You know you are giving birth in Madison, Wisconsin when.....

Last week, Tim and I took a tour of the hospital where we plan to deliver the boys. We found ourselves constantly looking at each other and smiling because so many things are different from the hospital we delivered our daughter Sofia at. We delivered our daughter Sofia at Germantown Methodist Hosptial in Memphis, Tennessee and we were lucky enough to be some of the first people to deliver in a brand new wing of the hospital. We received EXCELLENT care and were very happy with our experience, the day my daughter was born was the best day of our lives.

Touring the hospital in Madison was similar in many ways but different in others. A brand new Women's wing is opening in the beginning of August. Unfortunately, I don't think we'll make it that long, we are more likely to deliver towards the end of July. Anyways, let me highlight some of the differences we noticed....

-Diapering: The hospital does not even carry disposable diapers, they use cloth from the very beginning. They feel that they can monitor the bowel movements and wet diapers more accurately with cloth diapers.
-Rooming in: We had Sofia "room in" with us in Memphis. I just couldn't take my eyes off of her and I wanted her by my side constantly, especially for nursing. The only time she wasn't with us was when they bathed her and performed her exam and heel prick. We plan to do the same with the boys which is good because this hospital said they really want the babies to stay with their parents as much as possible, if not all the time. 
-Placenta: The hospital offers to save the placenta if you have a religious or other type of need for it. Tim and I won't be saving the placentas but nonetheless we found this interesting.
-Food: I remember Tim having to leave my hospital room to get food for himself. This hospital encourages you to order enough food for you and your spouse so you can stay together.
-Whirlpool tub: The hospital has a tub for you to labor in if you desire. As of right now it looks like I'm having a planned cesarean but I probably would have enjoyed using a tub with Sofia's birth.
-CELEBRATIONS!- Celebrating after the birth is not only ok, but highly encouraged. Our tour guide said you can bring wine, beer, champagne, whatever you desire. She did ask that people don't bring tailgating coolers to the rooms though. This comment got a good laugh out of our tour group.
-Hats- Instead of a generic hospital hat, the hospital allows you or the babies' sibling to choose hand knit hats made by volunteers in the area. I thought this was awesome!
-Support for partners: The hospital is very supportive and respectful of traditional and non traditional partners and the role they play in the birth and recovery.

We had another doctor's visit yesterday and at 33 weeks twin A is measuring 4lbs 7oz and twin B is measuring 4lbs 5oz. Twin A is still breech and at this point it is highly unlikely that he'll flip again so our doctors are planning on a cesarean. They even penciled us in! I am a bit disappointed that I will have a cesarean but I understand that a breech birth is not good for either me or the babies. Even though it was a lot of work, I thoroughly enjoyed going through the experience of labor, pushing and birth and I'll never forget when Sofia was born and put on my chest. Our eyes met immediately, Tim watched over my shoulder, and I felt the most intense love I've ever felt in my life.

As long as the boys are healthy I should be able to hold them very quickly and they will even allow Tim to have "kangaroo care" time with the boys immediately after birth. Some people think it's a silly concept but I'm a firm believer in skin to skin bonding and baby wearing.

It seems as if things are finally falling into place. Tim had another interview this week and we should hear the results by Tuesday. We are weeks away from meeting the newest members of our family and it feels really good to be home in Wisconsin. Now we just need to find a place to live and move either when I'm very pregnant (like we did with Sofia) or with two newborns and a 16 month old. All we can do is laugh at the situation and thank God that we have the help and support of family and friends.

16 Months Old!

Yesterday Sofia turned 16 months old. I fall more deeply in love with her every day. Tim and I treasure the special moment we have every night when we check on her before we go to sleep. She is usually snuggled in her crib with her bottom in the air and one hand snuggling her puppy dog stuffed animal. We are in awe of our daughter on a daily basis and usually leave her room saying "We are the luckiest people alive to have her in our lives".  She has adjusted very well to our new living circumstances and loves having family around more often. She is a very easy going girl, we can still take her anywhere and we are learning that she has a very caring and sensitive personality. She smiles all the time and is just a joy to have in our lives. She is starting to notice my baby belly more, honestly it's hard to miss. Sometimes she sweetly touches it but other days she plays the drums. Tim and I are so happy we chose to add more children to our family, Sofia loves having other people around, especially kids.

At 16 months old Sofia....
-Sleeps from 7:30pm-6 or 6:30am
-Takes one nap from 10:30-12 or so (sometimes she'll take a short cat nap in the afternoon)
-Walks easily and started running for short spurts about a week ago
-Can throw a ball and has even caught one thrown to her every now and then
-Waves and says hi and bye, blows kisses, gives kisses (she usually says beso before or after giving a kiss), says Momma, Dad/Dadda, Frodo, "Be quiet"- she learned this from her Grandma and it's hilarious when she says it, hi guys, thanks, gracias, up, dog....
-She is constantly walking around the house babbling or pointing to things and giving instructions, she even holds an iTouch to her ear and has long and animated conversation
-She loves to pack up various animals and sometimes a baby doll in her stroller and walk them around the house talking to them, then she'll stop and bend down in front of them to kiss them or give them a blanket, it's adorable
-Sofia spend a lot of time singing and dancing and acting out motions to camp songs, she LOVES music and live performances so we take her to as many shows as we can and she dances her heart out, many times when we put her down for a nap or bed time we hear her singing for a good twenty minutes before she goes to sleep

Not a great picture but it captures Sofia chatting away on an iTouch while I talk on my iPhone.  When Sofia sees a flip phone she looks at me like "I know this is not a phone mom".

The Sullivan crew visiting with each other.

Playing can wear both baby and Daddy out!

Father's Day hike 2011

Settling down...

After a few stressful weeks of moving and trying to adjust to living in someone else's house things have finally started to calm down a bit. Tim and I should know more information about where we will be living by next week. After months of being patient about the job search the past few weeks have been the toughest. We would really like to get settled into our new city before the boys come but it just doesn't look like that will be a reality. Many of the positions that Tim has been interested in are advertising for a full time doctor but when we get further into the process we discover that they really can't support a full time doctor and usually don't offer health insurance. It's frustrating for me because I want to help my family out and provide those things through a job of my own but Tim and I have decided it's crazy for me to try to be ready to work by this next school year. The official due date of the twins is August 13th and we really do not feel comfortable putting the babies in childcare at such a young age. We kept Sofia home until she was about 6 months old. So I have had to learn to relax and trust that things will work out. I plan to spend at least the fall semester home with Sofia and the boys. I am both excited and nervous about being home with 3 children under the age of 2!

Tim and I met our new doctor last week and were surprised to learn we have to go in for weekly visits from here on out. And they are limiting my travel to a 2 hour radius of Madison. Weekly visits are a bit annoying, especially since we have an hour long drive to the doctor but we will do whatever it takes to keep the boys healthy. Unfortunately, they will not be doing a growth ultrasound until the end of June. I know the boys are getting bigger though, their movements are frequent and strong. We definitely miss the ease and familiarity we had with my old doctor's practice. 

It's hard for me to play with Sofia like I could when I wasn't a giant pregnant lady :) Thankfully, Tim is home until his optometry license goes through so we've been having a lot of fun taking her swimming, hiking, and to various parks. She is growing up so fast, she talks so much and loves to run to her family members to give hugs and kisses. She is still obsessed with books, dogs, and being outside. I will write a longer update for Sofia in two weeks when she will be almost 16 months old!!