Twins talking, fear of baths and the Infamous Choo Choo

Despite all of the stress I've been under recently, my kids are doing well.

They are firmly two year olds. They have been known to fight over objects and to throw tantrums. The other night, for example, I refused to turn on the dvd of Thomas the tank engine. Luckily the tantrums last around a minute or less until they realize they're not going to get their way.

Thomas (a.k.a. choo-choo) is the current favorite at our home. I'm not sure why my son noggin is obsessed. I think maybe it's because he can name all the engines (His favorites are a toss up between Percy and Henry). I remember watching some "Shining Time Station" when my younger siblings were growing up. Never did I imagine that I would be watching a similar program with my own children.



Fortunately, he can be torn away from Thomas by going outside, going on a walk, going to the park, etc. But if we're in the our living room and thinking about watching a dvd, he's probably going to demand "choo-choo". (Never mind the fact that we've seen the episode three times already that day).

Both kids, but especially noggin have a firm grasp on language. (If you remember, I was concerned about their lack of language a few months ago). Every day he says more words. And he repeats words that we say. My husband and I have toned down our language, but it's still sobering when he repeats words like "bucket", "away", "die", etc. He repeats words like Arlo Guthrie's character to the army recruiter in Alice's Restaurant. Noggin has this way of saying "I silly" that is just hysterical. Every time he says it (in a two year old James Cagney way) I laugh.

Goose had taken to not liking the bath. Every time it was time for a bath, she would run to the nearest adult (usually her father) and cry. While standing in the bath, she would scream. Her brother likes bath time and everything to do with the bathroom (he waves bye to the toilets - potties - at Lowe's).

So last night we put bubbles in the bathtub. This is a first, since they have sensitive skin and I thought they would break out in hives. Goose loved the bubbles. She didn't cry at all. She stayed in the tub longer than her brother. She had a great time throwing the bubbles around the bathtub.

We will probably be using bubbles for the foreseeable future.

Goose also loves choo- choo, but not as much. She doesn't seem to use as many words as her brother does, but she talks just as much. Often, it's hard to tell what she's saying. It sounds like she's babbling, and then every so often, she says a full sentence like "I'm okay". She still will sit with books and read through them herself.

Goose, like her great grandmother and great aunt (chanson's mom), loves watermelon. Truthfully, she likes all kinds of melons in general. She eats it like candy. Yesterday I had some out on the table but had not given her any yet. She recognized the sliced watermelon and cried until I gave her some.

She's also not a good sleeper, or needs less sleep than her brother does. She will talk herself to sleep - sometimes up to forty five minutes of singing and talking. If we bring her into the front room, she runs around, not looking sleepy - excited to be the center of attention. (We've been watching Simon Schama's Power of Art recently, which is really pretty good. Although, parts are violent and not really child friendly. So Goose doesn't get to join us for those episodes).

Some friends of ours brought their eight month old daughter over the other day. She is very cute, but very tiny. She can sit up on her own. Both noggin and goose were very respectful. I was astounded to compare the two of them to her. They are little kids - no longer a baby like she is. It's sad and exciting at the same time. They were very cautious around her, and when she started crying for her dad, noggin said "(insert cute little girl's name here) sad". The next day we went outside, and he said the same thing - although our friends were gone.

Noggin actually sat and watched the fireworks (on tv) with me last night. Goose ran around the front room, which, in all honesty, is what watching tv or movies with my two are like. They'll watch five to ten minutes, and then run around.

We're planning a trip to the beach for the near future (yes, for you Florida readers, there are beaches in the midwest, just not the same kind of beaches that you have!) We'll see how that goes! We recently went to a swimming/toddler pool, and they had a great time. So I hope it will go well.

All is all, this is a good time with them, and I couldn't ask for better kids.