Category Archives: Twintuition

Twindergarten

written by leslie. Posted on August 24, 2010. Filed under Twintuition. 3 Comments.

How are we already here?

Oh you are so excited. Last night I helped you carefully calculate your first day of kindergarten matching-shirts-but-not-matching-pants combo. Packed your Cupcake backpacks with extra Lipsmackers and Band-aids to share with all the new friends you’ll make. Breathed a sigh of relief that the hours we spent collecting double pink pencil boxes and Hello Kitty folders weren’t in vain. Today was it.


London pauses for a minute before going into Miss Cengic’s classroom, separated from sister as anticipated. At least you are at peace with being next door neighbors. Last week it was love at first sight when London first met her teacher because “she is SO pretty!” Somehow that fact alone chased every butterfly from your stomach.


Maddie is a little uneasy but a lot brave. Running a fever last night and skinning your knee on the way into school once again demonstrates your resilience. And, you are at advantage because your teacher’s name, Mrs. Wood, is easier for all of us to remember.
We couldn’t be more pleased with the pivotal instructors you and London will be spending seven plus hours each day with.


Any sentimentality about the first day of school was eclipsed by the shock of waking up this girl and finding out that she had spent 12 hours in her crib having removed her diaper…Way to provide an angry distraction so your mom couldn’t event think about crying, including the short trek to school, the drop-off, and the appropriately named ‘crying room breakfast’. I was beginning to blend in with the fathers in the building, you know with the ‘whatev’ shrugging of the shoulders.


Home again, the entourage has grown to seven babies (weren’t we trying to cut back?) while you have every couch to yourself and I am restless.

That brings us to now. Liv is wandering the house and I am wondering why it is so clean, and quiet. Isn’t that what I’ve been asking for all these years? However home doesn’t feel like home without you; your cereal bowls still in the sink and pajamas on the floor, I am waiting for you to spring from the crevices of the toy closet with your makeshift confetti and surprise one of your favorite princess guests, whose birthday it always seems to be.

I keep thinking about this conversation I had just five years ago in the NICU, after a particularly hard day when I wondered out loud to one of the nurses if having sick babies is something a person can ever recover from. And she changed my life, because she said to me, “This is just something they did…just like Kindergarten will be something they did.” The heartache of subsequent days was thwarted because of the vision you’d be doing just what you did this morning. I am more proud of you than I could ever have hoped.

Liv jumps out of the armoire yelling “surprise!” just the way you would, perhaps practicing for your grand return in just five hours. Three musketeers down to one feels so empty, but she is basking in my full attention and my day, and my joy, is already full
to
the
brim.

And now the tears can flow.

Look Before You Leap…

written by leslie. Posted on June 8, 2010. Filed under Memory Lane, Twintuition. 2 Comments.


With Preschool ending, we have long hours to fill and found just the way to do it. A friend of mine from the ward opened up a little dance studio in her home and we couldn’t have been more eager to join in on the fun.


Good thing your outfits still fit from the last time we took up ballet, and check out the requested Barbie Island Princess-inspired hairdos with little purple embellishments a la Auntie Alice (she even sent one for Liv). And come to find out, we do the general public a favor by wearing name necklaces.


Getting warmed up with new friends.


Plie! Who knew both of you were already quite familiar with beginning ballet moves; of which we have Barbie Nutcracker and Angelina Ballerina to thank, not to mention your 6 months pregnant mom’s rusty 8th grade skills!



And we sachet across the floor!

After the first day, we headed to Walmart to pick up some things for dinner and you were already trying out your moves, seriously oblivious to the fact that you were crashing into shopping carts and confused shoppers alike. I think there’s a lot more where that came from!

The Graduates

written by leslie. Posted on May 30, 2010. Filed under Memory Lane, P to the f, Twintuition. 4 Comments.


Wednesday marked an important milestone in our lives: the twins’ Preschool graduation. Here they are in all their graduated glory.


The ceremony was quite elaborate and included the handing out of diplomas, singing of many little preschool songs, not to mention thoughts and a prayer from the Community Church’s pastor. I held out pretty well until the slideshow at the end which included pictures of the entire year and an emotional ‘then and now’ baby picture compilation set to that country song about how quickly children grow. I couldn’t help but think what we were doing five years ago in the NICU and how far you have come, singing your little hearts out the whole way.


Madelyn’s teacher Miss Wendy and the girls. Madelyn just found out Miss Wendy won’t in fact be her Kindergarten teacher and has been crying every morning since. It has been music to my ears to hear how much these kiddos love school, even homework.


Madelyn’s friends Liam and Adeline. Madelyn’s class was smaller and a great little mix of personalities. These kids are all BFF’s.


London’s teacher Miss Sandy and the girls. I never thought we’d survive splitting up the twins for preschool, but it has been a good experience for them. For one, it means double the friends, but I also noticed they spend the entire drive home from school catching each other up on the latest.


London’s classmates Joey and Celine.


Proudest mom ever!


L & M got a little restless towards the end. I couldn’t help myself from turning totally paparazzi on them. Sorry twins, blue is your color.


And an end of school pool party thrown by Madelyn’s friend Courtney.


Olivia instantly puts Madelyn to work at home. I think she’s the only one happy about school ending.


And they’re off! Big plans for summer I can assure you; the swimming pool is calling our name. And the catch phrase around here these days–
“Look out Kindergarten, here we come!”

Today is Your Day

written by leslie. Posted on May 20, 2010. Filed under Festivities, P to the f, Twintuition. 4 Comments.

So this week brought an unexpected trip to Utah for Ryan; he was able to attend the funeral of his dear Grandpa Honey, who passed away last Saturday morning. We were glad finals week was over and work allowed for Ryan to go, but sad to have him away for the twins’ fifth birthday. Reportedly, the 20-something hour drive to Utah went well and Ryan was glad to have been there to see relatives and attend the service, or as the girls put it, ‘say goodbye to Grandpa Bee Honey.’ We will miss Leon a lot.

Meanwhile, since the twins have been anticipating the event of their birthday since mid-March, I knew the pressure was on round these parts. Thank goodness for Heather to help out the night before.


Who doesn’t love a little cheery mouse to wish them happy birthday at the breakfast table? Especially when the menu consists of your favorite chocolate donuts and a platter of strawberries and grapes.


I love that you are now old enough to spout out phrases like, ‘This is the happiest day ever!’ and ‘I am so happy I could cry!’ which reaction I had no idea 79 cent vases from IKEA could provoke, even from Livvy.


You got to work right away opening presents…


The Barbie dress-up clothes you chose out months ago and had to watch me put in the shopping cart from the corner of your eye, just to make sure. London the ballerina and Maddie the bride, and yes, you have already switched twice since then.
After a couple of hours of dress up and Barbies, you asked me, what’s next mom? to which I replied ‘Anything! Today is your day,’ while I was thinking… (don’t say it, don’t say it, don’t say it)
but you said it–
‘Swimming at the lake!’
So there was packing, and sunscreening, and wrestling down Liv to get a swimsuit on, making lunches, blowing up floaties, more packing, and an hour later, we were–


Ah, paradise right?
All of you clearly too busy to look at the camera, let alone hold still. You chased down an entire family of ducks, ate your requested lunch of tuna sandwiches and Cheetos, floated out to sea a few times, made a new friend, and, did I mention announced to every person on the beach that it was your, both of your, birthday?




Livvy’s third word surfaces (first and second used strictly for emergencies)–”Ducks!”
And a point.

After the lake we had a pizza party dinner, at which point in time we had completely run out of steam. The girls were able to chat with Daddy and open their presents from Grandma & Grandpa Davis, and finally muster up the energy to blow out some candles.


(Pretty sure London’s cupcake only had four candles on it, that’s how tired I was!)

All of us went to bed early, thank goodness, and when I asked you your favorite part of the day London said:
‘All of it…except when I was in time out.’
That about sums it up.
Happy Birthday to my darling little five-year old girls. I am the luckiest mom in the whole world!

From the Sidelines

written by leslie. Posted on November 8, 2009. Filed under Fly on the Wall, Twintuition. 3 Comments.

DSC02779

Yesterday we watched a mid-game three-player collision from the sidelines. As is a reflexive action for every parent, 3/6 of us breathed a sigh of relief that it wasn’t my kid, however what happened next was unprecedented in my book.

An un-injured Madelyn, having witnessed said collision, completely stopped, turned around, and headed toward one of the injured players–her opponent. She proceeded to help him up, dust him off, offering one last, ‘there you go’ before they both jumped back into the game.

Later one of the player’s mom made her way across the field to tell us how impressed she was with our daughter helping her son, who is also a twin, recover speedily. Chuckling, we concluded, there is just something about twins, collectively, that watch out for each other. Maybe the twin intuition, or twintuition (sorry y’all, I know we thought twitches was over) as I call it. But whatever the case, when we asked Madelyn about it later, she said- “I was just worried.”

Maybe it’s that simple.

There is a piece of yesterday’s game that I hope makes its way into Madde’s sense of self, something completely unrelated to the ending score. It is something that cannot be coached from the sidelines and sometimes not even exemplified from the sidelines. It is character.

A collision of players that brought my collision of thoughts.