In the Land of Two Threes

My babies, and we still call them that, are three.  Three years ago I was so ready to not be pregnant and also petrified about my third c-section.  I had Asher and Eowyn and then did not sleep for 48 straight hours due to adrenaline and breast feeding.  I reminded D of this yesterday and he said, "Hmm...three years later and we still don't really sleep much."

Here are some details about the tiny people who pretty much rule this joint:

They have eclectic taste.

They evolved from listening to the Blade Runner soundtrack before bed to watching octopus videos.  Asher and Eowyn are obsessed with octopuses(octopi, is that a thing, English is weird).  Before bed they watch a video of people in Korea eating LIVE OCTOPUSES!  D found the video on YouTube and thought they would love it, and they do.  It's probably even weirder than the whole Blade Runner thing.

They learn everything from their siblings.

I realized recently that both girls can count, recognize letters, and do all sorts of things I don't remember teaching them.  That's probably because I didn't.  Sammy and Wren ensure the younger two learn the basics, which is good because by kids three and four, I can't even remember what they are supposed to know by certain ages.  You'd think it would get easier, but I have a lot less time to hang out on BabyCenter checking out developmental milestones these days.  Plus, these kids have fried my brain so I can't remember much except that they all have to be fed and watered regularly.

What I've Learned

Do not ever actually talk to the adult siblings of twins.

Parents of adult twins will talk nostagically about the twin connection and all that jazz.  I think these individuals have blocked the biting, hair pulling, and screaming that comes from having two people the same age competing for everything.

But siblings of twins don't play.  While at the park, a woman saw Asher and Eowyn and said her twin brothers were born when she was eight.  Here's how the rest of that conversation went:

Lady:  Yeah, they were something else.  They drove a car through our house when they were three.
Me:  What?!?
Lady: But that's nothing compared to that time with the bomb.
Me:  What?!?
Lady:  Yeah, they made a bomb and set it off in the back yard, but it caught our tree on fire and then the house caught.  I think they were 11.
Me:  What?!?
Lady:  Yeah, twins are seriously advanced in certain areas, like problem solving.

Which I guess is true if the problem is you can't drive the car because you're toddlers and the solution is one of you steers while the other pushes the pedals.  But still, it's not encouraging.

Probably not planning world domination.  Asher on the left.

One-on-one time at home is near impossible.

Some of my favorite times with the kids are instances of one-on-one time.  With Wren and Sam, I can grab one of them and read a book or cook a snack, and the other one does not feel the need to freak out.  That absolutely cannot happen with Asher and Eowyn.

I think it's probably because they are the same age.  If I try to read a book to one of them without including the other, it is a disaster of epic proportions.  They love each other so much, but there is a desire for fairness that rivals anything I have ever seen.  Even if the other one is going to get special time next, they can't comprehend it.  I've stopped trying and now we do one-on-one time outside of the house, which ensures one parent is left at home with a screaming toddler who assumes they are being left behind because they're just not loved as much as sister.  I have no idea how to fix this problem.

They're two of the most hilarious people ever.

They will talk to you with their butt cheeks.  They quote movies in the actual character voices.  On certain days, they will only speak to each other using robot voices, and then they laugh maniacally at themselves.

Eowyn
Eowyn is a tender child.  Her feelings can be hurt by a glance, and though she is usually the one to instigate physical violence, she is also the one who cries the hardest if she thinks she's disappointed anyone.  When left at Sunday school this morning, she is the one who cried the entire hour because she thought she had received child abandonment for her birthday.  She loves to cuddle and would start breastfeeding again if she thought it was even a possibility.  It's not, but she still serenades my boobs on occasion just in case.

Asher  
Asher is my physical child who figured out how to move around in her water floaty and how to climb up to places I didn't want her to be the earliest.  She likes to do what the big kids are doing, and dancing is one of her favorite stress releases.  She adapts to new environments fairly well, but she has no problem letting you know if she's not happy about something.  When it comes to antagonizing, she is the one who will put her finger really close to your face but not touch you then cry when you retaliate.  She is also a cuddler, but she can play on her own just fine.

Eowyn in the red

I still haven't figured out all the finer points of raising twins.  It's new everyday, and sometimes I feel like we're in a pretty good groove and other days not so much.  They teach me about myself constantly, and I am honored to be their mom.  If I can keep them from setting our house on fire, I think I will consider this parenting thing a real success.