The thing about twins is...

... there are two of them.  You never know what you're going to get.  And just like anyone, they each have good days and bad days.  I almost don't know what to wish for, though.  If they have their bad days on the same day, it's a complete nightmare.  But if they have their bad days on separate days, then my bad days never end.  Plus, since there are two of them, you have to factor in the sympathy actions.  If Audie is having a bad day and crying a lot (because, maybe, he's teething), then Anaya might decide to cry too, just to show some support.  That's what happened yesterday...all day.  I'm not sure I've ever been happier to see the sun set.

Today, the babies are seven months old.  I think things are getting easier, but maybe I'm just wishing it so hard that I'm delusional.  Because lately it's been tough.  Really tough.  There is nothing I can count on, except that it's going to be a busy day.  It's always going to be a busy day.  I'm not sure if it's them or me or the fact that Adam is home from school, wreaking havoc, preventing them from ever having a proper nap, but things are extremely chaotic.  I probably shouldn't even be writing this blog because I'm feeling very negative about our life right now.  I'm tired.  But, I'll do my best to give you a neutral update!    

Anaya

At her six-month check-up, Anaya was not yet rolling over or sitting up and, therefore "failed" the gross motor skills portion of her assessment.  Within days of the appointment, she started doing both.  The truth is, she probably could have been sitting up sooner, but that's my fault.  It's hard to work on those things with two babies.  It's tough to sit them both up and hold them and play with them simultaneously.  You can't work with them separately - if you're doing it with one, you bet your ass you've got to be doing it with the other.  Jealousy is rampant around here.  Anyway, Anaya is an old pro at sitting up now and she loves to sit and play.  She "talks" some, but not as much as Audie.  She more squeals than anything - like, with delight.  She wakes up early - like 5:30 - and is not a baby I can put back to sleep or put in bed with me to snuggle a bit.  She's just not snuggly.  She is already learning how to push Audie's buttons and I can't help but laugh.  If I put the babies together to play, it's like she waits to see what Audie's going to go for, then she goes for it, too.  Don't worry, though, that door swings both ways, as Audie is no saint.  She loves to splash BIG in the bath and she still loves to watch Adam do anything.  Anaya eats well, but hates anything green.  I'm having some success mixing green stuff in with orange or yellow stuff, but she knows something is up.  She eats much neater than Audie most of the time, but has been known to end up with sweet potatoes in her hair.  She doesn't seem to be trying to scoot yet on her belly, but on her back she scoots at a record-breaking pace.  The thing about Anaya is this: When it's good, it's great, but when it's bad, you want to get the hell out of dodge.

Audie

Anaya has some sweet moments, but Audie is definitely the sweetheart of the two, although lately he is working on his little temper.  It usually flares up when he's hungry, or when it's Anaya's turn to take a bite, but he thinks I should only be feeding him.  I'm convinced that Audie, in an attempt to make up for being born second, is going to accomplish all of the big milestones first.  He's determined.  He's been rolling over for a few months now, with no problem.  He's sitting up, too- this one we'll call a "tie."  This week, he also started creeping - scooting on his belly.  All he needs is a little more muscle development and he'll be crawling.  He eats well, but is messy.  He's still more snuggly than Anaya, and likes to wake up early from his naps to get a little one-on-one time with Mommy.  He talks a lot and loves to bang on the computer.  He sleeps on his belly, a lot of times with his butt sticking up in the air - the epitome of the sleeping baby.  The other day, he grabbed Anaya's pacifier out of her mouth and put it in his.  Another favorite way to pick on her is to grab her bib while I'm feeding them, and pull it as hard as he can.  The bibs have snaps, so instead of coming undone, it forces her to lean towards him.  And he won't let go!  She gets so mad...it's hilarious.  He loves baths and being tickled, and he loves his sister and brother.  He especially watches Anaya with such awe - smiling when he sees her and trying to interact with her.  He can't help but migrate towards her when they're playing separately.  He usually ends up rolling/creeping over and sucking on her hand or foot.  He loves her :)  I think he's always going to have her back.  It's a twin thing.

All in all, we're surviving - some days barely, and I might have chunks of hair missing, but still...  Right now is just an adjustment period, for some reason, which makes it a tough time for all of us.  The babies are more fun now, and Adam is finally beginning to reap the rewards a little of having two playmates.  We do count our blessings each and every day and we still feel honored that God has such confidence in us, giving us two babies at once - blessing us doubly.  Somehow, we appeared competent to him, although I am quite sure the babies would give him feedback that indicated the opposite, if he asked them.  There will always be ups and downs - such is life. The trick is to ride the ups as far as you can, so that you don't even notice the downs.  Here are a few more ups:      

Here, Audie had just scooted over to Adam, reaching for Adam's Doo Doo, forcing Adam to move it (you can see him hiding it behind his back).  Anaya's mad, for some reason:

Here, Adam is reading to them:

The End (Sorry, couldn't resist!)