16 months

The boys are 16 months old today!

And most days I feel like we have our hands plenty full.  There are many nights that I walk out of the nursery and I am just grateful that no one ended up in the emergency room that day!  I think the boys have a mission in life to injure themselves at least once each day.

We have given the boys a bit more freedom in the house as the only baby gates that are still up are blocking the stairway.  The boys love this new freedom but it has come with some parental challenges as there are now many more ways for the boys to get hurt.  The couch has become a trampoline.  The fireplace mantel has become a springboard.  The kitchen chairs have become go karts.  The kitchen utensils have become swords.  The dogs have become tag team wrestling partners.  The iPads have become skateboards.  The electrical outlet safety caps have become teething toys.  And all electrical cords have become lassos.  The boys love to explore their new world each day while Kara and I run around like crazy people!

The boys have mastered climbing up the stairs and they absolutely love to race each other up them each night before bath time.  It is amazing how competitive they have become at such a young age.

I think our biggest struggle at the moment is in the area of communication.  The pediatrician expressed a lot of concern at the 15 month appointment.  And to be honest it really surprised me.  The majority of the concern is with Alex.  Both boys have very few words. And there have not been any new words this month.  Alex can still say Mama.  And Jakob still can say Mama, Thank You, and Bye-Bye.  We were told that a 15 month old should have between 3 - 10 words.  I never knew that.  I was under the impression that you didn't get concerned with talking until a toddler hit the age of 2.  I think the pediatrician is worried about Alex because of his head circumference.  My boy has a big head.  But I have a big head too.  So that has never concerned me.  But it still concerns the pediatrician.  I just think it is genetics.  And when I look at the growth chart I can understand that concern.  Alex is off the charts for head circumference and between his 12 month appointment and his 15 month appointment his head circumference growth did not follow the growth chart in any similar manner.  The growth should have followed a pattern like a hill and my boys head grew like a mountain.  The pediatrician was pushing for a speech evaluation at the 15 month appointment but I asked to wait until the 18 month appointment to reevaluate things.  The thing is their comprehension seems to be growing in leaps and bounds.  This is great!  I truly feel like they understand a lot of what I am saying to them.  But the problem comes with them being able to communicate with us.  We have noticed this to be a problem specifically with Alex.  Alex has zero patience.  He is babbling a ton but he gets immediately frustrated because we don't understand the words.  This has led to a lot of temper tantrums.  Jakob is a bit more relaxed but he will have his moments of frustration too.  They just don't come as often.  I know the boys will talk on their own timetable.  But I am keeping an eye on it.  We talk to them all the time.  We read to them.  We are doing our best.  The best that a parent of twins can do.  I think the pediatrician has caused me more concern than is necessary in the area of verbal communication.  But I would be fibbing if I said I wasn't worried at all.    

The boys have become very picky eaters.  It think this is normal for toddlers.  They so want to be independent and as such we can no longer feed them with a spoon.  I know we were spoiled for as long as they let us spoon feed them.  We are working on teaching the boys to use utensils but it is a challenge.  I would say the following are favorite foods at the moment .... blueberry waffles, bananas, blueberries, peaches, hot dogs, pizza, cheerios, Mum-Mum's, bran cereal, fruit crisps, animal crackers, peas, shredded cheese (Alex is obsessed), yogurt, and squeeze pouches.  I miss the days of their obsession with oatmeal.  It also provided me comfort that they were at least getting one good meal a day.  Now they prefer to graze.  And I'm okay with that.  I just want them to keep growing!!

We also switched to one nap a day!  And the adjustment period seems to be getting a bit better.  The current schedule looks like a version of the one below.

7:00 Wake-Up / Sippy Cup (milk)
7:30 Breakfast
8:00 Walk
9:00 Playtime
10:00 Snack / Juice (water) and Playtime
11:30 Lunch
12:30 - 2:30 Nap
2:30 Wake -Up / Sippy Cup (milk)
3:00 Playtime
4:30 Dinner
5:00 TV (Super Why or Seseme Street)
5:30 Walk
6:30 Bath / Story Time / Sippy Cup (milk)
7:15 Bedtime

There are still many days that the boys will take a cat nap on our evening walks.  I'm okay with this as both boys are still falling asleep within minutes of laying down.  Kara and I absolutely love the new schedule as it gives us many opportunities on the weekends to plan events.  And I think within a couple of more weeks the boys will be fully adjusted to the new schedule.

I think that is all for now!

Mary