Happy Thanksgiving! And—Happy 29 Weeks! Thursday - November 22, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving! For those of you who don’t know—this is Dan’s FAVORITE holiday for all the obvious reasons. We have SO MUCH to be thankful for this year. Most importantly, we are thankful for our healthy little Gabriella and two babies that are still growing strong and healthy inside mommy’s belly.
As of Friday, we’ll have reached 29 weeks—HOORAY!

The babies passed a very important milestone last week, as 28 weeks is an important viability check point in the pregnancy. A majority of babies born at 28 weeks will spend weeks instead of months in the NICU, and will also reach adulthood without major complications. Since my last “baby” update, I’ve had 2 more OB appointments and yesterday I had another growth ultrasound. The current stats are:
Baby A: 3lb 10oz (77%)
Baby B: 3lb 3 oz (63%)

The percentage is where they stand comparatively in growth with the average singleton pregnancy. We couldn’t be happier with the babies’ growth! It’s crazy to think I have almost 7lbs of baby in me right now. And crazier to think they need to stay growing inside me for hopefully another 7 weeks. Yikes! If you think about it – 7lbs is the approx BIRTH WEIGHT of most singleton babies. Not to mention the fact I have two placentas, two amniotic sacs, and two babies kicking around constantly making my belly look like a pinball machine at times. I’ve gained 36lbs so far (6lbs more than I had gained w/Gabby @ 40 weeks, 3 days!), and ideally, the doctors want me to gain another 10-15, and the babies to gain another 2lbs each by 36 weeks. Bring on the Thanksgiving dinner!

We’ll be spending the Thanksgiving holiday with cousins Trish & Todd, their girls, Aunt Leo and Uncle Kenny, cousins Barbara & Kirk and their son Clint, and many friends of Trish & Todd’s. Holidays with this group are always fun… wonderful people, fun conversation, and the most delicious food!

BiRtHdAy PaRtY FuN!! Saturday - November 17, 2007

Gabby had SUCH a great time at her birthday party! So many of her little friends were able join us and the park worked out great! Unfortunately, if you weren't in the sand, dirt and puddles... or chasing your child around on the different play structures... you probably didn't see much of the birthday girl! Gabby was SO dirty half way through the party. And, I'm shocked that we actually got a few photos (thanks to a neighbor). After packing up and leaving party central - Gabby fell asleep after 5 minutes in the car and slept for 3 hours... now that's amazing! It was a beautiful, warm day spent with so many wonderful friends - even Dan & I had a great time and were exhausted.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GABRIELLA!

Wow… I can’t believe our baby is 2 years old! Where does time go?

Birthday week has been and will continue to be busy! The other day we had Gabby’s 2 year old photos taken. She did ok for the first 7 minutes and then the little model needed “water” and “toys”… yes, she was DONE with being photographed and made it very clear. I guess it was successful in that we got a few shots that showed her true colors.

Birthday week also meant having to attend her 2 year pediatrician appointment. From the moment we pull into Dr. O’s parking lot, Gabby will begin saying “But I don’t want to see Dr. O, mommy! I don’t want to see Dr. O!” Poor little thing… luckily, the 2 year appointment didn’t involve any shots, but DID involve Gabby getting a “Happy Birthday” sticker. It’s the little things that REALLY make a difference in our lives, isn’t it?! Gabby is healthy and continues to excel with speech, as she seems to have an above average vocabulary and has been talking in 6+ word sentences for months. Seriously… I have no idea where she gets her talking skills from. Ok, alright… so she DOES have Dan & I as parents. We may be partly to blame…it isn’t often silent in the Martino home. Dr. O was impressed with Gabby’s growth since her 18 month appointment, and her stats are now:
Height: 33.5 inches (40th percentile)

Weight: 23lbs (8th percentile)

Since we aren’t back in our house yet, on Saturday we’ll be celebrating Gabby’s birthday at a local park with some of her very best friends in the Bay Area. The park’s pretty cool in that it has lots of play structures, a big green lawn, a lake, and a huge carousel and train that parents & kids can ride throughout the park. And, we’ll of course have Gabby’s favorite foods – pizza and cake! YUM!

Gabby continues to light up our lives and provide us with constant amusement. Her smiles make us smile and her laugh makes us laugh with her. Our hearts melt every time we hear “I love you, mommy!” or “I love you, daddy!” And while we aren’t living at “home” right now… the constant pitter patter of very busy running feet throughout the house make any space feel very warm and cozy, fast. Happy Birthday, Gabriella!!!

Birthday & Halloween FUN… or something! Sunday - November 4, 2007

We celebrated Dan’s 36th birthday on Tuesday. And Gabby surprised daddy on the big day by saying “Happy Birthday Daddy!” a few times without even being prompted. I was shocked she remembered after only practicing a few times the day before! No big party or fancy dinner – but it was a memorable night. Gabby had helped me make the birthday cake… even putting the candles on the cake by herself (each candle was surrounded by fingerprints in the frosting). Just after we had taken several bites of cake – we had a 5.6 earthquake. The house we’re living in shook like CRAZY! I was able to grab Gabby after a second or two. But, the house was shaking so much it was difficult to move (and being off balance w/the belly didn’t help!). Kitchen cabinets and drawers were opened and stuff had fallen over or off shelves – but no injuries. The only “damage” was Gabby’s piece of chocolate cake that was smashed ALL OVER my sweatshirt and hair. Yes, like a true Martino… even though the child was scared she grabbed the cake with her hand to take with us – wherever we would end up. She wouldn’t have considered leaving CAKE in the middle of an earthquake. And, she did mange to finish eating what wasn’t smashed on mommy. Gotta love that kid…












The HALLOWEEN holiday was really fun this year. Our neighbors hosted a pumpkin carving and pizza party on Monday night. Then, I was a bit worried Gabby would be scared of her costume, as when I first showed it to her a month ago she didn’t want anything to do with it. Luckily though – she was so excited to go trick-or-treating with daddy and the neighbor kids that she didn’t flinch. And DAN dressed up too! “Curious George” and “The Man in the Yellow Hat” were a TOTAL HIT in the neighborhood. Dan did the trick-or-treating thing with Gabby and the neighbors, and I hung back at the house handing out candy. One of the neighbors hosted a post-trick-or-treat dinner, so Dan & Gabby were also able to join in that fun. I ended up having to lie down to try and calm a contracting belly. The night was a true success... as Gabby came back home sleeping on daddy’s shoulder. But, I’m still trying to figure out who had more fun - Dan or Gabby!? Gabby of course has put her costume on each and every day since Halloween… and she’s also made daddy put his yellow hat and shirt on. Dan, being the wonderful playmate he is, totally complies with the orders. Moments like these just make me smile, laugh and fully appreciate our crazy little family.

A couple funny Gabby comments to note:
1. Gabby refuses to drink straight white milk (like her mommy) – so she drinks chocolate milk. We’ll give her a sippy cup filled with mostly whole milk and enough chocolate milk to add the taste of chocolate. Dan has been trying to wean out the chocolate, but, Gabby is noticing. When Gabby realizes chocolate milk was not added (or not enough added to her liking), she’ll hand the sippy cup back to us and say “Put cow in it, daddy/mommy!” or “This needs cow in it!” The chocolate milk container has a cow on it – so that’s her “chocolate” identifier.

2. Whenever she wants to do something by herself she’ll say “My do it myself!”

3. “Or something” and “How about X though” seem to be added to a lot of requests lately. “How about we got to the park or something?” or “How about a hot dog or something?” And if we say let’s brush your teeth (HATES getting teeth brushed), she’ll say “How about we go outside though” Or “How about we go to the park though”.

Dan and I can’t help but find humor in #3. If adults were to use this lingo in our daily lives or professions it could make for some GREAT humor. “I’m going to start this project or something” or “I’ll put together a meeting agenda or something.” Or, your boss tells you to deal with an issue you SO DON’T want to deal with… and you say “How about a pay raise though?” or “How about naptime though?”. Could be quite funny…

Another week to check off in the pregnancy – 26 weeks! Hooray!