Showing posts with label 2.5 years. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2.5 years. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Potty Training Update

Many of you have been asking me how potty training is going, so I thought I'd post an update.  If you are not caught up on our newest adventure, you can read about the beginning here.  

Overall, the past 6 weeks have gone pretty well.  Rhett has definitely been easier to train, but I think he was more ready than Rhys was when we started.  But I really can't complain about Rhys either since she has done great!  

The first few days were a challenge for Rhys.  Please don't judge me, but I even put the little potty in front of the t.v. to encourage her to sit. You can see how well this worked:


So, we started using chocolate again.  You may not agree with this, but all I can say is that it worked for my kiddos.  I'm not planning on replenishing this container when it is empty (and we are getting close) so we will see how it goes.


Rhys needed some extra motivation one day.


Pink fingernails!

One of my fears when we began potty training was that we would be stuck at home all the time to be near a bathroom.  After a few days at home, I decided that we were going to need a traveling solution.  So we put a little potty in the van, and voila!


Pretty hilarious, right?


Overall, the potty training has gone better than I expected.  We still use diapers/pull-ups at nap and at bedtime but are staying dry during the day most days.  While I don't love spending a lot of my day in restrooms (especially public ones!), it is a welcome change to not be changing 147 diapers a day.   The extra money in our bank account is nice, too!

Way to go R&R!

Monday, December 30, 2013

Lately

There has been so much going on lately, and I haven't had a chance to blog.  I am loving this new, though sometimes challenging, stage of toddlerhood (2 years 9 months) we have entered.  Here are a few of the things I want to remember right now.

Rhett says "darken" when he is trying to say it is dark outside.  He also says "stucken" for stuck, and "wettin" for wet.  Tonight he told me it was raining and "windin."


He loves, loves, loves to run and play, and prefers to be outside.


His favorite song right now is Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

Tim gave Rhett this Academy towel, and Rhett calls it his blanket.  He wants to use it all the time.


He is full of energy and new ideas.


Rhett says "apple-foss" for applesauce.

I'm pretty sure Rhett is trying to potty train himself right now.  I'm not interested yet.  Maybe after the holidays.  :)


Rhys still carries her pig around everywhere with her.  She is really into feeding pig and putting pig down for a nap in the doll pack n play.  And Piggy even got to go for a ride in the jeep.


She is really into birthdays and sings the Happy Birthday song about 30 times per day.  And she is usually singing to herself.  


We travelled for Thanksgiving, and ever since we returned home, Rhys stopped calling Tim "Tim" and now calls him daddy.  After over a year of using his first name, Tim is thrilled that she has stopped.

She really really really likes to wear her sunglasses.


Rhys is my little helper and loves to help me clean.


She also is really into taking pictures.  Some are good, and most are not.  ;)


The twins are talking non-stop, and we can't believe that they were in speech therapy a year ago.  They have little conversations with each other that are so very precious.  Rhett started calling Rhys "Rhysie" and I love it.  She calls him "Bubba."


Both kids really like to "help" in the kitchen as much as I will let them.  They grab their stools and are ready to stir, spill, and sample as we cook.



R&R spend a lot of their day cooking in their own play kitchen.

*And yes, Rhett is wearing Rhys' apron from her Halloween costume.  My mom did make Rhett an camouflage apron, but he prefers this one.  :)


We've been busy lately, but more to come soon!

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Breakfast with Jesus

Our church puts on a fabulous Breakfast with Santa event each December.  This year, Rhys and Rhett were so excited that their friends, Aiden and Adeline, (who are also twins!) were able to join us.  

We started out with red and green pancakes topped with whip cream, gummy bears, marshmallows, sprinkles, and chocolate chips.  YUM!



Then we went in to see Santa.  Rhys has been real confused lately with Jesus, Santa, Christmas, birthdays, etc.  She was so nervous and the whole time we were in line she kept telling me "I no sit with Jesus, okay mommy?"  We tried to get them to sit with Santa Jesus but knew immediately it would not go well.  We opted for the family picture this year.  I honestly cannot believe that this picture looks like everyone was happy.  Believe me--they were not happy to see Santa.  Or Jesus.  And were only posing for one reason.  CANDY CANES.


We got the ultimate screaming Santa picture last year, and didn't feel the need to put them through that again.  For those of you who remember, here is the craziness of that day:


There were several activities for the kids to do that morning, including coloring, decorating their bag, and making a reindeer craft.  Rhett and Aiden held hands as we walked through the building.





Here are the kids with their super cute crafts!

Adeline, Aiden, Rhett, Rhys

We also loved that we got to see some of our favorite people that morning.

Rhett with Caleb

 sweet Savannah

Rhys and Lyla

We had such a great time!  

Sunday, November 17, 2013

HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

We decided early in the year that the twins would dress as Duck Dynasty's Phil and Miss Kay for Halloween.  We got the idea after my mom bought Rhett a camouflage shirt.  We were joking about the idea for a Phil costume, but then decided to actually do it.  I think our little couple turned out adorable!


My mom sewed Rhys' apron, and surprisingly, she didn't mind wearing her little black wig.  Rhett wore the camo shirt, shorts, and a cool headband attached to his beard.  It was a little itchy (and hot!) but he kept it on most of the night.  He even wore his sunglasses in true Phil fashion!


Here is a picture of the twins right before we left to go Trick or Treating.  They weren't really sure what was going on, but were excited.


After a few houses, they really started getting into it.  They would stand at a door and say "trick or treat" over and over again until the door opened.  Then they would just stand there quietly.  We couldn't get them to understand they needed to say trick or treat again!



Rhys LOVED going door to door and filling her pink bag with candy.  Rhett got tired after a lot of walking and was ready to go home.  Rhys kept saying "little bit more?"  This surprised me because she is usually our shy and quiet one.  I guess her sweet tooth gave her a little more motivation!

Here is the crazy amount of candy we collected:


We let them pick one piece to eat Halloween night and they both chose fruit snacks.  LOL


And, because trick or treating is hard work, a corn dog to finish the night off.


Hope everyone had a HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY Halloween!  And, I'll close this post with some memories of the past couple of Halloween nights...

Twins' first Halloween (2011) - dressed as A&M football player and cheerleader


Halloween 2012 - Puppies!


Wednesday, October 30, 2013

2.5

How in the world did I blink and my babies become 2.5 years old?  And I can't believe almost 2 months has gone by since my last post.  I guess I blinked twice.

We have been busy...with TWO two-and-a-half year olds, I find myself pretty exhausted at the end of the day and not very motivated to get on the computer to blog.  Today I was watching R&R talk to each other and it hit me just how fast they are growing up.  I don't want to forget these memories.


The twins seem to play together more and more.  Sometimes I am amazed at how well they communicate, share, and enjoy each other.



It's not always like that, though.  There is a lot of this going on too...


They are now tall enough (and smart enough) to reach things off my counter tops.  I have to really pay attention to what I have out.  Here R&R are helping themselves to some pretzels.  

Their language development has just continued to amaze me!  It is crazy to me that just a few months ago they were both receiving speech therapy services.  Now we can't get them to stop talking!


They really like going to HEB, which they refer to as "ABCD."  Once I tell them we are going to grocery shopping, the whole car ride there is spent discussing the type of basket we will get to ride in once we arrive at the store.  They beg me to get the "car cart."  If you have read my previous blogs, you know that I have a love/hate relationship with this cart.  I think it would be pretty fair to say that they are obsessed with the car cart.


Rain is very exciting.  We have to touch it!  And sometimes we even play in it.


Lots of snuggles and hugs between these two, especially in the early mornings.


They are both really into wearing their sunglasses, "like daddy," they say.  Rhys almost always has hers on if we leave the house.  She would actually wear them in the house if I would let her, but after losing several pair, we have decided that they should always stay in the van.


We spend a lot of our time outdoors these days, especially now that the weather is cooling off.  Both Rhett and Rhys love to play outside and I am so thankful since Tim and I also enjoy being outdoors.


We had a fun day at the zoo complete with a ride on the train!


Parks are always a big hit!  Here we go with the sunglasses again.


"Hiking" with daddy.

Feeding the ducks!

 Working on balancing at the neighborhood play ground!  Rhys started walking on this beam and Rhett followed.  I had to take a picture because I wanted to remember that she is usually the "leader" and he is usually the "follower."



Rhett is so very affectionate, and is always trying to love on and hug Rhys.  She doesn't always accept his love, but when she does it is so very sweet.


Both R&R love to paint and "do crafts" as Rhett would say.


Anyone that knows R&R will agree that these kids love to eat!  At 2.5 years old, Rhys' favorite foods are blackberries, edamame, cheese, meat, bread, broccoli ("wokky"), cucumbers (she calls them pickles), walnuts, and anything sweet!  Rhett loves hot dogs, all fruits and veggies, avocado ("cado") and he really loves those waffle fries from Chick-fil-a!


A little bit about Rhys...

She loves her pink Converse shoes and prefers to wear them every day.


She is becoming quite the little mommy and loves taking care of her babies.  Here she is changing diapers.  Notice she has twins.  Ha!


We always joke that Rhys is a little hoarder!  She is usually seen with one (or more) bags, purses, containers, etc.  She will stuff as much stuff as she can get into these things and carry them around.  When she naps or goes to bed, her bags sit next to her bed for safe keeping, I suppose.  Here she is with all of her "stuff" loaded onto the front of her cozy coupe!


She also loves to play in her kitchen.  She makes me coffee often.


Hoarding again.  Filling up the shopping cart and a backpack with her treasurers.


She definitely has an opinion on what she should wear.  Wow.  You know that saying "pick your battles?"  Well, let's just say that I am really good at following through with that.  Rhys wore this exact outfit to Walmart....2 days in a row.


She dressed herself again.  This time she matches! (notice she has Piggy and a purse!)


She still carries Pig around everywhere.  Baa sometimes gets to join.  She also has a favorite baby doll named Zoe.


She is all girl.  Drama and all.


Rhys is very cautious and uncertain in new surroundings.  She usually gets very scared and anxious when we arrive somewhere and wants me to hold her.  We have visited this petting farm area at the zoo multiple times.  This was the first time she attempted to brush a pig by herself.  I think she was scared, but I was so proud of her for trying.


Hoarding.

She loves loves loves to help me clean.


Rhys also loves to work independently.  She likes to sit and do little activities by herself or with me.  Here she is sorting out golf tees.  She likes all items that are tiny and that she can put in and take out of containers, bags, etc.  She also enjoys coloring.


Did I mention that Rhys loves to eat?


Rhys is a girly girl.  She prances on her toes when she runs.  She is full of giggles.  She loves dresses.  Pink and purple are her favorite colors.  She reminds me to put a bow on her if I forget.


She is usually seen pushing around a shopping cart and/or a baby stroller.  She can maneuver both at the same time like a seasoned mother of multiples.


Rhys has a great memory and reminds me of things I said weeks ago.  I have to be careful of what I tell her we will do...she definitely holds me to it! (Like the time I said she could get a cup of ice water at Sonic the next time we drove by...)


She always wants to accessorize, and needs her purses.  Here she is with 3 purses and her Piggy.  All ready to head out to the playground.  Love this little girl!


And now moving on to my little man...


He sure does spend a lot of time building with his blocks.


And I'm pretty sure Rhett would live outside if we would let him!  He is always climbing, running, and jumping on things.  I turned around one day at the playground and saw him doing this...and almost had a heart attack!


He is not scared of anything, and loves to try new things.


Rhett really likes to play trains.  This is one thing he actually prefers to play with by himself.  


He also loves to play with and line up his cars.



Rhett loves to eat hot dogs, and likes to wear hats!  I love this picture!  He made this giraffe hat one morning at MOPS and wore it every day for a week after that.



I love his silly side and deep, contagious laugh.  He is also the best snuggler!


Several months ago, Rhett would have never wanted to get his hands dirty while painting, but now enjoys it!  I know his occupational therapist would be so proud!


My handsome little dude!


Working like daddy...

Rhett enjoys reading books...when he is the one reading!  He does not ever stop talking and pointing out things when I read to him.  He just gets louder and louder until I stop reading and listen to him.



Rhett is such a typical boy....loud, always running, jumping, climbing, tackling things (and his sister!), playing cars and trains, and destroying things.  But he also has a very sweet side as well.  He frequently plays dolls, too.  One day after I put the kids to nap, I found Rhett's doll all tucked in with a paci, a blanket, and Rhett's water bottle.


It's time for you to all meet Rhett's new love...Tiff.  Yes, that's right.  Rhett named his baby doll Tiff.  We are not sure where this name came from, but we are going with it.


Tiff went to the zoo with us a couple weeks ago!





So very proud of how far this little guy has come and love him so much!


We are blessed!