Christmas

Well the girls first Christmas was adorable, and yet we were all sick thanks to Nicky bringing home a cold on the last day of school. He came down with it about Monday of Christmas week, shortly followed by me, Tom, Nana and the twins. Of course I'm pretty sure I'm always sick at Christmas, but this was nuts.

But we endeavored to persevere. The tree was trimmed:


and Santa came:


It was a little sparse compared to other years, but then again, Nicky never got something like this before:


Probably took him a good 10 minutes to even look at anything else.

The girls had fun too. Their gifts were not wrapped at all so that we could avoid spending hours doing presents. We just had them all set out on a blanket and sat down to play with them.




All in all we have been kept hopping this season:


And now I have a week off to kick this cold. And maybe send out the Christmas cards. We wanted to send photos, but we're too sick to look cheerful. The kids are cute though. So there is that.


Merry Christmas!

Baptism photos of the girls

The baptism, in pictures:

We had dinner before we left. Nicky was happy with hamburgers and hotdogs:



We got the girls dressed to go:





At the church, we did some singing:


And Gabi fell asleep on me:


Then things got rough for the girls. Gabi did not appreciate the dunking (she was first):


And Lily felt really abused!


But it didn't take long to get them dressed and calmed down:









There was something about candles. Lily wasn't sure about that candle thing:


But Nicky was willing to help out:



Then we had some posing to do:







And Lily was pooped out after all the partying.


Gabi in the meantime was screaming her head off. She'd had enough. No photos of that though.

Nicky wants a Boo Boo Kitty Lexus

Nicky and I made it to the university's holiday concert tonight. We sat up in the balcony since Nicky wanted to sit up high. If he'd totally had his way we'd have been in the very highest seats, but I put my foot down (and my booty) and wouldn't budge about midway up the balcony. We had great seats, right on the aisle and with no seats directly in front of us. Ha! So no seat for Nicky to kick. He actually has been really good for these performances over the last few days. I'm pretty impressed. Especially for a hyper 4 year old.

This one was long, although not as long as the ballet. It was about 90 minutes though. I promised him McDonalds afterwards if he was good. And afterwards we did visit McD's for the promised happy meal.

As far as the concert went, it was much more professional than the community college one, and the quality was better musically speaking. But the community college concert was so charming and entertaining. They had a few skits included to add a little zest that the university concert lacked. I think it was great though for Nicky too see so much variety in his first three shows.

Now next weekend is some kind of holiday fest thing in town that we're going to try to attend. Santa is supposed to be there too!

I took a movie of Nicky at the show surreptitiously. You can see him trying to hold it together and then getting all distracted by the lights on his shoes. But he pulls it together in time to clap. I think the clapping at the end of each song was his favorite part.



Oh, also today.... Nicky helped put up the Christmas lights. This is the first year we have outside lights up and they look great!



This morning I put Lily into Gabi's crib for a visit. They are so cute:



Lily actually pushed up onto her knees and elbows today! I had them outside with me while Nicky and Tom worked on the lights. They were in the playpen while I crocheted. (I'm helping out with making a crochet coral reef for my library to display next spring.)

I think that's all the news that's fit to print. But here are two more videos of Nicky. I took these on the way to school December 1st. Nicky was talking about the chickens at Grandpa Buz's house in this one.



And then we made a movie for Aunt Jessie since she hadn't been able to come to the baptism. Notice the car Nicky wants us to give him.



Oh and one more thing. Nicky finally got a trim. He was getting positively shaggy as you can see:



Nana trimmed him up before we went to the ballet Saturday. Don't have a great photo of it, but you can see it here and in the movies above of Nicky at the concert.

Party Concert Ballet Movie- been busy 'round here

Just a quickie post before I run off to bed...

The girls were baptized the Monday after Thanksgiving and the dresses were gorgeous. JM took some photos and I'll post them when I get them. Tom and I were too busy to even try to take pictures ourselves. Aunt Liz and Miss Kris are their godmothers and Father John did the ceremony. He gave a really nice talk beforehand, describing the ceremony and what the various parts mean. I think that's Tom's favorite thing about Father John, that he gives the history behind the ritual.

We had quite a crew there. Liz and Jodi and my Mom were all there. My Dad, Gwen and my Aunt Janice were there. Tom's Mom, Dad and JM were there. And Kris was there along with three people I work with. I made a cake and afterwards we all had cake and soda.

The ceremony itself was very nice, but we were all surprised when Father John said he was happy to see the font was deeper than he thought so we'd be able to do the whole immersion. I think we all just looked at him with our eyes big as saucers and then we just went for it. We weren't at all prepared for the immersion though. The priest who'd given us the supplies hadn't been either, so we had basically a hand towel and two washcloths. I think Gabi went in first, and then Lily. I dried Gabi off as best I could with my shirt and the hand towel, and passed her off to Liz I think. Then I took Lily and just used my shirt and the washcloths to get her dried as best I could. Then we ran over to get them into their dresses so they wouldn't freeze. That water was cold! Well, room temperature, but still cold!

We got them all calmed down though and dressed. Finished up the ceremony and then had cake. Lily was doing fine with the crowd, which as our little extrovert isn't a surprise. But Gabi only held it together for maybe 5 minutes or so. Then she decided she'd had enough of it all. She had been dunked in water and changed into a big fluffy dress, she was hungry, she was tired, and there were just too many people around. All that added up to a complete meltdown. Tom and I spent a good portion there at the end with the girls in a dressing room trying to heat up bottles, shush babies, and change them back to the only outfits we had for them other than the dresses. (Because there was no way they'd fit in their carseats with the dresses on.)

Lily actually passed out on the floor. But Gabi was inconsolable. She screamed like someone was killing her the whole way home. When we got home we hurried to get them both inside and the second I unbuckled her to take her out she stopped crying, and the instant I had her up on the changing table she was all smiles. Spoiled girl. She just prefers being at home.

Lily in all her splendor:


All in all it was a lovely baptism and I was so happy so many folks could come. I only wish I'd had more time to visit with everyone. I had actually taken off Monday because I was sick. The girls and I all had that cold and weren't feeling very well. But that was my last sick day for a while, and I hadn't though to take Tuesday off in advance. Well, we'll just have to visit with everyone for Christmas!

Speaking of Christmas, Nicky and I have been going on a few outings to get ready for the season. Thursday, he and I went to a holiday concert at the community college. It was an hour long, and they sang a bunch of songs. There was even a lady there doing the songs in sign language. This was Nicky's first attendance at a performance (other than that half of the Bob the Builder show we went to a year or so ago). And he did Great! He clapped at the end of each song, and really didn't wiggle much at all. I was very impressed. He said the show was "Awesome!" when asked and so I'd say it was an excellent experience all around.

Then Saturday Nicky and I went to the ballet. Thursday at work I scored two tickets to the city ballet's production of the Little Match Girl from a co-worker. Yep, this is the Hans Christian Andersen story about the poor little girl who freezes to death. Kind of a downer, eh? I told Nicky the story in the morning while we were getting ready for the play, and then during the ballet I pointed out the parts we'd talked about. It wasn't a professional troupe, and there were dancers of all ages there. But Nicky really seemed to enjoy it. It was long. Two whole hours! With two 15 minute intermissions in there. He was really getting wiggly by the end. But he held it together, and clapped at the right times. He never tried to run off or be too loud either. When asked, he said it was great and awesome, so I'd say he had a good time. We walked through the gift shop of the museum next door to the theater, and got some good ideas for Santa. And then headed home.

Then later Saturday night, Tom and I went and finally saw the new Harry Potter movie. Usually we see those the weekend they come out. But it's pretty hard to get away these days. Fortunately Nana and Grandpa and JM all came to our rescue and teamed up to watch the kids for us. The movie was really long! It was the 8:30 show and as we were walking out of the theater it was after 11pm! But it was really good. I'm glad I didn't re-read the books right before it though. I'm sure lots had to be changed for the movie, and I had enough distance that I didn't really notice anything. Of course NOW I'll have to re-read them though. As expected, the movie ends on a real downer, but then it is the middle of the book! I hope the final finale is worth it this summer.

Ok, it's been a long day and I'm off to sleep! There is another holiday concert tomorrow night. This time at the university. I'd really like to take Nicky, so we'll see how that goes.

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah too! (Wish I'd been able to attend your Hanukkah dinner tonight Colin. I'm sure it was awesome!)

First foods and Thanksgiving

Well I shared that the girls started eating solid foods (other than a little cereal here and there) right at 24 weeks. They started with the sweet potatoes, just like Nicky did.

Next came peas, and then butternut squash, then finally they had their first fruit, pears. Then green beans, bananas and they just today finished up their first meat: chicken. During Thanksgiving they had some sweet potato souffle, without the topping, and some pumpkin pie. They loved those! Gabi adores pumpkin pie especially.

Lily took to eating like a champ, never turning down any food. Gabi was ok with trying out a little of everything, but if you gave her too many peas she'd finally start crying. She didn't really adore anything till the pumpkin pie. That gave them both a little red rash around their mouths for a bit, but it went away after a little washup. I suspect that was caused by the cinnamon/allspice stuff in it. Next comes apples, which I anticipate them loving!

We had a very nice Thanksgiving feast. Tom made a ham this year instead of a turkey, and I have to say it was so much easier! Much less cooking time since mostly you're just heating it up and glazing it. I wouldn't mind doing this again, but I think we're committed to a turkey for Christmas since everyone seemed to miss the bird. Tom does make awesome turkey I admit. I'm sure JM was able to get a better pic, but this is the one I took:



Now we have the girls' baptism coming up Monday November 29th. I'm hoping to get a few good photos and movies of that event. The girls have beautiful gowns their Nana made for them. I can't wait to see them in them!

I am definitely not a pro at this event thing yet. But we'll have a nice gathering. My Dad, stepmother Gwen and my Aunt Janice have come all the way from North Georgia to attend. Liz, Jodi and my Mom are coming all the way from South Florida. Tom's Dad, JM, and Nana are coming and I have a few folks from work who might come. Our friend Kris will be there also, and Liz and Kris will be the godmothers. Since the baptism is kind of late, 7pm, we'll just have a cake and drinks afterwards. I was going to buy a publix cake, but the only real options were either a plain cake with flowers or one with a cross of some sort on it. I don't know, it just seemed a little weird. So I opted to make a cake instead. It's amazing what you can do with sprinkles and a bunt pan.

So anyway, baptism shots next time. And hopefully that will be done BEFORE Christmas.

Oh, ok, one more. This is Friday, after Thanksgiving. Nicky was entertaining Gabi.

Halloween- just a bit late

Ok, so it's about to be Thanksgiving. Must be time to put up those Halloween photos then!

Um, yeah. So been a bit busy. Shocking I know.

So Halloween. The girls and Tom were fighting off the cold that Nicky and I were so kind to share with them. But Tom still worked on the jack-o-lantern with Nicky:



And Nicky and I made this:



Which means we looked like this:



Black icing...kind of gross. But fun anyway. Nicky's happy pose in front of our crafts. Probably around noon-ish, and he was still in his nightshirt. Hey, it was Sunday.



After that Nicky and I got all dressed up for Trick-or-Treat. He was a scary pirate:



And I was a wicked witch (photo by Nicky):



Terrifying I know. Nicky mostly loved my furry spider on my hat. He still asks about it.

Then we headed over to a Halloween Party where Nicky met up with his friends, the dragon and the cupcake princess. The pirate was pretty focused on getting his candy though:



And then, the mean parents made them all pose for entire SECONDS on the front lawn:



But in the end, much Trick-or-Treating took place and lots of candy was extorted from the neighbors.




The girls didn't actually get to dress up this year. We have their wings on hold till next Halloween though. They were going to be fairies. That'll be just fine for years to come I'm sure.

Six months old

The girls are officially 24 weeks/6 months old today. So we stopped by the store on the way home and picked up sweet potatoes and peas for them. Today they had their first sweet potatoes, and I'd say it was a raging success! Two more days of those and we'll move on to peas. After that, well maybe pears or apples. It's a whole new world for the girls.

Of course you know there is a movie of it:


Now of course getting that movie means I downloaded the other ones off the camera too. Here's the girls admiring their big brother. They just adore him! And the feeling is mutual.


And the promised Halloween photos will be up next time. Promise!

Morning conversations and Dogs in heaven

Tom just showed me some movies he took on his iphone.

This shows the girls in their crib yesterday. That was the last day they shared a crib. They can move around too much now and so we set up the other crib for Gabi last night. They both did just fine in their separate cribs last night, which was a relief. We were worried that they'd be lonely.



Those were the outfits (minus the jeans) that they were going to wear for Halloween, along with their fairy wings, but they ended up staying home with Daddy. They all three weren't feeling well. Nicky and I went to a party and went Trick or Treating and had a great time! More photos and movies of that to come.

Now, here are two movies Tom took on his phone. It was Saturday morning, so that's me before makeup, tooth-brushing or anything. But the kids are cute enough to make up for that I think. Nicky likes talking to Lily and Gabi and having me talk for the girls, so that's my baby voice asking him questions.


Here he continues, now telling them about dragons. He'd just started watching "How to Train Your Dragon" which he seems to love. He's telling them about the Night Fury dragon named Toothless. At the end, when we were listing everyone in the family, the movie cuts off just as he was saying "and Sampson," who is our dog in heaven.


Speaking of dogs in heaven. Abbey was almost taken to the vet last weekend. She is really having a lot of trouble with her back, hips and knees. Probably arthritis. She's also very nearly incontinent, at least in the bladder area, which drives me NUTS. She was starting to have trouble even standing up, and so we were going to take her Monday. But then we gave her an aspirin, found out that we couldn't afford the money to put her down, and she got a reprieve. I imagine it won't be long now though. Cold weather is really hard on her and I hate the idea of her suffering through the winter. We've already started talking with Nicky about it. Not the most fun conversation to have. But he's doing well with the idea.

Get a load of this photo

I must have taken twenty photos of them, and this one is probably the very best.

Our three kids:


That's Lily on the left, Nicky with the cheezy smile, and Gabi looking coy on the right. It's mighty hard to get a photo where they're all smiling!

Anyway, just a quick update for you. It was a three day weekend for us because of homecoming. Our town shuts down when the Gators have homecoming weekend. Nicky had a sore throat Thursday morning, and by that night I had one too, but I'd promised to take him to the parade Friday. So even though we were both feeling a bit under the weather we went.

This was Nicky's first parade, and I think he enjoyed it. We'd planned to catch the bus, but we missed it twice! That'll have to wait for another weekend. So I drove to campus, and we parked and walked. It was a good 15 minute walk, and then I stood from about 11:30 till 2pm. It was a LONG parade. Another 15 minute walk back to the car and we were both about to drop. By the time we got home we were done. We both had fevers, and were exhausted.

The rest of the weekend has been pretty uncomfortable. Nicky seems to have endless energy, but even so he's a little under the weather. He's bounced back much better than me though. I'm just hoping I don't share it with Tom and the girls. Tom being sick will be hard on us all, and no one wants a sick baby! That just breaks your heart.

So we're doing a lot of hand washing around here. Oh, and we have a new acquisition! My mom bought us a dishwasher! That should help keep the germs from spreading also. Thanks Mom!

Speaking of Moms, that reminds me, the kids are all set for their Halloween costumes. Nana bought Nicky his Bumblebee costume, and the girls are going as fairies with two cute dresses they already have, and some fancy wings Nana found for them. They'll be adorable! Now we just have to figure out what we're doing for Halloween. We've done Boo at the Zoo for three of the last four years. I don't know if I have it in me to do again. We'll have to see.

One more for ya:


Oh, and maybe just one movie: This is Lily talking. I swear she says "hi."

Sorry about the wait

Just a little busy around here. Seriously.

But here's a few videos for you finally!

All smiles from the girls. Gabi is on the left here.


A typical Sunday morning at the Mott's. Well, during a quiet few minutes. It was actually so remarkably quiet I had to grab the camera.


And this is what I look like within 5 minutes of walking in the door after work.


The girls were quite happy at their four month pediatric visit. Well, before the shots anyway. Gabi weighed in at 13lb 5oz and Lily weighed 12lb 2oz. We think the only reason we can usually tell them apart these days is because of their weight difference.


Photos too!
At the ped visit:


Can you tell who is who here? It took me a bit to be sure! Check out the name of the image to see.


Such happy girls:


Posing in the big chair. Lily is playing footsie I think.


Can't forget Nicky! He's just hard to catch on camera with his busy schedule. Here he was waiting for the cookies to finish baking:


That pretty much brings us through the end of September. Check out the photobucket link and the 2010 September and Movie folders to see more!

Now if I can just get the October stuff up.

Lily chatting up the camera on a Wednesday morning.

Lily has decided that she is going to talk and talk and talk...

Ok, just one more video

All smiles from the girls. Especially for their daddy.

Two Talkers

Ok, I'm tired, it's late and I still need to feed the girls once more tonight. But I've been trying to get a few photos and movies up for you guys. And this is the only time I can do it.

So skipping the story and moving straight to the good stuff...

Lily and Gabi are over 3 months old already. They're getting really good at sitting up supported, and we try to put them in their exersaucer/jumperoo things a little everyday so they can work on those muscles. They surely prefer that to tummy time! Tummy time is actually just Screamy time around here so we're not very good about making them do it.

But here they are in their upright gizmos. Their big brother likes showing them how to use the toys:


Gabi likes the sun toy on the exersaucer:


Lily likes the Jumperoo:


The other fun development is that over about the last week they've really started smiling and talking at the flowers hanging over their crib. Tom puts them in there to converse with the flowers a bit each day and they love it! We took some movies of them Sunday.

Here's Gabi:


And Lily:


A little more of Lily. You just can't get enough of those smiles, I know:


So we're doing ok here. It's busy, and insane actually, but we're all having a good time and Nicky absolutely adores his sisters.

Sunday while I was making brunch:


Nicky feeding Gabi:


And Lily smiling at the flowers:

Update with photos. Feel free to skip to the photos.

So graduation was Saturday. I totally didn't go though. I meant to attend in SecondLife, but didn't end up doing that either. Instead I played with Nicky and we cleaned his room.

But I finally got around to checking my grades Monday. For the two classes I just finished, the two classes I took while in the last weeks of a twin pregnancy, had twins and have been completely sleep deprived ... I received A's.

Yeah, I'm a little proud of that.

So my final GPA for this Master's degree is a 3.97. Not the 4.0 I got for my Master's in Special Education, but still, pretty good! Especially considering this time I worked full time, had a young child and gave birth to twins. Last time it was just Tom and I, and he worked so that I could focus on just attending school.

But I'm so happy to be DONE. So happy in fact, that I hadn't even bothered to check my grades till Monday. Every other semester I was checking for final grades every day in anticipation.

Anyway, other than me being ecstatic to have NO HOMEWORK, I've been busy. I've started working mostly from the office and only working from home after a particularly rough night.

The girls are getting good at sleeping through the night, although that just means from the last bottle till around 7ish, and they don't usually go down from the last bottle till around 2-3am. But still, progress! In fact, last night, the last bottle started at 11:30. They were finally settled in at 1am and slept till almost 8am! I think we can't ask for any better than that.

I have uploaded photos from July into photobucket. A few of my favorites are:

Nicky and Lily cuddling on his bed


Nicky in his new bunk bed


And our set up for the bouncy chairs in the other crib


I'll get around to uploading the August photos soon. JM actually came over the other day and took photos of the girls with her fancy camera. I got them this week and they are gorgeous! I couldn't resist, so I had to upload some for you now. Hope you don't mind more photos.

Lily


Gabi


Gabi and Lily with Daddy (Gabi on the left)


Gabi and Lily (Gabi on the left)


There are sooo many more! But those will have to wait. Plus it gives you guys a reason to come visit so you can see them all! She gave me a disk with nearly 200 photos on it!