17 months?!

Tomorrow my sweet babies will be SEVENTEEN months old ... that just sounds old.  Here are the things I want to remember about them at this age ...

Amelia ...

Favorite word: Doggy!  Everything with four legs is called a doggy ... close enough, right?  The other night we were literally chasing two different neighbors down the street to pet their dogs -- Amelia loves dogs!

Favorite food:  Anything.  I kid you not, this girl can eat.  Favorites include sweet potatoes, turkey, cheese, watermelon, strawberries, green peas and raisins.  Also, she loves chocolate the few times we've let her try it (can't imagine where that love came from!)

Favorite activities:  Anything to do with water.  She literally drenches me and our bathroom every night  during her bath because she has so much fun splashing.  She also loves any type of ball -- she actually has quite an arm on her!  Amelia is fascinated with small details -- she loves to play with zippers, buttons, ties, laces ... she seeks them out and I can just see her wheels spinning trying to figure out how things work.  She is a very determined girl.  When she sees something she wants she sticks her tongue out (so cute), gets this very focused look on her face and GOES for it.  The other day she all out tackled Luke to get her play shovel back from him!  Ha!  What a sight!  Most of the time she's a pretty easy going and relaxed kid, but if there's something she wants -- she WILL get it!

Luke ...

Favorite word:  Ball!  Also, his first word, it's the one I hear him say most clearly and most often.  But he has an amazing number of words that he understands.  I will ask him to do things like, "Go get your coat and shoes and bring them to Daddy" and he DOES it.  Watching their communication develop has been such an amazing and rewarding process.

Favorite food:  This has been interesting.  If Luke had it his way he'd live on cheese!  So we've had to slowly stretch his diet and encourage his tastes!  We also started juicing (today the kids were downing a lovely orange/carrot/broccoli juice ... ugh!) which is a great way to back in extra vitamins and minerals into a more picky kid.  But in the last month we've seen a great deal of improvement in Luke's willingness to try new foods.  Current favorites include: avocado (always been a favorite), strawberries, french toast, black beans, ravioli, sweet potatoes.

Favorite activities:  Reading!  And yes, it makes my heart happy to write that :)  Right now Luke is in a phase where he just loves to be read to.  Dozens of times a day he'll carry a book up to me and say, "uhh uhh" meaning: "Mama, please read to me" ... so I pull him on to my lap and we snuggle while I read.  He's a very active boy so it's pretty much the only real snuggle time I get anymore so I soak it up!  He is happiest when he's outside.  He LOVES to play outside.  Finding sticks, digging in the dirt, smelling flowers (his book showed him how to do it and now he always walks up to flowers to smell them ... so precious).  His dad may have a thing or two to teach Lukey about yard work over the years!

I love this phase.  They're so curious -- loving to explore, test, figure out the world around them.  Two little scientists at work!  But they're still in constant need of reassurance -- always wanting snuggles from mom and dad ... and more recently from each other (cutest.thing.ever).  They sleep through the night probably 90% of the time which means I'm much more emotionally available to them since I'm not fighting constant fatigue.  I'm feeling so thankful tonight for these two ... loves of my life!

We've been having a great visit with Grammy and Gramps -- I always am in awe of how smoothly things run with extra adults around.  Tonight Grammy and Gramps did baths while I cleaned up the kitchen after dinner.  By the time the kids went down I was done with my chores which meant that I had a whole extra hour (a lot of personal time these days!) before bed!  What a treat!  It's just so fun to watch L and A develop a relationship with their grandparents.  Here are a few pictures ...

Look out!  Driving Gramp's truck!!

More water play (always!) with cousin Caroline and Grammy

Gramps and Lukey reading :)