Another Trip to the Hospital

Steph spent another few hours this afternoon and evening in the hospital. Everything is okay ... her uterus is quite jumpy these days, however. She continued to feel contractions last night and this morning and decided to call the doctor - who had her come in to his office for an ultrasound to check her cervix. The great news is that she is not dilating ... but she was having minor contractions about every 2 minutes. After a lot of monitoring, a couple more shots of medicine in the arm(s) and a prescription for some "uterus relaxing" medicine, we were able to finally come home.
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As of right now, Camden is winning the race to be the first born. During the ultrasound we could see his head bumping his momma's cervix. I'm "not-so-secretly" hoping he's born first so Harper can have two BIG brothers watching out for her.

Early Contractions

Steph had her first non-stress test (fetal monitoring) this morning. What was routinely, an hour appointment turned into 4 hours as we learned Steph is having minor contractions. She's scheduled to have two stress tests per week and one doctor's visit each week. But if she continues to have contractions (more than 5/hour) she'll be back in Labor and Delivery (L&D) more often. She had early contractions with Carter and had to take a pill to help slow them. The babies are doing fine - just pushing their momma to her limits. Please pray that all goes well.

Crack Up

Carter continues to crack us up - this has almost become a daily achievement of his. Today's daily crack up ... We got out and ran some errands this evening. We made our way to Target for some stuff and then needed to stop by Braum's (ice cream / fast food / small grocery) to pick up some milk for Carter. About a week ago I took Carter out for some dessert at Braum's (introduced him to mint chocolate chip ice cream). Well, as we were sitting at the stop light, waiting to turn into the store, I guess Carter recoginzed and remembered Braum's and started shouting (repeatedly), "Zerts!" (Carter code for dessert). So we decided to make it a stop and treated him (and ourselves) to a night of dessert. We really love this stage of Carter's life right now - but it's all going way too fast.

Scaredy Cat

Steph and I are beginning to wonder if Carter is going to be a "scaredy cat". He has shown signs leading towards this ... Our youth group takes a little break from regular stuff and meets at a family's house during the summer who has a big pool. Carter and Steph come each week cause Carter loves to "fim" (of course, Carter code for swim). Now this family has an atypical yard for suburban OKC. They have a lot of mature trees that surround their pool and the occasional leaf or flowering bud falls in the pool. For the past two weeks, Carter has decided that he is deathly afraid of leaves and little purple flowers floating in the pool (outside the pool, they're okay). If one is about to touch him, or even in sight in the pool, he begins to yell until I am able to remove the monsterly item from his sight. there are lots of other things that seem to frighten him these days too. Hopefully this is just a phase, but looks like for now, at least, we've got a "scaredy cat".

Safe For Kids

A friend sent me a link to a website that allows you to "rate" your blog. So I did, and received a "G" rating. So now we can all feel safe to enjoy the reading.

Ultrasound

We visited the doc this morning and had an ultrasound. Everything looks good. Camden and Harper both weigh (estimate) just over 4 lbs. Harper is actually measuring three days bigger than her brother (must be getting some "girl power" from her mama). It's a little crazy to think that Carter only weighed about 6 1/2 lbs. at birth and today (6 weeks until birth), Steph has almost 9 lbs. of baby inside of her. Things look to be a little crunched in there too, as Harper had a foot positioned up by her head (mama's not the only one who is uncomfortable these days).

Steph is doing good also. Blood pressure was a little higher than normal (but still good). She begins non-stress tests next Monday and will have these twice a week until birth. For all of you pregnancy illiterates - all this means is that she will be hooked up to some fetal monitors for about an hour each visit to monitor her and the babies. This may be a little too much information ... but is an important prayer request ... Steph's cervix measured a little shorter than last time and is getting close to the point where she might have to go on bed rest to prevent premature labor. Please pray that all continue to goes well.

Big Weekend

Carter and Steph are back home in Piedmont! Carter had a blast - his Nonna bought him a bunch of new toys (his favorites are his new "pew" - computer, his piano, and his very own tools). He also got to ride the tractor and spread rock this weekend with his Papa Harvey. Steph said that he couldn't get enough of the big tractor - so much that he fell asleep twice while riding it. He also got to ride a toy tractor at a friend's house ... I'm surprised he let Steph bring him home ... he did miss his drums, however.

Finished Painting ... Almost

I was able to get Carter's room and the nursery painted tonight. I'm glad that's over - I thought it was going to be way more fun than it actually was. Luckily, both rooms aren't very big and it didn't take too long. I also didn't spill any paint, which is a very good thing - I have a track record for spilling a little bit, at least. We've only got our bathroom left to paint and the whole house will finally be painted - I'll try my best to put this off as long as Steph will let me. Steph and Carter are in Lone Grove this weekend visiting family and friends ... and I'm missing them very much. It's funny how you think you're going to get more sleep, when the "natural" alarm clock is away from home, but it's much more difficult to even sleep when the two of them are away.

Little Drummer Boy

Carter has a new passion. Actually, he's been pursuing his dream to play drums now for about ... 2 months. Each time we pick him up from daycare he asks to visit our youth room at church to play the "bums" (Carter code for drums, of course). He has a little drum set at home that he loves to play, but nothing compares to the big drum set at church. I see a lot of "noise" in our future.

The Weed Empire

Wednesdays have become my day to mow the lawn ... or to put it more accurately ... mow the "Weed Empire". The sod our builder laid only caught in a few places (which are growing quite nicely), but the majority of our lawn has been overtaken with weeds. Those of you who know me, know how much this is driving me crazy. I love my lawns and hate weeds. And with all the rain we've got in OK this summer, I haven't been able to do anything about it. Steph and Carter are going to Lone Grove this weekend, however, to visit family and attend a friend's son's birthday party. This is my cue to kill the weeds. I can't wait to drown them all in poison and hopefully get started on the recovery of our yard. I especially hate that Carter has an incredibly horrid backyard to play in (not that he cares, but grass is so much softer than weeds). I also have plans this weekend to paint the nursery and Carter's room. I hate painting, but am looking forward, actually, to painting all the kids' rooms. It's going to be a very busy weekend.

Is Summer Really Almost Over?

Steph visited the doc this morning and checked out okay (no fun baby stuff or anything). Her iron has been testing just below average, so she's been taking vitamins and returning for check-ups every month and today she's above average - so no more testing until, probably, after the babies come.

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Our high school students at church are leaving for camp next week - which is crazy because camp usually signifies the end of summer. And for Carter, Steph, and I the end of this summer means two additions to the family. It's all gone so fast - I can't believe we're only 6 weeks away from seeing the twins. We have an ultrasound next Wednesday, which we're looking forward to (love to see those kids).

Thank you all for your continued support and prayers - this is quite an ordeal for us and we're glad ya'll are taking this journey with us.

Home Grown Tomatoes

Some family friends that Steph, Carter and I lived with (The Boone's) while we were so patiently waiting for our home in CA to sell, have begun harvesting vegetables from their garden. They dropped some tomatoes off at church this morning and I can't wait to slice and begin eating ... reminds me a little of growing up in Indiana and harvesting my great-grandma's garden (even though I didn't like tomatoes back then - mostly just the corn and green beans). The picture doesn't do this "raised garden" justice either. It's at least 400 square ft. in area and is holding probably 1500 cubic ft. of dirt (the soil at their house is not conducive to gardening). Carter and I helped construct the garden (Carter mostly dug holes and played in the dirt with their daughter, Jessie), and are still a little sad it didn't make the new "7 World Wonders" list.

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We're all starting to get over our illnesses, finally. Steph's is probably dragging on the most - but her body does have a valid excuse for taking a little longer. Her mom spent the weekend with us again, helping out with Carter and around the house ... another wonderful blessing.

Oops ...

I was checking out the settings here on the Blog and noticed that I had accidentally checked a box that wasn't allowing comments to be posted. That is my mistake ... and I think it's fixed now. Steph and I love to read comments when they're posted ... so please comment away.

Code Brown

Oh, the joys of parenthood. And the story begins ... Carter got to have corn on the cob for dinner (his new favorite vegetable) and of course he's the cutest site after eating it, but also the messiest. So we give him a bath after dinner tonight and as we're finishing up ... he proceeds to squat ... and next thing we know, we've entered "CODE BROWN". I quickly scoop him out of the tub and yes, yell "CODE BROWN" to Steph. ***We had a friend recommend this code language so we could stop and jump into action.*** Steph was on the phone, but knew another appointment was more important. She took Carter and finished cleaning him up and I finished "cleaning" the tub. The things you do in love.

And to think ... in a couple of months ... with three "CODE BROWN" possibilities looming ... we might be calling some of you in for help with reinforcements.

Antibiotics (times 3)

As of sometime this afternoon, everyone in our household will be taking antibiotics. Carter received his prescription first, I got mine second, and Steph's doctor is calling hers in today. We will be a healthy household sometime in the near future.

Steph's mom and stepdad spent the night at our home on Tuesday to help out with Carter and to let Steph and I lay around in bed all day on Wednesday ... what a wonderful help that was ... because there still seems to be little that can slow that boy down. Steph and I realized last night that Carter is beginning to grow up into a little boy. Everyday he begins to do more and more "little boy" things. It really is incredible how fast they grow up.

Energy and Chinese Food

We're all still feeling a little under the weather around the house. The biggest problem with these colds is that whatever Steph and I are fighting has zapped our energy ... and it seems that Carter's cold / allergies have boosted his energy level beyond radioactive. He hasn't missed a beat. Which we are very thankful for - just wish we could catch up with him.

Steph and I had a "something we miss about California" moment last night. We decided to grab some Chinese food for dinner and had been recommended to a certain place by a few people. Strangely, Oklahoma has a lot of really good Chinese places, and this was one of them (Speedy Wok) - loved the Beef Broccoli. I had thought, however, that Speedy Wok was a "fast food Chinese restaurant". Fast food Chinese was everywhere in Corona, but we have yet to find a place here in OKC. Fast food Chinese reminds you of a buffet (food's already prepared and waiting for you behind a glass counter), but the server behind the counter scoops up your food and puts it in a wonderfully fashioned styrofoam container (more food than you care to look at too). We'll keep looking for just the right place for Chinese here in OKC - a place where the food isn't so fresh.

Visited the Doc Today

Steph had a doctor's appt. this morning. It was a quick visit - everything checked out okay (she is measuring 34cm ... doctor said that mom and babies seem to be growing well). He has scheduled another ultrasound for June 25 to get a more accurate look at the kids and very shortly thereafter Steph will begin visiting the doc twice a week for stress tests. She is still feeling quite a bit of discomfort and lower back pain (and now has a head-cold) ... I will make sure to show this to Harper and Camden in a couple of years to let them see what their mom endured for them.

Carter's mystery rash seems to be drying up which is great. He loves to help us put lotion on his boo boos, but hates to take his medicine. He and I washed the cars (sorry - car and minivan) last night and he had a blast. Normally he hates getting water on his head and in his face ... but there's something about it coming out of a hose that makes it okay ... he's such a boy! We love it!

Under the Weather

Everyone is feeling a little under the weather around the house today. Carter has a little ear infection and has developed a rash from an allergic reaction to something - so he's on antibiotics and a cream for his rash. He also reached out and touched a hot pan for the first time this evening (we all cried with him - it hurt bad). Steph is feeling some pressure and continues to feel a little discomfort. And I'm having some sinus problems. It figures the first full day it hasn't rained in almost three weeks and we're not able to enjoy it. But we've got the BIG, Piedmont fireworks festival (rescheduled from last week) tomorrow evening, so we're ready for an exciting day.

June Bug Capitol

Carter and his mama had a good scream together last night. Apparently, Piedmont, OK is the destination capitol of the world for june bugs (they're everywhere - and love to greet us in our garage when we pull in at night). We got home late last night and Steph was getting Carter ready for bed when they both noticed a june bug crawling up his arm ... needless to say now that they both let out a giant scream (Carter's partly due to his mama's scream I think). The funny thing, however, is that last night after the "bug incident" and even today, Carter keeps holding out his hands and saying, "Bug!", thinking one is still crawling up his arm (creepy crawlies at 20 months - pretty funny). Right now, at least, I don't think Carter likes bugs.

Carter's New Favorite Band

Carter has a new favorite band (here he is watching them). Just yesterday morning he couldn't live without Miles and his Sesame Street band. But yesterday morning Carter caught glimpse of a new band playing on Good Morning America and a new love was born ... a love of, "The Fray". Luckily we were able to rewind the show and record them playing two songs, because Carter loves them.

Lions and Tigers and Triple Strollers, Oh My!

Have you ever seen a triple stroller? And no, you didn't see it in the last winter olympics performed by an ice skater. And yes, it's a real thing. It's a stroller made for three kids. Steph has been shopping these things for a little while now and I took a close look at some of them for the first time last night. You've got to be kidding me. These things are about 4-ft long and weigh, no joke, 30-lbs (and that's the light ones). The price on these things is comical too. I realize their as big and durable as a hummer, but do they really need to cost as much. On sale, these things run about $900. Needless to say, we're shooping ebay and other auction sites in hopes we come across one. But we're more and more coming to the realization that we're probably just going to have to trust Carter will be able to walk beside a double stroller (yes, comical too ... but a little less comical than the triple) and not climb the shelves at the store or run off when he sees a row of bikes (we're in trouble). Sure, a triple stroller isn't on our necessity list - which right now seems like a good thing. But for those of you who know our son - you understand our need to keep him strapped in to something.

Boys in the Dirt

Here is a picture of Carter and his cousin, Jasper playing in the dirt their Papaw shovelled to fill in some holes in our yard. What the picture doesn't show is the, now empty holes and the dirt back in the driveway and street.

Missing Jasper

My family left town this morning to head back to Kentucky ... and Carter sure is going to miss his cousin Jasper. Carter had a rough night's sleep last night and at one point woke up calling out his cousin's name. It was the cutest thing - and the saddest too because Jasper was sleeping and he didn't understand why he couldn't play with him. Steph and I are hoping that Carter is as awestruck with little kids as he is with big kids ... because if he is, he'll make the best big brother. I'm hoping to get some pics of the boys playing together uploaded real soon.

Twin update: Steph is really starting to feel the strains of pregnancy with twins. She's finding it more and more difficult to get comfortable at night and the babies have started wrestling and jockying for best position now - they're squashing every major organ in her body. We return to the doctor next Monday for a checkup. During our last visit, the doc placed Steph on Stage 1 Bed Rest. Stage 1 just calls for limited activity and a bit more rest.