BIG Helper

When I found out I was having twins, the first thing I did was the math.
"Hmmm that means.....FOUR kids in........FIVE years!!!!"
And this is usually one of the first questions I get when people find out I have twins,
"Do you have any others? How old are they?" And when I tell them they always look aghast and exclaim something like
" You are going to have your hands full!" or "That's a lot of little kids!" Yes I have seen the stares we get when we go out in public. Its is NOW commonplace to see the head shakes as they count the kids and then look at me....Hello people I'm not blind!
Anyway, turns out I don't have to do EVERYTHING by myself. Maddi LOVES helping (as I suspected she might) but surprisingly Andrew is a fabulous helper. When he hears a baby cry he RUNS into the room and yells " I HELP!" And he sticks his face in their face and makes giggly sounds. And when we are unloading the car, I help him out first and he ALWAYS turns around and says "Oh Mom! Don't forget the babies!" Good thing he reminds me, WHEW! thanks kid.

Perfect Fall Leaves...

After I had the babies, my mom stayed with us for awhile to help out. Everyday Maddi and Andrew would beg her to come outside and play in the leaves. I can't blame them, the leaves seemed to all fall off in one day and they were BEGGING to be played in. Since we needed to start raking them anyway, she obliged. Brexton from next door came over to join in the fun. LOVE the look on their faces!

This is where they mess up the neat piles Grandma just made

Teddy Bear Pictures...

When Madalyn was a baby, I began taking her picture with a teddy bear every month for up to a year so we could see how big she was getting. Here is Madalyn at 1 month. Ahhh so cute.Here she is at 4 months. Doesn't she look like Ellie?

Here's Andrew's 1 month
And his 4 month
And here are the Twin's pictures
1 month They were so small they couldn't sit up
2 months
3 months
And 4 Months!!!
Look how BIG they have gotten! I love it!!!

A Jaunt up the Canyon

One of my all time favorite things to do is to get Gandolfos, grab a hoodie and some good music and head up the canyon. We were able to go a couple of times, and we had a LOT of fun! However sometimes it was FREEZING!

We weren't prepared for the cold! Poor Andrew...

"I'm freezing but look at this rock!"
He looked a little like a Jedi to me

For Anyone who didn't see it...

Here is the beautiful announcement Jesse designed to announce the girls arrival. Thanks to my friend Julie for taking the pictures! Here's her website .

Fun in the Snow and Snow Dogs...

At our house, snow is anticipated as much as Christmas is. Even when there a tiny little flurries floating around outside and not hitting the ground, there are squeals and giggles and begging to go outside and then moaning and gnashing of teeth when I point out there is nothing to play in. I mean they can sit on the lawn if they really want to, but the neighbors may think they're pretty strange or that I've banished my children from the house (something I would NEVER do.......*cough*)
But I digress....
Snow is like Birthdays and Chuck E Cheese and the dollar store all rolled into one. So this year when the snow first stuck to the ground....whenever that was.....does anyone know? Cause I don't.....
Anyway, we bundled the kids up and sent them outside to play.
And while they were at it could they shovel the walks please? Thanks...
(good thing I bought those little snow shovels...they need to start pulling their weight around here...)

Here they are, finally glad to be outside, see how happy my children are? Oh and check out the snowman. Now he's very happy...

Andrew I guess has a bit of a tude and will NOT smile. See? Check it out, he shakes his head. He starts on one side...

And it goes...

still going....

Ahhh.....finally finished.And here is the snow dog. Why do my children make snow dogs? I have no idea....wishful thinking I suppose. I told them they don't need a dog, they just got baby sisters, which really is the same thing. Right? RIGHT???

We'll just keep making snow dogs, they are easier to clean up after.
I'm all about ease these days....

Trim up the tree with Christmas stuff, like bingel balls and Who floo fluff!

I think it was about the second week in November, when we realized, "Hey, we have a whole Sunday with nothing to do! Why don't we avoid the after Thanksgiving stress of putting up the tree and do it now instead?"
My inner middle child resisted as I am a "strictly celebrate Christmas after Thanksgiving kind of girl". However I was too tired to protest and was holding too many babies to stop them.
The tree got put up and the decor scattered around and there you have it. I have to admit it was very nice to "celebrate" Christmas a little longer this year, and to not have every thing so squished together. It was also fun after to listen to Christmas music and drink Hot Chocolate and just admire our handy work.

The kids just picked a spot and only put decoration in THAT spot. I usually fix it every year after they go to bed, but I decided to find it endearing this year and left it as is.

"Mom and Dad are letting me stand on the furniture! Boo yah!"

Maddi's response to "SMILE!"

I even got in on the action
Maddi got the stool and they turned off the lights to admire the tree
Sigh.....
Hot Chocolate and Babies!!!