A package on our doorstep...

This week was Fall Parent/Teacher conferences. This years conferences were held on Thursday night and Friday morning (the kiddos didn't have school on Friday). It was nice as I only had a half day on Friday and conferences are done! Of the kids I case manage and some regular ed. kids in my homeroom class, I only has two conferences that were "bad" and they were nothing the parents didn't already know ;). Adam had fun with the camera each morning. As I hate being in pictures all by myself, I will include the pictures he took of me because it is probably the most dressed up I have been all year, and the most dressed up I will be until Elle's baptism in November!

Thursday Morning...

Friday Morning...

On Thursday night, when I got home from a long day of school and a night of parent teacher conferences, there was a package waiting for us on the dining room table!!!!! The package was from Adam's Aunt Cathy and Uncle Bill, and they are also his god-parents. It was a box with some of the cutest little outfits and a very nice card! It still brings home the reality when we get two of everything, and when we picture the little bodies filling in the clothes!

As I type this weeks post, the babies are listening to their Baby Einstein CD. As I read before, now that they can hear and their brains are continuing to develop, the music helps stimulate the development and make connections. In the last three days, I have been feeling a lot of movement. More when I am laying down and on my side. I am feeling more movement on one side more than the other, but I am thinking it all matters how each are laying and if one is kicking me, maybe the other is just kicking their brother/sister... I can't wait until the ultra sound in three weeks to see how they are positioned and growing! With feeling all the movement, I also can't wait for Adam to begin to feel them.

The babies now weigh about 7 ounces and are about 7 inches long. Between now and the time they are born, they will increase in weight more than 15 times! Not much else to report on this week, as the already developed systems just continue to get stronger and a little more more fine tuned... We will however, leave you with knowing that we are officially HALF WAY there! Meeting the 40 weeks with twins is almost unheard of, due to their room to grow so between last week and this week, it is safe to say we are half way there.

Thanks for checking in and a BIG thanks to Bill and Cathy for the special package!

Weekend Away

This week we had the excitement of hearing the babies heartbeats again and sneak out of town for the weekend. We are getting used to the idea of twins and it is natural for me to refer to the "babies" and "they", but nothing can take you back to the feeling of hearing the two distinct heartbeats!!! This appointment was quite routine with the measuring of my uterus, hearing the heartbeats, and then the doctor threw in the idea of having my hemoglobin checked again. Needless to say, he called me after the appointment stating that the babies were taking all they needed and leaving me with very little iron. So I was put on iron as well. Maybe that will help with me still feeling quite tired all day!

Stats from the last appointment at 13 weeks:

Heartbeats (maybe two separate) : 150

Measuring 13 centimeters at 13 weeks (should match up in a singleton pregnancy)

Stats from this weeks 17 week appointment:

Two distinct Heartbeats!!!

Right Side Baby: 144

Left Side Baby: 160
(Dr. Walker didn't really say Baby A or B)

Measuring 21 centimeters at 17 weeks... 4 weeks larger than "normal". When I say this the question that follows is "Are they going to move your due date?" The answer is NO. "Normal" is a singleton pregnancy. There are TWO babies in there, so I will probably always measure 4 weeks large.

This has been a great week! With only two and a half days with kiddos, the week went by fast and it is always nice to have PD days to see friends from different buildings in the district! We ended out the week by sneaking away to Adam's parents house. Adam stated that it felt like a vacation, and I have to agree. We had the opportunity to have some GREAT meals and spend some time with the family. Adam said it felt like a vacation because he had the whole weekend off and not being at home feeling like something had to be done; he got to be lazy and relax!

The babies are already getting spoiled!!! We got two bins full of treats and needed "Stuff" for the babies.

Laura and Jerry just returned from Orlando earlier in the month. Needless to say they got the babies their first Disney Gear. They are already very SpOiLeD!

On Saturday afternoon, we went bumming. Adam feels left out that he never has a Saturday off to "bum", so we hit two baby boutiques in DePere. He walked in and looked at the prices and then he and Jerry"waited for us outside".

Look how thrilled he was to be at the second boutique!!!

Izzie made the trip with us like always... we cannot forget about her. She does so well in the car and feels right at home at Adam's parents house!


VERY BRIEF baby update:

(The belly picture is only because my sister demanded...)

18 Weeks
The belly is definitely making more of an appearance by the day. I don't feel like it is there as much as the picture shows, although this week has been the week were people who don't really know me or didn't know we were expecting, have asked when I am due without me having to tell them I am pregnant. I am 97% certain I have felt the babies move. In talking to others who are expecting and have felt recent movement, I haven't had the fluttering feeling move across my stomach, but I got to thinking I might not feel that since they are tight in there and going to stick to a side. I have felt some twitches/thumps and sometimes feels like my stomach drops like going over a steep hill in a car. The babies are the size of a sweet potato and are passing the hours practicing swallowing, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, and sucking.

Longest week ever...

I will warn you right away that this isn't going to be a vary interesting post. This week has been a week I have been dreading for awhile. My volleyball team had late practice this week. That means I supervise study-hall for the girls from 3:00 - 4:30, then we practice after that. It puts for some long days. We had two games this past week that were both away which puts in for some long nights, but needless to say when the girls play well it helps!!!! And I ended this week with class on Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday. Ish. Ish. Ish.

This week is going to be a much better week! I have a half day on Wednesday, and NO students on Thursday and Friday!!!

This past weekend, we did find the time to visit a pumpkin patch. We went to the Pleasant Valley Tree Farm for a bit. I have a feeling we would have spent more time there had we already had the kiddos. There is so much to do there! This is also where we went last year for our Christmas trees so Adam was hunting a bit early for our tree... notice Izzie's look on her face. By this time she was hot, thirsty, and had been pet by about 100 kids!!!! Poor thing.

Baby Update:

The big development areas this week are the babies cartilage turning to more solid bone. The joints are now working and the tiny bones in their ears are developed so they can hear things. Adam continues to talk to them which makes me laugh. Playing music for them with headphones may start this week, and also they can feel me rubbing my tummy (supposed to help calm them and help the bonding process). I am patiently waiting for the definite moment where I know I have felt a kick this week as well! The babies are about the size of a turnip.

We have our doctor's appointment this Wednesday. Maybe this time we will be able to hear the two distinct heartbeats!!! We will have our next ultra sound in four weeks at the 21 week mark where they will be able to determine the gender, but we are still thinking that we don't want to know!!!

Gearing up for Babies!

I'll start out this week with a Belly Shot... I think I was more proud of the regular jeans buttoned and zipped. They lasted the entire day, until I wanted to put some sweatpants on due to the jeans pushing on my bladder. My belly continues to expand by the day. Sometimes I swear it is growing by the hour. I have "good" days and "bigger" days and it always seems that on a day I feel it is a "good" day I always get the most comments on my belly! I have yet to be sure I felt movement. Most feel movement within the 16-20 weeks span, but with two in there I would think that I would feel it sooner. Every now and then I will feel something and I am almost positive it was the babies, but then I talk myself out of it (gas).

16 Weeks

On Saturday I geared up for a full day of "Gearing up for the Babies." Missy, Elle, my mom, and I went to Woodbury to register for all the goods we will be needing. When Missy offered to help out, I could not turn down the chance to go with a "Pro". I was a little overwhelmed starting out at Babies R Us with all the stuff. All the pacifiers alone confused me! It helped to have someone who could guide me and give an honest opinion. After Babies R Us, Target was a breeze. I think it was because they had a lot less stuff, and I already pretty much knew what I was looking for! It continues to all sink in when I had to think about what I needed one of and what I would need two of. Hopefully our house sells soon, because we will need more room! :) It was a successful day and I thank Missy, Elle, and mom for all the help!

This was my first outing out in public with Baby Elle. It was amazing how many people commented on her hair. Missy has even had people (strangers) ask her if it is a wig!!!

She is such a CuTiE!

I got to spend all day with Elle, but Adam wanted to be able to spend some time with her as well so we grilled out later on Saturday evening. Adam can't get over how much she grows and changes each time we see her. He says she "looks like a real little person."

Proud Uncle Adam holding Elle. She loves to stand right now!

Ending with an adorable picture of Elle with her Uncle Adam.

~ Thanks for checking in! Amy and Adam.

It's Fall!

Fall is here! Fall is one of our favorite seasons. I love decorating the house for the Fall and Halloween! This past week of school was full of spirit for HoMeCoMiNg!!! It is a busy week with all sorts of activities, and a bit tiring with all the extra "Spirit" that the kiddos at school had. Adam, Izzie, and I capped of the homecoming week by going to the parade. Notice the winter gear... It was sort of chilly!

After the parade, we kept our tradition of the past couple years and ate at Ted's Pizza. Then we were off to the game. Menomonie played Superior and won 50 something to 14 (we left early). As I have been in the district for going on 7 years, it is fun to see the familiar names on the field that I had when they were 6th graders!

We ended our weekend with a Sunday drive to the apple orchard. The colors are beginning to turn and I was craving a fresh caramel apple, so we took a drive to the Maple Leaf Orchard in Spring Valley. We ended up buying some other apples to make apple crisp. Now I just need to find the time and energy to make it sometime early this week!

I had my first volleyball game this past week with my 7th graders. We played Altoona and they did a great job. We won 1 of the 4 games, but I knew the scoreboard would not show how my girls played. Altoona has a different coaching philosophy than Menomonie. They have "Try-Outs" at the 7th grade level, and they have teams divided up by ability. Well, we played the "A" Team and they had a server that played all 4 games and scored at least 15 points on us right off the bat while some of their girls never got playing time. :( At the 7th grade level, I truly enjoy seeing all girls play and watching all girls grow in their skills. My girls did a great job and I am excited for their next games this week!

Some other exciting new for this week.... Our house is FOR SALE! After long debating of when to sell and when to build, our goal is to now maybe/hopefully be in our new house before the babies are born! Of course all is now dependent on when and if our house will sell. We have been busy meeting with our builder so have everything set for when we get an accepted offer. This weeks big development was staking out the rectangle on our lot and trying to finalize some decisions on the house plans.

Baby Update (15 weeks): Sorry, no belly picture again! That isn't something that is in my daily routine... and believe me I have been forgetting ALOT lately!

The babies are close to the size of softballs weighing about 1 3/4 ounces and 4-4 1/2 inches long. Their eyes are continuing to move on their faces and their ears are continuing to develop externally. On some ultra sounds, babies at this stage can be seen sucking their thumbs. Lanugo Hair covers their little bodies with their thin skin. I have had more people at work make comments this week about my belly, and it really depends on what I wear. The day I got most comments I was wearing an actual maternity shirt and it was white (I get less looks and comments when I wear dark colors).

Kids Say The Darndest Things!

I'll start out the post with the most exciting part of our week... Our doctor appointment on Monday afternoon! It has been four weeks since our last appointment and we were both excited to hear the heartbeats again. First going over all the results of the blood work that they drew the time before was pretty standard. Everything came back perfectly normal, even my iron which in the past has been low! The next part of the appointment was for the doctor to check my uterus... I didn't really feel like I have popped yet but I think he basically told me I have (and will continue to for the next 6 months). My uterus is right about at my belly button, maybe a tad higher. I was measuring 13 cm (from pubic bone to top of uterus) at 13 weeks! The measurements should match with your weeks, but he said they usually don't catch up with each other until 20 weeks. Without the prior ultrasound, Dr. Walker said with the size of my uterus, he would have ordered one thinking it was twins.

Next was hearing the heartbeats! We for sure heard one strong one at 160 beats per minute. As Dr. Walker moved around my abdomen, he heard another one that was about 157 beats per minute. He can not be sure that they were the two different heartbeats, and to be sure they need to be 10 beats different. That wasn't the case, but I feel we heard two. It felt to me he was in two very different spots. Either way, with they way I am "growing" we are confident both are healthy and growing strong. It is such an amazing experience! Another appointment in 4 weeks which will put me at 17 weeks, and an ultrasound at 21 weeks... most likely NOT going to find out the genders!

The pictures for this week are not too exciting... The first is the closet as it stands. Notice the Diapers we are beginning to buy with coupons. I am sure we will find a specific brand that we like, but hey... these were on sale and we had coupons!


The other picture is Adam practicing cuddling on the couch with babies. He said, "take my picture, I am practicing being a dad." Izzie sure is a cuddler and it isn't rare to find them in this position.

Last, but not least... The reason for the title. I told my students and my volleyball team about the twins this past Thursday. I again broke out some Twinkies and Doublemint gum. As I shared this treat I asked "Why might I be sharing this treat with you today?" Here are some responses:

"Because it's your BIRTHDAY!!!" - Nope.
"Because the Twins won last night and your a baseball fan." - Nope.
"Because you like Twinkies and they're your favorite." - Nope.

After more hints, someone said "YOUR HAVING TWINS!" Leave it to one of my students to say, "I noticed you were getting bigger," and another said "That's going to hurt when they are born!" Thanks kiddos...

The last quote I will share comes from my friends 10 year old son. Jamie and I were having a mini girls night out on Saturday night and as I went to pick her up at her house, her son ran to the window to sneak-a-peak at me. When I got into their house Jamie told me he said, "She isn't even that fat yet." Thanks Blais, I'll take that as a compliment!!!

Sorry - no belly picture this week. My mom was begging, but it didn't get done. Next week.

~Thanks for checking in... I either need to get better with the camera or we lead a pretty boring life.

First Big Purchase

I'll start out by saying that I have no pictures this week. We didn't really do anything that allowed us to take pictures! You can say we were pretty boring this week. I basically went to work, was on survival mode through volleyball practice and crashed when I got home. There were nights Adam brought me supper on the couch and then I went straight to bed!

I had class on Friday night, all day Saturday, and all day Sunday. I am working towards my master's with another certification . The class was about Communication and Language Disorders. I found certain elements very interesting for how to work with and support some students I work with, but also found how newborns, toddlers, and children pick up language and speech VERY interesting. That brings me to this weeks update on the babies!

The babies are about the size of a peach this week. They are about 2 1/2 to 3 inches from rump to crown. The babies have doubled in size since the 7th week... explaining why I have been exhausted. The babies heads are slowing down in growth letting the rest of their bodies to catch up. Right now their heads are about half their length and by week 21 their heads will be about a third of their length. Their ears are just about at their permanent places on their heads, their eyes are moving closer together, and their intestines are developing. I read somewhere that this week you can start talking to the babies and music helps with brain development. I learned in my class this past weekend that talking to the babies actually helps them with the rhythm of language for later development. I laugh every time Adam tries to "talk" through my belly button to the babies. He thinks his mouth has to be on my belly and all it ends up is a muffled noise.

Oh! One more exciting thing from this week... We bought the stroller we have been eyeing up! Thanks to Adam (bargain shopper) we found it for MUCH cheaper than we had seen in the stores so we ordered it. It's out first major purchase, just another thing making this whole experience very real! We especially liked it because it is on a single stroller base and can easily convert to a single and double stroller with all the attachments. Maybe I'll get to go shopping with only one baby for an afternoon and it can be converted to a single (wishful thinking?). Also, when it is a double, it doesn't feel like we are pushing a bus!!!

We have our doctor appointment tomorrow. We are excited to hear the heartbeats again!! I guess we aren't really sure what else the appointment will consist of but we will keep you posted in next weeks entry!