Disney World 2015 Part 1 {Packing}

I have found to the key to a successful trip with kids starts with the planning. My nature is more of a wanderlust traveler and I like to let the culture be my guide. With kids…NOT SO MUCH! 

With toddlers I know that surprises will come up, tantrums will happen and clothes will need to be changed. The more organized and simplified I can make packing the more help I have found my husband can be. When it’s all just up in my head then obviously only I can execute. So with this in mind I have developed my packing strategy! 

Step 1: I write out how many outfits I will need and pull up the weather report for the days we will be gone. Then I go one kid at a time and pull the outfits together making sure they are good for what ever activity we have planned for the day (ie. travel day is always soft clothes) 

Step 2: I place each outfit in a gallon zip lock bag with EVERYTHING they need to get dressed. Diaper, socks, hair bow, hair tie ect. The thought behind this is that the kids should be able to dress themselves with minimal help and questions. When left with a suit case of clothes I find they spend more time digging around and throwing clothes on the ground. Also when I tell Mr. T to dress a kid it ends up being me doing it because he can't put an outfit together to save his life and I end up dressing all three kids plus myself and we are 1.5 hours into the day and I’m already tired. With the clothes pre bagged everyone just takes their bag and gets stated. 

• this saves a ton of room in the suit case when you press all the air out. 

When we get home each evening I ask the kids to just put the clothes in a pile and I collect all the dirties into a trash bag. One for kids and another for adults. This saves me a ton of time when we get home because they are already separated kids/adults; dirty/clean so can just throw each load into the wash. 

My packing assistants

And presto only hours of folding left! 

Stories only a MoM can tell: potty training twins the outtakes

There are some moments that only happen with twins! 

Amongst all the fighting over, well everything, just when I'm at my wits end, I find them sharing the potty! How sweet! 

Ok really more of a mess than sweet! 

Guess I'll be buying a 2nd potty this weekend

Since I'm posting naked baby pics, here is what's going on as I type this post! 

Our ball pit got a whole and deflated so I turned tubby time I to a ball pit! 

1st Birthday Wishes

 Double the giggles,

goodies and sweets,

TWO times the wishes,

surprises and treats...

A pair of bright grins

from the time it begins-

It's TWICE as much fun

when a birthday's for twins!

Baby Rush,

You stole my heart from the moment I saw you. Not at all what I expected a boy to be, you are loving, patient & quite. Only for you will I continue to wake up at 4:30 am to see you smile you toothy grin.

 Miss Nixon,

Never have I met a person, grown or child, that has a better sense of who they are. You burst into the world with complete understanding of what you want and how to get it! You are strong willed and determined. You are also very funny and protective of those & what you love. Typical Leo you are turning out to be.

 Happy 1st Birthday

Rush Beckett & Nixon Elizabeth!

11 months have come and almost gone

Where has the time gone? I'm intended to sit down and write this post for WEEKS! The Twins are 1 week away from turning 1. It feels like I blinked and they are not babies anymore sniff sniff. Mr. T said this morning " wow next week they will be one" I said how it has just flown by. It was obvious by the look on his face maybe it has not exactly flown by to him.

Month 11 has been the most changeling by far. I said it a million times that I knew when they got mobil it would be a game changer! Oh has it ever! I'll put it in writing right here that I'm running away when they learn to walk!


Rush
You not only started crawling with great speed but you started crawling on all fours.
You pull up to standing on everything!
You wear a size 4 diaper (and still HATE to poop)
You wear size 12 month clothes
You are still the most loving little boy I have ever been around
you almost always have a smile on your face showing off all your teeth. 8 to be exact with 2 more on the way.

You STILL wake up for a bottle at 4am most days

Nixon
You started crawling about 2 weeks after your brother. Your never going to let him do something you can't!
Your still crawling on your belly
You can pull up to standing but would rather just be carried.
You wear size 4 diapers
You wear 12 month clothes
You run the show around here.  You are very funny
You taught your brother how to throw things over the balconey
Your sister taught you how to "shake" it so cute she will tell you to shake and you start shaking your head and laughing

You still don't like turkey
Your getting 4 teeth all at the same time! It's not pretty. You are waking up several times a night in pain & always pulling at your ears. I put a Amber teething necklace on you. I have no idea if its helping but I'm scared to take it off! 

You like music! When ever you hear music you stop and tune in! 

You say Dada ... All the time

On the whole:

In 5 days you guys eat (at least) 

2 containers of strawberries 

2 containers of blueberries

20 Plum organics pouches

10 sprout entree dinners

10 yo baby yogurts 

5 string cheeses

1 container of grapes

1 happy baby puffs

3 gerber ill crunchies

2 1/2 gallons of whole milk 

32 oz white grape juice

Cheerios ... Endless 

Around 300 diapers a month

Five months old

These pictures were taken on the twins actual five month birthday (January 7th) and I just now getting around to write this post. I have actually already written it twice but it was some how not saved. I wrote  it while getting my hair colored for the first time since October! Which turned out to be the worst hair color EVER and I spent another 4 hour hair apt doing color correction. If you live in Austin this will make since my hair was not so much yellow rose but a whole lot landing strip.

On to my FIVE MONTH old cuties! The time is flying by my little nuggets!

Rush Beckett

- first off you are so sweet! You just love for people to talk to you and you smile and coo back

-you are wearing 6 month clothes

-size 2 pampers

-you just started solids this last week ( a week & a half behind your sister)

-your not a fan of rice cereal but you love pears

-your drinking 6-8oz bottles

- you got the beginnings of your first tooth! Bottom right. So far teething has not been to ruff. There was two nigh you were fussy and had to sleep with me

-you can roll back to tummy and tummy to back

-you start out sleeping on your tummy but always wake up on your back

-you have found your thumb and are sucking it a little

-your favorite person is mommy. you love to listen to me talk and you pat my face

-you are the king of drool and spit up ! wow you bro thru a lot of outfits and bibs! 

Nixon Elizabeth 

-Hello my tiny diva

-you are on average 2 lbs smaller than your brother

-you have been an awesome sleeper! 8pm to 7am most nights for the last few weeks (but you don't really nap during the day)

-your favorite person is your big sister

-your wearing 3 months clothes 

-your wearing size 1 pampers

-you started solids over a week ago and you love to eat! You have loved everything you have eaten

-you eat about 6oz per bottle

-you sleep JUST like your big sister. You have to have your face snuggled into something. 

-You love action. You want to be able to see everything that is going on around you

-your fine motor skills are very advanced. you can grab objects and switch them from hand to hand. 

-you can roll tummy to bad and back to tummy

-you sleep on your tummy all night

-you smile big, laugh big and scream big

-your very ticklish 

We go thru:

 about 300 diapers per month

10 23.4 oz tubs of Enfamil Gentlease per month

14 to 16 bottles per day

caffeine ... bottomless

3 months old!

My little wee ones are three months old! Pictured here getting some love from big sister.
We are getting into a routine, a little. The days are still crazy but our night are getting better and everyone is getting a little more sleep. Rush is still my sweet tempered chunky monkey & Nixon is still a tiny pixy with a big personality.
I describe my days as being constant. I'm constantly doing something! Someone constantly needs something! I must make at least 50 trips up and down the stairs each day. My booty better be looking good by spring! I'v lost the 50 pounds I gained and 4 extra and yes I'm very excited about it! BUT and it's a big but... my skin! How do you get your skin to not look like an elephant ear?

Two Months

Where oh where does the time go? For me it's consumed in diapers, bottles, boobs, laundry and personal assistant to a very busy 4 year old!

So I'm late posting the Twins 2 month pictures and update but these days I'm lucky to get it done at all so I'm going to cut myself a little slack.

On with the cuteness ...

What's cooking: Both Rush and Nixon eat on average every 3 hours around the clock. They take turns nursing every other feeding now since each baby eats at least 4oz per feeding so we have a little alternating breast/formula thing going on.
Who's Sleeping: The longest either baby has slept is 3 1/2 hours at a stretch
Fashion: My little Pixie Nixon is still wearing Newborn size but Big boy Rush has moves on to 0-3 months size.
Personality: We have smiles, Nixon first then about a week later Rush. Nixon is doing a lot of coos when you talk to her and she is very reactive to her big sister! Rush loves a lot of eye contact and is starting to coo a little but is much more into studying the world around him. When Nix was fussing the other day I looked at Rush and said "that's your twin" he actually gave me a laugh out loud. I swear he was thinking don't look at me mom!

Willis

Ah the fun things I do while sleep deprived!

Decorations & Details- The twins shower

The AMAZING Decorations! 

Doubble Bubble Topiary 

There are over 700! 

Miss Lucy Q. was the game winner with a guess of 400

This crown jewel is now my dining room center piece 

This sign welcomed guest to the party as they arrived. 

I think I should put this in the lawn at Mr. T's law office! 

Baby Bump progression posters! 

Paying homage to our old school cheerleading days! Painted banners! 

The girls thought of every thing down to the tinest details

Miss C likes to eat herself and feeds me the others! 

Twinings Earl Grey Tea. A game prize won by my Grandmother for guessing how many inches around I measured! 

The guest drank form personalized cups

"Double the trouble but double the fun, It's twins for the Collins"

The Food was great great. We had a "Collins Twin Pack" of two slider burgers wrapped in patriotic paper & pin wheels with old school & sweet potato fry mix. Thank goodness there are no pictures of me stuffing my face! 

Party Favors

Austin Amber Beer & Mini Barefoot wines wrapped meticulously with tags that read "Thank you for showering the twins June 24th 2012" 

Click here for more Twin shower details