"Twin" Talk

I captured this audio while I was laying in bed this morning listening to the boys play through the monitor. It wasn't long ago that they wouldn't get outta bed when they woke up - they would just call for us..Now they get up and either get in our bed or just turn their TV on and play while watching TV - and that's what happened this morning. Believe it or not they are starting to talk a lot better. Or I should say they talk to us better, but I still have a hard time understanding them when they're talking to each other. They are starting to use some English, though.




Raising twins has been an amazing experience..You not only get to witness an unbreakable bond, but you also get to witness each child fighting to become their own individual. When you say "twins" people just automatically think "same", but that's not true..I've really started noticing one boy may be better at doing something than the other one , or one likes something more than the other..Then there are some things that they both love..Just within the last couple of months Jason and I have started distinguishing whose who just from hearing their voices and cries..They're growing into a normal 3 year old (I say normal, but not certain I know what that is) They mock, make fun and tattle on each other, which is annoying at times -but also hilarious (sometimes you just have to sit back and laugh - it's the only way to keep your sanity)..They can fight like CATS AND DOGS, but in the next moment turn around and play so nicely together. Their moods and attitudes flip flop depending on the day and people their around - like right now Eli is the more outgoing one while Austin is more reserved..I've always thought Austin will be the sneaky twin..Around Amy & Eric Austin likes to run around naked, while Eli is hesitant - Austin loves the laughter and attention, while Eli really doesn't. Every now and then he'll join in with Austin's nakedness - then things really get crazy casue they feed off each other. Eli will try a new adventure before Austin will..But all that could change tomorrow..

Letter to Santa

We were finally able to write Macie's letter to Santa. We've been talking about it for days and finally got it done. We still have the boys letters to do, but I can already tell you the only two things they want are:

1). 4-wheelers

2.) big trucks

Here's the boys being themselves. They've been wearing our stockings around the house pretending to be Santa.



Funny Story:

Jason and I were in bed while I was entering this blog and looking at the above picture. There was another picture of Austin smiling and his smile was all jacked up - plus his dirty face didn't help matters. Here's our convo after I was laughing at the last picture:


me: I sure love my kids.. They can't get much cutier -ya know.
jason: Yeah, like when Austin woke me up first thing this morning having to go poop - hahahha

Here's the funny smile I was talking about.

I'm excited to say my Christmas shopping is just about done and my Christmas cards will "hopefully" go out Monday..My wrapping is also caught up..This is a 1st for me!!!

Our painting on the Christmas characters aren't going too well, though..Snow White is done and we've been working on Snoopy - poor Piglet hasn't been touched..We may save him for next year - don't know yet..

The First Thanksgiving

Macie had her first school Thanksgiving feast. Her classmates dressed up as Indians and Pilgrims. Macie decided to go with a pilgrim & looked just like one with her hair curled and puffy sleeves.

Macie's class also made butter and got to eat it on their rolls. I didn't try any, but it looked like butter. Pretty cool!!

Thanksgiving Fun Facts: (ya'll know I love these)

• Though many competing claims exist, the most familiar story of the first Thanksgiving took place in Plymouth Colony, in present-day Massachusetts, in 1621. More than 200 years later, President Abraham Lincoln declared the final Thursday in November as a national day of thanksgiving. Congress finally made Thanksgiving Day an official national holiday in 1941.


• According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Minnesota is the top turkey-producing state in America, with a planned production total of 49 million in 2008. Just six states—Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Virginia, Missouri and Indiana—will probably produce two-thirds of the estimated 271 million birds that will be raised in the U.S. this year.


• In a survey conducted by the National Turkey Federation, nearly 88 percent of Americans said they eat turkey at Thanksgiving. The average weight of turkeys purchased for Thanksgiving is 15 pounds, which means some 690 million pounds of turkey were consumed in the U.S. during Thanksgiving in 2007.


• Snoopy has appeared as a giant balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade more times than any other character in history. As the Flying Ace, Snoopy made his sixth appearance in the 2006 parade

http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=Minisite_Generic&content_type_id=60820&display_order=3&mini_id=1083

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!!!!!!!

Star of the Month

Macie is STUDENT OF THE MONTH!!!!! We are so very excited cause as you know NOT everyone in her class can be student of the month. In honor of her accomplishment she gets her:

1. name/picture in the paper (will appear in Wednesday's edition)
   
   


2. a certificate


3. a pin


4. her name on her school's hallway bulletin board
   

5. breakfast for her, Jason and I..She was the most excited about this!! Both Sunday and Monday mornings Macie has woke me up around 5am telling me to get up and take her to school for her breakfast - hahahaha.. Sunday morning she said "it's time to take me to school cause - I'm student of the month" and her head was just a bobbing matter of factly.

Bag of Goodies

This morning went great!! Macie ate her Student of the Month breakfast with 2 of her friends and will have her classroom Thanksgiving Feast later this morning..

Here is Macie's picture that is hanging on the wall outside her classroom.

SSSssshhhhh!!!!!!!

Okay, I'm so excited to share one of Macie's Christmas presents from Santa...Awesome Rachel got me an old school desk and Jason is painting it. He just started, but it looks so good..If all goes as planned Macie will L-O-V-E it..

Here are some more pictures of what else we've been working on. We add new Christmas characters to our yard every year and this year we're doing Snoopy, Snow White and Piglet..We're nowhere near done and poor Snow White and Piglet look pretty rough, but hopefully we'll get there before next weekend..

Getting the Boys Involved

As I said in my earlier post, I'm wanting to get the boys more involved in the blog..So I took this video while they were playing today and this is what happened.

Austin was the first one to act silly, then monkey see monkey do..

*I ordered my photo Christmas cards tonight. I can't wait to send them out!! I must say - they are cute!!

We're On A Team

As most of you know, Saturday was Macie's basketball draft. She was lucky number 13..All the girls had to dribble the ball from half court and try to make a basket..Macie tried really hard, but missed her shot - but that's okay..She's been practicing all week and will get better and will be AWESOME. To make things better her friend Maggie is on her team, so she's really pumped for their 1st practice Friday night.

After Macie took her shot a guy (to whom I didn't know) said to me "some of the most talented people are left-handed). That was very thoughtful, I thought..He's right, she'll be something spectacular someday..

*I'm going to try and get the boys more involved with the blog..

We were at the mall Sunday and I tried to get them to sit on Santa's lap and they shook their heads "no" in horror, so I guess their still too shy for him..

Why Does Everything Taste Bad After You Brush Your Teeth?

Okay, I know what your thinking - and your right..Slow blog day - but I've always wondered about this. The explanation is a little in depth, but now I know..And do I care - NO!! ;0D

This came from yahoo.com:
If you have no idea why we’re pondering that question today, go brush your teeth real quick and grab a drink (orange juice, iced tea, beer—anything except water). Awful, isn’t it?You can thank sodium laureth sulfate, also known as sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES), or sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) for ruining your drink, depending on which toothpaste you use. Both of these chemicals are surfactants – wetting agents that lower the surface tension of a liquid – that are added to toothpastes to create foam and make the paste easier to spread around your mouth (they’re also important ingredients in detergents, fabric softeners, paints, laxatives, surfboard waxes and insecticides). Nice, huh?

While surfactants make brushing our teeth a lot easier, they do more than make foam. Both SLES and SLS mess with our taste buds in two ways. One, they suppress the receptors on our taste buds that perceive sweetness, inhibiting our ability to pick up the sweet notes of food and drink. And, as if that wasn’t enough, they break up the phospholipids on our tongue. These fatty molecules inhibit our receptors for bitterness and keep bitter tastes from overwhelming us, but when they’re broken down by the surfactants in toothpaste, bitter tastes get enhanced.
So, anything you eat or drink after you brush is going to have less sweetness and more bitterness than it normally would. Is there any end to this torture? Yes. You don’t need foam for good toothpaste, and there are plenty out there that are SLES/SLS-free. You won’t get that rabid dog look that makes oral hygiene so much fun, but your breakfast won’t be ruined.

So there you go - there's my thirst of knowledge for the day..

On another note - Macie did have her basketball draft Saturday - and I'm ever so patiently waiting for her coach to call me..

GOD BLESS AMERICA

Today was Macie's 1st school performance!! Her school had a Veteran's Day assembly to honor all the men & women who have fought for our country. This just wasn't the kindergarten classes, but the WHOLE school. Kindergarten - second grade, which totals about 800+ students..Everyone did an outstanding job & Macie looked cute as ever!! I've posted a tidbit of the video (which I know the quality is horrid!! It's a video of a video). You can't see Macie in the video, she was standing behind a tall boy, so she's in the vicinity of the tall boy the camera keeps getting close too..

Digging for Diamonds

Saturday the kids, my mom and myself loaded up and went to Murfreesboro to dig for diamonds. I'll start off by saying the place was packed. Hardly a parking spot vacant. People come from all over to find that "needle in a haystack"..There were people from Missouri, Louisiana and Texas. We had no idea of what to do, so we just started digging. The top layer of dirt was ssoo hard, but once you dug a couple of inches the dirt turned to a mud like clay that got worse once you tried to clean it with water. That was more work than my mom and I were willingly to do, so we took our dirt home (which is not the way to do it, says an older man from the wash stations - hehehe)..Needless to say I didn't get anything and my mom is still working on hers.

K-U-DOS to the ones who have found something b/c it's a lot of work. Definitely an experience! The weather was nice and we got to enjoy the sunshine. The kids had fun and for being TOTALLY outta their routine - they did good..

*Funny story about Eli - the whole time we were at the diamond mine Eli kept falling. I mean constantly and I kept saying "what is your deal". Three hours later I figured it out. We were sitting in Buddy's Ranch House Cafe and noticed his boots were on the wrong feet. A-N-D guess who put his boots on? ME!!!!!!! So I was his "deal" - poor guy..I think he liked falling in the dirt, though ;0)

Sunday the kids got to ride in papaw Richard's tractor and 4-wheeler, and got to feed the fish in their pond. And of course I made them pose for Christmas pictures - AND GOT SOME GOOD ONES!!! I'm so excited - usually 400 pictures later I still don't have any good ones and don't send photo Christmas cards out - but will this year..YEA!!!!

Soccer Star

Tonight was Macie's trophy night for her soccer team the "Wild Cats". Macie was so excited to get her 5th trophy. She was amazing this season! Her very first time to play was Fall of '07 and scored only one exciting goal, but let me tell you it was the most exciting goal ever..Then Spring of 'o8 she scored 12 goals. So that brings us to Fall of '08 with a massive 30 goals!!!! When the assistant coach gave Macie her trophy he said: Here's to one of the quietest players on the team, BUT one of the most ferocious!!! I thought that was the sweetest thing!! Who would have thought that calling my sweet daughter ferocious would make me so joyful - hahahaha..

The coaches also gave each teammate T-H-E CUTEST paper bag scrapbook..I've never seen one in person until now and I love it!!! SO CUTE!!!! The team colors just add to the cuteness..