1 Year, 10 Months

Here we are, just two months away from two years old, and life is always like this:

Well, maybe not. But it's nice to have proof that they are occasionally nice to each other.

The boys have been growing and learning new things at a startling pace. I'm surprised every day at the new words they've learned; they're amazing little sponges. Henry talks quite a bit more than Jack at this point, but they both demonstrate excellent comprehension.

They definitely have favorite words. Henry's is "Hawaii" (after hearing it in discussion). I can't begin to count the times I've said "no, Henry, we're not going to Hawaii today," which is typically met with an emphatic response of "go!" 

Jack's favorite word is "CAR!" Loudly. At every car he sees. Sigh.

The boys are also fond of the word "yellow" and will answer that first anytime they are asked the color of something. They enthusiastically respond "yellow!" with mischievous grins. I have no idea why they think that's so funny, but they do seem to know their colors so they're definitely doing it on purpose. 

The boys got their first "official" haircuts earlier in the month (not including Mom's desperation buzzing around the one year mark to stop the incessant hair pulling).

Jack seemed pleased to show off his new look:

Henry summed up this thoughts thusly (with an eye roll):

The boys find many ways to entertain themselves at the table. They find their cups particularly fun, for stacking and hoarding.

Jack and the milk cups:

Henry and the water cups:

The boys love their outdoor time, much to their mother's chagrin (seriously, the inside is climate controlled, has comfy chairs... anyway). Henry and Jack help Dad in the garden:

Grandma and Grandpa Pool fittingly bought them... a pool. The weather was finally warm enough to use it last weekend, and the boys were thrilled. Jack foreground, Henry background:

Twin life, being constantly pulled in two directions (Henry left, Jack right):

We recently discovered that the boys can drink through straws (which isn't all that surprising, it's just that we'd never tried before). They've gotten to try fruit smoothies on some of our recent hot days.

Jack enjoying his treat:

Jack, dubious of his brother's request for smoothie:

Jubilant Henry upon receipt of smoothie:

Henry
Henry continues to be a little sunshine boy... except when brother is harassing him.

Another side of Henry, concentrating on his bead track: 

Henry's favorite attraction at any park is the swing. He hasn't quite figured out how to pump his legs, but he's excellent at holding on and likes to swing pretty high for a little guy.

If he's not swinging, Henry can usually be found collecting rocks or picking flowers. He has quite the vocabulary now and will enthusiastically announce his finds. 

Henry's favorite flowers are poppies. He will excitedly shout "poppy!" upon seeing them and then demand to pick them.

Mom said no...

... but then caved.

Studiously reading... it's difficult to believe how big the little dude is now:

Jack
Jack is... a handful.

Who, me? 

It's okay, we found a way to contain him:

My favorite story from this past month involves Jack and his dinosaur backpack:

We were walking downtown when a man across the street shouted, "look out, there's dinosaurs!" To which Jack responded, very loudly, turning heads up and down the street, "RAWR!"

Jack, master builder...

... who's quite proud of himself.

Bored with all of us, contemplating his next move:

One fun hobby he dreamed up, piloting his skuttle bug with his eyes closed:

We quickly ordered him some safety gear:

He was so excited the day his helmet arrived that he insisted on wearing it to breakfast (though he disapproved of me taking a picture for evidence): 

Hangin' around the playground:

Selfie to show off Mom's new glasses:  

They definitely look better on me, thinks suave Jack, after swiping them from Mom and putting them on himself:

Disapproving Jack, upon discovering his meal contains absolutely no cheese (the horror!): 

Jack is obsessed with cheese; we may need to get him some help.

Old man Jack at one of the boys' favorite places, a colorful mural downtown:

"Ta da!" Celebrating his accomplishment of emptying out a toy bin and climbing inside: 

Gymnastics
The boys' toddler gymnastics class has wrapped up. They primarily occupied themselves with trying to adjust the apparatuses (like, for instance, turning the knobs on all the bars), pushing buttons on the background music radio (Henry's favorite activity), and peeling repair tape off of the mats. However, in between all that, they did find time to do a few gymnastics-like things.

Swinging Henry: 

Swinging Jack (while Henry tests a door behind him):

Jack means business on the parallel bars:

Henry takes a breather in the tent/tunnel obstacle:

Steve's Birthday
Steve turned 35 this year. The boys got him balloons... which they occasionally let him hold.

Jack performs perfectly, bringing Daddy his balloon:

Henry brings his balloon over in a more unconventional fashion:

They all liked the birthday donuts, I swear:

You see what I'm dealing with here? Anyway...

You never have to open your own birthday gifts when you have two toddlers:

Jack shows off the coloring job on Steve's gift wrap:

"Who colored that, Jack?" "Brother!" (Amusingly, he was correct, that was the side Henry was coloring)

Travel
We were able to visit Steve's parents this past month. The boys love running around a house much bigger than their own, are big fans of Grandma's awesome toy truck collection, and absolutely delighted in some playtime with Cousin Camdan.

Grandma was kind enough to make the boys some play dough in Henry's favorite color. They had a great time moving it around, stamping it with cookie cutters and cutting it with little plastic knives.

Grandma looks on while Dad and Henry work on their creations:

Jack is a bit unsure about this stamping thing:

In the end, they thought play dough was pretty great: 

I asked Jack if he was going to drive us home from Grandma and Grandpa's. His response was a firm nod and this expression:

We found a great park to stop at around the halfway point between our house and Steve's folks' place. Definitely made the trip better for the boys.

Added bonus, giant soccer balls:

Henry was also a fan of the fluffy wind-blown feather grass:

One cool feature of that park is its kid-activated water play areas. Just press a palm to the hand print button and an awesome fountain show begins.

Dad and boys admire the show:

Mom encourages the boys to step on in: 

Some perspective on the water play area, a little Henry and a giant palm tree fountain: 

There's another separate water play area in another section of the park that we'll definitely investigate next time.