25. Almost 30 weeks along.

I never thought I would stop writing here when I ended up getting pregnant. I thought I would use my blog as the place where I could get things off of my chest and document my beautiful journey. Little did I know that life would get busy, and getting up off the couch to grab the laptop would feel like too much work. I didn’t expect to be this tired, or sore, or busy.

I am almost 30 weeks along with our twins. We found out 2 days after our wedding that we were having 2 GIRLS! In that moment, this whole thing became real – this growing bump felt more precious and it was as if we knew our babies so much better.

I always dreamed of having a daughter. I never imagined that life could bless me with two, let alone two at the same time. But in 8 weeks our girls will be here, I will finally get to look at their faces and and hold their little hands. I will be able to kiss them good night and tell them that every hard moment along this journey was well worth it because it gave us them. I can’t wait to know them and watch them grow up.

I will try to find more time for this blog as time continues. I will try to document their first years. But for now, I will save every ounce of energy that I have.

This has been a wild roller coaster, so many ups and so many downs. Getting pregnant with these girls has been the biggest “up” of my life, and even when they kick me so hard in the ribs that I feel like I am going to fall over…. this roller coaster keeps travelling upwards.

Up, up and away.

Shannon.

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24. Pregnancy Announcement

We posted this picture on our social media pages with the caption “Our family is growing by 4 feet in May”. Needless to say, we were overwhelmed with the response. All of the love that was sent our way was such a wonderful feeling. And now this all feels so real.

My tummy is growing away. I really thought I would be able to hide my pregnancy for a while longer, but these babies have a plan of their own. I have quite the baby bump now, which makes me smile every time I look in the mirror. There are my babies, growing and developing and every single day we get closer and closer to meeting them.

What will they look like? Will they like hockey as much as we do? And if they do, will they cheer for the Leafs or will there be a team rivalry in the house? What will their voices sound like? What will they find funny? Who will they grow up to be? How can we love them more than we already do?

So many questions floating around. I think about them constantly. In normal every day situations, I imagine them here… sitting on the couch at my parent’s, watching the game… baking cookies in the kitchen…. decorating the Christmas tree…. taking the dog for a walk. They will enhance every moment of our lives, and even the normal moments will seem extraordinary because they will be here.

This has been our dream for what feels like forever, and now we are months away from watching it come true. Our two miracles coming into this world.

I’m just on cloud 9 over here.

Shannon.

23. Planning a Wedding and preparing for babies!

We set a wedding date. To be honest we almost completely planned a wedding in a few days. On Thursday my Mom and Dad had us over for dinner, they would really like to see us married before the babies come, so they are willing to help out with the financial part of the wedding. To be honest, we have always wanted to be legally married before the babies were born and then have a reception when they are about 6 months old, but as soon as my Mom mentioned a wedding I couldn’t help but think of how amazing it will feel to call Tiff my wife, and to celebrate with our friends and family. So we put together a guest list, and each of us had a task for the next day (venues to call etc.)

On Saturday we visited the venue that we decided to go with for the reception, its a nice space with lots of windows! Then we booked the ceremony venue – which is actually the same place that Tiff and I went on our first date, so that’s pretty special! Then later Saturday night we created and ordered invitations!!

On Tuesday we booked the photographer. She was recommended by a good friend and her photos are beautiful!

On Wednesday the invitations came in the mail – they will be addressed and sent out in the next few days!

On Saturday we are going out looking for dresses, which will be interesting since I will have quite the belly by then.

I am so beyond happy. I cant wait to marry this woman, she is my perfect match and she makes my world brighter!

Today we got to see our babies. They are amazing, I could watch those little hearts beating forever. I can’t wait to meet them and fall even further into love with them.

My life is wonderful right now. This may be the happiest that I have ever been. 2018 is going to be our year. Starting it out with a wedding (January 6) and then adding 2 peanuts to the family in May. Could I ask for more?

Just smiling ear to ear.

Shannon.

22. Nine Weeks

I have been quiet on here lately, I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I feel tired and nauseous all the time. I just have no energy for much after I am home from work. People always talk about the fatigue and morning sickness in the first few months of pregnancy, and I swear I underestimated how intense it could really get.

We have still been taking our weekly photo with a fruit or veggie that shows the twin’s size. This week we are at the “cherry” size. It is crazy to think our little babies are already that big, they have little hands and feet and their facial features are becoming more defined. We had another ultrasound last week, and it was amazing to see how much they had grown and how much stronger their sweet heartbeats were.

I am already showing. This isn’t much of a surprise to me, since everyone that has had twins told me that I can expect to start showing about a month earlier than I would with a singleton pregnancy. Maybe Tiff and I are the only ones who notice, but I swear my shirts hug my tummy a little tighter and stretchy pants feel so much more comfortable. I am excited for 3 weeks from now, when I get to start telling people and feeling less self-conscious about my growing belly.

We are still wrapping our heads around the fact that we are having twins. Two babies. We know that we are being blessed twice over, but we are still a little nervous about everything. Caring for one baby is stressful and amazing and overwhelming and beautiful…. caring for two babies will be so much more. But I wouldn’t have it any other way, these babies are going to be the most wonderful gift.

Back to day-dreaming about baby names.

Shannon.

21. DOUBLE the love

Today we had our 6 week 4 day ultrasound and it went better than I ever could have dreamed. 

As the technician was doing the ultrasound and taking the pictures she said casually “remember when you were told that you had a higher chance of twins? Well you’re having twins”

My mind went to a million different places, but it kept coming back to “we have 2 babies in my tummy and I already love them so much”. I haven’t stopped smiling since we got the news. We got to see their little heartbeats, and my whole heart filled with joy and love.

When I got up I looked at Tiff and she was crying. I think it was a mix of “omg we’re having two babies” and “how are we going to pay for two babies?” and “I already love them so much”. But when I looked at her, all I could see was her holding our sweet babies, rocking them slowly, kissing their foreheads and being the best damn mother in the world. I can’t wait to raise our children together, it will be the greatest joy of my life. 

So now I have to let it sink in. I think it is, slowly but surely. I am going to be a mother. I am going to be a mother to two babies at once. I have never been so happy.

Filled with love!

Shannon.

20. Thankful

This weekend was Canadian Thanksgiving. I was able to spend the weekend doing everything I love with all of my favourite people. 

On Friday my sister, Nicole, and I baked cookies for Thanksgiving day. She is my “person”, the one who I call to share my news (no matter if it is good or bad) and the person who knows me better than anyone. I loved having a sister day, laughing and talking about our plans for the future.

On Saturday my sister, mom, aunt, Tiff and myself all went to the local Thanksgiving craft show. There are hundreds of vendors selling cute little homemade items, so we bought some Christmas decorations for the house! 

Sunday was our Thanksgiving celebration. On our way to dinner we stopped to take our photo for week 6 – with a sweet pea! Unfortunately I felt nauseous all day but I made the best of it! My parents put on the most amazing holiday dinners, there is always more food than you can even imagine and it’s so good that I ate a full plate even though I didn’t feel well. After dinner we took a walk to the park looking over Lake Ontario and watched the sunset, the sky was the brightest red I have seen it in a long time. 

Thanksgiving is one of my favourite holidays. It is so special to be able to actually take time to think about all of the blessings that we all have in our lives. Some days are harder than others, but in the end I have so much to be thankful for! This year was especially meaningful, knowing that I finally have a little life growing inside of me and we are one step closer to being parents. Next Thanksgiving I will have a beautiful baby in my arms, and I will have even more to be thankful for! 

Forever Grateful!

Shannon.

19. Silence

I have been so quiet on here lately. I am feeling such a mix of emotions, it is so hard to put them into words. On one hand I am over joyed – a positive pregnancy test was all that I could have hoped for this month. On the other hand I am hesitant to be too happy. I know how early in my pregnancy it is, and there is no guarantee that it will stick and continue to develop. I hate this feeling of unease, not being 100% sure. 

I just want it to be a few months down the road so that I can relax a little bit and start to plan for this little life growing inside of me. 

For now, I’ll keep my fingers crossed and keep myself as healthy as possible. This baby will bring so much joy to my life! 

My pregnancy app says that baby is the size of an Appleseed this week! So we took a family pic with an Appleseed to track the baby’s growth! Hopefully we get to take countless more photos with different fruits and veggies to track the growth! 

Shannon.

18. Positive!

Early Sunday morning we went to get my bloodwork done! They said they would call with results in the early afternoon, so we had about 4-5 hours to kill. We headed to the mall and found 2 of the cutest little onesies, so obviously we got them with positive thoughts in our minds!! 

On the drive home through the country back roads we got a call from the clinic. It was 11am so we were caught right off guard! They told us that our HCG levels were great and our results came back positive!! We cycled between laughing, crying and sitting in disbelief. It was the most beautiful and surreal moment of my life, and I will remember it forever! 

We quickly drove to my parents house to share the news. My mom broke down instantly and ran over and pulled us both in for a hug, it was then that I look at my Dad and noticed the tears forming in the corners of his eyes. It was so wonderful to share such exciting news with the people who care most about us in this world! 

We went for our follow up bloodwork 2 days later and our levels hadn’t quite doubled in the 48 hours. I was nervous but tried to stay positive, I couldn’t let go of this floating feeling so quickly. 

We got more blood done today and our HCG numbers look great! I have never been so relieved! I am officially pregnant and the baby seems to be growing well! 

We get to go for our first ultrasound in 2 weeks to check up and make sure that everything is going well! So for the next little while we will eat healthy, get out for evening walks, think of baby names and soak in this beautiful joy that we have in our lives. 

I swear that all of the positive vibes and thoughtful messages helped me through this. My fingers are crossed that this pregnancy sticks and in 8 months we have a beautiful healthy baby in our lives! 

Still smiling ear to ear!

Shannon. 

17. The longest 14 days

This two week wait feels like it is passing so slowly. I read too far into every little cramp and every time I get the feeling of butterflies.

Only 6 days left to wait.

Shannon.

16. The Perfect Weekend

I honestly don’t know how to start this post without all of my happiness and joy spilling out and making absolutely no sense. I will start with Saturday morning. 

On Saturday September 9, I turned 30. I woke up snuggled in bed with Tiff and the dog and sunshine beaming through the blinds. I opened my beautiful card from Tiff and all the perfect gifts that she got me. 

We got in the car and headed to the fertility clinic. Most people wouldn’t consider blood work and an ultrasound to be the best way to spend their birthday, but I was happy to. I was even happier when our wonderful doctor told us that he would like to do our trigger shot right then and there so that we could inseminate the next day. I just have to take a second to say that this was HUGE news for us because up until now, we haven’t had any follicles grow during any cycle. This cycle we had 2 good follicles! 

When we got home Tiff took me (blindfolded) to my sister’s house where my entire family and a group of friends were waiting to surprise me with a games day! We played fun outdoor games for hours, ate my favourite cake and laughed till it hurt! 

This morning I woke up way before my alarm with a smile across my face. Today would be our first real shot at having a baby!! (Okay my eyes might be welling up with tears right now)

The insemination was significantly less painful, long and awkward than I had imagined. Tiff held my hand and looked me in the eyes the whole time. We both gave my tummy a little rub as I laid there, just sending some love inside! 

I can’t even begin to wrap my head around this situation. I know that there are no guarantees and our chances of getting pregnant on our first try are not great, but everything seemed so perfect. It felt like the stars were aligning. 

So now we wait and pray and hope (and give some words of encouragement to my belly). 

Come on little one! 

Now here are some photos of my perfect weekend! 

^Saturday after our appointment.

^My wonderful momma giving me my cake 

^My sister, my dad and I

^Me and my cake

^My sister, Tiff, Grandpa and I

^This morning in the car on the way to the clinic

^About 30 seconds before insemination 
Shannon.