Let Us Out! Let Us Out!

This was too funny not to throw on the blog immediately!! Enjoy!

PS. If the screen is white, just hit play. It should work. If not, let us know. :)

10 Months!

Sheesh! There goes another month. It just crawled right by.... that's right! They're crawling... well kind of. They both can get around some way or another pretty quickly. They love to be on the move.


This last month was a slightly standard one for Dan and I. We are both still very consumed by our classes and homework. Dan is in the peak of his busiest segment of school for the whole year, and I'm in the middle of midterms, so life is pretty boring for us (except for the fact that we live with the two most hilarious kiddos in the world). I went up to Milwalkee for a weekend for a City/County Government conference. It wasn't a bad time. Dan went up to Indiana to spend a couple of days with his brother Sean and they enjoyed watching Notre Dame beat Purdue. It was a very cold game, but they had a great time. We will see Sean and his family later this month for Sean's birthday, so we are pretty excited about that.


Abby: Abby is starting to move around a lot more. She is rolling and scooting pretty well when she wants to and can go from laying down to sitting up on her own. She can even pull herself from sitting to standing, but then she gets so excited and nervous at the same time that her legs lock up. She is just as tall as ever and her hair is starting to grow in the slightest bit. She has added "ma ma ma ma" to her vocabulary and we are pretty sure she knows that Dan is "da da da" because when he picks her up from day care she gives him a big smile and starts yelling that. :) Speaking of yelling... she loves to! There are times that she has quite a bit to say and saying it in a normal voice just wouldn't do the story justice. Ha. It's hilarious.

Bridget: Bridget is crawling. She does it normally sometimes but her default crawl is what the lady at daycare calls her "peg leg" crawl. Just watch the video below and you'll see what we mean. Since Bridget is on the move now she has discovered so many more things. She loves to play with doors and swing them back and forth. She is good at opening all the kitchen cupboards and slamming them back closed. She also discovered a new treat.... dog food. Oops. Yep, one day Dan and I weren't looking and she crawled over to Boscoe's dish and decided to snack. We caught her with a piece in her mouth and one in her hand. Yikes! Bridget's 6 teeth are getting pretty big now and she loves to give big goofy smiles and show them all.

Both: They are the cutest, funniest kiddos ever. The love to get into anything they can. One of their favorite things to play with is their car seats. They'll tip them over and rock them and climb over them and anything else. It is getting harder to put them down for naps because they know the other girl is right next to them and instead of sleeping they will often pull themselves up to see the other one and then just laugh and talk the whole time. We might think it was more cute if they weren't so crabby because they didn't get their nap.

This next month should be a more eventful one and we'll be sure to take a lot of pictures.

Slideshow

Abby!

Abby do.mpeg

Bridget "barking" at the dogs

Bridget barking.mpeg

Bridget's crawl

Bridget Crawling.mpeg

(I wrote all of this a week ago and am just getting around to adding photos and posting. Since they're 10 month birthday they have learned to do the following things: use just about anything to stand up, open the kitchen cabinets, hold their own bottles, and start to cruise around furniture. Big week for the wee babes!)

9 Months!

Our girls are 9 months old! It seems like a week ago that I took their 8 month photos. Wow. (I anticipate saying something to that effect every month. ;) )

Dan and I are doing well. Dan is getting excited about his thesis topic that he is doing for his Master's of Military Arts and Sciences. He doesn't have a thesis yet, but he's enjoying exploring the options. It will have something to do with George Washington because next to JFK and Tom Brady, GW is one of his favorite guys. :)

I am doing well and plugging away at my school work as well. This weekend I go to a big International City/County Management Association conference up in Wisconsin... will be my first real experience where I'm surrounded by public administrators. I guess I'll find out if I'm doing the right degree for me or not. :)

This month was not a great one for the girls. Bridget started out the month with a cold which turned into ear infections. Right about the time that she started to get better Abby got ear infections. We swear that colic was back because most of the month someone (usually Bridget) was fussing and could not be made happy. We have very few pictures from this month because of that reason.

This last weekend Dan's parents were in town and the day they showed up the girls decided to be happy and all giggles. They were wonderful! It was a blessed break from the few weeks prior. Bridget is now getting a cold again so she's back to being fussy, but not nearly as bad as before. She still manages to show us smiles and giggle a lot.

Abby: Abby is still holding strong at two teeth. She keeps making us think another is on the way, but no. She is still growing like crazy and loves to smile and be a happy girl. She's definitely the low-key one of the duo. She also likes to slap things and laugh at the sound and she still loves to pet the dogs. Abby has been playing with the light switch by the changing table all month...she finally turned the lights on/off this morning. Abby is just over 29" tall and 18lbs 8ozs.

Bridget: Bridget now has 6 teeth. She still likes to roll around a bunch, but no crawling yet. Bridget is also getting good at picking up little crunchy snacks and getting them in her mouth. Bridget is still the "needy" one of the two and by that I mean she needs the most love and the most toys. She'll hoard anything she can get her hands on. Bridget is 27" tall and 16lbs 15ozs.

Both: They discovered they can hold hands on purpose. Up until now they've held hands, but I think it was more accidentally. Now they are doing it and realizing what they are doing... and they think it's hilarious! We'll hear them laughing hysterically and sneak up to find them holding hands. They LOVE to make each other laugh and it never gets old for us to watch or listen to them do it. They started a new day care this month and it didn't start off well, but they are used the the place and the people now, so more often than not they have a great day playing with other little babies.

Bath time: Until about 2 weeks ago, I bathed them one at a time and it was all business. Since they are so good at sitting up now, bath time includes some fun time. We put the girls in the tub at the same time and let them splash around with floaty duck and turtles. They love it. Abby is finally getting the hang of splashing in the water, and Bridget is constantly trying to find ways to corral all the toys in her 1/2 of the tub without letting them float away. It's hilarious. No pictures of that yet because we are too busy laughing and smiling at them to remember to have the camera.

Another month has gone by and we can't wait to see what this next month has in store. These two little blessings are so much fun!!! :D

8 months old!

(I wrote this two weeks ago and finally posted it. Sorry.)

So another month has gone by and our little girls are bigger and funnier than ever. I can't recall any significant events that happened in the last month. Dan started school a couple of weeks ago, so we're finally getting in to our more normal crazy schedule. I start school next week, so life as we know it is going to start to get more hectic... but we chose this for ourselves, so we'll figure it out. :)



Abby: Abby now has 2 teeth and they are starting to show up when she smiles, so that's pretty cute. She is using a lot more sounds now when she "talks" and it's pretty funny sometimes. She also understands us when we ask her to "jump jump" when she's in her jumper chair. She loves it. There are some times that I swear she is going to launch herself out of the chair. She is not crawling yet, but she can roll over from one side to the other. She tends to get stuck on her belly sometimes though. She's figuring so many things out and is getting super heavy. She's our big little girl. Abby also just recently discovered that the dogs are funny things. One day she busted up laughing when Coda was play with her stuffed duck. It was hilarious!



Bridget: Bridget is also a very happy baby. She has 4 teeth now and her hair is starting to get longer in some places. She's a runner. If she's in her exersaucer or laying down, or pretty much any time, she loves to move her legs like she is "run-running." She is not crawling either, but she has started rolling across the room. We'll lay her down in one place and come back and she's across the room under some chair. She still loves the dogs and is doing a pretty good job at petting them... except for yesterday when she starting pulling Coda's hair out. Ha.


Both: They are both sitting up on their own (as you can see by the photos). That's super fun for us because they can now do a lot more on their own and have lots more toys to entertain them. They still love eating food with a spoon, but unfortunately for us they have learned that they can spit it out and splatter us with food. They don't do it often, but maybe we should start wearing bibs too. They love talking to and laughing at each other. Their exersaucer makes music noise, and they'll hit the buttons to get the music going and then Bridget will dance and Abby will jump as long as the music is going. They look like they're having a good time, and we love spying on them when they get going like that.


Both girls were getting pretty crabby by the time I tried doing a photo shoot with both of them. I didn't get any good photos, but here are some of our favorite bloopers and the captions that make them special. :)

Abby: "Are you feeling okay?"

Bridget: "Don't worry Abby, I'm right here."

Abby: "Sigh. I know." :/

Abby (interviewing): "So Bridget, how do you feel about that?"

Abby: "It's called the Heisman."

Abby: "Are we done taking photos yet???"

It's crazy that they are already 8 months, and I'm sure before I know it I'll be saying their 9 months...and older! Like I mentioned before, starting this month Dan and I are both full-time students. The girls will start going to day care more regularly and life will just generally get crazy. We're excited about it though. Can't wait to update you next month on the girls accomplishments and photos. They are getting so big and so smart so quickly. It's really fun! :)

Our Last Three Months!

So, yes. It has been a very long while since we updated the blog, so here goes some catch up!

We spent Easter down in North Carolina with the Hayden gang and had a great time.

Then in May we had to pack up our house out in Alexandria, VA and make the big move out to Fort Leavenworth, KS. We spent as much time out in the city as we could before leaving. We miss D.C. already.

Before we left D.C. we had these photos taken of the girls and the family (as well as the two individual photos and the family photo on the right side of the blog layout). Enjoy!

On our trip we stopped to visit some friends in Columbus, OH and then stayed with Sean and his family in Valparaiso, IN for a few days. It was a good time. We also celebrated the girls' 5-month birthday on the road so no 5-month photos with the stuffed animals. :(

We got to Fort Leavenworth and immediately were busy with unpacking and moving in. The girls did as well with the travel and moving as we could ask of them, but it was nice to get settled down into a schedule again.

We weren't here very long before Dan and I left the girls here with their Mammy and Poppa and went out to Colorado for a week to attend the Rocky Mountain High program at Spring Canyon (where Mike works). We spent one night with Mike and Kallie being family, and then we spent the rest of the week there as campers (but we still enjoyed seeing family every day). ;)

During that week we went white water rafting down the Arkansas River, went rock climbing and rappelling, did a ropes course, and spent 4 days and 3 nights going on a trek up Mt. Shavano (one of their 14ers...14,229ft to be exact). It was a great time and we really enjoyed the group we were up there with. It was a fun week to be away and to reengage our efforts to lead our lives for God.

We came back and I (Holly) went right in to my first class of grad school. I had class for 9 days straight and then a couple papers, and that was done. My next class starts next week.

The girls had their 6-month birthday somewhere in there...during all that busy life. Their 6-month check up went really well and the doc said that they are healthy girls. Abby was 26.75 inches tall and 15lb 8oz. Bridget was 25 inches tall and 14lb.

Now... I honestly can't account for the last month. It seems like we've only been saying "they're 6 months old" for the last 10 days or so, and now suddenly they are 7 months old. Guess time flies when you're having fun! And we have been having fun. These girls are a blast! Sure they have their moments, but they aren't colic-y any more and they are interactive and expressive. They are learning so much so quickly and it's really fun to watch. My parents visited last week and they got a lot of good time to enjoy the girls too. It was a great visit.

Abby: Abby is a talker! She LOVES to babble. Her most recent stories that she tells us are filled with "blah blah blahs" and "da da das." She has one tooth and is not shy to make sure we know she has another on the way. You can get her to smile just about any time and she's ticklish just like her daddy... you can REALLY get her going some times. :) She also prefers to stand up... not by herself, but she'll support all her own weight.

Bridget: Bridget is a smart cookie... she knows that if she screams at the top of her lungs, someone will eventually pick her up. We've had to start saying her name in a stern tone, and sometimes that helps... so does temporarily ignoring her. ;) She now has two teeth and popped them both out with relative ease. She's starting to find the dogs funny and usually get a good laugh out when they walk by. She also has the "da da das" down pretty good and is practicing lots of new smiles with her teeth. Unfortunately she will sometimes bite her tongue with her new teeth and that's usually good for a 2-minute blood-curdling scream. :(

Both girls: They love solid foods. Dan has been making all of their foods lately, and their favorites are squash, sweet potatoes, and pretty much any fruit. They are terrific eaters. They also love each other. They used to just look and smile at each other. Now they are starting to talk to one another and laugh at what the other one is doing. It seems to be a lot of fun for them... but it's even more fun for us to watch. They are getting so big that they have their own cribs now!

Every day they learn something new, and every day we notice how they are unique and wonderful. Enjoy all the photos and hopefully there will be more in a month. ;)

Four Months Old!!!

Getting one girl to smile is hard enough...

Our little girls made it to their four month birthday yesterday. This last month was quite an adventure, so here's a little update on their big adventures!

Abby

Bridget

On March 19th we packed up the girls and their stuff and flew on a 5.5 hour flight out to California to visit my family. The girls had met everyone except for Mike, Kallie, Jack, and Audrey, but most of them hadn't seen the girls for a while. We spent a week just spending time with all the McKean side of the family and it was a very enjoyable time. The girls did great on the flights and had no issues with the time change. While we were out there the whole family went to Disneyland. Yep! Their first trip to Disneyland at only 3.25 months old. The day started off uneasy, but the girls did well and we had a great time. Here are some pictures from that trip.

Another development also occurred while we were in CA (besides the girls getting their first whiff of In-n-Out and being hooked)... they discovered each other. One day they locked eyes and stared. The next day they locked eyes and smiled at each other. Then the next day the started "talking" to each other. Now they do it quite frequently. Abby does most of the talking, but Bridget always lights up with the biggest smile when she sees Abby (it's pretty cute the way she often tucks her chin and puts her fist to her mouth in a very flirty way). Both girls are doing great. They are much more interactive than ever before, but can also be much more crabby than ever before. Like any baby, they realized that we were getting a bit more comfortable with them, so they threw us a curve ball and changed up their routine. We're still trying to re-figure them out, but we just concentrate on surviving one day at a time. To celebrate their 4-month birthday yesterday, we decided to start them on rice cereal. We dug out the spoons, booster seats, and bibs and had at it! Ha! Abby hated it from the start, and Bridget was more receptive but confused... both got equally messy and I'm not sure if any of it was actually swallowed.

Enjoy all the photos and we can't wait to tell you about more fun things they accomplish by their 5 month birthday! :)

Aunts and Uncles and Cousins, Oh My!

One of the things that we have been most excited about is having our families meet the girls. In the last two weeks, we've hosted/met up with Sean (Dan's brother in town for business), Tim, Stef, & Dima (Holly's brother & his wife and their new son passing through Dulles), and Dirk & Erin and the kids (Dan's sister and her family).

Sean was fortunate enough to spend a couple of nights in DC and was selfless enough to ride an hour each way on the Metro every day after a full day of conferences and workshops. He did this every day for three days and we couldn't have been more thankful to have family spending some time with us. However, he was unfortunate enough to not have had his picture taken with the girls...which is why there are no picture of him with the girls! Oh well...we'll see him and his family in May on our way through during our drive to Kansas and we can take plenty of pictures then.

This past week, Holly packed the kids up and drove out to Dulles so she could meet Tim, Stef, and the newest member of their family, Dima Matthew. After many weeks spent in the Ukraine and going through all the ups and downs during the entire process, they have themselves a new son! And since their layover was cooperative, Holly was able to meet up with them. Pictures are below. Unfortunately Dan had to work and couldn't make it out to the airport.

Tim & Bridget

Stef, Abby & Dima (who is quite a little chatterbox!)

Dima was very attentive to the girls' needs while they were being fed.

Finally, we hosted Dan's sister and her family today as they were in town for the baptism of their Godchild. Jackie, PJ, and Diana took to the girls very well and kept asking two things..."Can I hold Baby Briget?" and "Can I hold Baby Abby?" And after having spent half of yesterday in the car, they needed to burn off some steam so we let them build up a sweat playing Wii and then took 'em to Chuck E. Cheese! We don't have any pictures of Chuck E. Cheese's but have plenty of pictures of the Steenwyk family with girls. As always, enjoy!

Erin sure does have hands full!

Jackie & Bridget

Diana was really excited to be able to hold HER Bridget! :)

PJ & Bridget

The Steenwyk Family plus Two!

Capitol Kiddos!

This is a quick post so we could throw some cool pictures up on the blog. We've been told a couple of times that if you're going to survive as parents of twins you have to have a small dose of "crazy." Well, yesterday proved that we are well on our way! We decided that since the weather was so incredible (hi of 78!) that we would take the girls and the dogs into the city so we packed everyone up in the mini-van and off we went!


We carried the kids in their Baby Bjorns and kept the dogs on leashes (obviously) and what we noticed was that every other set of parents with a singleton had way more stuff with them than we did. I'm talking strollers, blankets (it's 78 degrees! Blankets? Really?), diapers bags...the works. What we realized was that since we had two and didn't have room for all that stuff that we are learning to pack only the essentials. If the kids needed a diaper change than they would get one when we got back to the van. Are we really going to wrestle the dogs while we try to change a diaper on the National Mall? No...so we left the double stroller and car seats and diaper bag in the van...and giggled at all the parents pushing strollers overloaded with unnecessary extras...while they looked on in curious amusement at the two idiots with twins and dogs!


Enjoy the pictures. :)

I had to throw this one in there because Bridget has got some really, really blue eyes.

Happy Valentine's Day!

As a Valentine's Day present, we took the girls to the doctor's for their 2 month check-up! The good news is that both girls are doing great. The check-up went very, very well. Abigail is bigger and taller than Bridget and both are in a lower percentile for both height and weight but that's to be expected since they were 3 weeks premature. The highlight came when we found out that Abby's head has a 15 1/2 inch circumference which put her in the 70%...she's a Hayden! For those of you not in on the joke, Hayden babies customarily have enourmous heads...just ask my sister and sister-in-law. It's definitely something I tried to hide from Holly but she figured it out eventually. :P

After the check-up we took them the immunizations clinic to get their shots. We were forewarned that it would be a terrific explosion of tears and screams and the girls did not dissapoint! Poor kiddos. They'll be okay though.

That's it for now. Enjoy the two month pictures!

Bridget is watching her new bear friends very closely.

You can't tell from this picture but Abby (L) is actually bigger than he stocky little sister.

Smiles are usually few and far between from Bridget so you gotta be quick with the camera!

Bridget is just hangin' out with her friends.

Abby might've gotten her wink from her dad.

Abby is all smiles all the time when Daddy gets home from work.

This is a great smile from Bridget. Like I said, gotta be quick with that camera!

Bridget's dressed up in her new monkey outfit while her sister is donning her new cow ensemble.