Favorite Things

I have not done an update on my favorite things the boys are doing now. Please bear with me, this is mainly for me to remember, but read away if you are interested. For those of you who don't see them often, it is a good glimpse of what they are up to now. Amazingly, they are wearing pretty much 18 month clothing; which means a lot of clothes have lasted us a long time!

The boys turned 21 months on Christmas Day. They continue to change and I am astonished every time I look back at pictures from merely a month before and see how much older they are looking. I miss my squishy babies, but honestly, I love this stage so much more. Even when it is a "terrible two" kind of day.

Here are some shots of where they were, compared to where they are as seen above.

Day of birth

First day both boys came home from their respective NICU's.

Amazingly, they both fit side by side in one bassinet, check out the chicken legs! You can see Gus had the bigger head even at birth;)

Back when they were in their carriers. Such cuties!

Favorites:

When Augustus really loves something he is eating he closes his eyes and appreciates every morsel of the bite.

Raleigh still does his sad/mad look where he looks up with his eyes, through his mess of hair, and holds his head down with a furrowed brow and sad mouth. He does it purely for effect and has now started laughing when he gets a crack of a smile from someone looking at him. Such a comedian.

The language explosion. I love to hear them attempt to say almost everything we do. "Yellow" and "down" are my current favorites because they really enunciate these words in particular. Most other words are cut off or shortened, but I am thankful for all their attempts at talking. I remember them turning one and thinking, they are never going to talk, is there something wrong with them, will they be delayed???? So many worries. Everyone talks in their own time, so no worries necessary. Augustus is still a little less verbal then Raleigh, but willing to sign more to help cut down on his frustration, so he is still communicative and very expressive about it. Yesterday we saw a turtle outside and went to check it out. I asked the boys if they wanted to see a turtle and they yelled out - Raleigh in particular - "TUR-TLE, TUR-TLE." Excitement does not even begin to describe the words.

Their differences keep coming out the older they get. Augustus now has a different hair cut/style/color, so it is much easier for people to tell them apart. Gus is still taller and slightly heavier. Raleigh has almost almond shaped eyes and Gus' face is longer; whereas, Raleigh's face is rounder and has cheeks that he can hide his stash of food in like a squirrel. Raleigh still has a smaller head, and bum too, but Gus' bum is getting smaller as he continues to stretch out. He still has the most precious baby bum ever in my opinion.

Personality-wise, Raleigh is more of a pleaser most of the time and loves to do things for praise. I think this is why he is so eager to go poo poo on the potty. Although, Augustus had a breakthrough this week and has gone pee pee on the potty as well! Augustus is a bull-dozer and very, very stubborn. Raleigh is just very stubborn;) Both are still very lovey, although the past few months they have been less so with each other. This week they have been playing "cat and mouse" more often and although they play much more roughly then they did when they were little, they are still happy and giggly boys when they chase each other around. Augustus is a huge Nonnie's boy. Raleigh said "pa pa" non-stop on the way to Grandpa Pickle's house yesterday and will cry if we don't take the turn to go to their house. Since Raleigh looks like Poppy so much and has so many of his personality traits already they will always have a close bond too. Augustus has the SAME dimple as Nannie and has her strength and determination to boot, so they are very similar. Plus, with Gus it is all about the boobs.

Raleigh is a clean eater (relative term here). Augustus is a mess no matter what he is eating.

Augustus continues to favor his right hand, and Raleigh is still mostly a lefty.

They are still so friendly with everyone. Both love to go up to other moms when we are at a playgroup, sit on their lap, and bring them a book to read to them. Even if I am sitting right there. They just love attention from everyone! They have their favorite moms and I can say they are really good judges of characters since the tend to favor my favorite mom friends as well!

I love that I can be away for five minutes, and when I return it is like they have not seen me for days. I love their hugs and kisses. Every night they still have to both say goodnight to me before they will settle down. They do a big kiss and squeeze-hug and then throw their stuffed animal into their cribs (preferably their dogs from Auntie Mary, or their tigers from Poppy - I think the red puppies from Nons are now retired), and they grab their blanket as they get into the crib and they are out. Generally they don't even talk or make noises. On the nights they do make noises it is hard to keep a straight face because they will come up with some interesting things to get them to sleep. I love when they try to make shadow puppets on the wall. Every once and a while they will suddenly yell out "boo" or "wow" in their sleep and Matt and I both have a good chuckle in bed. Although napping has been a hit or miss thing lately due to very congested, snotty noses, they really are still such good sleepers. When they are done, they are done.

Both boys are amazing eaters. They love curry, rice, noodles, vegetables, cheese, salsa; you name it, they'll eat it. The only thing I know they generally won't put in their mouth is mashed potatoes, but they will do sweet potatoes mashed, and even ate pureed squash this last week. I hate mashed potatoes and it is a total texture thing for me, so I am okay with this dislike. Gus is really sensitive to hot food, whereas, Raleigh will just blow on it and eat away.

Not so much a favorite thing, but something that is a stage to remember is Augustus' fear of noises. He will run to one of us if he hears a loud truck or unusual noise suddenly. We thought it was the move and the unusual noises around the backyard, but it has progressed into other areas as well - like Busch Gardens the other day with the roller coasters. I will bring it up to the pediatrician at our next appointment. It does not bother him all the time, but it is very strange for my usually fearless wonder.

I know I am missing about 100 other little things to write about, but I am done for now. The little things are so precious, don't miss them!!!