One day in October I wanted to get some exercise and it was just perfect timing with the kids up from their naps. So I took them for their first ride on the bike carriage. I wasn’t sure how they’d take it, given how randomly they seemed to take stroller rides. But they both actually enjoyed it and didn’t cry one tear. We’ll see what happens in the spring when they’re 1.5ish.

Stella loves anything she can climb on. Scarlett hasn’t developed a love for climbing trees, but Stella might. Put anything in front of her that’s a bit off the ground and she’ll try to get on top of it. Not sure if she’s trying to reach what the adults and her big sister can or if she’s just climbing it for the same reason people climb Everest: Because It’s There.

The funny thing about this age is that the kids start making all kinds of faces at the adults. But for the most part, I doubt it really means anything. For the most part they’re learning by imitating and trying things out and seeing what kinds of reactions they get. But we can’t help but ascribe intentions to their facial expressions. Then again, we do this with inanimate objects, it’s part of what makes us human. (Or at least puts us in a small category of animals)

I took this photo back in August. I’ve said it before on the blog when talking about Scarlett, but it’s incredible how much the babies change in their first year. Sure, at this point it’s 100% of his life. But eventually you reach this age where you don’t really change all that much from year to year. You get a little fatter or skinnier and maybe lose a little hair, but it’s on going back multiple years where you really see the change. But look at Sam closer to birth:

Some things are harder with twins - feeds, giving each one the amount of attention you’d like to give them, bed times, and more. But some things are pretty awesome - like the fact that they have a playmate that’s the same age. When we were little, I used to play with my brothers, but it’s not the same when you have the oldest (me in that case) directing play versus two kids who have the exact same notions of what play even means.

Just as with Scarlett (when she was a baby), we THOUGHT Sam had teeth coming. Everyone felt something in his mouth. He had all the signs….but, alas, no teeth yet.

More insight into kid brain development. Scarlett drew this image of a person sitting on a chair. I asked her if the little box was a tablet. She said, “No, it’s a door.” So I asked her why it was so small. “Because it’s far away.”

When Scarlett was born, I went a little crazy. Sure, it’s natural for first time parents, especially someone with my personality. But I think I also deserve some slack because it was a difficult, complicated pregnancy and then Scarlett needed surgery in her first week of life in order to live.

So when I saw myself starting to act crazy again (after another crazy pregnancy with premie babies), my solution was to withdraw. If I didn’t get too attached, I wouldn’t have such visceral reactions to my underweight daughter not eating. So I threw myself into my books and video games. It was made easier by the fact that my mother in law was here, so I had more opportunities to run off. But then, a week ago (and I’m writing this post about a month before this will appear on my blog), I realized that I had been letting their infancy slide past me without enjoying it. And so I put myself back into their lives. This was made easier by nearly five months of the doctor weighing Stella and finally being OK with her weight. Also, we’d found out she was lactose intolerant and switching her away from mother’s milk and cow-based formula caused her to transform into a happy baby. But now I’m really enjoying the heck out of the twins and it’s a joy to see them each day.