Super Bowl Sunday

So, yes, we are still unable to attend such events as Super Bowl parties as a family because of the rash that just wouldn't leave......you can't see it that well from the pictures as thankfully the head and back regions are only like former white blistery dust. That is very much welcome compared to the big red leopard spots on the chest and belly and those now spreading from the shoulders down the arms. When reading up on this stupid rash we did learn a couple things that explained some changes we had seen. The rash causes fatigue and headaches along with its obvious itchy nature. Bingo....after so long of no nap taking, Ben has been putting himself to bed mid afternoon for a little nap or falling asleep on the couch while watching a movie or TV show. He has been more irritable than usual. He has wanted to be held more, babied more and has decided that he does not want to bugger with using the big boy potty anymore and he used to be the star in that arena. Poor sick guy.....hope you get well soon kid.


Because of the dreaded rash and people's very dare I say racist or is it just anti- African view of what that rash must mean, after much deliberation we decided that Ben and I would stay home from the annual Super Bowl party. We figured Daddy and Seb could party down and Ben and Mommy would have some much needed one on one time at home.....the boys wouldn't notice.... right? Plus, Ben is a bit antisocial and doesn't usually enjoy a huge party of strangers while Seb basks in it. Ben loves alone time.....he wouldn't mind right?

Daddy had gotten his hair cut and so we figured the boys were about due for one as well. They both hate it, but I had the lesser hater of the two, Sebby, come to me first and Daddy told him that we were cutting his hair so that he would be ready for the party and ready to see his main squeeze Cassidy. With a little protest and a few tears we got Sebby's hair cut. The big surprise was to see Ben run over to me, plop himself into my lap and demand his hair cut too. Now usually Benny is a two man job because he hates it......with a capital H, Hates it. Writhing, screaming, crying, bending, moaning, freaking out.....absolutely positutely HATES HIS HAIR CUT! But, hearing that brother was getting ready for the party......Ben wanted to get ready for the party too. He sat without batting an eyelash through the whole thing. I praised him all I could, but knew he still couldn't go to the party. It really made me sad. Poor kid.

But, the boys still had some time for some fun. So, the brothers took their baths and got dressed up in their Raiders jerseys (as if the Raiders would ever make the Superbowl) and played for a while. Racing around the couch by foot, by hop and with the ever popular crawl races.

The boys were so cute, I couldn't help but take a couple of pics with them. And in the end, it wasn't so bad. Seb and Daddy went to the party until half time. Seb played with a gaggle of girls who carried him around and dressed him up in various outfits. He let all the mommies at the party dote on him. He even refused to let Mike feed him and insisted on sitting on our friend's lap and eating from her plate.....silly boy.
Ben and I ordered pizza which made him feel right away that he was getting the better deal. We did all those things that are impossible to do with brother home....we played with the train and Benny could build his own track and not fight over the tunnel piece. He got his doctor's kit out and I was his patient. He also enjoyed beat boxing into the stethoscope. We played golf in the house. We sat together and watched the game and he got all of mommy's undivided attention. Yes, mommy and Ben had a fabulous time. Although.....mommy was more tired after this day than any other in a long time. It is hard for me in my old age to run races around the couch in every manner possible and give into a toddler's every whim. But, I think Ben was happy to have the time alone and I was happy that he was happy.

My Big Boys

These wonderful boys amaze me everyday. We have been pretty much stuck in the house and not attending functions since Ben caught a viral rash.....ugly, but not serious, so no worries. It isn't said to be contagious and no one has caught it as of yet. This is with Ben....when feeling Seb is getting too much attention lifting up his shirt to show his leopard spotted belly. He points out all the "boo boos" and laments his condition so that we can sympathize. Of course, brother being the compassionate dude he is, starts to kiss each and every boo boo. A little gross, but his heart is in the right place. We have enjoyed the quiet time together as a family though. Sometimes it seems like you are going all over the place to visit here and there and you forget that you are missing out on time together. So, we have really just been enjoying each other lately. My parents and my grandmother came for a visit last weekend and of course, the boys were spoiled with homemade waffles and a side of sausage every morning.....not to mention homemade pizza and all the attention two boys could ever get in a four day weekend.

Little by little my mom has been bringing things back that I had left in my old room that I like to think of as free storage. As these things make it back to me and find room in my garage, I am of the opinion that my junk is no longer welcome in its old habitat. This visit was a bunch of my.....well, for normal people it would be Halloween stuff.....for me it was just general room decor. My scream ceiling hangy thingy.....scream mask, scream figurines, a big crypt keeper....I don't know what else. Ahhhhh, memories, right? I was happy to see that the boys may take after me once and for all in my love of all things horror. The boys were quite taken with the Scream stuff......although I didn't let them near my most prized Crypt Keeper.
Very funny that characters in Disney movies can send them hiding behind the couch, but Scream masks are great to play with. They love "ghost". I keep thinking, ha, maybe our Halloweens of Pooh and Tigger are fading fast and a good old fashion movie marathon starring Jaime Lee Curtis will be in order before I know it. After all, mommy and daddy's first date was on Halloween for such a marathon. Even if Daddy has bad taste in movies.
Too bad I only had one mask. Seb so enjoyed running around the house in it and bobbing like a rapper in a video. He hid behind the couch and jumped out with an enthusiastic boo several times....followed by uncontrollable laughter of course. Note to Seb.....it isn't really scary if you do it from the same place over and over again a million times in a row. It doesn't surprise anyone. Of course, we love you so much we can't help but throw up our "surprised arms" and give a scared yelp. Poor Ben was so jealous of Seb's mask, he put the hanging scream over his head. Now that was funny. Especially seeing two little ones chasing each other around the house with loud giggles and enjoying Halloween in January.
The boys are just growing up too fast. Their vocab is growing and Seb is starting to put together little three word sentences. Usually, "I love.....(enter whatever he is doing)." I love ball. I love cookies. I love tools. etc. Of course, a big laugh came when he was writing with chalk and of course the ch sound came out as a hard c. So, he told everyone very proudly," I love cock." He also is telling me a lot more when he needs to use the bathroom. He says,"Go pee," and points proudly at the stream going into the potty. He also has become more independent. He wants to pull up his own pants or put on his own shoes....even when this could take a million years with tie laces (why he prefers his rain boots I suppose). If I try to help him with my impatience....he puts up the stop hand and says in a strong voice," I DO IT!" He also has become possessive with his things as so very few things aren't joint community items in the life of twins. Well....his bed is his. So, gone are the days when Ben could come over for a snuggle or sit next to brother leaning on the pillow. I frequently hear now..."Noooo! My Bed!" and of course, that makes Ben want to be on that bed more. I finally get Ben on his bed and all of a sudden one toe is over the divider and then one foot with a devilish smile and then I hear,"No! My Bed!" from Seb again. This is reminiscent for me of many battles my sister and I had over the couch when we were allowed a cushion each and pushing the boundaries would often lead to bickering and a call for MOM!
Both boys love to count never mind that everything in a line that they are counting is "2, 2, 2, 2". They also like to try to point out letters. Many times the letters are "E, O, O, T, T, A". Although I was impressed as we have been writing their name in chalk and they can point out letters if asked....don't know how much of that is coincidence in three letter names though. Ben can say his first name now which is a major achievement for him. If you ask, "What is your name?"....okay, usually if I ask as he doesn't talk to many strangers.....he will tap his chest and say,"Me Ben!" Seb also says "Me, Me, Me" when it is his turn for something. He also has started demanding milk, but he calls that "Me" too. I only give them milk or juice with meals and they get water in between when thirsty. Seb now will tell me," No wa! Me! Me!" If he sees me going to the refridge water dispenser as I still water their juice, he catches it. He says,"No wa, no wa".
They are in love with running races now. Ben is faster than a bolt of lightning. Seb runs well, but his big feet often get in the way. They get impatient waiting for me to start the race sometimes and demand,"Set Go!" Of course, once someone fell and my mom picked them up and gave them lots of attention.......they started doing dramatic flailing falls and laying out on the ground every single race. They would then call for the person they wanted to pick them up. I finally got tired of that game and tried ignoring the fallen children helpless on the ground. Of course, Seb then squeaked out in a very pitiful voice,"Help me, Help me." So I couldn't help myself. Seb is also very good in soccer. We set up a kicking triangle with Seb in the middle. He loves "kick ball". He is usually on target and even stopped a couple kicks between his leg....future goalie I imagine.
They are also fond of their slide. They go down it in every position imaginable. They push it over and make forts. They push it back and forth across the lawn for no apparent reason. We got a sheet out and made a fort the other day. We told Seb that we put up the sheet to make a fort of the slide. He said,"Sheep, Sheep," and looked under the sheet and said, "BAAAA?Baa?", looked out and said,"no sheep." We had fun though even with no sheep. The holes of the slide made good spaces to make ghost hands come up through the sheet and grab faces......a favorite pass time around here. We also took the sheet and made adult held hammocks to swing the babies in. That was fun for them too.

One more funny thought......the potato heads that the boys play with. They have become less interested in the potato, but love the accessories. They balance the hats on their head.....put on the Santa beard or hold the various lip pieces in their mouths so that they are in fact the potato head. Seb even took the potato head arms and played the piano with potato head's hands. It was very strange and my crazy brain had wonderful thoughts of horror movies in the making.

Anyway....thought I would say hi from our sick house and let everyone know we are in deed still alive. We miss you all and promise that as soon as the rash leaves we will be rearing to go and ready to hang out with you all.

Our New Year's

So, as New Year's approached this year I was very upset not to have any plans. Babysitters are scarce and even my grandmother parties well into the wee hours on New Year's. Oh I complained and complained and hated that I would probably be in bed asleep by the time midnight approached. We were set to have a quiet evening at home. Nothing even special for dinner. Mike had popped into work earlier and a couple of friends said they were getting together and we could join them....but, I was reluctant to accept. The twin tornadoes can be a menace when presented with an unchildproofed house full of interesting things to touch and grab and perhaps even break. Michael gets really nervous too and so I convinced myself that they would rather not have the lot of us join them.


Luckily, I was wrong. A couple hours before said get together, the phone rang. It was one of the girls asking if we were planning on coming over. Defeated, I sighed and said that she probably didn't want the boys running around her apartment late into the night. But, I was wrong. She welcomed us one and all. So, we decided to go and I was glad that we did. We all had a great time. There was pizza and cookies.....and wine (see red face in picture). We were able to visit whilst the boys were awed by Nemo and Ice Age on the television. Also, the boys were overjoyed with the pet selection in this household. There were fish, lizards, frogs, cats and a big dog. Okay, Ben was very scared of the big dog, but there was a lot to keep the boys busy.
I always underestimate how grown up my boys are. They visited well and stayed up late without much protest at all. They actually mingled with the guests. Anyone who knows my boys knows that I am making an effort to socialize them. For too long I have kept them home with me and they are pretty shy when it comes to light conversation with an acquaintance. Usually when people try to talk to them, they are met with a stop sign hand and several "no's". Not tonight though. The boys were ready to party.
Seeing how well they did, I felt a little less guilty about keeping them out late....away from their cozy beds. But, if you look at those smiles.....you can tell, they were happy to get out. They needed it just as much as I did.
As the hours crept on, luckily the boys began to quietly fade. They melted into the couch which was just as good as their beds. We covered them with blankets and proceeded to watch an advance copy of Twilight while we chatted and waited for the arrival of the New Year.
Okay.....we got a little crazy too. And, this picture did wonders for helping with a New Year's resolution.....that much Booty is good for no one. Okay, Michael may disagree, but that is a whole different kind of blog. But, to sum up.....we had a great time with great friends and are confident the New Year will bring many good things for many good people.

Too Tired to Say Much

With the holidays and the endless stream of visitors and the partying and cleaning and celebrating some more.....I am too tired to actually be coherent. So, I won't write much. With pictures being worth 1000 words and all, I think I will meet my word quota for this assignment. I was really even too busy to get that many pictures taken-good sweet wonderful ones anyway, so these will have to do. The boys had a great Christmas though. They had way too many presents and now, if not before, I can say that our house is nothing short of a toy storage facility. When I recover.....um, err, possibly by the summer, I will have to organize said toys. For now they are piled high in every spare closet --to the ceiling like some movie closet where an avalanche could break at any moment. Word of advice, do not open any doors that may lead to a closet in my home.....it could be hazardous to your health. At this moment, the four of us are warn out from our New Year's Eve partying......I may blog about that one some other time, but for now I am going to take a nap. Enjoy the pictures.







Wishing you all a fine 2009 and I hope you all had an awesome holiday season.

Santa Clause is coming to Town

As if I didn't know that my boys are growing up at the speed of light......it is confirmed in a little tradition known as the Santa photo.
In one short year, look how much they have grown up. Last year, Santa was just an old scary man with a long beard who they didn't know and didn't want to know. Look at the horror....the terror....the tears.
A year later, is a different story. Number one, a candy cane is a great gift in the eyes of my boys. Santa is a superstar as soon as he starts passing out these sticky and soon to be slobbery treats. And although, Ben cares more about that candy cane than the mystique of the bearded one, Seb has a happy smile. No more tears and fears. My little boys are big boys and I am not imagining the fast rate at which their youth is evaporating right before my eyes. Oh boy, I can only imagine a goatee in Santa pic number three next year, sigh. Okay, a little overexaggeration never hurt anyone, right?

CA snow day

So, what is even better than driving through snow on the way home from a trip.......having snow at home the next day! We awoke to a blanket of white snow and the prettiest dainty snow flakes fluttering down from the sky. Of course, our satellite dish will not work because of it, but it is something different for this CA girl. We did a year in MO and had plenty of ice and snow, but this is CA. This would have been a dream come true when I was a little girl.
Of course, we don't have snow clothes for the boys and my mom actually picked up some boots and gloves yesterday......which are not here today and won't make an appearance until Monday. But, I couldn't resist. Just looking through the window made the boys squeal with delight. And the snow started to pick up and there was a wonderland in our backyard. So, at 10am.....I gave in. I bundled the boys in layers of clothes and we ran outside into the exciting elements.
There is nothing like the joy on a kids face in their first experience of snow. They ate it from the sky with tongues hanging out as far as possible. They blinked as flakes stuck to their lashes. We made a snowman. We had a snowball fight. We created big snowy piles just to trample them like Godzilla. They enjoyed the slick slide with my assistance and were really in awe. Even our break for hot apple cider was taken outside because the boys were having too much fun.
Of course, though, the fun cannot last forever. As the clothes started to get more wet than dry and the fingers started turning red from the frost and I knew the tennis shoes had cold little feet with wet socks inside....we had to come inside for lunch. Inside to a nice heated house where we would change our clothes and put our shoes in the dryer and eat while we looked longingly at the scene outside. It just keeps coming down and is beautiful. I love the trees covered in snow. I love the look of a snowy yard.....even if I can't keep my balance to save my life. Okay...I only fell once so it is not that bad.
But, along with the good comes the bad. One of the scariest things is a Californian trying to drive in the snow.....or a So Californian trying to drive in the rain even. Okay, driving is scary all together, but you can't trust anyone in these conditions. So....the Christmas cards would have to wait to be mailed. If I can't walk in it....I can't drive in it. The schools are closed, even my husband's office was closed. Man, he couldn't even get the car in the garage when he returned home.....we are not armed with snow shovels and didn't know we would need to be. But, we will drink a hot cocoa and look out the window at the lovely scene and just relax and enjoy this holiday season........if I can convince dh that this is not an ideal opportunity to play NCAA football on the PS3 that is. Come on.....at least volunteer to take the boys out for their second jaunt into the wild snowy world that is our backyard. I already did my 1.5 hours today which was totally worth it, but I don't know how much more frost bite I can take.

P.S. Stay away from the yellow snow......how much can two little dogs pee in a couple of hours anyway.

Busy Busy Busy Bees

As you can tell from the title of this particular blog....We have been busy! Okay, we are always busy, but we were especially busy this weekend. My sis and I were throwing our parents a party for their 25th wedding anniversary. Thank goodness she had the time to organize and put the details together. She was the backbone to this operation and of course, with her impeccable sense of style, it was a great event. So, we went home for a long weekend that flew by too quickly.

Can you believe that this is the weather we drove through on our way back from Nor Cal. It was actually quite pretty and the boys were very excited to see the snow. It almost rated with the Moos of the many cows, the baaaahs of the many sheep and the choo choos of the many trains that we saw on our drive.
We are lucky that the boys are so wonderful in the car. Six hours is not fun......even if there is a stop over at McDonald's on the way.
Of course, we have Einsteins on the TV and Twizzlers to snack on (this is the boys new favorite treat) and who could ask for a better excuse to travel.
We had kicked off the festivities of the weekend first visiting my mom at her school and showing off the babies.....um, errr, my big boys. That night we braved the cold to go to the Tilden park set up for Christmas. They had a really nice display of Christmas scenery and of course this included Winnie the Pooh which is always exciting for the dudes. The boys forgot the cold after the first 10 minutes of shaking like a tickle me Elmo and were not easily contained as they whipped around the area at full speed ahead.
The main draw was the Merry Go Round. Seb loves it! Although this Merry Go Round was like at supersonic speed. I have never seen something fly around so fast. Needless to say, I was a little dizzy.....but it didn't bother the boys.
This was the first time we were able to get Ben to agree to take a ride. Before, at other venues.....he always refused. Of course, with my big self pinning him to the tiger.....who wouldn't feel safe. So, he acclimated quickly and went on the next time without my riding behind him.
The boys did pretty well at the main event also. We had a very nice lunch at Scott's and my guys were quite dashing in their ties. Although the boys got a fruit plate instead of salad and chicken fingers and fries instead of the grown up food.....their appetite was unparalleled and I don't know how they ate it all. I was even impressed that they were able to stay in booster seats with no belts as there were no high chairs and we had forgotten our traveling seats to secure them in. They really are growing up and I have to remind myself as an overprotective mommy that I don't give them enough credit. They really are rock stars!
Here are the happy couple coming in from the cold to join their party.



And more of the boys in their ties.....I can't get enough of my cuties! Yes, a successful weekend...but too short. However, it gave me something to talk about in this here blog. Something other than the fact that a couple days previous in one of my panic rushes to get too much done....I gave the dogs the Twizzlers and the boys the Milkbones. Seb looked at me like I lost my mind and gave it back with a look. Of course, when I rush to Ben......he is eating the tasty dog snack with gusto and I feared he wouldn't trade me for his candy. Unbelieveable. I really need to slow down/calm down sometimes, hehe.