Big Fat Blog

If one more person…

2010-08-17T18:03:00.001-07:00

…asks me if the girls are boys or girls I am going to scream! They are 15 months old and wear girly clothes...Yes, I know they don’t have much hair, but still! My mom and I were talking about what to tell people from now on…

They are hermaphrodites and we are letting them choose their gender…we believe in gender choice! That way people will just shut their mouths and not say anything else! :) (nothing against hermaphrodites)

I think it could work.

A Day of Hiking

2010-08-15T20:42:00.001-07:00

The girls made it through the 3.5 hour hike we took today in New Castle. They both fell asleep, but didn’t seem like they were getting completely annoyed…

In other news…Ava decided to jump into the wall face first, from the bed and scared the crap out of me. I thought she broke her nose, because she had a mark under her nose right away that looked like blood! Thank goodness her pacifier was there because I think it saved her nose! It gave her an immediate bruise…but she is ok! :)

I saw a mom of twin girls today (identical I think). They were only probably 2 or so, but just held her hand as they walked into the grocery store. If only I could do that without the girls going opposite directions! :) I can’t wait!

Jake’s work starts tomorrow! ahh!!

So I know, I know…

2010-08-11T19:33:00.001-07:00

Yes, it has been way, way too long since I have written. I just have been WAY busy! Hoping everyone is doing well!

We have moved to New Castle, CO…definitely smaller than I thought it would be, but it is a nice little town. We have hikes right beside our place and are surrounded by mountains…Jake got a job at Grand Valley High School in Parachute/Battle Mesa…look it up :) There are only 340 students!! He is teaching science and is the head coach of baseball.

The girls are doing great! They are almost 15 months old and are crazy full of energy! I think they are doing “twin speak” too. They know what each other are saying, but it definitely is NOT English! haha

They are cute and are great with the dogs. They love kissing and hugging Bailey, but Chachi stays away as much as he can.

I started my photography company, www.thesweetlifephoto.com and am hoping business is good in this area. I will be doing some photo shoots in the Denver area as well.

Hope everyone is great! I am going to start using this more…I swear!

2010-02-21T11:15:00.001-08:00

Ava can walk for 3 steps...she says dada,baba,papa, and other babbles. Ireland tries to walk but she goes too fast! She says dada, baba,mama and other babbles.

2010-01-29T07:58:00.001-08:00

We checked them out today and Ava is 20lbs and Ireland is 19lbs! Wow, they are getting big, but thankfully do not have the michelin syndrome haha!

8 months old and full of energy

2010-01-22T12:18:00.001-08:00

The girls are now 8 months old and a few days and are definitely keeping us busy. Our schedule is normally like so:
between 5-6a Ireland wakes up (Jake normally gets up to feed her if it is early enough for him to get ready too)
between 6:30-7a Ava wakes up

There are sometimes naps, but normally not. If there are naps, it is only for a short period of time. Ireland took a 2 hr nap today and Ava didn't take one until I went for a little drive.

Jake will get home around 3p and then I get a break!!! I basically go into work or work in the back of the house for about 4 hrs...

They both pull themselves to stand and Ava even tries to take a walk. She took one step the other day, but then stopped and sat down. Ireland is getting really good at picking small things up. They are growing up so fast!

They started eating solid foods a while back...they love everything! I haven't found anything at all that they don't like! Is that good or bad? :)

We are off for a trip to Denver in April so we can try to setup our move and hopefully get jobs. I am still trying to work from home...we will see if it is possible! :) I am hoping to get more into my photography. I really want to take a class just to refresh everything I learned a long time ago...

Jake is wanting to go back to school for nursing...he wants to either be an OR or ER nurse...I am all for it...we just need to find time to fit it in and be able to pay our bills!! Tough!

All is well in Grayland...hope all is well for everyone else!

New pics

2009-10-05T13:32:00.001-07:00

Here are some recent pics of the girls. They are getting big!! :)

It has been a while!

2009-09-06T15:00:00.000-07:00

Updates on Babies!
They are almost 4 months old and are growing like crazy! Both are cooing and trying to sit up all the time. They giggle and smile all the time. Ava weighed 14.5 lbs last week and Ireland weighed about 13.5! Crazy! They are getting more hair and are looking so cute! They still aren't sleeping all night consistently, but Ava seems to sleep more than Ireland! She slept from 8p-6a last night! We definitely have our hands full and are getting lots of help from my parents! :) Thanks guys!!

Who called the 15th?

2009-05-17T16:29:00.000-07:00

I want to introduce everyone to the newest additions to the Gray family...Ava and Ireland were born Friday night at 6:28 (ireland) and 6:29 (ava). They are both doing really great with the exception of one minor problem. We found out first hand the power of explosive diarrhea. Thank goodness Ava's bottom was pointed down and not up or S@#$ would really would have hit the fan. They both are starting to eat a ton...Ireland is eating more than Ava at the moment (minor victory for all the smaller twins in the world). We are really excited about them and cant wait until we can get them home sometime tomorrow. Enjoy the pics.

updating just to update

2009-05-11T09:16:00.000-07:00

Babies are doing well still. Had to do the some labwork on Saturday and will get the results back tomorrow. They will get measured again tomorrow...I have gotten edema back with a vengeance so I have been trying to swim every day. By swim, you have to know, it isn't real swimming...but it does help me feel better.

Don't know the due date...the only way we are going to know is if the test results are bad or if I go into labor...

Swimming = Weight Loss

2009-04-23T05:11:00.000-07:00

So the Dr from MFM told me to swim to get the fluid out of my body...I gotta say it worked! I have lost 12 lbs since Saturday and now have ankles and feet again. My legs even look skinnier! :) yay! I went yesterday for bloodwork and had to turn in another 24 hour urine collection...which is lots of fun collecting it. The bloodwork was the easiest I have ever had!

Tomorrow I go to MFM for another checkup...which means I hope my BP stays down because last time I went to them, I was in the hospital. I think everything will be ok since I am on meds now though.

That is it for now :)
Peace.

GOOD NEW BAD NEWS

2009-04-16T16:05:00.000-07:00

GOOD NEWS: Went to the dr. today: babies were good

BAD NEWS: BP was high so now I am admitted to the hospital for 1-2 days, maybe delivery

GOOD NEWS: Babies are 5.3 and 4.8 lbs and both are 17 inches.

BAD NEWS: BP was high so now I am admitted to the hospital for 1-2 days, maybe delivery

GOOD NEWS: I still have my feet

BAD NEWS: They look like club feet and Jake now plays with them

GOOD NEWS: I can eat now

BAD NEWS: It only took 10 hours 'til I could eat, so now my stomach hurts!

GOOD NEWS: I still can pee

BAD NEWS: but in a cup

GOOD NEWS: I remembered to shave my legs before coming to the dr.

BAD NEWS: No one cares, they only care about poking at my edema

GOOD NEWS: Babies heartbeats were fine for the hour monitoring

BAD NEWS: I laughed so hard, they probably thought I was having a contraction during it.

GOOD NEWS: I have internet access

BAD NEWS: I am at a hospital

Hope everyone is great! Enjoy the lovely pics :)

Love,
Shannon

Baby Update

2009-04-01T17:15:00.000-07:00

They are doing well. The tech was very excited about the amount of hair they have...I guess Ava has a lot! :) Heartbeats are good too.
Ava is 3lbs 11oz and 16.4 inches 144 heartbeat
Ireland is 3lbs 4oz and 15.6 inches 154 heartbeat

The docs are very happy! :) I love going and not having them freak me out! Look at the pout on Ireland! Couldn't get a good shot of Ava...her head wasn't facing the right way!! ughh

Easter time again!

2009-03-29T18:06:00.000-07:00

We had our first Easter egg hunt with the girls....it took me forever to find the one egg that was hidden. With the help of a few friends, I located the egg and now waiting for it to hatch.

woo!

2009-03-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

So I don't have gestational diabetes...my bloodwork looked wonderful...very exciting. Let's hope the tech on Wednesday actually gives a crap and takes her time to measure the girls...ugh!

posting

2009-03-24T15:19:00.001-07:00

I think I fixed the problem with everyone else posting...try it out :)

March 18th

2009-03-18T15:09:00.000-07:00

Went to Maternal Fetal Medicine....
Ava is now 14.9 inches and 3.8 lbs
Ireland is now 14.5 inches and 2.9 lbs

Had to move up my glucose screening due to the fact their weights are discongruent...so I am doing that Friday...fun.

So let's pray that everything is ok...and there is no Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome going on...

fun video...

2009-03-14T14:34:00.000-07:00

ireland video

2009-03-14T06:11:00.000-07:00

3D Ultrasound

2009-03-10T14:32:00.001-07:00

Today we went to get the 3D ultrasound....fun, but totally not as exciting as I thought it would be. I really thought we could see them better...here are some pics from it....

Universal Trip

2009-03-07T12:38:00.000-08:00

Our trip to Universal was fun!

Feb 25th: 4 lbs of Baby

2009-02-25T16:46:00.000-08:00

Well both babies are around 2 lbs...Ava is 2 lbs exactly and Ireland is 1 lb 15 ounces. Very close! :) Everything was good at the appointment and the Dr. said I have little chance of going into labor in the next 4 weeks, which is a good thing! They are laying transverse and each baby has their head between the other one's legs.
I am now tracking their kicks in a log and my next appointments are on the 12th with Dr. Brown and the 18th again, with Maternal Fetal Med.
All is well..Jake is making fun of my stomach a lot...which is awesome! :) We have a class to go to this weekend and hopefully will be getting a 3D scan soon....They tried today but the tech sucked!
Peace.

Last night OB Triage

2009-02-20T14:16:00.000-08:00

Well I know this probably sounds exciting, but it really wasn't. I was feeling a lot of pressure in my abdomen so my doctor wanted me to go to the OB Triage at Healthpark to see if something was going on with my cervix...had to do a really fun test and sat in the room for about 3 hours with mom. Had some minor contractions while we were there and I was hooked up to 3 monitors...one for each baby and one for contractions.

Everything is ok...just have another bladder infection...awesome right? :) Just thought I would share.

Thank you Mom!

Babies Nursery

2009-02-15T16:53:00.000-08:00

So we started working on it...Jake put the crib together with the help of me and my mom! We are only putting one up right now, since they will totally be able to fit in one for a bit...The room is getting there! YAY! :)

holy stomach!

2009-02-15T16:37:00.000-08:00

So everyone wants to see pics of my growing belly. Here it is! Of course you have to realize there are two in there and they are probably now between 1.5-2 lbs and 12 inches or more... :) fun stuff! (also...had no makeup on!)

Hope you like!

Dec. 4th Dr. Visit

2009-02-05T14:25:00.000-08:00

Went to the Maternal Fetal Medicine office. The babies are doing great! They are both at 11.2 inches and 1 lb 2oz!! Same exact size! The heartbeats were good, as well as the fluid around them (which is what they are watching very closely). I am constantly getting kicks too. Funny and sometimes annoying when they hurt! All is well though. They are active, which the Dr. said was great! I also noticed that they were sizing at a week further than they thought I was...so I asked them if I could be a week ahead and they said it was definitely possible. Mom and I thought I was further along!

Anyways, all is good! Enjoy the pics!

We've got a kicker!

2009-02-02T17:48:00.000-08:00

Tonight I finally felt one of my babies kick...I laid my head on Shannon's belly and she kicked me right in the face. Lets hope that is not a sign of what's to come. For any of you wondering, it was Ava that kicked me...we named the one on the left (baby A) Ava and the one on the right (baby B) Ireland. It is so cool to feel that little alien kick. I can't wait for more butt whippins by the girls. Next up, Ireland.

Today...

2009-01-28T09:18:00.000-08:00

Took off from work because I was at school for like 13 hours...so I was completely worn out and stuff. Feeling nauseated today, but hopefully that goes away...felt some of those braxtons hick's contractions the past couple days...fun fun :)

There is my little update...isn't it exciting? :)

Registry Info

2009-01-25T15:36:00.000-08:00

Everyone keeps asking us where we registered...and we finally did it :) Go to http://www.target.com/registry/baby/014399700354229 to get to our registry. Honestly didn't know what all to add...but some of the stuff is fun :)

Love you guys!
Shannon and Jake

Ultrasound Jan. 19th

2009-01-19T11:31:00.000-08:00

The visit went well. They said everything was great. I was also asked if I wanted to be put on leave, because they normally put twin moms on leave between 20-24 weeks and I declined and told them to ask me at the next visit. The dr. just didn't want be to be worn out. Each baby is 9.4 inches and Baby A (Ava) is 11 ounces and Baby B (Ireland--yep I think we are changing the spelling) is 10 ounces.

Here are the pics from the visit.

New Dates Wanted

2009-01-18T06:34:00.000-08:00

So, here is the deal...we went to the doctor and he informed us that Shannon would be lucky to make it past 35 weeks. Here is what I am proposing- everybody pick new dates and forget about the old ones because there was a failure to communicate. Our new dates are:

Shannon- 5-15

Jake- 5-16

Another thing...anybody that wants to take a stab at what their future professions are going to be after I took this ultrasound. I just don't see what is so hard about taking an ultrasound...I did this one in 2 minutes. Where is my $300?

Week 19

2009-01-11T12:28:00.000-08:00

We go to the doctor this week on Thursday and then we go on the 19th to the Maternal Fetal Medicine place. I think we will be going to them every 2 weeks so they will be checking on the fluid in the membranes. If it gets too thin, the twins (Ava and Irelyn), might have a chance to get the TTTS. I don't think it will happen, but it is better to be watched. :)

Things are going well. I don't feel as sick and have more energy, though I notice my stomach is getting bigger! I have to wear maternity clothes or at least more loose clothes to feel more comfortable!

Jake and the parents are helping out a bunch as always. Jake is always getting me stuff to eat and drink and carries everything...so sweet!

I will update you on the dr. appointments!

WELCOME IDA AND EDNA!

2009-01-07T11:35:00.000-08:00

A big fat welcome to Ida Jo and Edna Dee! How lucky to get two girls! Just a few rules.....no pink and no bows! Just because they are girls doesn't mean they have to wear pink or velcro bows and especially not a handband with bows (so ghetto)! Now let's all join in and sing a lil somethin from Motley Crue.........

Girls Girls Girls
At the Dollhouse in Ft. Lauderdale
Girls Girls Girls
In Atlanta at Tattletails
Girls Girls Girls
Raising Hell at the 7th Veil

New pool going on...

2009-01-06T15:07:00.000-08:00

next pool we have is, who can find the vag's first on both babies! We have one regular size baby and one non-regular size baby. Baby B is normal size and weighs in at a trim 6oz...baby A is a fatty and quite active weighing in at a very impressive 8oz. Who found the vag's? Wait a minute...quit looking you friggin' pervs!!

The Results are In...

2009-01-06T15:01:00.001-08:00

We went to the Maternal Fetal Medicine place again today and they said everything seemed fine so far...I think we will be going every 2 weeks to them from now on...we have another appointment with our regular Dr. on the 15th...

And the results are in!!!

Both are (drumroll please).....Girls!

Weighing in at 8 and 6 ounces.

As you look at the photos...you will notice two arrows pointing at Baby A and Baby B's Va-Jay-Jays....Enjoy!

Wagers

2008-12-31T06:43:00.000-08:00

We have a bet going...#1 sexes #2 weights and lengths #3 birthday....if you want to throw in color of hair and eyes be my guest. Don't be afraid to chime in.

My guesses are:
Birthdays: 5-31
Sexes: boys
Weights: 6lbs 7oz &6lbs
Lengths: 16.8 and 17.1

Shannon's guesses:
Birthday: 5.21
Sexes: B and G
Weights: 6.7 and 6.9
Lengths: 16.2 and 16.5 (although she rethought this and thinks they are going to be longer)

Now you guys give us your guesses. :)

Dec. 30th

2008-12-31T06:12:00.000-08:00

I got my blood drawn again yesterday. The nurse apparently could not find my veins...so she decided to stick me anyway and move the needle around in my arm...it felt awesome! haha

Mom was playing with my belly and pushed on the top of it and felt a kick! She was so excited! :) I didn't feel anything, but was excited too :)

We find out the sexes and exact due date next week on the 6th! Yay!!

Profile View Dec 23rd

2008-12-29T10:44:00.000-08:00

here it is! ugh! :)

Dec. 9th

2008-12-29T10:04:00.000-08:00

Mom didn't show up, but that is ok! :) We went to the Maternal Fetal Medicine place where we were greeted by a happy doctor who likes to scare the crap out of you. He was nice, but he scared me when he started talking about how the membranes were thin and there could be a chance in the future for the twins to get the Twin to Twin Transfusion....which is not good.
Jake and I went over to mom's work and she calmed me down after talking with another doctor that said that he normally doesn't have any tact and that there were better doctors in the office. Hopefully the next time we go, we will get one of the other ones!
Other than the scare, the images were awesome! You can see lots of organs and bones! They looked so cute! :)

Nov. 21st: The Second Scan!

2008-12-18T17:12:00.000-08:00

This was a normal day for us. We just went in and got a scan of the babies. This was the first time they looked like actual babies and we could tell what they were! While in there, the ultrasound machine froze, so we only got to have 1 picture to take home! Wasn't bad though. The doctor said everything looked great! The heartbeats were around 167 and 172....not bad! :)

Here is the scan.

First Ultrasound

2008-12-18T15:24:00.000-08:00

Nov. 4th: "Finding Out it is Twins!"

Here is the first ultrasound that was taken on November 4th....I am trying to catch up with what has been going on. On this day we found out it was twins! We also got to see both of them and hear both heartbeats.