We've Turned a Corner

A few weeks ago we took the girls to eat at our local mall.

As we sat down to eat our "Food Court" food, another couple with a single toddler about the same age as the girls sat down next to us.

The parents dutifully set out a booster chair which they had brought with them, along with a plastic bowl, plastic fork, and cloth bib. They then wiped down the table with antiseptic wipes.

Our girls looked over at the family of three with interest. They were eating with plastic forks you get with your food, out of paper plates we grabbed from the food line, on a table we had half-heartedly wiped down with a dry napkin. As the girls watched the little boy eat, their shirts were stained with teriyaki sauce since they weren't wearing a bib.

I think we've overcome our phobia of keeping our girls "super clean". We've turned a corner as parents -- good or bad, we've turned a corner!

We have fun in our house

Lest I forget in years to come, this age is a FUN age with the girls. We have fun in our house every single day. Here are some examples to help me remember the fun things we did when they were two years old:

Hugging each other just because.

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Mugging for the camera!

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Caroline giving her baby a ride on her shoulders,

the way Daddy gives her a ride on his shoulders.

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Built "Ford" Tough

Last week the girls were playing their new favorite game, "Hide 'N Go Seek". Katherine had run into their bedroom, while Caroline stayed out in the family room with me, counting.

Unfortunately, the girls are not yet entirely clear on the concept of "Hide 'N Go Seek", because as soon as Caroline stopped counting and started to run into the bedroom, Katherine immediately left her hiding place and ran out towards the family room.

Caroline turned the corner to the hallway leading to the bedroom just as Katherine turned the same corner coming from the opposite direction. Both were running at full speed.

The result was a spectacular collision that sent both girls falling backwards onto our hardwood floor.

Now, I'll admit that as a father of twins, I've become pretty good at not overreacting to falls. With twins, someone is always falling, and you can't be there to catch them all the time.

But this fall got me up pretty quick. First, it sounded loud. Second, both girls literally fell backwards onto their backs from the force of the collision.

Naturally, both girls were crying hysterically.

I picked both girls up, kissed them, consoled them, and got them their "owie" ice packs.

I watched them closely to make sure they weren't more seriously hurt.

Then, about one minute later, I took the photo below. I'll let you decide if they were badly hurt from their collision.

Ready to start playing again.

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All Aboard!

Every day when I take the girls to school, we see the local commuter train pass us by. The girls get very excited, and every day they ask me, "Daddy, go on train?"

So this weekend, we took the girls to the Zoo to ride the train. They had a blast.

Riding on the Little Puffer Steam Train.

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Katherine and Mom on the train!

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Caroline consulting her map just before the train ride.

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We also went to see the bears. Katherine is going through a faze where she does not like to get too close to see the animals, which explains this "back up!" look on her face in this photo.

Too close to the animals for Katherine's comfort.

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I also got this cool shot of some grizzly bears:

Grizzly Bears.

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Just Wait

So today we were at our weekly Target outing waiting in the checkout line to pay for some things.

Katherine was getting antsy about the wait, so she starting jumping around. She tripped, and fell on her stomach. Luckily, she is so good at falling she wasn't hurt.

However, she fell right in front of a young lady wearing a HUGE engagement ring. The young lady looked down at Katherine (who smiled up at her), then looked over at me with a contemptuous look that suggested, "Can't you control your child?"

I didn't have the heart to tell her that I considered a little jumping and falling pretty darned good behavior in the checkout line! I had to bite my tongue to tell the young lady, "Call me in five years when you have a child, and I'll dare you to give me the same look you just gave me!"

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Some photos of the girls:

Caroline predicted good things for the Bruins this week against Washington, when she chose this hat to wear to school on Friday. I swear I didn't pick it out for her! UCLA prevailed, 44-31.

Go Bruins!

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We had our first storm of the season, signaling the end of summer. The girls were trying on their new jackets from grandma:

Ready for Fall weather.

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Overheard in the car on the way home from daycare.

I was distracted listening to a program on the radio when the girls were trying to get my attention:

Katherine: Daddy?

Caroline: Daddy?

Katherine: Daddy?

Caroline: Daddy?

Katherine: DADDYYYY!

Caroline: DADYYYYYYYYY!!!!

Still no response from Dad.

Caroline: DAVID!

That got my attention!

Favorite phrases this week.

Caroline: "I funny!"

(Any time she does something that she thinks is very, very funny -- which is just about anything that makes her laugh.)

Katherine: "My Daddy!"

(Part of a game we play. My response is, "My daughter!" She then repeats "My Daddy!" We will keep this game going for quite a while. I am hoarding all this love and attention towards the day when she makes me drop her off at the mall a block away so her friends won't see me.)

Good times at the Lim House.

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Same good times as above, but this time Caroline is looking at the camera (sort of).

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