hitting the ball fields with their dad, who just so happens to be the commissioner of the league

Michael has coached the Roland Park Baseball League Toppers for 9 years and was approached by the board to be the Commissioner and he finally gave in this past year. The boys and I haven't been able to get out to the fields very often to see what their dad has accomplished but this past Saturday was a perfect day. We even got to see Cal Ripken warming up the Gilman team in preparation of their show down against Calvert Hall.






The boys' cousins and aunt and uncle are pushing for them to play lax but we'll see. They would make a great shortstop/2nd base double-play combo, right??


Will it be baseball Or lacrosse

We'll wait for them to decide.

this bumper is awesome

When we decided to separate the boys, it was an easy decision for us in terms of who got which crib since they have different bumpers. Connor has the Alphabet Soup animals on his bumper, who he talks to before he falls asleep. It is so sweet to watch him reach out and touch the animals. He doesn't discriminate as he maneuvers around the crib to reach them all. In case it is not clear -- Connor has a thing for his plush and animals. He talks to them and smiles at them more than us. It was well worth the wait to be able to use this pattern in the nursery!!

he either understands how funny Alan is in the Hangover!!! or he just likes the song?!?

HBO aired the Hangover and Michael and I have been watching it and laughing just as hard as we did the first time that we saw it in the movies. Jackson has found the Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out" along with my singing to be absolutely hysterical. According to Michael, who was holding him as I showed off my new discovery, Jackson was laughing so hard that it appeared as though was going to pee himself, which he probably did!!!

it's official -- we have a roller

Regular readers may remember the Tummy Time for Jackson entry. If not, you can always take a look. That picture was taken the week after I discovered that he could roll from belly to back. He took a face plant on the couch and landed on his belly. Only because he was fine, I walked away to get a bottle for Connor and when I returned, he was on his back.

He was at it again this week. We ALWAYS lay the boys on their backs for naps and bed time. Michael and Gina both found Jackson on his belly this week in tears and probably in shock. We were hoping to see him in action. He came through yesterday with what was our first view of a back to belly roll. I know now that he can NEVER EVER be left alone. He is always concerned about missing something and the ability to roll will only help him get to where he "thinks" that he "needs" to be.

still waiting on Connor....

Jackson had a duck on his butt and I get dogs on my feet??

I put this sleeper on Connor this a.m. and while he was sitting on the couch - he looked down and was fixated on his feet. The boys have had so many sleepers with some type of animal on the feet and this is the 1st time either one of them has noticed a thing. I have heard that there is something developmentally new each day and I just can't wait (Michael and I can only hope to keep up!)

hand and eye coordination

We pulled out the activity mat months ago and the boys would wave their hands at the bright colors and we thought it was so amazing. Now, they reach out and grab things with a purpose. Jackson prefers the exersaucer since he prefers to stand so Connor gets more time on the mat.

Connor reaches out for his Octopus Gus



and stares at Dale the Whale while grabbing for his rings and other toys.





It is so amazing to watch how far that they have come and it is only the beginning....

my future hair stylist

I have heard a lot of moms explain how much of an ordeal getting a shower is and since our bathroom is not big enough for 2 bouncy chairs or bumbos -- I have learned to adapt. Most of my showers are taken at the gym while the boys are in the Kids Club. I've started to bring everything I need, including my flat iron (thanks to the boys -- all of my accessories coordinate). With everybody sick, I had to take care of it at home. I was able to shower while the boys napped but Jackson wanted to be on hand to help my with the blow dry and style. He WAS very patient as I worked on my hair.



pupsqueak and his block helped too!

the learn worm

We bought the Leap Frog Baby Counting Pal as a gift for baby Will and decided that we needed to get one based upon his mother's rave reviews. Here is a picture of Jackson hanging on to "the learn worm" during a nap --

Connor's new Giraffe friend

As has been previously reported, Connor has a thing for his plush. Since the boys have been in separate cribs since Mother's Day and we didn't want them to feel too alone, we added some toys. Connor is very affectionate with his giraffe and rubs him as he gets ready to go to sleep or take a nap.

cute and cuddly despite their first cold

We are not sure where it started but we do know that Aunt Gina has agreed to take the blame. Jackson gave his cold to me and I gave it to Connor. Michael held out the longest but in the time it has taken me to publish this post -- one of us has given it to him. There has been a lot of sleeping, aspirating of the nose and cuddling. Hopefully, everybody will feel better soon.

finally getting use out of the second crib

We decided to separate Jackson and Connor on Mother's day Sunday. They both had issues with napping over the weekend with all of the festivities and we thought we would try it. We were surprised that Jackson was waking up more times in the night but it has worked well. At this point, Michael and I are wondering how they actually fit in the same crib for as long as they did.

the first of many Mother's Days

The boys and I went to Cheesecake Factory for brunch and the twins were such a hit. We were able to make it over to see Michael's lax game and the persuasion continued for the boys to avoid baseball. We were able to spend the afternoon with Joe, Missy and Sophia and Michael and the boys got in a lot of quality time with their cousins.

I spent a lot of time thinking that Michael and I were not meant to have children and truly realize how blessed we are to have the boys. I never could imagine how AMAZING that it is to be Jackson and Connor's mom. Every day brings excitement and I can't wait to see what our future holds.

This was taken before our 1st trip to the hospital. We were so calm.
I guess we knew that the boys weren't ready just yet!!!



This was taken at the baby shower given to me by Gina and Missy.

how a year changes....

We found out that I was pregnant on May 8th and never could have imagined what we were in store for in the past year. Accomplished a major overhaul of our upstairs, including a newly painted, decorated and furnished nursery and dressing room for Michael (the boys and I are eternally grateful for the help of Uncle Tony and Aunt Gina) and planned for the arrival of 2 babies, which we received into our home with so much love that we can't imagine our lives without them.



A picture from our last vacation before the boys arrived - Boston. It will be a great history lesson for the boys when they are ready and it is one of our favorite places to visit. Hopefully, they (while still in utero) will remember the excitement of me jumping up and down rooting for the Sox as Papelbon shut down the Blue Jays. Clay Buchholz was amazing to watch. He gave up just three hits and one run over 8 1/3 innings, walked two and tied a career high with nine strikeouts. It was an awesome weekend. We will never forget our view from on top of the Green Monster.

the talk

It happened this past Thursday and was one of the most amazing moments of being a parent...the boys finally responded to one another. It started off with Connor's pure giddiness when he saw Jackson, which had me in tears, and ended up with the Jackson FINALLY responding to his brother. It was the first of many amazing chats that I hope to overhear and be privileged to be a part of. These pictures were taken just prior to the "chat" --

Connor and his activity mat

As Jackson has kind of claimed the exersaucer (we do call him the Don of the Exersaucer), Connor has started to really embrace his activity mat.

He is constantly grabbing for things and has actually started rolling towards the octopus. For Connor, who is generally very laid back about what he is doing and not very active,  this is a very welcome change. 

He and the octopus have had a love/hate relationship in the past when just looking at him would result in tears and we are happy to report that they are the best of friends.