2009-Year in Review

I can't believe another year is already coming to an end! 2009 has proven to be really busy, but completely amazing! I am happy to report that we had a wonderful year. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching the girls grow and learn immensely. They both continue to amaze me each and every day! They have exceeded everyone's expectations of their developmental progress for being 28 week preemie's, and I could not be more proud!

The year started off with the girls having just learned how to walk, and venturing in talking with a few words here and there. Now, at 26 months old they speak in full, coherent, clear sentences and they love to run, jump, and dance all over the place.

Watching the girls different personalities develop over this last year has been such a joy! There is no doubt about it, these girls definitely have Personality! They are both little Ham's, and have the greatest sense of humor! They are constantly making me laugh and smile! It is amazing that although they share the same exact DNA, they are sooo incredibly different!

Kaylyn is our little dare devil! She is not scared to take risks when it comes to climbing, jumping or getting herself into precarious positions. The bigger the better in her opinion. I think she is going to be an adrenaline junkie like her dad! She has acquired the nickname "bruiser", because even when she does fall, she rarely cries about it. Typically she will just get up and keep going. She is also VERY talkative, and always has something to say. Kaylyn also tends to be very logical, and not much gets passed this kid!

Kylee tends to be a little more reserved both in talking and taking risks. She likes to talk in more of a one on one setting, where as Kaylyn likes to perform for an audience. Although Kylee doesn't like to jump off bar stools (yes, Kaylyn did this!) she does love Bugs and Reptiles, where as Kaylyn is a bit more squeamish in that department. Kylee is very sensitive in a lot of ways, and loves to cuddle.

They definitely balance each other out nicely, and are the best of friends. They share a bond like no other. As different as they are, they share a lot of similarities as well. They are both very kind and empathetic. They also have a wonderful use of manners. Both Kylee and Kaylyn tend to be a little shy at first around strangers, but once they warm up there is no stopping them! They are very sweet girls, and over all extremely well behaved. I couldn't ask for anything more!

In April the girls started dance class! It started off as a Mommy-and-Me class, but once they turned two they graduated to dancing on their own! Not only do they absolutely love dancing, but it has been really good for them developmentally to learn to listen to instructions, take turns, and play nicely with friends. I love watching them dance!

In October the girls celebrated their 2nd birthday. I still can't believe that they are two years old! It is hard to even wrap my head around the fact that they entered this world barely over 2lbs and not breathing! To look at them now, and see all that they have overcome is truly astonishing. Right after their 2nd birthday, the girls had their final developmental appointment to ensure that they are developing appropriately (because they were born so premature). The Dr that administered that standardized test was amazed at how well they are both doing, and cleared them from the developmental follow up program! Amazingly, they both tested at a 2 1/2-3 year old level in all areas! They are also both extremely tall, in the 97th percentile for height!

It has also been a year of a lot of learning. Their intelligence just blows my mind!! I am constantly trying to think of new ways to challenge them, and they never cease to amaze me. They are both very smart. Aside from their remarkable vocabulary and language abilities, they have learned a lot! They know their shapes (octagon, circle, square, triangle, rectangle, oval, and heart), they can both sing their ABC's all the way through, they can both count to 20, and we are working on colors. The girls have an amazing memory, and have memorized several books from cover to cover, and also have the ability to recall facts from months ago. The girls also use several Chinese and Spanish words and phrases (thank you Dora and Kai-Lan!). I am trying to make sure I keep up with them, so I know what they are talking about!

Their little imaginations have been running wild in recent months. From playing with their dolls and other toys, to playing with each other, I just love watching them pretend and role-play. It is crazy how at such a young age, they have the ability to pretend and make up their own story-line.

Then-January 2009

NOW! December 2009

What a difference a year makes!! 2009 has been a fabulous year, and I hope that 2010 will be equally as enjoyable if not more! Happy New Year!!

Christmas 2009

I can't even begin to tell you how much more I enjoy Christmas now that I am a mom! Seeing my kids faces light up, and enjoying the magic of it all is truly priceless!

This year our Christmas schedule had to be altered a bit to coordinate with Keith work schedule. Keith had to work Christmas day, so we talked to Santa and he agreed to make a special appearance a day early for us. That Santa sure is a good guy! ;)

Christmas Eve-Eve, we went down to Keith's parents house and anxiously awaited Santa's arrival that night. We left out Cookies and Milk for Santa, and Carrots for the Reindeer. We talked to the girls about how Santa was coming that night, and he would come down the Chimney and bring all the presents. Kaylyn instantly questioned this logic and said, "Santa cannot fit [in the chimney], he will get stuck! He is too big!". Nothing gets by this kid! So we just explained to her it was the magic of Christmas and Santa would make it down just fine. I don't think she was fully convinced, but she let it go.

Christmas Morning (Christmas Eve) the girls woke up to some wonderful gifts! I was amazed at how much they enjoyed each and every present they received. They would open 1 present and play with it for 30-45 minutes before moving on to the next one. With each present came a variety of "Oohs, Aahs, Wow's and Cool!" as they opened it. It was great to see how much they loved every single thing! It took quite a while to make it through all the presents, but they did it and enjoyed every second of it!

Some of the biggest hits out of the presents they received were their new Big Wheel Tricycles, the Barbie Pretend Make-Up kit (that included a blow dryer that they absolutely love), a Little People Doll house, Baby Doll beds, and their Dinosaurs. Within a couple of hours the girls mastered pedaling their tricycles and were cruising all over the place. I could not believe how quickly they picked it up!

Christmas Day Keith had to work, so the girls and I went to the Fire Station to visit him and have dinner with him and his Fire-Family. It was a lot of fun, and the girls ate a ton of food! It's hard having Keith away on special days such as Christmas, but we are thankful that we got to spend some time with him that day.

That night the girls and I went over to my Dad's house to share Christmas with him and Grandma Darlene. Again, we opened more presents and enjoyed spending time with family.

It was a busy few days, but I couldn't ask for anything more. We are so lucky to have such a great family to share these special times, and create such wonderful memories.

"Mommy, I didn't Pee-Pee in my Panties!!"

This morning when I got the girls up and went to change their diapers, Kaylyn was adamant that she was NOT going to wear a diaper. I gave her the option of wearing panties, and she decided that sounded like a good idea, so I went with it. Of course once Kaylyn was in big-girl panties, Kylee wanted to join the party as well, so she also got panties.

I put them on, and we had a long talk about how we don't pee in our panties, and if they have to go Potty to tell Mommy etc... Somehow this conversation evolved into them listing everything in the house they are NOT supposed to pee on, like the couch, the rug, the floor, the trampoline, their baby dolls and on and on.

I went ahead and printed them out some cool little Potty Training charts, hung them up, and explained that every time they went to the bathroom in the potty like big girls, they would get a sticker to put on their charts. Once all the squares on their chart are full, they can go to the store and pick out a new toy. They were all about that and very excited!!

So on we went with our morning. I periodically asked them if they had to go to the bathroom, and put them on the potties every so often, with no success. So then I was doing something in the kitchen, when I noticed Kylee went outside via the doggy door. I was curious to see what she was doing, so I went to the window to watch her.

She climbed up on Bandit's bed, pulled her panties down and Peed!! She then pulled them back up, and came back in (again, through the doggy door), and ran up to me and told me, "Mommy, I didn't Pee-Pee in my Panties!" She was so incredibly proud of herself!! I was trying not to laugh and to make sense of the fact that my daughter just went outside to go to the bathroom (when her potty was sitting in the middle of the living room floor), and told her it was Very good that she didn't Pee-Pee in her panties! Apparently, she thought the whole not peeing in the house conversation extended to her potty as well??? It was hilarious, and definitely a story we will share with her when she is older.

The girls wore their Big Girl panties from 8:00am-11:45, and it was then that they requested to have their diapers back. I think they were getting tired of me in their space, constantly asking them if they had to go potty. Thankfully there were only 2 accidents all morning, so that is pretty good I think.

I will continue to follow their lead with this whole potty training thing, and I am not going to push the issue. I have left their charts up in the meantime, in case they get the sudden urge to wear panties again.

SNOW- Southern California Style

With the last storm that made it's way through Southern California, it brought a lot of snow to our local mountains. Since the snow doesn't come to us directly, we had to go to it, and it was definitely worth it!

We had such a great time! The girls went sledding with Daddy, built a snow man, and really enjoyed eating the snow!

Both Kylee and Kaylyn refused to keep gloves or mittens on, but that didn't stop them from picking up the snow to munch on it. The problem arose when their hands got really cold from holding onto it. At that point, I would take the snow out of their hands and put it on the ground, which then resulted in them being angry at me for taking away their snow. It was a no-win situation!

Fun was had by all, and I can't wait to take them back!!

In Search of the Perfect Tree

It has become tradition that every year we all go with Grandma and Grandpa to cut down a Christmas tree for their house. There is a local Christmas tree farm by their house, and it is really fun to hike around and find the perfect tree and cut it down!

I was so impressed this year with how well the girls did. There is quite a bit of hiking and climbing involved in this adventure, and they did awesome!! I think they are better hikers than I am! We didn't find the perfect tree right away, but as we were getting ready to leave Grandma spotted it, and it just might be the best tree they have ever had!

The owners of this tree farm, also have 2 horses and the girls loved them!! The man even gave the girls carrots to feed them. Kaylyn asked me if she could Ride the Horse, but of course I had to tell her no. Right as we were getting ready to leave, the horse peed, and the girls are still talking about how much that Horse peed in the dirt! Apparently, it was very impressive to them!

RAIN!!!!

We got our first big Rain Storm of the year in Southern California today!! This was the first storm that the girls were really old enough to somewhat understand what was going on. They woke up in the morning and saw it raining, and were very excited! They immediately asked me if they could go jump in the puddles, so of course I obliged.

At first, I think they were a little confused about it all, but after a couple minutes they were jumping like crazy and having a great time!! We went out several times, and each time they were pretty disapointed when we had to come back inside.

The Rain was definitely a welcome change!!

Santa Claus is Coming to Town!

This year I really tried to gear up and get the girls ready to meet Santa. I bought several books about Santa, and we talked it up quite a bit. I was still unsure of how the meeting would go when we finally went to see him in person.

I think the picture says it all, and it couldn't sum up the girls personalities better. Kaylyn was as cool as a cucumber, and Kylee hated every single second of it!! Kaylyn even tried to calm her sister down by telling her that "Santa is Not Scary, Santa is nice!", but it didn't help. They did both, however, enjoy the Lollipops that Santa gave them after their visit.

Who would have known....

That getting a good picture of all 4 of us for a Christmas card would be so incredibly hard!!! We went to a picture studio, and we got one taken there, but I wasn't in love. The girls weren't smiling, and the way they had us positioned was weird. Then we tried at home, took some in front of the fireplace, some in front of the Christmas tree, and various other spots around our house. Again, not in love. So then we went up to this beautiful waterfall by our house, tried several positions there. Nope, still nothing!!

Is it so much to ask to get them both to smile, and somewhat looking at the camera??? Apparently, YES! It didn't help that they have both been sick, and so has Daddy so no one was quite in the mood for this.

Out of pure desperation, I finally made a decision, chose a picture and went with it. No, it isn't my favorite, but it works and that is all that matters.

This year we sent out 122 Christmas cards to 34 different states and 5 different countries! It was a big undertaking getting all those addressed and stuffed, but well worth it.

Happy Holidays!!!