Mika on Mother's Day

Allison on Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!

Today is the second Mother's Day for our little tykes. What a difference from last year when we were proud if they managed to hold their heads up for a few seconds! We saw Jason's family yesterday and Kaylee's family today. Allison and Mika delighted in showing everyone their latest feats.

Learning to walk has definitely taken a backseat to learning to talk. Both girls happily say shoe, balloon ("baaooon"), ball, hi, bye-bye, wahoo, no, and of course the old favorites ma-ma and da-da. Mika even said something yesterday that sounded suspiciously like "granpa." There are probably others that I'm forgetting. "Ba-ba" continues to have a multitude of meanings.

Their mimicry skills are amazing. They can parrot back to us almost any sound we make. They even can make a bunch of sounds that we can't, like that crazy tongue-rolling thing that Mika enjoys so much.

On top of what they can say, they understand A LOT of what we say. They've started using a bunch of signs to tell us when they're hungry, want more, and are done. They even say thank you! Such polite little sweeties.

They are making progress on the walking front. They can stand quite steadily on their own and take a few steps before someone notices and starts making a big fuss. As soon as you notice they're walking, they'll sit down nonchalantly and refuse to try again until you're otherwise occupied and not paying attention. I really think they want to perfect the walking thing privately, then proudly march across the floor together like little experts.

There's a lot of "theys" in this post. But Mika and Allison really are identical in so many ways!!! Both show the same hesitance to walk, both love to talk and sign. The differences in their personalities are more subtle. This identical twinning thing is so bizarre to watch.

This year has been the biggest roller coaster of our lives. As I hugged Allison today, so many emotions and memories rushed to the surface. I don't care how cliche it sounds, being a parent really is the best experience in life. I'm so thankful that I'm a mom to such beautiful, loving little girls. And I'm thankful to my mom, mom-in-law, grandmom, and grammy-in-law. I'm lucky to have four beautiful role-models as I cross the threshold of my first year of mommyhood. All four of you have taught me so much about motherhood, about love, about support and experience and just plain winging it.

Thank you. I love you. We love you. Happy Mother's Day.