Christmas 2008

We had so much fun this Christmas. The day before Christmas Eve there was tons of snow on the ground but Christmas Eve it started melting and now it's all gone (via the rain and sun). We did have a White Christmas but it was an old and dirty white Christmas - not the kind you imagine or see on postcards.Christmas eve I had a Dr apt in the late morning after which we went to Rachel & Tyler's Ugly Sweater Party. We had so much fun eating, talking and making boxes to take to local charities. This year we went to the Ronald McDonald house and dropped off a box of food, toys and toiletries. It makes everyone feel so good to share and give at Christmas. There was a toy in the box that Abygail especially liked and we told her she could hold it and look at it in the car but that we would have to give it to another little girl who was sick for Christmas. When we got to the R.M. House she went inside with Jason (Jackson was asleep) and willingly gave the toy away - so sweet!That evening we opened our PJs and took our annual PJ picture, then we read about the birth of Jesus in Luke and talked about it with Abygail who understood a little of it. Last year she and
Jackson got a nativity set from Allison and they have loved playing with it this year. After we read Luke we talked about it and the figurines from the nativity set, it was a nice experience.

Christmas morning the kids went straight to the stuff that was unwrapped. Abygail saw her doll stroller first and she was very excited. Then she saw her dress up stuff (Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood, a too too (sp?) with 3 pairs of shoes and 3 tiaras - all displayed nicely in her new dress up basket).
Jackson loved his building blocks and cars. He also loved the doll stroller :)

Jason and I also had great presents. Last year Jason got me a camera and I got him a water bottle that he still enjoyes and uses. This year the tables were turned and I got him a Wii and he got me a 2009 calendar that I will use and enjoy throughout this next year.

Christmas day I cooked dinner (ham, green bean casserole, pumpkin pie...and Jason made smashed sweet potatoes - yummy!). Our friends came over and we all enjoyed the day/evening. We played the Wii while the kids played with new toys and watched a movie.

We've had so much fun and we hope all of you had a very merry Christmas too!

The Santa Train

Can you tell how excited they were to see Santa?!

Too bad this is blurry!

Saturday after Jason got home we all headed to lunch and to ride on the Santa Train. The kids have been obsessed with The Polar Express movie this year (I could probably quote the whole movie by now)! There is a train museum about an hour from here and they do seasonal rides (fall foliage, Thomas comes to town once a year, wine train tours, etc) and during the Christmas season they do a Santa Train. It was a little expensive but we decided to treat the kids to it and make the whole train experience come alive for them.

First on the agenda was to fill up our bellies. We stopped a The Original Pancake house and had some yummy brunch. Then we headed out to the train museum. We got there about 15 mins before the train left and it was CROWDED! When we got on our assigned car the only seats left were on the sunny side of the train. O well, we survived the sun.

Jackson, "ts Santa!" and Abygail hiding from Santa

Shortly after departure Santa came through our car. Abygail was very shy and covered her face the entire time. Jackson was fine as long as Santa kept a reasonable distance. They both knew who he was, Jackson even pointed at him and said "ts (it's) Santa". They may not have liked Santa being so close but they enjoyed the candy canes his elf passed out. After Santa some more elves came through and sang songs. We enjoyed singing Jingle Bells and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer when the Elf sat across from us. The conductors came through and punched our tickets and chatted...we got a picture with ours, who also happened to be the oldest on the train...and probably the cutest too. Another Conductor did some magic tricks for the kids. We all had fun.

Jason and the kids de-boarding

It was a good experience for the kids, but I don't think we'll do it again. Unfortunately only half of the windows on the train DIDN'T fog up and ours was not one of them so we couldn't see out our windows and the tracks were blocked or backed up before we got to our midway point so we had to turn back early. It was about a 1 hour train ride total. The museum itself was ok but most of the toy trains were not even running and there were no BIG or REAL trains to tour (at least that we saw). So, although it was a fun time we overall thought it was not worth the cost. I'm still glad we went...but next time we'll just do something Christmasy closer to home and less expensive.

28 Week Update

The girls are weighing in as follows:

Amelia Bedelia: 2 lbs 7 oz - and still breech
Beatrix Potter: 2 lbs 14oz
Mommy: 158 lbs (total of 28lb gain and still at least 2 months to go)

They are both doing well and measuring appropriately. Their heart beats are 140 and 141.

My next appointment (at the hospital/sonogram) is in 2 weeks and then I'm on a weekly schedule there as well. Every week will be a quick sono and then a stress test and every 3rd week will be a full measurement sonogram.

I may not seem big to anyone else but I seem big to me. The biggest thing is that it's all baby/babies so their slightest movements are felt and my slightest movements are VERY uncomfortable because there is no cushion. So, for those of you that get really big when you are pregnant - be glad you've got some padding!!! It's not so great with out it.

The Belly

Christmas Time!

Although I'm not yet house bound I feel like I am. Jackson got pink eye Friday and we took him into the ER yesterday for some meds (we just found out we have to get a new pediatrician due to our insurance change too). We stayed home from church again today because of this and because I can't tell if Abygail is getting it or not - her eyes look glassy - so rather than risking other children getting it we are home.

This week we gathered for book club at our house and discussed The Anatomy of Peace: Resolving the Heart of Conflict by The Arbinger Institute. I didn't finish the book so I felt pretty left out of a lot of the discussion, I also was up and down most of the time rounding my kids back upstairs and opening the door for guests so even when I felt like I could contribute my chance was gone by the time I came back. O well, it was nice to have everyone here since I don't get out much anymore and the discussion went really well. I would recommend this book to pretty much everyone, it's a good book on showing us how to treat others and keeping our hearts at peace with the world around us. It's also an easy read (I was reading some other books and put off reading this one and wound up with no time to read it in the end with the sick kids so it's my own fault I didn't finish it).

Last night we missed the ward Christmas party due to pink eye as well. Instead we had our own party. We finally got our decorations out and the kids and Jason decorated the tree, I made cookies and then put out the rest of the decorations. There was only one ornament fatality (our Niagara Falls ornament - which we can replace) so I would say the kids did really well. They are currently in love with the "Choo Choo Train Movie" aka The Polar Express so it was on most of the day yesterday. Abygail is so into Christmas this year, she's already asking about Santa and she loves the Christmas lights. Whenever she sees anything Christmasy she says "Oh, mommy, it's Christmas time!!!" Last night we read "The real story of Santa Claus" as a family and explained that Santa lived a long time ago and now as part of Christmas we celebrate his giving spirit, among other things (Christ Birth). We've decided to be truthful about S.C. and let our kids decide if they believe in him or not. We've also decided that this will be part of our yearly tradition, reading the story. We still have lots of things to do before Christmas day: learning about the true meaning of Christmas, decorating their first Christmas ornaments, buying their yearly ornaments, doing a service project, etc. I'm sure this time will fly by faster than usual. Also, just in time for our festivities...We had our first REAL snow (enough that you have to shovel) last night!

As a side note...last year my stocking holder broke and so I went out and bought a new one. I love nut crackers and the only nut cracker stocking holder they had was a twin pair so I bought them...do you think I jinxed myself?

While You Were Out

Abygail enjoyed Tea Parties with her cousins, aunt and grandma while in AL

I haven't blogged in a while and I guess I'm in a blogging slump. There's not much to blog about around here. It's gotten harder for me to get around and I'm tired and sore all the time so we are not doing too much.

Thanksgiving: While Jason and the kids went to Alabama I stayed here and had a week worth of FABULOUS SLEEP! I had forgotten what it was like to not have a child (or in my case children) shoved up against every part of your body while I'm hanging onto the edge of the bed for dear life hoping to not fall off. I remember I would wake up at 4 or 5 am and hadn't moved from the position I laid down in, it was AMAZING!!! I had a Dr.s apt on Wednesday of Thanksgiving week (I think the Dr just wanted to make sure I didn't leave with the family) and got to see two little feet hanging out in the lowest possible area of the uterus - baby A, you only have a few more months to turn around so you better get cracking. After my apt I went and watched Twilight all by myself - that was a real treat to be in a movie theater and to be there all by myself. I was disappointed with the movie, my thought is if I had not read the book I probably would have enjoyed the movie a little more. I spent Thanksgiving with our friends and enjoyed a yummy meal. Saturday Boss and I went shopping and that was lots of fun. I also did lots of shopping on my own and managed to keep the house clean for more than 20 mins (it's amazing how much of the everyday mess is NOT mine). I mopped around a bit, missing my family and watched way too much TV.

Abygail was sick for the majority of the time they were gone and remained sick for a few days after they got back.

Yesterday was the first day we got out all week. We went with our friends to the Children's Museum (I'm certainly not allowed to go that far from home alone anymore). All the kids loved it and the adults had fun too. We were all tired and ready to leave by the end.

Jackson learned to throw a ball and enjoyed playing with his cousins while in AL

Jackson turned 1.5 in Alabama...he hasn't had his 18 month check up yet so those stats will be coming soon. He's getting to be so grown up. He talks to much and knows so many words it astounds me. He loves his sister and he has learned "mine" from her. Now when they aren't playing together they are fighting over who's toy it is or who had it first. Jackson always seems to think that it's "MINE". :)

Good News and Bad News

Which first...always hard to decide.

Good News - we have a new family member. Her name is Gertrude and she is a 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan... Yippee - we can all ride in one car when the twins are born :)

Bad News - Amber has been grounded. Not completely but I've been grounded to the Buffalo area (at least it's not the house - yet). So, no trip to Alabama for me. Jason and the kiddie-kins will still be going and I will enjoy a relaxing spa vacation (ya, right).

24.5 Week Update

We finally had another FULL/REAL sonogram last Wednesday. We took the kids to see it and they did really well the whole time - on the other hand the sonographer was a pill about it telling us that it would be more than an hour and the room was small and the kids can't run around in there...blah blah blah. FOR REAL?! Wow, because I was just going to let them go crazy! I thought maybe she would not only do the sonogram but babysit my kids too. Well, duh Lady, we brought them on purpose and for a reason. We were not planning on them doing much more than watch the sonogram with us...some people!!! Well, enough about that part.

The kids actually made it through the whole thing and did not run around and were relatively quite for their age and the circumstances, we were very proud of their behavior. Abygail enjoyed looking at the 'girls' and Jackson didn't really care one way or another. As a side note, Abygail went to all the sonograms for Jackson and I think it helped her to feel a part of the pregnancy and understand (as much as she could) that there really was a baby in mommy's belly.

Well, here is some info on the girls - A (who we've dubbed Amelia Bedelia - my favorite book character) is on my right side, still breech weighed in at 1 lb 10 oz. B (who we've dubbed Beatrix Potter - a wonderful children's book author) is on my left side, head down and weighed in at 1 lb 9 oz. We've got some pictures from the sonogram and as soon as I can I'll post them.

A Day At The Museum

...or at least that's what it was supposed to be.

This morning when I looked out the window and saw clear sunny skies with heat coming in through the windows I was thrilled ... needless to say. Then I looked at what the weather was going to be like, thinking we could play outside or go to the zoo or park. This was the forecast: highs in the low 30s, windchill in the 20s, chance of snow 30% with 1-2 inch accumulation. Well, too cold to play outside but darn that sun was inviting! I racked my brain to come up with something we could do to get us out of the house but keep us warm. I've been hearing rave reviews about a children's museum in Rochester that I've previously decided not to get a membership to because of the drive...well, today we changed our minds. So it was off to Rochester and the Museum.

Then...I remembered an appointment I had for mid afternoon, and Jason needed to go to school with a pit stop on the way to get bus tokens, and I needed a winter coat - my hoodie wasn't going to get me through the winter, much less the day. So, we headed out - got bus tokens, Jason to work, a winter coat and made it just in time for the appointment. Afterwards we ate a late lunch in the car and the kids took naps on the way to Rochester - hey, we had already discussed it with them and made a promise. We got there with about an hour to play before they closed!

Elmo's World - Abygail playing dress up with Mr Noodle and Jackson exploring any and everything.

The kids LOVED it! There are so many rooms and displays for them to play in but we only made it to two: Sesame Street (actually just a small portion of the area - Elmo's World of course!) and the trains. First stop was Elmo's World - kid's choice - we played and played and finally I pried them away because I wanted to see more of the museum. After Elmo we took a ride on the train and played with the train set where finally I had to pry them away again- Jackson crying full throttle - because the museum was closing.

The trains.

It was totally worth the drive and there will be lots of things to do so it should not get old for them.

Why I Love Halloween

My favorite costume from the ward Halloween party. The Wolf who ate grandma!

There are lots of things I dislike about Halloween, too much candy, scary things and all the money you put into it (costumes, gas for going places, candy for passing out which your husband winds up eating instead). But...There's some things about Halloween that I absolutely love and because of that will never stop enjoying it.

To me, it's the one day of the year that you can be who ever you want to be - no restrictions - it doesn't matter what your education is, your family situation, your human-ness or even your financial circumstances. If you've always wanted to be an astronaut - go for it. Wish you were born during a different generation - no problem. Want to be part of the cartoon world - easy. Have a secret desire to be something other than human - we can handle that. Dream of being an animal - they are in abundant supply.

It's the only night where you can see actual SUPER-HUMANS like Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and the Incredible Hulk (among others).

No one questions you abilities or doubts your authenticity. Your whole personality can change - you can be someone else in and live in another life for 24 hours (well, more like 18ish). HOW COOL IS THAT!!! It's the biggest most celebrated day of pretend EVER! Everyone is doing it, even your neighbor who gets a kick out of just passing out candy.

Let's face it, you don't have to go and collect all that candy, you don't have to go to any parties - even though they are fun and make the day even better, you don't even have to put on a costume if you don't want to. You can just imagine and pretend all by yourself that you are who/what you've always dreamed of being - or at least who/what you've dreamed of this year.

Halloween is also a great day to spend with family or friends and just have fun. If you are into scary things - go get scared! If you are into sweet things - go collect a bag full of candy! If you are into hanging out - plan a party! If you are into dressing up - the sky is the limit!

So for me, Halloween is way more than candy or ghost and goblins - it's a day for dreaming big!!!

Halloween

Last night we went over to our friends the Turner's house. We were invited to another big party too but we decided on a low key night of friends and trick-or-treating. (anyone that knows me knows I'm more of a low key home body than a party girl - at least since I turned 25 ... a year ago, ha,ha,ha!) The kids dressed up again as Goldie Locks and Baby Bear, Jason and I both wore our hoodies with ears - although Jason was the only one to go trick-or-treating. We ate pizza and then the Husbands and children headed out, while Alaska and I stayed in and 'hung-out'. There was a good time had by all and the kids came back with LOADS of candy. Good thing - turns out someone (not I) has been raiding our candy stash!

One of the funniest/saddest parts of the evening - One of the boys had a mask on that Jackson did not like and was totally un-sure of. A few times Xavier ran in the kitchen with the mask on, where we were eating, and it really scared Jackson. Before they went trick-or-treating I had Jackson touch the mask and hold it so he could see it was nothing to be scared of. I honestly don't know if that helped or not, but he did seem to live through the night :)

I want to record the following for my own memory's sake: Abygail's costume was so cute in my opinion and it was all regular stuff put together. Boss loaned us the apron (which I messed up a bit by HOT GLUE-ING the blue ribbon over red rick-rack that was already there, it's still cute but if she ever wants to take the blue off she'll have to replace all the ribbon and sew a new hem!), the blue dress was from Target and can be used for many more Sundays to come, the tights and shoes we already had and the 'goldie locks' I created from yellow fabric ribbon, blue fabric ribbon, hair clips and hot glue. I was so impressed with the out come and I certainly think she had the cutest costume of anyone I saw this year - but I might be a little biased. Additionally, mine and Jason's costumes were simply brown hoodie sweat suits with brown shirts underneath. I lightly sewed on felt ears that I created with hot glue and tada, we were bears! Although Jackson was super cute in his costume, I have no personal attachement to it because...it's store bought. Maybe I'll get some more creative juices flowing next year! This is really all thanks to Boss who put the idea in my head. She dresses her family in themed costumes that she mostly creates. This year they were Rapunzel, Prince, Tower and Witch - how cute is that!!! Too bad Rapunzel was sick and the Witch had to stand guard at the ward Haunted House all night during our ward party.

Goldie Locks and The Three Bears

Last night was our ward Halloween Party. The Young Men and Young Women of our ward put it together and did such a great job. It was like a carnival, with a haunted house and trick or treating too. The kids bobbed for apples, which they preferred over the candy and sweets offered at the party. They came home with a small amount of candy - which is enough for our house. I don't think we'll do any other trick or treat-ing because we just don't think they need any more than they got last night. Also, it's worth noting that we already have more candy in the house than we need, Jason and I are booth off the sugar for the most part. By the end of the night they had discovered the candy though.

Here are some cute pictures of our family and our fun night.

The best part of last night...I was released as Activities Chairperson last Sunday so, I didn't even have to stay and clean up, and it was a MESS!

Side Notes

Here are some side notes, additional comments, on our trip to the pumpkin farm. (Thanks Erika for taking the pictures!)

Doesn't my little girl look all grown up!?

Abygail was checking this turkey out and got a little too close...then it pecked her!

Jackson REALLY enjoyed his sister's ice cream.

Jackson playing peek-a-boo (his favorite game) in the pumpkin pyramid.

Our family (wish I had taken my glasses off and maybe even done something with my hair!)

Two super cute kids playing in the pumpkin pyramid! Don't ya just want to pinch their cheeks?

Crossing Our Fingers or Mission Accomplished?

This last week I decided it was time to commit to potty training Abygail. It's gone pretty well so far. There is usually one accident a day (when she is too busy to be bothered with going to the bathroom). She's been in big girl underpants for pretty much the whole week - even in public. Yesterday we were at Home Depot and for the first time she actually TOLD me she needed to go potty (well, told is relative...I'll get to that). She used the potty 2 times during that trip!!! We are so happy and proud of her. Today at church she even used the potty!!! We came home accident free. She's still in diapers during nap and at night time but we are sooo incredibly proud and happy for the progress she's made...I think it's just the right time and things are starting to connect for her.

She doesn't actually tell me when she needs to go potty. She usually makes up a story (she LOVES telling and being told stories) about when she told mommy or daddy she had to go potty or she talks about it to herself. We have to pay close attention and listen so that we catch those clues and then we ask her if she needs to go and she inevitably says 'yes'. Mostly I'm still on potty patrol and just make her sit on the potty every couple of hours. (she goes way less frequently than I do...I bet her bladder is bigger than mine in it's current state :) The only time she is still in diapers while awake is in the morning. She is very sensitive after waking up and we don't dare try to change her night time diaper until she is good and ready for it to be changed.

Other progress beyond that is that she is very fluent in her colors. She is also actually counting things now - she no longer repeats her numbers 1-10 (1-14 if you count the extra 13 before the 11) now she will physically count her fingers, items on the page, etc - and she almost always gets it right.

Now we just need to work on her letters, she still struggles a bit in that department.

She is smart and talented, sweet and sensitive and we love seeing her develop, learn and grow.

As for the potty training...I'm not sure if we will call it a Mission Accomplished yet...we'll probably just keep our fingers crossed.

A Day To Blog

Today I felt that I needed to blog since it's been more than a week since my last posting. Well, after I blogged this morning I wanted to enjoy the day with the kiddie-kins. I was not sure what we would do but I had a trusty friend at my beck and call. What did we wined up doing?

Well, since you asked...we painted masks in the morning. Which turned out to be fun but also a bit of clean up. After the mandatory baths I hurried the kiddies off to nap. After nap and lunch, which we enjoyed with Daddy because he was working at home, we headed off to Boss's house and decorated Halloween cookies. It was a mess but it was fun. Abygail was very methodical and a work horse, she used the same method as when picking raspberries. She decorated several cookies and refrained from enjoying them until after all of her labor was finished. Jackson enjoyed decorating, then eating, and covering his body from waist to head with the cookie and decorations. After one he was done.

Tada!

The mountain of frosting cookie. It's glued to the table with frosting too. I think Abygail couldn't see where the cookie ended so she continued and frosted the table too. It was very funny :)The Cookie Monster!

It's so fun and interesting to see the differences in them. While painting the masks Abygail was satisfied to work diligently with one color until I was ready to start the next color, while Jackson was ready to jump to the next color as soon as he got one stroke of the current color on his mask. You can't tell by the final product but there are 6 different colors on those masks!!!

For your viewing pleasure - this is a horrible picture but...you can kinda see how large I'm becoming. Look Mom, It's the great pumpkin!!!

What We've Been Doing

This picture was stolen off the Evans' blog. Left to right - Goode's and their 2 kiddie-kins, us (abygail is wearing her new 'leash'), and the Evans...Stephanie (beside me) and I are due at the same time - look how big I am compared to her!

Last Saturday we went to the Pumpkin Farm. We got there late in the afternoon and it was SO crowded...we didn't have as much fun as last year but it was still worth it. Jackson loved the animals, Abygail loved the sand around the playground, Mommy enjoyed the hayride and Daddy, well, I'm not sure what part he enjoyed the most...probably picking out the pumpkins and running around with his cute little kiddie-kins.

(our camera is broken again and Abygail hasn't gotten around to repairing it so ... no pictures)

We picked out our pumpkins and I think this weekend we will paint them. One for Daddy, one for Mommy, Abygail picked one that was smaller than Jackson's and Jackson got one just smaller than Mommy's. We also got two tiny ones for the girls.

Another big event in our home...we finally got a dinning room table that will accommodate all of our current and future family (4 and 6 of us). We bought it from a friend that moved to Dallas! It's been so nice not using the card table and elbowing one another as we eat in our tiny breakfast nook. The kids have enjoyed drawing while sitting at the table and just hanging out. They are much more willing to stay and eat at the table now that it's not in a suffocatingly small space - and so am I!!!

Jason started riding his bike to school again so the kids and I have the car back (ya!). He finally got a follow-up appointment and seems to be healing wonderfully - he's released to full activity.

The fence is up in the back yard now so the kids and I have been enjoying that space more too. Jason got a fire pit and we roasted marshmallows for FHE on Monday night. It was a little cool so the fire was a welcome event.

It seems like there is more that happened this week, but I can't remember them. Thus is the brain/memory/mind of a double pregnant woman. (I wonder if you memory is truly hindered by the exact about of babies you have in your belly. I think it's true in my case.)

Here are some pics I took with my phone yesterday. Jackson picked the last of the tomatoes and ate them...that kid loves 'nomano'.

Seriously?!

Today we had another Dr. Apt. It's all starting to get old fast!

We are just under 20 weeks along and we are now on a 2 week schedule with the Dr, and in 5 weeks we change to a 3 week schedule for ultrasounds (at a different location) and finally sometime before 30 weeks they will start sending me for a weekly stress test (I'm not sure but I think these are done at the hospital - same place as the ultrasounds).

Seriously?! As if this pregnancy has not been going too fast anyway. Now we'll be bogged down in appointment after appointment. If I wasn't having stress normally I think I'll show stress (and probably the girls will too) just from all the appointments!

Now if that wasn't enough, I must admit that I fell/slid down the stairs yesterday. It was seriously no big deal - I don't even know how it happened! One moment I was on my feet and the next I was bumping along on my bum. I was so shocked because I was holding the hand rail, and I didn't even feel my feet slip out from under me - in my opinion I had made no clumsy error or mis-step. Well, I hobbled away with a bruised back and bum and a good scratch down my arm but I was able to get to the couch and relax. While relaxing I focused on feeling the girls move so I knew they were ok too. I didn't call the Dr because it was a slide on my back and bum and I could feel the girls move and...no, I didn't even tell Jason about it until this morning. Well, I got a lecture from my Dr and now I'm supposed to call immediately if there are any falls or jaring movements to my body. She sent me for a blood test to make sure everything was fine. SERIOUSLY?! Why not just put me in the hospital? At least there I could be watched 24x7 and as long as they had free child care I wouldn't have to arrange for an endless parade of babysitting for the next 16 weeks.

I know, I'm just venting and releasing my frustration - I'm glad that everything is ok but I'm just not used to having all these extra precautions and restrictions.

So, here's the deal - if you read my blog and you are willing to go on the list for the soon to be endless parade of child watching needs, leave me a comment. I'll try to give everyone that wants it the opportunity to watch my adorable and perfect children so that you too can see how angelic children can be (ha, ha, ha).

FINISHED!

I finished my first project on the sewing machine today. It was probably the simplest project I could ever do. I bought a yard (should have done a yard and a half so it would not have been such an odd shape) of a fleece Halloween print. I used some quilt binding/edging and just sewed it around the edges, and that's it - well, I cut the selvage edges off too, but that's nothing.


It's not perfect - the stitching is white on one side and black on the other and very un-straight. But - I like it and I'm proud of it. It's super warm and it makes me think of fun evenings to come :)

What do you think?

Two And A Half

Yesterday Abygail turned 2 1/2. It's so amazing to me, I can still remember finding out I was pregnant with her and the great debacle that came with it. I'm not sure I've previously recorded the story...

We had just moved to Rexburg where Jason was teaching at BYU-I. I had just gotten a new job and I was to begin work almost immediately after the move. I had felt a little 'funnyish' as if something wasn't quite right and I thought I was late but...I don't record these things so it was possible that I was wrong - wasn't sure on that front. I decided to take a test anyway. It had only one line on it and it was a plus/minus sign test. So, I threw it away without a word to Jason about it. Shortly after (with-in the hour or less) Jason found it and questioned me. It was a bit puzzling and something didn't seem right about it but, I just blew it off. When he questioned me about it we looked at it again and realized that the minus sign (the constant mark of the test) was the one missing!!! We took another test and it turned out postitive.

Abygail is truly a joy to have in our home - when she's not throwing a tantrum or waking up 5 times a night, which still happens. She talks in full sentences and always thinks about what she is going to say before she says it. She really says some of the funniest things! (I can't think of any right now that I haven't already posted but if I do I will update this post for posterity's sake.) She loves being a big sister, as long as Jackson is doing what she want's him to do. She is kind and loving. Whenever Jason or I are feeling under the weather she rubs our back or arm of her own accord and says "Mommy/Daddy, I'm sorry you don't feel well." If we have an owie she says "Oh no! Do you need a band-aid for your owie?" She get's so excited about things, I love her open mouth-shocked expression when she's excited.

She loves getting her hair done up in pig tails, we call them pony tails but just say ponies for short. I'll ask her, "Aby, would you like ponies in your hair today?" It's almost always a resounding "YES!"

Another favorite is talking on the phone, she will talk your ear off. She still has a hard time having a conversation but she loves to just talk and tell you about her day and what she is doing and what she sees while on the phone. She also loves to sing. Her current favorite song is Keep The Commandments. I love to hear her sing! It makes me smile everytime. She also loves to "Tell Stories". This morning when I mentioned Little Red Riding Hood and The Big Bad Wolf she said, talking to Jason and I..."Hey guys, do you want me to tell you a story?" Then she recites the story as much as she can remember it.

She also loves playing with dolls, she rocks them and sings "the hush little baby song" to them. Other favorites include drawing, coloring, painting, watching Little Bear and other movies and shows. She also loves playing outside and in puddles. She likes to help clean up and watch when we are cooking, and help as much as we will let her. She is very independent, if she wants butter on her pancakes - you better let her do it, and cut them too or you are in for it! She gets herself dressed and likes to pick out her own outfits.

She knows her colors and can count to 13 (with an extra 13 before the 11). She is working on her shapes and recognition of what the numbers look like. She can sing the ABCs if you help her...she likes to drop letters out of the song unless you are singing with her:)

Nap update: she is doing very well, it still takes her an hour or more to go to sleep but there is no more screaming or crying. I am enjoying the quite time and I think she likes it too.

I don't know what else I can say, she is our princess and we love her!

*I took some pictures today and will post them later, when I get them downloaded.

They're....

Well, we had our ultrasound this morning. Everything is looking fine. Baby A is smashed into my pelvis which makes it quite uncomfortable most of the time. Baby B is stretched out and enjoying pushing it's sibling into a small space. She thinks she's queen of the castle...that's right they are girls. Actually, baby A wouldn't let us have a look, but all signs still show identical and it's been 4 sonographers now so if baby B is a girl (and she was NOT shy about showing us) than baby A must be too.

O boy, the hair, the clothes, the hormones...I'm not sure we, no I, am ready for this!

Dr. Barbara

Yesterday Jackson finally had his 15 month check up. I say finally because he's now 16 months old and in the past month we missed 2 of his appointments - we just plain forgot!

He has finally hit the 20 lb threshold...but just barely. I think he was 20.5 lbs!!! He is 10th percentile for weight, 20th for head circumference and 50th for height.

Abygail loves pretending that she is the pediatrician...Dr. Barbara as we like to call her. She came with us so she could get her flu shot too. While there she enjoyed watching all the things Dr. Barbara was doing. At one point Jackson started getting fussy and she said, "Dr. Barbara, I think Jackson is ready to go home now." We laughed and Dr. B. said she would hurry so that Jackson could go home. (She really says the funniest things, I need to start blogging them down so that I'll always have a good laugh).

Jackson has become quite the little talker. He loves learning new words, the parts of his body and animals. Here is a sampling of what he knows:

Animals: cow, frog, cat, dog, elephant, giraffe, fish, turtle, duck, bear, monkey, gorilla, and my personal favorite - monster :)

Body parts: nose, eyes, ears, mouth, head, knees, feet, belly, and my personal favorite - tongue

Words: nose (nooo), eye (I), ear (eaw), head (hea), belly(belbe), juice (ju), milk (mil), soda (doda), cracker (cackew), bear (beaw), Bill (as in Little Bill the show - it's his favorite), daddy, mommy, baby, no, poopy, pizza (peda), apple (appa), paint (pain), ball (baaa) and my personal favorite - dirty (deeeeerdieeeeee)

He understands so much too. I would say he understands about 80% of what we say (or more). He likes to help clean up, as well as make a mess with the movies. He loves to finger paint too. His favorite foods are: anything breakfast (pancakes, frenchtoast, eggs), black olives, rasins, apples - really any fruit, carrots, peanut butter (as long as it's just on a spoon), and milk. He's still comfortably wearing some of his 6-9 month clothes and starting to wear 12 month clothes. Pants usually fall right off his waist but his 6-9 month pants are getting too short.

He's a wonderful sleeper and I'm so grateful for that. I hope he can teach his baby siblings to sleep just as well (and his big sister too). He has a blanket that he adores and we can NEVER put him to bed with out it, it usually comes everywhere with us - but it keeps him so happy.

I almost forgot to say...he has 3 front teeth on bottom now and 4 front teeth on top and he's getting in one of his molars.

He is such a sweet and happy little boy. We love watching him grow and learn.

Nap-tastrophy

Another milestone this week...we've started a new nap routine, or rather, I have. It started on Wednesday so we've only tried it out for 3 days so far but, I have my fingers crossed and am hoping and praying that this will work, otherwise Jason is going to have to ship me off to the loony bin.

Here's the old routine: Jackson slept in his pack-n-play which is the only thing set up in the nursery, while I put him down (which only takes 2 seconds because he's the best sleeper in the world) I let Abygail watch one episode of Little Bear. Then it's time for her to lay down on the couch and either take a nap or quietly read books and play with other quiet toys. This has not really been working because I have to stay in there the whole time and do the same as her (read or nap). In the past month I think she's only taken a dozen naps which only gives me a dozen days of sanity. Something had to be done and done now before the twins come.

So here's the new routine and the solution: Jackson now takes a nap in his crib with is in our room, in his room there is a small fan that we run for quiet noise...in our room there is an AC which I just put on fan only and run it for quiet noise. I then put Abygail (at almost the same time) in the nursery in the pack-n-play or on the floor with pillow and blanket (whichever she wants because she can climb out of the pack-n-play anyway) and leave the room (after the snuggles and nap kisses of course).

Day 1: She cried for 45 mins, then started saying ow, ow, ow, so I feared that she had stuck her finger in the socket and electrocuted herself (there seriously is nothing else up there and they love unplugging the fan). I checked on her to find her perfectly ok except for a poopy diaper. I changed her and told her it was still nap time, put her back upstairs and left. She cried for 20 mins and then fell asleep. What did I accomplish during this time - SOOOO MUCH!!! I got the living room cleaned and vacuumed, ate my lunch in peace and rested. It was a very good sanity day.

Day 2: She cried for an hour and a half, kept Jackson awake almost the whole time and then woke him up shortly after he finally fell asleep (I forgot to turn the 'fan' on for him this day - won't forget again!). Finally after an hour and a half I was DONE listening to both of them screaming and figured it was good enough.

Day 3: Same routine, she cried for about an hour and then feel asleep. Jackson woke up shortly after and I brought him downstairs waiting for Abygail to wake up. By 4:30 I went up to wake her up only to be confronted with the WORST, NASTIEST MESS I'VE EVER SEEN OR SMELLED IN MY LIFE!!! Apparently she had gone poop again, only this time she had taken her clothes off, her diaper off and I don't know...maybe danced in it!!! She was covered in poop and so was the floor and her discarded clothes. (I didn't get a picture - I don't think one wants to see or remember that). It dry too, dried on her hands, feet, legs, floor, clothes YUCK YUCK YUCK!!! I had left her in the room just to sleep on the floor and when I opened the door she was in the pack-n-play...I think she wanted to escape the poop and find a clean/poop free place to sleep. When I cleaned it up I just threw her in the shower (that stuff was so caked and dried on I couldn't get it off any other way) and I wound up throwing the clothes away - they were stained anyway and who want's to wear poop stains even if they don't smell on the outside of your clothes!!!

No matter, I will deal with poop, I will listen to screaming and crying, I will handle the police when my neighbor finally calls them because I'm sure they can hear my child screaming and think she is being abused. I will survive this until she sleeps, there's no turning back - it will work, it must work, I will it to work!!! And in the end we will all be the happier for it and I will lavish in my 'alone' time, and enjoy the few months left before we start training two new little ones about sleeping.

A New Doctor

Drum roll.........

We officially have a new doctor - and we really like her. We do not like that it's in a clinic with lots of sick little kiddies but, beggars can't be choosers. We also don't like that we have to go to a different location for sonograms, but it'll be ok.

We did find out that at 24 weeks we will have a sonogram EVERY WEEK. We didn't realize how high risk carrying twins can be. We don't have the highest risk since they are in different sacs but out of 3 possible risks for identical twins we are in the #2 category.

Our BIG ultrasound/sonogram is scheduled early in the morning next Tuesday - I sure hope we can wake up on time!!! Maybe by the time Laura (my sister in California) is awake we'll have some news posted.

For Your Enjoyment

I know I've posted a lot today (this makes post #5 - so if you missed any...scroll on down). I wanted to share that I had to go take a pregnancy test today before the new doctor (possible new doctor - i still haven't decided) will even schedule an appointment.

This is what I look like as of today - 17 weeks along - a little more than 4 months along.

You won't believe what happened! The test turned out positive!!! I can't believe it - I'm pregnant! As if they couldn just look at me, or my sono pictures, or my records from previous doctor!!! How annoying!!!!!

Family Time: Part IV

Jackson Picks Some Apples

Family Time: Part III

Abygail Picks An Apple

We could only get her to pick one apple, she was too worried about her raspberries :)

Family Time: Part I

Saturday we took some much needed family time. We took a trip to Brown's Berry Farm (on a tip from some friends :). Any-who, we got there around 4:30 and they close at 6, so we didn't get to play in the playground area or go for a hay ride or even build our own scarecrows but we did get some fun berry and apple picking time. It was a perfect day, the weather was just great and a few trees were showing their colors. Fall is certainly in the air :)

Abygail was very intent on the job at hand. She loved picking raspberries - I don't think she ate as many as the rest of us, in fact...I never saw her eat even one, while she was picking! Jackson on the other hand was a pick and eat-er! We didn't wind up with as many as we thought we would, they seemed pretty over picked and we were running out of time. The blackberries, well, they were non-existent, guess we should go earlier next time.

Jackson really enjoyed picking apples, but Abygail just wanted to sit in the stroller and look at her basket of raspberries, and munch on them - she was very proud of her handy work.

After all the picking we had ice cream (well, I had a salad and everyone else had ice cream). I wish we had pictures of the fun mess that was made. Turns out that Abygail doesn't like eating the cone. She likes having a spoon and eating her ice cream out of the cone with the spoon - then giving the cone to Daddy to eat. Jackson - well, he likes it all!!!

On our way home we stopped at a state park that was just on the banks of Lake Ontario. It was beautiful! The kids enjoyed seeing the lake and then swinging on the swings. We tried to take a walk in the woods but the sun was going down and Abygail DID NOT like being in the woods when it was starting to get dark...guess we know a little more about her night problems now.

The kids fell asleep before we even got home and they stayed asleep too!!!

This is definitely something we will do again, it was such a good family experience.