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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (28 months), New Years eve day in our garden

We started the year with two toddlers and somewhere along the way we said goodbye to baby cheeks and leg rolls and unruly hair and watched two little girls emerge that never cease to amaze me, delight me, amuse me and full me with such wonder. I love this stage and age with you. Our year had its ups and downs, some scary times and a few tough days. But it was one the best years

Best of 2015

1. TALKING Listening to your talking bloom from single words to full conversations, your names, English and Afrikaans, stories, secrets, songs and dreams and I love you's
2. EXPLORING Travelling all over with you, to the beach and the bush, to the farm and to Cape Town, to Millstream, to the lakes and to London
3. ADVENTURE Sleeping on the platform under the stars
4. BONDING Watching you grow together and distinctly become yourselves
5. DEVELOPMENT Witnessing your empathy develop with your big, golden hearts and your minds grow with your big, beautiful brains
6. TOGETHERNESS Nursing you to sleep at night and morning snuggles with all of us in bed
7. BIRTH Welcoming two new family members into our lives
8. INDEPENDENCE Seeing you get excited for your birthday and Christmas and parties. And learning to swim. And riding a horse. And doing puzzles. And feeding yourselves. 
9. GROWTH You continuously growing into two beautiful little beings
10. LOVE Unconditional love

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (27 months), pre Christmas Eve sparklers at Cheska's home

Me: What do you want for Christmas?

A: (without hesitation) a star!

F: me also want a star!

Happy Christmas baby girls. You make it so special.

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (27 months), Millstream

We went to a farm in Dullstroom for a week. I love that when you go away, normal routines slip away and the days seem to take on a rhythm of their own. I also love the way different family members just naturally take on different roles - bed time stories with Chessie, mealtimes with Francie Sugar, and driving with Human. k and we would start our mornings with you at the kitchen counter nibbling on rusks and helping prepare breakfast. After breakfast we would make our way to see the horses, which Anna named Angelpie Snowflake and Florence named Bow (as in take a bow) Snowflake. We would then go for a swim and meander back home for some home made apple pies (Anna with crea, Florence without). Our afternoon naps with us all on one bed would usually be accompanied by thunderstorms and incessant rain on the tin roof. Following a late lunch we would go for a walk in the hills, or around the dam, with you two snuggling up in the carriers.Evenings ran later as you helped papa with the fire, naps ran longer, and bathtime was an eventful affair joined by whoever was staying at that time (Kimmy, then granny nanny, and Chessie). In between you made mud pies and found fairies, you saw a rainbow and went on a row boat. It was a good week. 

A note on horse riding: Although you were nervous of patting the horses,  after the first day of visiting themAnna you said right away, and determinedly, that you were going to ride by yourself the next morning. Which you did. Florence, you started off riding with papa and the said half way through you would ride alone. Which you did. The pride in your faces made me beam as we walked along side you around the lawn. You then asked to go riding every morning! One morning papa and I went for a ride by ourselves while you stayed with Chessie and Human. I was misty and the horses were frisky and we galloped across the grasslands passed zebra and springbok and blesbok. It was magical and I cant wait until we can all go riding like that together. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (27 months)

Honor's fifth birthday party. Your perfect profiles, and pretty little bonnets made by Kimmy, watching the older girls jump on the trampoline. Watching, observing, taking it all in. You were very excited for this party because singing 'happy birthday' and blowing out candles is one of your favourite things to do. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (27 months)

"Help each other.

Love everyone.

Love every weed.

Love every ray of light.

Forgive."

The Tree of Life

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (26 months)

I can't keep up with all the wonderful things you are saying right now. I love our conversations about your world, and listening to talk each other is one of the most wonderful things I will ever hear. The other day as we were driving to Kimmy and Bear's house I overheard this conversation:

A: And what shall we do in the morning? Play with fairies?

F: In our lovely nest?

A: No, in our cot.

Here are some other things you are saying right now...

Florence:

"Anyfing" (for everything and nothing)

Whenever we get in the car or are heading somewhere you ask "Where's our going?" (We are we going)

"I think so" in answer to many of my questions, most of them rhetorical

You love time references. I remember when you discovered the word "later" you were so happy to have a term to describe some time other than now. "Yesterday" refers to any past day and "tomorrow" is a way to delay things to some time other than now. You also randomly throw in days of the week - Me: We should go out for lunch some time, F: Friday! Me: That's sounds good. F: I think so. 

Anna:

When we sit down in the chair in the nursery as we are heading to sleep, before I nurse you, you always say, "I want HushNowBabyDon'tSayAWord, tell me about baby Jesus, and sing the song."

You love rhyming words and make up rhymes for everything - Francie Sugar wuga, Florence borence, on bon, etc.

You have a lot of empathy for some one so little. If you see some one upset you try and comfort them, "Don't wowee, me make it better."

You love fairies right now and refer everything back to them. "My fairies can't sit in this carseat", "These pants are for my fairies", "My fairies also like nectarines", "The fairies can't go there." "Eeyore" and "holiday" also feature strongly in your conversations.

"Oh boy... Oh girl" (Me say "Oh girl mama")

"That's so funny."

"So..." (When explaining things)

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (26 months)

"I feel like a part of my soul has loved you since the beginning of everything. Maybe we're from the same star." Emery Allen

I always tell you that you're both from the same star, whispering it sweetly in your ear before you drift off to sleep.

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (26 months), photo by Tink Photography

How lucky you are to grow up around the corner from all your wonderful cousins. Today we celebrated Francie Sugar's christening. The ceremony was held in the church that bear's parents helped establish and build, and the luncheon was held in Kimmy and Bear's garden. Cheska and Kimmy put together a beautiful event, from flamingos on the lawn, to watermelon lolly pops, to giant balloons and party hats. Although hesitant at first at all the guests in the garden, you warmed up as the day went on and eventually you were diving right in and having a delightful time - hiding under granny nanny's iconic blue dress, nipping bits of chocolate biscuits, and running around the garden. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (26 months)

Kitten bunnies, Halloween 2015. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (26 months)

Summer Sundays at Kimmy and Bear's house are one of most favourite things of all. The whole family, and often some more, join for a day under the giant oak tree in their lush oasis where the world outside is forgotten for a moment - Wendy houses become hideaways and fairy gardens become playgrounds, a golden rabbit lazes just off the lawn and pathways lead you through a wonderland of plants and flowers and gnomes.  Sun dappled afternoons are characterised by bare baby bodies, little dips in the pool, trapoline jumping and adventures around the garden with your cousins, looking for fairies and going on trips. Late lunches that spill outside and sticky-fruit-fingered babes revelling in a day where time slows down and you never have to wander very far to find a pair of wide open arms ready for a hug. Sunlight fades and it's dinner time for all the littles and often a bath in Kimmy's huge tub. Then we head home, marvelling at the dark outside and the lights of the city, with tired eyes and happy hearts tucking these memories safely away. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (25 months)

You girls have the most wonderful papa. He's the greatest bedtime story teller, moon hunter, and bear hugger. The three of you create your own world of silliness, make-believe and adventure. This is a pic of a game called "back back" where he carries you both on his back. Making "kos" with papa is one of your favourite activities, usually conducted while the other one of you is being put to bed. He takes you on a culinary tour of whatever ingredients are making our dinner that night. As I come out the nursery I see him giving you tastes of pasta, and explaining how you cut herbs, I  hear him teaching you about cheeses - "mozarella" you repeat after him with flair, Your papa has only ever spoken to you in Afrikaans, and there are certain words you only know in that language. While you've understood what he says to you from day one, you're saying more and more Afrikaans words in your conversations with him (baard, skoene, werk, maan, kos, staan, man, and on and on) and I love this added layer to who you are. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (25 months), London, UK

Oh London we loved you. We loved strolling along the Southbank from Westminster to Borough Market, we loved visiting Tate Modern and running through the National Gallery to find one of our favourite paintings, we visiting the queen at Buckingham Palace and watching the gardeners rake the beds, we loved the good weather conducive to running through green Park , we loved nibbling on croissants for breakfast and eating out at restaurants and trying new foods and strolling back to the apartment in the evening when all the lights were glowing and city commuters were on their way home, we loved catching buses and underground trains and riding in taxis with no car seats, we loved watching the fountain in Trafalgar Square and listening to a street performer play his bagpipes, we loved walking around the cobbled streets of Convent Garden watching the world go by, we loved discovering Peter Pan's statue in Hyde Park, and visiting friends we've only met in letters. For us, it was fun to be back in a city in which we both once lived, and for you, it was fun to experience a big bustling city who's sights and sounds we'll talk about for many months and years to come.

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (25 months), Windermere, UK

This week we went on a great adventure It started with 24 hours of travelling to arrive at Langdale Chase Hotel, Windermere in the Lake District in England. You are super star travellers - sleeping the whole flight, running through airports with your little backpacks,  asking questions about buses and lifts and transfers and check-in and security, and finding the while experience rather thrilling. Travelling with you makes every part of the trip more fun, including all the waiting. 

The Lake District was beautiful. We met up with your Papa's family there for a few days to celebrate Oupa Jan's 60th birthday. We stayed in a grand old hotel, with wooden-clad halls and ornate fireplaces, which you fondly referred to as Jeremy Fisher's house. We would wonder around the grounds in the afternoon, stroll along the waters edge, and run down grassy hills.  You gazed in wonder at the new scenery - the glass-gray lake, the old wooden jetty, boats passing in the water, damp stone buildings, and a constant mist which gave it all an eerie, magical feeling that would only lift in the early evening. We also took a boat ride around the islands, ate lunch at old pubs, strolled through a little village and came across a meadow of cows, and visited the quaint Beatrix Potter Museum. This area is the home of Beatrix Potter (some of your favourite books) so we and you were fascinated by all the characters. 

The highlights for you however, were the hearty English dinners you ate (think roast chicken with old fashioned veggies, fish and chips and cottage pies); and getting to wear your raincoats and gumboots and splashing in the puddles with umbrellas one rainy afternoon.

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (26 months)

I took you for a haircut this week. While it was not your first cut, it was certainly your biggest. In an instant you transformed from knobbly, wisps of ragamuffins to the sweetest little pixies I've ever laid eyes on. But along with those snips of  soft baby locks, a part of your toddler-ness was cut away, to reveal a stronger glimpse of the little girls emerging from inside. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (25 months)

My bush babies on the back of the Landrover.

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (25 months)

We're back in the bush for a week - endless days, silent nights, no cell phone reception, sleeping under mozzie nets, eating breakfast with hornbills and squirrels, and cultivating a love for this special place in you. Sleeping on the platform was one of my greatest adventures growing up. We introduced you to this adventure for the first time and it was magical falling asleep with you under the stars, bundled up against the cold, listening to the sounds of owls and a far-off leopard, and waking up under the leaves with the sunrise outlining them in a startling glow. I hope this is the start of a family tradition for you, the next generation of bush babies.

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (25 months)

Sometimes it's really hard being a twin. But mostly, it's really wonderful.

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (25 months)

The South Coast immediately conjures up idyllic memories of childhood beach holidays. That damp smell of ripe vegetation, squishy berries underfoot, mixing with sand bought up from the beach and never quite discarded (even months later we find tiny traces of those days at the bottom of beach bags), big banana leaves that make you feel very far away from ordinary life. As I watch you scurry along an overgrown path with lush overhangs of tropical proportions, it's as if I am watching myself many years ago, running with buckets and spades under arms, eager to get to the beach. The destination. The reward for a long walk down. 

Everyday, in the late afternoon, we walk across the golf course, down this overgrown path, and onto a beach, deserted. All ours. Surrounded by nothing but the Indian Ocean and rocks on the one side, and vegetation on the other. It's the end of August so a winter chill is still hanging around in the evenings but this doesn't prevent dips in the sea, and naked bums on the beach. We make our way back up to the house for dinner, tired but exhilarated, and you tastes of salt as I kiss your chilly bodies and wrap you up in whatever warmth we can find. These are the favourite parts of my days. 

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A portrait of my babes once a week in 2015 (24 months)

We are in Southbroom for a week with all our favourite girls: Kimmy, the three sisters, and all our babes (and Hugs' bump). Sand in the toes, salty spray on your skin, family around whichever way you turn, loud meals, long walks, rainy afternoon activities, cousin baths, and morning snuggles all in one bed. Girls' holidays are pretty wonderful.