Journal of a Nobody

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 35

2012-01-27T09:47:00.001-05:00

A (mostly) twins Quick Takes:

~1~

The boys have improved by leaps and bounds with the rice cereal! They now regularly eat the whole bowl. Currently we're doing two tablespoons of the cereal mixed with two to three tablespoons of their formula. They only get it once a day right now. It seemed to take us so long to get to this point that I haven't really pushed anything more. But ... I did buy some green beans for them the other day. I think we'll take the next step this weekend!

~2~

Food is kind of a boring topic. Well, I find it exciting, but you may not. That's okay. What is more exciting is how much they are moving!! Peter can drag himself forward, spin himself around on his tummy, and he occasionally manages to get on his knees and rock a little bit. He's not real stable on his knees though, so it doesn't last long. But with the scooting, I've been surprised a few times at how far across the room he can go.

Ethan just recently started moving a bit more. He can go backwards, but not forwards, which results in him sometimes getting stuck under things. He has been working hard on pushing himself up on his toes. He ends up holding himself up on just his hands and toes with his butt up in the air ... and he can stay there for more than a few seconds.

I really need to get some pictures of Ethan on his toes. It's too cute!

~3~

Peter is a rolly-polly. Even changing his diaper is a challenge. He wants to always be on his tummy. I admit that life must be more interesting from that perspective, but I didn't expect such acrobatics during diaper changes. Oh my! I'm getting better at getting him dressed that way, but I don't think I'll ever be able to put a diaper on him while he's on his tummy. And now he's starting to try and turn himself around on the changing table. A challenging child for sure!

~4~

I've started the big daycare search again. I have a couple appointments next week with places that both have waiting lists. Glad I'm starting six months early.

~5~

I bought a big storage container last weekend to pack up all the boys' newborn, 0-3 month, and 3 month clothes. In the process I found a small stack of preemie diapers that they grew out of before we could use them. Wow were they small!! What a reminder of how much they have grown!! Speaking of which, we have moved into the 6-9 and 9 month size clothes. Some fit nice, some are really, really big; pants especially are big. It's nice to know that they have room to grow in this size.

~6~

The boys are not yet sitting up independently. I don't know when this is supposed to happen but I think if you go by their adjusted age they should be close to that. They aren't though. But that's okay, they'll do it when they are ready. Obviously they are doing plenty of other things!!

I will say, though, that I may need to unsubscribe to the emails I get about "what your baby is doing at x weeks/months." Those emails are already talking about lowering the crib mattress and baby crawling and pulling themselves up to a standing position. Um, yeah, not my kids. Those emails always seem to be MORE than a month ahead of where my boys actually are. I'm still waiting for them to hold their own bottle.

~7~

Not related to the boys, but I had to share: Things are moving with our house. I can't divulge details yet, need to wait until a few more things are finalized, but it might be very soon! We have started the serious search for a new house!!

For more Quick Takes visit Conversion Diary.

Religious Freedom Being Threatened

2012-01-26T21:57:00.000-05:00

The Obama administration recently announced that all employers must pay into insurance policies that cover abortion, contraception, and sterilization procedures. This includes all Catholic employers. There is an extremely narrow exception, so narrow that the vast majority of Catholic employers are not exempt.

This smacks in the face of our religious liberties and freedoms. As Catholics we morally object to contraceptives, sterilization, and abortion. It entirely goes against our beliefs to support any of these things. Under this new HHS policy Catholic Churches, Catholic hospitals, Catholic charitable organizations, and other Catholic organizations will be required to pay for these procedures and treatments despite the fact that the Church morally objects to them.

All people of faith should be disturbed by this ruling, Catholic or not. Even if this particular ruling does not affect you in particular, it is only the beginning. It only takes one step to get the ball rolling.

So I urge you to sign the petition found on this St. Michael's Society website: Support Cardinal-designate Dolan Sign the Religious Freedom Petition. After you sign it, share it with your family and friends.

This administration has been working hard to chip away at religious liberty and freedom in our society. This needs to stop. The government should not be forcing religious groups into morally objectionable policies.

March for Life

2012-01-23T08:00:00.000-05:00

Today is the National March for Life in Washington, DC. Hundreds of thousands of people will be there to march to the Capital steps to protest the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that made abortion legal in this country throughout all nine months of pregnancy. May God bless all those who are marching today. May their witness bring about change in the hearts of politicians and advocates of abortion.

cartoon from Umbert the Unborn

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-18T14:44:00.000-05:00

Peter (on left) and Ethan
Jan. 15, 2012

Happy Birthday!

2012-01-11T15:07:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday, Zachary!

Can't believe it's been 3 years! We miss you every day. Sweet, little Zachary, pray for us!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-11T09:30:00.000-05:00

Ethan finished the WHOLE bowl!! 1/9/2012

I don't need no stinkin' blanket.
Peter, 1/9/2012

Look at me, I'm so cute.
Ethan, 1/9/2012

My Saint for 2012

2012-01-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

I went over to the Saint's Name Generator this weekend, said a prayer for the saint who would choose me this year, clicked the button, and out came:

St. Anthony of Padua

An interesting choice! He's a popular saint and yet I realized I didn't know him all that well. Of course, I knew him as the saint for "lost things," but otherwise I was surprised at the things listed under his patronage:

Patronage: Against Infertility; American Indians; Amputees; Animals; Elderly People; Faith in the Blessed Sacrament; Lost Articles; Mariners; Oppressed People; Pregnant Women; Travellers.

I did a Cursillo retreat in 2009 and my table was the Sts. Anthony and Jude table (we were lost and hopeless souls!). I've been interested in St. Jude since, but didn't think much about St. Anthony. I guess it is time I did!

So I will be spending 2012 praying with St. Anthony, getting to know him better, and asking for his intercession when I have prayer intentions.

Want a saint for the year? Check out the Saint's Name Generator. Also on that page are links to why Catholics pray "to" saints, how the Church chooses saints, and what a patron saint is.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 34

2012-01-04T23:32:00.000-05:00

~1~

Week one of sabbatical project has started. I hope it will go well. By day two I was starting to wonder if I was crazy to try working at home with two 7 month old babies and no day care. Still too early to tell. If anyone local wants to come visit during the day you're welcome to come during non-nap times. The boys would love it!

~2~

I started a new blog just for my sabbatical project. If you're curious about what it is or how it's going, I'll be journaling my way through the sabbatical over there. You can go to Music Recitals Project to see more. It's not a very creative name, so if you have suggestions, I'm all ears. I'm not attached to the current name at all. Seriously: not. at. all.

~3~

Also this week, I'm back on the wagon. That is, the weight-loss wagon. I've fired up the old Lose it! app on the iPod, weighed myself on Sunday, and started counting calories. Man, I'm hungry!! I also have a support group on Facebook that a group of friends started, so I'll have some accountability this time. And motivation!

~4~

The boys and I went for a walk on Wednesday morning. It's a little too cold for walking the neighborhood, so we went to the mall to walk before the stores opened. I barely made it. We had a pooping episode in the morning that required a change in clothes and an unexpected load of laundry and then when I got to the mall I had to remember how to unfold the very big and very heavy double stroller. It took me a while to remember how the wheels fanned out, but I finally got it. I was determined to get my walk in and not be foiled by a stroller! I do love the stroller, though! It is great: turns easily, is very smooth, looks comfortable for the boys. But man is that thing heavy!

~5~

I got a Kindle for Christmas!! It was totally unexpected. I had been looking at them, but couldn't decide which I wanted. Did I want the basic, original Kindle or the Fire? Did I want 3G capabilities? Did I want to wait a year and see if they released a Fire with 3G? Maybe I should look at the Nook? But all my questions got answered for me: Hubby got me the Kindle Fire. So far I'm loving it!! I downloaded a whole bunch of free Kindle books and am currently reading The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus (I also got free e-books by Aquinas, Belloc, Ignatius of Loyola, John Henry Newman, and a few others). Hubby downloaded Angry Birds and started playing Words with Friends. Currently he may use it more than I do.

I also like that I can get Facebook and my email on it, plus I'm enjoying the Pulse app that comes automatically with it. Pulse is a little like an RSS feed, but mostly just for newspapers and magazines (current events), though you can also set up part of it to show you the links your friends post on Facebook.

I realized the other day that one of the best features of this is that when I travel I only have to bring the Kindle with me and not my whole laptop. Bonus!!

~6~

Speaking of Christmas, we had a great Christmas visiting my family in Atlanta. Everyone was there for Christmas day: my parents, all four of us kids along with two spouses, a fiance, and a girlfriend, four grand-kids, and my aunt who just recently moved (back) to the Atlanta area. Opening gifts was overwhelming, probably because my two children aren't old enough to do anything and have no idea what is going on, so I felt as if I was constantly being brought gifts from my niece (6) and nephew (3). Boy were those two excited!! It was a fun day and very relaxing. My family is always laid back during holidays, just hanging out, catching up, playing with the little ones, watching football, and enjoying a nice meal together. And it was wonderful to have everyone there!

How was your Christmas? Did you travel or stay home? See extended family or celebrate with your immediate family? Any special traditions?

~7~

My husband has already accomplished one big goal this year: re-organize the garage so the van will fit in it. Success!! The garage was already pretty well organized and neat (for a garage) but there was really only space for the two cars. Now that we sold one of the cars and Hubby re-organized things, the van fits!! That is quite an accomplishment if you know the neighborhood and kinds of houses in this area. Garages are small! The van barely fits, but it's in there. Now that the weather is turning colder, this will be a good thing. I don't want to deal with doors frozen shut early in the morning when we have to go somewhere (no repeats of what we had on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception trying to get to an 8am Mass ... no surprise, we were late). And it was snowing all day while Hubby was working in the garage, thankfully mostly flurries or heavy flurries with the occasional moments of accumulating snow.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at Conversion Diary.

Our 2011 Family Letter with Additions

2012-01-01T15:51:00.000-05:00

Dear Family and Friends,

Merry Christmas!! We hope everyone has had a good year and hasmuch to celebrate this Christmas season. We certainly have much to be thankful for in our family.

At the end of 2010 we announced that we were expectingidentical twins. On May 30 we welcomedour two little boys, Peter Xavier and Ethan Alexander, into our family. We feel incredibly blessed to have them inour lives. Their arrival came afterseveral interesting months that included two hospital stays (thankfully shortones), approximately four months of bed rest (made better by many incrediblefriends who helped Kerri out), and eventually a c-section delivery (which went verysmoothly). The boys have been growingwell, learning to roll over, smiling nice and big, talking up a storm, and completelychanging our lives!

The birth of our twin boys is definitely the biggest news of2011 for us, yet the year was filled with many other events as well.

In early February we had the privilege of going down toAtlanta to surprise Kerri’s mother on her fifth anniversary of being cancerfree. We were so happy to be able to bethere for such a joyful occasion.

In the spring Kerri learned that she had received herpromotion to Librarian I, the highest rank for librarians at theuniversity. This was a greataccomplishment!

In July we celebrated Peter and Ethan’s Baptisms surroundedby family and friends. We were so happyto be able to welcome our two boys into the Catholic Church surrounded by somany loved ones.

In October we grieved the death of Chris’ paternalgrandmother. All four of us attended herfuneral in Remington, IN. She lived along life and will be missed by many.

This fall Kerri and several friends began a new blog calledCatholic Sistas (www.catholicsistas.com). Although a relatively new blog, it has already been getting a lot oftraffic and select articles have been linked to from some well-known Catholicsites, including New Advent and the National Catholic Register.

Also this fall, we put our house on the market. We hope the New Year will bring an offer sowe can begin the search for a new home for our family.

As we look forward to the New Year, we feel lucky that Kerriwill have the opportunity to work from home the first six months of 2012. She will be on sabbatical and the boys willbe able to be home during that time period. Hopefully, Kerri will find a way to get some work done while surroundedby such cuteness!!

Addendum:

As we begin 2012 we have a lot to look forward to. We'll have a new niece arriving sometime in February and another new niece or nephew arriving in June. Wedding plans will also be underway as Kerri's sister gets ready to wed in 2013. Also we'll have the opportunity to once again travel to Hilton Head in the early fall for a week with Kerri's family. At about 15 months old, the boys will have such a fun time seeing the beach and the ocean for the first time.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! Much love from our family to yours,

Chris, Kerri, Peter, and Ethan

The Boys' First Christmas
Chris with Ethan and Kerri with Peter

For the Feast Day of the Holy Innocents

2011-12-28T20:22:00.000-05:00

For today's remembrance of the Holy Innocents, I have a blog post up at Catholic Sistas called Protectors of Life or Threat?? Come on over and visit. If you like what you read, please consider sharing with others via Facebook, Twitter, Google+, or other social media.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas Day and is still enjoying the Christmas Season.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 33

2011-12-22T01:27:00.000-05:00

~1~

The boys are doing really well! They had a doctor appointment earlier this month, 6 month well visit. They are both progressing well and are very close together in all their measurements.

Peter, 6.5 months

Peter weighed 15 pounds and 4.8 ounces, 10th percentile for his age. He is also 26 inches long, which is in the 25th percentile. Pretty good! I'm pretty sure his stats at his earlier appointments were all in the 5th-10th percentile ranges. His head is 43 and a half centimeters, which is in the 50th-75th percentile range. Oh my!! He definitely gets his head size from my side of the family!

Ethan, 6.5 months

Ethan weighed 15 pounds and 5.2 ounces. Basically the same, only four tenths of a difference from his brother. Obviously he's in the same percentile range as Peter. Length-wise he's 25 and a quarter inches, only 3/4 of an inch smaller and yet that puts him in the 5th percentile. It's amazing what a difference of less than an inch does. His head is exactly the same as Peter's. My boys have big heads. That does not surprise me in the least.

~2~

Just before Thanksgiving we bought a mini-van. When we did we did not trade in Hubby's car. Instead he decided to sell it himself. He had some leads that didn't work out so finally he put it up on Craig's List. Within the first 24 hours we had several inquiries. He made arrangements with someone to come check out the car last Sunday. Just before they came over, he went to move the car into the driveway and it wouldn't start! We've never had an issue with the car. Never!! He figured it was the battery and told the person who showed up to look at it that he would replace it and let them know so they could come test drive it later. I was convinced that they wouldn't be back. But Hubby replaced the battery that day, the potential buyers came back, test drove it, made an offer, and we made the deal! Monday Hubby took care of the paperwork and when I got home from work that evening the car was gone. Yay!!

We were so excited to once again sell something on Craig's List quickly!! Maybe we should put the house on there!

~3~

Speaking of selling the house, our Christmas decorations are minimal this year. And since we're also traveling south for Christmas we decided not to put the tree up. However, we have a faux ficus tree in our bedroom that became a temporary alternate Christmas tree while I was wrapping gifts:

2011's temporary "Christmas" Tree

~4~

The boys got out a lot this week. The bank and the mall with Dad on Monday and then a few parties, errands, and visits with me the rest of the week. And I should note here that we are finally getting on a nap schedule!! So with all the trips we have done this week, I've been trying to be in the car when they are tired since they fall asleep anyway. It makes it easy. Wednesday worked great!! When they started getting tired and were ready for a morning nap, I got them in the car and we headed out to my in-law's. We got there a little over an hour later with two well-rested babies and just in time for lunch. They were great for a couple hours, got to eat, and then when afternoon nap time approached we headed back home. It was perfect!

~5~

I had a girl's night out on Wednesday evening. It was one of the best ever. And the reason why?? One word: chocolate!! We met at a friend's house. Our meal was small, just a simple salad, some meatballs, and goat cheese and pita bread. It was all yummy. Oh, and wine, of course!! But the main part of our gathering was really dessert: chocolate fondue. We had marshmallows, fruit, pretzels, angel food cake, and some little cookies. Our hostess's husband also made some chocolate Oreo truffles for us that were amazing. Chocolate, wine, and good friends! Doesn't get much better than that.

~6~

I must take a moment to share something serious.

Last week a friend of a friend decided to abort her 20 week baby after a prenatal test showed the baby had Downs Syndrome. Many, many, MANY friends prayed all weekend for this mom and her baby. She originally had an appointment last Friday that was cancelled because she was too far along; she was rescheduled for Monday. She had offers from friends to pay her medical bills and many offers from people willing to adopt the baby. Lots of prayers went up over the weekend, no word Monday, more prays from countless people, still no update Tuesday ... we all continued praying that she didn't go through with it. Wednesday we finally got an update. It was not good news. Please pray for this mother: she needs prayers as she is in the hospital now with excessive bleeding. And continued prayers for her as the emotional impact hits her later.

Today about 90% of babies diagnosed with Downs Syndrome are aborted. Unfortunately, the tests are not 100% conclusive. I discovered from friends as we all prayed for this girl that many of them had been given Downs diagnoses for their babies only to have the baby born without Downs. Downs children can live very joyful, healthy lives and bring lots of joy to those around them. There is also a very long wait list of parents waiting to adopt Downs Syndrome babies. Abortion is never the answer, it just ends the life of an innocent child.

Please include this mother (because she is a mother whether she accepts that or not) in your prayers. And please also pray for the little baby girl who is now in Heaven embraced by our Blessed Mother and surrounded by the Father's love.

~7~

Finally, I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. I hope you get to spend the holiday with loved ones. I would like to invite anyone who has not been to church in a while, who has fallen away from their Catholic faith, or who has never attended a Catholic Mass and is interested in Catholicism to come to Mass on Christmas. The Midnight Mass is wonderful, but if it isn't feasible for you most churches will have several Christmas Eve Masses and will offer at least one or more Masses on Christmas Day. To find out what Mass times are available at a Catholic Church near you go to www.masstimes.org.

And if you have been away from the Church for a while, I invite you to give it a try again and make the steps to come back as a regular attendee. You can find a whole bunch of resources to help you in your journey back home to the Church at www.catholicscomehome.org.

May your celebration of the birth of Our Lord and Savior be a joyful one. Merry Christmas!

For more Quick Takes, visit Jennifer Fulwiler over at Conversion Diary.

Wordless Wednesday: Flight Practice

2011-12-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

Ethan in back, Peter in the lead

[Almost] Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-14T15:30:00.000-05:00

Here's what we started in mid-November:

We're still working on it.

(Ethan pictured)

A Cherished Life

2011-12-14T08:00:00.000-05:00

It was sad when , after announcing they were expecting their 20th child, the Duggar family received so much criticism. All children are children of God, from the moment of their conception, and thus their life should be cherished and celebrated. Why should a family that chooses to welcome however many children God sends to them be so criticized? It's just sad.

My friend Colleen wrote a very articulate article on this topic in November at Catholic Sistas. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it.

Recently, the Duggars lost the baby they were so excited to welcome into their family. They will be having a memorial service today for the the baby that they named Jubilee Shalom.

This is a family that truly cherishes life!! Life at all stages.

It's a beautiful thing.

I was so pleased to see that they would be honoring their baby in this way. Not only that, but it's being reported nationally that they named the baby and are having this memorial service.

Although I find practices like this common in my Catholic circles, I know miscarriage and pregnancy loss is still very much a private and hushed topic in our society overall. The idea of naming a baby that was lost so early is still a foreign concept to the general population.

I hope the many critics of the Duggars will think twice before they criticize them again. It is extremely painful to go through a loss, regardless of how many children you have. A life is a life is a life. The Duggar family knows this better than most people.

Being a mom of three babies already in heaven, I sympathize with the Duggars; my heart breaks for them right now. But I also hope that this loss will have a positive impact on those many critics. I hope the critics will see how precious this little life was. I hope they will see how special this child, little Jubilee, is to be given a name and thus an identity. I hope they regret being so critical of a family which has done nothing but love and cherish each child God has put into their care.

And I hope that by naming this child and having a service in remembrance of her that people everywhere will begin to come to accept this as normal in recognizing a life lost due to miscarriage or pregnancy loss.

Can you imagine how different our world would be if the naming and recognition of all children who die before they are born into this world was more readily accepted?? Think about that!

I have been lucky, I am surrounded by a community that has been nothing but supportive of my family as we struggled through three pregnancy losses. In thinking about what the Duggars are going through at this time and what they are doing today, I couldn't help but reflect on the burial service we had for our daughter Brigit Ann just a year and a half ago.

I pray that the Duggars will find peace through their suffering and that they will cherish this opportunity to say goodbye to their precious child. I also pray that others' hearts will be softened by the witness of the Duggar family.

Jubilee Shalom, you were most certainly a cherished life. I pray that your short life will have a positive impact on our fallen world. May you rest peacefully in the presence of Our Almighty Father and be comforted in the arms of our Blessed Mother.

Advent Wreath Link-up

2011-12-13T10:31:00.000-05:00

Sarah over at Snoring Scholar asked for Advent wreath pictures. So here's ours:

I took this just before we sat down for dinner on Monday night, as you can see if you look closely at the very bottom of the picture. Next to the wreath, stuck in the napkin holder is the Magnificat Advent reflections book which, with two small babies around, we almost never get around to reading.

You may also notice that the candles aren't purple. The day I went out to buy them I forgot to pick some up while I was at our local Catholic book store. That happens to me a lot when I'm there! Why? Because I always run into someone I know, start talking, and then can't remember everything I intended to get. I remembered later, by which time I was on the opposite side of town running errands. So I ran into Michael's and burgundy candles were the best I could find. At least I found a pink one for Guadate Sunday.

By the way, burgundy and pink were our wedding colors! So it's all good.

I love our Irish wreath with the Celtic crosses on the candle holders and the other Celtic details. My married name is very German, very different from my maiden name, so now I love incorporating as much Irish stuff into our family as I can. Around St. Patrick's Day my husband even makes Irish soda bread now using my grandmother's recipe and my Our Lady of Knock rosary now sits on my husband's side of the bed for him to use when we say a rosary at night (which hasn't happened in a loooooooong time!). Infiltration at it's best!

Happy Advent to everyone!

Blogging, Babies, Cars, and More

2011-11-27T22:44:00.001-05:00

I missed Quick Takes this past Friday, but wanted to share a few things on this Sunday night. In the last week:

I wrote another post for Catholic Sistas and it got included in a "Best of Catholic Blogging" post at the National Catholic Register. Totally blew my mind! Catholic Sistas is being picked up fairly regularly now by New Advent and by NCR and a few other Catholic sites. It's very exciting to see it grow! And I love being a part of it, all the ladies who are contributors are wonderful women that I love being able to call friends, even though I've never met any of them in person.

We have continued working with the boys on ~~accepting~~ eating rice cereal. They don't spit it out as much as they did at first, but they aren't enjoying it much either. The looks on their faces ... priceless! It's still early, I don't mind taking my time. It may be that they won't be ready until they are closer to 7 months old.

We bought a minivan. I've driven it only 2 or 3 times now. Just haven't had to go anywhere since we bought it and when we have gone somewhere, we were all together and my husband drove. This is a big thing for me. I love driving my small cars. Luckily, the Honda Fit actually feels quite similar to the Honda Odyssey, so the transition isn't so bad. But in 18 years, I'm going back to a small car! I know, I know ... everyone tells me that I will love, love, LOVE my minivan and will never go back. But I know myself, I will always like having a small car to zip around in.

You really can't "zip around" in a minivan.

We had Thanksgiving with a large group at my in-laws. It was a good time. And apparently everyone got assigned to bring desserts! Luckily, Hubby decided to do something non-traditional: a sour cream-blackberry cake (very similar to a cheesecake) and macaroons (because he had lots of egg whites left over from the cake). I think we may have been the only ones to not bring any of our dessert home with us. If you were a pumpkin pie lover (which I'm really not) there was a feast of pumpkin pie there!

We also brought a cranberry sauce that Hubby made from real cranberries. And then we brought most of it home. So Hubby bought a small turkey on Friday and we had a small Thanksgiving feast ourselves. When we sat down for dinner on Saturday night with turkey, potatoes, dressing, cranberry sauce, and green beans my husband commented that all this food was a result of wanting to use the cranberry sauce with something!! Today he decided to make a corn casserole, so we repeated the feast again.

It's no wonder I need to lose weight!! Has nothing to do with the babies anymore. But I digress ...

I had hoped to do a Quick Takes on Friday and use it to share the things for which I am thankful. Since I didn't get a chance to do that, I just wanted to say here how much I am thankful for my family this year. It has been hard in the last few years to feel very thankful at this time of year. This year was different! I'm so thankful to have two little guys in my life and my wonderful husband. Our lives are forever changed ... and it is a wonderful thing!

Speaking of the boys, we worked hard the last several days on trying to be on more of a schedule and have nap times. I NEED nap times. My sabbatical is just over a month away, if I can't get some nap times out of them I will never get any work done. I think Peter will be easy to get on a schedule, he goes down for naps fairly well and sleeps well. Ethan does not like naps. But boy does he need them!! By evening he becomes insufferable. You'll probably see more posts on this topic in the future. They have one more week of daycare and then we're full-throttle into getting into a schedule.

Finally ... Blessed New Year to you!! Today we celebrate the beginning of a new Church year. It's the First Sunday of Advent, the first Sunday in which we use the new translation of the Mass, and the first Sunday that my parish community moved back into our newly renovated space! An exciting day all around.

Out of curiosity: How did using the new translation go for you at your parish today? Would love to hear your comments, experiences, etc.

Not exactly a short update. But if you made it this far, thanks for reading along!! I hope everyone has a blessed and prayerful Advent.

Thoughts on the New Translation: Coming Soon to a Parish Near You

2011-11-21T09:54:00.001-05:00

Today I have some thoughts on the new translation of the Mass up on Catholic Sistas. Come on over and check it out. I hope you'll give me some blog love over there as well and share any of your thoughts on the upcoming implementation of the third Roman Missal.

See you over there!!

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 32

2011-11-17T23:54:00.001-05:00

~1~

We're getting to the end of my crazybusy week! Phew, it's definitely been a full week! I'm surprised at how well I've made it through.

~2~

We tried giving the boys rice cereal last weekend. It didn't go all that well. We opted to wait a bit longer. It was funny though. We started with Ethan who had absolutely zero interest and did a lot of crying during the process. But while I was working with him, Peter was sitting in his highchair nearby watching me. I saw how interested he seemed and noticed him opening his mouth. So I tried it with him. I got the spoon close to his mouth, he opened up, and he let me put some in. One taste, however, and he was no longer interested. We tried with both of them again on Sunday and decided that we needed to have more time, and the coming week wasn't going to give us the time we needed (see #1 above). So we'll try again in another week or so. It'll be easier when one of us is home every day and not rushing off to work and school.

~3~

I ordered Christmas stockings for the boys!! They are so cute!! I can't wait to put them up. As a matter of fact, we're going to be out of town for Christmas and I think I'm going to bring their stockings with us.

~4~

I have finally been able to successfully feed both babies at the same time!! I can save myself about a half hour in the morning by feeding them together. They are finally at a point where they have more control over their heads and they don't dribble formula while they are eating. It makes it easier to feed two at once when they aren't so messy. I love knowing that we have achieved one small step toward a bit of efficiency.

~5~

Catholic Sistas has been getting lots of attention this week. Monday's post about the Duggar's got a TON of interest with over 3,000 hits!! All the posts this week have been getting high marks! In addition, some other sites have picked up on Catholic Sistas posts and have been linking back to the site. On Wednesday, the front page of New Advent had links to two articles on Catholic Sistas and, on Thursday, the National Catholic Register had an article on the "Best of Catholic Blogging" linking to a variety of blog posts including, at the very top, a guest post on Catholic Sistas. Also on Thursday was the interview on my local Catholic radio station about the Sistas. It's been a big week!!

Makes me a little nervous, I'm supposed to post on Monday. Still working on that.

~6~

Speaking of blog posting, I wrote an article for the Libraries' employee blog that got posted on Wednesday. It's the second article I've written in a serious of articles about what library staff are reading. Check it out if you have the time: What We're Reading: Sociology, spies, and Wal-Mart. It was actually a fun conversation and I hope that comes across in the article.

~7~

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at Conversion Diary. Have a nice weekend!!

Tune in for Catholic Sistas

2011-11-15T23:15:00.001-05:00

The founder of the Catholic Sistas blog will be doing a radio interview THIS WEEK! And the best part: you can listen in, no matter where you are.

The interview will be on Thursday November 17 at 4:00pm Eastern time. You can listen one of three ways. If you are in the local area (Lexington, KY) you can tune in at either 1380 AM or 94.9 FM.

If you are not in the local area you can go to the website for Real Life Radio and click on the "Listen live" link.

The interview will last about 15 minutes. We hope you'll tune in and hear more about the Catholic Sistas. You can help us spread the word too by sharing the Facebook event with your friends list.

Thanks in advance for sharing this with others and for listening in if you can!!

Busy, Crazy, Crazy-busy

2011-11-13T22:44:00.001-05:00

Last week went by way too fast. I know I don't post on a regular basis, but I do usually try to get a Friday Quick Takes post in. I like that it keeps me writing something, even when I have a busy week. Last week was definitely busy!! Suddenly it was Friday, I was walking to my office, and realized that Quick Takes was the last thing on my mind.

Oh well, it happens. Moving on ...

I'm looking at another crazy-busy week this coming week. Unfortunately that may mean no posts again. But I hope that won't be the case. I have so much I want to write about!!

I may be getting a very early start on my week. The boys were a handful tonight. They were obviously tired, but fighting it. So we had to endure a lot of crying and unhappiness. Suddenly during dinner they fell asleep. Ethan was sitting in his highchair crying and suddenly he went silent. It was so sudden I turned to look at him and was surprised to find him sound asleep. Ah, to be able to fall asleep like that!!

Peter had been in his rocker chair and was being so fussy that Hubby finally picked him up and had him in his lap while he was eating. Right after Ethan had zonked out, Peter's eyes started drooping. He fell asleep on Hubby's lap!

We let them nap a bit, Ethan in his highchair and Peter was moved to a blanket on the floor. They woke up about 30 minutes later. A quick change, two bottles made, two babies fed, and they went right to bed.

I don't think we've ever put them down before 8pm. But I couldn't deal with any more tonight. So off they went. I'm expecting them to wake me up at 6am tomorrow morning.

If so, it will probably be a good thing. I need an early start for this coming week. It'll definitely be a busy, crazy, and crazy-busy week!!

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 31

2011-11-04T09:18:00.000-04:00

~1~

I forgot to mention here that I had another post go up on Catholic Sistas. My post, Saints for Life, was my contribution to the Sistas' big Respect Life promotion during the month of October. I hope you've been following along, there were many excellent posts last month!

~2~

My babies are 5 months old already!! Peter is rolling over onto his tummy now. He can't roll back onto his back, but his arms and neck are getting stronger and he doesn't get nearly as upset anymore being on his tummy. Ethan likes being on his back. Every morning I find him sleeping with his hands behind his head like he's relaxing on the beach. Silly baby!

Peter and Ethan, 5 months old

~3~

We've started calling Ethan "Thumper." When he is in his crib, or really anywhere on his back (the floor, pack 'n' play, etc.) he brings his knees up to his chest and then throws his legs out in front of him, making a thumping noise when his legs hit the mattress. Sometimes we listen to him doing this over and over and over again when we go to bed at night. I find it hilarious. The thumping also causes him to scoot down to the end of the crib every night! So now I make sure to put his head near one end of the crib when he goes to bed at night. In the morning, his feet will be at the other end. Again, such a silly baby!

~4~

Halloween was Monday. No Trick or Treating for us this year. But we sat out in our garage and handed out candy. Well, Hubby did, I was back and forth between there and the house with the boys as they got hungry and tired and needed changing. But we still had to have fun with the boys and dress them up. Luckily, I found these cute costumes, which were only worn for a couple of hours, on clearance:

Our little pumpkins, Ethan and Peter with Daddy

~5~

Can I just vent for one little moment? I have so much on my plate at work right now!!! I'm feeling the pressure of putting things in order before I leave for my sabbatical. I know I can't do everything, but I need to do what I can to not leave a whole bunch of loose ends everywhere for 6 months. But it's more than that:

I'm in the middle of the hiring process (and praying I get someone who will start before I leave)
It's that time of year when I have to read faculty promotion files and write letters (11 files this year)
I realized today that I really need to work on staff evaluations this month if I plan on taking a lot of December as vacation
I have data to collect for my 2012 article in my professional journal
I am getting nervous about another contribution I had to an upcoming publication that has been delayed and they want the contributors to update there stuff (which I have no problem with, but I emailed my section editor and I still haven't heard back from her and I really want to do this BEFORE my sabbatical ... it'll probably end up becoming part of my sabbatical)
And then there is just the normal work load ... well a bit more than normal since I'm short one cataloger.

Okay, I feel better, moving on ....

~6~

Some good news! We've had several house showings recently. Got a call last Saturday for a showing that same afternoon that we had to turn down (we were in Indiana for a funeral and did not leave the house in any shape for a viewing). We got a call Sunday afternoon for a showing that afternoon which we accepted, of course, even though we had one hour to quickly put everything in order and do a quick clean of the obvious stuff. Then we had a showing Wednesday evening and, finally, got a request on Thursday for a showing on Saturday. Turns out the showing for this coming Saturday is the person who had wanted to see the house last Saturday. We had assumed that the Sunday showing was that person, but apparently not. Our feedback is all positive, so really it's just a matter of the right person finding us.

~7~

Have I ever mentioned that I am a fan of the Food Network? I've gotten addicted to watching the reality-type, competition style shows on that channel. Chopped is one of my ongoing favorites. I love seeing the odd ingredients they often require the chefs to cook with. More recently I've been watching Sweet Genius, which is a little quirky, the host particularly. He is very intense and a bit intimidating, but then at the very end of the show when he names the "sweet genius" his demeanor completely changes and it makes me smile! But the best show that just started has got to be The Next Iron Chef. Seeing all these chefs who I see as judges and hosts of their own shows now competing against each other to be the next Iron Chef is a lot of fun. Unlike other reality, competition shows, these people all already know each other and work together for the same network. So you have none of the weird, tiresome drama that you get when a bunch of strangers are thrown together for a couple months. These shows are fun.

Do you have any favorite Food Network shows? Or do you prefer another cable channel? Any favorite reality shows?

For more Quick Takes, check out Conversion Diary.

Weekend Doings

2011-10-31T09:00:00.000-04:00

We have had a very busy past few days. Very busy! Here's the quick rundown:

Thursday I dropped the boys off at their daycare and then hit the road to drive north to Indianapolis. Arrived just in time to have lunch with three other librarians and then get to our 1pm committee meeting.

The rest of Thursday and Friday was conference stuff for me. I love getting to spend a few days with other music librarians and be able to talk to people who understand!

Hubby got to pick up the boys Thursday evening and take care of all their needs Thursday evening and Friday morning. One of his sisters came to stay the night on Friday night, so he had some extra help then, which I know he appreciated.

Saturday morning, Hubby got the boys in the car and he and his sister left at 4:30am to head north to Indiana. We all met about an hour and a half north of Indianapolis for his grandmother's funeral. I'm so proud of my husband for all the work I know it took to travel four and a half hours with two babies. Actually, it was longer than four and half hours, that's what it would be without stops. They had to stop obviously, but they still did very well.

Following the funeral, there was a luncheon and then we headed back to his grandmother's house to change the babies one last time before hitting the road again. Sister stayed to come back with her parents on Sunday, so it was just Hubby and I in separate cars traveling back. We stayed together the whole time with the exception of about a half hour or so when we got separated at the bridge over the Ohio River which included changing highways as well.

By the way, Cracker Barrel has the coolest chairs for infant seat carriers. Plus they have a lot more space in their baby changing areas than most places do. Regular stops at this establishment are definitely in our future.

While at the luncheon after the funeral we got a phone call from the realtor's office. Someone wanted to see the house that afternoon!! You can imagine that with everything else, the house was not in shape for viewing. We asked that the prospective buyers choose another day. I hate doing that, I always fear we'll lose a potential buyer.

Then Sunday at about 2:45pm we got the call again. They wanted to come see the house at 4:15. We scrambled and managed to get the house in order and cleaned in an hour! One hour!! We had to listen to the boys scream the whole time, but we got it done, got everything we needed for the boys into the car, and we left to go hang out at the mall. Phew!! That was an incredible feat.

Coming up, there's Halloween on Monday (we live on a very popular street) and then All Saints Day on Tuesday. We haven't figured out which Mass we will go to on Tuesday.

I'm looking forward to Wednesday. ::smile::

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 30

2011-10-21T09:20:00.000-04:00

~1~

Last week in my Quick Takes post I bragged that Peter had rolled over for the first time. But then he didn't do it again for several days. But by Monday or Tuesday he started doing it again. I now find him on his tummy almost every morning when I go to get him up. He's also rolled over while at daycare and a couple times while on the floor in our family room. I think I've only seen him actually roll over once, generally I'm not in the room or happen to look away just when he goes over. Ethan isn't trying yet, but he is starting to get on his side, so he's probably not far behind.

~2~

I had to share a picture of my boys. They are 20 weeks old now. Aren't they cute in their matching polo shirts!!

Peter on left, Ethan right

~3~

Okay, one picture isn't enough! I thought they looked so cute in these thermal long-johns I had to take a picture.

Peter on left, Ethan right

~4~

We had our first blow-out in the bath tub this week. Ugh, what a mess!! It's one thing to have them pee in the tub, but ... ewwww. Can I realistically hope that this won't happen again?? Yeah, I know ... probably not.

~5~

A miracle has happened!! Seriously! The job posting for the staff position in my unit has been posted as of today. Every time this position has been open I have to wait several months just to get the approval for it to be filled and then there is usually another couple weeks before it gets posted. This time?? It's being posted a whole 14 DAYS since my former staff member left. You see why I say this is a miracle!

Know someone who has some library experience (and has some kind of music background) who might be interested in a job?? It's only open for a week. Click on that link to see more. Position comes with an awesome supervisor!!

~6~

I would like to ask here for your prayers. Hubby's grandmother passed away overnight sometime between Wednesday and Thursday this week. She was 95. Your prayers for the repose of her soul would be much appreciated as well as for my husband's family as they deal with the loss of their mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She is survived by two children, six grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren with another on the way. She was preceeded in death by her husband, a daughter who died in infancy, and 7 or 8 more great-grandchildren. Thank you for your prayers.

~7~

I'll be traveling next week for a conference which also happens to be not too far from where my husband's grandmother lived and where the memorial mass/service will be held. I'm not sure when services will be held, but it'll probably be during the same time that my conference takes place. So I'll be missing a day of the conference and my husband will probably drive up to meet me. Not sure what we'll do with the boys. We could take them with us ... well, Hubby would be the one traveling with them, but we're not yet prepared for a long trip with them. We were hoping to have a mini-van before Christmas which we thought would be our first long trip with the boys. Regardless, we're just waiting to hear what the plans are before we try and figure out what we're going to do.

Most likely I will not be doing a 7 Quick Takes next week. Actually, it's not "most likely," I really should say that it won't happen. Thanks again for your prayers.

For more Quick Takes check out Conversion Diary.

Spiritual Productivity

2011-10-18T09:30:00.000-04:00

We had an incredibly busy weekend! On Sunday night I was exhausted and yet I couldn't remember what we had done or whether anything had been accomplished. I was so tired I couldn't think straight. Yet, as I layed in bed trying to shut my brain off so I could finally sleep, I was able to start reflecting on what the weekend had consisted of. It was fairly productive afterall, though maybe not in the way we normally think of productivity.

Or maybe just not in the way I think of being productive.

I like to physically see something accomplished. An empty hamper because the laundry has been washed, dried, folded, and put away. An email inbox with very few unread messages. A full recylcing bin because we've read the paper, magazines, and other publications we get. A clean kitchen counter because the dishes are all washed and put away. I could go on ... but you get the picture.

I like to see something. Check it off the to-do list and see the empty/clean/whatever space around me.

This weekend, although I did do a little laundry and a few other things, most of the weekend's productivity was not visible in any material sense.

Saturday we went to a public rosary event. Our bishop was leading the praying of the rosary that afternoon on a busy street (one of the busiest in town) near the only abortion clinic here. We stood on a strip of median between the busy street and the access road, about twenty people or so. Not a large crowd, but we represented all ages: small children (including our two 4 month olds), some older people, and all ages in between.

It was wonderful to stand with so many like-minded people to pray. A couple of men were also holding a big sign that faced the road. Later I saw a picture of Our Lady of Fatima on it, but I never did get a chance to read what it said. There were also several passers-by who honked their horns in support (I presume it was in support, they didn;t sound like angry honks). The babies were both really good as well. Peter was alert and staring at me the whole time. Ethan got fussy at one point and I had to pick him up, but he was great after that.

Following the rosary we ran a couple errands. It's funny walking through stores pushing a double carriage with two infant carriers attached. People are always stopping to look, pointing the babies out to their children, or doing a double-take when they realize there is not just one baby, but two in the stroller. Some people even stop us to talk and ask questions. It's something I'm slowly getting used to, but I'm not sure I'll ever be 100% comfortable with it.

Saturday evening I pulled out four candles for the Wave of Light for Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. All four candles came from my church, two from the All Souls Day Mass the years that we lost Zachary and Brigit. I don't remember how I acquired the other two. They make the perfect candles for this event. I really should have taken a picture of them. Maybe next year.

Sunday was Mass, of course. But later in the day I took both boys with me and went to the cemetery. It had been a long, long time since I had been there. I made sure to bring the grass clippers with me and it was a good thing too. I couldn't even see Zachary's stone and Brigit's was barely visible. The boys watched me as I cut away the grass and cleared the dampened, flattened grass clippings from the stones. It had been a LONG time since I had visited. I need to go more often. The cemetery had also added a sign to the baby section, so now it is clear that the section is called "Gabriel's Tears." I also walked around to visit the other babies. I cleared some leaves off one of the stones and stood the two little plastic statues back up that were left there. It is always so sad to see new stones; there were two new stones since the last time I visited. Before leaving I said some prayers over Zachary and Brigit's graves while Ethan looked on (Peter was asleep by then).

Even though I did get some "productive" things done over the weekend, most of my productivity had more to do with more spiritual things. A rosary for an end to abortion and the conversion of hearts through Our Lady of Fatima, lighting candles in memory of my children and the children other friends and family have lost, time spent caring for the gravesites of two of my children, and the care and feeding of the two children I have the priviledge of caring for in this life.

Spiritual productivity may not have the same kind of satisfaction you can get from seeing things checked off a to-do list or seeing a clean space that once was messy, but it is so much better.

And apparently even more exhausting!

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

2011-10-15T13:29:00.000-04:00

Today is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. For those of us who have lost children during pregnancy or as infants, we never forget. This day is set aside for all of us to remember those babies. So I hope you'll take the time time to participate in the Wave of Light today for all those babies lost too soon.

The Wave of Light happens today at 7:00pm in all timezones. Light a candle (or two or three) for one hour in remembrance of all the babies who have been lost to miscarriage, stillbirth, or early infant death. I encourage you, too, if you know someone who has lost a baby, to send them a quick note to just let them know that you are thinking of them and their children waiting for them in Heaven.

Also, today, the Catholic Sistas are sharing stories of loss. Some are anonymous, others are not. Go visit and check out the many stories being shared over there today.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 29

2011-10-14T01:10:00.001-04:00

~1~

Last Friday at work, we said farewell to one of my staff members. She decided to take a big leap of faith and change career paths. I think the cake illustrates well her career change:

"From Books to Crooks"

~2~

I promised a picture of the Mary statue that I talked about in my post from Wednesday. My camera's battery failed me Thursday when I tried to take a picture. But a wonderful co-worker walked over and took a few pictures for me with his phone. I really need a phone or new iPod Touch that has a camera on it. One day! In the meantime, here is the new Mary statue on campus:

~3~

The Blessed Mother at the University's Newman Center
Photo coutesy of Daniel N.

~4~

Thursday morning I poked my head into the boys room to make sure they were still sleeping before heading downstairs to grab some breakfast. I found Peter like this:

I can't believe he had rolled over on his own!! He doesn't like being on his tummy and usually struggles and eventually screams during tummy-time, so I was waiting for him to wake up and be very upset. Sure enough he was! I still haven't seen him roll over yet, but I now know he can do it.

~5~

If everything works well with the boys' schedules on Saturday, we'll be taking them to their first public square Rosary. Our Bishop is leading a Divine Mercy Chaplet and Rosary starting at 3pm across the street from the abortion clinic in town. I'm not really able to participate in the 40 Days for Life campaign, but I can do this. So that's where we'll be on Saturday.

~6~

We had a second showing on our house this week, same people from the week before. Unfortunately, they are not making an offer. They liked the downstairs and the yard, but felt that the bedrooms were on the small side. I have to agree. Why do you think we're moving?

~7~

I hope everyone has a nice weekend! Fall is finally starting to feel like it is here to stay! I love it!!

Head over to Conversion Diary to check out more Quick Takes.

Nice Surprises on Campus

2011-10-12T08:30:00.000-04:00

My office at the university is not too far from the Catholic Newman Center on campus. As a matter of fact, I usually park in one of the lots either right next to or just across the street from the Newman Center. So I walk by it pretty much every day, twice.

Monday when I left work I couldn't help but smile as I walked through the Newman Center parking lot. Right there in the courtyard area of the Center, right next to the parking lot, was a nice size statue of Mary.

It must be about 5 feet tall and she faces out to the parking lot. I loved seeing her there!! What a wonderful addition to our campus and to the Newman Center.

Tuesday morning as I headed into the office I couldn't help but look for her as I walked by the Newman Center again. Almost like I thought I had dreamed it the day before.

But there she was. And this time she had company.

Just as I was walking by, a group of students came out of the Newman Center and walked right over to Mary. As I took one last look over my shoulder I noticed them all bowing their heads in prayer.

Almost brings tears to my eyes! How awesome to see this on a college campus. There is hope for the future of our Church!

And Mary is leading them!!

7 Quick Takes, vol. 28

2011-10-07T09:22:00.001-04:00

~1~

So I just checked my blog and realized that I haven't posted anything since last Friday, also a Quick Takes post. I apologize for being so slack with the blog. I have lots of things in my head, but little time. I'm sure you can guess why!

~2~

One of those ideas in my head is a post for my Parenting after Pregnancy Loss series. Actually, I have several topics listed, but the first one is proving difficult. It is started, so hopefully you'll be seeing it soon.

~3~

We had a nice weekend with my parents visiting. They hadn't seen the boys since their baptism in July. Obviously the boys have changed a lot. While they were here, they took some pictures of the boys that my father then shared with his brothers once they got back home. He sent me an email with a picture that one of his brothers put together from two pictures of each of the boys and a picture of my dad from sometime in the mid-50s (he looks like he's maybe 5 or 6 years old, I think). What do you think? Do the boys look like their Papa?

Ethan on left, my dad as a kid in the center, Peter on right.

~4~

We had a showing of the house!! It was Tuesday, early evening. We didn't get any feedback the next day, so we thought that was it. But then I got an email Thursday with a brief comment. Apparently it was a woman that came to take a look and she liked what she saw, especially the kitchen counters! Her husband is coming into town early next week and they hope to see it again. That sounds promising!! I'm afraid to get my hopes up, this was just our first showing, but it really sounds good.

~5~

Wednesday evening I got home from work before my husband. The babies both needed to eat, but I was alone. I was hoping that Hubby wasn't far behind. So I got both diapers changed, the two leftover bottles from daycare in some hot water to warm up, and placed one of the boys in his rocker by my feet. I've tried to feed them both at the same time and have not been able to do it successfully. However, before I could sit down to start feeding one of them, the doorbell rang. I had a leaky bottle I was trying to clean up and fix and one screaming child. But I went to the door anyway. A lady was there wondering if we had any brochures of the house. So I went and grabbed one for her. She asked if we had a dining room and when I replied yes she seemed very excited. Then she asked if she could just take a quick peak at it. Um, Lady, can you not hear the screaming child in the other room??? I said no in a very polite way and she left. I was then able to start feeding the screaming child, which then meant that the non-screaming child had to pick up where the first left off. ::sigh::

~6~

I was encouraged by this and let my realtor know that we had another potential interest she might be hearing from. Then on Thursday I get home from work and Hubby informs me that the same lady came back again. She pulled into the driveway just behind him when he got home from work, told him she had been here the day before, and asked if he had a brochure on the house. He asked her, "Didn't my wife give you one yesterday?" She said yes, but she lost it. Already?? Hubby is convinced she's just crazy. Maybe I shouldn't count on her yet. Oh well!

~7~

My work life is about to change quite a bit. I have a staff member who's last day is today. ::sad:: I've been lucky over the years and have always had good people in that position. Each time I have to refill that position I worry that I won't find someone as good as any of the previous people. The person I'm losing is no exception. She'll definitely be missed. I'll be taking on several of her job responsibilities in addition to my own as well as asking other staff members to handle some things. The tricky part is that I probably won't get to replace this position right away and then I'm also going on sabbatical for six months beginning in January. That means my unit will be down two people out of five for six months. Yep, I'm a little nervous about how things are going to go. I do trust my unit, but still, three people doing the work of five is not easy. First and more important, we're going to celebrate the time we did have with the person who is leaving and wish her luck on her new job and new career. I'll post a picture of the cake next week!!

For more Quick Takes, check out Jen's awesome blog Conversion Diary.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 27

2011-09-30T08:16:00.000-04:00

~1~

My boys are 4 months old today!! Here they are, aren't they cute!

Peter and Ethan

~2~

My parents are coming to visit this weekend. Nanny and Papa haven't seen their grandsons since their baptism in July. They have grown a lot! I'm looking forward to the weekend because there will be many more extra hands to help out.

~3~

My next post on the Catholic Sistas blog went up this morning. You can find it by clicking here. I hope you'll like it.

~4~

I went by my church yesterday to check out the construction and possibly take some pictures. No one was in the sanctuary at all, so I was able to walk around and take the pictures I wanted. I got one of the new tabernacle:

Tabernacle construction on 9/29/2011

I also got a picture looking at the whole sanctuary. You can't see the tabernacle in this picture because of the wall that currently separates the altar from the construction area. But there is plastic sheeting all over the place. You can definitely tell that construction is going on in this picture:

Cathedral of Christ the King, construction 9/29/2011

~5~

Before leaving I drove by the new rectory. Windows are in and the walls all look like they are up. No pictures of the rectory since it is at the corner of the church property and I just drove by it. But I moved my car to the front of the church and got out to check out the Perpetual Adoration Chapel. As a reminder, here's a picture from the groundbreaking:

Groundbreaking on frozen ground in January with ceremonial dirt brought in.

Now here is the same spot, from a bit further back:

Cathedral of Christ the King, St. Kevin Perpetual Adoration Chapel
9/29/2011

I wish I could show you pictures of the new Baptistry, but I wasn't able to get into that area. Actually, I didn't really want to attempt to get into where the Baptistry is since there were workers in that area.

~6~

Things at my job are going to be getting tough very soon. One of my staff members is leaving, she's decided to change career paths. I'm excited for her because she's excited, and I'm proud of her for making such a big change. I wish her luck. I've been down this road before: I'll have to make a case for filling the position, I'll have to fold some of that position's responsibilities into my work, and eventually I'll have to go through the whole advertising the job, reviewing applications, interviewing, and hiring. Oh, and I'm going to be out of the office for six months beginning in January. I can already feel the stress building! But, I've been here before and survived. We'll survive again.

~7~

Speaking of being out for six months ... I am referring to my sabbatical, which I have previously mentioned in this space. I need some input from some creative people. As part of my sabbatical, I want to keep a blog as a way to easily journal the work I'm doing in addition to having a place to link up relevant info or surveys I create or whatever else I think might be good to have a link to. But I'm stuck on a title/name for the blog. The project includes: working on a database of all the recital recordings from the university (cleaning it up, mostly), creating records from that database, creating templates for cataloging future recordings, some research on recital program requirements at other Schools of Music, and looking at some digital possibilities. I want a professional sounding title, probably using Kentucky or University of Kentucky in the title (or subtitle) in some way, but also catchy. Any creative ideas out there??

Check out more Quick Takes over at Conversion Diary where Jen hosts Quick Takes each week.

A Blog Giveaway

2011-09-23T16:30:00.000-04:00

Are you a fan of Catholic Sistas yet??? If not, you need to get over there and start checking it out!

And while you're there check out the first Catholic Sistas giveaway. A $35 gift certificate to a Catholic Bookstore that can be redeemed online if you don't live in the area where this store is located.

(And since I live in KY and many of my readers live in KY, you may be interested to know that this particular store is located in Owensboro, KY. So if you happen to live near Owensboro or have family there, what a great giveaway to enter! Right??)

Who doesn't like free stuff?? Go on over and enter!!

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 26

2011-09-23T12:22:00.001-04:00

~1~

I've been sick the past week and very out of the loop. Luckily, Hubby and Ethan seem to have escaped the sickness. Peter had a congested cough over the weekend, but no fever and was always in a good mood. I got a call Monday afternoon from the daycare that he had a low fever. Despite that, he was still a smiley baby. Both went back to daycare on Wednesday, by which time I was totally sick. Still am. Ugh!

~2~

Due to the sickness in the house this week, I have no new pictures. But I still laugh at these pictures everytime I see them. Just way too cute!!

~3~

Being home most of the week and sick, means I've had no energy to do much of anything. Thus I've been vegging in my recliner watching ~~crap~~ sitcom reruns on TV. I'm finding it very disturbing how sex and pregnancy is portrayed on TV. Pregnancy especially. When did pregnancy become something to be feared and depressed about all. the. time??? I need to go back to watching HGTV and the Food Network.

~4~

My husband showed me this video this week. If this was popular on Facebook this week and everyone has already seen it, I apologize. I did mention I've been out of the loop all week. This is for all the Star Wars fans out there:

So I couldn't figure out how to embed the video here like I have done in the past. Sorry. Use this link to go check it out: http://youtu.be/NtgtMQwr3Ko. It's very funny!!

~5~

Tuesday we had a well-visit for both boys. Luckily no one had a fever so both were able to get their shots. Both boys are growing well. Peter was 12 pounds, 14 ounces and 23 1/8 inches long. Ethan was 12 pounds, 12 ounces and 23 inches long. Pretty identical, wouldn't you say? I didn't find out what their percentiles were, but found the growth charts in the back of one of the preemie books I had at home. From what I can tell they are roughly in the 20th-25th percentile for weight and less than 5th percentile for length. This is for actual age. My husband was looking at it for their adjusted age (3 months old instead of 4 months old) and they are slightly higher on the chart, but not by a lot. They really aren't behind by much.

~6~

My next post over at Catholic Sistas is supposed to go up next Friday. I haven't written anything yet. I have several ideas that I can't seem to develop into anything worthwhile. Hopefully something will come together soon. Like VERY soon.

~7~

It's Friday and it's noon!! I'm late for a Rosary I'm supposed to be doing ... right. now! Please pray for a sweet little baby girl who is being born right now with a serious condition of fluid on the brain. She is facing surgery sometime shortly after her birth and possibly many more procedures. She comes into a loving family with two wonderful parents, four older sisters and a brother in heaven to pray for her. Thanks!!

For more quick takes, check out Conversion Diary where Jen hosts Quick Takes each Friday.

Twin Talk at 15 weeks

2011-09-17T10:30:00.002-04:00

Peter: Then Mommy takes the bottle ....
Ethan: What are you talking about??

Peter: What? I tell funny stories!
Ethan: Whatever, dude.

Peter: What's Dad doing?
Ethan: Now, that's funny!!

Check out Friday's Quick Takes post to learn the story behind the bibs the boys are wearing.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 25

2011-09-16T07:45:00.001-04:00

~1~

The boys are 15 weeks old now and we're starting to find our groove. They sleep great!! I kind of hate telling people that because so many lament how their kids never slept so much at such a young age. Wish I could tell you what we did, but I honestly have no idea. Sorry!

~2~

Speaking of the boys, Peter is now able to get over on his side. He does not seem anywhere close to actually being able to roll over, but does seem to like lying on his side. I walked into his bedroom one morning and he was awake and on his side. I thought he had seen me, but apparently not. I looked down at him and said something and he suddenly splayed out on his back, all limbs extended as far as they would go. I couldn't help but laugh. I know it was at my child's expense, but it really was funny!!

~3~

Our house is officially on the market. Know anyone moving to Lexington, KY? Anyone in Lexington looking for a new place? Let me know! We'd love to sell our house to you.

~4~

We got something cool in the mail this week!! A note from one of the School Board members for the Catholic School attached to our church congratulating us on the baptism of our boys. Included was two letters from some 5th graders at the school also congratulating us on the boys' baptism and welcoming them to the Church. The letters were very cute. I had no idea they did this, but I love it!! Oh, and there was a gift included as well ...

~5~

Peter and Ethan in their new Christ the King School bibs.
How cute!!

~6~

Speaking of Christ the King I had written a post back in January about construction beginning at my church. Last night I attended a meeting to get an update on how things were going. I was pleasantly surprised when I got there and discovered that it was less of a meeting and more of a tour. This was good for two reasons: one, I had both boys with me (no "divide and conquer" that night), so moving around and being able to chat with people along the way was way better than trying to keep them quiet and happy during a meeting; and two, I actually got to see the progress rather than just hear about it. I also meant to bring my camera, but forgot it in the chaos of trying to get out the door (Hubby had Bible Study at the same time, so it was a crazy evening all around). Luckily, my good friend and our church organist told me he had been taking pictures and would send me some! Yay!!

~7~

And he did!! Since the pictures I took for the January post about the beginnings of construction were all of the ground breaking for the Adoration Chapel, for comparison sake here is one of the Chapel under construction:

Photo courtesy of Brian Hunt, Christ the King organist and friend.

Thursday night I actually got to walk into this chapel. The walls are much higher now, I believe they said they are about ready for the roof to go on, and you can see the shape of the chapel and the spot where Jesus' in the Eucharist will be exposed, plus the new baptistry font is in front of it (not shown). The chapel is expected to be completed by mid-March. Still a ways to go, but it's all really coming together and that was obvious when I was there last night. I could write more, but these are supposed to be "quick" takes, so I'll save it for another time ... when I have more pictures too.

Check out Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes.

Alert: Catholic Sistas has moved!!

2011-09-14T18:30:00.013-04:00

If you haven't been following the Catholic Sistas Blog [and I'm sure that is no one here, right???] then you may have missed the announcement that it moved to a new web address. Don't miss anything, change your RSS or blog reader links to the new address: www.catholicsistas.com.

Did you notice how much easier the address is?? We kind of figured we would eventually go this direction, just didn't expect it within the first couple weeks. But hey, the Holy Spirit leads and we follow!!

I will be going through my posts and sidebar shortly (if I haven't already by the time this post publishes) to redirect all links to the new blog.

Also, I have a request. If you have been following Catholic Sistas and enjoying it, we would love to hear your feedback. Check out the page under "Accollare" (on the left side of the page) for the Readers' Scoop: http://www.catholicsistas.com/2011/09/09/what-readers-are-saying/. Have a comment to add? There is a place there to add comments, or let me know either here or in a private email (see sidebar, About Me) and I will share it with our fearless leader. If you share something with me, you're also giving me permission to use your words. We won't publish your last name, just first and last initial, or even just first if you prefer. Really, we'll put you up however you want. If you want to brag about the Catholic Sistas in a blog post of your own, please share the link with me and we'll be happy to add the link to your post under that same "Accollare" menu. Just let me know!!

Don't forget to change your RSS links and bookmarks to the new and improved Catholic Sistas blog. Go check it out!!

Parenting after Pregnancy Loss: Initial Thoughts

2011-09-13T00:10:00.000-04:00

I've written about miscarriage and pregnancy loss quite a bit on this blog. Because it is such a part of my life now, it will always be on my heart and thus something I will still write about.

But now my life is in a different place, a new place, and I'm still working out my thoughts on it. I think I'll be working out these thoughts for a very long time, so I have a lot of fodder for blog posts. As a result, this post is probably the first of several.

It is estimated that about 25% of all pregnancies end in miscarriage. I'd venture to guess that this is a low estimate, especially when you consider how the pill works in addition to the possibility of very early miscarriages that often go undetected (we even wonder if we had one of those once, but we'll never know for sure). So miscarriage, and pregnancy loss overall, is much more common than most people realize.

And yet, with all the people who have been through the pain of miscarriage, everyone has different experiences. Everyone's experiences before they became a member of the Miscarriage Club are different and shaped how they were able to deal with their loss.

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know that I have dealt with my losses in a variety of ways. Writing here has been one of my ways to get my thoughts and emotions out. I also felt better being open about my losses and sharing my story whenever and wherever I can. This is not for everyone, I know this. But if my story can help someone else, then I will continue telling it.

Now I find myself in a new place: the mom of two sweet boys. I'm loving my cutie pies both during the fun times and the fussy times. I'm loving that after so long I am finally getting the chance to be a mom. My heart melts with each little smile and bursts with pride with those rare little laughs.

Mixed in with all these wonderful emotions is still some sadness as I wonder what each of my other children would have been like. And so many more questions, too. Would I have these two sweet boys if we had Zachary? Do I appreciate my babies more because of what we went through? But then ... more than what? And what about future children? How long do we wait? What if we wait too long and we experience loss again? How will a possible future loss feel different now that I have living children? Or will it?

These are just some of my initial thoughts and questions on this topic of "Parenting after Pregnancy Loss." It will be interesting to explore more of my thoughts on this topic and I look forward to hearing your comments too, especially from those who have been there themselves.

I think the first idea I want to write about will be on "appreciation." Stay tuned to find out what I mean by this. I hope you'll stick around as I explore these various thoughts and feelings.

Divide and Conquer

2011-09-11T21:48:00.000-04:00

I don't know why it took us this long to figure this one out, but we finally did this weekend. We are in the process of putting our house on the market. Have been for a while, but we are finally at the point where we must get things put away, the house cleaned, and the papers finally signed ... hopefully this week!!

All of the above is difficult to do with two three-month olds. It would be hard, I'm sure, with one let alone two.

Hubby and I both had errands to run this weekend. We finally decided on the divide and conquer method.

Saturday he took Ethan with him and went to the credit union, stopped in at his office to pick something up, went to Lowes, and finally Kroger before heading home. While they were gone I was able to shower and get ready and then start the process of putting away all our pictures and other personal items. It was so much easier to do all that with just one baby.

Saturday night Hubby took the boys for a walk and gave me an hour to get more stuff done. It's amazing what you can accomplish in one hour: two loads of laundry folded, a third one started and a fourth waiting to go, the bedroom completely cleared of all personal things, dusted, and vaccumed, and the living room decluttered some as well.

I felt so accomplished!!

Today after church and breakfast, we did it again. I took Peter with me to run more errands while Hubby and Ethan went around the house taking down pictures, hanging different ones in their place, and repurposing others. Again, so much easier to do all those things with one small child!

We need to divide and conquer more often. I would find it much easier to run into the grocery store with one baby than with two. I know it'll get easier as they get older, but right now those infant car seat carriers are heavy!!

Divide and conquer it is!! At least when it is possible. Hubby can't take one of the boys with him to Bible Study, so I'm on my own then.

But that's okay, I get some time away too and Hubby gets to be in charge then!

New Vacation Day Concept

2011-09-07T10:00:00.001-04:00

Tuesday I took a "vacation" day from work. Ha!! It was a totally exhausting day.
I had made an appointment to have the boys pictures taken that morning. The appointment was at 9:00am. For some reason, 9am on a "vacation" day didn't seem as early as it usually feels on a regular work day. That is until I woke up at 7:15am and realized that I needed to leave at 8:30 in order to make it while also showering, dressing, changing the babies, restocking the diaper bag (because we had been out most of Monday), and feeding all of us. Amazingly it all got done, with the exception of feeding myself, and we were pulling out of the driveway at 8:40.

Phew!

And I made it on time, pulling up to the studio at exactly 9am. Again ... phew!

Pictures went well. And I had help. Oh thank goodness for that!! What a wonderful friend I had to come spend the morning with me. She helped me change the boys, hold them, switch them out ... everything. I couldn't have juggled it all on my own, so I was extremely grateful to have her there.

And when we were done, she offered to stay at the studio with them while I ran across the street on a quick errand. Truly amazing friend!! And thankfully the boys had fallen asleep by then. It was an exhausting morning for them as well.

The pictures were done when I returned. We then packed everyone and everything back into my car and my wonderful friend met me over at another store so I could run my last errand. She pushed the stroller through the store so I could pick up what I needed. I know having help in the store made that trip take half the time than it would have otherwise.

Peter had had enough by the time we were checking out. I don't blame him, I was hungry too. Everyone and everything back in the car and I took the interstate to get back home as quickly as possible.

It amazes me how much longer it takes to do things now. I do plan for it, of course, and I just laugh at it all.

Home by noon, boys changed and fed, and I finally got to sit down by 1:00pm and eat for the first time. Just in time for the next thing on the agenda ...

an interview for our local Catholic paper.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from that. I was being interviewed by someone I know. She had taken the newborn pictures of the boys as well as pictures at their Baptism. In talking to one of the deacons in the area who works with the Paper about Peter and Ethan's Baptism, they started thinking about how my story would be a nice one to write up. So I agreed.

I wasn't quite sure of the angle, but with the March for Life coming up in January and October being a Pro-Life month, they are looking to do a bunch of pro-life stories. So this fits in well.

As for the interview itself: she was here at the house for about two and a half hours!! But we had a good time. We sat on the floor to talk so I could easily attend to the boys while we chatted. I basically went through everything from our first miscarriage through the birth of Peter and Ethan. She asked some questions along the way and then had several questions at the end. She has a few questions for Hubby and then she'll be able to write something up.

By the time the interview ended it was after 5pm and I was amazed at how fast the day had gone by. I was exhausted ... to say the least. More exhausted than days when I have to get us all ready for daycare and work in the morning, go to work all day, and then have my hands full all evening as well. Those days seem like the easy days now.

The vacation days, on the other hand ... well, those are now a bit more exhausting!! Haha!!

Yep, definitely a new concept to the "vacation" day. ::smile:: Even so, I really did enjoy every bit of it!

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 24

2011-09-02T01:26:00.003-04:00

~1~

My boys are three months old now!! They are growing up so fast! ::sniff sniff:: They smile a lot more now, which has been fun. It still takes some work on our part to make it happen, but the reward is finally there! So cute!!

What do you remember from when your child(ren) were this age? Or were you too sleep deprived to remember anything?

~2~

We are starting to see a routine with the boys. We now feed them 6 bottles a day (occasionally 5) and they sleep a good length of time at night. Those first several weeks you just have no idea how many bottles they take a day. At least I don't, not with two of them. It was all written down, but nothing was consistant. Now, however, I can predict things. Oh what a difference that makes!! First bottle is somewhere between 5 and 6 am (give or take an hour or two), last bottle is around 10pm (give or take an hour), and they sleep well in between. I'm simply feeling lucky right now!

Don't tell me that this will change. Just don't, let me live in a fantasy world for just a tad bit longer.

~3~

During my pregnancy I know I mentioned a desire to use cloth diapers. It is still very much on my mind, but we're unable to completely convert to it. The daycare won't use them, so I'm left with just weekends. I thought about evenings and nights during the week, but that wouldn't produce enough dirties to bother with a wash every couple days; there is no way I'm leaving dirty diapers sitting in the diaper pail for a week before I can wash them. So for the moment, it's just weekends. Then we had some issues with leaks and I decided I really didn't like the flushable liners I was using (the possible culprit of the leaks). So I bought a diaper sprayer [Yay!!] and Hubby hooked it up this week. Now my plan is to use cloth fully this coming weekend! It's actually a four day weekend for me and the boys (I'm taking a vacation day next Tuesday) so we should get plenty of use out of my fluff and see just how many more diapers I need to truly make it work for several days at a time. I'm hoping that by December, when I start being home full time, we'll know what we're doing and we'll be able to forgo sposies completely for the next 6 months.

For the most part, we're using one-size, pockets (seem to be the easiest things for us with working and busy schedules). I'm completely open to hearing tips, stories, and recommendations as well as words of encouragement for Hubby who is still doubting the wisdom of this endeavor. Leave comments below ... please!

~4~

I had professional head shots done this week. They were taken for an upcoming promotion and tenure celebration but I'll also get the digital copies to use however I want. So you know, if I ever, like ... publish a book or something, I'll have a nice picture for the back cover. Ha!! Maybe I'll just use it for my profile picture on this blog.

Have you ever had professional head shots done? If so, what for?

~5~

Promotion and tenure celebration?? Oh, did I forget to mention ... yes, I was promoted this year. Went into effect on July 1. Yes, I know, I wasn't even at work then, hadn't been there in several months. So how did I manage that? Well, as a faculty member the promotion process starts very early. I started putting together my file and contacting potential outside references (colleagues from other institutions) in May/June of 2010. The process takes about a year. I found out around March or April that my case had been approved at all levels except the Board of Trustees. So I've known since then, but it wasn't really official until the B of T met in May. Let's just say that I've been a little busy since it was made official in May. ::smile::

Any guesses on why I was so busy? [You can just taste the sarcasm, can't you.]

~6~

Have you been following the Catholic Sistas blog?? I am so impressed day after day with the amazing posts my sista friends are writing!! If you haven't been there yet, please go check it out, "like" us on Facebook, add us to your blog reader or RSS feed, and if you have a blog grab the "Friends of the Sistas" image from the blog and add is as a linked image on your blog (and we thank you for the free advertising!). [And my first post went up this week, too.]

Is there anything you'd like to see this blog do? Maybe something you wish was on the internet for Catholic women but haven't been able to find anywhere else? We're still new enough that we're throwing around a lot of ideas.

~7~

I signed myself up for a date for my next post over at the Catholic Sistas blog. I chose the feast day of St. Jerome. It was completely unintentional, I was looking at the end of September and saw his feast day listed and thought, "what the heck." He's the patron saint of my profession. So now I'm contemplating writing something about work and still putting a Catholic spin on it. It just may take me a month to figure that one out.

Any ideas?

For more Quick Takes head on over to Jen's blog!

Talking about Prayer

2011-08-31T12:51:00.001-04:00

Today I am talking about prayer. But not here! You have to go over to the Catholic Sistas blog to see what I have to say. My first post there, Prayer on Autopilot?, went live today. Come check it out and while you're there check out all the other wonderful posts.
Come on over and join the fun!!

Fun Weekend

2011-08-29T21:40:00.000-04:00

Yes, there was one of these at the party.

A party is not complete without an inflatable slide/"rock" wall. We went to a party on Friday night that some friends of mine were having at their house. I hadn't seen these friends or many of the people at the party in years!! In that time, people had gotten married, had kids, and those that already had kids now had much older kids. It was great to see so many people and catch up, even if it was brief. We didn't stay long because of our two little ones and the fact that we walked to the party. Walking to the party was a GREAT idea!! The boys fell asleep on the way there and then again on the way home.

The best part? They easily fell asleep that night too!!

Decluttering and cleaning MUST go hand-in-hand. My husband does not get this concept. We are "this close" to getting our house finally ready for that big For Sale sign in the front yard. This close! He spent Saturday cleaning the siding and putting down mulch. I spent part of it inside trying to clean. He kept telling me to forget about cleaning, just to declutter everything. But how can you NOT clean while you're decluttering? That's what I want to know. I ignored him and went about my cleaning AND decluttering. As I tried to explain, I declutter things better when I am also cleaning. When I have to move things to clean, that's when I start thinking more about whether that item needs to be out or not.

The rooms I did get to on Saturday look great, both clean and decluttered!! My ability to get a lot down is now hampered by the fact that the two little men in my life get bored watching me clean after a while and want to be awake a lot more these days.

So close!!! {sigh}

The stroller needs a van. Seriously. I love our stroller. We take it for walks in the neighborhood and we've even taken it on the trail that circles the huge city park near our neighborhood. It streers easily and is very smooth. Our Sunday outing was to our church's annual parish picnic. Because it was on a farm and there would be Mass outside followed by the picnic, I wanted to bring the stroller rather than using the Double Snap and Go stroller that the carseats fit in. I knew the babies would be way too hot if they had to sit in their carseats that whole time. The challenge was getting the stroller into my husband's Camry. I have a Honda Fit, so that was totally out of the question. He had to pretty much take the whole thing apart to fit it in the trunk of the car. But we managed to get it in along with the cooler while the back seat of the car held the two babies, the diaper bag, our two chairs, and one other bag containing a blanket, sunscreen, and bug spray.

We're going to Atlanta for Christmas this year. We NEED a van before then or we may have to bring two cars. Seriously!

Never thought I'd find myself sitting on a hay bale during Mass feeding a baby. So Sunday's picnic was preceeded by Mass. The picnic and Mass were at a horse farm just outside the city (but still in the county). They had hay bales set up in rows for people to sit on as well as chairs for the seniors and others who needed something more sturdy (not to mention more comfortable). Ethan had not eaten his full bottle at the meal previous to leaving for the farm. As I suspected he needed the next one right in the middle of Mass. We had gotten there late so left everything in the car and just took the boys in their car seats. Why I didn't at least grab the diaper bag, I don't know. So halfway through Mass hubby had to run back to the car to grab the diaper bag so I could feed Ethan. Once Mass was over, Hubby went back to the car again, taking both car seats with him (a friend of ours and I held the babies), assembled the stroller, grabbed the rest of our stuff, and made his way back to us once again. I think he got his exercise for the day.

In the future the picnic will be a lot more fun for the boys. There was a mini petting "zoo," pony rides, a clown, and, of course, ... an inflatable bouncy house kind of thing.

No party is complete without some sort of inflatable ride.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 23

2011-08-26T08:05:00.001-04:00

Wow, I haven't done a Quick Takes post since mid-April!! Hope I'm not too rusty; here goes nothing ...

~1~

It's been over a month now, but we did have the boys baptised in July. I do have plans to write up a blog post and include some pictures of the day. I'm sure some readers are interested in how things went and want to see pictures!! I can tell you that there was much wailing but thankfully little gnashing of teeth. More to come ... eventually.

~2~

I finally finished writing thank you cards out for all gifts that we have received for the babies. That has been a constant task of mine for the last 12 weeks. It takes a long time when you can only do a couple a night and then some nights just get way too busy and none get done. And I really wanted to write nice thank you notes, really let people know how much we appreciate their generosity. So it takes time. And now that this is done, I've turned my attention to birth announcements. Yes, the boys are 12 weeks old, going to officially be 3 months next week, but I still wanted to do this. Besides, there are people who are not online that haven't seen any pictures (the great-grandmothers, other relatives) so I figured they would be delighted to get an announcement, even one that arrives 3 months late ... or maybe 4 months.

~3~

I have to say it ... I'm tired. Ahhh, I feel better. That is all.

~4~

Many months ago in #3 of this previous quick takes I mentioned that I had received some good news from work, but couldn't yet share the details. I can now!! Actually, I could have a while ago, but I never got around to it. That's just my world these days. The announcement: I have been approved for a sabbatical leave starting in January of 2012. I'm very excited about this! I will be home (working from home) for six months and the boys will be able to stay home with me. That's very exciting!! I will be working on a project that has been haunting me for years. With this sabbatical I'll be able to concentrate on just that and not have to worry about my other job tasks, meetings, supervising people, etc., etc.

You might wonder what it is exactly that I'll be doing. Well, it may not sound that exciting. I will be working on massaging a database that is currently a jumble of information to make it worthy of converting into another format. Along with this I have an idea for a survey, some digitizing possibilities, and a blog. All of which will hopefully lead to some presentation opportunities in the future and maybe an article or two. Oh, and about that blog: I plan on keeping a blog of my progress, thoughts and ideas along the way. It could come in handy down the road.

The best part of all: working from home on my own schedule and having the boys with me. I'll have to be a master organizer or it could be a waste of 6 months!!

~5~

Even though I am excited about being home for six months with my little guys, I really do like the daycare they are currently with. We were extremely lucky to get in considering that they originally told us they had no openings. Once they realized I was going to be short-term, they were able to fit us in. It is really close to work. Classes at the University started this week and as a result my parking situation had to change. I am now parking closer to the daycare than my office! The people there are great and you can really tell that they enjoy the children and really get to know them. Most likely we'll find a new daycare for them to go to starting next July, which is kind of sad since I really do like where they currently are. But for a variety of reasons it makes sense to place them elsewhere at that point.

~6~

Have you checked out the new blog I am a contributing author for? You must check it out if you haven't yet. I am so impressed with the quality of writing so far. I have a post waiting in the wings that will go up on Monday, but do check it out for the other authors! You can also "like" the Catholic Sistas blog on Facebook and links to the blog posts will show up in your newsfeed. And while it is a Catholic blog, if you are not Catholic it is still a good blog with faith-filled posts. Any Christian will find some uplifting, inspiring, and thought-provoking posts to enjoy.

~7~

Have I mentioned that I'm tired?

Check out Jen's blog for more Quick Takes!

What did Mary see?

2011-08-24T16:30:00.010-04:00

One afternoon I was sitting in our family room with one of the boys in my arms. He was stretched out in front of me with his head in my hands and his feet against my chest. Perfect for making eye contact.

As I sat there looking at him and trying to get him to look back at me and potentially smile (oh, how I love to see those smiles that are still so few and far between!!), I wondered what it was like for Mary to look into her baby's face. Her baby ... Jesus; her child ... the Son of God.

What an amazing responsibility. What did she see in those eyes? In that face? What were her thoughts as she looked at this helpless little baby who was also her God?

I can't even imagine!! Wow, what a thought!

I feel overwhelmed at times when I think of the awesome responsibility I have in raising my two boys as faithful Catholics and servants of God the Father. The sense of responsibility Mary must have felt had to have been enormous ... totally unfathomable to me. She was raising a son who WAS God.

So as I looked into my baby's face and watched his jerky arm movements and the eyes that wouldn't quite look at me, I wondered about the baby Jesus. Was He the same way?

However, I wondered most about His mother. What did she see when she looked into that face and those eyes? Did He have those same jerky arm movements that little babies all have? Or was He different? Did He cry for her in the pitiful way infants sometimes do? Did He keep her up at night? Or was He different?

So many questions going through my head.

Mary pondered much in her heart and I bet she had many thoughts about what would become of her son when she looked into those little infant eyes of His. Did those thoughts fill her with joy or sorrow? Did she fully realize the sorrow and suffering that was in store for her?

Suffering is a part of motherhood and the Blessed Mother knows this better than anyone. I find comfort in knowing that I am not alone as I begin this journey of motherhood. As I look at my little one, cuddled in my arms, I like to think that Mary once did the same thing. She is a mother and she is my mother. With her by my side I know I can raise my boys well.

Blessed Mother, give me the strength needed to raise my boys in this crazy world, to share with them a devotion to you, and to lead them, through you, to your divine Son. Mother Mary, pray for us.

Who is this?

2011-08-22T14:47:00.000-04:00

Having identical twins comes with its challenges ... and I'm sure I don't even know the half of it yet!!

This morning the boys awoke a little before 7am. I had just finished getting ready so went in to start getting them ready. Hubby came in just as I finished changing and dressing Peter. He told me two bottles were ready to go and then wisked Peter away. I got Ethan up and went through the changing routine with him and then brought him downstairs to join Daddy and brother for breakfast.

Settling myself into the recliner with baby and bottle, my husband asks me, "Who is this?"

It took a moment for me to realize what he was asking me. He didn't know which child I had changed first and he was now feeding.

I had to laugh!! And do a double-take myself to make sure that yes, it was Peter he was holding and Ethan that I was holding.

This is only the beginning!! We have lots of fun in store for us as these two boys get bigger and look more and more alike every day. We're in BIG trouble!!

A New Adventure!!

2011-08-20T19:05:00.001-04:00

Life is a journey so with each new thing we take on it is like embarking on a new adventure. That is exactly what I and several friends of mine are doing. And we want to invite you to come check us out.

We are starting a new blog called Catholic Sistas. It is all things Catholic from a group of Catholic "sistas" who like to talk ... a lot!! I hope my readers here will come over and check us out. We're just getting started and there are just a few posts up, but the writing talent is easy to see. I'm already feeling humbled by my fellow sistas writing abilities!

Nothing should change here. I'll still be posting as infrequently as always and always with a desire to post more frequently. I'll be sure to link up my posts over at Catholic Sistas when I do post there. But do check it out for the other writers, we have some really good ones in the group!!

Wordless Wednesday ...

2011-08-10T21:51:00.000-04:00

... with a few words.

About 8 weeks old (I think). Peter on left, Ethan on right.

Cheering for our favorite baseball teams!!
Go Red Sox!!
Go Gamecocks!!
(Peter on left, Ethan on right)

Peter is already hogging the remote ... and falling asleep in front of the TV.
Such a boy!

Peter sticking his tongue out at Mommy.

Ethan cozying up to Daddy. So cute!

The Wipes are Screaming??

2011-08-09T16:42:00.000-04:00

The middle of the night is NOT my finest hour. Case in point:

It is 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning, just after a feeding. As we get settled back into bed:
Me to Hubby: I hear the babies' screams in my dreams and it makes me think they're right here, like I forgot to put them back to bed after we fed them.

Hubby: In the bed?

Me: Yes, I start looking for them and wondering what happened to them. Then I realize that I'm hearing the wipes.

Hubby: The wipes are screaming?

Me: Yes ... wait, no ... wipes? Did I say the wipes? [Insert hysterical laughing]

Hubby: What is screaming?

Me: [more hysterical laughing]

Hubby just looks at me confused. Finally I'm able to compose myself enough to tell him that what I was trying to say was that it was the babies' cries through the baby monitor that I was hearing in my dreams.

The wipes!! Ha ha ha! Cracks me up every time I think about it. And this happened about two weeks ago!! The wipes are screaming!!

What silly things have you said or done in the middle of the night when caring for an infant (or two)?

Coming out of the fog ...

2011-07-20T10:29:00.000-04:00

... just long enough to finally post something here again. It has been way too long, I know. I promised pictures a while back and then I disappeared. I also realized that I had a horrid misspelling in the title of my last post (ado? how about adieu, much better!); we'll just chalk that one up to "mommy brain."

I promised pictures!! So here is one from when we first got home from the hospital. They are so tiny here!!

Peter (left) and Ethan, home for the first time

We also had some newborn pictures done by a friend who is starting to build up her experience to start doing more photography gigs in the near future. (If you're in the Lexington area and looking for a photographer for something (kids pictures, senior pictures, etc.) consider calling her.) She posted some of the shots on her blog site (where you can also find her contact info) and there are some really cute pictures of the boys there. She did an amazing job. Check out the pictures here: Newborn Twins, Peter and Ethan.

Overall we are doing well. Peter and Ethan are now just over 7 weeks old. They had their two month appointment yesterday (a little early because their doctor wanted to see them one more time before her maternity leave). They got a couple shots and had all their measurements taken. Peter is now 9 lbs, 8 oz (5th percentile) and 21 inches long (2nd percentile) with a head circumference of 38 cm (25th percentile). Ethan is now 8 lbs, 15 oz (2nd percentile) and 20 inches long (less than 2nd percentile) with a head circumference of 37 cm (5th percentile). I have tiny little boys!!

We're doing well here at home too. I have actually managed to get out a few times. The boys and I made a quick stop in Kroger one day and another day we went to Babies 'R' Us. Pushing the double stroller and trying to do a bit of shopping is tricky. At Kroger I tried pulling a small cart behind me with one hand while pushing the stroller in front of me with the other. Unfortunately the stroller I'm currently using (a double frame for snapping car seats in) doesn't stear well with one hand. At the baby store, I just used a basket, but that was also tricky. I'm thinking in the future (at least at the grocery store) that I will bring the reusable grocery bags with me and use those to carry the items I am buying since the bags will fit on my shoulders. Then I can unload them at the register and once they are rung up the bags can be filled again. Seems rather efficient, doesn't it? I'll let you know if it works. Obviously I can't be doing a large shopping trip or buying anything too heavy, but at least I can run in for a few things when I need to.

Feeding has been interesting. I tried breastfeeding, but it proved way too difficult. There were issues with the babies being so small at the beginning and then we were doing so many crazy things to try and get them to suckle that it took two of us to feed just one baby at a time. If both were hungry it was even more stressful as we struggled to feed 10 ml of formula to one through a tiny tube while they were at the breast and the other baby sat screaming nearby. Then the babies lost about 10% of their birth weight (too much) and we had to supplement with actual bottles of formula. Plus, I knew there was no way I was going to be able to coordinate the feeding tube and trying to get them to breastfeed at the same time once Hubby went back to work. So breastfeeding eventually went by the wayside. I have continued to pump (though that too has slowly been diminishing) and giving them each a bottle of breast milk when we have enough, or close to enough. I was disappointed that breastfeeding didn't work, but things are much less stressful now that we are primarily bottle feeding. The more I talk to people with twins or people who know people who had twins, the more I'm finding out that it is rare that someone is successful at fully breastfeeding twins. We can always try again the next time (if there is a next time).

Peter and Ethan are now enrolled in "school" as well. I found a day care I liked and got them enrolled. Location-wise it was not very convenient and some construction in that area was going to make it difficult for me to get there and get to work, etc. But I liked the place a lot, so we went with it. But then another place I had talked to called me to see if I had found something or not. Turns out they had openings after all AND they are in walking distance of my work! I liked them a lot too and I couldn't ask for a better location. So we made the switch. Only issue is the boys have to start a week later than I had planned. For my first week back at work we'll be working something out to have friends and/or family watch the boys at home and then they'll go to day care starting the next week.

All of this starts next week!! I can't believe I am going back to work already! I'm a little sad, but I know we'll all be good once we get into a routine.

Speaking of routine, we're starting to have one!! Yipee!! The boys are starting to sleep more at night. Our last feeding is now somewhere between 9 and 10pm, then we transition to nighttime clothes, low lights, and soft voices and we get them in their cribs sometimes between 10 and 11pm. We usually have one feeding around 3-4am and then not again until around 7:30 or so. During the day I'm feeding them about every 3 hours, so I plan my day around that. We probably have another 3-4 weeks of this and then they should start to be able to make it longer overnight, have fewer feedings during the day, but take more formula at a time than they are currently. We'll slowly transition to that, but I'm estimating that we'll be there by the time they are 3 months old or so.

Finally, Peter and Ethan are being baptized on Saturday. I'm so excited to be able to have this celebration of welcoming them into our Catholic faith after we have had to bury and say good-bye to three previous babies that we never got to do this for. Our children are definitely gifts from God and one thing I have learned is that we are not promised children. We are lucky to have the two we have and to have the three in heaven interceding for us. But I know there is no promise that we will have more. So I kind of went all out with the Baptism. We have invited several people and we are doing a lunch reception afterwards. It's a celebration and a very special sacrament, so I wanted to make it that way. We may never get the opportunity to do this again. More on the Baptism (hopefully with pictures) later.

Sorry for taking so long to post an update! I hope my readers hadn't given up on me! I promise I am not abandoning the blog!!

And without further ado ...

2011-06-06T21:35:00.000-04:00

I would like to finally announce the arrival of our precious twins. Sorry for the delay ... it's already been a crazy ride!!

Peter Xavier and Ethan Alexander arrived on Monday May 30, 2011 both at 10:31pm after a Cesarean section delivery. (I have a picture to post, but apparently I caught blogger during a maintenance period. Picture to come soon.)

Peter Xavier was 5 lbs. 11 oz. and Ethan Alexander was 5 lbs. 6 oz. There is no doubt that they are identical! They both had a nice head of dark hair and they resemble their father quite a bit. Both were also very healthy and after a quick check of them in the nursery they came straight to my room. No NICU time at all!!

All three of us came home on Thursday together. They have been a joy so far!! Some pictures and more on how things are going to come soon. For now, I'm just trying to take things one step at a time.

Thank you to all who have been praying for us!!

Final Pregnancy Update ...

2011-05-29T14:02:00.001-04:00

... take two. Still trying the blogging app.

Tomorrow is the day!! I'll be 36 weeks and 5 days and I am so done with this pregnancy! Monday can't get here soon enough.

Early last week I was feeling ready but was okay enough that if we went longer I was good. Actually two of my docs wanted me to go to the hospital last Monday and I was relieved when they let me go home. But by Friday it was a whole other story. At my appointment with Dr. P Friday I practically begged her to send me in. However after talking with Dr. H and checking my cervix again they sent me home. I was still at 5 cm. The good news though is that they scheduled me to come in on Monday!!

Monday both Dr. P and Dr. O will be on duty which makes me feel good. The plan is to give me the epidural and then remove the cerclage stitches. Once that is out we'll determine what to do next. I'm hoping I'll go ahead and start dilating more on my one and just go naturally from there. But if they have to break my water or administer pitocin to get things moving I'm open to it. Not my ideal, but so much of this pregnancy has not been ideal anyway. The plan is to remove the cerclage and allow me to labor in the L&D room but then to move me to the OR for delivery. Multiples deliveries are routinely done in the OR.

Why am I so done with this?? It seems like this past week every little symptom I have has become more exasperated! The swelling in my feet isn't going down like it was originally. After doing a little more reading I learned that just sitting and propping them up doesn't help, lying down is actually best. So I'm trying to do that more which creates more heartburn problems. If it's not one thing it's another! One more day, one more day!!!

I've also had some issues with itchy skin. The belly itches, but that's to be expected. I started feeling itchy on a patch of skin at my knee but just thought it was a random mosquito bite. But as more itchiness came up in other places we finally looked it up and saw that this is a normal, albeit extremely uncomfortable, part of pregnancy. It starts with itchy bumps on stretch marks but can also present on the arms, legs, and buttocks. Yep! I have it all. Ah, the joy!! One more day, one more day!!

I know all these things won't go away immediately, but any small amount of relief will be welcome!!

In preparation for the end of our family of two, Hubby and I went out last night for the first time in a very long time. Went to a movie and then dinner at a great Italian place in town. I had lobster linguini! Yummy!! It was also his birthday (#40!) so I'm glad we were able to do something.

Next time you hear from me we'll be a family of four!! Enjoy your Memorial Day and wish us luck and lots of prayers!!

Testing something new

2011-05-29T12:44:00.000-04:00

I'm trying something new, blogging from my iPod. Blogger itself doesn't seem to have an app, but there are several free apps that can connect to Blogger. So that's what I'm trying. If this post is successful it will provide me a way of blogging on the go, specifically from the hospital tomorrow!!

Pregnancy Update: Week 36

2011-05-25T10:30:00.012-04:00

How far along: 36 weeks now!! And by the way, I'm actually writing this update early (just in case) and scheduling it for posting on Wednesday. There is a chance that this update is the last one.

How big are babies: My app says the babies are almost 6 pounds (similar to a crenshaw melon, shown right), but based on previous experience I'm guessing Baby A is over 6 pounds, though Baby B is probably right on target with the app's estimate. Babies are also approximately 18 and a half inches long.

Survival chances: These are all the same as the last two weeks. Here's a reminder: between 34 weeks and 36 weeks, 6 days survival chances are greater than 99%. Chances of severe or moderate disabilities among survivors is now down to 4%; minor disability is still the same as last week at 15%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010) As for percent chance of delivering for women who have had a rescue cerclage, based on singleton pregnancies, about 34% of them delivered between 34 weeks and 36 weeks, 6 days.**

Weight gain: Went up another 3 pounds this week to make a total of 49 for the pregnancy. That just sounds scary!!

Cravings: Was kind of craving chocolate chip cookies this week. So Hubby bought some chocolate chips and then made Ranger cookies. They were good, filled with oats, currants, chocolate chips, and nuts. They satisfied my sweet tooth, but I still want just some classic chocolate chip cookies.

Aversions: Nothing still! Yipee!

Belly button: Definitely flat. It's like it's not even there.

Movement: They are still partying in there. Not sure how they are finding the space, but somehow they do. Hubby has been getting a kick out of feeling them moving around in big waves. You can definitely feel how strong they have become.

Pregnancy Symptoms: My only thought at this point is: we're almost done!

--Just when I thought things were getting better with the leg restlessness they started acting up again. There are good days and bad. At this point it is just one of those annoying things that I will just deal with.

--Feet are still swollen and no longer seem to go down when I put them up. But my blood pressure is good, so we're sticking with gestational hypertension. This may also be what is contributing to the pain and numbness in my hands. It doesn't help that I already have tendenitis in my right wrist, but that may explain why the right hand always feels worse than the left. It's worse at night and first thing in the morning. Usually feels good by the end of the day. Then I go to bed and it all starts over again. Sounds fun, doesn't it? Ha!!

--Heartburn is still there, seems to be getting worse. Oh well, what can I do at this point. I'm just taking the Tums and hoping this will go away.

--Have I mentioned back pain previously? Well, in case I haven't, it sucks! And it doesn't help when you then pull a muscle in your side near your back. Yep, I did that. Smart, huh? I've pulled plenty of muscles in my time, but never have I had one that keeps coming back just when I think it is gone. This pulled muscle has been bothering me on and off for over a week now. When it acts up there is no hope for getting comfortable.

Sleeping: No improvement. I know everyone says you should sleep now because you won't sleep when the babies are here. Well, any sleep I get once the babies are here HAS to be better than what I'm getting now. Even two hours of comfortable, good sleep will be better than what I am getting now. I wake up feeling so stiff and uncomfortable. I gave up a while ago on my pledge to not nap during the day. Now if I start to doze off, I let myself go ahead and nap. Some days, that's all I get. I will say, however, that Sunday night/Monday morning, I moved from bed to the glider in the babies' room and actually slept for four hours without getting up. I felt really stiff when I got up (man, I'm old!), but I couldn't believe it had been four whole hours!

Ultrasound: The next official one is Thursday (tomorrow). However, at my appointment on Monday, before the attempt to remove my cerclage, Dr. P pulled the ultrasound machine in for a quick look at babies' positions, just in case. I didn't get a good look at them, but I did see one face. And, baby A is head down, yay!! Baby B is breech and his/her feet are low, which is good if they do a breech extraction. (Doesn't that sound like fun?? Um yeah, I'm having an epidural!)

Appointment: So at the appointment Monday, they did the Strep B test and then attempted to remove the cerclage. I was told that we could do it in the office as long as it was pretty easy. If not, I would have to make an appointment to have it removed in the OR with a spinal, just like how it was put in. I was warned it was going to be like a long speculum exam. It was basically one of the most uncomfortable exams of that type I've ever sat through, and in the end it was not successful. But I was more than happy at that point to let them do a spinal and remove it in the OR. However, she wanted to check the cervix one more time before I was let go that day. So she did that and surprised us all by discovering that I was 5 cm. dilated!! Yeah, that's right, I have two cerclage stitches in AND I somehow dilated to 5 cm. without feeling a thing!! All I can say is, I am definitely my mother's daughter.

After that discovery, Dr. P left to go consult with Dr. O about what we should do next. They both came back in to talk to me and decided that they would let me go home but I was to come to triage at the first sign of spotting or bleeding, contractions, pressure, or definitely if my water broke. We also made another appointment for Friday (since Monday is a holiday). I'll be sure to have my bag with me at that appointment, if we even make it to Friday!

Non-Stress Tests: These have been going fine. Had one last Thursday and another on Monday. The babies slept through most of Monday's so it took a while before the docs had everything they wanted. Dr. H was there and heard that I was 5 cm. dilated and she almost sent me to the hospital. But after talking with me more and hearing what Dr. O had said she decided to let me go ahead and follow his instructions. I'll be back there on Thursday for another NST and an ultrasound. So they can check me out more then if they want to. I'll be bring my hospital bag with me then too, if we make it that far!!

Notable this week: I think the 5 cm. dilation is pretty notable. Don't you? Also, I'm excited that I am almost done with the prometrium!! One last pill to take on Wednesday night and I am done! Done!!

Final Countdown

2011-05-24T16:15:00.001-04:00

My doctor appointment on Monday went well. I'll elaborate the details in my Wednesday update. But to give you a quick sneak preview, things are moving along! We may be meeting our babies this week!!

Knowing that this is now a very real possibility and that we are in the final countdown, I thought it would be a good idea to take one last pregnancy shot. So here I am ...

35 weeks, 5 days with twins

Start the day with humor

2011-05-22T20:55:00.000-04:00

Don't you love when you can start your day with something humorous!! I do. Especially these days!

"What are you looking for?" I asked my husband this morning. I was getting ready for Mass and he walked into the bathroom and started going through the laundry hamper.

"My phone," he answered as he pulled out a pair of pants and went looking through the pockets. No phone there, so he started wandering around the house looking for it.

I was pretty much done getting ready so headed downstairs to grab my phone. Coming back upstairs to where he was I dialed his phone, but didn't hear anything. Hubby headed downstairs as I wondered if his phone battery had also died or if the phone was off. I walked over to the top of the stairs and that's when I heard it. It was downstairs somewhere.

"Did you find it?" I called down to my husband as I hung up the phone when it went to voice mail.

"No, but call it again."

I dialed again and I could hear his phone ringing as I sat at the top of the stairs. Finally he yells up that he found it. "Where was it?" I asked as I headed downstairs.

He's laughing as I get down there. "It was in the recliner!"

Apparently it must have fallen out of his pocket when he was sitting in the recliner the night before. When I dialed the first time he could hear it ringing but had no idea where in the recliner it was. He finally located it when I redialed.

We got a good laugh out of that!! I could just picture him hearing it in the furniture and not being able to find it!!

Just a little laugh to get our day started!

Pregnancy Update: 35 Weeks

2011-05-18T16:44:00.000-04:00

How far along: 35 weeks! Oh my!! And this past 34th week was quite eventful.

How big are babies: According to the pregnancy app, the babies are approximately 5 and a quarter pounds (the size of a honeydew melon). Based on the last ultrasound I would guess that Baby B is about this much. Baby A may be closer to 6 pounds at this point. Wow, that's probably over 11 pounds of baby I'm carrying around! They are also probably about 18 inches or so in length.

Survival chances: These are all the same as last week. Here's a reminder: between 34 weeks and 36 weeks, 6 days survival chances are greater than 99%. Chances of severe or moderate disabilities among survivors is now down to 4%; minor disability is still the same as last week at 15%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010) As for percent chance of delivering for women who have had a rescue cerclage, based on singleton pregnancies, about 34% of them delivered between 34 weeks and 36 weeks, 6 days.**

Weight gain: I think I've only gained two pounds since last week, which is great!! So I've now gained a total of 46 pounds in this pregnancy.

Cravings: Still nothing strong. Doing better on my diet which is making an obvious difference in the restlessness in my legs. We had a possibly pre-eclampsia scare this week (more on that below) so Hubby was looking at the newest edition of Fertility, Cycles & Nutrition by Marilyn Shannon last night and she has a diet listed for preventing pre-eclampsia. Interestingly, many of the good foods she lists are also some of the same things we had found that were high in magnesium when we were investigating that for my leg restlessness. It's always so interesting to me how interconnected all these things are. Despite all this, I do wish we had some cookies or something around the house that was easy to snack on when I need something sweet. Oh well, I'm making a pretty decent snack out of graham crackers and nutella.

Aversions: Still nothing!!

Belly Button: I'm going to say that it is definitely flat. During an NST last week I was in a room with another twin mom and she had an outie. Any thought I had about mine being an outie is now gone.

Movement: Still lots of movement! And it's getting pretty strong. I think they were having a party in there on Sunday.

Pregnancy Symptoms: Why does this list seem to continue to get longer? Ha! Isn't pregnancy amazing.

--So the leg restlessness is getting better. The banana a day and protein shake a day have been a good combination, plus I have the magnesium supplement. On days when I do nothing, my legs are fine; on days when I move around a bit more (appointments, running errands with Hubby, small things around the house) the restlessness comes back. Doesn't make sense to me, but whatever.

--The numbness in my hand is still there. Seemed to get better over the weekend and early this week, but it really bothered me this morning. Not so much numb as hurt from stiffness. It eventually went away once I was up and moving around, but it's a strange sensation.

--I mentioned swelling last week in my hands. It wasn't bad, but Friday I started having swelling in my feet. It went away when I had my feet up, so I didn't think much of it. I am carrying two babies, and at 35 weeks I'm probably the size of a 43 week pregnancy. Some swelling is to be expected, I would think.

--The little bit of heartburn I had had earlier seems to be making a comeback. It's mostly just at night, but just so annoying! I now keep the Tums in the bedroom.

Sleeping: Still about the same ... not much. We did get a glider chair for the nursery and right after Hubby assembled it, I fell asleep in it. I may give it a try one night when I'm having difficulties sleeping. It's a lot easier to get in and out of than the bed. I can hear my joints creaking when I get up from bed. I'm getting old!

Ultrasound: None since last Monday. The next one is scheduled for Thursday, May 26.

Appointment: Okay, here's where things get complicated. Had an appointment on Monday, was pretty routine until they told me they wanted me to go to Triage over at the hospital, due to the swelling in my feet and a slightly elevated blood pressure. They felt that everything was probably fine, but I should get checked out just in case. Since I also had an NST scheduled, they told me not to worry about it and they would let Triage know that I needed the NST as well. Thus started my unexpected hospital stay this week. Next appointment is Monday May 23, I'm not sure, but maybe the cerclage will come out then. Yay!!

Hospital: In Triage they drew blood, took a urine sample, monitored my blood pressure, hooked me up to monitors for the NST, and then we waited. After a couple hours I saw Dr. O who felt that I would be allowed to go home soon. He wasn't at all concerned about me. A little after he left I was told I was being admitted. That was a let down. They had talked about sending me home with instructions for doing a 24 hour urine sample that I would just bring back to the office. Instead they decided they would do it at the hospital. After two attempts to put a hep-lock in (just in case I needed an IV at anytime) they gave up (IVs and I do not get along) and moved me to a room. During my stay they occasionally checked my blood pressure, which was always either really good or at least fair, they collected all my urine over 24 hours, and they did a few more NSTs on the babies. Tuesday afternoon everything checked out and I was discharged. I do not have pre-eclampisa at this time, although I was just below the levels. So Dr. O says I have gestational hypertension. I'm supposed to take it easy (um ... I'm already on bed rest) and keep my feet up. The swelling goes down with my feet up, a good sign. I'll have some more labs run next week at my appointment, but hopefully they won't be sending me back to Triage, especially since we are getting so close to the end!!

Non-Stress Tests: Had one Thursday, it was good; as mentioned above, was supposed to have one Monday, instead I had about 3-4 while in the hospital between Monday and Tuesday; and I'll have another again this coming Thursday, plus two scheduled for next week. Babies keep looking good!

Notable this week: Honestly, this past week was pretty eventful already, not much I can add to it. Hopefully there will be big news next week! We're getting close!

**Ventolini, G., et al, "Pregnancy outcome after placement of 'rescue' Shirodkar cerclage." Journal of Perinatology. 9(4):276-279, April 2009.

Pregnancy Update: 34 Weeks

2011-05-11T16:22:00.000-04:00

How far along: 34 weeks!! And, it seems we may only have two, possibly three, of these updates left!! More on that further down.

How big are babies: The pregnancy app lists the babies at approximately 4 3/4 lbs. (about the size of a cantaloupe) and almost 18 inches long. However, we had a growth ultrasound on Monday and Baby B is about on target with this estimate at 4 lbs. 13 oz. Baby A is a bit bigger at 5 lbs. 9 oz. Both are growing well!!

Survival chances: Another step up as we hit 34 weeks: between 34 weeks and 36 weeks, 6 days survival chances are greater than 99%. Chances of severe or moderate disabilities among survivors is now down to 4%; minor disability is still the same as last week at 15%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010) As for percent chance of delivering for women who have had a rescue cerclage, based on singleton pregnancies, about 34% of them delivered between 34 weeks and 36 weeks, 6 days.** This is the peak of those stats.

Weight gain: Looks like I've gained about 44 lbs. I almost fell off the scale Monday when I saw the number. Haha!! At least this is temporary!

Cravings: No particular cravings, but I am trying to focus my diet more on things that will help keep the restlessness in my legs away. Namely things containing magnesium and/or potassium. Not really a craving, but I'll do anything to settle down the restlessness.

Aversions: Still nothing! Yay!!

Belly button: Still the same. Wonder if it will return to it's normal state after being so flat and out for so long!

Movement: They are really moving a lot! They must be running out of room because I see so much of their movements now. It's so wild to see my belly move in big huge waves suddenly. There are times when I think they are about to jump right out!! Hubby keeps missing it, poor guy.

Pregnancy symptoms: I might possibly be getting the leg restlessness under control. I'm now eating a banana once a day and we got some magnesium supplements this week that I've started taking. The supplement provides 25% of a typical person's daily allowance of magnesium. I'm also drinking a protein shake once a day that provides 30% of my daily magnesium. Between those two things, the banana, and just whatever I get from the rest of my diet, things seem to be a bit better. I probably need a few more days for everything to completely take effect.

A second symptom just started up in the last two days, some numbness in my hand. Of course it would be my right hand, the one on the one side of my body that I'm comfortable sleeping on. I'm right-handed, so it starts falling asleep when I'm eating, typing, writing, and even just doing nothing. Sounds fun, huh? Although it did just occur to me that this is the same side where I developed tendinitis in grad school and have been dealing with ever since. It hasn't flared up in over a year (it's been two years since I played my clarinet at all and I am very careful to be ergonomically correct at the office), but maybe I should pull my arm brace out again and sleep with it on to see if that helps. Otherwise, I guess I should just hope that this will go away after delivery (tendinitis is a pregnancy symptom, and I'm more prone to it since I'm already pre-disposed).

I may also be possibly having a bit of swelling for the first time. Just noticed it this morning in my hands, but I'm not sure if it is really swelling or just a bit of joint stiffness or maybe related to the tendinitis. At least there are only a few weeks left.

Sleeping: I've given up sleeping on my left side. I know that would be preferable, but my back can't take it. I do sleep on my left side for a short period of the night, but mostly I stay on my right side. Also, we did get a recliner!! It is now finally vacuumed and cleaned and I tried sleeping in it some last night. I slept a little, but I don't think I could do it all night. But it does give me another option besides the one position I can comfortably sleep in while in bed.

Ultrasound: Like I said above, I had an ultrasound on Monday. This time it was the growth ultrasound. The babies were very cooperative, thus the tech went through everything pretty quickly. It was probably the fastest growth ultrasound I've had. I think the dopplar ultrasound two weeks ago was longer. So Baby A had a heartbeat of 133, was head down, and weighed 5 lbs, 9 oz putting him/her in the 61st percentile. Baby B had a heartbeat of 130, was mostly breech (a bit transverse), and weighed 4 lbs, 13 oz putting him/her in the 42nd percentile. The discrepancy is 13%, which is still in the safe zone. It's a big change since previous discrepancy calculations, but since both are growing fine, fluid levels were good, and we're so far along now, there seemed to be no concern about TTTS. The doctors seemed pleased with how everything looked and I got two cute pictures of the babies' faces. B's pic was a little blurry, but A's was really good, you can see cheeks and a little chin! Very cute!

Appointment: Before the ultrasound, I had my appointment. The doctor is recommending that we remove the cerclage at 36 weeks, in the office, and then see what happens. She felt that I would probably dilate at least 2, maybe 3, cm shortly after it is removed. So it's possible things may go fast after that, or it could still be another week. But they won't let me go past 37 weeks, so either way we have at most 3 weeks left. Also, she explained more about why the ideal position for Baby B is breech. As long as B is the same size as or smaller than A and A delivers vaginally, they can grab B's legs and pull him right down safely. For this reason, it has been highly encouraged that I get an epidural, but she did say I can put it off until I'm roughly 5 cm or so if I want. I'll be taking that option. As long as A is head down, I'll be opting for a vaginal delivery. I know this also means that I could end up with a c-section for B if he/she moves once A is out. But I'm willing to take that risk. Even with a planned vaginal delivery, c-sections happen. So it will be what it will be. Luckily, delivery will be in the operating room no matter what.

Non-Stress Tests: Have had two more of these since my last update. Both went well and have lasted no longer than about 40 minutes or so. I will continue having these every Monday and Thursday.

Fetal Echo: Last Thursday was the last one of these. It went well and whatever minor problems they saw the first time were no longer there this time. So I don't need to go back for another. The babies' hearts will be listened to after they are born and if they hear anything unusual they will follow up then.

Notable this week: We finally got a dresser!! It was delivered today from a local furniture store!! Finally I have a place to put many of the things we have acquired for the the babies. Let the laundry begin! Hubby also installed a ceiling fan in their room and new shades. We purchased car seats (very important) and will be installing those in the car soon. Things are coming together! Oh, and I got such an unexpected call on Tuesday. My regular doctor's nurse called me just to check on how I was doing. She had received the ultrasound results and wanted to call and see how I was. She also told me when the doctor would be back from her maternity leave, which will be right when I'm 36 weeks. But really, I was just so touched that she wanted to check on me. Not only have all the medical staff been great and definitely world-class, it's obvious that they a care too. You can't ask for better than that!

**Ventolini, G., et al, "Pregnancy outcome after placement of 'rescue' Shirodkar cerclage." Journal of Perinatology. 9(4):276-279, April 2009.

A Tribute to Brigit

2011-05-10T12:14:00.000-04:00

Very quietly you entered our lives,
A joyful discovery that truly took us by surprise.
We had waited so long and had almost given up,
and then, to our surprise, you showed up.

I remember seeing you for the first time.
Such a tiny little dot on a black and white screen.
The fluttering little pin point gave us hope,
Hope that you would make it,
Hope that our arms would no longer be empty,
Hope that things would be different this time.

But just as quietly as you entered our lives,
You quietly left.
So quietly we had no idea how empty our lives suddenly were.

The next time I saw you was bittersweet.
Very briefly I saw you floating across the screen.
And that's when I learned that you were no longer with us,
The fluttering was gone.
All alone I sat and waited ... and wondered ...

Why? Just ... why?

Everything about your short life was so quiet.
I imagine you as a quiet, contemplative type.
Maybe that is why God needed you,
Another prayerful soul for His Kingdom.

But for you, my daughter, I did the only thing I knew to do,

I fought for you, for your personhood.
And I won.
A small victory among much heartbreak.
But it meant a proper burial,
a day I will never forget.

You are our special child,
Our quiet little girl,
A blessing in our lives.
You, our little Brigit Ann, will never be forgotten.

Pregnancy Update: Week 33

2011-05-04T17:18:00.000-04:00

How far along: 33 weeks! 12 weeks ago today was when I was admitted to the hospital because I was 2 cm. dilated. Being at 33 weeks now feels like a miracle!!

How big are babies: Babies are a bit over 4 pounds now, about the same as a pineapple (mmm, pineapple!) and probably a bit over 17 inches now as well.

Survival chances: We're at the same place as last week: Between 32 weeks and 33 weeks, 6 days survival chances are greater than 98%. Severe or moderate disabilities among survivors is down to 8% while minor disability is down to 15%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010). As for percent chance of delivery for women who have had a rescue cerclage I'm still in the same category as last week: 22% delivered between 30 weeks and 33 weeks, 6 days.**

Weight gain: Haven't been weighed since last week, so I don't know. I hope it's still under 40 pounds.

Cravings: Nothing in particular, although fresh pineapple is sounding good now.

Aversions: Nothing beyond the things I would avoid pregnant or not.

Belly button: Same as last week.

Movement: Still moving like crazy. How they are finding the room for it, I have no idea!

Leg cramps and other symptoms: The most annoying symptom remains the restlessness in my legs and occasionally in my arms. We haven't found a magnesium supplement yet that is under 130 mgs. But we have a few places we haven't tried yet. In the meantime, I have found that the Special K Protein Shakes are pretty good and contain some magnesium and I try to snack on almonds a little more, another good source of magnesium. Also trying to get in more potassium to help. Thankfully the kick ball match with my bladder has not returned.

Sleeping: Basically not doing much of this. I can no longer lay on my left side without major back pain. That means I'm only comfortable on my right side. I wouldn't mind, except it gets uncomfortable after a while when I really can't move anywhere else. I can't easily get out of bed or even sit up. So I don't sleep much because of all that and frequent bathroom trips. I really want a recliner!! We're trying, have struck out four times using craigslist; I'm starting to get desperate!

Ultrasound: Next official one is Monday April 9.

Appointment: Next one is also on Monday April 9.

Non-Stress Tests: Started these this week. First one was Monday and took about 30-40 minutes. Baby B got the appropriate number of raised heart rates in the 20 minute time period. Makes sense that the active, always moving child would excel at this particular test; although it was difficult locating Baby B's heartbeat to begin with. Baby A's heart rate was easy to find, of course, but this child is also our laid back one. Took a bit longer before we got the same number of raised heart rates. I'm getting really curious to see how their personalities will be and how well they match what I've observed of them these last few months. Next NST is tomorrow and then I have two more scheduled for Monday April 9 and Thursday April 12.

Fetal Echo: The second (and hopefully last) of these is tomorrow morning. Which means I'll also get to see the babies on ultrasound again. The focus will be on the heart, but it'll be nice to see them again.

Notable this week: I could mention several things here, the baby shower from this weekend being one of the biggest things. We also finally got the replacement dresser for the babies' room, only to find out that it too was busted. We've decided not to try and replace again, but to just return it and get our money back. I will say, customer service at Toys 'R' Us is very nice. The guy I spoke to was very understanding and had the reimbursement started right away rather than waiting a couple weeks for the product to get back. And he gave us 20% off and free shipping on a future order. That will come in handy, I know there are other things we'll need. As for the dresser, we'll be looking for something from a local furniture store, maybe while we're also looking for a recliner!

**Ventolini, G., et al, "Pregnancy outcome after placement of 'rescue' Shirodkar cerclage." Journal of Perinatology. 9(4):276-279, April 2009.

Joy Moments (6)

2011-05-03T09:30:00.003-04:00

There are several things I could comment on for this post. How to decide? Since I mentioned both the Baptism and the shower in my Monday post, I thought I'd just post a picture this time that made me smile.

This was taken during the shower on Saturday. These are two of my nieces, my sister's daughter on the right and my sister-in-law's daughter on the left. The older one (5 years old) "adopted" the younger one. When I saw this picture I couldn't help but smile. They look so cute sitting under the tree in our front yard on one of the few really nice days we have had recently.

Did you have a Joy Moment (big or small) from this past week that you want to share? Blog about it on your own blog and post the link to your post here in the comments section (and include a link in your own post back to this one). Or, for those without blogs, share your Joy Moment in the comments here. Looking forward to hearing every one's Joy Moments!!

Joyful Overload

2011-05-02T14:53:00.000-04:00

I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around how exciting and joyful and happy [and insert your own synonym here] things are getting around me. I've been so cautious for so long, with obvious reason. I lost a baby and planned a memorial mass for her. I lost another baby in the second trimester and had to plan a funeral mass for him. I dealt with wacky cycles and the possibility of not being able to conceive again. I then lost a third baby and planned a burial mass for her.

Then I got pregnant a fourth time and no matter how excited we and everyone around us was, I was still very cautious. Who could blame me? And then we had the scare around 21 weeks and we thought we might lose them. Luckily that all worked out and things are progressing very smoothly. I still find it hard to believe! And that's what is so scary about our lives right now.

I actually have a Baptism planned now. Wow what a difference! To actually have the opportunity to plan a joyful event rather than a sad one feels a bit foreign still. In some ways I almost feel a little removed from it. Intellectually I know it is for the children *we* are having, the ones I feel move around in my body, but emotionally I feel almost like I'm planning something for someone else.

Then this weekend my family had a baby shower for me. It was so amazing to have so many people here showering our babies with things they will need, celebrating these little lives with us. I was so touched and overwhelmed by the generosity of everyone. Such a wonderful experience!! I just can't believe it was for us! Even now, as I sit in my family room where some of the decorations are still up, the gifts are piled in the corners, a stack of children's books sits on my coffee table, and the thank you cards sit next to them ready to be written, I have a hard time believing that there will be two little ones here soon, in *our* house! We even have cribs in our house. Cribs!!! In our house!! Who would have thought.

The shower was wonderful!! My sister, mom, and niece came up for it. They along with my other sister who was unable to be here, took care of the cute invitations, the decorations, and ordering a cake. My in-laws took care of the food since they are a bit closer (only an hour compared to six hours). Besides the family members who were here, I got to visit with co-workers and friends some of whom I hadn't seen since February. It was so much fun!

The theme was "Two Peas in a Pod" and it was carried over from the invitation to the decorations and into the food.

The cake was precious!! The topper was a little pea pod with two little heads popping out that looked like little elves. My sister ordered it from a local bakery without knowing anything about them since she doesn't live here. I had not heard of them either. It ended up being an excellent choice. Not only was it a cute cake but it was really good too!! Very moist. The top layer was vanilla and the bottom was chocolate. We still have some of the bottom layer left, actually half of it. If you are local and want to try it, stop on by!! Seriously!

As creative genes go, my sister got them all. I'm not nearly as creative as she is. She put together the vases you see on the mantle in this picture to the left. They were filled with frozen peas and had a white pillar candle in them. The food table also had similar vases of frozen peas with flowers in green, yellow, and while stuck in them. The banner says "Sweet Peas" and she found it on Etsy and asked the maker of it to include two little baby faces in the pea pods on the ends and in the middle. And of course, the colors all matched as well.

In the picture on the right is a diaper cake. It was so well put together, again by my sister, that many people didn't realize those were all diapers at first. You can also see the invitation next to it. Also, with the little peas in a pod on it. Like I said that theme was everywhere!! So cute!!

In addition to the diaper cake (which has about 50+ size 1 diapers in it) there was also a basket full of diapers and markers on the coffee table. Guests were asked to write a short message on the front of the diaper so that my husband and I have a cute message to read when we are up at 2am changing diapers. We suddenly have lots of diapers and I have yet to actually purchase any myself (with the exception of the few cloth diapers I have purchased for later use). Although, for as many as we have, we know we'll go through them quick.

A few more pictures:

The spread of food my in-laws put together before we all dug in. The "runner" on
the table is actually wrapping paper! Isn't that a great idea!

These tiny salt & pepper shakers were too cute to pass up.
And they fit the theme so perfectly!!

These were the favors: green M&Ms candies in little bottles with stickers on them in the
"Two Peas in a Pod" theme.

It was a really great time and I hope that everyone that came had a good time as well. The food was good, the company was great, and the love was everywhere!! I am on joy overload with the generosity of everyone celebrating with us. I need these little reminders that good things really are in our future.

Thank you to all who came to celebrate with us! Thank you to all of my family for putting this all together!! It may be hard to wrap my mind around this totally, but I am certain the reality of it all will set in fast once these babies are here.

St. Gianna

2011-04-29T21:15:00.001-04:00

I'm taking a break today from 7 Quick Takes in order to tell you about my Thursday evening. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't go check out other Quick Takes, so head on over to Jen's blog Conversion Diary.

St. Gianna: Catholic, Mom, and Physician

Yesterday was St. Gianna Beretta Molla's feast day. She has become one of my favorite saints and I hope she will be a good role model for me as I take on the challenge of balancing a family and a career as well as remaining a faithful Catholic. So it was a no-brainer when I heard that her relics were going to be in town on her feast day and would be on display following an evening Mass at my parish. I immediately told my husband that we were going.

The priest who presided at Mass is the chaplain for both the local chapter of the Catholic Medical Association (named for both Sts. Luke and Gianna) and for the infertility support group. He is also a convert to Catholicism and a former OB/GYN, which has been a blessing for the infertility support group. There were several of us there from the group and we all sat together. It was a nice simple Mass. There were maybe about 30-40 people present including lots of families and children.

A portrait of St. Gianna was displayed just off to the side of the altar along with two second-class relics: her fetal scope and a pair of her gloves. There was also a tiny, round container that contained a first-class relic, a few strands of her hair. This must have been up on the altar because to conclude Mass, the priest did the final blessing and then added an additional sign of the cross over everyone using the first-class relic.

We were then invited to come forward to venerate the relics. We waited patiently and eventually were able to get up close to the relics and say some prayers. I prayed specifically for my friends struggling with fertility issues and for all the moms in an online community I am a part of.

The priest that said Mass smiled at me really big when I went up for communion. I have not seen or talked to him since last summer, when I was still dealing with the loss of Brigit and having my own fertility issues. So of course that big smile was completely understandable.

While we were waiting to venerate the relics, he approached and asked how far along I was. I told him, we exchanged a few quick words, and then he moved on. I had no idea whether he knew from talking to anyone else anything more about my situation.

But once we had our chance to venerate St. Gianna's relics and ask for her intercession with Our Lord, we headed back to the pews to meet up with our friends but paused to speak to the priest who was sitting in the front row. I told him about my surgery, that we were expecting twins (to which he said he was glad to hear it since he thought I looked a lot bigger than 32 weeks!), and that we have made it much further than originally expected. He was very excited for us and said he we would continue to be in his prayers.

It was a blessing to be there last night and very much a privilege.

Pregnancy Update: Week 32!

2011-04-27T14:34:00.000-04:00

How far along: Well, we never thought we'd be here, but here we are at 32 weeks!! This is four weeks longer than the long term goal that was set for us about 11 weeks ago while I was still in the hospital. Amazing!! I have very caring and attentive doctors and of course lots and lots of prayer warriors!!

How big are babies: Babies are estimated to be about 3.75 pounds (about the size of a large jicama) and about 16.7 inches long. The babies are now starting to fatten up in anticipation of coming out into the world.

Survival chances: We've moved into a new category!! Between 32 weeks and 33 weeks, 6 days survival chances are greater than 98%. Wow!! Severe or moderate disabilities among survivers is down to 8% while minor disability is down to 15%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010). Something I have not mentioned previously but seems like it can go in this category is percent chance of delivery for women who have had a rescue cerclage for singleton pregnancies. The doctor who performed my surery gave me these stats that day, unfortunately there are no stats for twin or multiple pregnancies so this was the best they had. Of those women who had a rescue cerclage done about the middle of the second trimester, 22% of them delivered between 30 weeks and 33 weeks, 6 days. For reference purposes, 5% delivered before 24 weeks and 10% delivered between 24 weeks and 29 weeks, 6 days.**

Weight gain: I think I have gained three pounds since my last weigh-in, which was two weeks ago Monday. This Monday I was not weighed on the digital scale so I'm not totally confident in my ability to read the scale with the sliding pieces. Overall, I estimate my weight gain at around 37 pounds. Wow!!

Cravings: Don't think I've had any this week. Although with all the Easter candy we have around the house now, I haven't had the opportunity to crave much of anything.

Aversions: Nothing here either. No surprise there!

Belly button: It's funny to me that I can see where it is now through my clothing!! It sticks out just enough to make an impression.

Movement: They are moving like crazy, especially Baby B! Apparently they still have plenty of room to move around! I wish I knew where they were finding it, just doesn't seem possible to me!

Leg cramps and other symptoms: Once again, no leg cramps, but I think I've had a few moments when I thought I was going to get one. I'm awake so frequently at night that I have been able to catch the start of tightening muscles and stretch them out before they turn into cramps. So those haven't been a big deal. The restlessness, on the other hand, is still driving me crazy. But I finally talked to the doctor about that Monday and I have some things to try. Hubby couldn't find a low dose magnesium supplement, but he did find some protein drinks that contain magnesium. Those protein drinks are beneficial anyway and were recommended since at some point my stomach won't be able to take in much food. So we'll try these and I need to start eating more foods that contain magnesium as well as some potassium (fruits and veggies, nuts, seeds, etc.). I guess the one banana I have a week just isn't cutting it. Only other symptom I've had was some serious bladder issues this past weekend. No infection or anything, just someone playing soccer or kick ball or something with it. I was in some serious pain this weekend because of it. It seems to have subsided for the time-being. I'm sure we're not done with it and I'm not looking forward to that pain returning.

Sleeping: It's just hard. 'Nough said!

Ultrasound: Had another on Monday this week. This one was for fluid and doppler checks. Have I mentioned before that I'm in a University HealthCare system? That means that there are often other people around besides your doctor and nurses and possibly some residents. I'm used to it now, I've had doctors, residents, med school students, nurses, nurses in training, and probably plenty of other people in on my appointments, hospital stays, etc. My ultrasound this week was actually performed by someone who is apparently learning how to be an ultrasound tech. He had not done twins before and had never done dopplers, since they aren't commonly done with singletons. Regardless, everything looks good and I never saw the doctor, but the appointment did take a little longer than usual since he had to find his way around and fidget with the machine more than a pro would I was impressed with the patience of the regular tech as she helped him through everything. He did get a really great picture of the separating membrane (which is impressive this far along in the pregnancy) and the fluid measurements looked pretty equal to my untrained eyes. My next ultrasound will be a growth ultrasound on Monday May 9. Can't believe we're making appointments for May now!!

Appointment: This was also on Monday. Nothing too big to report. Talked to Dr. M's nurse briefly and she told me that Dr. M was doing well and enjoying her new baby, plus I finally got the little guy's name. My visit with Dr. P was good and brief. She is letting me go another two weeks before she sees me again and then we'll start having weekly appointments. She's determined that I'm still going to be pregnant when Dr. M returns. That would be great and I hope she's right! She also said that as long as the babies are doing well and are healthy when we get to 36 weeks, she'll let me go to 37, by which time I believe Dr. M will be back. We are also starting the Non-Stress Tests (NST) next week. Those are twice a week, Mondays and Thursdays. So my next appointment to see Dr. P is Monday May 9. In the meantime I have an NST on Monday May 2 and Thursday May 5 as well as the second fetal echo on May 5. Yep, May is going to be a busy month!!

Notable this week: We (i.e. Hubby) got the cribs put together!! And we now have the dresser scheduled to be picked up and a replacement coming as well. I hope there are no issues with the replacement! Here's a look at the cribs:

The picture between the windows is Our Lady of the Snows.

I'm also starting to look online for baptismal gowns (wow, there are some pretty expensive gowns out there!!) and get the date set for a baptism. I can't believe I'm actually going to get to plan a baptism this time!! For so long it seemed like it would never happen or that we would have to do it at the hospital. I'm so excited!!

**Ventolini, G., et al, "Pregnancy outcome after placement of 'rescue' Shirodkar cerclage." Journal of Perinatology. 9(4):276-279, April 2009.

Morning Adventures

2011-04-27T13:03:00.000-04:00

Today my husband and I had a very interesting morning. A totally unexpected experience, for sure!!
First, the morning mass at my parish this morning was being offered for the baby we lost last May, Brigit Ann. When someone is buried at our local Catholic cemetery, the cemetery sends the names of those people to the parish they came from to have a mass said. We never know when this Mass is going to be, so I usually just keep my eye on the bulletin each week until I finally see it. When we lost Zachary it was almost a year (and happened to be Christmas weekend when we were out of town) that a mass was said for him. So I expected it to take about as long for Brigit as well. Sure enough, in Easter Sunday's bulletin I noticed that the mass for her was being said on Wednesday morning (today). So we went this morning.

When we walked into the church today I noticed that there were many young people there from the school. I learned later that it was the 6th and 7th grade classes. Most of the adults attending where sitting in the side sections of the church, but I went ahead and found a seat a couple rows back from where all the middle schoolers were sitting. Mass proceeded just fine, although the homily was a little long as the priest was trying to engage all the kids. Again, I think this is fine and I didn't have to be at work or anything (although my husband did). Things finally got wrapped up and we started into the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

We didn't get very far before things kind of halted. I was a bit confused as to what was going on until the priest announced that we were under a tornado warning and we had to all go down to the basement.

Now, let me clarify. We have had several tornado warnings in the last several days, maybe the last week. Not one tornado (to my knowledge) has actually been spotted in the area of several counties around us. We've had some pretty high winds that have caused damage in places, but no tornadoes like they have been having lately in Texas and some other areas. I understand these warnings are important and we want people to be safe, but it's starting to get old! This morning it wasn't even raining when we drove to church and I never heard any rain while we were still upstairs in the church.

So we went down to the basement. I checked my phone and had a text message alerting me to the tornado warning in effect until 9am. It was about 8:45. By 9am I got another alert extending the warning until 9:15. At this point we joined a friend and her daughter in the nusery where they had the radio on. The warning then got extended to 9:45am.

By the way, the bread and wine from mass had not been consecrated yet when we got the first warning. I'm not sure if the priest just left everything on the altar or what happened, but while sitting in the basement, he did come down with the Eucharist that had been on reserve in the Tabernacle. It was nice to see that they take care to do this in an emergency. He set it on a table and took off his vestments and layed them on top of the bowl that held the Eucharist.

Finally, the 9:45am warning expired and the storms had moved far enough east that we were able to go back upstairs and resume Mass. The children were all taken back to their classes and many of the adults had apparently left the Church when we got the first warning. So a handful of people remained, of which we were two. When we got upstairs I also noticed that it appeared calm outside and was still not raining. Maybe a storm had passed over us while we were in the basement and unable to hear anything, but there was certainly no evidence of it.

Mass finished up and we headed out. We were starving at this point too, since we hadn't eaten all morning and it was now 10am or later. By the time we got home and had breakfast it was close to 11 when Hubby left for work. I'll be curious to know when he gets home whether his co-workers were even aware that there was a tornado warning this morning. Often they seem to have no idea.

I'm glad we were able to attend the Mass this morning and that Brigit could be remembered and prayed for by our church community. But, I'm really getting tired of all these tornado warnings, especially when they don't seem to be accompanied by any visible signs of danger. Being safe is important, yes, but I'm really starting to wonder about some of these warnings.

And I heard that we can expect more tornado wanrings this afternoon. At the moment the sky is a bit cloudy, but I seem plenty of blue sky too. It looks rather nice out!

A Note

2011-04-23T18:18:00.000-04:00

Dear Baby A and Baby B,

Mommy is getting really tired of the fun you are having kicking her bladder. Please stop before it falls out. That won't be good for any of us. Laying down helps, but then I'm dealing with heartburn. Let's all be happy and stop playing with Mommy's bladder. Much appreciated!!

Happy Easter and much love!! We can't wait to meet you (but please not yet)!!
Mommy

Pregnancy Update: Week 31

2011-04-20T22:29:00.000-04:00

How far along: an amazing 31 weeks!!

How big are babies: They are measuring about 16 inches long and weigh about 3.3 pounds (about the weight of four navel oranges). The babies are probably a bit bigger than this based on our ultrasound from last week. In addition, we're apparently heading into a growth spurt! Oh joy!! :)

Survival chances: This is the same as the last three weeks: Babies born between 28 weeks to 31 weeks, 6 days have a 95% chance of survival. Severe or moderate disability among survivors has dropped to 12% while minor disability among survivors remains the same at 25%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010)

Weight gain: We'll find out this coming Monday.

Cravings: We'll eat anything, no specific cravings.

Aversions: Nothing here either. Hopefully I'm growing good eaters!

Belly button: Not much change. Sticking out a bit but fairly flat overall.

Movement: Still feeling and seeing lots of movement. It's getting fairly strong now too!

Leg cramps and other symptoms: No leg cramps recently, but the restlessness continues. Heartburn has kind of settled down, I feel it late at night and occasionally take a couple Tums, but for the most part I haven't had to. As long as I can get back to sleep I don't bother taking the Tums. Back pain is starting to be an issue and I'm starting to wish that we had purchased a second-hand recliner after I got home from the hospital. We had talked about it, but I didn't feel it was necessary at the time. Now it doesn't seem worth it. Though it is on my mind!

Sleeping: Wow, can this really get harder and harder? I put the pregnancy pillow back into the bed. Last week I said it was hard to reposition myself. Yeah, well, somehow it got even harder. Because my back hurts there is really only one position that's comfortable, but I just can't stay that way all night. Yeah, that recliner idea is starting to sound better and better.

Ultrasound: I went to the hospital on Thursday last week for a fetal echo. This is basically a very detailed ultrasound of the babies' hearts. Some new research shows that heart issues may be a possibility for mono/di twins, plus there is a history of heart issues in my immediate family. So this was a "just in case" kind of thing. It was a long appointment, especially with having to be on my back the whole time! Everything looked pretty good overall. A few possible small issues on Baby A, but nothing that looked serious at this point. So I go back again when I'm around 33 weeks for another look. The next regular ultrasound is Monday April 25 just to look at dopplers (heart beats and umbilical cord blood flow).

Appointment: Next appointment is also Monday April 25. Anyone local want to pick me up after these appointments, sometime in late morning? My husband is dropping me off in the morning, just need a ride home around 10am or so.

Notable this week: It's been a slow week, not too much excitement around here. We did get the rest of the nursery furniture and today we had the carpet on the whole second floor of the house cleaned. So we (and by "we" I mean Hubby) will be putting all the furniture in the nursery and assembling it this weekend. Maybe I'll have pictures for next week!

Joy Moments (5)

2011-04-19T20:51:00.000-04:00

Ever since the surgery I had, almost 10 weeks ago now, my husband and I have not stayed after Mass on Sundays for any of the social events (doughnuts & coffee or the K of C pancake breakfast). Our routine has consisted of Hubby dropping me off at the front door and going to park the car while I make my way down to the front pew. After Mass he goes back to get the car and I slowly make my way back to the front door where Hubby picks me up.

But this week we stayed after Mass. It was a nice change!! Following Mass we headed over to the main hall where I made a quick stop in the restroom while Hubby went to get some doughnuts for us. Some friends of ours were busy selling tickets for an upcoming event, so their three kids were sitting at an activity table coloring. When I came into the hall their youngest, who is also my Goddaughter, came right over to me and gave me a big hug!! Ah, so sweet! She's not quite 4 years old and I think it might be the first time she has done that without any kind of prompting from one of her parents. It warmed my heart! She's such a cutie!!

Did you have a Joy Moment (big or small) from this past week that you want to share? Blog about it on your own blog and post the link to your post here in the comments section (and include a link in your own post back to this one). Or, for those without blogs, share your Joy Moment in the comments here. Looking forward to hearing every one's Joy Moments!!

Stroller Help!

2011-04-16T16:17:00.000-04:00

I need help from experienced moms. Whether you have twins or not, I think (I hope) that this question is still something you can weigh in on with what you have done (if you have twins) or what you might do (if you were having twins).

My plan is to get a double stroller frame that my infant car seats will fit in. I figure as long we the babies fit in the infant seats (at least 12-18 months, is my guess) I can use this double stroller frame. Once we have outgrown this stroller we need something else. This is where my husband and I are having differing opinions.

My husband seems to think that we should get two umbrella strollers. I think we should get one double umbrella stroller. He doesn't seem to think the double stroller is necessary. For some reason he thinks that any time we will use it we'll be together. I don't agree and can't imagine trying to handle two separate umbrella strollers at once. Yes, we usually go on walks together, but there are other times either he or I will probably need a stroller and will be on our own. Right?

What do you think? Whether you have twins or not, I think this is something any mom can think through. Once your children were old enough to be in an umbrella stroller and thus also able to walk, how much did you use a stroller? Do you think having two umbrella strollers are doable or would you think a double umbrella stroller will make my life (our lives) easier?

I'm open to any thoughts on this. And if you agree with me, I'd love to know reasons why. It will help in discussing it with the Hubby! Thanks in advance!

7 Quick Takes, vol. 22

2011-04-15T09:36:00.000-04:00

I'm not the best at remembering to take pictures and even when I do they often sit on our camera for a while. Last night I finally uploaded our pictures from the last several months!! Hope you enjoy this Quick Takes in mostly pictures!

~1~

In January we were asked to be Godparents to our newest nephew. Here we are with our Godson at his Baptism.

~2~

We undertook another remodel project in February and March this year. This was a much, much smaller project than the kitchen was over a year ago. We replaced carpet in our family room and painted an accent wall. Here's our new accent wall in the family room.

~3~

And the room with the new carpet, which I absolutely love!!

~4~

Just for good measure, here's the whole room put back together. We did change the furniture a bit (the love seat is now in the living room and we moved my chaise lounge into this room). It looks much bigger now; in my opinion, anyway.

~5~

In addtion to downloading pictures from our camera, I finally got around to scanning ultrasound pictures from the last few months. I couldn't resist sharing this one from when I was 20 weeks pregnant (about 10 weeks ago). This is a profile shot of Twin B but Twin A couldn't resist getting in on the action. So A's knee is there on B's head.

~6~

Let's bring things more up to date. My last ultrasound was on Monday at almost 30 weeks. Here are two pics from that ultrasound (they are a bit blurry, but it's getting harder to get really good pics as they get bigger). First is a profile of Twin A.

Twin B is already dubbed our trouble maker. He (generic "he") didn't want to give us a nice profile, but we did get to see a quick view of his face (again, very blurry).

~7~

Finally, we took another picture of me. It's not the best picture of me, but that's not why we took it, so just check out the belly, please! This is me at 30 weeks. We're guessing I'm measuring around 38 weeks at this point (and I'm definitely feeling it!).

There are lots more Quick Takes over at Jen Fulwiler's blog Conversion Diary. Go check them out!! Have a nice weekend!!

Pregnancy Update: Week 30

2011-04-13T10:36:00.000-04:00

How far along: We have made it to a new milestone: 30 weeks!! At this point I'm hoping we have about 4-6 weeks to go, which seems to jive with what my doctors are predicting as well.

How big are babies: The pregnancy app claims the babies are "almost" 3 pounds (about the same weight as a cabbage) and about 16 inches long. But at an ultrasound on Monday the babies were estimated to be 3 lbs, 3 oz. and 3 lbs, 1 oz. The app is definitely conservative! Oh well, that's why we do the ultrasounds. But it's nice to know I have good average size babies!! Yay!

Survival chances: This is the same as the last two weeks: Babies born between 28 weeks to 31 weeks, 6 days have a 95% chance of survival. Severe or moderate disability among survivors has dropped to 12% while minor disability among survivors remains the same at 25%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010)

Weight gain: According to my estimates and based on the scale at the doctor's office on Monday I've gained about 34 pounds. But they probably have my official weight gain at 24 pounds. Not bad for 30 weeks with twins.

Cravings: Nothing in particular. Kind of remarkable considering I've been watching a lot more Food Network lately, too.

Aversions: Nothing in particular.

Belly button: I can now see it protruding beneath my clothes on a much more regular basis. Again, it just looks weird.

Movement: Still lots of movement. Kicks and waves of shifting movements. Still surprises me when it happens. I have to remind myself to enjoy it now, as the babies get bigger and have less room I know I'll feel them move less. Everything I've read about twins indicates this. Hopefully I'll keep feeling them for a good while longer.

Leg cramps: Still none, but the Restless Leg Syndrome is still there. Walking a bit more around the house helps and I'm doing a better job of stretching my legs more. Luckily my doctors want me to start slowly doing more moving around. So that's good, I don't feel as guilty walking up the stairs a couple times a day just to stretch my legs. If I make it to 32 weeks, I may get to actually walk a bit further. Could a walk down the block and back be in my future?? Hmm ...

Sleeping: About the same, which isn't saying much. Since I can't seem to reposition myself without great effort, I finally decided to get rid of the pregnancy pillow. Gives us a lot more room in the bed! Still up a few times a night and moving from one side to another is a hassle. Honestly, I think I'm getting used to it. It's practice, I'm sure, for all those late night feedings in my future!

Ultrasound: Had a growth ultrasound on Monday. Twin A was estimated to be 3 lbs., 3 oz., had a heartbeat of 136, and is in the 52nd percentile. Twin B was estimated to be 3 lbs., 1 oz., had a heartbeat of 125, and is in the 47th percentile. Good average babies. The discrepancy between them (which takes other things into account besides weight) is 5%. Still good. I saw Dr. O this time and he said he saw no reason to continue checking my cervix. Yay! Was fun, as always, to watch the babies moving on the screen. Even saw one of them swallow!! Both were also head down! I'm hoping they stay that way, but our little trouble maker (Twin B) will probably move again while he still has some room. The next ultrasound will be Monday April 25 and will be just to check dopplars (mainly fluid flow in the umbilical chords).

Appointment: This was also on Monday just before the ultrasound appointment. While waiting I saw Dr. M's nurse (my regular OB) who told me that Dr. M had her baby at 2am on Sunday morning. A good size baby boy who was 8 lbs., something! I'm kind of surprised because she's not a big person and she didn't look all that big when I saw her just two weeks ago. Anyway, I met the High Risk Fellow, Dr. P, and had a good appointment with her. She didn't measure me, but I'm estimating that I'm probably measuring around 38 weeks now (since I've been consistently about 8 weeks ahead). She seemed very optimistic that I can make it to 36 weeks easily. Let's hope she's right!! She also wants me to go in for a fetal echo cardiogram. Apparently some new research shows that mono/di twins are more at risk for heart issues, plus I have a family history of heart issues. So I'll be doing that on Thursday at the hospital. We're not really worried, just want to make sure there are no surprises that could effect treatment later, especially if the babies do come early. Next appointment will also be Monday April 25.

Notable this week: Sometime this past week Hubby actually felt one of the babies shift around, rather than just the kicks or punches he had previously felt. It's so funny to see his reaction!! We also ordered furniture and the cribs came in! They are still in boxes in the living room, but they will eventually make their way upstairs. Finally, upon reaching 30 weeks I am suddenly hit by the realization that these babies could really be here in another 4-6 weeks! Wow!! So I've started talking to my parish about the baptism and we have asked our prospective Godparents and all four have said yes!! No date set yet (that may be a while) just trying to get everything else in order and make sure we all meet my parish's requirements. So exciting though!!

Joy Moments (4)

2011-04-12T21:58:00.000-04:00

Finding a Joy Moment from this past week was a bit difficult since I've also been fighting this cold (which is better, by the way, just not completely gone). I have mentioned previously how I sometimes find this sort of thing difficult, right? Yep ... one of those weeks.

But then I had an ultrasound yesterday and saw something that made me smile!! Ultrasounds are amazing, but when you have them as often as I do they start becoming second nature. Not that they aren't wonderful to watch and see the babies, but I have one of these almost every week or so (about every two weeks at the moment). Yesterday, however, while watching the ultrasound we caught one of the babies moving it's mouth and it was obviously swallowing!! Wow!! How amazing is that!! Both my husband and I noticed it. It was so cool to see.

Did you have a Joy Moment (big or small) from this past week that you want to share? Blog about it on your own blog and post the link to your post here in the comments section (and include a link in your own post back to this one). Or, for those without blogs, share your Joy Moment in the comments here. Looking forward to hearing every one's Joy Moments!!

Seven Quick Takes, vol. 21

2011-04-08T09:41:00.005-04:00

~1~

The babies' room is now painted!! Nothing else has happened, furniture isn't even ordered yet, but we have made a little progress finally!

~2~

I have been dealing with a cold this week, possibly a sinus infection, but let's call it a cold for now. I've been trying to drink lots and lots and LOTS of water to help loosen things up and get over this quickly. I think it's working. I feel slightly better each day. It's just hard dealing with it while also starting to feel so huge. Hopefully I'll be in fuller health this weekend and will go back to just feeling huge again.

Any suggestions?

~3~

Over the last few days I've avoided eating much cheese or drinking milk. I'm pretty much sticking to water and the occasional juice. But last night I couldn't take it any more, so I had a string cheese and then a bowl of cereal. I like dairy, it's so hard to completely avoid it.

~4~

This week was my parish's Lenten Mission. Being on bedrest I had to miss it. I have been looking forward to this Mission all year!! Literally. But I knew I just could not sit there for two hours and this cold made it obvious that it wouldn't be a good idea for me to go. My husband went and it sounded like a great four evenings. The speaker was Fr. Larry Richards. He's one of my favorite speakers!! I've listened to him on Catholic radio for years and am so sad I missed the opportunity to hear him in person. However, I still will be able to hear the four mission nights and you can too! Our local Catholic radio station recorded all four nights and have them up on their webpage here. Better than nothing!!

~5~

I may regret asking this, because every time I start looking into it I start feeling overwhelmed. But I'm going to ask anyway. For those who cloth diaper, what kind of cloth diapers do you prefer and why? I am leaning toward the pocket diapers, specifically the Swaddlebees. Anyone use these or some other kind of pocket diapers? Any suggestions or tips? Things I should know about up front? What other "accessories" are important for cloth diapering folks to have? Like I said, I have done some research and asking around, but I keep getting overwhelmed. I think the whole twin thing is causing me to feel overwhelmed with any big decision like this.

~6~

I often write about miscarriage and pregnancy loss on this blog. Related to that, I had to share this amazing blog post I read last night from Cheeky Pink Girl. The post is called "Holding Your Child in the Palm of Your Hand." It is a beautiful testament to the reality of life at all stages. There are some pictures that may shock you, but they are reality and thus are also beautiful.

~7~

Finally, and on a lighter note, enjoy this modernized version of the Israelites Exodus from Egypt:

http://www.aish.com/h/pes/mm/Passover_Google_Exodus.html

Thanks to Jen Fulwiler of Conversion Diary for hosting Quick Takes each Friday. Go check out her Quick Takes and the many others linked from her post. Have a great weekend!!

Roots and Wings

2011-04-07T12:19:00.000-04:00

I heard this the other day while watching TV and it really struck me as a great philosophy!!

Our jobs as parents are to give our children roots and wings.

I love this!!

Roots refers to a strong sense of family and a place of belonging. Our children should always know where they are from and who they can turn to in times of need. They should feel secure in their family and know that they can rely on their parents and siblings.

I also think the idea of Roots for our children should also encompass the faith we give them. God is just as important to their sense of security in the world, if not more so, as family is. We have to give our children a good foundation in the faith as a part of forming them in our families.

Then there is the idea of wings. I think this can be one of the scariest things for parents, but it is so incredibly necessary. This is the idea that we give our children the abilities to go out into the world and be successful and independent people. We want them to spread their wings and explore the world, no matter how scary that may sound. Going away to college, living on their own, making the right decisions, starting their own families; no matter where any of these things lead our children, whether that be across town, across the country, or across the world.

If the roots are in place, though, the wings will always have a place to come back to. I think that is one of the greatest things a parent can do. Provide those strong roots so that their children's wings can spread with ease and allow them to be taken wherever life may lead them. And when they need the comforts of home, home will be there to support and encourage them.

Pregnancy Update: Week 29

2011-04-06T12:11:00.000-04:00

How far along: 29 weeks. Wow! I don't think anyone thought we'd make it this far! Also, I'd estimate that we are measuring at 37 weeks (since we've been about 8 weeks ahead the whole time). Hubby commented to me yesterday that when he saw me dressing earlier in the day he thought I looked like a full-term pregnant woman. I'm feeling like it, too!

How big are babies: The babies weigh approximately 2 and a half pounds, about the same as a butternut squash, and they are each a little over 15 inches from head to heel. My guess, based on our previous ultrasounds is that the babies are probably about a quarter pound more than this. But we'll find out next week. Their size is also starting to show more and more, not just in the size of my belly, but in my ability to move easily or reach my feet.

Survival chances: This is the same as last week: Babies born at 28 weeks to 31 weeks, 6 days have a 95% chance of survival. Severe or moderate disability among survivors has dropped to 12% while minor disability among survivors remains the same at 25%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010)

Weight gain: Haven't been weighed since last week, but I'm sure it's gone up some. We'll find out on Monday.

Cravings: I don't think I've had any. Went to a dinner with some friends the other night and they both assumed I would choose the place based on my cravings. Sorry! Not many cravings going on. On the other hand, as Hubby left for work this morning I told him I wanted some sort of cranberry juice (cran-grape, cran-cherry, I don't really care). My throat has been sore the last couple days so I think it has more to do with drinking something that makes my throat feel better. But the cranberry juice commercials on TV with the guys standing in the cranberry bogs may have also effected my choice!

Aversions: Still nothing here either. Guess I'm easy to please (which I know Hubby appreciates).

Belly button: It's stretched out and popping out. It just looks weird.

Movement: Lots of movement!! I'm starting to actually see little waves on my belly in addition to the little bumps and kicks I feel during the day. They also like to get active when I lay down at night.

Leg cramps: Woohoo, none still! Restless Leg (and arm) Syndrome, however, is what is mostly bothering me. Sometimes it's at night when I go to bed, but, more often than not, I have it while sitting on the couch. Ugh! I'm trying to make sure I get plenty of protein during the day and I try to move my legs around as much as possible. I just need to remember to do some sort of leg stretches every day. It's so easy to forget!

Sleeping: I keep thinking it can't get any worse. And then it does. It has become a chore to move from my left side to my right side. I've also discovered that I can lay on my right side and deal with my right arm falling asleep (who knew that the tendinitis I had from 20 years of clarinet playing would still plague me even after 2 1/2 years of not playing!) or I can lay on my left side and deal with back pain. Numb limbs vs. back pain? Not an easy decision, but I also can't lay in one position all night long either. So I switch during the night, but, like I said, ... IT. IS. NOT. EASY. I've basically learned that I almost have to get out of bed in order to reposition myself. That is, if I can get myself up into a sitting position to begin with. I think I'm in for several long weeks ahead!

Ultrasound: Next growth ultrasound is going to be this coming Monday, April 11. I don't know when we're doing another cervical length check ultrasound. And that's fine with me!

Appointment: Next appointment is also this coming Monday, April 11. I'll be seeing a new doctor since my doctor is now on maternity leave.

Notable this week: We moved furniture out of the guest room, packed up a bunch of extra stuff, painted the (now old) guest room, and fixed up the office so it looks more like an office and less like a storage room. My sister and her husband came up to help us and we got so much work done!! The old guest room is going to be the nursery. It is currently empty, but we'll be ordering furniture soon and before you know it, it is going to look like a baby room. It's going to be so weird to see a nursery in our house, especially one with two cribs in it!

Joy Moments (3)

2011-04-05T09:30:00.003-04:00

Spring is coming!!

My favorite tree in our yard starting blooming this week. It is right outside our bedroom window. A cherry tree that blooms in pink and a dark red color, kind of like a maroon. These are the same colors that we had in our wedding! It makes me smile every year when I see it start to bloom. The colors change in a couple weeks, but for now, I'll enjoy looking out at my tree!!

Did you have a Joy Moment (big or small) this past week that you want to share? Blog about it on your own blog and post the link to your post here in the comments section (and include a link in your own post back to this one). Or, for those without blogs, share your Joy Moment in the comments here. Looking forward to hearing every one's Joy Moments!!

Seven Quick Takes, vol. 20

2011-04-01T11:03:00.001-04:00

Who says you can't be busy while on bedrest??

~1~

This past Sunday some friends of mine hosted a baby shower for me. It was nice to get out of the house briefly and enjoy an afternoon with a few friends. It was a small shower and so much fun, especially with this particular group of wonderful ladies! I didn't drive, someone picked me up, and I got to sit in someone else's house for a few hours rather than my own. It was all wonderful These are smart ladies too, the cake was chocolate and from one of the best bakeries in town!! Yum!

~2~

Monday we had someone come out to the house to fix the two exterior doors that lead into the room where we recently put in new carpet. The doors were dragging on the floor pretty badly and could ruin the carpet over time. Unlike interior doors which can be easily shaved down, you can't do that with exterior doors. So a handyman came out and removed both doors, the trim, and the frame and then set them all back in a half inch or so higher. This is also the room in which I spend most of my time. So I ended up in the living room instead. It was a nice change of scenery for one day.

~3~

Unless you were living under a rock this week, you've probably seen the video of the twin boys deep in "conversation" with each other. I saw it for the first time on Tuesday. So cute!! Here is a version someone just pointed me to yesterday. Love the translation!

~4~

Wednesday was my busiest day so far this week. I had two appointments, so I had a friend pick me up and drop me off at the office and then my husband came to get me after work. It all worked out perfectly! My friend came and got me and dropped me off and then was able to head right over to pick up her two boys after school, which isn't too far from where my doctor's office is. My appointments lasted the rest of the afternoon (there was a lot of waiting involved) and Hubby basically got a full day in at the office and picked me up around 5:45 or so. (Sound late? It was!! OB appointment wasn't too long, finished up a bit after 3; stopped in at the restroom, walked down the hall to Ultrasound, and signed in at 3:15. Appointment was at 4, but it was obvious that they were behind. I finally got called in just after 5pm!! Yep, it was a loooooong afternoon!)

~5~

Thursday morning my husband called me from work to let me know that a plumber was coming over in about 30 minutes, but that he was going to come home to meet him. Well, I hadn't showered yet, so I headed straight upstairs to do that. While getting dressed the plumber showed up and Hubby wasn't home yet. So I let him in and directed him to the water heater and then called Hubby who was apparently just leaving the office. In the end, getting an estimate for replacing the hot water heater turned into replacing it that day. Not until he got started working on it did I remember that I hadn't brushed my teeth yet that morning. Oh gross!! The water was already being drained so I was stuck. Bummer! Worst part is, I had a hair appointment that afternoon, which meant leaving the house and being around other people. Luckily I had a few peppermint sticks around, a bottle full of drinking water, and my friend that picked me up that afternoon had mints in her car. The water heater took all day to get done because of some changes in building codes. At least it is done now and we'll be able to sell the house sometime in the next year with a brand new water heater in it!! Oh, and thank goodness this pregnant lady had a reason to go out today, not having access to the toilets in the house would have been torture!!

~6~

Today we had a storage unit delivered to the house. This can only mean one thing!! We are finally getting started working on the nursery!! Yay!! Our house has no (none, nada, nein) storage in it. What little we do have is fully in use. We knew we would want a storage unit one day so we can make the house look more spacious when we do get ready to sell, but when we found out we were having twins, we realized that our plans for the tiny room to be a nursery were not going to work out. So we got the storage unit earlier than planned and we'll be moving the guest room furniture into it along with whatever else we can live without for at least a year or so. The tiny room was changed back into an office again, finally making our master bedroom look more spacious and more like a bedroom rather than a bedroom-slash-office.

~7~

My sister is coming to visit!! My sister and her husband are driving up this afternoon and will be here over the weekend to help us move furniture, pack up some boxes of stuff, and paint the babies' room (I'll mostly be supervising). Even though this will be a working visit, it'll still be so great to see them and have them here for a little while. I'm so grateful that they were able to work out their work schedules and babysitting for the kids (thanks, Nana!) so they can come spend this weekend with us.

Phew!! Even on bedrest, I still end up with lots to do!! This was a busy week!! Next week should be very low key: no appointments, no work being done on the house, nothing. Maybe I'll finally finish the journal column I have been semi working on.

For more Quick Takes, check out Jen Fulwiler's blog post on Conversion Diary. She hosts a great blog and is a wonderful Quick Takes host as well. Lots of great links to check out!

Third Anniversary

2011-03-31T12:14:00.000-04:00

It was a day like any other. It always is. No one ever expects these things to happen. You start your morning, go to work, make dinner, do a few evening chores, and watch a little TV. Just another normal day.

But then your whole world changes. And not for the better.

That was my day, exactly three years ago today. A completely normal day, until just before bed. That's when it happened. My heart raced and I felt panic. I didn't know what to do and felt completely helpless.

Nothing prepares you for the reality of a miscarriage. Feeling helpless is an understatement. You learn very quickly that you really have no control over anything.

I started bleeding just as we started getting ready to go to bed. We headed to the hospital and I was put in a room in Triage on the Labor & Delivery floor. It was the first of many, many trips we would end up making to Triage over the next three years. We were there for several hours, I had an ultrasound, bled a lot, and had a lot of very painful cramping. It was one of the scariest nights of my life.

That was the night we lost our first baby. I was only about 8 weeks pregnant and we had not shared the news with anyone. But I could not ignore the life that I knew had been there, no matter how short it had been. So we started telling our families and eventually our friends and as more and more time has gone by we've been more open about this child that God gave to us for a short time.

We didn't know if we had a girl or a boy, but we wanted to name this child anyway. Give him or her an identity. We selected the name Casey Marie and entrusted her care to Our Blessed Mother. Over time we have also started to identify Casey as a girl. We don't know why, but it must have been put on our hearts by God.

I still miss Casey and think about her often. I can't believe it has been three years already. Of all of our children she was with us the shortest amount of time, but she was still our child. A daughter we never got to hold, never got to see smile, never got to watch as she discovered the world around her.

Today I remember her specifically. Not just the physical and emotional pain we went through three years ago today, but the child that she was. She was a gift from God, His child given to us for a short time. She is His child, always was and always will be. That's what she taught me in her short life. Our children are never really ours. They are God's and He gives them to us as gifts, to care for and nurture until He brings them home, whether that be for only a few weeks or for many, many years.

The loss of a baby weighs heavy on me today. Not just because of the anniversary of losing Casey but also because this day comes only one day after a friend of mine just lost a baby and the promise of motherhood that seemed so close.

Casey Marie, my little saint in heaven, please pray for us.

Pregnancy Update: Week 28

2011-03-30T21:13:00.000-04:00

How far along: 28 weeks!! No one thought I'd make it this far. It's quite amazing! And we're officially in the third trimester! Totally cool!

Chinese cabbage, weighing about 2 1/4 pounds.

How big are babies: The pregnancy app puts the babies at about 2 and a quarter pounds (about the same as a Chinese cabbage). However, the babies weighed this much last week, so my guess is that they probably weigh closer to 2 and a half pounds. The app also says the babies are about 14.8 inches from the top of the head to the heels.

Survival chances: Everything just got a lot better!! Babies born at 28 weeks to 31 weeks and 6 days have a 95% chance of survival. Severe or moderate disability among survivors has dropped to 12% while minor disability among survivors remains the same at 25%. (Gunter, The Preemie Primer, 2010) My doctor told me today that if I were to deliver now they would expect the babies to stay in the NICU for about two months. But with each week further that we get, that's about a week less they have to stay at the hospital. If we get to 36 weeks there is a good chance they will come home with us. Don't know that we'll make it that far, but here's hoping!!

Weight gain: Was weighed at the office today and my doctor said I had gained about 20 pounds. I realized then that she was using a different base number than I was. I was thinking of what I know I weighed just before I got pregnant; I believe she is using whatever I weighed at my first "official" appointment for this pregnancy, which was not actually my first appointment and was probably around 12 weeks. My base number shows my gain at about 30 pounds. But if she says 20, that works for me, too! Either way, I'm doing pretty good for carrying twins and being on bedrest, i.e. getting no exercise to speak of.

Cravings: I've been wanting something sweet!! We have some sweet things around, but not the bad sweets! Hubby made chocolate cupcakes this week, which was awesome! I'm not a huge fan of the broiled coconut frosting, but it's not bad. I would have prefered a more traditional frosting. I also had a coupon for 2 bags of candy that expires at the end of the month. Hubby didn't seem excited about using the coupon, but I apparently wore him down. He bought me a bag of mini York Patties and a bag of the assorted mini Hershey bars. So awesome!! I'm going to have be careful or that weight gain may go up a bit more than it should!

Aversions: Nothing I can think of. Yay!

Belly button: Well, I was an outie, but it seems to be getting stretched flat now. I think it might disappear!! Haha!

Leg cramps: I'm tempted to take this off the list, but as soon as I do I'll probably get one again. So far, though, none since sometime in January! Yipee!

Sleeping: I can't believe I am sleeping better. Well, maybe better isn't the best word, but I'm not getting up as much during the night. Usually only twice now, maybe three times, but that seems rare. Getting comfy is still hard, my back is hurting more making it difficult to find a comfortable spot, and trying to turn over is almost impossible. Almost. Check back in a few weeks. I've been starting to dream of having one of those side sleeping pillows I've seen on TV that have a hole in the middle. You know what the hole is for? For your ear!! Yes! That's what I need so my ear stops feeling so sore after being smashed against the pillow in one spot all night long.

Ultrasound: Was back in Ultrasound again today for another cervical check. We're still holding steady at 1 cm. This may be short compared to most women, but it's great when you consider where I was 7 weeks ago: 2 cm. dilated! Since I've been holding steady at 1 cm. and we're now at 28 weeks, they are going to stop checking it so often and, as the doctor told me today, start "weaning me off" of the ultrasound. Fine by me, this is not my favorite type of ultrasound to be doing every week. So the next ultrasound is a growth check of the babies on April 11. Wow, that seems so long from now!

Appointment: Today was my last appointment with my OB. She goes on maternity leave next week and I'll most likely deliver before she gets back. But she wants to know what the babies are and when I deliver, so she told me to call when everything happens. In the appointment itself we just talked about several things, she answered the questions I had, we took a look at the babies' heartbeats with the portable ultrasound machine, and she measured me. I am measuring at 36 weeks for a singleton! No wonder I feel so big! My next appointment will also be on April 11, but with the Fellow for the High Risk Clinic. No one felt comfortable having another one of the OBs take my case on, so this way I'll be with someone who works closely with the High Risk/MFM doctors. I also met the Fellow briefly when I was in the hospital, so at least I know who she is.

Notable this week: Some friends of mine held a baby shower for me on Sunday. It was sweet of them to do and we had a great time together. It was really nice to have a small shower with just a few close friends. And now there is more baby stuff in the house ... but nowhere to put it. Not to worry, we'll be doing some work this coming weekend to finally start getting ready.

Prayer Request: I just want to take a moment to ask all the prayer warriors out there to please offer some prayers for a friend of mine. I don't know all the details, but she and her husband were supposed to be adopting a baby this week. Things did not go as planned, unfortunately, and I believe they are back home already (the adoption was taking place out of state). I feel absolutely heartbroken for them. Please offer some prayers up for them and all involved.

Joy Moments (2)

2011-03-29T09:30:00.001-04:00

Time for Joy Moments!! Want to participate? Keep reading for more info!

I have two Joy Moments this week and they are related. Both were this past Sunday.

First, the "big" Joy Moment was a baby shower hosted by my friends in the SHE group. It was so nice to have a small, intimate shower and to be in such a joyful atmosphere! It was probably one of the best showers I've ever been to. Someone mentioned that same sentiment while we were together and everyone agreed. I think for this group in particular having a shower where we all know each other, know each other's struggles, and have supported each other in those struggles just made everything so much more relaxing for everyone. Not to mention, it was just so nice to have these girls share the joy of my pregnancy with me. It brings tears to my eyes!! Definitely a Joy Moment in my week!

As we were wrapping up the shower there was also a small Joy Moment when someone's husband stopped by with their daughter who is about 4 months old. It put a smile on my face to see some of the girls making cute faces with the baby and eating her up. Just so cute!! I hope so much that there will be many more baby shower celebrations in the future for the girls in this group.

Did you have a Joy Moment (big or small) this past week that you want to share? Blog about it on your own blog and post the link to your post here in the comments section (and include a link in your own post back to this one). Or, for those without blogs, share your Joy Moment in the comments here. Looking forward to hearing everyone's Joy Moments!!

Seven Quick Takes, vol. 19

2011-03-25T09:28:00.000-04:00

I've gotten many questions, particularly from my doctors, about how I'm handling bedrest. For those who may be new to this blog, I have been on bedrest with my twin pregnancy since I was at 21 weeks (currently at 27) following a cerclage surgery (this link explains a normal cerclage, I had a rescue cerclage because I had already started dilating, thus the reason for bedrest). For this Quick Takes, I thought I'd list some of what I'm doing to keep myself sane and "busy."

~1~

The first thing I decided early on about being home and off my feet for an indeterminate amount of time was that I would get up each morning and have breakfast with my husband before he went to work. The main reason for this is so that I will sleep at night. So I get up each morning, have breakfast, and then move to the couch. In addition to this, no naps. I make every effort to not nap during the day for the same reason: I want to be able to sleep at night. Sometimes I doze off anyway, but this has been fairly minimal. Having a consistent schedule, I think, has been very important. (Not that I don't sometimes sleep in, I'm not that strong!)

~2~

Everyone seems to think that I must be watching a lot of TV. I just can't do this. I would feel like such a lug each day if I just left the TV on and did nothing else, because for me nothing else would happen if the TV was on. Instead, we watch some morning news during breakfast and I try to turn the TV off around 9am or so. It'll go back on for the evening news when my husband comes home and we'll generally leave it on watching a variety of programs (news, prime time shows, Food Network) for the rest of the night. Otherwise, I try not to watch during the day. Not to say I don't occasionally turn it on to watch a little HGTV or TLC, but not everyday!!

~3~

Email/Facebook/Blogging: This is probably my most frequent activity. I am much better at keeping up with my email account now and I keep Facebook open for a good part of the day. My blogging has been a bit more regular now and I have done a better job of keeping up with the blogs I follow as well. I also check my work email account every few days and answer important questions, delete all the junk mail, and go through all the listserv email. Checking my work email account does help keep my brain working well, which is nice.

~4~

Get showered and dressed everyday! I would feel like such a bum if I didn't do this. It just helps me to feel normal to be showered and dressed each day, not to mention clean. Sometimes I may not do this until after lunch, but it doesn't matter, as long as it happens I feel better (I skip this maybe only once a week). I even put shoes on, because to me you're not dressed unless you also have shoes on.

(I'm the type that always has my shoes on; I'll take them off at someone else's house only if they have a "no shoes" rule, otherwise I keep them on; and I find it so weird (rude even) when someone takes their shoes off automatically when they walk in my house ... ick!)

~5~

I've been trying to listen to more Podcasts since being relegated to my house. I have five that I am listening to now and I am still several episodes behind on at least four of them. I'm trying to catch up and listen to at least two a day. Doesn't help when I fall asleep listening to them, though; sometimes it's hard to avoid those naps! (Here's a post about the podcasts I am listening to.)

~6~

Read, read, read! I haven't done as much of this as I thought I would (and wanted to do). I have several books I want to read and I am reading bits and pieces of them, but not nearly as much as I wanted. On the other hand, I am doing a fairly good job at keeping up with the reading that comes in the mail: a few magazines, the diocesan paper, and some newsletters.

~7~

I actually do have some professional work I have to do which bedrest can not change. Some deadlines are just non-negotiable, especially when you are working with a professional journal. I have a column (my first one, actually) that has a June deadline. I had given myself a March deadline assuming that if I was going to be off from work earlier than expected it would be sometime after March. I ever expected to be out starting in mid-February!! Luckily, remote desktop is a wonderful thing!! So I have been able to continue working on my column and am actually very close to finishing. Plus, I need to start working on gathering all the data for 2011 that will be the basis of my next column to be published in 2012. It's nice to have this distraction and the work isn't all that hard: mostly data gathering, number crunching in spreadsheets, doing some math, creating some charts, and putting it all together.

All these things have kept me sane during these past 6 weeks and hopefully will continue to do so for many more weeks. I think I would go insane without the Internet! With it, I am still connected to the world and don't feel like the walls are closing in on me. I think it is important for those on bedrest to have some consistency in their lives with a variety of things to do, otherwise it most certainly can start to feel like a prison sentence!

For more Quick Takes, check out Jen Fulwiler's blog Conversion Diary!!

Lots of links to many wonderful bloggers doing their own Quick Takes.

Happy Weekend all!!

Pregnancy Update: Week 27

2011-03-23T22:58:00.001-04:00

Edited: Had my appointment day wrong in my original post, it is not tomorrow but next week.

How far along: 27weeks!

Side Story: When I was 21 weeks and sitting in the hospital after having the cerclage surgery, one of the doctors visited me during rounds. It was my last day there, I was being released later, and she gave me the same speal I had heard from all the other doctors. It was about bedrest and how they don't really know for certain that it helps, but since there isn't something better to recommend, this is the best idea they have. She then said that she had a patient that was in similar circunstances to me and she was on bedrest and currently (at that time) was at 27 weeks. So she was a believer. I remember thinking, "27!! Wow, that seems like such an impossibility!" But here I am!!

Cauliflower, apparently 2 lbs!

How big are babies: At the ultrasound we had today the babies were estimated to be about 2 lbs., 5 oz. and 2 lbs. 4 oz. each. The pregnancy app I'm using estimates about 2 lbs. for 27 weeks (apparently what a head of cauliflower weighs) and about 14 1/2 inches long. Does a head of cauliflower really weigh 2 lbs.!?

Survival chances: We're doing so well in this area!! Although their lungs are immature (and hopefully the steroid shots I had a few weeks ago will help) they can function outside the womb with medical assistance. From 27w 0d to 27w 6d, chances of survival are now at 90%. The chances of severe to mild disability among survivers is the same as last week, 25% (The Preemie Primer, Gunter, 2010). I love seeing these stats moving up!!

Weight gain: Haven't weighed myself since last week, so let's just say I'm still at around a 25 lb. weight gain.

Cravings: I was in the mood for French fries this week; had some on Monday and again tonight. They were good!

Aversions: Stil none, thank goodness!

Belly button: What belly button? Well, okay, it is definitely an outie, but also seems to kind of be disappearing. It's also starting to be visible through my clothes, though that depends on what I'm wearing. Heehee!

Movement: Definitely! Becoming more often and much stronger. Starting to get into that stage where I can also see it. It's very weird to see me belly move, like there is an alien in there or something! We even talked about the movie "Alien" tonight!

Leg cramps: Still none! Yay!

Sleeping: What is sleeping? Can someone remind me? Obviously this is not going well. I wake up in the morning feeling like I've been beat up during the night. Between the babies' movement (the most minor of the sleep issues), the effects of the prometrium, the frequent bathroom trips, the new back pain I'm starting to have, and my inability to move positions (which is probably causing the back pain), I'm extremely uncomfortable. That's pretty much an understatement.

Ultrasound: Had one today. I was a little nervous going in after the results of the one from last week. Luckily, all looked great. Twin A had a heartbeat of 143 and weighed in at 2 lbs, 5 oz. Twin B had a heartbeat of 140 and weighed in at 2 lbs., 4 oz. The discrepancy between them came in at only 3%. Excellent news!! Next ultrasound is a week from today.

Appointment: My next offical appointment is next week, but I can update on the glucose test from last week. I failed the one-hour test, but not by much. So I went in on Monday morning for the three-hour test and I passed that. Thank goodness!

Notable this week: I'm suddenly having more trouble getting up from the couch, getting out of bed, and just basically moving around much at all. I realize this is mostly because the babies are getting bigger and thus so am I. But I think the fact that I'm on bedrest plays a role as well. I need to stretch my muscles more and do little exercises so I don't turn completely into jelly. Love it when hubby is home! He's been helping me get up from the couch when he's around. Otherwise, I'm on my own.

Almost in the third trimester. One week to go!!

Joy Moments

2011-03-22T19:41:00.000-04:00

Is it easy for you to find joy admist tough times? Or are you like me and finding those bright spots in tough times is ... well ... tough?

What about joy in just the everyday? Do you easily recognize those fleeting moments of joy admist the housecleaning, work, errands, diapers, etc.? Or does the day go by and leave you feeling joy-less?

I don't always recognize those fleeting "joy moments" in the everyday. And in terms of difficult circumstances, forget it. I tend to get too wrapped up in the circumstances themselves and don't see those precious joy moments when they come. No matter how small.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I do think that no matter what is happening in someone's life it is important to still recognize those small moments of joy that can crop up unexpectantly. For me, even when dealing with the loss of a pregnancy, there were moments of joy that I'm sure I didn't recognize at the time.

It's good for our health as well. Just to smile one time can do a world of wonder for our bodies. Not to mention our souls. And I believe sharing those joy moments with friends can help lift up the spirits of those who are dealing with difficulties and aren't able to recognize their own joy moments.

I said above that I sometimes find it difficult to recognize what I call "joy moments." And yet, when I hear other people's joy moments I start recognizing them in my life as well.

Joy moments don't have to be big, most likely they will be small. A sunset that catches your attention; the mildew on a morning spiderweb on the back porch; your toddler smiling at you; hearing form a friend who you haven't talked to in a while; the cashier at the grocery store smiling and being polite when you've had a rough day. If it brings a smile to your face, even for just a moment, that's a moment of joy!

Being on bedrest was what got me thinking about this. One of my doctors talked to me about depression and while thinking about that possibility, this is what came to mind. The best way to deal with endless days on the couch in the same room, is to recognize the little joys around me when they occur.

Now, I can't say I've been particularly successful at this. But I am trying to keep it on my mind so that I will recognize the Joy Moments in my life. So once a week (Tuesdays?), I plan on posting at least one Joy Moment.

But I also want to hear about your Joy Moment!! You can leave a comment on my post, or post about your Joy Moment on your own blog and leave a link to the post in the comments here. We'll see how far we can spread this, maybe if enough bloggers are interested we can look into adding a Mr. Linky or something. But we'll start small for now.

So with that intro, my recent Joy Moment:

After Mass on Sunday a lady who I see every week but have never talked to approached me and asked when I was due. She also asked for my name and said she would be praying for me. I've been so touched by all the prayers and support from so many and it was even more touching to have a stranger approach me and offer to pray for us. It made me smile and thank God for the wonderful people in my parish.

What is your Joy Moment?
Leave a comment or write about it on your own blog and leave a link to the post in the comments here. Looking forward to sharing our Joy Moments!!

7 Quick Takes, vol. 18

2011-03-18T13:29:00.000-04:00

~1~

Had my glucose test done on Wednesday and I did not pass. Very disappointed. Only good news is that I was really close: 148 and they want it under 140. I'll be back at the lab on Monday for the three hour test, which I should be able to pass considering how close I was.

~2~

Due to the glucose test from Wednesday I have a very large bruise on my arm. It's about the size of two quarters side-by-side and about two shades of purple with a little blue around the edges. Lovely! I hope it's gone by Monday. Can't image if this happens again how they are going to find four places to take blood within those three hours. I can only imagine what I'll look like by Monday afternoon!! Can you say "pin cushion"?

~3~

I got some really good and very exciting news from work this week. I don't think I can give details yet, but I'm very excited!! There are some challenges on the horizon, for sure, and a lot of work, but it's going to be great (for both me and for my family)! I can't wait to share more in the coming months.

~4~

I like making lists! I keep lots of lists at my office and we have some around the house as well. But since being on bedrest I haven't been making lists. At the beginning I figured all the projects I wanted to do that did not require physical activity would get done while I sat around letting the babies cook. Five weeks later, almost none of those projects have been done. So I think I need to start making lists again. Then I'll have something I can cross off (because that's the best part of having lists) and it will guilt me into working on these various projects.

~5~

I had an apple with my lunch today and with that the fruit draw in our fridge is completely empty for the first time since early December. This may sound kind of silly, but since December Hubby has been buying two huge boxes of oranges once a month from a truck that comes up this way from a orchid in Florida. Most years we buy one box at a time (there are only two of us living here afterall), but Hubby decided to do two this year. December was oranges, January temples, and February he got one of each. So the fruit drawer and the bottom shelf of the fridge have been full for months. We recently finished up the last of the oranges and now the other fruit we had recently bought is also gone. Wow! Can't remember the last time the fridge looked so empty!

~6~

Hubby asked me the other day about buying a new washer and dryer. Oh my goodness, how exciting!! I wasn't expecting to get something new until we moved, though we don't know when that will be. But he figured with two babies on the way and the fact that I'm considering using cloth diapers, maybe it'd be best to go ahead and get something. I would love something bigger (the drum in our current washer is T-I-N-Y!!) and I have been so missing my top loader since we got married over three years ago and I sold my place. Yes, I am NOT a fan of the front loader. Honestly, I hate it. And now that you can get high efficiency top loaders, I am so ready for something new!! Oh I hope it happens soon!!

~7~

Today is Hubby's paternal grandmother's birthday. She is 94 and still living on her own! Happy Birthday, Grandma B!

For more Quick Takes, go to Jen's blog Conversion Diary. Not only will you see Jen's post, but you will see links to lots and lots of other bloggers' Quick Takes posts. Enjoy!!

Pregnancy Update: Week 26

2011-03-16T19:34:00.001-04:00

How far along: 26 weeks, which is 2 weeks past the first short term goal my docs had for me and 2 weeks until the next goal! According to The Preemie Primer: babies born at 26w 0d-26w 6d have a survival rate of 85% with a 25% chance of either severe or minor disability among survivors (Gunter, 2010). We're making progress!!

14 inches, approximate size of a baby at 26 weeks,
though hopefully baby isn't as skinny.

How big are babies: They are approximately 1 and 2/3 pounds and about 14 inches long, similar to the length of an English cucumber (pictured right).

Weight gain: I have now gained approximately 25 pounds. Had a two pound gain this week which is the most I've had in a while. Doing really well, which is totally surprising me!

Cravings: Thanks to both hubby and my sister, my cravings from last week were more than satisfied. As of now, no cravings ... unless chocolate counts.

Aversions: Nothing here either. I'm happy eating most anything! Which makes my slow weight gain even more mysterious!

Belly button: Outie all the way!!

Movement: Oh my, this has really been getting stronger!! I feel them a lot more now. Have even been playing music on my iPod to my tummy and feeling the babies move a lot while the music is playing. (My music of choice for babies has been my classical channel on Pandora, which consists primarily of classical works for winds and clarinet music. Yes, I'm going to bias them toward wind music from the very beginning!)

Leg cramps: Believe it or not, still none!! Another surprise. Restless is another story, but I'm working on that.

Sleeping: Not much change here. A full night of sleep is now an elusive dream. Feeling the babies a bit more keeps me up some, the frequent bathroom trips don't help, and the prometrium is also making it hard to sleep. I mentioned the medication to the nurse at my appointment today and she said that she has heard from others too that it can make sleep difficult. Good to know I'm not crazy for blaming the medicine!!

Ultrasound: Had one yesterday. Cervix is still stable at about 1.2 cm. The doctor was very pleased with this, as am I! The babies both looked good as well, though no real measurements were taken since this wasn't the point of this particular appointment. The only concern that came up was with the fluid levels around the babies. One had about 5 cm., the other 8 cm. 8 was a little high but 5 is adequate. So no one is too low, just one of them is potentially a little high. They had two different techs take measurements in order to confirm this. On the other hand, the Doppler measurements (on the cord blood flow) were good and about the same for each, which is actually a more accurate measurement than the fluid measurement anyway. At the moment, they are not yet concerned, but they want me to come back in a week for a full growth ultrasound. We'll get much better numbers at that appointment.

Appointment: Went in today for this and we discussed the ultrasound results more. I feel better about things after talking with my doctor about it. Saw the babies again briefly and heard their heartbeats (160 and 120; yesterday they were both about 144). Also got some tips on dealing with heartburn, which I may need to use tonight. She also measured me and I am measuring at 34 weeks for a singleton. Oh, and I took the fun glucose test!! The orange drink wasn't too bad. I downed it with a straw in about 2 minutes (totally impressed hubby!). The blood test was also really quick and painless. You just can't beat a good phlebotemist! The bruise and lump on my arm, however, is another story. Guess she burst the vein. Overall it was a good appointment.

Notable this week: For this week, no particular event stands out. Instead, I am just thinking about how grateful I am to be where I am and to have the love and support of so many friends and family and others who read this blog, whether we know each in real life or not. I've been touched on several occasions lately by comments people have left me and by private messages that have been sent (whether on here, on Facebook, or email messages). I also found out a couple weeks ago that several people I know through the local Cursillo community and others are doing or have done a novena for me. All these things are just so touching and I am amazed at the love and support that I have been shown. Even today, I went back for my appointment got weighed and then walked down to the exam room. The nurse did what she needed to do, we talked some, and then she left. A few moments later she poked her head into the room to tell me that one of the residents who had been in on my cerclage surgery was in the hallway when I walked by and she wanted to know how far along I was now. It seems that there are doctors, nurses, residents, and fellows everywhere that are thinking of me.

All this in the midst of the tragedy in Japan and other areas around the Pacific that were effected by the earthquake and tsunami, just leave me in awe of the support that is being shown to me. I am no one special (thus the name of this blog), and yet somehow I am being made to feel so loved and supported. Thank you to everyone for reading along, keeping me, hubby, and our babies in your thoughts and prayers, and for the love and support you provide to us during this time. It is definitely felt and appreciated!