Lesson Learned

It was a great weekend.  Michael did not have to work, and we had a great time taking care of the babies--laughing at their funny faces, giving them a bath, and taking way too many pictures because there were so many cute moments.  Saturday, we had friends over in the afternoon (thanks for visiting Pipkins!) and then they went to bed easily and only woke up at 3 and then at 6:30 on Saturday night.  On Sunday, we became official members of Atlanta Westside and they were so good throughout church and lunch at Flip Burger with friends.  (I have a new obsession with Flip Burger and we dined there three times in one week.  Mainly, I love the Nutella and burnt Marshmallow milkshake. They top it with liquid nitrogen so it smokes when they bring it out). Then, to top it all off, I got them to bed by 8pm, something I have been trying to do unsuccessfully for the last week. I was on a high and for no good reason decided that this could be the night that they sleep through the night.  They have had a few five hour stretches, but I have been praying for that 9 hour stretch.
So with high hopes, Michael and I finished watching Princess Bride (Michael hadn't seen this classic) and I dashed off to bed thinking I might get some serious shut-eye.  Things went down hill after I set myself up for disappointment.  Here is the rundown:
10:15 Allie wakes up and Michael gives her 4 oz of formula
11:30 Harper wakes up and I nurse her.  I always wake the other one up to eat so they are on the same schedule, but I'm still thinking Allie will sleep for a long stretch...
1:00: not so, Allie is screaming and i nurse her.
2:15: Allie screaming and i can't get out of bed, so Michael brings her to me in bed to nurse her again for 20 minutes
3:15: Nurse Harper and cuss myself for not waking her up at 2:15 to eat with Allie
4:00: Allie's screaming and Michael gives her a bottle.  It takes an hour for her to take out 4 ounces and for him to change both gals diapers
6:30 Nurse Harper
6:50 Finally come to my senses and wake Allie up to eat.  SHOULD have been waking both up to eat together all night!
I squeeze in a shower before Harper is screaming again at 8am.
This was one of the most difficult nights we've had and I took the time the next morning to recall the events so thought I would record them here.  I learned a lesson: Don't let my hopes of sleeping through the night keep me from waking one to eat with her sister. I do love them despite their hunger at all hours of the day.

 

They look so innocent ;)

Stroll on over to meet Allie and Harper...a "Sip n See"

A few people have given me a sideways glance when I said that Allie and Harper were having a "sip n see" in Chattanooga.  I guess it is a southern term for a party to meet new babies.  A few of my Chattanooga friends and my mom's friends hosted the party. Harper, Allie, and I had a great time and I was so proud of them.  They didn't make a peep the whole time and loved being passed around and ogled.

The gracious hostesses!

Two Month Pediatrician Visit

Carolyn (Michael's Mom) and I took Allie and Harper to their 2 month weigh in and once again, I am happy to report healthy, growing babies:

Harper:
9 Pounds 12 ounces (24th percentile)
22.5 inches long (59th percentile)

Allie:
9 Pounds 3 ounces (@15th percentile)
21.5 inches long (? percentile)

Dr. Chugani was glad to see that they are moving up in percentiles (Harper from 15th percentile and Allie from 3rd percentile). I was surprised that they were only a half a pound different in weight because Harper feels significantly heavier and she is such a better eater.  Way to go Allie!

They also got a shot in each leg and they both let out the the saddest cry I've ever heard.  Harper hardly breathed for 5 seconds after she was stuck.  It was so sad to see the confusion on their faces last for a second after the stick and then turn into a murderous cry. I'm going to need support to take these girls to get all their shots, and I'm so glad Carolyn was able to go with me and soothe screaming babies.

Mark and Carolyn made the trip from Mississippi once again to help us out for 3 nights this week and brought these cute Christmas outfits.  The hilarious socks were given to us by my mom's friends:

Allie looks like a Christmas angel and Harper has visions of sugarplums dancing in her head.

Sleep

Last night, Harper slept for 5 straight hours! Michael gave her a 6 oz milkshake (what we call formula) at 9:15 and she was asleep by 10 and didn't stir until 2:15. This is particularly amazing because she slept through Allie's most ear piercing screaming session to date. The plan was to put them both down around 9:30 but Allie would have none of it. After multiple trips to and from our bed and the nursery to soothe, rock, nurse again, and replace the paci, I gave up at 12:15 and let her "cry it out." It sounded like the cat fight of the century and about broke my heart, but I also could not manage to get out of bed one more time. She either quit after 15 minutes or I just slept through it, can't remember. At 2:15 she was sleeping soundly and I had to wake her up to eat with Harper. After that, Harper woke up about every 2 hours to eat again, maybe because she had stretched five hours before?? Anyways, if I can get miss Allie to sleep I may be close to five straight hours of sleep. Allie goes down for naps during the day easily, while Harper wants to stay up and play or nurse some more. I've got one night owl and one rooster (or some other animal that stays awake all day).

Allie the Night Owl

Harper the Rooster

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Fun at Dad's Office

Yesterday, Allie and Harper met Santa for the first time at Michael's firm's kids Christmas party. He was a pretty authentic looking Santa, too. Real beard and all. We did see him leaving in a car though instead of his sleigh. I shielded A & H's eyes. After the party, we tested out Daddy's office chair (and spit-up in it after a few spins-oops)

Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving trip to my parents' mountain home in Cashiers, NC was Allie and Harper's first vacation.  The Tuesday night before Thanksgiving we loaded down the car with all the necessary baby gear, and I don't know if we could have fit anything else.  Then, about 30 minutes down the road, we realized we had forgotten the pack-n-play -- their portable crib.  We couldn't stomach turning around and adding more than an hour to our trip, so we forged ahead and figured we'd cross the where-to-sleep bridge when we got there.  Except for one bottle each, they slept through the entire 2.5 hour drive.

After some brainstorming, our best idea for a baby bed was one from the olden days -- a drawer.  Wish I had gotten a pic of them sleeping in it.  They liked it just as much as their crib.

The holiday gave us a nice break because there were so many loving arms to pass them among.  On Friday, our family friends, the Moores and the Smiths, arrived for another HuffSmithMoore throw-down. The house was packed with 22 people. Because babies and new parents need their sleep, we missed out on the night-time festivities, but did get to hear everything through our door, including a 2 hour game of Salad Bowl (similar to Charades, but louder, especially with 18 people) and a 1am-3am dance-off.  I came out during the dancing to get bottles ready for the babies and saw furniture moved out of the way and parents and kids in a circle breaking it down.  They danced the fuzz out of the rug, literally.

Here are pics of some of our baby-care helpers who relieved us over the week:

"Lovey" as she wants to be called, and Harper

"D" and Allie (commiserating over their hair-loss issues)

My childhood friend, Kaki Brown, and Harper

Chrissy Smith, mother of six, was so refreshing.  She held and soothed my babes the whole weekend and brought me snacks and water when I was nursing.  That was the life!

Kadie Ann Smith and Harper

My baby, Allie, and my sister's baby, Weezy.  Weezy was quite curious about the babies.

Went to the Young's neighbor's Christmas Tree Farm and cut down our own tree!  (That's actually Michael, not Indiana Jones)

A Good Start Then We Get Hungry

Here are a few videos from one morning about two weeks ago (Again, pardon the baby talk):

Things start off great:

 

Then Harper gets very hungry:

Harper caught in the act on video.  For the record, I have also caught Allie latching onto Harper's head one night when it took me a little too long to respond to the cries of hunger.

Allie's Pirate Eye

You may have noticed that little Allie has a bit of a pirate's eye.  On Tuesday, I had my first outing with just one baby and took her to the eye pediatrician.  She was diagnosed as having a drooping eyelid.  First of all, let me be clear that this is something I am not really worried about.  The doctor said that he couldn't tell me that it would go away, but I think that she is just a newborn and will strengthen up that eyelid.  We will be watching to see that she is opening her eye enough so that her pupil is not blocked or partially blocked.  If it is, her vision might not form properly, so the doc would recommend an eye patch. My BFF Anna had an eye patch til 2nd grade and she is awesome and only minorly scarred from the social stigma (jk), so little Allie will be OK if this doesn't heal itself. Plus she is quite cute with that little cock eye.  She will go back to the doc in 7 weeks to see how she has progressed.  Say a prayer that this is no big deal like I think.  Her daddy is a little more worried about it than I am.  He does love his gals.

It was quite nice to take just one baby on an outing. I feel like I really got to bond with and think about just her, and man, was it easier getting around.  We were OTP (Outside the Perimeter for you non-Atlantans) so we ran errands at Hobby Lobby and Babies R Us.  I didn't have to break out the spaceship stroller, just dropped her car seat in the buggy.  She also accompanied me to my four-week followup OB appointment.  The doc who brought her into the world was glad to see her and said we were the talk of the Labor and Delivery floor because it was such an easy twin birth.  I've healed up quite nicely too and I'm starting to think I should start working out again.  Haven't hit the gym since I was 4 months pregnant.  I'll probably give myself until they are sleeping through the night- 15 pounds to go!

In other news, it has been a great week because of all the help we have had from visitors.  When I have help in town, I've decided to take advantage of them, let go of always having to breastfeed, and have my visitors give them a bottle at the midnight or 3 am feeding.  Anna Guessetto, the one with the eye patch, traveled from Nashville after working a night shift (she's a labor and delivery nurse) and helped me on my night shift.   And Michael's parents came to take care of the babies Monday to this morning.  I got to sleep for over 4 hour stretches when they were here, and I feel very refreshed.    Looking forward to next week when we go to the mountains for Thanksgiving with my family.  Bobby, Tyler, Mom, and Dad, get your sleep now ;)  Bobby might be off the hook since he has a broken foot.

Great-Grandparents Ellie and Granddaddy also met Allie and Harper this week.

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Pediatrician Visit

I'm happy to report that Harper and Allie have been bulking up. At their one month (almost one month) appointment here are their stats:

Harper:
7 pounds 6 ounces (10th percentile)
20 inches (16th percentile)
Allie:
6 pounds 9 ounces (3rd percentile)
20.2 inches (24th percentile)

Dr. Chugani was pleased with their growth. It is funny that we think Harper is so big and she hasn't even reached what I weighed at birth (7 pounds 14 ounces). Mom and I asked a bunch of questions and learned a lot. Dr. Chugani agreed with us that babies do sleep better on their stomachs but explained why we need to keep them on their backs at night until they can roll over. It's not just that could bury their face and suffocate (I was skeptical of this because they have such strong necks already) but having their face against a surface can create an air pocket where they continuously breathe in their own carbon dioxide causing them to suffocate. I found that interesting and was reason enough to keep them on their backs even though they sleep so soundly during tummy time.  Tummy time is for daytime only for now.

She also wants to play it on the safe side and have Allie's eye checked by an ophthalmologist. Since birth, she has rarely opened her left eye as wide as her right eye and we just want to make sure those brain waves are connecting with visual stimuli.  I'm pretty sure there is nothing wrong with that eye, but we'll go get it checked out per Doc's orders.

Peaceful tummy time (and my long toes)

In other news, my parents came this week and we took the girls out to dinner both nights.  They didn't make a peep both meals, as is usually the case when they are in public.  They love lots of background noise. Wish they slept so soundly at night!  I know we will miss these days of being able to cart them everywhere when they have to be on a more set sleep schedule and in their cribs. They love to shop too. And by love, I mean sleep through the whole trip. 

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My Piglet Lives Up to Her Name

Yesterday, while Harper was impatiently waiting her turn to eat, she latched on to Allie's diaper.  There aren't many stronger hunger cues than a latch onto a diaper.  So I moved her and tried to calm her down and she latched onto the pointiest part of Allie's head.  This morning, after they both blew through their diapers, I let them hang out in just their undergarments for a while.  I left them to play together while I got dressed and came back to find that Harper had latched onto Allie's shoulder.  My Harper loves to eat!

Here is a sneak peak at a little slice of my day (please pardon the baby voice.  It is very hard not to use baby talk):

I'm glad I still find most of these moments entertaining. 

Events This Week

It's a rare moment of peace and quiet.  Even though they pretty much sleep all the time, someone is always grunting and needs a back rub or they are off on their eating schedules (every three hours), so it feels like almost all I do is feed them all day.  Last night was the first time we had Grace, the night nanny, and she IS our saving grace! I got to sleep for 4.5 hours straight.  The longest span since they were born.  I feel like a new woman.  We hope to have her one night a week until they start sleeping through the night to rejuvenate. 
Yesterday, Allie and Harper also got to meet my San-San and Racquet, and mom's sisters' Kim and Michelle.

Aunt Kim and Harper

San-San and Harper

 Last Sunday, Michael's mom, Carolyn, went home.  Before that I had only had one or two days without help from my mom or Carolyn.  Since then, I have had a few moments of feeling sad that these girls have to share my love.  If I am nursing one of them or changing a diaper and the other starts screaming, there is nothing I can do but try to soothe them with my voice until I am finished with the other one.  Also, Allie is often the first one to eat and then she wakes up right as I start feeding Harper, so I feel like I keep missing opportunities to interact with Allie.  She is awake and alert way less than Harper, so this breaks my heart! I have to remind myself that my time with each girl may not be equal, but it will be fair.  In the end, they will both feel loved and cared for.  It's not an accident that God gave us two at once.

Other events this week:

• Photo shoot in the park in new cute dresses:

Harper-L, Allie-R

• First Date Night!  I felt so grown up and it was almost exhilarating to get a babysitter (thanks mom!) and get out! We went to JCT Kitchen on the Westside.  Michael's duck confit was awesome and my Georgia trout was the least fishy, most bacony tasting fish I've ever had.  

• We like JCT Kitchen so much, we went there again when our friend, Jonathan Williams, came to visit.  This time the blueberries were in tow and we enjoyed the Sunday Supper.  Michael and I first had Sunday Supper at The Public House in Chattanooga and love the idea.  Typically, you have a set menu to share a salad and three sides, then choose your own meat, and finish with dessert.  The best side was the squash casserole.  Michael thought that his pork tenderloin won, but I thought that Jonathan's veal meatloaf was better.  I had JCT Kitchen's famous fried chicken drizzled with fancy honey. mmm.  We sat on the patio and enjoyed live music from a party going on next door.  Allie and Harper slept right through the whole meal in their car seats.
• Photo shoot with a professional photographer, so keep checking in to see those pics soon.

2 Weeks

Today, Harper and Allie are two weeks old! A lot has happened since 10/15/10.  They are so snuggly and adorable and truly a joy.  They look very different and have unique personalities.  Allie is our wee little one.  She likes to stick out her long tongue and make cheerio lips.  Harper is our chunker and makes a million different faces.  She will look utterly disgusted at the scene around her and then she will break into a huge smile.  They say smiles at this age are just from gas, but I am skeptical.  Michael believed that until they started smiling when he bobbled them around. Harper is awake more often and just took over an hour to put back to sleep, I think because she just wanted to play.  I ended up feeding her twice in a two hour span, so now their schedules are out of sync.  Not fun at 4 in the morning.  It takes Harper 5 minutes to down the same bottle that takes Allie 15-20 minutes.

 

Piggy Harper

Foodie Allie

If I did not alternate which sides they feed on, I would be lopsided.

We've had several outings in their first two weeks. They sleep like rocks through all our walks in Piedmont Park,  through a shopping trip to Pottery Barn Kids and Hobby Lobby (the nursery is still being decorated), and through their first church service.  Allie had to make a second Pediatrician visit to make sure she did not drop too much weight.  The doctor was proud of me because she went from 4 lbs. 11 oz to 5 lbs. 1 oz in three days.  Harper weighed 5 lbs. 11 oz last Friday, and I would imagine that she is over 6 lbs now.

We feel so blessed by these little girls.  Thank you so much to anyone who prayed for them to figure out breastfeeding because I think we have really turned a corner. I don't have to fight them for thirty minutes before they eat.  Such a relief!

The Birth Story

Harper and Allie have been home for one week now. It has been one of the most blessed, tiring, and rewarding weeks of my life.  I feel so blessed when I think about how smoothly the delivery went.  So many of the nurses could not believe that I had the girls without a C-section and even my doctor seemed amazed that Baby B's (Harper's) head fell right into place after Allie arrived.

A little bit about the birthing experience, my apologies if this is too much information, but I want to be able to remember the events myself:
Pitocin (the labor-inducing drug) really didn't start until 9 am because after 3 different nurses tried to insert my IV, they called in the "IV team" who was one lady -- who finally succeeded.  I've got the bruises to show for this. Dr. Knoer tried to break my water and the second time he tried, around noon, I think, he was successful- what a gush!   I wanted to feel some of the contractions, so ended up waiting until around 2pm to get the epidural. And man did I feel them!  I've thought that it would be cool to have a natural birth, you know, experience what women since creation have experienced, but an hour of painful contractions cured me of that notion!  After the epidural, I took a nice little nap until Dr. Knoer checked me again at 4:00 to learn that I was fully dilated and ready to have these babies.  The nurses took down my epidural a bit so that I could feel the contractions enough to push and I was wheeled into the OR around 4:30.  There were at least 10 people in that very bright room: 2 nurses for each baby, 2 nurses for me, 2 anesthesiologists in case a C-section had to be performed, Dr. Knoer, and of course, Michael.  I felt quite exposed in the stirrups but from the beginning of my hospital stay I had begun to get over any sense of modesty.  I was shaking pretty badly, which everyone said was normal, but besides that, I was just excited and ready to push. 

After what seemed like only a few minutes to me, but was closer to an hour, little Allie was here!  I really only got to see her right when she came out and when the nurse briefly brought her over for us to look at.  10 minutes later, and maybe only 3 more contractions of pushing, Harper arrived, too!  Dr. Knoer said, "Here, hold this!" and Harper girl was squealing and squirming on my belly.  The whole thing was awesome.  Then Harper was whisked away and the most disappointing thing of the birth was that I didn't get to see or hold either of them for maybe an hour.  Michael was amazing; completely there to comfort me and giving me every report he could on the girls while they dealt with the afterbirth and stitches for me.  Honestly, delivering the placenta and Dr. Knoer kneading my stomach afterward was far more painful than the birth. 

Michael and I were flooded with emotions watching the nurses wash our babies and run all the tests in the transitional nursery. We felt so blessed!  Our families did some detective work at the nurses station and found out they had been born and busted in the room saying it was unfair to keep them waiting.  But I hadn't even held my babies, so they had to.

You can't describe how it feels to hold your baby for the first time.  It took some time for it to sink in that they were mine and my life was forever changed.  The family gathered in our recovery room, we announced the names, drank champagne, and then they briefly got to hold them before our families were shooed out for the first attempt at breastfeeding.  I had one nurse on each side trying to get the babies to latch.  I'm sure it was a sight.

Breastfeeding has certainly been the hardest part of being a mom.  Allie sometimes cries and roots around for 45 minutes before latching on.  We joke that she is our foodie because the dining atmosphere has to be just right and then she slowly takes in each taste.  It makes for long nights.  Eventually I will feed these girls in tandem, but so far I've only been successful 3 or 4 times.  I've given up trying for now.  Harper is my little piggy and usually latches right on, though sometimes she picks up some tricks from her older sister and takes forever!  Pray they would get this eating thing down.

I'll post more about the first week soon.  Just wanted summarize the birth and let everyone know that we are thriving.  I absolutely love my new job as a momma!

Posted by Kakhi (can't figure out why it says posted by mbwakefield)

More pictures, including Allie & Harper Go to the Park

I figured out how to send pictures directly from my phone to a Picasa album.

I realize that others may not be as enamored of my babies as I am, but I'm not letting that stop me from posting more pictures. I'm telling myself that my awareness of my own self-indulgence (posting more pictures) is separating me from those parents who become so absorbed with their children that they can't talk about anything else. That's fair, right?

You can also use the links to the left to view both our Picasa albums. if you add these albums as a favorite you will get an email whenever we update them.

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More pictures

I've posted an album in Picasa for anyone who wants to see more pictures.

Welcome Home, Babies!

We took Allie and Harper home at noon today.

On Day Two, they've started to express themselves a little more than during their first 24 hours. They both can cry, and a sure way to hear some baby screams is to unwrap one from her warm swaddling. They don't like to be exposed.

Harper grabbed her pacifier the first time she was offered it, and now she's rarely without it. When she sleeps she spits it out about every 15 minutes, then gives a little yell. If you put it back in her mouth, she dozes off again.

Allie sucked on hers for a while, but she likes to put her tongue on the roof of her mouth, which pushes the pacifier out of her mouth. She doesn't seem to need it to keep quiet and peaceful though, like Harper does, and overall she's the less fitful sleeper. They already have their own personalities, which eerily resemble what we expected from how they acted in the womb.

Our families left this afternoon except for Kakhi's mom, who is staying for a few nights. Then my mom will come help us. Doing this with just the two of us would be difficult.

They're almost two days old!

Here are pictures. Babies getting ready to leave hospital:

Kakhi and babies about to leave hospital:

Our family at home:

Meet Allie and Harper Wakefield!

Alloway Dayton Wakefield
Born October 15, 2010, at 5:28 PM.
5 lb. 3 oz., 18 1/4 inches.



Harper Brooks Wakefield
Born October 15, 2010, at 5:39 PM.
5 lb. 13 oz., 19 1/2 inches.

All four names are from our family trees. Alloway and Dayton are from Kakhi's family, and Harper and Brooks are from mine. We had a fun time looking through family histories and tracing our families back through generations.

Here's an overview of the rest of the delivery.

Between 4:00 and 4:30 yesterday, the nurses wheeled Kakhi into the operating room. I had to wait a few minutes for them to set things up, and then they retrieved me to help (ha) with the delivery. Can't say I've ever seen anything like babies being born.

I gather from the nurses' reactions that it was a relatively easy delivery. Most twins are delivered via C-Section, and even when they're not, babies aren't always cooperative. Kakhi had about two minutes between contractions once she started pushing, and it only took about 8-10 contractions (45 minutes, maybe?) to get Allie's head out. From there it was all downhill.

The rest of Allie followed shortly, I got to cut the umbilical cord, and then they whisked her away to be tested and checked and weighed and cleaned. We didn't have much time to look at her because Harper still had to be born! But it only took another 10 minutes before her head emerged, and when the rest of her came out, the doctor tossed her onto Kakhi's belly and said "here, hold this." So the first we saw of Harper was a wriggling, crying, messy baby sitting on Kakhi's suddenly not-huge belly. Then they whisked her away, too.

I spent the next hour or so bouncing between the babies and Kakhi, who did an amazing

job with the birthing. She was walking a little within a couple of hours of the birth, and she seems on the path to a quick recovery.

We have moved to a post-birth room, and we get to see the babies whenever we want. They haven't expressed much interest in eating yet, but the nurses tell us that babies don't usually start to eat very well until 24 hours after birth. The hospital runs lots of tests on them. Too many rules and regulations caused by too many lawsuits.

If everything goes as expected, we'll all come home tomorrow, and then the real fun begins!

Here are some pictures:

Above: Allie on the left, Harper on the right.

Above: Harper on the left, Allie on the right.

Babies coming

We are in the labor/delivery room waiting for Kakhi to get so close to birthing the blueberries that they move us to the operating room. Standard procedure is to deliver all twins in the OR, just in case there are some tangled-up type complications and the doctors need to do an emergency C-section. Of course, we're hoping that won't happen. The worst-case scenario is to have to recover from one natural birth and one C-section -- no fun.

Anyway, I've been asking the nurses and doctors all kinds of questions. They've commented on how I'm more inquisitive than most dads-to-be. I took that as a compliment.

She is anesthetized and napping through contractions. Not quite as dramatic as the movies. I think we're still a few hours away, but it feels like things are moving quickly. We'll try to keep everyone updated.

Here are a couple of pictures.

Last night we had one last pre-babies date, and here is a before-dinner picture:



By the way, we went to Murphy's in Virginia Highland, which was great. The highlighted dish is my shrimp & grits. I don't often order shrimp & grits because I never find anything that compares to City Grocery's (in Oxford, MS) -- which means I usually come away disappointed. But last night's were a different style, and I really liked them. Roux-based instead of cream-based, I think. I would order the dessert trio again, and I might go back just for the flatbread appetizer.

But enough about food. Time to focus on babies.

One last belly picture:

Tomorrow is the BIG DAY!

Drumroll please...Tomorrow, I report to the hospital at 7:15 am to begin the process of bringing these babies into the world.  We are thrilled that we will finally get to meet our girls.  Please pray for a safe delivery and that the induction would go smoothly.  I am a bit nervous because I know inductions can take a lot longer than planned and sometimes result in a c-section.  Michael's parents are driving in tonight and my family will get to hospital around noon tomorrow.  It feels like Christmas Eve, but even better!

The only sad news is that my dearest dearest friend Anna Hildebrand is getting married on Saturday and I was plotting to sneak up to Chattanooga for the day to witness it.  Saturday will be bittersweet knowing that I am not there for her big day.  I love you, Smalls!

Pray, pray, pray!

Less than one week!

That's right!  These baby girls will meet the world in less than 7 days. 

Here's how I know:
I just got back from my final ultrasound with the perinatal specialist.  The babies look "beautiful," have great heartbeats and amniotic fluid, and they are getting to be heavy little tater tots.  I'm 36 weeks and 5 days and Baby B is weighing in at approximately 6 lbs. 4 oz. Way to go blueberry B!  Baby A has a healthy weight of 5 lbs. 9 oz (also approx.).  The specialist's only concern was that blueberry A's stomach had not grown as much as she would like in the last two weeks. This means that her placenta could be getting tired and it's probably time for mama to start feeding her in the big world outside. 

So my specialist called my doctor who happens to be on his day off.  We must wait until tomorrow morning when he will decide when I should be induced.  If my memory serves me well, he is on call this weekend, so I think there is a good chance that my induction will be scheduled Friday, less than 48 hours!  If not Friday, it will be sometime next week with another doctor in the group because my doc is not on call during next week.  I know you are all on pins and needles ;) so I will post an update as soon as I hear from my doc (of course, Mom, I will call you before that, right after Michael).

I feel very blessed to have made it to 37 weeks (on Friday) and Michael and I thank the Lord that our blueberries look so healthy.

Check back tomorrow for an update.  In the meantime, I have some serious nesting to do!

10/10/10

It's 10/10/10! You must admit, it would be pretty cool to have that birthday.  If I make it past today, I will happily fatten up these babies to full term (37 or 38 weeks for twins, depending on who you ask).  But today would give the girls a little conversation piece for life. Unfortunately, I'm not really feeling like today will be the day.  Plus, if my labor is like Mama's, as my pregnancy has been, then I'm looking at 24 hours of laboring, making it 10/11/10.  Let's hope the similarities with the mother diverge there.

On a different note, I made Alice Waters' Buttermilk Pancakes for Saturday morning breakfast and they were divine!  I did use 4 different kinds of flour -- not the simplest ingredient list for pancakes -- but fun to make and very yummy.  I'll post the recipe at some point, or really, you should just buy the cookbook (see previous post).  The blueberries liked them, too.

More food notes: Michael and I are taking every advantage of these last few days with portable babies and no babysitter price tag to sample lots of Atlanta restaurants.  This town has an impressive selection.  Here's where we have tried so far and a top dish at each:

Holman and Finch: The Sticky Toffee Bread Pudding with ice cream (hazelnut or some such delicious flavor) was the best dessert I've had in memory.  The menu changes daily, so if you luck into this one when you are there, ORDER IT!  We also enjoyed several dishes that incorporated the 500 pound hog H&F purchased about a month ago.  They do all the butchering themselves and use every part they can (see offal).

The Iberian Pig, in Decatur: The Pork Tenderloin was beautifully presented and great to share among four people.  We split four other tapas dishes with our friends, the Dutsons, and it was just the right amount of food. Top that off with some meaty tacos, compliments of the chef, and it was sealed, we will frequent the Iberian Pig (starting in a few months I guess).

Pacci: Duck Confit over polenta -- crispy on the outside and melt-in-your-mouth meat.

Veni Vidi Vici: For Midtown Restaurant week, we enjoyed a 3 course meal for $25. It's hard to beat battered Asiago cheese with a red pepper puree.

The Porter Beer Bar: Gastropub in Little Five Points, the Belgian Fries were perfection and I loved my Korean BBQ Sandwich. The beer menu was a book and had one that Michael's beer connoisseur professor smuggled back from Belgium for a law school tasting (Kwak -- comes in a cool glass, ask for the story behind the glass).

TAP:  Loved the spicy fried chicken and pork tacos. Good beer selection. Michael liked Three Philosophers.

Rosebud: Michael's risotto of the day was great.

Other great spots we have tried for lunch and quicker dinners: Flip Burger, Yeah Burger, The West Egg, La Fonda, and the restaurant just next door to our condo, Quattro.  We were pleased with all.  I told you I'm working on fattening these babies up!

Feeding Blueberries

Last fall, I read Julie and Julia, after reading My Life in France by Julia Child.  I was inspired. You may have seen the movie where Julie Powell cooks all 524 recipes of Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year. I'm not so ambitious to cook through a Julia Child cookbook or to set deadlines for myself, but I searched for a cookbook to take on.  Because I wasn't interested in filling my refrigerator with random ingredients that would go bad after using only a teaspoon, I decided on Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food.  The ingredients are simple and I like the emphasis on the local-food movement.   Waters encourages buying ingredients that are in season.  I love that her recipes generally entail a main vegetable or meat that is prepared with ingredients you already have in your pantry; it's amazing how far olive oil, salt, and pepper can take you.  Most of the recipes have variation ideas so I can use up stuff that is sitting in the fridge.  She gives good explanations of why certain methods give the best results.
In case you have this cookbook or buy it, which I certainly recommend, here are a few of my favorite recipes so far:

• Hummus: In Austin, Michael and I were on a quest for the best recipe and threw in all kinds of ingredients.  Waters's 6-ingredient Hummus surprised us as the clear winner. 
• Guacamole: Even after dining all over Austin, a fresh Tex-Mex haven, we would say this guac competes with the best of 'em.
• Haven't gone wrong with her soups: Spicy Cauliflower, Sweet Corn, Red Pepper
• Sweet potatoes with Lime (add salt and butter and you're done!)
• Moroccan Sweet Potato Salad
• Braised Duck Legs with Leeks and Green Olives (couldn't find duck legs in Jackson, so I used chicken legs)
• Roasted Almonds: Michael regularly roasts these and keeps his babies' Omega-3 levels up! 
• Onion Tart: Really pretty and yummy

What does this have to do with growing blueberries? Well, this is what the babies have dined on for the last 9 months, minus the first trimester when I couldn't stand the smell of onions or garlic (both frequent Waters ingredients). I've cooked 95 of the 308 recipes.  30 Percent!  I have a feeling this could be a multi-year endeavor since cooking may take a hiatus while having to feed 2 babies 8-12 times per day.

Here are a few pics, still working on the food-photography thing:

Braised Chicken Legs with Tomatoes, Onions and Garlic and Hummus

Caprese Salad 

Potato Gratin- Delicious!

Simple Salad, Tomato Tart that our friend Jonathan made (not a Waters recipe), and Sautéed Shrimp with Garlic and Parsley 

Growing Belly

As of today, I have been pregnant for 35 weeks and 3 days.  On average, twins come at 35 weeks, so they could arrive any day now. I've been blessed with an easy pregnancy -- only minor nausea in the first trimester.  My one more-serious problem hit me on my brother's graduation day from Ole Miss, when I was 13 weeks along.  It may have been a stomach bug, but whatever it was, I ended up spending the night in the hospital in Jackson to keep from getting too dehydrated.  After that horrid 24 hours, I haven't felt sick for the rest of the pregnancy. The craziest thing (and what makes me think it's not a stomach bug) is that my mom had the same experience with all three of her babies: sick first trimester, sick as a dog one day resulting in night in the hospital, and then smooth sailing until delivery.

At 30 weeks, we moved from Jackson to Atlanta. Even though Michael and the rest of his family strongly encouraged me to not do so much packing and unpacking, I could not resist.  That resulted in 2 weeks of bed rest to make sure I made it to 34 weeks.  I must say bed rest wasn't so bad.  Michael cooked, cleaned, laundered, grocery shopped- basically did everything around the house and told me to get back to the couch whenever I started to help.  I also had sweet visitors bearing lunch and their babies to entertain me and answer my many questions about raising blueberries.  Thanks friends!

All twin pregnancies are considered "high-risk," which means we've gotten lots of ultrasounds and continuing confirmation that both girls are healthy.  Baby B is a little bit bigger and she likes to do more flips.  Baby A has been a good girl and stayed head down for the last month or more.  We hope that Baby B stays head down like she seems to be now so that I can attempt a normal delivery.  Today I'm 1 cm dilated, which means they could come tonight or in 2 weeks....it's a waiting game.  I am ready to meet them and be done with this huge belly, but want to fatten them up a bit more before they come, too.

See how my belly has grown:

At 17 weeks.

At 23 weeks, I'm pretty proud of that baby bump.

At 35 weeks and yes, the shirt is becoming a crop top. I officially outweigh Michael.  All for a good cause...