Addison and Riley's journey: Lots and lots of updating to do

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend! It has been a very busy couple of months for us. Lots of changes are happening and I guess the biggest one is that Ian and I are no longer together. We decided, back in March, that we just weren't good for each other and so we've remained friends and have a great co-parenting relationship. I've started working nights and weekend so pretty much all of my time without the kids, is spent at work. Skylar just finished 3rd grade and Leah graduated from preschool.

The boys are doing so well!! Addison is now about 23lbs. and Riley is almost 22lbs. Addison is so close to walking. He'll walk across the whole house just holding onto one of my fingers. He easily walks toys across rooms and can stand up on his own without holding onto anything. Riley is starting to walk while only holding my hands but he is just a little too wobbly. He can walk a toy across the room but it's not pretty.

They're both climbing onto furniture. They love to climb onto the couch and play. Addison stands up, with his arms straight up into the air, and then falls down on the couch. He thinks it's the funniest thing (and it is pretty darn funny). They're both easily going up the stairs. Addison crawls all the way up the steps in only a minute or two. They don't know how to get down from the furniture or stairs but we're working on that.

Their therapies are going really well too. Ian usually has them during their physical therapy sessions and he tells me that the therapist is really happy with their progress. They're doing great with occupational therapy. Speech is where I think they're making the most progress right now. They can sign "more" "eat" and "please". They're starting to try and say the words "cat", "dog", "baba (for bottle)", and "baby". They're saying "mama", "mom", "out", and they're babbling with a lot of new sounds. They follow directions wonderfully. If I ask them if they're hungry, they'll crawl to their high chairs and try and climb into them. If I tell them it's time for a new diaper, they go to where I change their diapers. I can ask them where something is and they'll either crawl and look for it, or point to it. If Addison wants something, he'll crawl to it and point. We're finally able to have some basic communication between us and it's made things a lot easier.

They're eating basically any food that you put in front of them....and they eat a lot. A normal breakfast for them is 2 scrambled eggs with cheese and milk added, either a half or whole banana, and usually some crackers or toast. We're slowly working on getting them off formula (and bottles all together). When I weaned them at 13 months and switched them to formula, if I had thought for even a second that they would still be drinking formula a year later, I would have tried to stick it out and continue nursing.

They're definitely toddlers now. 2 weeks ago, they were still somewhat babies...but they're 100% toddlers now and many people have commented on it. They each have their own personality and like and dislikes. Addison will definitely be the ring leader and Riley will be the one to watch Addison to make sure it's ok before he does it. Addison gets this sneaky grin on his face and he gives the funniest expressions. He knows when he's not supposed to do something and he'll turn his head over and down but look at you out of the corner of his eyes. Riley is my love bug. He loves to snuggle and be rocked to sleep.

They give each other high five's and shake hands. They love to give hugs and kisses. They make car motor sounds when they play with their trucks. It's hard to believe that they're 2 already. It has been so fun to see them grow and become individuals AND brothers.

Riley enjoying cake that the neighbor made