Halloween 2011

The girls had a great Halloween and got WAY too much candy, in my opinion :) This is the first year they were really able to get into it and it was fun to watch. They always made sure they both got candy, which a lot of times meant they both got double the amount of candy. We start out in the morning going to where I used to work, before they were born. It was good to see everyone and visit with some friends I haven't talked to in awhile. For that particular trick or treating trip Brooklyn was a little pirate and Emmalyn was a cow girl!

Later that afternoon the girls and I went to Jeff's work and enjoyed another round of trick or treating. At one cubicle the guy offered the girls either an apple or a piece of candy. At first the girls both chose an apple, but then decided they also wanted a piece of candy, but then they munched on the apple the rest of the time we were walking around. The girls decided to switch costumes so this time Emmalyn was the pirate and Brooklyn was the cowgirl.




That evening we went to our wards trunk or treat, that was a lot of fun, and I "borrowed" some of the girls candy from earlier to pass out to the other kids in the ward/neighborhood. I didn't get any pictures there because I was busy handing out candy. We ran our of candy a lot sooner than we thought, so we decided to take the girls out to their grandma's house to show off their cuteness :) We took them to a few houses in Jeff's mom's neighborhood, but the girls tired out quickly. When we got back to their grandma's house they realized what was happening when other kids were coming to the door and thought it was the best thing ever. They LOVED handing out candy to the other kids that came. They would wait at the door and get so excited when kids started walking up the driveway. It was really cute to watch!

Catching up!

Yes, it has been awhile since I've blogged, I stay pretty busy with the girls and everything that has been going on. I'll start with some pictures of things we've done.

For Labor Day we headed down to Caliente, NV (my hometown) and had a great weekend with my parents and my brother Cory, his wife Melissa, and their adorable, fun kids! We enjoyed a trip to a local reservoir and ate some hamburgers and hot dogs, we watched two parades (a night parade and a day parade), and just enjoyed the calmness of the small town! Unfortunately I kept forgetting to take pictures so I only have a couple.

We stopped at a Burger King on the way down for lunch...our two Burger "Queens"!

This was actually taken after we got home, but that is corn that my parents gave us to bring home...the girls LOVE corn on the cob!

The rest of these are just really random. This first picture was taken after a very busy day with lots of kids running through a very small space! At one point in time we had 5 adults and 7 kids all crammed in our little house, it was a good day and it was great to see some family we hadn't seen for awhile!

One day Emmalyn seemed to be having a particularly rough day, and it didn't help that Brooklyn seemed to want to pester her more than usual! At one point Jeff took her upstairs with him for a little while, he put on one of her favorite shows on his computer and put his head phones on her. She thought it was the coolest thing ever!

One Sunday we went to my cousin and her husbands house for dinner. They have a park close by that has a lot of ducks, so we took some bread down and let the girls feed the ducks. Brooklyn was really hesitant at first, but she eventually warmed up to the idea...as long as someone was holding her hand and the ducks didn't get too close!

Emmalyn

Brooklyn and Joanna

Emmalyn wearing Joanna's shoes!

The first weekend of October (and April) the LDS church does a world wide broadcast (General Conference) and we get to listen to our prophet and his counselors and many other church leaders talk and give counsel. Thanks so Netflix, we were able to keep the girls occupied during one of the sessions so we could listen to the talks!

One night while Jeff and I were cooking dinner we turned around to see this...

Emmalyn pulled out her chair and climbed up, buckled herself in, and got comfy to watch us make dinner!

One Friday we decided to take a break from the Zoo and went to the Ogden Nature Center with our friends Allison and her kiddos. The highlight for the kids were the little black, fuzzy caterpillars that were all over on the trail. Brooklyn's favorite part was all the sticks she was able to collect and carry...I thought that was only a boy thing!!

This was just taken yesterday. The girls discovered their front pockets in their little hoodies they were wearing, I thought they looked so cute!

B-left, E-right

Some other things that have happened lately. Jeff got a job with Kelly IT services working as a documentation analyst a a company called Ceridian. It's a contract position that will go till the end of January.

A couple of months ago Emmalyn figured how to crawl into Brooklyn's crib, and shortly after out of it and into hers so we started the hunt for regular beds. We decided to skip toddler beds and go straight to twins. It took a few nights for them to get used to them, but they do fairly well in them now. Emmalyn is really starting to explore her independence and pushing every boundary she possibly can. She's very smart and quick to pick things up and surprises me day after day of things she says and does!

Brooklyn is very observant and quiet. She is very curious about everything and how things work. She's very good at taking things apart and will play for quite a long time with things that she trying to figure out. This past weekend she ended up getting croup. I ended up taking her in InstaCare and they gave her some steroids and a cold-air breathing treatment. She actually got over the croup rather quickly, but still has a cold with a normal cough (so does Emmalyn).

As for me, not a whole lot it new. I still watch our friends little girl that is two months younger than B and E Mon-Thurs. I've gotten a little brave and taken the three girls to the park for a play group some of the ladies in our ward do. As much as a love the cool weather and the holidays, I'm not looking forward to having the girls cooped up in the house! They get worse cabin fever than I do :)

So that is what our lives have been like the last couple of months, in a nutshell!

The Zoo!

What's better than having a year-long pass to the zoo that gets you and your kids and a few friends in as often as you want? A zoo pass that also lets you ride their train and carousel as many times as you want!

The past few months we have frequented the Hogle Zoo here in SLC. We've been with a few different groups of friends, but the girls and I have been quite often with a lady is our ward that also has a set of twins (who's names also start with E and B!!). The kids have a lot of fun and it's nice to be around another adult to talk to! Our trips to the zoo developed a particular pattern. First thing when we get there we ride the train! Then we go around to look at some of the animals. We make a stop at the carousel for a ride or two, look at a few more animals, stop and eat lunch, stop back at the carousel for another ride or two (or three or four), once back at the entrance we'd ride the train again! Depending on the kids' moods we'd let them play with a ball that sits on water and spins around that's right at the opening. We always have a great time and love hanging out with Allison, Brooks and Eva!!

Here are a few pictures of our trips to the zoo...these were not all taken on the same day!

Emmalyn

                                                          Brooklyn (with Allison and her kiddos behind her)

The girls LOVE water and always have to stop to look at the fountain in front of the Zoo

The four kiddos looking at the elephants, one of Emmalyn's favorites.

I thought was such a funny/cute way that Brooklyn was riding on the carousel, she's on an elephant

Emmalyn.

Family Pictures 2011

I finally got these to upload!

A few weeks ago our good friend Angela (owner of IvoryLime Photography) met up with us and did some family pictures for us. We had a lot of fun, and it helped that the girls were familiar with the photographer! Here are some of our favorites! Emmalyn is in the pink outfit, Brooklyn is in the orange outfit.

Two 2yo's

I know I'm a couple weeks late on this, but better late than never!!

Emmalyn and Brooklyn have turned 2. I can't believe it's already been two years since these angels joined our family. It has been a wonderful learning experience and they have taught me so much! This year was still kind of uneventful, the girls didn't really get it, which was quite obvious when walked into their room the morning of their birthday singing to them and they just looked at us like we were crazy! But we still had fun! This is what the girls came downstairs to.

Here are a few pictures from their party.

Enjoying some hamburgers and hot dogs!

Opening presents!

Brooklyn showing off her new dress!

 

Emmalyn mutilating...I mean opening...a card.

 

Emmalyn playing peekaboo with a gift bag

 

A Broom!

MELMO!!

Cake time!! I forgot to take a picture of the cake, but oh well. Brooklyn freaked out while the candle was lit, but once we blew it out and she realized it was cake she was fine!

Nothing ends a party like BUBBLES!! The girls love bubbles and they know right where Grandma keeps them in her garage. So of course we had to bring them out and indulge the girls.

Emmalyn chasing the bubbles

 

Brooklyn blowing her own bubbles, she's actually quite good at it!

Although the girls are identical in the genetic/medical world, they are total opposites in personality, temperament, expression, etc.

Emmalyn is spunky and bossy! She extremely expressive and very talkative. She likes to think she's queen bee around here (and everywhere) and never hesitates to tell you what you're suppose to do or not do. She is very sweet, loving, and friendly to pretty much anyone she sees.

Brooklyn is our strong, silent type of girl. She loves to play "rough" and pounce/lay on her sister all the time. She's very curious about everything and is very good at taking things apart (she took a pen apart that she was drawing with and by the time we caught her is was in about 5 pieces). She loves to help us do anything that we'll let her help with, and is always quick to give cuddles.

Both girls love animals and being outside, especially if water is involved (unless it's rain or snow). The love to go to the park to swing and go down slides.

Happy Birthday Emmalyn and Brooklyn, we love you so much!!

Summer Fun!

It's been quite awhile since I've blogged, but we've been having a lot of fun this summer...now that it's finally warm! At the beginning of June we got together with Jeff's family for a reunion in Richfield, UT. I kept forgetting to pull out my camera, so I only have the one picture of the girls on a wagon with some of their cousins at Cove Fort. We had a great time seeing everyone and catching up.

We have a zoo pass again this year and we've made frequent trips up there already. The girls LOVE the animals and we love going up there with friends. We usually pack a lunch and go enjoy a few hours up there. Here are the girls on the carousel. Brooklyn prefers to sit on the bench seats, but Emmalyn loves the ones that go up and down.


Another nice thing about the zoo is that it wears the girls out and they generally end up falling asleep on the way home, so when we get home I usually just let them sleep on the couch.


Some of our good friends have a pass to "This is the Place" monument park. We went up there with them one day and had fun riding the trains, looking at the animals, and running around. There's a part of the park that has a petting zoo. The girls paid little attention to the animals and were more intrigued by the water that was running through the place. They love water!

One July 4th we went to our friends' house for a hot dog roast! They were puppy sitting for a little while and the girls LOVED the puppy. Here's the only picture I could catch with them all running around and having a blast!


One evening the girls were begging to go slide and swing, so we took them to a park nearby our house and let them play for a little while. They love being outside, playing, and running around. They are crazy girls, but oh so fun. Here are some pictures from the park. Emmalyn is in the pink, Brooklyn is in the purple.








As I mentioned before the girls LOVE playing in water, so we got them a little wading pool to go on our back patio. They love it and are now always wanting to go out to play in the water! Emmalyn - pink, Brooklyn - blue.