A 13 year old told me that Reagan and Nolan tired her out after spending about an hour with them.
Welcome to my world.
They are on the go as soon as their peepers open in the morning until we sing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star at bedtime. They do take a nice afternoon nap, which gives me about enough time to clean up the mess the twinadoes made during the morning, get dinner started, clean a bathroom, and hop on-line (yes, facebook.) By the time they hit the hay each night, I'm ready to go right along with them!
Reagan and Nolan are on the verge of the "terrible two's." I see it coming. Reagan wants to be so independent that the frustration she experiences is mind-numbing for her. She also likes to get a rise out of people by doing things she knows she should not do. She laughs. Right.At.You. Nolan is pretty tolerant, but when he reaches his breaking point his vice is throwing things or saying "no hit" "no kick" while doing just that. I keep reminding myself that the Terrible Two's will be as bad as I allow them to be, since the kids are really having a terrific time testing boundaries and exploring. They just need to be guided in a way that doesn't show the adults frustration with them. Something that is hard to remember, but gets the job done in the end.
Kids say the darnedest things and Reagan and Nolan are no exception. There isn't a word they won't try to say, especially Reagan. Her vocabulary and ability to put sentences together really blows us away. Nolan will benefit from more one on one time since Reagan tends to push her way into any conversation or book he and I happen to be reading. That is just her personality and his is to let her take over. I told Bill he is going to have to get stronger in that regard or women are going to walk all over him for the rest of his life!
Here are just a couple examples of what they are saying these days:
They both know their address (number and street; still working on city and state)
The other day Reagan was looking out the window yelling, "Sammy, be careful." (Sammy is the name she gave the squirrel(s) that play in our yard.) I asked her what he was doing and she said, "climbing on the roof." Sure enough, there was Sammy at the peak of our neighbors roof.
Nolan has a whole conversation by himself. If I say there is a mess or something is dirty, he will say, "Oh no! A mess. I clean it. OK."
Nonny Linda & Grandpa Fred were over for dinner recently and as they were pulling out of the driveway, Nolan yelled "Bye Fred!" Reagan yelled "Bye Grandpa Fries!" Guess between the two of them, they will get his name straight!
They are both learning a little Polish. I don't pretend to speak it well or know how to spell it, so this will be phonetically. Dye-me boushi means "give me a kiss." They will say dime bousie and run up for a kiss. They have mastered the word "dupa."
Speaking of nether regions, here is a little potty humor. Nolan was in the powder room with me one morning and I was explaining that I was going to the potty and was gassy (they love that word.) I farted (yes, we all do it!) and I asked Nolan what that noise was and he answered "An elephant!"
Reagan has picked up my "how about." I usually say "how about we clean up before doing X" or "how about we have a smoothie for breakfast." Whenever Reagan wants to watch a particular show, it is "how about....."
Nolan knows the quickest way to get a cuddle is to come up to me with outstretched arms saying, "Come 'er. I sleepy. So tired." All the while patting me on the back with his head on my shoulder.
Reagan was looking through a gardening catalog today and she kept saying, "That is Cheeto's house." (She named my mom's bird Cheeto a few weeks ago.) I asked her to show me and she pointed to a have-a-heart trap. Close enough.
This is their time to test boundaries, explore, and learn. What a fun spring & summer it will be. If it would just hurry up and get here!
The egg coloring went pretty well until some (well, all) of the purple dye got spilled on Reagan's high chair and on Reagan. They were wearing old oversized t-shirts, but she will be sporting some purplish legs for a few days. Some of the dye got on her high chair and on our hard wood floor despite having plastic down.
To some a big deal. To me, not so much.
To me those stains (and as minuscule as they are, I bet I'm the only one that can even find them) are memories. From now on I'll look at that floor and think of Easter 2009 when my son had such a good time playing in the green dye that he looked like the incredible hulk....as did Uncle Sam who helped him and got pretty splashed up in the process. He would tell Uncle Sam "more eggs" and Uncle Sam would take the egg out of the cup and Nolan would put it right back in and stir it up with his wax crayon. Laughing the whole time. They had a good time. That is what being a kid is about.
Those stains are what will make this house our children's home. One I want them to have so much fun in. Messes and all.
Reagan got four eggs done before the accident. The first couple she thought she needed to lick when they came out of the dye. Once she was wet and sensing some irritation on Daddy's part, she was done. When she was offered to have Grammy give her a bath, she took it. She will have her fun when she gets to put stickers on the eggs.
Into each life a little purple egg dye must fall........
Reagan's steps of egg dying....dip, then suck. Yuck. 
