Happy Halloween!

Silas the sea otter and Liam the ring-tailed lemur

Family Photos

Two weeks ago we had family photos taken by a photographer friend of ours. Although it's pretty tough to get both boys to look at the camera at the same time, I was pretty pleased with them! Today the boys are 9 months old already! It's so crazy how fast the last 9 months have gone. I am so lucky and feel gratitude beyond words to K and her family! There are still days when I look at the boys and can't believe what an amazing life story they have to tell!

Birth Certificates

After 8.5 months we finally received the boys' birth certificates that list me as the mother and J as the father. We had hoped for a pre-birth order (PBO), but the judge wanted DNA testing after the boys' arrival. We did that and jumped through the other hoops to finally have the official documents in our possession. I knew all along the boys were ours and that K wouldn't be contesting that, but it's still nice to have the official documents. It feels like the final step in the surrogacy journey. I feel so fortunate to have had such a great experience with surrogacy and hope that others who take this path to their children find similar success. Life is good!

8 months old

"Miracle Baby" Birthday Party

This past weekend we went to a birthday party hosted by our RE and his clinic. They do this every year to celebrate all the "miracle babies" they helped to conceive. The boys were able to meet their first babysitters, the embryologists, as well as some of the nurses and of course, Dr. S, our wonderful RE. The party was hosted at the Mall of America's aqaurium, Underwater Adventures, and the boys absolutely loved watching all the fish. While walking through the aqaurium tunnel Liam laid back to watch the sharks, rays, and large fish swim over our heads and also enjoyed standing up next to the sides with his hands on the plexiglass watching the fish swim by. Silas seemed to enjoy looking at the jellyfish in the small tanks, but seemed a little scared when J put him right next to the plexiglass of the tunnel. It was so much fun to watch them taking it all in. I love seeing life through their eyes where everything is new and so amazing!

A family photo at Underwater Adventures: (it's blurry but the only one we took)

The four of us with Dr. S (who's eyes are closed):

The boys with Dr. S:

Underwater Adventures Family Photo:

Still here

I am still here and enjoying life. Being a full-time working mom of twins is a lot more work than I expected, particularly when you're a high school teacher and have work to do outside of the normal workday. I vowed not to do any schoolwork while the boys are awake, which means that I'm busy in the evenings when they go to bed and during naptime on the weekends, and so far I've stuck to this plan. My biggest challenge since going back to work aside from being away from the boys is trying to cook well-balanced healthy meals. I've started using the crockpot more often and am prepping my meals on the weekends. Also, I try to make double batches of soups, lasagnas, etc that I can throw in the freezer for another week. It seems to be working well. My other big challenge is keeping my house as tidy/clean as I like it to be. As a Type A I have very high expectations for things, including the state of my house. I'd love to have a cleaning lady just once a month to alleviate this stress and am still lobbying for that with J.

The boys just got over a cold (as did their mommy) and are doing quite well. It's hard to believe that in a few days the boys will be 8 months old already! Neither of the boys has teeth yet, but I can see them just under the surface and they are constantly tongueing at their lower gums. Although they get around quite well by rolling, turning/pivoting and rolling, they haven't started to crawl yet. We've observed both of them on their knees for brief moments, but nothing beyond that. Before I started school we babyproofed the house, so we'd be ready the day they take off. Liam has taken to babbling with anyone who'll listen and Silas is a little more shy. Both boys have smiles that melt my heart and everyday I race home as soon as I can to see them.

Last week I celebrated my 34th birthday (I'm not too proud to admit my age) and our wonderful nanny surprised me at school with the boys. When they arrived at my classroom I was in the back of the room helping a group of students and heard a quiet voice say "Happy Birthday Mommy". I turned around to see our nanny with both boys in tow. They were wearing matching onsies that said "Happy Birthday Mom". I was so happy to see them and couldn't get over the cute onsies the nanny had made. She truly is a wonderful person and we're so lucky to have her caring for our boys!

Return to Work

Tomorrow I will return to work after having been off with Liam & Silas for 7 months. I have been dreading this and have cried on and off all week anticipating the end of my maternity leave. Tonight while putting Silas to bed I rocked him and bawled because I I kept thinking about how I won't see my boys awake until 3:30pm tomorrow. It's not that I'm worried about the boys not being well cared for or that I dislike my job. I love teaching and feel confident that my boys will be in good hands. My mom will be with them here at our house two days a week and our wonderful nanny the other three days. I'm just sad that I won't be the one who's with them. I'm sad that I'm going to miss all the smiles, giggles, kisses, hugs, cuddling, and new milestones. This week is going to be tough, so wish me strength as I return to work.