Standing on Their Own

The twins have been gaining confidence in their mobility lately, and they like to give mommy a scare almost every day! They both stand on their own now, without holding onto anything. Tom has taken one or two steps, but then he loses balance and falls down. Troy, my little monkey, is always climbing everything! He can use any item to get a "leg up", and then he will get onto the couch, or as you can see from the picture below, he will climb up to view something that he can't otherwise see. I'm glad that they are doing well at reaching their developmental milestones, but sometimes I think it was easier on me when they were stationary! ;-)

Crafton Crochet

Last summer, Grandma Becky came to Minnesota for a visit, and taught Christy how to crochet! She also offered to teach me, but I wasn't ready to learn something new at the time. I had my hands full just trying to keep up with the twins! However, now that life has settled down a bit, I have finally given in to Christy's pleas to teach me crochet! She is an excellent teacher, and after only a few days of 30-minute classes, I can chain stitch, single crochet, and double crochet! It is fun to spend time with my oldest daughter doing something that we both enjoy, even though she works on more complex projects while I practice the basics (the last picture below is my practice start). We are both looking forward to the next time Grandma Becky comes out for a visit so that she can see how we are doing, and give us lessons on more advanced techniques!

Twins' Check-up

The twins had their 9-month check-up yesterday, and they are doing great! They are both almost 20 pounds now, although Troy is 11 oz. behind Tom in weight. The pediatrician seemed impressed that they are both already pulling up to standing, cruising, and even Tom will stand for a few seconds without holding on to anything! I am so thankful that they are healthy, happy, and doing so well! Here is a cute picture of Becca holding Tom (left) and Troy (right):

Happy Easter!

We had fun celebrating Easter this Sunday! We colored eggs, enjoyed Easter Baskets, and had a wonderful time at Church celebrating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ! He is risen!

Christy's Birthday!

We had fun today, as a family, enjoying Christy's birthday! She wanted to play at Edinborough Park in Edina, so we spent a few hours there, and then we went to Red Robin for dinner! We all had fun, and even the twins were happy and cooperative most of the time! ;-) She opened some of her birthday presents from us today, which included a Nebula Ball and the Queen Amidala outfit that she has been wanting (see picture below). We will have a little party tomorrow at home, and she will open the rest of her gifts. She is such a gift to us, and we love her so much!!

Garden Girls

Christy and Becca have big plans for their gardens this year! They have been reading books about gardening, and wrote down their plans for what they would like to grown and where they would like to grow it. We have 4 garden plots this year...so plenty of room for the different vegetables, herbs, and flowers that they plan on growing! We are also looking forward to adding the fresh produce to our recipes, and learning to cook in new ways to accommodate the variety!

The girls would like to get out there today and start digging and planting, but we all know that the threat of another frost has not yet passed. Instead, we will start many of the plants indoors (we bought a mini-greenhouse container), and transplant them when the time is right.

It is going to be a fun spring and summer! Even though we homeschool year-round, the girls will have enough of their online classes completed by June that they will have a much lighter load to handle through the summer. However, we do plan on taking the entire month of August off so that the kids can be kids, and mom can plan for the next school year! ;-)

Sam & Dan's Preschool

We have been very pleased with the "Heart of Dakota" Preschool curriculum that we picked for Sam & Dan! They are enjoying their time with Mom as they learn the basics of letters, numbers, colors, shapes, Bible stories, character traits, etc. They have plenty of opportunities to wiggle and move around during their learning time, and I believe that this helps immensely with keeping them interested and engaged during the lessons. This first year is designed mostly to show the boys that learning is fun! Mom is having fun also! ;-)