The Bridges' Boys

Trent was right! We are having two boys.

Tomorrow I will post a few pictures from the ultrasound.

Daycare, Mother's Day Out, Nanny - Oh My!

So many options…So many decisions

Finding the right child care situation is such a big decision.

• Who do we really want caring for our children?
• Are they qualified?
• Will they love and nurture them like us (well no, but can they get close)?

I've been asking around about what has worked and not worked for others hoping to shed a little light on the subject, so anyone who I haven't heard from please feel free to leave a comment.

The thought of our newborns in daycare for 50 hours a week, along with many other babies, waiting their turn to be fed and changed is hard for me to accept. I just don't feel it's the optimal option for us right now.

I'm all about daycare when they get older. I truly believe that the social interaction that they get from daycare is essential, however, it isn't necessary during the infant stage.

We are blessed to have family around that are willing to nurture, love and care for their needs. Mom has graciously offered to keep the kiddos a couple of days a week and I'm leaning toward Mother's Day Out for the other ones. Now to just find the right Mother's Day Out. We still have some time to figure this out, but I know that time will fly by.

My friend put me at ease when she said "it's hard to think of someone else with your children but trust you Mommy instinct, Mom's always know best." Thanks, Michelle!

Baby A and Baby B

Baby A and Baby B still seem like a figment of my imagination. Even though I know they are in there, until I actually see them at the ultrasound, it still seems a little unreal. Can two lives really be inside me?

A friend of ours had a baby girl on Monday. Her new born pictures were so precious. It's still hard for me to grasp the fact that two of those are going to come out of me!

We find out the sex of the babies on Tuesday! Baby A and Baby B will finally have names (or at least we can start narrowing down the list anyways).

If you haven't voted for what we are going to have you only a few more days.

We are officially in countdown mode!

Father's Day

Our families gathered together on Saturday to
celebrate our Fathers.

Clay and Dad…thank you for being such wonderful figures in our lives. We wouldn't be where we are today without each of you!

Dad surprised us with a front flip off the diving board. In the 33 years I've known the man, I've never seen this before. Dad, you never cease to amaze me.

Trent, of course, couldn't be out down by my Ole' Man...

Here are more pics from the day.

Sabrina, Mom and Laynie

A race across the pool.

Blake

Mom and Me

Kathleen and Sabrina

I'm sure our children will never be shy in front of a camera with Trent as their Dad!

Happy Father's Day (to be) to you, Trent.

I love you!

The Belly Rub

Those who've been pregnant before can appreciate this one, other's probably not so much.

Belly Rubbing by Me:

I used to always wonder why women would touch their pregnant bellies while posing for pictures. Case in point…




Do they really think we can't tell that they are pregnant without pointing it out?

Well, I catch myself doing the same thing. Not necessarily while posing for pictures, I don't find myself on the red carpet too many times, but at other random moments. It's out there, it feels a little weird and it completely throws off your posture (I can't even imagine what I will say about this topic in another couple of months when I'm gigantic).

I also find myself holding my belly in the middle of the night. When I wake up for the second time to go to the bathroom there is my hand holding my belly. Maybe I'm just saying hi to the little ones!!

Belly Rubbing by Others:

It's only happened a couple of times, once was from Mom while she asked me if anyone has touched my belly. Now that it's a little more obvious (no matter how much I suck it in, it's still there) I'm sure it will happen more often. When someone reaches for my belly is it rude if I pull away or is it part of being pregnant, you just have to stand there and take it while strangers touch your belly. Hmmm...

Names for the Grandparents

These days, there are a million different names out there for Grandparents. When I was a kid we called them Grandmother, Granny, Grandfather and Grandad. That was it. No Mee Maw, Papa, Pee Paw, etc.

As for my parents, their names have already been decided and have been in use for 13 years. Mimi and Grand are here to stay.

I do love Pops, but I refer to my Dad as Pops so that one is taken.

Maki, Nona, Gi Gi, Oma, Grams, Poppi, Mummi - there are some really odd names out there.

So Grandparents, put on your thinking caps. This isn't something you pick lightly; it takes a lot of thought and consideration and will stick with you FOREVER. Remember, your grand kids will fondly refer to you on the playground with their best buddies. Do you really want them to tell their friends that they are going fishing with G-Pa?

Party Time

On June 11, we hosted a party for Trent's office; we had around 50 guests.

This date has been ringing in the ears of many for the past month or so as we've prepared our house for the big event.

"Dad, can you have the pavers laid by June 11. Also the shutters painted and the light switches changed out." His list goes on and on.

"Mom, can you get my draperies made by June 11." Her list also goes on and on.

"Clay and Lloyd, can you provide a whole lot of manual labor, and since you are both electricians, how about you install the transformers for our pool lights."

We thank the many family members who helped with our house, which looks great considering we moved in 7 months ago. It is starting to look and feel like home. Now that we have these projects behind us, maybe we can relax on the weekends and just focus on these babies.

Here are a few pics of the backyard before the party. Thanks everyone for all your help. We could not have done it without you!

Due Date Change

Having twins means I will carry them 3 weeks less than a singleton, therefore, my new due date is November 8th. Babies will be here just in time for Thanksgiving!

If we do a c-section we get to pick their birth date, assuming we make it all 37 weeks.

Which date do you like...

11/8/10
11/9/10
11/10/10
11/11/10

Decisions. Decisions. And here I thought picking out a name or two was hard enough.

The Long Run

In January of 2009, my good friend talked me into training for the Oklahoma City Memorial Half Marathon. A few weeks into training, I roped my cousin (and good friend) Angie into joining the group as well. Our fearless leader, Kristi, offered brunch after each Saturday training run and who can turn down girl time and breakfast once a week. It was therapy like no other. Not only was the running therapy, but so was the weekly girl time. I looked forward to it every week. April came around and we finished the Half Marathon despite the conditions, which were hot and sticky. We said we would run it again next year, but might consider running the full marathon instead.

In January of 2010, Kristi informed us that she was going to train for the full marathon. Angie and I decided that we would buck up and train for the full as well. Plus I figured kids would be coming soon and this might be the last time for awhile that I would have this much time to myself. We trained in sub-freezing temperatures, snow and rain.

In February, Trent and I decided to quit trying not to get pregnant and just see what happens. I really didn't think it would happen so fast. I found out on April 1st that I was pregnant and after a lot of thought decided that I wouldn't run the full marathon. I did, however, run a couple of 18 milers and a 20 miler while not knowing I was pregnant. Although I didn't run the full Marathon this year, I was proud of my other accomplishments. One of these days I will add the extra 6.2 miles to that 20. Here is the picture of the treadmill I took right after I finished 20 miles.


I followed my running buddies on the course the day of the race; the finish line was bitter sweet. I was so proud of my friends for their accomplishment and a little sad that I wasn't there beside them, while at the same time so happy to be pregnant. I have learned during my short stint of pregnancy that it's all about sacrifice…sacrificing my body, my time, my emotions, etc. I know motherhood will be even more of a sacrifice.

A friend from High School writes a blog and I really enjoyed this article on the parallels between running and parenting. If you are a runner check it out.

The forbidden (fill in the blank)

These days, I think the only thing a pregnant woman is allowed to eat is broccoli. Ok, so there's more than just broccoli, but sometimes it feels that way.


I believe on the forbidden list is lunch meat and hot dogs (who knew), cheese such as blue cheese, feta and brie (some of my favorites), raw fish (oh, how I miss sushi), raw eggs (no Caesar salad here), and of course alcohol.


I recently learned of non-alcoholic beer and it has become a touchy subject in our house. Sometimes I just miss the taste, the smell...really I do! It's amazing how bad you want something when you can't have it. While non-alcoholic beer and wine don't contain much alcohol, they still have a bit (less than 0.5%).

I figure our parents and grandparents smoked, drank and took over the counter pain medication harder than Tylenol and we all turned out ok, for the most part anyways. Can one non-alcoholic beverage every now and then harm anything? I'm off to the doctor tomorrow and on my list of questions is "can I or can't I". To be continued...

Men at Work

One thing is for sure about having a party at your house...it makes you get things done.

We had some help this weekend getting the backyard in shape. Thanks to Trent, Clay and Lloyd, a lot of rock was moved from the driveway to our flower beds. Now Bailey no longer has the luxury of rolling in the flower beds and then transferring as much dirt as possible into the swimming pool. Here are a few pics from the day. Trent somehow escaped the camera.

Thanks guys, I owe you one (or two)!

Birthday Bash

We planned a surprise party for Mom's Birthday. Thank you Angie and Bryan for hosting!

Here are a few pics from the evening, courtesy of Kathleen.

Mom's grand entrance.

A couple of cool kids.

Some of my favorite women.

Yummy!

Laynie all grown up.

Mom directing us to sing louder and faster,

"you are at a party, not a funeral."

Hail Storm from Hell

I'm at a loss for words these days, so I apologize for my lengthy pause.

Since the hail storm on May 16, we've been completely consumed with the cleanup, and all it entails. After 30 large lawn and leaf trash bags our yard is somewhat free of leaves. Here are a couple of pictures taken right after the storm.






Dealing with the insurance company is never fun, but at least we've almost completed the process. A new roof and paint job are next on the list. I will be so happy to get rid of the green paint!

We are hosting a party for Trent's office next Friday and are expecting around 50+ people. As you can imagine, we've been working in high gear to get all our home improvements completed. The hail storm certainly slowed our progress a bit. Now we (Trent and me) just have to spread about 6 tons of rock in our flower beds. I'm sure this will be a fun project! Let's just hope it isn't 100 degrees on Saturday and Sunday.

Next Friday can't get here soon enough. I plan to do nothing next Saturday and Sunday. Someone please hold me to it!