Meet Abigial Elizabeth Nagode

Happy Birthday, Abigail!
She was in this exact pose in one of the 3D sonograms.

3 weeks old and already alret!

Abigail loves her binky!

During a smile session, but mom couldn't catch it on film!

Abigial is the "Nagode baby" with the exception of her dark hair which is more like mom's! She has been our chubby little cheeks baby since day one. Many have made the comment that she looks like a chipmunk and lots of people love to kiss and squeeze those darling chubby cheeks! Abigail started out to be the fussy baby, but big sis Anna Mae has now taken on that role. The only time Abigail fusses is when she is craving that taste of bottle! Abigail seems to get bigger eyes as the days past. She is becoming much more alert and LOVES to smile when we talk to her. She is making really good eye contact and seems to be socializing quiet well for a 6 week old.

Nana nicknamed her Cuddle Bug, which is very fitting. When she is cuddled she will quickly fall asleep and is very content. It used to be, that the second we put her down she would stir around and quickly let you know she wanted to be held. 6 weeks later, she is much more content when she is placed down for a nap, and even has the ability to soothe herself to sleep.

Abigail seems to be independent and rather smooth sailing for the most part. She is shorter than Anna Mae, therefore developing multiple and such adorable thigh roles! She likes to be tickled, patted, talked to and played with.

We love you, little girl!! :D

Meet Anna Mae Nagode

5 weeks :) and so Precious

4 weeks! Isn't my face filling out well?

Three weeks! So big!

I love car rides... looking out the window especially!

Happy Birthday, Anna Mae!

Anna Mae is the big sis by 1 minute! At birth, she seemed so dainty and fragile. She kept us up those first couple of nights by sneezing here and there, and making some odd noises. :) Matt quickly was drawn to her because Abigial was (then) more fussy and liked being held by mom. Originally she was quiet and now she is the noisemaker of the family. She is a very good eater (eating anything from 4-6 ounces), very good sleeper (sleeping anywhere from 6-8 hours), but oh-so crabby sometimes (crying anywhere from 1-3 hours)!!!

Anna Mae has not yet blessed us with a cute smile, but she makes the prettiest coo's and she sneezes so darling! She always ends her sneezing sessions with a big "Ahhh." When she fusses, she starts out so quietly and we think it will be an easy soothe, but then she really works herself up to the point of where nothing is comforting to her. She is typically very alert and loves to be held all the time. Right now that is the only way to put her to sleep... close cuddling and easy rocking.

Anna seems much longer than Abigial, and we think she is putting on weight a little more quickly than her little sister since she consumes more formula during a feeding. She has this pretty strawberry blonde hair currently, and we look forward to knowing if her pretty baby blue eyes will stay baby blue! Anna Mae is often compared to looking like her mommy.... just about everyone has made that comment. She seems to have more Jackson than Nagode in her!

We love you little girl :D

Happy Birthday, Little Nagode's!

so tiny they can share the hospital bed :D

Our first family portrait.... a nice Christmas card? :D

Hello, little loves!

Here's the 38 week belly...

Ok, Ok... we may be 5 weeks late. Hopefully you all can understand that we have been extremely busy and adjusting to parenthood. We haven't had much time to think, let alone update our blog! Let us think back to July 22nd here and see if we can sum up the best day of our life together!

After a long, long day of waiting, off we went to Methodist Medical Center around 6:30 P.M. We checked in at the ER and away we were swept to the maternity ward. We spent a good hour and a half in the exam room where all sorts of monitors and an IV were put in their proper places. We of course did a run through of questions with the nurse and doctor and Melissa was then prepped for surgery...

Nerves really set in as the surgery time crept up on us. Melissa of course had a breakdown and bawled her eyes out for a good 20 minutes, fearful she was going to die. (She did not appreciate stories of infections, blood clots, and hemmorhaging on TV and magazines during her pregnancy). After the tears stopped and she came to grips with reality, she was walked down to the surgery room and Matt was strapped into his "monkey suit."

The surgery went very well. So quick and painless (thank goodness)! We can't tell you how much we LOVED the surgical team and especially our Dr. Gibson! Anna Mae made her debut at 9:07 P.M weighing in at a healthy 6 lbs. 2 oz. and was 19 1/2 inches long. One minute later out slipped Abigail Elizabeth one ounce heavier and 1/2 an inch shorter than her big sis! Daddy Matt snapped some pictures, Mommy Melissa layed their curious and paitiently to see her big girls! After about 30 minutes of clean up and sewing Melissa back together, away the girls and Matt went to the nursery and Melissa to recovery.

Recovery was horrible. Melissa threw up we don't know how many times and was so exhausted and completely out of it from the anesthesia. The next day, she was up and out of bed with ease and even got to take a shower on Friday morning! Overall, it was not nearly the horrible experience she had been dreading and of course the best results were meeting our new little ones!

The Waiting Game

Here we sit at 1:40. Another 5 hours and 20 minutes stand between our arrival at the hospital! Then we will have to wait another 2 hours and 10 minutes to see those babies!

We are both in good spirits today. Giddy is a good word. Matt worked a half day and Melissa did her nesting one more time this AM. She is currently starving and thirsty as she began fasting at 9AM for the surgery. What a cruel way to end pregnancy for women with C-sections! After pigging out and being told to drink lots and lots of water for 8 months.... she now has to go food/fluid less for 12 hours prior to the surgery. Ouch!

Matt's parents are currently making their long trip up from Georgia and should be arriving in a few hours. We are happy that they were willing to make the trip to share in this special day to meet their #5 and #6 grandbabies!! Melissa's family will also be at the hospital (parents, gramma, sister & family). We are fortunate to have so many loving family members who want to support us on our special night with us! Kudos to you all for waiting the long wait and probably not getting home until the wee hours of the morning. We are sure it will be worth it :D

We keep getting asked what we still need for the babies at this point. In all honesty, if you would just keep us all in your prayers and hope for a quick, safe delivery... that is all we need! We look forward to sharing pictures in the next couple of days and finally being able to introduce you all to our little darlings... Anna Mae & Abigail :D :D :D

The Twinsie's Birthday is Set

July, 22 2009. :D

We will finally get to kiss and squeeze our little girls' cheeks soooo much that day! After Dr. Gibson did his normal routine with us today, he decided it would be best to schedule a C-section for this week. He just didn't want to risk us going into labor on my own any longer. This Friday, he happens to not be in town so 7/24 was out. Then we took a step back and looked at Thursday, Jully 23rd. That also happens to be Mimi J's birthday. How cute of a gift to get twin grandbabies! However, there was really no spot for us available for surgery on 7/23. That made us look one more day back and look at Wednesday, July 22nd. That is his surgery day at OSF but he is squeezing us in at 9:00 PM! We hope Dr. Gibson can take a nap after his long day at OSF and before coming to take care of business with us that late at night.

Melissa will have to fast for 12 hours Wednesday. Yikes. Someone might be going into surgery a little crabby. Blood pressure was good today & babies are still breech/transverse (no surprise there). She has to go to the hospital tomorrow for some quick blood work and have a talk with the anesthesiologist. Then its up to Labor & Delivery to talk about our birth plan with the following questions... Can you drop the curatin so we can see the girls being pulled out? Can daddy Matt cut the cord? Can Melissa not be strapped to the table like Jesus so she can touch her babies once they are out? Can we take pictures and video? Can we attempt breastfeeding in the recovery room? ETC.)

Oh, and after speaking with several people with experience & after some of our own consideration, we are going to request visitors (with the exception of family) to hold off from coming to the hospital for a couple of days. Maybe Saturday at the earliest? Since we are having such a late surgery Wednesday, and Melissa is a big wuss for pain... Thursday & Friday may be one heck of a couple of days for us with lack of sleep, adjusting to little ones, learning to breastfeed twins, etc. We want to share our little girls with our family first and foremost, but once we are home we would love to show them off to you all as well!! Don't worry, we will try and post pictures ASAP from the hospital!

Can you believe it's finally time to have some babies? Looks like we may successfully make it to 38 weeks after all... and that's been our goal from day one!! :D

Good News!

We went back on Friday to get our results from all the blood work, and everything just looked peachy! All levels were either normal or low.... so NO toxemia! The blood pressure spike must have been from my poor food selections from the last week. I really splurged since I had such good numbers the week before. whoops. :D No more splurging.

Girls are breech and one is slightly sideways. If they flip to the head down position now, unbelievable. They have been a little less active these last couple of days. Of course that makes me nervous, but Dr. Gibson likes to reassure us that they are just running out of room and their kicks and tumbles won't be so dramatic as before.

Matt has put the finishing touches on the nursery this week. Shelving is up on the wall for pictures and such. He also put up the curtain rod. Today we are going to sneak out and purchase the curtains and stock up on groceries one last time before their arrival. Did I mention that tomorrow we get the delivery date for Anna Mae & Abigail?? Im keeping my fingers crossed, as he said he wouldn't make it past the 17th either, but here we are on the 19th and still completely pregnant. I would just love to hit our goal of 38 weeks on Wednesday!!

Bags are packed... dog sitter is lined up... Matt & I are rather calm and collected. I think we are ready to join the parenting club :D

We are Officially Full Term! 37 Weeks!

The average pregnancy with twins is 36 weeks and it is such a great feeling surpassing that by another week. I have been reading that 37 weeks is considered "full term" for any pregnancy becuase the lungs of the baby are typically fully developed. So to be sitting here at 37 weeks with two healthy babies is a wonderful feeling. We may still hit our 38 week goal. Maybe not. I'll explain that in a little bit!

We met with the sonographer probably for the last time today, followed by an appointment with Dr. Gibson. The sonogram session was great again... and we finally got an image of Abigail's face! She is so stinkin cute with chubby little cheeks and a little button nose. I am doing my best to wait patiently for their arrival, but I can't wait to kiss those chubby cheeks! Anyway, they are still stinkers and both are sitting breech. I can't blame them, I would hate to stand on my head for weeks on end too. So we will forgive you's for being breech and causing mom to undergo a C-Section. :D Both girls have hair! Unbelievable. Must get that gene from Matt, as I was as bald as a baby's butt for months when I was born. Heartbeats were good and Anna Mae weighed in at 6lbs. 7oz. while Abigail was just a little behind at 6lbs. 2 oz.

Now for the "iffy" news. I put on another 3lbs this week, so that brings total weight gain to 41 lbs. I have high hopes of losing 20 of it that first week out of surgery. We'll see. My blood pressure was HORRIBLE this week and I find it so confusing how it can go from "perfect" the week before to sky high this week. Dr. Gibson is now concerned that I may have toxemia, so he ordered blood work and we are waiting anxiously for the results to come back tomorrow afternoon. Basically, if I do have toxemia, he is going to "pull the plug" on my pregnancy as he put it. I am assuming at the earliest he will deliver the babies first thing next week. I doubt he does it this Friday because we already have an appointment with him at 8:00 A.M. We also have to go back on Monday at 8:45 A.M! We of course hope blood work comes back looking good and I'll get a clean slate of health to wrap up the pregnancy.

He did finally give us the absolute last possible date to deliver... July 28th. That would make us one day shy of 39 weeks!! But he also threw in there, more than likely he will deliver our sweet babies next. So what birthday sounds good? I like July 21st or 23rd. I like those odd numbers. :D

We will keep you posted!

Did I forget to post week 36?!

They call it placenta brain, and I definetly have it.

Our 36 week appointment was last Wednesday, the 8th of July. We waited a good 30 minutes to get in the office and visited with the doctor for maybe 5 minutes. To our surprise, there was no talk of setting a date for this supposive C-section. I was still only dialated to 1 cm, which according to my baby books is actually 1/2 an inch. Why is known as 1 cm than and not .5 in? Anyway, 1 cm dialated and still 80% effaced and baby was at a -2 station. I guess babies haven't dropped afterall!

My blood pressure was as good as it has ever been, 110/72! Weight LOSS of 2 lbs too. Dr. Gibson thinks one baby is head down and the other is breech. Kudos to the baby who flipped into the head down position! I hope you stay that way and the other turns ;) Mommy's orders.

He again said I have done quite well this pregnancy and post-poned talk of a D-day until this Wednesday at our THIRTY-SEVEN week appointment! He schedules surgeries at our choice hospital on Friday's... so it looks like we may be having a July 17th or a July 24th birthday for our girls. Or, if they girls decide to both be head down maybe we can still hope for a vaginal birth. We'll all have to wait and see but I hope to inform you this Wednesday!!

Oh, Matt said he will handle the 2 AM feedings just fine... :D

We can not wait to meet you, Anna Mae and Abigail!

And the Worries Begin!

Is this how Matt will respond to 2:00AM feedings?

That is the only picture I could find that resembles the facial expression of "stressed-out" in our photo albums. :D And how I miss my cuddle-buddy, Maddox the cat. :(

Here I sit at 5:00 AM completely unable to sleep. It may be because I slept for a solid 14 hours yesterday (I am completely exhausted these days), or maybe its because my mind will just not stop spinning! I feel that D-day is fast approaching, even though we don't quite have the official date marked in our calendar. I was reminded yesterday that Dr. Gibson has his "Methodist" days on Friday mornings. Does that mean he will schedule us for a C-section THIS Friday, the 17th? Or maybe he will push us off one more week until the 24th. (That would be AWESOME since we would then accomplish 38 weeks of pregnancy)!!! Wow I can't believe we have successfully made it this far with two kicking, tumbling little girls!

I'll give you a nice list of some of the concerns I have as we enter the last week or two before the babies arrive!

1) How are the dogs going to respond to having two new babies in the house?

2) Are the dogs going to eat EVERYTHING that we may accidently leave in their reach, including toys, blankies, pacifiers, etc. They like to demolish what ever they can get their sneaky paws on.

3) What if for some reason I can't breastfeed successfully?

4) Do we have enough bottles?

5) Will the girls' lungs be well-enough developed considering their early arrival?

6) How is Matt going to cope with late night feedings and working the next day?

7) How am I going to cope with people telling me how to do a specific task with my babies?

8) How long will it take for me to recover from this blasted C-section? I don't think I will ever come to terms with being cut open like a fish.

9) How do you politely turn away ill visitors that don't have a clue to stay away from newborn babies?!

10) Will the girls fit into their "coming home" outfits or will that be the first red flag of bad parenting... two little girls swimming in their clothes?

11) Will we be successful at getting Anna Mae and Abigail on a schedule?

12) Our double-stroller doesn't fit in the Tahoe... now what? :D

What a huge change in our life this is going to be (I can already hear some of you saying, "DUH" as you read that). I am up for the challenges and rewards of parenthood and I realize most of the issues that I have right now will be figured out in the upcoming weeks and we really just have to play it by ear. I look forward to the help from our parents! As of now, I believe my mom (and hopefully Dad, here and there) will be staying with us for about two weeks and then the Mimi & Papa shift changes to Matt's parents who will be up from Georgia for several weeks in August. I know we will need the extra hands to get us off to a good start. We are lucky to have such a great support system of family & friends and I need to remind myself of that more often. But, as many of you know, I am such a worry-wart!

A Unique 4th of July

We had a very memorable Fourth of July this year. We spent the majority of the day up at Melissa's parents home for a nice lunch and good conversation. Plans were hashed around for our afternoon plans, but with the rain we decided to do a nice dinner out in Peoria and attempt to catch the fireworks show there as well.

Melissa had complained of an "achey" feeling throughout the morning and just about the time we were ready to leave for dinner, some side pain really kicked in. We got in our cars and drove to Peoria for dinner anyway, but on the ride down the pain brought her to tears and we decided to call Dr. Gibson. He directed us to go to Labor & Delivery at the hospital. So we went, a little worried.

We arrived at the hospital at about 6:50 P.M. and were immediately directed to an exam room where Melissa had to strip and was attached to two heart rate monitors for the babies and another one to pick up contractions. How love to hear the girls' heartbeats! All was well with them and they seem to be in constant competition already. The pain had subsided but apparently she was contracting every 2 minutes! They called them "irritable uteran contractions." Supposively it was false labor and her uterus is just about stretched to the max. She was given two vaginal exams, one at 7:00 and one at 8:00 and both times, still only dialated to a 1 and now 80% effaced. Since she wasn't in true labor (thank goodness), we patiently waited for the word of when to leave.

We were released from the hospital at about 9:00, and with that news decided to catch a good view of the Peoria fireworks from the hospital parking deck. We hope you all enjoyed your fourth of July events, despite the rain and cooler weather!

The Nursery is Complete!

Daddy put up the shelving. Mommy and friends supplied it with clothes :D

A darkened view from the doorway.

Our ready-to-go changing table.

The crib is baby ready and the hamper is awaiting all those dirty clothes!

The lovely decal, along with bumbo seats from Doug & Bree.

We finally can say that our nursery is D-O-N-E. Much of the credit goes to Matt, who so delicately painted, assembled, and crafted what it has turned out to be. I just LOVE it. I guess the only thing left to do is add the curtains and a little bit of shelving, but we will still call it baby-ready.

We got the bedding from Land of Nod, the cribs were a generous gift from his parents, and the changing table we purchased at good ole' Good's Furniture in Kewanee. It all came together so nicely. The tree and birds is actually a decal, not a painting. I can't say either one of us has the patience right now to hand paint images in the girls' room. Matt has the talent, however.

We are considering a rocker, but as you may tell from the pictures we are a little crammed on room with the fact of having two cribs instead of one. A rocker sure would be great for all those feedings though!

Before too long, we will have two peaceful, sleeping babies in each crib. How EXCITING!

A Lovely Baby x 2 Shower!

A bounty of gifts for Anna and Abigail

The infamous diaper cake :D

Family shot!

The hosts and I (Bethany, Lisa, and Jan)

Such a lovely side profile with Jill, Dorothy, Jenny, Chris, and Lynn

My gramma, Cheryl Ehnle, Jan Curry, and sweet mom!

On Saturday June 27th, two of my dearest friends and my sister threw a baby shower for Anna and Abigail. Bethany, Lisa, and Jan all played the part of a wonderful hostess! Such a hot day, but we made the most of it. The food was delicious, the company was cheery, and the gifts were well received and much appreciated! We played a couple of games, chatted, opened gifts (with the help of my niece, Kylie, of course), and dined on fine Italian beef, fruit/veggie trays, delicious cake and mints!

Thank you all so much for making it such a special day. My hormones must really be out of whack, because that was the first thank-you/acceptance/welcome speech that I have never cried at while giving! :D It was wonderful for all of you to make the trip out to Lafayette to celebrate in our upcoming blessings. It is always touching to know that I have such wonderful friends and family looking out for us. You are much loved and appreciated!

Week 35

What exciting milestones we continue to hit each week! On July 1st we offically became 35 weeks pregnant! We had a great baby appointment and received the news that our little girls may not come out so little after all. Anna weighed in a a shocking 5lbs. 11oz. while her sis Abigail was a healthy 5lbs. 5oz. Dr. Gibson was happy with their weights and all measurements looked normal. Both girls were still breech! Melissa made up from losing one pound at the previous appointment by packing on 6 pounds herself. Seriously, who does that? :D That brings her total weight gain to an even 40lbs. Eh, could be better, could be worse, right?

Melissa is now dialiated to 1 cm, which we all know may not mean too much, as women can be dialited to a 1 for weeks or months! She was also about 50% effaced. We talked to Dr. Gibson briefly about our birth plan and when the question concerning episiotomy's was brought up, he quickly responded with a, "I do not see you having a vaginal birth." DARN! Now we just need to mentally prepare for the C-section and pray that all goes well with that. Melissa is dreading and fearful of surgery, but what a terrific end-result... two little girls!

Melissa's complaints... typical aches and pains... increase in contractions.
Matt's complaints... losing sleep from helping roll his wife out of bed all hours of the night. And packing on that lovely sympathy weight. (His wife still thinks he looks pretty good though!)

Our joy: Knowing we will meet our girls in less than a month!

34 Weeks

According to Baby Center... "Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies."

Melissa is hauling around approximately 10 pounds of baby. How amazing! We greet each week with a smile, as we know the longer they "incubate" the better off they will be... plus our nursery is not quite yet finished and we STILL haven't packed our hospital bags!

Yesterday we had our 34 week appointment, although we do not technically hit that milestone until tomorrow. The appointment again was filled with good news. Blood pressure was good, Melissa actually lost a pound, and we heard the vibrant heartbeats. Dr. Gibson checked her cervix and there is absolutely "nothing going on" as he put it. No sonogram. We are feeling a little supressed from sonograms, as we haven't had one for a month now! Usually we were getting them done once every 2-3 weeks!

On July 1st we will have our 35 week appointment and will finally get a sonogram to see how much the girls have progressed in a month. Melissa is feeling more movement on some days, then other days its as if they do nothing but sleep. This morning has been full of roley-poley with the girls. She enjoys feeling all of their amazing kicks, squirms, and somersaults.

Her only complaints these days... hip pain, back pain, lots of pressure on the groin area, and headaches have been popping in all of a sudden. It's all worth it though, right? :D

The Final Stretch Begins!

Today we had our 33 week appointment (2 days early) and again, we are blessed to have nothing but good news! The babies hearts were beating just perfectly and they like to keep their heads together! Now they are both sitting breech. They are always head-to-head, even when one is lying transverse. I think they are going to be the best of friends! We didn't get weights or measurements of the girls today because we didn't meet with the sonographer, nor will we next week. But just an update, on June 4th the girls weighed in at 3lbs. 9 oz. and 3lbs. 10 oz. Now we expect them to be somewhere over 4lbs. each. They are consistently gaining weight and we hope when they debut they will have a little meat on their bones and chubby little cheeks to kiss and squeeze :D

My blood pressure was a good reading again and my iron levels were right where they need to be! I have to thank my dear Matt for always making me cream of wheat in the morning and making me eat spinach and more leafy greens to get a good reading today! It worked and I think we make a pretty good team afterall.

We say the final stretch is beginning because Dr. Gibson says our goal is to stay pregnant for ONE MORE MONTH! That puts the babies at a happy, healthy 37 weeks. My goal is to keeping them in until 38 weeks, but we all know babies come at their timing! Each day I feel a little more prepared... but not quite there. We really need to start packing our hospital bags. Tonight we wrap up our 7 weeks of lamaze class! It will be nice to free up our Monday nights again, I have only caught one episode of "The Bachelorette!" We are busily finalizing the nursery as well and I hope to post pictures soon. This week we are expecting the dresser/changing table to be delivered on Thursday. We got our diaper bag in the mail this week and sweet Doug & Bree sent us our bumbo chairs!

I need to say a special thanks to a couple of friends and family members who have been keeping me sane while I spend more and more time at home on the couch... Mom, Grams, Pooky & kids, Bethany, and Caitlin you girls are wonderful and I appreciate the phone calls, books, messages, Farm Town fun, and I am looking forward to board game day! You are all so dear to me and I appreciate your concern and efforts at making me one fat happy momma :D

Summer is almost here! I hope we survive the heat!

We have to share some recent gifts..

Our dear friends, "The Sorenson's," as the Jackson's have always called them, sent us a sweet little package a few weeks back. They probably know by now we are not quick with formal thank-you's but keep looking in your mail as you should receive one soon! They sent us two cute matching sleeper sets. Melissa has them hanging in the closet anxiously awaiting to wrap around two cute little girls. Jim & Mindy, we hope you can come down and visit once they arrive! We would make an effort to get up to Chicago, but as you may guess it might be a little hectic for a couple of months :)

As we have mentioned earlier, Melissa has some of the most thoughtful co-workers in the world! On top of the diaper/book shower, now the Special Ed and Embroidery teacher, Teresa Hill, had her class make the above burp rags! Aren't they cute! We love how personalized they are! They will be put to very good use in several more months. Thank you so much Teresa ;)

Then there is Amy Owens, who doesn't even work at MCHS anymore! But she swung by the school one day to drop off four cute little summer dresses for Anna Mae & Abigail. We look forward to snapping pictures of the girls in them once they arrive!

Oh and I can't forget Tricia... she gave us multiple outfits for the girls. They are so cute! I will have to snap pictures of them to post as well.

Finally, we have received some darling clothes from Leslie, Bree, Bethany, and Pooky! Thank you for passing them along! Im sure we will go through so many clothes and all your efforts have made us feel a little less stress about being prepared. Pooky--thanks for the swing and other misc. toys and equipment. I look forward to your visits over with Kylie & Chet!

We already have so many helpful and thoughtful people in our lives... this parenting thing should be a breeze with all your help... right!? :D

Intro to the Nursery!

Matt has done a great job of getting our tiny little nursery into shape! First his dad ripped out all of the carpet, because kitty liked to use the entire room as his personal restroom. Maddox no longer has access to the upstairs and seems to behaving much better in the basement. Anyway, once we got new carpet Matt has been busily painting and searching for the perfect trim for the walls. He also assembled the cribs we received from his parents. We love the sleigh cribs! Once Melissa washed the bedding we put it all together and she would say we have darling bedding! The pictures below don't include the bumper pads, but those have since been added. We will remove the bumper pads once the twins are a couple of months old, because we have heard infants could suffocate by nestling their face into the padding. :(

We are currently in the search of a matching changing table to go in our only empty corner of the room. We really don't have much room in the nursery... just enough for the two cribs and a dresser with a changer table top! Anyway, you'll have to use your imagination as it is not nearly finished. Melissa just couldn't wait to get the cribs together! We have a lot more to add to the walls, a nice area rug, etc. Maybe we can squeeze in a rocker for those late night feedings too!

28 Weeks

We had our 28 week appointment today and have more good news to share! Melissa passed the blood sugar test "with flying colors," as the nurse said. While running the blood test, they did note that her hemoglobin was about 2 points lower than what they would like to see. So they told her she is anemic and instead of adding medication to her daily routine, she is going to increase her levels of iron. Breakfast looks like it will now be a bowl of cream of wheat and lunch will consist of green salad, maybe ending the day with more fish than beef. Anyway, her blood pressure was also great AND most importantly, the twins are continuing to hit all their milestones! Twin A (who we know as Anna Mae) is weighing in at 2 lbs. 9 oz. while her sister Abigial (Twin B) comes in at 2 lbs. 5 oz. Their heart rates were good and we find it soothing to hear those tiny little hearts beat every chance we get!

Dr. Gibson did confirm Melissa can NOT mow the lawn---yes even on a ride mower! She was a little devastated since thats all she seems to be able to help out with around the house these days. He keep reminding us rest is the best medicine for this pregnancy... he doesnt even like her stretching in the Lamaze class. How has she only managed to pack on 24 pounds so far being such a slug? :D

These little girls sure do move around alot. We did get somewhat "bad news" about their positions, but we need to keep in mind that they still have weeks to get into the perfect fit! If you can imagine it, Anna sits on Melissa's left and is breech. She would be the first one out in a vaginal delivery and with her cute little butt down, Dr. Gibson would not risk a vaginal birth. Abigal is actually laying completely sideways, also known as a transverse lie. So if you can picture it, Melissa is carrying a letter "L" with both heads meeting at the left base of the L. We asked the odds of having a C-section and he told us there was an 80% chance of that happening, but again, once we are closer to 37 weeks he will have a more definite answer. Melissa was not happy to hear "80%" as she is scared to death of being sliced open! But, of course we would do what is best for the little babies to come out safe and sound!

We started Lamaze classes last week and find those somewhat enjoyable. We have met several nice couples and really enjoy our instructor. She is so pleasant and helpful! We did a tour of the hospital this past Monday and will soon be watching birthing videos. Tomorrow is our first of two breastfeeding classes. We hope breastfeeding twins works! We have heard many success stories, but a couple of downers too. We'll keep our fingers crossed! Keep praying for the healthy arrival of our little girls. We really appreciate it :D

Happy 25 Weeks, Babies!

We are learning that we are not good bloggers. We have failed to keep regular updates like we were hoping to do in the beginning!

Our last appointment was April 15th and all looked well! Both twins weighed in at 1 lb 5 oz! (Grow, grow, grow)! We have been told they have picked their side they will remain on until birth, but they may still flip around in their individual sac. So Anna is on Melissa's left and Abigail on her right. Right now Anna is head down and Abigail breech. That is good news we think, since Anna will be the first out if we are able to have a vaginal birth. If she was breech, we would not be able to do so. So Anna, try and stay put and don't flip around too much :D

All stats were good, but Melissa's blood pressure was a higher than usual. She does not have high blood pressure, but Dr. Gibson told her to only eat what she can grow and kill. So, basically he knocked out about 90% of her diet. Matt has been helpful in keeping her on track, but we confess to eating a couple of items this week that don't grow on trees...

The girls are letting us know of their existence quite regularly. Lots of movement that Melissa always feels, but Matt has not been so lucky at catching them. He tried to sneak up on them the other day, but they must know when his hand is pressed against their nest. One of these days we hope they will give him a swift couple of kicks so he can partake in the fun!

Let's all welcome Melissa to the world of swollen feet and stretch marks! Yes, sad to say, this week Melissa has discovered 3 small stretch marks on her left side. Thanks Anna Mae! They look like three little cat scratches, about the length of a fingernail. She knew they were coming, it was just a matter of time :(

Our next appointment is not until May 13th! Dr. Gibson said things were going so well he didn't see it necessary to see me until then. Melissa was surprised since she was going every 2 weeks, but now it will be a 4 weeks difference. It will be at this appointment Melissa will be tested for gestational diabetes and the girls will be at 28 weeks development already! Wow.

Lots of nursery work to be done in the next couple of weeks. We finally got the new carpet laid and paint samples picked out. Our bedding has arrived from Land of Nod and we finally registered at Target. Now if Melissa can only get Matt to paint the nursery walls and assemble the cribs instead of playing with the dogs.

God continues to bless us...

A Surprise Baby Shower

When I walked into my classroom this morning, I was surprised to see several baby items stacked on one of my kitchen counters. Shortly thereafter, the gifts just kept coming and coming. My dear co-workers had planned a surprise Diaper & Storybook Shower!

I must rave about my fellow staff members. They have been so supportive and helpful over these three years. I have learned so many lessons from them and their continuous advice is always useful. My co-workers are kind, thoughtful, and so generous in all of their actions. With your endless gift-giving, today we received 1,048 diapers and dozens of children books. Matt says if we only change diapers 1.5 times a day/twin, that will almost last a full year! We do not want DCFS on our case, however, so we will make sure to change their diapers on a regular basis! We also received two adorable embroidered baskets and a travel cooler for milk/formula. You all are so thoughtful and creative!

Needless to say, it will be a bittersweet day when I leave Midwest Central. I can't say I will ever return to the profession of teaching, but the people I work with everyday make the 50 minute commute worth it. Again, thank you for your generosity and the surprises! I was touched and will miss you all when I leave this spring. I hope you all find the time in your short summer schedules to come visit Abigail, Anna Mae, & I once they arrive! I know I may need some "grown-up" time and I would love for you to meet them too!

Here are some snap-shots of the darling little cake and all the gifts :) THANK-YOU, it is all greatly appreciated!

22 Weeks!

We hit 22 weeks this past Wednesday! Yesterday we had another "big" sonogram with the sonographer. She did some measurements of Melissa's uterus & cervix to make sure everything was holding up with the double load. So far, things are looking great. She then moved on to our two little girls. We were happy to hear there was a head down, instead of a butt! That is a good sign, but from our understanding, there is still some time for them to change positions again. The sonographer continuously commented on how active the girls were. The girls were constantly moving. We saw lots of kicking, swallowing, and waving.

We heard nothing but good news today. One twin weighs a pound already and the other is just shy, at 14 oz. Their hearts had a strong beat and they seem to all still have 10 fingers and toes!

Here are some pictures of our little Abigail and Anna Mae! We were fortunate to receive a couple of 3D sonogram images also!

20+ Weeks

We have done a poor job of updating our blog recently. We have a few minor updates, but will hear more next week at our next big sonogram on April Fool's Day!

Our last appointment was Thursday March 19th. Melissa took lucky Gramma Cindy with her since Matt was planning to be out of state. His trip was cancelled, but Melissa's mom went anyway and both were happy to share in the experience! :) The little girls were "boxing" or now we consider the thought they were just practicing their cheerleading skills! It was fun to watch the membrane shift and swirl around with each punch from Anna & Abigail. Maybe next week we will witness them working on their volleyball skills.

A huge surprise was when the nurse told Melissa she has only gained SEVEN pounds in the first 20 weeks. That is very good! We are certain the weight will start adding up now that her appetite is increasing and she is required to work and come home to sit on the couch with her feet up! Dr. Gibson has said bed rest is pretty much inevitable, but when and how strict it will be is yet to be determined. Hopefully we can at least make it through May on both feet!

This past weekend we finally got started on the nursery. Matt cleaned out the office and we began to figure out what we are going to do with the flooring and paint scheme. Right now we are thinking of ripping out the carpet and laying down wood flooring. As for the paint job... we are looking at pinks, browns, and creams. We probably should pick out bedding first!

We both feel this pregnancy is really starting to pick up it's pace! The babies are sticking out more and more everyday! Melissa has a noticable line running vertically down from her belly button. Does that mean her abdominal muscles are splitting apart and will never reunite!? Yikes! We think her belly button is actually going to pop out soon, too. It has become much more oval than before.

We will get some pictures up soon! We are both awful at taking pictures and making the time to upload them. Happy spring and God bless you and your families!

"Twin B" is...

Another little girl! We may be announcing both sexes early, but if the sonogram tech and the doctor say both are girls, we are going to confidently assume we are expecting two little ladies this summer :D What a sweet little surprise! From the get-go Melissa assumed boys all around but Matt knew all along "daddy's little girls" were in existence. It is possible that father knows best after all. All else went well with Dr. Gibson at our follow-up on the 23rd. The Quad-Marker test came back negative, so that was great news. Our next appointment is March 16th when we are almost 20 weeks along. Hard to believe, but that is the half-way mark!

The name game is a constant go in our household now. Melissa came up with the name Anna Mae back in December and is sticking to it. She thinks Anna Mae Nagode has a good ring to it. Since we are now expecting another little girl, it is Matt's turn to select a name! So far, he has been fond of Abigail, Mary, and Danielle. Melissa tried to throw in Emma, but he has been persuaded it is too common of a name. Emma is out! Our niece Kylie, who is an adorable 3 year old, stayed with us all weekend and when we asked her the babie's names, she responded excitedly, "One is Anna, and one is not Anna." Eventually we could get her to say Abby, so thanks to Kylie it may be Anna & Abigail (Abby for short). We will see, as we have plenty of time to look into it!

Melissa made an error in a previous blog. She misunderstood the sonogram tech at our last appointment. At 16 weeks, the babies were approximately 4 and 5 inches, not 4 and 5 ounces! According to our baby books, that is still ahead of developmental rates for twins a 16 weeks gestation.

This Wednesday we mark the completion of 18 weeks! Almost half way there. We need to get going on the nursery as we haven't selected any cribs, dresssers nor have we come up with a permanent decoration scheme. Melissa has a coouple of ideas but Matt hasn't really put in his two cents yet. We hope to post more sonogram pictures soon!

Finally, a "Happy 27th Birthday" to Melissa's big sister, Jan on March 3rd and a "Happy FIRST Birthday" to our adorable niece, Mackenzie who celebrates the big one on March 4th. :)

It's a Girl!

Well one of them, "Twin A" is for sure a little girl. "Twin B" was being modest and would not uncross it's darling little legs. "Twin A" is the twin that has been causing all the movement & fluttering. Such a surprise to hear she is a little girl, as Melissa was for sure that would be a rambunctious boy! We found out she is the baby closest to the cervix, so as of now she would be the first one out. She is sitting breech, which we hope changes in the next 3-4 weeks. If she stays breech, we are certain we will have to deliver cesarean. Once we hit about 20-21 weeks supposively there is really not much extra room for them to move around... so however they end up at 20 weeks we hope is comfortable for them as they will be stuck in that position for the rest of the pregnancy!

Both twins are growing great. Twin A is approximately 5 ounces and Twin B is 4 ounces. Both had fluid in their stomachs, which means they are swallowing and their kidneys are functioning well! They had lots of brain tissue developing, a three vessel umbilical cord, and all measurements were "normal" or "average" as the sonogram technician said. We were very happy to hear all the good news! Once we were done with the sonogram, Melissa had blood drawn for the quad-marker test. This test checks for down syndrome, spina bifida, and cystic fibrosis. Luckily none of these diseases are hereditary in our families, but it is of course a great precaution. We have a follow-up with Dr. Gibson on Monday, and maybe if we beg him enough he will do a quick sonogram to get a better peek at Twin B to see if our other little baby is a girl or boy. :D Otherwise, we won't find out until March 16th when we hit 20 weeks! (Wow time is going fast!)

Of course since we know one twin a girl, Melissa had to go buy out Gymboree. Our daughter has clothes now for what seems like the entire first year of her life. Melissa and her mom found lots of adorable ladybug sleepers and onesies, so that may be a nursery theme, depending on what Twin B is. We doubt a little boy would like pink lady bugs and flowers all over his room.

All is well in the Nagode household. Melissa is much more energetic and happy in her second trimester. Our weekend getaway to Chicago was excellent over Valentine's Day weekend! We are now anxiously awaiting spring! Happy birthday in the next week to our nephew, Chase who is turning the big 4! :D We wish we could be down in Atlanta to celebrate with you.

15 Weeks

Another week down and 25 to go. It seems so close, yet so far away! It's only me blogging tonight, as daddy-to-be is visiting a friend. I think that means drinking beer and talking about tools.

Today I am certain I felt some "quickening" (fetal movement)! I was sitting at my desk after school and felt a long sense of fluttering in the left side of my belly! It was so neat. It makes sense its on that side since thats where the little jumping bean was at our last sonogram. There are so many hidden joys to pregnancy and just feeling that movement for about five seconds really made my day.

I just got done reading what to expect in this next week of pregnancy in one of my favorite baby books. I quote from Your Pregnancy, "Week 16 is the turning point-no more lying flat on your back in bed while resting or sleeping, or lying flat on the floor while exercising or relaxing. This position puts extra pressure on the aorta and vena cava, which can reduce blood flow to your baby." Bummer! I have been trying to sleep on my side but have been struggling for a good night's sleep this week. Ill start out on my right side... wake up and I am on my back. I moan like a dying cow in an attempt to rollback to my side and then I realize I have to pee. Needless to say, this really is an occurance at least twice a night, EVERY night.

I have really noticed the added weight protruding from my belly this week. It seems like in the last week I've gained a baby bump and then some! Sadly, I dont think I'll have the appealing basketyball belly, but I think by July I'll look like I'm giving birth to a UPS box. I feel very square and unproportional right now.

Our little babies are getting the fine lanugo hair all over them this week and hopefully they are getitng plenty of nourishment from their fully functioning umbilical cords! Supposively they are capable of sucking their thumbs and are just enjoying a laid back life. I wonder if they think, or what do they hear, and how they pass the time by in that tiny space... I can't imagine (obviously).

Next Wednesday, Feb. 18th we get a sonogram with the technician and will hopefully find out if we are having boys, girls, or one of each! I also have to get a quad-screen test, which tests for Down Syndrome. Hopefully with more blood work & the in-depth sonogram they can determine if the twins are fraternal or identical too :)

We are taking off for our mini-honeymoon this weekend to Chicago. Someday we will get to Alaska & Texas. I suppose we could always make it a family vacation!

Spring Fever

The weather is so lovely outside today. We would guess its about 55 degrees with a slight breeze. Another joy of having two crazy dogs is that they track in mud everywhere. We can't help but think that if we have survived raising these two meathead's of animals, we should be pretty good parents, right? We say that with sarcasm. We are trying to get the house in order today, Melissa has really slacked on cleaning. Her daily routine consists of... up at 5 AM, commute, work 8-3:30ish, commute home, beg Matt to take her out to dinner, eat dinner around 5:00, come home and sit on the couch until about 8:00 and then jump into bed in a comatose state of mind by 8:30. Of course her sleep is interrupted one or two times a night by the urge to urinate. She has been very, very lethargic and physically exhausted. Anyway, after getting about 11 hours of sleep last night, she finally has some spunk to mop the floors, vacuum, and rid the air of wet, dirty dogs.

We added some sonogram pictures to our older blogs below. We finally took the time to load them onto the laptop, to share with you kind people that check our blogs out occasionally! We took a fun quiz online today at www.childbirth.org to calculate if we were having boys or girls. According to the quiz, 45% chance of a boy and 55% chance of a girl. They didn't have a quiz for twins... so maybe that means we are having 1 boy and 1 girl :)

Melissa was quite happy to recieve maternity clothes this week from an online order last weekend. She has been unsatisfied at what she can find for Peoria shopping. Motherhood help has been quite unpleasant and the clothes seem to always have snags and she has even found a tear or two. JCPenny was the only other store at the malls in Peoria that carry maternity clothes. Their pants were comfortable at first, but ever since the first washing, the elastic waistband has become twisted everywhich way, which is really uncomfortable and it just looks bad! She then ordered jeans and some tops from Gap Maternity and is very happy with them. Next weekend we are taking a trip to Chicago and hope to find a couple of nice maternity stores up there.. like A Pea in the Pod.

That is enough ranting for today! We should be working on our wedding thank-you's. Matt has been a good boy and has written 15... Melissa has not been so good... she is still standing at zero.

14 Weeks

Today we hit the 14 week mark and are very anxious for our next appointment at 16 weeks! Hopefully the little twinsies will show us if they are male or female! We don't have many updates this week, but everything seems to be going smoothly. Melissa is starting to pack on the pounds, after having lost 14 pounds in the first trimester... due to her random illnesses and morning sickness. Her belly is starting to protrude and she can't really suck it in anymore like she used to! Her morning sickness is down to about once a week, but we hope that dwindles away to none soon. Never-the-less, it is nothing like it was those first couple of months. Her only complaints these days are excessive fatigue and horrible lower back pain. She says it is really hurting her tailbone, which causes her a small concern that she will talk to her doctor about in the next week or so. Back pain is expected, but we figured it seems early. Although they are only about the size of lemons & limes right now, Melissa can not stop dreaming about the day she will finally get to hold them in her arms!

We feel as if this time is just the "sit and wait" time. When we think about it, their arrival is about 6 months (or less) away. Since we don't know yet where we are going to live (Metamora or Toulon) its hard to plan out a nursery or come up with a scheme. We hope to get the ball rolling after our next appointment and get some organizing done! We are sure the next 26 weeks will go by quickly!

Does anyone have any suggestions for the nursery? We would love suggestions!

No, we are not having Octuplets!

The latest joke around school today was, "Miss J... what if there are more babies hiding behind the twins?" Well sorry kids, we're pretty sure there are no hiding babies in this uterus! :)
How interesting that would be, but we are certain our hands will be full with these little twinsies!

We had our 12 week appointment yesterday, Jan. 26th. How awesome! We got another sonogram but the pictures do not do justice to what we witness in the room. They were quite active yesterday... swimming, kicking... constantly moving. We were amazed at how different they looked than previous appointments. We saw tummies, heads, legs, arms, little fingers, heart beats, etc. Dr. Gibson said they are approximately 2 inches long and all else is well!

We inquired about which hospital Dr. Gibson suggests has the best neonatal care and it all depends on what week the babies are born. If we remember correctly, if they are born prior to 32 weeks, we must deliver at OSF. Of course we will do whatever is safest for the babies, but Melissa has heard their bedside manner is poor, but the good thing is they do have the best neonatal care around and we have heard that a handful of times. After 32 weeks, we can deliver at Methodist, which is good because Melissa & babies are covered there with insurance. So... it is all a waiting game and pray they will make it to AT LEAST 38 weeks! That will take a lot of prayers, as twins usually deliver 35-37 weeks. Our next appointment is February 18th, where we will find out the sex and get all sorts of measurements from the sonogram technician. Melissa also has to do a blood test, but we can't remember what for, but know there are only more to come! We truely felt blessed leaving the doctor's office and hope they continue to grow to their full potential over the next six months!

In other exciting news, we broke the silence & announced our pregnancy to co-workers and dear friends last Thursday & Friday. Boy did it feel good to get that off our chests! Matt played dumb and Melissa had to lie her way through all the incrimination of... "I think your pregnant." "Melissa, are you pregnant?" "I bet it's morning sickness and not the flu!" So, our apologies for not being 100% honest, but we did want to wait until we successfully completed the first trimester.

Tomorrow we hit 13 weeks! Then there are only approximately 27 weeks to go!

12 Weeks

We apologize for not updating for quite some time now! Melissa is back to work in full swing and is pretty much enjoying this last semester of teaching. Matt has been busy with work as well, and luckily for us, no possible job loss with the way CAT is cutting back on employees.

As for the babies go, all has been great since our last appointment. Melissa has had no spotting and her abdomen is really starting to fill out. Her appetite is gradually increase, morning sickness is decreasing, & she is not as tired as she was earlier on. All seems to be looking up for now! We have our next appointment this coming Monday, January 26th for another checkup and sonogram! Melissa loves getting sonograms and we hope to finally hear the heartbeats this time.

We hope to post again on Monday to inform you all of what is new with the twinsies development. Have a lovely & enjoyable weekend!

"Momma Called the Doctor and the Doctor Said..."

Melissa, again, was worried about spotting. We had an appointment with Dr. Gibson today and AGAIN reassured us all is just fine! Now Melissa will hopefully take a breather and not freak out everytime something seems to be a little off. Supposively, women can spot their entire pregnancy and not have any problem... it would just be nice to know what exactly is causing it. However, Dr. Gibson checked her cervix, uterine muscles, etc and everything is just "great."

We again got a sonogram today! Supposively we will be getting one every appointment here on out since we are carrying two babies. What great news, but not so good on the wallet! Sonograms are about the only thing that can put Melissa's mind to rest. She enjoys witnessing that her little babies are alive and well! We still have not heard the heartbeats, but they are quite visible. Matt was lucky enough to spot their big heads apart from their bodies! They are looking more human every week!

Our due date was actually pushed back to August 10th instead of August 6th. He did assure us though, that we would more than likely be delivering in a hot, muggy mid-July. Another subject Dr. Gibson touched on this evening was amount of activity & bed rest. It sounds like he really doesn't want Melissa being on her feet too much once March hits. That sure is cutting the school year short and this is definetly something Melissa needs to discuss with her boss, Jay!

We hit the 10 week mark on Wednesday... which is great to finally be in the double digits! Two more weeks and we will finally feel more comfortable sharing our news with EVERYONE! Melissa is going to make Matt scan some pictures at work so we can finally post some sonogram pictures this week.

Adios for now!