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.