The census guy came around the other day and recorded that Sayla and Brynna were zero years old. Here I was thinking ten months was a major milestone (double digits). Then I figured out that they are 310 days old, making the length of their lives--and my accomplishments--seem much more dramatic than they are...because in fact, they are only zero years old.
Then I got to thinking again. Within zero years, Sayla has grown almost four times her birth weight, and Brynna has grown five times hers. They have both mastered the arts of rolling, crawling, pulling up to stand, and sometimes even standing on their own for a short while. They can feed themselves, communicate that they want something (although it's rarely understood), throw fits, wave, play games, and collaborate with each other to knock things down. Those are a lot of accomplishments for not having lived a whole year yet. I believe that's called "a good attitude".
That being said, their changes aren't necessarily all good. I am noticing that the girls are throwing a lot more fits lately, and I don't think it's because of their teething and restless nights. I think it's simply the fact that they are girls. Spoiled. Rotten. Girls. See...being at home with my babies is a good thing, but it turns out you can have too much of a good thing. The cranky, teething babies will notice me sneak out of the room as they are playing, they throw themselves to the ground, and screeeeeaaaaam with crocodile tears and everything! Total meltdown. As soon as I begin walking toward them again, Sayla starts to dance, and Brynna crawls toward me with a happy grin. (You thought that was cute, didn't you?) Yeah, they are pretty darn cute, but when this behavior prevents me from eating or showering, this mommy doesn't think their manipulative powers are so "darn cute" anymore.
I do admit, however, that most of the time their cuteness is what saves me from going completely insane. I love their belly laughs and how they giggle when you do something silly. Lately Brynna has been using a new "word" called "Ite". I think her big sister, Emma, taught her this one. Brynna opens her mouth as wide as she can and says "Ite" like she's biting something. No, I don't think she's saying bite. I think, if anything, she's trying to say "Hi". She has also learned to wave (among other things) as taught by her partner in crime, Sayla. Together they do a lot of parallel play, meaning they play side-by-side, but it also leads to a lot of hair-pulling and screaming. Then I have to separate them, which means one baby is left with the toy they were both playing with, and the other baby with some other toy. That doesn't go over well either.
Some days I have to walk away and pour a cup of tea just to calm my nerves. One day I sauntered back into the nursery after thinking everything was safely tucked away, and to my horror there were wipes strewn across the floor with two wide-eyed, devious babies sitting in the middle of them. It happens with the laundry, too. "How," I often ask them, "do you get into so much trouble when you're not even a year old?" Smart little boogers. Which leads me back to my first thought.
Although our many acheivements at zero years old is worth noting, I admit that this was my attitude the first time I thought about this math:
310 days old: Wow, I've survived that many days!
10 months: They're only twice as old as they were when they were born.
Zero years: Are you kidding me?
But now I realize that when Sayla and Brynna are thirteen years old and asking to sleep over at a friend's house, I'm going to look back on these days and think, "When did they grow up so fast?" What's that country song where he sings, "you're gonna miss this; you're gonna want this back; you're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast; these are the good times, so take a good look around; you may not know it now, but you're gonna miss this." I have to keep telling myself that when I'm listening to "I'm so mad at you" in stereo. I have a feeling I'll be hearing that a lot throughout my lifetime.
So long story short, and to answer the burning question, "Has it gotten any easier," the answer is no and yes. No, it is not easier. They are little monsters. Yes, it has become easier because they are more fun (and they can eat table food). That's all I am able to spit out right now, as we have officially entered day 311.
Melody
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