Puzzle Pieces

This is how we've decided to break the news to our parents: puzzles. Both of our moms love puzzles, so we figured this would be a fun way to inform them of our big news. We'll mail my mom's tomorrow, so it should be there Wednesday. Then, we'll give Chris' mom hers on Wednesday as she's leaving in the afternoon. I can't wait for their reaction--we think there's going to be some major shock and awe!

On the topic of puzzle pieces, I love seeing pictures of what our babies look like in utero and how all the "pieces" develop. Here is a 9-week-old baby, which is about where our twins are at this point:

1. Ear

2. Neck

3. Rib outlines

4. Liver

5. Cerebral hemisphere

6. Eye

7. Loops of intestine

8. umbilical cord

Isn't that amazing? I am always in awe about how quickly things develop--definitely explains my extreme exhaustion. Anyway, the picture is way magnified, and from what I've read, our twins are each about the size of a grape.

Stay tuned for parental reactions! And for details about our regular ob appointment tomorrow!

Jeremiah 29:11

I love this verse:

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

The one thing I'm learning once again is that God is the one declaring He has plans for me--good plans. So far, God's plans for my life have been perfect, exactly what I needed and not neccesarily what I wanted.

I can think of several things I have said in the not-so distant past that are turning out to be not what I planned for my life:

(1) I've said to Chris many times since Noah was born, "God wouldn't give me multiples; I think He knows I can't handle it." Chris always responded with, "I wouldn't say that if I were you . . ." Indeed, what a crazy thing to say; I am now carrying multiples.

Baby A

Baby B

(2) I have said a zillion and one times that I would never drive a mini-van. Never. Ever. Not in a million years. Over the course of this week, we've had a lot of discussions about what we were going to do about a vehicle. There is no way our five-seat vehicles could fit three car seats and all the gear that accompanies those seats. We looked at some non-van 7-seaters and found them to be very impractical. The third row of seating is not accessible, and there is zero space for gear in them. Today, I had a huge reality check. Check out our new-to-us mini-van. Sigh.

I have to say that this vehicle--a Kia Sedona--is amazing in that it meets all of our needs. It is cheaper than my old car payment, it has the highest safety ratings of any van, it has a 100,000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty, it has seats that fold down for hauling massive amounts of belongings, it will fit three car seats quite comfortably, it's getting a DVD player installed next week, it has decent gas mileage, etc. Sigh. I wave my white flag of surrender . . .

"In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9

A Word from Big N

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

From My Sister

My sister is into photography these days--she has a gifted eye for seeing art in simple things and can capture it with the lens. What a gift! She sent me a link to a picture she took for our precious twins, and I LOVE IT! I think it just might end up in a frame on the wall. Anyway, she posted the picture to her Flickr account with a caption. Here it is . . .

...My sister's first son, Noah, was conceived via IVF/ICSI in May 2006 and was born February 4, 2007 . We share this birthday in such a special way. She has been through more than I can possibly understand to become pregnant yet again. This time she's having TWINS. I feel the need to share in her words what has touched my heart. (Due date is January 5, 2010).

"2/17/09To my baby(ies),You are the forefront of our thoughts, prayers, and conversation today. I'm already imagining the energy of your heart beat, the flutter of your elbows and heels, the frenzy of preparation. Never doubt that you are life that was wanted, planned for, and sought after. Every shot, every pill, every dollar was and is worth it, you. We have loved you since your conception years ago. We have loved you, suspended in time. We love you today. And we will love you firmly forever."

More recent writing, beautifully written:

"The blessing I see in being able to carry with me our triplet and Noah's embryo:I don't have to release them to this world. Their physical make-up isa part of me; their spirits are in perfect Paradise. "

More . . .

Now that we know we definitely have two growing babies, here are the stats:

Baby A: 15.9 mm, measuring 8 weeks exactly (sorry it's lopsided!)

Baby B: 11.9 mm, measuring 7 weeks 3 days

Baby B closed the measurement gap by 1 day, so he or she is trying to catch up! It is amazing how much bigger they looked as opposed to a week ago. When I saw them, my extraordinary fatigue and pukiness made a lot of sense. If you check out the baby gaga ticker, it is once again RIGHT. ON. My workout regiment is history for now.

Our triplet is already gone--amazing to me how it just disappears. There was absolutely no evidence of a third, a true vanishing triplet.

I do have to mention how much I love Soonja, our nurse. She is definitely in the right field. I loved how she saw us and came into the ultrasound because she "want[s] to see this!" She's been with us from day 1 (and took my order for pink cupcakes when I was on the crazy drugs), and I really appreciated her stopping what she was doing and sharing our joy!

The doctor said today to expect this pregnancy to be quite different than my singleton (Noah) pregnancy. Our official due date is January 5, but we're probably looking at mid-December for delivery. The fact that Noah was a full-termer is supposedly a good indicator that we can get these babies close to term. I know, however, that's definitely not a guarantee--right, Krista?

Anyway, while we are so excited about our twins, I have to confess something to you, my faithful readers. I said to Chris today, "What have we done? TWINS?!?" The best way to sum up the emotions of this whole thing is BIPOLAR. I'm so excited and so terrified all at once. We'll be going from a family of three to a family of five. We have to get different cars--probably a mini-van (GASP! I swore I would never drive a minivan.) We'll probably have to doctor our house a little bit. We have to double our gear. WOW. It's so overwhelming to stop and think about all of the details!

We go to our regular ob on Monday, but it's just the initial appointment. In the meantime, I continue on with the estrogen patches, the progesterone shots, the extra folic acid, and my prenatal vitamin. And the Zofran.

Stay tuned for how we break the big news to our families! I have some priceless video of Noah and will try to upload that in the next couple of days. Thanks so much for all of your prayers! Keep praying that both babies will grow healthfully and that we will find peace in the chaos and the wide-ranging emotions.

P.S. I have to mention the fear that shot through me when Chris told the front desk lady, "We'll see you in about three years!" We still have one more "batch" of embryos . . . too much to think about right now . . .

Drumroll . . .

Ladies and gentlemen, we are pleased to announce that . . .

(Drumroll . . .)

We're definitely having twins!!!!

*More details and photos coming soon!

Just as soon as . . .

. . . I write that Noah doesn't like to cuddle much these days, he proves me wrong. I was feeling very tired and nauseated after our second graduation party of the weekend. As soon as we got home last night, I hit the couch, and Chris took over bath and bedtime. Noah was so concerned about me--he came over, started petting my head, and then climbed up to cuddle with me. What a sweet boy he is . . .