One Year Down

June 2 saw the start of their second year of life. As I sit here at the kitchen table with Keillor in my lap trying to play with the computer, feet propped up, just like his mommy, I am amazed at how much my life has changed, at how much of  a better person I want to be. Enough about me.

Emaline is walking on her own. She is no champion sprinter or anything, but she can stand up and swagger like a proper toddler. She is master of multiple surfaces: linoleum, hardwood, carpet, decking, and even grass. She wants to walk on porcelain  (the bathtub), but this scares her mommy.

Emaline walks over to play with her toys

While she is a walker, she is nowhere near as fast as her brother, who crawls at breakneck speeds throughout the house. He can move from the kitchen to our bedroom in the time it takes for me to get milk out of the fridge. The other day, a guest had left the bathroom door open and the toilet seat up. Once he knew we were distracted, he jetted for the bathroom. Aimee turned around and in a flash had stopped him from diving into the toilet.

Emaline plays with her new drum.

Summertime is outside time, and Grammy bought the twins a deluxe water fun park with an alligator pool, elephant shower, and giraffe...I'm not sure what it is really--it's like in a cartoon where if Yosemite Sam shot the giraffe in the neck with buckshot and his neck sprung a leak. He carries a six-shooter, doesn't he? Elmer Fudd then. Emaline is still traumatized after going under a couple of times, so she sits outside of the pool and plays with the water. Keillor likes to get buck naked and splash. Also, since he has discoved his boy parts, he likes to tug on his penis with one hand and splash with the other--multitasking.

Pool time

The Webbs gave the twins a great birthday gift that allows for water play but lets Emaline stay dry. They tried out the water table yesterday, bringing out their favorite tub toys.

Speaking of toys, one set of Alabama grandparents stopped by for the weekend. GaGa and GeGe (don't ask) brought homemade rocking horses for the kids. My father loves projects, and with grandchildren, he is having a blast in his workshop building wooden toys. The rocking horses look like expensive antiques. The kids are a little too small for them now, but horse racing season is just around the corner. They'll be ready for the Keeneland fall meet.

Emaline cries as Keillor steals her plastic kitty cat

While it has not arrived yet, the Arizona grandparents (my mom and stepdad), have ordered the twins a workbench. They have one at daycare, and both are into all the tools as much as GaGa. One might say they are gaga about the tools. One might.

Their second birthday cake, a mommy and daddy original (that we copied from a magazine)

On the food front, Keillor is eating everything he can put in his mouth--except birthday cake. He had chicken nuggets yesterday. He is officially an American boy. Emaline has become quite picky. She might love blueberries one day, but won't touch them the next. She likes chicken, but doesn't like the breading. She still wants to eat baby food, but doesn't want to be fed. Are we raising a diva? As for milk, we have made the transition from breastmilk to formula to cow's milk mostly successfully. They like the vitamin D milk, but don't like how cold it is. We are supposed to be transitioning to sippy cups.

Keillor uses a sippy cup, even though he would prefer a bottle

Keillor can drink out of a cup, no problem, and he will, too, until he sees his sister drinking from a bottle. She doesn't seem to have figured out the sippy cup. This will be a frustrating process. We just have to keep reminding ourselves that very few adults still drink out of bottles, so eventually our kids won't either.

Emaline eats birthday cake with GaGa. Keillor prefers to look at the plate.