They were 13 months yesterday. They’ve changed a lot this month.

Teeth:
First of all I’d like to say that I would seriously advise against sticking your fingers in the girls mouth. They think it’s funny when you scream in pain as they clamp down on your finger. For this reason, we hadn’t checked for new teeth in awhile. I was surprised last night to find they both have another tooth. They are on different sides (I can’t remember which one has which and I’m not going back in there or sending John!) and are about halfway back. There was no crying for their 9th tooth. That’s good news. I should add that we do brush their teeth and mouth every night so we have not been neglecting their new tooth - you just can’t feel it with the finger toothbrush.

Hair:
Maybe a bit more…maybe.

Sleep:
I would rather not comment on this but seeing as this is their journal I will. I better not get jinxed. Emma was bad, then got good but couldn’t sleep through Leah’s badness. Leah all of a sudden got very bad for a few days, made us all very tired, then went back to being our little sleeper. Since then we are proud to call them our little sleepers. We are all very well rested these days. The girls have even started sleeping in until 8 everyday. Somedays 9! They still take 2 naps but it’s getting harder to get them to take them when they are not in their cribs. The days of falling asleep in the stroller appear to be over.

Getting around:
Emma can walk behind the push toy. She can walk if you only hold one of her hands but she’s no risk taker and will usually try and crawl. She loves to climb and has very good balance. I can see her loving rock climbing when she’s older. She studies her target to figure out the best way to get up. Today she was trying to climb up the outside of the stairs on the 1 inch carpet that hangs over edge.

Leah continues to get stronger but she’s has little interest in standing (a topic I’m sure you’ll be hearing more about after our NICU appt next week). We are not concerned since she is progressing. She has much better balance and is getting stronger in her mid section and her legs. She will stand if you hold her hands - but she doesn’t like it for long. She has caught up to Emma in crawling and is very quick.

Food:
They are finally starting to eat a bit better. There is no more crying at meal times. I’ve been giving them lots of things to try. The majority of it gets thrown on the floor in disgust but they are getting better. Slowly. We still start every meal with baby food veggies because otherwise they don’t eat enough. They just don’t like food all that much and I’m trying my best not to get really frustrated. They are still on 2 bottles of formula a day. We’re supposed to switch it to milk when they’re a year corrected (July 24). They are drinking from the straw cups like pros now. It’s very cute.

Talking:
They “talk” all day long now. They wake up and talk to each other in their cribs and every night they fall asleep after at least 30 minutes of talking and laughing. We have no idea what they’re saying but they sure have fun! They are starting to mimic 2 syllable words like baby. Leah can now say Emma and eeeah as well as cat. They also say mama and the occasional dada in context. They also learned the sign for milk this month. Just what they babble is different - like we’ll hear Leah say “oby giby oh oh” to which Emma will reply “ba ba ba CAH!!”. I sure hope it’s not twinspeak. I have been reading that sometimes twins are delayed on verbal because they make up their own way of communicating with each other.

Cute stuff:
This is the stuff that makes me realize that our days of calling them babies are numbered…
-if they manage to beat me to the cat’s bowl they will eat catfood (none ingested…yet…catfood is in our ensuite now). Hmmm maybe I should add catfood to their menu…I can’t even count how many things get thrown to the floor without even being tasted.
-Emma was splashing the toilet water the other morning. Bathroom doors remain closed now.
-they lick the floor and eat the carpet fuzz
-Emma turns the tv off and presses all the buttons and shakes her head, smiles and does it again when you tell her to stop.
-they know how to get the cd out of the portable stereo
-Emma will get your glass if you leave it on the coffee table
-Emma can pull papers off the edge of the kitchen table
-they broke the safety latch (I use that term loosely) on the stove
-the love doors
-they LOVE taking the grate off the vent. Emma suffered her first injury when Leah pulled the grate off the one by the front door. Emma was standing looking out the window and fell in the grate cutting her foot. I was watching the whole thing unfold but was not quick enough.
-Emma likes pulling Leah’s hair
-Leah likes lifting up her shirt and slapping her belly
-they both have a fake laugh, a fake cough and can growl
-they both stick their arms up in the air when they want up
That’s all I can think of right now but I know there’s much much more.

Personalities:
Emma continues to be timid in new situations. She’s very clingy if she’s not comfortable and will scream her head off if you try and put her down. If she’s in her comfort zone (like her stroller) she is very happy and LOVES attention. She’ll smile at anyone and squeal in delight. She’s still very rough and very stubborn. If she wants something she will keep on trying to get it. She’s started to cry when you take stuff away from her (even if Leah takes her toy) which we don’t like. We just let her cry although she’s so stubborn I don’t think she cares. When she’s in the mood Emma loves to be held. She wraps her arms so tight around your neck - it’s very sweet.

Leah is very easy going. She adapts well to new situations and is usually very happy. She’s not so quick to give out the smiles to strangers these days but she warms up quickly. Leah is not a cuddler. When she wants to be picked up she’ll follow us around like a dog and try to climb up our legs. It’s also very cute. Leah rarely screams her head off, when she cries it’s because she’s scared or her feelings have been hurt. She has perfected the pouty lip and the big teary eyes.

The girls are never far apart from each other. They will race around the house after each other and play with the same toy. One thing that I find surprising is that they could still care less if the other one is crying - it’s just business as usual with a bit more noise. They are always talking to each other in their cribs, carseats and stroller. When we’re in the car we usually turn the radio down and listen to them. It’s very entertaining. I know I have said this before but it’s like all of a sudden they became little people this month. They are so much more interactive and will mimic whatever you show them. It’s definitely a lot more work keeping them happy and out of trouble but it’s a lot more fun than the days of feeding them and watching them sleep.