Just the other day I was going through some things and found the belly cast I made while pregnant with the boys. Wow, there was a lot of space in there! =-) It is still such a mind boggling miracle that these two buddies grew inside of me.
Then boom, they were out and part of our life, what a unique experience to witness and be a part of...life with twins! Not something I ever expected or imagined, it has been quite an adventure and honestly not always pretty, but none the less an exciting life trying to wrangle twins plus a big sister.
We took on that first year determined not to be slowed down. I am proud of the trips we did (3 weeks in Hawaii, month long RV trip, weekend get-a-ways) and though there were challenges, we realized that each outing gave us more confidence in being a family of FIVE.
Then another year went by and Calvin and Jett turned TWO! They gave us the gift of getting potty trained one month after turning two, which was such a bonus. Though I do feel like, between the two of them, we changed our fair share of diapers in that two year period. =-)
It is funny to think about how each year we get to know our kids a little more, they are growing and changing and developing their own uniqueness and personalities. But when I think back to characteristics I noticed about them from the beginning, some of these same things I still see today. For example from the day he was born Jett has had this ear piercing high pitch scream. Now, thank god, he has words, so we don't hear it as often, but it is still there and hard to ignore when he lets it rip. Though his scream is high, the funny thing is that Jett has a deep, low voice when he talks. Calvin is the opposite, his talking voice is HIGH and his yell gets deep when he is angry. His cry when he is hurt or sad is softer, he really just sounds heart broken.
Another thing that has stayed the same from day one is body tone. Jett is hard, his head is SO hard that if he bonks me, I see stars! He is more cuddly now, but he used to be pretty stiff.
Jett likes to be FAST! He loves super heroes though he doesn't know much about them except that they fly and that they save people.
Jett is our most easy going kid, he tends to be eager to please, though he has quite a rebellious spirit. He loves to escape out of his bedroom just as he is getting tucked in. He always runs straight to Piper's room to blow her a kiss.
He is a sensitive little monkey, getting his feelings hurt if someone calls him a baby. If someone else is hurt he is there talking softly, to see if they are okay.
When he has finished something like a puzzle or his dinner, he loves to say, "TA DAAAAAA!"
Calvin started out as a pile of mush, and to this day he is our best cuddler. His skin is so soft, his whole body can just melt into mine. He loves to get lost in my hair, it is almost like a sense of comfort to have me lean in and let him tickle his face with the ends of my hair.
Calvin is a total sweet talker too, already knowing just what to say to try to smooth things over.
Unfortunately (maybe fortunately if he plans to be an attorney) Calvin loves to debate for the sake of debating. Almost always the first words out of his mouth are "No Mommy..." or "Well..." or "But Daddy..." Followed by some reason that what we said is not right, or not what he thinks is best. This of course is extremely frustrating, but we are figuring out that we just need to let him talk and express his thoughts. Maybe it is just because he is three, but getting him do something we ask is never a simple task. It has to be his idea, he is not one to be told what to do. And boy does he talk. Calvin comes up with the best imaginative stories that go on and on and on. Usually his stories involve his "brown mom and dad" who always do things just right and let him do all sorts of things. Calvin's favorite color is brown which is why all his favorite things are brown, including his pretend brown mom and dad.
Calvin and Jett both adore their big sister. So far she is still quite in control of how they play and what they play, but the boys love to follow her lead. It is when they decide not to follow where problems tend to arise in their trio of play. But for the most part they get along really well and have lots of fun role playing, lining up cars, chasing each other or snuggled up side by side on the couch to watch a movie.
This is a good example of the yin and yang of twins. There has been time and time again either on bike or on foot where we would set out on a trail and Calvin is dragging behind, but Jett is charging ahead. Then when it is time to turn around and head back Calvin is gung-ho and Jett digs his heals in, not wanting to go any further.
If there was just one of them, I would probably quickly forget about the whining or complaining because it would only be half the time. With the two of them (or 3 when Piper is there) someone is almost always off, so the outing can feel like a nonstop cry fest!
But then we get those times where the stars align, everyone is happy and fun and excited to be out and enjoying life. Boy does that feel good!
Jett is good at making friends. Random kids at the playground seem to pick him out and want to play with him. He is gentle and sweet. Favorite color is green.
Loves to show his muscles and be strong and fast.
Calvin loves to be a joker, it fills him up to make people laugh. His best jokes are when he rhymes words and thinks it is the funniest thing in the world. He has the goofiest dance moves that are so adorable. Super loosey goosey. He really gets into role playing. If we are playing a game where someone is a tiger or something chasing him, he gets this real look of fear that they are actually a tiger and going to eat him. What a beautiful imagination he has, so fun to listen to his stories. If there is something he doesn't like he says "I don't LOVE this!" Calvin has these condescending eyes he uses where he almost closes them, but can see out a slit, as his eye lids flutter that say,"I know so much more than you, if you only knew what I know!" He does this at a time when he is probably being bad, or getting in trouble, but these eye flutters only make me laugh...its hard to explain. What a character we have in Calvin, he is good at spicing up our life and I know will always keep us on our toes.
Calvin also loves to read books and swim and bike. He has great coordination with running and kicking a soccer ball. He loves to destroy things like knock over blocks or pull apart lego creations, stomp on a sand castle. He loves to play with friends and run with the posse of older kids like Piper's friends at the park.
One of the benefits of having an older sister is getting to dress up in tutus and go to have high tea with a fairy at the Fall Festival.
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They have just started going to school now that they are three. We have them in the same class (but not the same class as Piper) going 2 days a week. Then we will alternate and have one boy go the third day and the other stay home to get one on one FUN days. So far so good with them LOVING school, no issues with drop off, which is another bonus of having each other.
Here is a series of pictures from my mini photo shoot of the boys for their "I AM THREE" blog post!
Check out their sweet hair styles, I can take full credit for since I am their barber. When I first spiked up Jett's hair he said "I look like a peacock!" Calvin looked in the mirror and said, "Why do I look like somebody else?!"
I love this picture, it is so Calvin and Jett. We love you buddies of the boys! Thank you for being you and choosing us to be your family.
