The Babies B

Thursday, May 8, 2014

blink month

I blink my eyes and a month has passed. We have had spring vacation and travelled to Maine and NYC. We have bought five silkie chicks, built a coop and then bought four more chicks. Amine is now researching goats and sheep and looking at ways to plant a garden in our backyard. We are nesting at a grander outdoor scale. I had the privilege to attend and photograph a friend's home birth. Iman just had minor surgery today to remove a earring back from inside her earlobe. Iman and Tayeb each grew three inches since last year and our yard is green and blooming. Our town continues to warm my heart with community events such as the spring stroll where we took a walk to town and met neighbors and other locals, petting farm animals, visiting the fire station and other local fun. Aya has two bottom teeth, has begun to sit, crawl and eat some solids. She says mama, baba and gaga, but I think she thinks she is saying much more. I am sure I am missing some things, but that's what happens when a month flies by, it becomes a bullet point summery rather than a more detailed specific moment in our lives. I may rent some weekend time at a local studio space, because I have free time and am dreaming colorful dreams of making art again, crazy but somehow I think it is possible.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

A taste of spring

The snow has melted, the sun peaks out and we crawl out of hibernation, stretch and soak in its glory. I love winter and snow, but I also love four seasons and how fantastic the dawn of a new one feels. The past few days I have sat in my porch swing, the rocking chair, the backyard and the playground. Today we took a bike ride on the rail trail. It was simple and glorious. I have cooked down possibly my last batch of maple syrup for this season and have begun to research chickens and chicken coops for our yard. We may also build a tree house/fort/swingset this spring. I took down the Christmas lights from the porch and decorated play spaces in the kids' room. The world is new through their eyes and spring adds a sweetness, fresh air.

Feats of Strength and Wits

5.13.08- Iman rolls over... recorded on video
6.2.08 & 6.3.08- Tayeb sleeps through the night... two nights in a row
6.27.08- without jinxing things, Bibi consistently sleeps through the night, last night breaking a record....9 hours, now if only he could talk to his sister

7.23.08- Babies first solid meal of rice cereal. Iman eats more avidly than Bibi, much to our surprise

8.1.08- Bibi and Iman learn to roll over back to tummy while in Morocco. They also found their feet. Both feats were learned within a day of each other.

8.18.08- Iman starts crawling, or rather scooting on all fours more like an inchworm

8.30.08- Iman's first tooth begins to break through

9.17.08- Bibi says Dada, although we are not sure if it should count as his first word, since it applies to everything right now

9.22.08- Iman's second tooth begins to show right next to the first

10.15.08- Bibi discovers his pee pee, typical man, can't stop playing with it now that he has found it

10.16.08- Bibi's first tooth breaks through the gums, finally all that drooling has paid off

10.20.08- Bibi's second tooth breaks through, right next to the first. Although he has gotten a later start than his sister, he has caught up to her in record time

11.4.08- Determined to make it to the voting booths, Bibi begins to crawl. He has a military style of staying as low as possible and pulling himself with his arms.

11.12.08- Bibi pulls himself to standing in the crib for the first time

11.12.08- Three new foods in one day- plum, yogurt and avocado

11.14.08- Iman's third tooth breaks through, the first one on top

11.16.08- Bibi slept through the night for the first time in a VERY long time, hopefully he will keep up the good work...I mean sleep

11.22.08- Iman slept through the night for the first time. They have taken turns since then, but haven't been nice enough to do it on the same night yet.

12.9.08- First cheese for babies and Iman starts more finger foods

12.11.08- Iman stands for 10 seconds without holding anything, repeated several times the next day... should I encourage this?

12.14.08- Iman waves while we are out and about in Cambridge, I am trying to remember now, but I think it may have been the first time she clapped as well

12.24.08- Bibi claps for the first time

12.27.08- Iman is up to seven teeth now, four on top and a third one joins the first two on the bottom. I am starting to feel like a slacker not documenting any of this. Bibi is also getting two teeth on top. One has already broken through. Iman also can stand on her own for much longer now, but no walking yet, she just leaps from standing to my arms. Other updates... both babies say Dada and Baba, but Bibi especially says Dada all the time and Iman has said Mama, but I still don't think they are connecting me to Mama and Amine to Dada quite yet.

1.10.09- Bibi stands on his own for the first time a few days ago, he is repeating it more often, but still only for a second or so at a time. Today Iman took her first very shaky unassisted step after a lot of encouragement and a day full of standing and playing with Sylvie (these two will be nothing but trouble together)

2.4.09- Babies first taste of Harrira and Iman takes a few steps unassisted. Bibi stands on his own for 10-20 seconds, or until he starts laughing.

2.8.09- Babies try couscous for the first time, their faces were priceless... let's just say it wasn't love at first bite.

2.9.09- Bibi has slept through the night three nights in a row. Last night he went down at 7:30 and Amine went to check on him at 7 am to find him awake and quietly hanging out in his crib. Iman is getting close only waking up once through the night, so she sleeps for two long chunks.

3.2.09- Bibi and Iman both take a few steps unassisted a few days ago, but often leading to the "trust fall" game where they leap forward assuming we will catch them. They also play peek-a-boo which for Iman means covering her eyes when we ask "Where is Iman?" and then moving them away and smiling. Bibi's interpretation is slightly different, he covers his ears when we say "Where is Bibi?", so the two of them look like hear no evil and see no evil... we just need to teach Sylvie to do speak no evil and then we can take this trick on the road.

3.7.09- While Amine finishes the base trim in the kitchen, Iman starts walking, the next day she looks like a pro, much more steady than Bibi, taking 10 controlled steps from Amine to me. Bibi does 3-5 steps, more of a running pace, falling into our arms.

3.10.09- Mama finally breaks down and feeds the babies some chicken

3.11.09- First act of twin on twin violence, Bibi bites Iman on the cheek

9.28.09-

list of English words: Baba, Mama, Bibi, ears, eyes, nose, mouth, toes, shoes, hat, no, apple, cookie, bird, horse, cat, cow, moon, balloon, ball, hi, hello, bye bye, bus, up, baby, this, what's that?, all gone

list of Arabic words: doh, lebass

list of their version of words: mimi (feed me), numas (I want to nurse), tehta (take this, here) weeohh weeohh (siren noise-ambulance, or fire truck), woof woof (dog), nana (banana), boo boo

list of expressions: uh-oh, oh no, foufou (hot!), wow, yucky

10.19.09-

Adding to word list: bus, knees, eyebrows, meat, monkey,owl, moose, donkey, boots, bear, mess, juice, house, car

Coordinating animals with noises: monkey, donkey, cat, bear

11.1.09

Iman's first sentence: (when Jon & Kate plus 8 goes to commercial) "Where the babies go?" it has since been translated to fit Curious George "Where the monkey go?", very cute and I need to get off my butt to video babies talking