the twinkies turn 12!

yes, I fully understand that they are two separate people.

 Nickolas and Nikko COULD NOT BE MORE OPPOSITE. 

Oh my days, it's ridiculous how opposite they are. 

(especially physically)

however, I don't want someone to come scan the page and only see one and think that was it and the other be left out! so, i'll do two separate things WITHIN the same blog.

aren't you glad I am so clear about things?

ok, here it goes:

Nickolas

Nickolas is one of the most kind-hearted little boys you will ever meet. He is feisty, yet sweet. He's loud, but so calm. I know, it doesn't make sense that those two work together, but that's the best way to describe him. He is super-athletic and active but when it comes to his niece and nephews, he is like the baby-whisperer--unless him and Nikko are throwing a bean bag at oliver--but don't worry, Oliver throws it right back. That boy has the most tender heart, especially when it concerns his niece and nephews. He is so smart (though he may not always agree). Because him and his brother don't have any younger siblings, I think he really thrives on being an uncle. Especially a young one. 

Oliver prefers Nickolas to almost everyone.

and it's especially ridiculous because Oliver wants Nickolas to hold him...

...and he is almost Nickolas' size. 

Seriously.

You should see him hold him!

love, love, love this boy.

Nikko

Nikko man! Man, this kid. Nikko is this big teddy bear of a boy. He just radiates love and kindness and goodness. He is soft-spoken and incredibly sweet. He is so helpful and does it so cheerfully. He'a artistic, athletic, and smart. He is so well-balanced. He snuggles with me when we watch tv and movies together. *sigh*. When Shantele was asking the boys what they wanted for their birthday, Nikko said he wanted to come to LA (by himself!) and hang out with us! 

Freaking sweetheart.

Ruby is really drawn to Nikko and Nikko is so sweet to her. And to Oliver.

And to everyone.

love, love, love, this boy.

These two are seriously some of the best little men in the world

 and I am so very grateful to have them in our lives.

(picture from our wedding

nickolas is the blond, nikko the brunette)

(they are only 8 here--aren't they precious?!)

*also, I'm not sure where miles and riley are, hahaha

whoops.

31 birthdays and counting.

I come from a family of 9 siblings. Out of us 9, there are 4-in laws so far (including Sean) and 5 grandbabies (including ours). From Sean's side, he has 6 brothers (2 are Shantele's twin boys), and one sister-in-law. There are 3 grandbabies (including our kiddos). Add 5 parent-figures on top of that and what do you get?

lots of freaking birthdays.

and guess what?

5 of those occur in January.

And even better yet?

They occur within 5 days of each other.

So, I was thinking today that I seriously love everyone in my huge, crazy, dramatic, hilarious, awesome family, that I am going to dedicate a blog post to each one of them on their birthday.

Oooh, yeah, baby.

And guess what?

Tomorrow, we have TWO.

The twins!

More on that tomorrow.

6 months and 2 years

I know. I'm crazy. 18-months apart is sooo perfect for these two. And to me, it doesn't seem all that weird. Until I put '6 months and 2 years' as the title of a blog post and realize that I was 3 months along with Ruby before Oliver even turned 1. Whoa.

Anyway, I realized I forgot to blog about their respective appointments, so I'll quickly do the details:

Oliver: 

38.5 pounds--over 95th

39"--over 95th

I asked the doctor how in the world Oliver wasn't over the 100th percentile. Doc said he was completely off the chart, but for documentations sake, they have to say 'over the 95th- percentile. 

Doesn't really make sense, but whatever.

He loves trucks, cars, reading, Mickey Mouse, Dora, trains, balls, 'draws' (coloring), Cars the movie, and doing flash cards with Sean. He can count to 7 and knows yellow, green, blue, purple, red, and orange.

Speaks a decent amount--I'm not in the slightest concerned about that.

Loves his BB 

(yes, his binkie. Sue me.)

Wears a size 11 shoe!

Still fits into 3T clothes, but not for much longer.

zero intrest in potty-training...

which is cool by me since I, too, have zero interest in potty-training.

Ruby:
18 pounds 11 ounces--90th
27"--75th

Ruby girl is getting chunky and is actually a tad short, considering. 

haha!

she has recently started sitting up for more than a minute or two.

she has big, brown eyes (just like big brother and dad!)

she has the most captivating smile.

Like, it melts my heart every.single.time she smiles.

(don't believe me? come visit and see for yourself.)

Wears 9-12 months clothes.

 Of course, I pour her into some of her 6 month ones, too.

Size 3 diapers...

..but let's be honest: that's mostly because I don't want to move up to 

size 4 and get less diaper for my money!

LOVES solids (obviously).

This is a pretty haphazardly written blog, but I wanted to jot some stuff down before I pay homage to each of my darling babes. In a separate post. In the future.

big girl!

have I mentioned lately how much I adore this little princess?

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until the sun comes up over santa monica blvd...

ok, not really santa monica blvd, but more santa monica pier.

santa monica pier (and boardwalk) is one of my very favorite places. for those who haven't been, it's this uber-charming oasis with complete with a carnival, aquarium, shops, fruit trucks, bike rentals, taco and hot dog stands, other greasy delicious food stands, the ocean (duh), charming beach homes, and a vast array of some of the happiest homeless people and their dogs (expression unintended).

we don't go here nearly enough, especially considering it's a whopping 4 miles from our apartment.

anyway, this past MLK day we finally went down there after a several week stint. we got there right at ten and it was calm, quiet, and awesome. we decided to rent bikes for an hour and stroll up and down the boardwalk into venice:

(*do make note of the cleanliness of the surrounds.

and also of the super-sketchy helmet on loan for Rubes)

the men in my life.

are you kidding me? precious.

toilet paper trail

ruby was working very hard, so she requested we stop for a drink.

*ah, yes. notice the difference in the surrounds once you get to Venice...? 

good ol' venice.

another really awesome thing about santa monica beach are the plethera of play structures and things. oliver loooooves the swings. it's just extra-sweet they happen to overlook the pier and the ocean:

come visit us.

anytime.

lastly, I have been pinteresting lots lately--including, but certainly not limited to--this baby:

before:

after:

*yeah, and is the camera quality as annoying to you as it is to me? a problem soon to be fixed via tax return.

lunatic

geesh, this girl. no wonder my children have tank legs:

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and so it begins.

law school starts up again for the hubs tomorrow.

uggghhhhhhh.

ok, that's all the complaining I'll do. we were SO spoiled to have him all to ourselves for the last 24 days. it's actually bittersweet; bitter because we'll see him 1/15 the amount of time we've been seeing him and sweet because me and the babes will be able to get back into a routine of sorts including, but not limited to: more structured naps for the babes (this is mostly for me--I need quiet time!), organized meal times, outside play-time, crafting, reading, organizing, cleaning, more playing, cooking, laundry, and all the other things being a mom and wife are all about. it is utterly inconceivable how much I love getting to stay at home with two of the coolest little people on the planet. I'm not sure how I got so lucky.

:-)

the happiest place on earth.

Did I tell you we have annual passes to Disneyland? We do, and we take advantage of it. Well, I mostly take advantage of it with the slew of guests we have at any given time. However, Sean wanted to take a little overnight trip to Anaheim to spend a few days bouncing back and forth between the parks. So, we got a hotel. I know--a tad ridiculous since Disneyland is an insane 45 minutes from our house. We thought it would be fun, and thanks to our cashback bonus on our Discover card, it was freeeeeeee! Here are some hotel pool pictures, because well, it was 85 degrees in Anaheim yesterday:

ruby girl. 

that girl loves her dad. lots.

 freaking cheese ball.

we call this one tankasaurus rex.

don't mind his muscles.

or is sweet side-part

HAM

waiting for the Christmas parade. that woman tried to squeeze into the approximate 7 inches of space available between me and the person next to me.

 oliver hides in the stroller whenever a parade is going on.

and he's watching Dora.

I'm officially a Disney nerd! lanyard? check. annual pass? check. wear it around my neck all day, on every ride, never taking it off? check.

the only time I like 'it's a small world'

twins :-)

aaaaaand, those are all the pictures we took. haha.

 we really need an actual camera. we took these 

with our video camera (which is a video camera first, camera second).

The trip was made even more enjoyable using the Disney dollars we got in our stockings (thanks, Matt and Shantele!). We ate (disgusting) kings.

two?!

I have TWO babies. Two babies big enough to sit side by side at Costco. Two!! Unbelievable.

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2012!

so.

I didn't do so hot on the blog thing the latter part of 2011. being flakey on your blog is soooo last year which is why I have decided that I am going to blog no less than once a week. rather than complain about how I didn't update on important events or provide documentation for absolutely anything we have done the last several months, I'll just say 2011 was very good to us and I imagine 2012 will try it's best to compete.

I should also tell you; I have a new and special person in my life. her name is Pin T. Rest. let's be honest--she takes up a lot of my free-time. like, and unbelievable amount of time and doesn't expect much in return. I use her over and over and over and over again and I know the only thing she wants in return is results. enter, book shelf (with a slight modification):

 (I promise that pocket doesn't actually sag--weird angle and stiff awkward fabric will do that, apparently).

(I haven't trimmed the dowels yet. Classy.)

obviously, the tutorial is from pinterest. It's unbelievably easy--even with the little pocket thing I added. It took me an hour from start to finish (including hanging stupid hardware. does anyone else hate hanging hardware as much as I do? The fabric looks bulky because it sort of is. I picked a wipeable fabric specifically because when Oliver eats it's like his mouth becomes a jet-powered fan and very little actually makes it into the mouth and most ends up on the walls, the carpet, his hair, and the inside of his ear. this book shelf is specifically for his art/learning/creativity stuff. This week I am going to paint the top of that table with chalkboard paint. huzzah!