David's 3rd Birthday

We celebrated David's actual birthday with some fun family events this year. We were blessed to have daddy home from work and my Mom, Dad and cousin Tracy in town to celebrate! It was so nice having the additional help since my physical condition isn't top notch at the moment!

We started the morning taking David to his favorite bounce playyard, Monkey Joes. He was so excited because Daddy was there to enjoy the fun! We then had an "ice cream" lunch at Jason's Deli and a birthday trip to Toys R Us. After nap he was surprised with grandma, grandpa and presents! That night we enjoyed a yummy dinner at one of our favorite mexican spots in Katy, El Jarrito; chips and queso, and a mariachi happy birthday serenade included! He has watched several of us have to wear the mexican sombrero during the serande and was excited that he got to wear it this time, plus the fact that there were real guitars made his evening! We finished the day off with a Disney Cars birthday cake with three candles to blow out....couldn't get any better than that could it!?!?!

Happy 3rd Birthday, David!!!

THREE...

photography by Amanda Green Photography

It is amazing to me how much you can grow up in one year. You have turned into a little boy right in front of our eyes, but you will always be mommy's baby. You have changed so much that I don't even know where to begin. The laughter that has filled this household, the memories of your accomplishments and milestones, and the love that we all share as a family of three over the past year are things that I do not ever want to forget. You are very special to your daddy and I and no matter how many changes lie ahead of us you will always remain and will be dear to our hearts as our one and only first born.

THREE...

• You can now tell people both your first and last name...you can actually spell both as well! If asked how old you are you will hold up 4 fingers and say "I'm three years old!" We are working on this, but I will admit three is probably the most challenging.


• You love to tell anyone and everybody that you are having a baby brother and a baby sister and that they are in mommy's belly. As much as we love seeing the excitement you have for your new siblings, we could some times do without the added attention! You are going to be the best big brother!


• One of your favorite past times is reenacting movies or your favorite shows that we watch on television. At the moment it is Disney Pixar's Cars, which we probably watch at least once a day. We have started a collection of the the die cast cars from the movie and you will sit there and act out your favorite parts with the actual car characters. You have shocked your daddy and I with how much of the script that you know and we just love when you sing the songs with your own words to them!


• We are currently deep in the trenches of potty training.......probably not the best thing to start when mommy is almost 8 months pregnant with twins, but you are doing great! We have actually ventured out of the house a few times recently in your big boy pants with no accidents; however you are not very thrilled about using public restrooms and I don't blame you but I do for see it being an issue. It's a work in progress!


• You love your mommy, but just adore your daddy. I think the highlight of your day is when he gets home from work and the two of you can go outside and play. You require so much more attention from him than you do from me, but I think that has something to do with you adapting to mommy's current physical condition and knowing that daddy can currently do more. (okay, and I will admit that daddy is just some times more fun than I am!)


• You always have had an incredible memory, but it still amazes us to this day. On your birthday you came downstairs from you nap and when you saw all of your presents you said "it's Christmas!" You have started realizing that it is getting warm outside and associate the change in weather with going to the pool. You remember every detail about our trips to the pool last summer, including the watermelon that we would bring and enjoy each time.


• It seems like you have just sprouted into a little boy over the past month. You are very tall and skinny, just like your daddy was growing up! I don't believe there is one ounce of chub left on you, which not like you ever had much but it is all about gone!


• Finally, after a whole semester of crying at mother's day out when dropped off you have adjusted to going to school two times a week. I am not sure that you are ecstatic about going, but you tolerate it and seem to make the best of the situation. Your teachers tell me that you are so sweet, and still enjoy everything academic and music related.


• Your social skills have started to blossom. I just enjoy watching you interact or attempt to interact with other children. You are extremely friendly and polite. You seem to adapt to different children's personalities well and enjoy the company.


• Although you share several traits with your daddy like your silly side; you are very much like your mommy. You are aware of others feelings and can be very sensitive to change, discipline, and confrontation. Most of the time you aim to please and are cooperative in unfamiliar settings, but I would be remissed if I did not mention that you do have a defiant side that can rattle your mommy and daddy's nerves from time to time (not wanting to hold hands in a parking lot!). You have an artistic side to you that shines through your love for music, imaginative play and creativity. You are not your typical wild, rough-housing little boy but occasionally that side will come out and I imagine over the next year we will probably see more of it.

Z is for Zoo

Having learned from our past mistakes, we decided to beat the Texas heat and take our annual trip to the Houston zoo a few weekends back. We figured it would also be one our last chances to have a family adventure just the three of us, which we were right. It about sent mommy into labor and we have officially been told "no more" from our OB! The weather was perfect and David was excited to see the "jungle" as he calls it. When we arrived he was already on a mission to find the lions. He showed little interest in most of the other animals with exception of the monkeys. He was actually scared of several exhibits, including the reptiles and bears. This was surprising to us, but we moved along with no questions. Luckily the lions were out sunbathing/sleeping in the lawn so we got a good view, which was better than catching them during lunch time like last year...eww! We made it through the new African Safari exhibit and then reached our limit. David was exhausted and showed little interest in seeing any of the animals, so we headed toward the exit hitting up the aquarium on the way out to see "nemo and dori". Overall we had a great short trip to the zoo. I figure one day we will last more than two hours, but until then will only attempt this trip once a year, haha!

Rodeo Day

Boots: check

Cowboy Hat:check

Classic Western Attire:check

Happy Cowboy: not so much

David had the opportunity to celebrate his first Rodeo Day at MDO last Wednesday. For those of you not from the Houston area, February is a big month around here....The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo consumes the entire month full of events, tradition and music. Dave and I have attended several things throughout the years, but decided to pass on the festivities this go around. We were debating on taking David for the first time, but decided on the zoo instead so his rodeo party at school will have to suffice. I purchased his boots a few weeks back and was so excited about his big day at school because he absolutely loves them. We literally have had a hard time getting the things off! Well, like usual I was wrong. After a rough morning trying to get out of the house we arrived at school with our gear on to only last 1 minute. He could not get those things off of him quick enough and the hat didn't even stand a chance! At least we get an "A" for effort, right? Luckily I was able to snap a few pictures before the breakdown. His teachers said the remainder of the day was great! They enjoyed a petting zoo, made trail mix, branded cows and read books about cowboys. When I picked him up from school we went through our usual conversation about the events of the day and this is what he told me....

Mommy: "David did you have fun today at your Rodeo Party"

David: "Of coarse I did"

Mommy: "What animals did you see at school"

David: "Chicken, Ducky, Pony and a Rabbit"

Mommy: "Did you ride a pony at school today"

David: "Oh yeah"

Mommy: " What was the pony's name"

David: "Barney"

We later found out from his teacher that he wanted nothing to do with the pony!

24, 25, 26 weeks....

Well technically almost 27 weeks, but who's counting, lol! We are just moving right along and I figured I should probably post an update before it just flies on by. So we have officially ended our "twin vacation" and are now seeing my OB every two weeks and our specialist once a month for ongoing growth checks. Luckily, I have been able to partner two of these appointments together every month to avoid being in the Medical Center every week! Our last ultrasound was performed at 24 weeks and the babies are doing great! Our little boy was measuring in at 1 lb 9 ounces and our sweet little girl came in at 1 lb 10 ounces. Baby A (boy) is breech and Baby B (girl) is what I believe they call in a transverse position. His head is on the right side of my uterus, while hers is on the left. So basically they spend their days kicking each other in the head, which we caught first hand during our appointment. I can feel them move quite a bit throughout the day and have noticed that they are both very sensitive at night. Heaven forbid mommy has to get up out of bed at 4 am for a potty run because I end up spending the following hour up getting kicked from both sides.

Over the past two weeks my body has started to realize that things are not quite what they used to be. I started having braxton hicks last week and had to make an additional trip to see my OB to make sure everything was still in tact. We are still looking good at this point, but things can obviously change very quickly. At 25 weeks I was measuring 32 weeks, which is 7 weeks ahead of a singleton pregnancy. My doctor has cut me off from exercising at this point and advised me to rest as much as possible...easier said than done. Outside the noticeable, my huge belly, I am also starting to become winded by simple tasks such as going upstairs, doing dishes, and even talking on the phone! They are hoping that I can make it to 37 weeks at which we will schedule a csection. We are just praying to keep them in as long as possible, but the thought of what my body will be like at 37 weeks is just frightening. For now we are just taking it week by week and feel very blessed that everything has gone so well this far.

Baby A (boy) Profile

He has a habit of being very busy during ultrasounds so we were lucky to even get this one. That is his hand resting below his chin.

Baby B (girl)
She on the other hand tends to cooperate a little more. We were able to get a good look at her on the 4D ultrasound which is just incredible; I am posting it but unfortunately it is not as clear as it is on the sheet. The ultrasound technician pointed out that she already has some hair on her head and she has "full" lips! We are not quite sure where the later comes from, so it will be interesting to see if this is a trait that really exists or that is just amplified by the ultrasound machine.

26 weeks belly shot

Not sure how much longer I wll be willing to post these! If it weren't for documenting purposes and to just prove to you all how big I am I don't think you would see a single one on here!

Here we are trying to satisfy mommy's cravings for sweets. Nothing like baking oatmeal cookies on a Saturday morning!

Big Boy Room

A few weeks ago we took a big step for our big boy and moved David out of his crib and into his new big boy room. We were a bit nervous and weren't sure what to expect since he has been in his crib for almost 3 years now. To our surprise he did great; he was so excited about his new room! We have had no issues with him climbing out at night or in the morning; he is still in his routine of staying in bed until mommy or daddy comes to get him (let's hope this does not change). He has also been doing great with his daily naps. Overall....SUCCESS!!! One more thing marked off our "to do" list before these babies arrive!

Here is a picture of the room; Daddy is so proud (he spent the night before putting all the furniture together)! Most of it is complete; we had crown molding installed last weekend that needs to be painted and I am working on picking out fabric for custom curtains.

Our Big Boy in his very own big bed!