California
The move went smoothly (thanks to lots of help from family and friends). We are renting a house here, which has been wonderful. I love having an extra bedroom, a backyard, a playroom, and a garage! This house also costs less than the apartment we rented in Washington. It is an older home and has some quirks (like aggregate flooring in part of the house!), but it is the perfect little house for us right now. We feel like real adults now that we have officially purchased some major appliances.
Extended Family
A big part of the reason we moved was to be close to our families. It is wonderful. We have been loving family dinners, time with cousins, lots of help, and grandparents loving our kids. The Larsens are less than 5 minutes away so we see them frequently, and my mom has been able to come stay with us a few days each week. We plan on making lots of visits to my family soon (as soon as I figure out how to get out of the house with three kids). We sure love our families.
Daniel and Alexa
We have been busy trying to get everything put away and organized (while keeping the 3 kids alive and well). Moving to a new state, starting a new job, and having twins during the holiday season was definitely a lot to tackle at one time. I feel like we are finally almost getting things under control. One of my favorite discoveries here has been a grocery delivery service! You order online after the kids are asleep and then they are delivered the next morning! It is fantastic and life changing. I have also been a very frequent shopper at Amazon. I bet our mailman loves us! In other HUGE news, we both got smart phones! We finally gave in (years behind everyone else, including our parents) and got some beautiful iPhones. I think that has also contributed to the amount of online shopping I have done!
Will
Will has been an awesome big brother. He is still his mischievous toddler self, but he is so sweet to those babies. He brings them things, comforts them, and has been extremely understanding and patient. It probably helps that he has had tons of attention from all of the extended family. He keeps us on our toes with all of the ways he wants to be independent. He regularly helps himself to treats, opens Christmas presents that don't belong to him, and even locks me out of the house occasionally.
Kate and Emily
While having twins is sometimes difficult, they really are great babies. They have both started smiling now, which is so fun. Kate is usually a bit fussier during the day, and Emily takes her turn at night. Still, I really can't complain, because they have been sleeping for 8 hour stretches most nights. Angel babies!! Will never slept more than a few hours at a time until he was a year old, so I was not expecting this. It has been fantastic and is probably the reason I haven't gone crazy by now.
