We did it! We survived the 1st year! It may not always have been pretty, but to heck with pretty...if it was pretty then there wouldn't be reason to celebrate, and I can assure you I definitely felt like celebrating today!
But the real reason for celebrating is obviously not because of all the hard, long, exhausting, challenging, sleep-deprived days that I put in over the past year (no, that's not reason at all...this day is not about me!) It's because my sweet daughters hit their 1st big milestone!! Those little girls who were born so tiny, at 6lbs 2oz for Lil and 5lbs 10oz for Di, now weigh 22lbs 10oz (75%) and 21lbs 7oz (50%). When I look at them, I sometimes want to eat their cheeks off they are so darn cute. And they are fun...not always, that would be too easy...but mostly. Every single day for the past year they have shined a light on my life. It was a year that could have been filled with so much darkness, but it wasn't, thanks to the two smiling faces I get to see every single day.
On February 8, 2010, at 9:29pm Lillian Jane was born, and just a few seconds later Diana Madelyn popped her head up and screamed, "Don't forget about me!", as she was born at 9:30pm. There is no other way to describe it than to say those were the two best and proudest moments of my entire life. I didn't even need to look at them before I fell instantly in love with them. I heard their cries for quite some time before I was able to meet them, and when I first laid eyes on each of them, well now that's the part that is indescribable. They were simply perfect.
Lilly after birth:
Diana after birth:
Twelve months later, I still look at them and am as much in love with them today as I was the second I met them. Despite the challenges and the frustrations of raising twins, they are my babies, and I am the luckiest girl in the world to have them in my life. It has been the happiest, most fulfilling, challenging, exhausting, rewarding year of my entire life. And I would do it all over again if I had to. Well, now that might be a stretch, but I am sure if I HAD to I would! Actually, well, hmmm...Cheers to year # 2!! :)
At one year's old, Lilly, you are a funny one. You give this look where you raise your eyebrows as if to say, "I am up to NO good and am loving it!" You just learned how to say "Uh oh" and you now say it nonstop and usually drop something on purpose just so you can say it. You aren't walking quite yet but you are so darn close that I think it could happen today. You are pleased easily and when you get worked up it's generally because you are tired or hungry. You are definitely what I would consider the "leader of the pact"...for now!
This is Lil's signature look!
Diana, you are still as spunky as ever. You talk a ton and sometimes I swear you are having a full-on conversation with me. Your new favorite word is "ASSSS" (but since you have a lisp, it sounds more like, "ASHHHH!", thankfully.) After your hospital stay, you seem a bit more anxious about your surroundings and have a look of curiosity 90% of the time. You are always keeping your dad and I on our toes! When I look at you, I see a fighter and someone who has already overcome so much at such a young age. You too are going to walk any day now. I think the both of you are purposely holding out on me because you know how much I am anticipating those 1st steps!!
Is there anything sweeter than a happy Diana?!
So how did the girls spend their big birthday? Well, for starters I decided to make them banana pancakes which I burned then perfected and the girls devoured them all too quickly. For lunch Matt and I took them to Paradise Bakery where they inhaled a grilled cheese and part of a cookie. I assume that we were trying to make up in food for what was about to come next....VACCINATIONS! Yes, just call me the devil. I booked their one year pediatrician appointment on the day of their birthday, and worse than that...during their naptime! Seriously, I suck. However, we narrowly survived that appointment and walked away with as little grace as we had left. The girls were steaming mad and they were exhausted and now they had ouchies on their arms and legs! I on the otherhand was skipping out the door as we finally got the okay to switch from formula ($$$$) to whole milk ($) , and the girls can eat peanut butter and eggs and we can turn their carseats forward! Now do you see why I didn't want to postpone that appointment a second longer?!
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| Our new mode of transportation! Lil and Di waiting patiently at the pediatrician's office. |
Once we got home and a decent nap was taken, it was time for presents! They actually took a bit more interest in their birthday presents than they did in their Christmas presents just a few months ago. After playing with those for a while, it was back out the door for my 2nd biggest mistake of the day. The girls have their one year photo shoot tomorrow and the procrastinator that I am decided to wait to try on the adorable outfits I bought them. Of course they were too big, as in way too big, so I needed to exchange them and I had to do it tonight! I proposed to Matt that we head up to the mall and while I make the exchange, he take the girls to the play area - their favorite. That lasted all of 5 minutes when I got a call from Matt FUMING MAD (Matt never gets mad) proclaiming that a kid with a cold sore "sort of spit on Lilly". I still am not sure as to what this kid really did, but Matt packed the girls back in the wagon and was done with THAT! He then made me go back to the play area to scope out the kid to see if he really did have a cold sore, but I didn't have the heart or courage to face this kid with his mother looming not too far away to get a closer look. I mean, this was a place we frequent and I wasn't about to risk being banned! To avoid any further traumatic experiences, we ventured to TGI Fridays for a peaceful dinner where the girls had no interest in their hamburger and threw every single piece on the floor while squealing a mighty squeal.
Diana and Lilly appear to be in shock by the amount of gifts they received!
Yay! More books for mommy to read to us!
Once at home, we thought we were safe from any further drama. The girls were delighted again as they saw two big chocolatey cupcakes coming towards them! It was 7:30pm, inching towards their bedtime, but we knew that the cupcakes would replace their exhaustion with enough energy to get them through a bath. Afterall, pictures are tomorrow. They needed a bath. Our plan was working like magic until the UPS man rang the doorbell, and the shock brought a lazy dog to her feet barking her little tail off, which in turn scared the crap out of the girls and they screamed and screamed and screamed, they screamed so much that they couldn't take another bite of their cupcake, they screamed through the entire bath, they screamed while we put on their pajamas, they screamed while we tried to brush their teeth, and they didn't stop screaming until we held them so tight that I think we cut off their screaming capabilities. What a great way to end a crazy day!
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| D & L about to get a little taste of heaven! |
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| Di takes after her mom and immediately started devouring these heavenly sweets! |
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| Lilly on the hand was not quite as ravenous as her sister. |
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| Obviously...the UPS man has arrived! |
I told you they weren't happy!
At 9:29 and 9:30 tonight, I looked at the monitor and just stared at my daughters sleeping peacefully in their cribs. In those two minutes I thought about this entire year...all the holidays and our vacation to Michigan and Diana's stay in the hospital and wishing per usual that my parents were here to help us celebrate this milestone. Lilly and Diana have filled my world with so much joy. And they have filled my heart with so much love. I cannot wait to see what year # 2 has in store for us!
Happy 1st Birthday to my Beautiful Daughters!!!
