Big Beds

So finally we made the move to big beds!  I have been building up to this for a long time, getting them used to the idea and getting them excited about moving out of their cots into big boy and big girl beds. The transition went really smoothly with lots of excitement and not nearly as much mayhem as I anticipated. Seriously, I thought they would go crazy with the freedom, but I think we timed it perfectly in that they seem to know and accept when it is bedtime and when it is naptime. I do not think this would have been the case if we had moved them in their two's.

 

Perhaps this will change or they haven't completely realised that they can now basically do what they want when the door closes...we will see.  It helps that we have a camera in the room, so I can see exactly what is going on.  If they sit or stand up I call to them to lie down and they do. I hope this bit of bedtime hype is merely because of the novelty and will fade in time.

I was sad packing up their cots - really one of the last "baby" things they had, and yet despite this, I am also so ready for this next stage in their lives - from toddler to 7 years old. I remember meeting many a 4 year old and loving the age and the incredible little conversations you have with them. I am looking forward to this with Finn and Rebecca.  Already, I keep reminding myself to make a note of the spectacular things they say and observations they make...sometimes Henk and I will turn to each other and mouth 'OMG, did you just hear that! How did they know that?"

They love their new rooms and I loved putting it together for them. I really love the antique oak beds - a different shape for each of them. And the hand knotted cushions on the black and white rug...love! We still have an art deco cupboard that we are painting baby blue and fuchsia and a bright yellow bedside table in place of the kist...will take more pics when complete!

Birthdays, Bunnies and Balloons

We decided to celebrate their third Birthday with small gatherings of people closest to them and with family.  We woke them up on their Birthday morning with 3 balloons each which they loved and then had cupcakes and unwrapped presents with Silvana, their adored au pair and Noms, our wonderful housekeeper.

On the weekend, their Aunty Jen and cousin Abby arrived to stay for 2 weeks and so we had a little celebration braai with Aunty Nicky and Stef, Ilse, Arusha and Bodhi too. It was so special to see them interact with other kids.  There is no doubt that they are ready for school as they are keenly interested in other children so I am sure they are quite ready to start becoming more social. I didn't see them for hours as they were so busy playing. We had special bunny cakes made for them - a blue one for Finn and a pink one for Becky - on request. They loved them and ate most of the icing before we could cut it into slices.

There have been some classic sayings lately. Finn had been playing with his balloon and when I let Mala in from outside, he said to her "Mala, don't eat my Birthday!". And then, Silvana told Becky that as she was 3 now she needed to stop sucking on her dummy at which she responded that Finn had to throw away his thumb then, to which Finn said "I can't throw away my thumb, it is stuck" and "Mom, don't throw away my thumb hey".  Very amusing!

We just had the news that they have been accepted to Waldorf!  Very happy about this and even though it means more strain on our already tight disposable income due to the high school fees and we also have to keep our au pair - we really feel it is the right place for them to start their next phase of development. So from January they will be going to playschool for 4 days a week.  I will have to drop them off in the mornings, which means I will be at work 15- 30 mins late as I can only drop them off at 8h15 earliest - work will have to handle it - and then Silvana will pick them up at 12h30 and take them home for lunch and nap and afternoon playtime.

I am loving this phase and all the wonderful words and thoughts coming out of these little poppets' brains...so so so cute!

Now we are three!

Langebaan adventures

The twins turn three on Thursday! My last post referred to time speeding by, and how it has! I am amazed that we have arrived at this new milestone so quickly. The baby years seem well and truly over now and in some ways that is so sad - it went so fast I don't feel like I really had the chance to completely appreciate them as babies - In the day-to-day task of parenting twins, parents are mostly too busy just looking after their basic needs. With two it was difficult to fully indulge in the true one-on-one bonding experience and in some ways I mourn this lost opportunity. There is always another baby needing you too.

 

Now in the toddler years, they are increasingly demanding of your time as a mother, both wanting you all of the time, competing for uppie, for playtime, for attention.  It is rare that I can just spend quality time with one of them alone. And on that rare occasion, when we have split up to do just that, I feel as if a part of me is missing and that we should all be together.

 

Little beauty with flamingo feathers in her hair

Darling boy with those eyes

So my babies are growing up. And while part of me truly wishes I could have had another baby, I am also so excited by their increased independence on both a physical and emotional level. Their personalities are blossoming, their sense of humour unfolding and their physical bodies strengthening. It is simply wonderful to experience this. I take as many moments as I can to just watch them, to drink in the miracle that they are.

 

My memory taking of them in this way is so precious and absorbing that I often forget to capture them on other lasting mediums. Funny how I had so much time to video my family's children but not as much to video my own. I haven't even edited their first year video yet...I would like to do this soon as they are just at the age where they will be really interested in the journey from babies in NICU to their first Birthday.

 

Finn is a delightful, sweet, sensitive boy with a cheeky grin, a sense of humour and a keen curiosity. Rebecca is a determined, bright, sparkly darling of a girl with a love of reading, also curious and never wanting to be left out of anything. They are both caring, compassionate and protective of each other.  I expect this will intensify as they grow older and there are sure to be twin versus parent issues ahead of us I am sure. Their vocabulary is impressive, as is there understanding of concepts and structures of thought. We often find ourselves reeling at the observations they make at only two years old.

 

Beach adventures

We recently went for their Waldorf Playgroup interview and await to hear whether we have been accepted. If they are then next year, we start their education journey. It seems like yesterday that we applied for a place when they were only 6 months old. It is a wonderful environment for a child and we look forward to our journey there too.

 

Love my dog

Me too

What exciting times lie ahead! Oh the adventures we will have. The experiences we will share. The travels we will learn from...

 

 

 

 

 

2 and a half!

The twins are almost 2 years and 8 months old...or 2 and a half if we still adjust!



This is how we role

I haven't posted in too long and time is tearing past. The twins are still getting cuter and cuter by the day, more vocal, more opinionated, more independant, more spirited, more wary, more observant...developing in leaps and bounds.  I am sure they are not supposed to be as articulate as they are at this age - very impressive really, their vocab is extensive.  They say words like "enourmous" and "shongololo" and "tremendous" and clearly too. The only pronounciation they seem to battle with so far is "th" and they say free instead of three. Of course we have been practising saying three as they turn three in just 4 months!!!  Still getting over the shock of that. Hey, I need to start planning their party yay!
 

Playing on the sculptures at Tokara

 We have had our fair share of the terrible twos in some ways - especially Becky who has had some good tantrums albeit shortlived mostly as she can be distracted out of them quite well. Finn gets quite physical and has bitten Becky a few times and pushes her over now and then. We started the naughty chair which works well but after reading 1-2-3 Magic, I am moving onto this discipline method with time out rather than "naughty" chair.  I have never really like calling it a "naughty" chair. The secret is not to be emotional or responsive towards the bad behaviour as this is rewarding the behaviour...tricky this as I find myself losing my temper when they so determinedly oppose me...I am still learning self control myself!!! Lol.  But I will keep trying to do it better.

Eating plums

I admit, I hope that the trantrums don't escalate in the threes. Other new rebellious behaviour is at naptimes, which makes us think that we are going to leave them in their cots until they don't fit anymore. Not always and never for the au pair, only me, but at some naptimes all hell breaks loose. You think they are going to settle down and the next minute they have jumped up, they strip their cots, throw everything on the floor including the mattresses and jump up and down like monkeys until they get tired. I usually intervene which makes them carry on more, so I really have to stop myself going into their room until they start crying for me. It is not that they are ready to stop napping as they really are tired and are impossible without a nap.

We recently put up an LED security camera in their room hooked up to a tv so we could see what actually goes on in there...well, it was partly hilarious, partly scary (as Finn was doing acrobatics trying to pull himself over into Becky's cot) and mostly infuriating (watching them trash their cots when they are supposed to be sleeping).  It seems as if Finn is the instigator and eggs Becky on.
Here is the proof of naptime mania...
 

Hmmmm trashing our cots instead of napping!

 Sigh, not sure how to handle this one, but based on our experiences going away for the weekend, if they were in big beds it would be ten times worse. They become raving lunatics when they have freedom to get up and play...I am dreading the day we move them to big beds and nightimes become manic...maybe by four they will have calmed down???? How do you get them to stay in bed when they have each other to play with?

Away in the Cederberg...bedtime was hectic!!!

On the subject of potty training...they are completely potty trained!! Yay, no more daytime nappies (only during nap but almost always dry) and then a nightime nappy.  Otherwise they are totally on top of it.  I am a bad mommy sometimes as I put on a nappy when I know we will be in the car for a long time or out at shops, I really shouldn't do this as it confuses them...must stop. And no more bottles either!  Totally off bottles yay...no more bottle cleaning! They really are becoming little kids now. The are growing tall - Finn is about 960cm and Becky 955cm - so both just under a meter.

Parenting twins is not for the faint-hearted indeed and you really need two fulltime parents to do it - in fact parenting itself is not for the fainthearted, but still loving it and wouldn't change anything for the world, apart from having a bit more time to enjoy them during the working week. In just 4 short months time we will be celebrating three years with our miracle twins - so special.