Ducks in a Row

The other day Maitlyn took her new stackable toys and lined them up on the sofa. And last night she lined up all the Leapfrog letters in a neat row on the fireplace. Makes me wonder if she is going to be good in math when she gets older, or just have a very tidy room. I'll hope for both.

Happy Hanukah!

We lit the candles for the first night of Hanukah on Friday. The girls were a little distracted by the pain from their last incoming baby teeth (Braiden is chewing on a piece of ice in the pic). But they enjoyed playing with their new gift--little backpacks that will accompany them on our flight to Atlanta.
I think the girls are also going to make great big sisters. They love to feed and dress and change the diapers of their dolls and stuffed animals. Yesterday Maitlyn buckled her doll into the chair before lunch. Too cute!

First Haircut

Brian keeps complaining how much he misses the blog postings, so I thought the girls' first haircut was a good reason to start again.

They did so well! Not a single tear was shed! They sat in the chair very patiently while the hairdressers worked. Unfortunately, poor Maitlyn now looks like she has a bowl cut. I suppose it will grow out nicely. And at least it's better than their mullets!Braiden checking herself out in the mirror.

Maitlyn being very patient.

Babies Need a New Pair of Shoes

We took the girls to get their first pair of shoes this past weekend. It was a vision of the years ahead of us. During the time it took for a salesperson to come over and help us, Braiden managed to take a header into another kid's stroller and get an enormous bruise on her forehead. So in between trying on shoes we were icing down her head.

Maitlyn took off after she tried on her first pair. I guess they don't worry about shoplifting until they can speak.

Nostalgia

So it's been a year, and a wonderful year at that. We made a 2009 calendar with pictures of the babies from each month. It's pretty amazing to look back and see them so tiny. This was Maitlyn on the day we left the hospital:

And this is Maitlyn and Braiden having their first birthday cake:
People always ask if I miss the 'baby' stage, especially now that they are entering the toddler years. But so far I have loved every stage. It's hard to wax nostalgic for all the baby stuff when they are learning and changing so much now. It's pretty amazing to see them do the things the baby books say they are going to start doing--putting lids in and out of containers is currently their favorite pastime. They are running around, interacting with each other, testing their boundaries, learning to climb up slides, and establishing their personalities. It is such a fascinating thing to watch. I feel incredibly blessed that I get to be a part of it.

Happy Birthday!

We survived the first year.

Good Parenting

Several weeks ago, when I was by myself with the girls, they woke up from their afternoon nap in a foul mood. They are usually very grumpy and clingy when they wake up, but this day they were especially cranky. So after going through my bag of tricks to make them happy, I did what any good mother would do---got out the video camera.

Maitlyn

Braiden

Perhaps high schools can use it as birth control...