My three sons

My three sons. I love fiercely in a way only a mother possibly could. And they all couldn't be more different from each other. Even the twins are starting to give us glimpses of the personalities they are beginning to adopt as they approach their first birthday.

My two year old. He's headstrong. Hugely opinionated. Knows what he wants and often stands his ground until we decide if fighting the battle is going to matter come Tuesday or not. We usually discover upon checking him when we retire for the night he's changed his pajamas into something he's decided is much more suitable. He has very strong opinions on food. Very strong. Just this morning he declared the munchkins he and I picked out as "yucky" and then asked me to hold his munchkin when we stopped at the corner store for milk - but not to eat it - and then proceeded to pick out a small package of Oreos and bring them to the counter. Where I was then told I could eat the yucky Munchkin. So today I learned Oreos for breakfast good, Munchkins bad. Good thing he actually likes oatmeal on a regular basis. He likes to tackle tasks himself. He's very observant, paying close attention to us even when we are unaware. We recently discovered he is capable of setting up the baby gates properly all by himself.

Our ten month old twins. Twin A had a lengthy six week NICU stay. He is methodical and deliberate and progressing on his own time. He puts a lot of thought into every action he takes. He is capable of sitting and entertaining himself with toys and playing quietly. He doesn't cry unless there is a clear reason for it such as being tired, hungry, an excessively wet diaper or overly bored with a toy, super frustrated with tummy time. He has made up all his weight easily, wearing 12 month clothing. He is a champion at teething and starting to work at finger foods and likes the taste of softer Mommy and Daddy foods.

Twin B had a two week NICU stay. He has caught up to his age developmentally. He cannot sit still for a second now that he is crawling and cruising. He needs attention constantly and is a high maintenance child. He despises naps, I suspect because it means he may miss household action. He cries and fusses to hear his own voice. We anticipate he will be a chatterbox when he starts talking. He is the smallest of the three boys, having not tolerated the milk based formula. Now that his formula is switched, we foresee him catching up to his brothers. He is quick to pull toys away from his brother if he likes what he sees.  He has the most million dollar smile of the three and has since day one.

Fact is they are our sweet boys, different as can be. We cherish their personalities and foster them to be their own person as long as they grow up to be good people and make smart decisions in life.