Big Boy Beds

We are slowly trying to start the transition of moving the boys to their big boy room. We decided that step one should probably be to take the rails off their cribs. Pierce is able to climb out of his, but really never did. Only occasionally during bedroom time. So it was a hard decision for me to want to voluntarily rock the boat, but I knew it was probably time. We talked about it for a few days and then BJ had them "help" him which was a great idea. Blaine was pretty hesitant about it and first and had firmly stated that he didn't want his rail off. So we started with Pierce's and then he quickly changed his mind. I had a feeling that he hadn't really been able to picture it. They quickly got very excited about it and were pretty hyped. It was really cute! I wasn't sure what to expect the first night. My fear was that they would be all over the house at any given hour of the night or at my bedside ready to be up at 5 AM. But it went really well. The first few nights the only change was that Blaine kept chatting. I mean talking and talking and talking. Poor Pierce. He's always ready to go right to sleep, but it often takes Blaine a lot longer to wind down no matter how tired he is. I figured out that it was probably because he had a much more direct view to Pierce's crib than with the cribs. So really there wasn't much change from their cribs. They slept great all night and woke up in their normal time range. Not bad!

Then a few mornings ago I was standing outside their door listening and I heard Blaine say he was going to come into Pierce's crib and he did. I opened the door and they both grinned at me. I had a feeling this was maybe a new door opened. Sure enough, that night or the next night I hear Pierce start to half real/half fake cry. That's unusual for him and I quickly put it together through the conversation of Blaine saying, "I said sorry", etc. that he had climbed into bed with him again- this time unwelcome. I wasn't sure quite what to threaten if he did it again, but landed on the idea that he would have to sleep in the pack 'n play as Pierce didn't like the idea of sleeping alone. So sweet! They both went right to sleep and that was that. So last night before bedtime we reminded the boys again about staying in our own bed and if not, that the pack 'n play would be used. We tucked them in and I got in the shower. A bit later BJ brings the monitor in and we hear Pierce crying and Blaine trying to desperately hush him. He kept saying, "Hey, hey, hey. Stop crying! I'm sorry. Hey, hey, hey. I have to tell you something. Stop crying!". I was almost crying I was laughing so hard. He was so afraid of us coming back and he knew Pierce was going to get him in trouble. It absolutely had us in stitches! We couldn't even be annoyed. So we just let it go for a bit and within a few minutes everyone was quiet. We'll see about tonight!

So we're adjusting. I'm still not sure when we'll be ready for bunk beds. At first we had worried about Pierce going up and down with the ladder, but now I think it will be Blaine we have to worry about!

Lake Fun

The boys have done great at the lake so far this year. We've had a slow start as June is always a very busy month for us, but we've gone out about 4 times now and they love it. Pierce still asks for chex mix the minute we step into the boat though. He's still in it for the snacks. When it's just the 4 of us BJ backs to boat up and loads up the boys. They launch and then I park and meet them at the dock. It works well. They both enjoy swimming and Blaine especially took to it right away. Pierce was a little slower to warm up to water this year, but has made progress each time. Blaine quickly remembered how to swim alone and his little limbs never stop moving as he tools around the water. It exhausts me just watching him! This last time Pierce was super excited about getting in and didn't want to get out either. BJ was what we call "his dolphin" and Pierce held on as BJ swam around on his back. Both boys can jump off the boat as well. They're quite the little lake rats.

Last weekend was the biggest surprise though. It was just the 4 of us and we'd eaten lunch and swam and were getting ready to head back in. Blaine looked up and said, "So, does anyone want to tube or ski?". It was so cute! We said that we weren't going to today since we didn't have another grown up. We've offered every time for them to tube, but they've always declined. But then he said that he wanted to tube! We both looked at each other with raised eyebrows and kept asking if he was sure. He said he was and Pierce expressed his interest too. So BJ started to inflate the tube and get everything ready. I think we were both pretty sure we'd get everything all set up and then they'd both back out. But sure enough, Blaine hopped right on the tube with BJ! We started out at a crawl just barely moving the tube behind. BJ sat behind and Blaine was all smiles. BJ kept giving me the thumbs up so I slowly crept up the speed and Blaine did great the whole time and loved it! Pierce was next and did the exact same thing. I can't believe my babies were tubing! We were so proud.

The other funny thing from the day was when we were just cruising around a bit. At one point, BJ sped up quickly and did a sharp turn. Pierce let out a yell and BJ looked back to make sure everyone was ok. It was right at the same time that I realized he had happily yelled out, "Rock on!!". We both cracked up!

No More Pacis!

I can't believe I forgot to post about this, but pacis are a thing of the past. And I cannot believe how easy it was! Abbey had said how easy it was once she waited until Ava was closer to three, but I wasn't sure that would be the case for us. They (Blaine especially) were pretty attached to them it still seemed. This was about a month ago and I knew naps were definitely done. But they were still getting pacis for rest time. I felt certain that if they weren't actually sleeping in the day anymore, pacis weren't necessary. They didn't quite agree. But one day (after some potty training frustration) I decided to go for it. I think I felt like I needed some kind of big boy victory if potty training wasn't going to happen. So I told them that we weren't going to use pacis for rest time that day and that if they made it without they could have ice cream for a snack. Pierce was fine with it, but Blaine did his whine/cry for about 20ish minutes and then was fine. I had sent them down with wet chewey cloths as a substitute thinking that might soften the blow. They did great and enjoyed the ice cream after.

It had gone so smoothly that afternoon that I figured we should try keep the ball rolling for bed time. So I prepped them again and once again offered a small morning bribe- breakfast cake in the morning if they did it. I had envisioned homemade koffee kake, but it occurred to me later that they may have been thinking about the leftover Thomas birthday cake in the fridge. They went to sleep with their chewey cloths and no problems! I couldn't believe it. We kept listening in on the monitor incredulously. That was way too easy! The next morning Blaine (my fellow breakfast sweets lover) was totally on board with the koffee kake, but Pierce had definitely been picturing the Thomas cake. I figured a deal was a deal, so a small slice he got. :) They used chewey cloths off and on for a couple more weeks, but that was it. So easy!! I'm so glad I didn't stress about it before now or try to push the issue much sooner. Maybe three is the magic age!

3 Year Old Check Up

A couple of weeks ago the boys went in for their three year old check up with Dr. Hartman. The Kleinbergs had been here the weekend before so I asked Uncle Andrew if they would have any shots this go round. He said they shouldn't, so they were happy about that going into things. I prepped them a few days out and we did our own pretend check ups here (a favorite activity) and read The Berenstain Bears Go To The Doctor. They seemed to be pretty prepared, but you never know how game time will actually go . I was fairly certain one or both would just woof the whole time and not really prove the brilliant boys that I know they are.

They walked right back to the room and each bravely put out their arms for the blood pressure. They've never done it in real life, but knew what it was from their Fisher Price kit. They didn't blink and looked quite proud to be having it done. Next was weight and height. For some reason (and I remembered this from the 2 1/2 year check) Blaine hates getting on the scale. He got pretty stubborn, but BJ somehow got him to step on (maybe we called it a puppy scale?) and he ended up doing fine. Pierce did great. They were about a pound apart and the exact height for the first time!

Then Dr. Hartman came in and they bravely and cooperatively did every single thing she asked. It was so cute! The chatted with her and I was a very proud mommy! At the beginning she told us about a free service elementary schools offer where we can have their speech evaluated if we wanted. I don't think she was concerned, but just letting us know. By the end of the appt, she said, "Yeah, I'm not at all concerned about their speech!". When I looked at their 3 year ability check list later, it confirmed my certainty of their genius. :) Count to 3? Try to 10-20. Recognizes and can say some colors? How about all of them in 2 languages? I know, I'm a biased mommy, but I'm still certain they're ahead of the curve. :)

July 2014 Update

We've settled into a pretty laid back summer routine and it's been fun. The boys are my little buddies and it seems so boring to think back to when they couldn't talk and express themselves. They are constantly cracking me up and I know I need to do a better job of righting down the cute things they say right when they say them!

- Both boys still like to pretend to be puppies. These days Blaine goes by "Clifford" and Pierce is "Pluto" (and will religiously correct you if you call him otherwise). Pierce is the most into it and pants, whimpers, woofs, and sometimes crawls in true puppy fashion. He even gives pretend licks instead of kisses. This was after he tried licking for real and we said no thank you.

- Speaking of which, "no thank you" has become the universal phrase for "stop it, I don't like it". I'm proud of them because it's helped them to communicate in a polite way and that's the signal for someone else to know they mean business. I know I'm biased, but they really are two of the most polite 3 year olds I know. We were at Union Station the other day as a potty chart reward and a big day care group came in. The boys had been playing on the Chuggington train table and kept their cool as a swarm of kids slowly settled around them. They shared and took turns and didn't ever get upset. They both just get very serious and aware though as they hold on to their favorite train and insert themselves into the play. At one point a couple of boys (who were easily a head taller than Blaine) got in the the way of where Blaine was trying to push his train. He just kept saying, "Excuse me, guys. Excuse me." It was so sweet. They either ignored him or didn't hear him and eventually he just went around. I'm so proud of them!

- Blaine is still our friendly extrovert. He says hi to everyone with a genuine attitude and loves meeting new people. BJ and I both say that he's friendlier than we ever were as kids and probably still are now. It always surprises me about him, but he has such a sincere heart and just genuinely enjoys people. We think he'd make a great doctor someday. :)

- Pierce continues to be very structured and particular. Although, I've noticed he's a lot more laid back when well rested and in his routine. He seems to be slowly warming up to some new foods (hot dogs and ramens are recent added favorites), but his new excuse now for not liking or doing something is "I'm getting o-der and o-der, so I don't do that anymore." He has somehow missed the memo that getting older means trying and experiencing even more things than before! He still has his "Pierce voice". I'm not sure how else to describe it. It gets a little nasaly, but it's really cute. He really goes into it when he gets mad or worked up about something. He's still my sweet snuggle bug though and would waller and nuzzle me all day if I let him.

- They have become the best of playmates and we finally can have hour long stretches where they'll just play trains together. It's wonderful and makes having twins so very fun and special. They for sure share a bond now that no one else can quite understand. I love listening to them from another room as they pretend with their trains. They make up scenes at the blue mountain quarry, fix wonky whistles at the steamworks repair, and take turns getting clean at the wash down. I'm amazed at their imaginations and their sweet play time together. I feel like a spoiled mommy a lot of days to have a built in play mate and best friend for each of them.

Some funny phrases from the last few weeks...
- Last week I was getting ready to go to Thursday Zumba. I said bye to the boys as they were eating and Blaine all of a sudden said, "Wait, Mommy. Don't forget your jingle bells!". He had remembered my Zumba bell bracelets and didn't want me to forget. You bet I wore them that night!

- The other day Papa was teasing Blaine by getting him to look away so he could steal his cookie. He said, "look, there's a giraffe in the backyard." They both craned their necks to see and then looked back puzzled and disappointed. They definitely didn't get the joke and so he had to explain that he was just teasing. Then Pierce looked right at him and asked if it was just his imagination. We all cracked up!

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