Revealing.......my first belly pics

See if you can tell a difference. I sure can feel it!

7 weeks, June 23















12 weeks, July 28

Twins!

Sooo, we found out last Wednesday via ultrasound that I am having twins and that they are probably fraternal. This was not what I thought I'd signed up for, but have been reminded that God doesn't give us more than we can handle. I am excited for the future, but a little scared of the baby/no sleep/constant needs, etc. part. So, basically, the first two years... Let me know if you want to come over and hold a baby.
So I wiped my mascara off with nail polish remover the other day instead of eye makeup remover. I am blaming that on pregnancy brain syndrome.

The 4th!

The 4th is one of my very favorite holidays. I always look forward to family, cookouts and fireworks. This year was pretty good. We stayed with Jenny & Shelby in their new (well, they bought it almost a year ago, I just hadn't seen it yet-fail.) home which was great. They have a finished basement which a lot of homes in Kansas City do. So, we had plenty of space, but even better, Gavin got to play with the girls and all their great toys. I really liked staying with them. I hope we didn't drive you guys too crazy! ;x

We visited the new Schlitterbahn on Saturday. Somehow I managed to still get sunburnt though I put on sunscreen. It really wasn't too bad and only was sore a bit Sunday. I was mostly fine by Monday. I kind of thought the park would be bigger, but really, we didn't pay that much more to get in to it then you do a day of White Water here. Gavin did great though at times I could tell he was tired. There were a couple of kids' areas and it was nice that we didn't have to follow right behind him constantly, though of course we were constantly watching him. The slides land in more shallow water, which was perfect for his size. At White Water, the slides land in a bit deeper water, so we always have to be at the bottom to catch him. Since I am preggars, I didn't go on the roller coaster or some of the big slides though I would have liked to.

Sunday was our family reunion at my Uncle Roger's on Lake Waukomis. We particularly had fun shooting a few small fireworks and letting Gavin hold his first few sparklers. It was neat.For the most part I think (hope & pray) I am feeling better. I am definitely not feeling 100%, but the nausea is way less. I kind of got to feeling sick Sunday night and then again Monday night which was the worse. I am already feeling (and looking) wider, though (yay!) I haven't gained any weight yet, well maybe one pound. (But, maybe not, my weight kind of fluctuates). ;) My pants right now are tight. I can definitely see and feel a bump, but I can still mostly hide it too. I am definitely starting to be in that pregnant or just fat? stage. I was kind of thinking I wouldn't have to get maternity clothes out for a while, but I guess it will be sooner than I thought since I am having twins. We shall see!

Catch Up!

Since I have neglected to blog since March I will try to highlight some of the things we have done since then...

My mom came this weekend. We took Gavin to a splash park and Jared and I got a night out which was nice. We went to Eischen's (fried chicken) in Okarche with some of his friends. It was fun. I needed it.

We have been swimming a lot as usual for the summer. Sometimes we just go to apartment pools, ha. We went to Will Roger's Aquatic Center last weekend. Though it was pretty crowded, I liked it. Jared took Gavin down the medium/large slide several times. They also have a small splash/spray ground area that G enjoyed. We went to White Water a few weeks ago. It was neat to see how many more things Gavin could do there as opposed to what I remembered him doing last year. We even took him on the "Big Kahuna" once. It was fun.


We got a new roof put on our house. After the hail storm we had early May, we filed insurance claims on both our cars and house. Roofers have been crazy trying to get business. There were days that I would get about 5 fliers in the mall and other people were going door to door knocking. A couple of my neighbors and I were really getting frustrated with all these idiots. So, Jared ended up getting a new car, a Chrysler 300 LTD and the Escape is still waiting to be repaired. There are two cracks on the windshield and of course there are dents everywhere. Right before the storm, Gavin and I were at a wedding shower out near Piedmont. About 30 or so minutes into the shower, the host's husband started altering us of a tornado that was nearby so everyone packed up and left. I felt so bad for Ashley, her shower being interrupted the way it was. She is such a sweet girl. Gavin and I got home just as it started to rain. In 5 minutes, I am not kidding, the sky got really dark and hail almost as big as golf and tennis balls was pounding our house. I was kind of freaked out as Jared was at work and I knew there were tornados not to far away by Piedmont. Luckily it didn't last long and all the damage done is repairable.

The weekend of June 12th, Gavin and I went to Kansas City for some time with my family and to do some kid stuff while Jared was stuck at work. We went to Crown Center, Union Station and The Legends, an outdoor shopping mall. Crown Center had a Clifford the Big Red Dog thing going on. They had a play area set up with all the different props from Clifford. There is a really cool little restaurant called Fritz's. It is not great food (cheap), but it is all about trains, so G. was a fan. Miniature trains bring you your food order and since the place is packed, trains are constantly chugging around. We went to the train station which was pretty cool. They have a good size room full of miniature train displays. Of course Gavin loved that. We sat while he played for a while. They also had a dinosaur exhibit going on. Though we did not go through the entire thing, my child was obsessed with this one dinosaur display there. Kaleidoscope is another place we visited there. It is a really neat kids art place. He was tired and a little young, but did a little bit of work. We also went to the Hallmark visitor center which was neat. Gavin was particularly intrigued by all the ornaments as a lot of them were miniature characters such as spiderman, etc.

There is a T-Rex (dino) restaurant at The Legends. It is owned by the same people who owned Rainforest Cafe, so it is very similar, obviously it is dinosaurs instead of other jungle type animals. Gavin really liked all the decor. his trip made me feel that OKC is kind of dinky compared to KC.

Jared and I took Gavin downtown one night just for something to do. We thought he would like riding on a 'boat' down the canal, but he really didn't care much. Oh well, I liked it. We got to see some of the landrun statues on the newest part of the canal I had never seen before.


Mid-May, I think the weekend of the 15th, one of Jared's good friends had his bachelor party at Lake Texoma. So, Gavin and I went to go see "How to Train Your Dragon" that Friday night. We had never taken him to the theater since we didn't think he could sit through an entire show, plus I am not a big fan of just going and sitting at a movie theater for two hours. It is overpriced, usually cold, you can't pause, other people are talking or kicking your chair, etc. Anyway, Gavin did really well and he liked the movie for the most part. He started to ask to leave toward the end, but we ended up being able to watch all of it. It was cute, though there were a few parts I thought were a bit scary/inappropriate. Why can't kids' movies just be wholesome? How hard is it, really?!


The next day we went to the zoo. I was worried because it was supposed to rain but it ended up being a perfect day. We saw the sea lion show for the first time (ridiculous, I know) which was really cute. A lot of the animals were out that day too, I think because the weather was decent.

JARED FINALLY GRADUATED COLLEGE! This has been a long awaited moment. I am so glad he is done. He jokes about getting his master's and I sincerely told him that that will not be happening until our kids are much older.

Jared decided it would be fun to take Gavin to a Redhawks game. We had a good time and Gavin really liked it. I was kind of surprised as to how attentive he was as those things are sometimes difficult to pay attention to.


April 24 Jared took Gavin to Parker Bryan's birthday party. It was at Bouncin' Craze in Edmond. I was bummed I didn't get to go as I had a training that day.

My mom and sister, Stephanie, came for Easter again this year. We went to the church hunt at the Rhode's home on Saturday. Next year I am going to bring extra eggs just for Gavin to find as all the bigger kids there seem to dominate even when the little kids get a head start. I am kind of shocked at the mother's who let their 5/6 year old kids walk away with their baskets toppling over with eggs when some of the little kids have about 5. Oh well. Sunday we went to Pop's in Arcadia for the first time and had an egg hunt there as well.


In other (recent) news, Gavin has been toileting. He was doing really well. I was so impressed and excited. But, the last three days, he has just been peeing all over. I am really confused as to why. I did not push him into potty training and he was telling me that he wanted to do it every time. I am kind of frustrated with it now.


I had been gardening like crazy. It was kind of obsessive. But now that it is so hot, I haven't been doing anything other than pulling an occasional weed. I am looking forward to the fall so I can start planting again.

Soo, if you didn't already know, I am pregnant! Yeah! It only took us two months of 'trying' and I didn't even think we put out enough effort then. ;) I will be 8 weeks Wednesday and have my 2nd prenatal appointment then. I am excited because they are doing an ultrasound. I hope we see something neat.

I have been miserably sick. I have been nauseous constantly, I am not kidding; and, before I started getting nauseous 24/7, I was so fatigued. The fatigue has mainly gone away and today I am feeling much better stomach and headwise, though not 100%. I was going to check my diary, but I really don't remember feeling this terrible with Gavin. I know that I only threw up once, I think with him. This time I have only thrown up twice so far, but I want to more. I haven't been eating a lot, so I wonder if that is why I am not throwing it up. A lot of foods are tasting sour to me, even things that I usually really like. I have had occasional cramping. It is bearable and it doesn't usually last long. But it feels like I am just being stabbed in my stomach. I know that I am not able to feel the baby move yet, but, sometimes it feels like there is something moving and kicking in there. And, my boobs have been pretty sore, especially in the mornings when I wake up for some reason. There are a couple of other things going on that aren't too major, but I thought the boobs information was TMI as it is for some of you. BTW, I know posting this on the internet is not exactly keeping it a secret, but there are some people who don't need to know yet, so if you are reading this, consider yourself special.

Sorry this is so long, though, I am sure I am forgetting things.

Things

Right now there are some things I am loving and another, loathing...

I am thrilled it is almost spring and we have had some nice weather! I have had a few small flowers bloom (crocuses), which makes me desperate for more. My neighbor, Tiffany, has some adorable little hyacinths. They are so cute. I thought I planted some in the fall, but so far none have came up. I am wondering if it takes a year for them to bloom or something?

I took the kid on a bike ride to the duck pond and around the neighborhood the other day. We have also been playing outside everyday, of course today we can't now as it is rainy.

Did I mention before that I won Sesame Street Live tickets from the radio station? That saves us a bit of money. We even get to meet the characters. I am pretty excited to take G. as he is loving Sesame Street right now. We have tickets for both Sun. & Thurs. I still can't decide if we should go to both or if I should try to sell the Thurs. night tickets.

Speaking of Sesame Street, I love when they have (most) celebrity guests on, especially singers. Some of the favorites I have seen on are Alicia Keys, Feist, Norah Jones, Jason Mraz, Cameron Diaz, Sarah Jessica Parker and Adam Sandler. Brandon Frazier has also been on, which was just kind of weird. Michelle Obama was also on once though I will not further comment on that. I know I am forgetting some others.

I am loving a few new scents I have recently found. Bath & Body Works has an awesome pineapple mango candle. There are times I think that I need to eat it. I also sometimes feel I need to eat the strawberry tangerine shaving cream I bought. I don't know why I haven't bought this sooner. I guess I was being loyal to Satin Care and never looked at Skintimate?! Silly!
Gavin has been saying some funny things. He has a few phrases he uses some incorrectly though some in the right context. He cracks me up. I am so thankful for him, it seems he is the one who always helps pick me up when I am upset.

Some girls from church started a bunko group. Our first night was Thursday. It was pretty fun. :D

I took G. to the library the other day looking for kids' stuff as we hadn't been in a while. As I was chasing him through the place i saw a book on display, "Nights in Rodanthe". I recognized the title as it is also a movie with Richard Gere on the front cover. I am now halfway through it though I think it is kind of bland. It kind of surprises me that a man wrote it too since it is a love story. This is the first time I have read 'for pleasure' since being in middle school but it gives me something to do other than clean if I get all the kids to sleep at the same time. I even reserved another book to read next, "Push" by Sapphire the story from which the movie "Precious" is from though I haven't seen it.

Soo, my loathe is about the same childcare parent that I complained about in my last post. I sent her child home Mon. AM as he was sick and has been now for a while. She didn't bring him back in the rest of the week as she didn't want to take him to a Dr. to check him out. All she really had to do was to get a note from him stating he was not contagious. She told me the Dr. was full and didn't respond to my text when I mentioned the after-hours cliincs that are everywhere. Thurs. she called and informed me that his last day was that (previous) Monday. My parent contract that she signed states she is responsible for an additional two-weeks pay if she fails to give me two-weeks notice to find another child to fill his spot. She of course doesn't want to pay, so I am having a lawyer send her a letter, and adding a few payments that I let her slide on throughout the year. So if that doesn't get her to pay, I guess we will be going to small claims court. I don't know what she is thinking. She is clearly in the wrong. It blows my mind and really I have been fairly upset about it. Not just money-wise, but that she thinks she can just walk over people. Even if I have to pay fees that equal to what she owes me, I am going to do it, just to teach her a lesson, though it probably really won't, huh? Blah!

Snow!

Day no. 2 of no childcare! Woohoo! It is amazing how much quieter the house is with just Gavin and I. (Well, I had one other child here until 1:00 yesterday; but that was fine!) I did have one (of my "favorite"-ha) parent text me and wake us up at 7:30, to tell me they weren't coming, as she also did yesterday AM. Duh. Really?! You can't wait until 8:00 at least? You don't dictate my days enough as it is since I have your child here about 10 hours everyday?! Wed. said child was the first one here at 7:30am and the last one to leave at 5:30. That is not the first time that has happened. I told her to text me IF the WERE coming when they were on the way. I really think she purposely does things like that sometimes. Really. Ugh. Okay, sorry for that, I am done.
I let Gavin do some painting with his easel. After working on some dishes I turned around and noticed I forgot to put up the paper I had gotten out for him to paint on. Soo, he was just painting on the easel, the way he normally does with chalk. Opps - my mistake. I almost have it all cleaned off now; I will work on it some more later.

We played out in the snow a little before noon. Gavin was clearly on a mission to break all icycles (that he could reach). He didn't go very far in the yard as the snow was coming down quite a bit and blowing too. It hasn't stopped coming down since we woke up. It is really starting to pile up. It is pretty. I really love the shape of snowflakes. It is so neat how unique they all are! What a neat little gift from God! I have always loved catching them on my gloves to look at them. I was trying to show Gavin how they look like 'stars', but he just kept saying, 'no, I think they're snowflakes'.

We came inside, watched Sesame Street and made snow ice cream. I added a little too much sugar, but Gavin was fine with that.
I made homemade noodles (and chicken) last night. I have been thinking about doing this for a while, but just hadn't. I didn't realize how easy they are! They were pretty good too and next time I have a few ideas of how to make them better.
Jared has had to work both days, but he is already home today! I have been semi-paranoid that he is going to get stuck again like he did in last month's blizzard.
Jared wants to go eat somewhere tonight. Getting out in this makes me kind of nervous.
Also, this is my new kitchen light! Jared and ("Uncle") Wakely installed it a couple of weeks ago. I love it! Now I don't have to work over the sink in shadows; I hate that!

Swimming!

This is my first blog! Well, I think I had an account years ago, but really never got into it. So, I probably won't even stick to this one. We shall see.

Gavin is sleeping and Jared is watching the Viking's game at Luke's.

We had a good day. We went to the 'indoor water park' in Kingfisher today. Though it was hardly a 'water park', it was worth the bit of a drive. Gavin did great and had a lot of fun. It was neat to notice the difference in his 'swimming skills' today verses when we took him last summer. He is just such a big kid now! ;) They had a pretty good slide we each took him down. He even went down a few times by himself. I was pretty surprised. He even wanted to go on the diving boards after watching some of the big kids. But there was no way he was jumping into that deep water even with a lifejacket on. I forgot my camera and was a little disappointed. Jared would not get his beloved Droid out of the locker room to take to the pool area and I left mine in the car; I considered going out to get it, but it was too cold out when you're wet, so no pics. :/ We stayed for a little over two hours until Jared was ready to go. It was enough though as G was shortly out in the car.

Since Jared actually had a Saturday off we went to Tulsa yesterday. Neither of us are too familiar with it as we usually just drive through on the way to KS. We went to the aquarium and riverwalk both actually in Jenks. I did take a few pics, one of Gavin that I love with some jellyfish.span>