New Car

 We bought a new car this weekend on our way to a wedding in Athens, GA.  We settled on a Chevy Volt and after driving it almost 400 miles to finish the trip we are pleased with our choice.  It is also a top safety pick, very important for a growing family!

 

Here we are between our old Echo (almost 200,000 miles), which we traded in, and the new Volt.

 

A better photo of the Volt in the daylight.

 

All plugged in at the house!  We can go about 50 miles on electric before the gas generator kicks in for another 300 miles or so, then we have to fuel up just like a regular car.  Luckily, Matthew can recharge at work and there are many places to plug in around Savannah so we will mostly be using electric.

25 Weeks

Two more weeks have flown by and I'm just starting week 25.  I'm still feeling pretty good although I'm definitely tiring more easily and starting to have difficulty moving around.  The kids have been kicking me regularly and Matthew has been able to feel their movement too!

 

At this week's scan they turned on the 3D imaging to try to get a few photos.  Both babies had things in front of their face (an arm or the cord) so they weren't the best images but you can sort of get an idea.  Here's baby B.

 

Baby A is a little more difficult to see in this one.  They are looking to the left and the face is on the right, with the nose almost in the middle.

 

We also got a few regular ultrasound images.  Here's Baby B's profile.

 

Baby A's profile.  You can see a little bit of the cord above the belly in this one.

 

 

We (ok, mostly me) have also been busy getting ready for the twins' arrival.  I've washed and sorted all of the clothes and linens we've received so far.  We've also been working on a registry and a baby shower is in the works.

Dresser

Some of our readers will recognize this dresser as it is currently in the nursery.  It was my mom's when she was a kid and we also have the matching desk.  There was another dresser and desk set in the family but the second dresser seems to be MIA at the moment.  So, we are on the hunt for a matching dresser to this one  because identical twins should have matching furniture, of course!  It was made in the 1960s by Sears and is classified as a French Provincial style.  Some places call it "vintage" as well.  I have found other styles from this set (low boy, lingerie dresser. etc.) on various local craigslists but have so far been unable to locate one of these that is close enough for us to buy.  Please keep your eye out for one if you are ever in an antique or second hand store! 

 

Apparently there are matching nightstands too, so if you see one of these we are looking for two!  Thank you :)

23 Weeks

Another couple of weeks closer to meeting our twins!  People are no longer wondering if I might be pregnant now, as you can see it is VERY obvious :)

 

I had another scan on Monday and everything still looks great.  Baby B cooperated for a cute profile photo.

 

Baby A was not as cooperative, but here are both of the tops of their heads.  I assume that they are plotting what trouble they will get into!

Engineering Design Challenge

For the last several months Matthew has been working with local high school students and Armstrong University to build a go-cart.  They were given an electric motor and a set of guidelines but had to come up with most of the design themselves.  The design challenge ended this weekend with a competition between the nine high schools.

 

Matthew, two of the students, and the high school teacher with their poster and go cart.

 

A few last minute adjustments to the cart before the competition starts.

 

Practicing for the first task, an obstacle course.

 

At the start of the obstacle course.

 

During the course.  Their cart did very well on the maneuvering part of the course but was unable to go across the bridge (seen in the background of this photo).

 

The next challenge was a tug-of-war.  Unfortunately, they were paired with the winning team right at the beginning so their cart lost the first bout.

 

The last challenge was a head-to-head race that included a stop.  I think they ended up about 4th overall in this. 

 

 

Although Matthew's team didn't win the challenges overall, they did win the award for most innovative! Their cart was the only design that used their feet for steering.

 

Before leaving Matthew had a chance to take it for a spin.

21 weeks

Today is the start of 21 weeks!  Last week I had a stomach bug for several days but I'm feeling much better now, probably the best I've felt in months.  And my bump is very obvious!

 

Last weekend Matthew and I drove up to Emily and Miran's in Charlotte.  We met Jane and Richard there as well for an exchange of furniture and baby goods. We stuffed the truck full of boxes and all kinds of goodies!

 

We are so thankful for all of the wonderful supplies, clothes, and gear from family!  As soon as I unpack everything it will be like an instant nursery :)

Due to my illness last week, the anatomy scan got moved to yesterday.  Matthew and I spent almost two hours at the specialists' while they scanned and measured both babies.  Although the babies were a little small (10th percentile) all of their measurements were normal.  In two weeks I'll go back for another check on fluid/growth and then in four weeks they will repeat most of the measurements from yesterday.

 

Profile of baby A.  This one was not real cooperative for measurements and the tech actually told us this was one of the hardest scans she's done in 15 years!  Both babies were side by side, head down.

 

Profile of baby B.  The tech recorded the gender of both babies but we decided not to find out yet.

Bees!

I've been interested in beekeeping for a few years now and this year I decided to start my own hives.  I attended two seminars, read one book, and joined a local beekeeping club over the last couple of months.  Here is my first hive, some assembly required!

 

Putting together the frames.  These are what the bees use to build their comb and store honey, pollen, and brood (baby bees).

 

The boxes that hold the frames had to be painted after assembly.

 

The big day!  Robert, a local beekeeper, sold me two starter hives and installed them into my larger hives.

 

These ladies seem to be enjoying their new home.  The jar is filled with sugar water as a food source while the bees are settling in.

 

Both hives are set up in the garden.  The one on the left we purchased and Matthew made the one on the right.  We won't get any honey this year but hopefully next year both hives will be strong enough to start producing.