More space? #41

When the girls come back out of school, these days they immediately go to their room and hang out there.

Then when I walked by I heard them giggling and talking while reading both a book. (what a surprise...)



But then I was looking at them for a while... they hadn't noticed me with the camera yet and I thought by myself: "Don't they want more space, each their own bed?, or even their own room? It looks so small for both of them."

But I guess they are not ready for the separation yet... because believe me I asked them many times. They like to be that close to each other, I guess they still NEED that!

Kids don't have the need to have that much space I guess... I mean when I am going back to the house where I grew up as a child now I always feel that it is so small!! But then I didn't feel it was small. We lived with 5 people in a house with only 1 bathroom and only 1 toilet. Now I almost get claustrophobic when I think about it that we shared that small space with 5 people. My dad lives in that house now by himself, and yes it is big enough with 4 bedrooms... but the spaces are tiny!

I guess that is the same with Jasmine and Juliet, they don't know any better than sharing their room, even their bed with each other and they like it that way...

I guess there will come a day that they will ask me to have separate beds or separate rooms, and that is perfectly fine with me!

But for now, they just giggle and share all their secrets with each other cozy together :-)
I just love to have twins!


Enjoy this gorgeous day!
Mireille xx

A thing or two about twins... #33

I bought the National Geographic today because the cover looked like this, and of course I was intrigued about what the article would say about twins. I mean I have read a lot about twins, but still they discover new things while researching all the time.



The following excerpt comes from the January issue of National Geographic:

They have the same piercing eyes. The same color hair. One may be shy, while the other loves meeting new people. Discovering why identical twins differ—despite having the same DNA—could reveal a great deal about all of us.

…twin studies have helped lead scientists to a radical, almost heretical new conclusion: that nature and nurture are not the only elemental forces at work. According to a recent field called epigenetics, there is a third factor also in play, one that in some cases serves as a bridge between the environment and our genes, and in others operates on its own to shape who we are.

Interesting!

Did you know that every summer, on the first weekend in August, thousands of twins converge on Twinsburg, Ohio, a small town southeast of Cleveland named by identical twin brothers nearly two centuries ago.

They come, two by two, for the Twins Days Festival, a three-day marathon of picnics, talent shows, and look-alike contests that has grown into one of the world's largest gatherings of twins.

I want to go there ONE DAY, see how Jasmine and Juliet would like that to meet so many other twins?

It stays a fascinating subject... TWINS, and I am blessed to be a mother of such gorgeous twins :-)



Juliet on the left, and Jasmine on the right. I find the older they get the more they start looking different... as you can see clearly on this picture. Although at some pictures they really look alike... so it all depends.

Enjoy your Thursday! Here it is a sunny and hot day, how is the temperature at your destination?
Mireille xx

Purging, moving, 9 year old's anxiety....

Yesterday we cleaned out the playroom of the girls. Being 9 now is a different stage in their lives. When we came here 3 years ago the girls were still so much into playing with toys, playing dress-up, coloring, crafting, you name it and they did it.

But being 9 is a whole different ball game!



So when the 3 of us were purging and sorting out their room we took out 10 FULL garbage bags with toys, coloring books that were full, games and puzzles that were not complete anymore.... kids don't clean up after they play and then things get misplaced or lost.... But we also still had a lot of stuff that is still good enough to give to another child. Well, our housekeeper will take care of that. Everything goes to her and she either gives it away or sells it. Probably the latter... which I don't blame her!

But for the girls this move is another step in their lives. The anxiety is building up a bit. They are afraid that because we will not be there when our stuff gets moved that a lot of their precious things are getting stolen. I don't blame them, because that is the story their heard through the grapevine.... Adults talking to each other without realizing that little ears are listening too.....



Although we are just moving about 10 minutes away, it is still a move. We do need to pack, unpack and redecorate our new house. Finding a new spot in the house, being comfortable in their new bedroom, saying goodbye to the old! Not always easy for a 9 year old. But I am trying to make this move as fun as possible and try to ease their anxiety by letting them pack a box full of their most precious stuff, tape it ourselves and give it to a friend who is so generous to let us stack a few boxes in her garage. (Thanks Ingrid!) So then when we come back from our long break in Holland and the USA we pick up our boxes and unpack these ourselves. That will ease their anxiety...

It must be weird for the girls that this time we don't see the movers come and pack everything, now we just live here for the last 3 weeks, go on vacation, and when we come back immediately go to the new house. And a lot of the things will be in its place already. So for a disclosure point of view, there is none. It will all happen so sudden for them.... but our girls are strong rooted and I am sure they can handle it! By the time they are going to college they will be pros in moving!!

Funny also when we looked at some homes we talked to the girls about each having their own bedroom, since in this house they will be from 9 to about 12 years old. A different phase in their lives, maybe one they need and want more privacy. But they said NO with a definite tone in their voice. However, now Jasmine was talking about that not always JJ's friends are her friends anymore and she feels sometimes a bit left out, so maybe it would be a good idea to each have their own room?? Which of course is fine with me, but I am wondering if after a long vacation she still feels the same. We will see. She has to put the pros and cons in a row and see how it adds up. Because each their own room, would also mean NO play room anymore... And sometimes Jasmine has nightmares and she creeps into JJ's bed, well if she is in another room, that is not that easy. I will keep you posted on the development of the bedrooms :-)

With the girls turning 9 we are definitely going into a new phase in their lives. Will be interesting to say the least!!



At least they have each other to go through this, that is the big advantage of being a TWIN!! A sibling that is one the same emotional level as you, so that makes life already better most of the time!!

Tell me, what do you do to ease your child's mind before moving?? Do you have tips and tricks for me?
Please share, I can use all the help! Always good to hear somebody else's experience!!

Have a Marvelous Monday!
Mireille xx

~ Twins ~

TWINS

So many good things come in pairs,

Like ears and socks and panda bears.

But best of all are sets of twins,

with extra laughter, double grins.

There's so much fun in having two

with twice as many points of view.

So much alike, forever linked,

and yet they're also quite distinct.

They share a birthday and a name,

But moods and tempers aren't the same.

Although at times they may dispute,

their loyalty is absolute.

From days of youth till life is done,

it's one for both and both for one.

We're all quite novel and precise,

But special folks~

God made twice.

Double double...

Went a day to the beach at Meanam again, but we got rained out... so we had to kind of leave in a hurry, but not before having a great massage under a palm tree, although it ended a bit short, so today we get half a rain check ;-)

This was my view while laying there and enjoying the massage...



And we met another set of twins on the beach, 16 years old, and their friend of 18. Such beautiful girls!!



Thailand; the land of great massages, and monsoons!

Sawasdee Kha!
Mireille

Cozy and snug together...

Jasmine and Juliet have each their own twin bed, but that is not close, cozy and snug enough for the girls. So each night, Jasmine takes her pillow and moves over to Juliet's bed and they sleep together.

We fostered the girls since they were 3 months old before we adopted them at 16 months old while we were living in Thailand. We didn't know for sure if we could keep them forever, so we never really bought a bed for them at the beginning. A friend of us gave us 1 crib and the girls stayed in there till the moment came they were a bit too big. Then we moved over to a Queen bed that I turned into a huge crib and the girls and me all 3 slept in there (Dirk was already living and working in the USA), till the day we officially adopted them and moved all to the US.

Again, we put 2 toddler beds together and they had again a big crib. Till the moment the girls were potty trained we kept it like a big crib, then we split the 2 beds and made it like a normal toddler bed, so they could easily get out and go to the bathroom.
Last year we moved to South Africa, the girls were 6 now, and we bought them each a twin bed, but I guess it is too big, not cozy enough and hard to snuggle up with each other.... so old habits are hard to get rid off and the girls are sleeping together again.

If that makes them happy, it makes me happy! There will come a day that they find they don't have enough space, for now even looking at this picture the bed seems huge for those 2 tiny bodies :-)

I guess it is a twin thing, they feel more comfortable being close to each other, for 9 months they were so close that even now it doesn't bother the other one if her sister is laying almost on top of her.

Have a good day!
Mireille

Twins... the same and yet so different ;-)

OK, people tell me ALL the time, that Jasmine and Juliet look so much alike. Yeah, I kinda agree (not really), but look at these close-ups and you won't agree anymore! The girls have such a different personality as it shows in their eyes, smiles and the way they talk, hold their heads, move their body.

Jasmine is the shy one, although she hides behind her princess and silly looks. Then she can come out as quite the outgoing personality, but as soon as she is Jezzy again, she likes Juliet to take control.

Juliet is the bold one, the leader, the more talkative one. She protects her sister and makes sure nobody will hurt the princess. When they do role plays, she is the boy and Jezz is the girl ;-)

Since they were at pre-school we color-coded the girls (teachers asked us for that) and since then it is the way the girls pick their clothes. Jezz has the 'girl' colors and JJ the 'boy' colors.

Look for yourself and see, and try to guess who is who. Don't look at the colors of their clothes but at their faces!! The eyes give away so much. JJ has a rounder face and her eyes are rounder as well. While Jezz has a finer face and features with a bit more almond eyes. Can you see?? (Click on the images to see a larger view)


Sweet Jasmine

Vivacious Juliet

Being confident and happy together

Tickle me, tickle me!

Confident JJ

Silly Jezzy

Tomboy JJ

Princess posing Jezzy

How I LOVE my beautiful twins!!

Have a fun day, hope the weather is better on your side, here it is raining already for a few days ;-(

Ciao, Mireille

Mermaids from the Indian Ocean...

We didn't only relax at Sheffield beach we also did a photo shoot for our Xmas card this year. I had it planned out and made these dresses from tulle. I made these for our New Years bash coming up, which is themed in the colors purple, silver and gold. I made Jasmine a dress from gold and 2 colors of purple and Juliet I made the same dress in silver and 2 colors of purple. Meters of tulle is woven into these dresses. But they are easy to make. No sewing, except the elastic band and the fluffy boa at the top, but the tulle you just knot.

Since we are always early awake I planned to do 2 photo shoots in one day. The first in the morning at around 8:30 and the other one with the sunset at around 4:30, see the difference in lighting!

We took so many shots, but it was so hard on the girls, they had to squint there eyes since they were looking directly into the sun. I had to have the lighting in my back, there is no way around it, but the girls had such a hard time. The sun is extreme here!! I want to use one of these photos for my Xmas card but can't decide which one is the best, can you help me pick one?? (Click on any of them to see a bigger size).


1. I like this one because of the nice background.

2. A bit too far? Maybe crop it a bit?

3. Too bad the feet are cut off...

4. Girls have a hard time looking into the sun.

5. Too much shade??

6. JJ doesn't look too happy!

7. Cute holding hands...

8. Distant too far??

9. Jezz can't keep her eyes open and JJ is not happy with the big waves in the back!

10. Both smiling...yeah!

11. Again smiling ;-)

12. Sunset session.

13. A bit too far?? not close-up enough.

14. Shadow in face, bothering or not??

15. Having fun sitting down.

16. Holding hands.

17. The end...how sweet those small little backs ;-)

So these are the 17 best of the 300 shots we took...yes about 300 shots! Very small amount turned out well, because the sun was bothering the girls SO much. Although the sessions both went fast, each maybe 20 minutes, but I just kept on shooting and shooting. The hard thing with 2 kids in one shot is that I have a lot of photo's that one of them is really looking great but then the other had her eyes closed or wasn't looking into the camera. You know how it goes....

So give me your opinion; which one you like the best. Brings out their personality or which one is the cutest smile, nicest background, best composition etc..

I like to hear from you!
Ciao, Mireille

Getting mail....I just love it ;-)

As of today I have 2299 visitors of 87 countries to my blog. That is great, wonderful, amazing, and I just LOVE it.

What I would LOVE even more is, if I would get some mail from you. Who are you? Why are you interested in my blog? Are you Dutch or Thai like us? Do you have twins as well, or did you adopt from Thailand like we did? Or do you live in the USA or South Africa, or even another African country, or is it just the Funky Donkey?? What are the common things we have that you come back to my blog?? I AM INTERSTED IN YOU! Do you have a blog as well, and like to share it with me? Tell me!!

Please drop me a line, give a comment on my blog. What do you like to read more about; our private lives, our house and surroundings, our daughters, me or my hero hubby??
What is it that you like or maybe even dislike about this blog, share it with me....I like to know more about my readers. You are part of my daily life...obviously.... I like to be part of yours ;-)

I hope to hear from you ;-)
Love, Mireille

Big kids in the City...

Jasmine & Juliet love to go to the Big Apple, so once in a while they have a modeling gig in the City and they get all excited! A lot of these photo shoots we have to cancel since I don't want the girls to skip school for it. But yesterday, it was georgous weather and they had a modeling appointment for H&M in the afternoon. So after school, we loaded up the car with coloring books, drinks and food and drove to NYC. We actually found a parking lot across the street from the CB studios on W.29th, between 7&8th Ave. They took quite some pictures from the girls, alone and together. So who knows you will soon see JJ and Jezz in a H&M catalog? I'll keep you posted if they use their pictures. Since they always use more children for 1 shoot and the best shots are used of course. It was fun, even if their pictures are not published ;-)
Afterwards we walked a bit through the streets, ate a yummy ice cream and went back home. Just another week day in the Dijkstra household.

Thai princesses

Isn't this picture adorable? We used this image when we sent out our adoption announcement in 2003. We were living in Thailand at the moment and since the girls are born there, we thought it was a cool idea to use the traditional clothing of Thailand.
These pictures were taken in a studio, and we had about 100 images, and this was the only 1 where both girls were kinda looking 'happy' in the picture. See some more below that we didn't use, but are still really funny!
You can see that they get bored and start chewing the jewelry.
Then Jasmine starts 're-adjusting' Juliet's tiara, which she is not happy about and starts crying.After a while, she thinks; what my sister can do, I can do and she starts messing with Jasmine's tiara. Of course she is not too happy about that! But look at Juliet's face, how smart she thinks she is, how funny is that face!

Having twins

A fellow mother (Janelle Adams of Chicago) of twins wrote this article in a group I belong to on Facebook. I thought it was so funny, I have to share this with you. Since I get most of these questions myself on a regular basis, so I can relate to this story very well. And I am sure if you have twins this will bring a smile to your face :-)

The Top 15 Stupid Things People Say to Parents of Twins

15. “I could never do it.” (Oh really. What would you do? Are you suggesting I put them on the curb with signs around their necks that say, “Free to a good home. My mom can’t do it.”?)

14. “Do they have different personalities?” (No. They are the same human being divided into two parts.)

13. Said by a stranger, “They’re identical, right?” Mom answers, “No. They’re fraternal.” Stranger response, “They are NOT!” (OK. You’re right. I have no idea what I’m talking about. These are not my children. I thought it would be fun to borrow them from a mom down at Baby Gap. It’s been more than an hour. I guess I should return them.)

12. “Are they ‘paternal’ twins?” (Yes. They have a father. There was only one virgin birth.)

11. “Just wait till they’re older. It only gets harder.” (Thank you. I woke up this morning hoping I’d receive a word of discouragement while pushing a cart of preschoolers down the cereal aisle.)

10. “When one cries, does he wake the other?” (No. Twins cannot hear each other’s cries because they all communicate with their special telepathic language only.)

9. From a perfect stranger: “Were they in the same sac?” (Hello. Nice to meet you, too. Will you be sharing your gynecological history with me as well?)

8. “Are they developmentally behind?” (Well, let’s see. They’re 3 years old and thus far, all their graduate school applications have been denied. We’ll get back with you on that.)

7. “How do you do it?” (Haven’t you seen the Nike commercials?)

6. Said by a dentist: “I was shocked that they didn’t have the same bite patterns.” (They are two different human beings, not clones.)

5. “You must be SO busy.” (Are you volunteering to clean my house?)

4. Said to a mom of fraternal twins who are different sizes, have different eye color and different face structure: “How do you tell them apart?” (I just look at them.)

3. “What do you do when they both cry at the same time?” (Sometimes I cry. Sometimes I go to Starbucks.)

2. Said to a mom of boy/girl twins: “Are they identical?” (Uh. Not exactly.)

1. Only one comment could be voted No. 1. The choice was clear. Drum roll, please. After a stranger had been informed that the toddler boys were twins, she asked a simple question: “Are they brothers?” (Enough said.)

Let’s be honest. People are fascinated with twins. They don’t mean to say stupid things. It just happens. It happens to all of us. Saying stupid things is one activity that joins us all together as human beings. Learn to forgive the frailties of others and enjoy the laughs later. Life is a journey. Enjoy the double-stroller roller coaster ride!

PS: Thanks Janelle for the story, I hope you don't mind that I am sharing this with the rest of blog world!