Mack Brown calling

In honor of their official status as hosses and promising future as members of the Longhorns' offensive line, we thought a little photo shoot was in order. (That, plus I wanted to practice using some of our new camera equipment and we needed a distraction since they've been a little fussy all day from their shots yesterday.)

Here's my teeny 6 lb 6 oz Baby A:

And his tiny 6 lb 2 oz brother, Baby B:

And the sweet brothers together (click the collage to enlarge it, and then you can click on it one more time to make it even bigger):

Reid L, Grant R

And now, my favorite series. I call it "Brotherly Love" (again, click the collage to enlarge it, and then one more time to zoom in):

That's Reid's fit-pitching face on the bottom right, in case it wasn't painfully clear. I'm pretty sure Grant is saying, "I'll show you 100th percentile..."

Look for these two on Fox Sports Southwest in 2030.

Crochet and crotchety look a lot alike. Coincidence? I think not.

My mom and I took a quick crochet class this morning at a nearby sewing shop. Here's the project I'm working on, a hemstitched burp cloth with a crocheted edge:

For the entire two-hour class, I wanted to throw the stupid thing out the window. Now I only want to hide it in the crack of the couch and forget about it, so we're making progress. At this rate I should have it finished just in time for the boys to quit taking bottles.

Overachievers

These boys are such TWINS... and huge ones, at that. It is so funny to me how neck-and-neck they have been since birth. Just 6 months old and they're already competing.

Today, for their 6-month checkup (three weeks late), Grant weighed 20 lbs 15 oz, was 29.25 inches tall, and had a head circumference of 18.5 inches. That puts him in the 91st percentile for weight and 99th for height and head circumference.

Big brother Reid came in a close second on weight at 20 lbs 13 oz and eked out a lead for height and head circumference with 29.75 inches and 18.25 inches, respectively. That's 90th percentile for weight and 100th for both height and head.

99th and 100th for height... whose kids are these??? Ryan is already salivating over the football prospects. Too bad their mom probably won't let them play, what with the new studies about it causing so many traumatic brain injuries and all that.

Their doctor said they look great. We got the green light to start feeding them food with a consistency other than mush, and, bless their hearts, they got three shots each. Aunt Morgan accompanied us to the checkup and I'm pretty sure she and I cried almost as hard as the boys did.

All was forgotten once we got home and got busy jumping, though.

Reid

Grant

I really think they're looking more and more alike these days, too.

Reid

Grant

Reid

Grant

Everyone keeps telling me how, just when you think the next stage can't possibly be any more fun or any cuter, kids prove you wrong. I'm just not sure my heart (or my back) can take it!

6 month checkup predictions

The brothers have their 6-month checkups this afternoon so, as we always do, Ryan and I have made our predictions:

Ryan
Reid: 21 lbs 7 oz
Grant: 21 lbs 10 oz

Melissa
Reid: 21 lbs 4 oz, 29"
Grant: 22 lbs 2 oz, 28.5"

Check back this evening to see how they measured up.

What a difference a year makes

This time last year, on my 31st birthday, I was 12 weeks pregnant, sick as a dog and eating pizza alone at home while Ryan worked until 8:30. I had been feeling crazy nauseous for about five weeks at that point, but I hadn't gotten sick yet... until... well, let's just say, happy birthday to me.

Fast forward one year, and I have had the best birthday ever with my three special guys.

It looks like Grant is thinking "Sweet, this has serious potential."

After a few minutes of festivities, it was business as usual around here. Reid wasn't really in the mood for veggies tonight, to say the least:

Reid - 1; Mommy - 0

And after getting his hopes up for creme brulee, Grant wasn't impressed either:

Finally, after 10 minutes of doing battle, Reid found something he was in the mood for:

So, even though we didn't do anything particularly noteworthy, I'd say my 32nd birthday has been pretty close to perfect -- after all, I already have the two most precious gifts in the world.

ttfn

My dad and Shelly stopped by last night so R&G could tell Pops "ta-ta for now" because he leaves today for three months in Angola. Reid was hard at work in his johnny-jump-up, so Grant seized the opportunity for a little one-on-one time:

He is extra sweet, snuggly, huggy-kissy these days:

He likes to put his hands on both sides of a person's face and just squeeeeeeze.

We had to pry Reid out of his jumper -- I swear the kid could spend hours in there and never complain. (He clearly did not inherit his love of intense physical exertion from me!)

Thanks again for coming over, y'all. And thanks for the salad -- it was delish!

Have a safe trip, Pops, and hurry home. We'll see you on skype very soon... and we can't promise we won't be walking by the time you get back!

The Daily Cute -- July 27

Daddy dog pile!

Peas and carrots

This one's for Poppy:

Reid

and Grant

go together like



My new favorite thing

How can it already be Sunday night?

We had the best day today! One of my favorite people in the entire world, Christy, drove from Austin to spend the day with us. Sadly, she left precious 9-month-old Oliver at home with his dad, but we still had a great time catching up (because talking every day at work just isn't enough).

I need to brag on my friend for a minute. She is crazy talented. She has been on the Martha Stewart show and she has an etsy shop of the most adorable baby onesies, burp cloths, stationery and more. She is always sending Reid and Grant (and me!) the cutest, most thoughtful gifts, from bibs to notecards to gift tags, and on and on. But this time she made what just might be the sweetest, most special baby gift I have ever seen--an 18x24 personalized alphabet of words and phrases that are meaningful to these little boys:

I seriously can not stop looking at it. I'm going to have to run out during lunch tomorrow to buy a frame because I can't wait to get it up on their wall.

And just look at this other cuteness from her shop:

Did I mention she also works full-time and has a 9-month-old?? Really her only shortcoming is that she lives in Austin instead of Houston... but I'm excited we'll get to see so much more of her and that beautiful boy this fall when we're in town for football games. I love you, friend!

(Edited to add: Check out the adorable photos she took of our sweet babies!)

Sunday evenings usually depress me, but I'm taking this Thursday and Friday off and the boys have their (belated) 6-month checkup on Friday, so I'm actually looking forward to the week. Any time I get to spend more hours with them than at work is pretty much perfect in my book!

A great-great day

Today Honey and I took the boys on a very special road trip to Huntsville to visit Tennie, their 98-year-old great-great-grandmother (Memaw's mom).

Generations 1 and 5: Tennie with Grant (L) and Reid R

We visited for awhile and the boys showed her a few of their tricks. Tennie hadn't seen them since they were 7 weeks old, and she kept remarking how big they are and how smart they seem... just like any good grandparent would. Here's a photo from her visit in late February:

Grant L, Reid R

We got an extra treat when the boys' great-great-uncle Charles stopped by to meet them for the first time.

The last time I saw Charles was at Thanksgiving, and today he couldn't help but remark--several times--about how I was the biggest pregnant person he had ever seen (and that was still 6 weeks before the boys were born). At this point I'm going to just wear that like a badge of honor.

Grant got a special treat--his first picture in a Stetson:

You'll notice the hat really wasn't all that big, either.

In keeping with the theme, this trip was also their first time to see this fellow, who any Texan worth his boot leather will recognize as Sam Houston.

Big Sam stands 67 feet tall on a 10-foot base. If you click on the picture to enlarge it and look closely at the one on the left, you can see people standing around the base, which gives you a better sense of the enormity. He is visible from the south for 6.5 miles.

And finally, just a funny story that my family will appreciate: As soon as we parked the car and were starting to unload the boys, the sweet lady who pulled in next to us said "Ohhhhh, are you here to see Tennie? These must be those great-great-grandbabies she has told us so much about." And then she added: "We just adore Tennie. She knows all the games." Truer words were never spoken.

But really, how many people are fortunate enough to have a great-great-grandparent in their lives? I want to make sure these boys never forget just how blessed they are to have such a large extended family that thinks they hung the moon.

Stop the clock

I typically avoid Babies R Us because I despise it with the fiery passion of a thousand suns, but tonight I had to make a quick trip to pick up a few things. I walked in with my list, determined to get in and out in under 5 minutes, but before I knew it I found myself wandering the aisles aimlessly and getting weepy over the fact that I no longer needed baby baby stuff. How is it possible that my tiny 6-pound babies are half a year old already?? Someone stop the clock!

So, before I start boohooing again, here's a little daily cute (taken on Sunday):

Grant

Reid

I'm going to go flip through old pictures and cry myself to sleep now. (Just kidding. Or not.) ;)

Happy birthday, Mimi!

Meeting Reid & Grant on their birthday

First time holding Reid (Jan. 7, 2011)

First time holding Grant (Jan. 11, 2011)

March 3, 2011

March 6, 2011

March 6, 2011

 

The boys' first Georgia visit: Apr. 9, 2011

July 15, 2011


Thank you for all you do for us and for loving us all so, so much! You are loved and missed more than you know.

Five grandparents in three days

These little boys think this is shaping up to be the best week ever! They have gotten to see five of their six grandparents in the past three days. First it was Mimi and Poppy this weekend, then Honey came over with Aunt KK on Sunday afternoon (and brought the boys to us this evening), and tonight Pops and Nana Shelly stopped by for some baby love.



Pops & Reid, Nana Shelly & Grant


My dad just found out that he'll be leaving next week for three months in Angola, so Raised by Wolfs will be going international. The boys are already excited for their first African souvenirs (no pressure)!