My 3 year olds!

We have survived another doctor visit, hooray! I was looking forward to this one as it has been a full year since the last, weird to think about when we used to go every couple of months. We see Dr. Cornish in Orem and he is so cool, very laid back which is what I need. I am a worrier, no doubt about it, I come in with my lists and my articles and he puts my concerns to bed and I leave with just normal 3 year olds. They are rather active 3 year olds, but nothing to worry about yet. All my concerns about them eating enough were for not as well as they are now in the 50th percentile for weight, up from 20th last year. They are still shorties though, staying even in the 15-17th percentile making them actually a little heavy as they have gained weight but not much height. He wasn't concerned, but for the first time since they were born I won't be worrying so much that they are eating enough. I will be focusing more on them eating the right things though. Well, that's not true, I have been focusing on good foods all along but I have been giving in to the junk foods just so they would be eating something. It will be easier to turn those foods down now, well not all of them--that would be no fun! They are 32 lbs and 36 inches, hooray for the Disney rides requiring them to be 36 inches. A month ago at Libery Land they were 34, so either they grew in the last month or Liberty Land isn't the most precise measuring device I could have chosen. You pick. Dr. Cornish wasn't concerned with their language which Lowell and I have felt they are behind their peers in that department, but because they are twins, he gives them a little more time with that. They speak very well between each other, it's just that we don't always understand. They really have been improving the last couple of weeks though. He also told us that 3 is the "Why?" age, where they will want to know why things are and will expect them to be as they think they should be. He said this is the age we can start reasoning with them about what is right and wrong and things like sleep, eating healthy, and potty training will be exercises in convincing them what is right. That has been interesting already but we are trying. They were bouncing off the walls during the appointment, crawling all over the counters and then jumping off, turning the faucet on and off, and weighing the balloon animal they got on the way in. It was driving me nuts but Dr. Cornish wasn't phased at all and didn't hold back in telling us that 3 was a tiring and difficult year in his house. Thanks! It made me think of all the times I heard 3 was good for twins and I still believe that, we'll have our struggles but there are certain things with twins that improve at 3 that we have seen already. It made me start wishing for 4 like I wished for 3. But then I had to laugh at myself and remember the talk by President Monson I just shared on here. If I am always wishing they were one year older, I'll be missing the fun of this year. So it would be nice if they were a little easier now, but I will try to enjoy this rambunctious year and the special things that 3 will bring into our home. So here are those special boys at the Children's Garden that we went to right before the appointment.

Big D with his crooked smile, he doesn't actually bite like that, it's just his "Mom, take the picture already and let me go play smile".

My C Man. Out of the blue he has become my little artist. Up until this week he just scribbled and sometimes would identify the scribbles as objects but they didn't look like anything. As part of the questioning for the 3 year appointment (Brooke, my kids called the half-man drawing Robot and Carter) we practiced drawing circles. Carter liked that so one day I drew one of his circles into a stick figure and he has just taken off. He takes his MagnaDoodle everywhere and loves to sit and draw, albeit the same thing all the time. Here's a shot:

He said it was Mommy, Daddy, Carter, Davis, and Carter's friend. I was so excited to see him drawing things that represents other things and look like them (well, sort of). I am also happy that he can sit and work on something for several minutes (ADD is never far from my mind, they are so active and the NICU nurses said if I touched my babies they would get ADD. I couldn't help but hold and cuddle them so I am always paranoid they will have it). Sleep is an on-going battle in our house, so Dr. Cornish recommended we add a reward to our existing punishment plan. Now if they leave their room 3 times, we close the door. Now if they don't come out 3 times they also get a treat in the morning. I stole this idea from my twin mommy friend, Janice. We have 3 objects, for us it is Yo Gabba Gabba pictures I colored, laminated, and added Velcro to, and for each time they leave the room they have to give us one of them. In the morning they can "buy" a special show or treat with any they have left. This seemed like a good idea to give them a physical reminder to stay in their room. My goal is to then move it to staying in their beds and also have them earn back the objects the next day by doing their "chores": putting their dishes in the sink, putting clothes and toys away, etc. Anyway, that was my project today.

Who knows if it will work, but we need something! We start bedtime at 8:30 and drags on until 11 some nights. Lowell works early so he needs them to sleep sooner! And it is not that they aren't tired, I think it is that they are over-tired from boycotting nap lately. I am sticking with it, when they nap they sleep better at night and are so much more pleasant to be around. So . . .any sleep tips would be appreciated!

We also had the UVMOM Halloween play group this week which was fun. I loved seeing all the little costumes and just visiting. The bubs have a trunk or treat with our ward tonight and then the big night is already next week. Sadly this weekend is the last days of the gardens. It is always a very mournful thing for me when they close. I spend so much time there all summer and the beauty and tranquility there always rests my soul. We will go tomorrow for one last visit. Sigh, pout! We are also going to the BYU game tomorrow, hooray! It is expected to be much better than the last game, I think we will have fun. I had a bunch of funnies from the kids lately and I keep forgetting them! Argh! I need to write them down. Oh and happy day, my dad started a new job today. It's not a dream job but it gets him out of the half-way house and on his way to home confinement, hopefully sooner than later. I am loving the extra time to talk to him--he is so funny with his cell phone. We chatted for an hour last night about going to Europe spring 2010. Still a dream, but here's hoping! The debate was what do you need to see in person more, amazing vistas like those in Murren, Switzerland--the Alps rising above you like you could not believe, I have seen a lot of mountains in the states but they couldn't hold a candle to that view, or amazing artwork like the David, again something that is so much larger and more impressive in person. My brother wants to do a whirlwind tour of a bunch of countries where I would like to spend a week in just one country, probably Italy. Tough choice huh? Still a dream choice at that, it depends on future babies, finances, people to tend my boys . . .fun to think about though.

Well, enough rambling--I'll get back to work (plans for the night, new episode of Chuck, working on Christmas photo books on artscow, and watching the new Indiana Jones). Loves all!