It's potty time!

We appear to be in the early stages of potty training, led not by us, but by … Colin. Yes, Colin. This started earlier in the week, when he was running around the house with his diaper off. (Colin LOVES to run around with his diaper off. Veronica, not such a fan.) Apparently, Colin came up to Ethan and said, “Potty. Potty.” So Ethan told John that he thought Colin wanted to use the potty.

John was skeptical (they just turned two less than a month ago, and while the medical world may stop adjusting preemies’ ages at two, in reality they shouldn’t have turned two until the end of September). But he dutifully put Colin on the toilet to see what would happen. And Colin peed.

They called me at work to let me know the exciting news, and I figured it was just a fluke. 

That night as I was getting the twins into their pjs, just for fun, I asked them if they wanted to try going potty on the toilet before they went to bed. Colin immediately started saying, “Potty, potty” again, and Veronica was saying “yes” as well. 

And again, Colin went on the toilet. Veronica, who showed a very early interest in going on the toilet last year, and who generally can’t stand being wet, didn’t have the patience to sit long enough to have success. However, they both went on the potty the next day at bed time.

Colin went on the potty three times yesterday and two times the day before, so this seems to be a fairly consistent interest — as long as his diaper is not on. He has not yet asked us to go when he’s wearing a diaper, although he clearly can tell when he needs to go without it. Because he’s really going, not just squeezing out a couple of drops.

John told Veronica we would buy her purple underwear when she’s ready to go on the potty all the time; Colin wants blue. And last night an over-tired Veronica was most upset that we were putting her in a diaper rather than her purple undies. So I had to explain the whole idea of being potty trained to her again.

I honestly don’t think they’re quite ready to go on their own yet. But I’m not going to stop them from trying if they think so. I would be oh so very happy if they followed in their big brother’s footsteps and got out of diapers early. Because the two things I'm ready to be done with are diapers (big surprise, right?) and cribs. 

Purple Backpack

Veronica is obsessed. She has decided that she needs to have a backpack. But not just any backpack. She needs to have a purple backpack.

While in general I appreciate Veronica’s ability to let us know exactly what is on her mind, there are some times when I think the only reason she speaks so well is because she discovered how much fun it is to make demands. (With a less persistent child, you might be tempted to call them “requests.” But Veronica doesn’t let go — when she wants something, she wants it. Now.)

I don’t know what triggered her need for a backpack, but we were outside a few days ago when she brought it up. “Roni backpack. Purple backpack,” she told me. 

“You want a backpack?” I asked, wanting to be sure I understood what she was telling me. 

“Yes. Purple backpack.” 

I thought it was a reasonable enough request … she’ll be able to carry her own things when we go places. If I buy a reasonably good backpack she’ll still be able to use it when she starts pre-K next year. So I told her I would look for a purple backpack for her. 

And now she asks me about it every day. Several times a day. And she’s losing patience with me because I haven’t been able to find a toddler-sized purple backpack for her. And that is not good. 

So this morning I decided I would use my LL Bean gift card (intended to buy myself something new) to get her a backpack. They have kid-sized packs that should last a few years, and the gift card would help defray the cost (which is slightly higher than I might normally spend on a backpack for a 2-year-old). 

Because Veronica is so particular, I showed her the catalog with the color options, and asked her which one she wanted. She studied it carefully for a minute or two, then pointed to the pink polka dot pack. “That.”

Now while Colin has shown absolutely no interest in a backpack of his own, I know that if I get one for Veronica, I had better have one for him. Otherwise we will be facing a major battle every time the backpack comes out. (Ask me about the red rocking chair some day.) So I showed Colin the catalog with the backpacks, and he immediately pointed to the school bus in the picture. “Bus!!!”

“Yes Colin, that is a bus. Very good. Now which backpack would you like? Do you like the one with sharks?”

Colin: “Bus!!!” 

Okay, I get the picture. Colin doesn’t care, and that's a school bus in the picture. Fine. I’ll pick one and hope you like it. 

And that, my friends, is a perfect example of how differently Colin’s and Veronica’s brains are wired. She is a girl who knows what she wants, and will make sure she gets it. (Purple backpack!) He’s a boy who is excited when he sees a bus (or a train, or a boat or a truck).

No surgery … for at least a year

I was surprised to see John back by noon from Colin’s 11:20 appointment with urologist. That had to be the world’s shortest appointment, especially since the office is at least a 20 minute drive (if you count parking, which you should). 

John said he spent more time looking for the office (they moved to a different floor) than he spent in the appointment. Apparently everything still looks like it has healed well, and the doctor doesn’t see the need to do another surgery for at least a year. So … I guess we’ll go back next summer and see what he thinks at that point. 

So here’s to a summer without surgery! Hip, hip hooray!

The start of another ending?

Okay, I apologize for failing to update the blog with the twins’s doctor visit stats. John took them over, and reported back when he got home. Unfortunately, we didn’t write anything down. So now … sorry. But their visit was unremarkable — which for them is a good thing. Colin was still around 21 pounds 8 ounces, Veronica a little over 25. I think she was 35 inches tall, but John couldn’t remember Colin’s height. We’ll say he remains at least 2 inches shorter than her, though.

The best part of the visit, in my opinion, was that Colin’s lungs sounded great, despite the fact that he had a cold. No wheezing or rattling. Just normal breathing sounds. For us, that’s a major accomplishment. 

Today Colin goes to see the urologist for his six-month follow-up from surgery. I am hoping that we’ll be scheduling his LAST surgery. (Really, I hope it’s his last surgery ever. In his entire life. Ever.) 

I have been using this last surgery as an excuse to avoid scheduling or planning anything: “I’ll plan that/do that/figure that out after we know when Colin’s last surgery is.” So while I’ll be losing my excuse for procrastination, it will be good to be able to put another problem, and set of doctors, behind us. I really like his urologist, but I’ll be happy not to have to see him again.

Otherwise, both twins are working hard on their language skills. Veronica seems to have jumped up to talking like a three-year-old, which again makes people think she is older than Colin. Several times in the past couple of weeks, John or I have gotten the “How far apart are they?” question when we’re out with the kiddos. 

Veronica is now counting to three on her own, and Colin is saying two-word sentences much more often. And both are getting very good at their colors. John is working hard on getting them to consistently answer correctly when asked their age, and on getting Colin to answer the question, “How are you?”

Two turn two at (almost) 2:00 on July 2

This afternoon, at nearly 2:00 (1:51), Colin and Veronica turned two. Looking back on those early days, when we weren’t sure they would make it, let alone what kind of quality of life they would have, it’s hard to imagine that we’ve come so far. 

But here we are … our twins are happy (most of the time), healthy (more or less, although they both have colds right now), rambunctious (always) two-year-olds who enjoy exploring the world and having lots of fun. 

Unlike last year, when Colin couldn’t even sit unsupported yet, the two of them spent their birthday weekend running around, chasing bubbles, playing the sprinkler and generally basking in the love of their extended family. They enjoyed their cake (or at least the frosting), loved opening and playing with their presents, and refused to sleep well at Grandma and Grandpa’s house.

Veronica is now not only speaking in longer sentences, but has figured out that she can ask for what she wants. “Mommy, music in van. Kids music.” “Eat yogurt lunch. Eat ham.” “Mommy, sit in chair. Eat breakfast. Sit!”

I think Colin is on the verge of a language breakthrough as well. He has started occasionally putting two words together, and is getting a little easier to understand. But the real reason I think he is about to make a leap forward is that the past couple of days, every time he wakes up, I hear him laying in the crib running through his entire list of words. Veronica “practiced” like that before she started talking up a storm too. 

They also are full-on into the tantrums of two. Veronica has long been the queen of tantrums, but Colin has now gotten into the act as well. •sigh• I hope this stage passes relatively quickly.

Tomorrow we go for their big two-year-old check up, so I’ll be able to update their height and weight. And I’ll add some pictures from the party as well. 

Into the woods, part 2

Okay, I really meant to finish this up the day after I posted part 1, but getting things ready for the twins second birthday party (and the regular busyness of life) got in the way.

The second day of our camping trip was HOT and very, very sticky. I think it bothered the adults much more than the kids, but the lack of nap and the heat had definitely caught up with us by mid afternoon. We took a little drive in the air conditioned van to get some ice cream to cool down a little, and when we got back the whole group headed over to the river to explore. 

That proved to be not such a good plan for the little kiddos, because the footing was very tricky, although they both enjoyed putting their feet in the little puddles in the rocks. But my sister and I headed back with the twins pretty quickly. Unfortunately, Colin fell asleep in the van on the way back to our campsite (a big 5 minute drive). I decided to wake him up right away so I could get them both into the shower to cool down and clean up — and that's where the fun began. 

Colin was not happy with being woken up. The showers were too hot, which made both babies (and Mama) very unhappy. So we were all crabby when we got back to the tent and I tried to get them to eat something (no go). 

And then the thunder started.

It thundered while I was fixing bottles. It thundered while I was trying to get the twins to sleep (Veronica fell asleep almost right away, tired boy … not so much). It thundered while Colin screamed his “I’m overtired and I don’t want to go to sleep” scream. It thundered while Colin woke Veronica up again. It thundered for at least an hour without any rain.

When John came in to take over with the twins, I started packing up the site and loading everything into the van, just in case. It wasn’t a well packed van — there wasn’t really room for people in the van when I was done — but at least everything was under cover. 

And then the rain started … or should I say, the torrential downpour. With more thunder. And lightening, directly overhead. And then hail. And wind. 

Ethan got very scared by the storm’s fury. Fortunately, he was able to retreat into George and Patty’s camper with the other (older) kids to wait out the storm. (This was somewhere between the start of the torrential downpour and the arrival of the hail.) 

After getting him safely inside, I went back to see how John was faring with the twins. They, of course, were not sleeping. We had given up on that. But they also weren’t acting scared. Colin spent the hour and a half of the first storm “reading” his book. The first two very loud cracks of thunder made him jump — right into my arms. But I think that was involuntary, because he didn’t really seem bothered by it.

Meanwhile, Veronica turned the tent into her own private bouncy house. Every time a crack of thunder shook the ground, she would squeal with delight and bounce all around the tent, diving on everything in sight. 

After the first storm wound down, we were finally able to get Colin back to sleep. Veronica took a little while longer (she had to eat the meal John brought over for me first), but she finally settled down and fell asleep as well. 

And the rain continued. But at last the temperatures dropped.

The rain let up enough at bed time that we were able to walk to the bathrooms and brush our teeth. But we had more or less just finished zipping up the tent when the rain started again. Another storm rolled through at around 10:00, but only lasted maybe half an hour. John was able to keep everyone mostly asleep through that one, and they all slept pretty well until we got our 4:15 wake up call from Veronica:

“Mommy! Daddy! Ethan! Col-y!”

We went out to survey the damage (and go to the bathroom): two large-ish trees down in our part of the campground; a gully under our tent where the impromptu river sprang up during the storm; lots of smaller branches down. And while we surveyed, the humidity starting rising … quickly.

Everyone in the group agreed that the tents were unlikely to dry, so after a grand breakfast, we all just stuffed the wet, muddy tents into the backs of the vehicles and decided we would set them up again back home. 

Surprisingly, I think the kids had a great time, despite the less-than-ideal conditions. But we decided that back-to-back camping trips would be too much for them, so Ethan and I went solo for the second trip. But we’ll get them back into the woods again this fall.