Saturday, January 16, 2016

21 Months





Happy 2016!  I will officially proclaim that 2015 was not the year for my blog.  Oh well.  We were TOO BUSY living the crazy life of one year old twin boys!  But just today, January 16, 2016, they are way closer to being TWO than they are to being one.  I can't believe it.  I figured that I better update this blog with their ages and stages before we hit the 2 year mark.

Benji
Personality:  He is still a very focused and determined little boy.  He still LOVES golf and will focus on swinging a club (real or imaginary) and hitting balls (real balls, plastic balls, blocks, anything in his way) for a good 20 minutes at a time if not bothered.  He loves golf, but he also is pretty skilled at dribbling a soccer ball and making dunks in the basket (standing right in front of it).  We think he is just a natural athlete and wonder where he'll land with sports down the road.  He watches Andy like a hawk, which is how he learned how to do practice swings, sans golf club.  He is sweet and tender, and he will still give you a good hug or cuddle if you ask, as well as a fishy kiss.  He is overall less emotional than his brother, but if he is interrupted during a game or something that he is very involved in (like, "time for lunch, let's put down the golf club"), he can get very upset and put up a good protest!  I think he is pretty detail oriented and still notices little things as well as enjoys putting things together--especially doing and undoing buckles.  He is a goofball, and when he gets excited to see dada or someone, he squints his eyes, puts his head back, and comes running towards that person squealing with delight.  It's darling.  He is so so handsome, and I keep commenting how much of a little boy he looks like, instead of a baby.  
Language:  He is slower to speak than his brother, but he can say mostly all of the same words.  He seems to think more before he speaks (like his dad!).  His voice is very sweet.  I love how he says "Zachy"--it sounds like "daddy".  Another favorite is how he says "golf club"-- "gol clum".
Eating:  He doesn't love proteins/meats as much as he loves SNACKS.  Geez.  Also like his dad.  Overall he's a good eater, though.  He drinks more whole milk than his brother, and sometimes I still get to hold him and give him a sippy of milk before bed or after nap, which I love.  He likes bananas, goldfish, yogurt (loves), eggs, craisins, cheesy southwestern rice, berries, pork (sometimes), pizza (sometimes).
Clothes/Shoes:  Fits into 18 month clothes, and 18 month pants are a little baggy and long.  24 month and 2T are a little big but fit.  Shoes are 6 or 6.5.  He still has very pudgy little feet!
Photo taken by Allie Renee Photography in Nov. 2015

Zachary
Personality:  This boy continues to be very busy!  Except for a few moments after he wakes up for the day and wants to hang out in his crib for a bit before getting out, he is go, go, go!  He wants to put on a show or play outside or brush his teeth or play all in the first few minutes of walking out of his room.  And from there, I have just learned to be a proficient multi-tasker!  When the weather was still warm, we hit up the neighborhood park almost everyday, which is a great way to get his energy released.  Benji loves the park, too, but I feel like he would be fine to stay home all day long.  Zachy is just like his mama-- I love to keep busy!  Zachary likes golf, too, but it's not his hobby.  He enjoys an array of things--sometimes all at once!  Haha. He more enjoys throwing balls than hitting them.  He likes to color, read, jump, dance, and throw things.  He is silly and loves to laugh.  When he laughs and grins, he throws his head back and gives you a nice view of his gap-toothed buck teeth :)  He notices when I leave the room, typically, and he will come looking for me.  Oh, and he for some reason enjoys playing with water... there is a drawer in the kitchen that I keep all of their old bottles and nipples and things, and he likes to open it up and asks me to fill something up with "ay-water" (ice water) that he will carry around until he spills it.  He is also very in tune with his emotions!  That's a nice way of saying something else :)
Language:  Wow, he is a talker.  He is so good at learning new words and repeats words that you ask him to repeat.  He recently started putting "more _____"  together on his own during mealtime, and I am so proud!  He loves to say "more orANGE!" even if they're not eating oranges.  And he just started saying "ay water" for "ice water".  He also will say a long string of babble that is just hilarious.  Benji even laughs at it.  The way he says "Benji" is just too cute.  It sounds like "Ban-jie", and he usually will ask for his brother if he's not in the same room or if he gets up from nap before Benji.
Eating:  He's typically a great eater.  He also likes snacks but not as much as his bro.  His most favorite thing, much to my chagrin, is fruit snacks.  I made the mistake of buying some 100% fruit juice fruit snacks one time and they are hooked, especially Zachy.  I'm honestly trying to see how many days we can go without giving them out.  Ugh.  For some reason they call them "ninas" ha.  But he eats pretty well.  Loves his peas and corn.  Likes pizza and grilled cheese.  LOVES hot dogs (ha-gogs).  Likes baked chicken with ketchup.  Loves all berries.
Clothes/Shoes:  He is petite and still feels like a baby to me.  He fits well in 18 month clothes, and 18 month pants are very baggy and long on him.  He wears size 5 shoes.


Sleeping:  Both boys are awesome sleepers.  Wow.  Looking back a year ago, we were in the middle of sleep-training, and I was still waking up several times at night.  Every once in awhile someone will wake up crying but they are easily soothed back to sleep with a pat and repositioning.  They go to bed around 7:30/8 and wake around 7/7:30.  They take one 2-3 hour nap everyday around 12/12:30-2:30/3.  It's a great schedule, and I'm loving all the time in the morning to play at home or the park or library as well as run an errand.  I love time with my boys!
Friends:  We love our guy friends Emmett, Elias, and Felix.  And Zachy loves babies, with his favorite being baby Abby (almost 1 yr) and her sister Zoe.  We (mommy included) love our new friends of almost a year (last February we met at Target with our babies and have been friends ever since!), Courtney and her twins Everly and Presley.  The girls are just a month younger than the boys, and we try to get together once a week, sometimes every other week.  She is pregnant with a little boy and due in March.  She has been a great new friend to me.  


at church

Penny doesn't mind, right?

Benji, about to knock over our tower!