Potty training?? And other news.

We've been having a busy time in the Hill household. Ruby thinks it's time to start potty training. She made this decision because her friend, Connor, is potty training. I'm not ready to dive fully into it, so when she asks to go to the bathroom, I take her. And she goes when she wakes up in the morning and before and after her nap, and before bed at night. Some days Ruby wants to wear "big girl" underwear and others she wants to wear her diaper. I figure we'll go at this pace until around her second birthday.

James and Hallie have earned a variety of nicknames. Sometimes we call them "Thing One" and "Thing Two." Other times it's "Tweedle Dee" and "Tweedle Dum." For some reason, I have taken to calling James "Mister Man" and Ruby loves that one!

They also seem to be developing into happier babies. (Now that I've said that out loud, James will likely go back to screaming every day.) We've had a pretty good week -- James has really started to smile. We're still waiting for Hallie to do that. But, both of them are going longer between eating and seem to enjoy doing more than just being held or nursing. They are both also getting a bottle of formula at night so that bedtime is less "Mommy intensive." And, from the time they get their bottle until they wake up to eat is usually about 6 hours! I also think Jason enjoys feeding one of them every night and spending some quality time with a happier baby.

Oh, and Ruby is really benefiting from school. The other day she pulled a magnetic letter off of the refrigerator and asked me to get "more R" -- and she was actually holding the letter "R." And, today she was playing with a plastic dog and I asked her what its name was. She responded: "B-I-N-G-O!" I couldn't help but laugh.

Her school is on spring break this week, which makes me a little sad. I know she loves going, and I enjoy having some time to get a few things done around the house.

Anyway, I know people really visit this site for the pictures. So, here you go:

Snuggled in the swing.

Look at my head control!

Holding Hallie.

"Hold Hallie, please!?"

Caught the smile!

James smiling!

Quiz Time!

Is Hallie wearing socks, or is it James? Can you tell which baby is which? Post your guess in the comments section and I'll let you know if you're correct!

Picture Spam!

So, I forgot to post photos from Arnold and Kim's visit. And we have a few new pictures to show the world. The pictures are in reverse chronological order. Enjoy!

Hallie asleep in her seat.

James napping happily in the car seat.

Ruby and Daddy on the exercise equipment.

Family trip to the marina -- Ruby helped push the stroller.

Hallie hanging out in the swing.

James chillin' in the pack-and-play.

Ruby cooking in her "big girl" underwear.

Hallie acting all cute.

James with his Wubbanub.

A little "Ruby time."

Sleeping babies?

Grandparents multi-tasking it.

Ruby in Grandpa's new boots.

Grandpa and Hallie.

Proud Grandparents

All of the visitors are gone ...

And that means Jason and I have to figure out how to make everything work as a family of five all by ourselves! We have been very lucky to have lots of family visiting and supporting us and entertaining Ruby. She has had a blast with all of the grandparents and has been just a little spoiled (in a good way)!

We are also lucky that we have some really good friends here in town helping us out. Ruby spent yesterday afternoon with April and Connor. April thought I could use a break since James really did nothing but scream ALL DAY LONG. (And when he was quiet, Hallie would scream and wake him up ... )

I think things will be much easier once James has outgrown his screaming phase. The doctor says it's colic -- which I basically have interpreted to mean that he screams bloody murder for hours a day and we don't know what's wrong or how to calm him down.

Anyway, here are some new pictures for you.

One Month Check up

James and Hallie went to the doctor today for their one month appointment and all went well. Both of them are growing just fine and they each weighed in at exactly 8 pounds. Hallie is 20 7/8 inches long and James is slightly shorter at 20.5 inches. They definitely weigh less than Ruby did at one month though!

Also, I did a big update to the Flickr account yesterday, so check out those photos!

Arnold and Kim are visiting this week and have enjoyed spending some time with Ruby. They took her to the zoo and out to breakfast and lunch yesterday. Today Jason and Ruby went with them to Pigeon Forge to do some shopping.

The babies are sleeping, so I should go lay down for a bit. I will try to post more pictures today or tomorrow when I take the next batch off of the camera.

Sorry for the lack of updates!

Sorry for the lack of updating the blog! We've been pretty busy around here and have had family in town -- plus, when all the kids go to bed for the night, we go to bed too.

Everyone here is doing well. James and Hallie went to the doctor yesterday and got weighed. James is up to 7 pounds, 10 0unces and Hallie is about 7 pounds, 3 ounces. So they are definitely gaining weight! They haven't gained nearly as fast as Ruby did, so they will be in newborn diapers for a while longer, we think. But, I think by the time they are a month old James will be out of his newborn clothing. Hallie will probably take a little longer to outgrow her newborn outfits.

James seems to be incredibly fussy (or screaming bloody murder) every afternoon, which can be frustrating. And Hallie continues to be pretty laid back. Their personalities are kind of interesting ... he loves to eat and she loves to sleep.

Ruby is also doing really well. She still goes to "big boy school" every Monday and Wednesday and she never wants to leave! Every morning Ruby wakes up and asks where Hallie and James are. And during the day she gives us a running commentary on what the babies are doing ("Hallie's eyes closed, sleeping. James doing? James eating. Put Hallie in swing. Ruby swing Hallie ...") Yeah, I'm sure you get the picture.

Anyway, enjoy the pictures and I will try to get a bit better about updating.

Hallie after her bath. (4 weeks)

James hanging out in his new swing. (4 weeks)

Peaceful, sleeping Hallie. (3 weeks)

Peaceful, sleeping James (this is a rare sight). (3 weeks)

Ruby stole a hat one of our friends made for Hallie ... we had to hide the hat from her.

Ruby's first set of wings and dress up skirt.

Hallie at about 2.5 weeks old.

Quick update and a picture of James

We went in last week for a weight check at the doctor's office. As of Wednesday, James was up to 6 pounds, 10 ounces and Hallie was at 6 pounds, 6 ounces. So, she hasn't quite caught up to her birth weight yet. The doctor isn't too concerned about it and said we'd see how she was doing at her one month appointment.

My parents made it back to Omaha safely, just in time for more snow. They didn't really catch a break with the weather -- it snowed when they were here and it snowed on my mother's drive home.

Anyway, I was torturing James with photos tonight. I will try to get some of Hallie later tonight or tomorrow. But, enjoy the one photo :)