February in Calgary was a cold month, but we luckily spent 10 days of it in Hawaii. The kids had a lot of fun playing in the sand and ocean.
Kyle is working on a separate Hawaii post. Stay tuned.
The twins started a new day care/Montessori school on March 4. The adjustment was easier for the twins than for Kyle and I. We now have to pack lunches and snacks. It is a lot of work at this age, as they can be picky eaters. But enrollment in the early Montessori program guarantees the twins a spot in the older program, and we want the kids to be in the Montessori program for the next 3-4 years. All snacks have to be fruits and vegetables, which is a great, and the kids are adjusting (Ewan likes cucumbers and they both love kiwi). They greet the teacher every morning with a handshake, and will eventually say good morning Ms. Sharma while making eye contact. I love the approach!
The first day at Montessori Ewan came home with a new skill- kissing! he runs up and gives us kisses. Eileen just started kissing us around early April. It’s very sweet, but a bit gross with the snotty noses! Ewan is really into hugging, and Eileen shows her affection by standing very close and leaning into you. Although, just this week Eileen has been hugging us (and Grandma Renee and Grandpa Ken who are visiting this week).
They continue to bite each other at home, but so far only one incident at day care (Eileen bite another kid). They fight over toys and push each other, mostly when they are hangry, but sometimes just because of frustration. Ewan bit Eileen yesterday after dinner, and Eileen only wanted Grandma Renee to console her. Both Eileen and Ewan are very excited the Maclean/Martin Grandparents are vising, they like the extra attention. They are sad to go to bed because they can see the Grandparents in the living.
Sometimes they play really well together.
Speaking of bedtime, we are extremely lucky both kids have been sleeping 11 hours in a row for 10 months now. They will wake up when they are sick or in pain. The week of March 9, both kids were sick with a gastro bug. Poor Eileen threw up all Saturday night, and neither kid ate much that week. Which was stressful for me, because Kyle was out of town for work. Kyle is out of town for work again this week, but I have support and help from Grandma Renee and Grandpa Ken.
This winter has been one illness after another. We are all sick again with a respiratory bug, going on 10 days. We’ve had three different gastro bugs and a handful of colds.
Kyle and I took the afternoon of March 22 off work. We met with our financial advisor, and then went for a long bike ride up Nose Hill Park. We picked the kids up from daycare and went to a family friendly pub for early dinner. It was such a fun afternoon!
Eileen continues to show her fierce independence. We place her dinner near her, within arms reach, so she can make the choice to bring the food onto her tray to eat. If we put the food directly on her tray, she immediate throws the whole dish onto the floor, no matter what the food is (mac and cheese- overboard). She also likes to pick her own outfits, and often Ewan’s too. If she doesn’t like something or is unhappy she lets you know. She is very happy when she is in control and can make her own choices (she likes to pick which bib to eat with or which water bottle to drink from). Eileen loves being comfy, sitting on the couch under blankets drinking her milk. Eileen loves shoes and hat. When she pretends the remote is a phone, she loudly babbles into it. When Ewan pretends the remote is a phone, he softy babbles.
Ewan has a gentle personality, and just loves life. He walks around smiling and giggling. Ewan can kick a soccer ball around, very impressive. If you are crouched down hugging Eileen, Ewan will run up and hug you from behind, so it’s a hug sandwich.
They are both into stuffed animals, hugging and rocking them in their arms. They both still love music and dancing. They are both really into building blocks and pretending everything is a car. They drive the ‘cars’ over all surfaces making zzzzffffffoooo noises. Bath time is a lot of fun!
The twins love being outside and exploring the yard or playground. They also love climbing on furniture (couches, tables chairs). Ewan follows Eileen most places. We were at the park last weekend and Eileen just decided to start walking away, and Ewan followed. Luckily she went down a quiet straight alley, and I was able to keep them together. We go to the park every weekend. One time Ewan was watched a bigger kid on the round swing, and after a minute he ran over and copied his positioning, he was so proud of himself.
Eileen has a larger vocabulary than Ewan. I feel like their verbal language skills are not as developed as their peers, but their comprehension appears to be similar. Eileen was picking up lots of words when we were in Hawaii, like gecko!
The twins turn 2 next week, hopefully I will blog about it!
Looking forward to our visit tomorrow! The twins seem to have changed so much ?