Poor Santa

2007

2008

As you can see, Luke cheered up considerably on the train ride afterwards -

Hopefully it'll be easier next year!

Emo means aunt in Korean

In Korean, a maternal aunt is called 'emo'. The paternal aunts are called 'gomo'. Therefore, Mike's sisters are gomo and my sisters are emo. We call them Grace emo and Christine emo. Mike's sisters are called Auntie Ellen and Auntie Amy. There's also Auntie Karen and Auntie Amber. Ok, there's your Korean lesson for the year.

The kids and I are so lucky to have Christine emo make so many fun things for them. I won't be able to make their halloween costumes, but I'll be able to show them how to balance their checkbook. Fortunately, we'll have Christine emo ensure the kids aren't embarrassed by their costumes falling apart.

With Christmas coming up, Christine emo didn't disappoint. First she brought over the kids' their very own Christmas tree for their bedroom. It came complete with ornaments, all handmade by emo.

(little stockings with the initials 'L' and 'S' embroidered on them)

For the latest, she made these ornaments to hang on the big Christmas tree. We chose the pink and blue ones for Bree and Luke. The rest will be adopted by other happy homes.

Would you have guessed they're made from champagne corks?!?!? Looks like I have to do my part and keep drinking the bubblies!


ps Luke & Bree aren't able to say emo. Rather they call Chris and Grace - Elmo. Just like the little cartoon character on their potty seat.

Christmas Cards

It's already that time of year and I'm going through our Christmas card list. Like last year's we (meaning Mike) made our own cards. We've used PSPrint. They're awesome and so cheap. We get 500 cards for about $60 (or something like that). So if you'd like to help us get rid of some and would like to receive a card, email me your address.

I know we have some friends who lurk on here but are painfully shy at actually contacting us. Just want to let you know we miss you. Email me already with your info!

We're viable!

I'm a blogging fool right now. Shhh, don't interrupt me, you'll break my streak.

I can't go any further without a mention of the boys, tentatively named J&T at the moment. I'm completely on board, but Mike needs a little persuasion.

I spoke to our surrogate today after her biweekly appt and everything is going well. I'm so thankful we've passed the 24 week mark. The boys are now considered 'viable' in the eyes of the medical community. Which means, if anything were to happen from this moment on, they would do whatever possible to save them because now they have a better chance of surviving. Of course, I'd rather she keep on baking. I would've given anything to have Matthew & Isabel as micro preemies, but they would most likely have issues, severe issues. Right now, I pray the boys are kept safe and inside until they're ready to be born full term and healthy.

Highlights from our conversation -
* Their heart beats were 130 and 140 today.
* Her belly is measuring 32 weeks, even though she's only 24 weeks.
* She's gained 7lbs in the last 4 weeks.
* Apparently they're going thru a growth spurt and fattening up. (I can't but help think we're the wicked witches fattening up Hansel & Gretel.)
* They're kicking on both sides of her.

Best news yet, we're going up for her 26 week appt with the perinatologist. We're super excited to see her and the boys. Since the peri has a 3D ultra sound machine, I'm hoping we'll get some good pics of them!

For Rent

My kids are totally into ride-on toys. If I could, I'd get them every type of car/tractor/wagon/catepillar out there. Seriously, they love them!

Imagine my reaction when I set my eyes on these beauties -

That's right, they're mini coopers for kids! How cool would that be?!?!? But alas, I cannot justify spending $160 PER CAR and I would have to get 2 too. But what if we bought them and then rented them out? Just think, your cutie-patootie could be sitting in his/her very own mini cooper for the week! Imagine the photo ops! The happiness on your kid's face! And best of all, not having to store it after the week is over!

This could be your pea-pod right here -

In the meantime, L&B will have to make do with their 'not-so-cool' little tykes 'mobile.

Thanksgiving and That Dress

We celebrated the kids' 2nd Thanksgiving at Grandma & Grandpa's house. As usual, the food was fantastic and this year we had not one, but TWO deep fried turkeys!
And unlike like last year, the kids were in relatively good health (minus the stomach bug and diarrhea). Still it was a fabulous day and one of my favorite holidays!

We also dressed the kids up for the holiday. I can't believe how big and handsome Luke is getting -

Then there's beautiful Brina. What's going on with that dress you ask? Well, it was a gift from Grandma J. It's not really my cup of tea nor Mike's. But I had an epiphany and realized Grandma J really loved the dress. When she gave it to me, she was hesistant not sure how I'd react. I didn't say anything immediately and took it home. Even though I wouldn't have picked it out myself, I'm glad Grandma got to see her favorite dress on her granddaughter. The more I thought about it, I realized what harm would it be to us and yet what happiness would it bring to Grandma. Just a thought I had and something you might want to keep in mind when you get that handmade/knitted gift from Aunt Beatrice.

Preemies Awareness Day

Ok, this is a cause that's very close to my heart. Please take the time and sign the petition to the right. Thank you!

Premature Birth is Still on the Rise

The March of Dimes speaks up for babies every day -- and on Prematurity Awareness Day, we make sure even the smallest babies are heard.

The March of Dimes has released a Premature Birth Report Card for the nation and every state. We scored a D overall because the number of babies born too soon in our country is 60 percent higher than the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Healthy People 2010 objective of 7.6 percent. State-by-state grades are also available in the Report Card. Visit March of Dimes and find out how your state measures up.

For the past few weeks, we've been asking everyone to sign our online Petition for Preemies and help us send a message to our newly elected local and national officials. Thousands of caring people have already responded. If you were one of them, thank you for your support! If you missed it, go to marchofdimes.com/petition. Don't forget, you can sign up for advocacy alerts to make sure you won't miss any opportunities in your area and nationally.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

36 hours, 3 birthdays, 300+ miles

I just love a nasty virus that set us back for weeks. No fix it program was able to get rid of it. Instead, we had to wipe out the entire laptop and start over. Between saving everything and then reinstalling everything, it took forever. But now it’s as good as new and hopefully, we’re back on track.

As you can tell by the title of the post, we had an extremely busy weekend. in just under 2 days, we had 3 birthday parties for 5 kids. The ages ranged from two 2 yrs old, a 3 ½ yr old (we were celebrating the half birthday), a 4 yr old and a 5 yr old. Not only that, but the parties were all over the place and we drove over 300 miles. And if that wasn't enough, we manage to squeeze in two dentist appointments as well. Nothing like getting your teeth cleaned for all the sugar.

But it was all totally worth it. We got to see friends, the kids got to play. We got to eat food that was good for us, and more importantly – food that wasn’t good for us. We got cake, ice cream, dolmas and sushi. The kids tried out a trampoline and found out they love bounce houses (guess what they're going to have for their 2nd birthday). Luke had his first PBJ sandwich and made a friend.

First birthday were our friends, M&F. They turned 2 and all our local twin friends were able to attend. It was an ice cream themed party, and we loved it!

Our second party was a sushi making one. L&B are too young, but it was still fun to watch (and get ideas for future birthday themes). Kids don't know how to jump yet, but loved the trampoline.

Our last birthday had the coolest bounce house. Once the big kids were gone, L&B had a blast. The birthday boy also took it upon himself to be a big brother to Luke.

[Blog Tip]
Occasionally, blogging for me is hard. The thought of going thru the hundreds of photos and selecting a few, uploading them and then writing about it is sometimes daunting. Fortunately, my friend Sharlene, suggested Picasa 3 which has made the process easier. If you haven’t tried it yet, you really should. Now if only they’d invent the automatic cutest-picture-eyes-aren’t-closed-selector program…

Baby Mama

Thanks for all the well wishes and congratulatory comments/emails from our last post. It’s great to be able to finally share the news, because we’re obviously over the moon.

I’ll also mention I’m not pregnant, our surrogate is. Didn’t see that one coming, eh? As mentioned in my bio, I had a complicated pregnancy and a complicated delivery. I’m so thankful L&B were born perfectly healthy and required no NICU, but I’m also unable to be pregnant again. That was really rough to accept, but I’ve had some time to come to terms with it. And to be honest, I’m thankful I’m able to play with my kids, run after them, pick them up and have them crawl all over me because if I were pregnant we wouldn’t be able to and not for a long time. We also have an incredible surrogate who’s just as excited and so happy for us.

If you’re wondering how we know there are two, here’s the very first ultrasound pic.

Now WE were thrown off because we transferred 2 embryos and expected twins, however only 1 embryo took AND THEN SPLIT. See how they’re in the same sac. I have to admit I think it’s really cool to have identical twins. One of my favorite movies when I was a kid was Parent Trap, except I’d always wished I was the ID twin. I think having ID twins is the next best thing.

According to an online due date calculator, the babies should be 12 ½ weeks now. At Tuesday’s ultrasound, they were measuring at 12+6 and 13 weeks. So we’re off to a great start. Better yet, the first trimester will soon be behind us!

Btw, I haven’t seen the movie with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. I’m a little apprehensive on how surrogacy is portrayed. Obviously, it’s a subject matter that’s very personal and I don’t want to be upset or offended. If you’ve seen it, you can tell me how it was. I don’t mind you giving away details. Yes, I’m like Harry and will read the last page first.

Coming Home

We just got word from Tuesday's mom, JK.

TUESDAY'S COMING HOME!

It's so unbelievable and we're so grateful.

We couldn't be happier for Tuesday and her incredible family.

There are a bunch of people doing the happy dance right now.

Breaking News

Ok, family has been told as well as (most of) our close friends. I think I can finally make the announcement.

WE’RE EXPECTING!

Yup, you read right. There will be more jansta eggis. Wait, did you say eggis? As in plural? As in more than one?

Yup

WE’RE EXPECTING TWINS!

AGAIN!

OMG

Discovery Science Center

In my quest to take advantage of all things free to kids 2 and under, we went to the Discovery Science Center. If you've ever driven on the 5 freeway in So Cal, it's the gigantic cube teetering on the edge of the freeway.

The best part of our visit was that we got in free too! Thanks to Bank of America's Museum on Us promotion, we saved $26 on adult admissions! People, if you bank with BOA, you have to take advantage of this promo! I don't think many people do as no one else presented their BOA card at the ticket window. Tsk, tsk.




Just the girls in our Tuesday tshirts.

The first exhibit we checked out was Animal Grossology. Not surprisingly, Bree didn't like it (she is, afterall, her mother's daughter). Luke didn't mind it as much, although he was cautious. Here he is as far away possible (but curious) from the poop exhibit -


Bob the Builder - Project: Build It exhibit upstairs was more to their liking -

Magnetic blocks which made stacking fun and easy...


Driving with Scoop the Digger


Dad helping figure out Bob's tools.


Our future architect...


and construction worker!


Kids had a blast pushing buttons on the Talkie Talkie and hearing the famous catch phrases.


In front of Wendy's Caravan.


There's my girl, laying stones on the wall. The miniature wheel barrow was too cute.


Surveying the vegetable garden.

Another fun day. So much so the kids are going on 3 hours of nap time! I need to wake them up or else they'll never fall asleep tonight.

ps If you like the Tuesday tshirts the kids and I are wearing, please click here or on the second Tuesday button on the left side of the blog. There are shirts for men, Mike's was in the hamper :-( All profits from the sale go to Tuesday's family to help with their medical expenses. Happy shopping!

Before the internet...

..before blogs, before cell phones, before dvd players, before husbands, before kids - this is what I was doing on my Spring Break. Taking trips to Ensenada Mexico, drinking little Cornitas (baby Coronas) and having a blast. Here I am with my beautiful friends who also happen to be my roommates too.



Now, we have 4 husbands, 6 kids, 2 dogs and 1 cat between us. Here we are a couple weeks ago celebrating Dev's birthday, who btw lives in London with her dear hubby and beautiful little boy. Obviously missing is my other dear friend who I visited a few months ago and blogged about-


I get nostaligic thinking about the past, but wouldn't trade my life now for anything. Well maybe for a case of Coronitas and a clove cigarette?

ps I couldn't post on a Tuesday, without a mention of Tuesday. She's doing miraculously well, we're so happy for them. Her mom's posted a great update on her here.

Bowers Kidseum

I got word today Tuesday has graduated from the PICU unit and has been moved to oncology! This is great news, she's getting better and can hang out in the less scary ward of the hospital. The PICU team all clapped for her and called her a miracle! I'm so happy for Tuesday.

Today my SIL, Karen, and I took the peeps to Bowers Kidseum. It was a great place for them. Like most moms, I'm always looking for a good place that'll be fun and interest them. More so, a place where I can let them out of the stroller without worrying about breaking anything or having people give me glaring looks. I'm also taking advantage of the fact they're under 2 years of age and usually free admission. I'm going to be really bummed when I have to start forking over the extra dollars :-)


L&B stepping down from the bridge they've crossed. They weren't sure about the floor beneath them not being steady.


A glimpse of all the cool masks and instruments the kids are encouraged to pick up and play with.


Cousin Maggie and Auntie Karen putting on a puppet show. Luke mesmorized by the dragon puppet.

Maggie and Bree dressing up from the trunks filled with international costumes.

I'm amazed Luke knew how to work the rotary phone!

Kids in the Language Exploration room learning different symbols. Actually, just Maggie learning. L&B enjoyed climbing onto the big kids chairs.

Legoland

Since it's Tuesday, I wanted to start with some Tuesday news. Good news - she's doing well and gotten off the vent AND graduated from the PICU unit. For more information, please check out her mom's blog. Also, Sharlene (from our twin moms group), was able to visit Tuesday's family to help out. She has a great recap of her visit on her blog. Seems like our prayers are being answered. Yay!

This is a little late, but I did want to post about our recent trip to LEGOLAND. Unlike Disneyland last year, the kids had a great time. I think it's a combination of them being older and an ultra toddler-friendly park which helped. There was lots for them to do, touch and explore. There were even a few rides which they enjoyed, they just hated waiting in line (who doesn't).



Luke telling me he loves his Legos, bucket and all.


Our first Lego greeter, Bob the Builder.


Inside the Imagination Zone. Kids had a blast here, they had Legos pieces as big as their heads.


Luke standing in front of MiniLand USA. Its a replication of seven regions of the US, made with 20 million LEGO bricks in 1:20 scale.


Bree loved riding on the train. I think she felt like a big kid. But she cried when the ride was over and she had to get off.


Future fire truck driver.


Luke also digging the train ride.

Here's a brief video of a boat ride. I love the kids' expressions. We had fun getting the kids excited. Definitely worth a repeat visit.


btw, did you know Legos were created in Denmark? I'd just assumed it was American, isn't that presumptuous of me. Typical American :-)

Anaheim Angels vs New York Yankees

We’ve heard some good news regarding Tuesday today. It made my day to hear about it. Tuesday’s mom even posted about it on her blog. And you have to check out the great picture of Tuesday in the side bar. Always praying for you Super Tuesday!

Today we went to a baseball game. Mike’s boss asked if he was interested, and of course we were interested. It was the Anaheim Angels vs New York Yankees. It was the kids’ 3rd baseball game and I’m a little worried they might get used to seeing the game this way. Preferred parking, luxury suite and Cracker Jacks! It’s pretty awesome and the only way I could see a game with the peeps. They can run around inside the suite, I don’t have to worry about them throwing food into people’s hair and it’s shaded so I don’t have to lather on sunblock. Who am I kidding, I’m worried I might get used to this!

It was a pretty exciting game. The home team, Angels, scored 8 runs in the 8th inning. (You should be impressed here since I sound like I know what I’m talking about.) They won the game, final score 11 to 4. I enjoyed it, but I’m such a sap I feel sorry for the losing team. I don’t know what I’m going to do when the kids get involved in sports when they’re older.

Unlike the last game, this time I brought my camera.

Luke chilling on the plush seats.


Bree feeding Luke snacks in the suite.


My cute little guy and gal watching the game.


Woo hoo, another run!


This doesn't look real. It looks like we're super-imposed on the background, but really we were there.


And another run!


Luke didn't like the fireworks when the Angels scored a run. Bree didn't like the rally monkey jumping on the screen.