We're here!

"We decided it wasn't any fun to hang out in mom's belly any more, so we got the heck out!"

Charles "Charlie" Evans and Weston Rieves made it here on Sunday the 26th of July. Lacy went into pre-term labor on Saturday afternoon as we were heading to lunch, so we detoured to the hospital, got transferred to downtown Austin, and got two precious little boys on Sunday afternoon at 2:05 and 2:06 pm. Lacy is doing well post C-section and the boys are doing great in the NICU. They get awesome attention and care over there from great nurses. They weighed in at 4lbs 11ozs (17.5") and 5lbs (17") respectively. We can't wait for you all to meet them!

The picture below is just as the NICU nurses were preparing to whisk the boys off to the NICU. They are approximately 5 mins. old at this point. Charlie is on the right and Weston is on the left.

Mom, dad, and boys are doing well.

Cast Your Vote for Our Babies' Weight and Birthday!

33 weeks has come and gone and the babies and I are still going strong.
Gestational diabetes can't get me down; We're so excited for the babies to come to town!

Ok, all cheezy rhyming aside, the latest doctor's appointments have been great. Last Tuesday, the boys weighed in at 4 lbs., 4 oz. and 4 lbs., 11 oz. My perinatologist's office (aka, fetal medicine specialist) loves to see me coming because they just can't believe I'm still working or even standing upright, for that matter.

Both boys are standing on their heads now so a C-section is not necessarily my only option. Scary thought but I know I can do it! (with the help of a strong epidural of course.)

We moved into our new house almost 3 weeks ago (thanks to Aaron's hard work and task master schedule) and the nursery is complete. Grandpa Wayne assembled two cribs and a bookshelf and also hung art on the walls. They have a lime green dresser chock full of newborn-sized clothing and diapers, lots of books and stuffed animals, a basket of bottles, rattles and pacifiers, and 5 or 6 boxes packed with diapers of every size. Aaron also assembled their bassinet and double stroller.

Now all we need is babies, I think. ;-) You can even help us predict the size and birthday of each baby. Just click this link: http://www.expectnet.com/games/rohretwins

and enter "rohretwins" in the game name box in the top, left corner. From there, you can cast your vote for both Baby A and Baby B.

Have fun!

28 Week Update

Went to the doctor last week (Fetal Medicine Specialist in Austin) and yesterday (OB/GYN in Georgetown.) The babies received good reports at both appointments.

On Tuesday, June 9th, the babies weighed in at 2 lbs., 12 oz. each. They are growing rapidly and are still one week ahead of schedule. One baby gave a nice profile shot with his arm and fist above his head (Power to the People!) but the other baby was facing down and towards my tailbone so all we got was a spine shot (kinda looked like a dinosaur).

Yesterday, I took my gestational diabetes test (the babies really liked the sugary drink I got to have and were moving around a lot) and I, myself weighed in at a good, healthy weight. (No need to disclose the actual number here, ;-)

The doctor said we are all doing great and there's nothing else she can do for me. She will let me go to 38 weeks if I'm still comfortable but will look to induce after that. That's August 24th if you're keeping a calendar.

So for the time-being, I am going to keep eating, resting, putting my feet up, and swimming! I'm looking forward to the family vacay at Lake LBJ next weekend and to moving into our new house after that. (By "moving in" I mean pointing to Aaron where I want stuff to go.) He's a super help and has been very caring despite my waking him up nightly because it takes me 5 minutes to get out of bed to go to the bathroom. Yesterday he got his first Father's Day present early, a super sporty diaper bag made from recycled materials, so I think that made him happy.

Will continue to keep you posted on all things twin but for now, a short list of current Rohre Twin favorites:

1. chips and salsa, sans heartburn (they are sure to be good Texans)
2. Nutella S'mores (thank you Kathy Walker for this ingenious idea)
3. elastic waist shorts (so nice and cool for mom)
4. new car seats and stroller to match (thanks to Gran, Theo, Grandma Di, and Wayne - grandparent name still TBD)
5. meetings that involve lots of engineering terms (they are very active when listening to software/hardware product info so I think this bodes well for future careers)
6. Arby's! (with lots of Arby's sauce)
7. sweet tea (just can't get enough)
   

It's all in the preparation

The days seem to go by faster and more people ask how the mom and boys are doing. To which, if you are wondering, they are doing fine. We go back to the doctors in the next two weeks and will have a complete report along with new pictures for you at that time.

In the meantime, the boys have been accumulating stuff. We have had several showers and people have faithfully been buying and giving things to us from our registries. It is a huge blessing to have people be so generous with what they give to us. The problem is we are running out of room to put this stuff. These boys aren't even here yet and are already taking up their fair share of room!

We are looking forward to an increasingly close closing date on the house we are buying and that will signal the beginning of the move. Once moved in and painted, I am sure that I will get to arrange and rearrange furniture to the mother's delight until all things are perfect for the arrival of the little guys. We will be sure to update you on the progress of the boys' domicile as well.

Two Knuckleheads

So sorry for the delay in posting. You see, it wasn't my turn. And the person whose turn it was, well, he just didn't get it done fast enough for me. ;-)

The babies were checked twice in the last two weeks by two different doctors and I've gained 22 pounds. (Everything comes in twos with twins).

They are doing great and growing rapidly. On Tuesday, May 12, baby A weighed 1 lb., 7 oz. and baby B weighed 1 lb., 9 oz. Both above the 50th percentile for their age.

On Thursday, May 21, my belly was measured to determine the gestational age of the twins. I measured in at 29 weeks (even though we thought I was 25). I'll have to ask my doctor what that means for my due date the next time I see her.

Here's their latest picture:

(new profile pictures to the right)

They are already putting their heads together to combine their vast intellect and innovative skills. Or, they are plotting how best to pull the wool over their parents' eyes.

Baby's First Playlist

A list of baby-friendly songs that we, as their parents, won't mind listening to!
(Disclaimer: We considered Fergie since she has a tendency to spell things and would teach our boys how to spell...but those things aren't always appropriate.)

Jack Johnson - The Sharing Song & Banana Pancakes
Matt Costa - Sunshine & Lullaby
Amos Lee - Shout Out Loud & Black River
U2 - Kite & Yahweh & Beautiful Day & "40"
Coldplay - Kingdom Come
Ray LaMontagne - You are the Best Thing
Peter Gabriel - Down to Earth
Rascal Flatts - Life is a Highway
Cake - Stickshifts and Saftey Belts
Derek Webb & Sandra McCracken- Valentine
REM - Nightswimming
Max Stalling - Runnin' Buddy
K.T. Tunstall - Black Horse and the Cherry Tree

a special relationship

we had an in depth sonogram appointment to check out the twins on tuesday of this week. measuring in at 12oz. each they are fairly matched and both are active little guys! "the boys" as i like to refer to them were also both healthy and developing well. no major or minor issues to note.

however, there was a most amusing part for myself. as the sonographer was doing her thing, the babies were positioned such that one lays horizontally across lacy's stomach with his head to the right if you are looking at her. the other is positioned diagonally from below her belly button toward her ribs on the right if you are looking at her, but head down. so, funnily enough, the one young feller was already kicking his brother in the head during the sonogram. perhaps it is the darkness of the womb, but most kids are at least mischievous out of sight of their parents...not when they are watching!

It Began With an Owl

Last Thanksgiving, Aaron and I were in New Braunfels with my family for our annual feast and day-after-Turkey shopping trip. Nothing fancy, we just peruse the local shops in and around New Braunfels. One of our favorites is Max's Haus Mercantile on Seguin Avenue.

Max's Haus has all kinds of things from antiques to gifts to kids clothes to locally made crafts. On our way out the door, perched on a chair, was an owl pillow made from blue and green fabric scraps. We thought then about purchasing it for our baby but no one knew we were even trying to get pregnant so we begrudgingly put the owl back on its perch and left.

Well lo and behold, 6 weeks later we were pregnant and I started dreaming about having that owl in my baby's nursery. We stopped by Max's on a day trip to San Antonio but were disappointed to find that all the cute owls were purchased. I spoke with the owner, told her our story, and she said "Well, Lacy, we just have to get you that owl for your baby!"

The woman who makes the owls is named Brenda Bond and she made us a blue/green owl for our baby. (Now that we know they are "babies" we've thought about purchasing another one but they may just have to share.)

Thanks Max's Haus!