20 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights
How far along: 20 weeks
Weight gain: 6lbs
Babies weight: 10oz boy, 9oz girl (at 19wk Ultrasound)
Movement: Yes! Our little boy is quite the mover. He's going all the time. Our little girl likes to give big hard kicks when she moves. I think most of the time she is trying to stay quiet and avoid her brother...who, the last two times we have seen them, has been kicking some part of her.
Symptoms: Crazy dreams. Also came to the conclusion today (at my Doc's appointment) that I, once again, have pregnancy induced kidney stones AND pregnancy induced carpal tunnel. Nothing new with the kidney stones, I had them with Adelyn. They aren't painful, just yucky symptoms. The carpal tunnel however I am not excited about. My hands have been going numb/asleep when I lay down and he said with it showing up this early I will probably be in braces by the end of my pregnancy. Yay.
What I miss: My energy.
Cravings: Winshueller's cheese!! I still haven't gotten some... (I know I totally butchered the spelling but am to lazy to look it up).
Best moments this week: The doctor confirming that their are no visible problems with the babies!!!
What I am looking forward to: Getting a van. Sad. But true. The jetta is starting to be too small for me to get Adelyn in and out of and it is a strain on my back to buckle her in, change her diaper etc. The basement being finished. DECORATING the babies room =)
Names: The girls name is essentially decided and we have two boys names picked out so I told Eric he has to decide since I like them both :)

Today marks the big halfway point, to 40 weeks, which I do NOT plan on going that long! I had my appointment with Dr. Taylor this morning and he said everything is looking good. My goal remains to make it to 36 weeks, anything from there is fair game :)

Leave of Absence??

Or not. I NEED to get better at this thing. One because I enjoy it. Two because I want my memories..or random thoughts. Third, it's fun to look back at what we (Adelyn) have been doing.
So.
What have we been up to?!
I am almost 20 weeks pregnant. With twins. Don't you forget it. We found out last week Friday that we are having a boy and a girl! I couldn't be happier :) It was quite obvious, ok probably absolute, what each babies gender was. More on the babies later this week..if I'm not a slacker. We are still in the process of trying to find a van. A process which I hate immensely. It's like buying a house. We are always a day late and a dollar short. Sigh. I have had my first official week without Sophia. It's been helpful in some ways and yet I miss the companionship of Sophia (and Tiff). We are also in the process..key word: process..of the basement getting finished. Our plan of attack now is to drywall it, we are going to paint the floor, put rugs down and hopefully potentially put trim down. Depending on how poor we are at that point. Oh well..I just need it usable! Eric is doing the same ole, same ole. Working, working and more working. Now on to my favorite little person.
Adelyn:
She is officially 18 months old. We had her well-baby visit last week Wednesday and she weighs 26lbs 3ozs, 75th percentile. Her height is 33.5inches, 95th percentile and her large head is in the 97th percentile. She only received one owie and is supposedly done with shots until she is 4. But I was told that she should get the flu shot. Thanks but no thanks. She says about 30 different words and we are working on saying please mama instead of whining for something. It's going rather well actually. I also have been sitting her on the toilet every night before bed and we just hang out for a minute or two and then she gets one M&M. Well tonight she went POTTY!! It made my heart smile. I would love to have her potty trained before the babies come..but am not quite sure how realistic that is. I would say tonight is a step in the right direction :) She is also back to not being allowed to have her paci downstairs and that transition went much smoother than the first time I transitioned her to no paci. We had a brief couple weeks, 2ish, where I had to allow it again because someone thought it was acceptable to bite Sophia. Um. No. Now she just bites things when she becomes angry and I tell her no bite and lead her to something else. She is one stubborn little girl. Armchair parenting is definitely not effective in the slightest with her. Not that it should ever be allowed but hey sometimes I get lazy (or just pregnant and exhausted chasing an 18 month old) and preach from my throne on the couch. The word no is not effective with her either. I can say it nicely or holler and neither have any effect. Eric would say she is my daughter. I guess I can't argue. The girl knows what she wants.

Fun Summer Ideas

I saw this on another blog I read and I read through all the posts because I wanted to gather up as many ideas as I could!

~Paint with pudding (on the table, paper or your BODY!)..or finger paint if you are feeling daring
~Put flour on the kitchen table and play cars in it. You can also add fun cups or whatever your heart desires
~Make playdoh. Play with said playdoh
~Cook
~Zoo
~Go to a local farm and ask (or call ahead) to look around
~Color
~Paint
~Have a picnic on the living room floor
~Build a fort
~Swimming
~Fill a container with dried beans and scoop them , sort them, drive cars through them, shovel them etc
~Have a letter of the week. Draw a picture pertaining to said letter, hide uppercase and lowercase of that specific letter around the house and find them, bake something with that letter
~Bake cookies and decorate w/ whatever holiday is coming up
~Sidewalk chalk
~Paint a wall indoors with chalkboard paint, instant rainy day chalk fun
~Popcorn balls..popcorn, 1 stick butter, 1 bag marshmallows. Pop popcorn, melt butter and marshmallows together, combine all ingredients, roll into balls and let cool.
~Fruit Loop Sort..click here for the printable and instructions
~Hike
~Marshghetti..Bag of marshmallows, box of spaghetti (regular not thin) and build something.
~Games..board games, card games, etc
~Twist pipe cleaners into glasses, animals or jewelry
~Water balloons
~Bubbles
~Paint the driveway or fence with water..use sponges or just spray
~Sprinklers
~Make popsicles..try layering with fruit, yogurt, juice
~Wash the car
~Have a dance party and play all kinds of music
~Play hide and seek
~Write or draw in shaving cream
~Work in the yard together..pulling weeds, planting flowers, planting/picking vegetables
~Make a pine cone bird feeder
~Learn to sort laundry
~Help clean the house..give them a damp cloth, swiffer, duster and have them go to town
~Dictate a letter to a friend or grandparent while mom writes and take a trip to the mailbox
~Make an obstacle course
~Go on a campout
~Hide easter eggs and have kids hunt for them
~Have a scavenger hunt..find a blue sock, a purple shirt, a pine cone etc.
~Play "I Spy"
~Go bird watching/listening. Can you find a cardinal or robin?
~Play tag
~Books on CD
~Mystery bag..place an object in a bag and let them feel it and guess what it is
~Build your own pizza
~Have a tea party
~Fill a tub with water and set it on a towel..go to town!
~Barnes and Nobles story time..every Tuesday morning..or check our your local library!
~Fun Crayons..break up your old crayons, put them in a silicone tray with fun shapes and bake them until they melt. Abut 7 minutes at 275. When they re-harden, the crayons make great funky colors
~Sidewalk paint..make with equal parts cornstarch and water..then add food coloring. Enjoy!!
~Homemade bubbles..1 C. water, 2T. light corn syrup, 4T. dish washing soap
~Make your own silly puddy..mix 4 parts Elmer's glue with 1 part Borax, add food coloring and store in a plastic baggy
~Make a collage with old magazines
~Fun snacks..cookie cutters and bread to make cinnamon toast

Fun ideas I picked up from many other blogs and wanted to have them all in one spot for later use :)

SURPRISE and random thoughts

For the few of you who guessed my surprise from my previous post (ahem-Kelly ;) ) I actually deleted what I had said and will re-enter it again tonight..just so I can remember what I had been feeling that day..

As for my surprise we are going to have a double blessing in December-we are pregnant with TWINS!!! It caught us incredibly by surprise since neither of us have twins, at all, on either side. The one and only thing I can think of is that I had only been done nursing Adelyn for a month before I got pregnant..and being pregnant for 9 months and nursing for 13 months equals 21 months of the female organs not knowing what to do. We have since got over the shock and the excitement is beginning to set in. I always tell Eric that the Big Man upstairs must think he's one funny individual because I was always one to proclaim loud and clear that I would NEVER have twins, I would never drive a mini-van (which is now our only (practical) option), I am terrified of stretch marks (and being pregnant with twins I am bound to get them), I am terrified of reaching whale like proportions, little babies scare me-little as in 4lbs..I can do 5lbs. 4, not so much...much less, I now have to deliver not one but TWO babies. The other things that terrify me is that Adelyn is going to get lost in the shuffle and I want to, but essentially have to, breastfeed. But He knows what He's doing and He must think I can do it :)
Oh and having a "plan" how many, what gender and how many years apart they are pretty much flew out the window too. I've heard from many people that having a "plan" is pretty much asking for something different. Ours was to have 2 kids close together, preferably girls, then wait until Adelyn started school to start trying for our 1 (in Eric's opinion) or 2 (in my opinion) more kids, boys. Pretty sure that isn't going to happen :)
The babies are both measuring exactly the same and they are fraternal..definitely a bonus, no twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome with fraternal twins!
We have many changes coming in the Fitzgerald family and we are excited for what comes our way!

Poop, Poop, Poop

Well folks. Today was most certainly a day for the record books (and, sadly, it's not over yet). I attempted to do a little packing this morning. Just kidding. Sophia cried the whole morning. Adelyn was intent on destroying my house. Finally got both of them down for a nap at 10...ah silence. Precious silence. For an hour. While they are sleeping I realize that Lakota, who is in the house, has poop all over her butt hair. Sick. And she was in my house. Even sicker. She got booted out. Adelyn woke up at 11. I vacuumed. We ate lunch. Played outside a bit. Sophia woke up at about 1:15, the one shining spot in my day, her sleeping for 3 hours. One baby for 2 hours. We played outside some more. Came inside because I realized even with sunscreen on Adelyn was turning pink. I tried to go to the bathroom. Key word folks: tried. I hear Adelyn open the basement door so I call her. She comes running and shes waving two tennis balls around. I'm wondering what that funny brown streak is on her arm. Then I realize she has funny brown streaks on her feet, her legs, her arms, her hands. Poop. Ah yes. Diarrhea. Adelyn does diarrhea quite proud. Since she didn't go yesterday (and she's an every day person) you can only imagine. She has managed to track it all in my bathroom. I go out to change her and see poop on the carpet, poop on the bumbo, poop by toys. I lay her down on the mat and take her diaper off..there was a scant two inches spared in the front. The rest had poopies everywhere. As I'm attempting to clean her up I have a fleeting thought, ok it was more than fleeting, of taking her outside and spraying her off. She sticks her hand in it and proceeds to mash it in her fingers. 1) Because I have her legs in one hand 2) In my other hand is poopie wipes. She wipes it all over her belly and then STICKS IT IN HER MOUTH. Pretty sure I yelled no quite loudly. Then I realize she already has a crusty brown spot by her mouth. Be still my heart, don't quit on me now. I wipe her off the best I could and she got a bath.
Nap time #2 for both babies. Attempting to put Sophia down while Adelyn goes back and forth between the bedrooms. She trips. Crashes face first into the door jam. Already has a small bruise on her cheek..here's to hoping it stays small.
Keep in mind I was in the bathroom for mere minutes. Toddlers are dangerous. I am going to have to start tying her to the chair when I have to go.
And. It's only 4:16. I still have more than a couple hours to go.
Can I get a rain check for today please??

15 Months

So I am a week over due but better late than never. We went to the doctor last week Monday and your stats were:
weight: 23lb 15oz, 70th percentile
height: 32 in, 90th percentile
head circumference: 97th percentile
Hey, at least you are maintaining in the head circumference area.
Dr. Lund said you look great and can't believe how much you talk. Apparently 2 words are normal, you say about 10-15.
-hi
-bye
-dada/daddy
-mama/mommy
-please
-baby
-this
-yes
-hot
-eyes
-uh oh
-oohhh
She isn't concerned about the fact that you, STILL, only have 2 teeth. She said if you didn't have any that would be cause for concern. You were tested for a dairy allergy. The first test came back positive, the second negative. So, back to square one we go. The doc said she isn't ready to send you to an allergist yet. If we could hold off until 2 then you would be exposed to more.
Haven't mentioned this on here yet (I don't think) but we watch Sophia Monday through Friday. With that being said I have made you go down to one nap, most days, from 1/1:30 -3:00. Sophia also is sleeping at the same time and it is much needed for Mama to have that break. I also started, today, to have quiet time with you. For a half hour in the morning while Sophia sleeps you will play quietly in your crib. I put some books and quiet toys in there and you are (supposed to be) entertaining yourself. We then spend the other half hour just you and me while Sophia sleeps. Day one was a success except for the intermittent crying but I think you will get there.
We got the news of our lives yesterday. Probably the biggest surprise I will EVER have. No joke. I rotated between crying and staring blankly off into space. I was mainly EXTREMELY overwhelmed. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I will get there. I will reveal our surprise shortly.

Random Conversations

Random Conversation #1 (via Gmail chat):
I informed Eric that I would like to make it to Costco today. His response: Don't forget Dove soap. The following conversation ensued:
Eric: get bars
me: bars of soap?
Eric: Yes. I think I like using a wash cloth.
me: oookkkk.
Eric: I'm sick of the loofa.
me: ...
Eric: Now that I think about it, it weirds me out. The loofa idea. Festering dirt.
me: I'll see what I can find. Sick.
Eric: It's like a bacteria's best friend.
me: (saying bye and signing off of Gmail chat)

Thank you, Eric, for thoroughly disturbing me. I will be using a washcloth from now on too. For the record...I did throw our loofa's away because if you do think about it, it is VERY disturbing. And how do you really spell loofa anyways?


Random Conversation #2 (via texting):
Rachel (my sister): Hey you are a (insert acronym inappropriate for blogging..or anything)
me: This must not be Rachel...
Rachel: No it is.
me: Why would you say that? Do you know what that means?
Rachel: Yes. And Cosmo told me to.
me: Oh. Who the heck is Cosmo? And do you always listen to what people tell you?
Rachel: My magazine. It told me to tell you so you are more open to doing things for me. You know, like waxing my caterpillars (her eyebrows).
me: OMG. I just laughed out loud. You know where I live if you need your caterpillars waxed.
Rachel: Yeah but sometimes you don't like to :)
me: Ha :) Just because I don't like to doesn't mean I won't do it.
Rachel: Still. I feel bad.
me: Seriously. Don't. I'm sure you don't like babysitting Adelyn for free.
Rachel: She is a nut. And makes me laugh.
(Notice how she avoided the actual question?)
me: It's true :) I should probably develop a better attitude about doing your eyebrows AND your hair. I'll work on that.
Rachel: So did my lovely comment help?
me: Nope. But what you said after did.
Rachel: What did I say after?
me: That you feel bad asking me to do it.
Rachel: Oh yeh. Cause you always grunt. So I don't ask very much. And Jake (her boyfriend) doesn't believe that I have caterpillar eyebrows.
me: Well feel free to ask whenever you want!
Rachel: Yes ma'am.

Now why did she have to call me a (insert acronym inappropriate for blogging..or anything) to accomplish that? That is the actual question and the answer is probably because I make her feel like she can't be open with me. I should work on that too.