Week 13 Photo

You can definitely see the transformation taking shape! Each fetus is now the size of a lemon and their arms and legs have grown long enough to touch. All of the organs, bones and muscles have formed, allowing the babies to focus on getting bigger. Over the next 3 weeks, hair will begin to form, more work will go into developing a functioning ear and their sex will be determined (I'm guessing they will be a couple of beautiful little girls, just like their mommy).

They Are Already Spending Our Money!

Our first major baby purchase - a 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan. We couldn't fathom how we could comfortably fit two kids, their gear and our two pups in anything but a minivan for the long term, so we made the plunge.

I think everyone is happy with this choice - I got my heated front seats (although I hear I won't need it this year as I will be carrying 2 little furnaces around), Andy got his stowable seats (perfect for his dreams of woodworking projects and Home Depot runs) and the pups got a DVD player (can you see it? - unlimited doggie movies all the way to the cabin!).

So, yes we are all happy, but the first payment hasn't come due yet either, so I am sure the euphoria will wear off soon!

Twelve Weeks and Counting

Wow! Twelve weeks already!! Stacy and I have managed to successfully make it to the second trimester, and the twins are beginning to demonstrate how much they can eat (they must be boys).

Stacy is always hungry lately regardless of what she eats and when (invest in Cub Foods stock now). I see weekly visits to the grocery store in our future. Keep in mind that this is good. Once Stacy reaches 24 weeks, or roughly there abouts, the twins will be occupying so much room that she will feel full all the time...but that's a long ways off. During the next few weeks all that nourishment is going towards refining facial features, such as eyelids, nose, chin and ears (soon they will hear sounds); and they will be large enough that Stacy will begin to feel them move!

Week 11 Photo

Here is our most recent picture. Hard to believe we are already 11 weeks along! After our last ultrasound, I am not surprised to see Stacy's belly starting to show more and more each day. Those little babies are growing fast. As Stacy has mentioned, it was time to shop for some new clothes as her waistline has increased an inch since our last photo. Stacy no longer has to worry about showing up to work in sweats (not yet anyway).

Week 10 Appointment

I would say that this was the most exciting appointment yet, but then, of course, there was that day we found out we were having a baby, then there was that day that we saw that we were having twins, so it seems difficult to rank them. But this one was definitely up near the top.

Why was it so exciting? Well, we had another ultrasound, and instead of just seeing their hearts beating, we got to see them both moving around, waving and propelling themselves around the placenta. I don't think either of us expected to see them moving, so it was quite shocking. Next time we will be bringing a video camera and will post the footage. A still picture just doesn't do it justice, but nonetheless, that is all we have for you this time. You can see them both again in this shot, still quite fuzzy, but now you can clearly tell where the head is and you can see the arms and legs. (Click on the image for a larger view)

We also had a couple of other changes. My doctor moved my due date up to January 17th. Technically I will only be at 38 weeks, but she doesn't want the pregnancy to go beyond that point. Also, she would like me to cut back on work, and possibly work from home by the 28th week, with an even more severe cutback and possible bedrest (hopefully not strict) starting in the 32nd week. I may or may not be able to continue working depending on the stress level and such. So, expect any Christmas presents from us this year to be purchased online - I may not be going out much.

Our next appointment won't be for another 4 weeks, but we will be posting progress pictures before that time. I am definitely feeling bigger this week and have outgrown all but two pairs of my pre-pregnancy pants...and I fear that they will quickly be leaving my sad collection of fitting clothes very soon. Time to go shopping!