Sweet with the Great Grans

I took this picture when we had the family over for the twins second birthday celebration. When my Grandmother and Grandma had settled in on the couch Connor grabbed a book, hopped up on the couch to read and share it with them.

Just love this sweet shot.

Dancing Style Update

The twins have always loved music and like many kids they love to dance. The other night Carl had to work late so we had a little dance party before bath time.

A few things to note:

• Dancing requires a prop, for Connor it's a black hanger, Chloe has an orange water pen
• Falling down is part of the new dance style, it's cool to fall
• Cheer when the song is over and run over to the iPod to check out what the next song will be

Bargin Ballons

The twins birthday was last week and we celebrated with family last Saturday. When I was getting ready for the party I headed to a party supply store near our house, but it was no longer there. Instead there was a dollar store so I went in to see what they had. I walked out with a "Happy Birthday" sign, 6 bottles of bubbles and an order of 7 balloons and a base all for $10.

We picked up these balloons on Saturday morning and they're still going strong. I'd never shopped at a dollar store but I may have to check it out more often.

Feeding Giraffes

Our last visit to the zoo we got the chance to feed the giraffes. It was honestly a really amazing experience.

Not only did they eat right out of our hands, they'd let you pet them. Totally recommend this!

Super Fun Birthday Two

We celebrated the twins birthday with family last weekend and had a really great time. It was planned as a brunch and I'm not sure if it was a good time for all our guests, but that morning timing worked great and allowed us all to take a nap in the afternoon (and I do mean allowed me to take a good nap, such a luxury)

Since the kids had been putting blankets over side table and making little tents we got them a pop up play house/tent for their birthday. They went crazy over it.

Chloe got a baby for her birthday, but thank heavens she got two babies because Connor is really interested in feeding the baby. Especially inside the tent.

Everyone had cupcakes and it was a fun party for all!

I was a little distracted at the party and didn't take any pictures, so thank you to Uncle Martin, KiKi, and GiGi for capturing the memories of our second birthday!!

Turning Two

Yesterday Connor and Chloe turned two. I pulled a picture of them from a year ago and took a couple of shots while they ate breakfast. It's amazing how much they've changed.

September 2010

Two years old! Chloe September 2011

Two years old & I love my toast! Connor September 2011

They did get a few gifts on their birthday. Connor hugs his panda, Chloe drops her kitty and then for some reason both animals attack their Daddy. It's the Swan Zoo!

Plan To Get Rid of the Pacifier

Connor turns two this week and still uses his pacifier. We only let him have it for naps and bed time, but he ask for it when he's upset and I really can't imagine him going to sleep without it. I'm not overly worried about it in the big scheme of things, but I know we'll have to learn to go without the paci some day soon. Our cousin, Laruen, mommy to Andrew who is the same age as the twins, made a plan to get rid of the paci. They're expecting a baby girl in November and Andrew was headed to school for the first time. She was sweet enough to send me her plan and I've shared the email below. When I first read this I has to hold back tears. I can't imagine this process with Connor. "As far as the paci is concerned, I hope that what I say and my expereince helps.  It wasn't easy to do, but I am sooooooo glad we did it and it is over. First off, you have to want to get rid of it.  If you are on the fence about it, just wait until you are 100% ready.   And when you are ready...JUST DO IT. Second, get rid of every paci in your house except for one. Okay so this is what I did. The morning I took it away we went about our normal morning.  I took his paci and clipped the end off of it (THIS IS A KEY STEP...FOR YOU NOT HIM), then layed it out on the coffee table so he could find it. He saw it on the table and grabbed and said "ahhhh my paci" with a huge grin on his face. (at this point my heart broke and i had tears in my eyes).  He put it in his mouth and tried to suck on it....Took it out...looked at it and then tried again.  He brought it to me to show me.  I told him "oh no...your paci is bust."  He says "bust" when things are broken.  So, we talked about how things get broken, does he really need his paci, he is a big boy, etc.  So, then he just handed it back to me and walked away.  Went about playing around the house.  We eventually left for errands and came back for lunch and nap. At naptime, we got his sleepsac, lovie and 'busted' paci and I layed him down like normal...trying to pretend everything normal.  He told me his "paci was bust", but other than that didn't seem to mind.  Well, about 2 min into nap time he started screaming and crying for his paci.  I let him cry for about 20 min but couldn't take it anymore.  So, at the advice of a friend, I picked Andrew up and again we talked about the broken paci and what we do when things are broken.  I asked him if we should throw it away in the trash.  He agreed and he was the one to open the trash and throw it away himself.  I honestly think this was the best advice I could have gotten.  After he threw it away, we watched a quick episode of Dora and then I laid him down again.  He cried for about 5 min but then went to sleep.  He napped his usual time, and when I went to pick him up the first thing he said to me was "momma my paci trash".  These were his favorite 4 words for a week straight :) That night was a lot harder.  He cried, but we didn't give in.  This is why cutting the paci and getting rid of all of the others is key.  If I would have had a paci available to me, I would have given it to him in a heartbeat.  Not because he was crying exactly, but because I know how much he loves it and missed it.  Even Kevin said how sad it made him. I would say it took about 6 days total for Andrew to completely get over having his paci.  He wasn't really himself, kinda fussy and needed extra TLC.  But, it was easier than I thought it would be. Anyways, now that I scared you to death with my detailed play by play analysis, I hope that this helps. Every kid is different, so it may not bother Connor that much.  I have a friend who took her little girls away (she was 23 months) and it was a non issue.  I have another friend who took her sons away (he was 25 months) and he cried every night for a month and was destructive at bedtime...no joke. I also have a friend whose girl is 3 and still takes a paci."   We've decided to wait a little longer with Connor. I don't know when I'm going to do it, but I'm not looking forward to how sad it will make him.

Lions Up Close

We made another trip to the Dallas Zoo this weekend and I never get over how close you get to the lions at the Serengeti Grill.

Upgrade Your Read

We're lucky both twins really like reading. I hope it continues.

Connor, however, has decided to upgrade his reading a bit. He's OK with Brown Bear, Brown Bear every now and then, but he also likes to check out the FedEx Annual Report over an apple snack. When we saw Connor was reviewing the revenue per pound shipped growth year over year Carl asked him to provide a top line with recommended action when he was finished.

Hiding Spot

On Monday we had beautiful weather here in Dallas. For the first time in months the temperature dropped into the 80's during the day. It was so nice we opened all the windows in the house.

The kids loved it.

Additionally, Connor has a new habit. When we tell him "no" about something, which happens pretty frequently, he cries and runs off to his private hiding spot. It's in the front room, next to the couch, behind the side table. He snuggles down and hides and cries until someone gets him.

On Monday, we were in the back family room when we told Connor "no" about something. He trotted off, fussing and crying and we knew he was going to his hiding spot. We heard a crash and looked at one another, but honestly, we hear crashes all the time so we didn't think much of it. I casually got up, walked to the hiding spot to coax Connor out and I found him outside the window with leaves stuck in his hair and all over his clothes.

I guess, making his was to his hiding spot, he decided to climb on the lower shelf of the side table. Normally that would be fine with the window there, but when he pushed his head up against the window it was actually the screen and he fell outside. I wish I had a picture but I started yelling for Carl that Connor fell out the window and it was a little too dramatic for pictures. He was totally fine, just a little surprised and we all ended up laughing. We had to step outside to brush all the leaves off him.

We've decided to keep that window closed.

Suckers

Last weekend we made a trip to Toys R Us for training potties and a birthday gift for the twins. After we got everything we needed we decided to let Chloe and Connor each pick a new stuffed animal. Did they need new toys, no. Why did we do it, because we're sucker parents. They were so cute with their new stuffed animals.

Chloe picked a cow with a red bow around it's neck and Connor picked a crazy real-looking lizard. It was totally worth it to see them playing with their new animals. So fun!!

Chloe dancing with her cow

Bringing Work Home

Earlier this week we had a shoe shoot for a brand I'm working on called Uwezo, which means ability in Swahili. The Uwezo product is currently safari boots and slip-on shoes with hair-on hide. They're really cool and will sell for about $150 a pair. Proceeds from the sale of shoes benefit the non-profit Empower African Children providing vulnerable African children with a premier education.

I love the shoes and boots, I love that they benefit the children of Africa, and I'm really loving my job right now.

I brought a couple pairs of shoes home so Carl could see them in person and then Connor wanted to try them on. This picture of Connor is a little blurry, but I love his GQ hand on the wall, leg crossed pose. What a charmer!

This is the shoe Connor has on,  Uwezo men's slip-on