Life As We Know It: June 2009

My Two New Obsessions

I am aware that most of my recent posts have been about the babies. I am having fun taking (hundreds of) pictures of them. I feel like they change every day.

I am so in love!

Keely & Claire

(wardrobe courtesy of my mom :))

Miss Claire

Miss Keely

Claire

Keely

As I mentioned before, we were beginning to doubt that the twins are fraternal. It is pretty tough to find differences between them besides Claire's little spot on her nose that seems to be fading now (ahh!). Our suspicions were confirmed with the results of the DNA zygosity test. They are, in fact, identical.

I didn't have a preference to what kind of twins they are, but now I can stop feeling guilty about not being able to tell my "fraternal" twins apart. My doctor was almost sure based on their positions and separation of everything in the womb that they were fraternal.

I have included some twin facts now that I am fascinated with the world of multiples!

Roughly 1.9% of the world's population are twins. 8% of all twins are identical. 18-36% of all identical twins have separate sacs and placentas, like ours did. Hmmm... should we be buying lottery tickets?
Fraternal twins are the result of two eggs being fertilized and are genetically alike as much as siblings born at separate times. Identical twins happen when one egg is fertilized and then splits to form two separate embryos. The timing of the split determines whether one or two sacs and/or placentas are present.
Many factors can increase your chances of having fraternal twins such as maternal family history, fertility treatments, maternal age, race, even weight and height. On the other hand, the occurrence of identical twins is completely random and universal. The chances of having identical twins is about 1 in 285 births.
Identical twins have nearly the same DNA. But environmental influences before and after they are born may make them look different. Identical twins tend to look less "identical" over the span of their lives. They have the same blood type, and will most likely be a perfect match for each other for an organ transplant if needed.

Double the smiles, double the love, double the old man hair-do!

We certainly feel doubly blessed!

David and I often get these two mixed up, but amazingly Brooke is usually right when telling who's who.

Four Fantastic Years

Happy Anniversary David! You are an amazing husband and I'm so blessed to have you in my life. What a treat to experience this life with my best friend!

Seeing Double

Kelly took this picture when she was here last week. It is pretty cute when we find them like this laying the same way.

Say a little prayer for the twins as they will be getting their first shots tomorrow. David may also need prayers as he will be taking them to the appointment. He may have a harder time than the babies!

First Photo Shoot

Check out these little models.

Keely in pink, Claire in green.

Claire

Keely

Baking with Grandma

This week's live-in helper is my sweet mother-in-law Jeanett. Yes, I am getting quite spoiled with the help, but I do appreciate it! Anyway, Grandma loves to bake with Ginny and vice versa. This time they made a strawberry cake with pink frosting (very Ginny-like!). Brooke woke up early from her nap just in time to help.

Mixing the "pink cake"

And here's Brooke once the cake went into the oven and she couldn't mix anymore. So sad.

We all enjoyed the "pink cake" after dinner! Yum!

Camp Conquer

Austin spent last weekend having a blast at Camp Conquer. This is a camp just for kids who have had someone close to them die. Austin was surrounded by other kids going through grief. What a unique experience for him. He had lots of fun and was completely exhausted when we picked him up at the end of the weekend.

Austin with his favorite counselor, Todd

Austin with his bunkmates, the Mustangs, performing their group skit.

The memorial balloon release

3 Weeks Old

Claire and Keely are 3 weeks old. They are really gaining weight now! The following info is here mostly so I don't forget so bear with me. Claire at birth was 4 lb 15 oz. She dropped to 4 lb 10 oz at one week, and got back up to 5 lb 10 oz at two weeks! Keely was 5 lb 7 oz at birth, dropped to 4 lb 14 oz at one week, and at week two was 5 lb 14 oz. I bet they are both around 6 lbs now. I know that is still really tiny!

They still sleep a lot which is nice. They really are very good babies.

To answer a popular question, we're not sure if they are fraternal or identical. They had separate sacs and placentas, but they look a lot alike, so I sent off for a DNA test that will confirm which type of twins they are. I am curious!

Claire and Keely last weekend. They insisted on wearing these "I love Mommy" onesies. I had to oblige.

Claire and Keely today with their newest presents. My sweet Aunt Joyce sent them these teddy bears wearing onesies with the girls' names embroidered on the front and their names, birthdate, and sizes on the back. What a wonderful and thoughtful gift. Thanks Aunt Joyce and Uncle Elton!

Fun in the Sun

After Mom left, my awesome sister Kelly began her shift as our live-in helper for the week. We all enjoyed her visit so much, and I know we'll look back on this time together as a very special one. One of Kelly's specialties is keeping the big girls busy. They enjoyed several fun filled afternoons together, especially once we broke out the kiddie pool in the back yard. Thanks for everything you did this week Kelly! Love you!

Ginny & Brooke love this fun game from Grammie Sandy.