I didn't even realize that I hadn't posted in two months. things have been crazy around here as Jenene is busy for the holidays and I am slammed for my year end. The kids have been doing great and getting bigger and bigger. We thought they would be good for a picture with Santa this year. So far kids 2 and Santa 0. We took them first to a mall and Cooper freaked out and Shea clung to me like her life depended on it. Jenene proceeded to get reprimanded by Santa for letting Cooper kick her. We gave it another try the other night when Santa came to the house to visit. Cooper again lost it and Shea followed suit. Tyler could not have loved him more but when you ask coop if Santa should come back he says "No, no HO HO!" the kid is adorable. It will be interesting to see how long it takes them to get the whole idea of the gifts. Tyler started to get it towards the end of the day when he was their age but this time time they will be able to see Ty open his first.
I attached the picture here even though it is blurry just because it is a classic picture and I am sure one we will never forget.

Fall 2010

It is almost Halloween and it is very fitting since we are dealing with two monsters! Actually they are just alot of fun right now. Cooper is chatting about everything non stop. He loves to be on the phone and call Gido. He chats away and puts the phone on his shoulder like a real pro. Shea is coming along and starting to pick up on talking. She certainly gets her point across though. Cooper still adores his sister and any time he gets something, Shea MUST have it too.

They both just got over some colds but they weren't hit with them as bad as Tyler. Shea had a high fever the one day and Cooper had a runny nose and slight fever. I am sure they will pass stuff back and forth all Winter.

I think for Halloween we are going to dress them up as Thing 1 and Thing 2 from the Cat in the Hat. That is if we can find the costumes. It should be very cute and I will post some pictures.

Not much else going on with them otherwise though. They are alot of fun and enjoy playing with Tyler and each other and are just enjoying things right now. It is really going by way too fast!

This is a picture of Shea that I just love because she has her little pigtails in. I just couldn't resist posting it.

Goodbye Summer

The summer is coming to a close this weekend and it has been a good one for these kids. Shea and Cooper are enjoying their days shopping with Mommy and playing with their babysitters. It seems like they have really grown up this summer. They are now talking, well at least Coop for the most part and running around and really interacting. I caught Cooper and Tyler the other day almost having a conversation. they really are amazing and lovable children. They seem to have an affect on people too. Whether family members or people that have come to babysit for us. People just seem to become attached to these kids. I believe it has a lot to do with their personalities. They aren't cranky all that often and really love to laugh and fool around. They have beautiful smiles which they show off constantly. They are like these little people with these big personalities. If you play with them for a little while it is easy to tell why this happens.

The kids had fun on our vacation down the shore and were so so with the beach. At first they would be scared of the water but then after they got used to it, they would like to stand there and maybe splash a hand in it. Coop didn't eat too much sand either. It's going to be tough next year when all three of them want to go all the way in swimming. but for now we are just enjoying them as babies!

I know this picture is a little blurry but it's the three of them with their Elmo shirts on. Their uncle bought them for them and the kids flip when you let them put the shirts on.

We had the early intervention people come in to check out Shea and Cooper last week for us. We were most concerned about Shea not talking but the evaluation is free so we figured we should have them take a look at Coop anyway. Neither one of them ended up qualifying for the program. though her speech is delayed, Shea isn't behind in any other categories that would cause them to come in. they will probably re evaluate if there isn't much change in 3 months or so. this was good news but something for us to keep an eye on.

We are getting ready to leave for vacation this week. We are going down to the shore for a week and my best friend is going down to his house for the same week. It should be nice for all of us to spend some time together. the thing I am worried about is that the house we are staying in is extremely small and these kids are all over the place. We don't have enough room in our house back home as it is. Now we are all going to be together all day in this cramped space. It should be interesting.

I can't wait to see how they handle the ocean or even the sand and if they like it or not. My guess is that Shea doesn't like the sand on her feet since she hates the feel of grass on her feet. Cooper will probably eat the sand or something.

I Wish Summer Would Never End!

Shea and Cooper are definitely enjoying their Summer. they love going in the pool and playing in their water tables. In fact they love just being outside and playing. They have been getting a lot better with other people too. Jenene had been worried because they clung to us so much when others were around. I guess since they have gotten a bit older and been around people more, they are getting better. A few weeks ago we went to a family reunion and by the end of the day they were going to all of their cousins and laughing and playing.

Cooper is a trip. He's got a little bit of an attitude on him and is going to drive us crazy I can already see. He is into everything and loves to throw things. He finds ways to climb on the couch by himself and even found a way to crawl on the table we have in the living room for the kids. The more you tell him no and yell at him, the more he wants to do it. He does have one soft spot and that is for his sister Shea. As soon as he wakes up he is asking "Where's Shea?" He actually does talk that good too. He will ask over and over where she is. He always needs to have her around or know where she is.

Shea still isn't talking so well and Jenene is looking into getting some speech help for her. She is an extremely happy baby though. Her one issue is that she is a bit of a klutz. She is constantly falling down things and banging her head or her face. this weekend we were at a friends and sure enough she fell down three steps off their deck on her head. She was fine but it happens everyday.

Overall they are a ton of fun right now and happy kids. they are enjoying their summer and doing a lot of activities and making lots of friends. It makes me wish I was a kid again.

I just came back from being away for 5 days last night and it seems like these two even learned stuff while I was away. Cooper is repeating things and they are both walking all overt he place. They love to wrestle with their bib brother Tyler and to have someone chase them all over the place. They have been sleeping well at night but have been waking up crazy early in the morning. Jenene was staying at her Mom's while I was away and when they would wake up, they would see her and not go back down. When we are at home, they wake up and make some noise but generally go back down for a bit if they don't see anyone around. They did that this morning for instance.

It just seems like they have gotten so much older in the last month since they started walking and talking more. It's like this big leap that they take. They are a lot of fun now to play with and interact with. They are pretty dalm cute too!

It should be a fun summer as we are planning a few day trips with them to Sesame place and some other kids place and then are going to spend a week down the shore as well in August. They should enjoy the active summer and so will Mommy and Daddy. The picture I put here is of all of them in the backyard. they all love to be outside. Once you take them out, they will flip for the first few minutes when you drag them back in.

Shea and Cooper are doing wonderfully and were at the doctor recently where they had some concerns around the fact that they weren't walking as yet at 15 months. starting that afternoon, we started encouraging them to walk anywhere they were going through the house. They picked up quick and are now taking many steps at a time. Especially Shea girl. Coop is a little lazier.

They did also have some concerns around Shea not speaking at all. You see both of my sons are chatterboxes but Shea hasn't said a word yet. She went later in the week to get her ears checked and they were fine. I think they are going to have her start seeing a therapist to catch it early. I think it's just that the other two talk for her. we also find oourselves doing the same. She screams and points and you say the word for her and get her what she wants. She's just so darn cute though!DIV>
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I inlcluded on picture here of just Shea cause it is adorable of her in the Mets hat. The other is a picture my niece took when she was sitting. I'll keep it around to show them how much they loved one another some day when they are at each others throats.

The only other good story I have is how I almost broke my neck for my kids. Shea woke up the other night and of course when I went in to get her, Cooper woke up. We took them into bed with us and I took Shea back to her crib at about 2am. At 5 Jenene woke me up and told me to take Cooper down. As I was going down the stairs, my foot slipped and I slammed the back of my head on the stairs and fell down the rest of them. I tucked Coop in tight so nothing happened to him but he was crying because he was scared. I saw stars when I whacked my head. Never the less, my wife came flying down the stairs yelling "Is he ok?" I said he is fine but I may have a concussion. She just shrugged me off and hugged Cooper tighter. My how far I have fallen on the depth chart.

The two monsters are doing well and are just about there with the walking. Shea is a little bit ahead of Cooper and is taking up to 8 or 9 steps at a time. Coop is still doing good and can take 3 or 4 steps at a time before taking a tumble. They will be flying around in no time at all. Shea also got her first haircut! You can kind of see it by this picture. What you can't see if that Coop also got his first cut. through he didn't need it as bad as her. She looks so cute now with her hair shorter.

On the talking side, Coop is a bit ahead of Shea. He basically tries to say anything you ask him to. He says Mama and Dadda and Pop Pop and Gido and Ty Ty and Shea Shea and Babba. those are probably his favorites. Shea is more of a screeching and grunting girl right now. But she will be coming along right behind him.

They are really starting to bug each other as well. It seems they always want the toy that the other one is playing with. The one takes it from the other and then the tugging and pushing and pulling starts. Cooper loves to yank on poor Shea's hair and she hates that!

also Coop is more of a biter than Shea. I was home babysitting yesterday and had them both in the crib and caught this picture of Cooper going in for a chomp. Thank goodness I got him before he could get her. I also got a very funny video of them right after this where Cooper does give her a kiss and then they both crash down in the crib.

Needless to say they are really a lot of fun now but also a lot of work as well.

Spring is Here!

I haven't posted in a long time and we have been super busy. The kids are doing well and enjoying some of the nice weather we are having here. They love being outside. Both coop and Shea still refuse to walk though. She is taking a step here or there but not much. They made it through Easter and the bunny was very good to them. They also had been sleeping well until about two nights ago when all heck broke loose and they were all up. I think they are all getting colds or something. hopefully they will settle down this week and get back to sleeping through the night.

The only major thing that has really happened over the past month is we lost our wonderful nanny Roseanne. She was the best in the world and enjoyed the kids so much but she got offered a job and had to leave us. I don't know who is going to miss her more, Jenene or the kids. Tyler and Coop and Shea loved her and went nuts every time she would come to the door. Maybe someday she will come back to us. I only have a new picture of Coop to include here. We just got a new camera and Jenene has to send me some new photos.

We made it through the first birthdays and are moving on to number 2! We just had family over for pizza and cake for the kids first birthday and the new house held up very well. Cooper and Shea enjoyed their cousins though they are in that stage where they are iffy about going to other people. But with the size of our families, they'll get used to it quick.

As far as progress goes, Shea is ready to walk any day now. She pops up and is holding on with just one hand. So she will let go at some point. She also does the stairs in the kitchen better. She knows to turn around and come down whereas Cooper basically swims down the two steps. Cooper pops up no problem but I think he may be a little further off with the walking. He is talking up a storm though. He says "Baby" and Dadda and Momma. Jenene is convinced he also says downstairs but I think she is a little crazy. She basically has one sound that she makes and sometimes a scream she lets out but nothing yet in the way of words. Though she did say Dadda a few times.

We are still having the sleeping issue with Cooper too. He is up almost every night at some point and will not go back down unless you pick him up. Shea has been perfect and may grunt and growl but she generally puts herself back. The other issue I am having with Cooper is the darn card that goes in the cable box. He is obsessed with it. We just got a cheap stand that is low to the ground for our TV because we are going to put it on the wall eventually. So it is right at his height. If that card is in, Cooper is pulling it out. No matter how much I yell at him, he crawls back over to pull it again. We finally just have to leave it out until he is either eating or in bed in order to watch TV. I yell at him and he just puts on this silly smile like in the picture I have here and waves the card at me. This kid is going to be trouble!

We're Home!

Good news! We are back in our home! It has been over 11 months but we have finally moved back in. We moved out the day before the twins were born last year. They had never even been to their own home until this past Friday when we spent our first night there. The twins have their own room and seem to be enjoying it so far. They have the run of the first floor and within ten minutes it looked like we had been there for ten years with all of the toys all over the place. They also loved crawling around in the kitchen and getting chased around the island in there. Cooper has woken up each night except for one and Shea has slept through pretty much each night. They seem to really like their new home!

So now our next event is their 1st birthday! That is coming up in two weeks and we are still figuring out what we should do. We don't want to throw a huge party but want to make sure they have family around. Plus, Tyler's birthday is this week. So it is a busy month for our family and asking people to do stuff for all three this month is a bit much. I can't believe though that it is going to be a year already. What a crazy year it has been. But I'll recap that around their birthday. For now, we are just happy to be home and happy to be together as a family. Here is a picture of the two monsters enjoying some toys in their home.

What a whirlwind these holidays were! The first ones for Shea and Cooper and of course Santa came to visit them. It seems we've celebrated ten times over. We started on Christmas Eve by hosting Jenene's parents and my parents and her brothers family. Christmas Day we had dinner at Jenene's parents and then went to my parents. By the time we made it there, it was already passed the kids bedtime and they get cranky and don't want anyone else but Jenene and I when they are tired. They did have some fun though playing with their cousins. Then all the rest of our free time has been getting stuff for the house. We celebrated Christmas again with our good friends the Iandoli's. It was bitter sweet with them as our beloved Aunt Mary was not with us this year for it. But we made the most of it and tried to smile through it. Next we celebrated with the Defalco family who were good friends with Jenene's sister. So pretty much Shea and Coop had 3 Christmases and loved every one of them. They even learned some new tricks over the holidays. They will put up one finger when you ask how old they are. they put their arms wide when you say "So Big!". They will give you a kiss when you ask them and Cooper will even give dit dits. But probably the biggest is that Shea has now learned to stand up! She did it once over the weekend and by the end of the weekend she was doing it all over. We heard her crying in the middle of the night last night and sure enough,there she was standing up in there. I guess next she is going to take some steps. Who knows, maybe she will walk before the first birthday. She earned her lovely picture here.

Now it's back to reality and the next event we have is their birthday. Jenene's parents leave this week for Florida so we have a rude awakening coming with no help. We'll get through it though.