Growing Older

Jaden and Cody are quickly approaching another birthday milestone. In less than 3 months, the boys will celebrate their 3rd birthday! So, what does life look like now that they're officially two-and-three-quarters? :)

Well, first of all, our boys definitely look a lot more grown up! Regularly, people comment on their tall height. (I think the presence of more hair helps them look older now, too.)

Cody, Jaden

Jaden, Cody

Jaden continues to be our loving, careful, particular little guy. He is very concerned when something is out of place or different. He's my little memory-guy who will remind me if I'm forgetting to do something. Jaden absolutely loves little babies. He's naturally very gentle with them, and when baby-friends of ours cry while on a playdate, he'll be the first person over to offer a hug or kiss to the crying child.

Cody is our ball-of-energy, quick, and goofy kid. He and his brother are both constantly on the go, but Cody is FAST! He loves to climb all over objects and people and especially enjoys wrestling and other physical-play activities. Lately we've been calling him our "runner," as he likes to bolt away from us in stores, at church, or any other time we need him close-by. He is our kid who regularly gets a little gleam in his eye or a smirk on his face before saying something silly or answering a question in a goofy manner.

Both boys are becoming much more independent. We regularly hear phrases like, "do it by self!" or "Mommy/Daddy not do it." They're getting much better at dressing/undressing themselves (though the shirts still present a bit of a challenge). Recently, we moved them out of high chairs to "big boy chairs" at the table. (We still use boosters, though, to prevent them from running away before the meal is done!) Both boys are especially good at clearing their places after mealtimes.

We have also moved away from diapers at bedtime. Hooray! Jaden was able to make the switch first, but Cody followed soon after when he saw his brother picking out new underwear after nighttime baths. Cody will occasionally have an accident, but we can officially say that we are fully potty-trained. Yay! Our entire household (and our pocketbooks) have really enjoyed being diaper-less! :)

Jaden and Cody have been showing some increased maturation during their playtime, too. They are more willing to sit for longer periods of time to play certain games (Mommy and Daddy LOVE this!). Their current favorite game is a Disney matching game. We put all the cards face up and let the boys search for matches this way. Most of the time, they will play until all of the cards are gone.

Mommy can also plan activities that require a bit more thinking. One day, we played this color-matching game. The boys had to find items in the room that matched the colored squares I laid out for them.

Tantrums and loud sibling-battles certainly still exist regularly in our household, but they have lessened a bit in the last few months. Praise the Lord for that! :) We're working hard on having the boys try to express their feelings in words to one another and trying to come up with sharing-solutions (like trading toys, asking to set a timer, etc.) rather than reacting physically. Of course, some days are much worse than others in this regard, but at least sometimes it's somewhat successful.

We especially love it when we hear giggles like these during the boys' playtime...

 

As the boys get older, it's really been a joy to watch their ability to imagine grow. It's quite common for the boys to name their animals (Moby the alligator, Rudolph the moose, Ms. Douby the elephant). They also like to build particular things with their blocks. On this day, both boys were creating a church.

I found it interesting that Jaden's church (in the back) was tall and compact while Cody's had the large, sprawling effect.

Both boys also love to sing! Their absolute favorite songs (requested every night at bedtime) include "He's Got the Whole World" and "O Come Let us Adore Him" (which is just the chorus part of "O Come all Ye Faithful"). They also really enjoying listening to recorded versions of Old MacDonald, BINGO, Humpty Dumpty, and Twinkle, Twinkle. They aren't usually willing to sing for the camera, but I was able to get them acting out "Rock-a-Bye Baby" on this video. Perhaps we need to work a bit on the gentleness factor of this lullaby... :)

Cody and Jaden's all-time favorite activities still include playing with cars (small matchbox vehicles, especially)...

...and reading books. They will often ask Mommy or Daddy to read a certain book to them throughout the day, but they still really enjoy flipping through books all by themselves. They'll generally have a large stack somewhere nearby, flip through each book page by page, and then toss it on the floor in front of them. Then, they'll run to their room to gather a new pile of books. This sight always makes Mommy so proud! :)

Mostly, Cody and Jaden will silently flip through their books, but some days (as seen in the video below), they enjoy narrating.

While having twins is still a challenge in many respects, as the boys grow older, we're seeing more and more joys with having two. One funny joy is watching them help each other out. Cody is our "sick one" below, while Jaden is the helper.

Here's the action video. Cody requests a "nose wipe" at the beginning. Then, be sure to catch Jaden's affirming remark ("good") to Cody when he's done.

These boys definitely give us plenty to think and laugh about each day. They are exhausting, loving, energetic, and funny little fellas who we wouldn't trade for anything!