Yesterday LR wanted me to get off the couch to play cars with him, so I sat up. He grabbed my hands in his and said, "getting bigger and bigger!" Had it come from anyone else, it would have earned that person a serious kick to the shins. 
Instead, I laughed and gave LR a kiss. He's gotten very conversational recently. He'll tell me about his day or what just happened on TV. He's also a little more cuddly which is nice. Sometimes I get a random hug and Daddy always gets a running tackle-hug to the legs when he walks in the door from work.
ckily, the snow has started to melt, so both Daddy and Noula have taken him for walks this week. Last week it was nearly impossible to go outside as you can see from the photos. His playhouse was half buried in snow. He peeked out just enough for me to snap a photo. The bulkhead was the only island he could get to. Otherwise, he was often waist-deep and struggled to follow Daddy around the yard. Daddy made a great, big snow family and LR helped me poke holes in one of the smaller snowmen.
You can't see how big I am in the photo, but you'll just have to trust me on this one. I'm HUGE. The doctors are debating a Jan 10th delivery vs. a Jan 17th one. The big difference is that if I go Jan 10th, I'll be just shy of 35 weeks which means I deliver at a hospital downtown with a NICU and the surgery will be performed by my high risk doctor. If I deliver Jan 17th, I can have my OB perform the surgery at the same hospital in Cambridge where we had LR. A few days make a huge difference here. They're debating bed rest despite the fact that the labs look fine and I'm feeling okay. (Okay is so relative when you're carrying twins.) I should find out the results of the latest set of labs on Monday.
Because I grew up in a warm climate, I don't think I've really been able to appreciate winters in New England. As an adult, they've always meant lots of layers which meant extra laundry loads, cold fingers and toes, hours of shoveling, and cold car rides. But watching LR go sledding today with Daddy gave me a new appreciation for what it means to live where it snows (and snows, and snows).
First of all I learned not to walk in the sled path since there is an art to packing down the run. After searching in vain for a sled yesterday (and missing the last one at Target by moments), Daddy decided to construct his own out of a box and a heavy duty garbage bag. Oh and duct tape. Lots of duct tape. He put LR in the sled and sent him down a small slope behind our house a couple of times. On the third run LR got a little spray of snow in the face and decided he didn't want to do it again. Daddy did a run by himself which LR thought was pretty funny. Then LR was happy to go on a ride with Daddy and had a big smile on his face the whole way.
We had a big snow storm yesterday. Luckily N, LR, and I made it to the mall and back just before the snow started. I saw signs on the highway warning about the approaching weather, so I knew it wasn't going to be good. Luckily, Daddy had done an install the night before and was awake from 1:30-6am, so he was working from home and not out on the roads.
N tried to get LR down for a nap, but when that didn't work, she bundled him up and took him out into the snow. It was only a few inches deep at that point and he seemed pretty zoned when he was out there. I could tell he was tired and fighting it. I got a few decent pictures, but the snow got in the way of a bunch of them.
LR was thrilled this past weekend when Daddy let him help shovel the snow off the driveway. We could only find 2 shovels, but they were both light enough for LR to wield. He might have taken a swing at the bumper of the wagon with the metal one, but whatever, Saturns are meant to take abuse like that. It was a toasty 40 degrees which is why Daddy went out without a coat. I still made LR put on a sweatshirt and when the wind kicked up, I added a jacket on top of that.
I'm going to have to teach him how to lead with his elbow earlier than I thought!) Since then he's been wary about walking in his boots. Can't say I blame him.
The first picture for this post is almost 2 weeks old, but it's been a while since I downloaded my CompactFlash card. Funny... it used to be a very big card, but with my new camera, it seems to be a little on the small size. 4 years of technology will do that. Anyway, love the smiles, guys!
N has been here just a week, but already things feel more relaxed around the house. LR is still pushing boundaries and doing his typical 2-year-old thing, but N is making it easier for us to get out the door to go to work or just get things done around the house. Unfortunately, there are many more extra errands we have to run to get her set up. There's the bank account, trip to the Social Security office, a cell phone, credit card, winter clothes (she arrived with a thin fleece during a brutal week of temperatures in the teens), and most importantly, her driver's permit. After we get the SSN, we should be all set to go to the Registry of Motor Vehicles. Then we can officially get her on the road - even if it is on the wrong side.
Today we went to pick out a Christmas tree. It was all very exciting. There were lots of small construction vehicles parked among the trees. 2 fork lifts and a front loader had LR's attention and he was upset that he couldn't climb on them. He wasn't so interested in the size, shape, color, and bushiness of the trees. The place we went had it all down to a science with an awesome "tree shaker" for lack of a better term. It violently vibrated the tree so that all the loose needless would shake free before they netted them and checked you out. It was very efficient and as parents of a toddler, we appreciated that. Unfortunately, when we arrived home I found the stand we had purchased had a broken bit which prevented us from being able to secure the tree. I made a trip back to the store after lunch and the teenager at the cash register was overwhelmed enough to skip the whole exchange and receipt check and just let me swap the stands. *phew* I also purchased some unbreakable balls for the tree, but LR just treated them like all his other balls and started throwing them around the house. Our tree has only the top 3 feet decorated now. Looks kinda funny, but oh well.
The last night the family was here for the Thanksgiving holiday, we went to the zoo lights at our local zoo. LR loved all of it with the exception of a very large polar bear which needed a compressor to make it turns its head and blink its eyes every few minutes. He hid behind Papa's legs. Papa picked him up and you can see LR peeking at the ferocious polar bear from behind Papa's protective shoulder. We moved on pretty quickly, but he loved the rest of the night despite the cold temperatures. The mittens kept slipping off, but he was content to wear them for the most part.
At the end of the twinkling path was a little carousel. LR really wanted to ride, so we got tickets for Daddy and Grandma Nese to take him. They picked a friendly looking horse and tried repeatedly to get LR to sit on it. LR was game, but every time they sat him down he complained. Finally, they realized that the metal seat and pole were way too cold for LR. Daddy gallantly removed his jacket and put it on the horse's back. Then LR sat without a problem and the ride began. He loved every minute of the ride. 
You can see his immediate reaction to the jacket protecting his temperature sensitive bum in the second carousel picture.
He was in heaven. I'm surprised I got him out of there at all. Since that day, LR has asked to see Papa's plane every day. He tells me he wants to take a ride in the minivan to see Papa's plane. I tell him that we will the next time Papa comes to visit. I don't know how long I'll be able to hold him off though. We might have to make a trip to Logan just to watch the planes take off. It won't be the same as sitting in the cockpit though, kiddo!
First of all, we have a lovely new camera which was a gift from Grandma W and Grandad B. It is awesome and doesn't have the nasty delay our old camera had. It's the perfect thing for when the twins arrive. It's also better with those indoor photos and since winter is here and the twins are arriving soon, that's probably where most of the photos will be. We had tons of opportunities to test it out during the holidays and I got a few good pictures of LR with the family. Unfortunately, LR got a little cold during their stay, but it cleared up after only a couple of days. He got to go see their plane
when they left and he's been obsessing about seeing the "big jet planes" since. Speaking of obsessions... LR has a new favorite show. Curious George is awesome. We went to a George themed birthday party of a friend of his a few months ago. He left the party with a goody bag of George stuff which he didn't appreciate at the time, but he does now. The best is a big foam yellow hat. LR can pretend he's the man in the yellow hat now.
LR's imagination is growing every day. Grandma Nese bought LR some adorable Gymboree gloves. They are raccoons with the thumb creating the bottom of the mouth and in between the main part of the mitten and the thumb is an extra piece of red material which is the tongue. LR was standing in his tower eating some grapes when I grabbed the raccoon mittens and started making the raccoon "eat" the grapes. Of course, with no where to go, the grapes had to go back into the bowl, so I had the raccoon spit the grape out while saying "bleh." 
LR thought it was just about the funniest thing ever. He wanted to put on a mitten and play too. Aunt K and I took turns playing with him and the game must have lasted at least 20 minutes. He laughed so hard that Aunt K and I couldn't help laughing along with him. We made our raccoon characters spit the grapes out for various reasons, but the basic retching sound got the biggest laughs. We had been having a hard time getting LR to keep his mittens on outside, but not anymore!
The following is an excerpt of a conversation I had with LR yesterday after he walked into a door frame during a game of chase with Grandma Nese.
This post is way overdue, I know. So in recent news, LR got a professional haircut for the first time in a very long time. I was tired of chasing him around with the Norelco razor three nights in a row to get a crappy version of a buzz cut. I could never get around the ears or the neck! Last time I took a divot out of the top of his head and I realized one of the plastic tines had broken and was scraping his scalp with each stroke. Nice. On the recommendation of a friend, I took him to Snip-its, a kids only barber shop. Imagine a Disney barber shop and you're pretty much there. Each cutting station has its own TV where they show a relatively lame Snip-its branded cartoon with Snips the Scissors, the head of the Snip-its gang. Anyway, when he first sat down he got to play with bubbles. Then she brought out the razor and he started to freak out. Then he cried. I gave him a lollipop, which they have a huge stash of, and immediately realized my mistake as it was quickly coated with hair clippings. *blech* So I held his hands to keep him from reaching up and getting cut and tried to talk to him about how well he was doing. At one point I said, "I know... it's torture," to which the nice lady cutting his hair replied, "we don't use words like 'cut' or 'torture' so that the kids will want to come back." While I understood the reasoning, 1. LR doesn't know the meaning of the word, 2. he wasn't paying any attention to what I was saying, 3. it was like torture since I had to restrain him during a scary procedure. Anyway, it was worth the premium I paid for a fast, nice looking haircut. For a few days afterward, he asked about whether or not we were going to get his hair cut again. I reassured him by saying that his hair was nice and short and he didn't need another hair cut for a few months. Now I catch him saying "nice, short hair" every once in a while.
most always accomodating, but on this particular night, Daddy was pretty tired. Instead he told LR they were going to play "snails." LR sat down next to Daddy and mimicked him. When Daddy started to scoot toward Daddy, "chasing" him like a snail, LR jumped up and ran away. Daddy had to convince him that snails don't run, they scoot. LR came back and played for another minute, but lost interest quickly. I laughed the entire time at Daddy's attempt to keep play time quiet. Commendable effort though!
So it's 6:39am and LR is still not awake yet. Daddy's still not awake either. The only reason I'm awake is because when I woke at 5:15, I was so excited that he was sleeping through that I couldn't get back to sleep. And I started thinking about baby names and then it was all over.
Note: Finally was able to post pictures in the Halloween post. See below. The picture at the left is of LR playing with a ticklish card that Gigi sent for Halloween.
There is a tradition at Tufts where students paint the cannon on the hill. Often it's for an event or celebration. Groups carefully stake out the night of the planned painting, check around campus to see who else has made noise about painting the cannon, then paint and protect the cannon the rest of the night. 
The rugby team decided to do just that the other night in honor of making it to the D3 final 4 and managed to get a few pictures of their stellar work.
We had a great time trick or treating and LR really got into the swing of it. We practiced during the day with his pumpkin basket. We'd knock on the door to the garage and then I'd pretend to open it. He's say the right words and I'd put a lollipop in his basket. Then he took it out and ate it. For that reason we only practiced twice.
The weather was perfect in the high fifties, so the costume kept him just the right temp since it was sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Only when we got outside did I realize that an all black costume at night was a bad idea so near a busy road. Daddy and I stuck close by his side though, so it wasn't a problem.
We hit about 6 houses and LR did the right thing at each door. He definitely tried to grab more out of bowls that were held out to him, but otherwise did okay. The only other glitch was when we saw a house with spooky decorations. LR wanted to see what was going on, but halfway up the long staircase he heard the audio recording playing and turned into my legs claiming "scary." I picked him up and said "Don't worry. We won't go to the scary house," and turned and walked back down the stairs. The rest of the night he fixated on it. Right up until bed time he was saying "Don't worry. Go scary." I assured him each time that we would not return to the scary house.
Here is a picture of SwingDaddy and Lady M's Halloween pumpkins from this year. They are expecting their second child a few months after the twins. Their pumpkins are very happy pumpkins.
No joke. These are our pumpkins from this Halloween. Daddy's is the bigger one. See the difference?
Looks like LR is ready for potty training (and as expectant parents of twins, not a moment too soon as far as we're concerned). We've had 2 potties in 2 different bathrooms for around a month and showed him how to sit, but it's mostly been a toy and a stool for him. Last night Daddy took his favorite bath toy, a large rubber dinosaur with a hole in his belly, and had him "pee" in the potty for LR's entertainment. At that moment it clicked for LR. He absolutely had to have a turn on the potty and if he hadn't just peed in the bath before getting out, he would have been successful. He sat down on the potty, tucked himself behind the special, boy splash guard that these potties have now, clenched his teeth and little hands, and really tried to pee. We were halfway between laughing and applauding his efforts.
LR helped Daddy pick out pumpkins. We got one for each member of the family. LR even picked out 2 tiny ones for the twins.
Then he showed Mommy his mad pumpkin cart pushing skills.
And finally he helped Daddy scoop out the innards of Daddy's pumpkin. Such a great helper all day long!
There is a hidden benefit to having twins, pity. As a teen with Lupus, I hid the fact that I had the disease for over a year after diagnosis. I told myself that I didn't want anyone's pity. Turns out I needn't have worried. Everyone in high school is too busy pitying themselves. :)
Well LR's cold lasted long enough that he woke up Friday night after being asleep for an hour with an ear infection. The doc said to give him Motrin and Dimetapp and to bring him in the next morning. I had a game to coach (Homecoming which we won 38-0), so Daddy took him to the doctor where he confirmed our guess of an ear infection and prescribed Amoxicillin. It seems to have already done the trick. Sunday he seemed better, but tired. Today he was pretty much back to his old self and the coughing has finally subsided as well. This cold has been going on for over 2 weeks, so I guess I'm not surprised that it turned into an ear infection. I am happy that it's his first one ever though. He was able to tell me that his ear hurt even though I hadn't missed the dozen times he poked his left ear while trying to fall asleep.
A snowsuit arrived from grandparents B&W. They've been scouting the Carter's outlet in Denver for weeks, waiting for the winter gear to arrive and finally it did. I opened the box while LR was playing in my car. He wanted to put the hat on right away and admired himself in the visor mirror. He didn't seem to mind the mittens still attached to the top. Thanks, folks!
On Sunday we had a little shin-dig for LR's second birthday. September is busy, so we were a couple weeks late, but he didn't seem to mind. He was still a little under the weather from his croup/cold, but it didn't seem bad enough to cancel the party. I managed to way over order Mexican food, but everyone did their best to help us out from under the mountain of food. Although we asked people not to bring gifts, he received a bunch of really great books and a couple of toys that he loves. He's very into firetrucks right now which explains the firetruck themed party. He loved the hats and made Daddy wear one while playing with firetrucks with him. I bought him a big truck a few weeks ago to help at practice and it's been one of his favorite toys since. My friend A with a 2-year-old in a leg cast and a 3 week old, gave him a smaller friction firetruck which is the noisiest toy he has to date. Thanks A! ;)
Thanks to a few weeks of pretend play where we sang Happy Birthday, blew out fake candles, and ate imaginary birthday cake, LR was a champ at blowing out the candles on his cupcake. I desperately wanted to make some cool cake like my mom made for us when we were kids, but I ran out of time. I was trying to make flame-like cupcakes, but it fell through when guests starting walking through the door. LR didn't seem to care and ate most of the cupcake anyway.
We blew up LR's new bouncy castle for the kids who were there and he and V had a great time despite the fact she couldn't jump. She crawled in and let LR run around her. He actually spent a lot of time crawling around the house with her. Not sure if it was empathy or if he just thought she was playing a game. Anyway, here's a picture of the two love birds. They are adorable together.
LR had no fever and very little congestion today. It's the fastest cold he's ever had. I gave him Dimetapp just before bed to make sure he slept comfortably, but I skipped the Motrin. He had such a big day today that I'm hoping he sleeps through the night without any problems.
After we blew up LR's gift from us on the morning of his birthday and he crawled into it, Daddy asked me, "are we the worst parents in the world, or the best?" It made me laugh, but I knew what he was getting at. We're trying to walk the line between spoiled and well taken care of. We have the means to provide him with all his needs and most of his wants. Do we turn our house into an indoor amusement park or a place for adults to socialize. We've chosen more the amusement park route and I can't say I'm too disappointed. Being an adult is pretty overrated. Playing with LR in his new moon bounce or pushing him in his beautiful new tricycle from Grandma W and Grandad B or spending family time after each dinner playing with his Playdough factory from Grandma Nese and Papa is some of the best time I've had this week. I can't say the same thing about work.
Unfortunately, the day after his birthday was his 2 year physical which he hated. It was a regular exam and he did well with the weigh-in especially since he got to use the big scale this time and not the baby one. He didn't mind them looking in his ears, but being shut in the room made him crazy. I don't know if it's small spaces that bother him or that he knew being in this room could only mean one thing. Well no shots, but they did a lead test which is a finger stick and then lots of squeezing to get enough blood in the vile. He was unhappy to say the least, but recovered quickly. Then in the evening he started a runny nose and small cough. He was up every hour and by morning was completely congested. I was able to give him Dimetapp for the first time since he's now officially 2! Hooray for 2! That helped, but by mid-afternoon today he had a fever and so we're just crossing our fingers that the Motrin will keep it down and the Dimetapp will help the congestion overnight. We could all use a good night's sleep!
LR started using "I" this past weekend. It was really interesting to hear since we've only heard him refer to himself as "baby" and by his first name until now. He's also singing many more songs. His favorite right now is a Laurie Berkner song about the moon. We belt it out at dinner time as a family and tonight he and I sang it as part of the bedtime routine. Speaking of which... no more bottles! After less than a week of water bottles, he's given them up. I'm tossing the chemical-releasing Avent bottles today!
