28 weeks

Baby's now the size of a rutabaga!

Baby can blink his eyes, which now sport lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. He's also developing billions of neurons in his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world. His lungs are also mature enough that he'd probably survive if he was born now. Wow!

I've made it to the third trimester! Where has the time gone?!?


Pregnancy Symptoms I'm experiencing at 28 weeks:

• Trouble sleeping: I just can't seem to get comfortable once I crawl into bed. I'm kind of a "flopper" when it comes to sleep. I don't like to stay in one position any too long and I always enjoy sleeping on my stomach. Lately though, the only position I can get comfortable in is laying on my left side with a pillow between my legs and a pillow under my stomach. The problem is, I just can't stay like this for very long. When I lay on my back, my arms and legs fall asleep. If I lay on my right side, my arms and legs fall asleep. And we know how well it's working to sleep on my stomach at this point :(

• Shortness of breath: I'm still dealing with this most significantly in the mornings before leaving the house. But it seems to catch me off guard throughout the day too. Or, of course, any time I attempt to do too much with the kids.

• Aches and pains: I'm really not sure how I did this whole pregnancy thing with twins!  I'm amazed every single day that I was able to carry two babies!!  I do have to say though that I'm glad I had the twins first, because every time I want to complain, I just think about how much worse it was during my last pregnancy. Then I seem to gain a little more perspective and realize "it's not that bad!"  This pregnancy though, I seem to be having more circulation issues. At night, I will often wake up to a limb completely numb. And during the day, my right hip and thigh are frequently tingly and numb. He must be hitting some sort of nerve in there or something!

• Braxton Hicks contractions: lovely!

27 weeks

Baby's now the size of a head of cauliflower!

It's official: Baby's showing brain activity! And his brain will keep on getting more complex. Baby's lungs are also going through some major developments these days, which (combined with the opening of previously plugged nostrils) means he's now able to practice inhaling and exhaling. The lack of air in your womb means every "breath" is filled with amniotic fluid, but hey -- it's progress. While his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning - with a lot of medical help - if he were born now. He's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing his eyes, and perhaps even sucking on his fingers.

26 weeks

Baby's now the size of a head of lettuce!

Baby is soaking up your antibodies, getting his immune system ready for life outside the womb. His eyes are forming and will soon start to open, and his eyelashes are now grown too! The network of nerves in your baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner's as you chat with each other. He's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he's born and takes that first gulp of air. And he's continuing to put on baby fat. If it's a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take two to three days.

25 weeks

Baby's now the size of an eggplant!

That oh-so-handy sense of equilibrium is kicking in, and baby's learning to distinguish right side up from upside down. He is beginning to exchange his long, lean look for some baby fat. As he does, his wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and he'll start to look more and more like a newborn. He's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.

I had my 25 week ultrasound and OB visit on Tuesday. I went by myself as Cody's sick days are already dwindling down and it's only February! At my ultrasounds, they continue to check out all of the organs and monitor baby's growth. He's growing alright!  Weighing in at 2lbs. 1oz. (putting him in the 76th percentile). They said he has a big head and a big belly. Already taking after both dad and mom :)

My placenta continues to remain close to my cervix (marginal placenta previa), but the doctor still feels confident it will move. They would like to have seen it move by week 32, so we have plenty of time yet.

I am still feeling pretty great. My heartburn has kicked into full force and I am taking Zantac around the clock to keep it under control. I'm also having a short period every morning where I feel very exhausted and am out of breath, feeling like a ton of bricks is sitting on my chest. Not sure what that's about, but it's usually at the same time every morning and goes away on it's own.

Here is the latest picture of our little peanut:

18 month schedule

Here is what 18 months looks like around our house. It doesn't vary significantly from our previous schedules...let's just say we like our routines around here :)

I've always said...our routine works great when we're on, but when we are off, it's a BAD BAD thing!

5:30am Mommy wakes up for the day

6:10am Daddy wakes up for the day

6:15/6:20ish Daddy wakes the kids up. I lay their clothes out, but then Cody changes their diapers and gets them dressed. They are typically crabby in the morning and typically throw screaming fits all while this is taking place.

6:30am the kids get in their highchairs for a "small snack" and some milk (something that will tide them over until breakfast at daycare).

When they get out of their chairs, they both get their Flovent inhalers and then their teeth brushed (something they continue to fight us on EVERY.SINGLE.DAY)

**right now because they are sick, their Flovent inhalers are followed by their Albuterol inhalers (which makes things even worse) and also their eye drops (which really puts the tantrums into full gear!)

7:00am coats on and start loading the car. Depending on the morning, it varies whether or not they will throw a fit getting into their car seats. The screaming, however, can usually be taken care of with a rousing rendition of "Do Lord" (although sometimes it does take two rounds).

7:15/7:20ish drop the kids off at daycare

7:30am start my work day

3:40pm pick up the kids from daycare. More often than not they have a tantrum trying to get them into their carseats (are you seeing a pattern here?)

4:00pm home, playtime, mommy has a snack that usually has to be shared, attempting to think about getting dinner started, starting dinner, and anything else I feel so motivated to get done.

5:00 daddy home from work YAYYY!!!  This is the kids' (and mine) favorite time of the day! They love their daddy so much and both can't get enough of him when he gets home. This is the time I can get them off of my legs for two seconds to usually finish up dinner.

5:30ish dinner time, clean up, wash dishes, play time, get organized for bath/bed time

6:30ish bath time, followed by screaming while trying to get pajamas on, and then a bedtime bottle

7:00pm bed time. Although, most often anymore, they are both in bed and asleep BEFORE 7:00 (it's awesome!)


*The kids are down to one nap a day while at daycare. Typically on the weekends though, Kenley still often gets two naps.

*They have become very picky eaters and at times hardly even eat anything. It makes meal planning very challenging. They love their milk though!

*Kenley wears size 24 month/2T clothes, Kaden wears 12-18/18-24 month clothes

*Kenley wears size 5/6 diapers, Kaden wears size 4/5 diapers

*Kenley continues to be extremely attached to her pacifier. I just don't seem to have the heart to take it away from her.

*Kenley has become a HUGE bully!!  It's driving us crazy. She will "attack" just completely out of the blue. We have started putting her in time-out and she does not like it one bit!

*Kaden is a sneaky toy thief. He often slowly walks up to Kenley and just tries to quietly take whatever she has in her hands away from her. When he does it though, he usually has something else in his hand to offer in exchange. Kenley doesn't always fall for it though and then things can get a little heated.

*They are typically good at sharing...AS LONG AS THERE'S TWO OF SOMETHING! It's pretty sweet to watch them make sure the other one has something. But, if there is only one, then it's usually a fight.

*Kaden is the biggest copy-cat around! He has to do absolutely everything that Kenley does. If Kenley walks by and touches the wall, Kaden will have to walk by and touch the same wall. If Kenley trips and falls on accident, Kaden will have to purposefully throw himself to the floor. It's rather humorous!

*They are both very much making their way into the terrible two's and testing our limits in every way possible. Cody and I are literally exhausted at the end of the night after they go to bed from all the tantrums, screaming, fighting, and not listening. I know it's their age and we will get through it, but it sure is tough right now!


Although 18 months is a challenging time, they continue to amaze us every single day. They are getting so funny and so smart, it's just fun to sit back and watch. The non-tantrum-throwing-times are absolutely amazing and I can't get enough of these two! The kisses they give at the end of the night while tucking them into bed make it all worth it :) Our God is an awesome God, and while there may be 100 things that make me want to cry, there are 1,000 things that make me smile!!

18 months

How the heck have we reached 18 months already?!?

The kids had their well baby check on Wednesday. Here are some highlights of our visit:

Growth:

Kaden:

Weight: 24lbs. 13oz. (30th percentile)

Height: 32 inches (38th percentile)

Kenley:

Weight: 30lbs 10oz. (98th percentile)

Height: 32 inches (60th percentile)

Diagnosis:

Kaden:

*routine health check

*cough

*congestion

*pink-eye

*wheezing

*diarrhea

Kenley:

*routine health check

*cough

*congestion

*pink-eye

Medications:

Kaden:

*Flovent Inhaler

*Albuterol Inhaler

*Albuterol Nebulizer

*antibiotic eye drops

Kenley:

*Flovent Inhaler

*Albuterol Inhaler

*antibiotic eye drops

*They both rocked in their development scores...except for their communication, which was once again the lowest, barely reaching the cut-off. MADDENING!!

*They really are saying a lot more words, you just have to listen closely for them. They are not imitating, or maybe they are just refusing to imitate. And they are not yet putting words together, unless you call "uh-uh-uh-uh-uh" a phrase :) If you hear them say something, it's simply because you caught it. I've started writing their words down so that I can really prove to myself that they do have some, rather than thinking they have nothing.

*On paper, Kaden is actually slightly ahead on his development, even though the dr. says girls typically develop faster than boys. I think Kenley is too stubborn to show us what she can really do :)

*They were supposed to get shots, however because they were not feeling well, they held off. Now I have to bring them in at a later date to get vaccinated.

*I think we were in the tiniest, HOTTEST, room in the entire clinic. We were all sweating!

*Kaden pooped 3 times in the hour we were there.

*Our Pediatrician can actually talk like Donald Duck...the kids were mesmerized.