Happy Thanksgiving, M'F@#$!!

Hugs & Kisses,

Finn & Belle

PS:  

It was only bad when the evil egg and sperm donors tried to make us pose for a thousand lame photos.  Other than that, the trip was tight.  We got to deconstruct ancient relics the Giants called 'toys' at Grandma's house.  

Didn't have to do too much to get someone's attention, bartered hugs and kisses for food, stayed up late and continued the par-tay early every morning, ate like a future Kobayashi 'nana pudding champ and left enough carnage behind for even Helen Keller to follow our tracks.  

Oh, Mom says it's time for bed (whatever).  Later peeps--keepin' it real in the 910.  fb

PSS:

Mom (she asked we call her Mommy, but that's for babies) wanted us to post this stupid picture. We tried to look resentful and wanting to gag (worked like a charm).

Nobody Puts Baby On The Floor

Aunt G sent an early Christmas surprise this weekend.  Two hand made, from Germany, all natural baby dolls for the twins.  Belle has developed a definite attachment to her belongings.  Of late, she refuses to leave her room without her blanket, tag rag, giraffe binkie, and Violet--her purple talking dog (it takes her about five minutes to make it three feet across her room; she refuses to make more than one trip).  Now she's adding her Baby to the mix.

Finn has yet to throw Baby out of his crib at night while he's depositing his pillow, blanket, Scout, and other plush contraptions--this is a good sign.

I filmed a brief video showing the twins playing with their Babies.  It seems Finn loves his Baby, but still has a strong attachment to throwing objects on the floor--thank goodness there's Sister Belle to save the day . . .

Enjoy!

It's A Pizza Party!

'Auntie' Sarah's sweet boy turned two last week.  She rented out a local pizzeria for the big event.  Each tiny guest made their own pizza and received a custom chef's apron (because, naturally . . . this was a Sarah Event).

We had the best time EVER!

Yes, Dah'ling; you could make a trash bag look fabulous.

There will be cake, right?  I was specifically told there was cake at this event.

Finn was more interested in eating the cheese than making his pizza-- 

Lady Belle just wanted her crayons back.

Outdoor Retreat

The back patio tile is sealed and the furniture delivered (our joint birthday gifts to each other).  Here's the finished product.  You're all invited to come sit out back and have a drink; in trade we ask you watch our kids while we take a much needed nap.

Check out the ferns!  I managed to keep them alive all summer!  

Finn is modeling our patio set from Target.  

We have lunch out here almost every day--the cushions are indestructible!!

Lady Belle intrigued by the dog door--which Bailey is FINALLY using on a regular basis (except when it rains, then she pees on the tile).

Note To Self

I've learned a lot these past two weeks.  Here's what I've managed to remember from it all:

1. One person CAN raise twins all by themselves, but two people make it so much easier (Dave was traveling most of last week for work).
2. If you keep serving the same thing every night for dinner, eventually your children will break down and eat it (Mommy made too many mashed potatoes, so she turned them into potato pancakes and will continue serving them until they are all gone).
3. Car accidents make the heart grow fonder (yes, we were in one over the weekend and yes we are all very grateful to be okay-- the car will be in the shop for the rest of the month).
4. When your child's toe breaks through the sole of his shoe, it's time for a new pair--or your other child starts ripping out the inner soles of her shoes, it's time for a new pair (either way, we had to buy new shoes this weekend for the twins.  Already!?!  I know, right?).
5. Always remember to ask 'is this covered under our insurance?' (I mistakenly asked for an $800 alternative endometriosis therapy medication that might not be covered under our insurance plan--whoops!  I wonder what sort of return policy there is for a used Mirena . . .).

For now, that is all.  

The Deceptive Detective

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about what and how to feed the twins.  Mirabelle will eat anything sweet tasting:  fruits, candies, cookies, cakes, etc.  She'll eat most cheeses and some meat but really has no taste for vegetables.  Finn, however, will actually try vegetables and hates fruit; but loves other sweet things like graham crackers, cookies, candy, etc.

Developmentally, we are entering those dark days of dining where the floor gets fed more than the twins.  Everything I've read suggests this is normal and will eventually phase away--but I can't help but wonder 'if only I cooked it better', 'tried a different technique', 'coated it in ketchup . . .'

Then I heard about Jessica Seinfeld's cookbook for picky eaters called Deceptively Delicious.  When I first heard about it I rejected the idea of 'hiding' vegetables in brownies, cupcakes and chicken nuggets.  I'm still recovering from being lied to about Santa--why would I break my children's trust by sneaking quality nutrition into their daily diets?

Jessica was recently on Oprah; which I accidentally deleted before realizing she's the author of Deceptively Delicious (at the time thinking 'who the heck is Jessica and why do I care what Jerry Seinfeld's wife has to say?').

So now I'm searching the web trying to find out about deceptive cooking.  So far, it sounds like a ton of work.  Before you actually make any meal, you have to prep the hidden vegetables into purees by steaming or cooking them for a hundred years.

In my sleuthing, I stumbled on two pretty cool articles from Jezebel and the NY Times.  The NY Times article was mainly about a recent study on picky eating and addressed the method of deceptive cooking.  Apparently the majority of toddler food preferences are genetic and the best methods to deal with them are patience and repetition (so got this last one in the bag--I have to do EVERYTHING twice!!).

So, if we are genetically wired to hate broccoli then it's okay to steam it, puree it and hid it in the chocolate pudding?  Here's were I still have issues and the psychologists seemed to agree.  The other 20% of food preferences are learned behaviors--if you never introduce broccoli in it's God-intended form; how will you ever learn to eat it smothered in cheese sauce (another God-intended form).  Then there is the issue of trust--if you knowingly hide spinach in the brownie and call it a 'brownie' instead of a 'spinach brownie' are you teaching your children that lying is okay, as long as Mommy is doing it?

Let's not forget about the added work involved in making these deceptive foods.  Should it really take three hours to make chicken nuggets (that's how long it would probably take me to prep, steam, puree, cook, and clean . . . Mommy would rather chat with you fine readers)?

At the end of the day, I'm going to keep offering the green beans in green bean form--even if Belle ignores them and Finn flings them on the floor (yesterday's sad performance).  Both Dave and I love food of all kinds and we will try anything.  I want the twins to grow up enjoying this variety as well.  If that means we waste a year's worth of vegetables that could possibly feed a small starving nation--in order for me to repeatedly introduce squash, then we waste them!!  This is America!!!

Round & Round, Up & Down

The county fair is in town right now.  Yesterday they opened early for 'Preschool Day'.  We met our friend Charlie out with her little Boo.

The fair only opened those rides suitable for preschool kids and at the main stage they had free drinks, snacks, and some guy with a crazy guitar singing children's music.  One can only assume the twins enjoyed their adventure, the majority of the day was spent in blank stare and wonder.

We rode the carousel, a mini train and some fire truck contraption that rotated up and down.  We're definitely doing this again next year, it was well worth the $6!!

1 out of 3 children want their Mommy . . . 

First time on a carousel, they got a little nervous when it actually started

and ended up sharing a saddle.

On the train headed to nowhere.

First in line for the fire truck ride, I assume Finn liked it

 since he spent the majority of our wait trying to unlock the gate.

Live Action Short

Now that the twins are extremely mobile, I find we're taking more videos than pictures.  Here's our very first video montage capturing some of October's best moments.  We had a blast visiting and seeing all our family and friends.

Enjoy!

Halloween 2.0

Dear Halloween, we miss you already.  Oma-ma came down to spend the weekend with us and celebrate Halloween with the twins (of course, we miss her too).

On Sunday, Finn &Belle invited a few of their friends over to participate in our neighborhood's 2nd Annual 'Trunk or Treat'.  For those who don't know, this is where residents park their cars at the clubhouse, decorate their trunks and pass out candy to all the kids who show up.

We paraded down to the clubhouse and let the kiddies beg for treats, half of which they wouldn't be able to eat.  Regardless, we had a blast.  Afterwards our group headed back to the house and hung out on our back porch chowing on chili and drinking hot apple cider.

Here's some highlights from our adventures:

Mirabelle the garden gnome with her very handsome Daddy

Finn as either a garden gnome, dwarf, or hobbit:
and Daddy dressed as a Daddy

two garden gnomes, a baby bumble bee (who liked her costume better 

when she wasn't wearing it), a baseball player and a cow.

one and only photo op with the hat on, we didn't even bother 

with the matching beard.

We transformed the wagon into a magical garden for our little gnomes.