Colter's message to Daddy

We miss Daddy!!!! Colter didn't go back to bed right away after the early morning feeding. He told me he wanted to send his dad a message. Here it is:

I also caught my little boy's smile on camera for the first time. We've capture'd Riley's grin several times, but Colter has made us work for it. It was worth it!

Martha and Lily visit

Today Martha and her little girl, Lily, came to visit us at Mom and Dad's house. They only live about 30 minutes away, so we wanted to take advantage of being so close and get together. Lily is almost 1 1/2 and was so much fun to play with. Here's a picture of what lunch is like with our group. Colter was sleeping, but Riley got to get to know Lily a little bit more. Mar is such a trooper to come and see us. She's due with their second baby in July, so I know she gave up some precious rest time to come over and hang out.

Here she is with her husband, Franklin. They came to our house for a couple nights at the beginning of April. They were so much help. Both of them got up in the night to feed Riley and Colter so Jeff and I could get some extra sleep. They also took care of them for most of the day on Saturday while Jeff and I ran around and got some errands done. Plus, Franklin took a ton of pictures of the four of us. He's an awesome photographer, and we really treasure those photographs.

Just a fun picture of the twins in the adorable denim outfits Emmy gave them.

Mom and I gave Riley and Colter a bath together again tonight. Sorry about the naked picture, kiddos.

I've posted a video so you can see them splashing away!

A little church and a little school

We went to Grandma and Grandpa's church this morning. It was wonderful to see more of the people who had been praying for Riley and Colter. They enjoyed the music (it helps that Grandpa is part of the praise team!) and slept for most of the time. The twins enjoyed posing with Uncle Shawn and Aunt Rita in their church clothes. They are getting so much love, attention, hugs, and kisses.

Rita and Shawn played school with Riley and Colter this afternoon. Shawn told me there were three subjects they were learning, but I only remember that math was one of them. You know, 1 stuffed hippo plus 1 stuffed hippo equals 2 hippos. We'll do fractions tomorrow.

Rita and Shawn are by their side whenever the twins are awake. They read us stories while they are eating, go with us (and the rest of the family) on walks after dinner, alert us if someone is crying, and supervised bathtime. It's really quite cute. Shawn says he's going to teach Colter how to run when he is 4. Rita plans to teach them how to walk. Both of them agree that the twins are quite lucky to have an aunt and uncle who like to play so much.

Speaking of bathtime, Mom and I bathed Riley and Cotler at the same time tonight. We just filled the tub up a little bit and they kicked around on their backs. This was great because each of them love bathtime, but usually cry while Jeff and I are bathing the other one. Hopefully we'll be able to give them longer baths and make evenings a little more fun.

We've had the funniest conversations with Rita and Shawn about nursing the babies. They had been really excited about feeding Riley and Colter. They were a little confused and disappointed when Mom explained that the babies are not drinking from a bottle. Mom told them I was nursing them. It immediately made sense to Shawn, who told Rita, "Yes, that's because people are mammals and mammals can make milk for their babies." [This is the same boy who informed her that she was eating a pig for Easter dinner]. I don't normally think of myself in terms of being a mammal, but I sure am! I love the way kids can see things in such uncomplicated ways.

First big trip

Well, I've learned that it takes almost all day to pack everything I think we need to take the twins to Raleigh for a week. This pile doesn't even include the stroller or my stuff! I'm sure I packed too much (Jeff would say, "yes!"), but it's hard to know what we will need. I'm really excited for Riley and Colter to meet their Aunt Rita (5 years old) and Uncle Shawn (7 years old). And from what I hear, they feel the same way. It will be awesome for them to see Grandma and Grandpa again, too.
The four of us left at 8:45am and met my mom in Charlotte at 1pm. Jeff transferred all the stuff to Mom's van (he he) while I fed the babies in the car. Mom drove us the rest of the way to Raleigh and Jeff went back home (I miss him already!!) for the week. We got to Raleigh just after 4pm. Not bad. The babies did great in the car. Each of them cried a litte bit, but they slept for the most part.
Here's Aunt Rita holding Riley. Doesn't she look proud?! I'll post more pictures tomorrow.

More visiting and playing

Mandi came over to visit today. We got to catch up while Riley and Colter were napping, which was awesome. It's always good to have some grown-up time during the day. Plus, she has a boy and a girl who are 2 1/2 years old, so I get a preview of what's in store for us.
Here she is holding the twins. She couldn't believe how big they are!

We keep using the bumbos during playtime. Governor was overseeing today's activities. I'm not sure what he thinks of the babies. When he comes inside he looks through the house until he's found them both. If they're within licking distance, he gives them a good lick across the face as he walks by. But, if either of them is crying very loudly, he goes to the door and asks to go outside. I can't blame you, Gov! I keep telling him they'll get more fun as they grow up.

Here's Colter showing off his O.U. outfit with Jeff. Aren't they handsome?

Happy Birthday, Gram!!

Today is Gram's actual birthday - Happy Birthday, Gram! Before Papa Jim took her out for lunch and a movie, she came over to watch Riley and Colter for a couple hours so I could go to the gym and run some errands. Wasn't it nice of her to spend her birthday morning helping us?

Here she is "visiting" with Riley. Those two could talk for hours. The topics of conversation are quite varied: shoe shopping, tea parties, etc. While Riley isn't actually using words, she does lock eyes and goo and coo for a long time. It's actually quite funny. Colter has just started the cutest habit. He loves to cling to are shirts when we're holding him. He's also giggling more often, including in the car when Riley is crying. I'm telling myself he's not aware enough to be laughing at her yet. It must be the monkey mirror that's so amusing.
I've gotten so I really love the mornings. Both babies are so happy and excited to be up and playing, that there's lots of smiling and cooing from each of them.

Gram's Birthday Party

Tonight we went out to dinner to celebrate Gram's birthday. As usual, Riley and Colter had a wonderful time. If only we could afford to go out to dinner every night, since they are a lot less fussy than the average evening at home.

Colter loved playing with Papa Jim!

They made their usual trip around the table, getting loved on by everyone. What lucky babies!

Jeff and I had so much fun that we lost track of the time. After the meal, the babies started getting a little fussy. We were chalking it up to being evening, and just tried to jolly them along. We didn't realize how late it was until someone asked, "could they be hungry?" Oh yes, it was 8:30pm, and they were quite hungry. Poor things. It was way past time to feed them. Good thing we didn't have far to drive to get them home.