Belly Photo: Week 25

Babies are the size of eggplants (1.7 lbs, 9")

Yes, that is coffee.  It's my one vice in the pregnancy.  I tried giving it up for a week and my head almost exploded.  I cannot live without coffee.  The good news is that I'm allowed 8-12 oz of coffee a day and it doesn't harm the babies.

Belly Photo: week 24

 

Babies are the size of an ear of corn (8.5", 1.5 lbs)

Belly Photo: week 23

Woah - this is SUPER late.  Between the extreme exhaustion and preggo brain - I'm just now finding the energy and focus to put these photos together. 

Babies are the size of papaya (8" long, 1.2 lbs)

Music 101

As a self-professed audiophile / music snob, Sean has been obsessing over how to introduce music to the girls.  According to the gazillion pregnancy e-newsletters I’m receiving – they all said that the girls would start hearing sounds (or at least become aware of sounds) that week.  So, Sean decided to play DJ for the girls. 

The first step was to determine how to play the music for them.  We hooked Sean’s iPhone up to our portable iPod speaker and placed the speaker on my belly.  The next step proved to be the most difficult.  Not surprising to anyone who knows him and how he feels about music – he obsessed over which song to play first.  He decided that because we’re having two girls – and our goal is to raise strong-willed broads – that he would start with some music by a strong-willed broad. 

He started with “Respect” (Aretha’s version, not Otis’).  Followed that up with “Femme Fatale” by the Velvet Underground & Nico.  After that, we played songs from Neko Case, Wilco, Sonic Youth and Solomon Burke.  He played more songs than I’ve listed – and I’m sure he’ll fill in the missing artists in the comments.

I was surprised that the babies actually responded to the noise.  At a few points, I caught sight of the speaker and it was vibrating violently on my belly.  It was pretty rad.  They didn’t react to all the songs that way – but to a few. 

I’m not sure if they actually heard the noise through all the noise they currently hear in their amniotic sacs – but it was a fun night for us and we’re looking forward to introducing more music to the girls.  Next on my list – Jimmy Buffet, of course. 

Belly Photo: week 22

Babies are the size of spaghetti squash (8" long, 1 lb)

Belly Photo: Week 21

This photo's almost 2 weeks late - but better late than never. 

Babies are the size of bananas (7" long, 11 oz)

A Week of Firsts

Well, the new year has started off with a bang, or more precisely, a kick.  The lava bubbles have officially turned into kicks and punches.  I felt the first kicks/punches on New Year's Day and man, they caught me by surprise.  I knew instantly what they were.  And it was one of the most awesome feelings I'd ever felt.  Once the kicks/punches started, I didn't want them to stop - but they eventually died down.


And today I actually saw one of the girls (both of the girls?) kick/punch me.  I was lying on the couch and felt some kicks/punches so I looked down at my stomach.  And the next time I felt a kick, I saw the movement on my belly.  It happened a few times and I have to say it was strange.  And awesome.  I have these little active kickers in me and it's definitely making the pregnancy seem even realer.  I think I saw the kicks because my bladder was super full, crowding the babies and pushing them tighter against my ab muscles.  But I'm totally making that up because I'm not a doctor and have no idea why I was able to see the kick.  (Who knows, maybe it was just really big gas bubbles popping.) 

Now that I know that I can feel the girls kick, I keep hoping they'll kick again so I can feel them again. 

Belly Photo: Week 19

Babies are the size of mangoes (6" long, 0.5 lbs)

Oh Sweet Jesus!

Best parts of being pregnant, so far:

1. no more sucking in my stomach when I'm standing around people.  
2. maternity pants!!  holy crap - I think I'll wear these for the rest of my life.

And combine those two - sweet Jesus!  Best part of being pregnant so far!

Belly Photo: Week 18

Babies are the size of sweet potatoes (5.5" long, 5 oz)

Lava Lamp

Well, it's official, I've felt the babies move.  It finally dawned on me a few days ago that the rumblings I'd been attributing to gas were actually baby movements.

I kind of feel like a lava lamp - the amniotic fluid is the liquid in the lava lamp and the babies are the lava bubbles.

Following G-ma's tradition, I put up the Christmas tree the Friday after Thanksgiving.  And to get into the holiday spirit, I popped in "Die Hard 2."  

Belly Photo: Week 17

I'm holding a turnip because the pregnancy books and websites use fruits and vegetables to explain the baby's size each week.  This week they're the size of turnips - approximately 5" long and weigh 5 oz.  

Personally, I think the books use the world's smallest vegetables and fruits because the turnip I'm holding in my hand is 10 oz.  So technically, the cubs weigh the same as 1 turnip. 

Hormones

I’d heard the stories – friends bawling at a Kleenex commercial or breaking down looking at baby clothes.  Hormones, they said.  Don’t worry, they laughed, it’ll happen to you too.  So, I was prepared for water works.  I wasn’t prepared for what’s actually happening. 

Annoyance.  Anger.  Irritation.

I’ve always had a pretty low tolerance for bs.  I’ve never suffered fools.  And I can’t stand incompetence.

Now, normally this hasn't been a problem, because I’ve tried to do a good job of being as neutral as possible (friendly, even) when I’ve come across people who irritate and annoy me.  Well, not anymore.  I’m not saying I’m mean or rude, I’ve just noticed that the mask I’ve been able to put up to block my disdain, annoyance and exasperation is on its way to completely disappearing. 

In short – I’m starting to act more and more like my brother. 

Huh.

Happy Thanksgiving

 

From the shoulders up, I recognize the girl in the picture.  But I don't recognize that waist at all.  I swear it's not mine.  

This Sidewinder Isn't Sleeping Tonight

A full night's sleep - I miss that more than my waist.  I haven't slept through the night in over 2 weeks.  Perhaps it's my body prepping me for the sleepless nights I'll have once the babies arrive? It's more than just an overactive bladder because I'm waking up at the exact same time every night/morning.  I wake up at 3:00am, 6:00am and more recently - I've started waking up at 4:30am, too.  And let's not forget the 45 minutes worth of tossing and turning I do before falling asleep - I feel like a dog who walks in circles before finding a comfortable place to sleep. Who knows - I may start up a new hobby during those bits and spurts I'm awake. 

Week 16: Doc Appointment

Had another ultrasound at Tuesdays’s appointment (my certified nurse midwife does an ultrasound at the beginning of every appointment to check on the kiddos and their fluid).  Starting as early as ultrasound number 2, I've noticed they’ve each had very distinctive movements.  Twin A continues to rock and roll inside the womb while Twin B just sits back and chills*.  I wonder if that’ll be indicative of their personalities outside the womb?

*  this observation is based purely on the ultrasounds – I haven’t felt them kick, yet

It's Alive! It's Alive!

I’m giving the blog a second chance at life.  It was hard keeping it updated when the blog didn’t really have a purpose to it, aside from assuring G-Ma that I was still alive out here in CA.  Now that I’m incubating, I’ll use it as a way to keep family updated on how things are going. 

4th of July cake

Some friends invited us to their house for a 4th of July bbq and block party.  Since I don't cook - I always bring desserts with me to bbqs and potlucks.  The last time these friends invited us over for a potluck I made Guinness & Bailey's chocolate cupcakes, so I knew I had to step up my game for this one.  I decided to try my hand at a cake.  For all the cookie and cupcake baking I do, I can't remember the last time I made an actual cake.  Not content to make a regular cake, I decided to make a Red and Blue Velvet layer cake with cream cheese frosting.

No need to adjust your computer monitors - the batter turned out turquoise and dark pink - not quite the blue and red I was going for. I'm so used to dealing with cookie batter - that I momentarily freaked out when I saw how runny and liquidy the cake batter was.

I love my Pampered Chef cake pans.  They cooked the cake so evenly and were a breeze to clean.  I cut each of these cakes in half (vertically) to make a 4-layer cake.

My favorite part of the cake is the frosting - I used a cream cheese frosting.  Buttercream is too sweet for my taste - it makes my teeth hurt.  But the cream cheese frosting is perfect.   I have no idea how people get their frosting to look so smooth.  I was proud of myself for putting on a crumb coat and letting it harden in the fridge for an hour.  But even going that extra mile I couldn't get the frosting to look smooth.  So I embraced the messiness of it and made the swirls part of the decoration.

The original decorating plan was to frost a small American flag on the cake.  Seeing as how this was the first cake I've ever frosted - that was a lofty, unreachable, goal. Instead, I broke out a star cookie cutter and used it as a stencil and poured sprinkles onto the cake.  Viola! 

I wish I had a better picture to show you of the inside of the cake.  It looks unappetizing, but I gotta tell you, it was DELICIOUS!  I'm bummed I couldn't evenly divide the cakes in half - but I figure that just takes practice.  As yummy as the cake was - I think I'll stick with cookies and cupcakes. 

One Sentence Review - Dengue Fever

Where:  Detroit Bar

When:  Saturday, May 29, 2010

Dengue Fever:  Awesome, awesome, awesome - I don't understand how Cambodian Pop Psych Rock isn't the most popular music out there.

Pocahaunted: Ugh - they're everything that gives acid-rock a bad name - with a dash of pretentious d-baggery by 'playing Indian' in feathered headdresses and facepaint. (Is this the new accepted form of blackface?)