Can you get that for me?

As Erin's belly gets larger, there are certain things that she is no longer able to do. Like touch her toes or reach anything on the floor...

Don't get me wrong. She continues to do chores, which I've declared off limits, but she refuses to listen (thankfully). In any case, our lives have become a game of "while you are up..." and "can you get that for me?" and my personal favorite, "can you help me up?"

I feel like it is practice for when the kids start playing the pick-up-that-thing-that-i-just-threw-on-the-floor game with us. You know that game.

To be honest, I'm looking forward to playing.

Joey

PS - 25 weeks. January will be here before we know it!

In case of emergency, Erin's belly can be used as a personal flotation device

It has been a pretty quiet week here in Ballard but that doesn't mean we aren't making new discoveries.

We have learned that Ani, although likely to be the oldest (thus, anterior), may not fully fit the mold of perfect first born. Yes, she has been in the same, heads down position since early on. And yes, her growth rate is above average. But! I have a feeling, or more accurately a bruise forming under my ribcage, that suggests she may be the most likely to use the "mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom" tactic.

Po, our somersaulting second child (posterior), likes certain sounds. I first had an inkling of this when she jumped in response to the bell rung at the close of yoga. Three rings, three jumps and then she was quiescent. Joey is strutting his stuff over our next discovery. His voice is one of the sounds she likes. She may not know who he is yet but she definitely perks up when he starts talking close to the belly.

Joey has decided that it is time to lose the baby weight. I think he might have lost track of the weeks. The kiddos aren't supposed to arrive for twelve more weeks and then we have at least six months before people start to look at us funny. Obviously, I am not a huge fan of this plan. The only way that I won't pass him is if he keeps the weight he has and adds a few extra pounds. I guess I will need to make another cake this weekend to counteract the biking, running, and swimming.

We swam laps tonight for the first time. Turns out that I float really, really well. Breast stroke works as expected but the crawl stroke is threatened by the flotation device on the front of my body. I fear that in a few weeks, you will find me cork-screwing across the pool as each stroke with the right arm flips me onto my back and each stroke with the left returns me to my stomache. I promise to take video if this happens.

Erin

Seeing the Babies

We are now seeing Ani & Po every other week.
Typically, we wouldn't get a chance to see them so regularly, but the docs want to make sure they are growing as expected (long story).

For now though, here are the most recent profile photos for your viewing pleasure. In case you are not a radiologist, both of the kids are looking up and to the left. You can see the roundness of their heads, their left eye sockets, noses, and chins.

Erin says that Po (labeled tw b) has an Austin nose, but I think she's just jealous.
Also, Ani's picture (labeled tw a) has some shadows, so maybe she is also blessed with an Austin nose but we just can't quite see it.

Anyway, 24 weeks and counting.

Joey

Na Pali Hike

On Friday, we hiked along the Na Pali coast, and it was a bit more of a challenge than we anticipated. Clearly, we knew that a hike in the heat of the day along a coastline which has both steep ups and slippery downs would be difficult for a pregnant lady, but we figured we'd go as far as we were comfortable. We brought extra water and snacks, and took plenty of breaks.

What a magnificent hike! The way that the volcano has eroded, via collapses and landslides, has created a marvelous landscape. Also, since Kauai is the oldest of the islands, the jungle growth is just spectacular.

I've created an album on Flickr to show some of the things we saw.

Joey

Kauai Babymoon

We'd heard about a "babymoon" in some of the parenting books, as well as suggestions from friends. Basically, the idea is to take some time for ourselves before we get caught up in the whirlwind of kids and all of the things that go along with that. Personally, I was just hoping to "bank" some sleep because I'd heard that there is none to be had after the twins' arrival.

Hawaii seemed like the most reasonable place - Erin was born here, and it isn't such a long trip. It isn't even that expensive either considering pregnant ladies can't do very much, and we have been making our own breakfasts & lunches. We selected Kauai, as it is a relatively quiet island and this time of year is not too hot.

So far, we've swam in the ocean (although Erin says it was really just bobbing in the waves) and done a couple of minor hikes. We got to go to the 14th Annual Coconut Festival in Kapaa, which had remarkable Coconut Shrimp. I've even got a little bit of sunburn on my shoulders, but we've been pretty careful about that.

There's more to this story, but it is getting late. Check out the photos on Flickr and we'll post more as we get time.

Joey