Lovin' Hawaii, Missin' the Girls

Aloha, here we are in Kauai, Hawaii, enjoying this lovely view from our lanai.

Also with us is our son Jon and our nephew Peter. Their photo is an ongoing "cousins joke" that they have been taking part in for the past month as they toured the islands. They email a photo of Pete, very somber looking and holding this sign, to their cousin Tim every day or so, to show him what he is missing. The sign says "booyaah" which is another story in itself.

Below you can see Norm, feeding the chickens, as he always does, each time we drive to the Koke'e Lodge area. I swear they recognize him because when he went in to buy the food they headed to the steps to wait for him. :)

We spent time with the girls before we left and soaked in every minute, knowing we would be gone for a week. Here you see the girls with their "tippy cups". Neither one loves to use them, but they are tolerating them at this moment.

We did also do a little outing with Aunt Suzie and Papa on Saturday. Papa needed a couple of things from Walmart and so we took the girls along. While there, we did some trying on of hats.

Uncle Jon has requested that we refrain from taking them to Walmart again. :)

While at Walmart we also had a little McDonald's lunch. A new experience for us, and I think for them as well. It took the three of us to manage the two of them. Twins are sure fun! Can't wait to see them again!

Dolls, Balls, Frosty, and Strolling!

Claire and Chloe are seen here rocking their new "Love Bug Dolls" that Great Aunt Dode and Uncle Rog gave them for their birthday. Those little dolls got lots of hugs and kisses as we played this week.

We also had fun with a neat toy that Aunt Suzie gave them. The balls are popped up out of a cylinder by a gust of air and they bounce all over. All this is done while a catchy tune is playing. :)The girls have such a good time chasing them and putting them back in the tube.

Also this week, Chloe decided that walking might be fun after all. She hadn't shown much interest previously and was perfectly happy getting around by crawling and walking along furniture. In the following video clip she is pushing the little shopping cart and if you listen carefully she is making a "motor" sound with it. We sure laughed about that, we don't know where that came from!

As Papa and Chloe read books one day, Chloe decided to do the reading. Here she is with Papa showing him the book of nursery rhymes and telling him all about it.

Papa often brings a little surprise when he drops by. This time is was a Wendy's Frosty. Here you see Claire looking quite satisfied with the taste.

On Friday the girls had their 12 month checkup. As we already knew, they were pronounced perfect in every way. Other than the shot and finger poke that they each had to endure, they enjoyed their outing very much and both took a nice nap upon returning home.

Enjoying the 1 Year Old Girls!

Claire and Chloe continue to develop their individual and unique personalities and traits. They both, however, are very interested in books and when things start to get wild it always creates a quiet diversion for them.

Here Chloe is after we had read several books this week, a few of them over and over.

The two girls had a little adventure in the kitchen on my watch. Before I realized what was happening they had started helping their Mommy by cleaning out one of the bottom drawers. Chloe didn't stop until every item was out and on the floor. Fortunately it was a drawer with safe kitchen items, mostly baby related, so it was rather harmless.

The film clip below is of the girls having a "squeal-off", it sounds better to say "squeal" than to say "scream off". I can't remember what got them going but I know we had been reading books a bit earlier.

The last little video is of Claire parading around with the birthday balloons that were still around for their enjoyment. Normally they hang over the staircase out of reach but close enough for them to enjoy.

Birthday Week Continues !!!!

This past week continued to be a week of enjoyment and included another small birthday celebration for Claire and Chloe. After all, twins only turn one year old once in a lifetime.

Included are a couple of photos and films from the day I spent with them. Chloe is seen playing with her doll and Claire is posing for me in the little wagon that Papa couldn't resist buying for them.

This little clip of Chloe was after I gave her a couple of "goldfish" crackers and the second clip is the girls "interacting". Their annoyance with each other doesn't last long, and sometimes it is hard not to laugh.

On the 29th, their actual day, we celebrated again with dinner, cupcakes and ice cream. The following pictures show the girls with their cupcakes, before, during and after consumption.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY...AND MANY MORE!

Birthday Celebration!

Saturday was the day to celebrate birthdays. We were celebrating Claire and Chloe's 1st birthday a few days early, and Uncle Jon's on the actual day. The family gathered at a local pizza parlor and the fun began!


Here is Chloe enjoying her pizza and Claire pondering it all between bites.




















After a yummy lunch of pizza and salad, the girls got to open their gifts.


It didn't take long to catch on that the packages held some super surprises and that the best way to see what was there was to tear the paper.

Following the presents came the cupcakes. How we laughed at their reactions. Chloe discovered right away that it tasted good. Claire, however, preferred to squish the frosting between her fingers. Claire was very willing to share with Uncle Jon however.

Happy Birthday Claire, Chloe and Jon!!!!

The Home Stretch to Turn One!!!

Less than two weeks and Claire and Chloe will be one year old. The weeks have flown by, and this week was no exception. Here are a couple of pics of the girls from the last few days. Claire is working on her walking skills in the first picture, and Chloe is playing with one of her favorite toys. It is a soft cloth bird house that has little stuffed birds that you can take in and out. She loves it and maybe she, like her Papa, will love birds as she grows up.

Yesterday, we watched a DVD that the girls got for Christmas from Aunt Suzie and Uncle Eric. It is entitled "All Creatures Great & Small". It is a beautiful, beautiful, video with wonderful music, animation, and live animal pictures. It is made and produced by Kurt Warner's organization. Below you see Chloe on her Papa's lap taking it all in. I didn't get a picture, but at the same time Claire was on my lap "rockin' out" to the very serene music which includes the hymn "All Things Bright & Beautiful". It was rather funny.

We have been experiencing unusually warm weather in the afternoons. Paula and I took the girls and the dogs for a long walk on Saturday afternoon.

Lastly, here is a little snippet of Claire doing her walking. She is steadier every day and is walking more each day.

Sniffles x's Two!

This past week brought the first illness for the girls. They have each had a drippy nose at some point during the past 11 months, but never a full blown cold. They were both pretty miserable. Chloe didn't let it stop her from her investigations, however, as you can see from this shot. She stands on her tip toes and has been known to stand on a stuffed animal or anything handy to make herself taller.

Claire had a little harder time coping with not feeling well, and slept nearly the whole morning that I was there. She would wake up but wanted to go right back to sleep. When Daddy came home at noon to check on his girls, she perked up remarkably and actually ate some chicken noodle soup and yogurt. Daddy was the best medicine she could have received. It still amazes me that neither of the babies have been to the doctor for an illness, only for their regular checkups. They have a wonderful nurse Mommy that has really kept them healthy. We are very thankful.

A day or two later, when they were feeling lots better, Papa stopped by. Here are the girls at his knee jabbering and enjoying his full attention. They are always happy to see him.

Also on that day, they were very active. Here is Claire practicing her walking.

Both Papa and I celebrated a birthday this past week. We are so very thankful for our good health and our wonderful children and grandchildren. Two more January birthdays to go, Claire & Chloe's Uncle Jon, and then 5 days later Claire and Chloe turn one! We still have much to celebrate!