Four months (plus a few days)

In that strange sensation that is "time," November 12 seems both days and years ago. These two little darlings are no longer the itty-bitty creatures we met at the hospital. (Although, I never really thought of them as "itty-bitty" babies, they were just my babies...this might be because I'd only seen a newborn in real life maybe once since the birth of my sister when I was five and didn't have a comparison.)

They are growing by leaps and bounds - both physically and mentally. According to my bathroom scale (we still have issues, the scale and I, by the way), Cora is floating around the 14.5 lb mark and Evaline is nearing 13 lbs! (For growth comparison pics, click here.) According to the babycenter.com's "growth chart calculator" this would put Cora somewhere between the 50-70th percentile (up from, I think, around 10% at two months!); and Evaline is holding steady in the 5 - 10 percentile range. (This is still an improvement, however, her birthweight was under the 3rd percentile.) Our 4-month doctor's appointment is on the 25th, so official stats will be available at that time.

I think there are probably many advantages to having your kids one at a time. But one area where I think that we parents-of-twins get an upperhand is in watching these girls develop. Instead of trying to remember back a few years, we get to see it happen. And it happens so differently: It is much, much fun to watch Cora lie on her side, trying to roll from back to tummy (she's really close), talking and babbling up a storm. She has so much to say - to everyone and to everything; she loves to talk. She can pick things up and hold them, but is a little slow and deliberate about the process. Meanwhile, her smile is more of a smirk (which Ian - a smirker himself - finds quite endearing). Evaline, on the other hand, can talk. She's done it before, and will do it occasionally. But she prefers to smile (with her entire body), and shriek whether out of pleasure and glee or sadness and pain. She also loves to hold things and will put everything she touches into her mouth. There are also a few signs that a tooth may be in our near future (but...that may be mere speculation, we'll have to wait and see on that one).

Overall, "fun" is starting to really outweigh the "work" here. Whether that will stay the same once we have two crawling, walking, grabbing, and wandering one-year-olds, we're not sure. But they're at a pretty good stage right now and time with them is at a premium.

One week 'til spring break. Then 10 until summer.

The "Four-month Picture"

Cora - enjoying the doorway-jumper

Cora - you can't hear it, but she's talking (and talking and talking)...

Evaline - what a doll!

The girls with their cousin Isabel