24

Today marks 24 weeks along with the twins... Just 14 left to go! I've gained about 34 pounds so far, only 2 of which are actually baby. They are just over a pound and as long as an ear of corn. We seem to have progressed from fruit to vegetables ~ this should get interesting!

Here's a picture of what they should be looking like right now...

I had a checkup this week and everything looks good. We got our C~section scheduled for October 6th... which seems so far away but really it's just a little over 3 months. I did the dreaded one hour glucose test (this seems to get easier each time?) and even had the boys with me. Thank goodness for cards and DS's (they fluctuate from wanting to play "War" all the time and wanting to play video games on Shawn's Nintendo DS). They got to hear the babies' heartbeats, though it wasn't easy to find them as they were so squirmy!! These babies are constantly on the move and don't seem to ever be still at the same time for very long. I'm thinking the Makua are in for quite a ride with these active lil Keiki!

Here's what my belly looks like today. My darling friend Erica brought me some clothes to wear after listening to my complaints of everything being too small ... and the first thing I pulled out was a maternity Aloha shirt. It seemed appropriate somehow :)

Other than that, we're plugging right along through summer. Swim lessons are almost over and the boys have learned a lot! I'm still not quite confident in their swimming ability for them to hang out in the pool without me, but I definitely feel more comfortable watching two kids even in my sluggish state.

Today we're off to go bowling with Ria and her girls, which the boys have been looking forward to for days. I'll try to remember to bring my camera because watching Gavin bowl is one of the funniest things I've ever seen in my life. I think you'll get a kick out of it!

Happy Thursday!

He did it!

So far our summer has been a blur of swim lessons, track & field (Gavin), museums, parks, libraries, hiking, hanging out at the pool, spending time with our friends and reading. Heaven, I tell you, heaven. We're having a great time together and I'm really enjoying the boys being big enough to do this fun stuff. Shawn's been trying to teach the boys how to ride their bikes in there, too, when he's not swamped with homework (he's trying to finish his degree on top of being a full time dad with a full time job and an emotional, hormonal pregnant wife!).

It's been a week since we had them out practicing because swim lessons are every evening, just before bed. Last time we were out, Tyler just about had it but was too frustrated and gave up early. But yesterday, he got it. And now it's all he wants to do.

If you'd like to see, here are my three best guys (I talk loud ~ turn your volume down a smidge):

The Last Hike

This week marked our 23 week of pregnancy. My belly continues to expand as the Keiki grow ~ this week they were compared, at a lil over 1 pound each, to mangoes. I'm getting more and more sluggish as each day passes and soon I'll be on travel restriction, to prevent a possible non~Denver birth... which would create all kinds of complications.

We had a yearly pass to our favorite hiking spot in Estes Park, so we thought we'd go there for our last hike of this year. Shawn found a new trail that we hadn't yet traveled ~ to Cub Lake. When we read that the round trip was 4.6 miles, we set off with expectations that we might not make it all the way.

As it turns out, there was a small pond about half way there that sure looked like what we imagined Cub Lake to be. So we stopped there instead.

Along the way, the boys did some rock climbing...


And we found some shady spots to rest...

The boys walked along together...

Until we came to the pond...

We saw tons of wildlife! Mama and baby Elk...

Mama and baby ducks... (they were SO cute!)

We also saw some members of the rodent family... like prairie dogs and this marmot. He wouldn't look at us and when we walked closer, he ran and hid, but he was a strange looking creature... almost like a cross between a beaver and a ground hog with some prairie dog thrown in there?

On the way back, hungry and tired, Gavin asked how much farther I thought it was? Maybe another mile?

"No," I replied, "I think it's just another quarter of a mile."

"Or maybe," Gavin said confidently, "a dime of a mile!"

A Day with Daddy

Yesterday was my day with the boys. It started off as a regular day, with us trying to decide how to spend it. We'd talked the day before about possibly doing the Butterfly Pavilion, or maybe checking out a new playground. Shawn kissed us goodbye and left. About 20 minutes later, he called saying he was headed back home. He had forgotten his badge, which he has to have to get into the secured building that he works in.

Another 20 minutes later, he showed up and rather than having one of the boys run his badge out to the car, he just got out and came back in. He decided to call in "sick" and play hooky.

So off to see the butterflies we went! We also drove a little further up to Boulder and found a veggie burger fast food joint to try. We also had a coupon in our Entertainment Book (this is such a great resource as it leads us to place we wouldn't otherwise find!) for a planetarium on CU's campus. So we got to see a movie and learn about the moon and explore the little science center there, too.

All in all, it was a great day! We didn't do a single productive thing, so I broke my rule of one fun thing and one productive thing on my Tuesdays and Thursdays off, but I think I made up for it last Sunday when I went to get the oil changed in Shawn's car as a Father's Day gift.

Here are some photos Shawn snapped of butterflies and boys... First they got to see and touch some sea stars:


Tyler was brave enough to hold a tarantula (!):

Then we made our way to the butterflies:

Here are some more of the ones we were able to capture on film... it was no small feat getting these photos ~ they are fast lil boogers!




This was my favorite:


And perhaps not as glamorous but just as cool, some moths eating dead fruit:


It's getting hot here... and at 22.5 weeks, I'm getting uncomfortable. We're going to be spending more and more time indoors if not at the pool. The boys started swim lessons this week and are loving it! The teacher is great and I think I'll sign them up for round two. I also got permission to swim laps in the empty deeper end of the pool while they are learning to swim, which will be great exercise for me. Everything else has been too painful ~ a strange thing for me as I was in pretty decent shape before I got pregnant. So I'm excited to get moving again, even if for only half an hour at a time.

Have a great week!

Let me count the ways...

When I was in college... not quite actively searching for the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, but certainly looking for someone cool to hang out with, I met him. I was 19, he had just turned 22. The odds were against us from the beginning. The timing was wrong, for many reasons... The future seemed bleak for us. I didn't know how long we'd be together, but I knew I needed to be with him. At least for right now.

He didn't make me any promises... about the kind of man he would be, the kind of father he would be, the kind of son he'd be to my parents or the kind of brother and uncle he'd be to my siblings and their kids. No promises from him, and no expectations from me, really.

But living for the moment eventually progressed to thinking about the possibility of forever. Time had run out for procrastination. He was working at a dead end job, freshly on academic probation from college after a bout of uncertainty and changing majors. I was working at a dead end job, freshly dropped out of nursing school after reevaluating my life and not sure where I wanted to go.

We came to a fork in the road and one way was staying together, getting married, following him around the country after he joined the Army... and the other way ~ life without him. Back home to live with my parents? Changing majors and trying my hand at finishing a college degree? But life without him. After spending 2 years with him, I couldn't fathom it. So we married.

A small ceremony at a courthouse in Lafayette, Indiana on a beautiful October day, with plans to have the big white wedding later, after boot camp. Well, that day never came and it never had to. We were together... husband and wife... vows were made and promises were made and expectations were set.

But still, at 21 and 23, you really don't know who YOU are, let alone what kind of parent or spouse you'll be. You don't even think about it. And so off we went, frolicking through our lives.

When everyone we knew was having babies, we started thinking about it too. After a year of trying, Tyler was conceived. We both wanted to be parents and very much looked forward to meeting our son. But still, until you are knee deep in diapers, spit up, strollers and baby wipes, you don't know what you are in for. And you really don't know what kind of parent your partner is going to be ~ no matter how much you've talked about it before hand. No matter how much you've read. No matter what kind of examples you've seen of what to do and what not to do. You just don't know until you're there.

At 19, when we met, I knew I wanted to be with him... I knew I had chosen him for who he was ~ his character, his personality, his quirks, his interests, our similarities and our differences. But I had no idea what kind of father he'd be.

Turns out, I got lucky.

Shawn is the kind of dad that comes home for dinner every single night and sits at the table and talks to his sons about their day.

He gently offers advice and guidance while letting them grow and learn on their own.

He's quick with a smile, a laugh, a hug, a kiss, an "I love you" for them.

He's slow to anger and has patience with even the most annoying little boy behavior.

He's thoughtful and generous and teaches them to be kind and to think of others.

He's there for graduations, first days of school, track and field or soccer practices.

He tucks them into bed. Every night.

He watches crappy cartoons and kids' movies and laughs along with them.

He is teaching them how to ride their bikes... even after a long 2 hour round trip commute and an 8 or 9 hour day at work.

He lets them help him with yard work when they want to, but doesn't make them do it when they get tired of it.

He plays board games and card games.

He is never too busy to read or be read to.

He has never complained about "babysitting" his own kids while I went out with the girls, or to get my nails done.

When he has a day off work or gets off early, he gets them out of day care to spend time with them.

He enjoys them.

He makes it easier for me to be a mom... by taking over when it's clear that my patience has long worn thin. By helping me with household chores, so I won't be too tired to play with them later.

He loves me. He never hides his love for me ~ he kisses and hugs and snuggles in front of them. One day, they'll probably be grossed out, but I like to think they're learning how to love a woman from him.

He sets good examples ~ holding doors, using his manners.

He snuggles with them every morning before going to work.

He plays with them.

He is silly and sweet with them.

He shares himself with them ~ lets them know him, all of him.

He never stops trying to better himself for them, for us, finishing school... excelling at work so he can make enough money to support us.

He's overcome incredible odds to be the person he is today, but he never stops trying to be better, do better, live better than the person he was yesterday and the examples he's had in his life.

They are happiest when they are with him ~ our best days are always the days when we are together as a family.

I just can not imagine a better father for my children, a better partner for me as a parent or a person, just trying to make it one more day in this crazy life.

Happy Father's Day, Shawn. Thank you for being who you are. I will always love you.

Urgency

Shawn and I watched a documentary last night on climate change. You might have heard of it ~ The 11th Hour (this was Leo DiCaprio's project). If you've been stopping by my blog for any length of time, you know that finding ways to protect our planet is one of my passions...

The movie last night gave me new things to think about, different perspectives. And it also gave me a new sense of urgency. At the same time, I'm filled with a feeling of helplessness because I fear it's too late. That the things that need to be done ~ that we have the resources to do to fix this ~ won't be done in time.

One of the points that I thought was a good one is that this planet, this planet that is sick because of us, is going to survive. We teach our boys to take care of our Earth so that the Earth will take care of us... but the thing is, the Earth will heal itself and regenerate, despite the damage that has been done to it. It's our species (and likely most other species on the earth) that is going to be extinct. Extinct!! Not just adapting ~ moving to new cities as the water levels rise and Florida disappears under the ocean... buying more air conditioners to combat summer heat waves... moving ski resorts further north as the snow levels decrease.

At first, yes, we'll adapt. But in the end, we're committing suicide. We're murdering our children's children. I just don't know how we can look away and not do anything. Not even try.

Some people think that climate change, global warming, is a belief ~ like a religion. But in reality, it's an undeniable truth that our climate is changing. Whether or not we are responsible for 100% of that is still being argued.

I don't think there's time to argue. The things that need to happen to turn this around need to start happening now. Yesterday even.

Unfortunately, I think the things that we do in our family... which is only a drop in the bucket of what we should be doing... are not enough. Even if every single person in the United States was doing every single possible thing they could do to reduce their carbon footprint, it still wouldn't be enough. We need help from our corporations and our government. But the corporations seem to have one motive ~ money. Without a home, what good is money?

And the government that we currently have seems to have one motive ~ war. Or power? World domination? Take your pick. But again ~ what good is power or domination if we have no home?

The last point that had me lifting my chin off the floor last night... was that the price of fixing this ~ reforestation, new energy sources, marine life repair (things that will put our country back to work and help the economy to boot) is expensive. I don't remember the exact number but I do remember this ~ it was one third the cost of the U.S.'s military budget. One third.

We need to change our priorities.

Funnies

We didn't have a lot going on today and thought it might be fun to take some videos... So here ya go!

Gavin doesn't particularly like to be put on the spot... but I couldn't resist.

Have a great Tuesday!

More Drama from Our House

Let me just start by saying that I gave not one single person a black eye or any bruises at a restaurant this weekend! Hooray! (thank you for laughing with me about the tray incident by the way) :)

Remember this girl from last week? Well, when I went to pick up the boys on Friday, she followed Tyler to the fence with her lips pursed, ready for a kiss. Ugh. He didn't kiss her but I decided it's probably about time to have a talk about what's appropriate or not for school.

We maybe should have had this talk earlier. As it turns out, BOTH of my boys are so cute that the girls can't keep their lips off them. Gavin's been accosted by Chloe a time or two and Tyler's been fielding advances from his girl for awhile now. He said he's told her not to kiss him but she keeps going after him anyway. (I'm liking this girl less and less as the days go by!)

We talked about how it's not appropriate to kiss at school (Shawn went further to scare warn them by telling them they can get kicked out of school for this). That hugs are Ok but at the end of the day it's your body and you don't have to kiss or hug anyone that you don't want to. That no means no. While I'm happy that it's kisses and hugs that we are dealing with in lieu of more violent behavior, this is still a strange new frontier for me.

I've promised Tyler that I'll stay out of it ~ he wants to take care of the situation on his own and I told him I'll let him as long as he is keeping it under control. He knows that if his words don't work, a teacher's will and he'll ask for help from her.

I know this is only summer day care and if this is the biggest our "problems" ever get, I'll thank my lucky stars.

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We had a beautiful spring evening last night and thought at 6.5, it was time Tyler learn how to ride his bike with no training wheels. He was extremely nervous and much bribing and deal making had to be done to get him to the point where he'd even put himself in harm's way by getting on the bike (weenies, I tell ya, I've got weenies for kids). But once he had on his knee pads, arm pads, wrist pads and helmet, he felt secure enough to take it for a spin.

Tyler is the kind of kid to get easily frustrated with himself and even mad at himself if he doesn't immediately do something well. When he is good at something (running, drawing, putting Lego structures together, reading, math) then he instantly loves it and will spend all of his free time consumed with that thing.

He didn't immediately ride the bike. But he didn't fall down and scrape anything either (not that there was any place his skin could see the light of day to get scraped). After many trips down the sidewalk and back with Shawn and as many different versions of "you're doing a great job!" as I could think of, he started to gain enough confidence to think he *might* be able to figure this out. So after over a year of talking to him about it being about that time that lil boys learn how to ride two wheelers with no training wheels... we've finally made some progress.

And Gavin, not to be outdone by his big brother, thought he'd like to try too. So Shawn took the training wheels off his bike and gave him a lesson as well. Gavin apparently has better balance and though he's not riding alone quite yet, he did very well and I think he'll be riding his two wheeler by the end of the week if we keep getting out and practicing with them! He was SO excited and kept wanting to get back on and try some more. He was so funny riding down the street with a big ol' grin on his face (rather than the look of terror right before death that Tyler's showed) and his tongue hanging out of his mouth as he concentrated on not falling down. He kept saying "I'm so proud of myself" because he was doing such a good job. So funny!

Hope you had a great weekend!

Go ahead, laugh at my expense

Yesterday was my day with the boys. We had plans to go to the museum with Ria but she ended up with a migraine and couldn't join us. So we packed up and went on our own... We saw some cool stuff and had a nice time. Two+ hours in a museum, however, is enough to wear me out. So the prospect of coming home and making lunch did not sound too tantalizing to me.

So when the boys suggested begged to go to the new McDonald's they built not far from our house to check out the play area, it was hard to turn them down.

We enjoyed our lunch and when we were finished, I went to throw our trash away. I successfully dumped the trash into the trash can but then as I was going to put the tray on top of the other trays, where they belonged, I missed. The tray went shooting out of my hands and hit a poor, unsuspecting young father in the head while he was sitting at the table with his son.

Oh. My. God.

I apologized profusely, hoping he would see the humor in the situation and forgive me, but he was clearly unappreciative of having a tray thrown at his head. I don't think Tyler could have been more embarrassed.

And I thought it was going to be a boring summer!

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In baby news... the Keiki are as big as carrots this week (21 weeks ~ 17 to go)! They are very active lil things and I swear baby B was doing somersaults at the exact moment that Obama won the nomination. No, I'm not trying to brainwash them already ~ they aren't even my kids to brainwash! But they are from Hawaii, just like Obama, and I am sure it's in their genes to love him!

And speaking of their parents... after the Makua left our home, they went on to other adventures in California. When I heard they were going to be in wine country, I politely asked them to think of me if they happened to end up in a winery and maybe send me a bottle for my post labor wine gorging event. (Shawn and I are trying to fill up our modest little wine rack)

They obliged, and yesterday Mr. UPS brought us not one but SIX bottles of California wine!

This deserves another: Oh. My. God.

I am so excited!! :) I am not talking about cheap $6 wine that I usually partake in but the good stuff that we only partake in for special occasions. I may never go back to Ernest & Julio!

Tyler's Girl

Tyler went to Gavin's day care/pre~school for the week of Spring Break, back in March. One day, after he was no longer attending, a girl approached me and said "So, what's wrong with Tyler?". She had a tiny bit of attitude that I found a bit off putting.

I retorted: "there is nothing wrong with Tyler."

Her quick reply: "then where is he?"

My quicker response: "at school ~ he was only here for Spring Break and now he's back at his regular school".

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Last week, Tyler's first week at the day care for the summer, he and Gavin were talking about this girl in the back seat on the way home from school. Apparently, she told Gavin that she was going to marry (!) Tyler. He was clueless about her affection but didn't seem displeased about it in any way. I chalked it up to a school girl crush and didn't think anything more about it.

We had a quick conversation about crushes and girls and how there are lots of fish in the sea... lots of friends to make.... lots of fun to be had.

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Today, when I arrived to pick up the boys, Gavin and I went into Tyler's classroom to collect him. He didn't see us walk in and was playing with some marble contraption. This girl and her lil buddy walked up to him and were showing him something they had drawn. Giggles broke out all around as I walked up to him to tell him it was time to leave.

He went to put something away and she whipped around with a big grin on her face and said: "has Tyler told you about me?" all coy and sly.

"No" I replied, just as coyly, "what about you?"

To which her friend replied: "she loves Tyler and Tyler loves her".

I smiled, nodded, and walked away thinking ~ well, I love him, too. And I'm not quite ready to share him. Not just yet.

Is this really supposed to be happening at age 6.5? I seriously feel like my life just got fast forwarded by about 8 years.

Our Next Chapter Begins

This week marks the first week that I'm cutting down on my work days.  I'm excited for the lazy days of summer and we've started out with a bang!  

We enjoyed our visit with the Makua ~ eating yummy meals, doing some shopping and even spending some time at a local museum.  Shawn and I decided that it was a good place for a membership for the summer to provide hours of (air conditioned) entertainment for the boys.  We're looking forward to going back, and hopefully we can convince Ria and her girls to join us!

We had a laid back weekend, with trips to the park, the pool and an impromptu BBQ with some neighbors.  We really lucked out where our neighborhood is concerned as we landed on a street with some really awesome people that are fun to spend time with and have kids similar in age to ours.  After being cooped up all winter, it's nice to see some familiar faces up close.  It always amazes me how people change over the long winter months ~ especially the kiddos!

Working Monday, Wednesday and Friday is going to be really nice, I think.  One day at a time seems so much less overwhelming than four and a half.  I can deal with the rudest of clients or the crankiest of co~workers for just one day!  

Both boys have a flurry of activities in June.  Gavin started Track & Field last night at our community recreation center.  In two weeks, swim lessons start for both boys.  I'm most excited about this because having them both at the pool in my slower, larger state is a lil nerve racking since neither of them can swim right now!  At the end of June, Tyler starts baseball.  

Neither of my boys are very athletic, so their involvement in sports should be interesting to say the least!  I love that they are open to trying new things to see if they might like them and possibly find some hidden talents?  Tyler's a great runner but he's terrified of balls hitting him in the face and looks away to avoid them.  Gavin's not as scared of the balls but runs like a chicken.  While it's the cutest thing I've ever seen, it makes for some interesting stuff on a playing field!  

Today was the laziest day of them all, though I did manage to be somewhat productive.  I woke up when Shawn did but didn't get out of bed until 7am (I'm usually up, dressed and packing lunches by then!), reading some more of the book I can't tear myself away from for too long.  The boys slept in, exhausted from the activities of the day before no doubt, and we were all in our jammies until almost lunchtime.  

I did manage to list some clothes on eBay.  It seems I can no longer squeeze my size 10 ass into my size 8 maternity clothes, so an upgrade is in order.  Since my 60 pound weight loss that I completed after the last twins were born, I haven't had to wear a size Large.  It's not a good feeling to be there again, but I'd rather be comfortable than have guts billowing out all around clothes that are too tight.   I keep telling myself that I'll be back to an 8 by Christmas...

And right now, there is a handsome Latin man with a cute accent downstairs doing a deep clean on my carpet that I didn't think I needed.  Apparently we are dirtier than I thought and a normal steam clean will simply not do.  I never could resist an accent like that, though.

When he's finished, we'll be banished from our home while the carpet dries... and since Father's Day is right around the corner, I thought we'd venture to the store to look for something special for my dad.  I'm horrible at shopping for him, but with Mom's help I think I have thought of a good gift to get.  I promised the boys a trip to the playground and maybe a smoothie for good behavior, since we're going to enjoy a slightly cooler day than we have had lately.

We'll end the day with dinner and hopefully after the boys go to bed, a movie and snuggle time with my honey.  The worst thing about summer is the lack of good programming on TV but on the other hand, we'll spend more time with those awesome neighbors and maybe finally get through our Netflix queue and the 83 or so books on the shelf waiting to be devoured.

And how was that for the world's most boring post?  :)  I think it's going to be a long, lazy, boring summer... but I'm really, really looking forward to it!  I'll try to spice things up now and then so you'll want to keep coming back for more!