Sandwiches!

Growing up, I loathed sandwiches in my lunchbox - the slather of way too much mayonnaise, the folded, slimy turkey, a thin slice of cheese made for many trades or trips to the trash. After graduating high school, I realized that I could have just told my mom that I HATE too much mayonnaise, I like my meat shredded into membrane-thin slices, and I would have liked some lettuce and tomato to kind of "block out" that deli meat taste. Nowadays, I really only eat lunchmeat if I can eat it within about 30 minutes of making the sandwich, or I'll just grab a sub from Jimmy John's and let it go at that. All that to say, I discovered in college that I LOVE peanut butter and jelly. It doesn't get that slimy, stale taste after 4 hours of being out of the refrigerator, it's cheap, easy to make, and just tastes good to me (especially with Doritos or Cheetos)! Fast forward to now...most days I eat a half pbj sandwich with a side of fruit and chips and I'm good to go.

I'm trying to help the girls along to new milestones, one including not cutting up their food into teeny tiny bites and maybe even graduating to eating sandwiches. I figure, they have all of their teeth and should be able to bite, but I've found that biting down is kind of a new concept for them. But, today, I thought I would jump right in, so I made them a very thin pbj sandwich so that the insides wouldn't ooze all over the place, and sure enough, they seemed to enjoy it. (I felt slightly guilty? bad? for introducing sandwiches at their age when they'll probably be eating them for a long time in the future, but that may also my own "sandwich phobia" that I've carried with me from grade school . Post traumatic sandwich syndrome.) Claire picked her square right up and took a real bite of her sandwich!
Caroline would bite down if I held the sandwich, but if she picked it up, she mostly just sucked on the pbj to draw it into her mouth. Whatever works! I don't know about these sandwiches, Mom!

Very interesting, this sandwich concept...I'll have to get back to you on this one.

We'll keep trying with the sandwiches, but the first day was a success as far as I'm concerned!

Mystery Solved!

A few weeks ago, we had a playdate with a friend who owned the Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Learning Home, and it was a big hit with the girls. My friend let us borrow hers while she went out of town, but I decided to splurge and find one on craigslist - not an easy task because they are apparently high in demand and very hard to find! I finally found one, and thankfully, the lady lived only a couple of miles away, so we drove back home the proud owners of our very own learning home! Since then, the girls love opening and closing the door, window, pushing the balls into the chute (or down the stairs if they are bored), and peeking through the mailbox.

During the last few weeks, I've happened upon Caroline clinging to the learning house as she shakes it back and forth...hmmm, Hurricane Caroline just might knock it over one day and then we'll really have a mess on our hands!
Playing peek-a-boo never was so fun before we had the learning home!

Lately, I've heard a thumping noise quite often, followed by hysterical giggles from both of the girls. As soon as I would come back into the room to find out what was so funny, they looked mischievously innocent and acted like nothing was new. They would resume the bumping and laughing for hours on end, and I kept trying to get to the bottom of the where the noise was coming from. It sounded like one of them was stomping on the floor, but not quite...

Well....Paul actually solved the great mystery. Apparently they sit against the wall and bump their heads, making the other sister laugh and laugh. And it's not just one of them...they both do it. My first thought was, "Great, all we need are more head injuries," but then I realized, "Well, as long as they are laughing, I guess they're okay!" So on with the head-banging and laughter for now!

Just Like Mommy

The other night, I was telling Paul how the girls really aren't into cartoon characters or TV shows all that much; not for a lack of trying, but they just seem uninterested at this point. We also have toys galore, everything from sports to kitchen toys to dollhouses to puzzles. What do they love the most? Books and animals. As I was telling this to Paul, he quickly replied, "Well, that's just like you." I hadn't even seen the connection, and believe me, I do not push any certain type of toy on the girls, but clearly, they have gravitated toward two of my favorite things, too. The girls always sit side by side or directly across from each other and "read" their stories to each other. It sounds like they are speaking Chinese, and Claire particularly will nearly start yelling with each page as she tries to explain what she's reading.


Caroline loves those Berenstein Bears!

Claire has also developed a penchant for cleaning - she throws away her own diaper now in the trash, she picks up clothes and shoes and puts them away, and she makes sure any door is closed, whether that is the pantry, the closet, or the bedroom. Again, a little scary to see how much she has picked up from her neat freak mom, but I'm already hoping she'll be cooking dinner for us in the next year or so.

Books also make good hats!

Watching them grow and learn always brings to mind the old argument: nature vs. nurture. How much of what they do is just innate or inherited vs. learning and living in our particular household. I tend to think it's a mixture of both these days, but it's really uncanny and interesting to watch!

Always Together

After a stressful and busy month, I decided to take a (permanent) break from blogging, only to discover that I missed taking pictures of the girls solely for the purpose of capturing those spontaneous, sometimes mundane, sometimes unseen, sometimes brilliant, moments of their young lives. I perused back through my pictures this month only to sadly discover that I was lacking in material - mainly because I had "turned off" the blogger in my head and I realized I needed to keep the blogger logged on so that I could remember these fleeting moments before they pass too quickly.

Lately, the girls have really enjoyed sitting side by side in various places around the house. I'll be cooking dinner in the kitchen, and I hear giggles trickling in from around the corner, and I peek around to see the girls sitting together reading, sipping their drinks, or laughing with (at) each other. Usually Claire sits down first, and Caroline follows her and sometimes sits so closely to her that their arms touch. Claire isn't sure why Caroline laughs at her so much - Caroline is so easily tickled that we all invent ways to get her rolling.One of my favorite pictures - it's hard to tell, but Claire is grinning right back at Caroline - what sweet sisters and a special bond they already share, despite the 63 times a day that Claire starts screaming only to make Caroline start crying. This pose makes them look so identical - our ob/gyn still pressures me to get them tested to find out for sure - are they identical or fraternal? We'll save up the $200 and do it someday... Okay, I've had enough bonding time for now...off to do more exploring! Thanks to all my readers for your patience the last few weeks! Life throws a few curveballs and makes things harder than they should be sometimes, but in the end, these little girls make everything better and I want to keep sharing glimpses of our lives that happen so quickly that they could be called insignificant, but in the end, they are momentous and worth remembering forever.