captain promotion weekend

The weekend of May 28th we had both sets of parents in town to celebrate Matt's promotion!  On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday we hung out, played cards, worked on the house, prepared for the party, and played with the babies.  The parents were all able to feel the kids move and hear their heartbeats...it was wonderful to be able to share that experience with them.

On May 30th Matt was promoted to Captain in the Air Force.  The ceremony was done by Col Walker, the group commander and Matt was one of six promoted at the ceremony.  Jannel and Nicole did a wonderful job at putting everything together and making sure things ran smoothly.  Syd, Matt's dad, did the swearing in oath; Mom and Dad removed Matt's old rank; Janet, Matt's mom, and me put on Matt's new rank.  It was a beautiful ceremony and privilege to be a part of it. 

 Once we got home, Matt opened his gifts.  He got some very nice things!

Then it was time to celebrate!  Mom's gift to Matt was the party...and what a great one!  There was tons of food and kegs in the kitchen...everyone had a wonderful time. 

It was a great weekend and a wonderful ceremony!  Congratulations Matt!
.katherine.

a trip to South Dakota

There has been so much that has happened since I last wrote!  In a nutshell: we went on a small "babymoon"/birthday trip, Matt was promoted to Captain, we had the babies, the NICU was evacuated due to the flood, and the babies and I are currently in Fargo while Matt and the Dads have been busy working on rebuilding our basement that was flooded.  Instead of rushing through all the stories, however, I am going to try to play catch-up and write what I can! 

The weekend of May 6th, Matt and I went on a trip to Rapid City, South Dakota to get away, relax, and celebrate our birthdays.  We have been planning to go to Rapid City for a while so we were both very excited that we could finally make it work. 

On Friday our first stop was Mt. Rushmore.

The museum had a lot of the original models, tools, equipment, and photographs.  There were also personal stories from men who worked on the project.  It was incredible to see all the documents!

We also took time to walk the founders trail.  It is a beautiful nature trail around the monement so you can see it from all different angles.

 

It was such a beautiful day and we loved seeing the monument!

After leaving Mt. Rushmore, we drove down the road to the Crazy Horse monument. 

This is another monument built in the mountain, however, this one is still in progress!  It is all privately funded and has been worked on for many years.  It was amazing to see the work being done while we were visiting.  We were able to take a bus to the base of the mountain to get a closer look at the monument.  While we were there we could see and hear the people working, it was a very unique experience.

We also visited the rest of the facility.  The goal is eventually have a education and cultural center.  We visited the museum, a gallery of the artists work, and a cultural center.  Some of the displays were also in the home the artist built on the site for his family.

The project is incredible and well worth the visit!

On Saturday we started out by going to the Comos Mystery Zone.

 It was deffinatly hokey and touristy but we still had fun.

Next we did the Norby Scenic Trail.  It is a beautiful driving trail and we loved it!  It was a great way to relax after doing so much walking the day before.

While we were in Rapid City we also enjoyed several wonderful meals at local resturants and just relaxed.  We had a wonderful time!  We would love to get back to Rapid City for another trip some day!
.katherine.

starting maternity leave

First things first, both babies and I are doing well.  The short version of this post is that I started my maternity leave but for the details you can read on... 

On the morning of the 29th while I was getting ready for work, I almost passed out twice.  I ended up calling into work and heading back to bed for the morning.  When my doctor's office opened I talked to Dr. Bozeman's nurse.  She talked to Dr. Bozeman who said to take it easy during the weekend, drink plenty of fluids, no extra activities, and call back Monday to let them know how it went.  Most of the weekend I was weak, dizzy, and exhausted.  Matt took great care of me and made me sleep most of the time. 

On Monday I went to work but had to take things slowly.  When the doctor's office opened I gave them a call, I knew my doctor was out on Mondays but I still wanted to call since I still wasn't feeling well.  The nurse said that if work would be OK without me to go home, continue to take it easy, and come in the next day to see my doctor.  I did just that...went home and slept most of the day.

On Tuesday, I went to see Dr. Bozeman and overall the appointment went well.  Dr. Bozeman went over my ultrasound saying he was happy with the development and everything looked great.  He also took a quick look at both babies, got both heartbeats, and measured my uterus (28 weeks!).  He said there wasn't one specific reason for me to be getting weak and dizzy except the pregnancy.  He recommended that I stop working and make sure to get lots of rest.  He also wants to start seeing me every two weeks now.  Dr. Bozeman also said I was still fine to take our planned trip to Rapid City.  It seems like my body just needs more rest and is having a difficult time keeping up with everything plus carrying two babies! 

After seeing Dr. Bozeman I went to let the girls I work with know what was going on and start my FMLA paperwork (which starts my maternity leave).  Everyone was very understanding and said that when I have my appointments I will have to come say hi.

It was great to hear from the doctor that everything is looking good but I was hoping to work for a little longer.  This is, however, much better than being on bedrest until the babies get here so I won't complain.  I am taking it easy, getting projects worked on, and getting the extra sleep I need.  I have still been a little weak and dizzy but it doesn't happen too often or as badly as before.  It is nice to be able to just lay down when it happens and not have to worry about any obligations.  I will continue learning how to relax and do things slowly!
.katherine.

20 week ultrasound

On April 28th (my 20 week, 4 day mark) we had our ultrasound!  The scan took about an hour and fifteen minutes and looked at everything.  The tech checked both babies for all the organs, vessels, and growth. 

First we got to see Zoey.  She was curled up most of the time and kept flipping back and forth while the tech was checking for everything but the second we looked at her face she posed for pictures.

 The tech verified her gender...and as you can see, she is a girl.

She looked great.  She weighed 12 oz and measured at 20 weeks, 2 days (right on schedule)!  Here are a few more pictures of our little lady.

Next, the tech did the full scan of Bryce.  He was very stretched out and relaxed during most of the scan but wasn't a fan of giving us pictures of his face.

It probably didn't help that his sister kept kicking him...I guess she missed the attention.

He was more than willing to let the tech verify his gender...multiple times!

Bryce also looked great.  He also weighed 12 oz and measured at 20 weeks and 3 days.  Here are a few more pictures of the little man.

Both babies looked great!  They both were right on track for weight and measurements.  All the organs were all there and functioning properly (as far as an ultrasound lets us see).  They both had four chambers in their hearts, healthy plecentas, and three vessels in their umbilical cords.  We are very happy to hear that everything looks so good!

  .katherine.