January is almost over! Hooray!

Not that I love how quickly time passes, but I really hate winter, so I am really happy January is coming to an end. The boys are already nearly five months old! They are complete balls of energy now. We've had a busy month. They are both regularly eating solids now (pears, bananas, apples, and sweet potatoes), but of course are still nursing as well. Joel ate an entire banana the other day-- what a piggie! They continue to grow like crazy. They love to play all the time now. We went to Gymboree (a playtime class) yesterday, had lots of fun and met another baby their age. Both boys have started "talking" a lot recently, and they were their normal loud selves during the class. The other little boy was completely infatuated with Joel and Evan-- he couldn't look away! The three of them sat their smiling at each other nonstop after class. Hopefully we'll be seeing him again soon. Their first friend their age! We are going to start attending storytime at the library, and we might be joining a park district program soon as well. I am excited to get them out of the house to start socializing, and, to be quite honest, I need a change in scenery myself.
Daddy went to Spain last weekend, so the boys and I went to stay with my family while he was away. They got lots of time with Nonnie and Poppy and Aunt Jessi. Even Mark (Jessi's boyfriend) and Katie (Alex's girlfriend) came over and helped out. It was nice for the family to get to spend the time with the boys, and it was great to have the extra help... feels like my brain got a bit of a much-needed break!
Here are some pictures taken over the past few days:

Evan
Evan enjoying his apples

Joel and Evan (look at that happy baby!)
Mommy makes Joel and Evan laugh!
Looking more alike every day
Beautiful baby faces (Evan on left, Joel on right)
Mealtime!
He can't really sit up on his own yet, but Evan was able to balance long enough for a photo!

Joel, intently watching tv.

Taking a tv break so Mommy can get stuff done (No, I don't just mean taking pictures!)
Evan
Daddy is trying to convince me that they look alike... opinions?

Pictures!

Here are some recent pictures:

Beautiful growing babies!

Well, the start of the new year was no fun for me. I came down with a respiratory infection and was down for over a week. My mom and Dylan ended up coming to help out for two days, and that was a lifesaver. Poor Todd was basically having to manage on his own otherwise, and it was not good.

But Momma's better now, so life continues as normal again! Joel and Evan are now four months old. That was the big number for us, because now I can put them in daycare-type settings, which means I can take them to the gym for cheap childcare each day! I am really looking forward to being able to swim again, or even just taking a soak in the hot tub each day. That is the plan starting next week-- daily visits to the gym.

Friday we have their four-month checkup. I'm really looking forward to it. We recently changed pediatricians, so this is our first time with this new one (and no, we did not go with the kook we had interviewed, but we are going to that practice.) I'm really anxious to see what the boys measurements are; according to our scale at home, Joel weighs... EIGHTEEN POUNDS! Evan is around 14lbs. They are growing up a storm. Just this week we noticed that their two bottom teeth are showing just below the gumline. And they recently started eating solids! They both LOVE bananas, but those made them a bit constipated, so we switched to pears instead. I received an awesome food processor for Christmas, so now I'm really enjoying making all sorts of baby food for them. I now understand what everyone was saying about how gross the poop gets once they start solids... geez louise that is nasty stuff! (For those wondering, yes, cloth still works out with the poop change. I just line the diaper with a Viva paper towel. It keeps me from having to throw nasties in the washer.)

Todd goes to Spain next week. He and his Dad are really looking forward to their little trip. I'm getting quite jealous about his little vacation; he better bring us back some exciting gifts! The boys and I will be going to stay with family during that time, and I'm looking forward to Nonnie and Poppy and Aunt Jessi really getting to spend some extensive time with the boys. Maybe I can even take a few naps while we're there!

I've been taking pictures when I can, so I'll try to get some new ones up soon. Probably tomorrow, after their appointment.