Eight is Great

 

Somehow my oldest baby, Joseph Mark, turned EIGHT last weekend!

 

To celebrate, he wanted to have a few friends over to eat lots of junk food, play Wii, and watch a movie!  Well…at first he wanted to take his friends to a super-expensive play-land type place… but he was quickly convinced of this alternative plan.

(Littlest brother “helped” to decorate while the big boys were at school.  He was also a good boy and only snuck one cookie off the plate before party time.  Ha!)

Joseph is a voracious reader.  Yesterday he even took a book to the park and read on a bench while his brothers played!

He is still very smart, and LOVES LOVES LOVES school!

He also loves Legos, Minecraft, Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, and wrestling with his brothers.  (And waking up early- STILL!)

My oldest is a sweet boy, a rule follower, and a lover of justice.  Also, a lover of his Mama and Dada.  (although he calls us Mom and Dad around his friends)

So thankful to have him as my oldest!

PS

The day afterwards, he got this:

courtesy of wrestling with his brother! Ha!  A little Isaac head-to-the-eye! Ouch.  He looks quite cheerful, because he couldn’t wait to show his friends, and have everybody “Think that I was in a fight or something!”

The best I can!

 

I finally finished planting my spring bulbs yesterday.  In mid/late November.  Perhaps I shouldn’t have planted SEVENTY?  But no!  Go big or go home!

As I put those little bulbs into the cold soggy ground, I whispered to them in my head, “PLEASE grow, little bulbs.  I know its late, but please please grow!  You will make me SO happy when I’m giant in the spring and I can see you outside my window!”

This is also how I feel about my children this whole first trimester.  “Please be okay, little children!  Please don’t let your brains rot when I let you watch another movie (or twenty) while I lay on the couch and try not to vomit/sleep/cry.  Please remember that I can be a fun Mommy who actually takes you places and makes you things other than Eggo waffles.  Please please please!”

But don’t worry, I know that they WILL be okay.  (Well, my children will.  The bulbs are iffy!)  They are actually probably thrilled at the extra screen time and cereal and freedom they are getting.

I’M DOING THE BEST I CAN HERE!  And that’s really all I can do.

 

Almost 14 weeks with twins.  Hopeful for this 2nd trimester to perk me up SOON!

 

 

Telling the Boys

 

(I’m recording this for posterity…because we all know I’m going to remember NOTHING soon when my brain turns into I-have-5-kids-mush!)

After school that day, Brian and I sat the big boys down. (Samuel was napping, but also too young to care much about this whole thing.)

I told them, “Guys, we have something to tell you.”

and Joseph immediately interrupted to say, “Good news or bad news?” (my little worrier)

I assured him that it was GOOD news.  Then said, “We found out today that I have a baby in my tummy” (insert joyful gasps) “but then I found out that I have TWO babies in my tummy!”

They both shouted “What??” And laughed and shrieked a bunch and jumped around saying “TWINS!!!” at each other! Ha!

Then, Joseph said, “Well….I DID think you were looking a liiiiiittle pudgy!” while rubbing his belly.

And Isaac said, “Don’t worry, Mama, I will hold one a LOT because I LOVE babies!” (he really does)

And then Joseph asked if we could teach them Spanish (?) and said that he couldn’t wait to tell his teacher and then there was general merriment and laughter and running around!

Everyone I told on the phone went a little something like this:

Me:  “I just was calling to tell you that the ultrasound went well.  Everything looks great and BOTH babies are very healthy”

Them:  “Are you kidding me?” (or maybe a naughtier word in the case of a few people, who shall remain anonymous! haha!) or “Are you SERIOUS?”   Always followed by lots of shrieking and laughter and disbelief and “OH MY GOSH” ‘s.

 

Basically, everyone was shocked by this news, but now we are all so thankful and filled with joy at this unexpected blessing!

 

PS Isaac has told me about a hundred times since then that he is SO excited for his TWINS!  My cup runneth over!

We have a little announcement to make…well…TWO little announcements!!

 

COMING THIS MAY!

I wish I could describe to you the shock that I felt when these two little bambinos showed up on the ultrasound!

Earlier that day, as the boys were getting on the bus, I had just told one of my neighborhood friends, “I’m just praying for ONE healthy baby today!” and we laughed about how horribly hard having twins would be.

And then I made a similar joke to my doctor, who had just noticed that my uterus felt quite big. “Oh..haha! I just get big fast.  But PLEASE, do make sure there is only ONE in there!”

About 2 seconds later, I saw a baby on the screen, wiggling with a heartbeat.  And about 2.5 seconds later, the other baby came into focus.

“Wait.  TWO???”  I shrieked!  (I’m good at reading ultrasounds) 

“Say hi to Mommy twinsies!” the doctor said! 

And then I laugh-cried for the rest of the appointment.  I mean, people, I had JUST BARELY psyched myself up enough to have a fourth baby.  I was close to calling it at three…but someone still felt missing. 

Well, apparently it was TWO someones!

Poor Brian just yelped, “TWO?” when I showed him the picture and then sat on the couch with his hands raised and his mouth open for quite some time.

Then we thanked the Lord for our bonus baby.  Who is truly truly a blessing!

And then we got ready to tell our boys the news! (who didn’t even know I was pregnant at this point!)