Patrick's mom is so kind to visit on Fridays...I LOVE IT and the boys LOVE IT even more! She works four days at Country Day School in McLean and on her Friday she graciously gives to us! The boys always take great naps on Fridays because they play and play and are simply worn out! Here are a few pictures from the other day..it was a bit cooler... so we were sporting coats... but it was probably in the 50s which felt cold to us after all the 90 degree days we've had! Yeah, we're wimps!
The boys love blowing bubbles on the deck....
Sullivan is determined to try but decides to suck on the wand instead... thank goodness they are non-toxic :)
We enjoy our Friday visits from Diane...she is a huge help...she is a great bottle putter togetherer, laundry folder, story reader, bubble blower, (just to name a few of her great skills! :) and her visits allow me to venture to the grocery store during nap, work on HOA projects and just spend time with the three of them... the extra hands are a breath of fresh air! It is nice to have another adult around!
So while on bed rest with Henry & Sullivan aka baby A and baby B at the time... I had TONS of time to write email updates to all who cared about the progress, the ups & downs, my fears and excitement about the pregnancy.... this time around with our future bambino I often don't even have time to process things myself let alone write it all down in an email...oh how life has changed! So here you go for an update...
I feel great! I am 23 weeks and some change as I write this.... My energy is back....no sickness or twinges of inkiness... I am so very happy about that. I can also feel him move throughout the day...and more so at night. I think the day is so busy I don't get much time to notice....but at night he reassures me that all is well with his squirms and kicks! For all who have been pregnant can relate to that great sense of relief that comes with each movement.
I know that I am conditioned to worry about everything when it comes to pregnancy. We have definitely been through the worst of it.... but I try so hard to refocus and to trust that all will be ok and push the heavy weight of worry aside so that I can enjoy being pregnant.
I do have limitations...I am not to pick the boys up from the ground.... well, the person who came up with that rule sure has never had two 30lb twin boys in their house.... so I do my best to have the boys crawl up the stairs or I pick them up from a sitting position but heck...I pick them up...they are my babies and you get the point. It would be nearly impossible not to do so. I am careful.
I take breaks during my mad dash cleaning expeditions that take place. throughout the day when the boys nap and when they are down for the night...where as I use to never break.... I try to scrub the floors with a mop vs on my hands and knees but I am fully aware that I do a better job with my hands vs the mop...so you see where I'm going with this...
:)
I am also careful/mindful of my cerclage and heavy lifting isn't allowed... no lunges ...no jumping etc... so since the cerclage is my only hope with keeping the baby inside of me during this pregnancy I do worry about my cervix & cerclage and am VERY RELIEVED when I see it holding strong every two weeks during my ultrasound.
Patrick has been a champ about giving me my dreaded IM progesterone injections weekly... I hate them and I hate him usually for a while after the shot...THEY HURT! But my hate passes shortly after... then we're back to normal.... :) The purpose of the progesterone is to help keep my uterus relaxed and it helps prevent pre-term labor. I will continue these shots until week 32 or 34 I think...
My c-section is tentatively scheduled for August 2nd....which is a Monday. Those of you who know me well, know I love a plan.... simply LOVE it! I know it is a way off but I am hoping for a very short hospital stay so I can get home to my boys.... I am already dreading being away from H&S... I have NEVER left them... for more than an hour or two during waking hours... so thinking about it makes me want to cry! boohoo! I am already strategizing how on earth I am going to keep their schedule set and normal during all of the changes that will come with me being gone and then the 5th member of our family at home. Hopefully I will do a good job of keeping them right on schedule...
Due to my moderate umbilical placement during this pregnancy, I will have measurements of the baby done at every other visit... which is every four weeks.... They will monitor his growth to make sure that the not ideal placement isn't causing any delayed growth. So far he measures bigger than his projected due date....so all is well for now in that department. The next measurements will be done at my next appt. I'm excited for that. I know I'm growing so I sure hope he is... otherwise I should stop growing so much! ha!
Pregnancy clothes... just a few words on those... THEY ARE AWFUL. I kind of feel like people think pregnant women enjoy looking frumpy or wearing bows or pleats with TONS of fabric... ick. I am not a fan of A-line shirts or weird gathers or puffed sleeves... not flattering....ONE BIT. I have found some items but it is difficult and I just wish JCrew would make their clothes for pregnant people too... their consumers do get pregnant eventually.... anyway, enough on that.
Names...we often get asked if we have named the baby yet... um no. We haven't picked one just yet. We hope to have a good idea of a name before his arrival but can't be sure. I think we just need to meet him! Then we'll decide. Hopefully it won't take us until the 11th hour like it did last time with poor Sullivan... we just wanted his name to be perfect... and it is :)
Well, as I write this the baby is dancing.... omgoodness....hopefully we don't have a little night owl on our hands.... as the boys would say.... he's happy!
Oh and one more thing...Sullivan and Henry are convinced I have a "ball" under my shirt... they point to it, rub it, slap it(gently of course) and say "ball" ... sometimes they say "baby" but often it is ball..... "momma ball" is what I get a lot... these boys love their balls! :)
I just thought I'd take a few minutes to update the blog...
I promise to go back at upload pictures from the last month, Easter and such, but I just thought I'd post a few things now....and sit down for a minute. :)
Patrick has been very busy with work lately.... tax season is long for me (and for him I'm sure) since it makes longer days without four hands...if you know what I mean! :)
The boys and I are making the best of it! We are so lucky to be spending a million hours outside... the weather has been just perfect. I'll even take the extra hot days with a smile. We spend a lot of time at the park playing on the equipment, playing with dogs, running around, swinging, watching tennis matches or practice... the boys love watching the game. I think the only meal the boys eat inside is breakfast.... we love to eat our lunch either at the park or on the deck...dinner is outside on the deck unless it is raining! The boys say "outside" in an excited whispering voice and enormous smile.. it is really cute. I think I must say it like that without knowing.... they crack me up.
I can't believe our little men are 17 months old.... I have never had so much fun in my entire life. I love being home with them and just know how lucky I am.... SO SO lucky. They are fabulous people...and I am just honored to spend my days with them.
Let's see.... where should I start....Sullivan... he approaches things head on... he simply dives in... his upper body even moves before his feet he gets so excited. This can be dangerous though when going down stairs...walking down slides, it is almost like he just knows I'll catch him! :) He loves the pool... face first he goes...he loves to splash... I will say though that he understands that when his feet don't touch the ground under him he should be extra cautious... I can tell because he holds on just a bit tighter.... and says "uh-oh"! He is a monkey for sure... he loves the trampoline... he and Henry could jump forever... they just giggle and giggle. He continues to enjoy swings & slides... he says "whee" even before getting on the swing or going down the slide...he just knows how much fun he is about to have!
Sullivan's favorite foods these days are things like blueberries, water melon, bacon, cereal, cantaloupe, enchiladas, fajitas, onions, peppers, grapes, yogurt/whips only.... funny guy... juice, risotto, he actually eats anything...he loves spicy foods, oh and jelly beans...he calls them "beans" ... but he takes after his dad and loves bbq beans too!
Sleeping... Sullivan is a great sleeper but I will say he is the lighter sleeper... he wakes up more than Henry....Henry takes after his father.... he can sleep through anything.... even Sullivan saying "Henry""Henry" over and over in the morning while jumping in his crib with squeals of excitement for the day to begin... The boys sleep from 7:30PM to about 7:45 or 8AM.... They nap from 11:30-2:30... they really play hard so sleeping hard is a must!
Henry I predict takes more after his father in some ways than Sullivan but heck they've only been around for 17 months so I'm sure I'm jumping the gun a bit here but...... he is an observer...he watches first and then jumps in... he is very attentive to detail...I see it in many areas of his little world.... he is happy to just "be" where Sullivan has to taste it, smell it and touch it.... Henry likes to watch "it." Oh and Henry is FULL of facial expressions - he is so expressive...I love it.
Henry and Sullivan love to give "loves" as we call them in our house... a hug or a kiss.... just so sweet to people. I find Henry just waving to strangers or random people passing by... he and Sullivan love people... they roam to other peoples picnics, strollers, toys or games... They both just want to be a part of whatever it is that is going on....
Henry & Sullivan are talking quite a bit.... they say about 35 -40 words a piece consistently..here are a few....ball, dog, baba (for bottle), Henry, Dada, Momma, juice, blueberry, "ammy" (for grammy), norni (for our friend Nori), "D" for Derek, Sink, Poo-poo, Up, under, Uh-oh, No no no, More, Hello, Hi, ByeBye, noodle, circle, triangle, octagon, blue, yellow, kikakapoo (a fish), humahuma (another part of a fish name), cracker, wa-wa (for water), Iao (another Hawaiian fish), Turtle, Eel, Baby, All done, Bubbles, Bean, Book, Bell, Dirty, Car, Truck, Airplane, Out, Happy, Boo-Boo, Elmo.... Ok, I could go on and on... basically they talk non-stop and love to use new words all the time.
Henry is really good about listening to directions... he will stop, wait, or follow safety rules more than another one of my friends... :) Sullivan will be one who learns by doing, falling and well, you get the point.... Henry I predict will trust that I just might know what I'm talking about... we will see...either way I know they will learn. It all just takes time. I'll be here for hugs when they fall. :)
Henry is a hard sleeper... he is so funny...even after hours and hours of sleep I often have to rub his back to wake him up or I just might not get to see his sweet little face awake very much. He wakes up so happy.... Both boys every morning I find them ready for their days...jumping up and down in their cribs.... they say "momma, happy!" They always ask for Dadda... I frequently tell them he is at work or at the office... they know the answer but always listen for the answer and then give me a smile like they already knew... smarty pants!
Henry & food... he is like his momma and has a sweet tooth :)! He loves yogurt and doesn't care if he eats it from a spoon sucks it from a tube or drinks it from a glass... he just really enjoys it and always asks for more. He likes his mac&cheese...loves crackers, devours grapes, cinnamon rolls, waffles, bacon, pears by the handful, oranges, melon and always give his blueberries to his best pal Sullivan :) Oh, Sullivan loves tomatoes... I forgot to add that in his food paragraph :) whoops :) Henry enjoys watermelon but isn't too keen to spicy foods... which is fine.... someday he'll maybe like Ethiopian food or sushi with his momma...but maybe not and that's fine too :)
Both boys L-O-V-E their milk....
One of my favorite parts of the day is when the boys read to me... we read a lot in the day and at night before bed... they will bring books and sit on my lap...point to pictures and read me the words... I still pinch myself that they love to read. I never liked to read - EVER... they love it and for that I am thankful. I hope they both really continue to love books...
Music...oh how they love music....they will hear even the slightest faint song in the background in a store, at the gym, or in a car with its windows down...and they will raise one hand in the air and bop their head to the beat... clap, bounce their feet and if they are standing they bounce and shake their head... Henry is now trying to snap his fingers... We enjoy music here in our house a lot... they loved their music class at BachtoRock that we enjoyed during the winter but now we are doing Saturday morning Gym class as a family... they love it...oh and they love the music they incorporate in the workout... so much fun.
Well, I must clean the house... boys are in bed and have been for about an hour...Patrick is still at work but I have enjoyed talking about the status of the short folk...
I'm already excited about tomorrow.... I hope you enjoyed the update.
xoxo