Weddings and dreams

A few weeks ago, my dear friend Anne got married. It was a beautiful wedding, and Zaria got to be a flower girl, which was really special. We're still getting to know Suren, but he seems to be a really great guy and we're very happy for the new couple.

Jamin and Zaria do a father-daughter dance before the real dancing begins.

The new bride and groom, Anne and Suren!

L-R: Me (Sara), Suren, Anne, and Cassie.

Zaria, dancing along the mirror and enjoying her "spinny" dress at the reception.

Xander and Wesley, dreaming together in the backseat.

January pics

Zaria has been a great entertainer for the boys. She often participates when they're doing "tummy time" and demonstrates how to roll for them. We've been checking out the "easy reader" books for her lately, which she loves. She also loves to "read" to her brothers by showing them her books and telling them something about them (not necessarily the written story). Above is Xander in the Bumbo chair in blue pants, and Wesley on the floor. A nick name I have for them is "Xander Blue" and "Wesley Bear."
The boys are surprisingly tolerant of Zaria playing with them. She can be a little rough sometimes, but she tries to be gentle. She pulled Xander out of one of the swings a while ago and we didn't realize it until we spotted him nearby on the floor. She must've been fairly gentle since we didn't hear him complain at all. Still, we have been very careful to buckle them in since then.
The boys are growing so fast, it's hard to keep up. These pictures are from a few weeks ago-- last we checked on the bathroom scale, they're both around 16.5 pounds. Xander seems to be just a few ounces under his brother's weight. We'll see if he's caught up at their 4-month appointment this week.

Welcoming the twins

We added a couple of family members to our ranks last Monday the 13th, Xander James and Wesley David. They are wonderful babies, though we're still working on changing their sleep patterns to nighttime instead of daytime. (= Part of last night's troubles were my fault for letting Grandpa Lee hold Wesley and let him sleep in his arms most of last evening. Who wants to sleep in a crib after being held for hours and getting plenty of sleep already?

I'm also starting to wonder if the boys might be identical? Though they've looked a lot alike, I had thought one had bloopy earlobes while the other had fixed and that their noses were different, but as they're putting on weight, they seem to be getting more and more alike. Perhaps time will tell or we'll hear something from the hospital.

This photo is from Saturday. I've had a pretty easy time telling them apart until the last couple of days. Both of them have gained enough weight to surpass their birth weights, so they are growing very well.
Zaria is enjoying being a big sister and tries to help with baby care-- sometimes good, and sometimes bad. It's pretty hard to resist touching little newborns and she's usually pretty gentle, but then she also enjoys rocking them in their carseats quite vigorously or climbing on top of them to give them a pacifier when they're fast asleep. This continues to be a challenge, especially while I am recovering from the c-section and I can't forcibaly move her around. My stepmom, Dawn, has been here this week to help, so she's helped me try to keep Zaria in line. My Mom has also been around to help out. We've set up a Pack N Play upstairs and down to keep the twins safe as needed now. (=
Here's Grandma Dawn getting Xander ready for a diaper change.

Here are Grandpa Dave and Grandma Joy with Wesley and Xander, respectively.