Introducing ...

Happy 1 week birthday!

Madeline Kate (Maddy) and Elizabeth Lucy (Libby)

They're here!

After a few days on bed rest, Baby A and Baby B decide that it "was time", so off we went to the hospital on Saturday night.

Delivered by C-section, we are pleased to announce the birth of our daughters on Saturday, June 21.

A was born at 9:48 PM and weighed 3 lbs., 2 ounces and 15 1/2 inches.

B was born at 9:50 PM and weighed 4 lbs., 9 ounces and 17 3/4 inches.

Both are recovering nicely in the NICU. A is breathing fine on her own & B is using oxygen, but is getting better every day.

We really went through the range of emotions yesterday, but we feel so blessed and amazed by these two little girls. We are still working on finalizing names and downloading pictures, so hopefully a better introduction soon!

c-ch-ch-changes

Not quite those kind of changes, but it's amazing what 1 day an 1Dr.'s appointment make. We had our weekly non-stress test and exam yesterday. The NST looked great, so we headed over for our exam. We were just chatting before my exam, when she asked if they checked my cervix last week. I replied yes and everything was fine. The Dr. checked to discover I was 2cm. dilated. She checked a few other things in my chart and directed us to have lunch and head to the hospital for further monitoring. After I was hooked up to the monitors, they also discovered that I was having contractions. Who knew? Not me!

So we settled in and they opted to give me steroid injections to help the babies lungs develop, and also gave me meds to stop contractions. So far, so good. No more regular contractions and the babies look great.

It looks like I'll be home tomorrow, but will more than likely be on bed rest at home for the duration. So worth it if we can help these babies stay put a few weeks longer. All I can say is thank goodness for a wonderful hubby who has stayed here non-stop, his lap top, my co-workers for bringing me a stash of magazines, sweet nurses, great in-laws that made the 2 hour drive to check on us, cell phones to stay in touch with family and friends, and let's not forget that lovely pill called Ambien to sleep in a hospital room.

iQuestion

In preparation to "pack my bag", one item that will definitely be included is my beloved little iPod. I already have various songs and mixes that range from "new running mix" and "half" (for the Nashville half marathon), to "slow down" (that has Michael Buble and other slow stuff), but I'm looking for suggestions for my hospital music.

While I really think that some of the half marathon tunes may get me through, I feel like I've listened to them over and over and want some new stuff.

Musically speaking, I tend to gravitate back to the familiar, so my list has a bunch of music from the 80's and 90's and aside from hearing new-ish stuff on the radio, I'm a little bit out of touch. Basically, I like a little bit of everything with the exception of most country music. I know, I know. How does a girl from TN not like country?

One song that I may have to include as a joke is Push It by Salt & Pepa. Hee, hee. So, help a girl out and list some favorite tunes or artists and I'll give them a listen, so I don't end up listening to "push it real good" over and over!

Checking in

Since I haven't posted in a while, I didn't want you to think that the babies were here, so I wanted to check in with a little update. Apparently, my co-workers get very nervous if they haven't seen me around the office for few hours and they think that they've missed important news, so I thought my readers might think the same.

We're at 32 weeks and 2 days, and all is well. This week was a milestone week (according to my Dr.) and I'm glad we've made it. The weekly non stress tests have started (I'm hooked up to 2 monitors while lying in a hospital recliner to monitor the heart rates of the babies) as have the weekly appointments. Baby B decided to move, so now Baby A is still head-down, and Baby B is breech/sideways. I'm still shocked that I never felt that distinct move.

Some of what's been going on this week:

• ordering cute seersucker pants from Ann Taylor Loft maternity and reordering them. The first pair didn't quite fit around my belly & I'm hoping that the new ones do.
• Eating yummy pizza from a new local, organic place last night - mine had fried eggplant, mushrooms, garlic, etc. So, so good.
• Trying to stay "horizontal" as much as possible when I'm home. It's harder than it sounds, but I'm just trying to follow Doctor's orders and stay off bed rest.
• Realizing that I have a gardenia plant in our yard and it has bloomed! This makes me so happy. If it cools off later, I'll try to get some pictures. They smell wonderful.

Hubby should play the lottery

I was sitting in our den on Sunday evening, feet propped on a pillow, watching TV when Hubby came in and asked me what I felt about NY in the fall? My first thought was "Has he gone mad? Does he not remember that we'll have 2 infants by the fall and probably won't remember our first names, let alone want to take a visit to NY?" Then it hit me ... he had entered his name into the ING NYC Marathon lottery several months ago, almost as a joke, because really, does anyone ever get picked out of the lottery?

All I asked was "Did you get in?" His grin said it all.

So, now for the next question ... who wants to babysit or come to NYC and help out with 2 3-month olds?!

He's trying to decide now if he would have enough time to train and be ready by November. He can always defer his entry to next year, but what a great opportunity. I'm really torn ... I would love to go and watch him run, but I don't know that I'll be ready to leave 2 little ones by then and I know I won't be ready to carry them around NYC.

Maybe I could do it with one of these?I can only imagine getting around the crowds with this much baby strapped to me. We'll see, but with this luck, I really think Hubby should go buy a lottery ticket to see if we can win the $25,000,000 or whatever it's up to these days!

Feelin' like a rock star

Some of the women from my office had a baby shower for me on Friday afternoon. It was really sweet and we received some very nice gifts and lots of essentials - huge ol' back of diapers, blankets, etc.

One of the gifts made me feel like a celebrity mom-to-be. I received this cool lullaby CD. This company takes modern music and turns it into instrumental music made for kids. I received The Cure, one of my old faves, but they have everything from AC/DC to Bob Marley to Coldplay.

Rock on!

Tick tock, tick tock

Why is it after 3:00 AM and I am wide awake, and have been off and on since 1:00 AM?

Could it be ....

Heartburn? nope, not tonight.

Can't get comfortable and need to rearrange pillows every 5 minutes? no, I actually felt pretty comfortable.

The babies are moving so much that it feels like they may be wrestling? they are moving around quite a bit, but nothing that drastic.

I'm hungry? well, that could always be the case, but I drank some milk and don't feel hungry.

I need to pee? Been there, done that.

Or is it the fact that I feel like my "mind" just won't turn off, plus it could have something to do with the brownie and chocolate sauce that I had for dessert tonight that has me wired from the caffeine in the chocolate? Ding, ding, ding ... we have a winner!

At this point, who the hell really knows? Hubby is snoring soundly, the dogs didn't make a peep when I came downstairs and poured myself a glass of milk and came into the office, I've updated photos on facebook, checked e-mail, watched Elton John on Classic VH1, watched part of an HGTV show, blogged, have debated about trying to read, and most importantly have wondered how the hell am I supposed to get up and go to work in a few hours? I am not a happy camper without sleep.

Ok, thinking about counting sheep and sweet dreams. Heading upstairs to try this again.

P.S. Just for the record, I noticed that the time of this post reads 2:15 AM and I can assure you that it is actually 3:15 AM.

Birth & Baby 101

Well, Hubby and I finally had our "Birth & Baby" class this weekend, AKA, what to do and when, who to call, and how to avoid having social services called to your home.

While I was a little disappointed that the videos weren't circa 1970, there were a few posters showing labor poses with the women dressed in tights and leotards. Hmmm, how does that work?

Three things we did learn ...

1. During Labor, Hubby knows not to stay 2 inches away from my face and ask me how I'm doing. This will result in lots and lots of expletives from me or actual hitting. (One of the guys in the video was up in his wife's face the entire time and it would have driven any normal person insane).

2. There are still "those guys" that have to act like the class clown and ask questions such as "So, is taking the baby on a motorcycle a bad idea" and "So, how bad is alcohol for a baby?" I just really felt sorry for his wife who rolled her eyes at him through 80% of the class.

3. We learned all sorts of terms like "cheerio to a bagel" and what that represents. If you don't know, I'll tell you, but if you think really hard about it you can figure it out. All I can say is bagel=scary and it has nothing to do with breakfast.

Documenting the belly

30 weeks and 1 day, oh my.

Here I am testing out the new duo glider stroller with car seats. I don't know if the word glide should really be anywhere in the description of this stroller, but a neccessity nontheless.

Also, a shot of us at our baby shower from last weekend.

My friends

I'm not sure if anyone else does this, but do you find yourself referring to your "blog friends" as your friends, or at least wanting to do this? 

I recently overheard people in my office talking about Hong Kong, and I had to restrain from saying, "My friend, Libby is moving there in 2 months." or when another co-worker showed off the skirt she made this weekend, I want to tell her about "My friend Lisagh's adorable aprons that she sews."  I guess my fear was that I didn't want to be further questioned and then have to say, "well, I really don't know them - I just read their blogs ..."

I can say that I actually do know about 3 people who are on my list of daily blog reads that are actually friends - I know where they live, know their husbands, could call them up and chat.  However for the rest, I may or may not recognize you if you came up to me and said hello.

I'm afraid if I started talking about my "blog friends", people would immediately turn up their nose and think, does this chick have no life and no "real" friends?  I guess they would liken it to that imaginary friend from elementary school.

However, since I read about everyone's lives, likes and dislikes, the highs and lows, sometimes I feel like I am a part of everyone's lives and feel connected to those people whose blogs I read on a regular basis.  I guess it truly is a social phenomenon that all of us are going through ... so, my question to all of you, do you ever talk about your "blog friends" in public or is this something that you enjoy keeping to yourself?

Living on the wild side

Today, I'm wearing white pants and am eating my breakfast of a PB& raspberry jam on wheat with strawberries.  Now, I know that this doesn't sound like a dangerous feat for most of you, but for me, I can rarely wear white without something finding it's way to my clothing.  The sandwich is done and I will say, I surprised myself without finding jam on my pants. 

Case in point, yesterday, I wore a white faux-wrap top and made it through most of the work day until I discovered the canister of Hershey's extra dark chocolate with pomegranate bits.  Yum.  I took one back to my desk to savor and looked down a few minutes later to find it on my shirt and also on my arm.  Go figure!

By the way, if you love dark chocolate - find this candy.  It is quite yummy.  We had the individual squares in several different flavors. 

Makin' big babies

Yesterday, I had an appointment for an ultrasound, then 2 hours later, I had to go back and see my Doctor. A little nerve-wracking to split up the appointments, but I was out of there in record time. I may need to schedule all of my appointments like this.

Everything is looking great - I'll be 30 weeks on Thursday. How did that happen? Time really seems to have flown.

When our X-ray tech was measuring the babies, I was anticipating 2 1/2 pounds each. That would have given them about a 1 lb. growth spurt since our last appointment, a month ago.

I was shocked when she measured Baby A at 2 pounds and 14 ounces, who ranks in the 50th percentile for weight. Then, came the ringer ... Baby B measured at 3 pounds, 6 ounces, well into the 80th percentile. We were shocked and amazed. Our Doctor was very pleased with the growth of both - typically he sees twins in the 10-20% percentile. Everything looks OK so far with the difference in their weight. They will keep checking it, just to make sure one doesn't grow too rapidly and or take over all of the nutrients!

WOW. Still can't believe I have 6 pounds of baby in there. I think this is always how I felt after a huge mexican dinner!

Fooling myself

I think that my Fresca over ice is just as good as Hubby's Hoegaarden beer with an orange.

Yes-sir-ee-bob, I sure do. And, I'm sure that Fresca will taste just as yummy with a burger and sweet corn here later tonight.

Why does the start of summer remind me of gin & tonics and cold beer? Not nice to do to a 7-month pregnant woman!

Friday Fill In

It's time for a Friday Fill In ...

1. On my laziest day I like to stay in my PJ's, watch movies, nap, read, and eat!
2. Crossing things off a list or being able to move papers off my desk and know that a project has made progress makes me feel like I'm being productive.
3. I love little kisses and big hugs.
4. This summer I want to learn to be a good mom.
5. Preppy Cafe / Suburban Cupcake made me start my blog.
6. Red reminds me of toenail polish, college (one of my alma mater & sorority colors), the Junior League, and inspi(red) and orange reminds me of UT football, jack-o-lanterns, and fall leaves.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to enjoying the first Friday that we have summer hours at work, tomorrow my plans include a baby shower and seeing friends and family and Sunday, I want to get outdoors for a bit and hopefully do a little organizing around the house, namely one of our spare bedrooms!

Learning to say thank you at a very early age

Aren't these the cutest thank you notes from KT Originals?

I wanted to find cards for our upcoming shower other than my regular thank you notes, but gender-neutral and not too cheesy. I'm sorry, but too many storks, ducks, and bows make me cringe. They also have matching birth announcements as well ... decisions, decisions.

The sweetest sound

I walked in a few minutes ago after working all day, then attending the Annual Meeting for the Junior League to hear the vacuum running. How nice is that? Hubby was vacuuming the house and I didn't have to ask.

I know I don't sing his praises enough, but he's a good, good man.

Maternity slips?

Anyone know if they exist? I hate slips almost as much as I hate pantyhose, but everyone once in a while, I really feel they're a necessity.

I ordered a dress online - it's really cute, but made out of a thin cotton that is a little too sheer for my liking. Or for anyone else's for that matter. I'm trying to wear the dress to a shower next weekend, and would really prefer not to look trashy while balancing my punch on top of my belly!

NKOTB

NKOTB Reunion = I'm OLD.

While getting ready this morning, I heard on the Today Show that NKOTB is playing a concert this morning and it's been something like 13 years since they've performed together. (That may not be 100% accurate - I'm not in the same room when I'm listening).

I do remember in High School, most girls loved this band and had a crush on one of the members. It seems that if you "liked" one of the guys, then your friends had to pick another member to "like."

Lucky for me, I was not into NKOTB at all, so I didn't have to fight over a band member. In those days, I was happiest listening to the Cure and New Order and trying to get Billy F. to notice me. He wore lots of black, and when he wasn't riding a skateboard, drove a black VW convertible bug. Ah, the good ol days.

The "dreaded" orange drink

Is it bad that I didn't mind the glucose tolerance test drink today? It tasted like a Sunkist or other orange-flavored beverage, plus they served it over little pellet ice, so I was fine with it. Don't know my results yet, so I have abstained from the bag of Starburst jellybeans in the cupboard, just in case.

Now, I start having appointments every week and have also started rotating Doctors. I know this is normal, but I really like my Doctor and am not looking forward to seeing someone new every week. Especially when they ask you questions like, "So are you feeling a lot of good movement from the baby? I mean babies?" Just a little thing, but I'm sure TWINS is scrawled in bold somewhere on my chart. Details, details ...