Doink

The Season

Tis The Season (you know).

Last year since we did such a disgraceful job of decorating for the holiday we decided to work overtime this year in an attempt to make up for it. As soon as we packed up our Thanksgiving feast we trudged out to the tree lot and brought home a beautiful Douglas Fir, and ever since then, this is pretty much what our evenings have looked like.....

Oh, and this is why you haven't heard from us in ages and ages. Knitting. This happens to be my first (and quite possibly last) stab at a sweater.

Ruari is obsessed with the countdown and is in charge of changing the number each day.

I for one am SUPER excited about this holiday season and can't wait for the finishing touch to our decor:

SNOW.

Tenth

Well, I've been on a rather long hiatus from this lovely blog world.

Guess what????

The most important event that you missed was the celebration of Miss Ruari's 10th birthday!

That's right, that's what I said, TENTH, an entire DECADE old.

She took it all in stride.......

And what is there to be said about this little one? Where would I even begin, or even know where to stop? She's the guardian angel of this family, always has been, and hopefully always will be. These days we have been calling her the baby whisperer, as she has a natural talent for finding little ways to keep the twins involved in new activities for long stretches of time. Whereas Finn is one for wrestling and riling, and Maija is more of a mothering sort, Ruari has a much more subtle approach to play time and they absolutely adore her.

She still loves school and enjoys challenging herself and pleasing her teachers. At home, she is very interested in kitchen business and I feel we may have one more chef to add to the family. She is still truly thirsty for knowledge, for information. We recently made turkey decorations for Thanksgiving and I asked the kids to think about what they were thankful for and to then write about it on the turkey feathers (a fairly standard and traditional art project for this holiday) and one of the first things Ruari wrote was "education", how awesome is that?

Dope-Ah-Tee

About 2 months ago or so, the twins came up with a full bellied, knee slapping, tear inducing, rolling around on floor laughing JOKE. However, since they came up with it all on their own, no one else, not a single soul, knows what it is or what it really means. All we know is that the twins seem to think it is perhaps the most hilarious thing they have ever known.

"Dope-Ah-Tee".

They will sit in their room murmuring this to each other until they are both caught up in bouts of laughter. They will run through house chanting it back and forth, exploding into contagious giggling fits. They will echo it between themselves time and time again, with secret smiles and knowing eyebrows.

But they will never explain it to us, and I have a feeling that we may never truly know what it is, what it means, where it came from, and perhaps that's the beauty of this joke. Perhaps dope-ah-tee isn't merely ONE thing anyways, perhaps it's a bit more abstract and obscure. Whatever the case may be, for now, we will continue to delight in it.....

It's A Twin "Thing"

Sometimes our days are so full, so busy, so hectic, that I forget to pay attention to the little things and I forget to notice what really matters. Sometimes I wonder if our twins have a "close enough" bond, a special twin "thing" and sometimes I question this.....

Sometimes I forget to look at what is right in front of me, to see the obvious.

They truly love each other.

They take care of one another.

They tell hilarious jokes together.

They make new discoveries side by side.

Obviously this 7 minute photo shoot was simply a brief glimpse into their lives, into their "twinness", but I believe that it is a fairly accurate account of who and what they are all about (formal wear aside).

Now on to the important stuff, like CAKE!!!! I made a traditional triple layer for the rest of the family and cute little heart cakes for Nuala and Oscar.

Oscar was unimpressed with our vocals.....

Nuala on the other hand understood EXACTLY what the cake meant.

And this, THIS, is a fairly accurate look at the bigger picture....

Turning Two

Happy Birthday to our darling twin wonders! I am grateful every single day that you are a part of our lives, and I cannot for the life of me figure out how you can possibly be turning two already....

Seems like just yesterday we were welcoming you into our arms, and now here you are ready for the prom.

Oh how quickly you've grown.

*And for the record, in case anyone is wondering, I will never, never, EVER take them to a portrait studio ever again! I may however invest in some type of backdrop for my own personal use, looks like a big white sheet may do the trick!*

Spirit

We made an effort this year to decorate for Halloween, we really did.

We made a banner from scratch.

We collected gourds and squashes, many of which ended up in delicious pots of soup.

We created the "enchanted forest", complete with those annoying wispy webs, a friendly ghost and a very large and very hairy spider.

We crumpled tissue paper with gluey finger tips.

And we, of course, carved pumpkins.

Lots and lots and LOTS of them.....

Mmmmmm, it really is my favorite time of year.

Love to you all, I hope you were able to get into the spook of the spirit as well.

(I've recently rediscovered just how much I LOVE wearing the baby. After the triple stroller arrived I sort of "forgot" about the baby carrier, but over the past few days I've been wearing her again and it is music to my heart!)