Double the blessing...

Welcome Blythe and Joy! They were born at 12:37 p.m. and 12:39 p.m. Blythe was 5lb, 13oz, and 18in. Joy was 7lb, 3oz.,and 19.5in. Both are doing well. Em did great. Thank you for all of the prayers!

Blythe & Joy

Momma and her little girls (her big girl is with Grandma)!

First pic!

Last day of just us three...

Jake surprised us girls by taking the morning off to spend with us!  We started off with a pancake breakfast, then headed to the park after Abby Jane's nap (a.k.a. playtime in her bed).

After lunch, Jake went to work, and my mom watched Jane while I had a pre-op appointment at the hospital.  Then after Jane's afternoon nap, we painted a welcome sign for her little sisters.
We lost interest in painting somewhat quickly, so it became a fun fall afternoon of running in leaves, throwing acorns, and walking up our street to the stop sign, a frequent trek of ours that takes us past fun piles of leaves, nuts, and past various homes with Halloween decorations that range from tolerable to amazingly tacky.  
When Jake came home, we carved our pumpkin, and Abby Jane collected all our outdoor pumpkins for the event.
She actually participated in the cleaning out of the pumpkin, which was funny since she's persnickety about textures and gooey things!
We finished the day with dinner at Ted's, a somewhat random choice for our last family dinner out for a while, but it was incredibly delicious and Abby Jane had a great time making faces and playing peek-a-boo with other customers.

This girl delights our heart and fulfills the meaning of her name as "source of joy." Because she is the amazing blessing that she is, we chose to start trying for another little one a bit ahead of schedule.  We just didn't know we'd be getting a two-for-one deal!  Tomorrow we get to meet Abby Jane's little sisters, and for that we are beyond grateful and humbled.  Thanks for your prayers and encouragement!  Watch for the update as soon as we can get one up! 

Sewing Machine Survey

Yesterday was my birthday- and no, not the twins' as well!  Jake took Abby Jane and I to one of my favorite breakfast places, J. Christopher's, in the morning, then last night he came home with the fixings for a shrimp and grits dinner that he fixed by himself (the shrimp was just caught off the GA coast yesterday morning!) 

SUCH a treat.  I am married to the most wonderful man in the world.  Abby Jane was very excited to help blow out candles!

She also loved the musical card that I received and had a hard time focusing on anything else after that was opened!  I'm holding the box that contained a sewing kit saying that I get to pick out...

one of these!  I'm SO excited.  It may be a while before I get around to sewing, but I can't wait!  

SOOO since so many of you are now accomplished little seamstresses, tell me your favorite machine!  

This is the Brother SE-350, which was Lindsey's recommendation.  If what she turns out from that machine is any indication of how great it is, then it's the one I should pick for sure. Check out her blog- she sells the cutest, cutest things (several of you have received baby presents that were her creations) and is currently doing the twins' Christmas dresses!

Friday night at the Gross home...

Will include a family of five after tonight!  I am still due for a C-Section next Friday at noon unless I go into labor or have any other extenuating circumstances in the meantime.  So before Jake and I start watching the movie we have, I wanted to share a few things...

1.  Abby Jane has been trying to get potty trained.  This is all Jake's doing and initiative- I am not crazy enough to undertake that process right now!  But the facts remain that she has gone on the potty almost every day at least once for the last couple of weeks at our suggestion.  She is particularly good at doing it as a performance for any company we have.  I know- the whole thing is backwards!

2. I don't think I've mentioned that every night when we put Abby Jane to bed, we read her board book Bible, pray, then I leave and it's Daddy/daughter time for a few last minutes. Abby Jane enjoys this so much that her goodnight kiss to me could not be more cursory and brief if she were a 12 yr old boy in front of his friends.  Further proof that I'm married to a wonderful man... this is breakfast the other day- eating/sharing his cereal, drinking his coffee, and reading a book to his little girl.

3.  My big sister Jodi came in town yesterday through this morning for a quick visit so we could actually hang out a bit before the girls come.  She brought 3 yr old Ian with her while Katie stayed home b/c of kindergarten.  We are so thankful for the proximity to allow these visits!

4. My mom sewed a new covering with some fabric we picked out together for the Moses basket she used for me and my siblings- I could not love the end product more!

Happy weekend- WAR EAGLE!!!!!!!

Beautiful Saturday

Yesterday morning we had breakfast at Cracker Barrel, then walked up Kennesaw Mtn,. It was a CHILLY day here- it was 43 degrees and windy!  It was so fun to have one more Saturday as a family of three, though many other hikers and runners out asked if we were trying to induce labor... which would be just fine at this point!   There was a big battle fought during the Civil War here, so there were a lot of canons to explore!

Twin Update and the Big Girl Room

We had an ultrasound today, and Blythe weighs 6 lbs. 12 oz and Joy weighs 7 lbs. 3 oz!!!  OH MY GOODNESS!!  We are scheduled for a C-Section on Friday the 30th if I don't go into labor before then.  Blythe was breech today, so even if I go into labor before, we'll end up doing a C-Section unless both girls' heads are down.  But praise the Lord for these BIG babies!!!

The big girl room is cozy in this rental, but it's perfect for her first room with a big girl bed.  I don't have any temptations out for her to want to get out of bed.  The piggy is a chair that was love at first sight when she received it on her first bday.  It was not planned to be a part of the big girl bed arrangement, but she asked to have it up there on her first night in her bed, and we haven't taken Piggy out as she has had such a successful transition!  Piggy is a gift that has kept on giving...

I made the headboard, pillows, and curtain tiebacks while we were at my mom's (I was sewing machine illiterate enough to need to ask her to thread the machine for me).  

The dresser was my mom's as a child, as well as being in all my sibling's and my nurseries.  Jake and I repainted it while we were at Mom's as well.

The reality is that normally that bed also has an average of 5 books, 3 babydolls, a Little People animal or two, and perhaps a train car in addition to the way it is pictured above, per various and sundry requests of the aforementioned "big girl." 

The Nursery

It's still slightly in progress- I am lacking a few picture frames, and there are a few empty frames waiting for pictures of tiny people, but other than that, the little girls' room is ready!

Abby Jane decorated the wrapping on the books she picked out to give to Blythe and Joy when they arrive!

Ladybug

Last weekend, there was supposed to be a city festival in the cute little downtown Kennesaw including a pumpkin trail of displays, hayride, etc.  We dressed Abby Jane up in her costumeand went down there, only to discover that it had been cancelled (since the morning paper had gone out!) and that a restaurant on Main St. had caught on fire.

We had an hour to kill before the next stop on our agenda, so we took our ladybug to the park, which erased the memory of the pumpkin trail that we had been building up before we got there!

After the park, we went to a fundraiser at Miss Lala's Treehouse, where she got to dance, play, see older girls dressed up as various Disney princesses, and most of all, show Jake one of her favorite places to go right now!

Another version of nesting..

FIRST OF ALL, I got a call this morning from Jake's cousin, Pam, who is a midwife at Kennestone, and the siblings ban has been lifted at the hospital!! YEA!!!  What a blessing- I did not see that one coming at all. So for those of you who are also under the ban- yours may get lifted as well!!

Secondly, I am done with official nesting- washing baby clothes, etc.  Now I'm on to doing projects with Abby Jane that might not happen as often after the girls come (trying to compensate in advance!): sponge painting earlier last week, making and decorating cookies later last week...

Cutting out pumpkin and leaf shapes...
Putting autumn sprinkles on top...
Have I mentioned that she makes the "cheese" face now?

And some of those cookies got to be sent home with my Grandaddy and Granny Joan, who we were delighted to have come play on Friday morning.

Today is a rainy day, so project #3 was homemade playdough!  I have no in-progress pictures as I was afraid to take a picture while trying to keep little fingers from getting burned on the stove.  But here she is playing with the playdough and a few of our creations- most of which were her suggestions and she helped to make!

It's all on foil because it was supposed to cool on foil and we were too impatient to wait for it to finish!  Did you know that warm playdough feels really good in your hands? Seriously.

Our little van Gogh

6-pack of Tempera paint= $4.99

2 pack of sponges (that I cut into shapes)= $2.00

Big pack of pretty paper that will last us a long time= $3.50

Trash bag smock= basically free

Beautiful fall afternoon in the front yard painting with my girl= priceless!

Pumpkin Patch

Friday night was a fabulous night with old and new sweet friends from our post-college years in Auburn- thanks for including me on your girls weekend in Atlanta, friends!

On Saturday, we went to a Pumpkin Patch Farm. Circumstances dictate that we go early in the season this fall!  It ended up being five adults (three grandparents, two parents), one happy little girl, and none of last year's drama...

When we were leaving the farm, they asked if I was smuggling out a pumpkin... which legitimizes my father-in-law's sense of humor in this picture taken previously...

They had a GREAT petting zoo, with goats, llamas, roosters, ponies, the whole nine yards- she was in heaven!

Trying to get into the pen with the calf...

On the hayride...

We all went back to Jake's parents' home for dinner, football, and Jake's birthday cake!