The Top 15 Stupid Things People Say to Parents of Twins

Alex and I thought these were hilarious...we've even already heard some of these! Hope you enjoy as well! We has our second ultrasound on Wednesday - and we are definitely having two girls...nothing has "descended" if you know what I mean. : ) All looks good with the girls - they are both a little over a pound. One was actually kicking the other in the head during the ultrasound. I think that type of behavior could only originate from Alex's side...or possibly a rogue Uncle Andrew gene.

15. "I could never do it." (Oh really. What would you do? Are you suggesting I put them on the curb with signs around their necks that say, "Free to a good home. My mom can't do it."?)

14. "Do they have different personalities?" (No. They are the same human being divided into two parts.)

13. Said by a stranger, "They're identical, right?" Mom answers, "No. They're fraternal." Stranger response, "They are NOT!" (OK. You're right. I have no idea what I'm talking about. These are not my children. I thought it would be fun to borrow them from a mom down at Baby Gap. It's been more than an hour. I guess I should return them.)

12. "Are they 'paternal' twins?" (Yes. They have a father. There was only one virgin birth.)

11. "Just wait till they're older. It only gets harder." (Thank you. I woke up this morning hoping I'd receive a word of discouragement while pushing a cart of preschoolers down the cereal aisle.)

10. "When one cries, does he wake the other?" (No. Twins cannot hear each other's cries because they all communicate with their special telepathic language only.)

9. From a perfect stranger: "Were they in the same sac?" (Hello. Nice to meet you, too. Will you be sharing your gynecological history with me as well?)

8. "Are they developmentally behind?" (Well, let's see. They're 3 years old and thus far, all their graduate school applications have been denied. We'll get back with you on that.)

7. "How do you do it?" (Haven't you seen the Nike commercials?)

6. Said by a dentist: "I was shocked that they didn't have the same bite patterns." (They are two different human beings, not clones.)

5. "You must be SO busy." (Are you volunteering to clean my house?)

4. Said to a mom of fraternal twins who are different sizes, have different eye color and different face structure: "How do you tell them apart?" (I just look at them.)

3. "What do you do when they both cry at the same time?" (Sometimes I cry. Sometimes I go to Starbucks.)

2. Said to a mom of boy/girl twins: "Are they identical?" (Uh. Not exactly.)

1. Only one comment could be voted No. 1. The choice was clear. Drum roll, please. After a stranger had been informed that the toddler boys were twins, she asked a simple question: "Are they brothers?" (Enough said.)

From an article by Lisa Smart at http://www.childrentoday.com/articles/3832.php

Finals - Finally!

Today I am celebrating having my husband back! Back from graduate school that is. He finished his last final yesterday and will be taking a hiatus from his remaining MBA coursework until we stablize life with the babies. It is going to be so nice to have him home most nights and homework free on the weekends. I plan on enjoying it while it lasts!

The pregnancy update:
At my 20 weeks visit I was less than 10 lbs away from 200 lbs SCARY! I figure if I've got to be over 200 lbs at some point in my life, this is definitely the way I want to do it! It is, however, a little odd to be weighing more than Alex. Of the maternity clothes I bought in my first trimester (pre-knowledge of the twins factor) about three pairs of pants have already bit the dust. My doctor said that I was measuring similar to a 7 month pregnancy at my 5 month mark. I am a little afraid to imagine what I'll be measuring at my 9 month mark! I did have a dream this week in which I was 14 months pregnant...frightening!

Otherwise, all is going well here. We are about halfway through our holiday party commitments. We've saved up some really special items for the "white elephant" gift exchange at our couple's small group party. At a previous party, Alex got "School of Rock" - the Jack Black movie...um...I'm so excited...that...we now get to...finally...watch such a....um...masterpiece? : )

So I shoved my mother-in-law with all my might...

Alex here, soon-to-be father of the twins! Friday was a first for the Zimbabwe in-laws...thanks to a fantastic dousing of freezing rain, sleet and finally snow, we all got to go sledding! Great fun was had by all, and yes, I really did shove my mother-in-law down the hill with all my might! Paul (father-in-law) had the brilliant idea of using a tractor inner tube as a sled, and it was without a doubt the hit of the day. We could load up two at a time and really get some momentum going, especially after the Thanksgiving gluttony! Anyway, here are some photos (that Miriam - the pregnant non-sledder took) of the good times...

Things appeared to be going spectacularly...until the combination of gravity and Thanksgiving gluttony forced the little sled into a fatal nosedive...catapaulting me face first into the snow.





A throughly enjoyable afternoon was had by all. And here in case any of you were wondering what 18.5 weeks pregnant with twins looks like...


Hope you are all well. Have a fantastic week!

And the Million Dollars Goes to...

Mr. Green - and he's going to need it because we are having twin girls!!! Yesterday morning we headed off to the hospital at 8:30 am nervously anticipating what the ultrasound would show. Both of our mothers were in tow and did they ever get a shock shortly after we entered the US (ultrasound) room. The first image we saw looked very similar to this!


At this point there was much screaming, gasping, and eyes glued to the US screen! The rest of the US took about an hour. We got to see all kinds of action, thumb sucking, stretching, etc. The US technician pointed out their bladders, four chambered hearts, genitals, hands, feet, etc. The girls are more than likely fratneral twins since they are each in their own sac. Here are some other pictures for you to enjoy!




We still haven't fully adjusted to the idea that there really are two in there! Our minds are reeling with images of two cribs, two carseats, a double stroller, double the diapers, and of course double the love and immense gratitude for such an incredible blessing! Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving day with your families - and Alex would like to add for those of you not in America - Happy Thursday!

If I had a million dollars

Two days and counting until the all important ultrasound! Alex is having multiple dreams about quadruplets...ahahahahaha...um no! I cannot even imagine what life would be like with four newborns all under my care. I'm sure you manage if you get so "blessed", but I'm thinking one baby is going to a big enough challenge for now. I asked Alex if he had an opportunity to win 1,000,000 dollars - and all he had to do was correctly guess what and how many we were having before the ultrasound - his bet is on twins! My million dollar guess is one very LARGE boy! : ) Apparently to those of you who have seen me...I'm big (bellywise - not I've been chowing down at a buffetwise) than most pregnant women they've seen who are 17 weeks. I just keep thinking, one very large boy, one very large boy, one very....

20.5 centimeters! Hum....

The suspense is building...two weeks to go until our ultrasound. We are very excited to find out the sex of our baby...or should I say...possibly...babies! : ) Don't get too excited just yet, we are only hearing one heartbeat, but at my 16 week visit today I measure 5 extra centimeters. (You are suppose to be one centimeter for every week you are pregnant. If you measure larger they begin to wonder about twins.) It's fun to have the additional excitement. We'll know more the day before Thanksgiving. Either way, it will be a thrill to see the first pictures of whomever is inside there!

Happy Halloween

Alex was a good sport and let me "make him over" Indian style for a Halloween party at a friend's house! The turban took on many forms through out the night...towards the end it had disintegrated into looking like a lame French beret or flattened chef's hat! It was fun to get to use my Indian clothing from my study abroad experience in college. Hope you had a fun holiday as well.

Awaiting the new arrival

We have entered the world of blogging! If you have yet to be informed, we will be entering the world of parenthood in 6 short months. We are very excited and still a little bit in a state of disbelief. Perhaps the ultrasound in November will make it all a little more real.

The only evidence of a baby in our home would be miscellaneous pregnancy books and magazines. I'm a little frightened to enter the world of baby stuff. I keep reassuring myself that at some point I'll get better educated and look at Consumer Reports. That is my only reassurance for now that I'll buy the safest crib, stroller, car seat, etc....and I'm so hoping the safe ones have a bit a design and aren't painful to look at!

We've begun the doggie behavioral adjustment program - and this time we are serious about it. Now we can only think about, "Oh, that will scare the baby, wake the baby, traumatize the baby." So we are doing our best to curb the jumping up, barking, food stealing, garbage can raiding, couch chewing... As you can see, we have a long way to go. However, we just received our secret weapon in the mail, the dog whisperer's book - Cesar's Way. We'll keep you updated on our wild animal taming!