Babies' First Christmas

On Thursday December 18, we were watching the weather forecast in Boston and a series of snow storms were in the forecast for the weekend, starting on the morning of Friday December 19. This was a problem, since we were planning to drive to North Carolina overnight on Friday, December 19!! So we made a quick decision and after Jason got home from work on Thursday, we packed up our things, loaded everything in the car (including kids and dogs!), and got on the road just after midnight on Thursday night. It was an exhausting drive, but we were able to beat all of the snowstorms and arrived in North Carolina around 2:30 pm on Friday, December 19. Another successful overnight drive!

The weather in North Carolina was a welcome change from the frigid, brisk, raw Boston weather. Jason was able to play a couple of rounds of golf in the week leading up to Christmas, and we enjoyed several runs outside in the warm weather.

Cameron and Isabel enjoyed all of the attention they received during the week, and were spoiled silly with gifts on Christmas day. Unfortunately, they were too young to really enjoy the Christmas day...in fact, they slept through most of the present opening!

With Christmas over, it was time to return to Boston and the impending start of work for Meghan. :-( So sadly, we made another overnight drive back to Boston, arriving at home on Sunday, December 28. Only 9 more days until Meghan returns to work.

Below are some photos from the Christmas holiday.

Isabel and Cameron in their 1st Christmas outfit. They wore this on Christmas Eve day. Isabel likes to flash her flirtatious smile and Cameron like to give his serious look to the camera.


Aunt Chele cuddling with Isabel just before...

...Grandpa Bahler soothed her to sleep.

Cameron and Isabel in their Christmas Eve church outfits! (Christmas Outfit #2)

Cameron acting like "Cam the Ham" as he shows off his rock hard abs.

Cousin Maddie holding Cameron and Cousin Jordan holding Isabel on Christmas Eve in front of the Christmas tree.

Cousin Jordan holding Isabel on Christmas Eve.

Jason holding Cameron and Meghan holding Isabel on Christmas Eve in front of the Christmas tree.

Cameron and Isabel in their 3rd Christmas outfit, this one for Christmas Day. Cameron is sporting a dapper red and white overall outfit with a reindeer motif. Isabel is wearing a trim looking red one piece with a Christmas tree image on the front :-)

Another photo of the kids in their Christmas Day outfits, this time complete with antler hat (for Cameron) and matching red headband (for Isabel).

Isabel looking like the prettiest girl in the world in her stylish Christmas outfit complete with matching head band :-)

Aunt Christi holding Cameron.

Grandma Bahler holding Isabel on her first Christmas!

Dixie and Duchess on Christmas Day...the pups have started to become best friends and stick together!

Early Christmas with the Darling Family

On December 13, we hosted an early Christmas celebration at our house in Arlington. Jason liked to call it the "Griswold Family Christmas"...for those of you who have seen the movie "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation", you'll get the reference. For those of you who haven't seen this movie, rush out to the video store or get on Netflix and see it now...it is a classic Christmas movie. Anyway, the reason Jason liked to call ii the Griswold Family Christmas was that we hosted 10 adults, 2 kids, 2 babies, and 2 dogs in our house in Arlington. The complete group is shown in one of the photos below. Unlike the movie, the weekend was free of disaster and the twins had the chance to meet some of Jason's relatives, including his Aunt, Uncle and Cousin, and his Grandmother (who they will call "Gigi", for "Great-Grandmother"). Some photos from the weekend and some additional recent photos of the twins are below.

Darling-Dean-Filiciotto Christmas in Boston!

Back Row (left to right): Jason's Cousin Charlotte, Jason, Meghan, Nate, Ethan, Jason's Uncle Frank, Jason's Aunt Mary (holding Isabel)
Front Row (left to right): Allison, Anna, Greg (holding Cameron), Marianne, Jason's Nana Mary




GiGi Mary holding Cameron



Nono (i.e. Grandpa) Darling holding Cameron





Meghan with Cameron and our friend Jess Casaletto with Isabel in front of our Christmas Tree.




Meghan with Cameron and Jason with Isabel at Symphony Hall in Boston. We took the twins to see the Holiday Pops concert on December 12. They behaved very well...looks like we might have some music lovers in our family!




Cameron flashing his winning smile :-)


Not to be outdone by her "big" brother, Isabel likes to show off her "orange slice" smile whenever she can!

Isabel and Cameron sporting their knit sweaters...these were knit by Jason's Aunt Evelyn.

NBA Wingspan?

Hmm....can you tell who in the photos below has the wingspan of an NBA basketball player??

14 Hours to North Carolina...

With the twins approaching 3 months of age, we decided it was time to take them on a trip to North Carolina to visit Meghan's parents, sister and family. The twins had grown so much since Meghan's family had seen them last, so we were looking forward to the vacation to North Carolina. But first, there was the minor issue of the 14 hour drive from Boston to Southern Pines, NC! We decided to try an overnight trip, and left on Friday at 11 pm....after 4 hours in the car, Jason was still driving and feeling a little sleepy...luckily he had brought along a Red Bull and was able to find the AC DC channel on XM...nothing like a little "Hells Bells" and "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" to give a driver an extra shot of adrenaline! Overall, the twins were perfect travelers and we didn't need to stop until 7 am to feed them. They slept 90% of the trip and we arrived in Southern Pines at around 1 pm the next day, only having to stop TWICE for the twins! Our traveling circus of two babies and two puppies was comical at rest areas, but overall it was an uneventful trip.

During our stay in North Carolina, Jason has played lots of golf (or at least TRIED to play golf), everyone has gotten more sleep, we had a Bahler early Thanksgiving, and Jordan and Madison got to "play" with their little cousins :-)

Jim was also able to finally open his 1955 bottle of Canadian Whiskey. In 1987, one of his college buddies gave him the gift of the whiskey "to be opened on the birth of his first grandson." So during this trip, Jim and Jason shared a toast with the whiskey, which literally "warmed" them right up...

Below are some photos from the trip in North Carolina.

Jim and Jason sharing a glass of the 1955 Whiskey.

Grandma and Cameron sharing a glass of the Whiskey :-) Not really, but she looks whiskey happy and he looks whiskey drunk!

Meghan, Jason, Isabel and Cameron in a family photo with the twins at 3 months old.

Jason and Mini-Jason. Mini-Jason is sporting a nice suit with a stylish bow tie.

Chele, Jordan, Madison, Isabel and Cameron....the Bahler girls and Cameron!

Isabel showing off her flirtatious smile :-)

Cameron with a sly little look...he's probably passing gas.

Isabel enjoying some awake time with Mommy...

...and some sleep time with Mommy.

Cameron helping himself to a little snack.

A Series of Firsts...

In the weeks and months leading up the arrival of the twins, I (this is Jason) found myself marking a series of "lasts." The last good night's sleep. The last night out for beer and nachos at a sports bar without having to find a babysitter. The last quiet night watching TV. The last time I could say "I'll be there in 20 minutes." The last easy road trip......

But now that I look back, none of that means all that much, especially given the series of "firsts" which has begun since the twins were born. See below for some photos marking these "firsts."

The first nap for Baby Mama and Cameron


The first time reading a book to Isabel, and the first look of "awe" on her face...


Isabel's first crush...she gave Jack Hayken the "eye" during a recent visit to Northern Virgina.


The first Halloween

Cameron's first dance move? Is that the "running man"?

The first time meeting their cousins

And of course, what made our hearts melt, the first smiles :-)

We're looking forward to a lot more "firsts" over the coming weeks and months!

October 14 Update - Ten Weeks Old

So the twins are already 10 weeks old (today). Here are some of the things we have learned so far:

1. You really can function on less than 5 hours of sleep for prolonged periods
2. After getting 5 hours of sleep for prolonged periods, use of kitchen knives is not advised (Jason has already cut his fingers twice)
3. Using a diaper that is too small for a baby leads to more laundry (due to unfortunate diaper leaks)
4. Poop really can travel across the room in a stream like a water fountain
5. "I'll be there in 20 minutes"....ha! That doesn't exist anymore!

We are sure there are more things we forgot...oh yeah...sleep deprivation makes you forgetful.

Anyway, below are some recent pictures of the Little Darlings.

Auntie Allison and Cousins Anna and Ethan during their first visit with the twins.


The first big family outing. We went to Honey Pot Hill apple orchard, and spent the first hour and a half waiting for bottles to warm, feeding the kiddos, and then changing an unfortunate diaper leak (see #3 above). But it was a nice fall day and we got to enjoy the weather.


After we finished with the feeding and changing ritual, it was off to the Apple Orchard and Pumpkin Patch. The kiddos were comfortable in their carriers, so we decided against pumpkin patch photos with the kids next to the pumpkins.


Isabel just chillin' on the sofa.

Cameron enjoying one of his favorite things....riding around in his carrier while Daddy Darling makes dinner.

Cameron (in white) and Isabel (in pink) after a walk around the neighborhood.

Cameron getting to know his puppies, Dixie (left) and Duchess (right). The pups have been great with the babies.