24 Weeks & A Happy Thanksgiving :)

This week was Thanksgiving... which just so happens to be my favorite holiday. Good company. Good food. Lots of enjoyment overall. Granted, being in California isn't quite as enjoyable than being surrounded by family, but I have Kyle and my twinnies so I certainly can't complain too much. Plus, we had a guest for dinner! Kyle's friends from the band, Kearney & Moore (they always talk about each other by their last names), joined us for an early afternoon feast. This post has a lot more pictures than normal, just an FYI :)

Honey Glazed Ham, Mashed Potatoes, Dumplings, Green Beans, Corn, Rolls, Broccoli Casserole, Stuffing

Chocolate Chunk Cookies & Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie. All made from scratch! Yum!

Today of course is Black Friday. Kyle and I decided not to go out last night and stand in crazy long lines, so we slept a solid 9-10 hours, then went to see what was left at the mall. We each bought one thing and feel fine about it. I just can't stand for long hours because my back and feet start to hurt too much, and Kyle hates crowds, so we were fine to only stay for a short time. :)

At the beginning of this week, we finally got all of our furniture! Some of it was scuffed up in the move, but that is to be expected with having friends move stuff. I am so thankful for all their help though! So, throughout the week we have been unpacking and trying to get situated. It looks nice! We love it, for sure.

He's practicing what he'll be doing after the twins are born. =)

I also had my third dream about having twin girls this week. Maybe that means these little babies are going to be Emmalyn and Harper! Who knows. I'll probably post something soon about the myths/prediction methods people use to try and figure out what sex their baby is. Then we will just wait and see how true they are! :)

Symptoms:

• Braxton Hicks contractions - are a tightening of the uterine muscles for one to two minutes and are thought to be an aid to the body in its preparation for birth (according to wikipedia). Basically, I hate them. I have been woken up from them twice now. Do not fear, if they become regular, then I will call/go to the doctor, but it's usually just the one or two contractions. 
• Heartburn - It comes and goes. Apparently this is the cause of the babies taking up more and more space and giving my stomach less space which actually causes the acid in my stomach to move up my esophagus, causing the heartburn. It is very unpleasant. 
• Weight gain - I had not weighed last week, but by the beginning of this week I have gained a little over 14 lbs. Oy. Kyle has never seen me weigh this much so it is quite interesting. My midsection has never been so big and yet at one point I weighed 25 lbs more than I do now! My, how pregnancy is strange! 
• Acne - It's always just on my forehead and I can't get rid of it. 
• This symptom is a little "too much information". I find it funny, honestly. I had a small incident that made it clear that I cannot hold my bladder quite like I have been able to. Basically, after a sneeze, I had to go change my pants. Nothing bad, just in need of some new pants. Haha! I couldn't believe it. Things like this are often left out when people talk about pregnancy! 
• Baby Jabbing.

24 Weeks :)

 I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving! Kyle and I are very thankful for everything God has blessed us with, including our growing twinnies. We just can't wait another 3 months until we finally get to meet them! Just 2 more weeks of work for me until I can start nesting :)

23 Weeks & A New Home

This week was our big move! It was so exciting to move from our apartment to our new home. We loved our apartment and the people who ran it but we are so happy to be in a bigger place. Buying stuff we need for the house is costly, though. I thought I'd only have to worry about twin stuff...I didn't realize I had to buy all this stuff that we'll need in the house. Where I used to have some money in my pockets, it has been replaced by lint and dirt. The cost of growing up!

We will finish our move tomorrow. Kyle has several of his Marine buddies helping out and we have rented a trailer for all the furniture. Today is definitely exciting because the washer and dryer are being delivered!!! Ahhh!!! No more getting quarters. No more carrying a big load of stuff down a flight of stairs and walking over to the laundry room. I can just throw stuff into the machine at my own convenience! :))

Other than that, we really haven't had anything happen this week. Normal pregnancy stuff. My belly feels huge.

Symptoms

• Terrible facial acne. It has gotten worse this week for sure. 
• Babies are moving like crazy! I'm trying to enjoy it, but sometimes I would like it better if they calmed down a little. :) 
•  Tired. I've been getting tired easier and more frequently. It may be because at night time, it gets darker earlier. 
• Heartburn - I've been waking up in the morning with some heartburn. I haven't needed anything to make it go away yet, it hasn't become that severe. Although, I always crave milk as soon as it happens. 

I haven't checked my weight gain this week. I don't think I want to. I know I have gotten bigger. People can officially recognize that I am Pregnant and not just chubby. I had a lady at a coffee cart randomly ask me when my baby was due. She squealed when I told her there would be two babies. I still enjoy getting that reaction. :) -- One of Kyle's friends hadn't seen me in a few weeks and saw me this week and said, "You look...good" and pointed towards my stomach when he said it. I couldn't help but laugh. Obviously he was being nice and friendly and not trying to be offensive in any way. It just made me laugh. So it is nice that my pregnancy is noticeable in a way...I just hate feeling big all the time!!

I've also been searching around for a photographer to do some maternity and newborn pictures. I think I have found one. There are several that I had options for, that had great pictures and relatively decent prices, but one woman is a military spouse and I just can't help but want to support a fellow military spouse! Plus, she was the cheapest and I know she'll incorporate Marine Corps memorabilia into the pictures, which is what I want. :)

That's all from this week! Next week we will officially have all of our stuff in our new home, it will be Thanksgiving week/Black Friday, etc, and all that fun jazz. I can't wait to set up our Christmas tree this week. Yes, this week! Next week, I'll try to post pictures of the house. Enjoy your thanksgiving everyone!

Much love.

22 Weeks & Daddy Feels Kicking!

First, my week started off sadly. I received a call Saturday morning from my mother stating that my Uncle Scott had passed away. He had been struggling with health issues for a while, but it doesn't make his death any less painful or shocking. Being stuck in California due to my pregnancy during this time of mourning is truly upsetting. He was a wonderful man, who has always made me and my brother laugh--someone who was fun to talk to. Overall, a great uncle to have. I just wish I could be at home with my grandmother and my aunt during all this. Please pray for them and that God would give them peace and healing.

The Eddins side of the family at our wedding. My last picture taken with my Uncle Scott.

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This past week saw Veteran's Day. A day that should be celebrated daily in my opinion. Everyone posts on facebook and every other public forum about how thankful they are to those who have served or are currently serving. It certainly is nice to applaud our servicemen/women, they deserve it more than we realize. Being married to a Marine allows my heart to swell with pride more than it did before. Though Kyle hasn't deployed, nor is in any kind of infantry MOS (job), I see what he has to sacrifice to be employed by this nation. I am very proud of him, to say the least. :)

One super exciting thing that happened this was, occurred Nov 10, about 9:45pm. I was lounging in our recliner, my hands resting on my tummy, and all of a sudden, I felt something move from under my hand. At first I thought it was a muscle spasm, but it happened again... and again! I called Kyle over and he placed his hands on my belly (his freezing cold hands, mind you) and finally was able to feel them! At first he said, "I can't tell if it's the babies or my finger throbbing." Hehe - it certainly could easily be confused for something else...the babies are still small. I felt those little kicks/jabs for the rest of the evening. I was beyond excited. Our little babies are getting stronger!! Since that day, that's all I feel: their little jabs. Kyle has been able to feel them a few more times, too. :)

Kyle and I also went to Buy Buy Baby this week and picked up a few pieces of furniture that had arrived for the nursery. Nothing significant...just toddler rails for the bed as well as the changing station for the top of the dresser. The big items haven't arrived yet. I'm very anxious for them to arrive, but will be glad they don't until after we move into our new place. We bought a few things while we were there, but not too many items.

Symptoms:

• I gained 1 lb this week. One of my pregnancy apps has described my weight gain as excessive. Wow, way to make a big girl feel worse! Of course, I realize this app is for singleton babies and I have two.... but still. Prior to this week, I hadn't been using my pre-pregnancy weight to figure out how much I weight I had gained - I was using a weight during my pregnancy so I am opting to correct that for everyone! My official weight gain is about 11-12lbs right now.
• Dry hands from constantly washing.
• Less appetite. I feel full for longer periods of time and I don't feel the need to eat every 2 hours. 
• Deep breath struggling. 
• Baby moving more strongly (as previously mentioned)! 
• Bloody & Stuffy nose
• Eye Sensitivity

My doctor's appointment went well. It was really short though. Kyle was able to come see the babies on the ultrasound. The doctor checked for heartbeats in both babies and was able to find them. It took him a minute to find the top baby, and it worried us but thankfully he was able to find it!! 

At my next post, I will be one day away from being completely settled into the new home!! I am so excited and cant' wait for Monday when we can officially call it ours (until we're out of the military of course). :)

21 Weeks

This week has been the same ol' same ol'. I worked. Kyle worked. My belly grew. I ate lots of food.

Symptoms:

• I have gained a total of 13 lbs by the beginning of this week. Ah! That's about 3lbs in one week. I think it's time I stay away from the ice cream for a while.... 
• Pounding Heart. 
• Facial Acne
• I still have a hairy belly. Yes, I still find it awkward and weird. 
• I wake up every night to use the bathroom. It's quite annoying but I guess it is just good practice for waking up. 
• Dry, irritated hands. From using the bathroom more frequently, I have to wash my hands frequently which dries them out.  
• During the night my throat gets really sore and I become very thirsty. I still make sure to keep something to drink next to me. 
• Baby Movements. It feels like bubbles almost. Some days I feel it much more than others.
• My belly is officially in the way at times. I can't bend over and see everything like I used to. And no, leaning forward doesn't help either.

We tried to pack a little bit more, since we are moving in a week and a half. Its hard to pack up too much when you still use quite a bit of it. Kyle's band was just scheduled some kind of weapons training during that week. Of course they were. That means they will be working longer days probably which is a huge inconvenience since it will basically only give us 1 day to move out of the apartment instead of 6... especially because I depend so much on Kyle and his friends to lift everything since I can't. Just another reason why the military is such a joy. In case you didn't catch that; that previous sentence was dripping with sarcasm.

Sorry this post is so short and sweet! Not much to report. No news or change can be a good thing, right? :)

Next week I have a doctor's appointment, so I'll be excited about that. They will hopefully give me the results of all the blood work I've done as well as the anatomy scan (ultrasound I had on Halloween). Kyle is supposedly allowed to go with me since he doesn't have work until ater in the day.  Prayers that everything is normal and going well!

20 Weeks & 10 Pounds

20 weeks! How exciting. Are you excited? I know I am. If I was having a singleton then I would be at my halfway mark this week. However, I will probably give birth (unless the twinnies have another idea in mind) in about 16 more weeks. Say what?!?

Symptoms:

• Belly Rubbing. Okay...so I'm not sure if this is technically a "symptom" but it's definitely something I've been doing much more lately. Kyle even asked me if I thought it was a crystal ball. My husband, the jokester =P
• Struggle with Deep Breaths. It's still problematic. Not everyday, but enough to become very frustrating. 
• Pounding Heart. 
• Extremely thirsty at night. I always make sure I have something on the nightstand. 
• I've gained about 10 lbs now! It's coming fast, so maybe I should hold off on the constant bowls of cereal.... and ice cream....

This week, we have continued packing and trying to prepare for our move on base. We are beyond excited to move into a bigger place. The transition from here to there will be tedious and annoying but the pay off will hopefully be worth it in the end! :) Plus, I cannot wait to get the baby furniture and set up the nursery. I'll probably sit in there and never leave! After we move in and start setting up the nursery, I'll make sure to post pictures.

I am already noticing the cost of living in a house is much higher than an apartment. For example: I am currently living in an apartment with one bathroom. I will be moving into a house with 2.5 bathrooms. The shower in my current place is a stand up shower that has an actual door, but in the house, they are tub/showers that require shower curtains, etc. This week I went and bought shower curtains, shower liners, bath mats, etc and that alone cost over $100. Pretty sure my wallet is super thin at the moment. Perhaps that is just foreshadowing for what is to come with the twinnies...

An exciting thing that happened this week was my anatomy scan ultrasound. I did not meet with an actual doctor to discuss the ultrasound, I just had the scan done. That scan is ridiculous because they make me drink 32 oz of water in basically 15 minutes, then I have to hold it for at least 1 hour until my appointment. Apparently a full bladder allows the techs to get better pictures of the babies or something. Basically it's a torture procedure for pregnant women. I'm still convinced doctors do things on purpose just to elicit some sort of response from pregnant women. I'm already dreading the glucose stuff I have to drink to test if I have gestational diabetes.

Twins are doing according to the lab tech!! Twin A measures at 19weeks + 4days and weighs about 11 oz. Its head is down near my lower right hip and the legs swing around to my left side. Twin B measures at 19weeks+1days and weighs about 11 oz, too! Its head is near my left ribcage with the legs wrapping across to my right side. So they are both similar in size and weight which is wonderful. The lab tech also was able to figure out the sexes of the babies, and he wrote it down and it has been mailed to one person who has a job to do with it. I will not tell you all who it is,  because I don't want the poor soul to be annoyed by any impatient people ;-). Only one person will know the sex of the babies and the rest of us will just have to wait until they are delivered!!

Here I am at 20 weeks!