Our babies have turned into toddlers, and it seems to have happened overnight. As their eyes have opened to the world around them, we have witnessed their curiosity and frustrations in a new way. For example, both of the girls are trying to climb but finding out about gravity the hard way. Running looks like fun to them, but hitting things with a thump emphasizes the 'hardness' of real life. This stage is a hard one for the parents as well; we are enjoying holding them but want them to be independent and explore the world apart from our arms. As I write, the sounds of a frustrating cry iminate from the nursery--this is the first night without the bottle before bed; doctor's 'suggestion'. He indicated that their dairy intake in the form of milk should taper off at this age and that the bottle has to go. We will miss holding our little ones and connecting before bedtime--so goes parenthood...changes.

The girls have started to show much more personality this month--spinning, talking, reading alone, smiling on cue (see above). They have embraced their daily schedule and know when it is time to eat and go to their highchairs; when it is naptime (night, night) and search for Paco and Leo (favorite stuffed sleeping buddies); and when to find a dark corner of the house (just after having been changed) to fill a diaper. Papa and Gramma found out these truths this weekend as they spent time with the girls. As you can see from the picture from the neighborhood 'track', Sydney and Abigail love to walk when outside--there is hope that they will love nature like Mama and Daddy and be hikers someday. FYI-many more pictures on flickr.