New Videos

See below for some great videos of the kids.

Isabel, the "Dancing Queen!"

Cameron playing the spoons.

Cameron having a tupperware party.

November Update

So we don't have a lot of time to write much, but the kids are growing so fast and people have been asking for an update so we decided just to post some photos and a video below.

The kids showing off their "raspberry" blowing ability!


Cameron enjoying some time at the park.


Isabel trying out for "goalie"!!


Cameron "helping" rake the yard.

Capturing a rare smile on camera! We need to teach the kids to smile for the camera.

Jason and Meghan on the hay ride at the apple orchard for Jason's birthday.

"Hey Dad, a little help here!"

"What is this thing?" Cameron discovering the hay maze at the orchard.

Cam & Izzie enjoying some book time.

Isabel Walking

It didn't take long for Isabel to catch up with Cameron. After watching her "older" brother walk for the past two weeks, Isabel recently decided that walking is more fun than crawling. See the video below.

Tough Guy

Cameron practicing the look he will give little boys if they are mean to his sister. Also, scroll down the page to see more photos and videos!

Labor Day in North Carolina

For Labor Day weekend, we all hopped on a plane and headed down to North Carolina for a weekend in the warm weather with Meghan's family. The kids were a bit squirmy sitting on our laps on the plane, but otherwise they were great travelers. We had great weather in NC, and Jason got to play a few rounds of golf. At the end of the weekend, we were sad to return to Boston and the upcoming winter! Hopefully we will have a long fall!

Some pictures from the weekend are below.

Cam being a Ham.


Isabel clapping and Cameron hollering....quite normal behaviors!


Isabel showing off her little 6-tooth smile. :-)


Isabel clapping...again.


"Tough Guy" Cameron and surprised Isabel with their cousins Madison and Jordan.


The Darling family enjoying the warm weather...Cameron sporting his first Duke T-shirt!


Cameron, Jordan, Auntie Chele, Isabel and Madison.


Hopefully this is the LAST time we see the kids behind bars!


Isabel playing "peek a boo" through the railing.


Isabel showing off her new talent of climbing over the rails under the kitchen table chairs.

Cameron Walking

Isabel was the first one to take first steps, but she has decided (at least for the time being) to stick with crawling for now. But Cameron has decided that walking is a lot more fun! See the videos below!

Cameron Walking

Isabel Reading and Crawling

Milestones and 12 Month Sears Photos

Now that the kids have turned 1, they are starting to change everyday and reach new milestones. Some of the new skills they have learned over the past few weeks include taking their first unassisted steps - not consistently walking yet, but very close - and making animal noises - their repitoire includes Monkey, Dog, Cow, and Lion.

We went back to Sears to have their 12 month photos taken. Unfortunately, it was ridiculously hot in the studio and the kids cried more than they smiled. But they still got some cute ones, even without the smiles. Some of the photos are below:

First Birthday!

Yeah, it's a birthday! Dixie and Duchess getting into the birthday spirit!

It is hard to believe that Cameron and Isabel are already 1 year old! It's been a challenging year, and we have certainly learned a lot about being parents. Jason likes to say that we've learned how to raise kids through trial and error, so we'll do better for the next set of twins! Overall we all survived a year, the kids are continuing to grow and learn, and Mom and Dad are still sane (most of the time).

For their first birthday, which was Wednesday, August 5, Mom and Dad Darling took the day off from work and made it a special day for the twins. We marked the day with wheat pancakes for breakfast and a trip to the Franklin Park Zoo. It was a very hot day at the zoo, and Cameron and Isabel enjoyed the Gorillas, Zebras and Giraffes the most. Below are a few photos:

Our two little Monkeys with one big Monkey at the zoo! (and some kid in an orange shirt)

Dad showing the kids the Zebras.

Mom with Cameron and Isabel at the Giraffe exhibit.

After the Zoo and during their afternoon nap, we made a special carrot cake for their birthday, complete with separate little cupcakes for them to mash and smash all over the place. It was a "healthy" cake, in that we didn't add any sugar. The twins liked it, but not as much as the ice cream they ate when we went out to dinner as a last treat for their birthday! After dinner and cake and ice cream, they got to open their presents. Then it was off to bed...needless to say, after such an exhausting day, they slept very well!

Isabel seems to be very pleased with the mess she is about to make!

Cameron is mesmorized by his cupcake!


"Dad, is this one for me? Can I open it?"

"Thanks Mom. It is just what I wanted!"

After celebrating their actual birthday, we planned a small celebration for Saturday, August 8. All of Meghan's family (except Uncle Doc) made the trip up north to Boston, and all of Jason's family came down from NH and VT. We set up some activities in the back yard, including a water table and slide borrowed from the neighbors, some sidewalk chalk, bubbles, and a crawling tunnel. We served food hot off the grill and finished it off with another cake, this one full of sugar! It was a beautiful Boston day, probably the best day of the summer. Several photos from the day are below:

"You want me to go down this slide? This one right here?"


Isabel checking out her new crawling tunnel.


Cameron really enjoyed the water table, and got most of the water all over himself!


"Yay, it's a birthday party for us!" Isabel showed off her new clapping skill.


All of Cameron and Isabel's cousins made it for their 1st birthday. Jordan and Madison Tabaretti and Ethan and Anna Dean.

Below are some before and after photos of the cake...

Before....

After...Isabel smashing the cake into her mouth!

After...Cameron enjoying the cake, AND the plate!

Father's Day

While Jason was traveling for work last week, Meghan decided to make him something special for Father's Day. She made little "I Love My Daddy" onesies for Cameron and Isabel, took their pictures in the onesies, printed the pictures and framed them. The frame is now prominently displayed in Jason's office at work!

Below are some of the photos from this first Father's Day craft project!

Outer Banks Beach Trip

During the week of June 6-13, Meghan's family rented a house on the beach in Duck, NC, in the Outer Banks. So in order to get the whole family to the beach house (including the pups), we packed up every square inch of the car on Thursday night in Boston and hit the road for the first leg of our trip. We arrived in Northern Virginia at Aunt Chele's house in the wee hours of Friday morning.

While we were at Chele's, we were visited by some of our DC friends, including Andrea Hayken and her little 1+ year old son Jack. After having a great time playing together, it was time for Jack to go home. Needless to say, Cameron and Jack were not too happy about this turn of events (see below)!!!



On Saturday morning, it was time to pack up the whole gang again and drive to the Outer Banks for our week at the beach. We had a great time at the beach, relaxing with the kids and spending time with everyone. Of course, Cameron and Isabel picked this week to catch their first illness (Hand, Foot and Mouth) and that led to a few sleepless nights. But overall, we were able to enjoy lots of sun, lots of sand, and lots of time away from the frigid Boston weather (it rained most of the time we were gone). When the week was over, we were sad to leave the beach and go back to reality. But we reserved the house again for next year, so we have that to look forward to!

Below are some photos from the trip.

Cameron making himself at home on the pool chair. "Waitress, 1 milk please!"

Isabel enjoying some towel time after a swim in the pool.

Isabel the daredevil climbing over the dog obstacle. Lilly did not even seem to notice!

Here is all of us at the beach. The kids did not seem to like the sand very much, so we spent most of our time in the pool instead of at the beach. Maybe they will like the beach next year!

Isabel sporting a stylish pink sun hat :-)

Aunt Chele, Isabel and Cousin Jordan in the pool.

We had some fun pool time just about every day.

Grandpa looks like a pro handling Isabel's bottle!

Jordan making bubbles on the beach access stairs with a few spectators enjoying the show!

Cameron going for a ride on the Daddy Train!

Isabel crawling around the living room while playing with the rattle.

Chele the "dog whisperer" attracting the attention of all the dogs. Dogs are allowed to run off leash on the beaches in Duck, so the dogs really enjoyed that!

Duchess showing Lilly how to play frisbee on the beach!