Brittany's Blog

Babies 1st Christmas!!

2009-12-27T20:50:00.000-08:00

This year we decided to be sporadic and drive to Fresno to be with my family for Christmas Eve, and then back to the Bay Area for Christmas morning to be with Aaron's family. Many people think we must be insane to do such a thing with month old babies, but we decided to go for it. For Christmas my hubby got me a new Volvo SUV. I am happy to have a safe, yet sporty vehicle to lug all the baby stuff as well as the babies! Things were going well for us until we were ready for bed on Christmas night. I started feeling nauseous and Aaron complained of a sore throat and a major headache. Not long after I went to bed, I was up and sprinting for the bathroom. It seems like I had the flu (which annoyes me because I got the flu shot!)...I had to basically sleep on the bathroom floor. I was really upset about the whole ordeal because I did not want to get the babies sick. Thank goodness for Mother in Laws. She rushed right over and stayed up with the boys all day and all night. She cleaned, cooked, and made bottles and fed the boys every 3 hours!! We would not have been able to do it without her. I am feeling better but have a migraine. The boys seem to be doing well, thank God! I hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Long time no Blog!

2009-12-17T15:45:00.000-08:00

Well it has been quite some time since my last post. I had my boys' on November 27, 2009. I have barely had 5 minutes of alone time/peace and quiet since then. I am so exhausted but my boys are well worth it. The boys were born by C-section. Dylan James was born first...5 lbs. 13 oz. Brayden Tyler was second coming it at 6 lbs. 7 oz. That is pretty good for them being a month premature and the fact that my pregnancy was so high risk. Brayden had to stay in the NICU for a wekk. He had fluid in his lungs, and infection they couldn't diagnose, a heart murmur, and he simply wouldn't gain any weight. Now both boys are home and are thriving. You can already see that they have two different personalities. I must say I am a bit jealous that everyone says they look like Aaron. I really want them to have some of my features so people will know they are mine!! I never know I could love anyone as much as I love these boys. They are amazing and they have my heart. I feel like I have changed so much. Thank the good lord that Aaron took 6 weeks off of work. Without him here, I would seriously wig out! I have had a few melt downs but nothing serious. I really need some kind of help but all of my family lives 3 hours away. I am scared for January 4th when Aaron has to go back to work. Well I hear some grunts coming from the nursery so I guess my 5 minutes of alone time is up. I will try to update more often! Miss all of you bloggers!!

Puppy Love!

2009-11-23T15:58:00.000-08:00

How am I going to sell these? I am in love! I am a sucker for Pugs! These are two of Leila's babies!

The countdown Begins....

2009-11-23T15:02:00.000-08:00

8 months pregnant!

Not as big as I thought I was going to be!

Big Brother holding his little bros!

Holding their first pairs of shoes!

It is crazy to me that on Friday at 9:30AM I am going to be a Mom. I am not really sure if I REALLY believe it yet...it kind of seems fake. I have this big belly and yet I do not grasp the fact that two humans are in there and are about to come out. I know I feel uncomfortable and am delirious due to lack of sleep, but still. I just can't make myself feel that it is real. I am in for a big reality check on Friday morning!! I am excited but scared. I have never changed a diaper in my life. Thank God for my husband. He has a 5 year old son, and I am so thankful that he knows what to do with babies. I get so scared every time I hold one and they start to cry. Everyone tells me that I will just know what to do when they are my own and that you feel differently. I truly hope so. My hubby is taking paternity leave from work so that he can stay home and help me. I am so lucky because I do not think I could manage on my own. I am new to all of it. I can barely take care of the puppies that Leila just had!! I pray that God gives me guidance and strength through all of this. I am 25 years old and never imagined I would be having twins...let alone identical twins! Since the babies' due date is December 24 and they are coming by C-section a month early, I am not sure if they will be able to come home right away. Everyone is pretty surprised how big the babies measure on my ultrasounds and bets money that they will be able to come home right away. They are both already over 5 pounds each. But no matter what, we are prepared for whatever happens. Please keep us in your prayers!! =)

Down in the dumps

2009-11-06T12:27:00.000-08:00

Last night was such a hard night for me. The runt of the litter, whom I named Wilbur, passed away. He was smaller than the rest and was weak. We tried bottle feeding him and keeping him warm and I really thought it would help paying extra close attention to him. I snuggled him all day and really thought he was getting better. My mother in law came over to help and as she was getting ready to put him to bed, he took his last breath. I know people think I am a crazy lady for being so down in the dumps over a dog. But I seriously cannot stop crying. I cried myself to sleep last night and woke up this morning only to remember the puppy died and continued to cry some more. I bonded with that little guy...he was my favorite. I really hate he had to die.

She's a Mommy!

2009-11-05T07:18:00.000-08:00

On November 3, 2009 Leila became the proud mama of 5 beautiful baby pugs! Aaron woke up at 4am because he heard a noise and he discovered Leila had jumped onto our futon and had 2 baby boys! Unfortunately the futon along with Aaron's brand new shirt are ruined! I put Leila back in her birthing tub (Christian's plastic pool he plays in during the summer) and she delivered 3 more puppies! Aaron's mom and brother came over to assist around 5:30am! Aaron and his mom were like surgeons! They had string and tied the umbilical cords and then cut them! Leila was so tired that she was not tearing the sacks of herself, so Aaron was removing them! I told him he should become a Doctor! =) Now the puppies are 3 days old and I am in LOVE!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-02T18:52:00.001-08:00

Leila waiting patiently for the trick-or-treaters!

Our adorable Lady-Pug

Cousins: Titus, Silas, and Christian
Mario, Luigi, and the Bumble Bee Transformer

Christian at his kindergarten Halloween party

This year we decided to stay home and pass out candy because it was Christian's mom's year to have him for Halloween. We dressed Leila up in her Lady-Pug outfit, and passed out candy! Aaron and I got into a debate about the fact that he thought I was too stingy on the candy distribution and I thought he was over indulgent! I spent $40 bucks on Halloween candy and he was handing it out in massive handfuls. I took over and gave each kid 3 pieces....he said he hated trick or treating at houses like mine when he was a kid! Overall we had a great, relaxing Halloween! Hope you did too!

Prego Pug

2009-11-02T18:46:00.000-08:00

Check out how fat she got and how big her chi chi's are!!

Some of you may know our Pug, Leila is pregnant too. Her due date is November 5 and she is ready to pop! My mom's Pug, Barnard, is the father! (No it was not planned!!) It just so happened that Barnard was in town when Leila was in heat. (She only goes into heat twice a year by the way!) I am nervous that she is going to go into labor while I am at a doctor appointment or something! I pray she has a safe delivery and that she doesn't require a C-section. (That will cost over $1600 and we just do NOT have the money right now!)

One last Hoorah!

2009-10-27T10:15:00.000-07:00

My two favorite beans!

My twin fairy Mely and I

Just in case I went into labor Dr. DJ Sal was there to help!

My BFF Sandra and I aka Robyn Da Hood!

My husband was in LOVE with that mask!

I think my man is hot!

Aaron and I decided that we were going to go out for one last hoorah! before the babies' are born! Our friend Eric was having his birthday party at a local Mexican restaurant and then after dinner was over the place was to shut down into a club and there was going to be a huge Halloween party. I was down to go even though I am still supposed to be on bed rest, but my plan was just to hang out in the booth while Aaron could mingle! We had such a great time! I was a pregnant fairy and Aaron bought some cheesy old man mask that he was way too excited about! He wore the mask and his biker attire! I am glad we had one last night out!!

Scared to be a Momma

2009-10-27T10:05:00.001-07:00

Some friends of ours recently had a baby. Every time we go to visit them everyone tries to throw the baby at me. (My husband included). Not literally, but they say I need to practice and so they hand the baby to me. I absolutely 100% DO NOT feel comfortable at all! I feel like I am going to drop her, like her head is going to snap off and fall to the ground! It is inevitable that every time I hold her she screams like she has never screamed before. I instantly try to pawn her off on someone else because who seriously wants to hear a baby scream bloody murder?!?! Aaron is such a show off....he is usually the one who rescues me when she cries, and every time he grabs her she stops crying. He knows just how to hold her and just what noises to make. I know he is good at it because of his prior practice with his own child, but still. I am the woman, I should know what to do. Shouldn't my maternal instincts just kick in? I am 31 weeks and 5 days pregnant today. My boys' will be here within the next 5 weeks and I am scared out of my flippin' mind! Everyone says that I will know what to do when they are my own...but I am not so sure. Any helpful advice to ease my fears???

Poor Hubs

2009-10-14T11:30:00.000-07:00

My poor husband has been so overwhelmed and stressed out through this pregnancy of mine. He gets up early in the morning and heads off to work on top of picking up his 5 year old, catering to me, unpacking boxes, making food, redoing the babies' room, and cleaning. I feel bad that I am on bed rest and sometimes I just go against the doctors orders and clean the kitchen or make dinner for him, but it seriously drains me. I just wish my hubby could get a break before the babies come! If I had money, I would send him for a spa day! Any ideas that don't cost a ton of money on how I can show him he is appreciated??

Gap Kids!

2009-10-09T23:50:00.001-07:00

Please go to this website and vote for Christian for "Fan Favorite!" You can vote once a day! We appreciate the support!! Feel free to repost the link to help him out! =)

http://family.go.com/gapcastingcall/entries/Brittanycherise/51805838/

Baby Shower #2 South City Style

2009-10-08T11:09:00.001-07:00

Christian is so excited to be a Big Brother!

My amazing sister in law Crystal aka the party planner

My adorable hubby and I

The SLO crew came for my baby shower!

Get it? DOUBLEmint!!

My baby daddy! AKA Sperm haha

Famous Duos..the best baby shower game ever!

Oh my goodness I can taste it now...tiramisu MY FAVORITE!

I was blessed to have an amazing sister in law and mother in law to plan a second baby shower for me! It was at my mother in law's house in South San Francisco. It was so fun and laid back! As everyone came in they gave them a name tag and people had to chose a word that has to deal with babies or the birthing process. After they chose it, they were told that their new name would be the word! If anyone called them by their "real" name, they could steal that person's clothes pin! I was lucky enough to have the name "Poop" and my hubby got named "Sperm!" Christian came in and wanted to play so he was called "offspring!" (He still gets annoyed when you call him Christian...he says in a stern voice "My name is OFFSPRING!" (Too cute!) Anyway, we played some fun games and ate yummy food! My sister in law got me the best cake ever...TIRAMISU...my favorite! I have gestational diabetes but it didn't stop me! Thank you ladies for a great day!

Go Blue Sharks!!

2009-09-30T19:32:00.000-07:00

Tired after a long game!

Look at our number 2 go!!

I love that he is learning to be where the ball is!!

We signed Christian up for soccer for the first time. He really loves it! We are trying to teach him to be more aggressive! He is starting to understand the concept that it is okay to steal the ball from the other team! It is so funny watching the kids play! Some kids just lay on the ground and pick grass and some just stand there and spin! We are happy that Christian really wants to play!

Today's Frustrations

2009-09-30T17:53:00.000-07:00

I know I shouldn't sweat the small stuff at all! So I am TOTALLY NOT sweating it...but I needed a place to vent today and so I chose my faithful old blog!

FRUSTRATION #1

While I am driving to pick up my Steppie from kindergarten, a man in his 30's (who I can almost guarantee has no license or is not a citizen of the US) pulls out right in front of me forcing me to swerve into the other lane!! I throw my hands up like "what the heck pal?" He flips me off, and grabs his disability placard off of his mirror and starts waving it at me. I rolled down my window and chewed him a new one! I told him being disabled doesn't make it okay for him to drive like a freakin' idiot! He gave me the finger once again and even though I wanted to tell him what was really on my mind and show him how lovely my middle finger is, I decided it wouldn't be appropriate for my big prego self to act like that! So I rolled up my window and drove away!

FRUSTRATION #2

Doctors who cannot get on the same page. Being pregnant with identical twin boys who share one placenta make me high risk. Along with having gestational diabetes, I have a lot of doctor appointments. Today I was on the phone scheduling appointments that needed to coordinate with one another and lets just say it is a pain! Ultrasound appointments (every 2 weeks since they found out I was prego), diabetes appointments once a week, Appointments with my regular OB every 2 weeks, Digital cervix checks every 2 weeks, and last but not least, stress test appointments. Oh, did I mention that all of the appointments are at completely different places across the Bay Area? I am busier on bed rest than I was not being on bed rest. I wish that the doctors could give my hubs and I some answers. We want to know when we are delivering and how and where! Those seems to be 3 things we can never get answered!

FRUSTRATION #3

Craigslist! WTH is up with people who post stuff for sale and then you hit them up because you are interested in their item and they NEVER get back to you?!?!?! Even if it is sold, I would appreciate a quick email saying so!

FRUSTRATION #4

Is it really that hard for people to pick up the phone to call or send a text to RSVP? Or is it really that hard to send a quick email or a facebook message to RSVP? NO! It is NOT hard, people are just lazy or just simply unorganized. After planning my wedding I got a HUGE reality check about how people don't really understand the importance of an RSVP! My second baby shower is this Saturday and more than half of the people on the list have not RSVP'd.....Annoying!

Sunday Funday!

2009-09-27T20:36:00.001-07:00

Sunday always has wonderful evening time TV! Tonight two of my favorites are coming back on! Will you be watching! Oh we are oh so excited! What do you think is going to happen?!?!?

Stinkin' Cute!

2009-09-25T12:58:00.000-07:00

I love when I open a present and it is personalized. It makes it that more special to me because I feel that someone put thought into it. Today I ordered the cutest stuff from Shea! We have two little girl birthdays coming up so I ordered personalized aprons! They are too cute! I cannot wait until they get here in the mail! Then I ordered Christian a Big Brother Tee and the twins little Bro onesies! I can't wait until the boys are born so that all three of them can take some cute pics in their new clothes!

Babies' Room

2009-09-23T11:53:00.000-07:00

Rotted wood in the window seal

The colorful walls (the dark one is actually pink but it looks blue here)

The golf ball sized hole in the ugly shag brown carpet

more rotted wood

The ugly closet doors with the very bright and colorful walls

Well Aaron and I are finally moved into our new house. EXCEPT we still have a million and one boxes laying around that need to be unpacked. This house is such a mess and needs a lot of work and TLC. It sucks that we are just renting because we would love to put our sweat and our money into the house if it was OURS. Our first project is the babies' room. It is the largest room in the new house. The people who lived here before had 3 kids in the room and let them each paint a wall. We have a pink, purple, and 2 yellow walls. Not very cute! We are going to transform it into a cute little nursery!

Baby Shower #1

2009-09-14T11:02:00.001-07:00

I had the most fantastic baby shower on Saturday. My Aunt Cindy and my Mom put together a pretty awesome day for me. The shower was at Marie Callendar's in Fresno and we had a great turn out. I got more gifts than I could have ever imagined. I am definitely blessed and my boys' are already loved so much! I had the cake of my dreams compliments of Mish! She knows that I was most excited about the cake! I have gestational diabetes and have to stay away from sweets, but since it was a special occasion, I went to town! It was the best!!! Thanks to everyone who made me feel so loved!

Stress, Stress, & More Stress

2009-09-06T20:01:00.000-07:00

Do you think there is a problem with the water?

The landlord doesn't seem to think so....

We are in the middle of a move right now. I am pregnant and I cannot do much. My family is up here from Fresno to help. Let me just say this new house we have is a hot mess and everyone is in a bad mood. I don't think my husband has ever been a bigger jerk than he has been the last few days. I know he is 100% stressed to the max because of everything he is doing (and believe me he is working his butt off) but seriously....he needs to check his attitude. My husband has a serious case of OCD...so everything he does needs to be perfect. We have different priorities concerning this move which cause us to butt heads. We have ran into a few snags...the water heater is bad and the landlord refuses to think it is bad because his daughter who lived here prior to us moving in never had a problem with it. There are wood panel walls and sloppy paint everywhere. Today my mom and Step dad painted over a tacky looking green kitchen with a nice cocoa shade. Then my mom sanded down all the cabinets and repainted them so they look fresh and clean. Aaron dealt with the plumbing problems and his friend Matt and Kurt came to help. Aaron attempted to paint our room and it was hideous, so I had to come up with a lie so Home Depot would return the 45 dollar paint!! Hopefully tomorrow will go smoother. Thank God for the 3 day weekend....

Bed Rest-Day 14

2009-09-03T11:49:00.000-07:00

Well today I am not feeling so well. My back is achy and I have not been sleeping well at all which means I am extremely cranky! I cannot wait until we get a new mattress! That will be our next big purchase. I do not know what is going on with the Earth but it is hotter than it has ever been in South San Francisco. For all of you who don't know, the bay area homes do not come with air conditioners. We are living with one teeny tiny fan that frankly doesn't work worth a crap! My step dad and Mom were supposed to be driving up from Fresno today to help Aaron with the big move. Unfortunately my mom has the flu so my step dad will be coming solo. I am stressed out and frustrated that I can't do anything to help. There is soooo much that needs to be done at the new house as well as a ton of repairs and what not at our current house. We are stretched to the limit and I feel really bad for Aaron. I think the worst part of it all, is that I cannot be in control and that is something very hard for me to give up. Can you believe I just admitted that I am a control freak?? On a lighter note, yesterday I hit the 24 week pregnant mark. That means the babies are now viable. If they were to be born today they would no doubt have some major defects, but they could survive. I am happy that I made it to this point and now I am striving to keep them in another 6 weeks! I can do it if I just relax and pray about it. Did I mention we heard from the landlord?? It was a no go on the new carpet but his reasoning made me feel better about it. He just had triple bypass surgery and has been out of work for 4 months. New carpet is not in his budget right now and I understand that. He sent a cleaning crew to tackle the house and a carpet cleaner over there. I can't wait to check it out!

FINALLY-Some good news!

2009-09-01T09:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to see a new doctor who specializes in high risk OB. She checked out my cervix and said it has not shortened since they put in the cerclage! SOOO EXCITED! Both of the babies are healthy and kickin! They have both turned and are ready to come out so that kind of stresses me out because I was really looking forward to having a C-section! But I am really happy simply because now I am allowed to go to my Fresno baby shower. If the cervix would have opened more, then there is no way I would have been able to go! I am still on bed rest, but it is more of a "modified" type. I am still not going to do much just to ensure these kids stay in!

Sunday thoughts...

2009-08-30T15:00:00.000-07:00

Today I am breaking out of my house and going to my in laws who live like 3 minutes away. We are celebrating 2 birthdays. I have to go and lay down on the couch the whole time but am seriously happy to be breaking out of my house! I need a change of scenery bad.

Thoughts:

Why are these babies beating the crap out of each other in my stomach? I put my cell phone on my belly and one of them kicked it off! These boys arent even out yet and they are rambunctious!

My new landlord still has not replied to the email I sent him regarding the new carpet. UGH! WTH?!?!?

I need a long expensive pedicure BADLY! My toes are lookin' rough!

Peeve: WHY aren't people rsvp'ing to my Fresno baby shower? I just don't get it! I guess I am just so anal about rsvp'ing that I do it the day I get an invitation in the mail!

Hoping and Praying for Change!

2009-08-27T18:01:00.000-07:00

Aaron and I have already signed the rental agreement for our new place in San Mateo. Bigger house, nicer neighborhood and better weather, and WAY better schools. Our current landlord is so mellow and laid back. We fear that he new one is not the same. In my opinion he seems to fear change and seems to think that wood panel walls and chocolate brown shag carpet with stains that hasn't been changed for a good 20 plus years is suitable. We did sign the rental agreement but simply because we need more space for all these kids we are about to have! It was a reasonably priced property so we can't really complain! I sacked up and just sent this email to the new landlord! What do you think his response will be??

Hello John-

I wanted to thank you for giving Aaron the keys early. As he told you, I was admitted into the hospital so it seems as though he will be doing all of the moving and packing himself! We were discussing the house and were curious if you had ever considered getting new carpet or new flooring? We have a friend who works at Lowe's who said we could most likely get brand new carpet throughout the entire house as well as installation for under $1500. We plan on living in your house for a while and are only interested in doing repairs or upgrades that boost your property value. The conversation came up when we were discussing the fact that soon we are going to have two premature babies whose primary place to be will be crawling around the floor and we were just worried about it being clean enough and safe enough for them to do that. We really take pride in where we currently live and plan to do the same at your property. We don't want to bombard you with requests or demands, we simply wanted to throw it out there to get your feedback because we know it never hurts to ask! Hope you guys have a good weekend and hope to hear from you soon!

Thanks,
Brittany

Getting Sick of Bed rest-Day 6

2009-08-27T07:00:00.000-07:00

This whole getting NO sleep thing is really starting to irritate me. My back aches soooo much and it feels like it is just going to snap! I yearn for a new mattress. We sleep on the same mattress now that was purchased for me by my dad as I went into the 7th grade. I would say it is time for a new one. The next one will DEFINITELY be a King because I hate touching when it is time for rest. I am so indecisive about what I want....do I want a firm one or a pillow top? Ahh who knows! All I know is that I don't think the bed rest is helping out with the back pain. I day dream about being at Burke Williams Day Spa in the City! First I would have a milk bath and then I would have a Pure relaxation massage and probably add on a foot rub! I told Aaron as he left for work this morning that no matter what the cost, I WILL indeed be treating myself to that once this bambinos are born and are free and clear of any health risks. Today my caregiver comes. Aaron read the list I made for her and said I didnt sound very nice. I hope he was just being very critical and I hope she thinks I am not too demanding! I will update later to let you know how it goes! ~B