17 Weeks

I guess I'm not that great with this blogging concept yet! I forgot to update you all on the last appointment.

They wouldn't tell us the genders, so the suspense continues (doctor's policy, they don't tell until 20 weeks). We will now find out on July 7th at 3:40 p.m. We're really excited too because our moms will both be attending as well! It will be a little party in a very little room with hopefully a shopping trip afterward to celebrate! 

The other appointment went really well though. The babies' heartbeats were strong and the ultrasound tech couldn't believe I haven't felt them yet with all the moving they are doing. They both measured around 4.5"! Apparently their size won't be affected until later on in development when they begin to run out of room in my stomach. She was happy with my weight and stats too, so all is good. It would've been a very quick appointment if you took out all the waiting around time.

So far things are falling in to place well. We are so blessed to be purchasing a car to replace my Jeep from Nate's grandma, which has been a huge  relief! So everyone will fit and be safe.

My maternity leave has been filed with HR and approved and I have enough time to take the full six months off and come back with some leave left over! So I'll officially be at home November 7 - May 14 which is just still another awesome blessing!

We are both (Nate and I) so thankful for all the support and love for the babies that we've received from all our friends and family members. We can't wait for all that is to come.

Thanks again for your continued prayers. 

PS: The bridesmaid dress fits so all is well!! :)

(the girls are excited to meet their new siblings!)

Quick update

Sorry I haven't posted lately... I had a few minutes today - so I thought I'd get you caught up.

Nate did an awesome job and finished up the guest room! It looks great. All that is left is ordering in the closet doors and then it will be ready for anyone who wants to come volunteer to help with the babies. Or visit. Either or. I'll take a few photos and post them soon.

This week (Wednesday at 3 p.m.) is our 16 week appointment. We are really hoping to find out gender - so hopefully I'll have an exciting update for Wednesday night or Thursday. Otherwise, I'm feeling great and things are going really well. Nothing too drastic to share.

Apparently from now on I could feel the babies move. I don't think I've felt anything yet, but will let you know when I have.

To date we've done a lot of growing and according to BabyCenter.com we have fingerprints, they are peeing now (which I'm not sure how I feel about that) and they are the sizes of avocados this week. Since there are two they may be a little smaller than that - but that's what the site says about one. They can also sense light this week! Apparently if you hold a flashlight to my stomach they would move away from it. Not sure how I'm supposed to know that since I can't feel them? I told Nate I was going to bring a flashlight to the ultrasound and try it, but he wasn't sure that would be a good idea. I might still sneak it in my bag and see if I can weave it into conversation with the tech! :)

We'll, that's all I've got. I will share my bridesmaid dress saga and other melt-down stories at a later date when they are actually funny to me... and hope to have an exciting update on genders soon!!

Thanks for your continued prayers!

Baby Bump Progress- 13 Weeks

So these photos might not last depending on how big I get and whether I still want photos documenting the width of my stomach, this is my disclaimer... so enjoy it now. We finally took a few minutes to go out in the yard and take some photos so enjoy. Not too big yet... but definitely more comfortable in dresses.

Heart beats

Ok, not a lot of time to write this morning so I'll try to upload the post later, but I wanted Kate to be able to see these videos before she left to travel to Gangtok!! Quickly though, everyone is very healthy, growing perfectly and I am checking out good too!!

Thanks for everyone's continued prayers!

Video #1 is the heartbeat of Baby A:

(and yes, baby A is the same baby A as the first time. I guess they will be in the same places says the ultrasound tech)

Video #2 is the heartbeat of Baby B:

And just as they were about to finish the ultrasound, Baby B decided to do a little dancing, so she zoomed back in and let Nate video the baby moving around! Super cool... enjoy!

Interesting Article

I wasn't going to post anything until later today, after our next doctor appointment, but my friend Kristen posted this article on her Facebook this morning and I thought it was interesting. I especially liked the part that said, "[Twins] are an identifier of these women who are remarkable, physically exceptional people." Especially after the rough couple of days I've had...

Anyhow, the article is a study about how women who have twins (naturally) live a longer, healthier life. It's a short read, so enjoy!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42981556/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/

11 Weeks

Well, I am eleven weeks this week - so I'm almost through the first trimester! Exciting, I know.

Next week we have another ultra-sound and appointment on Wednesday, so we'll have some new photos. I will also get Nate to take a photo of my belly, because it is starting to show a little this week...

So far things are going really well and I'm actually really enjoying talking to all of the people I've found that have twins! They all say that twins are so much fun and they share all these great stories... not to discredit all of the work that goes in to it, but it definitely seems like all the fun times and cuteness out weighs the rest.

In the meantime, I thought I'd share a few things that I've learned so far in the last few weeks:

1. Orange soda is caffeine free.

2. Strawberry smoothies and pineapple are amazing.

3. Elevators make me dizzy for about 5 minutes afterward.

4. Breaks in the bathroom to unzip your skirt or unbutton your pants are well deserved.

5. I may never sleep through the entire night again with all the potty breaks.

6. I am not "Wonder Woman" and cannot keep up the crazy schedule I was previously keeping.

7. New this week: getting run over by a bus does not begin to describe the actual tiredness you feel.

8. Jeans, especially my skinny ones, are NOT comfortable in any way.

9. Heels are not the best option for an "event" day of work. But still cute.

10. If you want to grow amazing, long nails - get pregnant. :) Nate and the girls are loving the back-scratches.

Class time

In an effort to make all dogs in the family "kid-friendly" and obedient, mom and dad signed everyone up for Puppy Class (level 2) at PetsMart on Wednesday nights for a little socialization. If you make it over to PetsMart during class night you'll see:

• Mom and dad with Stormy trying to get her to calm down for two-seconds in order for her to learn something (although I will say she does what I ask her to do) :)
  
  
• Nick and Shea with Lola, hoping that she won't kill another classmate (although she has vastly improved since class #1 and is starting to play nicely)
  
  
• Party of six: me, Nate, the babies and the girls (Sammie and Ellsey) showing up everyone else in the class because we already know all the tricks. OK, maybe not all the tricks, we did learn "wait" this week. The girls are trying to become a little more social with other dogs; mainly Elly. Sammie gets her frantic butt wiggle in each week hoping that every dog in the class will like her and Elly could care less and would just prefer to give you every trick in the book in hopes you'll share a treat with her.
  
  
• And finally, you'll meet CindyLoo the miniature Sheltie who is adorable and wants treats from everyone and Kiki, not sure what KiKi is, but she has a lot of energy!

I'm not sure this is helping in the cause to make all the pups "kid-friendly", but it sure has been fun. I'd like to note that my mom has always claimed to not be a dog person, so of course I had to post the photo of her playing with all the dogs on the floor of PetsMart. (sorry for the poor quality, taken with my phone)