It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Christmas at the Vicars house is coming early this year. Santa is hopefully going to bring us 2 healthy baby boys. Van and Eli should be here within the next few weeks, so I have been frantically trying to get Christmas up and presents bought. Since we didn't travel this past weekend, we got a lot accomplished...tree is up, house is decorated, and majority of presents are bought. I think the nesting bug has even hit Adam. He cleaned out the entire garage and it honestly looks entirely different...so clean! :) I feel my house is in order (for now) which is a huge relief. Soooo, we are just waiting for our little Christmas bundles to arrive. I had a good ultrasound yesterday. The boys were practicing their breathing, blood flow looked good, and they were moving well. I am continuing my three weekly doctor's appointments, am still working from home, and taking it easy as much as possible. I think I have grown since the weekend from all the Thanksgiving goodies, so hopefully that means the boys are bigger too!

I will leave ya'll with a pic of our Christmas tree.

Happy Thanksgiving...a Little Late

I'm a little behind on my blog. Since I last posted, I have been back to the doctor several times. I have started going 3 times a week now. My boys were last weighed Monday and they are both still on the small side, but poor little Baby B is only 2 lbs 11oz. He has not grown much since the last weigh in 2 weeks ago, so the doctors were very concerned. Baby A is 3 lbs 8 oz which is still small but not as dangerous as B. They are monitoring me very closely. I even had to go in to the hospital today for an NST since the office is closed. They want to make sure they are not getting sick. It looks like I will deliver within the next few weeks. Ideally they want me to make it to 36 weeks which will be Dec. 15 but 34 is possible too, which is this coming Thursday-eek! Needless to say, I am a little worried about these little guys. I have also had to cut back on my activities. I am no longer teaching at the gym and am limiting my workouts (which are proving to be few and far between) to leisurely walks. I am doing everything possible to keep those babies in there as long as possible and get them bigger! I am taking it very easy and am eating hearty meals like everyone is instructing me to do, ha ha. We want these boys to grow! After getting back from the doctor on Monday, I wanted make sure everything was packed for the hospital just in case something were to happen early. I think everything is ready now, so we are just waiting.

(No, I have no makeup on, please excuse my face.)

We had already planned to stay here in Greenville for Thanksgiving (which is a first), so I could take it easy and be close to the hospital just in case. Let me just say a nice, relaxing Thanksgiving at home was just what the doctor ordered. It was wonderful! Adam put together a wonderful spread and everything was delicious for our first attempt at the feast. I'm not much of a cook, but I do like to bake and made several pies which turned out very yummy. Adam is the cook, but I did help him prepare everything. :) We were very proud of our efforts. And no, I didn't eat the turkey leg. Adam took care of that, ha.

Chef Adam

Eating for Three

The weekend before Thanksgiving, Mom came down for a visit, and Adam ended up going to Kingsport to visit his parents. I told him that would be the last chance for him to go to Kingsport for a while, so he better take advantage. Mom and I had a great time! She hadn't seen the nursery in person yet, so I think she really loved it. Some "Mom" time was just what I needed. She was so sweet to help me clean my house too. Some of the usual cleaning tasks are hard for me to do these days, so it was nice to have a helping hand. Adam and I are truly blessed with wonderful families. They have been so supportive and helpful during my pregnancy. I feel very fortunate.

My mother is the cutest! I had to put this pic up. :) Don't be mad Mom.

So that's about all that has been going on. I am just resting and waiting to meet my boys. Oh! and eating of course, ha! I guess this is a time in my life when I need to load it up, so why not? Plus everyone keeps telling me to eat more for these boys, so I am taking full advantage.

Last Road Trip

Since the time is nearing for Van Earl and Eli to be born, Adam and I decided to take advantage of these last few weeks together. This past weekend we went to Charlotte for the day. This will be our last road trip for a long time. We had a beautiful drive up. It was such a gorgeous Fall day. We ended up at South Park mall. It was nice to get out and shop a little and get some Christmas shopping done. I am trying to get everything finished before the boys come. Unfortunately my body won't let me shop like I used to, but we still managed to get in several good hours. :) My body and the boys were done after that. After all that hard shopping (ha, yeah right), we had a fabulous dinner at San Antonio's (a great Tex Mex restaurant). Not only were we excited to eat some great Mexican but it happened to the 5th of the month so everything was $5...awesome! It was a great trip and very nice to get away to see something different for the day. The days of picking up and going will be long gone before long.

30 Weeks and Counting

Well, I have finally made it to 30 weeks. This is a big milestone for me in my pregnancy. According to what the doctors are telling me, I only have 4-6 more weeks left. It really is right around the corner. I definitely have mixed emotions. I am super excited and can't wait to meet my boys, but am also a little apprehensive of what the future will bring. I know my life is totally going to change, but until I experience it I will not fully understand what is ahead. I am still going to the doctor 2 times a week. Mondays I see the High Risk group for an ultrasound scan and Thursdays I go to my regular OB group for an NST (Non-Stress Test). An NST, as I found out, is where they put monitors (3 to be exact) on my belly so they can listen to the boys' heartbeats for 30-45 minutes to make sure they are increasing and decreasing like they are supposed to. So far so good on all my doctor's visits. Today was the 3 week weigh in ultrasound for the babies. Baby A is 2 lbs. 15 oz and Baby B is 2 lbs. 8 oz. They have each grown almost a pound since last time. Baby B is still small and has "restricted growth" but the doctor was very positive today. I will continue my twice weekly visits. The doctors seem fine with me continuing to teach and workout at the gym, so I am going to keep on trucking. I am taking it easy of course. I am very fortunate I am able to work from home and put my feet up and relax as I work. I am definitely feeling heavier and more pressure in my belly. The boys movements are more pronounced. I can even feel and see where Baby B's head is and Baby A's feet. Baby B is breech (his head is right next to my belly button) and Baby A is head down (this changed from last week). Who knows where they will end up. I have prepared myself for a C-section so either way is fine. We are supposed to complete our "Birth Plan". Some of the questions I have no idea about. My Birth Plan is to get the babies out as quickly, safely, and painlessly as possible. I wonder if they can just put me to sleep and wake me up when it's all over with, ha ha. I'm serious, I am terrified of the pain. I really don't want to know what or how they do it, just do it. That's why we are not taking a class on the whole birth process.

And since it's the 30 week mark...

Here are some pregnancy highlights:

How Far Along: 30.5 weeks

Size of Babies: Baby A is 2 lb 15 oz and Baby B is 2 lb 8 oz

Maternity Clothes: Some. I've been wearing a lot of leggings (non maternity) low below my hips and larger tops.

Gender: BOYS! Van Earl and Elijah Willis

Movement: More pronounced. I can tell where their heads are.

Sleep: I get up AT LEAST once a night to go to the bathroom and a lot of times it's hard for me to get back to sleep. I am having a harder and harder time getting comfy. Boppy full body pillow is very helpful.

What I Miss: Red wine (this one is never gonna fall off the list, ha), sleeping without waking up several times a night, my feet leaving the ground for high impact aerobics, not feeling so heavy, cute clothes, being able to maneuver easily (I am a clumsy fool right now, ha)

Cravings: Hamburgers! (not sure if that's a real craving or it's just because I have an excuse to eat them, ha ha). I did have a random craving for a tuna sub from Subway which I never eat normally. Oh yeah and a random sausage biscuit from McDonalds' (don't eat sausage normally either).

Aversions: Onions (that's nothing new though)

Symptoms: Heavy and BIG, belly button about to pop (weird), have to take it slower, simple tasks are a little harder these days.

Best Moment of the Week: Going on one last road trip my hubby to Charlotte. We are cherishing these last few weeks of just "us."

The Twins Nursery

Ok, so I have been trying to hold off until the nursery is completely finished before I post any nursery pics, but I am going to post now. It almost complete, but still lacks a few finishing touches. Here are the pics...

Eli's Crib




Van's Crib






Bear had to get in some pics




The rocking chair was my Grandma's




Dresser/Changing Table



Bookshelf


Coming home outfits


Like I said there are still some finishing touches that need to be done. I want to get an area rug, a floor lamp to put in the corner of the cribs, and maybe some shelving to put in that corner as well.

Greenville Shower

I am still catching up on my blogging... Two weekends ago our dear friends Kathrina and Jason threw us a couples baby shower. Let me just say it was fabulous! They went all out and everything was perfect! Once again, I was so touched by the thoughtfulness and generosity of our friends. Adam and I are so blessed to have such wonderful friends. I will post more pics once I get them since I am such an awesome photographer and ALWAYS remember to bring my camera (ha!). Yes, definitely left my camera at home, so I relied on others to take pics.

Kathrina and Jason did a low country boil at their home. It was good to have several of our friends together to celebrate this exciting time. The decorations were so adorable and creative. I can't wait to post the pics. Like I said, they went all out. It was amazing! Adam, the boys, and I definitely feel loved.

I did take a pic once we got home of the amazing diaper cake our neighbors made for us. I was super excited to get this and look at all the detail. They are very talented! :)


Awesome Diaper Cake made by Whitney and Sarah

Knoxville Shower

The past few weeks have been full of Baby Showers. We have had 3 all together. First of all let me just say...Adam and I are overwhelmed with everyone's generosity. We are truly blessed with such wonderful friends and family. We have been touched by all everyone has done for us. It is greatly appreciated!

I know I am way overdue to post. I am going to try to get caught up. The first shower was at Adam's work which I have already blogged about so you have read about how wonderful his co-workers were to us. We traveled to Knoxville a couple of weekends ago for the last time for a while per doctor's orders. My mother put together a fabulous shower for me at Apple Cake Tea Room. She really outdid herself and everything was perfect! It was so good to see friends and family whom I had not seen in a while. It was so special to have everyone together. Here are some pics from the wonderful day...

Katie and Preggo


Daddy and Mommy to Be

The Vicars Clan


The Fillingim Clan

Dad and his girls


UT Slippers from Dad






Delicious cupcakes


Baby Washcloth Roses (creation by Mom)




Basket of goodies from my sweet sissy


As you can see, I am truly blessed!