The Aunts Go Marching One by One

I have two really rad sisters.

Growing up, we weren't very close because of our age difference. I am a {little} older.

But now we are the best of friends, and last summer began the process of us sharing common experiences when both sisters got married.

We have been able to spend the past year talking about the difficulties awesomeness of marriage.

Then, the first of January, both sisters found out they were expecting their first babies. And later, we found out both would be having boys.

I have begged them to set up skype in the labor room so I could participate. But they have rudely rejected me.

Their due dates were 2 days apart, which led to major heartburn for my parents. But God has orchestrated it beautifully (why did we doubt?).

Little sis Carrianna gave birth to this sweet bundle on Sunday evening.

Meet my new little nephew.

Reese Daniel weighed 6 pounds 3 ounces and has already stolen his mom and dad's heart.

I am excited for my sisters to experience motherhood and this love like no other. They will be great moms.

He's so sweet. It makes me want another little one!



Almost...

Oh, Kate.... batter up!

As Night and Day

Our twins are 3 months old.

I almost had to pick myself off of the floor after typing that sentence.

First of all, I can't believe it's been 3 months! And secondly, I can't believe I have twins!

Twins do not run in my family. At all. Unless someone is hiding something from me, I know of no other twins in my blood line.

I knew very little about twins in general before January of this year. I had always found them to be intriguing, but upon discovering I would soon be a "mom of multiples," I began doing my research.

I may have been foreign to twin trivia, but I did know that boy/girl twins are never identical. Duh! But you would be surprised how often I get the question, "Are they identical?"

Jack and Ryan Elizabeth are fraternal twins. Upon doing a little research, here are a few interesting facts taken from a "twin" website

* In the caucasian race, you have less than 1% chance of having fraternal twins -- they occur once in every 125 births. But if you are a fraternal twin girl, you have a 1 in 17 chance of having fraternal twins. {Congratulations, Ryan!}

* Once you have a set of fraternal twins, you are twice as likely to have another set in a future pregnancy. {uh oh}

* Fraternal twins are hereditary - they run in families. While identical twins happen by sheer chance, fraternal twins run through the mother's family. {or not...maybe God just chooses to answer your heart's prayer and give you twins!}

* The older you are, the greater your chances of having fraternal twins. {32 is not old, thank you very much.}

* Twins are more common in large and tall women. {Great...and there we have it....}

While Jack and Ryan are twins, former womb mates, they are as different as night and day.

Ryan Elizabeth is my little pink piglet. She snorts and squeals. She is as solid as a rock and has a pound advantage on Jack. She is very sturdy and can already stand up while holding my fingers.

She holds nothing back. From day 1, Ryan has been the loud mouth. If she is hungry, you will know it. When I was in the hospital, I would be awakened in the middle of the night to hear her screaming as they wheeled her bassinet down the long hall.

She can complete her meal in about 5 minutes flat. She means business when it comes to eating and wastes no time. She is pretty intense.

Jack is my little lamb. He is so laid back and peaceful. While Ryan is screaming her head off, Jack is looking around with his eyes wide open and his mouth in a huge, wide grin. I have a hard time feeding him because he is constantly smiling. I try to limit the eye contact so he can concentrate on sucking!

While they are as different as night and day, Jack and Ryan do share a few things in common. They are both deeply loved. They each fill my heart with sunshine -- even at 3 a.m. And they are gifts from God.

Jack and Ryan remind me that Jesus is the "Life Giver." He is a personal God and loves each of us uniquely and individually.

Count your many blessings. Name then one by one.

Weekend Treat

Bob and I were asked to speak at a function this past weekend for our law school. Since it was being held at The Homestead, one of our all-time favorite spots, we gladly accepted.

We have stayed here quite a few times for various events but have never taken 4 children with us. Since my cousin Mathers was still here helping out, we decided to go for it! And we are so glad we did.

The kids were great, and we all had a fabulous time. Besides a mad fit, thrown by Master Caleb at breakfast, and a loud reference to a "stinker", made by Madam Eveley at dinner, everyone was on their best behavior.

We spent the afternoon at the pool.

Snuggled in bed at night

Taught the kids to play chess...

Kinda... Where's Caleb?

Did a little fishing

Let the kids run free around the grounds

{Tried} to teach Evie how to pose for a photo

Soaked our feet in the natural hot springs

And exhaustingly tried to get a family photo.

Perfect.

Summer Blues

Our summer has been pretty low key -- some of that purposefully and some of that is out of necessity.

But I have been trying to insert some fun and special things into the weeks for the older two.

Our "special" outings have consisted of trips to the pool, Walmart, the library {ahem...the kids think Barnes and Noble is the library...} or the mall.

I made the kids pose a little yesterday morning before we headed out to the mall -- it is about 110 degrees here, so we enjoyed the indoor play area and carousel.

A blog reader and sweet friend made these shirts for the four monkeys. So cute!!



In the midst of our packing, Eveley found the secret stash of presents from her 4th birthday. I tried to put up some of her gifts so we could pull them out periodically this summer for a little fun. But she spotted a gift from her friend Cohen -- a bubble gun that blows colored bubbles.

I looked at it and tried to find an excuse as to why we couldn't play with that. I admit it. I'm a little neurotic about messes and like to try and keep the kids, my house, and my stuff tidy. But I decided to relax and let the kids have a little {messy} fun.

While I was cooking dinner, I loaded the colored bubbles into the cute little bubble gun and let the kids outside onto the back porch.

Just a few minutes later, this is what I found.

I know the Smurfs are making a comeback, but this was ridiculous.

Tomorrow, we are really having a special outing and heading here.



You will find me relaxing here.



and eating here.



sleeping here.



and chasing my crazy kids around here.