What did he say?

Well, Nolan has yet again surprised Tricia and I with his ever-expanding vocabulary. The other night it was him saying "Elephant" when I turned the page in his book...then he followed it up with the "whewwwww" sound we make when we read it to him! Crazy! He's learning his animals and colors at daycare, so we are consistently surprised with what he talks about. This past week he said strawberry and bunny, too. He is rapidly becoming a little stinker and now enjoys running around the house whenever we ask him to "come here." It’s a great game, let me tell you. He is also realizing the impact of us saying “no” or “naughty” to him. As soon as we say it he starts to cry because he’s not getting his way. Do the terrible 2’s start early at 17 months?

Last week Jane introduced Nolan to the new baby who will be starting at daycare in September. Erica happened to pick up Nolan that day because Tricia and I were at the Twin’s game, and apparently he was not happy with this little baby being the center of attention...Oh boy, will he be in for a shock when his first sibling shows up! Jane recommended we think about buying a baby doll to carry around the house to break him in a little and get used to the idea of a baby being around, so Tricia went out and bought one. So far he hasn’t been too impressed, although he has started giving it kisses when we hold it. It feels a little weird, but we’ll try anything to make the transition a little easier for him! Tricia had her 38 week check-up on Monday, and as of right now there's nothing happening to suggest we'll be needing to bolt to the maternity ward anytime soon. There really haven’t been any contractions since last week, so we’re pretty sure the baby is happy and content being in the belly!

Last weekend was busy for us. On Friday night we watched Chris and Sasha’s little boy Jackson so they could go to the Twin’s game. They dropped off Jackson with Tricia at work and she brought him to our house, and I picked up Nolan. It was pretty funny watching them play together. At one point they were both sitting at the little table, pounding their little hands and laughing! Dinner was also pretty hilarious. We fed them pork chops, green beans and mashed potatoes. The meal was a pretty big hit, because every time one of them took a bite he would say “mmmmm”, and the other one would take a bite and say “mmmmm”. I looked at Tricia at one point and commented that I never thought our Friday nights would be spent like this! By the time we bathed the boys and got them both in bed (which was surprisingly easy - they both went right down!) we were exhausted. How do people with twins have any energy? On Saturday I helped my buddy Jared celebrate his bachelor party, and Tricia spent the afternoon with his better half, LeAnna, celebrating her bachelorette party. It was a little nerve racking being 2 hours away from home this close to the due date, but it all worked out – no baby yet! I got home around noon on Sunday, and noticed pretty quickly that Nolan was ready for a nap. I asked him if he was ready, and instead of answering he walked in to this bedroom, climbed in his bed and grabbed his blanket. Hopefully this will become a routine! This was even after he slept from 7 pm Saturday night to 7:45 Sunday morning! On Sunday afternoon Tricia and I took Nolan to the local beach in hopes of enjoying the heat for awhile. Nolan (and me too) enjoyed digging in the sand and blowing bubbles in the water. Nolan also took a liking to kicking his legs and getting bobbed up and down in the water. I think next summer we'll be spending a lot more time there!

On Monday night we celebrated my sister Erica's birthday out in Waconia at Lola's. Other than having to get food a little before everyone else (as Nolan's teeth seem to be coming in again) we had a nice meal. The highlight was getting to take Nolan and Claire out to the deck on the lake and feed the blue gills pieces of bread and french fries. (I think I got as big of a kick out of it as they both did!)

There will be more to come soon, with Nolan continuing to grow and expand his lungs along with the addition of another member to the family! We've got the names picked out (we think) and bags partially packed. I think the baby will come early, but Tricia is convinced it won’t show up until after September 9th. Anyone else want to place a bet?