got an eyeful during my own c-section), "she's much prettier on the outside than the inside." :)

They kicked her husband and I out, and rushed Casey to the O.R. to find the bleeding. It was terrifying. Her poor husband was a wreck. I'm usually pretty collected in a crisis, but I was terrified.

At 8:00 in the evening (when Casey's family arrived, and I had to leave to go pick up the twins), they had still not completely stopped the bleeding. She had lost over half of her own blood supply and had LOTS of blood transfusions. She came so close to death that I am shaking just thinking about it. She spent the night in ICU with around-the-clock nurses watching her.

This morning brought good news. She regained consciousness and has little memory of the traumatic events of the day before, which is a small blessing (and a side effect of one of the drugs they gave her). They managed to stop the bleeding, and she is considered "out of the woods." I got to see her this afternoon when I went to pick up Audrey, who will be staying with us tonight. I probably should have let her rest, but I had to see her with my own eyes to make sure she was alright. She's always a beauty, but I thought she looked especially beautiful - pale and fragile, but alive!

While there, Cam and Gray got to meet little Hudson in his "turtle tank". They were thrilled when they were allowed to hold him!

New big sis, Audrey, Cam in pink, Gray in purple with Hudson!

Our First Slumber Party:
Audrey is with us this evening. She blessedly doesn't know why she gets to come play, and the three girls are thrilled to be allowed a sleepover. We've had so much fun so far! We met their other best buddy, Ella at the park and the foursome ran off some energy. Upon saying goodbye to Mieke & Ella, I took the Cam, Gray, and Audrey to Chick-Fil-A for dinner and some indoor play. Audrey is very familiar with us and our home, but I want to make sure she is good and tired before trying to put her to bed in a new place.

Park playing - Grayden, Audrey, Camden, Ella

The girls played princesses for an hour, we read a bunch of Christmas books, and took a bath. They were excited to choose where they were going to sleep. Cam insisted on sleeping in her own bed. Grayden offered hers to Audrey, and staked her claim to a pallet between the two. I braced myself for hours of squealing and sleep-deprivation, but all that tiring out must have worked. Camden was asleep almost immediately. Gray and Audrey giggled and talked for almost an hour before I told them they would be separated and one of them had to sleep in the playroom. Audrey immediately volunteered, and both were asleep within minutes. She awoke about an hour ago confused about her location and a little scared. Once I put her in with Cam and Gray, she was fine and fell right back to sleep.

First overnight playdate... success! Adam is saving the day by bringing three puppets for our elf to leave the girls under the tree and by getting donuts in the morning. What a treat. Hope Audrey's parents won't mind that I've been feeding their daughter terrible things the entire time!
*** NOTE: I actually wrote this (leaving out some details) and published it and then panicked and talked to my sweet friend about it to make sure I wasn't overstepping my bounds or infringing on her privacy. Here are her words:
"I'm glad you wrote about it. Don't leave out seeing my uterus (as long as you mention how slim and classy It looked ;) I had NEVER heard of such a thing and I want other people to know its possible and that unforeseen things happen even in this country and this day and age. So have a will. So again, I'm not concerned with privacy. I don't feel embarrassed or ashamed or anything. Just grateful to be alive and hopeful that my body will work correctly again. And heal."

Our Days are Merry & Bright!

2011-12-18T23:05:00.000-08:00

Trying to pack in as much holiday fun as possible. As usual, this leaves little time for our poor little blog. Here's some catching up:
I hosted a hot cocoa playdate at my house on Tuesday. I made 'real' hot chocolate. With heavy cream, chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and milk. Sounds as healthy as it was. My friend Ashley made little felt-sewn cocoa mugs for the kids to make into ornaments. I'm so lucky to have such awesome friends! So are the twins...

The kids were NOT wanting to sit, but we wanted them to show off their craft.

I LOVE how they turned out!

That night, we went with Adam to see the Christmas lights display and shows at Prairie Lights. The twins loved all the lights as we drove around, but the highlight was when we got out of the car. The show changed from years past, and was a laser-lights show. Grayden's reaction made me almost cry - she was so excited and innocent and filled with wonder. When it started to 'snow', I thought she might explode. We took the lit walking tour, and the girls took turns riding on Adam's shoulders and racing ahead. Then we rode the carousel and a spinning bears ride before heading home. What a magical family night.

Checking out the lights!

My little elves

On Wednesday, we went to a friend's house to make 'Reindeer Food'. We'll sprinkle it on the lawn or roof on Christmas Eve, so that the reindeer will have a snack on their long journey. Rene went all out on it this year, and the kids all took home a cute little pail filled with sustenance for the reindeer. We also made cute little reindeer snacks out of donuts and pretzels.

Making reindeer food with our pals

On Thursday, we hosted a fancy Christmas Tea for our little friends (in celebration of the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party). We used all of my great Aunt's old china. The kids were so precious. Grayden kept asking for 'another spot of tea' in a fake british accent.

Today, we had our annual AMMG holiday party. This year, we held it in a bounce house place. My assistant organizers were both out of town, so I had to plan it alone. Thus, it wasn't quite as elaborate as it usually is. Good thing the kids didn't notice. They all had a blast running and jumping around. We made our annual handprint ornament - this year reindeer with each family member's thumbprints. And we ate a taco buffet for lunch, all with 30 or so of our friends.

Gray, Cam, and Audrey

Eating with Ella & Audi, Hugs for Lily

A few of our buddies - Laurel, Maddie, Audie, twins (holding Noah), Avery, Addie, Maya

Little Helpers

2011-12-13T15:30:00.000-08:00

I know that soon the girls won't want to help out, but for now, they love nothing more than helping around the house. Chores are so much fun! They fight over who gets to put the silverware from the dishwasher away, think it's a treat to take their dishes to the sink, and Camden desperately wants her very own vacuum for Christmas. But the best job? Filling the washing machine with clothes and then getting to push the buttons to start it. I'm taking advantage of their sweetness! I wish there was more I could have them do.

The Big Guy Himself

2011-12-12T21:11:00.000-08:00

Today, the twins met up with Santa again. We headed to Northpark at 9, picking up Grandmom and breakfast on the way. By 9:45, we had our number (#108) and an estimated time of 3:45. To those of you not familiar with Dallas or the Northpark Santa and are inevitably flabbergasted at why anyone would wait that long to see Santa, he is totally worth the wait, and you don't actually have to wait in line for that long!

After getting our numbers, we scouted the mall for some Christmas cards for Grandmom (she's very picky), sat for Santa's storytime, perused a toy store, wandered up to the Trains at Northpark display, watched Scrooge's Puppet Theater, visited 4 mall restrooms, ate lunch at Maggiano's (the first restaurant besides Lazy Bones the girls ever went to as infants), watched the ducks and turtles in the fountains, and then headed back to see what number they were on, just for kicks. To our surprise, they were running early, and they were just calling our numbers. We headed to (yet) another restroom to change the girls from their comfy clothes into their itchy Christmas dresses. After a few minutes of waiting, the girls got to spend some quality time with St. Nicholas. He was so sweet, and for the first time, Cam and Gray were eager to see him and quite chatty with him. They told him what they wanted, talked about how good they've been, asked him some questions, and posed beautifully for the photographer. As one last adventure to tack onto our day, we hit up the Disney Store. Grandmom and Mommy took turns perusing wandering around with awe-struck twins and surreptitiously purchasing fun gifts for the girls. We left as four very tired (but happy) Baker ladies.

Sneaking up on me with Grandmom; Waiting for Scrooge's Puppet Theater; Eating at Maggiano's

The Trains at NorthPark!

Peeking in at Santa; Chatting him up

The 'Too Busy' All-In-One Post:

2011-12-11T21:44:00.000-08:00

We've been having lots of seasonal fun. We barely have time to breathe, let alone blog about it. Here are some of our adventures recently...

We visited Grandad's firestation for his annual holiday lunch. We had lots of fun with Grandmom and Grandad, sang and danced for the firemen, and Grandad gave the girls a Fireman Santa.

We made donut wreathes for breakfast one morning with our friends. Pajama parties are the best!

At the same playdate, the kids had a blast playing in all of the falling leaves in Oliver's yard. Yes, we realize it is December. Here in Texas, December is still Fall!

We've been to see Mrs. Claus for her storytime twice... once with our friends, and another with Daddy. This time, I thought to take a picture with her. And the twins with their funny rudolph noses she gave them.

Daddy and Grandad have finished welding the foundation of the girls playhouse (their big present this year) and put the floor in. Walls are coming this week, I think. For now, the girls call it their stage, and had a blast dancing around on it.

We rode on the Polar Express again this year. Laurel and Susan came again, and this year so did the Fergusons. This year, Gray didn't cry when she saw Santa. They got hot chocolate, saw snowflakes (ok, they were soapflakes), and sang Christmas carols. A fun tradition for our family!

After the train, we took the girls to mail their letters to Santa. He always writes back when you send them from here... thanks to our Aunt Courtney for that tip!

Enjoying our busy holiday season!

Elf Addict

2011-12-08T21:17:00.000-08:00

Zadigan Kelf has been a busy little shelf elf!!! Here are some of his best 'hiding' places recently...

We found him all swaddled up pretending to be a baby - bottle, rattle, teddy lovie and all! Kimberly must have been babysitting him, rocking him to sleep when we caught them and they froze:

It must have been a lifelong dream of Zad's to join a rock band. Seems like Barbie and the Rockers have taken him into their fold and let him take over keyboard:

Silly elf! How does he get into predicaments like this? He was playing in the clock and couldn't figure out how to get out. Here he is in clock 'jail':

Yee-haw! Ride 'em Cowboy Zadigan! Our little guy strapped on some boots and a hat (looks like Jesse let him borrow hers) and went out for a ride.

Table for One, Garcon! I have to admit, I got this idea from the twins. The girls made individual pizzas with English muffins, and we sliced them like a regular pizza. Cam and Gray thought it was precious, and said they were eating doll sized food. Eureka - fine elfin dining:

I guess our little elf wanted to play the lead in a nativity pageant. Here he is all wrapped up in swaddling cloths (or a party napkin... whatever):

My Aunt Jodie sent me a box of old Christmas decorations, thinking the twins might like some of it. Apparently, it was a hit with the elf set too. Zadigan displaced a parachuting reindeer and strapped himself in for a ride. Don't worry - the reindeer got his parachute pack back. This has probably been Cam and Gray's favorite place so far:

And my personal favorite (it's the teacher in me) - Zadigan reading books to some playroom children while sitting in a rocking chair next to a little people easel. Sweet little elf:

Santa's Little Yelpers

2011-12-06T20:29:00.000-08:00

We came across these in the dollar section at Target, and the twins decided that Avery and Atticus MUST have them. The girls think they are awesome... not so sure about the dogs!

Dear Santa...

2011-12-04T15:25:00.000-08:00

Here are the twins' wish lists (this is the first time they've been aware that they could actually ask for a specific present) I'm sure we will be ammending it daily now that they know they are allowed to wish for things:

Camden's list (in her words):

A zoo. For me to be the boss of.
An angel. A pink one.
A tiny yellow monster
More stuff for my tiny furniture (dollhouse)- a stroller and a little sister
Little people so my Jesus can have friends
Food and fun things for me to pretend cook
A swing like Aidan has with a tire
Pink maracas
A vacuum
A friend for my Rosie (the train)
More princesses. I love princesses, you know?

The kid is convinced she is going to be a zookeeper when she grows up. She and Gray play zoo with all of their stuffed animals - she's the keeper and Gray is the vet. It's pretty cute. I think ~~I'm~~ Santa's going to have to spring for one of {these} to make them both happy! She won't be getting any more maracas or Little People. We have plenty of both. Anybody know of a small vacuum that really cleans? I'm hoping that the stroller and little sister went along with her 'tiny furniture' request (her word for her dollhouse), since there will be no real little sister delivered. And the angel and yellow monster... chock that up to being a weirdo and a three year old. :)

Grayden's List (in her words):

Bullseye
Animals for me to be a doctor of
A snowman. A real one.
Some cupcakes like Olivia has
A smoothie maker. It can be pretend if you want
Tea party stuff and kitchen stuff
A drum and a guitar. So me, Sister, and Ella can have a band at our house.
Puppets like at the museum
Mulan's friend who is a boy

The only thing Grayden has consistently asked for is a Bullseye toy from Toy Story. I'm pretty sure her Uncle Stephen and Aunt Sarah have found one in NYC, since they are impossible to find in the large size that she wants. Poor kid... we live in Texas. Hope she's not banking on a real snowman. I love that she wants Mulan's 'prince'. They have never even seen the movie, but we got Mulan as a gift for their birthdays, and they know that she should have a boy. All of their other princesses have a prince to go along with them.

Getting Into the Holiday Spirit

2011-12-02T18:55:00.000-08:00

Hooray for December! The twins have been wearing some of their cute holiday outfits and we've been doing lots of seasonal activities with friends and family. We went on Tuesday to a story time with Mrs. Claus. A bunch of our favorite AMMG buddies went too. It was adorable. Mrs. Claus told some stories and then gave all of the kids handbells to sing along to jingle bells with. Then, she picked some of the children (including Cam and Gray) to wear some reindeer antlers and perform a rendition of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. At the end, they gave everyone a little stuffed snowman.

Some AMMG pals

Storytime, singing with bells, riding the carousel

Afterwards, a bunch of us headed to the food court and then the carousel. Addy, Cam, and Gray were enthralled with the enormous Christmas tree, and Grayden asked me how they got such a big tree in the door. Such a thinker. After lunch of Subway and Chick-Fil-A in the food court, Addy, Ella, Avery, and the twins rode the carousel until we were all dizzy. Just when they thought it couldn't get any better, we stopped and let the girls get a cookie on the way out!

Big tree, Little girls

Ella, Gray, Cam, Avery - I LOVE this picture - they were having so much fun!

Last night, we headed out to Grapevine for the Parade of Lights. We've gone every year since the babies were... well, BABIES. The Barkers and Geists joined us for a quick bite to eat before the parade and then we headed over. We were thrilled when cousins John Austin and Peyton joined us. For a while, Aunt Courtney hung with us too. Grayden suckered her into lifting her up onto her shoulders, so the rest of the parents had to follow suit. The twins had a (squealing, hugging, bouncing) good time with Ella and Audrey. I love seeing these four together - what a bond. They loved the parade - especially sitting on shoulders, dancing until they fell down, and the light up swords that Audrey's daddy bought them. When it started to rain, we ran a few feet back to Lazy Bones and had a snack. When we went back out, the parade was just ending, and we all went to see the Christmas Tree Light show.

Besties - Grayden, Ella, Camden, Audrey

With John Austin & Peyton; Gray on Aunt Courtney's shoulders

Parade!

Light Sabers - Gray & Daddy, Cam & Mommy, Audrey & Barker, Ella & Scott

We stayed out way past the girls bedtime and were rewarded by getting to sleep in until 9:15 this morning! We lounged around in our (Christmas footie) pajamas until dinner time, when Dennille and Evie convinced us to put on clothes and have dinner with them.

Despite Cam's mean mug, they adore Evie!

Decking the Halls!

2011-11-29T22:59:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! We started by putting up the girls' tiny tree in their room. This was important, because like last year, their elf leaves little presents beneath it each morning until Christmas. Cam and Gray were thrilled to be able to decorate their tree with the special ornaments they picked out (and made) last year. We'll add a few more as the season progresses, I'll bet. The best part - a tie between standing on their table to put on the star and the fancy pink and purple lights their daddy bought for the tree.

From there, we were ready to tackle the big tree downstairs. I let the girls 'help' put up some of their more meaningful ornaments. I love how they put 20 ornaments on the same 4 branches. So cute. I, of course, snapped a picture before moving the ornaments to a more aesthetically pleasing location. Adam's mom came to help, so the tree looks pretty great.

After a bit of tweaking, it looks good... but the twins' version was good too:

Toddler Tree - haha!

And, each morning, the twins rush to find where their elf, Zadigan Kelf has taken himself. He leaves them little gifts (books, tiaras, candy, dollar bin treasures) if they are good the day before. Here are a few of Zad's adventures thus far:

Cruising with holiday Barbie... fun until Grayden wanted her Barbie back!

Acrobatic elf hanging from the window... he left some window clings!

Enjoying a mug of cocoa. Cam and Gray LOVED that he made a marshmallow mess that they could clean up!

WAY up high. Took the twins all day to find him !

Playing with the bathtub crayons (he wrote a message and doodled holiday pictures all over the bathroom!)

Oh, and the outside of the house is looking pretty festive too... the house lights are on. Just need to fish the wreaths out of the attic and throw out the lit-up deer. I LOVE Christmas!

What's in a name?

2011-11-28T23:26:00.000-08:00

Cam and Gray LOVE to name things. I think that's pretty normal for their age. What is not normal is their selection of names. They have recently come up with some alter-egos for themselves/each other. Camden is Win-Echo and Grayden is Ana-SKA-Fay. What weirdos! As strange as it is, I'm kind of impressed with their creativity.

That's AnaSkaFe and WinEcho to you, buddy!

On the same note, they named their elf this year. Of course he couldn't be Johnny or Jingle. Nope - too ordinary. Too easy to remember. May I present to you:

Zadigan Kelf. It was funny to listen to them throw names around with one another, like they were speaking some creepy foreign language. Hope they won't regret their elf's name later... it is officially written in the book, so we are stuck with it!

Zadigan Kelf

Blast-from-the-past FUN!

2011-11-26T22:52:00.000-08:00

Today was Kiddie Park day! I think I love watching Cam and Gray play there as much as I loved going there as a child. I wonder if my own parents (who also played there as children) felt the same way? The day started off rainy, and I thought we might have to cancel, but it cleared by 10:30, and we were riding rides by 11!
Last Year's Kiddie Park adventures: {HERE} and {HERE}

I had arranged for several of my school days friends to meet me at the park, so for the first hour, we knew everyone at the park:
My dance/drill mentor Shaine (and still one my heroes) came with her little family. Her eldest, Taryn is so grown up now at 6; Devin is just one day younger than the twins and never stops moving; and little Dean is the sweetest little baby (our first time meeting him)! Her mom and grandma were there too, whom I have always adored.
My friend Laura D and her little guy Aidan (he and the twins go way back). Laura and I are friends from middle school and bonded further in four years of French in high school. She cracks me up, and Aidan is a tiny genius.
Cody and Rachel joined us with Colton for the second day in a row - Grayden was thrilled! (Grayd had to work really hard to convince Colton that the rides weren't too terrifying, and she held his hand and comforted him whenever he was frightened.)

Shaine's Crew & mine

The girls can officially ride everything at Kiddie Park - even the fast flying helicopters, which were too scary for them to ride last year. In fact, they may have replaced the boats as their favorite ride. We played for several hours before heading to lunch at Cheesy Janes. Rachel & Colton, Laura & Aidan joined us. Then we headed to the Brackenridge Miniature Train... another one of my own favorites as a child. After the train ride, we said goodbye to our friends, and the twins suckered me into taking them back to Kiddie Park (we had an all day wristband), where they rode everything several more times. By then, a cold front was coming through, and we headed home - giddy and exhausted. We at dinner with Grandpa and ShaSha, after forcing them to play animal hospital with all of my old stuffed animals and some of Grandpa's medicine cabinet and kitchen staples... they fashioned splints from forks and bandages, made sick beds out of bowls and baskets, and gave out lots of pretend medicine and kisses. Chelle was able to give lots of help, since she broke her wrist yesteday, and had a real splint and cast on her arm!

Brackenridge Train with Colton; all the kids
My girls and me; Aidan kisses for Cam

Animal infirmary with Chelle (ShaSha)

In the words of Grayden:

"This was the BEST DAY EVER!"

Or at least one of them...

A Whale of a Time!

2011-11-25T22:46:00.000-08:00

Our first visit to Sea World. We met up with some of my oldest friends - Cody and his wife, Rachel and their little boy, as well as my best guy friend (and eternal bachelor), Jordan. I was shocked when I bought our tickets and the three of us cost $179 admission. I was determined to get 180 dollars worth of fun out of the visit!

Cody, Rachel holding Colton, Me holding Cam, Jordan holding Gray

The twins and little Colton hit it off immediately. He is a sweet natured, well behaved, precious little boy! He loved holding hands with the twins, and Grayden was clearly smitten.

Our first stop was feeding the dolphins. I was unsure whether the girls would handle the little dead fish, but they grabbed them right away and fed the dolphins with gusto. What a neat experience! We saw several shows - Grayden loved the sea lions and Camden's favorite was the leaping, flipping dolphins. They loved the noises that the beluga whales made. And, I got my 180 dollars worth at the otter exhibit... the otters were making the cutest little yipping noises. When we walked over to investigate the sound, they looked up at us and pointed at their mouths (almost the ASL for food) and then put their little hands together like they were praying. It was so human-like and adorable. Sadly, the sign said 'Do Not Feed the Otters'. Other highlights: I visited the first aid station for some ibuprofen for a wicked headache, we were serenaded by Christmas mariachis (I love San Antonio), watched penguins and puffins play, and touched sting rays. I'm so glad Cody and Rachel invited us to come along with them!

Cam feeding dolphins - I had to make sure they didn't fall in, so no good pics

Mariachis! Grayden, Mommy, Camden

We rushed from Sea World to Macee's house so that we could spend more time with cousin Britton. We went to get red enchiladas in Boerne with Aunt Cammy, Macee, Kris, and Baby B. It is our tradition, and I never feel a trip home is complete without some red enchiladas with the Smith clan. We also got some cute cousin pictures in their matching Christmas pajamas!

Aunt Cammy, Kris, Britton (wearing one of our first Xmas outfits), Macee, & twins

Cousin pajama party (with lovies - Boppo, Lamby, Monkey)

Thankful

2011-11-24T22:37:00.000-08:00

I have much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving - mostly these two angels:

We always spend Thanksgiving with Cammy, Roy, and Macee. This year was at Macee's house again. It was a perfect 'family feast', as the twins have been referring to it. We brought a ham from Lazy Bones, but had to leave its creator at home. Poor Adam has to spend Thanksgiving back home working.
The girls had wonderful time playing with their cousin Britton before the meal. When it was time to eat, the girls wanted only fruit, broccoli, bread, and ham. After some convincing, they realized that the sweet potatoes were delicious. I love hearing my kids ask for more broccoli, but wish they'd enjoyed the Thanksgiving fare: turkey, dressing, cranberries, pie. No such luck. There's always next year. After lunch, we had Christmas with the cousins, since we don't come back to San Antonio in December. As usual, the twins got spoiled by my aunt and cousin. They got lots of precious dresses and some fairy dolls. The highlight for them was a GIANT hippo for Camden and a HUGE monkey for Grayden (to match their lovies) - and matching knit hats made by Macee! So cute! I got Baby B some sweet outfits, a bubble blowing bath toy, and the Learning House that the twins loved for years. I also got all three girls some matching Christmas jammies - can't wait to get pictures of them in those. We spent a lazy afternoon with Macee and Britton and had leftovers for dinner (just as good the second time!) and then headed to Grandpa and ShaSha's house. Cam and Gray dragged out my old Barbies and stuffed animals and played in the living room right up until bedtime. They made a mess and lots of noise, but I'm pretty sure Grandpa LOVED every second of it!

Cousins!

Snacking between Thanksgiving meals

Apparently, all of the Aggie War Hymn singing by the girls didn't help. The final meet-up between UT and A&M ended in a loss for us. We are off for the SEC next year (undoubtedly to get kicked around for the first few years, but it's a good move for us), so our storied rivalry will end... at least for a while. I guess everyone will have to start singing the first verse of the War Hymn again. :( Goodbye to Texas University...

Little Aggie Girls

San Antonio Children's Museum

2011-11-23T21:59:00.000-08:00

Let the Thanksgiving fun begin! Yesterday, we headed south to my hometown to spend a week with my family and old friends. I doubled back after getting gas to get the twins' winter coats since it was really cold in Dallas. Turns out I don't need them... SA is beautiful, sunny, and warm.

For our first full day in San Antonio, we headed to the children's museum downtown. It is a three story wonderland for little people. We spent 3 full hours there, and the twins were still upset when we left.

City play table, Edwards Aquifer slide, sand excavation
Cam spelling her name, playing a pipe organ, sitting on a {tiny} formal setee

Air pressure ball maze

making lego cars and racing them down a track

The biggest one of these I've ever seen - with our hands (G, C, Mommy)

Control tower & scaled down airliner

The HEB market - it is enormous!

Water room and bubble play!

Prairie Lights

2011-11-22T20:06:00.000-08:00

We bundled up the girls and headed out to the Prairie Lights 5K (and sneak peak of the lights). Like last year, Dennille and Evie joined us, but this year so did Grandmom, Grandad, John Austin, and Peyton. We met some of our friends from AMMG.

This year was much busier than last year... I guess it is catching on! The girls loved all of the lights, and I liked the exercise. Adam and his parents along with Peyton took a leisurely walk, while Dennille and I set off on a more brisk pace. My sweet nephew John Austin hung with us, and it was nice getting to talk to him for a while. In my head he's still a cute little boy, but at 11, he's so mature and fun to talk to. I know I'll blink and Camden & Grayden will be pre-teens too! Dennille and I sprinted in once we caught sight of the finish line, which Cam and Gray thought was hilarious. Despite our race at the end (I'm pretty sure I won), we still barely finished in under an hour.

It was a great evening with friends and family - what a great kick-off to the holiday season!

Beds

2011-11-19T18:23:00.001-08:00

They are overrated!

I love how Boppo is hanging off the bed as if he's wondering why he isn't with her. Camden fell out of bed. I guess the fall didn't wake her. And, yes, I put her back in her bed.

You have to be pretty tolerant...

2011-11-18T22:19:00.000-08:00

...to be a preschooler's dog! Atticus and Avery are so sweet with Cam and Gray. Poor Atty was modeling some of Grayden's sunglasses. She told me "he likes to dress up!"

Crafty Bugs

2011-11-16T19:59:00.000-08:00

I save trash. Ok, so not trash, but things that I think we can use to make fun projects and crafts. Three year olds LOVE to make things! So, I have loads of egg cartons that we've been saving. A few days ago, we decided to make ladybugs. They turned out so cute!

I cut out each individual cup, and the twins did the rest. They painted the bugs a variety of colors. I let them choose, since not all ladybugs are red as we read in a book about ladybugs. I'm fairly certain there are no purple ladybugs, but it is Gray's favorite color, and three year olds like to make unique things. :)

The making of a bug...

We let them dry and then the girls painted spots on them. Were the spots uniform and symmetrical like they are in nature? No, but Cam and Gray were insistent that they do it by themselves. Again, we had to wait for them to dry. Luckily they dry super fast.

Next, the girls glued little pompoms on one end as a head and then added googly eyes. At this point, we could have been done, but Cam and Gray wanted antennae. I poked them through the egg cartons and then the girls bent the antennae into the shape they wanted. Six cute little bugs made by two proud little girls!

Old Friends and New Turkeys

2011-11-15T16:44:00.000-08:00

We went to play with Colin and Lucas yesterday, which we loved. The kids made a little turkey craft that is proudly displayed on our mantle. We traced their handprints and then let the babies put feathers on the fingers, googly eyes and a balloon 'waddle' on the thumb, and clothespins for legs. After finishing their turkeys, all four kiddos wanted to be outside. I don't blame them... the weather was beautiful and Rene's backyard is a children's wonderland. They climbed and slid on the playset, played in the little playhouse, and jumped on the trampoline. They even found a big caterpillar to play with and study. And, I got some cute photos of the twins with Colin, who they have been friends with since they were 4 months old. After we left, we ate lunch at the park near our house since the weather was so wonderful.

Grayden, Colin, Camden

Today, we spent the morning with Adam's parents before going to an afternoon playdate at Ciara's house. The girls helped Grandmom plant some flowers in our (sad) garden while Grandad and Daddy broke ground on our playhouse. It should be done by Christmas, and Cam and Gray are very excited.

Babies' 1st NFL Game

2011-11-13T15:37:00.000-08:00

Adam got us all tickets for the Cowboys game this afternoon - our first game as a family. The seats were awesome (we were on the front row of the second deck, on the aisle) with lots of room for Cam and Gray to dance around. Everytime the game would stop, music would play and the girls would dance. They entertained our entire section, since we were at the front and the aisle next to us made a nice stage.

Gray & Cam with their daddy in front of the stadium
Below: video of then dancing in front of their seats.

Despite paying 60 dollars for super-close parking (the best money we spent all day), the girls were tired from walking by the time we reached the stadium. Then we waited in a really long line to get patted down and searched. By the time we got to our seats, I was exhausted too. Fortunately, it was a GREAT game at which to be. The Cowboys trounced the Buffalo Bills. It was also the Veteran's Day/Military Appreciation game, so there were helicopters and tanks to look at outside, a military band at halftime, and we got to participate in a halftime card stunt - we held blue cards up with eyeholes, which the girls thought was hilarious. The girls alternated between loving the game and whining when they got bored or the noise of the crowd got too overwhelming. They loved the cheerleaders dances, a play in which one of the Cowboys literally jumped over a Bills player like a spider monkey, and eating their way through the game. They didn't enjoy much of the game itself or the deafening roar of the rowdy crowd. I'm not sure why they seem to enjoy Rangers games so much more, but I think they may be too young for football. One thing that really helped was the adorable lunch bag that they sell for kiddos. It is an insulated lunch bag filled with kid food - a peanut butter sandwich, fruit cup, potato chips, apple juice, and a rice krispie treat. I don't know why more sporting events don't offer something like it.

Gray hitching a ride on Adam's shoulders; The girls dancing in the aisles
Cute little Lunch bags; Cam with her card for halftime stunt

And, last night, they got to spend some time with cousins John Austin and Peyton at Grandmom & Grandad's house. I love how much these four love one another despite their age gaps.

GOOOOOOOAL!!!!

2011-11-12T22:26:00.000-08:00

Today was the twins' last soccer game of the season. Both girls played really well today. This game and the one last week have been the first ones in which Cam and Gray really started to play soccer. Kind of sad that we are quitting right when my little late bloomers are starting to thrive. Grayden got her first goal today! (Video below) She actually got close a couple of times, as did Camden. But Gray got control of the ball when none of the opposing kids were paying attention and dribbled it in for a goal. To say I was proud is an understatement. I'm embarrassed to admit that I teared up a little bit. And hearing Camden cheering for her sister in her squeaky little baby voice made my heart nearly burst. Camden played really well the entire time she played. I have tons of pictures of her with the ball today, because she actually had it quite a bit. I don't think we'll be getting soccer scholarships anytime soon, but I'm happy with their progress. We went out for pizza and frozen yogurt to celebrate their efforts afterwards.

Camden handling the ball

Gray kicking it in

The other team asked to take a picture with us. Look at my little duo hugging!

Proud girl getting high fives at the end of the game! Gray, Claire, Cam, Addison, Katie

FroYo for the soccer stars

Watching them play over the past few weeks has been entertaining and hilarious. It has also taught me something about myself... I am going to embarrass the heck out of the girls when they are older. Below is the video of Grayden's goal. If you listen over the yelling, you can hear sweet Camden cheering for her sister.

Bath Time!

2011-11-11T15:28:00.000-08:00

Cam and Gray have always been "just add water" babies. Bad day? Cranky? Bored? Just add water... instant happy twins! Bath time is one of the best parts of the day in our house. They love the bath tablets that color the water. They play with cups and mermaids, tub crayons and musical instruments in the tub. Our friend Stacie bought them some colorful scented soaps that look like old-school deodorant bottles which they love to draw on one another with. And, of course, nothing beats a bubble bath with towers of bubbles.

The girls also LOVE playing in the shower with their little Polly Pocket Princesses. I bought them on Ebay so that they could play with them at Hawaiian Falls this past summer, which naturally transitioned into splashing with them in Mommy's big shower. We did the dark glowstick bath, which they loved. (Thank you, Pinterest). So, of course they wanted to take a glowstick shower. Adam thought it was so cute that he bought a HUGE box of glowsticks in the wake of the post-Halloween sales. Yesterday, we filled water balloons - some cold water, some warm, some with little toys in them to try to figure out, and some with just air. Two had surprise bath tablets so that when I told them to cut them, there was a color explosion... literally (I didn't count on the pressure of the water, so color went everywhere)! Next time I might put glowsticks IN the balloons. It was a fun sensory exercise as well as an impromptu sink/float lesson. :)

Glowstick bath

Showering with our tiny dolls

Glowstick fun in the shower

Sensory balloons; cutting open the color tablets; blue+yellow=green!

We like to keep things fun and adventurous. Bath time has extended from half an hour to almost an hour. I have very clean (giggly, happy) girls at the end of every evening.

Appearances can be deceiving...

2011-11-06T18:58:00.000-08:00

Don't these two look like soccer stars? Like they should be goal-scoring machines?

Grayden standing, Camden kneeling

They are the cutest thing to ever walk around in a little red uniform, but their soccer abilities are a bit lacking. They are slower than the rest of their team (they are also the only 3 year olds on the team - all of their friends are 4), and they have a hard time focusing on the game. I love that they are having so much fun. And they ARE getting better. Both girls actually kicked the ball in the general direction of the correct goal at their last game. And they run in the direction of the action. For now, I'll have to settle for having the cutest babies on the field instead of the best soccer players. :)

Ok, so the rest of the team is pretty cute too... Team Spain:

Katie, Addison, Grayden, Camden, Claire, and Coach Chad

STARS!

2011-11-03T13:54:00.000-07:00

One of Adam's friends works for the Dallas Stars. This is good for us, because he often gets us some pretty amazing tickets. Today, he asked the twins to come down and be in a promotional commercial for TRE and the Dallas Stars. The girls did great, and made friends with Ralph Strangis (the play-by-play announcer/voice of the Stars, for those of you not in the metroplex). Cam and Gray were quiet when they were supposed to be, parroted what the cameramen wanted them to say, and looked adorable. The little 'set' was aboard a TRE train, on the upper deck, and the twins kind of stole the show. They were the only kids there, so the camera kept coming back to them. For the closing shot, Ralph Strangis wanted to hold them both, which was funny. I don't think he realized how very heavy TWO 37 pound girls can be... especially when they needed to do 3 takes! He definitely won't need to work out his arms today. I think it is probably going to play on the jumbotron at Stars' games, but if I can get my hands on it, I'll post it.

Camden & Grayden giving Dallas Stars' Ralph Strangis some love!

Thanks to Bradley Wayne for asking the girls to do this and to their pal "Ralphie" for being so sweet with them... Cam and Gray had a GREAT time!

Aunt Jodie Visits!

2011-11-02T23:04:00.000-07:00

My aunt came through Dallas on her way back to Santa Fe from one of her RV adventures. Unfortunately, she 'came leaving' since one of our oldest family friends is in the hospital, and she had to go to see him. Originally, Aunt Jodie had planned to stay for a week, so I had to pack a weeks' worth of fun into just 2 days. Yesterday, after a visit with the girls, and some exciting backyard fun (with Aunt Jodie's ENORMOUS puppy, Magnus), Adam's parents came over to watch the twins so Adam and I could spend a 'grown up' dinner with Jodie. Today, we all had breakfast at Cracker Barrel, as it is the twins' favorite place to get pancakes. Then, we played with Magnus (even Avery and Atticus got in on the fun) some more. Grayden loved playing with Magnus, and he was overjoyed with the attention. Camden was a little overwhelmed by his size (and the fact that he knocked her over a few times), so she preferred to play with our little dogs. Both girls decided that our dogs got smaller after meeting Magnus, which I thought was funny. This afternoon, we headed to the Arboretum. It was a beautiful day, and we all got our exercise walking all over the grounds. Finally, we all had dinner together, before dropping Jodie off. Whirlwind trip? Yes. But, we got a pretty good visit in!

With Jodie at the Arboretum; Grayden hugging Magnus (Irish Wolfhound pup)

And, since we won't see her again for a while, she brought lots of Christmas presents for the girls. She even let the girls open a few early... some toddler sized kites, a lap harp, and this giant deer (which they promptly named Magnet... notice the similarity to the dog's name?) The rest we'll save for Christmas morning.

Spoiled!

Trick or Treat!

2011-10-31T23:39:00.000-07:00

The twins and their beloved Ella - Cam, Ella (cupcake), Gray

For the second year in a row, we went trick-or-treating with the Geists and Osbakkens. The girls have been talking about going out on Halloween with Ella for weeks.

Just before we left, we went over to our favorite neighbor's house and showed off our costumes to Mark and Virginia. When we got back, we took the costumes off (so we would fit in our carseats) and Evie came to our door looking for candy (and bearing gifts). She makes the cutest cow! Dennille gave the girls glowing wands - perfect for their costumes. The twins didn't want Evie to see them without costumes, so they threw on their funny orange ghost ponchos.

With our sweet neighbors, Mark & Virginia

Evie the Cow; Boo! Our funny disposable costumes

After a drive-through dinner at Chick-Fil-A (we were short on time), we headed to Ella's house. This year, we didn't bring the wagon, so the girls had to walk the whole time. Good thing we got in a nap today. All four girls ran to the first few houses, and were so excited to get treats in their little bags. We only had one minorly scarring experience, when one house (which we remembered too late as the 'scary house' from last year) jumped out and terrified the kids with a scary mask and loud scream. I wish they had looked out the peephole to see that the trick-or-treaters were babies, but lesson learned. We will definitely be avoiding that house next year!

Strawberry Avery, Princess Camden, Cupcake Ella, Princess Grayden

Trick-or-Treating!

What a difference a year can make! Those are the same kiddos last year (their first trick-or-treat experience) and this year. I'm impressed I remembered the correct order...

Avery, Camden, Ella, Grayden.

Halloween-a-palooza!

2011-10-30T20:18:00.000-07:00

Let the madness begin! The big day isn't until tomorrow, but we've been celebrating Halloween (Adam's favorite holiday) for weeks. Adam and the girls decorated the house, and he bought them a bunch of Halloween stuff, so it has felt like Halloween for a while around here.

Black Cats - Gray on left; Cam on right

Friday, we went with the Early Childhood PTA to a local retirement home to trick-or-treat. All involved had fun. Cam, Gray, and their friend Lily put on a little recital for the residents - they sang 5 or 6 songs, which was adorable. Since it was a work night for Adam, we went out to dinner with some friends. We went to an Italian restaurant. My girls usually pick Mexican food, so when we got there, they asked where the queso was. I love my Texas girls! The twins, along with their little friends Maya and Julie, all sat very sweetly and ate well while their mommies got to chat.

Lily, Gray, and Cam serenading the seniors; And a group shot of all of the kiddos

At the restaurant with Maya (stripes) and Julie (jacket).

Yesterday, we headed out to our annual Halloween festival in Grapevine (preceded by dinner at Lazy Bones). The festival was moved from Main Street to the vineyards, and we were unsure about how it would be, so Ella opted out this year. Luckily, Audrey still came out, and this year we had baby Evie with us too! We ate dinner with the Barker brood. Then we took pictures with Audrey, the cousins, and Evie before heading to the festival. We needn't have worried about the festival moving... it was even better than usual! The highlights for the twins (aside from full access to Evie all evening) was a little train ride, the firetruck and firefighters, an interactive storytime, fresh made kettle corn (Daddy waited in line for quite a while for it), and a little robot police car that talked to them.

The Royal Family

Grayden, Camden, Audrey

Cousins - Peyton (Link), Grayden, Evie (cow), Camden, John Austin (Zorro)

Riding the train with Evie and Dennille

Enjoying storytime and a BIG bag of kettle corn

With the talking car. SO cute!

Today, the girls helped Adam and I scoop out the guts of pumpkins and picked what they wanted their jack-o-lanterns to look like. We also made some Halloween sand art. Then, while I took the girls to get their Christmas pictures taken with Heather (our awesome photographer, who does them early enough so that we can put them on our holiday cards), Adam made a special (spooky) dinner for the girls - complete with a bubbling cauldron (dry ice), sandwich monsters, and a cookie monster for dessert, while their jack-o-lanterns watched. What a fun Halloween we've had so far... and it hasn't even started! Tomorrow we go trick-or-treating with Ella and Avery!

Scooping out pumpkin guts - mixed reviews.

Sand Art - Two thumbs up!

Surprise spooky dinner = coolest daddy ever!

Pumpkins

2011-10-28T13:05:00.000-07:00

'Tis the season for all things pumpkin! We've had lots of fall fun this month - four pumpkin patches and pumpkin painting with our friends!

These are from our awesome photographer - Heather at Chunky Monkey

A visit to Hall's Pumpkin Farm

Great Pumpkin Festival at the Arboretum

Pumpkin Patch by our house

Pumpkin painting at Miles' house!

Turtle Races, Candy Corn, & Karma

2011-10-27T22:13:00.000-07:00

Today, soccer practice was rained out... but not until after we had already arrived at the field. Cam and Gray were really upset. Enter Dennille to save the day. She called to invite us to an after-hours event at her school. The school was learning about turtles and had a speaker from the Fort Worth Zoo as well as a bunch of fun stations. The twins got to hug on their sweet baby Evie and then illustrate some poems, sequence a story, and best of all - 'turtle race'. The kids all used little dolly carts to wheel along on their bellies and race to the finish line. The only part of the evening that wasn't educational, and probably everyone's favorite.

Turtle sequencing; Turtle races (at Dennille's school)

Tuesday, we got to attend a fun candy corn themed playdate at our friend, Blake's house. Of course, at the end, we had to attempt our requisite couch picture. Grayden was beyond thrilled to get to hold baby Peyton. She is still obsessed with babies.

Avery & Grayden holding baby Peyton, Blake, Oliver, Addy, Ella & Camden holding baby Layna

Yesterday, we went to a park with a bunch of our friends. I was embarrassed when Grayden didn't want to play with a little girl who happened to be there at the same time as us. The other girl was older, and kept trying to take Grayden's hand and lead her around, which Gray didn't like. When I told her that it is fun to make new friends, she told me "I already have lots of friends." And she told the little girl she didn't want to play with her. I wasn't watching Gray the entire time (since Camden occasionally requires my attention, but I don't think the little girl was mean to Gray. The last straw was that Grayden threw wood chips at her. I got so upset with her that we left immediately and I made her cry on the car ride home. I know she's only three, but she has always been my friendly, outgoing, and empathetic one. It made me so sad that my baby was being a 'mean girl'. When we got home, Gray immediately fell and hit her mouth. To anyone else, it would have been no big deal, but any little bump to Grayden's teeth can cause them to fall out. Her teeth bled and are loose again. I iced them, and am hoping with a few days and lots of soft, cut up food, they will tighten back up. A hard day for my little girl. Hoping she learned her lesson on new friends, since she obviously hasn't gotten better at protecting her mouth. In case you don't know why we are worried about Grayden's teeth, catch up {HERE} and {HERE}

The 3-Year-Sweaters!

2011-10-26T13:15:00.000-07:00

My Aunt Cammy gave us some precious Halloween sweaters when the girls were 18 months old. They were 2T, so they were quite big on them that year (I had to roll up the sleeves and they were more like tunics than sweaters). They fit perfectly the next Halloween. This year, I decided to try them one more time. Super snug, but still cute!
My babies in their sweaters at ages 1 1/2, 2 1/2, and 3 1/2:

Time to pass them on to cousin Britton and baby Evie... may they get three good years out of them too! Is it awful that I may shed a tear or two boxing these up?

Arboretum with Ella

2011-10-24T16:23:00.001-07:00

We headed to the Arboretum with the twins' favorite friend, Ella (along with her mommy and grandmother). We took pictures in the pumpkins, explored the castles (and donned princess dresses to check out Cinderella's carriage), ran & played in fields, flowers, and a miniature pioneer town, and did what kids do best... got filthy! We followed this up with lunch together. When it was time to tear them apart (after spending the better part of 4 hours together), all three cried.
I often marvel at the bond of these three. I didn't know that a friendship between three-year-olds (even ones who have known one another since infancy) could be so strong. They truly love one another!

My girls!

Frontier Adventure!

Princesses - Ella (Snow White), Camden (Cinderella), Grayden (Belle)

Evie turns ONE!

2011-10-23T20:34:00.000-07:00

Cam playing with Evie; Gray giving her kisses; Smashing her cake

A year ago, I was in the delivery room helping my best friend bring her baby into the world. My own girls were delivered via c-section, and I was a little out of it, so witnessing Evie's arrival was amazing. A total miracle. I loved her instantly, and so did the twins... they even call her their little sister (although, they do know that she isn't their 'real' sister). Here's a sweet (funny) video of the twins meeting her when she was just a few hours old. They thought she was in a turtle tank. :)

Today, we celebrated that baby's first birthday! Tons of friends and family came to play at the Little Gym and sing to sweet Evie at her ducky themed party. The birthday girl was a social butterfly, and had a great time. And my own girls had a blast too. It was really funny to watch Grayden get possessive of "her" baby when other little kids wanted to play with or hug Evie. Evie smashed her cake with diligence, but refused to eat one bite!

Grayden on bars and hugging Dennille; Cam on the beam and twins hanging
We had so much fun!

The cousins were also at Evie's party, and we didn't want to see them leave. So, we all went to a local pumpkin patch for some fall photos and frolicking. The twins loved playing 'store' using pumpkins and jumping all over John Austin and Peyton. I have so many pumpkin pictures this year, that I think I'll make it an entire post. But here are a few cute cousin ones for now. I hardly recognize the boys, they are getting so grown up!

These boys are so sweet with Cam & Gray

Adam's parents with all of their grandchildren

Halloween Party

2011-10-22T22:31:00.000-07:00

Today was our annual AMMG Halloween party. We used a new venue this year, and it was great. We also hired an entertainer, and the kids loved him. He sang and danced with them and then helped them put on a costume fashion show. The twins got to wear their costumes during that portion, but changed to run and play on the climbing scape. We love our friends!

Most of the attendees

Mr. Phil with the rapt attention of 30 kids!

Princess Camden & Princess Grayden

Best Buddies! Camden, Ella, Grayden

Yesterday, we headed to try out a new park with the group. It was multi-leveled, shaded, and beautiful (not to mention a perfect fall day), so we will definitely be going back. The kids all played so well together (and spent the better part of an hour making a 'cake' out of dirt, seeds, mulch, and acorns). I loved watching them collaborate on such an imaginative project.

Adam, Alec, Melissa, Jack, Avery, Grayden, Camden, Lily, Kyle

Grayden, Alec, Lily, Kyle, Camden

Texas State Fair!

2011-10-15T20:43:00.000-07:00

It's fair time here in Texas. We went with the Fergusons again this year, this time with almost one year old Evie... last year poor Dennille was super pregnant. {Link to Last Year's Post} We met up with The Thomanns once there, so we had quite a group. I forgot to put the battery pack in my camera and Ashley didn't have hers, so all photos are courtesy of Dennille.

Camden, Grayden, & Evie

Despite the heat and the crowds, we managed to have fun. We took the girls into a children's learning farm. They got a bucket and walked through all different kinds of farm work. They planted and reaped vegetables, fed livestock, gathered eggs, milk, and wool from said animals, and then came out at a little farmers market, where they were each given one farm dollar to spend for real. They bought a cookie and a granola bar (and shared with sister). It was a really cute, hands-on way to teach preschoolers about farm supply and demand.

Addy and twins ready to farm; getting some corn feed; Feeding chickens/collecting eggs

Planting crops; Driving the tractors with their haul into 'town'; Spending their hard earned dollar

We moved on to the petting barn as well as the show animals, where we fed farm animals as well as a camel, bison, and other exotic animals. The twins loved the baby animals - especially a week old donkey and some pretty adorable piglets. From there, we moved on to the food. The feature this year was fried bubblegum, but that sounded beyond gross. So, Cam & Gray had some chicken tacos, a cinnamon soft pretzel, and fresh squeezed lemonade. Addy had nachos. They shared. We sat and ate under Big Tex himself...

Feeding cattle and a camel; Newborn donkey and Grayden showing Evie the animals

With Big Tex: The Fergusons, The Bakers, The Thomanns

By this time, we were all getting tired, but we had to let the girls try some rides. They chose a spinning bear ride first, which I had to go on with them. It made even me dizzy, but they loved it. Next, they rode a little whale ride, a flying elephant, and a really bouncy jeep ride. This was by far their favorite part of the day.

Riding the spinning bears with Mommy

Flying elephants!

Super bouncy jeeps - they LOVED this one!

Our final stop was for my only requirement at the fair... a funnel cake. Last year Grayden loved it and Camden slept through it. This year Grayden loved it and Camden wouldn't even try it. Oh well - more for Gray-Gray and Mommy!

Mmmm... funnel cake!