T-minus 72 hours....

& counting down until the arrival of our TWO bundles of Joy!

That's right! I'm scheduled for a noon c-section on Thursday, Jan 23rd to bring John Carlson Parker & Caleb Nance Parker into this world. Those are the names, hope you like ;)
I will be exactly 38 weeks pregnant at this point & it's a sheer mystery & miracle of God that I have made it to this point!
Thanks to all of you for your support, prayers, hand-me-downs, thoughtfulness, and advice -- I could not have survived a minute of this without you ;)

We'll be sending out pictures from the hospital & posting on this blog (I hope) so stay tuned!
Until then, enjoy a stroll down memory lane of my belly...and some Xmas pics & fun!
Love,
M, E & SC

This past Monday, Jan 13th

Nursery pics

Sutton being cute :)

Family xmas pic!

ThanksMas fun with Nicole & Hailey

& Jordyn!

Santa visit! No smile, but no tears. 

She actually said 1 thing to Santa -- "Open this" when he gave her a candy cane! ha!

Playing dress up :)

Eating a Panthers Game Day krispy kreme donut!

The "New" Minivan

Eric & Marc, our neighbor, @ the Panthers/Niners game last weekend..

Disappointing game vs Seahawks yesterday, so all I have to say is GO BRONCOS!!!!!!

Wheels are.....

Starting to fall off this pregnancy :).....I know this blog is not a forum where I should vent, but poor Eric is just tired of hearing it! I need someone else to listen :)

Updates/WHINING:
1) I failed my 1 hour glucose test & given the interest of time left (<9 wks at that point) & extra fluid around Baby B, I opted to follow the diet & prick my finger 4x a day. This I can live with. It's somewhat restrictive & mildly annoying but it's honestly what's best for the babies.
2) I now have stretch marks :( which really did make me so sad but what was I really expecting with a massive twin pregnancy!!??!?!!??!
3) I have the worlds most itchy, most annoying, makes me want claw my skin off pregnancy rash now -- called PUPPS. If you've had it, I pity you. If you don't, I will pray you never get it. Apparently there isn't a known cause but it usually affects 1st pregnancies...unless you are carrying multiples :)...and the sufferers are typically (70% of the time) carrying boys. Yup that's me. There are creams & pills and such to mitigate (so they say) the itching, but delivery is the only thing that actually gets rid of the rash.
I have had my fair share of rashes in my lifetime (I seem to be allergic to most things :), but this... knowing it may last another 7 weeks....I may come unraveled.
4) People have stopped asking if I'm having a Christmas baby or when I'm due....Now they just say "Twins, right?" because honestly, that's the ONLY thing that would make sense. This belly is just massive.....I ran into one of my surgeons & his son @ Kohls the other day. He later told our mutual friend who hadn't seen me lately (when she asked how big I was) that Gavin could have stood under my belly to stay out of the rain!! It's huge :)

Other updates/no more whining:
1) We had an ultrasound at 29 weeks, 5 days....babies have always measured big, but they are HUGE! Baby A was 3 lbs, 11 oz & Baby B was 4 lbs, 13 oz!! That's almost 9 lbs of baby in me -- NO WONDER :) There still is a lot of extra fluid around B, which is probably indicative that he is the one receiving the affects of the diabetes...but I'm doing what I can now! Another u/s in 3 weeks (Dec 17th)
2) WE HAVE FINALLY HIRED A NANNY!!!! It's honestly a Christmas Miracle. And it all happened so fast. She is fabulous, amazing, has twin & newborn experience, and a beautiful happy personality. I just know in my heart this was the right decision for us & I'm so grateful that God directed her to us...and that I can sleep better (when I'm not itching) at night knowing it's ok to have these babies b/c we will have a nanny when maternity leave is over.
3) I think we have decided on names! I better not post them though b/c this is the 2nd time we picked names :) hahahaha
4) The holidays are here! I love Thanksgiving & Christmas!!!! I have to "be good" this year with my gestational diabetes condition but still, the spirit of the holidays always lifts me up....which is good -- I need a little boost this year. I'm awfully slow :)
5) Everybody else in this family :)....Eric & Sutton are both doing GREAT. No complaints! We had Pop & Patsy for Thanksgiving & enjoyed also hosting Sarah & Will (Patsy's daughter & her fiance) for our meal. ThanksMas with my family is next weekend (the 14th) so we are all decorated & ready....
I had a WONDERFUL baby shower/sprinkle with friends in mid-November...Mom even flew in for the fun this time! Everyone has been so generous & is so excited for us! It's been tremendous....
Now for Picture time!

Ladybug princess Sutton on Halloween

At Sydney & Carters. SHE LOVED IT!

With Sydney & Carter

A getaway for E & I -- @ the Ritz in Charlotte!

Pool at the ritz

View from the pool

Awesome Rattle Cupcakes at my Baby Sprinkle

The spread :)

"The Perfect Pair" onuses

Starting early with Tarheel brainwashing :)

Me & Mom

Kristin, Me, Katie, Amy. (hostesses) Laura already left & Lesley wasn't there

Sutton on Thanksgiving all dressed up

Sutton in the Santa hat in front of the tree giggling :)

It's sad when I take ALL of my own belly shots. HA!

I blended into the furniture here, but you get the idea. 

31 weeks!

More news coming soon as we get closer & closer! The doc says he'd be happy if I could just get to January :)
xoxo
Parkers

Updates around the Parker household.

Good morning!

Lots to report around here!
We are all doing well -- happy & healthy...and have your prayers/support to thank for that!

I'm now 25+ weeks pregnant with these two baby boy bundles. I'm slowing down in all honesty, not my favorite thing to admit, as the weight continues to pile on & it gets harder to move in general -- but really am feel great all things considered!
We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of our friends too with all kinds of hand me downs -- boat loads of clothes, mattresses, swings, playmats, moses baskets, crib sheets, you name it! Eric & I started putting their room together & it is all feeling a little more "real".
I will post pics of the nursery once we get the dresser built this week :)

I think I was 17 1/2 weeks here?

21 weeks here...

almost 24 weeks

almost 25 weeks

Sutton is using the potty at school & at home -- she is doing an AMAZING job....Even her teachers took the time to write us a note about how she is the model student & has grasped potty training so fast. We could not be more proud of her!

Pop & Patsy got married!!!!!!!! In a gorgeous ceremony & perfect reception under the stars of Richmond in September.....The weather couldn't have been better & Patsy thought of everything. We are SO so happy she is now officially part of the family -- though it's been unofficial for while :) They are now back from their extensive honeymoon to Europe (mostly Italy) and we are looking forward to seeing them & hearing stories at Thanksgiving.

on the train with Daddy, Michele, Meg & Mitch

All of us (minus Patsy) on the wedding day!

Pop getting his workout :)

Gorgeous wedding flowers & decor!

The bride, Patsy & her daughter, Sarah

Eric's new job @ New Dominion Bank is going well....2 months in! He works a lot, drives more than he wants, but is busy & liking his new role as well as the people he works with!

Oh yeah -- we went to the beach for 5 days @ the end of Sept....we had a blast in Wild Dunes & so did Sutton!

Mom, Annie & I had a girls weekend at Mom/Dave's new place in Naples -- it was a quick 48 hours, but an amazing trip...beautiful views/weather, lots of fun laughs, and delicious seafood!

We bought matching clearance hats @ Stein mart on the first night after dinner :)

2nd night before dinner

Eric took SC to a pumpkin farm while I was gone - she had a blast!

More of the pumpkin farm/patch the following weekend when I took her by myself -- & she rode a pony!

Feeding the little goats

Petting the new puppies (her fav)

Riding on a pony -- she doesn't look happy here, but she LOVED it!!! She was a natural :)

More family fun & photos ---

Eric & I before Zac Brown Bank

Sutton giving me a cheesy smile in her pumpkin shirt MADE by Aunt Annie

Last Monday just being a silly big girl :)

That's about all from here for now -- Stand by! We have another ultrasound tomorrow to see how these boys are growing & we'll be sure to check in :) Take care -- Love to you all.

xoxo

Megan, Eric, Sutton & my belly