Waving & Whistling

Brenna's new favorite game is waving.  She truly loves it and finds it hilarious.  She's often says 'babababa' while waving so I'm trying to figure out if she's trying to say 'bye'.

Nora's latest skill is whistling through an elephant whistle.  We are truly amazed and shocked that our nine month old daughter understands that when she blows air into this toy whistle it makes noise.  She did it immediately after we demonstrated and then repeated it again.

I'm feeling much better thanks to good company, yoga, a supportive husband, and a couple new supplements.  

Grandpa Kelly arrived tonight for a long Memorial Day weekend visit.  The girls will be so happy to see him in the morning.  

Ted is looking forward to an extra day off this weekend....yay for summer!

Saturday Family BBQ

My mom's cousins live in the area and they hosted us for a BBQ last weekend.  It was really great to be with family.  I have special childhood memories spending time with them and their parents on Cape Cod when I lived nearby as a child.  They were tickled to meet the girls and Brenna and Nora obviously loved the extra attention.  

Our Angel Desiree

My dear friend from high school Desiree moved closer to where we live and was able to make a quick Angel visit this week.  She is a mom of twins as well as another beautiful boy Ayden (my godson).  She definitely knows how crazy it gets!  With homemade baby food and a rocking elephant toy in tow we had a wonderful day.  She encouraged me to go get a massage which was overdue and delicious.  The girls were magnetically drawn to her which warmed my heart!

Unconventional Mother's Day

Weeks ago we decided it would be fun to get tickets to a Red Sox game with our friends who live in Cambridge.  I go to baseball games to eat peanuts and people watch in the fresh air.  Plus I've heard how special Fenway is.  I didn't even realize the day we picked was Mother's Day.  Ha!  As the day got closer Ted got nervous about taking the girls.  He convinced me what I actually needed for Mother's Day was a break from mothering.  I knew he was right, but I felt awful mostly about the societal pressure to be with family on Mother's Day.  After my guilt subsided I had a wonderful day with my friends.  We took the subway, enjoyed the weather, walked the city streets.  I hadn't even seen the city before then!  Ted enjoyed his time with the girls and took them on a long walk through Cambridge. 

Recent Happenings

Today I witnessed Nora give her sister a kiss.  It was the sweetest.  Nora loves to climb under the play table and she just figured out how to get out herself.    Brenna stood up today without holding on to anything.  Yesterday Brenna was holding onto my behind while I was kneeling on the ground and took a couple steps forward.  They have quite a large play area, but we always find them next to each other.  Sometimes there is hair pulling involved :/

They are enjoying bath time together these days and we have been exposing them to the grassy areas in our neighborhood.  At first they were very apprehensive, but now they seem to like it, especially the taste of mulch.

I have been struggling for the past few weeks as Brenna's separation anxiety seems to have gotten worse (or maybe it's just the cumulative effect).  I can't leave her sight without hysteria.  The girls seem to fight for my attention as well.  I need to find some occasional help during the weekdays as Ted is gone for almost 12 hours at a time.  I did meet up with a local mom's group which was a treat.  There will be more of those outings for sure!

Hamming it up

Nora the Bookworm

Walden Pond Mental Health Day

Our friends Erin and Stephen moved to the Boston area from San Francisco less than a year prior to us. They were at the Boston marathon bombing, but weren't physically hurt. I did harass them quite a bit to come out to the "country" especially when the authorities were searching for the suspects in neighborhoods close to them. We had a lovely stroll around Walden Pond (10 minutes from us) and Erin and I visited attended a nearby yoga studio.

Kwartler Grandparents in Concord

We had a great visit with Grandma Trish and Grandpa Yitz. We went to Target and Grandpa tried babywearing for the first time-he loved it. That's the only way he can handle retail therapy. He also accompanied Dad to the girl's weekly music class. We realized that we need to get a family van after our road trip to CT. Grandma Trish enjoyed sharing meals with the girls and learning their songs from music class.

More Love Celebrations

Last weekend we took a road trip to CT to celebrate the nuptials of Andrea and Greg. It was a beautiful ceremony accompanied by beautiful Sunshine. The girls got to meet their Aunt Holly and Uncle Rob as well as other members of the Kwartler Clan.

Brenna's First Tooth and Nora Holding Her Bottle

We were fooled many months ago and thought Brenna got her first tooth, but last week it actually happened. The first showed up on the bottom in the center and its neighbor showed up within a couple days. She actually accidentally bit her tongue as she has been practicing chewing.

Nora has been working hard at holding her own bottle. Even with one hand! When there is a little left at the bottom she turns the bottle upside down to try and finish it all.