Wendy and Miriam are 4

Happy 4th birthday to my twins. 

Rainbow cake at Grandma's house

Wendy can be bold. She gets into a new situation and decides what the most interesting new thing is and pursues it.  Sometimes it means she sees new friends and, if so, she's the first to speak up,  "Hi, I'm Wendy and this is my sister Miriam."

Other times, like at a new playground, she will make a beeline for whatever new equipment she wants to check out. She is a few inches shorter than Miriam and totally owns it. Sometimes she tells me that she wants to be as tall as me when she grows up. Other times she brags about being the smallest. She has gotten really good on her pedal bike with no training wheels. Whenever a new person arrives at the park, she will ditch her play to jump on her bike and do a few laps, enjoying the adults' impressed comments. She loves outfits that match, like all red or all purple,  instead of just coordinating. She also loves to match with Mommy. She would like to be with Mommy every second of every day, but actually does really well in her 2 days a week preschool. 

Miriam is a sweetheart. While Wendy may choose to speak up first in social situations, Miri really loves people and friends. She often will choose to find new friends over finding new things to play with.  She has a stronger bond with Theo because she seeks him out and is willing to let him lead the activities. She still gives the best hugs. Even after she has been mad at me for enforcing a boundary, she usually wants to calm down by giving me a big hug. She still has her yellow dog, called "Dogoo," that is her absolute favorite. While Wendy alternates between favorite stuffed animals, and Miri likes other stuffed animals, but Dogoo is the best. I once asked her if she could have any toy in the world, which one would she like. She said,  "Dogoo." If she wakes in the middle of the night, she always comes to find us, carrying Dogoo. Miri is good with numbers. The other day a picture book asked how many candies were on the page. They were arranged in groups of 5. Miri said,  "Three 5s are 15." She was right, and I was very impressed. Theo said she probably learned to say it from watching Number Blocks. 

For the birthday party, the girls decided they wanted to decorate rainbow and funny face cupcakes. I asked who they wanted to invite.

Wendy yelled, "Jenna!"

Miri yelled, "Jenna"

Both yelled, "Jenna! Jenna! JENNA! Jenna! Rachel! Theo! Mommy! Daddy! Grandma! Granddad! Jenna!"

Well Jenna was sick, so she and Rachel, her sister, couldn't come. We will have to have her over another time. The girls had a very good time with just their immediate family and grandparents.

We started with a magic show by Theo. Then we had a treasure hunt (using a treasure chest Tammy gave me) and inside were aprons in rainbow colors. That was supposed to be the take home gift for the guests. Then we decorated cupcakes. We were also supposed to do rainbow fruit kabobs, but by the time we were done decorating the cupcakes, the kids wanted to sing happy birthday and open presents. The kids got lots of presents, including 5 games, which they wanted to play immediately, so that's what we spent the rest of the party doing. Zinah dropped off Jenna and Rachel's gifts and they really liked the little baby dolls and the pictures that the girls drew and the necklaces Rachel made for them too. They didn't get opened for awhile because the girl were so busy with the rubber band board and Noodle Knockout Ramen Game and the Monkey Balance Game.

Written Oct 13

This morning while brushing my teeth the girls came and tattled on each other several times. 

As I finished, Miri told me her sister needed a time out. 

I told them I thought they just needed to play by themselves for a bit. 

They screamed, "No!!!!" 

Miri said, "I will never ever ever be without my sister!"

Then they hurried off together, happy. 

I saw them a few minutes later playing pretend. They glared at me pointedly and Wendy said, "We are making friendship pizza."

I guess I got told. How dare I suggest they play separately?

Written October 17

Wendy: I would like a pickle sandwich with ham, tomato, and mayonnaise. 

Today I found out that ham is just a condiment.

Also, I'm not sure if my girl is adorably funny, or if I'm just a parent who thinks everything their kids do is amazing. 

The girls told me that today they are grownups and I am a baby. They are doing lots of things because they are grownups. They unloaded the dishwasher. They couldn't reach some cupboards, but told me I was a flying baby and could reach some places for them. 

Written December 1

Today I told the girls that instead of walking to Theo's bus stop, we would drive because it's cold and rainy. 

Wendy argued that she should be able to ride her pedal bike. I said, no, that the bike wheels could slide and she could get hurt. 

"But Mommy, " she argued, "cars have wheels too!"

I gave her a high five, but still insisted we drive. Good argument!

Written December 16

Today the girls saw a wedding on TV. They asked about when Daddy and I got married. After giving some details, they asked, "But were we invited to your wedding?"

I tried to explain that they hadn't been born yet. 

Miriam said to Wendy,  "She didn't invite us!"

Wendy turned to me and asked,  "Then who stayed with us while you got married?"

They are pretty smart, but I don't think I convinced them. 

Painting the stepping stones that Gabi and Tache got them for their birthday

"Mommy, can you help me tie my Miriam's princess sweater? She said I can wear it."
"Of course."
"Mommy, can you help me put on my helmet?"
"Of course."
"It's a good day for princesses to be safe."
Great mantra. I couldn't convince her to wear shoes, though.

Extra special nails with Gabi!

Kids are just a little wiggly.

Theo got a new, bigger bike. 
Jay was worried that he wouldn't understand how to use the speeds, but he immediately picked up on it and also announced after his first ride which speeds he preferred, so he's a speed snob.

I didn't get a photo of the first time I came out and the girls were both up on the wall. They are great climbers. Also, they aren't allowed to do this because the yard behind us is a lot lower.

They wanted to make face cupcakes for their birthday party!

The day before the girls' birthday party, Theo came home from school and said that there was a magician the performed at his school. Miri said wistfully, "I wish I could have a magic show at my birthday party."
So the Amazing Theo practiced and reprised his performance so Miriam could have her wish.