The McPherson Chronicles

At the end of June we celebrated Great Grandma Rita's 95th birthday. Her 7 children were all in town for a special Mass and party at my parents house. It was fun to have everyone here for such a special occasion and it was nice to catch up with a few of my cousins too. The girls love parties and were especially fond of all the attention they got from cousin Faith. This was Andrew's first time meeting some of the family too. Even with his "stranger danger" he was a trooper for the weekend. This was the same weekend he got his first tooth so all things considered he did very well. We're so lucky to have Grandma living with my parents and so close all the time. The girls and Andrew see and interact with her on a daily basis. They know her scheduled- what time she watches what shows, how she likes her pillow and recliner etc. Grandma loves seeing and hearing all the things the kids can do or say everyday and they have a very special relationship. She is still so ind...

I realized I haven't kept up much with how our adjustment was after Andrew was born. I guess I was too busy just living it to actually even realize it! But now, 7 months in, I have time to reflect and process it all. It already feels like Andrew's always been here. Just having the girls, being pregnant and even him being born all feels sooooo long ago. How is it already closer to him being 1 than a newborn? The girls adore Andrew and have since he arrived. They are amazing big sisters. I love how every morning as soon as they hear him start chatting in his crib they ask if they can go in and say good morning. They stand next to his crib and talk and laugh. They make faces, give him toys, play peek-a-boo and talk or sing. Whenever he starts fussing and one of us can't get to him, they are always right there trying to make him feel better or tell us what is wrong. They love pretending to talk for him, especially in the car. I think they use him as their 3rd vote on anything...

We headed down to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park a few weekends ago to kick off our summer. There isn't a lot of shade there so it will be way too hot during the summer to go much so we wanted to get it in early. We had a fun day riding the carousel, seeing the gorillas and tigers, watching the cheetah run, visiting the bald eagles and condors and just walking around. I love that we saw different stuff than we did the last time we went a few years ago. Can't wait until we can go back in the fall and see even more. We'll spend the summer at the much cooler zoo instead.  

Loves to jump in his doorway jumper Calls for his sisters when he can hear them but can't see them Loves to laugh and giggle at the girls Eats sweet potatoes, cereal, avocado, peas and bananas Had his first double ear infections & antibiotics Weighs 20 lbs, wears size 3 diapers & wears size 9 mos. clothing  Super happy when he wakes up Loves his feet

Hanging out with Mama Enjoying all our toys Trying out new seats Reading with Daddy Loving sister playtime!

The girls are getting dangerously close to crawling. Update! Olivia figured out how to push herself backward today. Off she goes!

We took the girls to a pumpkin patch in Temecula on Sunday. It was a lot of fun with tons of pumpkins and places to take cute pictures, a corn maze, and pig races. By the way, pig races are hilarious! And yes, there was plenty of swine flu jokes to accompany the event thanks to my smart-alec husband. Olivia Lucy The girls always enjoy being out and about so they were fairly well-behaved considering they had just woken up and were hungry. Apparently, Temecula is quite a twin hub! While at the pumpkin patch we saw 3 other sets of twins! I don't know if there are suddenly more twins out and about, or if I'm just noticing them more than I used to. Melissa and Ross were able to come up from San Diego and spend the day with us too, which added to the excitement. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at the mall and celebrating all of our birthdays at the Yardhouse. Thanks for spending the day with us!

There are so many little things the girls do every day that we will too soon forget. There is no place in their baby books to write all these details down. No place for the things that these days, bring us so much joy and laughter. I do not want to forget them. Here are our current favorites: The girls playing with my hair when they nurse Olivia jumping away in her doorway jumper, happy as a clam Lucy proudly clapping her tiny hands Watching them snuggle up to their turtle blanket squares to fall asleep Hearing them laugh hysterically when we play peek-a-boo and say their names Their "twin talk"= babbling and squealing at and over each other There is so much more. Perhaps I'll make this a series of posts and add more things along the way.

Since the girls were born, we've been blessed to have so much help from our families. They've provided meals, babysitting, clothes, diapers, pep talks and loads of hugs and support. The girls are so lucky to have such a large, wonderful and loving extended family (as are we). We've been fortunate enough to have Aunt Sarah watch the girls since I went back to work in July. The girls are just as comfortable with her as they are with us, and she has allowed them to be in the comfort and security of our home every day. She's spent countless hours singing, tickling, reading, cuddling, rocking, watching Baby Einstein and loving her nieces. We're sad to see her daily time with the girls come to an end. We're so proud of Sarah for getting into her nursing program and can't wait to hear about her new adventures as she continues her education and ventures into a new part of her life. The girls will definitely miss her though we all know she'll be o...

So the girls have tried quite a few fruits and veggies now. They are good eaters in general and even if they don't particularly enjoy the days offerings, they plow through it without fussing and hope for a better menu for the next meal. Here's what they've tried: -green beans -peas -squash -sweet potatoes -carrots -apples -oatmeal -pears The only 2 things they haven't really enjoyed are green beans and peas (the photos above are pea-faces). Momma's not a big fan of those things either though. Apparently, green veggies aren't the favorite. Sweet potatoes seem to be at the top of the list with carrots right behind. The fruit seems to be a bit sweet for the girls so I mostly mix it with their oatmeal for breakfast. We continue to experiment with new foods and coming up this week are peaches, bananas and perhaps avocado.