Momma's little project

This past weekend I worked on a special project for my two sweet little ones. With the weather being so pretty we have been spending alot of time outdoors and so I wanted to get them some more things to enjoy outside. My top choice was a playhouse but we simply did not have $200-$300 to invest in something like this right before Christmas so I started checking craigslist to see what I could find in our budget. I was bummed when they were still in the $100 range and I kept missing out on the ones that were in the $50 range because people would purchase them right away. One afternoon I got a call from one of the listings that I called on and he said that his first buyer fell through and so he was offering it to me. I agreed on $50 and Preston was a great sport in driving all the way to Dacula ,which was half way to Athens in order to pick it up. We arrived and the playhouse looked TERRIBLE! It was in awful condition and the paint was all chipped off. Preston looked and me and said "honey are you sure you want this?" Since we had driven so far he agreed to pay $40 and take the playhouse home. I had high hopes that I could get this little disaster looking great. I scrubbed, sanded and after a few cans of spray paint I was very impressed with my work. I wish I would have taken before and after pics. Gracie and Bailey have loved it and it is so fun to watch them play together inside the house. I like that one side opens up since we will always have two little one's sharing the fun! Our project today is to run to Walmart to pick up some flowers for the flower boxes and some kitchen toys for the kitchen, oh how I love being able to have fun to do lists!

Come on in and play!

We love playing with the mailbox.

Bailey is checking for his mail.

Gracie is cooking in her kitchen.

So much fun to play peek a boo through the windows.

Gracie is all ready for company in her new house!

We learned how to say "snack" just in time for our new table.

14 Months

14 Months Old

"We love to giggle at each other in our hoodies"

We have been very busy the last month and have been having lots of fun at 14 months old. We are continuing to love our twins play group that we meet with twice a month and have been making lots of new friends and having fun play dates with other twins. I have joined a Mom's group called "Birds on a Wire" and so we attend that every Monday morning and while I have group with other moms Gracie and Bailey play with their friends in the child care at First Baptist of Alpharetta. I have been loving this group and so that will be another post! We also started swim lessons that we attend each Saturday. Our first lesson was on Gracie and Bailey's 14 month Birthday so it was a fun way to celebrate the day. Their first lesson went great and they seemed to have lots of fun. They learned how to blow bubbles in the water, how to kick their legs, how to move their arms and how to hold on to the side of the pool. The instructor said that they have been some of her youngest participants and that she thought their skill level was great! We also became members of a gym where I can work out while Gracie and Bailey go to play with other kiddos. They have lots of wonderful children's fitness activities as swim lessons are our first to try but we are looking forward to baby gymnastics soon.
At 14 months old we are working on lots of "transitioning." We are still trying to come completely off of our bottles and we are super close. I have tried not to become frustrated as it has been a very hard process. The pediatrician stated that for preemies they really have until 18 months but I am exhausted with washing bottles and so I am determined we will be off of them soon. We sometimes are only taking one nap a day and I think we are moving more consistently in that direction. The weather has helped immensely in that we are able to break up the day with spending lots of our time outdoors. Gracie and Bailey are feeding themselves and are doing great with their table manners. They have both learned to say "all done" instead of screaming when they are done with eating. We are still working on not throwing the food that we don't like on the ground but cookies seem to be helping with enforcing good behavior. I have introduced "time outs" although I am not really sure if we entirely get the concept. Their time outs are either in the pack and play or turned around in their high chair but it seems to be more of a punishment for who ever did not commit the misbehavior because they miss their twin so much. I am amazed at how smart Gracie and Bailey are at this young age. They can follow simple commands...if I say "eat" then they go to their high chairs, if I say "outside" they will run to the door and the one that I love the most is when I say "love each other" and they will hug each other. Gracie loves to read books and she will bring book after book to me to read to her. She also loves to ride Dixie who is such a good sport for putting up with her literally climbing on her back. Gracie has recently discovered how to dance although she can only move backwards when she is dancing and she shakes her little hands. Bailey loves to play ball and he can point to his facial features. His favorite game is peek a boo and he is constantly giggling at something. He loves to talk on the phone to his daddy on his way home from work.
I feel amazingly blessed that my husband gives me the opportunity to stay home with my sweet babies to watch all of their growth. I am learning more and more each day about how my role as a mother these first five years is vital at shaping who Gracie and Bailey will become. I absolutely love staying at home with Gracie and Bailey and capturing all of their "firsts."

Our first swim lesson

A glimpse of hosting twin playgroup in our playroom

We love going for wagon rides together

Gracie thinks she is super girl and climbs up our 5 ft play set

to go down the slide, over and over again!

Bailey isn't quite walking yet so this is how he gets around

Our first time trying ravioli, what a mess!

Gracie and Bailey's play pumpkin

Cousins: Little to Big!

Earlier this month we went to Macon in order to celebrate 3 family Birthdays Michael's, Mary Ellen's and Laura's. The twins had a blast as usual because they absolutely LOVE being around their cousins. They instantly have smiles on their faces when they see their big cousins and are entertained all day by their craziness at Grandma's house. Gracie and Bailey also will eat anything if it is fed to them by their cousins. Michael, Molly Kay, Addie Mae, Andy and Lauren are all such great helpers that I think I am going to put a bid on them for the summer months!

As much as I love seeing Gracie and Bailey interact with their cousins, I am SO excited to announce that they are going to be BIG COUSINS! Preston's brother, Parker and his wife Nicole are expecting a sweet baby girl around March 22. At the end of the month they hosted a "gender party" where they announced that the baby was going to be a girl and that she is going to be named Mary Elizabeth McFarland. We are looking forward to meeting Mary Elizabeth and introducing her to the craziness of cousins! I have been practicing with the twins in order to prepare for Mary Elizabeth's arrival. We "love" our baby doll and practice giving her hugs and kisses. So far we are still licking the baby's forward, giving it extra drooly kisses and carrying her around by her leg and so it looks like we have lots of practicing to do!

Enjoying Grandma's backyard in Macon

Grandma spoiling Bailey with some cake
Our big girl sitting on the steps

Our family anticipating if our new cousin will be a boy or girl

Family celebration after the announcement of Mary Elizabeth

Lil Dawgs

The Georgia Bulldogs haven't had much luck this season but we sure have enjoyed getting our little ones dressed up to enjoy the games. We started working a couple months ago on teaching Gracie and Bailey how to celebrate a touchdown and they seem to have learned it perfectly. Here are a few pics of us cheering on the dawgs this year.

Gracie loves sampling the tailgate food!No tailgate is complete without our friend Uga

Celebrating our first touchdown of the year!

Gracie is practicing her cheerleading moves with Uncle Parker

Time to get excited about the GA game

Practicing our touchdown celebration

Gracie enjoying the game from her favorite seat on Hershey!

All this celebrating makes us thirsty

Waves Crashing

We were blessed to be able to enjoy a wonderful trip to the beach earlier this month. I think it was the twins fourth trip to the beach house and they just turned one! It has been fun each trip to watch Gracie and Bailey enjoy the beach in different ways while they grow and develop. Last trip they were just able to sit up on their own and this trip they were both standing independently, crawling and Gracie is walking. They definitely seemed to have more fun while enjoying their independence. I also had more independence with not having to hold them as much and not having to pump to produce milk which was great to be able to spend my time outside enjoying the sun instead of inside. We spent most of our time on the deck in the pool but we did enjoy the beach a couple of days. Gracie had no fear and loved swimming in the ocean and jumping in the waves. Bailey seemed to remember his fear of the ocean and wanted nothing to do with it the first couple of days. I felt so bad as he would just cry and cling to me as he heard the waves crash. I was such a proud momma by the last day when my Bailey conquered his fear and he decided to get in the ocean and enjoy it. He spent nearly the entire day in the ocean and was giggling and jumping in the waves along side his sister. It was such an awesome experience to watch my little buddy trust his mommy and daddy and decide to join us in the fun. Preston had the chance to enjoy a couple of days golfing with his brothers and dad and I was able to read in the sun while the babies napped. Long walks on the beach always seem to do good for our souls as we are reminded of how God makes the most awesome creations.

Our Family on Gracie and Bailey's 13 month Birthday.

Gracie playing in the sand.
Bailey is my handsome little sailor.

Gracie and Bailey enjoyed the beach with Dixie.

Grammy with her two sweet grandbabies.

Bailey going for a walk on the beach with his puppy.

My sweet Gracie.

Family fun on the beach.

Enjoying the ocean together as a family of four!

13 Months!

Happy 13 Month Birthday to my sweet babies! Gracie and Bailey celebrated while enjoying the beautiful Beach in Fort Morgan, AL

Toes in the Creek

As I sat down to write this I glanced at the calendar to check the date and it made me think about last year at this time. My sweet babies were just up to about 4 pounds and they were still in the NICU breathing with the assistance of oxygen and being fed via a feeding tube, what a difference a year has made. I am in awe when I stop and think about last year compared to this year and I pause to give thanks to God and also the wonderful people who cared for our family. This past weekend we had a blast spending time together and enjoying the great outdoors. The weather was beautiful and so we visited some of our favorite local parks.

Gracie and Bailey with Dixie ready to start exploring.

Our first stop was Windermere Park where we enjoyed watching Dixie swim in the creek. We decided to put our toes in and feel the cold water.
Daddy and Bailey love to watch Dixie fetch sticks in the creek.

Gracie decided to put a little more then just her toes in and was soaked from head to toe!

When we got home from the park we took extra long naps and then watched Daddy mow the grass. We love to wave to him from inside.

Sometimes we are able to flag him down for a ride.

Our second stop was Central Park where we met our friends Amy, Doug and Joshua. Double slides are so much fun because we can go down together.

We absolutely love fun family filled weekends.

Last year at this same time we were just able to take our first family picture. Couldn't imagine then that we would be all going down a slide together this year!