An extremely long day - but what a great one it was!

Halloween was a blast - from sun up to sun down!

TJ's regional end-of-the-season celebration and tournament too place. Our first game was at 8am and then we had two more games after that. The Yellow Jackets won the first two games, but lost the third game. That put us in second place for our group (there were two groups). Then we had the playoffs for third place. The Yellow Jackets were tied with their opponents when the game came to a close, so that meant overtime! We had to play two more 8 minute quarters and we won 5-3! WAY TO GO YELLOW JACKETS!

I am so proud of TJ! Even though he thought it was a bust (he didn't make a goal during any games), I think it was a very rewarding experience. I really hope he plays in the spring because I think he will get even better and will find himself scoring goals!


Our day ended at 4pm with Soccer - so that means the girls were good sports during 8 hours of being out on the fields. Here are some pictures I took:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=42013&id=1303620738&l=3cbf60d7f5

We got home in JUST enough time to scarf down some food, get dressed and go Trick-or-Treating. Actually, we did trunk-or-treating at two different churches within a mile from our house. The girls LOVED being out and dressed up for the occasion. Lauren loves prancing around as a Leaf Fairy and Katie made an ADORABLE little Dorothy! Here are some pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=832545&l=11544f5c76&id=1303620738

Fun at the Farm

We went to Lyon Farms today with HAMOM and had a blast! Here are some pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41057&id=1303620738&l=26cc8af466

It was pretty cold and windy, and the girls were cranky a little, but they still managed to have fun while freezing in the cold! TJ was up and going the entire time we were there! HE had a BLAST!

Teeth, Eyes and Hearts

The latest in pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=39516&id=1303620738&l=8784e33478

TJ lost is first front, top tooth. Although this is tooth #5 as far as the number of teeth he has lost. Lauren is up to 12 teeth now, and Katie sits at only four.

Went to see the opthamologist on Wednesday for Lauren's astigmatism. Is hasn't gotten any worse and since both eyes are about the same, we are good for at least another year. If we see problems, we can go down there and see the doc again (in Birmingham). Lauren will probably need glasses at some point, but when is the question.

Tim and I will be celebrating seven wonderful years of marriage tomorrow! No plans since he and I won't be in the same town tomorrow... but as soon as he is back, I am sure we will find a way to go off and have a nice dinner without the kids :)

So far, everything else is going okay... :)

The latest at the Towle House

I've posted a few good pictures from the past few weeks here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=36954&id=1303620738&l=5a45985c8d


TJ's soccer team, the Yellow Jackets, are doing really well! They've won all three of their games so far! TJ is starting to get better and starting to actually enjoy it. He was very timid and uncoordinated at first, but we've seen some real growth from him.

The girls are doing very well! They had their 15 month check-up on 9/11 and Lauren outweighed Katie 15 ounces. Katie is 3/4 inch taller than Lauren. They are both pretty high up in percentiles for height, and just a little lower for weight. They are doing WELL!

Katie has become quite the lap baby. She loves sitting in momma's lap! Lauren is much more of a go and get 'em type. She loves, loves, loves to dance and be silly. She's a lot like TJ was at that age. Katie seems to be more interested in books and sitting down with herself and her toys. It is so much fun to see the contrasting personality types between them and even TJ!

TJ is doing well in 1st grade. He needs to pay better attention and this shows in his reading comprehension and math, but he is more than capable of acing all his subjects. He's very smart, but right now things like Batman and Iron Man are much more important to him! Boys will be boys, right? He's got a b-day party to go to this weekend and he is so excited about that!

I will post more as things happen! I am not on top of this like I used to be, but I am trying!

So much to say, so little time

There are so many things going on, and so little time to write about it!

Here are some pics from TJ's soccer:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=34293&id=1303620738&ref=mf

They named their team the Yellow Jackets :)

I wish I had more time to write... and I will as soon as I can!

My how time flies!

I uploaded a few pictures from over the past month. You can see them here.

Since Tim has dreams of opening his own Pizza Parlor, I decided to pizza-fy his birthday. He got an awesome pizza stone, a pizza peel, a gourmet pizza cutter, a pizza book and pizza dough mix to get him started. I can't wait to see what comes from this!

TJ started first grade this week and I can tell he loves it. They had a spelling test on Thursday and he got an A+ and was so proud of himself - as was I!

We also started soccer this week. The first practice was rained out, and seeing as how the skies are blue as can be right now, I anticipate practice tonight to go well. He was really nervous and scared about starting sports, but once he got there and saw other boys his age, he forgot all about being scared and just jumped right in. I am just sorry he didn't actually get to practice!

The girls are doing pretty well and are growing like weeds! They are both talking a little, but Katie is the one that repeats sounds more often. Lauren is the physical one - always running around. Katie is my little thinker and listener. Don't get me wrong, they are both full of it at times and they know how to get to me, already! Ahh, the joys of motherhood!

Be sure to check out the pictures! I will post more with TJ playing soccer soon!

Back from the beach ~ and TJ turns six!

First - I've uploaded 130+ pictures... so click here to see.

We had a great but tiresome trip. The girls really enjoyed the water, not so much the sand. We didn't take them out too often because they really didn't need to be in the sun that much. But what time they did spend on the beach was enjoyable for them.

TJ had a great birthday! We went to the Treasure Ship restaurant (just like we did when he was 4) and then we had cake and ice cream at the condo afterwards. Keith, Alice and Josh were vacationing not too far from us and joined us for dinner, too. That REALLY made it special for TJ and I think that's exactly what he needed for his birthday! He really made out like a bandit, too!

I am just glad to be home and can't wait to sleep in my OWN BED! In fact, I am about to go there now!

Enjoy the pictures!

Some new pics!

Here are a few new pictures at Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28100&id=1303620738&l=651444dcf6


http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28728&id=1303620738&l=70f58cd7ba

Tim was gone for a week while traveling for work. No fun for the Towle House and we missed him dearly. We sure are glad he is safe at home!

Here's a video we shot for him while he was gone:



Enjoy!

Garbage Pickup

To my neighbors - those in Madison County, we are being screwed. I am so pissed off - our trash pickup is being taken down to once a week. We have five people living in my home! How am I supposed to keep the trash down to only enough to pack up my can once a week??? THIS SUCKS!

Click Here for the Story

In Desperation... it is Dora

Tomorrow I become a single mom for a week. Tim is off to a CISCO conference in San Francisco and I will be all by myself!!! To be honest, I am not that worried about it. There have been plenty of days where Tim's worked 16 hours and I had to do everything all day long. This is just an extension of those kinds of days.

But tonight, Tim is with TJ to watch Transformers the movie. I got the girls home, fed them... too early for a bath, no second nap today... and what? If I sit and play with them like I normally do, they will fuss and cry. Katie will fuss because she wants to sit in my lap, Lauren will fuss because she is just plain tired.

Dora.

Dora the Explorer.

I said I wouldn't do that with these kids. I can't stand Dora. I had ENOUGH of her AND DEIGO when TJ was a toddler.

But that's all that was on Noggin and I don't think our recording of the Backyardigans is going to work again. They already watched Sesame Street today, we've had it on kids music for background noise.

They needed a distraction to keep them going until bath time.

Dora.

Then.... DIEGO!

Awwww Lawd! What the hell... it could be worse. It COULD be that stupid show with the bumpy plastic fallic looking fellow with the disco dude and the strange singing and dancing that not even this dork can enjoy.

sigh....

Dora :(

The party is over...

... and I am officially done! No more party planning for me anytime soon! Although we are all exhausted, we had a blast! We had about 20 guests plus children and JUST enough room for them all.

I've posted a lot of pictures on Facebook HERE.

Katie and Lauren made out with gifts! They got a few outfits, pajamas galore (thank goodness - they needed them, always), lots of books and lots of toys. They seem to be a bit overwhelmed a bit right now with all the new stuff - but I am sure they will get into everything as time passes. We also got a gift card to Michael's and I purchased some wall decorations for their room. I will post those pictures later. I am still working on it - I got a LOT - but it's looking pretty good!

We played a little bit of Mario Kart towards the end of the party and TJ was quite the challenger! He whooped Cedric's booty a few times (see pics in the photo album linked above). He was really full of himself (TJ) and man... he sure is OUR child, that is for sure!!! I fear what he will be like behind the wheel of a real car 10 years from now! LOOK OUT!

The party was quite the success and Tim and I feel so very blessed to have the kinds of friends and family that care enough to come out and celebrate Katie and Lauren's birthday. We really had fun, even though we were busy busy busy, it was well worth it. Our friends are the best!

The Squirrel Lives On!

Last September, I came home and found an abandoned baby squirrel hiding out in our carport. I felt so badly for it, so I called my animal rescuing aunt Nancy. She said she would come by an pick it up - you can read more about it HERE.

Well, she got an email on Thursday (June 11):
Hi Nancy, l recently joined the group. l was wondering though, if you are the same Nancy Luna who brought me squirrel a year ago. She was a baby girl squirrel very thin. If so, she was raised successfully by me and released two weeks ago in my yard. She lives somewhere close because she is in my yard daily for nuts and treats. l just wanted to say thank you for bringing her to me and saving her life. Sincerely, Tobie P.S. l had named her Luna and she's a little sweetheart.

Needless to say, this MADE MY DAY! Here are a few pics of Luna then:


And here is a picture of her now:




YAY! I am so happy to hear that little Luna the squirrel is a happy little thing!

It's official!!! The girls are ONE!

Gerber calls them Toddlers. They're walking, kinda-talking movers and shakers! I call them my little babies! Can you believe a whole year has passed??

I uploaded pics of them eating their celebratory birthday cupcakes: CLICK HERE

We've got a LOT planned for their Birthday party on the 13th. We've got hot-dogs GALORE, 8 pounds of wings (hot and BBQ), loaded baked potato salad (a Towle Creation), TowleSlaw (Towle House version of Cole Slaw), Spinach and Veggie Dip, a Cheese Ball, and all the fixings!

I can't wait!!!!!

Tomorrow, my babies turn ONE!

I can't believe a year has flown by. It really has been all a blur! The girls are so much different today than they were when I first laid eyes on them. Katie, the child I didn't think looked much like any of my other children, turned out to look like her daddy! Lauren, the big baby has grown to be the smaller of the two. What fun it has been to experience the magic of twins.

I've looked back at the blogs when I first started and am amazed at how I managed to pull through. I went a couple months with only 2 and 3 hours of sleep at a time. Tim was amazing during that time, and still is. I feel like he and I have accomplished so much together. We really teamed up to go into this twin-parenting ordeal with the goal not to fight, and enjoy every last (however miserable it may have been) moment. We've had so many magical moments that were filled with elation and laughter. We've been so tired we were brought to tears, but we did it as a family and we are so much stronger because of it.

As of today, both girls are walking. Lauren is a pro and is learning to walk fast enough to play games where she runs away when we say "I'm gonna getcha!" Katie is still learning, but her will and determination shine when she does walk - you can see it in her eyes because it's like the Little Engine That Could!

Where Lauren is great at walking, Katie is great at talking. Katie knows how to say TJ, Mama, Dada, duck, and has actually said Elmo on a few occasions. She also has her own words for Bell Pepper and doggie. Lauren says Mama, Dada, duck and all done. Katie is better at verbal skills, but I am still very pleased with where both of them are with talking.

It is bittersweet. No more first smiles... no more first tooth experiences (Katie has three broken through, Lauren has eight)... but at the same time, we are DONE with bottles. Last night we gave them their last bottle. They've done really well with strawed sippy cups, and we are going with those for all the meals. I will miss giving Katie her nighttime bottle (Tim gave Lauren hers) where she would rub my arm while she sucked down her full eight ounces.

Like I said, it is bittersweet. On Saturday we will have the last first birthday, but the first girlie birthday.

Needless to say, I never, ever, ever plan to have any more children. At this point, between a tubal and endometrial ablation, my reproductive system has been obliterated. Next up - Tim's getting a snip-snip. We don't want any small percentage working against us!

It's been so much fun! I can't wait to see what the next year has in store for us!

Fun at Dublin Park

We had a lot of fun at what TJ called "Dumplin Park." I've promised him we would go back sometimes after the girls' birthday party. He spent most of the three hours running and playing in Kids Kingdom!

This was Tim's work group summer picnic and I really enjoyed seeing everyone there! I think out of all the different places I've worked (I know, it has been a while) and places Tim has worked since I met him, this group is the best! It really feels like a family in a way. It's great fun to see his co-workers, their spouses and better-halves, and their kids. It feels so familiar and comfortable.

I didn't take as many pictures as I wanted to. Although, my goal for our upcoming beach vacation is 10K pictures in 7 days. LOL But if you are interested in seeing what pictures I did take, click here.

Enjoying the sunshine while it lasts

Despite what you see here, we enjoyed the sunshine this morning!

You can see the fun in the sun in our album on Facebook.

Also, you can see a short video (I hope).

Start - Summer Vacation - Week Two

Trying to stay busy this summer is not going to be a challenge. I am ready to take my son just about anywhere to get his daily fill of energy exertion. Thankfully the girls seem to enjoy getting out of the house and are pretty good in public places.

Last week we went to the petting zoo, the park, the guys saw a movie, and a friend's house for dinner. This week I am fairly certain we will be making our way to a part or two and will enjoy the blue skies while they last. I bought a tiny little (very tiny) pool for the girls. I've got a couple of bathing suits (via Raney's mass of borrowed girly clothes) for the girls, lots of sun block, and a good sprinkler for TJ. I need a little bit of sun, myself and I think I'll de-white my shiny legs!

After my late night run to WallyWorld this evening, I realized how much it FEELS like summer now that TJ is actually out of school. Of course, before Kindergarten, even with Pre-K, it didn't really "feel" like summer break. Hmmm.... very neat to feel this time of freedom though the eyes of a parent!

Expect me to post LOTS of pictures over the next few months! We've got all kinds of fun up our sleeves and I can't wait to capture those Kodak moments!

Nevermind... I don't want a goat!

The kids and I went to the petting zoo today. Despite the fact that the ground had been soaked for a few days, and there was red clay (Alabama dirt) everywhere - we still managed to have a great time. Actually, the owners did a pretty good job in keeping the hay down to keep the mud from being a problem.

I thought I wanted a goat. For some reason, I've wanted a goat for a long time. But after really looking at the ones I saw today, I realized just how demonic looking they are. Perhaps I've seen too many paranormal shows lately (pentagrams, ram's head, etc)... because when I look into the eyes of a goat - they look really sinister! Something about rectangular irises that really make it too much for me!

You can see our pictures from today's adventure at Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=26003&id=1303620738

TJ Graduates!

Isn't it awesome!? TJ is well on his way to being a first grader!

I uploaded a few pictures from graduation to Facebook. You can find them here.

TJ was the best kid all year! He never once got in trouble and "stayed on green" every single day! As a reward, I let him choose a DS game. He had talked about it since after Christmas when I told him I would buy him a Nintendo DS game if he was good at school all year long. Bribery worked, I'd say!

Wrapping up the school... damn swine flu!

TJ's last day would have been May 22, but as backwards as the Madison County School system is, he has to go to school on the Tuesday and Wednesday after Memorial Day to make up the two days they missed because of Swine Flu. They closed the schools down for two days (some schools for four days) to limit exposure from two confirmed cases in a school that isn't in our district. TJ's graduation is on the 21st, and he is totally confused as to why he has to go BACK to school after he's already graduated! I can't seem to explain it to him and wish someone would explain it to me!

The girls will be ONE in less than a month, and their birthday party is a month from today! I can't believe just how FAST this year has flown by! It seems like yesterday I found out I was pregnant!

Katie finally got a tooth. It hasn't moved all the way up yet, but it is visible. Subsequently, she bit her lip in a boo boo incident with their toy bucket yesterday. She hasn't even had her tooth for a handful of days and already she's managed to give herself a purple lip! It doesn't look bad, but I certainly see it! She is probably going to be a klutz just like me! Lord help her!

Lauren is walking, walking, walking and walking. Last night she was walking around in circles... simply, just to walk. Katie is trying to walk, too. She finally took a step all by herself, but immediately fell. She won't let Lauren be the center of attention, that's for sure. She's working hard to catch up to her "little" sister!

There isn't too much else to report, but I wanted to make sure I kept up with the blog since it was something I promised to do!

Oh, and here is the invitation to the party... I will be sending them out next week. We really want to have a blast, so I hope you all can come!

Big Milestones

Lauren is officially walking! The little monkey is going to and fro on her feet, with an occasional bump to her bum!

We also have TJ's Kindergarten Graduation coming up on May 21st. I am really excited to see TJ do so well this year. Considering how much has changed for him this year - with the addition to two more siblings (at the same time, nonetheless) - he has taken it all in stride!

TJ has "stayed on green" the entire year. That means he has been the perfectly behaved student. He really enjoys school, and I really hope this trend remains. Of course, I am sure Ms. Lisa Williams (his teacher) has a lot to so with it. She's really amazing and I give her all the props she deserves! From what TJ has told me, not many students are all that well behaved, and I am sure that has been a challenge for everyone in the classroom. Ms. Williams rocks!

I am planning the girls' birthday and can't wait to send invitations! We will be having it on June 13 - late afternoon - so that everyone can have food and can stay as late as they'd like! We can't wait to celebrate their first year!

Fun at Panoply (and more updates on the girls)

Here's a picture of TJ standing next to the Giraffe his teacher chose to take to display at Panoply! As far as I could see, only one more Kindergartner was chosen! How cool! Such the little artist!

I was praying they would have some fried pickles or even fried green tomatoes, but they didn't. In fact, Panoply was a good bit smaller this year, and not nearly as many artists as years past, but there was still plenty for the kids to do. I am assuming the economy has a lot to do with that. We spent way too much money there. TJ's extra-long corn dog and a lemonade came to a whopping $10. I almost told the lady she was nuts, but I let it go. But still!?

So, an update on the girls...

Lauren has turned out to be much more like Tim in personality and Katie definitely has more of my personality. If you tell Lauren "no," she cries. Katie, on the other hand, will throw a fit. Raney reminded me that I had said I always wanted a child that looked like me with Tim's personality and Lauren seems to fit the bill. Then we have two kids that look like him with my personality. Sheesh! We are in for it!

Katie is a very verbally talented child. She mimics sounds very well and was first to say things like Mama, Dada, and even her little version of Bell Pepper (the dog) which sounds like "bo pa pa." She even says "yeah!" while clapping her hands.

Lauren is doing extremely well with moving around. Today she took about 5 or 6 steps on her own and I can see her running before we know it! She's got big, wide feet so that has aided her in getting up and moving around.

We are planning their 1st birthday party for Saturday, June 13. We are going to have a cook-out and all of our family and friends are welcome to come.

If you want to see our fun at Panoply, you can visit the photo album at Facebook.

It's been forever, I know... Sorry!

Okay, I am going to try much harder to be better about updating our blog. I just have very little time these days. However, I've got use of a laptop and plan on using that to update in the evenings when I have time!

Tomorrow is Panoply and TJ has some art in the student art tent. We are really happy and excited for him. It isn't a huge honor to have your art at Panoply, but it IS something special. I have noticed how TJ's artistic ability has been growing quite a bit and I have to say he gets that from me. I took four years of art in High School, won prizes for my work in local competitions and even went to state with my art. I still enjoy it and should have pursued it in college (hindsight and all), so I am very excited to see TJ's ability! We plan on taking a picture of him with his work tomorrow.

Gosh, I didn't realize what time it was... and I have to go! Figures!

The pic of the girls is their 10 month picture. More about those little monkeys later! If you don't already have a Facebook page, get one. I've posted pic and videos of the kids there that I haven't posted here. It's easy and fun for catching up with family! Just do it!

TJ: Mythbuster Junior

I just have to share this nugget of laughter...

Today while cleaning, I picked up a phone book and said "Hey TJ, watch me rip this phone book apart!"

"No you can't!"

"Sure I can! They did it on Mythbusters!" Although I can't remember how, I am certain they did it!

"They said not to do that at home. And the other guy said 'EVER!'"

Of course, this is only funny to you if you've seen the show. They start each show with a warning from Adam and Jamie... do not try it at home. Surely this is something I can try at home, right?

Recent Happenings at the Towle House

Christmas has come and gone, the New Year is in, and junk food is out. Yes, another year, another "lose weight" resolution (at least for me). After giving birth to the girls, my stomach has become some kind alien territory for me. It doesn't look like ME - it looks like... yuck. So, I ordered Crunchless Abs and joined the Slim Back Alabama campaign. Our team name is Phat Four and we each have to lose at least 10 pounds before the 10 week period is up, and that will enter us into a drawing to win money. That's not my only incentive... looking in the mirror these days is incentive enough. Now that I am DONE having babies, I am going to focus on trying to return my body back to pre-baby state. I know it's a lofty goal, but I am still going to shoot for the gold here!

We are STILL trying to find a Wii Fit to help our weight-loss endeavours. Everyone seems to love it and I want one, too! Tim got Mario Kart from my mom for Christmas and that's been the highlight of our evenings, lately. After the monkey is in bed, and the girls are fed their last bottle, we turn on the Wii and enjoy racing against other people on the Wii's Mario Kart WFC (we think that stands for Wi-Fi Channel). It's loads of fun, but causes severe immediate road rage. Even TJ gets it when he plays! And TJ isn't half bad on it at all! When he kicks butt, I wonder what other people would say if they knew some 5 year old just raced better than they did!?

The most fun is cracking open a cold one or pouring a glass of wine (times two, or three sometimes) and then playing online. Tim and I have no social life to speak of since the girls were born, so we have become very addicted to the Mario Kart world. We have loads of fun and laugh, so that's all that matters, right?

As for the girls, we've reached the seven month milestone! They are rolling over (everywhere) and Katie even uses it to get to where she wants to go. Lauren is trying desperately to crawl, but hasn't yet figured it out yet. I imagine in no time we'll be seeing two little monkeys crawling around the Towle House. Fun, fun!

We finally got another highchair (we still had TJ's) and the girls are officially eating in them. Lauren does really well with Cheerios and Puffs (baby puffed rice). She pretty much eats anything I put in front of her like biter biscuits and toast, etc. Katie is a slower eater, but seems to enjoy finger foods, too. We've tried sippy cups, but I am going to do exactly what we did with TJ... I purchased some sippy cups with straws and will let them learn on that. Since they already have the sucking down, they should be able to suck through a straw easier than learning to suck on a sippy cup with it upright in the right position. In my opinion, that makes more sense than doing it the traditional way. I can't wait until I can start giving them real finger foods to eat and do away with the puree crap. It's take a LONG time to feel the girls and right now with our schedule, I do it myself during the week (solids) and it takes up quite a bit of my time to feed them in their highchairs.

Surprisingly (or not), Katie seems to, perhaps, said her first word. Of course, it could just be her babbling, but she seems to say "BaBa" right before we have a bottle, and especially after her evening bath, which always comes right before their last bottle of the day. Funny and ironic, considering how she was so much smaller at birth and now out-weighs Lauren by two full pounds. I just think Lauren has a much faster metabolism than Katie, but you have to admit that the chunky-monkey's first possible words of "BaBa" is fitting, right?

The girls are calling for me now... waking up from their evening slumber. So, off I go. I really wish I had more time to blog (among other things), but I still (always) hold out hope of having more time in the future!