Most of you are pretty unaware of what life was like in Anchorage and these pics are probably only going to skew your view even more, but here goes...
Rob, Meisje, Gideon, and I would bundle up almost twice a week to go cross country skiing before Rob went to work.
Meisje loved running in the snow and she would get extremely excited every time we went out.
Sometimes Porter and Callie and Bryon would join us---Good thing we got the double chariot!
We had the amazing opportunity to go dog sledding with Travis and Sarah from Turning Heads Kennel not once, but twice! I have tons more pics and even some video to share, but that deserves its own post.
I hope you enjoyed this little glimpse into Alaskan life!!
I feel like I should have started doing this little survey weeks ago, but we all know that I'm a procrastinator and not too great at this whole blogging thing, so here goes!
How far along: 23 1/2 weeks
Total Weight Gain/Loss: I lost 12lbs in my first trimester and since then I have gained it all back, plus 10lbs! I consider this a victory. Maternity clothes: I mostly lounge around in yoga pants or in my swimsuit at the beach/pool. When I have to actually get dressed I wear maxi skirts or do the rubberband trick on my jeans ;) I only own 2 maternity shirts, but that's gonna change real soon. Stretch marks: none thus far! Sleep:I get up 2-3 times to use the bathroom at night and recently my hips have been bugging me when I lay down. Also, as soon as I lay down my brain usually goes into overdrive about having twins. Best moment last week: Seeing a glimpse of "baby b" on a 4D ultrasound. We usually just do the regular ultrasounds but my doctor was feeling generous and "baby b" was cooperating so he switched to 4D for a moment. She looks so beautiful and perfect! Food cravings: Cafe Rio, mashed potatoes, french fries, hash browns...anything starchy and salty. Eggs sunnyside up. Gender: Girls Labor signs: if I do too much or lay flat on my back I immediately start having contractions Belly button - in or out? still in What I miss: Sleeping through the night and eating eggs sunnyside up. What I am looking forward to: increased survival rates in the coming weeks Milestones: Tomorrow we are getting our Swagger Wagon!!
I was fresh off my LDS mission (I had actually been home for about a year) and looking for a car to purchase. I wasn't planning on getting married or having kids anytime soon, but I did figure that it was in the cards at some point. I was going to pay good money for this car and I wanted it to last me at least the next 10 years, so I did a lot of research. And when I say a lot, I mean A LOT. I scoured the internet for weeks reading about how to buy a car and what features I wanted and which ones I absolutely didn't. I really wanted a Subaru Forrester---that was the ideal---but I also knew that if I wanted to buy it used and with low mileage that it was still out of my price range. Other than low mileage, AWD/FWD, and trunk space to fit camping/climbing gear, one of my big requirements was that it would comfortably fit two carseats in the back. After a couple of trips to different dealers and private sellers I finally settled on the Suzuki SX4. It fulfilled every requirement I had for it and it looked great too! I even made triple sure that two carseats could fit in the back. Not because I had kids, but because I figured that in the next ten years I would probably have two kids and then "we" (my mythical family and I) would have saved up enough to buy a minivan and I would relinquish my "fun car" to my husband. That was the idea at least.
Her name is Suzy, and she's a champ
Fast forward 3 years and here I am married, with a 10 month old, AND twin girlies on the way. Ladies and Gentlemen, there is no wayto fit 3 carseats in the back of this car. I thought that I had been doing pretty well with this 10 year car plan, even with getting pregnant so fast a second time I figured it would be a couple years until we dared to have a third child and then we could reevaluate finances and determine if we could keep my suzuki and be a two car family.
I guess it's true what they say, "if you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans for the future"!
Honestly though, I wouldn't have it any other way. I love these girls so much already and I'm excited to have them join the family. We have had tons of adventures in that Suzuki and it's been an awesome car for our family. Admittedly, I will be very sad to see it go BUT I am also very excited to have a "swagger wagon". Automatic opening doors? yes please. Room for all the kiddos? definite must. Low enough clearance that I don't die putting the carseats in? absolutely.
With that said, tonight we venture out into the world to find ourselves a minivan. Wish us luck!
Also, I'd like to thank Toyota for making such an awesome commercial that has ultimately helped sway my husband into being excited (or at least okay) with driving a minivan.
P.S. if you or anyone you know is looking for an awesome adventure car that can fit two carseats in the back and still has room for camping gear in the trunk, let me know!
Ok, so not the final Final Countdown, but only 1 week to go until I check in to the hospital. After that we begin a new countdown---8 weeks of hospital life until the girls come!! As crazy as it sounds, I am actually looking forward to the hospital. Modern technology has made things for momo mamas so much more manageable in some ways and I'm looking forward to knowing how my girls are doing 24/7.
Anyhow, the last few weeks have been pretty darn crazy. My doctor allowed me to go on a weekend trip to Vegas so that Gideon and I could see Lola and Papa Tony while Rob drove through to Utah to attend his best friend's wedding. A good time was had by all. The next weekend we had an epic Higham Family Reunion in which all 12 of us were reunited for what will be the last time for 2 years! We went to sea world and the movies and the beach...it was crazy awesome. This last weekend Rob and I left Gideon with his Aunt Sarah and headed to a sweet little beach bungalow for a getaway weekend before the hospital.
Here are little snippets of all of those happenings and as soon as I steal the photos from Rob's phone you will have a much more fun picture of what went down:
Papa Tony and Lola spoiled the junk out of Gideon and got him a highchair.
Pool time with cousins
Gideon enjoying his nighttime bottle on the beach before
the fireworks
Sadie and Ryan were attached at the hip at Sea World
Despite the look on his face, Gideon really enjoyed hanging with
Aunt Shannon
Sadie and Ryan would put on their "princess dresses" so that they could twirl
Gideon is in love with his Aunt Becky
Beach days are the best!!
We woke up to this picture text while we were on our getaway.
As much as we needed some "us time", we sure missed our little boy!
