18 Week Belly

Almost half way! The boys are bell pepper sized this week, which is creating a dilemma for Striker since eggs with bell peppers are a breakfast food of choice.

I've been feeling the little guys moving around just about every day, but not consistently yet. I've actually been feeling them sporadically for a few weeks now, but wasn't sure. I'm going to be in big trouble in a few weeks as A is already practicing his tap dancing on my bladder.

Rule Breakers Unite!

http://m.cnn.com/cnn/ne/politics/detail/340540;.live7i

If this passes, y'all will get to be rule breakers like me, KFuj, and KT! Not that we'd ever break the law...

House Arrest

And the house arrest continues...my doctor won't let me go back to work or resume normal activity until the subchorionic hematoma that was on my last ultrasound is gone. Next ultrasound is in 2 weeks. I have to wait for the scheduled Fetal Diagnostic Center's ultrasound because they are the only technicians that have been able to find it - it probably helps that they have the newest and fanciest machines. Sigh. At least I finally got all of my disability paperwork so that amused me this morning :)

Ways to Make a Crazy Pg Lady Cry....

Send this picture to her and tell her that the boys are going to get a lot of nice stuff because daddy just won the "Pot of Gold". Instant tears. Seriously. I am NOT a crier. It's the aliens.

Since most of you are likely wondering, the Pot of Gold is a weekly side pot where the house (as in bowling alley) randomly picks 15 frames out of 30 that you need to bowl strikes in. You have to match all the strikes exactly. What you bowl in the other frames doesn't matter. I'd never be able to do this. It's super hard to do even for good bowlers, which is how the pot gets bigger each week.

Yay Striker!!!! The boys and I are proud of you!!!! Mommy can't wait to go shopping!

The Future of Coke

Striker is going to be making me take him to Jack in the Box in San Diego soon. Required reading. Coke is piloting a super fancy soda fountain that allows you to customize the regular soda flavors with different syrups. Orange Coke anyone?

I just wonder how much money they're going to lose while everyone stands there tasting every single flavor option in one visit? Obviously the novelty will wear off, but I imagine the testing/introductory periods will be very costly!

The new machines are currently only being tested in San Diego and Atlanta, so maybe the Funaholics can go be our taste testers before school's back in session?

Drive Up ATM

First, I want to go on the record as saying that I am THRILLED that the bank closest to my house is my bank or choice. However....

Why would they have this sign on the machine in the drive thru?! I'm hoping it's because they slap them on ALL of their machines.

More Frilly Dresses and Bows

Turns out that the "barrettes" were in the shape of bows...and in regard to the "poodle" perms...it was the early 80s. Sorry Auntie, but this was the best picture to show off my barrettes :)

3's of Me Compared to the Queen

This should almost be a shared thought...I'm only posting it because it's 3's :) The Queen's answers are first.

Three names I go by:
1. Queen's real name - Jennifer (pretty sure everyone figured that out)
2. QueenB - Jenn Ann (blog names)
3. Pies - Jenn (though we definitely need the Queen to explain Pies!)

Three Jobs I have had in my life
1. service manager - district sales manager
2. office manager - account manager
3. waitress - grocery store demo chick (yes I handed out samples like the 70 year old grandmas)

Three Places I have lived
1. Phoenix, AZ - Diamond Bar, CA
2. Redwood City, CA - Moreno Valley, CA
3.College Station, TX - Chino, CA

Three Favorite drinks
1. diet DP - currently Hi C Fruit Punch...I blame the aliens
2. champagne - ditto, though I do love some white wine!
3. water - ditto

Three TV Shows that I watch..
1. Top Chef - So You Think You Can Dance
2. Big Brother - ditto
3. Desperate Housewives - ditto

Three places I have been
1. Hawaii - nope, Cabo San Lucas
2. Australia - nope, Dominican Republic
3. um... we'll just say Europe - nope, lots of states - really want to go to Alaska and Hawaii!

People that text me regularly
*no one texts me... it's all bbm
1. Chris - Will
2. Kim - ditto, though KFuj and my sister probably bbm me more than any of these 3
3. Jenn - Queen B
**Though Pickle and Rachel actually do text me...just not as often as the BBMers

Three of my favorite foods
*can't limit to foods, so I'm doing categories
1. anything Chris makes - ice cream (the aliens tell me it's a food group!)
2. Italian - ditto
3. Mexican - ditto

Three friends I think will respond
1. Elizabeth (cuz she already has) - ditto :)
2. Andrea - ditto (assuming she meant ABBA)
3. Ryan - Paula or Mom Funaholic...depends on how many of the kids are sick or in the ER ;)

Three Things I am looking forward to
1. Aug trip to Phx - ditto
2. next softball game - the hubby's softball game
3. graduation - December!

Three things I did today
1. made coffee - loaded the dishwasher
2. did a personality quiz - took a shower
3. posted a note - had groceries delivered (such an exciting life!)

Three Favorite Bands/Musicians
1. Tupac... this just does not change - so not with QB on this one...polka (not a specific band or musician)
2. Miranda Lambert - or this one...but I do love country
3. Kelly Clarkson - ditto
*I like some variety, no? - ditto

Three things you might not know (although many of you do)
1. I love GH (really, who wants to hear that again?!) - ummm I like it, but not as much as the Queen...I love to polka with the hubby...one of the things I miss most while pg!
2. I'm competitive above almost all else - ditto
3. I can be the laziest person I know - ditto, though being forced to be lazy makes me want to do stuff

Bows and Frilly Dresses

As mentioned to Mom Funaholic, I dug out the really fun pictures of me in frilly dresses and bows. It appears I was a late adopter to the bows as all earlier pictures included some sort of barrette...perhaps I'll post those tomorrow...











Sorry for the weird formatting!

PB&J OCD

How do you make your PB&Js?

When making Striker's lunch today, I realized that I always make PB&Js the same way:
1) 2 slices of bread folded open so that they will evenly match up
2) PB first on the right slice
3) Jelly on the left side
4) flip PB side onto jelly side.
5) Smoosh together.

Is this "normal"?

17 Week Belly

And there is the belly that was MIA last week!

I love these pants since it appears that my rear has returned. Illusion or not, I'll take it!

It's going to bug me forever that the door is open on the left! See, the boys' room is the door in the middle (yes, it also just occurred to me that I've been taking the belly shots in front of the boys' room) and it's completely empty with clean carpet. The open door is Striker's office where just out of sight and blocking the door from closing is a dresser which will be painted and put in the boys room eventually. We moved it out so the carpet could be cleaned and Striker will be taking it down to the garage for painting this weekend. I'm waiting for the curtains so that I can match the paint colors. Room painting will likely commence next weekend. Not that I'll be doing any of the actual painting myself. :)

Big Brother Blog - Fashion Edition

So tonight the most distracting thing was the poor choice in attire for the 2 nominees and Julie Chen. It was hysterical the way that both Laura and Jordan kept adjusting their dresses at the beginning of the show and then throughout. I don't think Laura's dress could have been any tighter. Jordan's probably could have had a tad more support so she wasn't falling out the sides. And note to all the women now and those who will try out for future seasons. Do NOT wear strapless tops or dresses. It's distracting to watch you adjusting every 2 minutes.

JULIE CHEN - THEY MAKE MATERNITY CLOTHES - HAVE CBS BUY YOU SOME!!!! And I'd probably stay away from white for the remainder of your pregnancy...just sayin...In case you're wondering, she's due October 4th...I had to know - I love Google.

Bonus Belly Picture!

16 weeks, 5 days. Looks a lot bigger than the last one....not sure why that one looked so small. I'm convinced the boys have a growth spurt over the weekend though because I always feel bigger on Mondays. They must like it when Daddy is home. :)

The much anticipated doctor's appointment was this afternoon. I was literally 1 block away when they called me to reschedule because she had to leave for a delivery. The soonest they could reschedule me for is next Tuesday afternoon. Ugh! I can call everyday to see if they have any cancellations....yay. At least that will give me something to do.

In the meantime I continue bed rest and help these boys grow!

OctoMom Strikes Again

No, she's not pg again, thank goodness! But required reading here http://m.people.com/detail.jsp?key=1977117&rc=newsnow&cm=true1

Why didn't she just read the box (which likely said non-toxic or had instructions on what to do if swallowed) or contact the poison control center? Was the call to paramedics necessary? She could have driven herself to the hospital in under 10 minutes, which was probably less time than it took them to reach her. Maybe I'm wrong here, but you call the paramedics for: cardiac issues, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding, or if the person is unconscious and non responsive. Maybe if the kid was vomiting blood? She made it sound like an after thought "I didn't want to take any chances". What's going to happen when the octuplets are crawling around?

St Jude is the hospital that I am delivering at and also where my ultrasounds are done. Lord help her if she creates a circus there that interferes with one of my visits!

Sorry, no secret that this woman irks me.

16 Week Belly

So sitting around the house doesn't really make for great blog material.

The most noteworthy development this week (other than confirmation that the twins are boys) is that Oskar has grown super protective of me. Yes, I realize that this is rather humorous given that he weighs all of 12 pounds, but he uses his ferocious bark to scare away potential enemies. Of course, potential enemies are all noises heard from his post on the couch next to me. And then he barks continuously until I either yell at him loud enough or distract him with something really good. This has resulted in a headache several times this week. He has also returned to sleeping while touching me, evil pillow and all. Sigh.

I started crocheting baby blanket #1 today. Going with basic baby blue. It's the same pattern I've used before, aka the "Sydney" blanket. I'll post a picture of my progress sometime soon.

Kids Week on Jeopardy

The final Jeopardy category: Women Authors. Before the clue came up Striker blurted out "J.K. Rowling".

The clue: As a child, she liked to play witches & wizards with her friends Ian and Vikki Potter.

He then insisted that I high 5 him for that. Sigh.

Twins Regularly Scheduled Ultrasound

So one of the perks of a twin pregnancy is that you get tons of ultrasounds. Throw in a few "episodes" and you get even more! Even though I just had a super thorough ultrasound last week, the Fetal Diagnostics Center still wanted to see me this week.

YAY! This meant that Daddy Striker got to come for the first time in 8 weeks - poor guy, we let Grandma Barbie come to the 10 week, no one came to the 12 week, then there was the scary 15 week that GB got to come to as well, so finally Striker got to see them after 8 weeks. This meant that he was also there when we got confirmation that both are...BOYS!!!!

Yes, names have been selected, no we aren't telling until they are born.

Let's just hope that everything goes well and I have to wait the 4 weeks until the 20 week ultrasound.

Quote of the Week

Striker: Wow, I can really see it now (said while gesturing to the wife's belly).
Me: Are you calling me fat?
Striker: No, I'm calling you pregnant.

This is probably one of those times that you had to be there/here.

What's in Your Freezer?

This is not my freezer, but it belongs to a good friend. She actually encouraged me to post it. :)

Any guesses as to who lives alone and loves both ice cream and cupcakes?

Holy OG!

And the totals for my OG meal are:
2 breadsticks = 300 calories and 5 grams of fat
Half a boat of alfredo = 190 calories and 18 grams of fat
1 serving of salad = 350 calories and 27 grams of fat
1 bowl of pasta e fagioli soup = 130 calories and 2.5 grams of fat

Grand total = 970 calories and 52.5 grams of fat!!!!!

At least I can say I'm eating for 3! BTW, sodium isn't an obsession point for me since I'm not on high blood pressure meds like those I know, ahem, but I did stop what I was doing and send a BBM to Mr. KFuj to tell him to NEVER eat salad at OG, for fear it would give him a heart attack on the spot with it's almost 2,000 mg of sodium!!!!

Alternative Career Take 3?

Not sure how many alternative careers have been posted, but I'm adding another - the Hints from Jenn version of Heloise.

Participants:
-------------
Jenn,Brenda(better known as Auntie)

Messages:
---------
Brenda: So I'm at security checking in and my bag of liquids opens up and my foundation fell and broke on the ground
Brenda: Its on my pants, top and suitcase
Jenn: Ugh!
Brenda: And the stuff (edited from original version - this is a family blog!) doest wipe out
Brenda: I look retarded
Jenn: Shout wipe or tide pen?
Jenn: Don't rub
Brenda: I hope this isn't the start of a f#*@ up week
Jenn: Do you have time?
Brenda: I don't have any of the above
Jenn: Is there a mother with a baby?
Brenda: Nope
Jenn: We're looking for baby powder
Jenn: Um
Brenda: I will try tomorrow
Jenn: Only option is damp cloth
Jenn: Dab
Brenda: Didt work
Jenn: Must be a lot
Brenda: I board in 5 minutes
Jenn: Just soak when you get to hotel
Brenda: A bunch
Jenn: Club soda on the plane?
Jenn: Grab paper towels from the bathroom
Jenn: Stupid napkins won't help
Brenda: Good idea
Jenn: Thank you
Brenda: I will go grab some in bathroom now
Brenda: Thanks
Jenn: Apparently a new talent I offer
Jenn: Might make the blog
Brenda: Guy (this is a term exclusive to my aunt - sorta means "that's not nice, stop picking on me")
Brenda: :'(
Jenn: Under the premise of alternative careers

And really, I'm sure someone will have time to Google and will comment the perfect foundation removal method, but that was on the fly without time to Google! :)

OG, OMG

As of July 1st restaurants had to start posting nutritional information either on the table or on the menu (in 2011 it has to be on the menu). I have been completely obsessed on the 2 occasions I have dined out with reviewing the info for my regular selections. It's fun and horrifying at the same time.

Since KT had Olive Garden for dinner last night it sounded like a super idea for dinner tonight. Once seated and ordered, I immediately grabbed the binder of nutritional info and calculated the total calories and fat for my meal. Let's have y'all take your best guess on what I consumed in: 2 breadsticks and roughly half a boat of alfredo, 1 serving of salad, and 1 bowl of pasta e fagioli soup. I'll post the answer when either many of you have posted your guess or I grow too impatient.

BTW, I will never again order the Tour of Italy - 1450 calories and 74 grams of fat!!!

Twins - Week 15

First, please note that I got dressed specifically to take this picture for y'all. :) I am now once again in one of the hubby's t-shirts.

I have concluded that there are 2 reasons I don't look any bigger this week in this picture. 1) black is slimming and 2) I've been sitting or laying all day and the belly looks bigger after I've been walking around all day letting gravity do its thing.

Today was Day 1 of 13 on bed rest. I was bored by 8:30, but managed to find enough things to do to pass the time, and yes, napping was involved. Bianka FFSUing while having contractions filled some time as did the Big Brother premiere. Probably won't BBB every episode, just sporadically.

The lemons are now apples. Temp names are Fuji and Mac :) I guiltily ate sliced apples today until I justified that they were neither Fuji or Macintosh apples. Yes, I avoid eating whatever size food they are for that week.

I browsed Babies R Us and Target online today. Why are bottles so darn expensive?! I expected a fortune for diapers and formula, but bottles?! I asked KT for the rationale and unfortunately her BB was near death so we had to put that conversation on hold. Same with the Pampers vs Huggies debate - Pampers cheaper with Sesame Street characters vs Huggies with Disney characters.

With the now likelihood that both are boys, Striker and I began discussing names. We involved the Queen since she is good at naming stuff and she was surprised/baffled/astonished to learn that Striker's middle name is Martin, thus sharing the same first and last name as the Queen's dad and grand dad. (I suppose that if you don't know the Queen's maiden name or Striker's real first name, that was really confusing.)

What a Way to Go

Required Reading: http://mobile.reuters.com/mobile/m/FullArticle/CUSN/ndomesticNews_uUSTRE5676MP20090708

Clearly the agitator was a problem, but huge vat of chocolate? Give me a fondue fork!

I am NOT Normal

Sigh. Bonus ultrasound picture from today! You may remember 3 weeks ago when I said I wasn't getting another ultrasound for 4 weeks? Math doesn't quite add up. That's because I had my third bleeding episode and will likely be on bed rest for awhile. (I'm calling my doctor in the morning for the duration of this round.)

The good news is that the babies are super! They are measuring about a week bigger than they are and each weigh about 4 ounces. My mom met me for the ultrasound today because Will was an hour away and wouldn't have made it to the hospital in time. I clearly get my impatience from her because she asked the technician if she could tell whether they were boys or girls. The official answer was: "it's still too early to be sure, but if I were to give you my best guess, they are both boys. I see something, but then I don't. " We'll just have to wait a few more weeks to be sure!

Why not....

....just call it a heart attack in a tortilla?

Ode to my Bug Bites

Itchy and scratchy
Oh, how I hate bug bites so!
I am just too sweet! :)

2 hours later...

We finally ran out of fireworks and sparklers!!! We had 120 sparklers and learned that my mother in law is quite the pyro and rule breaker!! Striker and I had an assembly line going - I prepped them, and he lit them. It was definitely quite the extravaganza!

The Thomas Family joined us for the first half - we saved the good stuff for after they left ;) - and Sydney was quite the champ! She liked the sparklers and the bigger the fireworks, the better! I was totally impressed, especially since my 25 year old sister was more afraid than Sydney! :)

Added bonus: some people were in the park across the street shooting off Disneyland type fireworks. They had a ton of them and put on quite a show with only 2 brief intermissions when the Fire Dept drove thru the neighborhood and then again when the police cruised thru.

Happy Independence Day!

Last night I realized that our fireworks did not come with a Sensible Sam bag like last year. I was concerned that we might not celebrate safely and responsibly without Sensible Sam's tips. ;)Thankfully there are tips on the back of the box.

#1 - Observe local laws. Use good common sense and always read and follow the directions on each firework. - Are they sure that the average Joe still has common sense? They might as well just say don't be stupid! Clearly open to interpretation.

#2 - Never point or throw fireworks at another person. - I know several people who do not follow this rule. They are the reason that I fear flowers. I have a feeling there may be deliberate violation of this rule tonight.

#3 - Use only State Fire Marshal-Approved Fireworks. - This one is easy. I'm not going to Mexico or an Indian Reservation. I will gladly go to the TNT stand less than a mile from my house.

#4 - Only use fireworks outdoors, away from homes, dry grass, or trees. - This one proves that they don't believe that #1 was explanatory enough for those "with" common sense.

#5 - Put used fireworks in a bucket of water and have a hose ready. - Hose ready, check. We just hose them all off before tossing them into the trash can.

#6 - Have an adult present. - Someone 18+ or someone that is actually responsible? I feel they should specify further. ;)

#7 - Light only one item at a time and keep a safe distance. Many fireworks come with a fuse that glows in the dark. Use a flashlight when lighting the firework. - One at a time? That's not fun. Do they need to tell you that the fuses glow in the dark? Flashlight? Haven't they heard of streetlights? Wait I live in cow country, some places have no streetlights. I'll give them a pass on this one.

Beware of the Crazy Pg Lady

While playing cards tonight, my uncle (the one who eats like a 5 year old) grabbed a ding dong out of the fridge and sat it on top of his Mt. Dew can right next to me. It looked tasty, so I snagged it, took a bite, then gave it back.

Somehow he was astonished by this, and sat there staring at it. Then my mom (sitting on his other side) grabbed it and took a bite. Then my aunt did. Since it was half gone, I took another bite, then my mom, then my aunt. Baffled, my uncle went to the fridge to reload, only to find there weren't any cold. He stuck one in the freezer and I felt less guilty in about 10 minutes when he ate it in the safety of the kitchen. :)

Warning: CPL has her appetite back!

14 Weeks....Hello 2nd Trimester!

Note to self: At least in these pants I have slightly more butt.

Exciting things happened in the last week! I successfully stayed up until 9:00 PM every night (some nights even a little later) AND I suddenly got very hungry. Like my typical meal size that I've been eating for the last year that left me satisfied? Still hungry when I'm done. I've also finally gained a pound - woo hoo!

I was also told several times that I was looking pregnant. Some deliveries were better than others ;) but I got the idea and took it as a compliment.

The shrimp are now lemon sized and are (allegedly) making facial expressions, (potentially) sucking their thumbs, squinting, and urinating. We're super excited to see them do stuff in 2 weeks! Bring on the lemon names!

I also had the revelation while getting my rings cleaned at their 6 month warranty check up, that the next time I did that, I'd have 2 small infants with me. Maybe I'll just send Striker with the rings :)

I'm puzzled and perplexed as to why I chose to stand facing that direction for the weekly pictures. Why not show off my right side?