Update On The Girls: One Year Old

It's hard to believe that the girls are ONE!  It's been one of the longest years of our life and one of the best years of our life (another post on that...ha).  We are so thankful to be celebrating this milestone!

Adelyn at One Year Old:

Emery at One Year Old:

Some facts from the girls eleventh month of life:
-Wearing 12-18 month clothes.
-Mainly wearing cloth diapers with no snap.  In disposables, they are wearing a size 4 diaper.
-Eating 4-5 times per day.  They eat solids for breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner.  They eat anything that we eat, and we no longer have to cut their food in to tiny little pieces.
-They are sleeping in their cribs at night and for naps.  They sleep 7pm-7am.  The are taking 2 naps per day, but have become flexible if their is a need for them to take only 1 nap.

Random things we don't want to forget:
-They babble all day long.  We think we have some talkers on our hands.
-They are speed crawlers and excellent climbers.  They are taking steps, but not quite walking yet.  They do love to push any toy with wheels, and they often run over each other or brother.
-Emery continues to be completely obsessed with Brown Bear.  If Brown Bear is within her sight, she will grab it and suck her thumb.  Adelyn is still not attached to a lovey.
-Both girls are great eaters.  Emery eats all of her food and drinks all of her milk.  She prefers carbs.  Adelyn eats all of her food and tosses her milk off her high chair every mealtime.  She prefers fruit.
-Adelyn has the best scrunchy nose face ever.  Emery has the best belly laugh ever.
-Emery spends the majority of the day trying to play with whatever Ben is playing with.  This results in both fun and disaster!  Adelyn is content to play in the same room, but in her own space.  She likes to watch all the action.
-Adelyn, Emery, and Ben had a sleepover weekend at Grammy and Champ's house this month!  Everyone did great!
-For their first birthday, we went to story time at the library and then went to Chick-fil-a for lunch.  We set up the bounce house after naps and jumped the evening away!  It was a great day of celebrating!
-We are celebrating their first birthday the Saturday after their birthday!  They are having a flamingo swim party.  :)

Update On The Girls: 11 Months

This is the second to last post for the girls! Let the party planning begin!

Adelyn at 11 Months:

Emery at 11 Months:

Some facts from the girls eleventh month of life:
-Wearing 12-18 month clothes.
-Mainly wearing cloth diapers with no snap. In disposables, they are wearing a size 4 diaper.
-Eating 4 times per day. They eat solids for breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner. They eat anything that we eat, just cut into little pieces. They are drinking cow's milk with every meal.
-They are sleeping in their cribs at night and for naps. They sleep 7pm-7am. They are taking 2 naps per day.
 

Random things we don't want to forget:
-The girls are still the fastest crawlers around. They can get anywhere fast! They are also pulling up on everything, cruising on the furniture, and standing unassisted for more than a minute at a time. They haven't tried to walk yet.
-Adelyn had a little retreat at Grammy and Champs house. She did great at their house, and Emery did great at home. It was the girls first night apart, and they didn't seem to mind!
-Both girls are appropriately waving and signing 'please' and 'all done.'
-The girls love reading. Adelyn usually chooses the book out of the book bin, but both girls sit intently while we read. Emery lets us finish an entire book, while Adelyn usually only wants us to read a couple pages.
-Both girls were sick with Roseola this month. We had some long days, but everyone is back to normal now. -At the beginning of the month, we volunteered at Vacation Bible School at our church. This entailed us being out of the house by 8:15am and not getting home until 12:15pm! The girls usually eat lunch at 11:00am, but were troopers about not eating until 12:30pm. We think they enjoyed the time away from home.
-They have really started to interact with Benton. He makes them laugh, and they make him laugh. They crawl after him (both at the same time...so funny), which he thinks is hysterical. Adelyn will play with Benton in the tunnel for an hour or so, and is such a trooper as he can be a little rough in such a tight space.
-Emery's favorite toy is anything she isn't supposed to play with. She is the reason that baby-proofing was invented. She is very persistent and determined.
-Emery is still obsessed with Brown Bearcat and daddy!  If Landon is sitting on the floor, she crawls up to him, sits on his lap, and then spins around (wanting him to stand up and carry her around).  We call this 'the spin cycle.'
-'Sharky' is Adelyn's new nickname. Her Mohawk has turned into a shark fin.
-Adelyn has the cutest scrunchy nose smile. Melts our hearts.

Benton Update: Two Years Old Continued

Benton had a great well child check.  He continues to grow right on track both physically and developmentally.  We are watching his speech (or lack of) and will be getting a hearing test soon.  We aren't worried though, we just think he might not be motivated yet!

Benton's stats:
-Weight: 31 pounds, 10 ounces
-Height: 35 inches

Update On The Girls: 10 Months

These girls have more endless personality!  They keep all of us laughing!  Only 2 more months until the big party...it is so hard to believe.  We are loving these days!

Adelyn at 10 Months:

Emery at 10 Months:

Some facts from the girls tenth month of life:
-Wearing 12-18 month clothes.
-Mainly wearing cloth diapers with no snap. In disposables, they are wearing a size 4 diaper.
-Eating 4 times per day. They eat solids for breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner. They eat anything that we eat, just cut into little pieces. They are off of formula, and drinking cow's milk with every meal.
-They are sleeping in their cribs at night and for naps. They sleep 7pm-7am. They are taking 2 naps per day.

Random things we don't want to forget:
-Both girls are fast crawlers.  Adelyn is crawling normally, and she is much happier now. 
-The girls pull up on anything and everything.  Some of their favorite things to pull up on are the wall, the fireplace hearth, and any human.  Ha!
-They are both starting to free stand.  Look mom, no hands!
-Big brother is still their favorite entertainer.  He makes them laugh!
-Big brother is also tortures them.  He has been to time out many times for putting them in a headlock (where did he learn this?!?).
-Emery got 3 teeth this month!  She now has 7 teeth.  Adelyn still only has 4 teeth, but we can see where she has some almost through.
-Before naps and bedtime, we let them stand in their bed while we sing them songs.  They jump and giggle.
-Emery is still a thumb-sucker, and she is completely obsessed with a blabla doll named Bernice the Bear.  We thought it was a cat for the longest time and called it Brown Cat, so now we have changed the name to Brown Bearcat.  Adelyn is still an index finger-sucker.  She doesn't seem attached to any lovie yet, but she does sleep in a sleep sack, and she loves it!
-Adelyn claps and waves, and does so at the appropriate time.  We're about to start working with them on sign language (all done, please, and more).
-Both girls barely have any hair, so we still use headbands for their bows.
-They were flower girls in their Aunt Julie and Uncle Jared's wedding!  They were originally going to be honorary flower girls, but at the last minute, Aunt Julie decided that she wanted the girls to come down the aisle in a decorated wagon.  They were precious, and they enjoyed meeting everyone at the wedding.

Benton Update: Two Years Old

Sweet Benton turned TWO! We are so thankful for our easy-going little guy!

Benton at 14 Months:

 Some facts from your second year of life:
-Wearing 2T and 3T clothing. We are no longer buying 2T, as he is quickly outgrowing them.
-Wearing size 9 shoes. Extra wide, of course.
-Still in diapers! We haven't even considered starting potty training, and probably won't for awhile. Wearing cloth diapers wih no snap, and wearing a size 6 disposable diaper.
-Eating 3 meals and 2 very small snacks a day. We offer you anything that we eat, but you are very picky. Our rule is 'take it or leave it,' and we don't offer a different meal if you don't like what we serve. Your favorite foods are bagels, peanut butter sandwiches, blueberries, applesauce, blueberry waffles, cereal bars, pizza, and waffle fries.
-Still a great sleeper. You go down for the night around 7:30pm, and we don't hear from you until 7am! You take 1 nap per day, from about 12:30pm to 3pm.

Benton at 17 Months:

Important happenings from your second year of life:
-You started walking at 12 months old, about a week after your first birthday.
-You started running at 13 months old, just weeks after you started walking!
-The biggest happening of your second year of life...you became a big brother!!! Your little sisters were born the day you turned 14 months old. You stayed with Grammy and Champ when your sisters were born.
-At 17 months old, you started taking 1 long nap per day.
-You were in your first wedding at 23 months old. Aunt Julie and Uncle Jared got married, and you were their ring bearer. You did a great job and made it down the aisle, but had to be taken away from the ceremony because you were trying to go to the very front of the wedding!

Benton at 20 Months:

Random things we don't want to forget:
-You seem to be an introvert, though we will see how that changes through the years. When we are outside of our home, you usually sit on our laps or have us hold you for awhile before you join the fun. Once you join the fun, you really enjoy the activities and the other kids.
-Your favorite toys this year have been your stacking cups, your alphabet stacking blocks, your alphabet puzzle, and your cars.
 -Your mechanical skills are amazing! You can easily stack cups or blocks, and have been able to from a very young age.
-You know all of the letters and their sounds, you know your numbers from 1-10, and you know basic colors.
-You aren't talking very much yet, but we are noticing new words and attempts at communication daily, so you probably aren't too far off.
-You sleep with 7 animals/ blankies at night. The list includes your teddy bear, monkey, sock monkey, two dogs, a fish, and a little blankie. You love your teddy the most, with your monkey coming in a close second. -You are very active! To burn energy throughout the day, you run sprints all over the house, jump on your trampoline, jump off our ottoman, run around the couch, and play outside. When outside, you like to go to the park, push your wagon walker, and walk on the sidewalks in our neighborhood. You also like sliding.
-We read you a bible story daily, work with you on bible memory verses, pray at meals and at night (you clasp your hands and close your eyes), and take you to Sunday School and mom's group. You get very excited when we tell you we are going to church...you love being there! After church on Sundays, we go to Panera to get bagels, and you very much associate leaving church with getting bagels!
-You are still sleeping in your crib. You love your crib, and haven't tried to climb out yet.
-We are often told that you look like Champ, and we agree! You even have the same hair.

Benton at 22 Months:

We love you, Benton!

Update On The Girls: 9 Months Continued

Here are the stats from the girls' Pediatrician appointment.  It is amazing that their growth is still so similar!!!

Adelyn's stats:
-Weight: 19 pounds, 11 ounces
-Height: 27 inches
-Head Circumference: 18 inches

Emery's stats:
-Weight: 19 pounds, 11 ounces
-Height: 27 1/4 inches
-Head Circumference: 18 1/2 inches

Update On The Girls: 9 Months

Oh my, these girls are too funny and too fun!

Adelyn at 9 Months:

Emery at 9 Months:

Some facts from the girls ninth month of life:
-Wearing 12-18 month clothes.
-Mainly wearing cloth diapers with no snap. In disposables, they are wearing a size 4 diaper.
-Eating 4 times per day. They eat solids for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They eat anything that we eat, just cut into little pieces. They also take a 6 ounce bottles 4 times per day.
-They are sleeping in their cribs at night and for naps. They sleep 7pm-7am. They are taking 2 naps per day.

Random things we don't want to forget:
-We have crawlers! Emery crawls 'normally' and fast. Adelyn uses more of a belly flop/ bounce technique, which looks as funny as it sounds.
-The girls can pull up on us or things lower to the ground. We are human jungle gyms.
-Both girls LOVE Benton, and have really started interacting with him. If he makes a high pitched noise, they will try to repeat it right back to him, and then they all laugh. They also crawl after him and try to play with all of his toys.
-Both girls now have 4 teeth. This month, Adelyn got her top 2 teeth, and Emery got her other top tooth.
-We no longer use the changing table for diaper changes, as the girls are strong and determined rollers. They are now changed on the floor with their hips pinned so they can't roll.
-Adelyn is currently in 'bow training.' As soon as we put a bow on her head, she reaches up and rips it off. Each time she takes the bow off, we put it right back on. This usually works after 3-4 times.
-They celebrated their first Easter by going to church at Crossings an then joining the extended family at Grammy and Champs. It was a perfect day, and the girls looked beautiful
-Adelyn is also in 'bib training.' She takes her bib off within seconds of us putting it on her. She then flings it arounds and bites it. Too funny.
-The girls are bathing in the big girl bath tub now. They both love to play with cups and they love to splash. Bath time is much easier now!
-They love riding in the wagon with Benton! He is so sweet for sharing.
-They both pretty much hate the jumperoo now. It's about time to pack up the jumperoos and put them in the attic.
-They enjoy going on walks, but if we walk as a family in the evening, Adelyn fusses until we hold her.