18 months old!?!?

How did this happen?  How did we get two big toddlers out of those two itty bitty babies?

On their birth day, March 26, 2010:

And here they are today:

Benjamin

Asher doing "gymnastics"

Asher at dinner, roaring, with chicken in his hair and pasta sauce on his face

The boys are trying and enjoying all kinds of new activities, like coloring at their table:

And eating with spoons:

We've been using some signs for the past week, since the boys are still not really talking.  They clearly understand us, and can follow commands like, "bring me the shoes," "give me/daddy/your brother a kiss,"and can understand and ignore things like, "stop!" and "please don't do that!"  Asher, especially, has picked up signs and is communicating fairly well.

giving each other kisses

"Benjamin, get down!  Benjamin, the salt is not a toy!"

I have to say, these sweet boys are full of personality.  I said to a friend yesterday, "Do you know any kids who are more rambunctious than mine?" and she said, after a pause, "No."  They are very good-natured, and loving, and generally easy-going, but they are very high energy.  If they're awake, they're probably moving.  They both like to make trouble in their own way; Asher is an outright mischief-maker and will turn in circles in the middle of the room looking for what he can do next, and Benjamin is a little more surreptitious, and generally makes his trouble quietly.

They still love to eat fruits and vegetables, and Benjamin will try anything once.  They love broccoli, strawberries, apple, peas, string beans, hot dogs, cheese, and pastas with red sauce.  Every once in a while they will love something unusual, like farro salad with goat cheese.  They don't especially love desserts like cake, but they do like animal crackers and graham crackers.

They are still nursing.  Benjamin nurses 3 times a day, and Asher nurses more than that.  Asher still says "Na!" for nurse and will get louder and more insistent if he doesn't get nursed right away.  He can be distracted pretty easily if we are out or busy, but if we are at home and not actively engaged in something he likes to nurse.

We call Asher the "green-eyed Bear monster" because he is very possessive of me, and will sometimes sit on top of Benjamin if Benjamin and I are snuggling.  This is one reason why I haven't pushed Asher down to one nap a day, because it gives me time alone with Benjamin.  Benjamin is definitely doing one nap a day now, but I often put him in the pack n play for an hour in the morning so that I can shower and do some cleaning up around the house.

We've had a good September, and are looking forward to October.  We will get to see family for 3 weekends in a row, and then end with Halloween.  In the meantime, we are trying to enjoy the warm fall weather by getting out for walks and jogs and trips to the play ground.  I am dreading getting stuck inside all winter, so we better make the most of it!