Looks like we made it..

Check! Made it through the first week alone with flying colors. Friday was the culmination of what I consider to be a pretty decent week, and we celebrated with having the busiest day imaginable... well.. busy for parents of new twins at least..

My brother John and his wife, Mariel, are in town for the holiday and they stopped by with Dad for a surprise visit, and brought a HUGE basket of all sorts of goodies(from their recent trip to CA) for us and the babies and stayed awhile to hold them. I think Mariel looks like a natural don't you?

Feeling extra ambitious (and a little like I would lose my mind if I didn't get some fresh air soon), Stephen and I FINALLY took the girls for their first walk in their fabulous stroller (courtesy of Aunt Margie and Uncle Gavin). What a fantastic stroller it is too. Goes through the front door with the greatest of ease. Walking around the block felt incredible, aside from the terrible humidity. Can't wait to take that baby out for a few more spins in the coming weeks. 

Back at home from out short stroll, we anxiously awaited the arrival of our friend Nathan and his wife, Suki. They were stopping in on their way to NYC to deliver/install Nathan's work for a show he is having up there with his new gallery. This was the girl's first time meeting Uncle Nathan and though he hates having his picture taken, he allowed Stephen to take one leaving out his face :) Who wants to venture a guess at which baby he is holding?

After they got back on the road, I fed the girls and we headed to St. David's for the first football game of the season.. yes we brought the girls with us..yes I know they aren't supposed to be out in public places until they are 8 weeks old BUT we kept them in their car seats, forbade anyone to touch them, and figured an open air venue would be pretty safe germ wise. They were a hit. We got to meet and visit with lots of faculty and students and though the Warriors were hustled off the field shortly after kick-off due to lightening, we enjoyed the outing and are looking forward to many more. Ada and Margot slept soundly through the whole experience. 

With the clock ticking (their next feeding approaching fast) we bade farewell to football scene and headed to the car with our bundles of joy in the hopes of making it to Erin's birthday soiree before the girls were ready for their dinner. We made it with minutes to spare and enjoyed visiting for  a few moments with everyone from FR before Margot began to stir and we snatched them back up and raced for home, stopping at Arby's to grab some super nutritious dinner. 

I honestly couldn't believe we did it all. It was such a treat to get out of the house and visit and just ride around in the car!  Of course all that activity wore me out and I passed out cold as soon as the girls were fed and put to bed. I have been recovering all day.. but it was worth it! Stephen is home this weekend and has Monday off of course so he has been the perfect husband that he always is and doing loads around the house to help me out. I have been able to sleep uninterrupted and have not had to carry both girls on my own to accomplish feedings..in fact.. I think I have only changed 1 maybe 2 diapers all day! Such a blessing.. I feel so rested and am looking forward to a good night's sleep. 

Here is baby Margot after her bath this evening. 

Ada, ever the cool cat, waiting to be bathed. I seem to recall an almost identical picture of their Uncle John asleep in his crib with his arms behind his head. 

So the whole stay at home mom thing is working out pretty well so far. It has it's easier moments and those more difficult ones. I really started to enjoy the solitude of being alone with my children the most towards the end of the week. Once I get my energy and strength (in by back) completely back I will really be cooking with gas. Their little personalities are really starting to shine. Ada is still my sensitive girl and though both babies cry, her cries are more desperate most days and she really enjoys a good cuddle. Margot loves to cuddle as well and is our quieter baby, her cries being more communicative and less desperate sounding. Both girls have very healthy lungs and can scream with the best of them. They are staying awake a little more, a little longer each day and that has been fun so far. Anyway, things are going well. The only time the "baby blues" seem to hit me is during those early AM feedings when my groggy ladies aren't as quick to latch and for some reason I feel irrational and hormonal - despite the fact that the entire day may have gone off without a hitch. I really have to battle my attitude during those feedings.. and that is something new as they used to be relaxing to me (for some odd reason). Ok well enough prattling on, dinner is served. Thanks for everyone's continued prayers for us. Stephen's week at school went even better than the last. 

Let me rephrase...

The super baby stretch

... I know I said yesterday would be my first day alone..and it was.. well.. I am about to have my first week alone with Ada and Margot. Sweet Aunt Tracy has spent the last 3 days riding to the airport only to have to return home with cancelled flights and the like. She has wisely decided that it would serve everyone better if we just postpone her trip until all this nasty weather clears up - I am in complete agreement as I think a later visit would be a welcome break from my new routine. So anyway.. yeah.. the best laid plans right? 

All is well here at Camp New Mommy. Today has been admittedly more difficult than yesterday.. beginners luck? The girls are sleeping fitfully today and I have not yet managed a shower.. though I see it coming in the very near future.. as in.. right after I finish with this post. Ada has been practicing her chameleon skills. She is very adept at turning purple and then changing back to a normal color once I am able to pick her up. I knew she would be my sensitive one and this is becoming more evident with each passing hour. Thank the Lord for Jane's musical mixes that she sent us in Brooklyn.. without these calming tunes I might be in worse shape but so far so good. 

So all you pray-ers out here.. I got some requests.. please pray for continued patience and peace for my little people.. above all.. please pray for my back..my back has been killing  me since I came home from the hospital and it makes doing anything pretty trying.. even Advil doesn't really take care of it..I am doing all that I can to stand up super straight (even with my new set of bowling balls) and pull my shoulders back .. and strengthen my back and awaken my abdominal muscles so I have some help from my core but.. this is slow going and so far it is still pretty painful.. 

Thank goodness for all those hours of playing with dolls as a child. Who knew my Cabbage Patch soothing skills would come in so handy  :)

Trial Run

Sooooooooo thanks to Fay, my help this week (Aunt Tracy) had her flight cancelled last night and won't be here until this afternoon.. yes that means that I am flying solo today. It had to happen eventually and I am up to the challenge, even though it is coming a few days sooner than I thought it would. 

I kissed Stephen goodbye this morning, then hugged him tight, biting my lip to keep the tears at bay until he was out the door. Then I sat down to give myself a pep talk. I tried to pray but couldn't think of what to pray for so I just prayed for help and patience, feeling more tears welling up in my eyes. Ada was already waking up, starting to cry with hunger. Deep breath. Go into my bedroom and get all pillows, Boppies, baby medicine and burp clothes ready for the morning feeding. Went in to open the blinds in the girls' room and unwrap them to get them started waking up for breakfast. Ada gets louder, Margot is still sleeping peacefully. Decide I need some soothing music to keep my emotions at bay. Turn on a quiet iTunes mix. Pick up Ada to change her diaper - discover her diaper was not tight enough and she has peed on her shirt, poor baby. Put her back down to go make sure the load of baby clothes from last night is dry in the dryer (so I have more blankets if I need to change her blanket too). Ada is starting to turn red with all the crying. Pick her up again and change her diaper, decide to go ahead and put on a fresh Onesie, calm her down so I can get Margot ready to eat as well. Pick up Margot who immediately starts to protest. Her cries silence Ada who lies on her back staring contentedly up at Margot and I from the crib. Start to change Margot, she chooses the moment I open up her diaper to pee all over herself and the new diaper. Deep breath. Discard both old and new diaper.. get another new diaper and secure it in place. Wipe a screaming Margot down with a diaper wipe. Change her clothes. Ok.. we are ready. How to pick up two wiggly babies at once. I find it easier to hold them both in the "football hold", one on either side. Tuck Margot under my left arm, reach down into the crib with my right and scoop Ada up, quickly tucking her under my right arm.. and we're off to the bedroom to eat. Put each down on the bed, climb into position. Watch Ada turning purple with her ever increasing hunger cries. Apologize to Ada, trying to soothe her verbally and remind her that I have to give Margot her antibiotics before we get started. Margot looks on contentedly licking her lips and glancing over at Ada's breathless screaming face. Deep breath. Give Margot her medicine, which she takes like a champ. Put Margot back down and scoop up Ada who latches on like a like a champ and starts to eat her breakfast with vigor. Lean over carefully (making sure not to dislodge Ada) and lift Margot into position, who too latches on and starts to eat. We did it! I lean back and sing along to the Regina Spektor song drifting in from the living room. 30 minutes later the girls have nursed themselves into a sleepy stupor. I put both back on the bed and burp them one at time. Then it's back to the nursery football style. Another diaper change for each and a good swaddle and they are down for the count. Yeah!!  Feeling ambitious and energized I make the bed and tidy the bedroom, head to the kitchen and wash the few dishes there before fixing my breakfast. My back starts to ache a touch and I take my Advil and remind myself that I better not overdo it since I have only 3 hours before I need to do this all over again, so I better make the best of the time that I have - translation - make sure I get a shower and a nap. Speaking of which, I better get going :)

Mile Stones

There has been a lot of family nap time around our house lately. Ada and Oliver enjoying a particularly sweet moment. 

The girls went to their weigh in appointment on Friday. This was the first time that they have been out in something other than a baby t-shirt or a Onesie. These adorable outfits came to them courtesy of Nicole and Adam and even though they are tad big on them now, they are pretty cute if I do say so myself. 

Drum Roll please.... after a week of nursing like a fiend and giving Ada many syringes of milk to supplement her short nursing sessions.. both girls weighed in at 6 lbs 5 ounces!!!! That means that Margot gained 3 ounces over her birth weight by this "crucial" two week mark and Ada was only 1 ounce shy of her birth weight- which was of no concern to the doc. Yeah!!!!! I could feel the stress melting off my brain as the nurse announced their official poundage. I am so proud of my good eaters and now we can get down to the business of learning how to be a family without the worrying about certain little girls starving or shrinking or something. We celebrated with some fabulous cheesecake that one of Stephen's teacher friends sent over. 

Yesterday, Ada Grey lost her belly button! Hurrah! That means that a true bath is on the way (so far it's only been sponge baths). We decided we will wait for Margot to lose hers as well since these babies like to do as much as possible together. We are very proud of Ada and even more excited that we no longer have to tiptoe around that scary little area - btw... looks like she is going to be an outie. 

We are still feeling very blessed by the easy going nature of our girls. They do have a difficult time setting between 9pm and 11pm but we are learning strategies to deal with this. The funny thing is, every time we get them figured out and have it down to a science.. they change it up on us and we get to start from scratch again. 

As far as personalities go.. they are the same now that they were in the womb. Ada is our active super vocal one, while Margot is mostly quiet and content. However at night, though Ada might take a little longer to get to sleep, once she is sleeping she is down for the count.. while Margot may take quite a few more calming sessions to completely settle into sleep... she will nap and wake crying several times while Ada is snoozing next to her.  They enjoy holding their little bobble heads up off of our shoulders, to have a good look around at their environment. Both have super strong backs and legs and have almost launched themselves off laps several times already - no wonder I always felt like I was bruised inside while I was pregnant. They are starting to be more awake after feedings during the day and love to sit in their baby seats and check each other out. 

Mary was here helping out this week and we had such a great time with her. Still, we have enjoyed our alone time as a family yesterday and today. We need and love all the help we are getting, but there is something so special about being in ones home with your best friend and your babies that you just can't beat. 

We broke down and got a baby monitor so that we can sit outdoors without having to rush in every few moments to see if anyone is awake or in distress. The weather here is pretty amazing today so we are hoping to get out the stroller and go for a walk, another first for Ada and Margot since they have only been out in their car seats to the doctor and back. 

Most surprising thing so far about parental sleep deprivation, the hallucination factor. Lack of sleep does not bother me as much as some - too many all-nighters in college. Stephen has had a little more trouble. There have been several times that he has awoken to bring me the babies for a feeding and once he sits up on the side of the bed, he bends over the corner of the mattress and starts swaddling or un-swaddling a phantom baby. I see this and inquire as to what he is doing and I am told that he is getting Ada/Margot, to which I reply that both girls are still in their crib - he declares that they are right there and he has them - I gently reiterate that they are indeed still in bed as I can still hear them crying - he disagrees but humors me by going to check and returns with one of the girls in his arms. One particularly disturbing episode found him returning from the girls room (after I sent him there with a sleeping fully satisfied baby to put her down to sleep) and flopped across the end of the bed with the sleeping bundle in the crook of his arm - when asked what he was doing he declared that he was trying to wake Ada/Margot up so they could eat. I reminded him they had just eaten.. then told him to stay right there and not move.. I put the other baby down and came back to extract the glow worm he was clutching. I didn't let him get up the rest of the night. He didn't remember any part of that episode in the morning. He has never endangered either girl but it is a bit upsetting to see your spouse completely out of it like that. I think that these episodes stem from Stephen sweetly staying up during that 8-11 fussy time and pacifying the babies while allowing me to sleep through. Last night we were able to do this as a team effort and when he awoke to fetch babies last night he was in his right mind. Still, pretty surprising how lack of sleep can affect the mind. 

Off to take a shower before I have to wake the ladies up for their second breakfast. 

Twin Stuff

This is Ada towards the end of her first nap of the morning. Her sister was crying away right next to her head, ready to eat, and Madame Ada just slept right through. The books I read said that they would sleep through each other's cries but I was sceptical but they were right. One can cry and the other just sleeps right through or might sometimes just lay there looking at the other one as if to say "What is going on with you?"

Stephen and I have been out without the girls twice now. This past Saturday, we went to the Farmer's Market here to get some peaches and ginger ale while my mom stayed and watched the little ones. Yesterday was Stephen's first day of school and to celebrate, the school had a big cookout/covered dish dinner yesterday evening. I was feeling pretty good so I got to go with Stephen while Mary stayed here and watched the girls. We had such a great time and the girls were still sleeping when we called to check in on the way home so we headed to Starbucks for a quick treat with Stephen's giftcard the school gave him during orientation. No, I did not drink anything with caffeine. The girls are sleeping so well I don't want to take a chance on messing that up.

This morning seemed to be the first time they really discovered each other in the crib. They are highly aware of the other's presence, or lack thereof, but this morning was different. I fed them and then we put them down for their usual nap and when we went back in 45 minutes later to check on some noises, there they were wide awake, quietly hanging out together. Ada was checking out their black and white mobile, and Margot was checking out Ada.



It was really so sweet. I have become such an emotional person lately. The other day I was trying to read to them while they were in their baby seats. As luck would have it I grabbed "Guess How Much I Love You" from the bookshelf ...yeah.. I got about 3 pages before the waterworks started. I persevered and finished the book with tears running down my face. Then I thought I would read "My Sister and I" .. another winning choice..more tears. How hormonal can one woman be?!

I tried to catch the visiting on video but I think the prime moments had passed.. still.. it's cute and I hope those of you who have not seen them in person yet will appreciate it. There is quite a lot of tongue thrusting going on here but I promise they had just eaten and they ate really well!

Big Brother

For those of you out there on the interweb who have been wondering how Oliver is faring with all these changes, let me just say that he is the consummate big brother. He wants to be with them whenever they are not sleeping. His bark has become extremely aggressive towards strangers outside out windows and he has taken to launching himself at the screen door and barking non-stop when we have visitors. He has become very protective. Once we allow said visitor inside and he sees that we are friends with the person and they are not here to harm his little sisters, he turns back into the same old Oliver with all the tail wagging and toy exhibiting of his former sibling-less self. 

The other day the room to the girls room was shut and they had started to wake up from their nap and were crying softly inside. Oliver ran to get his favorite bone and started twirling excitedly and wagging his tail outside their door. When I opened the door he ran inside and straight to the crib, jumped up on the side and started trying to put his bone through the slats in crib, wagging his tail the whole time and doing is little happy wiggle dance. It was one of the sweetest displays I have ever witnessed and I knew for sure that he knows that these little ones belong to us and are here to stay. 

When I nurse, Oliver is my nursing buddy. We have two Boppies but I only use one at the moment so Oliver either cuddles in the empty Boppy or on my leg while I feed the girls. 

Ada and I have been spending extra cuddly  time the last few days. She is my inconsistent nurser and when she goes several feedings without really getting a good meal it's hard on Mommy. She still sleeps like she has a full belly and we give her a supplemental syringe of milk but it still bothers me. Extra cuddle time seemed to help a bit yesterday. 

We went to their second weigh in on Thursday and the news was good. Ada gained one ounce and Margot gained two. They are supposed to be gaining 1/2 to 1 ounce a day at this stage so Margot was on the high end and Ada on the low of this scale. The doc was very pleased and said we should keep doing what we are doing. We go back this coming Friday for another check at which point they should have gained their birth weight back so we are really pushing the feedings around here. If you think of us, please pray that both girls will consistently nurse and get full feedings each time. It's really hard to wake a near term infant up for feeding so that is a little added strain on things but they are doing very well.. I am just impatient and have nothing better to worry about I suppose. 

I have already started dreading the day all my help leaves and it's just me here during the day alone with the two of them. I am sure we will figure things out in good time but I must admit it's a little daunting. Right now I would just be happy if my incision would heal fully so that I can be back to my more active self sooner.. again with the impatience thing. All in all everything is well here. Stephen and I are going for a morning outing to the Farmers Market while Mom watches the girls so I better get movin' before they wake up. 

Week One: Glow Worm Infestation

Well we made it through the first week! The girls were one week old yesterday :) Our home has become infested with these little glow worms and somehow we can't seem to remember what life was like before they arrived. A few photos from the past week to catch everyone up.. 

The cocoon the morning of the hatching. This is what 12 lbs of baby looks like. 

Leaving the hospital after having the girls safely installed in their car seats by one of the nurses who then insisted on taking out picture. If it looks like I put on weight that would be because I now have two bowling balls strapped to my chest. 

First glimpse of the glow worms in their home environment. 

This is Ada on the left and Margot on the right. Margot is our finger sucker and loves to get her arm worked out of her Papa's professional swaddling job so she can have a taste. 

Ada enjoying a little Kangaroo Care with Papa. Though the girls were full term for twins (37 weeks) they are still considered premies. Premies really benefit from lots of skin to skin contact with the parents in the early weeks so we spend a lot of time cuddling them to our chests right now. If I could I would do it all day long, they  are fantastic snugglers at this stage. 

One proud Grandpa with sweet Margot. Dad has been driving over to Raleigh (a one and a half hour trip each way) every night he is free to stop in and visit and hold the girls for a little while. We are so glad he and Mom are close enough to get to enjoy these early days with us. 

So here is the skinny on how things are going. I am sure I will soon eat these words but I gotta say.. so far it's been a lot easier than I expected. I am nursing them both at the same time and they  are on the same schedule. Sunday and Monday night, it seems they had their days and nights mixed up but that changed Tuesday night and last night. They are sleeping and waking up at about the 3 hour mark which is what we wanted. Again..I know this is probably beginners luck and we are in for more difficult times ahead but so far.. it really has been awesome and I can even venture to say that I feel pretty rested. I am still taking it easy recovering from the surgery and Mom has been a fantastic help and comfort this week - our house has not been this clean in awhile and she even found the time to bake us a pound cake yesterday! 

Now that I am able to move around better, I am actually able to go and get the girls for feeding at night and leave Stephen and Mom to sleep. That makes me really feel like a mom. I am constantly amazed that they actually recognize my  voice and that sometimes Stephen and I are the only ones who can soothe them. 

Oliver is the best big brother two little girls could want. He scratches at their door when they are crying and when the door slides open he hurries in to check on them, standing up on the edge of the crib and peering up at the new little creatures that are now in his home. He cuddles on my leg every time I nurse them and loves to sniff them and give them tiny little puppy kisses on their cheeks. They  seem to know him already and have never even turned their faces away from his kisses. He faithfully protects them from the mailman every  day and no matter how long or loud he barks, they never even flinch.. even if they are asleep! He has just been as fantastic as we knew he would be and we are so glad to finally be back at home with him. 

The girls had their first doctor's appointment on Tuesday and all was well. The only  item of concern was their weights. They did not lose any weight since leaving the hospital but they also did not gain - so that means they maintained which is a plus but we really need them to gain. SO... the last day and half has been a feed fest. I have been supplementing their feedings with a syringe full of pumped milk and pumping before feedings so that they can get to the good fatty "hind milk" faster when they eat. We have another weigh in today and we hope that they  have put on what they need to. If not, we will move on to other strategies. We are trying really hard to avoid having to bottle feed until they are at least 6 weeks but their thriving is my top priority so if that takes a bottle then.. I am fully on board. The biggest problem I have had is keeping them awake during feedings. It's just because they are so young and it is getting better by the day but it has been a bit of  a challenge. I have tried all the tricks, tickling feet, rubbing their hands, cold washcloth to the face and body, undressing them..they are serious little sleepers. Anyway.. it's getting much much better and will continue to do so as they age. 

So there you have it, week one in our lives as the parents of twins. I am off to take a nap before the next feeding frenzy. Thank you again, everyone for all your prayers for us.. they are working!

They're here...

Stephen and I are pleased to introduce you to our new baby girls. Ada Grey and Margot Dagny. Ada weighed in at a very healthy 6lbs 6oz, and measured 19in, with time of birth 11:23am while her sister Margot weighed in at 6lbs 2oz, and measured 20 in, with time of birth 11:24am

Mommy with Margot

Daddy with Ada

Margot looking at daddy from nursery

Ada in the nursery

Margot on the left and Ada on the right

So now you know the names, Ta Da! There isn't a whole lot behind our choices other than we just loved these names and they just felt right for our little ladies. They sound very different but the meanings are surprisingly similar. Ada, means "Adornment" and Margot means "Pearl". Grey just means the color itself, and Stephen and I have always loved those lovely grey days. It has been something special between us since we met. Dagny is Norse for "A new day" and this is obviously that! Dagny is also the heroine of my favorite Ayn Rand novel "Atlas Shrugged", a book that changed my world view and way of thinking.

Mother and babies are doing great and again, we thank everyone for their prayers and support through this whole process. More to come soon..

One

Well, this is it folks. The final day has come and gone. We went for our pre-admission appointment this morning and I am now all tagged and ready to go for the AM. I am supposed to just show up with Stephen and the camera and no extra stuff. They will scan me in and away we go! Our meeting with the nurses could not have been more relaxing. We had a bit of a tough salty nurse and a sugary sweet nurse so they balanced each other out. The anesthesiologist, Dr. Grey.. yes, Dr. Grey (no her first name was not Meredith) was also super calm and sweet. I had to sign consent forms for the girls and put my relationship to the "patients" down as well.... "Mom".. very odd and pretty exciting at the same time. We had the car seats inspected and approved outside and we headed home to attempt to be normal for the rest of the day.

At some point this afternoon, Stephen said he just felt strange.. like there was this elephant in the room and he suggested we have an ice pop and sit in the nursery and discuss. So we did. After talking about how strange we felt to be about to bring home two little girls tomorrow, I decided that now was as good a time as any to give Stephen a diaper changing tutorial. So one of the girls stuffed bunnies volunteered to be the guinea pig.

I think he did an excellent job and he received high marks from the bunny as well.

Tonight we went to dinner at NoFo and had shrimp and grits, mmmm. Now I have about an hour and a half left to get in some sort of snack that must last me until tomorrow afternoon. As strange as it all feels to be getting up tomorrow and heading to the hospital to meet our daughters for the first time, we are so ready for this. As ready as we could possibly be. We know it will be hard and crazy for quite some time but we are ready for hard and crazy. We have had 6 years and 8 months together to get ready for these little girls and we are ready.

Before I sign off, I received an email tonight from one of my best friends in New York. I was just starting to feel a little nervous about tomorrow and anxious about things to come and then there was this email in my inbox. I hope she does not mind that I am going to share this sweet note with the world at large but it was just the thing I needed to read tonight and I can't possibly duplicate the beautiful way it was written.

"Hi there!!!

How are you?? Ready Freddy? I've been thinking about you so much and how excited you and Stephen must be. Actually, I think about you every single morning (I'll tell you why in a minute) but this morning it was different and I knew I had to write . . .

Every morning as I sit in traffic on the West Side Highway, I watch the barges being pushed by those tough little tugboats, and I naturally think of you and how much you enjoy those little guys. In my mind, I race them up or down the river, and given rushhour traffic, they usually win. But they take the race very seriously - much more seriously than all of those silly cars on the highway. Those tugboats are in it to win - there's no two ways about it. Anyway, the "big", little tugs and I go through this ritual each morning and it makes me laugh and makes me think about you.

This morning, I crept down the West Side, anticipating my first tugboat sighting, and up ahead I was excited to see a giant barge. As I got closer, I saw the cutest (they don't like being called cute, but I can't resist), brightest, reddest, strongest little tugboat I've ever seen! I quickly jumped over to the right lane in order to get the best view. The little tug was pushing this giant barge right up the Hudson River! I was driving south and the tugboat was going north, so I knew I'd only get a few moment to see it. But before I could even laugh outloud about the ridiculous cuteness of the whole scene, I looked toward the back of the barge and saw a second tugboat!! It was IDENTICAL to the first one! It was bright red and just as strong as the first tugboat! Together they were pushing this big barge right up the Hudson with the ease of pushing a child on a swing. It was so amazing!!! And again, it made me think of you, and it made me think of your sweet little, strong little girls. It made me think about how they will grow up to support one another just like those two cute little tugboats. How they'll be able to move mountains (or barges) together.

Anyway, it really brightened my otherwise dull commute to the city, and best of all, it made me think about you and Stephen and your new little family.

I wish you the best of luck and know that everything will be just fine. Our prayers are with you."

Thank you, friend, for giving me that perfect glimpse of the the city when I needed it most.

And now.. I will bid you all goodnight (for some reason Blogger now has me stuck in italics..). Thank you everyone for your prayers.. we will see you on the other side.

Two

Two days.. two.. as in day after tomorrow I will be the proud mother of two little girls.. all at once. Today I had Cuban food from Oakwood Cafe for lunch and will probably have it again tomorrow. Stephen and I tried to think of things, last minute things, that needed to be taken care of before Wednesday and didn't come up with very much. He is really getting a lot done on his lesson plans and that is encouraging to us both. So it sit/lay on the bed and help him with sentence wording/idea affirmations while thumbing through various books and catalogues. 

Tonight, Ellen came over to visit for one last time before my whole world changes and I become the strange and alien being that I will apparently turn into once I view my offspring for the first time. First, we went for a drive to check out a house and a neighborhood she was curious about buying in. After deciding that it was a definite no-go, she took me for a Cook-Out milkshake (I had the Chocolate Malt) and we came back here and ended up sitting outside in the front yard for a few hours chatting. We talked about everything from college to babies to weddings .. memories intwined like the smooth tapestry that only sisters can weave together. 

I remember that time before she had Seth. I remember wanting to soak up every moment we got to spend together, worried that once he arrived I would lose my best friend as she  became one with the universal sisterhood of mothers. And then, he was here, and though she was different.. she was still the same girl that I have known all these years. I hope that I can do as good a job of keeping my identity intact as she has done. Thanks for the milkshake, Anne girl. 

Three

Oh the places we've been...

Stephen and David's opening in Newark.. Two Crackers from the Same Box

A wild ride on the Cyclone in Coney Island..

Camping in the Catskills..

Christmas at home in Brooklyn.. pregnant and didn't know it yet..

Seattle..

High atop the New Museum in the city..

Montauk..

Yankee Stadium to cheer on the Rays..

Chillin' in Chelsea.. 

Savoring a warm day at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens..

Deer Isle, Maine..

Outside the chateau in Murviel-les-Beziers in France..

Armstrong Park in the fall...

Prospect Park in the summer...

Birthday dinner in the village..

Being tortured by firefighters in Brooklyn Heights..

Sitting on train tracks in Raleigh.. just started dating .. who knew we would end up living here one day..

Hanging out at the train station in High Point..

Leading a group of campers on a hike at Pilot Mountain.... just friends here.. no we are really just friends..honest! I really don't want to get into a relationship right now (ha!). 

Bar Harbor, Maine... 

West Yellowstone, Montana .. days prior to the proposal...

Three days from now.. the next chapter begins... the saga continues.. something tells me it will be as varied as the past has been...