9-Month Check-up

The doctor has given us a clean bill of health!  She said that you'd never know that we were 2 months early by how we are developing.  That's great news!  Here are our stats:

Elyse: 16 lbs 10 oz (25-50th percentile)

26 3/4 inches long (50th percentile)

Felicity: 16 lbs 13 oz (25-50th percentile)

27 1/4 inches long (75th percentile)

The doctor was very impressed that we can crawl and pull up on furniture and get wherever we want to go.  As you can see from our stats, Elyse has now closed the gap with Felicity and we are only 3 oz apart!  (From earlier months, we were more than a pound apart).  We are very happy to report that we are healthy little ladies.

And on a funny side note, the doctor entered the room and asked Mommy if she was going it alone.  Mommy said no, we have a very involved Daddy, to which she replied that we must not be from around these parts and laughed...and then said, "no, I meant, do you have help?  Like a nanny!" To which she went on to say that we were very nice people (apparently also indicative of not being from around here) and guessed that we had to be from the South or the Midwest because we were nice and our Mommy was doing a great job of being with us alone all day.  We all had a good laugh about it! (And our new doctor is very nice, although we still miss our very first doctor in Colorado--because, well, she was our first pediatrician!).   

Our First Visit to the Park

We've decided that on a beautiful fall Sunday afternoon, there's nothing better than a trip to the park!  And how convenient that we have a playground across the street.  Here's a picture we like to call "Tangled Twins in a Tunnel":

Felicity: I just LOVED exploring the tunnel! I could crawl back and forth and slide around.  I can't wait to do it again!  Elyse, as you can see, would just crawl one direction or another to get to the closest lap of Mommy and Daddy.  

Elyse: Excuse me, Mom? Is that lap available?  I'd like to sit there...

Felicity: Who needs a hat on a balmy fall day?  Not me!

Who can get to Daddy's lap first?  Let's race!

Felicity: This cool contraption had three planes on it and it bounced up and down.  Elyse and I each took a plane and we wanted to keep bouncing and bouncing and bouncing!

There is so much cool stuff at this place!

Daddy, look at me!  I'm so big!

Elyse: I just loved sliding part way down the big-kid slide on my tummy.  Can't you tell how much fun I'm having?!

Felicity: I got a little distracted on the slide by this cool leaf.  There's so much to explore at the playground!

Conquering the Stairs

Elyse: This pic isn't one of Mom's greatest, but if you squint, and look on the bottom part of my gums, you can see my first tooth!  I don't really like it when people go poking around in my mouth, so Mom had a tough time getting this shot (or so she tells me).  

Now that we can crawl all over and pull ourselves up on furniture and such, we figured it was time to attack the BIG, OMINOUS monster of a mountain (otherwise known as the stairs).  

Elyse: Below, you can see what I like to do after I make it up the landing and onto the first stair.  I like to sit, and gloat over my crowning achievement of course!  In the above picture, I'm inviting Felicity to join me.  Come on, sis, it's a great view from up here!

Felicity: Climbing is so much fun! I can't wait to tackle all of the stairs!  Apparently, Mom says that will take a long time to learn.  Until then, I'll keep practicing!

Jail Break!

Just a few short weeks ago we were content to wake up in our cribs and hang out quietly until it was time for our naps to be over.  But now, well...now is just a whole different story!

Felicity: Yes, Mom, I'm ready to explore the world!  Can you hurry things up here?

Elyse: I'm ready to blow this popsicle stand!

9 Months Old!

Today is our 9 month birthday!  Time just flies by!  Not only are we busy crawling everywhere (no more scooting, we're talking bona-fide crawling!), but now we are pulling ourselves up on the furniture!  This is opening up a whole new world for us! And sadly, we must say good-bye to our wonderful crib Winnie the Pooh mobiles.  Mom says that now that we could theoretically reach them (yeah right, we're not THAT talented!), they pose some sort of hazard.  So much for counting Piglets and Eeyores to drift off into dreamland...  

Fun, fun, fun!

We have our 9 month check-up next week.  We'll be sure to let you know how that goes and how much we're weighing these days.  

Weekend Adventures

Last Friday we loaded up all of our stuff in the car and drove to our friends' house who live just outside of Pittsburgh, PA.  It was a marvelous weekend for Mommy and us.  Here is a taste of all of our adventures:

Meet Todd and Annie, they are our wonderful friends (and we were their little glimpse into life with babies!).  Mommy met them when she lived in MN.  Now they live in PA and we only had to drive 5 hours to see them!  And because Todd grew up in the area we live in now, we'll see them a lot when they come to visit family. 

Elyse: It took me a while to warm up to the whole idea of staying in an unfamiliar place, but by Monday when we left, I was having a grand old time!  I was unsure about Todd (he is a crazy guy), but then I realized he is lots of fun and his silliness started to grow on me.

Todd is the head soccer coach at a private college and we got to go to our first soccer game on Friday night!  It was a little chilly, but after getting cozy in our pajamas, we mostly slept through the game.  Here we are on Sunday after a tour around campus:

Felicity: We were busy little bees this weekend, so on Sunday afternoon, we all needed a little nap!

Felicity: Todd is just my kind of goofy kind of guy.  Here I am keeping my toes warm in his slippers.  Big shoes to fill for sure!

Felicity: Here Todd is teaching me how to kick a ball like all cool soccer players do.  I think with a little practice, I'll be rocking the soccer field in no time!

Elyse: On Saturday we had a fun shopping trip and tour of some of the greater Pittsburgh area.  Here we are all very happy (which was good because I was a little testy on Friday because I'm fighting a cold AND I cut my first tooth! Whew! Being little is pretty hard sometimes!).

Elyse: A happy break from being a little out of sorts from teething:

Felicity: Here I am trying out one of my winter hats at the soccer game.  Definitely a great fashion choice with the pjs!

Thanks Todd and Annie for all of the fun and hospitality!  We had a great trip! 

And to all of our faithful blog readers, we are down with pretty nasty colds (Mommy too), so keep us in your prayers! :0) Let's just say Mommy won't have time for re-upholstering chairs this week!

Hats off to you!

Even though the weather here has been between 75-85 degrees, it is bound to cool down sooner or later, and so we were trying out our two hat options for colder days.  

These hats are from our marvelous twin cousins in MN (who got them from our very silly grandma).  

Felicity: Whoever thought wearing a bushy lamb on your head was a good idea...well, there are just no words!

Elyse: I don't know, Felicity.  I think this hat is...well...just the right amount of bushy, fuzzy, lamby perfection!  It also acts as good padding when I lose my balance, which is why Daddy thinks it looks just like a football helmet (he always has football on the mind!).

But who could choose between the lamb and this spectacular little crocheted number with the satin bow detail?  Perfect for the mild winters here. 

Felicity: Yes, this is much better.  I can see this one in my wintery future.

But I just don't think I'll be happy about any hat...

A Little Project

Our mom has been busy working on multiple projects for our humble little abode.  Here is one little project that she did one recent afternoon:

This is one of the six dining chairs our mom bought at a local antique store called "Finders Keepers" (this is our philosophy regarding pacifiers!).

Isn't the seat upholstery so stylish?  Yuck!

Knowing the yucky upholstery just wasn't going to cut it, she set to work on making the chairs look better by doing this:

Because in all of her spare time (we are not time-consuming at all--don't believe the rumors!), she likes to takes what's old, spice it up a little, and put her own eclectic stamp of approval on it.   

Take this and multiply it by 6 and you've got our new dining room chairs.

WANTED: Pacifier Thief

Felicity: I must set the record straight.  Elyse is always the one stealing pacifiers in this house.  Even if she has her own, there she goes, taking mine, just to have one to hold.  Even if she has one in her mouth and one of her own to hold, she will crawl across the room to take mine.  So this morning, I took the situation into my own hands.  Before she could snatch my pacifier, I took the one in her mouth, and just to  make sure she was clear that I was not planning on giving it back, I put it in my mouth for safe keeping.  It was a little much to hold two pacifiers, but necessary for her to know I mean business!

I maintained this position for a few minutes, just to say "Listen, the pacifier stealing has to stop! And I mean it!"

Felicity: And when I decided Elyse had learned her lesson (or actually realized she just didn't care), I gave it back to her.

Elyse: Oh Felicity! You are so silly!  It really isn't such a big deal.  I'm not denying these allegations, just saying that you shouldn't take it so personally!

A note from our Mom: Just for the record, these pictures were not, in any way, staged.  Also,  Elyse really is our pacifier thief, so when Felicity did this, I couldn't stop laughing (rolling-on-the-floor, can't stop kind of laughter).  Oh my! Life with twins!

In addition, you should all know that I maintain a firm position of giving the girls their own pacifier, spoon, bottles, etc. because I don't want them to share more germs than necessary.  Yet every time I turn around, Elyse really does have her pacifier and Felicity's and there are only so many times in a day you can wash off a pacifier while tending to twins.  So there, dirty little confession, sometimes they do share pacifiers.  It's horrible, I know.  Just keepin' it real.  

Say Cheese!

Felicity: Mom's not the only one who can take pictures.  Watch out Mom, I'm going to get your mug on here one of these days too!

Another Fancy Favorite

Our fancy friend Melissa gave us theses cute little blankets when we were born.  We weren't very interested in them when we were smaller, but now that we can hold on to them and cuddle with them, we just love them!  They are called "My Blankee" and have this sweet little poem in the corner: 

"My Blankee

I love my little Blankee

I take it wherever I go

it keeps me warm and cozy

at home or on the go"

We highly recommend My Blankees to all of our fancy friends! You can see all of the designs and other soft cuddly products here.

Felicity: Since I'm the wild and sassy one, I just adore the hot pink!

Elyse: And of course, as I'm very serious and sophisticated, I like the pastel pink Blankee with the subtle zebra design in the material. 

Our Blankees are especially important to us right now as we need them to cuddle with while we fight nasty colds.  Yuck!

You Can't Catch Me!

Now that we can move, we just love exploring everything!  One of our new favorite spots is under the table.  Our Mommy says that she can foresee lots of fort-building in our futures (just like our Daddy!).  (Mom also says pay no attention to the card table...the furniture refinishing is still in-progress!)