A Table For Four

A Sad State of Affairs

2012-01-19T12:00:00.000-08:00

I admit it. I have to pee really badly right now, but there is no way, not one tiny iota of a way, that I am stepping foot in the back part of my house before the end of naptime today. Usually, I would attempt it- but I'd be tiptoeing, holding onto the wall for support, and not flushing unless absolutely necessary, but today has been a restless nap day and those babies must sleep.

Also, my kids have binkies in their mouths alot. I take them away when I can, as often as I notice it hanging out of their mouths, but I've given up on fighting it for now. My new plan is to wait until they understand what "only at bedtime" means. Sure, they might "get" the idea now, but since our list of words stops after "ball, mama, dada, hi, and more," I'm just not fighting it until I have to.

I make separate meals for my kids and my husband and I to eat. Partly because I prefer eating after they've gone to bed, but also because we only have about 15 foods that we choose from on a regular basis. Those foods are: hot dogs, chicken nuggets, toast, pb&j, spinach and chickpea patties, nutrigrain bars, bananas, grapes, yogurt, oatmeal, animal crackers, graham crackers, and some form of salty cracker. Elijah in particular is picky and eats very few veggies unless I hide them in his food. I've resolved to stop fighting this (at least fighting it hard, we still introduce new foods as often as possible and I sneak pureed veggies in as often as possible) for now, until they can understand the phrase "eat it or starve" and the consequences that come with it.

I ask my kids if they want their diapers changed and if I have time/they aren't stinking up the house, wait until they give me the ok (which is usually before I have to ask more than twice and is generally less than 10 minutes). I'm just tired. Tired of fighting 8 limbs that flail and lash out and twist until I'm certain I'm going to end up accidentally hurting one of them if I try to restrain them any longer. And so I wait until they are ready, even asking permission to do so. It's not ideal, but it saves me from accidentally hurting myself or them so it's ok for now!

And finally, I invent errands, beg and plead for playdates, and generally over schedule our lives to avoid long days at home. That's just where we're at right now, and let me be the first to admit- 2 years ago I would have adamantly sworn to NEVER do most of these things.

Ah, live and learn :)

When Andy "Cleans"

2012-01-17T17:59:00.000-08:00

Since moving into the basement, Andy has been reminded several times by his loving wife (me, in case you were confused), that he needs to go through his stuff in the basement and get some organizing going. Or purging...purging is always good.

However, in four + years of marriage, I have learned a couple things about my hubby. In no particular order they are: 1- Most of the stuff he holds on to is a toy in some form of the word, and 2-He always says he has a lot of "stuff" he can get rid of until he actually goes through it and realizes that he still likes his toys.

A month or so ago it was the playstation. We had it all set to go get listed on Craigslist...until we gave Guitar Hero III one last shot. The Playstation is now a permanent fixture in my living room again. Yippee.

Today my sweet hubby spent some time in the basement going through old toys while I was at the gym. He dug out these GI Joes (and friends, and gear, and forms of transportation). He has spent most of the day researching their value online, making calls to see about selling them, checking out the cost of replacement parts he would need to make them more valuable, and...playing with them. He broke one.

These pictures are the ones he took to help him list them on ebay or craiglist.
However just before dinner tonight he said: "I forgot how much I like these things, they're kinda cool."

Do you think they are going to ever actually leave the house? I'll let you know in a couple weeks:)

Pretty, huh?

Carnivorous

2012-01-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

In October you got to see some great pics of Elijah and Evelyn at "the farm" aka the home of my good friends Kim and Troy Galloway in Big Rapids. They got to meet the horses, chickens, dogs, kitties, and...piggies. These were not pet pigs, they were being raised for...ahem...food: just as God intended!

Come Christmas time we recieved a gift from Kim and Troy- a selection of pork from the same little piggies we got to meet this fall. We've been enjoying the meat (thank you Galloways!) and last night had some fantastic chops ala "Harry Plopper," which is what we've been calling the pig as it's the only given name I remember.

That brings me to this series of pictures. See, eating little cubes of meat just is not as fun as chewing it off the bone, especially if you've gotten to meet your meat (heehee) in person. So, morbid as it may seem, I just couldn't help but snag a few pics. Plus, as Andy pointed out, one day we can show these to Evelyn if she ever decides to go all-veggie. Enjoy!

"Mom, pork is good." (I should add that Evelyn is particularly fond of bacon-surprise surprise)

"What do you mean pork is pig? Is this that big, hairy, dirty thing I met last October? Oh my goodness! Oh who am I kidding...I really don't care. Nom nom nom."

And now for another type of meat: sister-meat. Elijah thinks Evelyn might be tasty too.

Two Bedrooms? Make that Three

2012-01-08T18:06:00.000-08:00

We have a two bedroom house. I believe it would be called a "bungalow." Four years ago we absolutely fell in love with it, it was one of the first homes we looked at! We even made an offer, walked away, then came back a couple months later because we just couldn't get it off our minds. Back then, we figured we'd live here for a couple years as a newlywed couple before adding Baby #1. We'd turn the back room into a lovely little nursery, then wait another year or two before trying for Baby #2. With the arrival of Baby #2 a move would be imminent, but not urgent. If need be we could keep Baby #2 in our room for awhile and possibly even move Baby #1 into the basement for a little bit until we could sell this house and purchase House #2.

Well...it's been 4 years. We did live here happily as a newlywed couple for 2 1/2 years...however, that is where life stopped going according to plan. (Well, maybe it happened sooner when we found out we were infertile but that's another story)... Suddenly we had twins on the way and a new plan emerged- the lovely little nursery for one became an efficient little nursery for two, twins share a room, right? It's a given...or so we thought.

Fast forward 15 months. We've tried lots of things to get Things 1 and 2 to sleep well and still share a room- white noise, binky tethers, bottles long past when I thought they'd still be getting them, even separated nap times with Evelyn sleeping behind the bar in a pack 'n play in the basement. Well, this week we've reached a new level of unplanned chaos in our home. Mom and Dad are now bunking up in the basement. We share our space with the dog, a bar, a guest bed, a set of snow tires, Andy's weight bench, and the laundry chute. Our bed is tucked under the stairs and my "closet" is actually a pipe that runs along the ceiling in the storage area with two Rubbermaid drawer towers underneath.

Honestly, lest I sound disappointed with this situation I could not be happier with this option for our current home. No, it's not the master bedroom I thought I'd have entering my fifth year of marriage, but my family is happy, warm, and getting sleep that is disrupted much less than when our bed resided in our bright and airy "master" with the dove gray (I love that color) walls.

My babies have their own rooms. Evelyn has taken over our old room, but it's not overly girly just as Elijah's is not overly boyish (we aren't doing the true remodel here folks, it just doesn't seem necessary). Her sweet little white crib takes up just one corner of the room and over it hangs a favorite mirror I picked up at a garage sale several years ago complete with a bunny resting in a hammock that suction-cups to the mirror- a beloved stuffed animal from my childhood. The rest of it gives them both room to play, play, PLAY! We were able to pull my grandmother's old dresser out of it's storage spot and fill it with little girl things. We are finally using the great orange lamp I bought that never fit in the jam-packed nursery. There are no longer toys covering every inch of my living room floor and when the kids walk into their bedrooms they can clearly see exactly what they can play with and all the parts for each toy are in one spot! I am also finally going to be able to pull out the doll cradle my grandpa made and grandma painted. I've wanted to show it to Evelyn for quite awhile but there has never been room.

Best of all, I now know that when one of my babies is sick, teething, has a nightmare, wakes up early from a nap, or just plain wants to play, the other one can continue sleeping peacefully while Mommy and Daddy calm (or honestly, sometimes ignore) the other baby. In truth, that peace of mind is priceless. It's a little weird to think that our kids have the true bedrooms in the house while we sort of feel like we are still in college living in our parent's basement, but this is where we are right now and truthfully I always liked college. The economy hasn't been kind to any of us and I am just so thankful that we are healthy and happy in our little two (make that three) bedroom bungalow :)

(Pictures to come but not until Andy organizes his clothes in the basement and the carpets get cleaned! I'm honest but not THAT honest...)

A (Posed) Christmas Morning Picture Progression

2011-12-26T09:51:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from the Heemstra's!

My Family's Family Christmas

2011-12-18T18:33:00.000-08:00

I just love our family Christmas. It's always uber crazy, lasts about six times longer than it needs to, and is full of all kinds of shenanigans. First thing this year we decided to get the annual grandkids picture since they were still fresh, dressed, and unruffled from any naps. This first one is probably the overall best, taking all parties into account, my kids don't look that great but everyone is present and accounted for, looking in the general vicinity of the camera, and with a halfway pleasant smile on their face.

This next picture was taken a split second later and it's waaaaay fun to click back and forth between them, especially when you look at Evie's and Reece's face.

Here we see that Reece is beginning to escape, Molly is losing interest, Raegan has disappeared behind Evelyn's ponytail, Evie is getting into full rock-out picture-taking mode, and Elijah is throwing silly faces at whoever is to his left.

Love.

Will you look at this face???

CHEESE! Check out my new chomp that FINALLY made an appearance!

Papa and two of his girls. Evelyn has really been laying the charm on thick with Papa lately...

Poor Elijah, this was so not his weekend. On Friday night around midnight he began puking...and didn't stop until Sunday morning around 5am. He ended the Christmas party with a wonderful projectile vomit across most of Nana's kitchen. Whew.

"Don't step on me, I might puke!"

Turkeys

2011-11-29T08:01:00.000-08:00

Snotty nose, pale skin, tired eyes, bad hair day, lack of cute holiday outfit...

Cute face and outfit but bruises all over her face...

Who says the Holidays have to be cute? I may be a few days late but I'm thankful for these guys this year, bruises, snot, messy hair and all!

Love Bugs

2011-11-20T10:51:00.000-08:00

The twinners' little personalities have been growing by leaps and bounds lately, they are learning so many new things, it's hard to keep track!

For posterity I want to record a few of my favorites:

Hugs n Kisses- both kids are learning to hug and kiss each other and other kids. They've been practicing their skills with their friend Ani, it is so cute to watch them. In a rare moment of sibling love the other day they were sitting on the couch and Evie laid her head on Eli's shoulder for a few seconds, it's so fun to see them be affectionate with each other!

"Where's Evie?"- One day I noticed Evelyn putting her hands over her eyes so I said, "Where's Evie?" She removed them and grinned, the classic peek-a-boo game. However for some reason in the last couple of days she has gotten confused so that when I say "Where's Evie?" She throws her hands up over her ears and grins at me..."Can't hear you mom." Thing is, Elijah now also believes this is how the game is played so you'll usually see him in the background, also covering his ears. :)

"Where's your belly?" When he doesn't confuse this question with the above mentioned, Elijah is just precious when he points to his tummy with one chubby little pointer. He also often doubles over with laughter afterwards.

Books. Both kids are starting to love books and I couldn't be happier. For the longest time they'd bring me a book, then walk away or shut the book the moment I opened it. Now one or the other will bring me a book, sit in my lap, and let me read at least three pages!

Skype. Andy got his own laptop recently and so now we have the ability to "Skype" each other. This means the kids can see him and he can see the kids on the computer. Wow, it was so fun to watch the first time...Elijah was beside himself he was so excited, he kept trying to grab the screen and would not stop smiling.

Evelyn on the other hand stared at him hard, then turned around to cling to me and cry. After a few minutes she suddenly warmed up and gave him a half smile, then some "yah! yah!'s" Absolutely adorable to watch :)

This is not cute but again for posterity- Evelyn has recently taken to going No. 2 in the tub. Every. Single. Time. You won't be seeing any pictures anytime soon and I don't know if the tub relaxes her or is just a result of terrible timing on my part, but this phase can end as quickly as it began...

How Far We've Come!

2011-11-10T18:39:00.000-08:00

Around this time one year ago we had two tiny, squished-looking infants who basically cried, ate, pooped, and slept (all day and in 20 minute intervals at night :)

Today we have two healthy, vibrant, active one-year olds who still cry, eat, and poop, but also sleep (mostly) through the night, walk, communicate in their own way, and are just generally about the cutest kids you could ever hope to see.

Love you E2!

Happy Halloween!!

2011-10-31T18:55:00.000-07:00

Chicken Progression

2011-10-29T17:49:00.000-07:00

This weekend we headed to some dear friends' home in Big Rapids to hang out on "the farm." Before E2 came along I used to get up to Kim and Troy's every few months for a day or two. I couldn't believe as we pulled up that I had not been up since well before the babies were born. It was great to spend time with them and see their (nearly) completed new house which had only been framed inside the last time I was up. My favorite was seeing the kitchen Kim and I designed together and the guest room that has one of the best views in the house. While it's still tough to travel with two babies we had a great time and it was so fun to introduce Eli and Evie to all the great animal friends on the farm!

A more recent addition to the crew were some piggies and a flock of Orpington Chickens. Here is a great progression of pictures from this afternoon when Troy caught one of them so the kids could see and pet one up close:

Exhibit A: Orpington Chicken

Elijah meets his first chicken: "It won't bite me?"

"Can I trust this guy?"

"You sure?"

"I think I'll pass."

"Oh fine, but just one finger."

"Hm, he's kinda...fluffy. Hey Evelyn, check this thing out."

"No really, it's ok. I'm a pro now."

Big brothers gotta be there for their little sisters.

SO Not One of My Finer Moments As a Mother...

2011-10-18T10:14:00.000-07:00

I can't share this on Facebook because it is simply too stomach-turning and there is no good way to make light of it in a status update, but since only people who love me and trust me and KNOW that I am not neglectful and generally capable of caring for my children read this blog...I just have to share one of my not-so-fine moments as a mother so far.

Yesterday my kids played with razorblades. I'm not kidding.
I was in the kitchen doing dishes (by hand, for the last time! Thank you hubby for fixing my dishwasher), and the kids were playing under the highchairs like they like to do after lunch. (They can push them around and they roll all over the dining room, it's kinda cute) After a couple minutes I realized it'd had suddenly gotten very quiet in my dining room so I went to investigate.
They were in the bathroom. In the "no-no" drawer that houses Daddy's replacement razors (they are all usually tucked neatly into little plastic cases...though this doesn't do much for my case I am sure). Evelyn was waving around an empty handle to a razor. Elijah was sucking. YES SUCKING on the head of a razor!! Words cannot express the drop of my stomach, the cold sweat that broke out all over my body, or how very much I did not want to look into my little boy's mouth at that moment.
Turns out, he had cut his tounge but it was pretty minimal. He actually protested when I took the stinking thing away!! He was oblivious to any sort of pain and while I debated giving him a sippy of milk or even tylenol (I was afraid they might make any cuts he had not noticed suddenly sting), all he wanted was his pacifier and he went right to sleep for his afternoon nap!
So needless to say I breathed a huge sigh of relief and the razors are finding an all-together new place to hang out. Uhg, I just cannot thinking about what that would feel like to run your tounge over a "Mach 5" razor...gives me shudders just thinking about it.

I'm an awesome mom...

A light? Or A Train?

2011-10-10T10:29:00.001-07:00

We had our one-year check up today...

Everyone seems to be right now track as far as height/weight goes. Turns out Elijah is still less than 20lbs!! 19lbs 7oz (7th percentile) w/ a height of 30 3/4" (79%) and an average-sized head :) 46cm (44%). Evelyn is, as always, surpassing her brother in the height/weight department at 21lbs 9oz (58%), 30" high (78%), and slightly-larger-than-average head circ of 45cm (68%).

That might not seem "right on track" but since they are both following a nice curve on the graph over time, they are doing just fine.

While I tried to talk to our pediatrician the kids scrambled and climbed and stumbled all over the place. I liked that my Evelyn was climbing the step stool and standing on one foot while chewing on a tennis shoe the whole time he talked to me about baby-proofing and saying "the number of times your child is in the hospital for injuries over the next year will tell us how good you're doing with baby-proofing." Hm.

My second favorite moment was when he informed me that the 2nd year is going to be just as hard, if not harder than the first year with twins. He then turned to Elijah and said: "Just when Mommy thought there was a light at the end of the tunnel she's finding out it was actually a train coming at high speed!"

Thanks Dr. Mogul, that's why we like you: you're honest.

Now, because sitting down to blog is a luxury and I need to be as efficient as possible, here are a few "picks" from our recent trip to Sietsma's Apple Farm :)

Less interested in pumpkins, more interested in strands of grass.

Since Daddy does not understand that you really can find a flawless apple (he thinks one bruise is just fine), I had to teach Evie the perfect apple-picking skills. Here she is showing off.

After naps that day it was bottle time but Elijah wanted nothing to do with it...until found out that Sam makes a great spot to relax and eat.

A Preview

2011-10-06T10:14:00.001-07:00

On The Eve of "One"

2011-10-04T18:34:00.000-07:00

For some reason I feel compelled to get the "We Are Turning One!" post just right, I want to touch on what I've learned this year and do justice to both the ups and the downs of life with twin babies. For tonight though, on the eve of their first birthday, I think I'll just jot down some haphazard notes on Thing 1 and Thing 2. That well-worded post about what life looks like for us right now can come later :)

A little bit about Elijah:
Eli, 'Lijers, LieLie, Lijah, we're a fan of nicknames around here and I'm afraid poor Elijah might be known as "Lie" from here on out...It's just what comes out of my mouth! He is the definition of "such a sweet boy," he has time for cuddles, plays great on his own with just a couple of toys, and offers up the greatest smiles and giggles. He has three "words" that come out repeatedly but I'm afraid are rarely used properly: "Mama," "Dada," and "Nana." He loves to repeat the wrong one back at us when we tell him to say one. ie. "Elijah, say "Mama." ......."Nana." :) He's not a temper-tantrum thrower, rather when he doesn't get his way he places his head on the floor and gives the most heart-wrenching cries you've ever heard from a little boy, complete with crocodile tears and big gulps for air. The best is when he does this from a standing position and ends up like a little pyramid in the middle of a room. He's walking (started at a little over 11 months), is great at shape-sorting, and loves LOVES to walk around with something stick-like in each hand with which to bang on things. At church nursery he heads straight for the little play structure where he can drop balls in and watch them travel through the toy and come out at the bottom. He likes to tackle his sister now that he can walk, and does so with all the intensity of a true wrestler (hands around the neck!), perhaps he's found his sport of choice. He's a total binky-baby with at least one in his hands and one in his mouth at night, more if you'll allow him. He even sucks on his sister's binkies- upside down. Elijah is a picky eater (his chosen diet is short enough to list: sausage, hot dogs, bread, blueberries, yogurt, granola bars, and cereal) thankfully he'll take any veggie pureed on a spoon so I try to pump those into him as much as possible. He's not that big a fan of the sippy but often pushes the bottle away too. The kid lives on air and carbs...we are working on this. Praise Baby is still a great distraction, especially if he's tired- he plants himself as close to the tv as he can get and just sits there with same game-face his daddy got when he used to play xbox. Another thing to note is that he is drawn to light like a wayward mosquito. Once he learned that pulling the little cord on the fan makes the light go on and off he literally climbs whoever is holding him to reach for it, straining with all his might with the biggest smile and widest eyes you've ever seen. Balloons get the same reaction and I just love his little head full 'o staticky curls. He is totally Mommy's little man.

Evelyn...Evie, Evs, Evie-Lyn, Evlyns...this girl has a got a lot of names as well. She is pretty much anti-talking right now, though she loves to use all kinds of inflection in her voice when she babbles (usually "Ba ba ba ba"). She can kill ya with a smile, open-mouthed and almost toothless (she has two bottom teeth). She is a seasoned walker (started at about 10 months), but look out if you get in her way- she is a temper tantrum thrower and loves to throw them when she gets underfoot and falls down. She has an ear-splitting cry when she's mad and often gives herself the hiccups because of it. Thankfully her redeeming qualities are plentiful- she's a pretty good sleeper, though every night we get a wake-up call at 11pm- just a couple whimpers and she's done -she eats like a champ (her diet is a bit more extensive but her favorites are: hot dogs, canned green beans and carrots, peas, cheese, lunch meat, strawberries, grapes, and today she ate a giant mushroom off my pizza). She too loves her binkies but is not as attached as her brother. She loves to lift heavy things, it's sometimes a bit shocking what she thinks she can carry around (the top of Nana's activity table? tipping over a huge laundry basket full of clothing to get at a pop can? no problem), and rarely plays with toys. Give this girl a spoon and the lid to a jar and she's content to walk the house just lookin around. Evelyn is truly glued to mommy's side, or rather, calf, and if I'm gone from a room more than 27 seconds she'll set out to find me. She also thinks she's a big kid and loves following the hoard of neighborhood kids up and down the block- no looking back at mom, off she goes the moment her little fat feet hit the concrete. I am slightly afraid of what adolescence will bring us with this little girl. She's a smarty pants, and already cops a little 'tude when we tell her what to do. While her brother can sit entranced by Praise Baby for the full 45 minutes, she lasts about 2 minutes before finding something else to do. She is a Daddy's girl all the way :)

Things I'm enjoying right now:
They love the dog, Elijah especially enjoys lounging on him, and Evelyn prefers to stand next to him and pat, pat, pat him on the neck. They both like to kiss and snuggle him.

While the past month has been extremely trying for me with this transition into the fall schedule, new nap schedule, and the occasional pop-up cold, I'm loving that we really are more flexible now adays. We have more things to distract us than ever before if we need to be out and about when one or both of them would prefer to nap: people are more interesting, food is a good option, even just a sippy of water can earn me minutes of calm.

Finally it feels like we can begin to enjoy those things that are supposed to be fun with kids- playdates, the park, holidays and outings, while we are still a long way from getting the most out of these activities it is so much fun to see them interact with their surroundings and the excitement at new things!

We're just loving our two little one-year-olds, despite the trials and tribulations of every-day life with two infant/toddlers, they are such a blessing and so much fun!

One More Day of "0"

2011-10-04T11:21:00.000-07:00

I don't think I can begin to summarize my feelings on the past twelve months...I think it's a post I may work on for awhile so that I can get it just right.

Today however, we're in the throws of "the fall cold," nap transitioning, and the busyness of preparing for a birthday party so I guess I'll just do my best to enjoy this one last day of "no years old" and try to find a way to blog about it later :)

Together

2011-09-29T05:53:00.000-07:00

They look good together don'tcha think?

They get into trouble together too...this was a lazy afternoon around the house when Evelyn pulled a bag full of garlic Parmesan pita chips out of the pantry and proceeded to dump them on the floor and have a heyday of garlicky goodness. All three of my children had garlic breath for the rest of the day (Samson being the 3rd).

On another note we scheduled one year pictures! Can't wait to see how those will turn out :)

How Our Minds Work

2011-09-22T11:22:00.000-07:00

This may be a boring post to some but I was struck again today by just how weird our minds are. I don't know about you but I've noticed that my mind has learned several things "on it's own" over the years...Maybe I should explain; you know how you associate a smell with a person/place/memory? Maybe it's a perfume, the smell of your favorite food, or how most of us think of Christmas when we smell cinnamon and nutmeg. Those are the most common unintentional things our minds learn but it can make other weird associations too. Maybe this strikes me more because I love psychology and understand why my mind has learned these things even though I had no intention of it doing so, but regardless I think it's pretty interesting if you can pick out similar things in your own brain. Maybe you'll never notice any of your own, but for the record, all of the following examples have taken me months or YEARS to realize where happening, but you remember the same moment in time often enough while always doing the same thing and eventually you start to notice...

For instance:
My kids got a new toy right around the time we took a road trip to Iowa. They played with it in the car often and it plays a cute little song about riding in the car. It also says "I'm a cat" etc. when you push on the different animals (B, this may sound familiar since it came from your house). Anyways, while they played with this new toy I was reading a new series of books- The Hunger Games. Guess what instantly pops into my head every single time the kids play with that toy?? Yup, The Hunger Games, specifically a female character that must have played a prominent part in the story when they were playing with that toy particularly hard.

Another example:
When I go to enter Evelyn's pin number into the phone directory for babyfood testing I always think of Harry Potter. Specifically the scene in The Goblet of Fire when the characters are taking a portkey to the Quidditch World Cup (yeah, I know...). I can only guess that I was watching that movie at one point when I was trying to remember her pin or entering it over and over as I often end up doing until I got it right.

My last example:
EVERY SINGLE TIME I CURL MY HAIR...I think of my friend Beth from college. I know why...it's because 7 years ago when she got married it took about 3 hours to spiral curl alllll of her very long hair. It's so ingrained in my mind I can't help but think of her every time I do it myself. Love you Beth!

There are various others that involve smell: two colognes that remind me of boys I liked in high school, the smell of hot pavement and diesel smells like India, cool weather with drizzly rain is Ireland, the smell of spring reminds me of a particular spring during my Junior year of high school, ketchup smells like Russ', etc.

So those are a few of my weird connections...what are yours?

Sorry Sammy...

2011-09-16T07:08:00.000-07:00

You know you've been neglecting your dog when...

You are walking past the bathroom to put away some clothes in the nursery and you suddenly hear the bath toy that is attached to the wall in shower going off. Since this particular toy never goes off on it's own and the curtain is shut you are confused.

Upon further investigation your dog is standing in the shower (curtain still closed, the toy gave away his otherwise stealth maneuvers).

You then watch as he proceeds to lick alllll the water up from the walls and drain left over from your shower that morning. It is then that you realize he has been sitting next to his water dish for about an hour and has now taken matters into his own paws finding the only other source of water in the house that is available to him. Sure, kids were crawling all over him while he sat there by his bowl, and he was looking cute and all, but his objective was obviously not babysitting. To borrow a term from The Pioneer Woman "Home Boy" was thirsty.

Sorry Sam, you've made a lot of sacrifices in the past year...

"Sailing...Take Me Away...."

2011-09-06T12:08:00.001-07:00

"...to where I always wanted to be...wanted to be..." Just a little N'Sync for your Tuesday-kinda-like-Monday morning. Enjoy!

And...That's a wrap.

Bubble Wrapped

2011-08-30T11:04:00.000-07:00

Bubbles. They like Evelyn.

She's kind of oblivious to them.
Would rather grab the camera.
"They don't dare stick to me."

Keeping Things In

2011-08-29T10:26:00.000-07:00

Lately Elijah is not too sure about what eating is really all about. This is nothing new...*shudders at memories of those first weeks of trying to get him to nurse.* But I never thought the problems would be 1) a complete lack of hand-mouth coordination, and 2) a compulsion to shove anything that looks tasty on his tray into his mouth at once and then find he has too much in his mouth to swallow resulting in very little food actually staying in his mouth and thus his stomach.

We have had some success though, had a great couple of days with black beans for instance. The obsession has now passed but I got some good pictures first.

YUM!

"I suppose I'll humor you and eat these...today."

He's a fan of false hope.

"Hm, I wonder what this'll do to my nice, white, cloth diapers?!"

"My mouf if vewy fwull"

For Lack of Pictures

2011-08-09T05:12:00.000-07:00

I haven't been very good about taking pictures lately, seems like anytime we do something noteworthy I'm too busy with Thing 1 and 2 to snap some photos. So here's a brief update on the twinners as I watch them quite animatedly argue over a toy. Thankfully one of them usually gives up fairly easily and goes to play with something else. I can only hope this amiable relationship lasts...forever.
Crawling/Cruising/Walking...what?!
That's right, we have all three of those modes of transport going on right now. Elijah is now a pro at crawling, he lost the "wounded solider" look about a month ago. Now he reminds me of a bug, he scuttles across the floor with arms in a wide stance, and he's fast! I can also hear him coming a mile away because he's totally a pounder.
Evelyn on the other hand is crawling about 30% of the time, walking about 40% of the time and cruising on furniture the remaining 30%. I just love watching her walk, every once in awhile she gets excited and tries to run, or takes two big steps and then 10 itty bitty ones in an effort to get there quicker, but most of the time she just determinedly places one foot in front of the other until she arrrives at her destination! This morning it was so cute to watch them in their matching pjs, Eli crawling across the living room with Evie walking along right behind him.
Naps
We're down to two naps, have been for a couple months, and this two nap thing is working fairly well. While I welcome the days that we only have one nap to schedule around, I am wary of losing that precious hour or so in the morning to gather my thoughts and prepare for the day.
And finally: Cedar Point, Iowa, Adventureland, Oh MY!
In the last week we've just had all kinds of fun. The kids spent their first two nights at Grandma Lori's house while mama went to Cedar point with the TCC youth group. Then, after being home for 2 days we headed off for Iowa to visit family and go to a cousin's wedding. Needless to say the mode of transport- minivan was not our first choice, but the kids were troupers and mama only had one small breakdown from feeling like I was torturing my kids by keeping them in carseats/strollers for 8+ hours a day! It was great to see the Iowan relatives that we only get to see once a year, if that, and spend time with the cousin-friends :)
It's been a busy week, I'm looking forward to a little bit slower one!!

The End of An Era

2011-07-19T17:01:00.001-07:00

Everybody's saying it..."The End of An Era." I laughed at first, quietly, to myself, shook my head....

But I admit it, it really is the end of an era. The first book came out in 1997...I was 13. I think I read the first one at 15 and then saw the first movie which came out in 2001. There have been a lot of kids series that have come and gone, gained popularity and then fizzled out, but I think what HP had going for it was that the movies are seriously some of the best-made based-on-a-book movies I have ever seen.

I know this, because before every movie came out I reread the book, at least the most recent one, if not the whole series. For the record I do this with a lot of books/movies, not just HP. The director of the original movie (Chris Columbus) also did an excellent job of casting the characters. Never has a person entirely in my mind looked so much like their counterpart on the big screen.

Anyways back to the "era:" by the time the last book was published in 2007 those who had read the book as tweens or teens were well into college or even post-college life. In the amount of time it has taken to the entire series to finally come to an end I have: graduated high school, travelled to many different countries, worked at least 8 jobs, fallen in love, gotten married, bought a house, had two children...and so have, I would point out, the characters in the books/movies. The final scene of the last book shows the main characters grown, married, and with school-aged children of their own. Why wouldn't people my age feel that they had literally grown up and/or come of age with these characters?

I'm not blogging to prove any kind of point, this is just the kind of thing I really do like to write about when I can take a break from adorable twin-pics. I have caught myself from time to time genuinely feeling like I know these people, like how could I not? I've "known" them since 1997- longer than I've known my husband!

It was truly an odd dynamic watching the last movie on Sunday night. Having read the books I was fully aware of what the ending would be, I also knew there were some very abstract scenes and ideas in the last book that would be extremely hard to pull off in a concrete world. I think they did a decent job. There were some things that I could view with a grain of salt that a person who hadn't read the books (Andy, for instance) would say was just plain weird. But there was also a real sense of finality, excitement, even pride, at how far the characters had come and how amazing the relationships and really entire storyline came together.

Well thats it. Call me a super-freak, super-fan, super-dork, but I for one am honestly going to miss these characters and there is a bit of sadness moving forward knowing that we'll never "see" these people again, not in a new movie that is. We'll all have to deal with what will come for our favorite actors, the mistakes they'll make (let's all stay out of rehab guys, that celebrity drug thing is getting kinda old), the bad choices they'll make in future casting calls...

Thankfully I maintain that these books and movies are harmless. I will read them to my kids one day, and show them the movies, when the convincing special effects will be hopelessly out of date. But hopefully they will get caught up in it just like I did, the "magic" of it.

Yeah, I'm not gonna lie, it really is the end of an era.

On My Soapbox

2011-07-18T16:14:00.000-07:00

In the past 3 years I have dealt with a lot, and I mean A LOT of phone and triage nurses. First there were the long months of fertility treatments which meant calling sometimes daily to talk to a nurse about cycles, medications, ultrasounds, etc. Then there was the pregnancy- obviously I had more appointments to schedule because it was a multiple pregnancy, but I also had plenty of questions as it was my first pregnancy period. Now I call the pediatrician on a regular basis- double because there are two kids (take how many times you had to call your pediatrician's office in the first year of your kid's life, then add a second kid...), and even more because of all Evelyn's ear infections.
I feel I can now say, without a doubt, that there are very few of them I like to deal with. I'm not a snob, at least I don't think I am....maybe I should take a poll....anyways....but I do feel like I should be treated with respect when I call. Am I wasting your time by calling? Would you prefer I found another doctor? Would you like to find out something terrible happened because I didn't want to call and bother you?! I will say that the Fertility Center had generally wonderful customer service. I can think of reasons for why that may be: you're more of a "customer or client" than a patient since most of their procedures are optional, much of their clientele probably IS a little higher class than a regular doctor's office, etc. but should it matter!? I don't care if I'm being completely ridiculous, emotional, or utterly thick when I call....a doctor's office should care and listen to it's clients and serve them as quickly as possible.
You may be wondering what set me off. Maybe you're not but I'll tell you anyway- I called my pediatrician's office around 8am, talked to a nurse, told her everything I'd tried for Evelyn's stubborn yeast rash (including the "magic butt cream" recipe they'd given me). A few hours later I called back and said while they were asking the doctor the first question I would also like to know if Evelyn constantly putting her head down on the floor and crying meant nothing or possibly that her ear infection is still hanging around. The doc has mentioned needing to know if her infections are actually going away or if it's all just one long one so I figured this could be helpful info.

....

At 3pm a chipper nurse called and said: "I just spoke to Dr. _____ (not my normal doc) and he said it's probably just water and to watch her a couple days."

Silence.

Me: "Oh, you mean her ears. Ok, I can do that (though she's already been doing it for several days which I told the nurse and which is why I asked)....but did he/she say anything about the rash?"

Silence.

"What rash?"

Me: "Well, that was the reason I called. She has a yeast rash, it's very bad, she is very uncomfortable."

Silence.

"Oh! Well there's nothing here about that, but you can use the Magic Butt..."

I interrupted- "I already tried that, I told the nurse that this morning (during our five minute conversation), it didn't do anything (and also wasn't cheap), so I need another option."

Frustrated sigh...."Ok, I'll ask the doctor."

Me, Annoyed at this point: "That's fine, and will you also tell him that I think it's important that she is constantly laying her head on the ground and crying? She has had 5 ear infections in as many months and we never know if it's more than one or one long one. She has been doing this head thing for quite awhile and I'm tired of just throwing antibiotics at her if we don't know they are working."

She told me to keep watching her and call back in a couple days. Fine.

At 4pm I got another call, they'd called a script in for a rash cream. I applied it at 5pm. At 7pm the rash is still there but SIGNIFICANTLY less red and obviously a ton less painful.
Was that so hard?!

I'm still not thrilled because I'll probably have to call again when she continues to cry and lay her head on the floor every few minutes, but at least the rash is clearing up.

All of that said, if you are a triage nurse, try to remember that your clients are dealing with sick, fussy, innocent babies. They are moms, just like you, who might have more education than you do! I'm sure you deal with all kinds of people, many of them frustrating and ignorant, but that doesn't mean we all are AND....the customer is always right ;)

Dirty Girl in The Heights

2011-07-16T07:14:00.000-07:00

We grilled dinner last night, steaks marinated overnight in Baja Chipotle Marinade with a little Old Hickory Smoked Salt. The sauce was tasty, the steaks were not the greatest cut, but anywho. This mama got sick of Daddy getting to escape outside for an hour while he gets the grill ready and then cooks the food. So once all the prep work was done I gathered up the kids and threw out a beach blanket to sit on so we could enjoy the nice weather and grilling out in the neighborhood.

It was nice and relaxing. If you call repeatedly reprimanding Evelyn for trying to touch the grill, climb the cement stairs, and beat up her brother, relaxing.

My favorite part? The fact that nobody likes crawling on cement so they both adopted the Mowgli Walk to get around, but Evie perfected it:

What you can't tell is that her hot-pink painted toes are scratched and covered with dirt, and everything from her forehead down has a light spackling of green beans and carrots.

"Who me? Getting into trouble and dirty as a little piglet? Not so."

"Daddy loves me, we are working on an advertisement for Alger Heights."

What Not/To Wear

2011-07-12T18:58:00.000-07:00

I recently ordered an adorable "petti-romper" for Evelyn to wear in her one-year pictures. I'd been eyeing them for quite awhile and had contacted the seller about getting them with straps (she stocks chiffon rompers with straps but only lace ones without, I wanted the lace one with straps because my girl is not going to go strapless until she's 40...I jest...kinda).
Anyways the seller (TheTrendyTutu on Facebook) just decided to place a one-time order from her supplier for lace rompers with straps. I jumped on it, and have one of these adorable little outfits coming in "dusty pink," a purply-pink color that looks very vintage. Here is her stock photo (minus the straps and in a different color).

Now I just need to find an outfit for Eli. The complication of course is that their birthday is in October, and so, unless we have awesome weather like last year, a sleeveless bodysuit is not exactly weather-appropriate. This is not a problem as I inted to do indoor pictures, but I can't exactly dress Elijah in a fancy little sweater and pants or they'll look like they are from completely different season. So I'm on the lookout for a cute, coordinating outfit for my little guy.

That being said, I know I will not be dressing him like this:

We did the bowtie thing once and it was very sweet but I prefer a little more...clothing.
No worries.

Mommy's Lament

2011-07-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

We're in a rough patch right now. I'm not sure what "the deal" is but we're struggling. The twinners just are not happy much of the time lately. It might be boredom in some ways- the days get long, and venturing out with them is often more than I feel I can handle; even going out to sit on the lawn requires suntan lotion, a big blanket, sun hats, and toys times 2. It could be teething, Elijah is about due to get some more chompers and who knows when Evelyn will start cutting some teeth, but both of them have been nomming nonstop on anything and everything in sight. Feeding times are confusing. Evelyn is hit or miss with solid food, and even when she does settle down and eat it she never eats enough to be satisfied. Elijah loves it most of the time but crumples most of it up in his hands and misses his mouth the vast majority of the time. As a result I feel like I'm back at the nursing stage- feeding constantly in one capacity or another as bottles get rejected but "real food" is begged for, or they have a "solid" meal but are not quite full and require a formula top-off. They hate the stroller- what kid hates the stroller?!
Morning wake ups and naps are quite wonky as well. Will they wake at 5am or 7? Should I make them wait to eat till 7? But then we'll be so incredibly grumpy by naptime....is it worth giving them a bottle and putting them back to bed? Maybe this just means an ealier nap...but then what does it mean for subsequent naps?
I won't lie, I am pretty sure with one baby this stuff wouldn't get to me as much. Or maybe I should say in the future when I have just one baby I'll remind myself how it was with two and I'll let stuff roll a bit more but right now I want, I desire, I NEED them to nap at the same time or I'll lose my mind.
I feel like a downer when people ask me how we're doing or "how it is with twins." Frankly, it's frustrating, and much as I hate to say it, I truly believe the baby stage just isn't my thing. I really don't like to admit that because it sounds like I don't like my kids! But that's not what I mean. I love them to pieces and am excited to see them every morning, they are adorable and much of the time a barrel of laughs and cuteness, I miss them after just a few hours of separation, I just don't do well with being clueless. I know, I know, most of parenting is trial and error, but I feel like I'll have a leg up in the guessing game of how to make a situation better if I at least know what the situation actually is.
Writing this is a catharsis of sorts, it makes me feel like I can explain better how I'm feeling to those who have asked lately how we are, and it helps me organize my thoughts on the current situation. That said, I know, because I've been told (and from experience), that soon enough we'll be past all this, I'll miss things about this stage and I shouldn't wish it away. So I remind myself that in a week, maybe two, definately by a month from now we'll be in a totally different stage that will also have it's positives and negatives. Today though, I'm going to bed praying for patience and happy days for my babes. I'm also thankful for a God who is ever-present and "on my side." My daily Bible verse today was Zephaniah 3:17 - The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.
Happy to know he's rooting for me :)

This is Baby Friends Day

2011-06-29T19:32:00.000-07:00

10 Babies under 2, and 3 more over 2 but less than 8 years. Welcome to Baby Friends Day on Belfast! Each Thursday during the winter we got together with all the babes for coffee and a play date. During the summer it's become Wednesdays and a different park each week. This week it was Creekside park and I pulled out the camera to capture a few faces. Not everyone is represented but let me introduce you to a few :)

Obviously you know who these peeps are. This was attempt #3 at a good mommy-twinners shot.

Kyle- he came up with the name "Baby Friends Day."

Trey, too cute.

Landon- hello cheeks!

Ava- she's into flying lately. We are missing the third triplet in this photo sequence- Claire.

Jonah

Miss Evs

Elijah- look at those chompers!

Feeling thoughful.

Some of the gang! (From left to right, Meghan, Anna (with Trevor and Landon), Elijah, Grace (With Ava and Claire on the ground in front of her), and Emily.

We Should Be On A Commercial

2011-06-24T19:15:00.001-07:00

No Captions Required :)

Tricks Up My Sleeve

2011-06-02T13:02:00.000-07:00

Like most people I have some tricks up my sleeve for keeping kids happy:
-Random Box 'O Fun: Go around the house with a small basket picking up non-toy items that are still baby safe. Put the full basket in front of child and let them go crazy pulling stuff out!
-Playing Outside: There is just something about the outdoors that keeps us happy.
-Change of Scenery: Not happy in the living room? How about the nursery? Bathroom? Master Bedroom? Kitchen? Dining Room? Basement? You get the idea.
-Snack: Self Explanatory

Those are just a few. Today, there are more random items scattered across my dining room floor than I realized I had; we've been outside so long my kids have dirty knees, hands, and feet; we've played in every room of the house- twice; and the kids have had food everywhere- on the changing table, in the exersaucer, kitchen floor, etc.

I'm outta ideas!!
Maybe it's just time for a nap.

How to Make a Bed with a Baby in it

2011-05-20T14:29:00.001-07:00

Who loves the movie/play "Annie?"

*Raises Hand*

I always wanted my mom to make the bed with me in it, like the maid in Daddy Warbucks' House. Elijah apparently had that dream too because he woke up early from his nap a couple days ago and refused to play nicely on the floor while I made the bed. It was "hold me or make the bed around me," so I made the bed.

Here is how we do it in the Heemstra Household:

Step One: Gather clean sheets and smiling baby.

Step Two: Give baby TV remote control to keep him occupied and from crawling off the bed while you're putting the cases on the pillows.

Step Three: Fitted Sheet. Put two corners of the sheet around the mattress and shift baby onto completed section. Retain remote control for safety purposes.

Step Three is complete.

Step Four: (This is the "Annie" part) Throw flat sheet into the air so it creates a lovely "billow" that then falls on happy baby who is now quite confused and is only visible as a baby-shaped lump.

Take a quick break to check on baby lump. He's smiling, move on.

Step Five: Remove baby lump and replace with actual baby on top of flat sheet. Reposition remote and smooth down edges.

Step Six: Stack pillows and tuck in edges of flat sheet. Say "Hi Baby! Having fun yet??"

Step Seven: Duvet. Similar to the flat sheet only you can't leave baby lump in place as long due to dangers of smothering.

This baby is starting to get concerned. "Mom, what are you trying to do to me here?"

"Whew! That's better." Step Eight involved buttoning up the duvet over the comforter.

Step Nine: Pause to take a picture of now angry baby who cannot move due to the heavy comforter pinning down his legs.

Miserable. "Bed-making is hard work and I'm starting to wish I'd stayed asleep like my sister!"

"Woe is me."

Garage Sale- A Verb

2011-05-20T14:10:00.001-07:00

I just love going garage-sale shopping. Especially now that I have kids who are constantly growing and needing new and different types of toys, there is just nothing like getting something you know is worth $20+ for a buck.

I also particularly love the Alger Heights Sales. They are annually a great time to pick up kids stuff because there are so many young families in the area.
Friday a bunch of the neighbors went first thing in the morning to get the best deals. After several hours of shopping and a second run out while the kids napped, here is my haul. I spent a grand total of $25.75:

That's five toys, 2 dresses (for me), 1 dress for Evie, a pair of shoes for Evie, a lion Halloween costume (not pictured because it's in the wash:) for Eli, hair pretties (not pictured because they are in the nursery with the sleeping babies), a pyrex bowl w/ lid (brand new and not pictured because it's in the dishwasher), and a small cooler that holds baby food.
This is a close-up of the detail on one of the dresses. I scored this one from a girl who said it's from her friend's boutique and that it never fit her. $3 and perfect for one of the weddings we are attending this year.
Evie's new PediPed pink penny-loafers. How cute are these?! (retails around $32, spent $2)
The new obnoxious toy that makes car noises. Normally I make it a point to not buy noisy toys, but I had a feeling Andy would really like this (which he does) and the kids love it too. It sounds like an earthquake is going on when the little guy in the car rumbles but both kids laugh and smile, what's a mom to do??
Hello adorable dress! $1.00?? Yes please. Size 18 months- perfect.
These two were actually from another sale I went to last week. I spent $4 on them...They have been a smashing hit!! I did not get a close up of the little red doll thingy posted in the first picture but have you seen these yet?? They sing when you squeeze them, but only one word each time you squeeze and they will hold the note as long as you push on their bellies. Their mouths also move quite convincingly. Lots of fun for another dollar.

And can't forget this guy!! He is a Lamaze toy, normally quite expensive, and cost $3. Add a few AAA batteries and you get: "My nose is ROUND like a CIRCLE!" He's a whole lot of fun too.

I really make an effort not to buy "junk." Obviously this is all relative but if they clothes aren't absolutely adorable, and the toys aren't in good working order without a whole bunch of dings and dents, I'll pass. There is enough stuff out there to be picky. A couple weeks ago I did the couponing thing, trying to stack coupons and stock up. While this makes sense for some products (like home and beauty stuff) I usually find there just aren't coupons for the things I want and I don't need to go to extremes to have plenty of what I need in the house. While I'd love to save hundreds like some people do on their weekly groceries I prefer a little garage-sale action to feel like I've really saved some money!! Thank you Dave Ramsey, I never pay retail ;)

Setting Them Up for a Life (Not) of Crime

2011-05-20T13:53:00.001-07:00

Spread Em! Eli likes to stand now, and Andy thinks its hilarious to make him "spread em!" He has decided to turn it into a lesson in why you don't want to lead a life of crime. Here Andy is showing Elijah how humiliating it is to receive a strip search with pat-down.

"Oh my goodness, how embarrassing."
"I'm so sorry Officer, but it was my sister, I swear."

"There, did I look repentant enough??"

"What's next? Mugshots??"

There is a new post...

2011-05-15T04:07:00.001-07:00

it's just a few posts down for some reason. I think because I started it awhile ago??

I tried... I really did...

2011-05-06T05:11:00.001-07:00

I tried to update the blog today. With some really cute pictures of the kids scooting all over the place and Evelyn trying to pull herself up on everything. But there is something wrong with the computer, and after several minutes of "uploading" the pictures I suddenly get an error message saying there was a connection problem. Twice.
But I can type.
So I'm not sure what kind of connection problem we're having.

I decided I'll just describe them and you can make your own mental image.

Evelyn is pulling herself up on everything. It's distracting her sleep which is a bit annoying. She wakes up and immediately tries to stand in her crib (and succeeds) which means there is no hope she'll settle back down and go to sleep again. Especially since sometimes I think she gets scared to sit down again...evidenced by the bloody-murder screaming she lets out while standing stock-still holding on the to the rail.

Speaking of bloody murder. Two days ago Andy brought Evie into our room for a bottle at 7am and she had blood all over her mouth. Further investigation found it all over the rail of her crib as well. She must have chewed on them so much she made her gums bleed.
Mental note: get crib rail guards so we can actually use or sell her crib...thankfully there are no chompers in there yet.
Besides the bleeding gums her head is also covered with bruises because while she has figured out how to climb to a standing position she has not exactly figured out how to climb down from one. The clunk reverberates through our entire house, followed by silence (the longer the silence the worse the result) and then the scream. Fun Fun!

Elijah is army crawling around like no one's business. He has discovered the joys of climbing into the bowl of the exersaucer and then through it to reach the curtains (also there is an electrical socket there I need to cover, so far he's not tried to touch it- I watch).

Things are getting interesting over here....

Why My Windows Ain't Washed and My Floors Ain't Clean

2011-04-26T05:51:00.002-07:00

*disclaimer* while I have a very nice camera, operator error has caused many of the following photos to be a bit blurry. I snapped these quick the other day in preparation for this post and did not notice they weren't very clear. I apologize if they bother your eyes but I think you'll still get the idea!

I posted a few weeks ago about my recent crafting splurge which has not seemed to slow down. For my birthday my mom got me a sewing machine and my mother-in-law got me all the accessories I could possibly need to dive head first back into sewing. I'd started making the burp cloths on my mom's machine this winter but have lately expanded my repertoire. Here are some of the latest creations:)

I love this fabric! It's cute and girly and classic. I've used it for burp cloths so far but I might make it as a blanket for someone I know is having a girl.
Like all things "boy" it is very hard to find cute fabrics for little boys. I snatch them up when I find them and thought this guitar print was fun. It also does not have the customary skulls that have begun appearing on everything lately.
Can't go wrong with lobsters!! Tasty and cute.
Some almost-finished burp cloths. I just needed to close these and iron them.

For mother's day I made both of my moms a tank top with these "yo-yos" and buttons. I'm still perfecting my yo-yo making but I thought this was a good first attempt.

This one was for my mom, my MIL's was on a black tank.

These blankets are my favorite right now. They are pretty easy to make and I can have lots of fun with mixing fabrics, ribbon, and the big buttons. I made this one for a friend of mine who is expecting a boy in June.

Here's a gender-neutral option. I'd probably lean towards boy for this print but I thought it was cute for either gender. (PS in case you didn't figure it out, the ribbon has velcro and can hold a toy :)

And here is a very girly print. I love these cats! And I attached the flowers I've been using as hair pretties.

It might seem like I'm making a whole lot of baby stuff with no one to use it but I've been talking with a couple of local consignment boutiques that specialize in kids cloths and also sell handmade items. Village Kids in Ada has agreed to carry some of my burp cloths and I will let you know if my other option pans out for the blankets, boo boo bunnies, and paci clips!

Easter Sunday Outtakes

2011-04-26T05:50:00.002-07:00

Getting good pictures of babies is never easy. I kept meaning to get pictures of the kids in their Easter outfits all day so finally at our last stop- The Kreiders -I got a few pictures. Here is a nice one of Elijah and Papa:

Don't you just love Elijah's little bowtie?! It matches the ear on his little Easter Elephant t-shirt.

Cutest little Mister ever!

Now try adding a second wiggly baby for a twinners Easter photo shoot... Evelyn is a little excited!

Evie is still excited, Elijah isn't sure...

Oh hey! There's some interest from Eli, but what happened to Evelyn?!

About to topple off the couch...no problem.

Okay, this is pretty good. We'll take it! Whew!

Now it's family picture time:

Andy and Elijah aren't ready....

This one might have been cute but Eli is missing and doesn't appear thrilled.

We did get a keeper (sorta, Elijah never did smile), but the dorky outtakes are more fun, don't ya think?

Cloth Diapering is Cooler Than You Think

2011-04-26T05:50:00.001-07:00

Don't believe me? Well than you can just check out the next edition of The Guiness Book of World Records because Elijah, Evelyn, a few of our friends and I will be in it for...that's right, cloth diapering!

On Saturday, April 23rd all over the world, families who cloth diaper got together at various locations to change cloth diapers at exactly 12:30pm. It was so precise, in fact, I had to ask a total stranger to change Evelyn because the kid to adult ratio was required to be 1:1. We sat and chatted for awhile, she was a grandma to a little boy that had also come to the Great Cloth Diaper Change so we were all good.
I won't pretend to be something I'm not, there were a lot of folks there you might call "granola," aka all about the "going green" thing...that's about 5th on my list of reasons I cloth diaper. The first 4 go something like this:
1- It saves us money, lots of money.
2- They are cute.
3- I'm stubborn, and now that I've started and told everyone we're doing it, I ain't goin' back.
4- I'm addicted...so many fun patterns! So many types to try! It's trouble I tell you, trouble.
5- I like Earth.
Ok so there you go. Regardless of the reasons for cloth diapering, it really is a lot of fun and can be highly addicting. It has it's own lingo, facebook groups, forums, and now...it's own World Record!
Here we are at Hopscotch on Cherry Street where the GCDC took place. Everyone is rocking their Chicco Keyfit Carseats and the complimentary cloth diaper (cut in half) we were given to change the babes on and commemorate the event. From left to right: Evelyn, Elijah, Annika, and Anna. Note Anna's adorable blanket made by yours truly :)

Here's Evelyn and I as we waited for the big event to begin. She stole that toy from Ani, you will see later on the my kids are bullies!
Here I am apparently extremely happy about changing my kid's diaper...I'm not, honestly.

Alison and Annika all ready to change! I should mention that all of the advertisements sent out said the diaper change was at 12pm. Once we got to the store we were informed that it would not take place until 12:30pm. A half hour might not seem like much but when you've arrived early to ensure a good spot and refrained from changing your kids' diapers before you left home in anticipation of changing them as soon as you got settled at the store...let's just say all the kids were very ready to be rid of those diapers.

Nicki and Anna. My what a cute blanket!

Elijah thinks Ani's toy looks like lots of fun: "Hi Ani, I am a nice boy, may I see that toy a moment please?"

"What do you mean, 'No?' You are making me angry...you won't like me when I'm angry."

Here is Elijah just before I changed him. He'd forgotten about the toy and apparently moved on to something else. This is what it looks like trying to change his diapers nowadays. He doesn't look thrilled you say? I don't know what you mean, he just saw a pretty girl across the room!

Saturday had a happy ending- everyone's buns were clean, we won a toy and got two free wipes! Whether I was 100% sold on the idea of "The Great Cloth Diaper Change" or not, I was glad I went and got to spend some time with my kiddos and some other great mamas :)

One of Those Days

2011-04-20T16:15:00.000-07:00

You know those days when your kids are whiney and you keep thinking: "Ok, they are going to nap GREAT!" Because of how grumpy they are and how crappy their first nap(s) was(were). And then they fall asleep and they take a "good" nap or halfway decent one and you think: "Wonderful, they are going to be well-rested and happy when they wake up!" And then they're not?
Yeah, this was one of those.

Epiphany

2011-04-13T17:01:00.000-07:00

This might sound like the silliest thing ever, but I was struck by something tonight and I just wanted to share...maybe someone else will know what I'm talking about. Tonight as I gave Eli and Evie their baths, I took sudden notice of their adorable little bellybuttons. Andy would cringe at this post as he has an anti-bellybutton thing, but I can't help it! I have never thought much of bellybuttons, they are just there, and no longer serve any purpose. However today I suddenly realized that those little navels are not just another body part, they are essentially a scar, reminiscent of a major event. All at once they looked totally different to me. They are like a seam, part of where their little bodies closed up as they grew, and literally the point of connection between us. It was kind of like seeing God's handiwork in progress, I felt like I could literally see how they were made, "knit together in their mother's womb." I really can't do justice to the moment, it's just that we so often overlook those small things...but now as a Mom I feel like it's the one remaining sign of the nine months they grew in my tummy. Anyway, I have a new appreciation for bellybuttons and I may never look at one the same way again. I figured it was worth sharing on the off-chance this would resonate with someone else :)

"What's a Florida?"

2011-04-11T18:42:00.000-07:00

This was the question of the week on our vacation- "What's a Florida??" We were very aware of the fact that most of the novelty of Florida was lost on E2, but it was great fun introducing them to alllll the new things Florida has to offer! First off was the pool, Elijah seemed to take to it like, well like a fish to water:

"If Florida is full of these "My Baby Rings" things, I LIKE it!" -Eli

Ok seriously, how can a mother ever, in a million years, deny anything this little pipsqueak asks for?? "What's that Elijah? You want a brand-new muscle car and a tattoo? No problem."

Check out that little upper-arm muscle. Preeeetty impressive!

"Can somebody just bring me my bottle right here? Bartender?"

At first Evelyn preferred to view the pool from a distance, but patience and practice found her floating like a pro by the end of the week!

That first day of hanging out pool-side really took it out of her. She loved wearing this comfy cover-up, I think she liked it anyways, how could she not? It was a hand-me down- from Mommy!

Evelyn just loved hanging out on Papa's lap while he drove the boat!

Naptime on the boat! Never very long naps, but naps nonetheless.

It was HOT! Sippy cups with ice water were a big hit.

Just the boys.

Evelyn and Daddy."Mmm, this water is so refreshing! I spilled lots on my shirt so I could cool off."

"What's that Evelyn? You want a pony and a belly-button ring? No problem."

I think mom has a picture of me that looks just like this. A sweet moment on one of our boat rides.

Well, we know where Elijah gets his complexion! Me and my little big guy on the boat :)

Learning how to drive Papa's boat! We can never start too early!

One thing I learned: Don't expect to feel relaxed AT ALL after a vacation with kids. It was a wonderful time, but I came home feeling more worn-out than when I left! However, we are counting our blessings as I couldn't help remembering that the last time we were in Florida Andy was giving me shots in the tummy every night as we hoped an prayed for the IVF to work. This year we got to bring two new wonderful members of our family! We've come full circle :)

In No Particular Order...

2011-03-18T17:14:00.001-07:00

We have had a ton, and I mean a TON going on lately; weddings, time with cousins, friends, and all kinds of milestones. We've been so busy in fact it's been almost impossible to keep up so here is a nice post of just about everything that has happened in the last month or so to catch you up!

First I should start off with my Mother In Law's wedding. It was February 26 and we really had a blast. I for one am excited to add lots of members to the family; a father-in-law, 6 step-sibling-in-laws (including the married-in ones), and 4 step-niece/nephews. We had a bachelorette party, rehearsal dinner, and of course full-blown wedding with reception. We even got to bring the kids and that is where we got some great daddy-daughter and mommy-son pics. The kids were awesome too, Julie helped us a ton and I could not have asked for happier babies!
Notice my fun flower- I made those for all of the bridesmaids and the bride! (The bride's were white orchids with shell and rhinestones). My lovely jewelry came from WAR- "Women At Risk"- an awesome organization that supports women who were victims of human trafficking all over the world. I will get all my special occasional jewelry from them from now on, and Lori and Jeff chose them to receive the benefits of their Dollar Dance.

We've gotten to spend a lot of time with cousins lately, particularly Caden and Reese. I love that my babies are getting to know their cousins so well and that Reese and Caden just love their twinner cousins. Reese even begged to "hold" the babies, and Caden has spent hours entertaining them. So fun!!

In other news, both babies have "found their feet," though Elijah is the most enthralled with the fact that he can grab both at the same time. This is one of my favorite "milestones," I love hearing them squeal with delight after concentrating for several minutes to get one in each hand!
With the warm weather we've been having the neighbor kids have been out in droves. We still do our best to see each other a lot during the winter but it's so much easier when kids can just run in and out of the houses while they play outdoors. This pic was taken on our first really nice day when Anna, Trevor, and Kyle stopped by. Kyle loves babies in general, particularly his baby brother Trevor and Elijah and Evelyn! I think Eli is a fan of him too :)
Um. This picture has no particular story...it's just cute a cute one of my happy, drooly, boy.
Oh Miss Evelyn. Part one of this picture is her adorable suit. I picked this up on my girls' weekend at Gymboree. I told myself I would only buy her a swimsuit if I found one I couldn't live without, and wouldn't you know it, I did :) The bows by her little smiley face are just too cute, and for $12.99 I couldn't resist! She loved it, once I squeezed her little body in there like a sausage.

Part two of this picture is that this little girl is determined to crawl. Right now, she ends up actually pushing herself away from whatever object she is trying to get, but I have a feeling it won't be long. By either laying on her back and pushing with her legs, or doing this backwards-crawl thing I have returned to the living room and found her several feet from where I left her after only a couple of minutes. Brother is following suit but this girl has the coordination down a bit better...time to baby-proof, yikes!!

"Yeah, I like my suit. And I'm on the move!!"
Another shot of Caden and Elijah. Cousin-Friends for sure!

Another cousin-friend; Kaiya, Karen's youngest who is only 3 weeks older. There are definitely some similarities between these two, and they had a blast at the wedding together :)

Another small "milestone" today is that both Elijah and Evelyn had their first solid, solid-food. Tara had some Baby Mum Mum biscuits that Reese doesn't like laying around so I took them home to E2. Elijah couldn't get enough, surprisingly, and Evelyn thought it was mildly entertaining. Poor Andy was shocked to see them with something "so solid" in their mouths! Eating baby food is getting better and better for both babies, we are having a lot of fun in the Heemstra Household!

Cloth Diapers...

2011-03-07T17:15:00.000-08:00

are an addiction.

The End.

Congestion: Two Kinds

2011-03-03T05:04:00.000-08:00

Question #1:
What do you get when you cross a true "Binky Baby" with a whole bunch of congestion? A kiddo that can't sleep because she has to choose between breathing, and sucking on her binky all night, not to mention the fact that she breaths 10x better when she lays on her back but really prefers not to sleep that way.

Question #2:
What do you get when you cross a really drooly tummy-sleeper with a whole bunch of congestion? A kiddo that wakes up from every night and nap with a puddle of drool and snot as big as he is and smells strongly of saliva and sweat.

Bonus Question:
What do you get when both of the above children sleep in the same room, whose doorway is 5 feet from their parents? Sleepy twins and sleepy parents. I may or may not get out of my robe today...

Cloth, Crafting, and Carrots

2011-02-25T05:36:00.000-08:00

The winds are blowing in a new direction...ish. Our babies are sleeping a bit better, we're down to one wake-up a night and a nice, early bedtime (with a nice, early morning to follow). We're getting the occasional warm day, usually followed by a blizzard, but still allowing us enough sunshine to raise our moods! Recently during one particularly nice day I decided to try sunning my cloth diapers. They haven't been too stained yet but I wanted to take the opportunity to get them out in the fresh air for a good couple of hours. I have yet to rig up a real clothesline, and am slightly stumped as to how to accomplish this without attracting Samson's attention too much, but here is my makeshift diaper-sunning contraption:

It was about this time that my neighbor stuck her head out the window and shouted: "Look at you, Green Mama!" Sure, call me Green, but it'd be more accurate to call me Cheap. :)
Another "hobby" I've taken up, or rather, gone back to, is crafting. It's been a life-long passion of mine and I'm so happy to have the time to devote to the occasional project. Recently I got all nostalgic and decided to remake a childhood favorite: The BooBoo Bunny. They are easy, made from a washcloth, ribbon, googly eyes, and a few pom poms. I've gifted one to every baby born in the last five months (that's 9, by the way) and a few other choice kiddos. AND sold two to friends who want to give them as their own baby shower gifts. The finished product:
I actually had a ton of super fun colors, brights and neons, but those are the ones I gifted first so these are the leftover more realistic bunny colors.
Sometimes I start projects just because I can't believe how simple they would be to make and how much they sell for if you buy one at a boutique. I usually like to put my own spin on them as well, so here are my "burpies," burp cloths crossed with taggies:
I've found so many fun snuggle flannels lately, and most of the stores have them 50% off or more. I listed them on my Etsy shop and included some previews of other fabrics:

Purple Gingham:Circles:
Tribal:
Fancy Hearts:

And last but not least, having a daughter only makes my obsession with making hair pretties all the more fun. Here is a little "nest" I made and named after my oldest niece Raegan. It just looked like her and I think it's best to list items on Etsy with real names rather than just a description:

This flower is appropriately named "Evelyn" as I made it for her to wear in her Grandma's wedding this weekend:

Last but not least I've continued on with the baby-food-making saga that started this summer with two bushel barrels of peaches (shared with the neighbors). This week I made carrots, sweet potatos, and bought some pears to get started with those. It's so easy and cheap and I'm loving my Cuisinart stick blender! I'll try to take some pictures later and post those but usually I'm scrambling to fit the baby-food-making in between naps so I'm not as leisurely in my picture-taking.

In other news, we've been braving lots of cold weather around here and Evelyn begged to be let out in the snow in her snowsuit:

Happy Friday!!

Love Day

2011-02-14T17:48:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wish Andy and I were a bit more gung-ho about Valentines Day. We might go out for dinner later this week, and I think he sent me flowers one year, but that's about as good as it gets for us. I could probably make a bigger deal of it but then I'd wind up with a double standard- I want him to think of something romantic but I'm not all that creative when it comes to this particular holiday either so...spending the day with the two cutest Valentines I've ever seen was good enough for me. One day when they are older I'll put together candy and cards for all my loves, but since Daddy is away at work today we did a little photo shoot with some felt hearts and cute diapers to "celebrate." :)

Mommy's Valentine

Mommy's Other Valentine

We LOVE our cloth diapers. Happy to be back in them after 2 weeks off...

Sending love to all our friends and family!

And as promised, Eli lovin' his carrots!

Things That Are Cute

2011-02-12T05:17:00.000-08:00

A blog post about things I find cute...
1) Say what you will about pacifiers but there is nothing cuter than a baby suck suck sucking on a binky. The wide eyes staring at you while their little mouths make the paci bob in and out in rapid succession...it's just cute. So is a little girl that loves her binky so much she holds it between two fingers through a feeding, diaper change, and half a bath. AND spends an inordinate amount of time concentrating on how to get it back in her mouth when it's fallen out during tummy time or in the carseat only to end up simply licking it since she can't always get it turned around and back in her mouth properly.
2) I think Elijah ate a whole carrot yesterday. It was pureed into a mashy goodness of course and packaged in a 39 cent jar from meijer, but he LOVED that carrot. No airplane spooning needed here, he simply opened his mouth wide every time the spoon came near his mouth and wolfed it down. To finish things off he sucked the remainder off his bib, fingers, and mommy's fingers. I should have offered him the ends of my hair come to think of it since carrot ended up there too.... (pictures later)
3) Morning playtime. It starts when the kids wake up and start talking to themselves in their crib, continues when I put both kids in one crib to hang out while we change clothes/diapers etc. and is culminated with Evelyn in the jumper and Elijah in the exersaucer facing each other and grinning/talking/squealing until it's time for breakfast.
4) Elijah sleeping. I know every mom probably thinks the same thing about their child, but this kid looks seriously angelic when he sleeps. Don't get me wrong, Evie is adorable when she's tuckered out, but Eli looks like he might have just drifted down off a cloud and landed wherever he's sleeping...
5) Kids falling asleep during activities such as a doorway jumper. Evelyn- almost mid jump yesterday -nodded off right in the seat. Then she woke up momentarily and jumped like there was no tomorrow...then nodded off again...

That's all for now, maybe next time I'll write about matching outfits, giant flowers on hats, and bare baby feet....

Kissin' My Sister and Eatin' Big Eats

2011-02-08T19:15:00.000-08:00

"Hi Sister." "Hi Brother."

"I think you need a kiss."

"Hm...this is kinda weird."

"HELP! He's eating my face!"

"Look, I can do it too." Eli: "Oh man.."

"Seriously, do you know what we've just done!?"
"I'm so embarrased."

"But your cheek tastes kinda good."
"Who knew we had so much flavor!"
"Eli, do you think we'll regret this when we're older. This isn't one of those photos mom will pull out when when we bring dates home, is it?"

Evelyn: "Mom, you won't do that right? Especially because I have a big booger in my nose."

Elijah: "I'm pretty sure she would..."

In Other News:
We tried Oatmeal Cereal today...

Evie's first tastes

Elijah's first tastes.

Andy decided pouring might be faster, Eli seemed game.

"Gimme that bowl, I can do it myself."

"Yum."

"You got anymore of that stuff?!"

Four Months

2011-02-06T17:40:00.000-08:00

Remember this picture?

I do, vaguely...it was a rough time, full of adjustments, crazy mama hormones, at least 24 dirty diapers a day, trying to make nursing work under the demand of 12 feedings (or more!) a day, and lots of crying, especially by me. Oh and the fleas...lets not forget the fleas...uhg.
I was thinking today about how four months can seem so long and yet so short at the same time. For instance if I'd owned a car for four months I'd still say it was new. Same with a house. And you're still definitely newlyweds after four months of marriage. But at the same time four months with your babies can seem like a lifetime. (I suppose it IS their lifetime but that's just nitpicking). Maybe it's because we spend 24-hours a day together but it seems like those days when we brought them home and they needed to be constantly swaddled, were easily carried around two at a time, needed paci-pushing every 15 minutes all night, and ate every 2 hours around the clock was waaaaay longer than four months ago. I also know (because people tell me so) that in a year I won't even remember the first four months. I'm sure it's true, I can already see it happening, but my oh my is time just funny that way. When you in it, time drags, when you're looking back, you find yourself wondering how in the world it flew by so fast.
Anyways, since I'm not the mom who took pictures each week or month of her babies' lives and made the cute album displaying their changes day by day (I'll play the multiples card here) I decided today was a good time to take a look back.
Because my camera got fixed so I actually have pictures to compare.
Because my kids are now going to bed at 7:30pm and I actually have time to myself at night.

Because Andy is flying and I don't have anyone else to talk to!
Here are some thoughts the day after my babies officially turned four months:

Elijah Timothy:
Eli is my "touchy baby." When he's happy he is very happy, shrieking with delight and squirming all over the place. When he's angry he is very angry, he works himself into a sweat and gulps for air between ear-piercing screams. He has his own unique "Elijah" look, he is such a little man. I love him in overalls, his hair is tinged red. His eyes are just slightly darker than his sister's. He's long and thin, with long fingers and toes. He's his father's child. He can be easily distracted but also incredibly focused on the tiniest thing. He loves to talk. Though we knew it was purely coincidence, during the Christmas Eve Service he said "Hi" clear as a bell. All we could do was look at him and say "Hi" back. He doesn't appear to need as much sleep as I'd like, and gets very angry when we try to put him to sleep when he's not ready. For a long time he had to be swaddled only to decided at about 2 months that he hated being restricted even though his jerking limbs woke him up constantly. He became a tummy-sleeper. He's my snuggler and when he does finally collapse into sleep he's out like a light. Sometimes he sleeps with his eyes a little open. Eating has always been hard for him, nursing never quite worked, and even finding the correct balance of formula thickness to bottle flow was important. He can be picky, but once we find what works he is one happy camper! Eating habits do not affect his desire to try to put everything in his mouth, especially blankets. He ends up in bed with me more often than his sister.

Evelyn Hope:

Evelyn is physically exactly what I always pictured a child of mine would look like: blonde, barely-there hair, chunky, blue eyes, big smiles. She has her daddy's exact head shape, a collection of stork bites on the back of her neck, and one on her bum. She is my easy-sleeper and binky-baby. Put her in her crib, on her tummy, with a paci in her mouth, and she will try to sleep. Hold her too long when she wants to sleep and she gets annoyed. She enjoyed sleeping on her side from the start, even swaddled, and moved on to tummy sleeping when she stopped liking the swaddle. She was my easy nurser, good eater, generally easy-going baby. She has a huge, face-splitting smile for anyone and everyone. In her bed she scooches her little self right up to the top of the crib until her head is pressed into the headboard. She loves "Chunky Train," and has her daddy wrapped around her finger. Between cousins and friends she has more clothes than I do and looks adorable in all of them. She loves the jumper, even though only her toes touch the floor. Daddy likes to cuddle with her and if she ever ends up in our bed at night it is usually because Daddy didn't want to put her down. She has a way of glancing at people, then registering that she knows them, and turning her full, undying interest on them. It's comical to watch.

Milestones (mostly for my benefit later). At four months both babies can:

Babble, using some consonants. Lift their heads and about half their bodies off the floor while on their tummies, laugh out loud, smile responsively. They sleep from about 7:30pm-3:30/4am, and then until 7 or 8am. They hate their carseats. They hold hands and suck on each other's fingers. When they see each other they smile and talk. They love bathtime and watching TV. They love watching ceiling fans. They have both rolled over one way, and are getting better about waking happy in their cribs and entertaining themselves for longer periods of time. They are wonderful :)

Thank Yous and Nakey Pics

2011-02-05T17:17:00.000-08:00

What would I do without my friends (and family!) that are willing to come over and hang out with me and the E's when Andy is gone? Some of the regulars are my mom, cousin Julie, friend Cassie, and Anna (my MomsBloom Volunteer who now says she'll come on her own time if I need her). I just want to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone who has and continues to help us navigate the world of twins! The babies love all of them so it's good times all around!

It seems we are moving towards a 7/7:30pm bedtime, which is fine by me although it means Thing 1 and Thing 2 are often up around 7am. It's not that 7am is all that early, it's just that I enjoyed being able to get up at 7 and have an hour or so if I needed it to get myself ready in the morning. However, lately they've been waking up happy and playing in their cribs or nicely in a bouncy for awhile before demanding food so I guess that works too :)

Tonight after bathtime they were especially happy so we snapped a few changing table "nakey" pics:

Elijah and his tiny buns.
Evelyn, a little more modest in a diaper. (Disposable because of the medication they are taking...boo!)

Eli loving his towel.

Laughing baby! It's always good to end with a smile :)

Photoshoot

2011-02-04T13:02:00.001-08:00

"Hi Mom!"

"I Love You"
"You love me too, right?"
"Are you sure? I know I've been a lot of work lately."

"I look good in camo."
"Yeah, I'm kind of a big deal..."
"Just wait till I'm a teenager."
"HI MOM!"
"I see you have that camera thing out again."
"Good thing it's all fixed now because I've got some extra chins I wanna show off."

"This here's my favorite, I call it 'Big Double.'"
"Hee hee, good, huh?!"
"By the way, there isn't like, a huge flower eating my head, is there?"

Bathtime Fun

2011-01-31T09:20:00.000-08:00

Well, my camera is fixed, sorta. Julie figured out that it was a shutter problem, but now I've messed with the settings so much it's going to take a good hour to figure out how to get it back to normal. An hour I haven't found yet. So these pictures are from Cassie's camera and she even edited them for me on Picassa! (Thank you Cassie!)
I've mentioned it before but bathtime is my favorite time of day right now. Not only does it mean we are shortly away from bedtime (hey, I need some time to myself once in awhile!), but it typically turns even the grumpiest baby into a smiling, kicking, squealing ball of joy. It's so nice in fact, that if I weren't concerned I might dry out their skin too much, I would seriously consider plunking them in there once or twice MORE a day than just at night. It's guaranteed happiness, and we like that around here :)

Elijah happy despite his bad cold!

Evie being a ham. Nice bubble mohawk!

Oh no, two-finger sucker? Despite my efforts to make him a binky-baby I think this may be the outcome....

Next up once my camera is allll better: fun in the jumper!

I NEED my CAMERA fixed NOW

2011-01-21T17:20:00.000-08:00

I'm missing out on baby moments, if not for my phone I would really feel like a terrible mom! Next time I have someone at my house who can kid-sit for a bit I will run it to the store, I swear! I will also put away that stack of laundry, get the vacuum fixed, clean the floors, finish some arts/crafts projects, clean the bathroom, and update my blog with something more interesting than a list of unfinished chores. And now, I'm headed to the neighbors for game night :)

SAHM

2011-01-11T17:46:00.001-08:00

I've had a lot of jobs in my life. I started working at 15, before I could even drive mom or dad took me to work at my first job at Andicott Floral. Then it was Bed Bath and Beyond, then Russ' for quite awhile, both in Grand Rapids and Holland. I had a brief stint at Kingma's Produce, then in college it was nannying, an office assistant in the Education Department at Hope, security at Holland Hospital, retail at Harborwear, and icecream scooper at Nutcracker Sweets. After college I was a Branns waitress, and finally kitchen designer at Standard and Youth Pastor at church. That's 12 jobs. While I absolutely loved being a youth pastor, and various things about all those other jobs, nothing comes close to being a stay at home mom and wife.
I always knew I was meant to be a mom, I remember telling people in college that it was all I really wanted to do. But I also knew I wanted to have a thorough education and of course, if it took a long time or I never got to be a mom, I wanted to be able to support myself...
While some days all I want is for Elijah and Evelyn to take a decent nap so I can get some stuff done or have a few moments to myself, all it really takes to define a good day is happy babies and food on the table for dinner. I know there are a lot of women who need to work outside of the home in order to feel fulfilled, and that's fine, but for me, this is really all I need.
Every day that passes I feel more and more settled into this lifestyle. We've reached the point where I can accomplish more than just one thing a day; like cleaning the bathroom AND writing a grocery list. Or doing a few loads of laundry AND reorganizing the nursery. They are little things but I love that my sense of accomplishment is growing as the babies learn to entertain themselves and be happy without being held all the time.
I've also noticed lately that some of the things I love most about being a mom and wife are small. I love being able to wear what I want every day. There's no dress code if I want to stay in comfy pants all day, but most of the time I enjoy just dressing the way I am most comfortable: jeans and a nice top. (I'm especially loving the long tops and leggings/skinny jeans- SO comfy yet fashionable!:) I also truly enjoy finding ways to stick to our budget while still making healthy meals and keeping us stocked with all the essentials plus some fun extras. Who'd have thought that finding a great price and free shipping online for cloth diaper detergent could feel like I won the lottery?
While life has gotten a bit more challenging lately the challenges are the type that really suit me. There is nothing better than providing comfort and happiness for my family. Overcoming obstacles like finding the best way to put a baby to sleep, or discovering a new recipe that's easy, inexpensive, and tasty, are keeping me busy and happy lately. I also love that I feel better able to keep up with friends and family. While coffee with friends or a day spent with my sister might seem like a luxury, it's part of what keeps me sane and allows all of us time to talk about our kids, our faiths, our marriages, etc. It's like a business lunch, only better, because these are people I really want to invest my time in!
This might seem like a silly post, but since one day I plan to print out my blog for posterity, I think it's important to write about the little things and not just major milestones. Right now I'm really enjoying the little things.

Heemstras Lately

2011-01-06T18:43:00.000-08:00

I know it's time to update the blog but I'm at a loss for a good topic so I'll just give a brief glimpse into our lives lately.
Andy has been flying quite a bit, most recently he was gone for a week and I did my first two nights alone. I had help from friends/family for 4 of the 6 nights but I'm glad I went ahead and took the plunge into doing a couple nights by myself. Things like that always seem more intimidating than they are don't they? It isn't something I'd want to do on a super regular basis, but I have to say it went well. I just keep telling myself this stage is brief. Pretty soon they'll be sleeping completely through the night and then I won't have to worry about who will be here with me or whether I'm mentally capable of handling a whole night alone!
The babies are doing well at night; we seem to have established a bedtime of 7:30 or 8pm and we've developed a good routine. We start out with a nice bath, fresh (and over-stuffed for duration) diapers and pjs. Then we grab a couple warm bottles of nighttime formula. The nighttime formula is thicker and sometimes a bit for Elijah to handle since we have to use faster-flow nipples, but regardless the effort usually knocks them both out. If we're lucky they sleep until 1 or 2 am, eat, sleep till 5am, eat, then sleep again until 8 or 9am. Ideally we all get up at 8am as this sets us up for hitting the same bedtime that night. The morning nap seems to be getting regular too. They definitely sleep the longest stint of the day at around 9:30 or 10am.
Right now daytimes are still a trick. Elijah is a hot and cold baby- when he's happy he's very happy, when he's not he is VERY not! He also sleeps much less than Evelyn so I'm constantly making him "try" to nap when his sister does though we are largely unsuccessful. Thankfully having just one baby awake allows us to spend some quality time with him and Evie still gets the sleep she needs whether we are in and out of the nursery with Eli or not.
Evie is in many ways the "easy" baby. She usually puts herself to sleep like a dream- put her in bed on her tummy, insert pacifier, cover with blankie, done. As long as she's tired, she'll close her eyes and try to sleep no matter how wide awake she seemed before. A couple days ago she even fell asleep with the hiccups! In fact, if I try to put her to sleep with rocking or cuddling it is actually a more difficult process. She lets us know when she is tired and down she goes. Elijah needs rocking but since we switched him to his belly we've accomplished the "drowsy but awake" approach to laying him down which works most of the time.
Right now my favorite time of the day is bathtime, they love their baths now! Both of them will sit in their little seats and smile away as we pour water over them and scrub them from head to toe. Andy and I both take our time as they seem to enjoy it so much. They are also getting better about lotion applications so I like to give them each a little massage before putting on the pjs. Bedtime is pleasant most nights and since they go to bed at 8 o'clock it seems like we finally have a little time to ourselves to accomplish whatever we can't get done between naps during the day or to just plain relax!
One of the most fun developments is that they are becoming very aware of their surroundings, including each other. If we prop them in such a way that they can see each other they both break out in huge grins. Eli is really finding his voice and getting louder, he'll talk and talk to Evelyn who mainly smiles face-cracking smiles back with the occasional verbal response. They do tummy time together and grab at toys, suck on blankets, grab each other's hands, etc. I forget that being so aware of other babies isn't "normal" at this age- when they see other babies their age they both try to smile and/or coo at them but most babies simply don't respond! Maybe being a twin helps them learn some social skills a bit early??
They've also started "exercising" alot. Until now they were so small and basically immobile that we rarely had to strap them into their swings and bouncies. Not so anymore! Several times they've kicked their way to the bottom of a bouncy and today Evie's little feet were tapping the ground as she swung, she'd worked her way down so far. She also likes to pull acrobatics in the crib: a couple weeks ago I found her in the exact opposite position I'd left her in- feet where her head had been! Since her mattress is slightly inclined right now I think this did not help her congestion :).
As for me, I've started going to TCC's women's Bible Study. I also have MOPS twice a month, and the neighborhood girls and allll the kiddos have been getting together once a week for coffee in the morning. We pass babies around and enjoy catching up. This week we started talking about joining the new Kroc Center nearby so we can work out together and I'm hoping if we join to do the baby swim classes you can start at 6 months. Gotta get ready for summer!!
In short, we've been having a lot of fun lately, I can't believe in just a few short weeks we'll already be able to start "solid" foods in the form of rice cereal! Both babies can sit in the bumbo and love to "stand" on our laps. They are growing in leaps and bounds and we are loving watching them change and learn!
(I'm sorry for the lack of pictures, our camera is on the fritz so I've mainly been taking pictures with my phone and uploading those to Facebook...hope to get our good camera fixed soon!!)

What We Do and How We Do It Part #1

2010-12-11T07:33:00.000-08:00

People are forever asking us how we "do it" with twins. I'm always tempted to tell them there is no trick, you just do what you have to, but when it comes right down to it I have to admit we do have little tricks up our sleeves that we've developed over the last 3 months. (Lest I get too proud of myself I just think of all those moms out there with twins plus an older child, two sets of twins, or larger order multiples like triplets or quads!)
In the interest of keeping a good record of our twin journey here are a few things we do to keep ourselves sane:
1) Avoid "passing the buck" when it comes to a crying baby. Very frequently, after an hour and half or so of feeding, changing, playing, and rocking the babies, we finally get settled on the couch with both babes sleeping away in the nursery when suddenly the quiet is shattered with a wail. It would be really easy at this point to get into an arguement about who's "turn" it is to care for the crying baby based on who is the most tired, who was the most busy today, etc. But we've fallen into the patter of having "his and hers" babies. Basically, whoever held that baby last is responsible for getting it back to sleep and/or pacified. It's not like we ever sat down and discussed this, or that we even really acknowledge the rule in the heat of the moment, but if you were a fly on our wall at 6pm each night you would see this pattern play itself out pretty regularly. Usually a baby becomes your responsibility when you feed it, since the babies eat about every 3 hours during the day that means you are responsible for that baby for at least 3 hours (we also typically switch who we feed at each feeding though that also has never been discussed). It works well since we avoid arguments and by keeping eachother's sanity in mind the other person knows when to step in and give a break when it's needed.

Since I never have more than 15 minutes at a time to myself the next section will have to wait for next time...

Because I seem to be short on time lately:

2010-12-01T09:38:00.001-08:00

Enjoy this little clip that all moms of multiples agree sums up our experience every time we leave the house with both (or all 3, or 4...) babies. Andy and I were LOL'ing:
http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/7767627/

For Your Viewing Pleasure:

2010-11-23T15:09:00.000-08:00

How to gift wrap a cat for Christmas:
http://laughingsquid.com/how-to-gift-wrap-a-cat/?ref=nf

New Soundtrack and Some Favorite Moments

2010-11-09T03:53:00.001-08:00

There's a new soundtrack in the Heemstra household. It consists of lots of baby crys, snorts, grunts, big sighs, toots, and burps. Every day we become better at interpreting the meanings behind all these little noises. For instance, was that a "wet" or a "dry" burp? (A wet burp necessitating a mad dash for a burp rag before whatever just came up goes all over baby and whatever he/she is laying on). The same is true for a toot, though I'm sure I don't have to explain.

Each baby has their own personal noises and meanings as well. For instance, both babies tend to grunt and make little noises in their sleep that aren't signs of fussiness. However the moment we hear Eli begin to pant we can be sure a cry is soon to follow. For Evelyn the warning sign is more of a snort, though the frequency of the snorting signals whether we're in for a real scream or just a bit of a fuss.

Sleeping peacefully.

It really is amazing how much they change from day to day. I can't locate my camera battery at the moment so these pictures are about a week old and I can't believe how much bigger and just plain different Elijah and Evelyn are from only a week ago!

Auntie Bradi, Raegan and Sydney picked out this fuzzy headband for Evelyn. Already it's getting a bit tight on her little head! However it's great for a laugh, especially when Samson decides to investigate the fluffy little thing that has suddenly appeared on "his" baby's head.

"Hi."

"Um...I guess you can sniff it, just don't lick my face, ok?"

Samson found the headband to be very tickly when inhaled, so after much snuffing and nervous dancing in place he decided she was better left alone.

Another favorite "Samson and Baby" moment from this week has been his new desire to somehow "help" the babies when they are crying. Twice today, when a baby was screaming for some reason or another Samson brought his favorite bone and placed it right next to them. This morning, as Evie cried, he brought the bone and placed it on her, to which she let out a little grunt, so he picked it up and set it next to her bouncy seat before giving her a little sniff and walking away. There isn't much a dog can do for a crying baby, but he seems to be doing his best to show them he cares...and provide an early lesson in sharing!

The old saying "sleep when baby sleeps?" Yeah, we got that.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T17:40:00.000-07:00

Our Halloween started off with a bath for the stinky babies. There had been lots of spitting up that day and everyone needed to be clean for their costumes:
A welcome change was that both Eli and Evie seemed to decide that baths are not meant to torture them and could be a rather warm and relaxing experience- no crying here!

"Ooh, so warm!"

After baths it was time to get in our costumes and pose for the camera!

"Why'd you have to dress the skinny kid in the skeleton suit??"

"I know I'm a little chubby but a Pumpkin-Ballerina? Really?! I'm going to need counselling."
Evie decided the best way to deal with the situation was to just go to sleep. Eli wasn't so sure...

Happy Halloween from the Heemstras!

We've had a lot of visits lately....

2010-10-24T10:29:00.000-07:00

Samson really seems to love the babies, he "visits" them often between naps. Don't let this picture fool you though- he's actually begging for food which is right outside the picture.

My good friend Kim stopped by for a visit from Big Rapids. She brought us her steam cleaner so we can clean the carpets just in case there are any residual fleas (ew), and also held babies for awhile :)

"Auntie Rachel" helped a lot this weekend, during our scare with Evelyn (more later) and the night before Andy went on a longer trip so we could all get some sleep. Thanks Rachel!

Our neighbor Anna stops by often and even brings me coffee. What would I do without my friends on Belfast??

And then there are the wonderful cousins and family. RG and Syd LOVE holding babies. She, Syd, Bradi, and their friends stopped over after ballet last week to sniff babies. It's so nice to have people stop in and just enjoy them!

Here We Are!!

2010-10-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

Elijah

Evelyn

Together at Last

Well, they are 2 weeks old already, but better late than never, right? Elijah Timothy Heemstra (5lbs. 8oz, 18" long) and Evelyn Hope Heemstra (5lbs. 14oz, 18 1/2" long) arrived on October 5th, 2010 after a 2-day induction. I'll post the full story sometime soon but for now I feel accomplished to have simply gotten their pictures and stats on the blog!

Mr. Eli is a challenge at breastfeeding but we're working through it, and Miss Evie is trying to show her brother what it means to eat like a little piggy (snorts and all!). Soon I'm sure I'll have 2 little chunkers on my hands :)

Denial, Coping Mechanism, or just plain Clueless?

2010-09-28T19:48:00.000-07:00

I just got back from Applebees where a group of twin (or more!) moms get together every month. It's not something organized by a leader or larger organization, but of all the different "groups" I've tried out lately I think it's the one I enjoy the most. All of the women there have already had their multiples. They actually formed as a branch of one of the other "Moms of Multiples" groups in the area, but I don't feel weird or left out because my babies are still waiting to arrive. It's nice to just sit and listen, tucking away tips for later, but the girls are also great about asking me how my pregnancy is going and all the "good" questions/comments that only people who have gone through the same experience can bring up.
However as I drove home tonight I realized that tonight, and in the last few days, I've answered about a thousand different variations of the question "how are you feeling about the fact that in 6 days or less you will be a twin mom?" and that I really have no idea what I've said or what the real answer is.
I'm not particularly scared at the moment, or nervous. I'm excited for sure, and maybe just...apprehensively optimistic? To even begin to answer this question I have to start with the fact that I'm scheduled for an induction but honestly feel like a ticking time bomb; I'm fully aware that just because we have a date does not inhibit the babies from coming sooner. So I fill my days with fairly mundane tasks that I know I won't have time to do later even though there is also a sense of urgency- should we wait until Friday to make that trip to the grocery store when we will stock up on all the last minute stuff we think we'll want to have around?
And then there's delivery. There are always unknowns, obviously, but since these are my first AND there are two babies, the unknowns are kind of compounded. Will both babies remain head down? Will Baby B have some sort of distress from Baby A's delivery that causes an emergency C-Section? Will induction go fast or slow for me? Will it be hours between the twins' births? Will they be 100% healthy or are there unforseen problems?
Next we move on to after the fact. Everyone wants to know how I'm going to tackle this or that obstacle. Then a lot of them smile and say "you say that now, just wait! You'll eat your words." Which is probably very true, but then why ask what I'm going to do? I frankly don't have a clue what feeding or sleeping times will look like, I haven't scheduled help for the first month(s) like so many people have suggested because I just have no idea when I'll want help or what our particular struggles will be (ps. I know we'll want food and dog-walkers:), what was a nightmare for one person might not be the thing we struggle with and vice versa.
Then there's my husband, who is so pleasantly oblivious I just have to giggle. Just now he sent me a text saying: "We're having our babies on Sunday, right?" And a few days ago he momentarily forgot the girl name we settled on (which he basically picked out himself by the way), and also the boy's middle name. He's hardly touched the book I got him when we were newly pregnant but he's "test driven" every toy we've gotten. Don't get me wrong, he has been very supportive and excited in the last few weeks and I honestly don't expect him to be clued into every detail right now, I think that would be a very unrealistic expectation for a first-time dad. But it's still pretty humorous to recognize how differently two people who are married to each other can prepare (or not prepare) for the arrival of children.
All of this is to say, as I sit here on a Tuesday night, 5 (or 6? or 2?) days before we meet our babies, I'm not sure if my lack of fear and nerves and generally unconcerned demeanor is denial, some kind of coping mechanism, or just plain cluelessness. I imagine it's a combination of all three. As bad an example as this might be it sorta reminds me of the days leading up to any other major life change I've experienced- like leaving for college or getting married. You reach a point when you know there are going to be obstacles, stumbling blocks, frustrations, mountain top moments, and probably an argument or two, but those things don't phase you like they did 3 months ago. Now it's just time. Time to get started, to figure out those things that will be hard and those that will be wonderful. Time to realize what it means to be a mom and a parent with your spouse.
There are two things I know for sure tonight, September 28th, 2010- it's time to get going, and no matter what our struggles, it's going to be great :)

Fleas?!

2010-09-24T13:07:00.001-07:00

Today could have started off better. Samson's nails were long and unruly, he was a bit stinky, the last of his summer coat was shedding away, and after a few months of hot weather he had lots of dirt that needed removing. Plus, he seemed itchy and he is prone to dry skin, so we decided to schedule a fall appointment with the groomer (we average one good groomer visit per season, sometimes 2 in the Spring) so he'd be fresh as a daisy for fall.
Since my neighbor's dog was also in need of a good grooming we made a dual appointment and took them in this morning. Upon our arrival to pick the dogs up this afternoon the groomer informed us that BOTH dogs had fleas. I have no idea where they picked them up, Anna's cat is an indoor/outdoor cat and we'd recently spent an afternoon with all 3 pets together, but all of her pets are flea treated regularly.
Thankfully neither of us has yet to find a single flea in our houses but we're washing everything- bedding, blankets, towels, both Anna's cats (one of whom she says seemed to think she was trying to murder him) etc, and giving all the rooms with carpet a good vacuuming. Plus I picked up some flea treatment for Samson at the vet this afternoon.
Here's hoping this is a one-time thing...not what I pictured my Friday afternoon to look like :(

If Samson Were a Twin....

2010-09-18T04:23:00.000-07:00

(Take a look at the pup on the right. Other than having 2 same-color eyes, this is almost exactly what Samson looked like when we brought him home. Thus the Humane Society dubbed him "Tweedle").

Let's be honest, Samson most likely does have a twin (or two) out there somewhere, but since we do not personally own more than one of him, he is an only child to us. Below is a picture I found online and I just couldn't resist taking a few moments to imagine life with 2 Samsons...
If Samson Were a Twin:-My house would never be clean.
-I'd probably never see my eldest niece again.
-We'd have to install a yard of gravel rather than grass as the tender shoots would never survive 8 galloping paws.
-I would buy black carpet and pretend it's clean.
-Trying to go for a walk would be...well let's just say impossible without help.
-The mailman would probably just leave any packages that came for us at the curb or the neighbor's house.
-We'd get to experience both the pensive teenage stage (x2) and rambunctious toddler stage (x2) on a daily basis, only these children are generally mute and only respond to food. Wait, that's not so out of the ordinary....
-When Andy is out of town I'd be doubly in the doghouse (I swear Samson thinks I am the reason Daddy is not around and is more aloof than a 16 year old full of teenage angst).
-I might lose my mind but I'd be in a cute, furry place.
P.S. I'll say it now- if anyone is looking for a creative way to help once the babes' come, taking Samson for the occasional long walk or jog would be AWESOME for my sanity.

Is it odd that 2 Samsons scare me a little more than 2 infants? ;)

35 Weeks

2010-09-08T09:19:00.001-07:00

...and feeling every inch. Don't let my seemingly small belly fool you, according to the online lists my babies are the size of honeydew melons. And since they have been measuring consistently right on target I believe that guesstimate is accurate. I like honeydew. Not too sure how I like having two of them in me at once though. If you can imagine eating 2 honeydews and the tummy-ache plus other discomforts that would be implied, that is about how I feel right now.

There are all kinds of "extras" that come with carrying twins- extra hormones, extra weight, extra tiredness, extra aches and pains, and the good extras like ultrasounds and generally attentive care from the doctor's office. I've done my best to take all these extras to heart and enjoy them for what they are- the fact that we are having not one, but two babies whereas not that long ago when medical science wasn't so advanced we might have had none.

However this week, I feel like I've hit my wall. I haven't been sleeping well since about 20 weeks (I blame a lot of that on our very indented mattress), but right now periods of sleep are down to about an hour long. Suddenly I'm twice as nauseated as I ever was- especially at random times like the middle of the night and middle of the afternoon -I cannot catch my breath or sit in a car, and while last week I was still feeling fairly motivated, I suddenly cannot do more than unload the dishwasher without feeling like I need to sit down before I fall down. My hands ache like they are full of arthritis, I have dull headaches and am constantly woken up by jabs and stabs from one of the babies.
I'm still trying to take everything with a smile, accomplish as much as I can, and enjoy every moment of "me time" I have left. While I will be SO happy to be done being pregnant for 2 babies whenever they decide to show their little faces, I can't help but be slightly terrified of what is to come. There are moments when I think 37/38 weeks cannot come quick enough and others when I can't believe the changes that are about to come.

Regardless, as long as these babies are 100% healthy they can come whenever they want. And lets just say I'm glad the decision of when is not up to me because inevitably, given the fluctuation of my emotions, tolerances, and general sanity, I would make the wrong decision!

Bye Bye Black Kitty

2010-09-01T13:29:00.000-07:00

Well, today my sweet black kitty went to his new home.
Surprisingly enough I did not cry. I've cried a lot over the last several months as I struggled with what to do with him, worried over never finding him an appropriate home, and hit one roadblock after another. But seriously, prayer and persistence paid off. Back in June Rachel posted an ad about Louis on GRCC's website and that same day a woman responded saying she was considering taking him. She needed some time to work things out and decide for sure so I continued to advertise while we waited.
In the meantime I only had one other interested person who after I waded through her email full of grammatical errors and missing punctuation told me she had 2 dogs currently living with her as her daughter and future son-in-law's trailer roof had collapsed on them and they needed a place to stay...you can probably imagine why I was not comfortable with this arrangement and though it was hard to turn someone down when I so desperately needed a place for him to go, I just knew this wasn't the right fit.
For anyone that has never had to rehome a pet before, it's really a difficult thing to do in today's world. For one thing there is a huge overpopulation of cats. Summer is often referred to as "kitten season" because cats have their litters typically between April and October every year. I worked at Harbor Humane Society in West Olive in college and I watched several cat owners bring in their unspayed outdoor female and her litters naively thinking all would be well and their cats would find loving homes- only for the Humane Society workers to be forced to take the mama cat and all her kittens straight to the E-room to be put down. I know it sounds horrible, but it didn't make any sense to tell these people that their cats would never even be put up for adoption because most likely they would just take them home and release them outdoors to make overpopulation even worse. Many of these people brought multiple litters to the shelter before summer was out.
The second problem when trying to rehome your cat is that there really are people out there who will patrol sites like Craigslist looking for "free to good home" cats and kittens to use in laboratories or as *gulp* reptile food. The best way around this is to ask for a vet reference or a rehoming fee, though the rehoming fee can often turn good people away in a world overrun with free cats and kittens.
Needless to say I agonized quite a bit about what to do with Louis but in the end, the woman from GRCC decided she and her family would take him, and I'm confident he found a perfect home. His new owner has a couple of cats and was not daunted by the fact that he has had the occasional UTI and accident outside of the litter box. She even sent me her address and offered to let me come by to see him in the future. The icing on the cake is when her son told me he'd be posting pictures of facebook tonight so I could check in and see how he was doing. They must love cats :)
While I really will miss his cuddles and "talking" and "hugs," I know this is for the best. Samson has already told me how happy his is to be an only child- for now, and it feels great to know I can have the carpets cleaned once and for all without the worry of coughed-up hairballs, litter, or another accident. Plus my dad can finally come over without wanting to gouge out his eyeballs! Relief is what I'm feeling right now as I pray that Louis doesn't feel too abandoned and settles happily into his new home.
A perfect illustration of why Louis was never very comfortable with Samson around: "Someone is watching you...."
He was never very excited about having a camera stuck in his face.

"Wow! Look at that otter! Can I have one? Please? Please?!?"

This is one of my all-time favorite pictures of Louis, sitting on my desk in our old apartment watching the snow. Love you Louis-Bedouis!

32 Weeks

2010-08-18T12:07:00.000-07:00

I can't believe we're actually at 32 weeks! Throughout this whole pregnancy the question running through my mind has always been "How long will we go?" The twin birth stories I've heard are all over the board, from babies that were born as early as 28 weeks and stayed in the hospital with all kinds of health problems for several months, to moms that went past their due date, to (the most common scenario) moms that gave birth at 34-36 weeks with babies who stayed in the NIM or possibly NICU but who came home fairly quickly after birth.

32 Weeks is kind of that "whew" moment since as Dr. Taber puts it: at 32 weeks babies will survive with very few health problems but will be in NICU. At 34 weeks babies are fine but will probably stay in the hospital a few to 6 weeks. At 36 weeks babies can usually go home with mom.

Since I'm not showing any signs of pre-term labor I feel pretty confident that we can hit that 34-36 week mark!
I thought I'd post some updates from the last couple weeks, I'm a little annoyed with my blogger account lately as it never seems to place pictures the way I want them so I apologize for the weird order.
Last week Andy and I both had Friday off so we took Samson to the Holland beach for some swimming. Needless to say Sam loved it but we didn't get a lot of relaxing in!
Each week BabyCenter sends an update with a picture of a baby's development. Every 8 weeks or so they send one that also includes fraternal twins images. Here is this weeks image, just for fun:

We finally have a functional nursery! More has been done since I took this picture but here are the cribs all set up. It was a pleasant surprise how easily these cribs were assembled:

Here's my belly today at 32 weeks!:

My friend Beth and I were about 8 weeks apart. She was able to make about an hour of my "Friends Shower" a couple weeks ago and I'm so glad she did because she had her little boy Lincoln Edward a couple weeks early via an unplanned C-section. They are doing well! (Look how tiny she is :)

And finally, this is what happens when I ask Andy to take belly pictures- they are lopsided and usually most are not of my belly:

Boring, Tired, Unmotivated

2010-08-10T18:27:00.000-07:00

Sorry I've been a boring blogger lately. I'm hoping one day soon I'll feel movitated to upload some recent pictures and update but for now, I guess I'm just no fun when it comes to my blog :(

Sautee Naccoochee Valley, GA

2010-07-21T07:27:00.000-07:00

I know I'm about a month late, but I figure it's never too late to post some fun pictures. This is the youth trip toGeorgia- which turned out to be fraught with car troubles!

Here we are in an Arby's in Kentucky, nice huh? Except we were stuck here for about 4 hours waiting for our AC to get fixed.

Unfortunately, the AC could not be fixed, so we spent the next 6 hours or so driving down the highway in a tin can under 95 degree sun with only the emergency hatches for breeze. Whew! It was warm.

Once we arrived we settled in- it was about 10:30pm and hit the sack. The next day was a work day which we spent at the camp working on their new basketball court. This particular camp, which is the organization's summer headquarters, was brand new to TeamEffort. There was a lot of work to do so each group spent a day working on-site. Our group got to do two days since we had a lack of transportation for a little while.

(In Picture: Tori, Kaleigh, Lauren, Alyssa, and Josh)

There was a lot of moving dirt and concrete from one spot to another. Here Tyler is shoveling some beautiful red Georgia dirt into a trailer to be moved to a more useful spot.

Everyone lent a hand for each job. This was actually one of the more pleasant jobs as it was in the shade!

It was HOT- think at least 95 degrees, in direct sunlight I would guess we got closer to 100.

(Alyssa, Kathryn, Amanda, Tori, and Lauren, with Tony in the background)

The younger guy on the left was one of our leaders- Clayton. The older gentleman was a volunteer who's nephew helped to start TeamEffort. One of the more disconcerting realizations for me when we arrived at camp was that all of the leaders were about 20 years old and there was no real go-to person who was in charge of the whole camp. There was a camp director floating around but we rarely saw him.

Tony Doster was the other adult male leader. He and Kathryn worked well together to move broken concrete away from the basketball court!

Every day we went "off-site" for our picnic lunch. Hanging out by the river was definitely our favorite passtime and on the second day of eating at this location the kids discovered they could catch minnows in their bare hands. After a few tries they learned not to scream and drop them the minute they caught one :)

A little minnow-friend.

Another fun activity was wading out to the "white water" in the middle of the river. It was slippery so we had to go on all fours or link arms but we were willing to do just about anything to get cool!

Thank goodness our rooms were air-conditioned! Evenings after worship and small groups was spent playing "Nerts" (or "Peanuts") and Euchre.

(Left to Right: Tyler, Lauren, Tyler, Mark, AJ, John)

This is Renee, our other fearless, but camera-shy, leader from TeamEffort.

We learned lots of new skills! Kathryn and Tori tried their hands at drywall.

John was a pro at sanding those drywall seams!

Our other work days were spent in a trailer park called Baker and Glover. The family we worked with had 3 children- Jose, Igselle, and Brittany (their new, week-old baby). Igselle had lots of friends!

(Left to Right: Naomi, Igselle, Erica)

When Alison and I made our trek to Atlanta to pick up the rental vans to temporarily replace our big bus we missed lunch and found this great little place to eat- The Old Sautee Store. On our 1/2 free day we brought the kids back for lunch and to buy candy for the return trip home.

(Left to Right: Lauren, Jessica, Mark, Amanda, Chris, Tony, Kathryn, Kaleigh, Tori)

The Old Sautee Store had all kinds of novelties- this was a measure of your romanticism. Somehow I ended up being pronounced "clammy" while most of the kids got "passionate," "burning," and "hot stuff." I guess the heat fades with age? Awesome.

The restaurant area of The Old Sautee Store

Nice big front porch- we knew we must be in the South!

On our full day off most of the kids went whitewater rafting, while Jessica, Alison and I hung out in a restaurant and played cards.

Time to go home!

(Front Row: AJ, John. Middle Row: Alisaon, Kaleigh, Lauren, Alyssa, Christopher, Jessica, Tony, Mark. Back Row: Krista, Tori, Kathryn, Amanda, Zach, Tyler, Tony, Tyler, Josh)

Last Weekend

2010-07-13T19:24:00.001-07:00

Forth of July on Belfast!

3 houses in a row- all pregnant!

Super Sally! Our faithful carriage steed.

Can you spot what's different about these pictures??

Yup, I've given up my long-time ban on shorts as a part of my daily clothing selection as well as the idea that the tank top is anything other than an undershirt.

Why did I pick now when I weigh about 20 lbs more than normal to bust out this more revealing wardrobe?? DANG, it's HOT OUT!

Andy's Child

2010-06-30T19:35:00.001-07:00

We had another ultrasound this Monday, "routine" for twins, I guess we'll be having them about once a month from here on out. Like the last ultrasound I had a difficult time laying on my back for the majority of it. The nausea/discomfort at laying on my back has now progressed to even the slightest recline- car seats, pillows in bed, even my desk chair, so while I loved watching the babies move and do crazy things on the big screen I definitely breathed a sigh of relief when it was over. I'm counting my blessings though because I know if/when I am ever pregnant with just one baby I will miss all these little glimpses!

This week we verified that we do indeed have one boy and one girl, our little girl was much less shy about revealing herself to the camera and our baby boy was finally willing to give us a good look at his face. My ultrasound tech maintains that she is not supposed to give us 3D pics so shhh you didn't see the following images.

We also learned this week, now that baby boy is ok with showing us his face that he is truly Andy's child. Can a baby in the womb look any more like it's father than this kid?!"

Now I'd like you to prepare yourself for this next picture, this is how I knew this little boy most certainly does not take after his mother (please note, the mass to the left of the the pic is his sister's behind...he does have his reasons I suppose):

The next too images are of our baby girl, she was much more coy and rather sleepier than her brother. She also must be more apt to take after me since she is loath to show her face to the world when she just wakes up.

It's not as obvious with this child who she looks like but we think she's pretty darn cute nonetheless. I also like the fact that she appears to be sleeping quite peacefully and soundly. Hope you keep it up once you're born kiddo!

On an unrelated note, I took a nice long, relaxing bath this evening to help out my sore back. When I returned to my room I found this.

It refused to extricate itself from my sheets.

Even when I began taking close-ups of it's nostrils.

Glad I brushed it today, otherwise it might have left behind enough hair to make a 2nd Sammy.

Thoughts For the Day...

2010-06-08T19:47:00.000-07:00

1) I'm ready for hubby to come home. I must have gotten used to him being around because he's only been gone for two days!!
2) Love love love the new carpet, and so does Samson. He is snoring.
3) I enjoy watching "How It's Made" and currently they are showing how to make oreos. Mmmm I want an oreo, or 5.
4) So excited about my cloth diaper choices I could cry. The more I learn the more comfortable and adventurous I feel. So very tempted to buy the 3 pack on Babysteals.com today simply because the patterns are adorable. I. Will. Resist.
5) LOVE the bedding we picked out, now I just need paint. Contemplating asking hubby to paint the nursery while I'm in Georgia...it would be so nice to come to home to a finished paint job!! But at the same time, it's a lot of work and I don't mind helping...
6) Miss breathing freely while talking, laying on my back to read/watch TV, and sleeping on my belly. If this is the worst of my "grievances" I know I have it pretty darn good so I won't complain too much except to say: I miss these things.

The End, have a great Wednesday!!

Go ahead and laugh...

2010-06-07T20:04:00.000-07:00

I am SO excited about the prospect of cloth diapering.

I know many of you out there in cyber-land think I am nuts, but that only makes me all the more determined! I also have the benefit of lots and LOTS of other current cloth-users who tell me they love it...and NONE who have yet to say they hated it so much that they gave up.

As of a couple weeks ago we narrowed it down to pocket diapers- something I swore I wouldn't use because I didn't understand having to change the cover every time you changed the insert... Until I saw them in person that is! The pocket diapers just seem so much more fitted to me. They feel strong, sturdy, soft, and I can picture them lasting through multiple children. They are also very cute.

That said, I headed out to a boutique in Rockford today to start a registry for either Fuzzibunz brand or BumGenius. I ended up settling on Fuzzibunz on the advice of the store owner who made a good point: given my and Andy's height we would be safest to go with the higher rise of the Fuzzibunz to ensure them lasting through potty training. (These are one size diapers, meaning they grow with the babies, though we still intend to use disposable until they are out of newborn sized diapers).

Here is an example of a Fuzzibunz diaper...look how stinkin cute it is!!

Thankfully this store also carried a new brand called Flip Diapers that I had seen online but needed more information on. They are a perfect hybrid for me. They combine the fit and look of a pocket diaper with the convenience of a prefold (so you can reuse the cover and insert a new liner, most of the time). They also have biodegradable inserts perfect for days out- they can be thrown away just like a regular disposable diaper.

Here is a picture of a Flip Diaper in their pretty "Zinnia" color:

I'm sorry to say I opted to skip registering at the boutique in Rockford because I think it's just too far to drive for most of my friends and family but I found a great website (thanks to a friend) called Kelly's Closet that has some fantastic deals on packages as well as individual diapers. If you're curious check out the website! It's crazy how many options there are...

20 Week Pictures

2010-05-26T20:17:00.000-07:00

Baby B's little foot!

Baby B's profile :)

Baby A's face, the best we could get!

This non-maternity shirt didn't last long...too short!

Seeing....PURPLE!

2010-05-24T18:32:00.000-07:00

Today was pretty awesome!
I wish I could describe how cool it was to see both babies for the first time, but all I can think to say is it was just very surreal. Reading descriptions online or even my awesome "From Conception to Birth" book complete with in-the-womb pictures just doesn't do it justice. I really enjoyed Andy's response of: "No kidding!!" over and over with each new image. I had to agree with him, the last time we saw them they were little black balls in the middle of a large grayish-white space. Now the white space is all but gone gone and the picture is allll baby! There were 20 fingers, 2o toes, 2 healthy hearts, livers, stomachs, spines, 1 set of boy parts, AND one set of girl parts!
Our little girl was being shy for the majority of the ultrasound...wiggly! But shy. In fact it wasn't until the very end that she finally allowed us to see for sure that she was a girl. Her brother was baring all proudly from the moment the nurse turned the image to him to the moment we were done (such a boy!). Baby Boy is also known as Baby A. He is on my right and already head down like a good little baby. He is the one I've been feeling the most and is also apparently responsible for head-butting my bladder from time to time. Baby Girl, aka Baby B, is on my left and much higher in my abdomen with her cute little head under my ribs. Her feet were constantly kicking her brother in the face throughout most of the ultrasound, but if she rolled over her face was smashed right in her brother's behind. Thankfully they are separated by their placentas or things might get a little awkward!
After the ultrasound we met with Dr. Taber and discussed all kinds of things- like the fact that carrying two babies has me measuring the size of a single pregnancy 6 1/2 weeks ahead of me! I told him about my plans for the summer- Georgia in June, which he OK'd, hopefully Mackinac Island with Andy in July, and Petosky in August with Rachel. His reaction to Petosky at 31 weeks?: "Petosky has a nice hospital." Oye. He said he can tell already he'll have to tie me down to keep me from over-doing. I beg to differ, I'm no glutton for pain, but only time will tell!
At the end of 3+ hours I can say without question it was a truly awesome experience, we are so thankful to have these two healthy, and already a little rebellious (Baby Girl refusing to show "the goods" and Baby Boy refusing to show his face for much of the ultrasound) babies. Our ultrasound tech was great and very understanding that I needed 3 breaks from the measuring when laying on my back got me nauseous, and Dr. Taber is extremely helpful and informative, plus the excitement and support of friends and family- we couldn't be more excited or feel more blessed!
I promise pictures to come but right now I'm way too exhausted. Good night!

Look! I added a ticker!

2010-05-23T18:21:00.002-07:00

does it look too small to everyone else?

Baby at the end of the road?

2010-05-15T19:46:00.000-07:00

Random Thought of The Day:
I don't think it's hit me yet. One baby or two, September or October, I don't think any of it has truly sunk in. I still feel like I'm pretending when I research baby products, talk about due dates, even when I answer the question: "So how are you feeling?" a hundred times a day.
When is it going to sink in, and what is THAT going to look like?

Belly- OW

2010-05-10T19:18:00.000-07:00

Tease me if you wish but today I could have sworn I had a hernia, appendicitis, a ruptured cyst, or all three. Around noon, while sitting at my desk I started to feel a pain in my lower left side that would not go away. I got up and walked around, got something to eat, drank some water, stretched, all to no avail.
After checking with my sister to make sure I wasn't crazy and this wasn't exactly "normal" I called the doctor and left a message. Two and a half hours later the office finally called back and said they wanted me to come in. In the meantime I'd managed to drive myself home and make my way to bed- the only way to not feel like I was being stabbed repeatedly in the gut.
On our way to the doctor I told Andy that this was feeling more and more like a pulled muscle, but how could I have pulled a muscle sitting at my desk?! I was going to feel really dumb if that's what it was, but by now the pain was radiating up and down my leg and was in my back too so I was still willing to let the doctor check it out.
Sure 'nough. According to the doctor it was a round ligament spasm...awesome. I guess it IS possible to pull a muscle while sitting at your desk if one of your orange-sized kiddos is using said ligament as a trampoline. I'm still having a lot of pain when I walk or press on the area but here's hoping it's better by tomorrow for work, and here's to more "normal" symptoms that don't require office visits.
Oh, on the upside I should mention that this doc (not my normal one) was able to find both heartbeats for the first time now that they are getting so much bigger. They were both in the 140's so that is probably why it was hard to tell before if we were hearing one or both. This time though he found one heartbeat on my right side and one of the left, before the left baby apparently scooted away and under his/her sibling. They must be on top of each other because that second one's was strong but much fainter than the first, like it was muffled by the other baby. It sure will be nice to have a better idea of where they are sitting in there and who is who in a couple of weeks!

2 Avocados

2010-05-03T19:30:00.000-07:00

If ever I wonder if my belly is actually growing, it sure is nice to have pictures to look back on.

This is 12 weeks. I thought I had a bump then because I couldn't suck my belly in completely flat anymore:

Now at 16 weeks 5 days I can finally feel the "bulk" of my two little avocados in there and I truly have a baby bump! Ignore my weird faces, Andy loves catching me at awkward moments and we were in a bit of a hurr:y

By the way, can anyone tell me where that nose came from? The more profile pictures we take trying to capture belly growth the more I wonder about that nose...it's not distinctly Rottschafer or Huizinga, is it? Correct me if I'm wrong... Are my babies going to come out with that nose?!

Yay!...Boo....

2010-04-28T18:30:00.000-07:00

Just a few ups and downs in my life lately, thought I would share:

Since my best friend Rachel came over to help me organize, my house feels nice and well, organized: yay! But since my house is now organized I have to keep it that way, and it still isn't really very clean: boo.

My belly, it's getting bigger: yay! My clothes, they don't fit: boo.

I finally went shopping for clothes: yay! Regular stores make little to no "long" maternity pants: boo.

So I went online and ordered over $100 worth of clothes for $68 including shipping: yay! The clothes won't be here for up to a week and a half: boo.

We get to see our babies soon: yay! "Soon" means a month: boo.

The Rummage Sale is this week: yay! The Rummage Sale is this week and that means lots of work, stress, long days, and sometimes grumpy kids: boo.

I think that about sums it up, I'm feeling very up and down lately, things seem to go from awesome to tiring or annoying pretty quickly but I bet that's not a suprise to anyone :/

Pregnant Brain

2010-04-12T15:17:00.000-07:00

Who knew it would start this early?

Last night I was sitting on our bed with my nightly pill in hand, talking to Andy. While we were talking the cat jumped up on the bed so I grabbed his pill too and sat with one in each hand while we finished our conversation.
Quickly, before the cat could run away I popped my pill and was reaching for the cat when I realized the pill left in my hand was a little big...I had taken the cat's pill! I yelled at Andy: "I just took the cat's medication instead of my own!" And we just stared at each other trying to figure out what in the world we should do. I considered making myself puke in order to get rid of it but that has never worked well for me so we decided to call my doctor's night answering service.
Explaining my story to the lady that answered the phone was...embarrassing. I mean, who takes their cat's pill on accident? The two look nothing alike; his is tiny and blue and mine is pretty large and white...but I had, and had to find out if I should try to get it out of my body, so I sheepishly explained the situation. I have to say, I loved her follow-up question: "Did you give your medication to the cat as well?" "No." I said, "it wouldn't have fit down his throat."
When the doctor called me back she sounded a bit annoyed and I'm pretty sure she thought I was a little crazy. She told me I shouldn't keep those two medications next to each other- duh. But also that that particular medication at such a small dose wouldn't harm me or the babies so I could relax.
Whew! Just because I can, I looked the cat's medication up online and found it is a Class C medication (used to treat pain and depression in humans and anxiety in pets, as my cat is neurotic) and not safe for pregnancy. However, some pregnant women will opt to take the medication as the benefits can outweigh the risks. And they take a dose 7.5 times higher than the little bit I'd taken. I really felt better after that.
Let's hope this is the "worst" thing I do. A lady at work told me she used to put the milk in the cabinet instead of the fridge...after this I think I might just be ok with that kind of slip-up! Oh, and one of the side-effects is sleepiness, considering I've taken nothing stronger than tylenol in 3 months, lets just say I slept like a baby!

First Glimpses

2010-03-28T18:46:00.003-07:00

Most people don't get to see their babies as early as I did...here are some of the very early pictures!

Blastocyst Babies:) Oh, and a dog hair apparently fell on the picture when I took it.

6(ish) Weeks...There are two!!

8 Weeks- Approximately blueberry-sized

Figs and Golf Balls

2010-03-27T17:24:00.001-07:00

What do the two have in common?
They are both the approximate size of our babies this week! :)
Many of you have probably heard of a website called "the bump" or possibly "baby center" which each week of your pregnancy send you an update with the fruit your baby's size is most comparable to, but did you know there is also a man-version of the fruit list? The one I use is on the website www.hisboyscanswim.com which is really more of a blog, but has come in very handy for helping us visualize our babies' size since really, how many of us can conjure up the image of a fig (or kumquat, or rutabaga) at a moments notice? Besides, is it a large fig or a small fig? Where was it grown? What particular type of fig? A golf ball, now that is easily understandable- regulation size, no questions...I hope this means they'll have dimples ;)

Andy's Travels

2010-03-08T15:55:00.000-08:00

Andy takes a lot of pictures on his various travels. I thought I'd share a few even though I don't know the names and places. I'll see if I can get him to come give a description but for now, enjoy these pics from Telluride, Colorado!

10:30am on a Monday

2010-02-27T12:31:00.001-08:00

Every once in awhile Andy gets a "really good idea" that just has to happen...right now. So last Monday at about 10:30am, having gotten out of bed, grabbed a bite to eat, and thrown on some clothes he decided that he simply must try arctic dog skiing.

As I was trying to get our the door for work, Andy and Sam were suiting up to try out Andy's downhill skis on the streets of Alger Heights.

Andy giving Samson some last minute instructions and a brief pep-talk.

Since I was busy taking pictures, our neighbor Anna ran out to help get Sam to stop worrying about getting run over by the skis and concentrate on running fast enough to pull Andy.

So Anna headed off down the street, calling for Sam, promising everything from walks and games of fetch to car rides and treats...

Samson wasn't having it...

So what did I end up having to do before I could leave for work? Driving my husband around the neighborhood so he could ski behind my car.

The need for speed.

I blame The Olympics.

Bad Cold

2010-02-08T16:53:00.001-08:00

Big news at the Heemstra Household: Krista is out with a baadddd cold. Over the weekend I went on a ski retreat with the church kids- poor choice -thinking I would be fine. They treated their sick youth pastor well as I basically floated around the condo in a congested haze but even with their understanding and the fact that I know they all had a great time, I am so glad that weekend is over. It doesn't get much more difficult than trying to hold yourself together and put a smile on with 10 teenagers who, despite good intentions, are still teenagers and by nature have a lot of energy when all you want to do is crawl in bed and sleep for 72 hours. BUT I pulled through and I'm trying hard to get healthy for the upcoming week, especially the upcoming Valentine's Dinner on Friday.
I looked online to find a picture or two of how I'm feeling since there is no way in the world I'll post a picture of myself at the moment. The first one I found, I'm not sure it sums things up...

Who looks like they are modeling for a pajama commercial when they're sick?! She has a semi-amused smile on her face and is surrounded by CLEAN tissues with a big fluffy teddy. I wasn't able to find any pictures of a girl with no make up, red cheeks, messy hair, a disaster of a house surrounding her, and a dog begging for constant attention because he doesn't understand why mom came home from a weekend away and went straight to bed without a little play time.

This next picture however, is an acurate portrayal of what I'm pretty sure Andy feels when he's sitting next to me in bed. Speaking of which- have you ever noticed how much nicer it is to have someone around when you're ill? I missed him more than I can say over the last 3 days.

Me in my "sick nest:"

And finally, the most accurate portrayal of how I'm feeling- Like One Sick Puppy:

I Did It!

2010-01-29T17:02:00.000-08:00

I gave my self a shot in the behind!
I had to close my eyes but other than that...I really never thought I'd be doing this myself (or blogging about it) but I'm geeked!
Gotta say though, whenever Andy is home I will still want him to do it. Especially since there is a very small amount of my own behind that I can reach myself....

Conversation with a Starbucks Employee

2010-01-27T18:16:00.000-08:00

So I went to Starbucks today to get some work-related reading done. I find I have a hard time reading in my office, there are just too many distractions and I've been wanting to read this book for awhile (like, years) so it was about time.

My first encounter with "Starbucks Man," as I will call him for the purpose of this story, was as he was mopping the floor in front of the cash register. Instead of saying "I'm sorry, I'll be quick" or something similar, he just said "pardon me...?" with a lilt at the end that made it sound like he was going to follow that with something else. I waited patiently but he didn't say anything else so I ordered my Decaf Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte (90 calories, in case you were wondering, it's their new thing, posting the calories) and found a comfy chair near the door.

A few minutes later he was mopping near me again and it went something like this:

him: "Pardon me"
me: (thinking he was apologizing for mopping near me again) "No problem."

"What's that you're reading?"

I show him the cover that says "Hurt" by Chap Clark

him: "Is that a novel?"

me: (until this point I hadn't made eye contact with him because I didn't really want to chat with a Starbucks Employee at the moment) I looked up, "no, it's kind of educational, it's about teenagers, and how difficult it can be."

him: "yeah....I'd say one or two (pause) of my teenage years (pause) was difficult."

me: "Yeah, pretty hard..."

I go back to reading, he goes back to mopping.

A bit later I finish my drink and go to the bathroom. When I come out there is a seat further from the door available so I move and begin to read.

"Hi Again." He says.

"Hello." I say.

"So...are YOU an adolescent?" He asks.

"No, I'm a youth pastor."

"Oh, that makes sense. May I ask where you're a youth pastor?"

"Yeah, Thornapple Community." (I point in a Westerly direction)

"What denomination is it?"

"Reformed."

"OH! Do you know.........(long pause).....oh, I forget her name, she works here! And she's reformed!"

*And then I palm-smack my forehead*

Update

2010-01-27T08:13:00.000-08:00

The book was gone!
Good grief. Called the mom, explained the situation, asked her to please remove the picture from her daughter's book before she got home.
Whew!
I don't know how good I'm going to be at this parenting thing if I'm losing them already...

Typical Me.

2010-01-25T16:27:00.000-08:00

So tonight, as I brewed some tasty chicken noodle soup, I decided to update the blog and post a picture of the "cute" little "embies" the doctor gave us on the day of our transfer. I headed to my bedroom to grab the camera and the picture (it is going to have to be a picture of a picture since I don't have a scanner) out of the book I've been reading. See, when the doc gave it to me I had no better spot to tuck it than in the book I had in my purse and I'd kept it there during my two days of bedrest because it was kind of nice to take it out and look at it every once in awhile.
So anyways....
I glanced around the room, no book.
Checked out the dining table, no book.
Started thinking back over my day. Whoops.
Turns out I had borrowed the from one of my students at church.
And returned the book.
This afternoon, with the picture still inside.
Thankfully by "returned" I mean I put it in her box at church so I was able to send a quick email to the church secretary to please remove the picture from the book in my student's box.
That could have been awkward...especially considering the student....I would have felt like I'd been caught in; "the act."

Too True

2010-01-18T08:47:00.000-08:00

Just a picture for you to reflect on this fine cold day...

How Men Screw Up Romance:

Pets Can Save Your Life

2010-01-09T14:38:00.000-08:00

At least according to WebMD.
I recently read an article that described 27 ways pets are good for their humans' health. I thought I'd take a moment to share a few of my favorites with you:
First, there's the obvious- having a dog (usually) promotes walking, and walking is exercise. Plus, when it's not 13 degrees and freezing out, walking gets you in the sunlight which increases Vitamin D and therefore strengthens your bones!

Next, it has been found that children raised in homes that have animals (and they don't specify the animal) have fewer allergies and higher immune systems. In particular it mentioned cat allergies as being far less common in children born into families with a cat UNLESS the mother had cat allergies and a cat is introduced before 4 months. Then the rate of developing an allergy actually goes up. (I just love genetics, they fascinate me)

Third, cats are good for the heart. And not in the lovey-dovey way; studies have shown that people who have never owned a cat in their lives at 40% more likely to die of a heart attack, and DOG owners have a higher rate of survival one year after a heart attack! I have no idea where the correlation is but I'll take it!

Animals are also good for your mental health. Psychologists have found that depression patients benefit from owning a pet. For those who need to talk, an animal will listen to you as long as you want, provided your hand is constantly making a petting motion. It also helps to draw people outside of themselves when they care for another creature. (Of course, one must be careful not to become the crazy cat lady.)

It's also been shown that spending time with an animal lowers stress or anxious feelings. Just 15-30 minutes spent with an animal tends to be effective. Cortisol, the stress hormone also responsible for weight gain in the belly area particularly, is lowered and serotonin, the "happy" chemical is increased. (For those who are wondering, I would assume the animal you're spending time with must be tame as hanging out with a trapped grizzly or puma might only increase stress...)

Dogs especially also tend to help their owners be more social. As the article stated; "A dog is a conversation waiting to happen" as dog owners often like to talk to other dog owners about their crazy pets. If Samson isn't a case in point, I don't know what is. Although perhaps "accident waiting to happen," or "cautionary tale in the making" might be more appropriate.

Exercising with your pet takes on a whole new meaning with these last little tidbits of advice:
1)Stretch when your cat stretches. Sorta like the old adage; "sleep when baby sleeps," the idea is that cats stretch a lot more than humans and are much more flexible. If you mimic your cat and stretch whenever and however he does, you'll release more lactic acid and become more flexible. I however opt not to try to lick the top of my own head OR the other end. Thankyouverymuch.
2) Use your cat or other small animal as a dumb bell. Sure, why not? They're just sitting around doing nothing. Might as well put them to good use!
3) Join a "Doga" class. That's dog+yoga and yes, they do exist. Who better to teach you the proper technique for "Downward-facing Dog?" :)

A Month or so....in review.

2009-12-13T18:20:00.001-08:00

Reece's Baptism:

*YAWN* "I'm a bit tired today, can I get baptized another day?"

What do you mean they're gonna dump water on my head, can't you see I'm already a bit chapped?! (poor guy has very dry skin! not for lack of lotioning though!)

The Annual Rottschafer Christmas Tree Hunt!

This was the year of tree toppers- the Heemstras and the Harveys went home with just the tops of a tree- a tree that would normally be too tall except that other people had chopped off the bottom branches making only the top useable. Surprisingly, they make beautiful Christmas Trees!
The customary "Andy picking our tree up over his head" picture

Welcome to the Belfast Christmas Party!!
Belfast Babes. Like our sweaters?!

Please ignore the effect primary-colored horizantal stripes has on my body...unfortunately it's not flattering!

(For you photography buffs out there- why do my jeans look all digital-y?)

Belfast Boys :)

Grace and Jeff were a matching set. Kinda like their sweater vests and turtle necks.

Kristin with her Charlie Brown Tree for Talia- a taste of our White Elephant Gift Exchange.

Grace modeling their gift- a lovely Santa wall hanging.

Ho Ho Ho.

Rottschafer Extended Family Christmas Party

Miss Molly was none too happy about having her picture taken under the tree.

Reece says: "Yay! Presents!"

"They're for me...right?"

Like all of my neices and nephews Molly just loves me. You'd be hard-pressed to rip her from her auntie's arms...

The kiddos with their slinkies! The most fun for 99 cents.

Meet Molly

2009-11-09T17:37:00.000-08:00

Meet my new baby niece: Molly Violet

Born 11/06/2009
8lbs. 1oz. 19" long

She's purty cute, and has a lot of hair. Welcome to the world Molly!!!

Apple Picking and ArtPrize

2009-10-17T16:47:00.001-07:00

One of my favorite things to do with the middle school kids in the fall is go apple picking. There's just something about selecting exactly the right apple off the tree...and getting to taste-test a few along the way.I dislike goats. But this picture was kind of funny...

Oh dear, it's a llama. A dirty, matted llama.

There was a makeshift play area for little kids, so of course everyone had to pile on. They aren't city kids per se, but a big hay bale is always a good time.

And horse-shaped tire swings are cool too!

"Family Portrait"

Here I'm pretending to be that squirrel in "Ice Age" after a nut..."Ehn! Ehn!"

The Orchard

Lovely.

Moving on to ArtPrize- Rachel and I went last weekend:

This was a maze-like piece about the amount of trash we produce.

An awesome boat- all inlaid with different colors of wood.

"Gently Down"

Rach and a tree friend.

I found one too!

Can you find me in this picture?

A Trash-Bag Baby outside The Bob

A butterfly made of onyx. I sat next to this artist at a wedding, his wife told me to "look for the butterfly at The Bob" I was expecting a painting and actually had forgotten all about looking for the butterfly until we were in the car headed home and I realized I'd taken a picture of it!

Paper Lanterns/Garlands in The Bob

This was pretty cool- it's made of different colored toilet paper rolls and you couldn't see the image clearly until you looked through a camera or camera phone. Or I imagine if you got further away but that wasn't possible in the small room.

The infamous Table and Chairs. And this is where the battery on my camera ran out. Fantastic!

Lately...

2009-09-15T18:47:00.000-07:00

Lately we've been pretty busy. Here are a few pics from the last couple of weeks to catch you up!

Went with the boys to the track in Martin for drag racing. Andy got about 13 seconds!

Don't blink!

Chris' car

Conrad watching the cars go by.

This weekend I headed up to Big Rapids to hang out with my friend Kim. They are building a new house on their property that I had to check out and we wanted to go to the "Extreme Cowboy Challenge" a local trainer was putting on. This is one of her pastures in the morning:

Hank and Joy

We spent most of the day watching the cowboy challenge- which turned out to have a lot of cowgirls!

The log pull - it's harder to do when the horse is facing the log so it earns extra points.
Going through a gate

Carry a cup of water without spilling! This little girl blindfolded her pony, who proceeded to barrel around the ring wherever she asked- pretty impressive.

Nobody really likes the water obstacle.

I loved this horse- he looked like a lot of fun to ride and gorgeous! He wanted to drink the water too.

Cowboy Challenge- It's a spectator sport.

Samson . 10pm

2009-08-30T17:09:00.000-07:00

This is Samson around 10pm on any given night:
Course it depends on the activities of the day to which degree he is sprawled, but you get the picture. (sorry about the picture by the way, which is a bit of an assult on the eyes- it was dark in there and hard to focus).

A closer look:
This is also the face we get every morning until about 11am (if it's a Saturday or a day off). He likes his sleep. And won't budge from that spot till he's good and ready. In fact, I think he's pretending to be dead. Having been caught with one eye open he's now decided to embrace it and go for the "dead dog" look. Go ahead, try and rouse him.