21 weeks and identical twin boys!

Hello,
Last week we had our 20 week ultrasound with Dr. Wyatt. Everyone knows that Ken and I really wanted girls---REALLY BAD! We were excited about finding out what the babies were so we could start planning the room, picking out names, and registering for baby stuff. My mom, dad, Ken and Robyn were all there for the ultrasound. Baby A was at first a girl. The baby never got into a great position. Everything looked good on Baby A. No defects were seen and it measured right to date. Baby B looked good too and was wide open to show his little boy parts! We were excited but that made me nervous because we still didn't know what baby A really was. Baby B was measuring 2 1/2 weeks behind Baby A--length and weight. They looked at Baby A again and said that it was a boy too. I was disappointed and in denial that Baby A was a boy. Dr. Wyatt wanted to send me to a specialist to look at the twins since there was such a big size difference. I saw him yesterday. He looked at both babies, did their measurements (2 times for each) , and told us that the twins were identical boys! He said that yes, there was a size difference but they were both fine and that he did not think it was twin to twin transfusion syndrome. The boys were both active, had no defects, fluid in both of their bladder (apparently a really good thing), and good strong healthy hearts. He wants me to come back in 4 weeks to check the growth and also at that time he will do some doppler blood flow studies from the placenta and umbilical cords.

So after the doctors appointment with the specialist, Ken and I went to lunch at Chi's--chinese restaurant-- and then went to Babies R Us and registered for baby things. We didn't get much on the registry because we tired out but we will add more later. We setup our registry at Target too.

This is the screen with their weights and measurments on it. If any of there are too small, just click on it and they will get better.


This is Baby A. Face is on the right with hands on either side of his face.


Baby B's boy parts and the picture on the right is the umbilical cord blood flow.


This is the only shot of Baby A's boy parts. It is hard to see. I have a better picture from the specialist but it is on paper. I will have to get Ken to scan them and put them on the site!

Busy Summer Weekends

Summer is here for good - it's been in the 90s for the last two weeks. No sign of cooler temperatures anytime soon, so we've been spending time at the community pool once or twice a week.


Our nephew Ross and our friends' daughter Ryleigh at the pool


Saturday our small group from church threw a baby shower for one of our couples - their baby boy is due in about a week. Rachel spent Friday night after work decorating and helping set things up. The shower was at our friends Andy and Crystal's house. I was the designated babysitter for their 10-month-old girl Londyn.



The first game had four diapers with different candy bars melted inside. You could look, smell, and taste to help guess the four correct chocolates...


The second game had four guys blindfolded as they raced to put a diaper on a baby doll





And here is my new favorite baby (until ours arrive) Londyn

Your pregnancy: 14 weeks

See the big picture

How your baby's growing:

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.

In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

Recliner for the Nursery

We ordered a recliner for the babies room! It is chocolate brown. It should be here in about 6 weeks. We were going to go for a chair and ottoman but decided on a recliner to save room. The fabric is very soft. We also paid a little extra to get it stain guarded!

Finally Got the Flowerbed Done!!

Hello All!! So it has taken us a while but we finally finished our front flowerbed! We started way back in March (I think) but because of rain, morning sickness, and just being busy- it has taken us a while to get it done. We are pretty proud of it. Some of the flowers aren't blooming yet and some will take a couple years to reach full potential!
Here are some before shots. The gardenia bushes were wimpy and the other plants were not very pretty:



Ken and I dug up all the bushes and we brought in a truck load of dirt. Karl and Ross helped us with the truck load of dirt:

;


We planted the plants that we had and ordered some more. We also got solar lights for the flowerbed. This is the first stage done:

Yesterday we weeded the flowerbed and then put mulch down! Here are some pictures of the plants:



We also planted tomato and okra plants. One of the okra plants died and the surviving one is pretty wimpy!

This is the plant that we got to grow and cover the window to help with the summer heat. Ken said our kids will be in college before it is big enough to cover the window.


Okay some other random pictures. The first picture is Eli and Barrett. Eli is a month older than Barrett but Barrett is a chunk!! They are so cute. This second picture is Barrett when I was babysitting him. SO CUTE!

This is what Lily does every time we have the front door open:


This is the card/picture that we showed the parents to announce that we were having a baby!


So I am going to try to do better on the blogging--more posts more frequently. I am starting to get a baby bump but it isn't very big. I took a picture but it doesn't show very much so I am going to wait to post until I have a better picture. My next doctors appointment is June 3rd. I am hoping they will do another ultrasound. I want to see the babies again!! Morning sickness is getting a little better. I still have some rough days but they are getting fewer. Hopefully I will soon be over morning sickness all together. I have lost about 15 pounds. I am sure it will come back pretty quick once I start being able to eat normally!

Things I Miss Already!

So I am borrowing this from my friend Julia who is about 2 weeks further along than I am. I am amending somethings and adding a couple of my own!!


1. Processed Meat.
I am not much of a sandwich person but I do like to eat just lunch meat and cheese sometimes. I occasionally like a hot dog and bacon but they all have nitrates. Ken has been on a hot dog kick lately and I don't think it is very nice that he eats them when I can't!!

2. Medium-Rare Steak.
I love a good rare steak but now I am having to eat well done!

3. My love for Chocolate.
Besides chocolate milk, chocolate (and most sweets) just don't appeal to me right now.

4. Cookie Dough Ice Cream
Again sweets not really appealing to me but I do love some cookie dough ice cream and I can't have it because of the raw eggs. And again Ken thinks it is okay to eat a big bowl while I am around!

6. Sushi.
I guess veggie rolls would be okay but I am missing some of my favorites!

7. Sleeping In.
I can’t sleep past 8am anymore! Today I was awake at 6:30. Ken slept longer that I did and that never happens. I also miss sleeping through the night. It is a good night when I only wake up 2 times to have to go pee!!

8. Some of my favorite foods.
Right now my diet consists of yogurt, SALTINE CRACKERS, granola bars, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, sprite, and water. Occasionally I feel well enough to eat outside of those foods. But I am really missing some of my favorite foods. I know that this one won't last forever but I am getting REAL tired of PB&J sandwiches and crackers!!

BIG News

Yes, the updates to the blog have slowed a lot this spring. We love posting pictures here, but Facebook and Twitter have made it so much easier and faster to give updates. Rachel has constantly been tired for a while, and a few weeks ago we found out why...

After trying for over a year, Easter weekend we began telling people that we are finally having a baby! We started working on the baby's room in December. In March we attended a meeting explaining the foster care and adoption process in our county and state. We decided to stop stressing out about baby stuff and start the process to be certified as foster parents. Just as we were starting to lose hope and change direction, we finally had a positive pregnancy test!

We are so excited, but were waiting for the first appointment to make sure everything was OK and see that there really is something there. Yesterday was the first ultrasound, and it was great to see that everything is healthy and OK. The woman doing the ultrasound said "OH! I see two babies!!!" and sure enough, we could clearly see two of them.

So the big news is WE ARE HAVING TWINS!!!! They are both the same size and are measuring just over 8 weeks old. They have a December 14th due date - twins usually try to get out up to a month early, but we are praying that they can hang on as long as possible. After two weeks of bad morning/afternoon/anytime sickness, things are starting to get a little better! We are still in shock but excited (and a little scared). Thanks for all the prayers (I think we had too many...) - now we will need ALOT more!!