To Be Filed Under I Should be Blogging More With All This Time: Catch Up Edition

I have a lot of time on my hands. Pretty soon there will be no time. I should be blogging more. I'm settling into this staying home thing. I'm making real dinners (nothing crazy, I promise) and homemade strawberry shortcake (a huge hit, at least, the whipped cream was). It's funny, the little things that decrease one's stress. It's such a relief to know that I can just leave dinner dishes in the sink and realize I can wash them, at my leisure, in the morning. Or in the afternoon! Or whenever!

As thrilling as all that domestic talk is, I guess I don't have all that much to say. I haven't been writing because, well, does anyone want to hear me whine about feeling exhausted, not sleeping, being suddenly very puffy and itchy? The good news is, I successfully got my rings off, with a little help from Erin, baker's spray and olive oil. I waited too long and it hurt and not to be dramatic but it would liken it to a teeny, tiny reminder of the fun of childbirth.

You may also be interested to know that you can watch "Thirtysomething" on Netflix's instantly streaming shows. I have grand plans for most days but have found that one errand in the morning (the grocery or the doctor) pretty much does me in. So, "Thirtysomething" on Netflix it is.

As long as I'm sitting on the couch, I feel great! Albeit, a little sleepy.

32 weeks, six days, today.

I had a doctor's appointment today. Baby B is sitting on Baby A's head, but I imagine they are pretty used to that kind of infringement. Do twins grow up to be more tolerant people, I wonder? In other news, they both have hair! And are estimated at 5.5 and 5.8 pounds. I'm told this is large for this point in the pregnancy, but I hope they have plenty of time to get bigger. I've never had a baby under eight pounds and anything smaller scares me. Oh, my doctor also told me today that I was "born to grow twins." So, maybe I have a new career direction?

In other big news, Ruby (our dog) got a haircut. Note the pink bows (yes we like to humiliate our dog). Please, however, ignore the recycling in the background. This photo was taken in the mudroom which Erin just painted. I am in love with the color, which is the same color we've decided to paint the babies' room. Hmm, do you think Leo loves his dog?

Ellie had her ballet recital last weekend. It was adorable as expected. Not that we're biased.




I was good! I only cried a little.

The other morning Leo woke up a little early before school, early enough to have time to draw. He's into houses right now. He drew the above and I was quite impressed to note that he'd included, without instruction or direction, his address. I have no idea if he just noticed this himself or if he's learning it at school. Either way, I'm proud. By the way, he's sticking his tongue out here, on purpose. Only because I told him not to.

Catch-Up

Just going to jump in here. I hate going long stretches without writing. But enough about that.

So.

We took Ellie to her first play, “Beauty and the Beast” (a musical, but not the Disney version).

Leo, as you’ll recall, is a theater veteran. I’d say it was a success though the production was decidedly low budget and no where near as good as the show Leo and I saw (I swear the beast costume was a fox or a bear—there was absolutely nothing beast-like about him and Erin and I had a good chuckle over “Beauty and the Fox.”) Anyway the kids didn’t seem to mind.

Ellie had her first ballet class last weekend.

No, that blob is not my thumb, it's some dad. They close the door shortly after the lesson begins so that's the best I could do. Ellie is in the center in the black leotard and white tights, the poor dear is the only one without a ballet skirt (don't worry, we rectified that immediately after class).

She has been asking to take a dance class for some time and it's been hard to find one that doesn't conflict with Leo's swimming but I finally found one and felt victorious!

I’m not sure what was more exciting, the class, the new white ballet shoes (here she is getting her ballet shoe "fitting") or the little pink outfit (leotard/skirt combo) I let her pick out from the dance school’s “store.” She pirouetted through the house and took that outfit on and off about seventy five times between Saturday afternoon and Sunday night. And almost every morning since that class, the first words out of her mouth upon waking are "Do I get to go to ballet today?"

If there’s anything cuter than a three year old in a black leotard and white tights, I’m not sure what it is.

Erin had a birthday, I had a birthday and Leo celebrated by getting some kind of very unpleasant stomach virus. He even woke us up at 12:30 a.m. birthday morning to start the festivities. Poor guy. Of course, I had just commented to someone aloud how we’d remained reasonably unscathed this winter (while furiously knocking wood) and of course, wouldn’t you know it. When Leo is sick, his energy level plummets to the point where he is unrecognizable. He’s this eerily agreeable, compliant, passive little person.

Also, he lies on the couch, which is SO not Leo.

Thankfully, he seems to be on the mend, though the stomach thing morphed into a cold.

For my birthday (which fell on a Monday, really, shouldn’t there be a law against Monday birthdays?), Erin made me this which was A-MA-ZING. I threatened to put my face into the entire bowl and just call it a day but I restrained myself.

In Babies News, these two are trucking along and currently weigh an estimated 1 pound, 13 ounces each. That seems huge to me (I mean, at this stage in the game) but what do I know?

Not sure if you can make it out but the sonographer captioned this one "Two Heads Are Better Than One." Awwwww.


Only one baby was feeling particularly photogenic today. This is "Baby B." That's a leg, in front of the face.

A less exciting shot, but don't want anyone to feel left out, I present, "Baby A."


Yesterday when Leo was home sick he and I watched an episode of “Make Room for Multiples” which he was absolutely fascinated by. He’s getting very interested in the belly (which is admittedly, hard to ignore) and has been able to feel some actual kicks. I think he’s still scarred from seeing me suffer from morning sickness, because he’s still talking about the babies making me ill.

He kisses the belly several times a day and then me. Seriously? Leo has the biggest heart of any child I’ve ever known. His empathy and sensitivity is just boundless, it seems. The other night when he was sick and I lay down with him before bed, he pulled me into his chest, holding me, as if I was the one who needed a little extra comfort and care.