Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Happy Birthday, my babies!!

I cannot believe that our babies are 2 (TWO!!!) today!!!  How did that happen??  These have been the most chaotic, crazy, fun, loud, sleepless, blessed years of my life.  Those first 22 months of having one child were awesome...but the past two years of having three has been more than I could have ever dreamed of.  It's not all unicorns and rainbows...we yell, we cry, we have our days...but, we also laugh, and giggle, and smile and have the best days.  It's true what they say...the longest days and shortest years of your life.

Funny things that are happening now and stats...

Bru-Bra's - any kind of large truck or tractor or piece of landscape equipment...it's spelled phonetically.  Although, Marlin recently learned the word tractor, so, we use both now.  It's so cute driving down the road to hear in the back seat, "Look Mar, there's a bru-bra" and seconds later to hear a cacophony of "BRU-BRA" "Bru-Bra"  hahaha.

Diapers - size 4, size 5 at night, for both of you

Clothes - Marlin is 18-24 months and Madeline is closer to plain 18 months.  Size 24 month pants essentially hit the floor with both of you.  But, Mad, I do believe that booty of yours will eventually start to hold them up :).  I love that booty (and you didn't get it from your Dad or I...).

Marlin, son, you'd drink your calories all.day.long.  Some days you will eat better for me than others.  Most days, you will scream until we give in and refill your chocolate milk.

Madeline - You LOVE fruit....and, you also love your chocolate milk like Brubby.  You are my best eater, probably, out of the three of you.  (Big sister has decided that some things are "disgusting"....ahhh...toddler-hood).

Marlin - you are a Chatty Cathy!!!  Especially, if you have one on one time.  You are starting to sing along with songs in the car and DVDs and TV shows.  And, yesterday, you sang Happy Birthday to your sister.  You love the movie "Cars" and you like Thomas the Train, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Dora, Diego, Paw Patrol.  You are super opinionated about what we watch, too, especially with your 6:00 am wake up call every morning.  I swear, I think you get up early just to have me and Dad to yourself for a little while.

All of you are OBSESSED with Bubble Guppies.  It's a cute show, so, I don't mind.  :)

Madeline - you like pretty much anything on the TV, it's Marlin and Molly that are the most opinionated in this area. However, you will occasionally DEMAND Bubble Guppies.  And, girlfriend, you will win a cat fight any day.  If you want it, you are getting it - come hell or high water.

Madeline - you are speaking some, but, not in paragraphs like your siblings.  I think you just can't seem to get a word in edgewise, and, really, it isn't worth that much effort.  They communicate for you.  I have no doubt that you will catch up soon enough :).  However, without fail, if I ask you, "Madeline, whose baby are you?"  You ALWAYS say, "Momma's!"  and it melts my heart...every.single.time.

Marlin sometimes calls you Man-in Weez (Madeline Louise).   It cracks us up.  He hasn't gotten Madeline right, yet, and I love Man-in.  I hope he still calls you that in high school when it annoys you...

You guys both LOVE school and LOVE mother's morning out.  You go running in and it's rare that you even look back for your poor old momma.  It's a blessing and a curse for me :).  Y'all are so loving to each other...it's so awesome to watch you two together.  You still share a room and seem to prefer it that way.  Some mornings (or nights or naps) y'all will stand up and talk to each other from your cribs.  You'd pass toys back and forth, except I made that impossible by spreading your cribs too far apart :).

Madeline - You LOVE your pillow pets, especially the black bear who is called "Burr".  Seriously, we take one everywhere we go.

Marlin - You have a Mickey Mouse that you sleep with - lovingly called "Mow-Mow".  You sleep on a pillow...Sissy doesn't need a pillow because she has 977 pillow pets in her bed.  And, don't try to take one from her either :).

You guys, Molly included, are the absolute lights of my life.  Aunt Lori said it perfectly today, "Isn't God amazing?  Out of sorrows and struggles comes the overwhelming appreciation for His abundant love and grace."  I am blessed to be your Momma.  I pray that you live a life of happiness and health.  That you enjoy more sunshine than rain.  That you endure struggles with grace.  And, when things get hard, that you know that your Mom and Dad will ALWAYS LOVE YOU, forgive you, take care of you and help you to be the best person you can be.  There will never be a day that you cannot come to us with a problem, with a fear, with a hope, with a dream.  Dream big, my babies.  Dance like no one is watching.  And, take your time growing up, there is no rush to be had in this life.

Happy 2nd Birthday!