January 2015

Dear Friend,

Already one month into 2015!  I believe this will be our year of toddlerhood.  There have been so many moments in the last few weeks when I've had to step back in awe...we don't have babies anymore!  

I guess a part of me never believed it would happen.  But time and time again, I have found my three kids playing together.  

The boys seem to have grown up so much in the past month.  

Though we are still working on talking, they certainly know how to voice their opinions.  

It's been fun to watch the three of them do things together.  On one hand, it's awesome to have them all so close in age.  

On the other hand, it's really hard.  Many people told me that the first year with twins is the hardest.   Nope. These last few months have been much harder!  Boyd and Smith are now mobile and opinionated, but not yet verbal.  They are curious in ways Summer never even considered and almost always moving in two different directions.  I feel like I am on life watch 24/7.  

As my mom always reminds me, "this too shall pass" so Elias and I are trying to enjoy this stage while we're in it.  Thus...the year of toddlerhood!

So far, this year has been packed with bath time fun,

going to museums,

table dancing (not my favorite activity, but better than countertop water fights),

indoor camping,

"seaweed ocean baths"

preschool, 

trying soda (Boyd definitely had the best reaction), 

discovering new places to read, 

going to the zoo, 

going to gymnastics...not going to gymnastics (the boys were so fascinated by a waving cat trinket on the welcome desk that they spent most of their time in the foyer)

and going on adventures.  (At the time of this photo, Summer is telling Smith, "We will go on an adventure.  We will run all the way over there.")

My dad joined Elias on a business trip for a few days so my mom came and hung out with us.  We loved it!

Summer insisted on celebrating her birthday (even though it is in March).  

The highlight of the month was when Elias and I escaped to paradise for 48 hours.  He was conducting interviews for Thornburg back at Stanford so I tagged along.  It was absolute bliss!  Thanks to a great babysitter, Elias and I were able to enjoy ourselves.  It was like we were back in college again.  I love him!

We had quite a bit of snow this month and have taken advantage of every snow day. 

We've loved having the end of the cul-de-sac all to ourselves for sledding.  

Boyd stays pretty focused on making his own tracks. 

Summer loves making snow angels.  

And Smith loves attempting to make snow angels, but regrets it the moment the snow hits his face.  (Poor guy...he forgets every few minutes and tries again.)

Summer has been all over the map this month.  She has developed this dramatic side that can either be hilarious or downright scary.  

But oh how I love her!  She is the only one that can really talk with me and I am so grateful for our friendship.  She is always up for an adventure, no matter how messy. 

She is so helpful!  I really miss her the four hours a week that she is at preschool.  One morning I came into the kitchen and she announced that she had made breakfast for us all.
 

She wrote her name for the first time this month.  It was so exciting to see all those letters together.  I am so proud of her!

 
And she still loves reading. Her happy time each week is when we come home from the library with our 22 new books.  She lays them out and dives in. 

I have been obsessed with Smith's smile lately.  He is such a little goof-ball!  He absolutely loves cars; he points out each one he sees with a loud "vroom, vroom".  Parking lots are like heaven for Smith.  

He loves to make people laugh and to give kisses.  He's a great cuddler.  And Smith is the most darling flirt I've ever seen.  That grin of his can pull the ladies in from the other side of the store.

And he loves to eat snow!  If his siblings weren't always encouraging him to come play, he would be content to just sit there and eat the snow until it melted away.  

 

And I'm crazy about his hair!  He's had about six haircuts and Elias says it's time for another one, but I just can't get myself to do it.  He's got these thick blonde locks.  I love them!

 

Boyd has been cracking us up lately.  He would always rather walk on his own than ride in the stroller or hold my hand.  But he keeps a pretty good pace and stays next to me for the most part.  

He eats twice as fast as anyone else in the family and has is own opinions about food.  If I don't keep the pantry locked, Boyd takes charge, like the morning he found the mixed nuts and refused to eat anything else for breakfast.  

Boyd is my constant reminder to try to not use technology in front of the kids.  He is obsessed!  When my mom was here, he would sneak into her bathroom where she charged her tablet so he could silently play with it.  

 But for such an independent little guy, Boyd is serious about his blanket at bedtime.  I tried to put him down for a nap once without it and he threw a fit!

And so begins our year of toddlerhood...

Hope all is well with you and yours. 

Love,
Elias, Brittany, Summer, Boyd & Smith