Twin Invasion!

On Saturday, the twins and I hosted our first play date. I thought it'd be nice to have some company while Karl is away, plus it's always fun to get the babies together. One thing that didn't occur to me until after I extended the invitations- there'd just be me to clean before and after. And how did I expect to do that? Well I did my best, mopping the floor while talking and singing to my babies, holding Lucas in one arm and scrubbing the toilet with the other (yes, I scrubbed both of us as well after that).

We spent the majority of the time outside in the backyard; I spread out a few blankets and added toys, books, and games. Shelley and Missy came with their babies which equals 3 sets of twins, aged 8 months, 10 months, and 14 months. Expectant moms Bradi and Lynn came too and I am hoping the scene did not terrify them too much.

Noelle and Jessa pulled themselves up on the coffee table at one point, smiling, laughing, and 'talking' the afternoon away. Chase and David ran around examining everything they could find and communicating with their mom through sign language. Davis, an easygoing lad of 10 months, was hanging out, smiling and playing. Lucas played at first, then resorted to crying every time I tried to put him down.

It was chaotic but fun with 4 boys and 2 girls running and crawling all over the place. Babies were changed, nursed, dressed, fed, held, and read to. At this age, though, they spend very little time actually playing together. I noticed that the most interaction they have is taking toys from one another (with the toy-less party protesting). My friends and I talked, laughed, and had lunch. I think I need to be around people with twins more often- they just 'get' it like no one else does. It does not hurt that this group of friends happens to have a great rapport.

Due to the fact that they did not take their much needed morning nap, my little host and hostess were the crankiest of the bunch. Thus, they waved bye-bye (ok, I waved for them) and were deposited in their cribs for an overdue nap.

Snow and Seniors

Karl is currently en route up north- heading to the home of the Eagles, cheese steak, Ben Franklin, and of course, 90 year old great-grandma Barb Melsky. Barb escaped to Orlando for the winter, where she expressed deep disappointment whenever the thermometer crept below 80 degrees. During her stay, she enjoyed attending weekly church services, taking dozens of walks around the block, and, most of all, interacting with Noelle and Lucas. She is overjoyed to have lived long enough to meet her first great-grandchildren, she says, and will tell anyone who'll listen all about them. (Express the slightest bit of interest and you'll have a picture thrust in your face before you can say the words 'Liberty Bell'). Tomorrow, Barb will be greeted with snow, sleet, and temps in the 20's and will likely realize that 60 was not so bad after all.

The arrival of babies has been known to bring families together, and I can now personally attest to this. People who did not have all that much in common come together through their love of a child. Grandparents and great-grandparents are recognized as cherished elders, spouses are brought together (when they aren't arguing over whose turn it is to empty the diaper bin) and siblings may take on a new role. Even my brother, who is admittedly quiet and not too emotional, has become quite attached to his niece and nephew. Noelle and Lucas have one cousin so far and another on the way..and hopefully more to come. Large families are the best :)

Obligatory Disney Day

I'll cover our mutual admiration for mother nature in the near future, once I become convinced of the other half of that topic; namely, that NL too love the outdoors. For now I can just drone on about my side of the story. No one cares.

The final talking point concerned the caged area. Perhaps this is too rough a term for a child's play enclosure, reflecting my feelings about it and in turn those of NL. To explain-- two months ago we replaced our dinette table with a three-inch thick cushiony memory-foam queen mattress topper. Scattered with stuffed squeaky toys, plastic batterized toys, colorful crinkling/vibrating toys, and a jumbled assortment of loose socks, blankets and what else have-you, this became NL's play area. Before long, though, Noelle sought more enticing pastures within crawling distance, with items such as the pets' food bowl and the collection of dull steak knives we keep on our living room rug. So into the picture enters a Wal-Mart caliber gray plastic gate/enclosure, three feet tall and six feet a side. Unfortunately, upon being placed in the enclosed play area, quiet happy twins instantaneously became red-faced teary screaming twins. And thus back on the rug they go.

Yesterday we paid both a visit to the Magic Kingdom and dearly for Disney World annual passes. It was a carefully coordinated trip, sandwiched with precision timing between feedings, after the pets met their daily exercise quota, and before NL's looks of wonderment became howls of tired frustration. We witnessed a booming loud parade with Little Mermaid and Lion King characters I would've found slightly horrifying at eight months of age, and then a PhilharMagic 3-D performance. Lamentably, the kids enjoyed only two lousy dimensions as the yellow plastic spectacles were more suitable for Mr. Ed than Mr. Lucas.

The album linked below also highlights some scenes from NL's very first bath. Hold all calls to the child neglect hotline; the kids have experienced dozens of bathings in the kitchen sink. This was simply their first proper bath, in a proper bathtub, in a proper bathroom. Both squealed abruptly at the instant of submersion but discovered all the splashy splashy joys in no time.


Photos:
http://picasaweb.google.com/gros.islet/Feb093#

Continuing on...

...with the remaining topics:

• our jogging stroller has been blessed today with a new accessory: a sun shade/bug screen. Excitement abounds as we can now push around the kiddies eastward in the morning, towards the south at high noon, and facing west in the afternoon without fear of a calamitous encounter with the sun's rays. And, as an added benefit, once bug season hits, no brazen dragonfly or kamikaze cricket will dare enter the kid compartment.
• In 10 days, NL will witness an empty silence throughout the house: Hana and I, and Kel's grandma, will motor up to Pennsylvania to sample some fresh cool air, deposit said grandma in said state, and journey back. Over this 2,000 mile journey Hana plans to enjoy the views from the back seat, tour historic Richmond, and prance around the Atlantic in South Carolina. I plan to straighten out the butt contour to be impressed semi-permanently into my driver's seat.
  
• Again with the advanced hour. I'll reflect on the outdoors and play cage at the next opportunity.

Unrelated photos:
http://picasaweb.google.com/gros.islet/Feb092#

A Tooth and a Trailer

• sun shade for jogging stroller
• sharing love of outdoors
• bike trailer
• Noelle's first tooth
• kids' distaste for play area once 'caged'
• road trip to PA

Here's a draft list of some topics to cover. And which one shall I comment on first? Which of these deserves an eye-catching spot at the top of this entry? Surely Noelle's first tooth! Surely not. In a world without bike trailers, that would be the case. But alas, I don't live on such a moon-man planet revolving erratically around a dwarf star spotted by the naked eye only once every 214 years. In my world, however loopy it is, the prospect of tugging behind my bike a sleek blue and yellow nylon contraption containing Noelle and Lucas is far too spectacular to relegate to second billing. Pardon my rambling. I must come to the heart of the matter: I ordered a double bike trailer and am hardly able to contain my glee. You see, my bee-hind hasn't felt the contours of a bike seat since prior to June 25th. One of my favorite activities has fallen off the map, as has leisure time in general. But now, this bike trailer (due to arrive tomorrow) will enable me simultaneously to shed those unwanted ounces while conducting State-obligated parenting duties.

As the hour has alarmingly advanced, I must close this report without commentary on the remaining topics. Shame on me, though, if I don't again allude that Noelle has broken the Gum Line with a tiny scratchy bit of a tooth front and center on her lower jaw. For the record, she is just over a week short of eight months. We're all quite proud of Tiny Baby Special, and now set our anticipation on Lucas's heroics.