Houston’s first birthday is a week from today! Can you believe it? I cannot wrap my head around the fact that it was nearly a year ago when, after 32 painful hours of labor and 4 of pushing, our beloved Houston came into this world. The first year is such an amazing time, with our boy going from such a helpless little creature to independent boy in such a seemingly short period. We couldn’t imagine life without him … and soon we’ll feel the same way about the twins. It’s difficult to comprehend that we could love any other child as much as we love Houston, but by this November, our house will be filled with triple the love and joy!

  

On the pregnancy front, I had my last check-up on June 11. I had only gained a pound, but I was 10 pounds heavier at the beginning of this pregnancy than I was with Houston, so that’s no big deal; there’s plenty of fat to go around. Plus, now that I’m over my first-trimester nauseousness, I’m back to my old eating habits — quite healthy, to say the least. My uterus, however, was measuring large, which the doc says is totally normal with twins. Baby A (I suppose that would be Lefty, since he/she is located on my left side) had a heartbeat of 160 beats per minute and Baby B (Pancho) came in at a whopping 164. We will find out the gender of the twins on July 8 and my Clan Dillingham readers will be the first to know the news, so keep posted.

Also, I officially felt Pancho move on June 15 (he/she was saying, “Happy Father’s Day!” to Stephen) and Lefty move on June 16. There has been much activity since then, especially at night, as well as more cervical and uterine twinges than there were this early on in my last pregnancy. Again, the doc says this is to be expected with multiples. 

Here’s the lowdown on Houston’s recent happenings: 

• Mommy and Daddy finally saw Houston take steps on June 1. He still isn’t walking per se, but he is taking 2-3 steps many times throughout the day, cruising like a champ, and of course, crawling around like a mad man. 
• His pal, Gracie, taught him to clap his hands on June 4. Now he voluntarily claps to music and to some of his own stellar accomplishments — humble he is not.
• Houston is obsessed with water! We bought a kiddie pool and have been playing in that on some of the hotter days. We have also been to a public pool on a couple of occasions with our neighbor, Heather, and her kids. There’s an area there that features geysers, sprinklers, trickles and lots of other aquatic-based fun for the kids. Houston thinks it’s great! 

  

• “Uncle” Adam visited the family for a few days late last week. He helped out with feeding and playing with Houston, so that Mommy could run some errands.
• On June 13, Houston had a play date at his friend Mason’s house. They frolicked inside and then headed outdoors to tackle Mason’s sandbox. Houston also slid down Mason’s sliding board with Mommy’s help. He was cautiously intrigued by the new activity. Check out the pics of that outing by clicking here.
• Then Aunt Lisa visited over the weekend, so that Mommy could accomplish some long-standing items on her to-do list. Houston instantly bonded with his auntie, who constantly entertained him outdoors and taught him about leaves, plants, acorns, bees and ants. Houston got a weird poison ivy-looking rash that day, although it wasn’t the dreaded weed, thankfully. The rash never seemed to bother him and it’s almost totally healed. Click here to see pics of Lisa’s visit.
• And yesterday, Houston and I babysat his pal, Jamie. He thinks she is one of the coolest things since sliced bread. So, he had a ball hanging out with her, exploring every nook and cranny of her house and drawing outside with her sidewalk chalk.

We’ll have many fun and sunny pictures to share with you once we return from the beach. Till then, you can check out all the June photos.