Easter Recap and Progress

Whew, what a weekend. Yesterday was Easter, and we had many of our friends over to celebrate. Joining us for an Easter feast: Olivia, Janet, Katie and Zach, Nikki and Dan, Nikki's sister Mandy, Matt and Becky, Cordell and Holly, Kenny, and Patrick (how did we not take one picture of the Easter party?! Fail.). We had so much good food--Olivia, Nikki, Becky, Janet, and Holly all pitched in and brought lots of appetizers and side dishes and desserts--we were all stuffed by the time we were done. It was a lot of fun--and it wore me out! I'm pooped today--I officially think Easter should be a three-day holiday--I could definitely use one more day off.


At the official start of the second trimester (week 14), the babies are the size of lemons this week! And we check in with Dr. Rothman next week.

Cherry Blossoms Are Out!

It was such a beautiful day today--and was about a perfect Saturday. I met up with Olivia and Kim Heiner (who was visiting from Kansas) for breakfast at Eastern Market--then Liv and I headed to the Tidal Basin to check out the cherry blossoms while Kim toured the White House. There were SO MANY PEOPLE out, but the trip was worth it to see all of the trees in bloom!








A belly shot at just shy of 14 weeks.




I should have done my hair before we left the house--but here's a pic of cute Olivia and me.



Then, we met up with Kim, Katie Stahl and her bf Zach (who are also here visiting) for lunch at Potbelly's--it was sooo good to see Katie! She left DC last summer, and in very sad news, I haven't had the chance to see her since. From there, we all went our own way for the afternoon (I started cooking for Easter, took a nap, and caught up with my mom), then reconvened for dinner at Two Poblanos, delicious Mexican food in Del Ray--it was so good to catch up with Katie and Zach, and for all of us to be able to hang out together again. A great day all around!

Two Firsts

First: I took advantage of "expectant mother" parking spots at two different retailers while running errands today. And it was wonderful, thankyouverymuch. They are not offered everywhere--but at some Targets, some grocery stores and the like, right next to the handicap spots there are spots reserved for those with small children or women who are pregnant. Much appreciated, Target and Safeway, much appreciated.

Second: I had to buy a couple of new bras. In a larger size. Today was the day that I officially joined the D Club. Wah WAH.

Funny, when it hits you

It is an absolutely gorgeous morning here in DC, and spring has definitely sprung--daffodils, tulips, and cherry blossoms are in bloom, the grass is green, and the sky is a clear, beautiful blue. But on my drive to work, I only wanted to be here:


This is a pic of Mount Borah from a trip home almost exactly a year ago to go skiing and steelhead fishing. Sigh.






These pics are from one of my favorite places--on a boat trip with the family on the South Fork of the Snake River.



And I really miss all of these yahoos.

I'm Telling

It's been a bizarre experience, telling everyone that we're expecting. How do you bring something like that up? "Have you seen the cherry blossoms? Oh, I'm having twins." "Lovely weather we're having. Guess what?" "Can you believe that nutrition vote in the Senate?! Oh, did I mention?" And then, there's the wondering if someone's on to you. I was at a reception last week, talking with a couple of colleagues--and through the entire conversation, I'm wondering if they can tell. I swear one of them was looking at my tummy...but I was being totally paranoid, so who knows (on one hand, I'd imagine that if you didn't know what you were looking for, you might not see anything--on the other, the tummy is an increasing presence). Anyway, I've had a hard time just saying it--but people's reactions have been great. From excitement, to giggles, to tears from a few close friends, people are really happy for us. While our families and many friends know--we still have a lot of people to tell.

This weekend was very low key. We did some work around the house, took Spud to the park, cleaned out the garage, and started spring cleaning our closet. Then, we headed to Ballston--Daniel was invited to an ice skating birthday party (one of his hockey teammate's daughters is in love with Daniel, and she was turning 5). So, he skated (boo, I've been grounded--not steady enough on skates), chatted with 5 year olds, wore a princess crown, and we called it a day. We had other things to do while we were out, but we were both so tired that we just went home and took naps.

Sunday was church for me, hockey for Daniel, then an afternoon at Verizon Center watching the Caps play the Flames. The Caps did not have their best showing, but it is always fun to go to games. After the game, we had dinner with Holly and Cordell--so good to see them!

And this week--RECESS BEGINS! Congress is home for the next two weeks, so my work schedule is much less demanding since there is less going on. Woohoo!

Also this week, the babies are the size of shrimps (I like the fruit comparisons better)--our next dr. appointment isn't until April 12.

The Belly

We had an NCFC co-worker lunch downtown at Coco Sala today (so delicious by the way--had my first taste of chocolate covered bacon, yikes). After lunch, co-worker Jill and I decided to stop by Zara and H&M for a little bit of shopping, since we were in the neighborhood. I found two cute, drapey cardigans from Zara that should work well into pregnancy. Then, we moved onto H&M, which actually has a maternity line. We eventually found ourselves in the dressing room, trying a few items on for size. Also in the dressing room were three cute girlfriends, who looked like they were maybe taking a girl's trip to DC. I came out to show Jill a maternity dress--one of them saw me in the dress, and said congratulations and asked how far along I was, to which I said thank you and I'm 13 weeks. She then said, "Oh, I know how it feels--I'm actually 15 weeks pregnant, so I'm trying to find things that fit now and will fit me later." The funny thing is--this girl did not look pregnant AT ALL. No belly bump. Jill jumped in, and in my defense said, "yeah, well she's got two in there!" which made me feel better, because at 13 weeks, I was definitely out-showing this little lady!

I'm sure there will be lots more of these kinds of situations to come. Sigh.

The Once in a Decade Visit! (it had better not be...)

My parents finally came to visit Daniel and me in D.C. We were so excited, because their visit fell almost at the 12 week mark, and kicked off us telling everyone about the babies. They arrived Thursday afternoon, and I wore all black with a big jacket to cover the now slightly protruding belly. We got their luggage, grabbed kebabs for dinner, and headed home. How did we tell them? Well, it was my mom's birthday earlier this month, so we picked up an ice cream cake that said, "Happy Birthday Grandma" on it--first, Daniel couldn't stop giggling all through dinner, he was so excited. We got the cake out and lit candles--we were just beside ourselves. We took the cake over to the table--my mom made a wish, blew out the candles, then looked up at us like, let's cut this cake--we had to direct her to read the top of the cake. And it all went downhill from there :) My mom was definitely in shock about the whole thing for the evening, but they both were very excited and happy. And then, per usual, I went to bed around 9.

Over the course of their visit, we went to the White House, toured the monuments and memorials (Washington, WWII, Vietnam, Korea, Lincoln), spent a day at the Smithsonians (Gallery of Art, Natural History, American History), and walked until our feet could walk no more. We ate great food while they were here (including an entire ice cream cake). On Sunday we had Olivia, Dan and Nikki over for dinner, and got to tell that we're expecting (again, it has become rather obvious in the past week--the belly is definitely out there)--everyone is so excited!

Then, earlier today, we had a doctor's appointment with our specialist over at the Brock Family Perinatal Diagnostic Center. My parents got to come with us--we had another ultrasound, and the grandparents-to-be got to see the babies and hear what the doctor had to say (which was all good news--looking good babies!). I was so glad their visit coincided with an appointment!

This week, our babies are each the size of a lime, and even just since my parents got here my belly is making noticeable strides!! The babies are definitely out there!