spring chickens

Oh, how we are loving spring in the Shafer house this year! The beautiful weather has brought so many new activities into our lives--longer walks, outside time with no blankets or socks, trips to the zoo, swing time. And the sunshine arrived just in time, as our little twins are getting to the point where rolling around on the same floor all day long is simply not entertaining enough. So what are our sweet seven month olds doing these days?

Frances loves to roll back and forth from belly to back...she finds this simply hilarious! She adores her feet, though she really prefers her left one, and tries to eat them any chance she gets. She still loves naked time. She sucks on her pacifier in the most creative ways--often sideways, but also hanging out of her mouth like a cigar. She still loves her bouncy, but is now a big fan of the exersaucer as well.

Barnes is a man on the go. He can spin around and scoot on his belly, and I'm afraid he'll be truly mobile soon. He loves books right now (eating them, not reading them), but he loves nothing more than bouncing. He would jump in his jumperoo all day if we would let him. He constantly tries to play with Frances; unfortunately the only "play" he knows is eating and grabbing, so playtime doesn't go too well yet.

Both babies can sit now, though neither can put themselves into the sitting position yet. Both are also growing more and more interested in the dogs...they reach for Cooper and Stella, and Cooper and Stella are slowly learning to stay at least an arm's length away.

Their diets now consist of 5 bottles (still 2/3 breastmilk and 1/3 formula), as well as two solid meals. In the morning they get oatmeal and a fruit, and in the afternoon they have rice cereal and a vegetable. So far they have tried sweet potatoes, butternut squash, avocado, bananas, apples, and pears. Barnes always gobbles up every bite--he loves solids. Frances has finally gotten the hang of eating from a spoon. She still doesn't love breakfast time, but has started eating as much as Barnes for the afternoon meal.

The most fun recent change is definitely their increased awareness of each other. Watching them look for each other and gravitate together is incredible, and we pray that their love for each other will only grow.