you, at six months: will.

William,

You are almost 7 months old! Here's a glimpse into your personality right now.

You are the sweetest, calmest, most content little babe there ever was. If all babies were like you, the average size of families in America would be something like 25. You never cry, and only make the quietest little whimper when you are upset accompanied by big alligator tears that just melt my heart.

You are still a spitter, but you've improved a lot over the last 2 months. Your tummy is happy these days.

You are a Mama's boy. Or maybe I am just a William's girl? You have me wrapped around your tiny finger in a big, big way. I cannot resist your sweetness or the way you squirm and kick your legs and arms and squeal when you see me to try to get me to pick you up. It works every time.

You love to sleep on your tummy and will roll there to fall asleep no matter how many times I place you to sleep on your back. You always wake up first in the morning with the softest little noises and a beaming smile.

You are skinny and long with a perfectly round face and really thick blonde hair. You drool nonstop and have permanently rosy cheeks and huge blue eyes. You are gorgeous.

You love Nora, but you don't like her to get in your space too much, it stresses you out. You especially don't like it when she gets excited and reaches for you but just ends up scratching you instead. This is a constant issue between you two.

You can be shy and have a bit of stranger danger. You prefer to be held by Mom and Dad.

You are more reserved and observant in your personality and like to hang back and watch things unfold. You give strangers a bashful little smile until you've warmed up to them and then the giggles and personality come out.

You just cut your very first tooth on the bottom two days ago.

You love rice cereal, are a PRO at eating, swallowing and grabbing the spoon, and you want a bite of everything else, while we're at it.

You love to stand and have a strong little body. You aren't much of a cuddler because you stay stiff. If I lay you in a chair to play with a mobile you will flex your little tummy and do a crunch until you are almost siting upright. You can sit up in the boppy and are close to sitting up without it.

You are the calm and peaceful in our family. You make the world stop spinning when things are hectic and crazy. I am so grateful for you, William, and I love and adore every thing about you.

These past six months have been a total pleasure. Please never grow up. I can't even bear to think of it. Oh, the heartbreak.

All my love,

Mommy

a little photoshoot together.

o

 the day they turned six months.

will & nora: month two.

they linked arms like this all on their own, i swear. i have a witness!

If you get annoyed with Mothers who are obsessed with their children LOOK AWAY NOW because I am the most annoying Mom you'll ever meet. When I found out I was having twins at that 20 week ultrasound the emotion that I felt the strongest was FEAR. I was scared. So, so scared. I couldn't imagine it being fun. I couldn't imagine feeling anything but stress. And those feelings were irrational and magnified by shock, but I have to say that caring for these sweet little twins of mine has been a much happier experience than I expected it to be. It has been a pleasant surprise.

Don't get me wrong here. It is HARD. Some days I am certain I won't survive another hour. Some days I want to bang my head against the wall a few hundred times. It is so hard, so stressful, very monotonous, and very exhausting, but man oh man, DO I LOVE THEM.

And that's the thing I almost wasn't expecting. Although I knew that I would love them (of course I would!), when I found out there would be two of them I worried that the stress might trump the adoration. I worried the stress would overcome me and make it hard for me to feel anything else. And I am so lucky to say that's not the case. I am so happy to say that the love trumps the stress times a million. Their needs never end, I rarely sit down, the feedings are never-ending and I am so, so tired, but I also feel so lucky. I can't believe they are mine. I can't believe how much my heart has stretched to make room for them. I can't believe how cute they are, how sweet, how soft and tiny and precious and perfect.

I don't want this time to go too quickly. Because right now they are everything to this little family and more. This time we're having--this phase of life spent doing nothing but loving them and feeding them and wiping their tiny bums--It is impossibly tiring and so insane and one of the greatest challenges I've ever known.

It is also straight up MAGIC.

2 months old.