The Month Before Christmas...

December was a busy, but fun month!  We started out by putting up our Christmas tree.  R&R were sooooo very excited to help.  

Tim got the tree put up, but the kids were getting hungry so we decided to hold off and do the decorating the next night.  So we enjoyed the lights and made homemade pizzas.  I can't find my pictures from that part of our evening.  Or maybe I didn't take any.  I can't remember.  But the kids loved putting their own toppings on their own little pizzas.  A new, fun tradition, I'm sure!

The next night we pulled out the ornaments and we had a great time decorating the tree together.

Then we let Rhett and Rhys have their first taste of hot chocolate!  I'm not sure what they thought about the drink, but they thought it was so funny that daddy put marshmallows in their cups!

Most evenings in December ended just like this.

We also visited Bass Pro Shops Winter Wonderland in December.  We rode the carousel (several times) and even saw Santa!  

The twins had seen Santa once before this season and were not big fans.  We did not have high expectations.  But we were pleasantly surprised when this happened:

CONFESSION:  We told them that Santa was giving candy canes to kids who sat on his lap and smiled at the camera.  That was a true statement.  He was also giving candy to kids who screamed for their parents, but we left that part out.  R&R are highly motivated by candy....what does that say about us as parents?  Hmmm......

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the month:

More Christmas posts to come soon!

Potty Training

January 2, 2104:  First day of potty training.  

All my friends are thinking, "Wow, I'm surprised Misty didn't start yesterday."  You know me too well, my peeps, too well.   You know my love of all things even and organized and structured.  All things which are not associated with teaching two 2-year-olds to use the potty.  

And for the inquiring minds out there, I did want to start potty training yesterday, but Rhett woke up in a defiant and fussy mood, and I knew it would not be good.  So we waited.  We woke up today, busted out the Cars undies and Dora panties and just went for it!

Let me first say that I have a new respect and admiration for anyone who has ever done this.

Rhys was so proud of her Dora panties, and kept announcing "I keep Dora dry."  She did great and only had 2 accidents all day!  

Rhett would not pose for a picture for me, but I sure did love seeing this tiny hiney in those Cars undies today!  He did great and did not have an accident all day!  He cried when I told him he needed to wear a diaper for nap, but was happy when I let him put the underwear over his diaper.  He woke up from nap with a dry diaper, too!

We spent a lot of time in the bathroom, setting the timer, and doing the potty dance to celebrate.  I may even be sore from dancing around so much.  Did I mention we spent most of the day in the bathroom?

Don't think I will ever get tired of seeing these cute bottoms!

Rhys was so proud of herself and asked me to take a picture of her tonight.

And this is what Rhett was doing when I asked him to take a picture for me.

I had decided last night that I was not going to use any kind of reward system, that I didn't want to keep up with it, and that they just needed to feel proud of themselves and that my praise would be enough.  Let me say that this changed within the first 10 minutes of putting those underwear/panties on.  I sure did use M&Ms to bribe motivate them, and it worked.  I may have eaten a few M&Ms myself.  Okay, I ate a lot.  But we survived Day 1!  If you see me this weekend, which you probably won't because I'll be in the bathroom singing songs, reading books, and dancing....but if you do see me, give me a hug.  And tell me to lay off the M&Ms.

Tomorrow is a new adventure.  Stay tuned!

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!

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!