Two Years Old!

Well technically they're 25 months old today, but I've never been known for my punctuality. Anyways, I know I say it all the time but I cannot believe how much they're growing and changing. I have a hard time believing they're actually 2 years old now. I don't feel old enough to have two two-year-olds, haha. But I do, and for all the troubles that come along with having kids young, we're so glad we did! Jackson and Cullen get cuter and funnier and sweeter with each passing day (although this doesn't always feel true, especially since they're quickly becoming excellent tantrum-throwers).

This toddler-stage is proving to be easier in some respects but much more challenging in others. People are always coming up to me and saying "I don't know how you do it!" I thought that would stop once they outgrew the newborn stage but it has continued to this day and I'm beginning to see why. Toddlers are crazy! And two toddlers are even crazier! Some days I'm ready to literally pull my hair out and lock myself in my bedroom and other days I think they're just angelic. Some days I swear they're speaking in a secret twin language and conspiring against me, other days they surprise me with their helpfulness and obedience and sweetness. I can't figure them out! Anyways, here are some updates on these crazy boys of mine:

*Jackson is 34 inches tall (30th percentile) but only 24.4 (10th percentile). Cullen is 34 1/2 inches tall (also 30th percentile) and 25.6 pounds (30th percentile). The doctor was a little concerned about Jackson's weight but just encouraged me to offer more snacks to him throughout the day. He's loving that!

*They’re not afraid to get in touch with their feminine sides. One of their favorite activities is pretending to put on blush with mommy’s make up brushes. They also love to moisturize their hands with lotion and apply chapstick and they literally beg for each several times a day. Brandon just rolls his eyes… And, no, he doesn't have a bloody lip in this picture. He just finished applying some of Mommy's lip stain. He beams when I tell him he's "so pretty!"

*They love to play chasing games with each other and have just begun to play catch together. They both throw really well for a two-year-old but haven’t quite perfected catching yet. Sometimes they catch the ball… other times they just watch it drop at their feet. But I just love watching them throw their baseball back and forth, it’s to die for!

*Recently, they’ve enjoyed pretending to be babies again. At least once a day, one of them will come and curl up in my lap, say “baby” and snuggle with me. Cullen also thinks it’s hilarious to pop one of their old pacifiers in his mouth and walk around with it. Jack points and calls him a baby and then they both laugh about their little joke. And they also think crawling is suddenly cool again.

*Everything revolves around trains right now. They want to watch choo choos on tv, read about choo choos in their books, and play with their new train sets all day. But really anything with an engine will do. They also still love fire trucks, airplanes, toy trucks, tractors and their toy car garage. They have absolutely no interest in stuffed animals or baby dolls, if you hand them one they’ll just throw it down immediately and run off to get a train or truck. 100% boys!



*They continue to learn new words every day and are expanding their vocabulary. They’ve just begun to put two words together. So far they’ve said “Hello/bye bye Dad” or whoever/whatever has just gone by and “big truck” “big bite” “let’s go”. The other day one of them said “juice Dad!” They’re obviously still pretty far behind the average two-year-old but not enough that the doctor is worried again. Strangely enough, they still have never said the words “yes” or “yeah.” I have no idea why but it will be nice when they start answering questions with “yes” insead of “NO!” every single time, even when they mean yes ;-)

*Their love for reading is really increasing too. They got lots of new books for Christmas and they love to look at them and point out all the objects they know the words for, which is a lot these days! Anything they don’t know the words for, they will say “dat! dat!” until you tell them the word for it.

*They love animals! They love playing with their kitties, sometimes they’ll get up and walk across the room just to give Huck or Emma a hug and kiss and then come back and continue whatever they were doing in the first place. They also know lots of animal sounds and love to make them whenever they see a familiar animal anywhere.

*Recently they’ve been really into colors. At first, absolutely everything was “lellow” (or “wewwo” as Cullen says) but now they’ve expanded and can name yellow, green, blue, black, and white. They can’t say orange or red so they either just smile or say some other color when they see one of those. I’m not sure they totally understand which color is which but they certainly get them right the vast majority of the time so I’m pretty impressed with them!

*They LOVE the little potty I got for them a few months ago. They literally fight over who gets to sit on it. Let me clarify though, by no means are they even close to potty-training (unfortunately), they just think of the potty as a really cool chair in which to sit and watch train movies. But they do know what it’s for and often when I walk by one of them sitting on it they’ll say “poo poo Mommy” and smile at me. I just smile back and think “I wish!” But I guess that’s a good first step, at least they know what it’s for. Since I can tell they’re definitely not ready to potty-train just yet, I think (hope) we’ll start concentrating on it in the summer.

*They love to brush their teeth and ask to do it all the time. I think they really just like the taste of toothpaste, but at least they’re brushing.

*They hate wearing jackets outside and cry when we put them on… too bad for them that it’s 30 degrees here lately. I have to admit, I also hate strapping them into their car seats with snow jackets on, I can’t wait for spring!

*They really like helping out around the house. They are getting pretty good about cleaning up their toys or room when asked. And they love to watch/help me cook and clean. This is probably a good thing considering all the messes they make!

*They want to do everything themselves, push the stroller, carry my purse, put things away, throw trash in the garbage can, feed the kitties, etc. Here's Jack helping push our luggage in Boise.

*They’re constantly covered in scrapes, cuts and bruises. I swear, they wake up after each nap with a new injury. I’d love to know what they do in there before falling asleep. I never wished I had one of those video baby monitors until recently, just because I’m so curious what goes on in that room when they’re alone!

*They’re completely obsessed with fires too. We spend most of our day in the living room with a fire burning and they break into applause every time I put a new log on the fire. “Fire” is right up there with “choo choo” and “no” as their most-used words.

*Whenever they don’t want to do something, like get dressed or have their diaper changed, they start shouting “OW! OW! Mommy, OW!” The first few times, they fooled me but now I know better. Tricky little boys! I guess it’s time to start talking about why lying is bad.

*They really like to blow their noses and ask for tissues all day long, even when they don't need one.