16 weeks 5 days, OB appointment

This morning I did a little copying and typing at school and then I was off for my OB appointment. My urine, pulse and blood pressure all looked good. At 16weeks5days I've gained 17 lbs, which puts us right on track for a 20lb weight gain by 20 weeks. I 'think' the gain is a little slower this pregnancy than last, but that would be due to the sweets aversion I'm sure.

Dr. E had already received our ultrasound report and said everything looked great. He wasn't worried about the heart rates at all. He had a med student with him today and she found both heart beats quite easily with the Doppler.

I watched a friend's son this afternoon, so I only got a 15 minute nap but I'm doing OK. It was another hot day today, but weather.com keeps saying it will cool off soon.

I have to back up a bit and tell you about the fabulous burger I had last night at BJ's Brewery. The"burger of my dreams" had pepper jack cheese, caramelized onions and a garlic pepper sauce. So while perusing the burger menu I came across several delicious sounding burgers. The 'Melt' offered Cheddar and Swiss cheese with caramelized onions and a 'secret sauce'. I figured it might be close. It was still obviously missing the garlic pepper sauce but it was tasty! I had 1/2 of it last night and enjoyed the other half this morning for breakfast.

Logan had a scrimmage with his flag football team. They lost but they learned a lot to get ready for the first game this weekend and Logan even scored a touchdown. I think he's really going to enjoy being one of the older kids on the team this year.

16 weeks 4 days and the babies look GREAT!!

I had my ultrasound today and everything looked great! The babies are growing right on target with both of them measuring right around 16w4days. Baby A had a heart rate of 156 and Baby B had a heart rate of 131. I see my OB tomorrow so I'll ask about the difference in heart rates. The tech didn't seem too worried about it, but it's always nice to have a question for the Doc!

It appears as though Baby A's bum is right around Baby B's head, for now at least. Baby B was very active during the ultrasound and the tech said he (my gut, but no confirmation of this yet) was flipping several times. I guess that confirms that I am not feeling movement yet as I was VERY unaware of the flips occurring.

After the ultrasound I met Brian for lunch at a burger place downtown that people have been talking about for quite awhile and the aide at school recommended to me based on my burger 'desire'. It's a tiny little place called 'Squeeze Inn'. It seats about 10 people inside and they have a patio area out back. There's virtually no parking and the nearby businesses WILL tow your car if you park in their lots. It was not my 'dream' burger, but it's the closest thing I've tried so far. It was DELICIOUS!! They melt a ton of cheddar cheese on the burger and the edges get crispy melted. The bun was fresh, the lettuce and tomatoes were superb and they even used good sandwich pickle slices (rather than the horrible pickle chips one would expect). The fries were not great, but it was a deliciously filling burger for $5.

On the drive home I realized that the burger was missing a shake. So I stopped by In & Out for a chocolate shake. It was OK, but I was left a little disappointed as a result of my fickle sweet tooth. I made it home in time for a 30 minute nap. It wasn't quite long enough, but it sure was good.

There is no practice tonight for anyone so we're off to BJ's Brewery for one more birthday dinner and my birthday pizhookie (free on your birthday a fresh baked large cookie with ice cream on top).

What a weekend!

Saturday Ciera and Brian drove down to Stockton for the first softball tournament of our fall season. We picked up a few new players and now our girls are the 'older 12's' rather than the 'younger 12's'. They left at 7am and returned home at 8pm. Brian neglected to take a phone with him so I had to wait all day to hear how the girls were doing. Turns out they did great! They won the first 2 and tied the 3rd game. They were the number 1 seed in their pool.

Logan and I stayed home for Logan's 1:00 soccer game. They did not win, but they only had 10 players at the game so Logan didn't sit out at all. It was VERY hot (close to 100 I'm sure), but he worked hard and hung in there. He even played through a big scratch on his neck due to some large landscaping while retrieving the soccer ball. Logan got to spend Saturday night and all of Sunday at his friends house, thus avoiding a HOT day of softball on Sunday.

Since we were the 1 seed we didn't have to be in Stockton until 8:30. The morning started off nice and cool, but by the Championship game at 3:00 it was BLISTERING hot!! Fortunately we brought our pop-up so we were able to sit in shade all day, but I still somehow managed to get sunburned pretty bad! I ended up with a really bad headache, it might've even been considered a migraine. I came home, took 2 Tylenol, jumped in a cool shower and fell asleep with cool eye pads on my throbbing eyes. I was asleep by 7 and woke up Monday morning feeling MUCH better, except for the red face.

Those of you reading carefully noticed that we made it to the Championship game. This is something we had not done at all during the Spring. The girls played a great game and easily won the Championship game-their first of the season! They all got to go home with brand new Champion t-shirts.

I had a PERFECT waffle today!!

It turns out one should always follow the directions. If it says to use a whisk to combine ingredients until smooth, than don't get lazy and use a spoon instead. It made a huge difference in the 'inside' texture. It was still missing something though so I added some sugar-YUM!! The waffle of my dreams!

We made it out for dinner last night after all. Practice ended at 7:40 and we headed to Chili's (we only have a few options here in town). I knew that I wouldn't be able to get 'the burger' but they have pretty good burgers, especially when you add a little bit of the queso. I went to bed last night very satisfied.

What a nice day!

I had BIG plans of pampering myself today, but of course my plans quite often change. I had planned to get a much needed pedicure before my 1:00 lunch date. Well I came home from dropping the kids off and promptly climbed back into bed without setting the alarm. I slept from 8:30-11! No pedicure for me, there was simply not enough time to shower AND shave my legs before lunch.

I met up with a dear childhood friend that I've known since birth for lunch. I have been itching for a REALLY good burger so I googled Best burgers and Google recommended The Habit Burger Grill. It wasn't a bad burger, but it was definitely not the BEST burger in the area. Brian and I are going to try another recommendation in Downtown Sac on Monday. Keep your fingers crossed for me that I can find a burger that compares to the one in P & L's hometown. Overnighting the burger makes it one expensive craving!

So visiting with my friend was nice. We generally try to get together once a month to catch up, but the summer got away from us. After lunch I stopped by Sam's for some milk and fruit. I also picked up a mosquito eater. Logan has been complaining about the mosquitos in his room now that I open up the windows at night.

When I got home Part 2 of my gift from S & S and family had arrived. Part 1 came last week and I will confess that I did open the box early to see what was inside, but I didn't take it out or tell anyone about it, so I don't think it counts as cheating. Besides STE knew if it arrived early I wouldn't be able to help myself. I opened up both packages and got busy making my first batch of Belgian Waffles with my brand new Rotating Belgian Waffle maker. I have wanted one of these for almost 2 years, ever since we stayed at a hotel that offered 'make your own Belgian waffles'. I just need to find the perfect mix. The one I tried was a little 'thick' on the inside, but still tasty.

Soon we have flag football practice and then we'll all head to bed, hopefully early. Logan has soccer at 1 on Saturday and Ciera has her first tournament of the fall season in Stockton. I don't get to go on Saturday, but am looking forward to seeing the 'new team' play together on Sunday. Another busy weekend!

Monday morning we get another peek at the twins. I'm very excited and can't wait to see them looking like hot dog buns! Oh, and next week it's supposed to FINALLY cool off. It was actually 95 degrees out today! In fact it was so hot that the chocolate chips that came in my gift were melted into a nice solid mass of chocolate! If I was 11 I could've had a swim party for the first time ever!

Happy Birthday Cyn!!

Happy Happy Birthday Cyn-y Dear,

Happy days will come to you all year,

If I had one wish, then it would be,

a Happy Happy Birthday to you from me!

I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing, pampering yourself day!

Lunch at 16 weeks

LUNCH-minus the onions!
It still didn't stack up to my burger on my visit with P & L, but it was darn good!
Next time I'll have to switch the cheese though, American is not my favorite. My lettuce was also not that green, but the tomatoes were excellent and those pickles sticking out on the bottom, those are sweet pickles. It was an enjoyable Thursday meal after a morning of photocopying.

Catching up to do

I was going to get caught up yesterday, but then STE posted the pic of P & L and I didn't want to bump them down, but it has to be done.

Sunday was nice. Logan and I had brunch at Panera Bread while Ciera and Brian went to the final day of the Jennie Finch softball camp. Apparently Jennie Finch and her dad personally looked at all of the pitchers for their form and mechanics (how neat is that). But, they actually pulled Ciera out to have her demonstrate her pitch for the other girls because her mechanics were so good (Thank you Kristen, our pitching coach). What an incredible honor! Ciera was very embarrassed about it, but Brian and I are so proud of her (plus it's a comfort to know that she has good mechanics and is less likely to injure herself). Sunday evening we all went to Brian's parents house for my birthday dinner. Uncle Jon agreed to grill his famous 'Yoshida Burgers' for me and OH were they good!

Monday I woke up with the intention of getting the house picked up and my fall decor out. When I got home from taking the kids to school I knew that I'd need a new plan. I just felt BAD! So tired and lethargic. I watched some TV, ended up watching Vanilla Sky, and then took a 3 hour nap. I still felt pretty bad and apparently the gals at school I looked really tired as well. Monday was our only free night as a family so I had hoped maybe we'd go out to eat for my birthday, but I just couldn't talk myself into leaving the bed. Brian was sweet enough to bring me home Burger King, the only thing that even sounded ok.

Tuesday I woke up feeling MUCH better! I picked up a few things at Target, went to the bank and came home to let the cleaning ladies in. This was our first try at finding someone to come clean for me every other week. When Logan came home from school he said, "This is the cleanest our house has ever been!" (which is not entirely true, but it was sweet). While they were cleaning I was able to get out some of the fall stuff AND take a 2 1/2 hour nap! When I woke up the house was clean and I hadn't had to do anything but pick up our clutter(actually I made everyone pick up their own clutter from around the house-Monday was not a happy night for everyone). Of course, since it was Tuesday we stopped by Coldstone after school as well. I was pretty hungry all day again. I started out with a bowl of oatmeal, 2 apples with peanut butter, 2 chicken salad sandwiches, a bag of sunchips (counts as a whole grain), 2 protein shakes, a bowl of yogurt, a banana, a tangerine, 2 crunchy tacos from Taco Bell (corn shell counts as a whole grain too), a kid size Coldstone and several glasses of milk and water.

Today I woke up feeling pretty rested, but I know I've got a big day ahead of me so I'm pacing myself this morning. I'm going to watch a friend's son for a couple of hours and then my kids have a minimum day, out at 12:30. Ciera will be going to her friend's house, but I will have 5 boys at my house for a couple of hours. Then we have Open House at school and soccer practice tonight. As if it wasn't tiring enough trying to decide what to eat all day! Today has started out OK, oatmeal, and some Chicken, Rosemary, Portobello Mushroom ravioli in an Alfredo sauce with a glass of milk.

Be sure to scroll down to yesterday's post to see the pic of the first day of Preschool!

First Day of School for P and L

Well, it was last week- but P. had Roseola in the meantime so it's taken me a while to post.  Don't they look so adorable!  It just melts my heart that the bear (a gift from Logan) and the blanket accompanied them to school on the first day- and every day since.

First day went well.  L. came home and told me: goat, baby, puppy, potty, eat, jump, out - which I guess summarizes the whole day!  Today (day two) they were excited to go, but there were a few tears when I left them.  It's only 2 1/2 hours 2 days a week, and right next door - so I'm sure it won't be too traumatic.

As for the "other" twins, we're back to food analogies, they are the length of a hot dog bun- and weigh as much as a C battery (which isn't a food unless you're 2 years old).  Things are getting very exciting!

What an exhausting day!

Saturday morning Ciera and I headed to Folsom (about 40 minutes away) at 7am for a Jennie Finch Softball Camp. 7 is the time I'm usually getting up, and I was supposed to be fed, food packed and out the door at 7? Well we made it and then got to wait in the registration line for an hour.

Ciera had a great day though. She had 2 teammates in her group so she wasn't all alone out there. They had several ladies from the Olympic team coaching at 7 different stations. It was really neat to actually get coached by the ladies hanging on her walls. What an amazing group of women. The girls got Subway and Gatorade for lunch, which are two of Ciera's favorites. I got to hang out for 7 hours and read my book while trying to keep an eye on what she was doing from a distance. It was a very nice day and only got warm the last few hours.

Somehow sitting for 7 hours was exhausting for me! The drive home felt MUCH longer than 40 minutes. We stopped off at a store in Folsom to pick up new sliding shorts. We just bought sliding shorts in the spring but the girl just keeps on growing! We finally got home at 5:30. I went straight to my bed and OH did that feel good to lie down! My feet were so tired feeling that I decided a bath with my 'magic mineral salts' would be a great idea. While I waited for the water to cool Brian brought me pizza in bed and Ciera and I told him all about the camp. The bath was everything I had hoped for. I went straight to bed to finish the last few chapters of the book and then I fell asleep!

I woke up this morning starving but feeling so much more rested! Today Brian is taking Ciera to day 2 of the camp and Logan and I get to hang out at home this morning. We need to run to Staples to get some things to keep Logan better organized at school and make brownies this afternoon. Today we are celebrating my birthday with Brian's family so we'll head to his parents' house this afternoon as well.

Oh, and the book, Sister of My Heart, was a good read once I got past not knowing how to pronounce their names.

Totino's pizza, gummi bears and candy corn-oh the joy of 15 weeks!

So Thursday was much like every other Thursday. I made copies at school in the morning and got a Whopper and onion rings for lunch again. I had a lovely 2 hour nap and then picked up the kids.
Ciera had softball so that means an early dinner of pasta. I am SO sick of pasta! I added some breaded chicken tenderloins and chicken nuggets to the menu. We have about an hour between getting home from school and heading to the ball field, so it always feels a little frantic to me.

The team had another great game and Ciera got to pitch some for the first time in several months. The other parents had been raving about the 'teriyaki chicken bowls' so Logan and I shared one as a second dinner. I was NOT impressed and sadly we threw half of it away. On the drive home I knew I was going to need something else to eat and Brian hadn't eaten anything yet. Suddenly I knew, I wanted Totino's frozen pizza. You know, the really inexpensive and fairly nasty pizzas that don't really even count as pizza. So we stopped by Safeway and picked some up, along with the gummi bears I'd been thinking about for several days (we did get some apples and pears as well). The Totino's was all that I had been hoping for and I was able to go to bed happy and full.

Friday started off with a bang. Today was the day Logan could bring our dog Scamp to school to share. Of course we had to give him a bath Thursday night so he felt soft and smelled like coconuts. We were finally running low on milk, so off to Roseville I went (I try to only go once a week to conserve gas and I'm getting lazy). I turned in all of our loose change, $165 worth of loose change. I went by Trader Joe's to pick up some creamed honey to go with my corn bread and some Pumpkin bread mix (without nuts). Then to Walmart to get some Shoe Goo for Ciera's cleats, yogurt, brownie mix, pudding mix, SpaghettiO's, pasta sauce, candy corn (who eats candy corn anyhow) and some more Totino's. My final stop was Sam's Club for romaine salad mix, milk, eggs and bananas. I had meant to pick up another sweater while I was there and totally forgot.

By the time I was finished it was almost 1:00 and I was in need of lunch so I treated myself to a burger from Wendy's. The tomatoes were so fresh and delicious that I think it was a much healthier lunch choice than it sounds. After unloading and repacking the freezer I was able to get in an hour nap.

Logan had football again tonight so I took along my new book, Sister of My Heart. I actually started it this summer and lost track of it. So far I'm enjoying it. Tomorrow Ciera gets to go to the Jennie Finch Softball Camp so I figured I'd need something to read while I'm out there. It should be a fun camp. There will be several ladies from the USA Olympic Softball Team there to give instruction to the girls. Logan has soccer in the morning and I'm a little bummed that I won't get to be there. We've been fortunate to not have to miss too much of either one of their activities.

I have to confess that I need it to start cooling off soon. My 'non-maternity' capri's are starting to run out of room, especially when I'm sitting. I find I quite often have to unbutton them while sitting at the computer-perhaps I should stop doing that so much. I'm starting to get antsy about our next ultrasound. It feels like it's been forever since we last checked in to see how they're growing. I can't help but get a little nervous. Fortunately we only have to wait another 10 days.

Ooh! I'm also loving warm milk at night before bed!

Confrontation at BR explained

So I've been asked about my interpretation of my Baskin Robbins dream.

I've never really been one to remember my dreams often and I certainly don't tend to interpret or analyze them. I've found that if I'm caught up in something I will often carry it over into a boring and mundane dream.

I think the real 'moral' of this dream was holding my ground and standing up for what I know is right, regardless of how petty it may seem. I will admit that when I awoke from the dream I was SEETHING! It probably did affect my interactions with others all day-crazy hormonal pregnant woman. I will say that it did cause me to realize I needed to do something with my thoughts and take action with some things that had been bothering me. They are not 'fixed' yet, but I began the process of dealing with the issues and getting them out of my head.

I'm not sure how I ended up at Baskin Robbins though. We don't have one in town and I haven't really even been in one in a while. It does seem odd to me that Brian also had a Baskin Robbins dream that night.

Thankfully when we go to Coldstone on Tuesdays there is never anyone else there to cut in front of me in line.


As for today, I am feeling much better. I was able to get quite a bit of rest today. I started a new book last night, The Night Bird and hope to be done with it tonight. It's been a very good read and has kept me occupied most of last night and today. The kids both had friends over today so I had all afternoon to read without feeling as though I was ignoring them. I even made a complete dinner.

Tomorrow is another busy day, but it almost doesn't ever matter. Thursday's mark the beginning of a new week. We will be 15 weeks tomorrow! I'm starting to get a little antsy to feel these babies moving. I try not to get too worked up about it in fear that I'll have another boring dream that makes no sense.

Oh, and the baby ticker does seem to be looking better. They were spotted several times today not head down. I'm feeling a little better now!

baby ticker worries

The baby ticker is starting to freak me out. They've been bouncing around upside down for several weeks now. Is it OK for the blood to be rushing to their heads for such a prolonged period?

Today was basically better. I'm still tired, but that's due to a lack of sleep. Wednesday should be a great day for reading and resting. I'm hoping to finally start my new book. I've decided that I need to plan out something to eat between 2:30 and 3:00. I seem to wake up from my nap really hungry (although I ate lunch right before lying down) and I pick the kids up at 3:00, so I've been putting off getting something to eat at that time. I'm SO hungry by the time we get home that it's almost too late. If I start planning and preparing something ahead of time I can just wake up, eat and then pick up the kids. We'll see if I can stick with the new plan. I'm still having a hard time coming up with stuff I want to eat. Nothing is screaming at me!

I slept pretty bad last night. I've got some stuff rattling around in my head and I think it affected m y sleep last night. I had a really bizarre dream involving the Baskin Robbins employee. Somebody cut in front of me in the Baskin Robbins line and the employee refused to acknowledge that I was next in line. I refused to leave until she admitted that she was wrong. I recall being VERY upset and the employee just would not admit that she was wrong. I wanted her to check the surveilance video and she wouldn't. Meanwhile MANY people have now gotten their ice cream and I am still waiting to place my order-which I won't do until the employee eithehr admits she was wrong or is off work. I woke up still at a stale mate. I think waking to this dream put me in a bit of a confrontational mood today.

I made some oatmeal for breakfast and got everyone to school on time. I did some grading, copying and scholastic book order stuff this morning. I was able to get a nap from 1:30-2:30 and then we headed to Coldstone for our Tuesday ice cream. Ciera is still only getting the strawberry, mango, banana sorbet but Logan is branching out and trying new creations. Today he had marshmallow and cotton candy with gummi bears-I can't think of a worse combo, but he loved it.

Logan has football tonight and I've got a softball board meeting. Unfortunately it will probably be a long meeting! Thank goodness I planned a rest day for Wednesday (which wasn't an accident-I try to plan 'rest days' after I have a busy day).

SO thirsty, hungry and tired today!

I think the babies must've had a growth spurt today. I have been so thirsty and absolutely starving all day. I slept for 2 1/2 hours today and I'm still fighting to stay awake tonight!

My bladder is now in overdrive. I've been waking once in the night to go and last night I was up MANY times. I also had to get up during my nap-and that's just not nice.

Off to bed and hoping for more energy tomorrow!

Birthdays, birthdays, birthdays!!

Saturday Logan had a 9am soccer game and we were off and running for the day. The boys played a great game and hung in there with the #1 team in the age division. They didn't give up and they learned a lot!

After the game we had just enough time for Ciera to go pitch and for me to finish making the spinach dip and get presents wrapped up. Then we were on our way to my baby brother's little girl's 2nd birthday. In July they moved a little further up the hill to a house rather than an apartment. It's been a lot of work, but they all seem to be enjoying have some space and no neighbors! My niece, Dorothy, has gotten SO big and had such a great time with all of her cousins (she has many young cousins on her mom's side). It was so neat to see my brother so grown up and hosting a party so well. The food was great and he made sure to visit with everyone as well as play with his little girl.

After cake and presents we headed back down the hill (about 30 minutes to get home). We stopped and picked up Ciera's softball friend to come stay the night. When we got home Brian and Logan had about an hour to rest before heading off to Brian's sister's son, Steven's party. When they returned home 4 hours later it was clear that Logan had a blast playing football and games with the 11 & 12 year old boys.

For dinner the girls' wanted to go to a buffet, so that meant Chinese here. It's clear that the babies are still not ready for Chinese. There just wasn't anything other than egg rolls that had much appeal. I did manage to eat plenty of chicken, rice, green beans, zucchini and mushrooms though. I just have no desire to go back anytime soon.

The girls and I watched Penelope and The Wedding Singer and then they were off to bed. In all honesty, they brushed their teeth and were instructed to play/talk quietly in bed but to turn off the light and stop talking at 11. I went to bed trusting them to eventually be asleep by midnight and I was OUT! I did not get my nap for the day.

On Sunday the girls had softball practice so we were all up and out of the house by 8am! They both got up well though so I guess they did OK going to bed at 11:30. After almost 4 hours of practice we headed to Barnes and Noble to pick a nonfiction book for Logan to read for his next book report. For a child who insists he doesn't like baseball, he was very excited to get a Babe Ruth book. We stopped at Togo's, Rubio's and Panda Express to get some lunch. Anyone care to guess which place I ordered food from?

Logan and I got dropped off at home and then Ciera and Brian headed back out for a pitching and hitting lesson. That's right, that raises the softball practice time to 5 1/2 hours for Ciera today. When she got back home she was BEAT!! I guess that was enough practice for one day. She's been lying on my bed since she got home.

When I was shopping on Friday BLT's sounded good. I bought everything we'd need and we finally got a chance to make them. Dinner was good with some Turkey, avocado and cheese added in as well. I also finally got to have my cottage cheese with Cheeze-Its. And I still can't get enough milk. We are going through 4 gallons of milk in about a week and I don't think the kids are drinking much of it.

I think we may all be in bed by 9:00 tonight! Tomorrow everything starts again!

A great find!

Today I finally made it to Costco. I'd been trying to get there for several weeks and it just never worked out. On a previous visit Logan and I had sampled some Turkey burgers on Ciabatta rolls and we loved them. I was planning to pick some up today. I was quite surprised to find them in the refrigerated section near the fresh pasta, already precooked! They are Turkey with Swiss cheese and caramelized onions. We had them for dinner tonight and they really were a snap to prepare. Everyone enjoyed them as well. Definitely worth the price paid. So check them out sometime.

While I was out I stopped by Old Navy and found maternity jeans clearance priced for only $10. I was able to find a few pair in my current size to get me through until my 'big pants' fit.

After school Ciera and I went to Target to get a few birthday gifts. My niece turned 2 this week and my nephew turned 12! Logan had football and they learned some plays. It always amazes me that they are able to run actual plays at 8 & 9 years old.

I had to get gas tonight and lucked into a special price of $3.29 per gallon. I came home and made spinach dip for my niece's party tomorrow. While slicing the green onions I got careless with my mandolin and sliced my finger. It's unbelievable how much a fingertip can bleed! Now I just have to finish up some laundry and I can go to bed. We have soccer in the morning so there will not be much sleeping in.

14 weeks!

Well I hope everyone can see the belly forming. It is feeling quite obvious to me now. If you look closely you will see my burn on my right, arm-muffin baking accident. I was attacked by gas pains again Thursday night. What seems odd to me is that I'm gas free all day until the evening.

I did my Thursday copying and then corrected math papers for an hour. When I left the school I was starving, despite all the snacks I had brought. I knew I'd never make it the 5 minutes home and then have to fix something, so I drove 2 minutes to the Burger King drive through. The babies loved a Whopper with no onions and a small order of onion rings. I probably shouldn't have eaten it all, I felt a little too full during my afternoon nap.

After school Logan finished up his book report, Ciera finished up her math, I threw some pasta with meat & cheese sauce together for dinner and we were off for our first softball game since July. On Thursday nights Ciera's team plays in a practice league. We play a game a week with one umpire, but they're just practice games. Nothing depends on the results and the coaches are free to sub around and try things out.

When we got home at 8:30 I was beat! I had just enough in me to get this picture taken for posterity before planting myself in bed for the evening with a glass of milk and 4 nutter butters (not what I really wanted, but I'd lost my window for powdered donuts).

A pretty good day!

Today wasn't too bad. I got some laundry done, got the house picked up (which is a huge feat), finished up the Scholastic book order AND managed to get a 1 1/2 hour nap before picking up the kids.

Logan had soccer tonight and a scrimmage. They actually didn't do too bad. I had a softball meeting, but it ended early and I was still home in time to say goodnight to the kids.

I don't know what it was I ate today, but my stomach has been aching from gas pains all night.

I've been waiting for almost 2 weeks for a package from Old Navy. It finally arrived today and I am so pleased to have received some maternity jeans with room for the growth that I know I'll need. I'm even pleased with the dress I ordered. If only I'd had it a few weeks ago when I needed a dress to wear. So now I just need it to cool off enough to wear jeans.

And in honor of the babies becoming the size of taco shells, we had tacos for dinner instead of enchiladas. YUM!!

What's up with this calendar!

Today my birth countdown calendar says the babies are about as long as a taco shell.  First rice, then cheese, now tacos...it's like Logan wrote it or something!  :)

Though- maybe it does explain Cyn's craving for Mexican food...

I survived the apple orchard

Today was the first field trip of the year and I survived-although I'm beat for not having had my nap. We got to try peaches, several apples and an apple/pear hybrid that was utterly horrible-even Logan agreed.

After school we went to Coldstone for our weekly ice cream. Tuesday is buy 1 get 1 free kids scoop. So I figured we'll go every week until we run out of money on the gift card. The gal working actually recognized us this week.

Logan had his first flag football practice tonight and he had a great time. There are 3 kids on his team from last year and he has the same coach as well (which is good since Logan really liked him).

I'm just about ready to fall into bed. Tomorrow should be a much less physical day.

FINALLY finished the Twilight Saga!

I pried the 4th book out of Ciera's hands around 10:30 and was determined to finish before going to bed. By 1:00 am I had finished the book!!

Monday morning came far too early. I had the toughest time opening my eyes! I just had to stay awake for 1 1/2 hours and then I could climb back in bed. I got the kids showered and off to school on time (we haven't been late yet). I returned home and climbed back in bed at 8:21. I had to set the alarm for 11 because I promised the kids hot mac & cheese for lunch. I just could not get myself to focus on making anything this morning. I slept soundly until 10:45.

After getting some lunch for everyone and replying to a ton of e-mails today (softball drama) I stumbled upon Ciera's open tab with the draft to Midnight Sun (the retelling of the 1st book, Twilight, through Edward's perspective). I hadn't been planning to read it, but it was there and double spaced and just too hard to resist. Around 1:30 I began to feel drowsy again. I was able to nap from 1:30 - 2:30 before having to pick up the kids.

The afternoon was spent reading the draft and making muffins for Logan to take to school on Tuesday for snack. Logan had soccer tonight at 6:30, but right around 5 he got his fingers smashed in the door. We're fortunate that this is the first time something like this has happened. He was quite upset and there was really nothing we could do for him. Finally around 6:45 he decided he could go to soccer, since he wouldn't need to use his hands much. Once he got there he seemed to forget all about his throbbing fingers and he practiced hard and appeared to have a lot of fun with his teammates.

Thankfully the entire book is not available to read, so I was able to finish up with the draft at a reasonable time. We have a field trip tomorrow and those generally exhaust me without being pregnant. We shall see....

It's been a LONG 3 days!

The last 3 days have been full of activity and reading, not nearly enough sleep. I'm almost done with the 4th book of the series though and can soon start sleeping again.

Friday was a very nice, but busy day. I got to have lunch with a friend (yes, two lunches in 1 week) and we had a wonderful visit. We went to Panera Bread and I had a delicious turkey and artichoke sandwich. After school we all went down to my in-laws to celebrate my nephews 12th birthday. We had breaded pork chops (which is one of my favorites), mashed potatoes and corn. The worst part about celebrating my nephews birthdays is that it's the last reminder that in 3 short months Ciera will also be the same outrageously grown up age!

Friday night I stayed up to finish the 3rd book. Ciera was in the middle of the 4th book and I knew that it would be tricky for us both to read it at the same time. Fortunately for me she was invited to a friend's house for the day on Saturday. The hope was to read all day and be finished by the time she went to bed Saturday night.

On Saturday Logan had his first soccer game of the year. Logan has a fantastic coach this year and although the boys didn't win, as parents Brian and I were very pleased with how it went. It was a 10:15 game so we thought it might not be too hot. This was the most difficult day to get through EVER!! It didn't seem like our room would ever cool down and the AC was on all day! I desperately wanted to read the 4th book but my body was just so hot and tired all I could do was sleep fitfully in between taking cold showers to cool off. Finally the house cooled off some by the evening and I was able to stay up far too late reading (but not late enough to finish).

Sunday Ciera had softball practice and I had plans to have lunch with some other local surrogates. Since we'd need both cars to accommodate my lunch I chose to stay home and read some more, hoping to finish. Time got away from me before I could finish though. Lunch was wonderful though. It was a great visit and the food was exactly what I had hoped for. On the Border rarely disappoints me. The reason for this lunch was that a surro from the Chico area delivered about a month ago and agreed to pump breast milk for the twins. She was bringing it down so we could store it until the birth. We are so fortunate to have such a great beginning supply to take the pressure of both myself and STE to produce amazing amounts of milk immediately. Big thanks go out to Trisha!!

Ciera and I have shared the book back and forth this evening and it's currently her turn before going to bed. I'm not sure what to do if I don't get it finished tonight. She usually takes it to school with her to read when she finishes her work. I'm hoping to just stay up and finish and sleep all day tomorrow. We'll see if I can make it. These babies have a way of changing my plans.

But overall I'm feeling pretty darn good. I'm branching out and including more foods back into my diet and the babies have even demanded peanut M&M's a few times.

The week coming up is pretty busy so I'm hoping to just get through it, next week looks a little better. Logan starts flag football practices this week and Ciera starts her Thursday night games. So if you've been paying attention you'll note that we now have Soccer practice on M, W, football on Tues, F, softball on Thurs., soccer games on Sat. and softball practice on Sundays. Somewhere in there we still have to pick a day for pitching and hitting lessons (that means Logan loses out on both Brian and I being at all of his practices). I'm sure it will work out, it just sounds like a lot. But really it gets worse in October when Logan also has football games on Saturdays and Ciera has tournaments on Saturdays and Sundays.

This pregnancy is going to fly by!!

13 weeks and officially released!

Well I have been officially released from our fertility clinic. I am now 100% under the care of my OB. I've been off meds for a week and my progesterone level is still at a 35, which is where it should be.

I have been having some 'odd' sensations below my belly button since at least last night. I'm not actually crazy enough to believe it's movement (as it's still a little early for that), but I am crazy enough to keep my hands on my belly every time I lie down, just in case. It's a little odd to feel 'in tune' with my body as I generally am so unaware of everything in my body. I guess I'm just eager to feel these babies move. I REALLY hope their mom and dad get to feel them move this time.

I stayed up WAY too late last night reading New Moon, but it was so worth it to finish it off this morning. I of course crashed this afternoon and slept hard until my alarm woke me up to pick up the kids. My legs are also feeling the lack of sleep.

Ciera had an orthodontist appointment today. We've been waiting for a few years for the Dr. to think it was the right time for braces. Today was the day, unfortunately Ciera is not as excited as she was 2 years ago. I'm thinking we may wait to put them on until after Halloween. One last chance to eat 'off-limits' candy. We didn't get the cost estimate today, so we can walk around blissfully unaware of just how much braces will cost and just how little our insurance actually pays.

I didn't get to the store for rolls for the leftover pork, so I think it will be fend for yourself night tonight. I did have a food breakthrough this week and I've had pancakes and oatmeal for breakfast. I'm hopeful that in another week or so I can get back to my morning eggs.

Speaking of food, I don't think I mentioned the fabulous burgers we had during my visit! I can't actually get the taste out of my memory and I'm trying to think of where I can go that might come close to duplicating such a great burger.

Today being Thursday I made copies and did some more typing at school. I was back home in less than 1 1/2 hours. I didn't even have to eat a snack while I was there.

Crock pot Pork Tenderloin

This one is incredibly easy and we're always surprised at how good and moist it is.

1 small pork tenderloin roast (or sliced pork chops/roast)
1 can diced 'flavored' tomatoes (I've used Chili ready tomatoes and Italian herb tomatoes)

Pour the can over the meat and leave all day on Low heat in the crock pot. About an hour before dinner I was able to shred the meat with a fork and 'soak' it with the sauce.

I think we may try the leftovers on rolls tonight.
I'm also thinking this would probably work with bar-b-cue sauce and might just be delicious.

Mushroom Patties?

Mushroom patties was closest my family came to meatloaf. My mother had as much trouble giving me a recipe for this as my MIL had giving me an exact recipe for her meatloaf. I'm more of an exact measurement type gal, so I needed it broken down for me.

1 lb ground meat (beef or turkey-1/2 and 1/2 is great too)
3 eggs
7 shakes salt
7 shakes pepper
3/4 cups bread crumbs
1/2-3/4 diced onion (or my Onion Onion spice so Logan doesn't know we're having onions)

Mix together ( I wear plastic gloves because I don't care to touch raw meat or eggs)
Form into patties and put in frying pan
Brown both sides
Add a can of Cream of Mushroom, reduce heat, cover and let simmer until the meat is cooked all the way through. (I probably should've used 2 cans so I could make the green beans a little saucier after I cooked the meat).

12 weeks 6 days!

I can hardly believe that tomorrow we will be 13 weeks along. That means we are officially in the second trimester (unless you believe the sites that say 14 weeks).

I was able to accomplish most of my goals today. I had my last blood draw today and I'm med free (I just have to remember to take my prenatal, folic acid and aspirin daily). I had a wonderful lunch with a longtime friend and the cupboards have been restocked.

I was even able to make a 'real' dinner for the second night in a row. Last night we had mushroom patties with mashed potatoes and green beans. Tonight we had crock pot pork roast, wild rice and corn bread. I meant to add a vegetable, but I ran out of time before Ciera and Brian had to head off for her softball lessons. Logan and I have soccer in a few minutes as well.

I started the follow-up book to Twilight, New Moon. I'm a little afraid to let myself really start reading it yet, as I'm hoping to get some good sleep tonight. I tend to have really vivid, wacky dreams anyhow, but I feel like the pregnancy is really intensifying them. I had spent most of Tuesday reading the Time Traveler's Wife and all I could think about all night while trying to sleep was the darn book and the text.

Shhhh - Don't tell Logan...

But my calendar today says that the babies are about 1 oz, the weight of a slice of cheese. After Logan's "bite-sized" conversation (here), I'm not sure we want to advertise this too much!

We had a great visit with Cyn. P&L were charming, and it was so fun to introduce Cyn and then make our "announcement" at the same time. Yay Babies, Yay Cyn!!

Almost recuperated from my visit!

I have been home for almost 24 hours now and I'm almost back in the swing of things here again. I had a fabulous time visiting with everyone. It is always so wonderful to see everyone so happy and in love with the twins. I can hardly believe how big they've gotten. It was amazing to see how well they play independently at only 2 years old and it was a delight to watch them interact with each other.

I hope to get the pictures downloaded tomorrow or Thursday, but I immensely enjoyed myself.

I finished up Twilight the day I arrived and I was introduced to The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. I was able to finish it off today between naps and feedings. It was as good as was promised. I did have a tough time reading a few of the last chapters with the blinding tears, but it was definitely worth giving up a day of productivity.

Ciera and Logan had a great time while I was gone. I remember when I couldn't leave their sides for 30 minutes and now I can be gone for 4 days and no one notices. Logan spend Saturday, Sunday and Monday with his cousin and had a blast. There was lots of soccer and softball, playing with friends and eating out. I was finally able to get some love from Logan by bedtime tonight.

Tomorrow will be a reality check. Another busy day of errands, practices and lunch with a friend.