Jammin' With the Boys

Dressing Up

Can you tell we've had to spend way too much time in the house this month???

Our Amazing Technicolor Dream Coats

I'm including three photos of the same scene here to illustrate how nearly impossible it can be to get a nice face from twin two year olds simultaneously.

The paper sacks were the boys' pre-school project from this week. How appropriate! Of course we tell Joseph and Benjamin the Bible stories about Rachel's two sons, but there was something nice about the visual of our modern-day miracles wearing a mock-up of that original coat.

It reminded me of when Matthew and I took all four of our parents to see a production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. No, it wasn't Donny Osmond's version, but it was still impressive. Afterward my Dad commented to me how he thought the multi-colored coat might be symbolic of all the different nations that sprang forth from the patriarchs of old. Of course that fit right along with the show because if you've ever seen it, every one of the twelve sons is depicted by a different nationality.

Good Friends

Last night our good friends the McComb's

came to visit and we had such a good time together. Rebekah and Melody are growing up so quickly. This photo was a special treat for me because while all of us moms were talking, Rebekah had somehow managed to corral all the kids to sit together on the couch and pose like this --even though there was no camera in sight! So of course I had to run and get it because even if I had tried, there is absolutely no way I could have orchestrated this shot. From left to right: Abbi Dennis (Trevor and Krissy's daughter) Joseph, Rebekah, Benjamin, and Melody.

Above you can see the finished product. Below you can see the fun that went into making it! Several times a week I get the boys involved in helping make dinner before Daddy get's home. I've been impressed with how helpful they try to be. Benjamin is covered with flour here because he was helping me measure the flour to make the crust. When he pulled the measuring cup out of the flour bin he somehow managed to dust himself in the process. And Joseph was more interested in eating the turkey sausage than putting it on the pizza!

Zoning Out

Lately Joseph's favorite thing has been sitting on the arm of the couch or chairs in the living room while watching the Pixar movie "Cars." I really try to limit their television and screen time. But when he walks around the house with such a pitiful face saying, "Mommy, cars, more cars" it's hard to say no. He's seen it so many times that he knows three to four scenes ahead when the scary combine scene is coming up and comes to get me so I can fast forward it. I'll be so glad when spring is here and we can get outside more.

Our Little Lincoln Log

I ordered the boys some Lincoln Logs online and when they arrived, of course, the metal bin they came in was more interesting to them than the contents. Here is Joseph with Olivia (my occasional mother's helper and baby sitter). He and BoBo (as he calls brother) were taking turns stuffing themselves into the container.

Benjamin Feeding the Animals

We keep a little table and chair set for the boys in the kitchen and the other day Benjamin decided to put his giraffe "Raffie" in the chair and feed him breakfast. "Spoon Momma, spoon!" Benjamin insisted until I got him a utensil. Obviously Raffie is a rather particular eater who likes to be spoon fed.

Cool Dude!

Daddy taught Benjamin how to put his sunglasses on and say "Cool Dude."

Bixby Boys

Winter Pics

Joseph up late!

Joseph likes to wait until brother is soundly off to sleep before calling out at just the right volume for us to hear him but not wake Benjamin.

Last night I let him stay up until Momma can home. He did however decide that our blanket was quite litterally the biggest sucky he had ever seen.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Fun and Games

Benjamin had jumped in front of Joseph to take him for a ride..., Joseph is looking at Mommy like: "Are you really going to let brother get away with this?"

Doing the dishes is more fun than ever! After a messy meal Joseph wanted to get into the sink to clean off, what a sweet Boy!!

More Summer 2009

Most of these are self explanatory...

Summer 2009

Me and My Boys

You'll notice that the next several posts all have today's date. That's because I have done them all tonight, trying to bring you up to speed on Joseph and Benjamin's development since their first birthday. Sorry for the delay, all I have to say for myself is that somehow time seems to go faster once the babies are mobile!

I hope you enjoy the photos and please feel free to comment. We'd love to hear from you!

Joseph

We are so proud of how hard this little man has worked to get where he is. Joseph has such a determined spirit, he doesn't let anything get him down. We notice this even in the everyday things. For example, when he gets his finger pinched by toy or has a hard time with a task he is attempting, he continues to work at it to figure out what it takes to get it right.

Joseph's sense of humor is also something that has impressed us. At the dinner table, if someone tells a funny story, he laughs at the perfect time. He is quite social and many of his facial expressions remind us of my dad, Grandpa Pat, who was also very entertaining at the dinner table.

Now that Joseph's strength and stamina have improved, he has focused intently on walking without holding on. Having two toddlers walking in opposite directions is the definition of a manic Momma!

Benjamin

Benjamin is such a ball of energy! He seems to be constantly in motion. It's as if he is asking, "Okay, what's next?" all the time. His attention span isn't very long, but rather than impatience I put it down to the fact that he is so curious. I have started limiting the number of toys in the play room at any one time in hopes that he will learn to focus a little more!

Grandma, or "Emma" as the boys call my mom, surprised them with an indoor climbing gym, complete with a telescope (as seen above), a slide and a swing. They love it. And I think it has helped with Benjamin's focus because he was so determined to climb the little wall and slide down all by himself that he did it over and over again until he didn't need my help anymore. He's also a very physical little person, he will climb in, on, and over anything in his path.

In the bathtime photo, Benjamin is using his modified sign language to say "water." My mom has been instrumental in teaching the boys several basic signs and I believe this has helped develop their language skills and allowed us to avoid the frustration that toddlers often experience when their vocalization ability hasn't matured yet.

Mischief Makers

To say that Joseph and Benjamin spend a lot of time together is a bit of an understatement. They eat together, sleep together, bathe together and spend virtually every waking moment in each others company. Although so much togetherness may become tiresome, it also provides many opportunities for cooperation and the benefits of synergism.

For example, a couple months ago they discovered that if they work together they can move both highchairs (even in a locked position) across the kitchen. And just a few days ago I realized that the play room had gotten suddenly quiet. When I went to investigate I discovered that Benjamin had climbed onto the chair to retreive a full box of kleenex off the table, then he and Joseph combined their efforts to empty the box and shred its contents as quickly as possible before mom could spoil the fun.

There is also a sort of twin language that is developing between them. Sometimes I will hear them in their cribs or in the play room just laughing and chattering back and forth with each other in conversational style. It makes me wish I had a universal translater for baby language!