Tuesday, May 19, 2009

A Place to Begin- 16 weeks

Welcome to our blog!

Many of you know that Allen and I are thrilled to be pregnant with twins after many years of trying to start a family. And if you didn't know, well, now you do! I thought I would start this blog post with some frequently asked questions because we seem to be drilled weekly. From Ashley's viewpoint, here goes:

  1. How far along are you in your pregnancy? 16 weeks or 4 months today
  2. How are you feeling? Overall, great. I have been pretty tired, and while most women tend to begin feeling better in their second semester, my doctor has told me that since I am carrying twins, I will likely be tired the rest of my pregnancy (and many years after the babies are here). HA!
  3. How does Allen feel about all this? Um. I'm not sure. If he feels anything like me, I'm sure he is excited, scared, nervous, overwhelmed- you know, the full range on emotions.
  4. Do twins run in your family? No
  5. Do twins run in Allen's family? No
  6. Do you know the genders of the babies yet? Nope
  7. Are you going to find out what they are? At first, I really did not want to know. But being that there are two and we'd like to pick out bedding,nursery colors, clothing, etc. Allen has persuaded me to find out.
  8. When will you find out the genders? Let's just say it will be in the next few weeks. Don't ask us when. We'll let you know when we know and are ready to share.
  9. Do you care what you have? While I care more about the health of the babies than the genders, Allen really, really wants at least one girl.
  10. Do you have a "feeling" or Mother's intuition about what you are having? From Day one, I have never thought we were having two boys. I think we are either having a boy/girl combo or two girls, and today I am leaning more toward one of each. I suppose only time will tell if my intuition proves to be accurate.
  11. Are you going to stay in the same house? Maybe? We currently have our house on the market to sell and are looking for the perfect home with four bedrooms somewhere here in the state. Can we be more specific? No, because we don't know how everything will unfold. Guess you'll just have to check back here for updates.
  12. How much weight did your doctor ask you to gain? 35-50 pounds
  13. How much weight have you gained? How dare you ask! Let's just say, I'm definitely gaining and leave it at that. Or, I could tell you that I gained 9 pounds in the past month and have your jaws drop open like mine did.
  14. Regardless of gender, are you going to put the babies in the same room/nursery? For the first few years, we anticipate keeping the babies together in the same room like many of the multiples books suggest.
  15. What's the best piece of advice you have received so far? Well, we have received lots of information and "advice," but the best advice has been the advice we have asked for and the questions we have asked others.
  16. Do you have any names picked out yet? Since Allen has refused to discuss names with me until we know the babies' sexes, I'm just creating a list of my own. No, I will not share them with you! I'm the one that gets to name the babies anyway, so Allen's opinion is neither here nor there. Ha!
  17. When is your due date? I'm due November 3rd, but twins usually come early. My doctor will likely induce me two to three weeks early, so they should be here sometime in October.
  18. Are you having any cravings? Food! I'm hungry all the time (no wonder I've already gained so much weight).
I think I've given you answers to the majority of the questions that we are asked pretty frequently. I hope you'll check back here for updates and become a "Follower" of our blog. I promise to post as often as possible and not always about the babies.

Thanks for visiting; make sure you leave a comment to let us know you stopped by our blog.

I'll leave you with some parting belly pics and hope they don't gross you out......







This is me at ten weeks pregnant, right after we announced to family that we were expecting.







And this is me today, sixteen weeks pregnant. My, my, my! What changes have occurred!


29 comments:

Jennifer said...

Cute blog! I love it!

Natalie Hudkins said...

Hey! I just found your blog- congratulations!

Jen&Carter said...

I love your new Blog. Cute belly pic. COngrats, I am so happy for you, and can;t wait to hear what you are having. I love being pg.

Mandy Miller said...

I am so excited for you. I had no idea, but then again I haven't talked to you in a while. I will definitely be thinking of you and I will add your blog to my blog favorites. Please add me to yours also. www.ajaxfarms.blogspot.com
love ya, Mandy

Anonymous said...

Ash!
Thanks for sharing your blog. Right up your alley! Can't wait to see that baby(ies) bump in person!
April
P.S. we're having problems with the whole name issue too!

Allisyn (aka the Mrs.) said...

what cute belly pics! i am a twin and my sister and i were actually born on nov 3rd :)

Anonymous said...

I can't tell you how happy I am for you and Allen! I know how hard this has been and so much worth the wait and effort. God is good and does answer prayers! I'll continue to check in and keep you on my prayer list, now for thanks and also for the health of you and the babies. Love ya!

Unequivocal_Prowess said...

Hey Ash! I have an overwhelming pile of stuff that keeps mounting for you. I don't know how much you want to buy brand new or how much you want to borrow. Here is the quick list of things to think of that we have extras of...then maybe whenever you get the chance, grab a few bags and boxes to redeem whatever of this you want! K, here's what I have:
two carseats (one gender specific), two strollers that match those carseats, two umbrella strollers, two swings, one bumbo seat, four bouncy-vibrator seats, clothes (but I bet you will get all that in gifts) 20-30 bottles (we started with one brand for Grace that Emilie hated, so we had to switch) and about 60 size one diapers, two floor play mats, and one boppy pillow. We will also have one mini-pack n play (we used as a bassinet) that we will be done with by the time the (girls, because that's what I think they are) babies get here...

Unequivocal_Prowess said...

Oh sorry! It's Jana!

Mops said...

Don't think I didn't notice your sassy disregard for my prediction! Fine,fine, I will tell little Oscar and Felix I knew they were coming myself! Oscar & Felix, Regis & Kelly, LaVerne & Shirley, I don't care who they are, but I place them in God's care regularly.
Love you and thanks for sharing this wonderful experience.

Anonymous said...

A very cute blog. I'm following along during this exciting time. xx

Danielle Moss said...

Ok, did you get even bigger since yesterday?? Seriously! I love it. Sooooooooo excited to find out what the babies are. I'm so excited for everything. You are going to be the BEST mom & Allen is going to be the best dad. I hope there is a girl in there for him, because she will surely have him wrapped around her little finger ;)

Glad you posted the belly shots! Did you do that just for me?

xoxo

Jess said...

Danielle just showed me your new blog! It's so cute! Congrats again on your pregnancy—so, SO exciting!

Anonymous said...

Such a cute baby belly! Sounds like things are going so well!

We walked out to At Last at our wedding - I thought that was sweet when I read your profile. :o)

Mama P said...

Hi there! I found your blog on blogsbydanielle.....congratulations on your twins! I have identical twin boys (our daughter didn't come until 5 years later). While you don't know me from Adam, if I can give any expectant mommy of multiples any piece of advice, it would be to rest, rest, rest. Our boys were born at 30 weeks. I partly think I over-did it, taking my new role of "housewife" too seriously and worked to hard, resulting in their premature births. Put your feet up and rest as much as you can in your 3rd trimester.
After they are home, make sure you keep them on the SAME schedule at all times. If one wakes up to eat, wake up the other one. It may mean you are up a little longer at that time to feed and change them, but chances are, if you don't, you will be up within 20 minutes otherwise. You will get the hang of everything in no time. You will find that since you didn't have a single baby first to compare your twins to, this twin thing will be a piece of cake!!

Congratulations again!

Danielle Moss // Graphic Design and Photography said...

I have a question for you. Did you ever get that cupcake you wanted??

Yakini said...

Congrats on the twin buns in the oven! How exciting!!!! This is such a cute blog, love the design! :-)

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad you have a blog so I can see updates on those babies!!! And see pictures! FUN! Thanks for sharing! I'm so happy for ya'll!

Just Me. said...

Awww... look at that belly growing! and love your Q&A! Sooo happy for you!

((((hugs))))

The Seat House said...

Congrats!!!! So exciting.... Im glad to find your blog!

The Shoemakes said...

Hooray! That is very exciting : ) Hope your feeling well!

-Dita

Photogrl said...

Congratulations, again!

Love, love, LOVE the belly pics!

Jessica said...

Ashley...So fun to hear from you! Congratulations on the pregnancy...you know you're going to be the cutest pregnant girl around. I'll be checking in on your blog to stay updated!

dsy said...

Hello, just found your cute blog
Congratz on your pregnancy...!
I hope one day I can have my own belly pictures like yours in my blog :)
gotta stay optimistic, right? :)

Suzanne said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog - I will definitely be following you now (especially since you're a few weeks ahead and can give me a sneak preview). :)

After reading your last post, I think we're both feeling exactly the same way - excited, scared, nervous, anxious. I'm so happy to be at my 2nd trimester (almost) but I know twins can present issues at any point so I'm cautiously optimistic (for lack of a better term).

I'm comparing my belly to yours and I'm wondering if I'm not having triplets. I really popped out around 10 weeks and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger. :)

Looking forward to sharing our stories and our journies!

Chelle said...

HI! Thanks for commenting on my blog. I have been thinking of starting a new blog because it IS a very thin line to walk. I sometimes hate posting pictures and such because I (we) know how devistating it is on the other side of the fence.

I, like the commentor above, "popped" early. My tummy is huge, but I love it! You look fantastic, what a change in just 6 weeks!

I look forward to following your journey and you are about 2 weeks ahead of me, so we will have loads in common!

I Believe in Miracles said...

Love this!! I'm so excited for you and Allen. :o) BiG BIG Answers to prayers. Cannot wait to see how the story unfolds.
~~HUGS~~

Jennifer said...

Awwwww!! Sooo cute!! I want twins!!!

Happiness Is... said...

I just found your blog and love it! Your bump is so cute!