So Long!

Now that we've become a minivan family we said goodbye (finally!) to the Camry, Brett's car of 10+ years and 150,000ish miles. Don't you love the 90's gold color?! Ah, yes, we've joked many times about the stunning "gold package". But the Camry actually sold within just 24 hours! And some young highschool student went home with his parents a very happy kid. Plus, Brett has upgraded to the Highlander. Everyone wins! Kind of...Brett will have to wait a few years for the car of his dreams.

Guest Room

Funny how when we moved into our house 3 years ago it seemed so big and spacious--we even had some empty or mostly empty rooms. But my how times change! I am confident in saying that we are now using every single square inch of living space, and we are surely thankful for it. We do love our house and are especially grateful that we have a finished 3rd floor. And for those that will be helping us out when the twins come, here are some pictures of your guest quarters:) What was once a playroom is now also a partial guest room. (Don't worry: we'll restrict Little C's playtime hours up here so our hired help can get some rest!) Here are a few vantage points to get a feel for the space.

Room for Two

Welcome to the guest room- turned twins' room! Our plan all along was to keep Corinne in her room, even though this room is twice as big. I felt kind of funny about that--but isn't it cool how God has a way of knowing what's best! Now we know why this room is twice as big...because there will be two babies instead of one. Perfect size! And, we've been blessed to borrow and re-do things we already had in order to avoid buying new furniture for the room. I think it's turned out well. I like to say that practically speaking, we are ready for the twins! Mentally, we're getting there. We're excited for sure, but anxious, too, yet ready to get on with this adventure. It will undoubtedly be a challenging season for our family, but we are trusting that we can do it with some super-natural strength from God and help from family.

With Corinne's move to her toddler bed, we were able to put her crib in the twins' room. I am so so thankful that her transition to the toddler bed has been seamless and smooth these last 2 months!

And a friend who has older twins generously let us borrow this solid oak crib! We are incredibly grateful for all the people who have loaned us what we need to make life with twins work for us.

A dresser that we already had will be the changing table. It was recommended to us that we put up a white board on the wall to scribble feeding, medication, and general notes for the twins so that any caregiver (aka Grandmas) can easily refer to it when helping and bleary-eyed in the middle of the night. Notice there is a Baby A and Baby B side (for now--names will be replacing that soon!)

Thanks goodness for a huge closet! Brett added even more shelving than what was already there, and my dear Monday Night girlfriends surprised me with tons of diapers and wipes to fill up the shelves and help us stock up for the first stretch of weeks. Thanks, girls! You're the best!

In an effort to use things we already had, my mom and I decided to use two rockers that we've had in the family for the twins' room. We re-painted the first rocker white (it was previously a red color) and I picked out fabric to make new cushions for each. The second rocker I was actually rocked in when I was a baby! (You should have seen the material it was covered in...trust me, a huge improvement). I think the rockers turned out well, and thanks to mom's sewing skills they now have matching fabric. And even better: each one matches a respective crib, too!My dear friend, Susan, is the craftiest person I know! She is extremely talented and over the years she has blessed so many friends with beautiful baby blankets made with her own time, creativity, and talent. (Check out her work over at http://www.oleybobbin.com/) She surprised me recently with these adorable baby blankets for the twins! They are not identical, but very similiar and both are just perfect for the twins. Below are pictures of the front and back sides, and wouldn't you know--she incorporated the exact bedding I picked out without even knowing it. Turns out she bought the same sheet over a year ago...and then used it for our girls' blankets! Amazing. Thanks, Susan, for the many gorgeous things you've made for Corinne over the years, and now the twins, too!

Reptile House

When I take Corinne to the zoo we don't normally hit the reptile house...I'm not a big fan of the animals there, nor the smell. But we went to the zoo for the first time this spring and somehow found ourselves inside with the snakes and alligators (perhaps Brett had something to do with this). Corinne did pet the snake that this volunteer is holding, though she acted shy at first. She has a fixation with alligators and enjoyed seeing those, too.

It was a beautiful day and we thoroughly enjoyed our morning with the animals--especially since Corinne has been asking to go to the zoo for quite sometime. I found myself sitting down frequently, though. Afterall, Marcey reminded me that mom went into labor with me after walking around downtown looking at Christmas lights. We didn't want our day at the zoo to end up with the arrival of two little girls! Not yet.

Shamrock Crown

We went to the Library for storytime and Corinne got to make this St. Patrick's Day crown. To my surprise, she wore it around the house for quite some time! And for dinner we had green milk, green water and green beer (for daddy). What a funny holiday.

ABC

I think it fitting that when carrying twins, the doctor and ultrasound tech name the babies A and B for purposes of tracking development, weight, growth, and various other issues that may come up, because that means we have an A and B to go with Little C! (Don't worry, though, we're not going to try and add the rest of the alphabet...one minivan is more than enough!)

So I thought I would share a little bit about our twins with you--it is clear that already they are showing some personality! Baby A is vertex or head down (=rule follower!) and seems to be the more relaxed, easy going one--based on her more infrequent squirms and kicks. She is low lying and closest to my cervix (that is why the doctor calls her A). I don't feel a ton of movements from her, and when I do they are just the simplest flutters! However, according to my ultrasound today, she may already weigh as much as 4 lbs 3oz (50th percentile). Yikes! Let's remember I am only 32 weeks! She's behaving herself quite nicely, staying head down like a good little girl, and to me that seems to fall in line with Corinne's compliant behavior, interestingly enough. And then there is Baby B...She is now in a breech position--having flipped since our last ultrasound. And wouldn't you know, she is constantly moving and kicking! I see appendages poking through my belly quite regularly with B! Right now her weight estimate is 3 lbs 13 oz--so perhaps she is just trying to assert herself a bit more than her sister, due to her smaller size! But really, I am shocked at those weight estimates...Corinne was only 7lbs 5oz and if you add the twins together they have definitely surpassed that! How can that be, I wonder, when I've gained less than 20 lbs to this point with the twins? Doesn't make sense, I say. Everyone keeps asking me where I am hiding the second baby, and sometimes I'm not sure myself.

Other fun things I can report: both twins have hair! Corinne had a ton of hair when she was born, and I mentioned this to the ultrasound tech. She told me she could see hair flying away in the amniotic fluid during the ultrasound. That makes me smile, I just love that!

Currently, I'm measuring 38 weeks--for a singleton--though I am only 32 weeks along. But 32 weeks is a wonderful milestone to reach, my doctor told me. If they were born now, everything would be just fine! That's great for peace of mind, though I have to say I'm not quite ready for them yet. Then again, will I ever be?! We're talking twins, here, and let's not forget how much of a shock it's been. And how much we've had to re-do, re-think, and remind ourselves that God is in control and not us.

Most days I feel good, but lately I have needed a nap when Corinne has taken her nap. And I can tell that some days just going grocery shopping or doing a simple errand will cause me to feel really uncomfortable. Thankfully, I can take those naps and with Corinne's early bedtime I can put my feet up in the evening and relax with Brett. It's thrown a small wrench in my social calendar...although I know not as big of one as it should be. Brett tells me I'm stubborn about letting others help and getting off my feet. But I just loathe the restriction I sometimes feel and I want to stay active. It's such a bummer that I can't play "chase" with Corinne and her baby strollers or take long walks with her to Ault Park like we used to, or even take her to her music class by myself (there's a lot of jumping, getting up and down, and moving quickly on your feet). I can't wait to get to the other side of delivery and recovery so I can do all those things again, just in time for summer! And of course, I can't wait to meet Baby A and Baby B...who shall continue to remain nameless until their grand entrance.

Thanks to all those who are praying for our family, it has made for a pretty uneventful and easy pregnancy overall and we are blessed.

Outdoors...finally!

Warmer weather, at last! It's been in the 60's this week and so we've been able to get outside a few short times. Corinne is happiest there, I think! She runs, jumps, waves, and is a completely outgoing and adventuresome kid when she gets outside. In the last picture she was running up to our path, down the steps to the driveway, around to the sidewalk, and through the grass up to the path again--she must have made this loop 20 times! She had such a ball and it's amazing to already notice the things she is more confident to do now that she is older. Even a big difference from just the fall. I can't wait to get her to the playground to see more of her growth in action! She's truly a little girl now--just like she tells me all the time, "I'm a big girl, mommy!" I love this age and I adore my sweet Little C.

Sandal Ready

After a long, snowy winter we are just beginning to feel like spring might be coming...and hopefully soon! On Friday, Saturday and Sunday it was sunny all day, warmer than it has been in a while (which isn't really saying much), and we noticed it's begun to get light earlier and stay that way later. So, it's starting to feel like we really will eventually see springtime here! To celebrate, Corinne and I decided to paint our toenails! Little C. loved it and sat very still while I did her fingernails, too (in a clear coat). But here are our sandal-ready toes! Now we just need some true springtime weather!!

30 weeks

This week marks 30 weeks along with our twin girls and after numerous requests from friends and family who live out of town, I finally found enough courage to post a picture. Here you have it! I'm not sure what week I'm measuring currently, but can report that at 28 weeks I was measuring 33 weeks along--for someone having a "singleton". (Yes, I know, there's a whole new lingo I've been introduced to since reading up on twins.) And, just in case I forget how big I am, Corinne periodically says things like: "Mommy's belly is getting bigger. She has two babies in there." (Thanks, Little C, for the news bulletin:) To give a short update, things continue to be uneventful so far. And that's a good thing. I see my doctor every week and am scheduled for ultrasounds every 4 weeks. Soon those will become more frequent, too. The biggest concern with multiples is premature labor and bedrest, so I am praying that I can continue to avoid both of those! The longer these girls stay in utero, the better. And I'd rather not go the bedrest route--that would absolutely devestate me. Mostly because I think about Corinne and how the precious time I have left with just her before the twins come would have to be so drastically different. Yet there is nothing that points to that at this point, and for that I am thankful! Most days I am still feeling pretty good, but definitely more tired. Mostly, I feel like I did at the very end of my pregnancy with Corinne--big, tight, like every muscle is stretching and then there is the constant weight of the babies pushing down on me. I can't complain, though, I am mobile and still active (probably more than I should be for my own good at this point). But I am happy to report that we have made much progress on our to-do list and have all major things in place--nursery, new car, car seats, etc. Practically speaking, we are ready to welcome our two little girls! And I'm getting there mentally, too, as it's hitting me this week that it really could be at any time. However, I'm banking on a good 6-8 weeks before our world totally changes! Stay tuned...

Decision Made

We did it. We bought a *minivan*. So this is our new family vehicle...marking a new chapter in our lives that will soon begin! Notice Brett's t-shirt, designed exclusively for him, by one of our friends. It even matches the van:) He's getting into the spirit, can't you tell?!