Rub a DubDub two stinkers in a Tub!

They LOVE playing in this toy tub.

My little lady bugs

I was separating the girls clothes the other day because they have grown out of their 12 month clothes, and I found these!  So I had to make them wear them for a bit.  Especially since they matched the outfits they were wearing!

Hello little ladybugs!

Flying away

After they were released from the hats!  Da dressed us today!  He even did our hair!  Good job Da!

Ana and the three little bears

Ana was adament that she was going to carry around all three bears at the same time... pretty funny.  She did get it though!

Got all three

oops one dropped

trying it again

GOT THEM!!!

Cloth Diapering

So Ben and I have been looking at ways to save money.  One of the ways that I came across was cloth diapering.
It cost me 200 dollars to buy everything that I needed, and I figure the girls will be in diapers for another 8 months to a year. 
We have been spending a load on disposables, and we did the math and we would save just over a thousand dollars by switching.
Then we have the benefit of having the diapers just in case we decide to have another one. 
Also, after we are through with them as long as I take care of them, I can sell them!  They actually retain value pretty well.
So...we decided!  Cloth diapering was going to be for us.

We started the week before Thanksgiving, and tonight is the first night we are trying it overnight.  The days have gone great.  Where it does add time to my day, it is just in 10 or 15 minute increments, so it does not seem too bad.

There are many great benefits of cloth diapering, it is better for the environment, it is less expensive, ect and so forth. 

The one thing I did not expect is how I felt the first time I put a cloth diaper instead of a disposable diaper on my child.
It was a fantastic feeling. I don't quite know how to describe it, but I felt like I was an awesome mom when my daughter touched her diaper, and wanted to snuggle with it, and when I put it on her little bum, her smile was 1000 watts. 

They love the feeling of cloth vs whatever disposables are made of ( I guess I really don't know...) 
So pride in making a good choice for my family swelled within me.  That was unexpected, and grand!

I bought a flannel sheet from a second hand store and cut it up to make wipes.

Laundry day (I didn't have enough clothes pins, so they were hanging oddly.  I have purchased more now!)

 

Our Stash

Ana in her very first cloth diaper

Emily in her very first cloth diaper

Playing outside

The girls still love being outside!
The weather got chilly for a week, and is now warm again for a bit.  Here are some outside pics!

Emily



Ana

 

Emily loves laying in the grass looking up at the trees

Both girls laying in the grass

Curious about the swing

Ana was so curious she got on her hands and knees to look at the bottom!

 

Intro to a Praying Mantis

The girls freak out about bugs, so I figured this guy would be worth a hollar or two.  Nope.  They were enthralled.

He was down at the bottom when they were looking at him.  By the time I went to get my camera, he was at the top.

Boots

The girls are very fond of shoes, and boots for that matter...

So one day Ben and I were just having a bit of fun!

Ana in Moms boots



Emily in Da's Boots

On the way to GrandDads!

I pulled out some new 18 month outfits for the girls to wear to visit GrandDad, and had to take a few pictures of them since they are super cute!!

Ana playing with her puzzle

Ana

Emily learning about feelings

Emily done with feelings...:)

She was eating an apple!  but this is the only pic I got of the whole outfit...

Out of town

I am going out of town tomorrow and I will not be able to keep up with my Thankful posts, but I have so many things that I am thankful for.  There is no way that one month could cover it all. 
Thank you for putting up with me doing this!  I wanted to write it down for myself as much as anything!  There are so many things that can happen in your life that can drag you down, and make you think... if only...ect
It sometimes takes writing a few things down to realize how blessed you really are, and how much you have.
I am very blessed. 

November 20

Today I am super tired, I stayed up way to late last night and then had one poor little girl today who is getting some eye teeth and another molar..She has burst out crying every 10 minutes or so...She had a lot of frozen peas...ANYWAY I am looking forward to a good nights sleep tonight
... onto the thankful post.
I am thankful for my Mother, but one thing I want to mention in particular.  She was driven to make sure that I had the best chance at a normal life.  She found a doctor to help, and then EVERY morning for many many years she would get up early to do physical therapy with me. 
She didn't have to do this...But she did, and she was diligent. 
I know that it is because of this that I have the life I have. 
Where this all ties into the previous subject of being tired.  This doctor that she found did many amazing things, but one was to teach me ways to put myself to sleep since I was on medication that had side effects of sleeplessness. 
I now have very few nights where I cant immediately go to sleep and get good solid rest.  It is a life saver! 

November 19th

I know this is going to be an odd post, but I read many books, and they remind me of far worse times. I am so grateful that I live in a time of running water and such other niceties.  I don't like the idea of having to run to the outhouse in the middle of the night, or the day for that matter. 

November 18th

Organizations such as the March of Dimes.  They have learned so much about prematurity and my family benefited from that. 

November 17th

I am thankful for the FW MoM group.  I have just joined, but I have gotten so much from them already!

November 16th

My discover card! 
I know that is odd, but we have been saving up our points on this card, and it has paid for all of Christmas this year so far.  That has been such a great blessing.

November 15

The First Baptist Church in Burleson
We are going to church with Pop while we are living with him, and the people and pastor of his church have been so accommodating.  They even now have someone in the nursery in the early service so that we can leave the girls and actually get something out of the sermon instead of handling the girls the whole time!

November 14

I am thankful that we have an offer on our house finally!  We are still going to end up in the hole if we accept it, but in the hole at this point might be better than not ever selling! 

November 13

I am thankful for people like this.  This opens peoples eyes to other opinions, other issues, and mostly in an open and honest way.  I hope that he doesn't mind me posting on my blog about his.
http://www.joshweed.com/

While we have such a long ways to go as a people, I hope that we can eventually get to a point where we leave the judgement of all things to God.

November 12

Bountiful Baskets.
My brother turned me onto these, and they are fantastic.  If you don't know about them...here is their website.  Check them out.

http://www.bountifulbaskets.org/

I love fresh fruit and vegetables, and this has been a fantastic find! Thanks Mike for filling me in.

November 11

My health
I have struggled with this for so long.  I am so thankful that I found out what was wrong with me early in my life so that I could change my habits, and live better in order to help myself  feel better and perhaps live longer.

November 10

I am thankful my husband has a job.  With so many people out of work, and with my own family struggling with being unemployed for so long, I am so grateful that he has found a job that has potential to support his family without me having to go back to work. 

Bugs!

Emily has become afraid of bugs.  It is so funny (to me).

She will see a bug, and do a little yell scream freeze in her spot and either swish her arms or point until I take care of it.

We were outside and she saw a bug and did this...so funny..

Emily with the bug in front of her frozen in place

the bug lol

Alice in Wonderland

I got some really good deals at Target on some clothes that the girls have been needing, but I was going to give them to them at Christmas since we are probably going to go pretty light this Christmas.  I got these shirts which are Alice in Wonderland shirts and they are super cute.  I washed everything before I wrapped it, and these shirts shrunk quite a bit!  I figured that if they were even going to be able to wear them it would have to be now...  So they got a Christmas present early...

Emily in her new digs

Emily beating on Ana with a letter...usual stuff! :)

Whats in there?

mix and match

The girls got some really cute birthday outfits, and they were all 18 months, and all hot weather clothes!  But most of them were so cute that I just have had to try to mix and match warmer stuff with them so they can wear them...Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnt, but it has been pretty cute regardless!

Ana

the back

Emily

the back

Emily is always so serious in pictures

Ana is always happy!

I took away the books for a while becasue they were destroying them.  This day I gave them back, and they played and read for probably 30 minutes

Dad getting ready to go to work (Emily)

Ana and Da!

Piano

We brought our piano to Pops house becasue I didnt want it hanging out in the storage shed...The girls are now old enough that they are fascinated by it.  Ana especially.  Everytime she walks by it she looks at me and asks to play!

I took pictures on multiple days...

Flower

Pop has had this flower which has looked exactly like this from before we came...It has been pretty amazing.

November 9

My Twins Group on facebook.

I actually dont know how to put into words how thankful I am for all this group. 
They have been my life line.  At 2am, 5am, 8am, 10am, noon, 2pm, 4pm, 8pm, 10pm, Midnight...It doesnt seem to matter.  There is almost always someone there to listen.

November 8

My support group.  My friends.

I am thankful for my friends.  I have not always had too many good friends that I was anxious to see and keep up with. 
I am not so good at taking care of good friends.
I am thankful that I have made a few that have stuck by me. 
Who have been there for me in hard times and happy times.
What would I have done without all of you?

Daily grind

Just another day in the life post... I take pictures pretty much everyday of these girls...cant help it!

Just sittin

Emily giving her sister a little squeeze!

Just relaxin

Up to no good...