Smoothies

 

Today for snack we had smoothies.  This was my first time making them and I wasn’t even sure what I wanted to put in it.  It ended up being a blue berry, banana, squash smoothie:) Squash??? gross I know.  You do what you can to add those veggies though. Ty and Micah REFUSE to eat any veggies that are not a puree.  They can’t eat baby food forever!  They won’t even let me puree veggies myself to feed to them!  It’s insane! :)     Anyways, I wanted to use sweet potato since its sweet, but all I had was squash.  They loved it!  I enjoyed it too:)

First Year

 

This is me not having anything to blog about:) It’s been a few days.  We have been dealing with sickness in our home for a week! That’s nothing to write about.  I thought I would make a list of things that was a must in our home during the first year of having twins.  Maybe it can help a new mama out there.

1. Bouncy seats. We LOVED ours and used it for at least the first 5 months of their lives. It was great to move from room to room if I needed to, that way I could clean or prepare food while the babies were with me.  It was also very handy to sit in the floor between them and hold a bottle in each mouth:)

2. Jumper. Micah loved to jump. It was great having this and an exersaucer so each baby could have something to play in.  I recommend borrowing anything you can.  They don’t play in them long at all!

  

3. Double stroller. We couldn’t have went anywhere if it wasn’t for the double stroller. There are so many options to pick from.  We had a front/ back stroller, but there are also side by side. I picked the one I did so it would be easier to go shopping if I needed to. Easier to get through doors and skinny areas. 

4. Walkers. They graduated out of the bouncer, to the jumperoo, to the walkers. They really liked being able to have the freedom to walk around the house. We have hardwood floors, so they could really move:)  It was always funny watching them push off then lifting their feet to glide across the floor. so cute!

5. Bumbo seat.  Ty & Micah didn’t like these very much, but they were handy for me when we traveled so I could feed them. They were also great for when they couldn’t sit up by themselves, we would put them on the kitchen table to have dinner with us.

6. Highchairs for traveling. IKEA has wonderful highchairs. Very light weight, easy to clean. They are only $25 dollars and they have been wonderful!   We go out of town alot and over to our friends house for dinner, these are perfect to take with us. That way we don’t have to hold the babies the whole time we are trying to eat.

It comes in blue, red, or white.  The highchair is $20, tray is $5.

7. bibs. These bibs are great. It cuts down on laundry and its easy to clean. Just run it under water or wipe it off. So easy!

8. This is not something to buy, but SCHEDULES! I would have not made it through this past year with out a schedule. We loved it. I always knew when my babies would eat and sleep. When you know when they are supposed to eat and sleep, then you know when when they cry, why they are crying. Well, most of the time:)  Usually if my babies were crying, they were sleepy. I put them on a schedule at 4 weeks. It changed our lives. All of us! At 6 weeks they started sleeping through the night and we were new people:)

Birthday Weekend…Success!

 

Wow! What a crazy, crazy weekend!!  I loved it, but I am so glad it’s over. Where to start, where to start….

On Wednesday Aug. 11, I started the fondant for the cakes. It is SO much work! Especially when you have 2 next day 1 year olds crawling around everywhere!  Making fondant if fairly easy. You just need powder sugar, marshmallows, water, and icing dye.  Heat the water and marshmallows then fold in the sugar.  Eventually it will become the right consistency. 

 

SO, while I was making lunch this day. Micah decided he was going to learn how to climb on to the couch by himself.

The first time, I just turned around and he was all leaning back with a big grin on his face, like ‘yeah, I’m just relaxing!’ It scared me to death! I got him down, then when I realized I should have at least taken a picture, I decided to capture his second attempt. It was crazy how fast he could get up there!

Aug. 12th, was Ty & Micah’s birthday.  I took the day off from cake making to spend with the boys:)  Sadly, they were sick with a cold, so it was a VERY lazy day. They slept till after 9am. Then took an hour and half morning nap instead of just an hour. I let them because I wanted them feeling better for the evening celebrations!   We got a handprint kit when they were newborns and never used it, so I decided we would use it on their first birthday.  MISTAKE. Not a mistake doing it on their birthday, mistake for doing it on a 1 year old.  Ty decided to grab a handful, so we tried to do the foot instead. It looks terrible, but I guess that is what will make it so special:)  Micah just got the foot print, I didn’t even attempt the hand with him!

We had a nice evening!  We had dinner at El Tap with several friends, then went to Marble Slab for ice cream.  It was their first time having ice cream…it was SO cute! They loved it!!! Micah couldn’t stop smiling:) 

Then we came home and they opened their gifts. Well, I opened their gifts. They weren’t interested…at all.  Not even in the paper like everyone said they would.  Ty touched a gift once, then said ‘don’t’, like he shouldn’t be touching it. haha.

At least they enjoyed playing with the blocks we got them:) 

Aug. 13th I made the cakes. NIGHTMARE! I don’t bake cakes. The first 2 were too dark, so I had to make 2 more to replace those.  I was pretty pleased with how they all turned out. Considering I had no idea what I was doing:)

Aug. 14th, party went great! We had a great turn out. Most of our friends were able to join us.  Ty and Micah enjoyed eating cake for the first time.  They got some really great gifts!  We really did have a great time! I was so worried since it was during one of their nap times! I wasn’t really sure how they would respond to that!  They did great though!

Sorry this was so long! I just had to put everything in here!

Happy Birthday Ty & Micah….Happy Birthday to you!

 

Wow! 1 year olds!  Aug. 12th 2009 at 8:02 Tyson Luke was born, at 8:04 Micah Blake was born.  That was THE happiest day of my life.  Ian & I were so excited to meet these little guys.  After 37 weeks of pain, misery, & morning sickness that lasted all day, I finally had them.  I remember that day so clearly….

I got up at 4:30 to put on make up, fix my hair, and shave my legs (who knows when the next time I can do this will be). We had to be at the hospital at 5:30 for my 7:30 C section.  I had the worst heart burn that morning. I won’t go into detail, it was bad!  I was so nervous to have to have this surgery, but ready to get it over with. At 7:30 exactly, they came to take me away.  Alone.  Ian had to stay out till after I had my epidural. But, I had the sweetest nurse to get me through it.  I was scared, but it was a comfort having her with me. 

I remember them testing to see if my epidural had kicked in, then my doctor saying ‘where is her husband?? get him in here right now!!!’  Then Ian was by my side and I was mostly okay:)  After some talking and waiting, my doc told us he could see a baby bottom.  Next thing I know, Ty was lifted so I could see him.  I loved him immediately.  Any question there was about my feelings for them were immediately answered.  I fell in love! Then I got to see Micah.  They cried and cried and cried, but it was the sweetest sound:)

It has been a wonderful year. It was so hard getting used to having 2 babies at home. Thankfully God blessed us with wonderful boys and an easy first year.  We put them on a schedule at 4 weeks and they started sleeping through the night at 6 weeks.  That’s when things changed for us.  We started slowly figuring things out…and here we are now:)

Again, God has truly blessed us.  We thank Him daily for the 2 sweet boys He has given to us to raise for Him.

Happy Birthday Ty & Micah!! I love you boys!!

Can it really be a year already??

 

I guess it can.  In 2 days my babies will be 1 year old! Where has the time gone??? It has been fun thinking back over the past year. In some ways it feels like they have been here forever, in other ways I am still shocked it has been a year. 

I am planning a VERY simple birthday party for them at the park. I can’t wait to post pictures!  It will be just a few family members and a few close friends. 

We took away their bottles this week. It’s almost like that makes it official, that they are now big boys. 

Here is just a picture of them to show their cuteness since I don’t have a lot to say tonight.  I am sure I will have lots to say in the next few days!  I have big plans. Fondant and cake making.  Party decorating.  Family in town!  Good night for now!

Birthday Shirts

 

Having twins has been SO much fun!  I can’t believe in only 7 days my tiny babies will be 1 year old!!  It has been fun coming up with ideas for their birthday party:)  The most interesting thing I have done so far is their birthday shirts.  I had it all planned out in my head of course.  Trust me, they looked ALOT different:)   However, I am very pleased with how they have turned out! 

 

I went to Walmart and Hobby Lobby to get my things.  Unfortunately, all they had in plain, white shirts were longs sleeves!  No problem! I will make it work!   So, I have my shirt, my fabric, Heat bond (lite) for sewing, embroidery thread, and needles. Oh, and an iron and board:)

Cut off a swatch of fabric. Big enough to cut out your design.  Place it on your adhesive strip.  Next time I do this, I think I will cut that extra stuff off that’s showing in the pic. That way the fabric is all that shows.  I had trouble not touching my iron to it, so I had glue on my iron:)

Trace your design on the back of the fabric and paper.  Then just cut it out!

Your shirt should be washed, dried, and ironed before you do any of this.  You would know this when reading the Heat Bond instructions.  But then iron on your design.  Press hard for 6 seconds. I am sure I did it longer.

To give it a more ‘finished’ look, I sewed the edges with a thick thread.  You can either hand stitch this or use a sewing machine. I preferred the hand stitch look here.  If you don’t plan on sewing this, there is a different adhesive than the lite that you should use. 

Finished product! I am very happy with the results:)

Now I just need to try them on the boys and see how they look!!

Baby Legs

 

How cute are baby legs?? Yeah yeah baby legs are cute, but I am talking about the tiny little leg warmers for babies!  TOO cute!  They seem so convenient too.  Changing a diaper in the cold while the babies legs stay warm, what more can you ask for? Added bonus, if you are potty training, its one less layer to pull up or down.  I heard that these were super easy to make, so I thought, why not? 

I go to Wal-mart in search of the perfect socks. I find them:)  If they had not been knee socks I would have kept them for myself.  They really were perfect.  We have a friend, Sam, that will be turning one in less than 2 weeks. This would be a perfect gift for her. 

Like I said, these were SO easy to make!

 

I would love to make a pair of these for Ty & Micah, it would be a matter of talking my husband into letting our boys wear them though:) 

Such a cute gift! Now, hopefully I can find a dress that would be perfect for them:)

Thanks Ty for your chubby baby legs to model them:)