Happy Birthday Baby Twins

Today the twins turn 5.  I can't believe it.  One whole hand old.  It is impossible.   They can't really be 5 already.  On the way to school this morning I told them I must have counted wrong and they weren't really turning 5 already.  They were really just turning 4.  They didn't buy it.  5 years old.  Somehow that seems infinitely older than 4.    When they were born, a friend's two daughters called them the "baby twins."  It stuck.  I still think of them as my baby twins even though they are not babies anymore.  They have grown up so fast.  Kindergarten is right around the corner.  Then in a flash they will be graduating from high school and moving away from home.  I'm not ready.  I need more time.  Days like today remind me how little time we really have when our children our young.  It makes me stop worrying so much about the cleanliness (or lack thereof) of my house or checking things off my never ending "to do" list.  I remember they are all only little for such a short time.  To make the most of it.  To stop cooking, cleaning, reading email, surfing the internet, and enjoy them while they are young.

Just yesterday they looked like this.

And the day before yesterday....this

Just last week I swear they looked like this

And now today....

The past  5 years have been full of smiles, laughter, bumps and bruises, trips to the ER, trips to the zoo, hugs, kisses, bedtime stories, and load after load of laundry.  We have had good times and we have had bad times.  We have bought cars and baby dolls galore.  We have also had to pay the plumber to retrieve a little boy's underwear he flushed down the toilet.  Through it all I wouldn't change a minute of it.

Ella and Harrison....I love you both with all my heart.  I am the luckiest mommy in the world and it is such an honor and privilege to be your mommy.  

Happy 5th birthday baby twins!

Sibling Day!

According to Facebook, wikipedia, and www.daysoftheyear.com today is National Sibling Day.  To be honest, I did not know there was an official day set aside to honor your siblings.  When I first saw people on Facebook posting pictures, usually old(er) childhood pictures, of themselves and their siblings I wondered how this all got started.

Here is a little background information for you straight from wikipedia.

Siblings Day is a celebration held annually in the United States on April 10 to honor the relationships of siblings.  The holiday was originally conceived by Claudia Evart to honor the memory of her brother and sister, both of whom died.  

It is a nice idea....Sibling Day.  Your siblings probably know you better than almost anyone.  And they know all of you, the child that hid in the bushes and ate all the Easter candy in one day, the teenager that came home tipsy hoping Mom & Dad wouldn't notice, and the adult with a mortgage, career, and kids.  They know your embarassing stories, your secrets and your fears.  They know what you wanted to be when you grew up and what you actually grew up to be.

I have the best brother and sister in the world.  We had our fair share of arguments and hitting matches as kids.  We picked on each other, tattled on each other, and got on each other's nerves.   Over the years we have grown up and grown closer.  Right now, neither my brother nor sister lives close to me.  Hopefully someday in the not too, too distant future that will change.  But without a doubt I would not have seen and experienced what I have seen, accomplished what I have accomplished, or be the person I am today without them.

So in their honor.....here we are.

It was more difficult that I would have thought to find a picture of the three of us without raiding my mom's picture albums.  I think that means we need to do a better job of getting current photos of all of us.  This was taken almost exactly 5 years ago at my brother's graduation from medical school.  That little bundle in my arms was a newborn Ella (or maybe Harrison, hard to tell from the photo) who will turn 5 next week.  She sure has grown but we haven't aged at all, have we?

John Robert and Anna, I love you both and am so proud and honored to be your big sister.