Fall Fun!

Pretty much since the babies were born, we've had someone visiting our house (usually grandparents!) for the weekend or day. This weekend, Nonna and Poppa visited from Crossvegas. They came up on Thurs. night, which was great because I had parent/teacher conferences and Chris had a terrible headache, so they were able to watch the babies. Then, on Friday, Uncle Do went to school with me and Nonna and Poppa stayed at home with the babies. It was great! Uncle Do helped me get a TON of stuff done at work (since I have been leaving pretty much as soon as the bell rings lately!) and I didn't have to worry about the babies at all. On Saturday, we went to the local pumpkin patch and picked out some cute pumpkins for our porch. We got a daddy, mommy and two baby pumpkins. It was very windy out, but we managed to get a few pictures. Then we had lunch a did a little shopping at the Avenue. All in all it was a great weekend.



On a related note, I went back to work this week and the babies started daycare. I really like where we have them. It is a relief not to have to worry about them. Of course I wonder what they are doing throughout the day, but I don't have to worry if their diaper is getting changed or not. I had a pretty good week at school, minus two small incidents on Tues. I really like my class this year, so that is something positive. When I got back, I remembered how much I really do love my job!

Chili's Gang (I'm trying to beat Clarissa to the punch!)

So for a couple of years now, my teacher friends and I get together on the occasion Friday after school. We started it when we all worked at Waldron and since the schools split, we have kept it up. It is so good to get together with friends and hear about all the fun things happening at their school. Usually they know the things that are going on at our school before we do!!! Last year was quite hilarious as all the preggos were there eating oh so much Molten Lava Cake.
This was the first meeting of the year for this school year. I'm still on maternity leave, but I was not about to miss a get together with friends. I brought my two kiddos and Clarissa brought Jackson. The twins and Jackson share a birthday. I was shocked at how big Jackson was!!! He is exactly the same age as my twins and he weighs 14 pounds!!!!! That's even bigger than Eliza who was born two months earlier. Hopefully the next time we get together, we can have Eliza, Holland,Clare and Cullen there too! What a fun little play group we would have!!

Too Cute!

How adorable is this little picture??? I love it. It is sooo cute. I love that they are holding hands!! Not much to blog about. I just wanted to share this picture of my adorable children!

2 month check-up

I cannot believe that my babies are two months old! Wow...these past two months have flown by. Yesterday we had our two month check up with the Dr. For those of you that don't know, babies get shots at two months. It was not so fun. It was quite heartbreaking to hear those little cries. Not only was it done once, but twice. Jake went first and then Emmy. We scooped them up as soon as it was over and gave them a bottle, which made them feel a little better. They were pretty much conked out for the rest of the night.

Jake now weighs 9lbs. 8 oz. and Emmy weighs 8lbs. 9 oz. They are both about 21 inches long. Emmy isn't gaining weight quite as well as her brother, so we're adding some rice cereal to her last bottle. Hopefully, that will put some weight on. Overall, they are doing well. They are cooing and smiling and grasping at things already. Here are some pictures from a little photo shoot we did over the weekend.

I said it's great to be....

a mommy! I know you all though I would say a Tennessee Vol, but alas, no. It is very sad to be a Tennessee Vol as of late. Tennessee football has been such a disappointment so far this season. Titans football on the other hand has been very exciting.
Back to the Vols....I bought these cute little outfits for the kiddos long before they were born and we put them on them before the Florida game. Daddy said if we win, they have to wear them every Sat. Oh well....I guess that's the end of those outfits. We do have Titans outfits, but they are way too big right now.
For those of you that keep up with us, we have another doctor appointment tomorrow. The twins have to get shots, so daddy is going with us this time. I do not want to see my kiddos get shots (sniff, sniff).
The countdown is on for me returning to work. I go back in three weeks. I have been working on lesson plans while I have been off. I've been working on a unit for the book The Bad Beginning. It would normally take me about 2 days to do it, but with the twins, it's taken me about 4 weeks! I'm a little apprehensive about returning to work for a lot of reasons, but I'm sure once we get into a schedule, it will be o.k.


I'll update more tomorrow when we get back from the dr! For now, here are some photos for your viewing pleasure!

Labor Day Festivities

Well, since Chris was off for Labor Day, we decided to trek to Knoxville for the babies' first visit with grandparents' houses. We thought we were going to get a good start because Chris got home around 2:00 the Friday before. I had just fed the kids, so it was a good time to go. By the time we got everything loaded up in the car, it was time to feed again, so we had to wait for that. Then we finally took off. Jake was not happy, so we stopped in Lebanon to check his diaper. He finally calmed down after that. As we started off again, we hit a HUGE traffic jam. It took us about an hour to go 9 miles. Of course, Emmy started to scream. We assumed this was because she was hungry and the car wasn't moving anymore. We got off at the first exit we could to feed the babies. I had a bottle, so I fed Emmy and Chris gave Jake a bottle. When we got the babies out, we saw what Emmy was screaming about. She had the biggest blow-out I have ever seen. She had poop all over the place! It was all in her car seat and even in her ear! I had to give her a baby wipe bath in the McDonald's parking lot. Soon, we were on our way again. We traveled back roads for a little while to get out of the traffic, which we managed to do. It was about 11:00 p.m. when we got home. Needless to say, what would normally be 3 hours at most took about 5. It was not too fun.

The next day, Chris went to visit his family and I took the babies to see my Nanu. Everyone enjoyed seeing the babies. They were held and spoiled the whole entire time. I was so glad that Nanu got to see the babies. We got a lot of good pictures with the babies.




Then on Sunday, we headed to Crossville to visit with my Granny and the other side of the family. They were having a cookout at my Aunt Betty's house, so we visited Granny and then went to the cookout. Everyone enjoyed seeing the babies there as well. My only complaint was that it was outrageously hot. The babies were passed around to all kinds of people and they were extremely hot, which is pretty uncommon, so we left after visiting for a few hours. The twins and I feel asleep on the way home. In fact, Chris has a pretty incriminating picture of me sleeping. By the time we got to Grammy's that night, we were all exhausted. The babies slept well and Chris and I did too.






Finally, on Monday, Chris visited his family a little more and the babies and I hung out with Grammy and Poppaw. Soon, we were on our way back to Smyrna. The babies slept the whole way home, so we were afraid that they might not sleep that night, but that was definitely not the case. In fact, they slept the best they had. Jake slept pretty much all night and it scared me to death! I'm just not used to it (but I'm getting there


All in all, it was an exhausting, but enjoyable weekend. We had a great time visiting with family and everyone loved seeing the babies.

Six Weeks Old!!!

I can't believe the babies are six weeks old. They have changed so much since they were born. They are starting to make lots of cooing noises, which Chris and I just love to hear. It is quite amazing how much they have grown. Jake now weighs more than his sister (finally!). He weighs 7 lbs. 9 oz and Emmy weighs 7 lbs 7 oz. Must be all that breastmilk! I have thoroughly enjoyed being home with them. Although some of this time is unpaid, it has been worth every penny. Your life really does change when you have kids and you can't really remember your life before them.



In addition to the cooing sounds, the babies are close to sleeping through the night. They are only waking up once at night now instead of twice. They can usually sleep from about 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.


I have about 5 more weeks until I go back to work. I am dreading leaving them all day, but I do have to go back to work and I know they won't remember this time, since so much of it is spent sleeping!


It's such a wonderful thing to be a parent. I was beginning to think I wouldn't get to experience it. I am so blessed and grateful to God for giving me these wonderful little miracles to take care of. I only hope I can do the very best things for them!

A Birthday Surprise!!

At the end of August, Erin's husband, Brandon, planned a surprise party for her 30th birthday. He did a great job planning because she had no idea we were all going to be there. She was quite startled when she came into her pitch black basement and we all yelled surprise. It was great to visit with friends and everyone loved seeing the babies. Eliza and Emmy enjoyed playing together (well, sitting and crying together) and Erin and I had a nice time catching up. We had wonderful food (thanks to Brandon) and great cake. Emmy was upset when we left, so she cried the whole way home. I think she wanted to sleep over at Eliza's house for her first slumber party!!! We had a great time. Here are some pictures from the event.







PS The babies turned one month old last week. I'll have pictures and a blog about that soon. Keep checking!

Three Weeks Old!

It's hard to believe that the twins are three weeks old! Everyday brings something new. It is so neat to see the little smiles (even though I know it's just gas for now) and to hear all the little sounds they make (even the cries).
We have been visiting Dr. Rosser once a week, per his request, to be weighed. He has twins, so he knows how important it is to make sure they are putting on weight. When we left the hospital, Jake had dropped from 6 lbs. 3 oz to 5 lbs. 8 oz. Now, three weeks after birth, he has surpassed his birth weight and is up to 6 lbs. 8 oz. He still is no match for his sister who was 6 lbs. 11 oz. at birth, but dropped to 5 lbs. 15 oz before we came home. She has put on the weight and is now at 6 lbs. 15
oz.



Parenthood is truly the hardest, but most rewarding job ever. Chris and I are enjoying every single second because we know just how fast it goes. These past three weeks are the proof!

A field trip

Last week, the twinkies and I took a little field trip to LLE and RWS. I know, field trips are supposed to be AWAY from school, not to a school. It was a teacher work day, so all the teachers would be there, but no kids! I wanted to show the kids off, but I didn't want a lot of germs around, so I figured that would be the best day.

Everyone was really excited to see the twins. They were quite popular! The fourth grade teachers took turns holding and playing with the babies while I visited with Erin and helped all the EA's work on my room. The sub I was originally had planned backed out, so Mr. McCann had to hire someone new. Everyone did a great job working on my room. Erin worked on my room instead of her own, which was so sweet if her.

After we visited at LLE, we drove down the street to visit at RWS. We didn't see as many people there, just Stephanie, Jennifer, and Surles. Surles and I compared noted on raising twins (his were born in June). Clarissa called Stephanie while I was there, so it was nice to hear from her too!

All in all, it was a great day! We were out and about for the majority of the day and the kids did wonderful!! Surprisingly, I am doing well with the navigation of twins and all their gear! We're going to Knoxville for Labor Day, so well see how well I navigate that.

Here are some pictures from our little field trip.

Life with Twins

Life with newborn twins has been quite exciting! We had our twin babies, Jake and Emmy on Tuesday, July 22nd. Both were born at 9:49 a.m., within seconds of each other. Jake came out first and Emmy followed very shortly after. Jake weighed in at 6 lbs. 3 oz. and Emmy was a whopping 6 lbs. 11 oz. That was quite a lot of baby! They both had a little difficulty feeding at the hospital and lost some weight. We're working on adding that back on. We left on Friday and enjoyed a somewhat quiet night at home. From that point on, each night has been different!
Chris returned to work on the Tuesday after we went home. This day was quite difficult for me, even though I had help. Hormones from pregnancy and childbirth can be a beast!!!
We've had a few visitors that have enjoyed seeing the babies. Mostly family has been by, but also the girls I work with. Erin brought Eliza by to "play" with the babies in the hospital and after we got home. Then Beth, Melanie, and Melissa came by to visit as well.
We are loving learning all about the babies. They each have such a different personalities. Jake is laid back and very quick to inform us when something is amiss, like when he needs a diaper change or is hungry. Emmy is high maintenance and is such a daddy's girl! She loves when Chris rocks or holds her. It has been a blast so far and we're both enjoying every little minute because we know it will fly by before we know it!

More Doctor Fun!

So I had quite an exciting weekend. I was supposed to have an NST test on Fri., which I did go to, but not with my regular dr. It was with the "practice nurse," which I can honestly say I will NEVER do again. She wasn't happy with how Emmy was responding to the test, so she sent me over to Labor and Delivery for an ultrasound....GRRRR. I should have said no right then, but I didn't. So off we go to L&D. I get hooked up there and hang around for a few hours. Then I finally have an ultrasound. Then I think I should get to go home, right? WRONG. I have to stay and eat and then they have to monitor my blood sugar, which is two hours after I eat. After that they inform me that I am having monster contractions, which I cannot feel at all, so they want to keep me over night.....I WAS SOOOOOOO MAD!!!

Anyway, I finally got to go home the next morning, so I slept most of the day on Saturday, seeing as how those hospital beds are none to comfortable.

Yesterday, mom and I went downtown for ANOTHER ultrasound to check out Emmy's head. It is a little oblong, but it's only because she is squished up next to her brother. Everything else is fine, so thanks to all of you who said a little prayer!
We also learned that she is a whole pound bigger than her brother (she's almost six pounds, he's almost five-So for those of you keeping track, I'm carrying 11 pounds of baby).

I go see my regular dr. on Thurs. and we're not too sure how much longer he will let me go, so the babies could be here soon!

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

Latest Dr. Appointment

So I went to the dr. yesterday and found out some very good things! The babies are five pounds each and I'm not dialated at all. My dr. is going out of town this week, so that is very good. I definitely do not want to have these babies without him!

He also noticed that Emmy's head is slightly oval and he is sending me to have another scan at a maternal fetal group in Nashville. This could mean a few things. She could just be squished and since babies bones are softer, that would make her head oblong. It could also mean that she just has an oval head. Most people don't have a perfectly circular head anyway, right? The worst case scenario is that it is an indicator of spinal cord issues and neural damage. The dr. doesn't think this is the case because we would have caught it before 34 weeks. It still doesn't make a momma feel any better. I can't get in to see the other dr. until next Monday, so I have a week to wait, which is agony.

This is very stressful, just because we don't know things right now and we have to wait, which is difficult.

I just wanted to update everyone and ask for prayers for our little Emmy.

Old Men on the Block

O.K.....So I was watching t.v. the other morning and this came on VH1. How funny! I almost fell off the bed (not a good practice for someone in my condition). I have to say that I, like oh so many my age, did indeed love the New Kids. I was slightly disappointed in this video for several reasons. Number One: it's about a particular season, so you know it will be played every summer for the until kingdom come. I mean really, look at Will Smith's Summertime. That song is three days older than dirt and I heard it the other day on the radio, just because it's that time of year. Brilliant move New Kids. Number Two: Where are the snappy dance moves? I was very saddened just to see a little arm movement floating around (very reminiscent of the Hangin' Tough video). I assume the moves are missing due to the geriatric nature of the gentlemen by now. I mean, come on, they must be pushing forty at least. What a trip down memory lane. It did take me back to middle school at least!

Father's Day

So, technically, Chris isn't a father yet, but he can feel the babies kick him and they are already draining his wallet, so I figured that alone made him worthy of Father's day gifts. We'll call it a pre-fatherhood father's day. After breakfast, I gave Chris his gifts, which included a cute little book that he can read to the twins called, I Love My Daddy Because. It's a cute little book that shows animal babies and their fathers and says all the reasons why daddies are great. I also got him a video camera case for his new "Daddy Cam." Finally, I got him a cute little t-shirt that says, "Real Men have Twins," which he wore with pride.
After that my parents came up to get Chellee, whom we had been dogsitting, and we went to Opry to look for two outfits to have the kiddos pictures made in. We were not very successful, because we are pretty sure they are going to need preemie size.
On Saturday, my dad, stepmom, and brother came up to see our new house. Then they took us to lunch at Jim and Nick's.
It was really nice to see all the dads in my life on one weekend! I can't wait until next father's day when the twinkies will be here to help us celebrate as well.

More Proof that I need a medical degree!

In my previous blog, I forgot to mention that I have been testing my blood sugar as well, which is oh so fun. I have to test four times a day by sticking myself with a tiny needle and then putting my blood on this little testing strip. I take medicine to keep everything stable, but sometimes it doesn't quite work out so well. Occasionally, my blood sugar gets too low and I get sick, or it gets too high and guess what? That makes me sick too. It's quite common for moms of multiples to have gestational diabetes because of all the hormones swirling around in there. Fun times!

Can I Also have a Medical Degree?

So, as many of you know, I just received my Masters degree in Education, which was quite a task considering my condition! It was quite difficult to make it through this last semester with the twins, but I am so glad that I pushed on through. By far, this was the most difficult semester. Melissa and I had such a horrible professor (but that's an entirely different blog). Anyway, since I am progressing further along in this pregnancy, Dr. Castelli has asked that I come in twice a week now. Once a week I have an NST test and the other time, I have an ultrasound. An NST test occurs when I am hooked up to the fetal monitors (one for each baby) and also a monitor to watch for contractions. At this point, I think I can hook myself up to the monitors and read them correctly. I know how to fix it when the babies move and the monitor no longer reads the heart beats. I am also learning what all kinds of things mean (BPP for instance is an ultrasound that just tells the basic facts about the little ones). So for that reason, I think that after this pregnancy is over, I would like my medical degree in obstetrics please! Perhaps I would make more money and then I could afford to take more maternity leave!

P.S. Stephanie enjoy reading....I'm trying to do better.

Eliza Grace!

I am so excited to announce that Eliza Grace is here. Erin went to the hospital the day school got out early and then little Eliza came the very next day. She is so adorable. She has been doing remarkably well. Erin, too, has been doing well. I'm glad she's going through all this stuff first so she can offer me tips and tricks!

Two Preggos!

It is so very cool that Erin and I are preggo at the same time! Who would have thought? And, no we didn't plan it (we get that a lot). You can see that I am getting vast in this picture, but Erin is hardly showing at all! I have to say that she has popped out there these past two weeks, but she is still so tiny!

It is also quite exciting that a bunch of people we know are expecting right now. There are three of us at work. Clarissa and I are a mere two weeks apart and Surles and his wife are also having twins. The Chili's gang is expanding quite quickly. We need a picture of all the preggos (although Bates is no longer preggo! Her baby is already here). It is very fun to experience such a neat time with a lot of good friends!

Baby Bedding

Here is the bedding we have picked out for the nursery. It was VERY difficult to choose something for both boy and girl, but I love this bedding. It is very appropriate since I am a teacher! We have a white crib, though, so it will look a little different. I can't wait to get in the new house and get the nursery put together. We are moving around the first of May and mom and I are eager to get to work putting they babies' room together. What do you think?

Car Seats, Strollers, and Bouncers Oh my!

So we have picked out lots of interesting things for the babies! We spent this weekend purchasing some goodies. We bought one car seat (the other one will come soon). Babies R Us gives us a discount since we are having twins, so we went ahead and got the car seat. It coordinates with the stroller we want and it snaps in the stroller. We sometimes have a difficult time picking things out since we are having one of each gender. We like what we got because it isn't too masculine or too feminine, so those kiddos should be quite happy! Here are some pictures of the car seat and stroller.

Baby Updates

Things are progressing very quickly with the pregnancy! I can't believe I'm already six months. Chris has really started to feel them jump and kick and I can definitely tell which twin is kicking me. Emmy kept me up all night last night because she wasn't comfortable I guess! She was also very active in church this morning. After I got her settled down, Jake started in on the kicking. I'm sure such is the life with twins. When you get one settled, the other will act up. We are both so excited. I go to the dr. again on Thursday, but there will be no ultrasound this time. I'm taking the glucose test, which has mixed reviews from my preggo friends, but hopefully I will pass the test!

We think we have found a daycare, which is quite an undertaking. For those of you out there who have never be honored to search for a daycare for infants, let me give you one piece of advice, start early! I really like the daycare we picked. It came on the recommendation of a girl I work with and after visiting there, I was pretty much sold. This was a big answer to pray, as many of you know how difficult it is to select a place where your children will be for a large part of the day.

Check back for an updated preggo pic sometime this week.

There's a first time for everything!

So as Chris sits and watches baseball, I decided to blog a little. I wanted to make this blog to keep everyone informed about the babies and what is happening with our little family. The past few weeks have been crazy and the upcoming ones show no sign of stopping. We have just bought our first house, which we are extremely excited about. We wanted to find something before the babies got here, so we searched furiously for something that would fit our needs. I am also finishing up my Masters degree (so we can afford the new house!) and if all goes well I should be finished by the beginning of May. Chris is working tons of overtime (so we can afford daycare!) and is dreading the move, but looking forward to the new house!