Justin pointed out to me recently that when we’ve been out with the twins, Claire usually says “Buddy’s home” when we walk through the door.   He thinks that she is confusing Justin’s nickname for Ronin “Little Buddy” with the terms anybody, somebody, nobody, etc.   Another funny word mix-up is Ronin wrapping himself up in my shirt and saying that he’s being a raccoon.  It took me a while to realize he meant cocoon, but it helped when he turned into a butterfly.

Splish splash

We’ve had a long rainy week with lots of flooding.  Our hot water heater went out twice due to the storms.  Claire and Ronin heard thunder for the first time, and got excited about it.  They have a Dr. Seuss book that mentions thunder, so they already knew it made a big boom sound, and they were happy to make the connection.  It’s been challenging to find things for them to do and keep them excited about staying inside.  We have gone for a few wet walks around the neighborhood, but it’s so much cozier in here.

I was taking a bath

We’ve been doing arts and crafts, bouncing on the trampoline, and getting on and off the potties frequently.  They took a bath in the afternoon just to have something different to do (mostly we take showers) and play with the bath toys.  I finally got a video of Claire singing part of the alphabet song.   She can do the whole thing on her own, but she mostly sings in the car and I can’t capture that.  For the past few months, Claire and I have been singing to each other, a little Claire song that goes like this:  Wa, wa, wa.  I repeat it back to her:  Wa, wa, wa.  Then she changes it a little bit, and I sing it back again.  It’s been really fun singing back and forth.

This weekend it is supposed to stop raining for an interlude before raining again all next week.   We seized the opportunity to go for a walk this morning, and tried out a new regional park, Las Trampas.  I am really glad I have a portable folding potty, because I can’t imagine what we would do otherwise.  It is nice to be able to whip this thing out within 30 seconds of someone saying “I’m going right now, Mommy!”

Las Trampas Regional Park

We walked on a paved path up a long, steep hill, and then came back down again.  We examined the multitudes of mushrooms growing everywhere, and looked at the two creeks.  It was so nice getting outside on a sunny day and it did wonders for my mood.  By the time we got home, despite a forecast to the contrary,  it started raining again.

Little Buddy and Claire

I’ve heard about this playground for a while, but never knew where it was when I was out and about.  Today, Justin used his new phone to look it up and navigate us to the right block in Berkeley, and we found it to be a toddler’s paradise.

Totland

It is full of outgrown and donated toys for children from infancy to preschool age.  There are trucks galore–bulldozers, diggers, fire trucks, police cars.  There are tricycles and scooters.  There are activity centers, exersaucers, ride-on toys, push toys and balls.  There is a sand-and-water area and the obligatory structure and slide and swings.  All gates automatically swing closed and have latches too high for the average toddler to reach, so it’s a safe playground.

Claire driving a car at Totland

The twins ran from toy to toy, truck to truck, tricycle to scooter, trying each item out.  I heard Ronin say, “Oh, wow!” countless times.  It was a lot of fun.  Claire hopped on a scooter and rode on it like she’d been doing it forever.    They got really messy, playing around in the dew-laden playground and digging in the sand, but it was totally worth it.

Sand toys

It’s been difficult going on outings with the twins and potty-training at the same time.  I took them both to a playground last week and had to run back to the car three times within half an hour to re-visit the potty chairs.  It is really hard to grab the happily-playing twin to accompany the other one back to the car, because the one who doesn’t need to use the potty gets fretful that we’re leaving and doesn’t have the same urgency.   There are a lot of false alarms and an occasional accident.  It is much easier to go out with Justin, but it’s still not relaxing.  Our excursions tend to be shorter than they would otherwise be.  We have not gone on any long walks in a while.

Ronin cuddling with Justin

Overall, they are doing much better than the last time I wrote.  We still need to remind them to sit on the potty chairs, but they have gone for entire days with few or no accidents.  It is really hard work for all of us, but I would much rather be doing this now than with a small baby to care for as well.  Despite the really tough week, there are little moments of joy.  The other morning, I saw Claire grab Ronin for a hug and say “I love you, No-nin.”  Ro hugged her back and said “I love you too, Claire.”  So sweet!

Sharing a present

It was so nice to have everyone over and see the twins really enjoy Christmas.   Justin and I put the play kitchen out in the living room so they would see it when they woke up and not get too antsy waiting for everyone to come over for breakfast and present-opening.   They were happy and pretended to make tea and pancakes for breakfast.

After breakfast, it was the twins’ assignment to pick out presents from under the tree and take them to be unwrapped by the recipients.

Picking out a present

Omie and Claire opening a present

Grandma and Ronin opening a present

We know what to get Manuel next year

Uncle Manuel and Aunt Dinah

Aside from the big play kitchen, Claire and Ronin got  hobbyhorses that my mom made for them, a train and track expansion kit, more dress-up clothes, toy tools and cars and airplanes, books, stuffed animals, books, ornaments, a zoo pass for the upcoming year, and other things too numerous to count.  They loved everything, little and big, and enjoyed unwrapping everything also.  I’m glad I had the foresight to move most of their old toys out to our storage in preparation for the new toys.

We had Christmas dinner at Dinah and Manuel’s house.  There were 18-month-old twins there also, and it was really sweet to see how Ronin was gentle with them and tried to share his toys and say hello.  We know he’s going to be a really good big brother.  Justin got to feel our new baby kick for the first time on Christmas Eve, which was a wonderful present for him.

Potato stamps

After five days of everyone but me being sick, my luck and my immune system ran out.  I hate getting sick while pregnant, because there is nothing I can take except Tylenol and cough drops.  I just don’t feel like going out and running around right now, so we are making a cozy day of it at home.  I borrowed an idea from a friend’s blog and carved shapes in potatoes to use as stamps.  Ours didn’t turn out nearly so pretty as hers, but we still had fun.

Stamped notecard

Yesterday Ronin was on the changing table and out of the blue told me “I want to go to India.”   I looked at him for a moment, and he added “And I want to go to Cambodia.”  He pointed up at this picture, hanging on the wall over the changing table, of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.  Justin took it when he traveled there:

Lotuses in pond at Angkor Wat

I asked Ronin when he wanted to go, and he replied matter-of-factly, “When I’m bigger.  And older.”

I knew Justin was the source of this, since he’s getting excited about a business trip to India in February.  When I asked him about it, he said he only mentioned it once, and did add that Ronin could go with him when he was older.   Justin is so happy that Ronin is curious about far-off places and wants to travel.  Both children are still asking about going on airplane rides and taxi rides and going to Mexico on a regular basis.

"Watch me jump!"

Claire is recovering from her cold.  She still says her ears hurt and she’s still a little sniffly, but she’s sleeping much better and is very energetic.  Ronin never got too sick, but is maintaining a constant runny nose.  He has developed the unpleasant habit of picking his nose and offering it to us like a present.   “Here, Mommy!”  “Here, Daddy!” as he holds his finger out.   They were running around the house today, so I captured a few videos for you, one of them holding hands and running around, and another of Claire kissing Ronin’s owie after the tumble they took in the first video.  You can hear Ronin demanding that she kiss his forehead.

My dad came out for the weekend and oh boy did the twins have fun with him.  Claire leaped into his arms and cuddled against him for longer than she’s ever cuddled with anyone, including me.  She just put her head on his chest and was calm and quiet.

Claire and Grandpa Bruce

We had a family get-together at Dinah’s house on Saturday.   Claire and Ronin have been getting really excited about parties lately.   We had them dress up so they could put on their party shoes and get in the spirit.  They like going to Dinah’s because there is always a party when we visit, and they ask about going to Dinah’s house or to a party or on an airplane or a taxi ride on a pretty regular basis.

Ronin in his party clothes

They were much easier to handle than at Thanksgiving.  It was partially Justin’s presence, but it was also that the house was filled with their relatives, who wanted to interact with them.  They weren’t running around trying to figure out what they could get into–they were talking to everyone and playing with them.  My dad made a paper airplane and Claire had a lot of fun throwing it in the air.  My aunt Shelley let them look at the pictures she’d brought.

Aunt Shelley

Ronin also loved hanging out with his Grandpa Bruce.   It was my dad’s idea to take them to the toy train museum in Point Richmond because Ronin loves trains so much.  When my dad was leaving, Ronin clung to him and asked to go with him.  Ronin started crying and said “I miss you, I love you.”  I could tell it took quite an effort for my father to not sneak Ronin into his duffel bag for the trip home.

Ronin and Grandpa Bruce

Ezra discovered a shoebox and one of the thousand ways to have fun with it. 19 seconds long.

These are absolutely fascinating and have raised all sorts of questions discussions as new parents. Watching this stuff makes me excited, scared and intrigued by what the future holds for Ezra….and makes me ask “what can we do to get him ready for it all?” I can tell you for certain, that I am looking forward to the communication technology that will make our nursing home life better.

Version 3.0 was created in 2008.

Version 4.0 was created last month.

At the hotel

We went to the same place as last year, in Playa del Carmen on the Mexican Riviera.  In so many ways, it was much nicer and more relaxing than last year.  Despite a few tumbles, we could trust the twins to run around on the jungle paths without falling too often.  We didn’t have to hold their hands constantly near the water features for fear they would jump in.  We even dared a few excursions this year.  We went to Xcaret, a nearby ecological preserve, where we floated down an underground river, looked at birds and turtles and sharks, and climbed up a small pyramid.

Floating the underground river

Claire and Ronin did really well in the river until about halfway through when a guy dressed up like a Mayan came over the wall and stood behind us for a photo op, shaking his leg-rattles menacingly.  Claire turned around, shrieked, and wouldn’t stop crying about the “scary guy” the rest of the way.  I tried consoling her, I tried distraction, I tried singing some of her favorite songs, and she remained trembling and inconsolable.  Once we left the river she was fine, and on our way out we stopped to look at the pictures (we bought the one above that was taken without a scary guy) and Claire just pointed out matter-of-factly the scary guy in some of the other pictures on display.

Ronin at Xcaret

On top of the pyramid

It was a long day,  but there was so much to do and see, we didn’t want to leave until we’d gone to all the parts we wanted to visit.  We ended up having naptime in a hammock.

Naptime at Xcaret

Claire recited her first poem while we were at the eco-park.  Upon not finding an iguana where she’d last seen it, she announced “Iguana all gone-a.”

The twins loved all the animals.  Ronin declared on the first day that the peacock was his favorite animal.  Claire liked the large catlike rodent of which we can never remember the name.  I have quite a few videos of them chasing the peacocks around.  They liked to ask the peacocks where they were going, and to tell them to come back.

In another change from last year, Justin was able to go scuba-diving twice.  I felt comfortable enough with the twins that I felt like we could be alone in this environment for a few hours, and it worked out well.  I took them for long walks on the jungle paths, and down to the playground for some climbing and bouncing and banging.  They loved the playground, and could play by themselves or with other children who wandered in and out.  Here is a video of Ronin reading a playground sign in Italian and thinking it says Ronin.

At the playground

We went down to the beach and played in the sand and had a snack.  I had to chase after one or the other occasionally, but all in all it was totally pleasant.

Sitting on the wall at the beach

We soon settled into a routine of eating, naps, walks, playtime, and swimming.  We had two inflatables for the children, and Claire in particular loved her crab boat.  She was not overly fond of water, but with the promise of her crab, she was happy to go bob about in the ocean waves.  Once she discovered how much fun the waves were, it was hard to keep her out.

On the beach

Justin and Ronin in the ocean

Claire really seemed to blossom on this trip.  Aside from the scary guy, she was much more personable with strangers than she ever has been.  She let people take her hand, ruffle her hair, and talk to her.  Both children learned to say “Hola” and “gracias” and “adios” and “topes” (speedbumps).  We noticed both of them did a lot of imaginative play.  Ronin liked to swoop about as an airplane, with his arms outstretched.  Claire started spinning the wheels at the end of the rollaway bed and said she was spinning turntables.  This was the first time we really noticed that they were accurate with plurals.  They said “There they are” vs “There it is.”  Ronin liked to stop and listen for jungle noises and said “Hear that sound!” whenever a bird called or a monkey howled.  Claire had a nightmare one night and was able to tell me that it was about the funny dog from the movie Toy Story.  Claire also frequently expressed emotion.  She’d run down the path, shouting “I’m happy!  Having fun!”

On the negative side, Claire has developed a new level of whine, and when something goes wrong for her, it is her first and sometimes only resort.  If she wakes up in the middle of the night, she cries out “Mah binky, wah wah.”  She would say it if she dropped her crab boat:  “Mah crabby, wah wah.”  It happened so much that Ronin started copying her without the actual whine included.  He looks at her and states “Mah binky, wah wah.”  Ronin was not as whiny, but he was really bad about opening the hotel door and bolting outside without us.  He could actually squeeze through the slightly open door even with the chain lock on, but at least it slowed him down a little bit.   After a total of probably 2-3 time-outs ever for them, Ronin had at least six time-outs for running outside that very first night we were there.  Thank goodness he got better after that, but he still needed a verbal reminder occasionally.  I think part of it was that the lure of all the excitement outside was no match for our disapproval at him running away.

Claire watching turtles

After a few days of ocean swimming in the afternoon, we went to the kiddie pool, and although it had no waves, it was a perfect depth for Claire and Ronin to get more comfortable in the water.  Claire liked the waves at the beach, but she LOVED the tiny pool.  She scooted around on her hands, kicking her feet, saying “I’m swimming!  I’m swimming!”

Justin and the twins in the tiny pool

Our last full day in Mexico, we went on another excursion, this time to the Mayan ruins of Tulum.  I was expecting a pleasant morning roaming around the site and taking pictures of the children against a beautiful, scenic background.  Wrong!  Claire was screaming and kicking so much on the taxi ride out there, Justin encouraged me to give her an emergency pacifier so the driver wouldn’t run off the road.  They’ve only had binkies for naps and bedtime for almost the past year, but this seemed like a special circumstance.  It quieted her down, but she refused to part with it once we got to Tulum.  I tried to take it back a couple of times, figuring the train ride to the ruins would provide enough excitement.  Not at all.  In fact, the train pulled up and we got off and she howled “Mah train, wah wah!”  She cried to the ticket booth, she cried on the walk through the gate.  I finally just took the binky away, figuring in another 10 minutes she’d forget about it with all the interesting things to see.  Like at the river, I tried distraction, I tried consoling, I tried singing, and again nothing worked.

Tulum

An hour later, Justin and I were both frustrated with Claire’s inability to forget about her binky (wah wah) or her train or anything else she became fixated on.  As far as taking pictures was concerned, I have about 5 pictures of Claire with mouth open and tears.  We were embarrassed about the tour groups we passed, trying to learn about the history of this magnificent complex while a small child howled in the background.  One guy stopped us and told us he had twins at home and he missed them.   We mumbled something quickly and moved on, and I secretly thought that maybe he wouldn’t miss them so much after seeing our cheeful little group.  Eventually, Justin told me to just give her the binky, and while I was trying to get it out Ronin took a tumble down the steps of the pyramid and banged his forehead and started crying.

Wah wah

All of us were so upset by then, we moved to a secluded area with a stone bench under some trees and tried to pull ourselves together.   We were promptly bitten by a swarm of mosquitos and fled, but not before getting massive bites.  It turns out that Claire welts up just as much as Justin does, while luckily Ronin and I don’t tend to react so much.

Ronin at Tulum

We were fortunate that most of our trip went so well, and it was only that last day that was really stressful.   The flights, although long and uncomfortable, were not as bad as they could have been.  We had a portable DVD player and that helped, and it also helped that both children think seatbelts are important.   We got in early yesterday morning, and I’m on my 8th load of laundry and wishing I was back at the beach, but it is good to be home.

I do not remember having this many aches and pains so early on with my previous pregnancies.  I’m hobbling around, so I’m totally amazed that we managed to go for a fairly long walk today.  After I get warmed up, it’s much easier.  We went to the Regional Park of Lake Chabot today.

Running down the path

Ronin in the cat tails

"Hi, Mommy!"

Claire going for a ride

Justin multi-tasking

Ronin

Claire looked adorable today in her new hat that she loves and won’t take off except for meals and bedtime, but she was moving so quickly I couldn’t get many pictures of her.    She turned out to be a blur in most of them.   I did get a video of her walking backward and Ronin giving her a sippy cup.  The twins were so fun to have along on this walk.  We attracted a crowd of “Aw-”ing spectators when they started skipping along holding hands and then stopped for an impromptu hug.   We heard people whispering “How adorable!” as they walked on.

Before I get to our playground pictures, I just want to share with you yet another sleeping baby picture.  It’s been a tough sleeping week (month, year), but I’m having a harder time than usual with their sleep shenanigans because Justin is out of town.  I don’t have anyone to come relieve me if it’s really bad, and I have no one to talk to when I finally get them to sleep and I come out of their bedroom.  Last night, I had a bad headache and I was really tired from only four hours of sleep the night before, and the morning sickness was on the verge of becoming overwhelming.  Amazingly enough, both babies snuggled into my arms, listened to a few stories, and then drifted off to sleep within 30 minutes of climbing into bed.  I took this picture to commemorate the occasion.

Ronin and Claire sleeping, 26 months

Today I went to a new playground with them.  I’ve been getting a little tired of my few tried-and-true fenced parks, and they’re getting old enough that they sometimes return to me when I say “Come back!” insted of running as fast as they can away from me.  It did happen once or twice today that one of them took off running, but they didn’t run off in different directions at the same time, so I was able to catch the runner with a quick sprint.  I was nervous because of the water, but it made a pleasant backdrop and they didn’t run straight toward it.

Ronin with grass

It is a pretty day, one of those days that actually makes me appreciate Autumn.  The air was crisp but the sun was warm.  Claire and Ronin paused for a hug on a rock overlooking the Bay.  They are both really enjoying hugging and kissing these days, mostly with the grown-ups, but occasionally with each other.  Ronin asks “Huggie?” which is his own invention for an imperative.  We realized a long time ago that “Downy”  means “Put me down!” and “Uppy” means “Pick me up!”

Hugging

They took turns pushing each other on the swings.   They’re still learning not to follow the swing when it goes forward so they don’t get knocked over when the swing comes back, but they’re improving all the time.   Claire is saying “Claire’s seat” in the video, for those who may not understand her.

Ronin pushing Claire on the swing

We were reluctant to leave, but we had to get home in time for a snack before naptime.  I can’t wait to go to this park with Justin, so we can go for a walk on the trail next to the Bay.

Examining the letters on the rock

We went to the Little Farm in Berkeley last weekend, knowing that we were getting there near closing time but desperate to do something fun with the babies AND get rid of our excess accidentally-bought celery.  Much to our surprise, they were having a big party there, with live music and booths.  My mom made some pinwheels for the twins at one of the booths.

Justin and Claire blowing on the pinwheel

It was a hot day, but Claire and Ronin danced to the music for a while.  Then we took a tour around the farm to feed the animals.  The sheep were particularly hungry that day.   The twins were delighted, and I regretted not bringing along our other bunch of celery.

Claire and teeth

After we finished off the celery, we strolled to the main area of the farm and found two tractors to climb on.

Tractor excitement

On the farm

It was a fun time for everyone, and we were glad we decided to go.

Loving the cat.

Mop Up – The stage of eating (usually dinner) where Ezra is done eating his main course yet is still hungry. At this point, we search the fridge for leftovers from previous meals, resulting in a mixed bag of breakfast and lunch for dinner.

During the aforementioned mop-up stage of dinner last night, Ezra decided to try to feed himself. He was enjoying some leftover yogurt from an earlier meal, and started to reach the fork into the yogurt container and then bring the fork to his mouth. Most of the yogurt seemingly didn’t make it into his mouth, but the effort, control and decision making were all there.

I started back to work this week, finally, after being off since late May.  It’s very exciting for me, and I’m still catching up on all the changes since I was last there.  The twins are really happy to be spending more time with their grandma, but they’re probably not going to like their frequent playground visits changing.  I’ve been taking them twice a day, most days.

Claire on the big slide

They can pretty much climb independently all over the big structures as well as the little ones.  I sometimes have to remind them to back away from the openings when they’re up high.  Claire loves slides and swings, and Ronin loves slides  and digging in the sandbox.  They both love climbing up ladders.  Claire has been jumping a lot lately, and Ronin has started practicing his hops going down steps.

Ronin on the swing

Jumping!

Let me examine your ear, Daddy!

My aunt Linda just sent a huge box of toys for Claire and Ronin.  It included a doctor costume and a doctor kit, a Little Hardhats DVD, a toy train, a couple of real cell phones (batteries removed), and some stuffed animals.  It has been non-stop excitement over here.

Paging Dr. Claire!

Both children are well on their way to recovery.  We thought Claire was catching Ronin’s tummy bug–she had a couple of episodes of turning pale and retching, but she managed to hold it in and no cleaning was necessary.  I kept her on clear liquids for the morning and she was back on solid food by lunch and doing fine.  In the meantime, I still entertained them at home as best I could, and Justin helped in the evening with the fantastic water-wasting hose game.

Last weekend we went to the Bay Area Discovery Museum.  It’s a little ways away, in Sausalito, so it means a 45-minute drive to and fro even without traffic, but I think it’s my favorite kid-related activity center so far.    We left after nap/lunch and still didn’t have time to visit all of the areas in the center.  It’s all hands-on.  Right now they’re having an exhibit about children in China, and there was an area where kids could try on costumes, play in a Chinese kitchen, practice speaking in Chinese, write characters, bang on drums, or pet a (stuffed) water buffalo.

Claire practicing her Chinese characters

Helping build the Great Wall

There was a train room, which Ronin just loved.  He hung out with the trains (have I mentioned he loves trains?), but the other side of the room had a Fisherman’s Wharf, complete with a large boat with fishing poles you could hook fish on, crab baskets with crabs you can raise and lower, a boat that rocks back and forth, a little tunnel to climb through and see live fish, and all kinds of pulleys and winches.  Claire brought up some crabs.

The outdoor area was immense.   There was a “tot lot,” a safe haven for littler kids where the bigger kids weren’t allowed.  Inside, there was a running stream with fish and frogs.  Ronin and Claire loved the water and played for quite a while until Claire got soaked and we decided to see the rest of the park.  There were areas with tunnels and burrows and statues of animals describing their natural habitats, a little quail maze, and a puppet show area where children or parents could put on puppet shows for each other.

Ronin at the stream

Outside the tot lot, there was a drumming area right near the hula hoops.  Claire has been really into drumming lately.  She’s been requesting a book every night lately called “Hands, Hands, Fingers, Thumb” which has a lot of drumming in it and she has been trying to recite it along with me and doing elaborate hand gestures.   One of the main recurring lines in the book is “Dum ditty dum ditty dum ditty dum,” and she’s been saying that as she bangs on things during the day.  Every time she saw a drum at the park she gravitated toward it.  These instruments had very pleasant tones and reminded me and Justin of Indonesia and gamelan music.

Claire with 3 drum sticks

There were more boats outside.  There was a complete boat to climb on, around, and in, and several sunken boats with treasure, for archaeological expeditions.  Claire did a little digging.

Looking for buried treasure

There was a replica of the Golden Gate Bridge under construction, and an area to put on hard hats and complete the girders.  There was a construction pit, with soft gravel, tons of dump trucks, more hard hats, and conveyer belts.  Ronin loved it.

Climbing through a hollow log

There was a maze made out of tree branches, and outside the maze there was a spider web to climb over and jump on, and more spiderweb mazes.

Ronin and the spider

I don’t think any of us wanted to leave when the museum closed at 5, but it was well past snack time and we needed to get home.  We tried to pose for some pictures outside with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.  Claire and Ronin sat still for about half a second, and then ran across the field away from us as fast as they could.

Sausalito, Bay Area Discovery Museum

Grandma Jan and Claire

It was well worth going, and I only wish it was a little closer so it didn’t have to be an all-day expedition.

Mom and I took the twins to Children’s Fairyland last week.   It’s the park that started the whole concept of theme parks, and it’s only one highway exit away from me.  Frank Oz of the muppets worked there, doing puppet shows as a teenager.  The founder had a vision of “fairytale and storybook sets that young children could play on ‘and become part of’; gentle farm and domestic animals; and live entertainment for the whole family.”  Walt Disney visited, and incorporated a lot of the concepts when he built Disneyland.  I went there as a child myself, when we lived in the neighborhood.  As an adult, the whole thing hovers between really cool and kind of weird to downright creepy in some areas.

Big dragon near the entrance

Entrance to the Alice in Wonderland tunnel

Ronin amongst the Seven Dwarves

Claire coming out of the Crooked House

Climbing the rigging of the Pirate Ship

Sitting in front of the door of the Musical Hallway

Claire in a rare moment of repose

There are tons of things to see in this park, and we didn’t get to see them all.  We went on a train ride and the twins went on their first solo ride in a little cage up in the air without me.  They did great, although my mom admitted afterward she was surprised I let them go.  Since they were the only ones there, the operator told me she would stop the ride if they wanted off at any point.  When Ronin got out, he said “Neat.”  I think my favorite part was the Musical Hallway.  My video doesn’t capture all of the different sounds and unusual music-making devices in the hallway, but it does show how pretty it was.  There were jewelled skylights also.   Claire and Ronin had a blast, and I’m sure we’ll go back in the future.

Two 2-Year-Olds!

It’s hard to believe, and at the same time, it feels so totally normal.   Justin and I were home last night, and  I was lying on the floor, and Ronin was driving cars over me and Claire was leaning over to see how close she could get to my face (pretty close) and I couldn’t imagine it any other way.   It was so nice.  We have a pretty low-key birthday planned for them.  Some presents have arrived in the mail (thank you, Bev!) and I know my mom has been making a spectacular costume closet extravaganza for them.    We have some trucks and cars for Ronin and I had a personalized board book made for them, showing them doing some of their favorite activities in rhyme.

Book cover

We like to read a book or two / We like to go on walks with you

Later today I’m going to make some little cakes and prepare a dinner for family and friends.   I think I’ll get some balloons, too.  I’m sure I’ll have more pictures later.  In the meantime, here is a picture of the babies sleeping last night, snuggling with their stuffed animals like I told you they’d been doing lately.

Claire with her puppy and Ronin with his bear

And last but not least, I have to share the funniest little video.  Justin showed the twins his talent of making a squeaky sound just by placing his two hands together.  Ronin was enthralled.  Justin tried to show Ronin how to do it, but it’s harder than it looks.  Ronin instead has been putting his hands together, making the same movement, but saying “Squeak, squeak, squeak” with his mouth.  It’s adorable, and I don’t know if he is just settling for second best because he can’t make the sound come out of his hands, or if he thinks that Justin is somehow making the sound with his mouth and making it sound like it’s coming from his hands.  But whatever the case, he does a great job.

Ronin and Claire preparing to paint

It has suddenly occurred to me that my little babies are turning TWO this upcoming weekend, and any “children under two are free” benefits that we might have enjoyed will be vanishing forever.  So I hurriedly looked up a couple of activities I’d always planned on doing and never got around to, like visiting MOCHA.    It turns out there is no under-two discount, but we still had fun.  Mom and I took the twins for an afternoon of hands-on creativity.

Claire working on her green series

Claire loved painting most of all.  She loved being able to dip her paintbrush into the pots and just dab away at the paper.  I have a whole back seat filled with her art right now.    They both tried scissors and glue for the first time, stuck their hands in bowls of buttons, shook glitter, and threaded buttons over pipecleaners.    Ronin had a lot of fun running into the play kitchen and then opening the window to enthusiastically greet anyone seated right outside.

"Hi!"

Another visitor commented that Claire and Ronin seemed so happy, and it’s true, they really do seem very happy.   They were loving running around, exploring, playing with things, interacting.  Even when I had to tell Claire not to take a piece of art that another boy was working on, she was only briefly disappointed and then quickly found something else to occupy her attention.

Claire the artist

They do always seem happy, unless they are in pain, or being thwarted in their desires.  Yesterday I was taking them to the playground and I didn’t get my normal parking spot so I had to drive around the block.  You should have heard the caterwauling in the car from Claire when she thought I was driving right by and not stopping!  Claire is actually getting very good at predicting where we are going.  She has started saying “Grandma” even 2 turns and 4 blocks away from my mom’s house, and “Home” when I get off at our exit.   This morning we went to a new playground and Claire didn’t know whether or not to believe me when I told her we were going to a playground, because she didn’t recognize the route.

Last week my mom, Justin, and I took the twins on an adventure to visit their Aunt Linda and their great-grandparents on a small island in McGregor Bay in Lake Huron,  Ontario, Canada.  There is no electricity and no phone service.   The cabin has a large glassed-in porch where we take our meals and watch the birds and the boats go by.  It is a simpler life.  We spent our days wandering the trails, picking blueberries and throwing rocks into the water.   We woke up at sunrise and went to sleep at sunset.  Event though there were propane lamps on the wall, Ronin pulled off the mantle the first day and when we replaced it he poked his finger through it.  Ergo, no lamp.  We slept under mounds of blankets and cuddled for warmth in the cool nights, and enjoyed the warm days.  We saw fireflies through our bedroom windows at night.

Picking blueberries

Claire was very good at picking blueberries.  She ate them with gusto, and made extra slurping noises for fun.  She learned quickly to only pick the blue ones, and sometimes she’d help pick them and put them in my hat if we found a particularly prolific bush.  Ronin, alas, never quite learned that blue ones were for eating and green berries needed to stay on the bush.  He ate them all, indiscriminately.

Ronin eating blueberries

We took turns taking the twins for walks and playing with them indoors and then occasionally taking a little time out for ourselves.  Justin and I took an hour canoe ride one day and picked more blueberries on a nearby island.   It is somehow immensely rewarding to find delicious food in the wilderness.  We took the babies for three canoe rides and that was not nearly as relaxing.  It is hard to hold a squirmy baby between one’s thighs while paddling and trying not to tip over.   My mom brought a portable pool because the lake water was so brisk, and we had Claire and Ronin splash around in that one day.

Drying off on Grandma Jan

Everyone took turns reading to the babies.  The front porch was the main baby-safe place to be, and that was the hang-out place.  We had toy cars, some colored pencils, drawing boards, and books.  Ronin fell in love with a truck book and asked to read it dozens of times.

Great-grandma reading to Claire and Ronin

Great-grandpa reading to Claire

My Aunt Linda reading to Ronin

The twins loved the boat rides, almost as much as the walks.  Maybe more.  They loved the canoe, they loved the motorboat, and if we’d gone on a sailboat I’m sure they would have loved that too.  We slept in the boathouse while we were there, and had to walk by half a dozen boats of various types–canoes, kayaks, motorboats–to get to the cabin for naps and bedtime every day.  And every time, we’d get pulled down the dock by babies clamoring “Boat ride!  Boat ride!”

Driving the boat with Aunt Linda

Leaning over the dock, looking for fish

We had a wonderful time.  Claire in particular would get more restless indoors, and would beg to go out walking or do something.  She was less content to sit and read, and always wanted to be doing something active.    Linda was very good about enlisting Claire’s help with dinner preparation and chores, which kept her interested and occupied.  We spent many happy hours exploring trails and climbing rocks, playing with or near the water, or just jumping around.   We were told by a flight attendant in the Sudbury airport on the way home that she’d noticed Claire the week before, skipping and dancing through the airport and was so impressed with her grace and liveliness that she thought she should be a dancer.

Rock climbing

The dreaded wetfoot! Not to be confused with crankyfoot.

I was very glad I had two pairs of shoes for each of them.  I bring soft-soled shoes for the planes so that our laps aren’t damaged as much by baby-stomping, but there were enough dunkings that I was happy to have one pair to wear and one pair to dry out.

Claire taking a walk

Ronin reaching out a helping hand

Resting on a bench, but just for a second

Claire peering through the grass

Linda and Ronin

The traveling to get there and back was quite extensive.  We could have gone to Thailand more easily, but our family wasn’t there.   Our trip there took a day and a half, and our trip back was one 18-hour haul, with one boat ride, a car ride, and three plane rides.  The twins did remarkably well until about hour 15.  Our troubles were offset (and maybe slightly compounded) by someone taking ill on the plane and me being the only person with medical training on board, so I left the babies with Justin and my mom and tended to the gentleman for a while.  We figured that would give us a little slack for any crying.

I think the trip was really good for all of us, though, and of course the children in particular.  Every time they get into a new environment, I can see how much they enjoy exploring their surroundings and arranging all of the new input in ways that make sense to them.  Ronin said his first sentence on this trip:  “Lion climbing up Mommy” as he pushed a little animal up my arm.  My mom told me it wasn’t a real sentence, but when I reminded her that she told me my first sentence was “Like a fish, pretty funny” and it didn’t even have a verb, she agreed it could be his first sentence.  Ronin started using a lot of gerunds on this trip, and Claire is going to town with her two-word combos.  Unlike Ronin, who would lie in bed at night and just say different words for hours as if he was studying, Claire is just talking without all the rehearsal.  “Yellow blanket,” “Mama drink,” etc.  They have both been saying “My” and “Mine.”

Ronin watching a dragonfly

The  children  got to spend good, quality time with their great-grandparents and Linda, and they got to know them much better.  Even I, who spent so much time with them when I was little, got to know them better.  It is interesting how stories take on different meanings with the dramatic shift, not just from being a child to an adult, but from being someone who was cared for to someone who needs to take care of others.  Even little incidents I’ve heard dozens of times from my mother are completely different now that I’m hearing them in the context of being a mother myself.

Justin, Claire, Lydia, Ronin, Linda, Donald, Jan, Marjean: four generations

It was companionable sitting around the dinner table, eating a meal that one of us had cooked on the gas stove, as we shared stories and looked out over the lake.  I realized I was continuing a tradition ~ I came out to this island when I was 7, 15, 30, and now I am here again with my children.  I swam and fished here when I was little, and hopefully if Claire and Ronin don’t remember this trip, we’ll bring them again sometime when they can remember it better.

Train ride at the zoo

My mom and I took the children to the zoo a few days ago.  We ended up going straight over to the rides, and stayed the rest of the afternoon, so the only animals Claire and Ronin saw were the props on the train ride.   They had a wonderful time and kept trying to go on rides that were too big for them.  Most of the rides had a 36″ height limit, and Claire is just barely under that at 35″ (75th percentile).  Ronin is 33 1/2″ (25th percentile).    Mom and I tried to stretch them onto their tiptoes and sneak them onto the roller coaster, but the operator said they were just itty bitty babies and they should come back later.  We told him they were tiny but adventurous, but he shooed us away.

Claire

We are leaving tomorrow for an adventure in the wilds.  We are going to spend a week on a small island in McGregor Bay in Eastern Canada with the twins’ great-grandparents and my Aunt Linda and my mom.  We will be without electricity or cell phone reception, so we’ll be completely out of touch, and we’ll be a long boat ride and then a long car ride away from any stores or other services.  I am taking a lot of care in my packing, knowing I won’t be able to pick up anything I forget or find out I need once I get there.  I learned my lesson from our trip to Wyoming, and am taking Children’s Motrin and some basic first aid supplies this time.

Unfortunately, Claire has picked up a stomach bug recently, and we have been spending more time than we would like giving her unanticipated baths and washing extra loads of clothes and linens.  This doesn’t bode well for long travel days and long plane trips and a vacation without a washing machine.  Last night we spent an hour in the middle of the night changing Claire’s pajamas, changing the crib sheets, wiping down the mattress, showering with Claire, and starting another load of laundry.  It was miraculous that we were able to do all that without waking Ronin, who had been asleep in the same crib and who was successfully transferred out and then back into it through all the activity and Claire’s crying.    I have packed extra clothes for Claire and more diapers than I had planned, and I also packed a change of clothes for the carry-on bag, just in case (gulp!).

I’m still off work due to my illness.  It has been 7 weeks, and I am definitely on the upswing but not fully recovered yet.  I never imagined I would be this sick for this long.   I haven’t wanted to talk too much about it, since this blog is mostly about the babies, but it has been such a major part of my life for the past two months and it has affected Claire and Ronin, too, in all the activities they’ve missed out on and the adventures we’ve had to cut short and the tv-watching they’ve done.   Luckily,  I am pretty sure I will be cleared to return to work when I come back, as long as I continue this trajectory.

As before, I will try to get some pictures posted when we come back but we’ll be pretty busy for a few days, so be patient with me.

Claire wearing Grandma Jan's hat

We had a nice 4th of July weekend.  Our noisy neighbors appeared to be gone and threw no parties.  We went for several walks in the regional parks and met multiple sets of identical twin boys while we were out and about this weekend.  It’s always interesting to see twins a little older than ours, to see what might be in store for us.   We went to my sister’s house for a barbecue on the actual 4th.  It is getting easier to go over there–Claire and Ronin entertained themselves by climbing up and down the stairs for quite a while, and it was the first time that we didn’t have to stay with them the whole time.

We red, white, and blue you too, Daddy

The twins also enjoyed playing with the kitten my sister is fostering right now and her two cats.  Claire is being increasingly good with animals and is not only gentle while petting, but brings toys to the cats and plays with their dangly toys with them.

Walking at Huckleberry Botanical Preserve

The end of the weekend was cold and foggy, and my sister, her husband, my mom, and we all met for a walk at Sibley this morning.    The clouds were so thick in the trees it felt like rain as we walked through them.

Walking at Sibley

Claire and Ronin slept through the fireworks last night.  Maybe next year they’ll want to stay up and see them, and maybe they’ll be able to convince me to stay awake too.