a small, and dare i say delightful, glimpse into my 35th birthday

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a day to celebrate!

happy birthday jordan, my honey! i don't know who's having more fun today, jordan or me and the boys. celebrating birthdays with 2.5 year old boys is where it's at. the boys gave jordan an awesome present of waking up at 7:20 this morning. we started our day with homemade pumpkin chocolate chip waffles in the shapes of farm animals. we took a nice hike in the woods and threw plastic sharks down a steep hill. we dug in the freshly wet dirt, made a construction site with pint-sized dump trucks and skid steers. we went to a new gymnastics gym open house and the boys jumped off of 4 foot high platforms, did somersaults down a wedge and slid down fireman poles. we ate mighty fine cheeseburgers and fries and fresh strawberry lemonade. and later we're going to have cake and candles and singing and then j and i are going to see bela fleck.

what a day to celebrate! we love you!

here comes the rain again

after a summer of near-record breaking temperatures and drought (we're talking triple digit heat w/ no rain, people!), the wet has finally arrived. we're on day three of beautiful rain, cloudy skies, mellow thunder and highs in the 70s and low 80s.

not even a potty break could spoil the fun!

phone photo friday - "the good samaritan"

jumping on laura c's friday theme, i'm posting some photos taken w/ my iphone yesterday at the library. we were leaving the library, just outside the door and the boys found a downspout with rain coming out (hurray!). just then, a school bus pulled up and about 50 fifth graders got out and started walking to the library entrance. ozzy ran to the door before they got there, opened it up (no small feat), and continued to hold it open until every last kid walked passed the threshold. it was unbelievably adorable, especially because the older kids were as sweet as could be and said thank you to him, patted him on the head and gave him high fives! that was all it took for ozzy to be hooked, and the next ten minutes was spent trying to convince him that he didn't need to open the door for EVERY PERSON entering or exiting.

san antonio zoo

i have two posts in "drafts" waiting to be written and so many thoughts that continue to swirl about the boys' zygosity determination, but for now, here are a few pics from our great visit to the san antonio zoo yesterday. abel was in heaven from start to finish and his favorite was the leopard. oz was scared of every animal except for the turtles and fish (he was also teething like a mutha and had a low-grade fever, though). hence, the apparent lack of animals in the photos. no matter though, the miniature train turned that boy into a giggle-puss in no time.

clarity

99.9 percent sure




i'm honestly in shock. still processing. i need some time for this to sink in and reflect on what this means to me. it's all good, of course. it's just that i've known them to be fraternal their whole lives, and now that notion has been turned on its head.

abel and oskar are identical twin brothers.

i think i'm going to need to say that a few more hundred times before it really sinks in.

bring on the bets!

jordan and i had a lovely anniversary this weekend. five big ole' years! every anniversary it feels like it's been forever (in a good way), and just like yesterday (in a good way). but when i really stopped to think about the past five years, i was overwhelmed. we've moved across country. lived in four residences. remodeled two of them. changed jobs SIX times between the two of us. and grown two amazing little boys. who are now 2.5! it just seems like a lot. i'm hoping our next five years are a bit mellower. and instead of recounting these major life-shifters, we can recount memories of smaller moments that captured our hearts and imaginations. but onto bigger news!

i was curious about one of my presents upon presentation. a large manila envelope. unassuming. definitely not a card. i opened it and pulled out the contents. a picture of a baby on a tri-fold brochure. what's going on here?

many of you know that we aren't for certain what type of twins the boys are. we know friends, family and complete strangers who swear on their grave the boys are identical. we don't think so, but we have no proof either way. i've blogged about our dilemma here. well, we're about to have an answer soon. my very own husband, the one who without a doubt says the boys are fraternal, got me a "family" anniversary gift.

a DNA test!

does anyone want to start putting bets down?

what's grosser than gross?

when your child finally get's over his aversion to pooping on the potty, but while in process of going, one turd manages to fall on the floor and your dog runs over and eats it in one quick inhale.

and then licks the floor clean.

the many faces of ozzy and abes

the many faces, originally uploaded by tasilverman.

the apples don't fall far from the tree

i try hard not to make predictions. and i am SO NOT the kind of parent to force my own present or past interests on my kids. but i can't help but notice that ozzy and abel have very distinct inclinations and talents related to me and jordan.

i was a competitive gymnast. it was clear to me at a very young age that flipping around was something i loved, and was very motivated to do. jordan did martial arts his whole life, wrestled and is now in the crazy sport of brazilian jiu jitsu.

just so you know, the boys have never seen me do gymnastics nor watched anyone else do it. at least not to my knowledge. likewise for jiu jitsu. for a long time now, abel relishes being upside down. he loves it when i flip him around. he kicks up into handstands when i hold him under his arms. and ozzy has for a long time now tortured abel regularly by tackling him to the ground, mounting him, wrapping his legs around his torso and many times getting him into a rear naked choke. it's a little scary actually.

i was the proud mama tonight when abel busted out a forward roll. i don't even know where it came from! but it was awesome. oz wanted to do it too, but he was clearly not getting it. lest i forget his true talent, he decided to show me what he's all about mid-video. i'm equally proud of him, i just think we need to get him in a class soon so abel doesn't have to be his wrestling dummy.

rockin this potty thing

we're on day 5 of potty training and it is going, in a word, AWESOME!

they are both exclusively in undies now, save for night time when they wear a pull-up. they are even taking their naps in undies and staying dry, to my disbelief. i'm trusting them more and more and reminding them less and less. they are both very motivated to use the potty and get pretty frustrated when i nag them to go. it's definitely an independence thing and they want to be in control of the process. i totally get it.

abel is still having some hang-ups with no. two and he's reluctant to use the potty for this. that's been the only sucky thing in this whole process. other than that, abel is our potty star. he goes completely by himself, takes his pants and undies off, puts them back on himself, etc. he even went on a big public potty at the vet's office this morning. love it!

we're off to costco this afternoon so the boys can pick out whatever truck they want as a reward for potty success. and i'm trying to think of an appropriate celebration for j and i to mark the end of diapers. because I LOVE LIFE WITH NO DIAPERS!!!

from the mouth of abel

j: abel, what do you want to be when you grow up?
a: BIG!

j: when you are older, are you going to go by abel or abie?
a: ABES!

j: abel, what would you like to drink with dinner?
a: BEER, PLEASE!

oi vay.

it's potty time!

it's official. today was our first real potty training day! the boys went from wake to sleep in undies.

the verdict?

they did awesome! did they have lots of accidents? heck yes! but they filled up their sticker chart and then some and went on the potty without any prompting too many times to count.

here are the proud duo, ozzy leading the way:

we have been doing "potty preparation" for god knows how long. i think the boys were 18 months when they started sitting on their potties, fully clothed, for the fun of it. by two, they would occasionally make no. 1, and on a fully moon when all the planets were aligned, they'd go no. 2. we talked about going on the potty every day. we read book after book. we gave incentives (chocolate chips). and they did great, but we never took it that seriously. why rush it?

three weeks ago we got a cool kiddie pool and set it up on the deck. the boys would frolic about naked and i decided to bring their potties outside, just in case. lo and behold, both of them, without any prompting, would stop whatever splashing fun they were in the midst of and sit on their potties whenever nature called. day after day after day. i took it as a sign of readiness and consulted with their teacher for the game plan. we marked our calendars for august 10.

potty training at school today went amazing. abie had only one accident; ozzy two. we continued at home and while they both had accidents, i think it was more my fault for not having them sit on their potties more routinely.

way to go, boys! we are so proud of you and so excited for us all to be liberated from diapers. YAHOO!

the summer of brotherly love

make way, here come the molars!

i've had a draft post about abel for a while now. the past few months have truly been glorious for this kid. happy all the time. always up for an adventure. sweet, loving and the biggest cuddle bunny on the planet. case in point, i was carrying him into the house one evening and gave him a big kiss and said, "abie, you are my big boy!" and he matter-of-factly replied, "no, mommy, abie your little boy." be still my heart! he is mama's boy through and through.

there was a time when abel was more of a challenge. very sensitive (like his father), small things would upset him. he was clingy. he whined a lot. he required a lot more attention. in contrast to his brother, mr. independent-i'll-do-it-myself-thank-you-very-much-and-blow-you-a-kiss-while-i-walk-out-the-door, abel was just more challenging. and i hestitated to ever say anything about it because i knew that one day the tables would be turned. the boys have, yet again, flipped personalities. of course they still retain some of their fundamental characteristics, but our "difficult" child has become the "easy" one and vice versa. i hate those terms, because oz is anything but difficult. but because i'm comparing, well, you know what i mean.

so it was strange this morning when abel seemed a little off. he felt warm and had a temp of 100. jordan asked, "what's going on?" because of course he had no other symptoms. and then during snack he opened his mouth real wide and i saw the culprit. his first second-year molar had erupted, half of it poking through his gum like a jagged mountain peak. AHA! mystery solved. i wondered when those suckers would come through, and upon further inspection i found oz with some swollen buds. which may explain his recent bout of crankiness, defiance, not wanting to go to sleep EVER, indecision (yah, right, molars - how about just being 2.5).

so here's a little photo homage to abie's recent glory days. livin' it up like a two year old little boy should.

circle time

circles bring out the best in the boys. balls, hoops, frisbees, manhole covers, septic tank covers - you name it. if it's a circle, they're set. they come up with unlimited games and their imaginations run wild. they are also totally into the concept of "racing." as in, on your mark-get set-go! they will race each other for HOURS. it's unbelievably cute, because they clearly don't care who wins or crosses the finish line first. i think it's the anticipation of "go!" and the satisfaction of repeating something over and over and over and over again. oh, to be a toddler!

the first set of pictures are at rudy's, gas station/bbq joint. yah, like you can fill both of your tanks all at once! the boys turned the round septic tank covers (way in the distance) into their starting and finish line. it was a healthy slope up and down, and after 20 minutes of running in the 95 degree temps, they were soaked! the second set of pics is at our brand new library. no kidding, this library opened up last weekend and it's called "laura's library," as in laura bush. we can walk there and the boys just go bananas for it. they have a kickin' kids room that they can pretty much do as they see fit; tents, masks, puppets, of course books, and...you guessed it...a million moveable circles in all different colors. the boys set up some paths and then spent the best hour of their week hoping from circle to circle and counting how many times they could jump. i don't even know what possessed me to ask, "can you guys count in spanish?" in unison they busted out one through ten in espanol. amazing what these kids know that i don't even realize!

we're fast approaching 2.5 and i know i've been pathetic at updating this blog. it's bumming me out. so it's my goal to post some "character profiles" of these silly monkeys in honor of their 1/2 birthday. we're having such a blast and i don't want to forget about these moments!

house makes home

there's the old saying, "home is where the heart is." and i believe it. we create our comfort by the people and love around us, not by the objects or environment. but i must admit that a good place makes the living, the love and the happiness flow a lot easier. we've found our own slice of heaven with this new house and we didn't even see it coming.

i grew up on an acre of wooded land in the northwest suburbs of chicago. my parents still live there, going strong after forty some odd years of calling the same place home. my mom says she'll die in that house. i never really understood where she was coming from. there are so many amazing places you can live in this country, let alone this world! why be so dedicated to one place? and now after i've moved to a new place almost every year over the past fifteen of my life, and now after living in this gem for the past month, i'm beginning to glimpse her perspective. home may be where the heart is, but there's nothing like it when your home captures your heart.

i was worried how we would all transition to this place. we were coming from a lovely neighborhood, where we knew everyone, where we could take carefree walks along the sidewalk and greet pearl the cat, bump in to almost two-year old jordan and her mom karen, knock on the mueller's door and see if kai wanted to come out to play. it was idyllic suburban american life, in a way.

now we wake up in the morning and head for the woods that is our backyard. we climb over big rocks in our pajamas. we hunt for snail shells hiding under the leaves and dirt. we keep our eyes out for the roadrunners that make this place home, too. we chase the bright orange butterflies and stay hushed as we creep toward the turks cap to see the hummingbirds feed on the red flowers. it's a different kind of life, equally idyllic. and we can't get enough of it.

i can't help but notice how happier we all are. the boys have embraced this place completely, from the moment their little toes crossed over the threshold of the front door. our first day here, we kept hearing, "new house! abie/ozzy happy!" they beg to come straight home after school. their content is expressed so clearly. they are in awe at the nature around them. and so are we.

life just flows easily here. we live in less space now, but the layout of this place fits our family to a "t." the kitchen is in the heart of the house, making it easy to prepare food while the boys play and gallivant around. they are always within eyesight or earshot. they have their own "wing" in the house, at the end of a sunlit hallway, separated from the guts of the house by two solid wood doors. it feels so good to kiss them goodnight and know we won't disturb them with a loud action film or a dinner party. and jordan and i have our little treehouse retreat, a master bedroom, bath and balcony on the second floor that is all ours. j and i pinch each other every time we look out one of our many windows. pure, unadulterated nature is all around us. this house has good bones and a great soul.

we thought moving into less space would be a challenge and we would eventually need to add on. maybe remodel a bit, too. but we were determined to downsize as much as possible for the time being. we probably got rid of a quarter of our "stuff." we still have too much, and there's more purging to do, but living already feels lighter. we love managing less things, things we never needed in the first place. and we have no intention of adding on or remodeling anytime soon. this place just feels right, just the way it is.

it's been hard unpacking those last ten boxes. it kind of feels like losing those last 10 pounds. you know you've got to do it, but you just don't have the motivation. we're still organizing and living in a bit of chaos. but it really hasn't mattered that much. we know we'll get to it. right now we just want to enjoy. so i didn't bother to clean up, pick up, or put away when i took these pictures this morning. it is what it is. and we love it.

pretty much sums it up

view from our street - tumbleweed trail

front path

from the backyard looking up deck and walkway between house and garage (left)

back of house and upstairs balcony

through the kitchen

the gang painting with banana stems in the breakfast room

view from breakfast

family room

conversation area

hallway to boys' getaway

our good friend richard built this screen our of white oak to match the floors. we LOVE it and we no longer worry about the boys free falling from the stairs.

unmade bed

view from our balcony

wall of masks

romeo chillin

the boys morning ritual - taking off for the woods in their pj's

ozzy creeping around the rocks

looking for snail shells

boy ozzy

abie shows off his shell