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!! 

Moving home...

Our last week in Memphis was full of packing, tying up loose ends and trying to say goodbye to all of the people and places we have come to know during our four years in Memphis. Some of the hardest goodbyes included our church, friends, doctors, and Sofia's teacher. Sofia absolutely loves one of her teachers at school and they threw her a special "despedida" on her second to last day. Her teacher is wonderful and Tim and I both came to say our goodbyes to her. I actually cried watching Sofia and her have their final moment together, it just really hit me that Sofia has no idea that she'll never be at her school again or see her teacher. Our church is an incredible place in Memphis that welcomes people from all walks of life and truly practices what they preach. The church was our family while we were so far away from our own family. Our last Sunday was beautiful, we got there early enough to socialize with some people and I brought Sofia into the sanctuary while the choir was still practicing. She looked straight up and held up her hands and just smiled. I know Sofia has felt the love of God and the congregation of our church. Then she listened to the music and just started dancing in the huge open space. Normally I would be quick to pull out my phone to take a video but it was a moment I'll have to remember in my own heart because I just watched her and smiled. I was pregnant with her in that church and I remember her moving in my tummy during music and now to see things come full circle and see this beautiful little girl dancing in her church was just amazing. Saying goodbye to my school was also hard, I worked with some incredible people and had some amazing teaching experiences. My entire teaching career has been in schools of great poverty with students from some very tough homes. I will miss my students dearly but I look forward to hearing about their accomplishments as the years go by. I was amazed by how many of my old students (who are now in high school) came by to catch up with me before I left. Honestly though, the job has been a lot of work and both physically and mentally and I am looking forward to a little rest and time to focus on my own family more. We were lucky enough to say goodbye to some of our friends with a fun cabin weekend but we weren't able to say goodbye to everyone which has been really hard on me. I have never been a person to make close friends quickly. Tim and I are both a little guarded about who we let near and dear to our hearts and leaving a group of people that we have come to know and love so much is very sad. I think overall it's just been difficult because we moved so far away. Our drive was 11 hours home and we know how hard it will be to see our friends who stayed in the South, especially as people have more babies etc. Now that we are in Wisconsin it will be nice to catch up with our old friends from high school in college but we will forever miss our Memphis group.

The move itself was a lot of work. I wasn't able to help as much as I wanted since I'm the size of a full term pregnant woman, I'm currently carrying almost 6 lbs of babies! Both boys are a few ounces shy of 3 pounds. Tim's parents are amazing. They left Wisconsin after work on Friday and drove through the night (besides stopping for a few hours to sleep at a rest stop) to arrive in Memphis by 9am. Tim and I weren't even home when they arrived because Sofia left her school Friday with a little virus and we wanted to play it safe and have the doctor check her out before we left. As soon as we got home Tim and his Dad began the arduous task of moving all of our things down 3 flights of stairs in 90 degree Memphis heat. Sofia was miserable and wasn't happy about all of the coming and going, she doesn't like seeing her Dad leave. After about eight hours of packing, Tim and his Dad fit all of our belongings into a minivan, trailer, and Tim's car. I was absolutely amazed and impressed that they fit everything. We didn't want to rent a truck because of the cost of the truck and gas for a 700 mile journey. Especially since we aren't sure when the next paycheck will come. Tim's Dad left as soon as the trailer was packed and the rest of us ate a quick dinner. Tim drove his car alone, which was good since there was no space whatsoever. Tim's Mom and I drove with Sofia and Frodo. We decided to leave after dinner since Sofia was so sick and exhausted. We drove until about 3am and tried to sleep at a rest stop to save money but Frodo kept growling at everything he saw and no one could recline seats because of car seats and boxes. So finally around 3:30 we were able to find a cheap motel and sleep for a few hours before finishing the move Sunday morning.

We are currently living with Tim's parents in Baraboo. We are very grateful for a nice place to stay but it's also a little stressful because we know we're going to have to move again, possibly two more times. It's also hard to live in a place that's not your own when you've been on your own for so long. There are also a lot of benefits. Sofia is adjusting quickly and seems to have beat her virus already. She loves spending time with family and having a big house to run around in and a yard! It's really helpful to have extra hands around since I am so big and I get tired very quickly these days. Tim has four possibly five interviews in the next two weeks so hopefully we will have an idea of where we will be moving to in about a month. We thought we would know by now but the jobs in Wisconsin are just not as plentiful as the South. I've been amazed with how patient I've been able to remain about the situation. I really like things planned out well in advance but I've had to let go and give up control these days because there is absolutely nothing I can do. It's just weird to think that we have no idea where we will bring the twins home to, it could be Tim's parents house and it could be an entirely different city. I look forward to the opportunity to get a little more settled and the moving is a pain but part of the process. We are hoping that we can rent wherever we go since we couldn't save for a down payment while Tim was in school. Again, another little bump in the road but it's all part of the journey and I'm trying to remember that God has a plan for me and my family and so far it's been a pretty awesome one.

Time for change

I feel like I've been saying this a lot in my recent blog posts but we have been extremely busy yet again. Between Tim's job hunt, being pregnant with twins, packing up my classroom, the last week of teaching, having a very active 14 month old, Tim's graduation and trying to pack to move things have been wild around here. Tim's award banquet and graduation took place last Thursday and Friday. The banquet was very nice but it was sad to say goodbye to so many people we've spent time with and grown close to over the last four years. I debated whether or not to take Sofia to the graduation ceremony because I knew I would be myself. Tim's family is wonderful and offered to come down but we told them not to since they are driving down this weekend (11 hours) to help us move back to Wisconsin. I decided that I wanted Sofia to see her Dad being recognized for his hard work and I REALLY wanted a family picture with Tim after his ceremony. I was not able to watch very much of the ceremony because I was chasing Sofia around the church and up and down the stairs but I did snap a photo of him receiving his diploma and we were able to get a few family pictures after the event. Later that day we drove to Arkansas to spend the weekend with some of our friends at a cabin in Heber Springs. The weather didn't quite cooperate but it was still really nice being able to catch up with everyone and spend some time together before we all move. We were missing two of our very best friends who were not able to come for a VERY good reason. Some of our very best friends just welcomed a beautiful baby boy into their family. We were lucky enough to meet him just hours after he was born and we saw him again tonight. It's bittersweet though because in just a few days we will be living a few states apart.

This week we have been trying to pack but also enjoy some of our favorite things in Memphis. There are many things I will miss about Memphis but many things I won't miss. I will probably write more about that next week when I have more time. I am excited to be moving up north closer to family and we couldn't have picked a better time to leave with the temperature heating up in Memphis. I'm also getting bigger by the day and I really want to try to be a bit more established before the babies come. We plan to stay with Tim's parents until we know exactly where in Wisconsin we will be living. Unfortunately, we will have to rent for a while since it's pretty much impossible to save money for a down payment on a house when Tim is in school and we spend more than our old house mortgage was on childcare each month. It's a bit depressing to think about moving to Wisconsin and getting set up in Tim's parents house, moving again to another city for who knows how long and then hopefully moving again into a house. I can't complain though, we are so lucky to have a healthy family and some job opportunities. I am exhausted and will leave you with some recent pictures.

Meeting the newest Winston!

I just love this picture. Tim and Sam are good buds and I just love how much they love babies and kids. Both these guys are incredible husbands and fathers.

What a perfect little guy! Congrats again Sam & Lea!

Tim with some of his other good friends before graduation.

Me with Rachael & Erin before graduation

All of the graduates from the class of 2011

I used the stained glass to entertain Sofia for a while. I love what the vent did to her dress!

The Ruder family!! We are so proud of Tim!!

Sofia enjoying some pasta at the cabin

Sofia giving Tim the "look" during the cabin weekend. Tim says he has seen this look before, can you guess where?

We survived the flood!

Wow, what a wild few weeks we've had. The muddy Mississippi rose to record levels in the last week and caused a lot of major flooding in Memphis. We live on Mud Island and there are only two roads off the island. One was shut down over a week ago and is still closed. The other route was narrowed to two lanes while one side of the road was built up in case everyone on the island was ordered to evacuate. Only a portion of homes on the island actually had to evacuate. Sofia's school had to pack all of the toys and equipment up and close the parking lot because the Wolf River harbor rose so high. Although we received several scary warning letters from Shelby county we remained safe.

Sofia is doing great. It is amazing to see how quickly she is growing up and become a sweet little girl. She is very adventurous. She started officially walking right at 14 months and now acts like a seasoned walker. With the weather being so nice we have taken her swimming a lot and she absolutely loves the water. This was no surprise to Tim or I since she has been swimming since she was about a month old and almost always enjoys bath time. Our pool has a little shallow circle pool with a fountain in the middle that she loves to play in. She also likes to walk around on her own and when she thinks we aren't looking she holds her arms out and just drops forward to go under water. We definitely have to keep a close eye on her. Sofia babbles a ton! She has a very mixed vocabulary of Spanish and English words, I expected this since she spends 7-8 hours a day entirely in Spanish. Sofia still loves to read and points to the words and babbles and will read to anyone who will listen. She has also become very affectionate to her baby animals. She could care less about her baby dolls but loves the animals. She holds them, brings them to me to kiss them and walks them around in a stroller. It's adorable to watch. Sofia also dances and will try to sing along to different songs she is familiar with from school. Sofia is a great eater. She will try almost anything but really loves fruit, all types of beans, yogurt, chicken, turkey, eggs, and pancakes. She used to really love vegetables but she is picky about them.

It's hard to believe we only have 2 weeks left in Memphis. We are going to try to pack in a lot of our favorite things in Memphis for our grand finale. It's amazing how much this city has grown on me. Working in Memphis City Schools has not been easy and definitely made my time in Memphis challenging but I will miss a lot of things about teaching, especially since I'm not sure when I will teach again. We will miss the early spring and long fall but I'm so happy we are moving home before the sweltering heat hits Memphis. Tim graduates a week from today and then we are spending the weekend at a cabin on a lake in Arkansas with some of our nearest and dearest friends we met in Memphis so we can have a proper goodbye. Many of the people who will be at the cabin were away for part of fourth year so I am so excited to catch up and relax with everyone.

I'll leave you with some adorable pictures taken from Sofia's one year photo session back in March. We picked up her pictures from the studio today and they turned out great!!

Walking in Memphis!!

Sofia has been talking steps here and there for the past few weeks but the day before she turned 14 months old she she started actually walking! She does pretty well but sometimes gets tripped by Frodo and is still learning how to go down steps or inclines. Here is a video of her walking tonight.

Sofia also loves to read. Every day when we get home the first thing she wants to do is look through her books. Sometimes she likes to be read to but many times she just flips through the books and babbles. I'm amazed at how much all of the reading Tim and I did with her from the time she was in my tummy has paid off.  My students at school always ask me what Sofia's favorite tv show is and it always catches me by surprise because Sofia doesn't watch tv. I feel pretty strongly about her not being exposed to a lot of tv before the age of 2. Every now and then we have a sports game on and Sofia checks it out but she is much more interested in exploring, reading, and playing. Here is a video of Sofia reading with Tim.

This weekend we welcomed my sister Lindsey and her boyfriend Carlos to Memphis for a visit. They were touring some wineries in Southern Illinois and came to see us for the weekend. We spent some time letting Sofia swim on Friday afternoon, it was too cold for the adults. Then we had some nice appetizers and drinks (everyone but me :)) and headed downtown. We wanted to show Lindsey and Carlos around and also enjoy the South Main Trolley night. Sofia's bedtime is normally 7pm but we thought we would take her and just see how things went. We got on the trolley around 7pm and it was packed! Sofia loved being on the trolley and watching all of the people and buildings. Friday night was a big night for Memphis, the Redbirds had a game, the Grizzlies had a game, Beale St Music Festival and South Main Trolley Night. The newspaper estimated that around 100,000 people were downtown Friday night. It was a perfect night, not too hot, not too cool. We rode the trolley all the way down to South Main and enjoyed some cheesecake and art galleries. Then we walked by the FedEx Forum to check on the basketball game, we thought about going to the game earlier in the week but we knew there was no way Sofia would be able to stay up that late. We got home just in time to watch the rest of the game on television and still put Sofia to bed by 9:30. She is such an awesome little girl, she is so flexible and easy going.

Saturday was great. We went to the Farmer's Market, made a big breakfast/lunch, and took Sofia to the awesome new park in Shelby Farms. She was exhausted and the playground was packed so we spent most of our time flying kites. We finished the night with dinner at the BBQ Shop, another Memphis BBQ place and dessert at YoLo. It was so nice to have family in town for the past few weeks. It's hard to believe Tim and I only have about a month left until we leave Memphis. We intend to do everything we can to savor our final weeks. It will be great to be back in Wisconsin but we will certainly miss Memphis.

Sofia loves swimming and water! This summer will be so much fun.

Carlos, Sofia & Lindsey

Sofia on the trolley checking out the scenery.

Lindsey, Sofia & Tim on the trolley.

I love her SO much!

My belly prevents me from wearing the Ergo carrier on the front so I started wearing Sofia on my back, she loves it and I can get so much done so much faster this way.