Ahh...I'm alive...

So as you can probably guess from the lack of posts in almost 2 months, life (in particular, the beginning of a new school year) has overwhelmed me. *Sigh* I do believe I'm now fairly settled and should be able to uphold my commitment of posting at least once every 2 weeks now. The only problem when you haven't posted in awhile is where to begin...

I'll start with a recap of all our visitors! After my mom visiting at the beginning of August, Alicia ventured down on Aug 19th. MaryRose came down too, but a week later on the 26th. They both left on the 31st. I know Quinn and Leyla had a lot of fun with them. They definitely recognized Alicia, who they call "Auntie." Quinn gave MaryRose the name of "MoMo" because he could not pronounce her real name. It is very cute. Shortly after, on Sept 3rd, Tycho's mom Gemma arrived. She helped us a great deal with getting them to try new foods and sit back in their chairs for meal time. We also made a trip with her to Clearwater Beach on Labor Day weekend. It was a blast!

Quinn and Leyla started school after Gemma returned home. Their first day was Sept 15th. They started that week by only attending on Tues & Thurs, so they could have a chance to get used to it before going full force. The following week (wk of 9/21), I had to bring them in the morning (which meant I had to wake up even earlier!), and they attended the whole week. Now, they have been there a few weeks, and they seem to love it. They are growing quite used to the routine there. I can definitely see that their vocabulary is exploding, which I am guessing is probably related to being around more people during the day. Quinn almost talks nonstop. ;0) The school teachers and administrators have commented on what good listeners they are and how smart they are. It's always nice to hear positive things about your kids.

On a final note, I have run 3 races since my last post...a 5K, 10K, and 15K. Four weeks from today, I will run my 1st (and maybe only half 7marathon). My times so far have been decent. I ran the 5K (3.1 miles) in 26:27; the 10K (6.2 miles) in 58:01; and today, I ran the 15K (9.3 miles) in 1 hr 27 minutes. I hope I can survive the half marathon, as today definitely drained me. After this 13.2 mile race on Nov 8th, I think I probably just stick to 5K's and 10K's.

Summer is almost over :0(

Hard to believe 2 months have passed...it really has been in the blink of an eye for me. I am sad that I return to school on Monday. There are days that I think I would love to be a stay-at-home mom. Then, there are days (like especially day 5-7 of Tycho being gone) that I think, "Okay, maybe not I don't want to stay at home all the time...maybe part-time would be good." Anyway, none of this is financially feasible for us at this time, so it doesn't really matter. However, if I had my best case scenario it would be to teach for 1/2 a day (4 hours). That would be perfect, I think.

I am running my first race this Sun. It is a 5k, which is part of a series. On Sept 13th, I will run a 10K. Then on Oct 11th, I will run a 15K, and it will all culminate on Nov 8th, with a half marathon. I am confident about the 5k race, but for those other races, I will definitely have to step up my running program/distance. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.

Random Things

I have been itching to write about a lot of random things I have noticed in the last 9 days since returning home, but I felt compelled to first finish my post about our trip to Holland. None of these I want to share are necessarily major moments, but rather, the *little* things. However, I must confess I worry more about forgetting these *little* things as Q & L grow older than I do some major things, so I hope to preserve them in writing.

Quinn calls my mom "Nonni" instead of "nana" which we all decided is adorable and will probably have all the grandkids call her this. Leyla, though, can't quite say it the same (at least for now) so she says "Honni."

Q & L are obsessed with socks and shoes, especially shoes. If any shoes or socks are in a pic in a book or on the TV, they will point them out. EVERY time...it's funny.

I've noticed they tend to play amazingly well together (at least most days) around 6:30, which is right before bed time. It's like they know it's almost bed time and think "Well, maybe if we play quietly and nicely, mommy and papa will let us stay up later." I must confess: it works, at least some days. Sometimes we do; sometimes we don't. Depends on that evening's plans, our level of exhaustion, and the next morning's events.

Letters...we have some letter recognition. We discovered this in Holland, but we have observed it a few more times since being back. If they see a letter they know, they will point to it and say what it is. You can also ask them "What letter is this?"(for the ones they know) and they will tell you. They mostly know the same letters right now, and those include: A, B, C, E, H(occasionally), I, O, P, R, and T. We are impressed, and we do credit this knowlegde to a PBS show they watch called "Word World."

Language...their language has been exploding (almost exponentially) this past month. Their vocabulary is really expanding every day. They definitely are in the repeating stage, and they will repeat almost everything you say. (So we are trying to watch what we say!) They have also started putting together questions and sentences, especially Quinn (although Leyla has made some progress in this area in the last week or so). Some common expressions are:
*Papa working.
*Nonni home.
*(Shoes, cup, fill in the blank) Where are you?
*Where did it go?
*Car away.
*Go outside, please.

Our trip to Holland

I have been procrastinating on writing this post because there is much to write. I will try to keep it meaningful and to-the-point. LOL

Let's start with the differences we experienced between this trip (now 27 months old) and the last trip (last July when they were 15 months old). Some changes were good; others not so good.

Good changes:
* The flight there and back was easier than last year. It definitely helped that they now have some interest in DVD's and better understanding of what we are saying.
* More words/better understanding so they could communicate more with us and other people.
* Although they still get into everything, being older, they are more agile and we do not have worry about falling as much. Also, they are not as consumed with little toys (that last year we had to worry about choking) or off-limit objects.
* They LOVED the trampoline...a definite lifesaver.
* They came home and were able to adjust to this time zone immediately...from the 1st night! YEAH! Last time it took a week for them to adjust and lots of sleepless nights.

Bad changes:
* Much more aware of people and more aware that they didn't recognize the family. This led to lots of tears when others tried to hold them or mommy/papa were out of the room.
* They never fully adjusted to the time change (6 hrs) while we were there. (Last time they adjusted w/in 2-3 days.) This meant usually at least one of them waking up somewhere in the night. We also had to play the DVD for an hour or two to get them to sleep.
* Meals...I will not elaborate too much, but let me say, "They were a DIASTER!" I think part of the problem was last time we had them in their 2 booster/high chairs and this time we did not bring it and their were 2 other young kids (a few months younger than ours). So they ate (read: screamed) at a big chair at the table. This was extra painful for us b/c if you know anything about Europe mealtime is a big deal there. :(

Now, on the trip itself...We arrived on my b'day (the 10th) and that night the guys had the bachelor party with Bas. They 1st chowed down and then played some paintball. Later than night (around 11pm) they headed out for some drinks. Tycho skipped the last part b/c he was exhausted after almost no sleep the night before (on the plane). The following day, July 11th, the girls headed out for the bachelorette party at 9am!! We drove to Amsterdam where we participated in a day package...the package included morning tart & coffee, followed by a tour of the Red Light District (mostly). After we ate lunch (not impressive!) at a nearby restaurant and then attended a "laughing" seminar led by a crazy lady. It was funny but only b/c she was crazy! The best part of the package was the end...we created a karoake CD of songs. We first selected and practiced them and then they recorded them. The only bummer for me was it was mostly Dutch songs that I have never heard in my entire life. ;) Next, we left Amsterdam and drove back to Bas' parents' house for a pancake dinner. At 8pm, I pooped out and headed home...again sheer exhausation from our recent travels and the jet lag. If I had only known that Leyla would wake up that night at 10pm and not fall back asleep til 2am, I think I would have somehow mustered up the strength to continue on with their evening of fun! Oh well...

Most of the next week was filled with family time...mostly hanging out and going to nearby places we could walk to since we did not have enough cars for us all to go anywhere.

Then, the big day arrived...Saturday, July 18th...Eline and Bas' wedding. Since the ceremony started at 12 noon, we started the day early...before 8, that is. Eline's friend, Fleur (sp?), arrived at 7:30 am to work on Eline's hair and make-up, which turned out amazing. Just see for yourself in the pics. We had decided it was best to get ourselves dressed and ready before dressing the kids' as they might ruin their outfits. I also worked diligently on Leyla's hair as she watched Word World. I had found some awesome little pink roses which at a flea market early in the week which I sowed to elastic rubber bands to make some adorable hair things. I really liked how her hair turned out, but unfortunately, as always she pulled it out. So I resorted to a quick pulled back hair-do. Someday, maybe, she will enjoy her hair having pretty hair styles.

Anyway, unlike American tradition, the Dutch people have the groom come to the bride's house and pick her up. Then, they ride to the ceremony together. A bummer, in my opinion, for those attending the wedding, but at least we (as family) witnessed their reactions as they first saw each other. They both looked stunning! Perfect together!

Once Edward drove them away in a rented Mercedes, the rest of us scrambled to get all the kids in the cars and race there ourselves. The first 2 rows had been reserved for us. Obviously, being in Holland, the ceremony was in Dutch. I understood most of the initial greetings, but after that, I did not hear much of it because I was too busy chasing, shushing, bribing, and threatening Quinn and Leyla. I imagine, thinking back on it myself, it must have been comical to anyone watching.

It was apparent from the beginning, that they did not want to sit still, nor be quiet, so I pulled out my prepared lifesaver--goldfish in a special snack cup. They happily inhaled those; however, a few minutes into eating them, Quinn thought it would funny to play peek-a-boo of sorts. He began covering his eyes with his hands, and loudly asking, "Where did he go?" And with each ignored question, he repeated the question in a louder voice. Then Leyla, not to be out done, began to stand on the chair, wave to the people behind her, and exclaim, "HI!" Thus began my shushing tactics, which fell on deaf ears. After a few minutes, these antics lost their appeal and they both wiggled their way out of our arms. Luckily, there was a large open space on the side of the rows, so we thought maybe they would remain quiet if we let them run there a little. Wrong! Instead, they discovered the metal vent on the floor made a *cool* sound if they ran across it! Soon, I scrambled and ushered them toward the back of the church building. I spent the remainder of the ceremony there trying to keep them still and quiet. It worked, for the most part.

After the ceremony concluded, there was a hor'dor and beverage reception immediately following. The reception was kicked off with a champaigne toast to the new couple. This time was still busy trying to keep an eye on Q & L; however, much more enjoyable as they could run free and I did not have worry about noise, just tried to keep an eye on them. This reception lasted from about 1pm-3:30pm. We left this and headed back to Tycho's parents' house until the evening dinner.

At 6pm, we walked down the street to a restaurant called "The Ark." As is typical in Holland, the wedding dinner is only attended by immediate family (both Eline & Bas' parents, siblings, sibling spouses--no aunts, uncles, cousins, etc) and close friends. I believe they had a total of 37 people there; although, I am uncertain if that # included the 7 children or not. We brought Q & L; however, Gemma was kind enough to arrange for a babysitter for the kids after they were put to bed. We decided, for various reasons, to bring them back home after ordering our meals. I must confess it was wonderful to enjoy the evening (it lasted til 11:30 pm) kid-free.

All in all, it was a wonderful day! Full of memories and lots of pics to help us remember in years to come.

Connecticut trip for the 4th of July

So summer has proven quite busy, which I guess you deduced if you have been checking my blog recently, as I have not updated since almost a month ago! AHH! Our second half of June was filled with doing odds and ends around the house...mostly organizing, discarding, and selling things we no longer needed...a lot of baby stuff in that.

Also, one of Michelle's good friends, Camille, had her baby on June 25th, so the last few days before our departure were filled with a couple quick visits to her and her new bundle of joy, Elena. Admist all the running around, I did manage to pack for our adventure to CT and Holland. It's hard to pack when you will be gone almost an entire month.

I flew alone out of Tampa on Sat evening, June 27th, with Quinn and Leyla. I must say I am delighted I had a portable DVD player with me along with some movies. In addition, I also packed a bag FULL of snacks and new toy trinkets, but in the end, I believe the DVD was the lifesaver of the day. The biggest problem of the flight was they both constantly tried kicking the seats of the people in front of them. (Even though they are a little over 2 now, since I was traveling by myself, I placed them both in their carseats on the plane, because I could envision one of them climbing out their seat, trying to contain them and then being double-teamed.)

Our stay in CT was delightful. In the beginning, Q & L were both clinging to me quite a bit because they are more aware of people they do not recognize. It was a bit saddening for everyone because they so wanted to play with them, but they understood it was something that happens at this age, especially when you do not live near family. After 2-3 days though, they warmed up to family and started interacting them and letting them hold them. Quinn was really taken with "Nonni" (his pronunciation of Nana). He would wake up at times or just walk around the house at other times, and say "Where's Nonni?" Then he would continue walking around looking for her and calling her name.

Q & L also had a photoshoot with their two little cousins, Stella and Savannah, while we were there. Trying to get 4 children to cooperate, look the same way, ansmile is no easy feat, especially when two of them are 2 year olds. We had 6 adults to help with the 4 kids and it still proved challenging. We did manage to get a few cute pics; however, I think we could have had more if the photographer would have snapped her camera more instead of "waiting" for the perfect picture. I will post some of those pics here soon.

The 4th of July was a lot of fun too. We celebrated it at my cousin's, Heather's, house. Luckily, the weather cooperated and it was a perfect day. Leyla and Quinn enjoyed spending a lot of time in the kiddie pool, coloring on their driveway, looking at the dogs, and letting Christopher (another cousin of Michelle's) chase them. It was exhausting keeping an eye on them though, so fortunately, my mom drove them home around 6:30, so I could enjoy some adult time. Another great part of the 4th was Tycho arriving. He flew into BDL around 8pm, and then we drove back to my cousin's house to hang out some more.

The 5th was my Grandma's 87th b'day and her first birthday in many years without Poppy. We all attended church with her that morning, then visited my Poppy's gravesite nearby. After that, we drove to her house for a light lunch. It was a lot of fun; however, we did not stay more than 1.5 hrs because her house is obviously not childproof and Q & L manage to find every single thing that is not childproof. ;)

During our time there we also managed to visit the Trolley Museum, some parks, Chuck E Cheese, and my brother's (Paul's) soon-to-be new apartment. It was a fun-filled time. I promise some pics are coming soon. :)

Catching up...final part...part 3

I thought I would include a couple of cute things Quinn & Leyla have been doing lately so those of you reading know, in case I forget to tell you. Also, since this blog will be a keepsake for Quinn & Leyla, I want a record of these little things that I am sure will fade from memory (without some visual reminder like this) over time.

Let's start with Quinn...He started saying phrases recently (ones that he has heard from us). One of his cutest phrases is "Where did that go?" He will say this as he is looking all around the house for something (often a toy). Another new thing Quinn does is he asks for Papa (Tycho) almost immediately upon waking up. He will walk around calling, "Papa? Papa? Papa?" Each time the name increasing in intensity. Needless to say, it is hard for Tycho to sleep in, and when he is gone with work, Mommy (I) need to walk Quinn through the entire house so he can see Papa is not here--he is at work.

Now for Leyla...She also says a few phrases. One of her cutest right now is a repeating a little game I play with them. I often say, "I gooonnnnnnaaaaa getcha" and then chase them, catch them, and tickle them. Leyla will mimick this phrase with perfect intonation. It's funny. Another new obsession of Leyla's is to turn on and off the lights. She is now tall enough to reach them (basically 36" tall), so she enjoys doing it. I think she also enjoys the fact that Quinn is not tall enough to do this.

Both of them...As soon as we say the words "bath" or "pool," they both immediately begin stripping. First, they rip off their shorts, then their shoes, and lastly their diaper. Then, they walk over to us and say, "shirt" and put their arms up. Needless to say, we now spell out those words unless it something we are doing that moment; otherwise, the clothes come off and there is no turning back.

Catching up...Part 2

So in our 1st week of summer last week, we made a couple trips to the new IKEA store near our house. We had tried to go two times in May; however, it was crowded we would have to park 5 minutes away and be shuttled to the store. Having two young (and unpredictable, especially in stores) kids, we decided that would not be wise. We adventured to the store this past, during the week, and we were finally able to park in the real parking lot. :0) We were anxious to see if this store lived up to all its hype over the last few months, and....IT DID! It is awesome. Here are some things I love about IKEA:
1) LOTS of different decorating ideas (Great for someone like me who used to walk through model homes in Vegas just to get ideas!)
2) Quality product (often real wood) at amazing prices
3) Almost everything is modern, colorful, and attractive
4) No sales people hassling you to buy things

On our first trip to IKEA we bought an easel for Quinn & Leyla. It has been a huge success so far. We have only had them use crayons on the white paper. Obviously, they just scribble, but they enjoy it. And, of course, as is everything with them, this gives us a chance to practice to sharing because they are constantly fighting over the crayons. Even though they are 12 crayons, more than both of them can possibly use at once, they fight over who can collect more. ;) Here are some pics from our 1st easel experience.