Has it seriously been a month?!?

Wow...time has FLOWN! I can not believe it's been almost a month since I have blogged.

Well, here is the month in review:

** The wee babes are doing fantastic!!! More on that later in this post.

** Lots of frustrations and delays with the house. We STILL have not closed. Seriously. We have a peace about it for the moment, but I would be lying if I said it hasn't caused a major meltdown on my part at least once since I last blogged. But, in my defense, I was well over-due for a tantrum so it was probably inevitable =).

We have given our broker and realtor a deadline of Feb 1st to have us closed by or we have to walk away from it. That SUCKS as we really love this house, and it would actually be cheaper than the rent we are paying now, plus we would OWN it and qualify for that new home buyers tax credit.

But, we need to start preparing for our babies. I am a control freak and a major planner who likes to feel prepared, and Feb 1st is already pushing it for me!! If we aren't closed by then, we will just unpack all our boxes and stay in our rented townhouse. It's really small (840 sq feet), and it's two story which was something we were hoping to get away from with two newborns. But hey, it's a HOME. And we are just grateful to have a roof over our heads to bring our precious babies home to. We watched "The Nativity Story" around Christmas time, and I was very humbled as I watched Joseph running from door to door trying to find a safe place for Mary to deliver their baby...talk about feeling unprepared.

Also, I see the Lord trying to teach me to relinquish control. Here I'd thought He was moving on to teaching me something else, since He and I visited that issue A LOT during our 3 year wait for a baby. But, I guess He's not quite done with digging that out of me! HA!



** Christmas was fantastic.
My mother in law got a bunch of these Nerf dart guns for Christmas gifts, and rest assured no one enjoyed them more than David and his older brother Peter...

We played games and showed some sisterly love...
And some of us imitated our Christmas presents...


** A lot of food was consumed during the month by all...

** New Years was pretty tame, just the way we like it =) We watched a movie and relaxed on New Years Eve, and slept in and relaxed on New Years Day. I spent a lot of time reflecting on 2009 and all the highs and lows. The Lord has shown us so much this past year, and He has been more than faithful to us...

** We had a doctors appointment today, and it went FANTASTIC!! We had an ultrasound to check the growth of the babies, and they are both doing so good!! They are both estimated to be a little over 2 pounds each (give or take 5 ounces the tech said), and have just changed so much in the last month. We even saw HAIR on their heads!! It made me cry when she pointed it out to us....my babies have hair. Not that I would have cared in the slightest if they are bald, but it was just one more thing about them that we have learned, and it helps me feel like I know them even better. And it helps make it all that more real.

Luke is measuring AHEAD of 26 weeks, and Abbey is measuring right on. We are so, so grateful!!! Luke is head down and Abbey is pretty much sitting on him =). Their positions are obviously subject to change as it is still so early, but it was encouraging to know at least he knows what position to be in for a regular delivery!! I know there is a good chance that I will need to have a c-section, and I am fine with that if that is what we need to do to get them here safely. They can pull them through my nose for all I care, I just want healthy babies out safely. But, I am hoping to be able to avoid the surgery if possible.

They were moving and shakin' today, and it was so fun to watch them. Dave and I could just stay there for hours watching our babies play!! We got the CUTEST picture today of Luke patting Abbey's head...
It's kind of hard to see, and we are the only people in the world without a scanner, so this again is a picture of a picture. But it's little Lucas' profile, and his hand is in the upper right corner, and his fingers are kind of curled around Abbey's head. It was SO CUTE to watch happen on the screen.

Again, I cried.

I cry so many tears of gratefulness during our ultrasounds. Especially when we hear their heartbeats...it's the most beautiful sound in the world to me.

Thanks be to God.

We got more good news when we met with my doctor and confirmed I am still not showing any signs of pre-term labor...YAHOO!!! I ask the Lord everyday to please allow my body to "do" this pregnancy well, and He is answering my prayers abundantly.

Even with the news that everything appears to be going great, she is reducing my work hours to 20 a week (fine by me! HA!) in an effort to KEEP it that way. It will be SO nice to be able to be home and resting more. I get just wiped out so easily now, and I know it's important to listen to my body. And more and more, my body is saying REST.

And lastly, here are my 26 week belly pics:

Yes, for those of you eagle-eyes out there, those are stretch marks on the lower part of my belly.

But you know what? I honestly could. not. care. less.

Do you know why? Look at my face. There is absolute pure joy on my face.

I am so beyond thrilled to be 6 1/2 months pregnant with twins. It is worth every single stretch mark, and then some.