12 Weeks 4 Days Ultrasound

Yesterday I went to the doctor for a blood test to determine the gender of our precious baby. They also performed another ultrasound while I was there. The baby is doing great. He/she was actually pretty sleepy during the ultrasound; the technician kept trying to get a lot of movement, but he wouldn't have any of it! I don't blame him/her one bit; it was a rainy cold Monday, and he knew it!

Here are the ultrasound pics we received. They turned out real blurry, and not as clear as other images I saw on the screen. But we love them still! The doctor said to expect the gender results in 7-10 business days. I'm hopeful we'll get them early, but I guess we can't plan on knowing until next week.

I've been feeling well these past couple of weeks. I still get tired/worn out in the afternoons/evenings most days, but nothing drastic. My tummy has grown so much this past week or so. I will try to take a picture of my belly soon and post it. I'm just now starting to feel my belly all the time; it is starting to act as a break when I try to move certain ways to get something for the boys. It feels like I have a small basketball in there, and the boys just love to softly bounce on it when snuggling me; even they can tell a difference! I'm still in the in-between phase with my pants, but a lot of my shirts are getting a little snug around the tummy.

I'll post more within the week as we share the good news!

Gavin and Wyatt's 'Lessons' - Week One

As I mentioned in my ’11 months’ post, Gavin and Wyatt are 100% toddlers. Part of this ‘100% Toddler’ we see is their sponge like absorption of everything. It’s a well known fact that young children are hungry to learn and enjoy doing so. The past few weeks, I’ve realized that the boys’ learning curve has taken on a whole new dimension, and I want to take complete advantage of this.

The Past 11 Months

Ever since the boys were a week old, I’ve spent our entire days teaching them as we snuggle, love, eat, clean and play. Learning sounds, colors, objects, signing, etc were all part of our daily routine. There was no ‘system’ to our learning, but rather taught as ‘life happened’. If we were playing with balls, I’d talk about balls, shapes and colors of the balls. I’d explain how they roll and other similar objects. If the dogs would be in the room, I’d say and sign ‘Dog’, which would eventually be Gavin’s first and Wyatt’s second word. So our days were filled will great learning opportunities, but nothing ‘prepared’ so to speak.

This Past Week

Now each week I ‘prepare’ lessons for the boys. These are not ridged lessons by all means, but rather provide them opportunities to explore ‘subjects’ on a whole new level. Typically on Sunday night or Monday I’ll get things ready for the next week’s lessons. Each week I hope to focus on a color, shape, letter/phonics, object, number and body part.

Last Week’s Color: RED

I have colored buckets for each week. Last week I pulled out the red bucket. In it I pulled out many red toys the boys have around the house and placed them in the bucket; a red block, ball, car, hand towel, wheel, star, etc. During the day, we’ll put all the other toys to the side, and we’ll spend time talking about and playing with the color RED. The boys think this is a great treat! I use my easel too during the week for these purposes. I have cute ‘color’ cut outs to be used on bulletin boards that I put magnetics on. I use red markers that week too. I try to point out the color of the week during any opportunity I see the boys minds are receptive to it (not distracted with other fun).

Last Week’s Shape: CIRCLES

I had a circle strainer from the kitchen filled with all circle or round objects. I had balls, wheels, lids, bowls etc. I did the same thing with these toys as I do with the ‘color’ toys above, but at different times. I drew circles on the easel too. I’ve been pulling up YouTube videos on my iPad about circles for the boys. They love these short clips and often dance along to the music. I try to point out all things ‘circles’ during the week as well.

Last Week’s Object: COWS

The ‘object’ of the week can be an animal, something in nature such as trees, flowers, sun, etc, or it can be cars, books, house, etc. I chose ‘cows’ last week because we were supposed to go to the farm that weekend and they would be able to see cows up close and personal (but it was raining, so we will try another weekend soon). I had a box full of ‘cows’ and did the same thing as I did for the shape and color of the week. In our box last week we had a lot of ‘Little People’ cows that we lined up in rows, we had a flashcard with a cow, a puzzle piece and a photo I printed out of cows from the farm. We also watched YouTube videos of cows and listened to their mooing. The boys giggle every time they moo! We talk about the ‘sound the cows make’ and when I say, ‘moo’, the boys say, ‘moomoo’ too! I’m no artist, but I drew cows on the easel too ;)

Last Week’s Letter/Phonics: A

We sing songs I make up about the letter A and the sounds it makes. The boys love to say one of the sounds along with me, and are working on the other 2. They’ll sit there with their mouths open trying to get the other sounds coming out correctly, but we make a big deal of the ‘a’ sound they make! We also talk about things that start with the letter; airplanes, ants, apples, ape, alligator, etc. I have A magnetics of different sorts on the easel, flash cards with the letter A, and I draw letters upper and lower case too. I’ve even found a few Youtube videos about the letter. We also have the LeapFrog Fridge Phonics on the easel that I can press and we can sing along about the sounds of the letters.

Number:1

I was going to focus on the number one, but this being our first week, I’ve really never got around to finding the right time to focus on ‘1’. So I’ll incorporate this into next week’s ‘lessons’.

Body Part: Feet

As I mentioned in my 11 Month Post, the boys know where their head is as well as their hands. This past week we have learned feet! Gavin points to his feet or lifts them up about 80% of the time I ask him, and Wyatt about 50%. So, we'll keep focusing on feet this week until it's 100% like head and hands.

More About Last Week

One day I focused on just the shapes and colors; one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Another day we spent our time on cows, and then just lots of fun playing. Then it might be cows, shapes and color the next day. Each day we talk about our phonics of the week. I guess what I’m trying to say is that we are very flexible each day about when we have our ‘lesson times’. I go off of cues the boys give about when they are most receptive. Sometimes they are just having so much fun running around the house or exploring other toys or just playing with each other or snuggling mama. It’s important to me that all of this be a fun experience and not ridged.

Week Two Plans

This week we've started to explore the color BLUE and the letter B. We'll also look at SQUARES and I'm thinking TREES might be a fun object. I'd also like to talk about the NUMBER ONE and FEET. Happy Learning!!

One More Thing...

I knew I was forgetting some thing I wanted to remember about the boys at this age:

'Music'

The boys constantly walk around the house making instruments of anything and everything. They love to grab vacuum hose attachments, empty oatmeal containers, random hallow toys, etc and yell, sing or blow into them to hear them echo or whistle. They will do this all throughout the day, everyday. I bought them little 'recorders' at the dollar section of Target the other week, and the boys just love blowing into them and making them whistle! They also love the 'spring mic' I bought at the same time that amplifies their voice and causes an echo. They are learning what toys have the same effect and which ones do not!

11 Months and 100% Toddlers

It amazes me that in just one month, my sweet little blessings will be 1 Year Olds! I vividly remember how I felt a year ago and just how excited I was knowing I was going to meet our babies sometime in the next month or so. I knew they were going to be special, but I couldn’t even imagine just how amazing they would be! I often sit in awe throughout the day as I watch my boys discover the world and all the gifts God has given them. If I had to sum them up in just one short phrase, it would be ‘Lovers of Life’!

Here are some things I want to remember about Gavin and Wyatt this past month:

Walking and Such
Both boys are walking pros now! They walk almost 95% of the time; crawling only a few steps here and there if a toy is close by. They are fascinated with watching older children run and jump, and so have been practicing their running each day! They are very fast little boys, and yes… they often do go in opposite directions! Our home is very child-friendly and so the boys are free to roam around both up and downstairs with the doors closed (although, we are about to get the door locks in place, because they can reach the handles now and are fascinated with trying to open the doors!). The boys love exploring the house and all the fun to be had. Dog cages and playing under tables have been great fun the past couple of weeks. I do believe their all time favorite ‘game’ right now downstairs is to run around the kitchen and entryway throwing and kicking the ball. They will get such a work out doing this they actually start breathing hard. They seem so proud of themselves too when they kick the ball by themselves and then throw it and chase after it. They of course love mom’s and dad’s cheers too!

Cause-and-Effect Continued
The boys still LOVE all the cause-and-effect games/toys I mentioned last month. They are abosultly fascinated with putting toys in things (boxes, containers, etc). They have quite a few toys that you put balls into and watch them go down, around and through things, then do it again. They love pressing buttons to get the balls out too. They also have started to put lids on things as well this past month. This past month, both boys are doing well working with puzzles also. They both are trying to put the pieces in the correct spot, but are off by a millimeter or two often. We continue to work with puzzles so they can fine tune these motor and matching skills.

Pull Toys
The boys get such a kick out of dragging their ‘pull toys’ behind them as they walk. Wyatt’s favorite pull toy (a toy on a string with wheels) is his ‘Chicken’ they got for Christmas; it chirps and lays eggs too. Gavin’s favorite is the talking and singing telephone they got for Christmas too.

Mirrors
The boys love mirrors still. I got them a few different ones to carry around with them and they have so much fun. Gavin still presses his eye right up to the mirror and cracks up!

Little People
The boys have completely enjoyed playing with all their Little People toys this past month. Their Grandma Nadine had bought them a lot while they were still in my tummy over a year ago. They can play for literally an hour at a time with these things. They are great teaching tools too I’ve found. Plus, they are great fun to roll down the stairs!

‘Teaching’ my Sponges
Gavin and Wyatt pick up concepts and ideas so very quickly. I find myself constantly thinking of things to teach them and how, because they have so much fun learning and exploring. Just this week at Open Gym at Gymboree, the boys were watching a little boy roll a ball up a huge incline. After the boy was done, they went over there and rolled the ball up it too; having a blast. Same thing with all the other things the ‘big kids’ (1.5 to 3 year olds) do. They mimic us in action and words so much these days. Anyways, I really could go on and on, but I don’t think I can remember it all!

But because of their love for exploring and learning and their ability to do so, I’ve started making ‘prepared lessons’ for each week. Each week we have specific focuses on a color, shape, letter/phonics, number, object (animals, nature, cars, etc) and body part. Although we’ve been exploring all these things already, the boys are ready for more depth, which is where my preparation comes in to help! This week we are focusing on the color Red. I have a red box full of all red objects. We put everything away and focus on the red toys. Same thing with Ciricles. We’re looking at ‘Cows’ this week since we’ll be going to the farm and they’ll be able to see cows up close and personal! We’ve been singing songs about the letter A and repeating all the sounds it makes. They boys have great fun! I’ll write more about this in a separate blog later.

Devotions and Songs with Scripture
We’ve been trying to have daily devotions most days during the week. They of course can’t respond back, but they love the book and the Word NEVER comes back empty! We also listen to (amongst many other things) Steve Green’s Hide ‘Em in Your Heart, Bible versus songs. I’m so thankful for all the wonderful resources we have so readily at our finger tips, and pray God shows me many more as time goes!

Body Parts
As I mentioned above, the boys are little sponges. We’ve been working on names of different body parts; focusing on one at a time, and then moving on when they have that one down. For the past three weeks, when I ask the boys, ‘Where is your head?’ they very excitedly pat their head and giggle! Then, the past week and a half, I’ve asked them, ‘Where are your hands?’ and they wiggle and wave their hands! This week we’re learning our feet! Tickling always comes in to play with feet exploration!!

Songs, Dancing and All Things Music
The boys favorite songs this month are: If You’re Happy and You Know It (oh how they love to clap along!), Shake Your Sillies Out (they get so excited when they get to shake, shake, shake, and they do a great job all by themselves! Wyatt often puts his chin on his shoulder when he shakes; too cute!), and My God is So Big (and our fun arm gestures we do along with it)! They just love music, and still press all the radio buttons on their toys and begin to dance. We bought them a children’s mp3 player this month, and they have a great time dancing along to the songs!

The boys dance every chance they get! They’ve worked on and ‘perfected’ their dancing without holding on to anything as they are walking around. They always crack people up at Gymboree as they dance around the gym as they explore, climb and run! The other week, Jason had some music playing in the kitchen and I picked up the boys and started dancing with them; they love this, especially Gavin. He cracks up every time, and will often cry a little when I set him down afterwards because he wants more dancing! Well, after a couple of songs, the boys started chasing each other and a good song came on that Jason and I always dance to. So, we started dancing in the kitchen, which we love to do, and the boys were glued to us. They had such light and wonderment in their eyes as they watched their parents spin around the kitchen. We even got a few claps from them! I think that moment will be ingrained in my mind forever! A special moment with my husband, with our boys by our side and our lil’ one in my tummy!

Sleeping and Eating
Sleeping and Eating is about the same this past month, except naps have become a lot more routine. Naps are about 9/9:30 and 2:30/3:30, depending on how long they take their morning nap. The morning nap varies between 1-2 hours. The afternoon nap isn’t as important to the boys these days, especially if they slept well in the morning. It might only be 30 minutes, but averages about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Funny food story: So the boys are great eaters and eat very healthy. Well, for some reason the other day, I wanted a Sonic breakfast burrito for lunch after Gymboree. While I was there, I decided I’d get them a kids’ meal for their lunch for the first time (plus other stuff from home). They were so giddy with joy as they ate their chicken strips, it was hilarious. They were literally dancing as they ate (they do this with other meals, but, this was pretty cute and different for some reason!) Then, I gave them a little chocolate milk through a straw… their eyes got so wide and their smile so huge! Ha, it was cute! But… those lunches are of course far and few in between. It’s just a fun treat every now and then!

Second Funny Food Story: The boys adore the dogs and are really creating a bond. Well, little to my knowledge, they have been watching them closely… They randomly and now very often, lean their head down on the tray during meals, stick out their tongue and lap up food. They’ve watched the dogs eat and are now mimicking them! Oh my! They even doing this during snack time with Cherrios, etc using a place mat. I knew I’d have to teach them they can’t ‘be a dog’… but not at 11 months!!
We’ve also been working on eating Cherrios from a baggie the past week. They boys think this is great fun and are getting the hang of it. They’ll have at least 10 Cheerios in their mouth at one time… I’ll be thankful when they have all their teeth!

Milk
The boys still get their morning bottle, although they have been a whole lot less interested in it this past week. During meal times, the boys have been drinking cows milk from their sippy cup and really do enjoy it! The pediatrician recommended weaning them into cows milk solely by 11.5 months to 12 months. It looks like this will be real easy to do; especially since they aren’t very interested in their morning bottle these days.

Dogs

As I mentioned before, the boys and dogs are really bonding. Noddles especially gets so excited when the boys wake up from their naps. He races me up the stairs in a hurry to greet them in their rooms. The boys are doing great practicing their 'gentle' petting and of course love to climb all over them. The dogs are great with the boys and eat up the attention they pour out.

Stairs
As I mentioned last month, the boys are excellent at going up the stairs, and do so quite fast. Well, this month as Jason and I had previously decided, I started working with them on going down the stairs. Our stairs are very steep, without a landing half way through, so here is what I did. I gated off the stairs about 6 stairs up and let the boys climb up, then taught them how to go down on their bellies, feet first of course. Gavin took to it great the first day, but Wyatt was determined to turn around and go head first. I’ve really been trying to stress not to stop and play on the stairs or just ‘stand there’ for safety reasons. By the second/third attempt, Wyatt began to think going down the stairs correctly was great fun. Now, when we go up the stairs, he’ll often go down a few and then climb back up. He’s learned it’s more fun and faster to slide down on his belly!

Small Spaces and Climbing
Last month the boys were having trouble climbing through small spaces in which they’d have to wiggle their body or army crawl through. Just these past two weeks, they’ve really enjoyed trying this concept out more and more. Wyatt’s actually been doing great this week at mastering this; both at home and Gymboree. Another fun activity they’ve been enjoying is to climb over things that require much effort; such as high balance beams, large inner tubes, our kitchen table, etc. They’ll climb over using their strength and maneuvering their body just right, then giggle as they either summersault or peek behind them upside down!

Outdoors
We’ve really been enjoying the park and our backyard lately since it’s been beautiful spring weather here in Texas in January! The boys will collect leaves, push the wagon around, play ball, dig in the dirt, play on their swing set, etc. They got a sand/water table for Christmas that they just got to use, and had a ball. We just have water in it now, but oh how they had fun! I think we’re going to leave the sand out for now, and stick with water until they are a wee bit older. Perhaps I’ll cook up some pasta and let them play in that sometime.

BooBoos
Both boys tumble, hit their heads and other booboos because they are so active. But… poor Wyatt really seems to be ‘accident prone’. It’s not that Gavin’s steadier than he is, or that Wyatt does more… for some reason, the booboos just find Wyatt more. Lots of prayers are being said for our sweet little active boys. Praying for angels to work double duty and so thankful for God’s protection!

Bath
The boys are still really enjoying their baths. The only thing really different is Wyatt has enjoyed laying on his belly and sliding back and forth. Both boys find it funny to stick their face in the water or lap up the water.

Obeying
Gavin and Wyatt are doing great at listening to mom and dad. As they explore the house, I’ll ask them, ‘Where are you? Mama can’t see you. Come sit here by Mama.’ And they come (usually) right away. The only time they might not come is when they get in the dog cage and lose track of everything! They understand ‘no’ and typically listen the first or second time. The only ‘trouble’ we are having in this area is during meals. The boys are persistent about playing with their hair, slapping the tray and touching the chair/wall; all of which they know is not allowed. One will start, and the other will follow suite; part of having twins! They actually know all three things they can’t do during meals. If they are touching their hair, I say no firmly and they quickly smile and bang their tray or touch the wall. Hands have been popped, but still we work on this… We are working on this and being persistent and with time, I know they will stop this as well.

Words
The boys are still saying all the words I’ve mentioned in other posts, except Wyatt is now also saying Hi there and Dat (for cat). They’ve also gotten a lot better about saying Ball, and not just Ba. Here are some new ones…

They LOVE saying ‘Tickle Tickle’!! It’s just so cute. They’ll walk around the house saying this all the time, especially a couple of weeks ago. Gavin says it, ‘Dukaduka’ and Wyatt says, ‘TicaTica’. One day while eating breakfast, Gavin leaned over the highchair and when, ‘Dukaduka’ to the dog watching him waiting for scraps to be thrown her way. Just the other day, Gavin ‘chased’ me around grabbing at my toes going ‘dukaduka’!

The boys are also trying to say ‘more’; especially Gavin. He’ll say ‘mow, mow’ during meals when his tray is empty. Wyatt is saying a consistent sound when he wants more, but it doesn’t sound like more. I’ll have to figure out the phonics for it and write it down one day.

I’ve been working with the boys about asking for ‘help’ when they need something instead of crying. Gavin is doing great with this these days. I’ll be doing dishes or cooking and he’ll be in the living room playing and I hear, ‘Eh, Eh, Eh’, very clearly and distantly from anything else he says. It’s not ‘help’ per say, but it’s his version and the communication is working great!

And they mimic often these days! The other day Jason had a coke and ask the boys (jokingly of course) if they wanted a cocacola. Gavin looked at him and said, ‘Cocoa’. Then, as we do many mornings, we play with their turtle that shines stars in their room. I always say, ‘turtle’ and when I did this this morning, Gavin very clearly said, ‘tutle’ twice. It’s so cute watching them explore and learn their sound and how to communicate. Which is why we’re starting to focus on phonics with them in a planned way each week. They eat it up. This week is A and they’ve been mimicking 2 of the 3 A sounds all week.

Wyatt is really intentional about signing ‘milk’ during meal times when he is thirsty. I make it a point to acknowledge what he is saying and provide him with a drink right away. (I do not put the cups on the trays because they play with them and bang them on the tray. We’ll put it back on the tray at a later age…)

Growth Spurt
The middle of January, the boys went through probably the fastest growth spurt they’ve every had. In just two weeks, the boys outgrew most of their clothes they were currently using. Just at the beginning of January, they were in size 12 and 18 months. Two week later, all their 12 month shirts and some of their 18 month shirts look like mid-drifts! Some of their pants that were too long are now just fine and actually a wee bit short. Thankfully, I had a lot of hand-me-downs in the closet ready to be washed for the boys! I pulled out all the 18 and 24 month clothes and they fit SO much better! The 18 month one piece pjs that looked so long and I thought would swallow them, actually won’t last much longer b/c they fit just perfect. Their pants are still 12 months due to the length of their legs, but 18 months fit so much better in the waist. They’ve had to change jackets too which thankfully we had bigger sizes on hand. Gavin now weights 24.5 lbs and 24 lbs for Wyatt. Wow, all in just two weeks!

Snuggle Time
The boys have been so incredibly snuggly lately!! They’ve always enjoyed snuggles and hugs. Growing up, they have always sought out ‘hug breaks’ from playing and then continued with what they were doing. But lately, they’ll come and sit in my lap and just snuggle in for long periods of time. Usually it’s one at a time, but sometimes they’ll both hop on a leg each! They love to give hugs and kisses, which melts my heart. And they love to get ‘mama kisses’ all the time. I figure someday they are going to think my kisses are silly, so I have to get them all in now!!

That sums up all the things I want to capture for this month (I think). I know it’s a lot, but I am just so in awe as I watch them each day. My heart has so much love for these sweet boys. Words can not begin to express how thankful I am for them and the depth of my love. So for now, I’ll just leave you guessing. But based on how much I’ve written, I don’t think it’s much of a secret!


Here are a few pics taken throughout this past month. The first several photos the boys are sporting their new 'Big Brother Shirts'!

Here are three cute video clips taken today as they finger (or shall I say 'Body') painted!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcZM7VgrSio

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiqIqVMLAqw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ya3xdlMksYQ