I was thinking about "twin talk" or idioglossia this morning as I listened to Wil and Elizabeth playing together. There's no question that they're developing something like that. It's not, as some suggest, a "secret" language between them. It's just that they understand their pronunciation of words that still sound unclear to us. For example, the other night Wil was asking to read a particular book, but neither Sean nor I could make out what he was saying. Then Elizabeth repeated it and we could understand her. She, however, understood both ways of pronouncing the title. The thing I found so interesting this morning is how much faster they can talk to each other than they talk to me. It's almost the reverse of when a native speaker slows down to talk to someone who is just learning the language.

I stepped into the garage for a minute to check on some laundry. When I returned Wil had turned my Winnie-the-Pooh slippers into Vikings' ships.

Elizabeth was in a state this morning just before I left. She had to be taken to her crib. She went beserk. Finally, she was able to come out. No discernible reasons. Oh well.

Wil fell again today on the ice. He was telling his teacher about it this morning at Mothers' Day Out. "We pay in de sno. Ih coe. An fwir-fee [slippery]. Buh ih okay."

Elizabeth discovered she could see her breath. "Look Momma. Whai." Exhale again. "Whai."

Funny how different our perspectives can be. I thought having the kids in bed last night was frustrating and not restful. I nearly vowed never to let them do it again.

This morning, however, I thought we had a great time playing outside in the snow. Both kids said "Tha wuh fun" when we came in and asked to go out again this evening. Elizabeth loved brushing all the snow off the swing set and only quit once her mittens were soaked. Wil was less sure about the whole thing, but we ran around and made tracks in the snow and I think he had fun enough. Yes, we were back in before Sean left for work but he left an hour later than usual.

Before we went out Wil was protesting getting dressed. Elizabeth said to him, "I thaw you wan to go ow-sai."

We got our first snow of the year last night and the kids really dig it. We walked around at a place with a lot of Christmas lights and they thought that was pretty fun, especially with the snow. (Elizabeth, however, was very afraid of the Living Snowman - the guy in the snowman suit - and started asking to go home to her house.) They wanted to go out right away this morning, but didn't do so well. Wil doesn't want to wear mittens. He was cold. Then he fell down and got really cold. Elizabeth did better. But they were back in before I even left for work.

Whoa. We had them in bed with us a lot last night. That was pretty okay because we went to bed at 830. Christine had a headache, and I felt tired enough to join her, and I actually fell asleep. First Wil came. Then Elizabeth woke up and figured out where he was and wanted to join him. Elizabeth was fine. She laid there quietly on Christine's side. Wil wanted to play, and he had Junior Asparagus with him. We told him if he was going to play he needed to go to his crib. He asked to go twice. Then, when we got there he picked up his book and said 'Can you read this to me?'. I had to tell him no, that it was sleepy time and not time to read. The first time he opted to go back to the big bed. The second time I left him and he settled down quickly and went to sleep and we made it through until morning. A lot of it was really nice. There was a lot of good snuggling.

Those crazy kids 'imaginatively played' in their cribs from 730 until 1030 sunday night. They didn't fuss. We were amazed. And then they woke up at their normal 730 time monday morning.

The twins are bursting with imaginative play these days. It seems like they are coming up with new games all the time. Last night in their cribs they were "riding in the car." This morning they "went to the store" and walked around the house filling up a bucket with books and other objects. When they play like that I don't understand half of what they say to each other, but they do. The parts I understand are when they are clearly imitating me. "Furse we go to sto, theh we go to chur. Tha be okay?" or "Come on Ebeh. It be fun."

Wil has started "talking" for his stuffed Veggies. He can carry on rather lengthy conversations between them. Sometimes he reenacts what he's seen on the videos and sometimes he just makes things up. "Mim-mer Al-fed nah a ro-bah. Ee a ni man."

Sean's grandfather died on Sunday, so Sean left town on Monday. We didn't have a lot of time to prepare the twins, so they are still unsure about where Daddy is. Wil's best guess is that he's at the airport and asks daily to go back to the airport to see Daddy. Although at Bible Study on Tuesday morning, he walked around church calling, "Daddy, weh ah you?" I thought Elizabeth was doing better because she asks to talk about "Sor-sa" (Florida.) And so we go through the routine of Where did Daddy go? "Sor-sa." How did Daddy get there? "Eh-pane." When is Daddy coming home? "On Sa-say." But then tonight she wanted to go outside to play with Daddy after supper.

Elizabeth is resisting naps and has made various attempts to get Wil to join her. On Tuesday it was, "Dohn lay dow Wil. Dohn lay dow. Wil? Wil? Weel! WEEEEL!" Which finally prompted him to respond, "I nee to way down Ebeh." Today she just resorted to hollering "Way up Wil!" [Wil's way is translated lay, Elizabeth's is wake.]

Playgroup met at KJM Stables this morning to ride ponies. Elizabeth talked about the "poh-pees" all the way there: "DW (from Arthur on PBS) lie poh-pee," "I no lie hor, I lie poh-pee," "Do Wil lie poh-pee?" etc. But would they ride once we got there? No way. When asked if he wanted to ride Wil would always say, "Um, no." Three times Elizabeth said she wanted to ride and twice she sat on the pony for a moment, but then she got off. However they loved watching the other kids ride the ponies and Wil especially loved looking at the "bee hor" (big horses.) They also had fun playing with their friends and in the dirt and with Bear the dog "bee daw". And they both helped brush the ponies when the riding was done. As Wil said, "Da wah fuh."

A neighborhood cat hung out on our kitchen window sill for most of the morning. Wil and Elizabeth were so excited. They pulled chairs up to the sink and chattered away at the cat. "Hi kih-kee, kih-kee." "Wah you do-in kih-kee?" This afternoon when Elizabeth was talking to my sister on the phone, my sister asked her what animals she likes to see at the zoo and Elizabeth replied, "Cat."

More ABC Song stories:
- We sang it on the way to church this evening. After the 5th or 6th time, Wil said, "Tha wah boo-ful."
- Elizabeth changed the words to "next time won't you sing with Momma." She loves to make jokes like that.
- It was the last thing I heard them say or sing before they fell asleep tonight.

Today was the first day I really let them help me put lunch together. Wil put green beans on their plates and Elizabeth washed their trays and unwrapped the cheese for grilled cheese sandwiches. They did great and were so proud of themselves. We'll definitely being doing more of that in the future.

Sean loves to wake up with one of the children sleeping beside him. I love to wake up to the sound of their happy voices in their bedroom. I love listening to them talk and play and sing. They are able to play so well together now and their games are becoming more elaborate. A couple of times recently I've gone in to get them up and Wil has said, "No Momma. Dohn come in," because he wants to keep playing. This morning they were singing the ABC song again. Wil also sang "Think of Me" from a VeggieTales video. Sometimes when he sings that song Elizabeth will hold their stuffed Junior Asparagus toy and rock it like a baby. What a couple of sweeties.

On the way home I asked Wil what he wanted to eat for lunch. "kih and rohs," he said. [Kix and Cheerios.] "Eh we pay wih pay-duh?" [Then we play with playdough?] His favorite meal and favorite activity right now.

They sang the ABC song in the car this morning. It was so funny and so sweet. I wish there was a way to write how they sound mumbling through LMNO and then the triumphant P. At the end Wil would sing, "Nah I my ABC neh ty woh sing wih me" and Elizabeth would say, "Momma you sing wih me now?"

Wil was so sweet last night. I heard the report later. Crying, Christine went in to check on him (I usually don't hear, and, anyway, Elizabeth will not receive my ministrations). He said 'I wan to fwee wih Da-dee.' [I want to sleep with Daddy.] So she brought him in. How could she not? And it was great. I generally love having one of my children in bed with me and Christine. Wil and I woke up earlier than Christine and he played a little and we read some books before Elizabeth started calling for Momma to come get her, which woke Christine up. Up and at 'em. A lovely morning.

We're watching "Discover Spot." Helen, a hippo, comes to play. She's wearing a crown and says, "I'm a princess." Wil said, "You not a pinceh. Ebeh a pinceh."

Granmas and Grampas are asking for Christmas Wish Lists. Here's what would be on them if the twins could make them:

For both: Fisher Price Little People Vehicles, tape recorder with microphone, Toy Story 2 video

For Elizabeth: doll with hair to brush, doll accessories (pacifier, bottle, feeding dishes, etc.) Lady and the Tramp video

For Wil: any vehicles, any tools/workstation, puzzles, especially things he can take apart and put back together, watercolor paints