"What's that" you ask?

That is my sweet brown eyed Kellen drinking out of a sippy cup! It is official...WE ARE OFF BOTTLES!!! And yes, the twins are 14 mths old but for whatever reason they were not ready to give the bottle up at 1 year. I decided to not force the issue, which for those of you know me KNOW that goes against my grain!! But I am glad that I waited. Yesterday, I just offered the cup instead of the bottle and not one tear was shed. Can I get a HIP HIP HOORAY!!!! And Pax is off the bottle too...I just dont have photographic evidence yet!!

Surviving the Cold

Well I am sure everyone is in agreement...winter needs to end. I am so OVER being cold, not even cold...FREEZING. We have been busy. We closed on a new house! We are very excited, but I am not looking forward to the move. Packing with toddlers is not going well! But we have the whole month of March to move, so I cant complain too much. I will post some pics of the new digs when it warms up and I can stand outside long enough to take a picture!!!!

We got a special treat a couple weeks ago when my best friend was in town from Boston on business. She got to hang out with the kiddos. She said she was exhausted just being with them for a hour!! I hear ya sista!!! The boys were in awe of Steph's blackberry, cell phone, and work papers...we couldnt get them to look up! Maybe next time!


I ventured with the kiddos to Atlanta last week to see my grandmother, aunt, cousin and her two kids. We had a blast. And Laura's kids are gorgeous. The newest addition to the family is 9 mth old Carrington...what a beauty!!
Paxton and his GrannySue


Miss Diva herself...Carrington!

Pax wanted that binky!

We had a rough night of sleep Friday and unfortunately Kel missed most of the festivities on Saturday.

Fresh Air...

...how sweet it is.

Delicious

Kellen's personality has been in full bloom the last couple of weeks. Gosh, he is so delicious I could just eat him up!!! Here are some of my favorite pics over the last few weeks.


Kel's new kissy face!

Pee-ka-boo!

Aaron was throwing his dirty laundry out of our closet last night (yes, he does have a hamper. And no, I dont know why he has not been using it!), and Kel was fascinated. When Aaron turned around he realized Kel had one of his shirts on! We dont know if Aaron threw it and just landed perfectly around Kel's neck or if Kel put it on!! But cute, cute nonetheless.

Baby Got Back!

SUPER-BABY!!!!

Brother steals SUPER-BABY's cape!

And he is off! This kid hates clothes!!!

Our First Haircut!

We had another first today...a haircut. Paxton's wig was OUT OF CONTROL!!! Kellen's hair is literally perfect. But they both got a trim today and look adorable. We played at Davis Kidd after and I felt like I was chasing different children!!!

Moms, can you relate?

You spend hundreds of dollars on toys just to have your kiddos snub them to play on your furniture? And there used to be cute candleholders in this space...BROKEN! And do you see those fingerprints on the window behind them...I IGNORE them!!


But they are so pround when they climb through, you continue to allow it...even when you know you shouldnt.


OR, when the outside of your house looks like this and you cant go outside...

...you resort to playing dress up EVEN if you are dressing your boys up in your accessories!!!


OR, when your kiddos get so dirty at dinner you just swipe the shirt off and dont bother replacing!!


I know I am not alone on this!!!

swaddled in love...

A very good friend of mine is a NICU nurse at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital here in Nashville. And I know all the twin mommys out there have a special place in their heart for the NICU and the nurses that nurture our babies when we couldnt. Here is a post from her blog, which is private, so I wanted to share. If you are interested in donating email me at courtneynash10@gmail.com. Here is Scarlett's post:

As we all know I am a nurse in the NICU. I have "runs" of good days where I witness nothing but the endless love and hope parents have for their babies. I think of the neonatal ICU as a roller coaster. The ups and downs is enough to make even the most hopeful parents nauseated. Lately, I am guilty of bringing my work home with me. I have taken care of so many babies where their little life has been full of more challenges than my 28 year old mind can comprehend. Some of the babies stories are more complicated than the typical preemie course. I have told David multiple times that if I could bring babies home from work that need love our house would be full of babies. I think my fellow nurses do a great job at fostering love whenever possible....whether it be immediately following a surgery or in the last moments when parents can't find the strength to be present. I have noticed that simple things such as normal, sweet blankets put in the incubators help moms and dads forget for a moment about the diagnosis and focus on the baby. That is why last year I started a blanket drive "Swaddled in Love" for the babies around Valentines Day. The goal was to receive donations of blankets that are perfect for swaddling. We gathered over 300 blankets. The blankets stay in the NICU and are used from patient to patient (sterilized of course!). It is a great way to give back to the babies and families by offering a soft blanket to be comforted. This year I am going to have our Second Annual Swaddled in Love Blanket Drive. If you are interested in donating a receiving blanket, contact me.

I'm ready for SPRING...but for now SNOW.

Nashville is getting slammed with a slow moving snow storm. 6-10 inches and 1/2 inch of ice before it ends tomorrow. Ugh. Tooks some pics outside today, can anyone spot Simon?!!!!!!!!

Two Bugs in a Rug!

Ummm...is there anything cuter than seeing your twins cuddling on the couch together?? I dont think so!

Boston and One and the Same by Abigail Pogrebin

I departed this past Friday for my first weekend away from the twins. A fun-filled weekend spent in Boston with my best friend, Stephanie. My husband surprised me with the trip, I was hesitant but accepting…he is now in the running for husband of the year! The flight from Nashville to Boston is five hours; I wanted nothing but to read a book! I love reading, but time do so is running on empty these days. I chose One and the Same by Abigail Pogrebin. I must say I chose the perfect book for my Boston escape, being away allowed me to really hear what I was reading. Further, guilt for leaving never crossed my mind because I was constantly mulling over our approach to twin parenting.

One and the Same offers a view of twinship that covers the spectrum, from the pitfalls to the rainbows, written with the insight of a twin. Pogrebin marries beautifully twins’ testimonials with factual information relating to multiples. If you choose to read this book, which I highly recommend, you will laugh out loud, shed tears, and come away with focused vision on the challenges of being a twin in adulthood. Pogrebin does not necessarily offer solutions to the difficulties of raising twins, but a parenting lesson was learned through each story she shared. I know I will be a better parent to Kellen and Paxton for having read this book.

One particular paragraph stood out to me, I read it several times, and then stamped GUILTY on my forehead! The paragraph reads:

“Labels or personality styles are assigned to each twin and scripted by the mother and family quite early,” Rothman writes, “likely as a means to soothe their own anxieties.” Joan Friedman agrees. “The labels are created in order to convince yourself you have a separate attachment. And if you don’t do the work and really have the separate attachment, then you’ve just created sort of a myth that helps you define one child in relationship to the other. . . . That’s the difference between being known and being noticed. If you’re not known through your attachment to your parents, then you’re noticed because you’re like your twin or you’re different from your twin. It’s not about who you are, but how you compare to this other person.” Being known versus being noticed.

Excerpted from One and the Same by Abigail Pogrebin Copyright © 2009 by Abigail Pogrebin. Excerpted by permission of Doubleday Publishing, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Wow, powerful stuff. I am certainly guilty for reciting the boys’ differences and not who they are as individuals. How sad if Kellen and Paxton become adults only being “known” for how they compare rather than whom they are? The difference between the two is fine, but I find this concept of utmost importance in parenting twins. This realization will foster more individuality, separation, and parenting decisions that will hopefully lead to a healthy adulthood for our twins.

So in sum, Boston was fabulous. Stephanie and I, once again, hypothesized solutions to all the world’s problems and did so over yummy wine and fantastic Italian cuisine. I return to Nashville manicured, pedicured, massaged, refreshed and energized with a better perspective on parenting. Now that is a successful 48 hours!! Thank you to Stephanie for hosting me, and Abigail Pogrebin for enlighting me.

Surprise, Surprise!

I was cooking dinner last night, Aaron had not gotten home from work and the fellas were playing at my feet. I must have gotten wrapped up in what I was preparing because I suddenly felt a little tug at my leg. Not unusual, I looked down to give Pax a pat on the head...and found him in the drawer beside me. I HAVE NO IDEA how he crawled in there and I didnt hear him or see him!! I wanted to quickly pull him out but opted to grab the Nikon instead! Kel took the opportunity to stand up on his brother and start pulling his hair. These kids are too much!

On the Mend

Looks like we will survive this "prolonged viral infection", which in mommy's words means a really, really long cold. When all is said and done it will have taken the boys over 21 days to heal up. Needless to say, it has been a long three weeks.

Last week Kellen had to get a x-ray of his lungs to rule out pneumonia, as he was still running a 102 fever. He didnt have pneumonia (thank God), but his fever ran through Saturday night. He was pitiful. This is what he looked like most of the week, curled up in a blanket in my lap.


As a mom it was so hard because each wanted to be held, rocked, and loved on...without the other one anywhere near. Friday afternoon, when Kellen had a 102 fever and lay motionless on my chest while I rocked him, Paxton sat at my feet and screamed. Luckily, I have the MOST amazing husband that left work early to come hold Paxton while I tended to Kellen.

Also, we had snow flurries for almost three days straight. The boys only got to see the snow from a window. Too sick to let them play in 19 degree weather!!

Birthday Cakes & Ear Infections

The fellas have now been sick since Christmas Eve, Aaron and I have sworn off the nursery at church. They pick up something almost every single time we go, but this was a doozy of a cold. Now on our 13th day we are fighting ear infections. I wont go into the long story about all of the screaming and sleepless nights, but fatigue has taken over. Will Aaron and I ever sleep again?!!

But onto more fun stuff. As you know the boys celebrated their bdays on the 30th. Anyone who has spent time with these kids will tell you their personalitites are very different. I spoke to my Aunt Cissie on their bday and told her we had smash cakes ready to go. And we laughed because I said Pax will be head first into icing, and Kellen will probably ask for his to be sliced!! Well, I was right!!! It was so funny, Pax is definitley a leap before you look kinda kid and Kel is a test the waters slowly little man!!!! Any icing or cake on Kel's hands are a result of us pushing his fingers into it, Pax didnt need any help! All the pics below are from the birthday. Enjoy!