Dear Ryan & Evan,

One year ago today we learned that we were having twins. TWINS!! How excited we were to know that we were expecting two little bundles of joy. We loved you instantly. We have every ultrasound picture that was ever taken of you. We bought every book we could get our hands on for parents of twins. But most importantly, we prayed for you. Each week we grew more and more excited as we could see you growing. I loved every moment of carrying you. I loved knowing that you were with me each and every moment of the day. You were our "two little peas" and we sang, talked, and read to you every single day. Nothing made us happier.

We met earlier than we expected, and those were some pretty tough days for all of us, I must admit. But each one of those days was still a blessing because we had you. Ryan and Evan. Our two blessed miracles from God. We took one look at you and if we thought we loved you before, it was no comparison to what we felt for you then. We are so proud of you-such fighters you are! Thank you so much for fighting so hard to be with us. So many people prayed for you. There were people and churches across the country praying for the Parker brothers. When God's people get together and pray wonderful things can happen. Miracles, in fact. Hence, we have you. Our Ryan and Evan.

And now here we are--the four of us. You two are the absolute light of our lives. Every single day since last year this time has led us right here to this moment. We can honestly say that if we lived in a world where we could get "do-overs" and we had a chance to have two of the fullest term, plumpest and healthiest babies come home with us right away BUT in doing so there was a chance, even a ridiculously minute chance-that we would get two other babies, not the two of you, we wouldn't do it. Without a doubt and with no hesitation we would choose this journey, our journey to you. Wonderful, beautiful you. Our Ryan and Evan. Thanks for being you, buddies. You are the best things...ever.

Love,
Mommy & Daddy

Evan, Evan, Evan!

Okay, so this is a funny story (at least it is to us!) and I had to write it down before I forgot it. Evan is turning into a ham! I was trying to help this little stinker get settled for his morning nap. He was sleepy, but he wasn't havin' it! So, I'm rocking him and patting him and doing everything I can think of to get this baby to close his eyes. I was sure his binky would do the trick, so off I go to get it. I give the binky to this sweet little baby of mine and he sucks it for all of 2 seconds and then it lands over my shoulder. I'm still a-rockin' and a-pattin'. I'm thinking, Did Evan just...? No way, Evan can't throw. So I give it back to him 'cause surely it was a fluke. I watch my child snatch the pacifier out of his mouth and fling it! This time he manages to get it midway across the room! Seriously, I didn't even know hw could do that! It's bouncing and I'm laughing and trying to stop it while I'm still holding him! A mess! Finally, I get the hint--Evan does not want the binky!
He eventually fell asleep--sans the pacifier! :)

Pictures and Random Thoughts

How stinkin' cute are these two? I mean, really...even if I weren't their mother I would be impressed by the adorable-ness in this picture!

Getting a decent picture of these two isn't always easy...

The Baby One is looooonnnng. He didn't get that from me that's for sure!

Look at my big boy in his big boy clothes!

The little toy thingy that Evan is grabbing? This is going to be the reason that Evan will roll over on his belly. He LOVES this toy! He loves it so much that he will risk the dreaded "tummy situation" to get to it. If he looses his grip on it he will turn every which way to grab it again. Shake it for him and you will have one feet-kicking, arm-flailing, drool-smiling baby on your hands. I can eat him up when he's playing with this thing.



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• The Peas had an eventful week. They had an appointment to get their Synagis shots for this month. They are getting so big that now they have to get two shots--double ouch! Unfortunately the doctor told us that RSV season is BAD this year. I mean bad. Bad bad. We're still on lock down and I don't even care. Too bad termies can't get the Synagis shot. No baby should have to go through that.
• I forgot to mention in my last post that both babies are trying to hold their bottles now. How come nobody told me babies would grow up so fast? sigh
• Ryan makes this screeching/laughing sound that is hilarious. Too fast, ya'll too fast.
• Evan does tummy time without all the fuss now!!!!! He's even pushing up on his arms more. He knows that he can be done with t-time whenever he wants now since he can roll over, but so what! Our baby's doing it!
• We are done with our appointments at Yale!! Wohooo:) We visited the NICU to say hello and goodbye and saw one of Evan's nurses. I'm so glad we saw her for the last time. She was so happy to see how well Evan is doing. Everyone seems to think that Ev looks like me. **blush** Of course all the ladies wish they had is eyes:)
• I met a mom that had just given birth to a 24 weeker. She was really scared. I know the feeling. I'll be keeping in touch with her.
• I'll be going back to work soon. Can I really do this?
• Looking for a nanny is a challenge.
• If you are looking for a GREAT book for your little one or a little one that you love, I have the PERFECT book for you. I Love You So Much by Marianne Richmond. This is our new favorite. It is well written and sums up a parent's love to a "T." This title was written for children of color so black and brown beauties can see people in books who look like them (according to the author). There is another version, I Love You So that features Caucasian cuties. Isn't that a neat idea? We got the book at Children's Place, but you can order it from Amazon. This book = a great gift.
• Please pray for the people of Haiti. We have a lot of church family from Haiti and many of them have family who still live there.
  

Pics Pics and More Pics

I've been a picture-taking slacker lately! I'm not sure why, but it just hit me recently that I hadn't taken pictures in awhile, so here ya go!

Evan's first taste of peas. He'll tolerate them, but he's not a fan. I don't blame him.

Don't let the picture fool you! Ryan loves peas:)

Evan is learning to sit up!

I took this picture immediately after a meltdown. Can you say crocodile tears!

Here's the meltdown.

A smile from Evan-kind of. I promise this baby has the biggest cutest grin ever!

Ummm...Ryan is so over the boppy. Literally! (PSA: No baby was hurt in the taking of this picture)

Why are our children wearing their bibs backwards?

Evan couldn't decide which toy he wanted most so he took both of them!

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The boys are doing well--praise God! They are growing and changing so quickly. In a way this is bitter sweet because my babies won't always be babies! Pretty soon they'll not want me to hold and love on 'em all day. On the other hand, I'll be glad to see them develop into little boys. I can't wait to see their budding relationship with each other as they grow older. They love to smile, touch, and look at each other already. Evan showed me tonight that if given the choice between looking at Mommy shaking a light up toy like a crazy woman and gazing at his big brother, the big brother wins hands down! Built in playmates is what they are:)

The boys gave changed since the latest video I posted was taken. Can you believe that?! Here's the latest:

• Both boys are playing with their toys now. This one little keyboard thingy is going to drive me crazy, but anything for the Peas!
• They reach and grab for everything! My hair and pearl necklace included! Note to self: look for that lost pearl! *sigh*
• Evan has gotten even better at escaping tummy time. Now he immediately rolls over when I put him on his tummy--he doesn't even bother to humor me now! BUT he will stay on his tummy for a little while if I put one of his toys in front of him. Let me emphasize for a little while!
• Ryan does this scooting action to get around. He's figuring it out, ya'll :)
• Both boys are working on sitting up.
• The boys are getting long! I put brand new outfits on them this week and hubby came home and asked if their pants were supposed to be "knee-knockers." LOL That would be a no. These babies are growing fast. I took a picture of their "getting chubby" little legs in their makeshift "knee-knockers" and I'm going to post them. Aren't parents supposed to take embarrassing pictures of their kids!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

On the Move II

Here is Ryan in action. Please excuse my commentary!:)

The Peas on the Move

I realized that I haven't posted any videos of the twins lately, so here is one from today. Now you can see what I meant from Monday's post with your own eyes! I have a video of Ryan on the move but eblogger is not playing nice tonight:( I'll try again tomorrow.

The tummy time saga continues...

Updates

I haven't done an "updates" post in awhile, so here it is:

Ryan

• Ryan is on the go! It is so hard to keep up with this kid--when he figures out how to crawl we will be in serious trouble. I have to use every pillow in the house to create a barricade so he won't fall on the floor. Once I had him on the bed (barricaded of course) and I placed him near the foot. I look away and hear a little shuffle. I look for Ryan at the foot of the bed where I know I placed him and he was at the head of the bed. How he managed this I still don't know.
• Ryan has decided that if anyone is going to hold him they must allow him to stand on their legs. If you won't agree to this, you can't hold him. He gets the biggest kick out of it.
• Ryan laughs! It is the cutest sweetest baby laugh ever. You'll get to hear it if you let him stand on your legs.
• Both boys love watching TV. Ryan will actually strain his neck to see it if he has to. We discovered their new found interest in television a few weeks ago. Since my new favorite show is The Sopranos (I know I am a few years behind the rest of the world on this!) I realized we needed to do something quick. I don't want the kiddos spending too much time with Tony and the crew ("woke up this mornin' got yourself a gun..." I HAD to do that!) so we bought them some Baby Einstein DVDs. They love them for at least 15 minutes. That is a lifetime for a mom with twins!
• Ryan had a corneal abrasion last week. Ouch! All I know is I left the room to warm bottles and the boys were separated. I come back and The Peas had wiggled their way to each other and Ryan is crying and won't open his eye. So who was the eyeball scratcher? Keep reading. A quick trip to the doc and now all is well.

Evan

• So you know Evan and I have an ongoing battle about tummy time. Well our child has a solution for this. He lets me think that I've won the battle and he will tolerate being on his tummy without crying. He lets me get all happy with this fact and laugh and clap and do a little dance. He looks at me and laughs and then rolls onto his back! He then proceeds to give me a look that says "Your move." The little stinker! This game can go on and on. The good news is that my child can roll. The bad news is that I can tell he is stubborn and so am I, so there will be plenty of these shenanigans for years to come. sigh
• The Hubby and I were watching him the other day and he was just lying around happily sucking on his fingers. He was on his back and started to roll to one side, but he must have felt himself getting too close to rolling onto his tummy. He threw his leg back with the quickness. We couldn't help but burst out laughing, and look at each other and say, "That's your son!"
• Evan now loves his oatmeal and he loves sweet potatoes! I spent the weekend making my first batch of homemade baby food, and first up on the menu were the sweet potatoes. Both boys love them! I also made them green peas, but they won't try that for awhile since we just introduced a new food. I hate peas, but I sucked it up and tasted them since I can't fathom the idea of giving my kids something that I haven't tasted. Oh the love of a mother! I still hate peas by the way!
• Evan is starting to assert himself. He is quite the spitfire! His newest thing is scratching and clawing. Get too close to him when he's mad and you will get it! I wouldn't be surprised if I have the Baby One to thank for Ryan's corneal abrasion!
• Evan is not as in love with his Binky as he used to be. He only takes it if he's sleepy and only for a little while before he spits it out. The Binky has been replaced with his hand--his whole hand! He tries to shove is entire hand in his mouth, but he really only ends up with a few fingers to suck on.
• Ev likes to stand too, but unlike Ryan he really doesn't care if you don't let him. He's content to let you sit there and just cuddle him. Just don't make him mad and don't let him get his claws near your face!

I have been working on some art for the boys' nursery. I was surfing the net and came across a fabulous webiste that sells hand painted canvases featuring your child's name or initial. I seriously considered ordering them but then I remembered that I'm kinda crafty. I have a new cricut and some other tools in my craft room and I know exactly what I want! The problem is I haven't painted before! Wish me luck--oh and tell me how in the world I'm supposed to find the time to get this done:)