The Bedding Arrived!

Parker and Emma's baby bedding arrived and Larry and I couldn't wait to tear it out of the package. Even though we are still deciding on mattresses to buy, we had to stick it in the cribs to see how it looked. The verdict...we LOVE it!!! It looks as good as we thought it would and we're happy with how it pulls in the wall color.

Emma's Bedding

Parker's Bedding

Today was the first snow of 2008, so we had to capture it for our kiddos. This is a shot of the back yard. It looked so pretty with snow on all of the trees.

The dogs were going crazy in the snow, but I couldn't get a good picture of them. This is the two of them acting like they love each other...awe, how sweet.

Rebel & Gunner

We have our ultrasound next week...stay tuned!

Rock-A-Bye Babies...

We just picked up the glider and ottoman for the nursery and it looks wonderful! This will be such a lifesaver.

The Chair and Ottoman

We all three fit!

Daddy's napping spot!

Parker and Emma's baby books also arrived, so we picked those up, too! I also found out that our bedding shipped yesterday and should arrive this next week. Although Larry and I aren't big on having everything match, we knew the bedding would need to coordinate and we just loved the baby books. It has certainly been an exciting day!

Thanks for checking in on us!

26 Weeks

We had our 26 week appointment and everything is going well. At this appointment, I did the glucose screening for gestational diabetes. It wasn't too bad, but it's certainly not anything I would ever look forward to. Apparently, I'm lucky because the sugar drink that I was given was lemon-lime flavor. Before you think that doesn't sound too bad, think about what a 2 week old Sprite tastes like...yum, right? :( If the results come back to show that I don't have gestational diabetes, then I won't have to worry about enjoying the drink again anytime soon!

Larry and I found out that we will have our next ultrasound at 28 weeks. We're very excited about seeing our two little cuties! I'm really looking forward to seeing how much they've grown and what they are looking like these days.

As for what I'm looking like these days...I've had several requests for a picture of me. Ah, the dreaded pregnancy picture. But, I'm proud of how our kiddos are growing, so I'll indulge you all! At the appointment, I measured at 33 weeks. That is 7 weeks ahead of where I actually was at that point. It's pretty normal for a woman carrying twins to measure 6-8 weeks ahead, so I'm right on track. I can't see my feet anymore, but I can still (with great effort) tie my tennis shoes! I've made my friend, Mary, promise to tell me when I need a pedicure.

27 Weeks

Parker & Emma's Room

The nursery is finally coming together. This past weekend, Larry and the grandparents painted the room. We settled on a creamy yellow. In case you've never had to pick out yellow paint, let me tell you...it's difficult. Even the slightest bit of color can turn out looking like you're heading to touch up a school bus!

Larry and I are so thankful that our parents live in the area. We couldn't have gotten the room together so quickly without them. In two days, they hung new closet doors, primed the room, painted trim, and painted the wall color. I am so happy with how it has turned out.

The Grandparents
From Left to Right: Larry's Mom & Dad, Dequita & Larry Sr. - a.k.a - Grammy & Papa & My Mom, Linda - a.k.a. Nana

Larry

Our furniture arrived on Tuesday and we spent all night putting it together. We ordered two cribs, one changing table (combo), and a dresser.

The Living Room was packed with boxes!

The Crib(s)

The Changing Table

The Dresser

The bedding should be arriving in early February. Now that we have the furniture in the room, we can start planning on decorations for the walls. We also have to assign Emma and Parker to a specific crib so we can decorate accordingly.

Still on the list of "to do" for the nursery:

• Mattresses
• Curtains
• Rug
• Lamp
• Nightlight
• Wall Decor

We have our next appointment next week. At this appointment, I'll be tested for gestational diabetes. Please pray that the test will return normal. Check back for an update!

Just Kickin' It

Whew! The holidays are over now, but they were so enjoyable. We took a whirlwind trip to Texas to see my brother graduate from the Air Force as a fighter pilot. He will be flying an A-10...a very awesome plane. Of course, I am a very proud sister. While we were there, Larry got to feel the babies kick for the first time!

Christmas was wonderful and Parker and Emma made out like bandits thanks to all of our family. I think they already realize they are spoiled rotten!

I had a very long break from work (11 days) and was able to get quite a bit completed. We ordered our furniture and bedding and I'm so excited to get that in. We are working to pick out a paint color for the nursery. We're thinking along the lines of a creamy yellow. We also ordered the glider and ottoman for the nursery. It is so comfortable and I know it will get a ton of use.

Parker and Emma must be growing a ton, because my baby belly grows bigger every day! Larry and I went back to see our doctor for the 24 week appointment. It looks as though everything is progressing very well. We were told that the ultrasound showed that both Parker and Emma are on track for growth and are very healthy.

We will start going to see the doctor every two weeks now. Wow, I can't believe it is already time. Of course, we are starting to go more frequently so early because we are having twins and they just want to keep an eye on them. Dr. Bell said that he wanted to make sure they didn't turn out like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito in the movie "Twins"! Did I mention that I LOVE Dr. Bell?!! The exciting news is that we will have several more ultrasounds before Parker and Emma arrive to make sure they continue to stay on track.

I can now tell a difference between Parker's and Emma's kicks. They are both very active, but not so much that they are keeping me awake at night...yet! It's so funny to me that they already have a routine. They are very active early in the morning, then they seem to nap until about 11:30 a.m. They start moving around again during lunch time, settling down some more for the afternoon, and then they're extremely active in the evening from about 6 p.m. until I go to sleep.

This weekend, we might try to paint the room. We will have to beg for help from the grandparents. I'll be sure to take before and after pics, but they won't look very exciting until we get the furniture, etc. in place.

The Day After...

Bad news...I've tried to upload the ultrasound to YouTube so it can be posted to the blog, but I can't quite figure out the technology. The rest of the truth is I'm so afraid to mess up the only copy we have of our little blessings surprise appearance! However, I can do the next best thing. I'll post the ultrasound pictures soon.

Larry and I finally got a chance to sit down together last night and let this all sink in. We couldn't be happier. We both woke up this morning and asked each other if yesterday was a dream. The good news is that it wasn't!

We spent the day revamping our plans for nursery furniture, car seats and strollers, etc. We did start a registry of a few things (two of everything) at Blessed Baby in Fort Smith. It was so overwhelming that we called it quits after a few items!

We had previously decided on using the Britax car seat because of its high safety ratings. Now that the twins will be riding closer to the sides of our car, it's even more important. Here is the link to the car seat and stroller that we will be using. All of the double strollers are so large that we just couldn't see ourselves ever utilizing one. There are two of us to push and two of them to ride...sounds like a perfect fit to me.

We "think" we've settled on the nursery furniture. We just have to measure the room to make sure the furniture will fit. We have decided on two cribs, one combo that will serve as the changing table, and a five drawer dresser. We have picked out a darker (cherry) wood tone than what is shown.

All of the planning has helped this become reality. As I've said over and over, we are just so blessed. I'm glowing and it's not just the hormones. Larry and I couldn't be happier. We are both so amazed with how excited everyone is. We are just so thankful to have so many wonderful family members and friends to share this time with.

Is it a boy or a girl?

And the Winner Is...

Larry and I had our ultrasound today. It was so great. So, I'm sure everyone is excited to know whether we are having a boy or a girl. We have had so many people say they think it is a boy and others are adamant that it is a girl. Well, everyone is right! Yep, Larry and I are having twins...a boy AND a girl!

I know that you must think I'm kidding, but I'm not at all. We hadn't even expected twins, but it was very clear today that there are two babies with two heart beats. We are so lucky to be having one of each.

We had already decided on names for a boy and a girl, but thought we'd only be using one of them with this pregnancy. It's a good thing we planned for either. We will name the boy Parker Reid and the girl Emma Claire.

Emma is on my left side and weighs 11 ounces today. Parker is on my right and weighs 12 ounces today. They both seem to be very healthy and doing well. We are obviously feeling so blessed by God's gifts!

In my earliest post, I said that as soon as we knew the baby's gender, the decorating would begin. Well, now we have some additional planning to think about...two cribs, two sets of bedding, a double stroller, etc!

I'll be posting the video of our ultrasound this evening. It's our kiddos first public appearance. We will keep you updated.