Pet Names

I was talking to a prospective babysitter yesterday and we started talking about the kids nicknames.

Marguerite started it. Frances called her "Marshie". She's always called her Marshie. That's the nickname Frances gave her about this time 2 years ago. Though Frances also briefly called her "roary" (happens when a baby cries ALL the time) Marshie also has other nicknames: Marsh (without the ie) from Frances, Marsha from her daycare teacher, Ree Ree from Frankie (though now he calls her "Mar-GA-REEEEET!" Yes, with the exclamation point at the end every time lol), and of course I call her Marshie LuLu (why I don't really know lol I just think it's cute) or Lulu or ReeReet. And of course, the inevitable, Marguerite Elizabeth! Yeah, she's figured out she's in trouble when she gets that one.

Frank only has one real nickname: Frankie. I do call him other things like PotatoHead, Mr. Powerhouse, Bud (Bud Lite is what his father started call him, but I just can't go there lol), Loudmouth...No, I'm kidding! Though he is. And, as with all boys, there's a few other things that I can't think of right now.

Grandma nicknamed Frances "Francy" when she moved down here, but Frances really hates it. lol Her name is "Frances Audrey" thank-you-very-much! And she's the one that started that. She really prefers to be called by both names. When I really want to tease/irritate her (Hey, I'm her Mama, I can get away with that!) I call her "FrancyPants". Talk about being pissed at me! She's also: Little Miss Thang, Herself (given to her by her God-Mama Boo), Miss Princess, Sissy Frances or Francesss (drawn out like Princess - which is how Frankie pronounces her name all the time).

Robby of course gets called RobbyBobby (which his Daddy started) or my new favorite for him is Mr. Poopy. (which is always accompanied by PoopyPoopyPOOPY - Yes, I do put poopy in there four times. Hey.... you try staying around him for very long when he's filling a diaper and you'll see!) He's also Mr. Droolyface or Drooly for short, Fang (now that I can't get away with "Toothless Wonder" anymore), Little Guy, Little Bud (another of his Daddy's names for him... I call him Little Buddy when I use that one lol), and a few other assorted pet names.

I suppose it's just "My Thing". Even Desse and Steven have been subjected to some nicknames over the years.

My ex didn't want Desse having the middle initial J because he'd be called DJ. So, I purposely steered everyone away from that -- though I came home from work one day to him telling a 19 month old Steven, "DJ. Can you say DJ?" lol And yes, he was DJ until pre-k. Then he asserted that his name is DESSE. Don't call him anything else. My nieces called him BJ though -- and still do. They're 11 and 13 now. lol We're still not certain about that one.

Steven just got stuck with Stevie (my sister) and that of course lead to SteviePooh which he hated more and STILL HATES to this day. Yeah, I know all the buttons to push. That's a Mama for you.

A couple of my brothers got in on the act too. I nicknamed one "Bit" and another "Shauny". My sister is and always has been "Sissy". Yep, I guess it's just me!

I don't really know why I was thinking about this again today, but I thought I'd write it down and think about it again some more later. Just a little food for thought ----

Creative Thinkers

Since we moved a few weeks ago, the kids have enjoyed being outside. We're now on a cul-de-sac rather than a busy street, and we don't worry about them as much. As a matter of fact, there are only five streets in our subdivision, four of which have cul-de-sac's on each end and the fifth is the street that goes through the center and dead-ends into the fourth street. No through traffic! YAY!!!!

So I came outside to see what the kids were up to and what do I see:



I asked Frances what she was doing and she said, "Talking to the bus, of course." She was very matter of fact about it too. *snicker*

And then... Marshie joined in! lol



You can see why I thought all of Marshie's "soot" was from talking into the tailpipe. Even now I can't believe she was ingenious enough to figure out how to open the engine cover. I'm still stunned!

Our Engineer?

After snapping this cute picture of Marguerite, we found out what she'd REALLY been up to.....

The little turd had unlatched the inside engine cover on the bus (no small feat for us adults I might add) and started exploring the diesel engine and transmission! No wonder she's so dirty. lol

Two-Fer Twos-Day

Yep, it's that time again! lol Hop on over to Deanna's Place to see who else is playing along today.

Frank and Marguerite turned 14 months old on Sunday, so they are my two-fer duo today. This picture was taken when they were just 1 month old. Marshie is the one waving. The "What the Hell???" look on Frank's face is because, in the previous photo, Marshie had smacked him upside the head. This is one of my favorite early shots of them together. I just can't help giggling when I see it.




And I failed this month with the 30 posts in 30 days. I didn't get to post last night as I was having some serious contractions. :( They're better, but still with me. I can't have the baby until after Rob gets back from China tomorrow though, so..... lol (Not like it would happen anyway. I've never dropped a baby early, including those two up there. *snicker* If we want to talk about having babies late though....) I'm still going to try to post everyday anyway as I like it.

Just because -- Frances got a Happy Meal yesterday (which I don't usually buy, but I thought 'eh what the hell') and in it was the Hippo from Madagascar II. She's been going around showing everyone her talking "Peeppo". She CAN say hippo by the way. She just chooses to make up names for things. lol She's a VERY creative for a 2 year old.

Happy Tuesday everyone! :)

Miscellaneous Weekend Photos

First is Frances all dressed up to go with Ms. Tammy to the American Girl store on Friday. The girls and Tammy had a "girls day" outing. I'm not sure what tune Frances was listening to in her head, but she was just-a-dancing so I had to snap her picture. Frankie was sitting on the floor waiting on Mama to take him away. He went to the doc's office with me, so he could get a little Mama-Time alone.



Can YOU resist this grin???? Well, neither can I -- thus the snap of it. He uses it whenever he thinks he can get me to do something.... mostly I just grin back at him and take his picture. lol I just love frustrating toddlers!


Little Ms. Marshie stealing cheerios from her sister, Frances, this time. lol Frances was eating a bowl of cereal with milk (for the first time) and doing a fairly decent job, though she'd drop a few on the table and Marshie would gleefully steal and eat them.

Phriday Photo Phiesta

Candid Carrie hosts Phriday Photo Phiesta each week and this is the first time I've participated. It's always looked like so much fun, but I've just not taken the time before. Head over to Carrie's place and see who else is playing along!

I'm cheating a bit. I have two pics this week. lol

First, Marshie following her Grandma around the kitchen a couple of mornings ago. Grandma was TRYING to get her Cheerios and Marshie was stealing them, 2 or 3 at a time, from the bowl. Mama of course was sitting at the table giggling and snapping pictures. It's not great, but it shows what a little sneak my baby girl is! lol (And yes, I finally went to rescue Grandma and refill her cereal bowl.)




Second is Mr. Cool-Guy (aka Frankie) on his tractor. He was having a ton of fun playing with the sunglasses that Desse brought home for Frances. They're WAY too big, but as you can see from his grin, he didn't really care! lol (Please excuse the drool down his front... teething ya know.)



I hope everyone has a great Friday and a wonderful weekend!

Way Back When-esday

I decided to join Ms. Cheryl over at Twinfatuation for Way Back Whens-esday this week.

When I was looking for pretty blue eyes on for Sunday's post, I found this picture of Marguerite. To me, it's just sooooo sweet and innocent. She was just over 4 months old when it was taken at Christmas last year.

You have to understand -- Marshie has been the hardest baby I've had to deal with. She could not seem to stomach breast milk OR any other formula given to her for the first 6-7 months. We finally found ONE that worked so/so.... and it was a soy formula that constipated her. So yes, her first year was a battle. But honestly, at 10 months they had us switch her to cows milk and solid foods and she's been GREAT ever since. You would not believe that she had been such a hard baby to deal with now that she doesn't seem to have the stomach problems.

It broke my heart at times because there were people that honestly didn't like her/refused to be around her. She cried. ALL the time. But this picture shows just why she was so lovable, even during all that.


My sweet little Marguerite: (I love you baby girl!)


Now don't forget to pop over to Cheryl's Place and see who else is playing along.

Two-Fer Twos-Day & a silly/sweet conversation

It's Two-Fer Tuesday again!!! Ms. Deanna at Eight is Great hosts this every week for us. Hop on over there to see who else is playing along. Trust me, there are some GREAT two-fer photos every week. :)

My favorite thing is to see a daddy holding his baby.... so today I'm showing off my Rob with each of our twins from Halloween night. First with Marshie, then with Frankie.







Now for the silly/sweet conversation ----

Last night as Desse was putting Frances to bed, she was running through the dining room (like the wild child that she is!), hugging everyone and telling them good night.

Frances (to me): Goodnight Cutie Pie!

Me (chuckling): Goodnight, Dumpling. (Giving her hugs and a kiss.)

Frances (reaches over and hugs the baby bump): Goodnight Baby Robbie. (Then she kisses the bump.) Take care of Cutie Pie.

I couldn't help laughing out loud. It was just SO sweet!

Of course, she ran off to Desse and he put her to bed right after that. Thank goodness I have a 16 year old that doesn't mind tucking his little sister in. (Man she'd be UPSET if he didn't! lol)

Baby Picture Sunday - Big Blue Eyes!

It's time for Big Eyes thanks to Debi over at Who Says 8 Is Enough? Hop on over there to see who else is playing along.

This one of Frances is from November of last year. She was at my office and I clicked it on the cellphone.


This one of Marshie when she was just a couple of months old. I swear she REALLY looks like a turtle there! lol


Mr. Camo/Rap Man! Frankie was only a month old in this photo.


Remember to head on over to Debi's site to play along.... and see some more adorable "Big Eyes"!

A couple of quick pics...

Just a couple of quick pictures of the kids in their Halloween costumes.

First: Frankie and Marshie
They didn't have "costumes", just ears. Orange and black cat ears for Frank. Pink and black bunny ears for Marguerite. As you can see, they didn't care to keep them on! lol The black eyeliner faces stayed on a bit better though. They were too cute!



Second: Isaac and Frances
Don't ask me what/who Isaac was. He was just a black cape. lol Frances was "supposed to be" Tinkerbell, but she kept telling us she was a "princess", so I guess she was actually a Fairy Princess. lol Cute either way if you ask me, though I tend to be a bit biased.

They went out to the rec center across the street with Ms. Tammy, Alex and Desse to "trick or treat". Of course, everything was set up at tables --- but hey, it was all safe that way and the kids got a little bit of candy and some little toys. : )

Trust me, there are a TON of pictures over here. I just picked out two that showed the kids' costumes the best. I'll probably post more when I get a chance to really look at all of them. Hope everyone had a fun/safe Halloween!

Two-Fer Twos-Day

Yep, it's that time again! Thanks Deanna!!!

This was Desse messing around with Marguerite a few days ago. Marshie was wearing Desse's t-shirt -- and she wouldn't let us take it off of her for HOURS!!!! I thought this was too cute and just had to share.

Happy Tuesday to everyone! : )

Weekend Randomness & Ramblings

It's been a fairly good weekend -- uneventful! (YAY!)

On Friday evening, Frances was standing next to the coffee table holding the insert to some "junk mail" before her eyes. Of course, 2 year old conversation ensued. lol

Mama: What are you doing, Frances?

Frances: (slowlllllly lowering the rectangle of paper to peep over it at me) I'm just reading (pronounced readin'), Mama. (Then the rectangle rose right back into place.)

And she stood there for nearly 10 minutes "reading" this rectangle of paper. lol Only a 2 year old, I swear!

Since then, whenever she has a book open or a piece of paper in her hands, she tells me, "I'm just reading, Mama."

Here's a picture of Frances -- though before I could snap the photo of her on her "motorcycle", Frankie just HAD to pop his head into the shot. lol


Then also on Friday night, Marshie got ahold of the jar of Gerber Grad's treats. We simply call them "stars" (as Frances nicknamed them when she first started eating them over a year ago). Of course, even at 14 months, Frankie and Marshie know when they're not supposed to be doing something..............

Hence you'll notice in the photo that not only are they trying to stuff both of their hands into said jar of stars at the same time, but Marshie is also tucked back up UNDER the table! Frankie's got one hand full and the other headed for the jar. Luckily these things literally melt in their mouth, or they would have choked they were stuffing them in so fast.

I admit, I was giggling too hard to be too hard on them. It was hysterical to watch. You'd think that they'd never been fed, let alone had eaten chicken nuggets, cheese blocks, yogurt and bagels less than an hour before this incident.

I have to say though, that Marshie eating makes me happy. Earlier this week she was running 104.5+ temps and the doc thought she might have a UTI. (NOT good for a baby girl apparently.) Our prayers were answered and that test came back negative. But sadly, it wiped her out. She spent almost four days doing nothing but sleeping or cuddling in my arms. I was DELIGHTED when she started eating again. I know babies will eat when they get hungry and all that jazz, but it's still rather scary when they suddenly stop eating like that. (One of the reasons that I wasn't posting most of last week.... I was cuddling a sick Marshie.)

Rob came home from China on Tuesday evening. We were SO happy to see him. Frances had to go to the airport with me to get him. While we were sitting at the airport waiting for him to come out, I asked Frances what she thought he ate over there:

M: Do you think they fed him turtles?

F: (with a perplexed look) No, Mama! You don't eat turtles.

M: How about aligators?

F: Uh... (Not really sure she knows if you can eat alligator or not by the look she gave me LOL) Nope!

M: How about elephants? You think he had to eat elephants?

F: Mama! Don't eat elephants!!!!

Yes, it was silly, but it was after 9 pm and after her bedtime. Silly songs only go SO far, and she really really really wanted to see Daddy so I was trying to keep her awake. Since then I've heard her mutter a time or two, "You don't eat turtles, Mama. And no elephants." lol She's beginning to remember things longer now. I think it's really cute!

Ok, enough ramblings for tonight. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! :)

It's Thursday!!

And yes, I'm SOOOOO glad it's Thursday. Why you may ask? Well, because it's the day AFTER the taxes were due (yes, we took a double extension... again!) and I got the darned things filed and sent! Yay!!!! (And of course that means I can blog TOTALLY guilt free today. lol)

We finally got over to the Pumpkin Patch on Monday, but I just haven't had the time to post the pictures. Here are a few.... trust me, there were MANY more. lol (Comes from having a camera crazy Mama, I know. lol)

Marguerite was delighted to have the freedom to run. I have a LOT of shots of her trying to run free. (Mostly shots of her backside I must say. lol) Frankie was sleepy and didn't really want to do much. He rode in the wagon or sat in the pumpkins when we put him there. We were just greatful he wasn't cranky. Frances was running around playing and giving me these coy, "try to catch me if you can," looks. lol Two year olds!

Now, on to the pictures:

Frances with Charlie Brown


Frankie chewing on his hay. lol (He's such a little farmer boy, isn't he?)


Marshie in a version of dress up (and Ms. Tammy hiding down there behind holding her) --- Marshie was NOT going to leave this little scarecrow dress until she got to have her picture taken with it. lol


My babies and the pumpkins -- this is my favorite shot from the whole day... it's also my laptop background.


Frances trying to pick up the pumpkin she chose for Desse's girlfriend, Alex.


Frances and the pumpkin she chose for herself.


Marshie chooses her pumpkin.


And Frankie just rides in the wagon. Mama had to choose his pumpkin for him, but he sorta liked Alex's too. lol



A couple of last pictures here - All four of us together courtesy of Ms. Tammy. It's not often I am in the picture. (With good reason - I hate being in pics. lol Besides, it reminds me I need to put a bit more blonde in my hair.)

So that's all the cute baby pictures for now. : ) I did manage to hide my growing baby tummy behind the twins, though I wasn't really trying. I have a sono scheduled for tomorrow morning and Frances is going with me -- to listen to HER baby Robbie's heartbeat. (Yes, I've been informed that baby Robbie belongs to her already. lol)

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thursday!

Trying new flavors

And for Friday, we have two little ones trying Dill flavored chips. (Well ok, Frances tried them too, but she loved them. No cool picutres of her. *giggles*)

Frankie didn't seem to mind too much. They were a little weird, but...


Marshie was the one startled by the first bite. lol

It didn't deter her though. She kept right on eating.

All three kiddos liked the dill chips. Mommy won't be buying THAT many of them for snack time, but I suppose once in a while it's good to have a change. Yes?

Picture Taking

So Friday evening I had to re-dress all three little ones, so I thought it was a great opportunity to take a picture of all three of them together for Daddy. Hahahahahahahaha! WHAT was I thinking???


They NEVER sit still!!!


Butt - of course - I couldn't resist this one! lol They were watching Isaac play with the dog, Sweetheart, outside. That's WAY more interesting than Mommy and her camera.


Frances and Marguerite standing on the couch. They look SO solemn, don't they?


Here's Mr. Frankie after he became the bottom tier on the "dog pile". Frances piled right on top of him and he got the giggles!


I didn't get the most wonderful pictures of the threesome out of it, but we all had fun trying! There was lots and lots of jumping on the couch (Frankie's favorite pasttime), dog watching, and giggling. As well as lots of picture taking by Mommy. Daddy will have a new background for his computer while he's in China anyway. lol


+++++ And as a quick update, my c-section has been scheduled for 12/3 at 7:30 am. So looks like Little Robbie will be joining us soon. :)

Rob says I'm in "nesting mode" because I keep cooking these last couple of days. (Wait until he finds out that I baked a spice cake for dessert tonight.... lol) Honestly, I've felt so bad the last couple of months that I've only grudgingly cooked, so now that I feel better I WANT to cook. Sometimes I think he forgets I actually LIKE to do it. lol

Way Back When-esday

Every week Ms. Cheryl at Twinfatuation hosts Way Back When-esday. Go on over and see who else is playing along. (There are some GREAT photos!)

Frankie and Marshie were all of 5 days old in this shot. We'd been home one whole day. Everyone in the family wanted to know "HOW do you feed twins?" Yeah, I rolls my eyes still. Like every Mama, you just DO it. lol (This was one of the "supplemental" feedings. Much to my disappointment Marshie never did take to breast feeding though - at all!)


Have a great Wednesday everyone!!!

Two-Fer Twos-Day

It's that time of week again! Eight is Great hosts Two-For Twos-Day. Don't forget to head over and see who else is playing along!

Today Tammy and I were still sorting through clothes (Frances is OUT of 2T and Marshie is out of 12 month), but Frances found a great use for the growing mound of clothes in the middle of the floor.

Yep, she decided to pull Marguerite round and round and round and round and round in circles! Frankie joined in too, but I didn't get any good pictures with him in the wagon.

I'll try to post the video of Frances attempting to pull both of them later.

Sibling Rivalry a la Twins

So I put Frank and Marguerite into a chair to take their picture earlier this morning. ((I don't get many of them together, as they SO don't sit still (though it's getting easier). It's also almost impossible to get them to sit next to each other for even one second! *sigh*))

Here is the first picture: (which I really like by the way lol)



Then Marshie decided she wanted Frankie OUT OF HER CHAIR!!!!







Needless to say, I was giggling pretty hard while I was taking these photos. I would never let them hurt one another, but watching things like this (where they are both laughing - well ok, Marshie was determined and Frankie was laughing AT her...) really is quite hilarious. As you can see by the last picture, she managed to oust him too! lol

Twins are SO much fun. We really are blessed. :)

Park Day

Yesterday we went to Desse's NJROTC picnic at the park around the corner. This is his third year in ROTC, and our third year to attend the picnic. It's a great get together for all the families. I didn't get pictures of him or his girlfriend, Alex, mostly because they hide from the camera. I did, however, find that I could get pictures of Frances, Frankie and Marshie playing on the playground.

They couldn't get away from the camera while trapped in the swings!! Boy they loved swinging -- the twins think it's fun to swing back to back, though they kept trying to see what the other was watching.





I only had about 25 people (literally) ask me, "Are they twins?" I read twin books while I was preggo that said I'd end up hating that question and I thought that was ridiculous, but you know.... grrrrr! lol I still don't know why that one question grates on my nerves so!

Frances likes to swing, but the following pictures show she found something she liked even better. I couldn't KEEP her at the swing set!



She kept telling us she wanted to play on the "pig". LOL I kept telling her it was a hippo, which she would repeat after me, but then ask to go play on the "pig" again. Silly girl!!

Lunch was nice. Hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, cookies, soda and water. The babies got their first taste of chocolate chip cookies. Frankie smeared his EVERYwhere, while Marshie sucked on hers a bit, then dropped it in the cup holder on the stroller (as Alex found as we were cleaning everyone up).

I finally got to meet Angel and Natalie as well. Angel is a senior, trying to complete high school with her 8 month old daughter in tow. I've so been there! We've given her baby clothes for Natalie, and as Marshie is growing out of the next size, I give those to her too. I'm very proud of her for continuing to go to school. She's such a sweet girl and so is her little one.

The ROTC teams performed amid many cheers and with few mistakes. The babies and I came home after a couple of hours, but Desse stayed until the party was over. All three of the little ones were so worn out they slept for 2 1/2 hours!! lol All in all I'd say everyone had fun.