Holiday Happenings

It has been quiet on the blog but not due to lack of stuff happening within our family. We are in Southern California spending the holidays with my family. We are absolutely loving the 70 plus degree weather and the awesome Mexican food. Abraham and Winston are being smooched on all the time and I am grateful they get the chance to spend time with their grandparents and great grandparents down here.

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and that God blesses you in the coming year. I will be coming back in the new year to share all about our vacation fun and how the boys are changing with each passing day.

A few cell phone pics to share:

The boys got to meet their great grandma and great grandpa Dykstra for the first time.

Me and my hunny at the beach on Christmas Eve.

Winston is just too cool for school.

Our little family at the view point for Diamond Valley Lake.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

I have been sick the past couple of days and have had zero energy.  I came down with mastitis which is a story in and of itself.  We have been spending lots of time in our pajamas over here.  The boys do not seem to mind. 

Nine Months!

These little guys are now nine months old. I brought them to their nine month well babies exam earlier in the week and learned that our identical twins are identical in their weight and measurements  .They are both 18 lbs. 12 ozs., 28 inches tall and a head circumference of 18.75 inches. That one surprised me because they have always had variance. The nurse was pretty amused by the whole situation as well. I really thought these kids had broken 20 lbs. but it was just my current lack of muscle strength.  Regardless, when you have these baby boys loaded up in their car seats they are heavy.  I can no longer carry them both in their car seats all the way to the car. I have to take breaks! So the little guys are on the lower end of weight and height (34 and 37 percentile) which I was surprised at because of their clothing sizes but their head size is off the charts according to the doc.  Poor guys do not like getting their shirts pulled over their giant noggins.

I love their fuzzy heads--Winston (left) and Abraham.

This is real life.  Abraham takes things away or pulls on his brother and

Winston lets me know how he feels about it.

This is how Abraham feels about green beans.

Abraham is becoming such a sweet and affectionate little boy.  He gives lots of hugs and it is absolutely heart warming.  He gave the nurse a hug when we went to the doctor's and she was thrilled because as the one who has to give kids their shots, she does not get many hugs.  Abraham also has a stubborn streak and does not like correction.  It's something we are constantly working on.  He is a texture eater and is not too crazy for things that are more grainy or that he has to chew.  He makes the sweetest coos when he wakes up in the morning and when he is done drinking milk. 

Winston checking out his apple.

Winston is so outgoing and loves to work a crowd.  When people stop to talk to the boys, Winston starts shaking his head and giggling to put on a show. He is more vocal (or whiny) about his needs and wants. In general he is more sensitive and once corrected will stop because he does not like disapproving tones and looks. His smile takes up his whole face.  Winston loves food. Period.  He is pretty open to eating whatever is set before him.  He still loves his mobile above his bed and gets so excited about it being wound up.  He flails his little limbs in anticipation and his eyes and smile show such innocent and joyful expectation. 

Observing babies in the wild in their natural habitat.

Abraham likes trying to open up drawers.

 "Hey mama, what's up?"

These boys are rolling all around and are figuring out how to crawl.  Abraham has the backwards scootch figured out pretty well but gets frustrated when he backs up into something and cannot maneuver back out.  They pivot on their bellies and do 360's.  They are both sitting up really well now. I just had to give Winston a little more time. It's amazing how one baby starts doing something new and his brother picks it up within a matter of days.  Both boys can say mum-mum and dada.  They have learned that when they want out of their play yard or jumpers that 'mum-mum' works pretty well.  I am working on some sign language with them and look forward to them hopefully learning to express their needs better.  This will lead to both happier babies and a less stressed mama.  Winston has six teeth, four on bottom and two on top.  Abraham has four teeth on the bottom and is right behind Winston with his top teeth as well. 

 "We are kind of busy here with the ornaments. Do you mind?"

 My beautiful family

 Love how they look like little men in button up plaids and flannels.

 Trying to motivate them to crawl.

These little guys love when someone sings to them, they are learning about how fun it is to have books read to them and they like to rock and shake their heads in unison.  They are a lot to handle at times but they are so much fun.  It's a blessing to see how much more they are each becoming their own little person with every passing week.

We are so excited for our first Christmas with our baby boys.  We have been so blessed with our  boys and look forward to teaching them about Christ their Savior and the reason we celebrate our Immanuel at Christmas time. 

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

These boys are hilarious and are sure to get attention wherever they go. This is a little video of our trip to Costco today. I know somebody is going to wonder about the lack of a shopping cart cover. I don't have one yet because the double ones are pretty pricey. I just use hand sanitizer on their little hands and make sure they do not put them in their mouth.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

We Like To Eat...

Some of the most entertaining moments in our household are during meal times.  The boys can make the funniest faces and are absolutely hilarious.  We are working on more finger foods.  Winston likes food period.  He will eat anything it seems, so it has been an easier transition for him.  Winston chews really well and with the three teeth he cut in the last week, he is catching on really fast.  Abraham is my texture eater.  He is not too impressed by table food because he likes purees.  I know it is just going to take him more time. 

It's amazing to see the similarities yet the differences in these little guys. It's also amazing to see how they change as the months go by. When the boys were newborns, Abraham was the big eater.  He picked up nursing quicker and was a much faster eater than Winston. 

Love these little guys:

Abraham can give such mischevious looks.

Winston likes gnawing on apple slices. 

I am Abraham and I am a stinker. 

They grab the spoon but the food does not quite make it in their mouth. 

Winston was all smiles here because he felt like a big boy. 

House Full

Since I am home during the day now, we set up some appointments to get some things looked at in the house.  It seemed like all the sudden there were these items that popped up that neither one of us had the ability to fix.  Eric called our home warranty company regarding the different items and they said they would call back within 24 hours to schedule a time to come to the house within the next week.  Scratch that.  Everyone and their brother came over today within a 8-hour period.  I was glad to have such a speedy response but it was a bit overwhelming. The plumber came to look at a leaking toilet and our hot water heater.  The HVAC guy came to look at the blower motor in the furnace.  The electrician figured out what was wrong with our master bathroom lights.  The high speed internet guys came to figure out why our internet speed was so slow and intermittently cutting out.  A general contractor came to give Eric a bid for the master bathroom floor since the slow leak in the toilet was starting to bubble the linoleum in there. 

At 8:35 this morning when I found out that the first of many people were coming over, I thought that today was going to be disastrous.  The boys have been teething and full on boycotting nap time.  Amazingly, Abraham took two 2-hour naps today despite all the in and out of people and all the loud voices.  Our killer attack dogs Suzie and Scooter also threw in some barking for good measure.  Winston was in a much better mood today and I was soooo thankful.  The little guy had been wearing me down.  Here is the crazy thing.  Winston woke up from a nap and I laid him down to do a diaper change.  He smiled at me and I saw something on his upper arch.  I did not think it could be a tooth already but it most definitely was.  The little dude has cut both of his eye teeth or lateral incisors.  I am not quite sure which ones they are because it's hard to assess how much space his teeth would take, how close together, etc.  It definitely looks like his eye teeth.  I now know why he was so grumpy.  Apparently those eye teeth are extra painful when they come in.  He is my little vampire baby for now.  I checked Abraham and no sign of his yet but he did cut a lower lateral incisor last week.  These boys are totally different in some regards.

Thankful that we can get stuff fixed around here.  Thankful for a home warranty.  Thankful that the boys had a good day.  Thankful I can be home to love on my boys and smooch their cheeks as much as I want.  Thankful for my husband bringing me home roses just because. 

********************************************************************************
Today is the last day of NaBloPoMo.  It feels good to accomplish a goal.  I doubted I could do it but I managed to get a post done everyday.  I learned how to write and compose faster which is a very valuable skill.  I will be slowing down the blogging pace from here on out for a while.  I want to focus on getting stuff done around my house and getting ready for the Christmas season.

FAQs #3

Wow, you had two kids all in one shot.  Now you can be done.

or

You're done right?
or
Do you still want to have more children?

Oh boy.  I have heard variations of these questions soooo many times.  Those questions are very personal and quite frankly are nobody's business except for me and my husband.  Sometimes it is phrased as just an assumption and a declarative statement.  I started getting this question even before the boys were born.  People did not even give us a chance to adjust to being first time parents times two before bombarding us with the questions.  I was simply trying to get used to having two babies and was not thinking about if and when I was having more.  To give a direct non-direct answer, we are pro-baby and pro-adoption.  It is our desire to add another child(ren) to our family.  I don't know what path God will take us on.  Right now we are just enjoying the little guys that we have been blessed with. 

Aren't you scared of having another set of twins?

If I had been asked that when the boys were two months old, I would have leaned towards yes.  The bonus to having twins as the first born children is that we don't know any better.  All we have ever known is twice the diapers, baths, laundry, cost and crying along with half the amount of sleep.  On the other side of that equation is that we have only ever known twice the coos, giggles, smiles and hugs.  It was super hard those first three months but each month has gotten better.  Now I cannot imagine not having both of my little guys here with us.  I think it is absolutely amazing that God allowed us to have these babies and we would gladly welcome another double blessing.  When we found out that we had conceived twins, we felt it was very apparent that God wanted us to be parents.  If He was pleased to give us another set of multiples then we would be thrilled.  Besides, having another set of twins would allow us to perfect everything we learned the first time around. 

Just One Day

I have accomplished one day now as a SAHM (stay at home mom).  The boys are at a really pivotal stage developmentally and I am really thankful that the Lord saw fit for me to stay home with them at this time.  Abraham is starting to develop separation anxiety.  I walk into the next room and he gets upset.  I have to keep talking to him to help him try to understand that I have not left him.  Both boys are getting little tempers at times and Winston even arches his back and kicks his legs.  Where do kids even learn that?  Isn't it amazing how intrinsic (cough...total depravity) it is for them to act that way?  The boys are also becoming competitive in regards to attention from me.  I can play with and hold one baby for a while and then go spend some time with the other baby and the original baby starts wigging out.  I obviously want to quash that competitiveness.  I want them to understand that I love them both equally and that they should be happy to see their brother loved in the same way that they are.

I know that I have a big transition to go through.  My biggest concern is creating a healthy balance of spending good time with the boys but also getting things done around the house when Eric is at work.  I don't want to be slothful and waste too much time.  I had a good talk with Eric in regards to goals and expectations for the coming weeks.  We agreed that there should be goals but to limit any expectations. By expectations I mean things that I expect from myself or things that Eric could expect from me.  The problem with expectations is that they are not always realistic. Something I am trying to do to keep progressing forward in getting into a new routine is to keep a daily journal or record of items that I get done and goals for the week to accomplish.  For example, one thing for today was that I gave the dogs a bath and trimmed their nails so that got written down.  A lot of little things will eventually add up to the big goals. 

One thing I have been working on is introducing more variety into the boys' diet and letting them explore touch and taste by feeding themselves.  Even at four months they were starting to grab for food so I knew they were ready.  I did not want to get them too dependent on being fed all the time.  Winston loves food no matter the form and is taking to feeding himself pretty well.  Abraham is definitely more picky in regards to texture and flavor.  Both little guys love their apples however.  Winston has managed to bite off big chunks with his teeth so we watch pretty carefully to make sure he does not try to swallow the whole thing.  Here they are:

Thanksgiving Memories

Thanksgiving 2009 in WA with Grandpa, Grandma, Jason and Rachel.  That was such a great weekend getting to meet Eric's extended family.  We were thankful to share that holiday with Grandpa while he was still doing well and could enjoy the visit. 

More Triple Date

These are some more pics from our fun triple date.  We walked around Sand Harbor at Lake Tahoe and went our for sushi. 

 Aaron and Alicia

 Eric and me

 Adam and Alisha

 Sushi-woot!

The whole group

Today was a nice relaxing Saturday.  We are just enjoying our family and friends right now.  Hope you all are having a great weekend!

Triple Date

We got to go on a group date today with Adam, Ally, Alicia and Aaron.  That's a whole lot of 'A' names, huh?  It's a good thing Eric and I broke the trend.  Our little group represented the dating couple, the newlywed couple and the married with children couple.  The boys got to spend some time with Grammy and Grandpa and the rest of us adults drove up to the lake (as in Tahoe).  It was soooo busy with the holiday weekend but the weather could not have been more perfect.  It was cool and crisp but felt just right when sitting in the sun.  We got coffee and just sat outside and talked for a while.  Then we drove to Sand Harbor, walked around and took some pics.  After that we drove down the hill and topped off the night by going out for sushi.

Now let me tell you the background on the sushi.  Eric and I both love it.  Before we had the kids we would go out about once a month.  When we found out we were pregnant we knew we needed to cut back.  Then when we found out we were having twins we knew we really needed to cut back.  Needless to say, there were no sushi dates any longer (plus pregnant women are not supposed to eat it).  We made a commitment that we would not go out to sushi until our debt was paid off or we could afford for me to stay home with the boys.  Every time we would get something paid off we would joke that we were one more step closer to going out for sushi.  After Eric getting his new job and me getting to resign from mine, we still had not done anything to celebrate or commemorate all the happenings.  Fortunately everyone in the group was a sushi fan so that is what we decided to do for dinner.  We went to a local place that Eric and Adam used to love going to years back.  The restaurant had been sold and apparently went down hill.  Eric had heard that the original owners had bought it back and that the food was really good again.  Oh. my. goodness.  It was amazing and all that I had been dreaming of.  The nigiri melted in my mouth and all the specialty rolls were so tasty.  It was a great evening with my hubby and extended family with lots of laughs. My belly was so happy and full.  I should mention that Eric had eaten sushi when he was on a business trip several weeks back but that did not count for our little game because it was for work.  All I can say is that I think I enjoyed my sushi all the more because of what it meant, that we had reached our goal!
 
In the effort to get out of the house, I forgot our camera so for right now I just have some cell phone pics to share until I can get copies from the other cameras.

 This was on our way to drop the boys off.  The local ranches move cattle 

as winter draws near.  It is a fun reminder that we live in rural area and in a small town.

A&A and A&A at the sushi bar

 My man

I am enjoying this long weekend with my hubby and still trying to process that I do not have to go to work on Monday.  Eeek!

First Thanksgiving

This was the boys' first Thanksgiving.  I have been looking forward to the boys' first holiday season. I love, love, love having a family.  A&W decided to boycott all naps today due to the excitement of having a house full of people.  They were really good all afternoon despite being tired.  They were very much ready for bed tonight and are now fast asleep. 

We had a wonderful meal and fellowship around the table.  It was a lot of work hosting for the first time but very much worth it.  We have been so blessed in the past year with the safe arrival of our little boys, the purchase of our first home together, financial provision and a new job for Eric.  We have our health and family and friends who love us.  I am married to my best friend and cannot imagine my life without him.  The reality is that I would not have a concept of how blessed I am if it were not for my relationship with my Lord.  I am a great sinner in need of a great Savior and I see how good He is to me despite of myself.  Life is good because God is good.

Some pictures of our wonderful day:

 Eric's masterpiece: The Pioneer Turkey

 The boys got their first pickle.  I am not sure what Eric was chuckling about 

here but I got him in the middle of it.

 Auntie Alicia and her beau Aaron

 The newlyweds: Uncle Adam and Auntie Ally

 Grandpa and Grammy

 This was what I wanted, my family around the table.

 Winston watching and listening to great Grandma Guddat on Skype. 

 Abraham kept smiling at great Grandma Guddat on the screen.  Isn't it crazy how our kids will always find technology like this to be normal?  Technology is amazing!

 I am so blessed by my family. I look at this picture and see my dreams realized.  As for the boys, they thought the pumpkins were more interesting than being photographed.

 Green beans and pumpkin for dinner.

 Auntie Ally made this.  Amazing right?

 

Mama JoJo tried out a new recipe: Italian Coffee cupcakes

After a rousing game of Uno, we are kicking off the Christmas season by watching Elf.  It's been a good day.  Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Getting ready for Thanksgiving. Our festive dining room.







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Finality

Tomorrow is my last day at my job.  I have been packing up and clearing my desk since last week.  I had lunch today with a group of coworkers that wanted to send me off.  I have been saying my good-byes as I see people.  It is all so final. 

I am really excited about spending more time with my boys, focusing more on my husband and getting more things done around the house.  I just know that it is going to take me a little while to get into a new routine.  The first week I will probably feel like I am on vaction and by week two will be wondering if I should be checking in with my boss.  It is a weird tumble of emotions right now.  I don't always like change. I don't like feeling like I am leaving things behind.  Intellectually I am full steam ahead but emotionally I am trying to reconcile things.  Pride can cause us to think that we are indispendable, that we are the progenitors of our roles whatever they may be.  As a stay at home mom I know I am not going to be hearing, "You just did great work" or "What you just did was really important" from my two babies. The reality is that I am truly going to be doing great work, doing important things, in the lives of my children.  There may not be recognition of that from them for many years to come (or never) and that's okay.  Everything we do is done before the Lord so I do it for Him and not for myself. 

Every time I hear this song on Christian radio, it reminds me that whether I am a working mom or a stay at home mom, I do every little thing for the glory of God. We can all use this little reminder at times:

Face Time

Eric is on the road this week, so we get to have nightly phone dates via Face Time.  Eric and I did the whole long distance relationship throughout our courtship and for most of our engagement.  It was not all that long ago, only 4.5 years ago, that our relationship started yet technology has changed so much in that time.  Eric and I each had to text using standard flip phones.  Remember having to key through to each letter and needing to start all over again if you passed it up?  Eric was so sweet and shy when it came to getting to know me so he would send me texts to test the waters so to speak.  I finally told him to just call me because as you know the old school method of texting was tedious.  And even more than that, neither of us had unlimited texting.  It only took one month of me going over on my cell phone minutes and text plan, and I switched to the same service provider as him.  Now we have fancy, shmancy smart phones and can text real fast with our QWERTY keyboards and we can video chat.  Can you imagine if we had all that when we were dating?  Now that the babies are here it is a real blessing that he can see them and talk to them.  It is so sweet watching the boys listening to his voice, looking for him and eventually realizing it is his face on the screen of the phone.

Photo credit

I bought a girly pink cover for my phone like this.

Eric and I were both commenting that the bonus of him being gone on occasion for work is that it often feels like we are dating when he calls at night.  I feel shy and goofy talking to him.  I get all nervous and excited about him coming home.  I am thankful that it causes me to not take him for granted.  It can be so easy in a marriage to take one another for granted, to get so comfortable with the day to day that we don't look at one another with the admiration and appreciation that the other person deserves.  Eric is my husband but he's also still my boyfriend. 

Breastfeeding: The Generational Divide

As the title infers, this post is going to be about breastfeeding.  If you don't care about that then you should stop reading...





...but if you're still here then it may be of interest to you because you're a mom or there is woman in your life that is breastfeeding.  I always wanted to breastfeed.  I can't really explain it but it was an important aspect of motherhood for me.  When I found out we were having twins I knew there would be an even greater challenge in breastfeeding two babies.  I met a MoM when I was pregnant that told me that she breastfed for 3.5 months before quitting.  It became too hard when she went back to work.  I remember thinking at the time, "Really, that's it? That is not very long." Now that I have been through the gauntlet of breastfeeding newborn twins myself, I understand what a challenge getting to 3.5 months really is.  I admire any woman for attempting to nurse their twins, triplets and beyond.  It can be so tough emotionally and physically.  I cried many, many times out of the frustration of bad latches and having lazy eaters.  I would watch the clock as I was in agonizing pain hoping that they were getting what they needed and trying to last as long as I could.  I was very dependent on my pump for the first three months.  My supply was not quite enough and I had to supplement.  I wondered if I should quit for my own mental and emotional health.  Ultimately my babies needed a happy and healthy mom and I wasn't sure if I was putting the idea of breastfeeding on a pedestal and making it an idol of my heart.

I trudged on however and when I went back to work pumped three times a day, every break and lunch hour, to keep my supply up.  Each month went by and it got better.  Now we have reached eight months and are going strong.  I have no immediate intent to wean the boys.  I think they will let me know as the time comes.  Nursing frequency will naturally taper off with increased solids and table food.  Eventually I will probably do the "don't ask, don't refuse" method and let the boys wean themselves. 

What I have found in the last months is that there is a generational divide when it comes to breastfeeding.  Just from personal experience, a lot of women that have not had children within the last 15-20 years are a lot more ambivalent towards breastfeeding.  Sometimes it is more than just mere ambivalence and they can act threatened that you are making a different choice than they did.  I grew up with the knowledge that breast was best when it came to the health of baby and the mother.  Women that are my grandmothers' age never even considered breastfeeding.  According to my dad's mom, there was the well-touted Similac and each expectant mom bought eight glass bottles with a metal ring holder to daily sanitize.  My grandma was not anti-breastfeeding when it came to me and my boys but I could tell she didn't get it; she had no personal experience to look back on.  My mom personally breastfed me and my brother so I had a really positive association with it.  Unfortunately my mom was not around to help encourage me in the early months with the boys because she lives in another state.  I am blessed that Eric was there for me every step of the way, if he had not I would have given up. It was and can be discouraging when older women, who in my mind should be encouraging younger women in this natural aspect of child rearing, make comments like, "Oh, you're still breastfeeding?"  Whereas younger women say it in a positive way, "You're still breastfeeding? That's awesome!" And I am not even going into the hot topic debate of nursing in public, nursing covers vs. no nursing covers, state laws, etc. 

I feel grateful that I can breastfeed my babies.  It is something I can do for them that no else can.  I enjoy the bonding that it provides.  I like knowing that I can provide the best nutrition available for them.  In saying that, I am not pushing my personal decisions on anybody.  Many women choose for a variety of reasons not to breastfeed or are not physically able to.  That is what formula is for.  Heck, I used formula to supplement.  Yay for formula!  I am simply trying to say that it is a blessing that I got this far and I feel grateful for each day I get to have a successful breastfeeding relationship with my children because it was and continues to be really important to me. 

For many women this is old info but here is why breastfeeding is the preferred nutrition for the first six months of a child's life:

• Breastfeeding saves a lot of money.  We have saved over a thousand dollars in the last eight months.  The only cost to me was my pump because I work full time. 
• The cells, hormones, and antibodies in breast milk protect babies from sickness. Formula-fed babies have higher rates of ear infection and diarrhea. Formula-fed babies also have higher risks of:
• Necrotizing enterocolitis, a disease that affects the gastrointestinal tract in preterm infants.
• Lower respiratory infections
• Asthma
• Obesity
• Type 2 diabetes
• Some research shows that breastfeeding can also reduce the risk of Type 1 diabetes, childhood leukemia, and atopic dermatitis in babies. Breastfeeding has also been shown to lower the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome).
• Breastfeeding can be good for the mother’s health too. Breastfeeding is linked to a lower risk of these health problems in women:
• Type 2 diabetes
• Breast cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Postpartum depression
• Studies show that breastfeeding mothers lose post-partum weight more quickly than women who formula feed.
• Breastfeeding releases oxytocin, the 'love hormone' that increases a sense of well-being for the mother and helps her bond with baby. 
• Breasfeeding can be vital in an emergency where water may be contaminated. It is always available in its self-renewing source. It is always the perfect temperature and can protect against hypothermia.  We take that for granted in the U.S. but breastfeeding is a life line to many babies whose mothers do not have access to clean drinking water or adequate shelter. 
• Breastfeeding benefits society.  Breastfed babies are sick less meaning their parents miss less days from work and are more productive. Medical costs are lower for babies that are breastfed.

There are so many more emotional benefits as well.  It's important to realize that our American idea of weaning is very different than world wide norms.  The WHO (World Health Organization) recommends breastfeeding for a minimum of two years.  So with that thought I will be giving my kids 'first breakfast' tomorrow morning around 6 a.m. and will be pumping for them at work tomorrow.  I took it one day at a time and am so happy we got this far. 

Saturday Busyness

Today we went grocery shopping and got all the fixings for our Thanksgiving dinner.  We also picked up paint and supplies for finishing up the dining room area.  We took the boys shopping and they were absolute dolls.  They smiled at everyone they saw.  Total time away from home was about four hours and there were no melt downs.  They pretty much missed a nap but it turned out alright.  It makes me encouraged that down the road I can take the boys on longer errand runs.  When we were out we ran into a couple that we had taken our childbirth class with and they had their identical twin girls with them.  It was so much fun trading stories for a couple of minutes and seeing their little girls.  People love babies and they especially find twins enamoring.

As of right now we have the wall almost done.  It's a color called Autumn Maple.  Perfect for Thanksgiving, right? The door is going to take a while longer because we have to take it off the frame to paint it. 

A picture is worth a thousand words, right?

Nothing too exciting happening over here.  Just getting geared up for the holiday.  It's going to be a bit of busy week with me finishing up work indefinitely and Eric going out of town for a business trip.  I am telling myself that I just need to push through till Thursday.  The good news is that I won't have to go back to work the following Monday.

Random Friday

Happy Friday Everyone!

The randomness in my head:

-Excited to go to a bridal shower tomorrow.  I have spent the last three weekends at home with the boys and am looking forward to some girl time.  We are all healthy again.  Praise the Lord!

-Finishing up the shopping list for the Thanksgiving menu.  Really looking forward to the grubbin'.

-We need to finish painting a wall in our new to us dining room.  It's the wall that had the door installed so we have to cover up the spackle job around the trim.  We are going to add some more color to the house and I am excited about finally making our place more homey. 

-We also got an entry ladder to our attic installed.  This means we can clear the garage floor and get a car back in there.  Revolutionary idea, right? 

-Trying to process that I have only have three days of work left.  Crazy.  Fortunately I am on track to finish a project that I have going. 

-We have had incredibly high winds here today.  There is a really bad fire in Reno.  Pray for the families that have lost their homes and the firefighters that are working tirelessly to stop it. 

-Sometimes I look back on my previous post and am in awe over my typos and grammar.  I try people but I am trying to crank these things out on a daily basis for NaBloPoMo and my brain is tending to shut off when I am writing these things.  I read yesterday's post and thought, "Did I really put the word 'statistcally'?  I am making up words over here!"  Really, I normally pride myself on spelling so it's a good thing to be humbled and laugh at my blunders. 

-These were my sweet boys right before bed tonight. When they are really tired they fall asleep right on the nursing pillow:

FAQs #2

Are your twins natural?  Did you have IVF or use fertility treatments?

Our twins were conceived spontaneously.  In my mind, using fertility treatments in order to conceive in no way diminishes the wonderful miracle of bringing a child into the world.  It is a super personal decision for a couple to arrive at and therefore people should not ask strangers about their reproductive choices but alas they often do.  I get asked all the time...sigh. 

Do twins run in your family?

Yes, fraternal twins run in my family.  I have cousins that are boy/girl twins and my maternal grandmother had fraternal twin brothers.  The fact that our twins are identical or monozygotic made it that much more of a surprise.  Statistically there are not higher occurrences of monozygotic twins in certain geographic regions or ethnicities like there are fraternal twins.  The research has not been conclusive if there is a genetic link to monozygotic twinning. 

Were your twins really born more than five hours apart or was that a typo on the birth announcement?

Yep, they really were born more than five hours apart and it definitely was not a typo.  Once Abraham was born, Winston who had been in the breech position flipped to the vertex position.  He had lots of room in my very distended uterus and was in no hurry to come out.  My labor was augmented with pitocin so that I did not have a significant stall in labor after delivering Abraham.  After about 2.5 hours of no real progress, I had to push Winston down in order to get him into position.  It took about another 2.5 hours of active pushing but I got my 7 lb. 9 oz. twin baby out after a posterior presentation.  If not for the pitocin, I am pretty sure they would have been born on different days and my OB actually had a couple of twin moms' whose twin babies had different birthdays.  I think people are so used to twins either being delivered by c-section or the second twin being manually extracted that they forget or don't realize that it can take quite a few hours to deliver another baby if the body is left to its own devices. 

As an aside, my dear grandma lives in a retirement community with many other Dutch emigrants.  When the boys were born she went around telling everyone the news and the boys' relevant stats.  A lady who supposedly had identical twins herself told my grandma that there was no way that our babies were identical twins because they would need to be born within minutes of each other.  My grandma got pretty indignant and told her, "My granddaughter went to college and she studied science.  I know that she knows and that's that."  Apparently it turned into a bit of a squabble and the activities director encouraged them to be more civil about it.  I love that my grandma had such confidence in my educational background but I am A&W's mother, shouldn't I be the one to know regardless?  People never cease to amaze me. 

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Mama puts hats on the boys in the morning before they head out the door. You can see how they feel about them:

 Abraham

Winston