1st Birthday Party

Here are a couple pictures for Nana and Great Grandma and Grandpa who couldn't join us today. The first is the before and then the after. They enjoyed their cake and had a good time playing in the gated area with their new toys. More to come later. From a tired mom while babies are napping.

12th month ends today

We traveled to Fall Creek Falls State Park on May 17th. Our church group met for church, haystack lunch, hiking, and fellowship. We are so thankful for this group of friends. Here are some photos that show us taking "Bob", the stroller brand, for a walk and seeing what it could do. The path was not stroller friendly but Bob did very well over the stairs, large rocks, and bumps.

We walked partway onto the swinging bridge with an inch on either side of the wheels. Unfortunately, the other side was not suitable for the stroller, so David reversed and we took another path. The boys were excited to go over bumps and do something adventurous. However, there was one time I caught Ethan grabbing for the sides and looking worried.

Today is the last day they will ride backwards in the van. They can now face forward. The law required us to wait until they were 20 pounds and 1 year old. I know they will like to see what is happening and we will be able to see what they are doing.

I had to post this video so you could hear some of the giggles coming from their bedroom. Of course Murphy's law stuck again because as soon as I started the camera the giggles ended. I believe they laugh when they take items from the others crib and they may even play peek-a-boo.

Michigan Trip May 1-5

We made our first long-distance trip, driving 12 hours to Michigan. We attended David's cousin's wedding and were able to see other friends during the weekend. The traveling went better than I expected. Diana rode with us on the trip up. This made restroom stops easier since we could carry the babies inside leaving one person baby free. We were able to feed the babies in their car seats so we only had to stop every couple hours for diaper changes or for food or fuel.

We took two pack-n-plays, two booster seats for meals, the double stroller and two umbrella strollers, and a few toys. We are very thankful we have a mini van, there was still room to spare! I received some valuable advice to buy a few new toys for the trip to use when I needed them to stay quiet like during the wedding ceremony or church. It was only mildly successful but would probably have been worse without the toys.

It was a pleasure to see Chris and Missy, Debi and Art, Aunt Ivy, the Moore family, and Uncle Don.

12th Month

It is a great joy to watch them do new things. Ethan is crawling, cruising, and can pull up on almost anything. He is cautious and seems to test the furniture to make sure it won't move or fall over.

Andrew is more vocal and can be so loud that sometimes he fools me and I think it is Ethan calling. He loves to clap his hands and try to make us laugh. He wants to stand often but unfortunately he doesn't get what he wants all the time so watch out, he may throw a fit. Oh what drama!

Ethan loves to explore. We have gates that keep him in the living room and dining room. I find it fascinating how careful he is with objects. He is always gentle and so far hasn't damaged equipment like the DVD player or computer. I'm not sure that Andrew will be the same way so it is probably good that he isn't crawling yet.

Andrew pulled up in his crib from sitting to standing yesterday, May 12. He watches Ethan closely as he crawls. He would love to follow him so maybe Andrew will work on his tummy time more. He loves to make noise so banging on Uncle Don's piano was a treat.
Speaking of treats, here's a humorous thing about Andrew. He tends to stuff 3 or 4 puffs, a cereal product similar to cheerios but dissolves more rapidly, in his mouth at the same time.