Just after they turned three, we moved the boys out of their cribs and into their 'big boy beds,' or in Ben's case, 'little boy beds. He still insists that he is not a big boy, he is a little boy, and he is not going to get big or grow up. It's only by a minute, but he absolutely lives up to his title as the youngest. The move to beds was pretty sudden. We just happened to see a great price on nice beds on Craigslist, so we figured we would buy them and eventually use them. But when the beds got to the house, we realized that we really had no place to store them. So, at 7pm, down came the cribs as two very excited little guys watched and 'helped' Daddy. I was afraid Ben would seriously balk at the idea and at leaving his little coccoon, but he was excited! They jumped on the mattresses and ran around for a while. We were watching on the monitor after they went to bed, and as expected, Ben was in bed with Jack within ten minutes. He did eventually go back to his own bed and they had a great first night. They have been excellent since! There have definitely been some naps that weren't, and some late nights when they are playing, but we couldn't have asked for them to be better. Sometimes, Ben will still try to snuggle with Jackie, but Jack kicks him out. It's funny because as infants, they slept in the same crib, and the reason we finally separated them was because Ben was (literally) smothering Jack. Some things never change, I guess!
I have to say that I am really enjoying the age of three. It was a tough year when Mairead was three because we were fighting so hard with the school system and dragging her to appointment after appointment. With the boys, three has been a lot of fun! There are definitely some challenges in that they are getting more opinionated and try to argue for what they want (one more than the other- guess who?), but they are just doing and saying such interesting things all the time.
For example, you know how they say that twins are double trouble? One day I literally heard Jack say, "C'mon, Ben, let's go find trouble." They are mischievous, though. We have a screen door that leads on to the deck and the other day I heard it slide open as Jack said, "Let's get out of here, Ben." I said, "Hey- what are you doing?" Ben immediately said, "Sorry, Mom. Sorry." Jack just had a look of, "Aw, shit, she caught us."
They are incredibly sweet, too. Yesterday, Jack wasn't feeling well and said, to his brother, "Ben, you need to make me feel better." Ben immediately jumped up, ran to Jack, and gave him a hug. And, I believe that it truly did make Jack feel better. You are probably seeing a pattern here of Jack telling Ben what to do. I imagine this will eventually lead to, "C'mon, Ben, let's take the car out tonight."
They are good to others, too. My grandmother gave them some pretzels the other day and Ben yelled to my mom, "Nana! My Nana gave me some pretzels! That was very so kind of her! Thank you, My Nana!" When one boy is looking for a toy, the other always helps him to find it. They don't want to go anywhere without the other. They really are fascinating and fun to watch as they develop their individual personalities, but always retain those bits of 'sameness' that connect them so deeply. We are so blessed to have them.
I also love having them because since I have twins, I am able to be part of a Mothers of Multiples group that is really great. There are so many fun activities planned, and a lot of terrific MoMs are in the club. I have developed some great friendships for which I am very grateful. There is one set of twins that we see very often, to the point where when we go someplace without them, my kids ask, "But when are Jack and Aidan coming?" It's sweet to see them develop friendships, too!
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