Perfecting Imperfection

First of all – Easter rocked!  Check it out -

We colored Easter eggs

We ate Easter Pizza (that’s what we call it at least)

We were invaded by GIANT Easter Bunnies

We had Easter egg hunts

We wore Bunny Ears (or at least THEY wore them!)

Now ~ we have so much Easter candy I don’t know what we are going to do with it all.  We have more than I could ever allow my children to eat – Easter has totally rivaled Halloween this year.  They got candy at the Easter Party we went to a few weeks ago.  Nate got some candy from school (not as much candy as other stuff, though – which was nice).  They got candy from my husband’s parents.  They got candy from my parents.  They got candy from the “Easter Bunny” (though only a few little eggs with jelly beans and a big chocolate bunny).  They got candy from my sister-in-law.  HELP!  I would like to do something fun with the chocolate…melt it down, maybe?  Any suggestions?  What do you do with all the candy? 

Oh…and…um ~ I reached 75 followers this weekend.  That is a really big deal for me…I’m kind of in awe, actually.  Thank you for finding me interesting enough to listen to while I’m rambling!  *totally blushing*

So ~ over at Multiples and More they are celebrating their First Blogiversary.  To commemorate the ending of this week long event, they put up a MckLinky for all sites to link up on.  That’s where I found this. Which has inspired me to elaborate on this – the day we found out we were having TWINS!

I think my original post about finding out we were having twins wasn’t a very good one.  Mainly because I wrote it the day AFTER we found out.  The excitement/fun had worn off and I had already started to worry. 

It was the Wednesday before Easter – I remember because I had my Easter Party with my preschool class the day before and had promised to call the school and tell them if I found out the sex of the baby at the ultrasound the next day. 

Jerry wasn’t excited.  He was more annoyed than anything else because he was “skipping” work to come to the ultrasound.  We had set it up so that he would still make it to work in time to have his weekly conference call with one of his higher ups, who knew where he was going and approved it and all, but Jerry likes routine and this was messing with his routine.  It didn’t help that we waited in the waiting room for a good 25 minutes after our scheduled appointment time had come and gone.  My mom had come to sit with the “big” kids and he was nervous we were keeping her from doing something, too. 

When we finally got back there, the ultrasound tech looked at me like I had 6 heads.  She just couldn’t understand why I was coming in at 18 weeks and not a few weeks later.  She sounded very pessimistic about being able to determine the gender.  I explained that the OB said I was measuring a little bit big and that she just wanted to check the size of the baby to make sure everything was ok.  The ultrasound tech didn’t even turn the screen so I could see as she started.  I wasn’t happy at all – I was actually feeling really disappointed.  Then I saw Jerry make a funny face from the bottom of the table.  I felt the ultrasound tech move from one spot to the other.  Jerry turned his head sideways.

“Well, honey, I know why you are measuring big.”  I think I held my breath here – waiting for some horrible news. “You are having twins!”

The next 30 seconds were a blur.  I remember Jerry’s initial reaction perfectly.  “Oh shit.” he said as he kind of crouched down and covered his face with his hands.  Then he rushed over to me…and the roller coaster ride began at the top again.

We learned from that visit that the twins had separate sacs and separate placentas.  Baby B was most likely a boy (she was 75% sure) They were most likely fraternal – not identical, but we were told that didn’t mean they wouldn’t look alike (they look NOTHING alike). 

We spent the next 40 minutes getting measured and measured again – everything looked great.  I remember the lady doing the ultrasound was the mother of twins.  She was showing an intern the “ropes” and that intern was a twin herself!  What are the chances?  We spent the car ride home trying to decide how to tell people.

Telling people was a lot of fun, actually.  We used pretty much the same approach with everyone.  They asked how the ultrasound went…we showed them one set of pictures.  They gushed over them – asking if we knew the sex.  We said no.  Then we would ask them to look up in the corner – they would then say, “Why does it say Baby A?” We would then whip out the second set of pics and say, “Because they are pretty sure that Baby B is a boy.”  This approach made both my parents cry and Jerry’s mom decide she needed a drink!  (she almost NEVER drinks!)

I did tell my brother and sister-in-law over the phone.  My brother-in-law was first and I just blurted it out because he sounded concerned about why I was calling him at work on a Wednesday.  My sister-in-law thought she didn’t hear me right when I said “they couldn’t tell on the first one”.  She said something about that being too bad but we would probably be able to find out next time.  So then I said something about how big Baby A was and that made her pause…and then ask me what the heck I was talking about.

Looking back, this was really a great day!  It was so much fun letting everyone know!  It was so much fun sharing that with other people.  The months that followed were rocky.  We had moments when we were sure we wouldn’t be able to do this.  Moments when we were in awe that there were 2 babies fighting it out in my belly.  Moments when we were scared.  Moments when we were excited.  It’s funny how all of that seems kind of silly now – now that we’ve been doing this for almost 7 months.  I wonder what we worried so much about.  It’s hard to imagine life any different than it is right now.  It’s hard to imagine life before I found out I was having twins.

That was almost a year ago – but I think I will always think about that day around Easter.  We were really celebrating new life that Easter – not only 1 new life, which were were expecting, but a second new life that was an amazing blessing!

*I apologize about the absence of some of the pictures in this post - I have no freaking clue what happened or what's going on...but I don't have time to fix it right now!  :(

It's not a bad thing that I'm not finding the time to blog about my weekend on Sunday nights - It usually means that it was a great weekend and I just don't have the energy or that I am really busy with my family and don't have the time. It's not a bad problem to have! So - here's the low down on what went down this weekend.

Saturday we celebrated my friend, Derek’s birthday.  He actually turns 30 this week – but with Easter coming and all we just celebrated this past weekend.  (I run into a similar problem with my birthday, too…it’s the day after his!)

The above picture is only really funny to those of us who are “in on the joke”.  You see, when these guys were younger – much younger – they would spend HOURS kicking a bean bag around to each other.  HOURS and HOURS, night after night - “hacking”.  Well, it got kind of dark and they just couldn’t see that darn bean bag as clearly as they use to…you know eyesight gets worse with age.  So, someone suggested they use a bigger ball.  Much bigger…it was actually hysterical to watch them kick this thing around a circle.  I was just worried that one of them was going to break their ankle or leg…you know bones get more brittle with age.
 
This is proof that I had a glass (or two) too many.  I was drinking wine and really (really) enjoying it.  Here I am towards the end of the night planting a big old kiss on someone who is NOT my husband.  (For the record, my husband is taking the picture – totally not upset, I swear!)

The next day (Sunday) we had an Easter Party to go to.  I must add here that my husband was amazing yesterday morning.  It was further proof of my two (or three) too many glasses of wine that I was having a really tough time getting moving on Sunday morning.  My husband was great!  Took care of the kids and let me “recover” a bit.  He even made everyone breakfast!  What a guy!

So – on to the Easter party. 
Unfortunately, it was raining – so the egg hunt took place inside.  Here are some pics from the party.

Danika (on the left) and my niece, Angelina (on the right) with their egg hunt bags!

Nate was lucky enough to only have one little boy with him in his age category!  His buddy Nicholas!  Boy did they ever make out with the eggs/candy!

My mom’s camera has a much better picture (one where it doesn’t look like I woke Dean up to take this this picture – even though I did).  I’ll have to get it off of her!


I have no idea what is up with the goofy grin. 




You will notice that there is no picture of Danika with the bunny.  This is where my Mama Guilt comes in.  She just wouldn’t do it.  No way – no how.  She was the same with Santa.  It’s not a big deal, really…but it’s not because I don’t WANT her to take a picture with these characters – it’s just that I DON’T want her to cry and scream any more than she already does.  I know that I shouldn’t feel guilty about not making her cry – but I kind of feel guilty that I can’t get her to not cry and just take the picture.  I mean I will have all these pictures of her brothers with Santa and the Easter Bunny (and hopefully Disney Characters some day) but none of my beautiful daughter.  I may have tried to make her take the picture, but I was holding a sleeping baby and there was NO WAY hubby was going to make her do something she didn’t want to…she has him totally wrapped around her finger.

Oh – and the prompt over at Mama Guilt w/Cop Mama was about picky eaters…I totally talked about that last week!  The Nutritional Habit of my Children!

That’s about it.  We ended the weekend eating dinner at my parent’s house and watching the Pens win in a shoot out.

We have a busy busy week ahead of us…so, I’m off to go get started.  First up – laundry…so we don’t have to wear the same underwear all week!  (BTW – I hate laundry…least favorite part is the putting the clothes away part…I hate to admit how much we live out of laundry baskets around here.)

 Never let it be said that my husband can't take a hint.  In this post I talk about how he isn't very romantic.  Then this morning this shows up:

Okay - so I actually didn't fall for any April Fools jokes today. However, I was kind of struck by how text messaging has made the art of fooling someone on April Fools Day sort of unimportant. Now anyone can send you a text and get you good - or if you are like me...at least make you think about it.

Case in point, my brother-in-law sends me a text today, "Lorrie called...looks like we are going to need that crib back..." Hmm...now, my sister-in-law physically could be pregnant. It's unlikely, though. I didn't hear him say these words so I can't tell you if he sounded like he was telling the truth or not...that makes this way too easy for him. I am then faced with the decision - A) Do I bite and then have him think that I am gullible just to avoid possibly offending him if he is in fact expecting another child? B) Do I call his bluff right away and then apologize like crazy if my gut instinct is correct? C) Do I make a joke back to him and, if it is an April Fools Day prank, have him trying to decide if I got it or not? It was a tough decision. However, I have a really hard time with my brother-in-law being 1 up on me...so I kind of called his bluff. I sent back, "Did you tell Jerry (my DH) yet? I'll let him decide if we should fall for this one or not. :)" He responded with, "Jerry fell for it hard - kinda figured you wouldn't."

Now, I have no problems with April Fools Day pranks. My friend in High School, Marci, once called me to tell me that her parents told her she had to move far away. I don't remember where but I do remember her calling me on the phone and telling me. She actually pretended she was too upset to talk and was "crying" on the phone. Her acting made me believe every word and I was more upset because she was moving than I was when that guy I dated Freshman year dumped me for a skank and then, after we got back together for a few months, dumped me for a taller skank with horrible teeth. When she called to tell me it was an April Fools Day prank I could have killed her...but I'll tell you what, she had talent. :)

This could be the beginning of a very long rant about how technology has totally screwed with the way things should be - but it would be a hypocritical one. There are sooo many things I love about technology. I love texting. I love that I can check on my kids while I'm working and no one will notice. I love that I can remind my husband he needs to pick something up on his way home before I forget yet without interrupting his day. I love the Internet. I love that any question I could possibly have I can find out the answer to...I also love that I can keep in touch with people so much easier and more often. So, you see I do love technology...but there are so many concerns I have about kids who don't know what it's like to not have some of these things. My number 1 pet peeve - text language. I hate the abbreviations...the missing words...the whole disregard for grammar. I hate it for a lot of reasons and I have to wonder if it's having an impact on student work in High Schools. I read an article, though - in some woman's magazine - about how a mother didn't understand the language and lingo of her teenage daughter. The daughter would look at her with those eyes of embarrassment when she would use words like "cool" or "dope" (I can honestly say I've never used the word dope in my life). This meant that her irritation with the whole texting thing was a product of her being old. (At least that's the message I got from the article.) Monday, I will turn 32...when I was 10 years old, 32 was really old. So...maybe that's it. Maybe I'm old. I still think that April Fools pranks over text message are kind of lame. hehehe

I am patiently awaiting my Control Journal in the mail - and my timer. :) In the meantime, I found that FlyLady has a Holiday Control Journal! I printed it out yesterday - printed one out for my mom, too. I also made my Christmas Card List yesterday! In Excel...I only need like 4 addresses. Crazy, I know...but I want to order cards with the kids pictures on it and I need to know how many to order.

So, yesterday I did a Weekly Home Blessing - it took me most of the day because of the kids...but I think I did pretty well. I changed the sheets, vacuumed, dusted and did a 27 fling boogie. I also listened to some FlyLady stuff on Blogtalkradio - which really helped me to get more motivated.

Anyway - I have to work today...so I'm hoping that the house won't be too tore up when I get home. DH will be home with the kiddos all day! Yikes!