Sunday, December 31, 2006

Mexican Music Sundays

We found a new place to dine on Sunday nights. Celia's Mexican Restaurants have live music on Sundays. The music consists of three guys with guitars who walk from table to table playing traditional Mexican music.

The girls loved it. They were so well-behaved before dinner because they were distracted watching the guys play the guitars and listening to the music.

In this photo, with the three guys playing in the background, Katherine is giving me a look that says, "Can you believe there are three guys walking around our table playing music?!?"

Friday, December 29, 2006

Mobile Phone Photos

I just figured out how to send photos from my mobile phone to this blog site. Since it's the only way I've been able to get photos off my phone, you are hereby treated to: "PHOTOS FROM MY PHONE."


Caroline at the Airport On the Way to Visit Grandma & Grandpa.
(click to see larger photo)

Caroline wearing reindeer antlers at day care.
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Santa Claus at the day care Holiday Party.
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Terri and the girls looking at Christmas lights.
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Girls Second Christmas

The girls had a great Christmas. They enjoyed looking at our Christmas tree (they managed to get the tree to lean, but never pulled it down, thank goodness), opening all their gifts, and then playing the the wrapping paper and boxes!

The only part of Christmas I don't think they enjoyed was when we made them take this photo at the local mall:

Who is this guy, and why are we sitting on this lap?
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I love Santa's expression. He's definitely got the look of "They don't pay me enough for this!"

Happy Holidays to all!

Saturday, December 23, 2006

Go Bruins!

There are a lot of books written about the differences between Mothers and Fathers, but all you have to know about the difference in how Terri and I raise the girls is to look at how they have been dressed on the past few weekends when Terri is working:

Katherine wearing Daddy's favorite shirt.
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Ditto for Caroline.
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I am still so fired up over UCLA's upset victory over u$c in football, I have the girls wear these shirts every chance I get.

Go Bruins!
(click on photo for larger view)






Los Angeles City Champions!
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Sunday, December 17, 2006

New Photos Posted

New photos are posted in the Photo Archives in a new easier-to-view format. Photos are updated to the end of November.

Sign in as "guest" and use David's hometown as the password.


More photos like these in the photo archives.
(click on photo for larger view)

Saturday, December 16, 2006

How much for an actual ROOM

Two weeks ago we were in Southern California visiting David's family for the holidays, and we had our first emergency room trip with the girls. Caroline slammed a bathroom door on Katherine's finger.

I'll tell you all about that horror story some other time (Katherine's finger is fine, by the way, and is now completely healed -- no stitches or broken fingers, thank goodness).

Today I just want to comment briefly on the bill I received from the local community hospital we took Katherine to.

Like many small hospitals, the ER was packed when we arrived. We ended up getting seen and treated in a chair in the hallway of the ER. Never made it into an actual room. A chair. In the hallway. Next to the bathroom, no less!

So imagine my surprise when I looked at the bill today.

The largest charge: "ROOM CHARGE": $330.

$330 for a chair next to the bathroom? Thank goodness we didn't actually get into a room.

We paid $330 for this large piece of gauze on Katherine's finger.
(click on photo for larger view)


********************

Here is a recent photo of the girls at Casa de Fruta (on the way to L.A.)

All aboard the Casa de Fruta Train!
(click on photo for larger view)

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Crossover Marketing Really Does Work

As the girls begin to get "older" (i.e., 16 months), they are become more and more familiar with that centerpiece of American family life -- the television.

Whereas before the girls might stop and look up at the T.V. screen only if a particularly catchy song started playing, now the girls will spend a few minutes watching T.V. if something catches their eyes.

And the girls are living proof that crossover marketing really does work.

Case in point. This is currently the girls' favorite book:

The girls will read this book umpteen times a day, and they love to point to the little Bernstein Bear in the book and call him "Duh-bee" (whatever that means, that's what they call him).

So yesterday, the girls are in our bedroom, playing with the TV remote, and they change the channel to --- the Bernstein Bears Cartoon Show.

I had no idea there was a Bernstein Bears Cartoon Show to go along with the books. For that matter, I have no idea whether the books came first, of if the television show came first.

All I know is that my girls somehow figured out that there is this cartoon on T.V. that resembles their favorite book.

They walked real close to the T.V., and started shouting, "Duh-bee! Duh-bee!" at the Bernstein Bears dancing across the screen.

If this keeps up, I'm thinking I'll have to buy the girls a new Bernstein Bears book:

I wonder if the book has a subtitle, "Too Much TV (Unless you're watching our show)"?

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Happy Thanksgiving - New Videos

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Many of you have asked me when I'm going to post some new videos. Consider them posted. Click HERE to view them.

If you need the password, email David.

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Fearless and PRETENDS to Be Fearless

Caroline is fearless.

At the playground near our house, she will climb up the steps of the play structure all by herself. She will go down the "big" slide all by herself. God help you if you try to hold her or help her -- she will slap your hand away and scream at the top of your lungs to "LET ME DO IT MYSELF!"

This fearlessness is both exciting and terrifying. Exciting because our little girl is developing her own personality and a sense of confidence that any parent would be thrilled to see.

Terrifying because she IS fearless. Nothing phases her. She will practically jump off the top of the slide, then land on her butt and slide down, laughing all the way.

At the Mall, Caroline will walk off to explore something new without a second look behind her to see if we are following her. This means we constantly need to keep our eye on her, to make sure she is nearby. It is tiring work.

Katherine, on the other hand, PRETENDS to be fearless. In actuality, she is much more cautious than her sister.

Katherine will always look back to make sure one of us is nearby. And when she climbs stairs, Katherine will not hesitate to accept a helping hand from Mommy or Daddy.

This photo really illustrates this point:


Doesn't everyone have one of these "freakin' out over the big character" photos?
(click on photo for larger view)


This photo was taken at the Cal-UCLA football game earlier this month.

First, notice who is in the photo: Daddy and Katherine.

Next, notice what Katherine is doing. She is screaming bloody murder because the Bruin mascot behind her is scaring the HECK out of her.

What you don't see is what happened before the photo.

Katherine was PRETENDING to be fearless. She saw the Bruin mascots, and kept trying to get to them so that she could touch them.

However, as soon as she actually was put close enough to them to touch them, she realized she wasn't as fearless as she thought, and she screamed and cried until I took her away from them. (At which point, of course, she tried to get over to them AGAIN).

Second, notice who isn't in the photo -- Mommy and Caroline.

That's because Caroline had run off somewhere and Mommy was chasing her down. Like I said, FEARLESS.

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Happy Halloween!

The girls enjoyed their second Halloween, their first where they actually had a clue of what was going on.

Last year, they were pushed around in a stroller by Mommy and Daddy.

This year, the girls were more mobile, and they had a good time trick or treating at three different locations.

First, they went to their daycare, where they walked around the office building where the daycare is located, and got treats from the various businesses in the building.

Caroline and Katherine with their friend from daycare.
(click on photo for larger view)


The Lim Family Halloween
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Then, they went with Terri back to her workplace, where they trick or treated some more!

The girls with Terri's workmates.
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Finally, later in the night, they walked around our friend's neighborhood (our neighborhood is too hilly) to about ten houses. Caroline especially enjoyed running up the pathways to each house, and would laugh and squeal as she made her way to the front door of each house.

The girls figured out how to hold their buckets in front of them and wait for people to drop candy in them. However, about 20% of the time, they would then try to sit down and play with whatever was placed in the bucket!

Because they are not yet eating candy, we brought the candy home, and gave the girls toys to play with. They spent the rest of the night in their costumes playing. They were having so much fun, they didn't want to take their costumes off.

Katherine as a duck.
(click on photo for larger view)


The only exception to that is that you will not see any photos of Caroline with her duck hood on. She simply refused to wear it.

Happy Halloween!

Sunday, October 29, 2006

Looking for the Great(est) Pumpkin



Last year for Halloween, the girls were only three months old, so we didn't get them a pumpkin.

This year, however, was a different story.

We took them to a large pumpkin patch in Half Moon Bay, where they grow their pumpkins locally.

Besides the pumpkin patch, the girls got to go to their first petting zoo. Katherine wasn't too into the animals. Caroline pretended to be brave -- until we actually got into the pen with the animals. Then she freaked out and wouldn't let Daddy put her down. Despite their fear, they both touched a sheep, a goat, and a rabbit.

Ultimately, we selected one medium sized pumpkin for them both to share.

Here are some photos from our day at the pumpkin patch:

The Lim Family in the petting zoo.
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Katherine with her pumpkin.
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Caroline resting in the pumpkin patch.
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The Lim girls.
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Sunday, October 22, 2006

Support Your Local Union

Support Your Local Union Plumber

Caroline is going through her "nudist" phase I've heard that some children go through. At least, I hope this is just a phase!

Every chance she gets, Caroline will take off her shirt and walk around without a top. Lately, she's even progressed to trying to pull down her pants and diaper.

Here she is, attempting to qualify for the Local Plummers Union 342.

"You're gonna have to replace that water heater."
(click on photo for larger view)


Happiness is going as God made us
(Note Katherine's hand trying to grab the shirt)
(click on photo for larger view)

What a difference a day makes

Last night I wrote about being mortified at a friend's dinner party.

This afternoon we went to another party at a friends house, this one a baptism for their infant son.

Happily, no red wine on the carpet this time!

It helped, I think, that our friends have a three year old and an infant. The house was baby-proofed, so other than the trail of sand the girls tracked in from the sand & water table in the backyard, destruction of our friend's house was kept to a minimum.

Caroline & Katherine Making a Mess at the Sand and Water Table
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Saturday, October 21, 2006

Mortified

It had to happen sooner or later, but it was still embarrassing when it happened.

And it won't be the last time, either.

This evening, we went to a dinner party at a friend's house.

It was a mixed crowd -- some couples with kids, some couples without kids.

We brought Katherine and Caroline (by invitation, of course). They were pretty well-behaved for most of the night.

Note the emphasis on the word "most".

Later in the evening, someone left a can of orange soda on the coffee table, easily within reach of Katherine.

She grabbed for it, and "splash!" -- all over our guest's cream carpet.

Luckily, I moved in quickly with a water bottle and some paper towels, and got the soda off the carpet before it could stain. Crisis averted, but only momentarily.

About 20 minutes later, Katherine again was cruising around the coffee table, when she spotted a plate of chocolate cake sitting unattended on the table.

"Crash!" --- right down onto previously-mentioned carpet. Right in front of where the homeowner sat, I might add.

This time, despite the use of carpet cleaner, terrycloth rugs, and a lot of rubbing, a slight dark stain left it's mark on the carpet like a shining beacon that read: "The Lim Twins Have Been Here".

I can only console myself in that my friends were very, very understanding. They are going to be great parents one day.

As for my girls, I have a sinking feeling that things worse than cake and soda will be dropped and/or broken at house parties for the next few years.

All part of joy of parenthood!

Thursday, October 12, 2006

Rocky VI

Rocky VI is being filmed at our house. This is the Rocky episode where he has twins and the twins learn to push each other around.

You see, the girls have learned to climb. Into everything. And they are not shy about pushing their sister out of their way when necessasry.

Laundry basket? In they go. Then out. Then back in. Then out. Then back in.

Stepping on each other's arms. Someone cries. The other pushes back. The basket tips over. Now both are crying.

Caroline & Katherine's Version of a Wrestling Pit
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They have a little red wagon used to hold baby building blocks. They dumped the blocks out of the wagon last week.

In they go. Then out. Then back in. Then someone raises the arm of the wagon, which hits the other in the head. Crying. Then back out of the wagon. Then back in. Then someone tries to sit on the other's arm. More crying. Pushing. The wagon tips over. Now both are crying.

A brief moment of bliss in the wagon before it tips over.
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If they are not climbing, they are still fighting. At night, after baths, the girls have gotten into a good habit of getting books off their bookshelf and coming into our laps to read.

Problem is, if one sees the other in Mommy or Daddy's lap, they have to also sit in that lap. Never mind that the other parent's lap is vacant. They have to have what their sister has.

Thus, if Daddy is reading to Katherine, here comes Caroline.

The one NOT occupying the parent's lap will simply climb in, as if her sister does not exist.

There is pushing. There is pulling. Someone swings a book. Daddy blocks it with his arm. Someone else swings a book. Daddy blocks it with his nose. Someone gets pushed off the lap and onto their face. There is crying. Stern rebuke by Daddy to the one who did the pushing. Now both are crying -- one because she is face down on the carpet, the other because she has been rebuked by Daddy.

The "expert" books say this is a phase that the girls will grow out of. I hope it happens soon. At this rate, I'm thinking of selling tickets to "Fight Night at the Lims."

* Note: Don't be fooled by the photos above, which show happy, non-fighting girls. You think we have time to take photos while they are fighting? No, we only get photos when they are happy and cute. Don't let these angelic photos fool you: they fight just as much as any other siblings!

** Note #2: Please realize the semi-humorous tone of this blog. They don't really fight that much. In fact, they play together quite a bit. But compared to even a month ago where they hardly ever hit each other, they current feuding is quite an escalation.

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Fall Is The Best Season, But Not For The Reasons You Think

Fall is my favorite time of the season.

Oh sure, the weather is more crisp, the leaves turn bright colors, blah, blah, blah.

I'm from Southern California. Nothing like that ever happened to me until I spent a year on the East Coast.

No, Fall is my favorite time of the season because that's FOOTBALL season.

More specifically, it's COLLEGE FOOTBALL season.

More specifically than that, it's UCLA COLLEGE FOOTBALL season.

And with the girls now 14 months old, it was time for them to learn a little bit about Bruin Football.


Caroline & Katherine - Future Bruins
(click on photo for larger view)


************************


There is nothing better than college football.

You can have the NFL.

Going to an NFL game is like going to Disneyland. The whole experience is so contrived.

Cheerleaders with no real ties to their team and who don't really cheer. Fans wearing the latest jersey of their team that will be redesigned in about six weeks just to make you buy another one. Loud rock music blaring through speakers in modern stadiums built yesterday. Endzone celebrations and player conduct controlled, monitored, and checked. Million dollar players mugging for the camera for making routine tackle.

College has tradition. There is nothing faked about the passion college football invokes.

The fans are students or alumni with ties to their team. The UCLA script on the helmet hasn't changed in 50 years, nor has the "M" on Michigan's helmet, nor the bright red "N" of Nebraska. A burnt orange Longhorn means only one thing -- Texas.

The cheerleaders are students. They actually lead the fans in cheers.

The band members are students (except for USC, who pays local musicians and community college kids to play in their band). Instead of rock music coming through speakers, you have "Sons of Westwood", "Hail to the Victor", and "On Wisconsin".

The Bruins play in the greatest football stadium on Earth -- the Rose Bowl.

College games feature elite athletes, but a walk-on with no future in the NFL can come out of no where and lead his team to victory.

************************


We day started early, with the girls getting dressed in their UCLA cheerleader outfits by Mommy and Grandma.

Getting Ready for the Game with Grandma
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We left for the game early to secure our tailgate spot with friends. We arrived at the Rose Bowl at 12 pm, with kickoff not until 4 pm. Plenty of time to sit back, relax, and tailgate with friends.


True Blue Bruins
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Tailgate food on this day consisted of chicken fajitas, carne asada, and teriyaki chicken, with of course generous helpings of chips, dips, and too many desserts to mention.

The girls had a great time running around the lawn, chasing Mom or Dad, or running around with a small football (For those of you who have not tailgated at the Rose Bowl, the entire stadium is surrounded by a golf course, and you tailgate on the greens).


Caroline Enjoying the Tailgate
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Once inside the stadium just before kickoff, the girls had a great time clapping as the band played their pregame music, and cheered with the crowd as the Bruins took the field.


The Lim Family at the Rose Bowl
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Katherine then promptly fell asleep.

Yep, seems four hours of eating, running around, and throwing a football can tire out a 14 month-old. Katherine slept for about an hour, until mid-way through the second quarter.

Caroline fussed a bit longer, until she too fell asleep mid-way through the first quarter, then woke up just before halftime.

The second half, the girls enjoyed watching the crowd and reacting to music the band was playing. Luckily, being in Southern California, it never got too cold, so we were able to stay for the whole game.

The girls got a lot of compliments on their uniforms -- people shouting out: "Look at the future Bruins!" Things to make a father proud.

Final score: UCLA 27, Arizona 7.


Go Bruins!
(click on photo for larger view)

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Climbing Furniture & Harry Potter

Silliness has prevailed in the Lim household the last two nights, much as it does many nights with our two girls.

First, Caroline learned to climb into our recliner chair two nights ago -- her first official climb into furniture. It's no surprise, of course, that Caroline the Fearless would be the first to climb furniture.

Once in the chair, Caroline spent the remainder of the night climbing in and out of the chair. The climbing out we need to work on -- she still insists on trying to dive head first out of the chair.


Caroline the Fearless Climbs Her First Piece of Furniture(click on photo for larger view)



Success!(click on photo for larger view)


Then tonight, Katherine found these Harry Potter glasses I received at the midnight book debut of the last Harry Potter book. Somehow, the glasses were at the bottom of a toy basket, and Katherine found them.

We put them on her, thinking she'd rip them off. Turns out she loves wearing them, and carried them around for a good part of the night asking us to put them on her after they'd fall off (her nose isn't big enough to hold up the glasses!).

I can't wait until the girls are old enough for me to read Harry Potter to them, they are great books.


Harry Potter Must Not Return to Hogwarts!(click on photo for larger view)

Friday, September 15, 2006

My Brown Eyed Girls

"Do you remember when we used to sing,
Sha la la la la la la la la la la te da"
- Van Morrison
"Brown Eyed Girl"


Driving the girls to daycare Wednesday morning, I was pretty tired. The girls had given us a long night. Then they had fussed over getting dressed for daycare. Then they cried when I put them in their car seats.

As I was driving across the bridge, Van Morrison's song came on the radio.

When the chorus was sung, "Sha la la la la la la la la la la te da" the girls laughed and clapped their hands madly.

I went from being pretty tired and cranky to being pretty happy pretty quickly. Nothing like seeing your girls happy to remind you about the joys of parenthood.

Sunday, September 10, 2006

First Word

This is big news, so no preamble necessary:

Katherine said her first word this weekend.

It happened on Saturday morning, just as the household was waking up.

Now, the girls have been saying "Ma ma" and "Da Da" for some time now. However, since they are as likely to call the refrigerator "Ma ma" or the car "Da da", we are not officially calling those phrases their first words.

And for a while now, the girls have been using the proper inflections on certain exclamations. "Uh-oh" has been around for a while.

But Saturday morning was the first official, "no doubt about it" word from Miss Katherine.

Katherine and I were laying on the couch in the living room. She was looking out of our patio door at our cat Tabby, who was sitting by the door waiting for her food.

I remarked to Katherine as I have for the past few months, "Look, Katherine, it's your kitty cat, Tabby."

Katherine replied, "Kee Ka!"

Not sure I heard right, I asked her, "What did you say?"

Katherine obligingly repeated, "Kee Ka!"

For the rest of the weekend, she would seek out Tabby any time she saw her outside, and would alternately call her "Da da!" or "Kee Ka!"

In hindsight, it's no surprise that kitty cat is her first word. Katherine LOVES looking at Tabby, and Tabby seems equally interested in Katherine.

Congrats to our little girl on her first official "word". I sure the flood gates are open now!


Katherine with her "Kee Ka" Tabby(click on photo for larger view)

Caroline the Fearless

It is amazing how the girls continue to develop unique personalities, even though they are twins. People expect them to be the same, and I admit I was one of them before they were born. But each day they prove that they are entirely different little girls.

Caroline is fearless. She will walk into a dark room in a strange house just to see what's there. She loves to climb, to grab, to push -- you name it, she'll do it.

Katherine is not afraid, but she is much more cautious. When she sees a dark room, for example, she will come find Mommy or Daddy and take them by the hand and cautiously lead them into the room.

As evidence of Caroline's fearlessness, I present to you the following photo story:

First, in this photo, I caught Caroline trying to squeeze between our coffee table and the wall, after we placed the coffee table as a barrier to prevent the girls from reaching a section of our bedroom. In this photo, she has conveniently gotten STUCK between the table and the wall. True to her fearless nature, she does not cry out immediately, but continues to grunt, and pull, and struggle for a good five minutes, until . . .

(click on photo for larger view)


. . . in this photo, she is admitting defeat, and yelling at me to put down the camera and "COME RESCUE ME!"

(click on photo for larger view)


Finally, in this photo, you have an example of Caroline the Fearless stuck in our laundry basket. She climbs in, but hasn't figured out how to climb out. Rather than cry for help, however, she'll just sit there for a LONG time with that look on her face that pretends, "I could get out if I want to, but I don't, so THERE!"

(click on photo for larger view)

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

Graphic Injury Caught On Film!

We went to Seattle this weekend for a friends wedding. It was the girls first airplane trip (more on this in a later post).

While at the hotel, the girls had a great time playing in the room.

Over the past two weeks, the amount of time they play together has increased dramatically. Rather than just play NEXT to each other, the girls now chase each other around, share/fight for toys, and generally laugh at each other's silliness.

So in the hotel, they were playing "you chase me, I chase you" (a game they think they invented), when I decided to snap my camera to capture this joyous moment of their infancy.

Let me set the scene for you:

Just as I snapped the photo, Caroline had caught Katherine from behind, and was in the process of pulling her backward by her shirt.

Now mind you, they play this game ALL THE TIME. They are so small, that pulling each other usually results in them falling into each other in a small but harmless heap, both of them laughing hysterically.

They do it at home on HARDWOOD FLOOR and never get hurt.

But this time, as Daddy snapped the photo, as Caroline tugged Katherine back onto her, Katherine's head met Caroline's mouth.

Katherine has a hard head.

Hard head met soft gums.

Soft gums started bleeding.

Quickly.

Profusely.

Laughter turned to crying very quickly.

We rushed over to Caroline. Mouth full of blood.

Her first significant "bleeding" injury.

We rinsed out her mouth, gave her some water, then juice.

Happily, within ten minutes, the girls were back to laughing and playing, "you chase me, I chase you" as if nothing bad had happened.

Daddy went to find a beer.

But later, remembering the photo I took just prior to the injury, I looked at the photo:


First Sports Injury.
(click on photo for larger view)


If you look real closely (or zoom in on Caroline's mouth if you can), you can see the blood.

(By the way, in case you noticed that Katherine is also crying, she was fine. She started crying because Caroline started crying.)

This photo is something of a rarity, I think.

I mean, what parent is going to take the time to take a picture of their child while they are bleeding? No one would, that's nuts.

The only way you get a picture like this is if you snap the camera as the incident occurs.

This kind of action photo is rare indeed.

I'm thinking of sending the photograph to Sports Illustrated.

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Update on Development - One Year Old

The girls are one year and three weeks old today.

I haven't updated their growth and progress in quite a while. When you see your kids every day, it's easy to forget how fast they are growing, and to take it for granted. Since part of this blog is to act as a substitute to a baby journal, I want to record their development. So please bear with me as I indulge in some Daddy bragging . . .

KATHERINE - Wt: 19 pounds, 1 ounce, Ht: 30 1/4"

Katherine at One Year Old.
(click on photo for larger view)


Katherine is walking very well. In fact, she is running now. It's as if her brain wants her body to move faster than it's able to. So even though she's walking much better than she did even two weeks ago, she's falling a lot more because she tries to run everywhere. But Katherine is a trooper -- she just gets right up and continues what she's doing.

Katherine is also very talkative. She is now pronouncing a range of consonant and vowel sounds. "Doo" and "Baa" are commonplace, but her favorite sound sounds like "Hey!" She loves to scream that at the top of her lungs at home, in the mall, at the supermarket -- everywhere. Yesterday, Katherine said, "Woo-woo" and "Ga-ga" for the first time. I thought babies only said, "Ga-ga" in the movies, but I guess I was wrong!

Katherine will also say "Da" or "Da-da" for Daddy, and "Ma" for Mommy, but we still aren't 100% sure she's connecting it to us. However, it makes us happy to think she knows us by name, so we're assuming she IS connecting it to us!

Katherine is still a mellow baby in many ways, but inquisitive in other ways. She is mellow in that she let's her sister Caroline pull her hair, push her down, and take her toys, and will not fight back. She just takes it. If she's really annoyed, she will cry, but for the most part she does not hit back at her sister. She will take the occasional toy from Caroline, but that's the exception. Usually, she will just move on to a different toy if Caroline takes hers.

Katherine is inquisitive in that she loves to explore around the house. She will spend each morning watching our cat Tabby eating just outside our screen door. She will pound on our front window watching our neighbor take his dog out for a walk. And she will scream "Hey!" to complete strangers who catch her attention in the supermarket.

Katherine goes to sleep very easily for the most part. She takes her bottle around 9 pm and is out with a minimum of fussing.

CAROLINE - Wt: 17 pounds, 6.5 ounces, Ht: 30"

Caroline at One Year Old.
(click on photo for larger view)


Caroline is her Daddy's daughter. Fussy like Daddy. Cranky like Daddy. Yet also extremely happy.

Caroline laughs a lot. While Katherine smiles often, Caroline LAUGHS. She has a giggle that she will break into often, and that many times evolves into full-throated laughter.

Caroline likes to dance. She has two favorite dances at this age. If she hear "The Wheels on the Bus" song, she will swing her arms side to side while twisting her upper torso (picture someone playing with a hula hoop). We have no idea where she learned this, because we've never seen them do this in day care.

This is Caroline dancing to "The Wheels on the Bus".

Her other favorite dance is to stand in front of you, have you hold her hands, and then shake her whole body and throw her head back while you support her arms and sing to her at the top of your lungs. She doesn't care what you sing to her, although she is partial to something with a little bass. I've tried to capture this dance on video, but it's hard because the video camera causes her to stop dancing and try to reach for the camera.

Caroline's walk is not as good as Katherine's yet, although she is getting better every day. If you've ever seen the movie "Frankenstein" you pretty much know how Caroline walks. But Caroline so wants to do whatever Katherine does, so if Katherine walks, Caroline is not far behind her.

Caroline can be a bully, I must admit. She will take toys from Katherine, and she fusses if Katherine tries to take a toy from her. She also thinks it's funny to grab Katherine and other kids at daycare from behind and pull on their shirt. For now, we try not to laugh, and hope our admonishments of "No, Caroline. Gentle touch," will eventually pay dividends.

Caroline's language skills are developing well, although she does not repeat specific sounds as often as Katherine does. However, Caroline will babble for long stretches. It is not uncommon for her to sit in front of you while playing, babbling all the while, and then look up at you, and wait for you to respond. All you have to do is say, "Really, baby, that's interesting. What else?" and then she will continue to babble for another two minutes. I really believe she thinks she is having an intelligible conversation with you!

Caroline is fussy like Daddy because when she decides she is upset, she REALLY gets upset. She can go from happy to tantrum in a wink of an eye. And when she is tired, you better have a bottle for her quick.

Together


Taking a Nap Together.
(click on photo for larger view)


The girls like to talk amongst themselves. Many times now they will wander off into their room to play by themselves, while Terri and I clean up the kitchen or living room. Then, in the privacy of their own room, you can hear them talking and laughing with one another as they play.

It's also worth noting that they do not cry as much when they are playing alone. You will hear occasional cries of indignation, but the cry usually subsides quickly, and they resume playing. If Terri or I are in the room, however, you often get a full-scale melt down from the injured party. It's as if the girls know that crying is useful only when someone is in the room to see it!

One of the best parts of the day is the early morning. The girls are usually in a very good mood in the early morning. And on many days, they will wake up at the same time. When that happens, they do not cry out, but instead each stands up in their crib, and they face each other and babble quietly to each other until Terri or I comes into their room to pick them up.

These are our girls at one year of age. Happy birthday, ladies!