Weekending

There's something about school starting that makes us really cherish the weekends.  Even though, we don't have anyone going to school this year, it does make us snap back into a routine and well, right now, we're loving no routine.

Last night Matt and I went out on a date.  Yes, a date.  It was wonderful to eat out and see a movie.  A very good movie.  I highly recommend The Help.  Its not often that we both enter and leave a movie feeling like it was the right choice.  One of us always compromises (usually its me, seeing something with blood and guts...I mean, who cares.  I get a seat to myself with no one crying.  I'll watch whatever). But I digress.  The movie is worth every penny...even though we had free tickets.  We said we would have paid for it.  Now I can't wait to read the book.

Then today, we went to the zoo.  Its become an end of summer tradition for us.  Two of the three times that we've gone, I've been pregnant.  Wow.  We went early in the morning and it was perfect.  All the animals were out and ready to socialize.

Daddy and Annelise by the fish tank.  There really are fish in there.

And Elli couldn't be left out.

Watching the gorillas squabble.

Petting the sting rays and nurse sharks.  Well, mommy was.  Annelise heard the word "shark" and decided it wasn't for her.

Feeding the birds.

She loved it!

This was right before I got pooped on.  In my hair.  Go ahead...laugh.

We really enjoyed ourselves, minus a few temper tantrums that I am attributing to ragweed allergies.  Runny noses are no fun.

And we've spent the rest of the afternoon napping, swinging, making laundry soap and folding clothes.  I'm trying a new recipe for dry detergent and decided to use Ivory soap this time.  Last time, the Fels-Naptha was just a little strong in scent for my taste.  Oh...and since I'm a sucker for fresh smelling laundry, I added a half cup of this to the mixture.  Its heavenly.  And it softens your clothes while it cleans.

So, that's us.  We have a few weekends left before the fall begins.  We're looking forward to cooler weather, shorter days and being a little lazier all around.  Slowing down in on the agenda for mommy - and we all know what that means.  Well, nothing really.

Happy Sunday.

19 Weeks

For those of you that have had singletons, I'm measuring at 26 weeks. And still smiling.

Let's Change Things Up

Had my big ultrasound today.  You know, the one you wait for your entire pregnancy.  All eyes in the room are staring at one thing...your unborn baby's (or in our case, babies') genitals.  Its the one time as a mother you pray your child does not decide to be modest.  Truly, the one time.

And we got to do it times two!

So, I won't punish you and make you read an entire paragraph about the health of our babies or the measurement of my cervix (like you care) before I tell you that...

Yes, according to Annelise, that is a boy pee-pee.

Well, if the picture isn't obvious enough...we're welcoming BLUE into our house.  And we couldn't be more thrilled about it.

So sweet...face to face and very cuddly in the womb!

The babies (ahem...boys!) are very healthy, measuring about 6 inches each and weighing roughly 9 and 10 ounces.  Um, that's a foot of baby boy in my stomach, not to mention 2 pounds of baby, placenta, amniotic fluid...you get the picture.  No wonder I feel so uncomfortable already! 

Thankfully, all of my vitals are looking great.  Long cervix, healthy blood pressure.  And, while my babies (sorry, still getting used to this...boys) measure 19 weeks, my stomach size measures 26 weeks.  Holy cow!  I wonder what I'll measure at the end?  I've only gained 3 pounds, which is amazing, because I feel like all I do is eat. 

We're still aiming for a December 28 delivery.  Trying to keep them in as long as possible.  However, anything after December 15 is fair play.  So, needless to say, we're very excited (and relieved) that we'll be changing it up a little...trading hair bows for ball caps and dolls for trucks.  We're ready for some boy action in this house.

My Right of Passage

Every parent goes through it...these moments we call rights of passage.  I guess they're kind of like badges of honor.  I wasn't in girl scouts, but I imagine it being something of an accomplishment when you've earned another badge.

The past few weeks, we've experienced quite a few rights of passage.  Things others adults (without children) would cringe at.  You know, pooping on the carpet, cutting long curly locks of hair, attempting to cut your sister's already too-short hair...those kinds of things.

Though it was tragic at the time...

I think the end result is nice.

And how come no one warned me that my 3-year old would start saying "Ok, here's the deal..."  Do I say that?

Elli has taken on a special role in our home.  At 22 months she's decided the role of rule enforcer fits her best.  Though her words aren't always coherent, its clear what she's expecting.  "No, no Anne..."  Words like mine, ioyikeit (I don't like it) and aheat (I eat) permeate our house.  I will be sad when she gives up the baby talk.  I love this stage.  And I enjoy it when I get to interpret for her.  There's something very gratifying about having to tell Matt what she said.  That's not wrong, is it?

Changes haven't just happened in our children either.  Matt finished a 5-year ministry position at Calvary Schools of Holland at the end of July and is enjoying his first week of work at Wireless Zone - our family business.  I wrote about the venture here, which has since grown to three stores in three cities with lots of employees.  We're excited to see what God has in store.  The schedule is different from what we're used to, retail hours, but I think the stress level will be much more manageable for my man - especially in light of the other change that is happening in our lives.

Ah yes, the twins.  They are growing rapidly - I think I read that between 16 and 20 weeks they double in size...yikes.  At my 16 week appointment we determined they are identical, so we're either getting girls or boys.  Their heartbeats were very strong and both seem to be active - though Baby A is usually the squirmiest while Baby B reacts to the punches.  There's just something amazing about seeing two babies on the ultrasound screen.  It never gets old.  In two weeks I have my anatomy scan (all the men reading this just said, what?).  Basically they are going to tell us the gender (yeah), amongst lots of other things.  I was told to expect the ultrasound to last 2 hours...they have to find and measure everything - two right arms, two left arms, two brains...you get the picture.  I guess that could take a long time.  Can you imagine what its like to have your bladder uncomfortably full for two hours?  I might need a bathroom break.  They are also going to measure the length of my cervix, something they don't do until the end with singletons.  I guess in pregnancies with multiples there can be an early shortening of the cervix, which isn't good.  Right now, I'm just praying for over 3cm - anything under and my doctor will put me on bed rest.  Have you ever prayed for a long cervix before?

So, life is really good for us right now.  Changing, but good.  We're enjoying a transition which includes lots of cutting back, refocusing and placing importance on raising a family that knows Christ and the power He has in our lives.  There's lots of trusting going on...and I'm sure you know that's a good thing for us.