Happy Birthday Tommy and Isabella!!

It's hard to believe that it was ten years ago, I was giving birth (by c-section) to the twins. I've already written about the day they were born and even today, I can remember the relief of holding them in my arms. They were so healthy. So unlike Nico's birth. Having them proved I was willing to go through Hell to get them and I still can't believe that we went through all that we did. I thought I'd instead do a paragraph telling what I love about each of them.

Since Tommy was born first, I'll start with him. It's impossible not to fall in love with Tommy. He is funny without knowing he is funny. He is passionate about football, basketball and baseball but mostly football. I am amazed at every game by how tough he is. It can't possibly be the same kid on the field that asks me, "Mom, can we cuddle?" He loves to bust a move and has been making me laugh since he was 6 months old. He is a self proclaimed "ladies man" and I love to hear moms (and teachers) tell me that they want their daughters to marry Tommy. There is a light in Tommy's green eyes that I can't explain...like he is an old soul. Like he is part of this wonderful joke or secret that he can't help but laugh at. A funny story about Tommy and there are many: We went to the kids' conferences two years ago (he was in 2nd grade) and first we went to Nico's and we heard all about how he struggled in Math. We went to Belle's and she got a wonderful report with the only thing to improve on was math. I thought, Great! They got my math genes. I was dreading Tommy's conference because he gets marked down for being the class clown and not listening attentively (he told me he listens with his ears, not his eyes) and no parent wants to sit and listen to that at a conference. We didn't hear any of that. The teachers went on and on about what a joy he was in class and then...we knew it was coming..."the only concern is math..." I knew it! "He is advanced and needs to be challenged. He excels in all the subjects but we really need to make sure we give him some accelerated work in math." Leo and I walked out of there dumbfounded. I looked at Leo and said, "Is it possible..." and he finished, "that Tommy is our smartest kid?" Who would have thought it with his blank stares or instead of answering me when I ask him a question, he busts out into hip hop moves? Tommy is a fighter through and through. He is so different from the other kids in that he rarely needs help and is a self starter in every aspect of his life (Nico is a self starter...when he wants to be). He is also by far our most stubborn kid. When he sets his mind that he wants something, he doesn't stop until he gets it. I want to say that he only uses this when he is on a court or a field but I can't. He asks me every single day when he can get drums and I answer, "When you have your own place." Drums and a baby don't really mix. Another funny story about Tommy was when he was in first grade and a little girl in his class called him on the phone. She was pretty forward and asked him if he was still her boyfriend. He said yes really quietly and she must have said she couldn't hear him because he yelled, "Yes, I am still your boyfriend!" He hung up and after I got over my shock of a girl calling him, I asked him how the call made him feel and he said, "all warm in my stomach." I hope Tommy stays as sweet as he is. I hope that if he has to battle all that he has to, that it doesn't dull his love of life. He tells me all the time that when he goes pro and is in the NFL, he is going to have so much money that he is going to fly me out to all of his games so I never have to miss one. Now, c'mon...how can you not fall in love with that?

I can say this because she looks nothing like me. People tell me all the time that she does but I think they are just trying to make me feel like more than the pod that carried her. She is beautiful and looks like a real live angel. When she was little she had Shirley Temple blond curls and now, I'd kill to have her hair. She has a blond (though it is getting darker than the white blond that it once was) sometimes curly and sometimes straight mane and pretty green eyes...see, total opposite of my brown hair/brown eyes combo. She is a people-pleaser through and through. She is so amazing with Gia that someday, some child is going to be very lucky to have her as a mom (someday in the very far future). Gia absolutely adores her. I would be lost without Belle and my life would be a whole lot more chaotic because she helps me so much. I went to Barnes and Noble one night and when I came home, she had cleaned the whole house. I am harder on Belle than I am on the boys and I know that isn't fair. The mother/daughter relationship is a tangled web. She is most like me and I see in her things I would have liked to have been different in myself. She has a short fuse and is quick to get mad. She holds a grudge and she is so sensitive that the smallest things hurt her feelings (once a girl told her that her desk was big and she was so upset she didn't ask the girl over for months). I have newfound respect for my parents since they never let on that I was bugging them when I would say, "Can I show you this dance I made up or read you this story I wrote?" She asks me about 20 times a day if she can "sing me the song she wrote or show me the cheer she made up?" I hope to God my face isn't registering what my mind is thinking. For the record, her songs for awhile disturbed me. Some of the lines were, "We broke up and I don't know why" or "I loved you but you didn't love me back" and my personal favorite, "You cheated on me and I'll never forgive you." Obviously her little crush in 3rd grade spilled over into her songwriting and we had a long talk about the way a boy should treat a girl and how about pepping it up a bit (I made a mental note...no more Taylor Swift songs for awhile)? I never worry about Belle's report cards or taking her out in public. She holds herself to a higher standard than I ever could. I have already talked about her passion for cheerleading and she does sparkle when she is on that floor or field or sideline but she has another passion and that is drawing. I love to watch her draw because she gets lost in it. She amazes me at how good she is. At first, I thought she was going to be shy but she enjoys being center stage in the things she loves to do. When she was little, she was okay letting Tommy have the spotlight but not anymore. She loves it just as much as he does and it is often the source of fights. One of Belle's best traits is her loyalty. If you win her over, she will fight for you and defend you even if you are wrong. I know this because she takes my side no matter what the issue is. Another story that shows how mothering Belle is was that when she and Tommy were in Kindergarten, they had the same teacher. She was the better reader but Tommy was at a higher level. Can you guess why? She was so concerned that he was doing what he was supposed to that she fell behind. I separated them the following year. I hope Belle never stops being loving and affectionate. I hope that when life gets rough, she'll try and find the humor in it. I hope she never loses her drive and passion for the things she loves. I hope she gains confidence in her abilities and talents to trust herself to try new things and not be so afraid to fail (I think that is another thing I passed down to her...hmmm...still don't have anything published...might be a pattern). I love when she says, "Mom, you are my biggest fan" because I am. She is beautiful inside and out and I hope that she gives the world the chance to know it.

It goes without saying that I love them with all my heart. Having twins is definitely double trouble but it is also double blessings and I wouldn't have it any other way.

(And if I had my computer, I'd be able to put more recent pictures in.)