Kids can be crazy!

Things happen daily that make me think, Oh, life with twins and today was one of those days. For starters, Aubree has been potty training for....hmmm....let's see....I think it's ummm, 16 months now??? :) Well, okay so that's kinda the thing. At 16 months, she started showing an interest in potty training (I think bc her  cousin Chloe (2 years older than her) went "potty" and she wants to be like her) so we got a potty and started- not consistently, more just to get her used to it- taking her potty every once in a while. This was a GENIUS idea, or so I thought, bc I was due with their little sister 2 months later. Well, turns out that getting them used to the potty just makes it another "toy" in their life but really...what can ya do? I had 2 one year olds and was about to pop with another! I figured, oh, when they wanna go, they'll go. Well, for the last year that is pretty much how we have handled it and though they are not potty trained, they go occasionally and they do just fine...until recently. Aubree has decided that when she wants to go potty, she "want[s] Nick Nick to watch me". Oh my goodness! You would think having shared a womb, sharing beds, sharing toys, (some) clothes, carseats, bedrooms, birthdays, etc., a girl would want SOME space, but NO! She's gotta take the one most private and personal time she will ever have, and "share" it with her twin. Okay, but even more is that Nicholas likes to sit there and talk to her and wait for her to finish. Okay, gonna need some serious intervention here! Those 2 are so crazy!

So, speaking of sharing, my family is most giving during the cold/flu season. 2 rounds with Aubree, 2 with Belle and (thankfully) only 1 with Nicholas. You know how people always say that men are the worst sick people! A woman can be nearing her death bed she's so sick and you would never know bc she is still up taking care of kids, the house, making dinner, and just dealing with everything that must be dealt with even though she feels like c**p (that was kinda fun beeping that out) :) but then a man gets a little chest cold and hell shakes beneath our feet disrupting every aspect of life until he is better. (And of course most all wives have heard the, "yeah, but when I'M sick I'm REALLY sick" from them...bc when WE are sick, aparnetly we are not REALLY sick...ok, off track)

Well, here is a benefit to having boy and girl twins. I have them from birth to observe and study (and believe me, I HAVE) and so many things just stand out about the differences between boys and girls. For one, this sickness issue.

 Exmple 1: Aubree is born, 1 minute later Nicholas. Approximately 1 hour later, Nicholas is taken into the NICU bc of too much fluid in his lungs and respiratory problems. Aubree sucks it up (literally) and deals with it for as long as possible even trying to fake her way to health until a VERY observant nurse just doesn't "get it" and sends her to the NICU where they discover that she has all the same problems as Nicholas, but they are even worse! (point 1: boys want to be pampered, girls would rather suck it up and take care of themselves!---PROVEN!)

Example 2: Twins are approximately 5 months old. Nicholas starts coughing, I realize he is sick. He wines and is gripey and snotty and cough-y all day long. We end up calling doctor who sets him up on a nebulizer with antibiotics. I get home and play with Aubree bc I feel bad she has been nearly ignored bc of Nickle's sickness. While playing, I realize she has a little snot too. I start watching her and realize that she quietly coughs every now and then and also has congestion sounds when she breathes. I felt horrible I had not noticed sooner that she was also sick. (point 2: boys will exaggerate their symptoms to get attention and sympathy, girls remain quiet and continue to do what is expected of them without complaint---PROVEN!)

Example 3: Aubree and Nicholas are approximately 18 months. Aubree is laying on the floor on her stomach watching a movie. Daddy tells Nicholas to sneak up on Aubree so he does...let me re-phrase...he runs full speed and JUMPS on top of her full force knocking his head into hers *BANG!*. They both immediately jump up grabbing their heads, Aubree looking at mommy with a horrified expression, Nicholas screaming and crying. I look at them both and say, "it's okay" and Aubree looks at me, calms down still holding her head and sits back down to watch her show while Nicholas, still screaming, comes to mommy crying, "MOMMY MY OUCHIE! KISS IT! MY OUCHIE!" I kiss it and he still cries another minute asking 2 more times for me to kiss it again before he quiets down then turns to me and says, "Aubree hit my ouchie!" (point 3: girls get pain, they process it, they deal with it, it's over...boys get pain, they complain about it, they show it off for the sake of sympathy, they ask for attention, they use it as an excuse and then they blame it on someone else!---PROVEN!)

So, obviously this is scientific so it should go into some science records book somewhere.

Every family has some sort of system of operations they automatically go by, usually it has something to do with seniority or something like that? Well, since seniority doesn't really work so well in the instance of twins, our family works a bit different. It all has more to do with humor here. This is cool bc it gives Annabelle an equal opportunity to be at the top of that system of operations (that sounded kind of official so I just wanted to use the phrase again- in fact, I think I'm gonna make it official....NOW! add that to the science record book---dang! gotta find a location for that book) anyways, so the last few days have not been her day at the top bc she has been teething as well as she is sick with a fever and all so...kinda been at the bottom. Anyways, today she got a bit of a start- I told Aubree that Annabelle's mouth was "ouchie" (she has a sore throat) so Aubree looked at Annabelle and opened her mouth wide and said , "Belle Belle, say 'AHHHHHHHH'" so Belle Belle complied and said, "AH!" and Aubree did it all again and Belle Belle complied again. Well, a giggling Aubree went for a third shot at it and said, "Belle Belle, say 'AHHHHHHHH'" and as soon as she did, Annabelle reached her fist up to aubree's mouth and shoved it full force right into Aubree's throat! **Take THAT Dr. Aubree!**** (she may not have SAID those words, but she meant every one of them!) :) ***Please note that no children were harmed during this***

Okay, so a long day in a long week in a VERY short year...how is that even possible?

New nephew!

So does a 4oz cup of applesauce, 8 grapes and a string cheese qualify as dinner? Think about it, you got your fruit, dairy and protein (if the cheese can double it's value there). Maybe I should eat a second string cheese so then I can count one as dairy and one as protein. Guess I'm still missing my whole grains and veggies though huh? Well, tomorrow I can just substitute baby carrots for the grapes. Amazing how similar the life of a bachelor is to a tired mom of 3! Messy house, inconsistent diet, loads of unfolded laundry on the sofa, 10 boxes of cereal in the cabinets.............

So, my sister is being induced tonight. She is almost 1 week overdue for my new nephew, Azariah Jacob, and I am ecstatic!!!

So, the nephew to Neice total:
Nephews- 5                                    Neices- 1 1/2 (Kara due January)              TBA- 1 (Krystal due April)
Maximus Ezekiel Jones (3)             Chloe Breeanne Jones (4)
Titus Brant Jones (2)                       Raelin (Noelle?) Howard (-3mo)
Elijah Samuel Rees (2)
Justus Alexander Jones (1)
Azariah Jacob Aguilera(-1 day)

 Can't wait to meet my beautiful nephew!

Funny things my hunny says

Favorite thing my husband said today:

"Why would ANYONE buy $1,000 shoes? Who spends $1,000 on shoes? I'd rather buy 2 iPad's and ducktape them to my feet! Then my feet can facetime each other, 'Hello left foot!', 'Hello right foot'!"