Tessa and Annie - 18 Months

At 18 months, Tessa and Annie are proving to be very different little people.  A lot of people have asked (since day one!) how they are different.  At the beginning, we were too sleep deprived and distracted to notice huge differences, or remember them, but at this point, the differences are clear, and their personalities so unique!

Tessa, although she was our baby A, is definitely not the leader in this duo.  So much for "birth order" in twins.  She is cautious and shy around strangers, especially the type of stranger who accosts them in their double stroller to exclaim, "Ooh, twins!!!"  She looks to Annie before she tries almost anything.  If Annie take a bite, Tessa dives in.  If Annie goes down a slide, Tessa will follow, and usually cautiously -- feet first on her tummy.  Shy as she may be in some situations, once she's comfortable in her surroundings, she is crazy!  She is our biggest clown, and is just so jolly sometimes.  She loves to make her sisters laugh!  And, she is so cuddly and sweet.  I hope I always remember how much she loves to be held.  She lays her head down on top of your shoulder and tucks her arms underneath her body, and just nestles in.  It's such a joy to hold her like this! 

Annie, on the other hand, is 18 months going on 15 years old.  She's already developing a little attitude when she doesn't get what she wants.  She furrows her brow and narrows her eyes like she is really mad.  We have to remind her to smile, and then she puts her index fingers on her cheeks and gives us a sugary sweet smile. 

She and Bridget are definitely cut from the same cloth! (At 18 months, Bridget was showing some similar 'tude.)  Annie loves to say "No!" to almost every request, and then quickly follows with a "Me!" if she reconsiders and really does want to do something. Both babies are curious, but Annie is a little more adventurous.  She is going to be trouble in high school and college.  I'm very scared!

Tessa's on the right in all of these pictures:

 

As physical as they are with each other (see above!), they still love giving each other kisses and hugs!

When Tessa and Annie were exactly 18 months old, I figured it was as good a day as any to start weaning them.  Yep, 18 months nursing twins.  Unless I climb Mt. Everest later in my life, I'm pretty sure this will be one of my biggest accomplishments!  And, if I do make it to the top of that mountain, I'll scream, "I nursed twins for 18 months!!"  Since I was never sure I'd be able to nurse them at all, I'm ecstatic to have lasted that long. It's something I already miss.  The time spent nursing them was an amazing bonding experience.  Amid the craziness of four under four, I always had my nursing sessions to take a breather, relax and just admire them (or play on my phone!).  

But, all good things must come to an end.  One 18-month old nurser can be difficult customer, nevermind two.  When they wanted to nurse, they were persistent, grabby and cranky.  This was a problem out in public, where I wasn't as comfortable nursing.  At the most inopportune times, they would pull my Hooter Hider (nursing cover) out of the diaper bag, start to giggle, and wave it like a flag at me.  And everyone else around us.    That Hooter Hider announced to the world, 'Hey, look at us!  We're huge babies who are still nursing!!" I didn't think they were too old, but the whole scene was beginning to straddle the socially acceptable fence.  So, for the past few months, I almost always nursed them in their room, on our super comfy chair and a half, especially since they usually just nursed before sleep and when they woke up.  The chair was positioned right in between their cribs, which made it easy to stand up with a baby in each arm, and deposit each of their sleeping bodies into their respective cribs.  (This transfer was getting to be more of an arm workout as they grew!)  So, when we decided to start weaning, we also decided to remove the scene of the crime, er, chair, to the living room. Without the big chair, their room is so spacious, and my next project will be painting a little activity table for them to put under the window. 

The "before" picture:

Since the weaning, the babies have been inhaling milk, even their baby dolls' ;)

and growing more independent every day! 

Their new morning and after-nap routine is the same as the big girls' --- they all sit together on the couch and watch a cartoon while they wake up.  They all seem so much closer in age when they're all doing the same thing together, or all enjoying the same activity.  I love it!

Our latest attempt at a little photo shoot: