19 Weeks

We only thought the first trimester was over…

I had planned to go to a bridal shower on Saturday, but went to the Emergency Room instead. It is all those tricky twists and turns that make life so interesting. Before anyone gets worried, Mom is fine, and after 10 hours in the ER, we discovered the boys are perfectly fine too. In fact, true to his previous self-revelations, Baby B was jumping around trying to instigate a fist fight with his brother – perhaps trying to negotiate a little more space.

For the sake of discretion, hereafter is the abridged version of events. I awoke on Saturday experiencing some not-so-nice symptoms. These not-so-nice symptoms kept Mom and Dad busy until the wee hours of the morning. At this point, I hadn’t had any food or drink for 12 hours. For those of you who prayed us through the first trimester, you’ll remember I was eating small snacks almost every hour. In the second trimester, I now can go a little over two hours without food. So, things were looking up – so we thought. The next morning, I tried to eat some dry toast - much to the toast’s chagrin and eventual refusal. Hence: the ER.

As fate would have it, all of northwest San Antonio needed emergency medical care Saturday morning. A lot of tears were the natural result of our nearly four-hour wait and a few near misses in the ER lobby. But true to the character of His unmerited graciousness, the Lord sent two people my way who promised to pray for me. (Either that, or I must have looked so bad that they thought the only thing that could help me was divine intervention). The ER staff was top-notch, hooking me up to an IV and allowing me to occupy one of their much-needed rooms for about five hours. Tests were run and the ER doctor ordered an ultrasound to make sure the babies were okay. Apparently all my late-night eating habits paid off, because even though Mom was severely dehydrated both boys were kicking and wrestling as usual.

Diagnosis? We’re not sure. Options include food poisoning or an elusive virus. But the only diagnosis I really cared about was the status of our boys. However, one funny misdiagnosis did occur. The ER doctor entered our room and announced I might have kidney stones. Apparently, someone else’s test results were shoved into my folder by mistake. Three minutes later, the doctor discovered the errant paperwork, and I was un-diagnosed. Cue 16th round of tears.

We’d like to thank everyone for their prayers. After the last few months, we can testify that prayer works. At a recent Sunday night event, one church member told me, “you two are well-prayed for.” It has been a crucial comfort to know we are being lifted up before God by saints who bend the Divine Ear on a regular basis. And although our prayer requests may not always align with His plans for us - nor our plans align with His answers – the result is, thankfully, always the same. God is active in our lives, using the scary ER moments to encourage us, reveal character, and renew our faith.

18 Weeks

Identical Boys... WOW!

Psalm 127:3-5

Those of you who predicted early on that we would have IDENTICAL TWIN BOYS can go ahead and give yourselves a big pat on the back. That is what the doctor thought during our last appointment and then the confirmatin came today. The babies have doubled in weight in just the past 3 weeks, pretty amazing; they each weigh 8 oz. now. Melissa can feel them nudging her from time to time now. During the appointment, we saw them change positions several times - head to foot, head to head, straight up and sideways, and every combination you can think of. It was really incredible to see in real time motion.

Here are some scans from the ultrasound today. This first one indicates male gender on one of the boys - according to the experts...

The following three scans show side profile views and face shots of both babies. They were moving around so much that really clear shots were difficult to achieve. You will have to use your imagination when you view these. Click on the individual scan to enlarge.

*No alien jokes, please. Our emotions are fragile right now.

NEXT POST WILL FEATURE PHOTOS OF MELISSA... STAY TUNED....

15 Weeks

Can sonograms detect a baby’s personality?

If sonograms can measure a baby’s personality with any degree of accuracy, then our second visit to the specialist was the most enlightening so far! It seems that we have two babies with two very different dispositions.

Meet Baby A: Baby A is laid back…literally. This baby had found its spot and was laying on its back the whole sonogram. It contentedly sucked it’s thumb and stayed still so that we could get a pretty clear picture.

Meet Baby B: Baby B is a completely different story. The last two sonograms have shown Baby B bouncing around, stretching, turning upside down, kicking Baby A in the head, and even trying to grasp Baby A’s hand. The picture below shows Baby B's face, which this early in the game does look a little alienesque, but cute nonetheless.

Despite their differences, we were relieved to hear that both babies weigh about the same (4 ounces) and are developing at the same rate. The specialist seemed very pleased with their development and, of course, Jonathan and I are both relieved and elated at the news.

For those of you who are wondering if your prediction regarding gender is accurate, our lips are still sealed. We were given a preliminary guess regarding sex, however, it is difficult to state with absolute certainty because it is still early. We were told it would probably be best to wait until the next appointment in order to confirm whether the babies are girls or boys. Therefore, we are not posting this information just yet. I know you all are waiting with bated breath, just hold on a little longer...at least three more weeks.

Thank you for your continued prayers!

12 Weeks

Visit to Twins Specialist

Our visit today 1-21-2008 went well. Everything looks normal. This time, we could actually see the babies moving around in there - it was amazing. We could see the heart beating - it looked like little flashes of light for each beat. Each one weighs 2 oz. and each one is 57mm long, or 2.25 inches long (that is from top of head to rump, so we estimate 3 inches overall to the feet). The doctor today said that there is a high probability that they are identical. Don't get too hard on yourselves if you mis-voted.

Here are some screen captures from the sonogram. The first is a closeup of the face and body of Baby A from the side profile. You can see the individual fingers in the hand just above the head. Is baby A waving at us or sucking his/her thumb? You be the judge. The second screen capture is a nice side profile view of Baby B. Enjoy. Click on the picture and it will enlarge.

Thanks for praying. Everything looks great so far and we are so excited. Melissa is currently berating me for not being joyous enough in my postings; too "just the facts" and not enough candid personal anecdotes. Perhaps it is just my hormones that have gone all haywire - don't know what to do with myself lately. The cravings, fatigue. Must go eat and nap now. Till next time. J

9 weeks

Back to the doctor's office on Jan. 2 for a follow up appointment. It appears that everything is on track and developing like it should be. You can see from the pictures just how much the babes have developed in just three weeks. They have individually grown from just over 3mm in length to 22mm in length - that's approximately a 700% increase in size. We will keep you posted as the excitement builds.

6 Weeks

We went to the doctor on December 13th to confirm that we were pregnant. Not only did the doctor say right away that things looked good, but about 5 seconds later we were told that it seemed that we were having twins. Here are the pictures of the sonogram - The first one showing both twins, and the second and third picture down below showing each individual twin. The doctor said that we may want to wait to tell people until the next appointment, so of course upon leaving the office, we got on the phone to tell everyone. We will go back on January 2nd to confirm that the twins are the case and see what progress has occurred.

Welcome

Welcome! Thanks for visiting. We hope to post updates to this website periodically to keep you informed of the progress of our twins. This website is also to serve as a personal journal for us as the twins grow.

-Jonathan & Melissa