Christmas - 2009

I'm finally updating our blog. I might be better again, because I got a new camera for Christmas. Since I have a new camera, I'm more excited to put some pictures up on the blog. I have thoroughly enjoyed Christmas break. My grandparents from Texas flew in and because of that my parents have wanted to plan everyday with something fun to do. I did bring home grading to do over the break...but that's the life of a teacher...no getting around it! I think Trevor is also enjoying his LONG break from classes. He almost gets a month! Was school break always only a week and 1/2 long when I was in school? I swear our school breaks felt a lot longer growing up.

Well the last week has consisted of Trevor's Birthday,school getting out before the break, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, the Nutcracker, eating out, and playing lots of games.

We went out to eat with Danny and Amelia and their baby Hannah Morgan for Trevor's birthday. Alex and Eva and their baby Lily Morgan met up with us later that night. There is nothing like hanging out with friends that you can totally relax with. It was exactly what Trevor wanted and was very fun! He, of course, got a couple of parties between both sides of the family... and a beautiful, delicious birthday meal of a shrimp, chicken and pasta medley.

The week before Christmas we had our extended family party for Trevor's side of the family. Don't even ask me how many people were there...too many to count. Even Santa showed up.




The kids at school were very anxious for the Christmas break, but they worked as hard as I hoped for up until the bell rang for them to leave for the break. Nothing makes you feel quite the same way as a classroom full of excited kids for Christmas. The break gives me a little bit of time to start missing and appreciating them!

Amber, my sister-in-law, made a great tri-tip steak dinner for Christmas Eve. She is an awesome cook. I have always wanted her overnight salad recipe and her home-made salsa recipe. And...if you've ever had the chance to try her Sheepherder's spice, you have had a real treat! We spent one night this Christmas break mixing up this spice in home-depot buckets with a drill! It is quite a project for a present for the neighbors. Anyway, we got our traditional pajamas on Christmas Eve, which you can see pictures of below.




Trevor and I woke up at 6:00 a.m. on Christmas to have our own, little, personal Christmas. Then we were at my parents at 7:00 a.m. for the Fuller Christmas. If you are fans of "The Office" you probably would have enjoyed our Christmas morning. We gave my niece, Grace, the uni-corn barbie (the one and only that Dwight horded one Christmas) and we gave my brother-in-law his present presented in jell-o. I got a great pressure cooker. Can you believe I steamed carrots later that evening, in my pressure cooker, and it only took a total of 4 minutes? I'm going to love my pressure cooker. So will Trevor, because he won't have to wait as long for dinner! Look at my Grandpa in the back of the picture. I have so many memories of him dressing up as Santa...its a real beard!












We had to make it back to the Schow's house by 4:00 for another Christmas celebration. There is never a dull celebration when the Schow's get together. Jan (Trevor's mom)got a total of about 60 kitchen glasses for Christmas (thats what she gets when all she asks for, for Christmas, is kitchen glasses). There were 6 of us that got her kitchen glasses! It was a very fun day. And we ended the night playing a game called, "Quelf". The game was invented to create a fool out of every person playing. As you can see below, I ended the game wearing a bike helmet, mummifying my face, and wearing Christmas bows as jewelery.





The next day we were at the Nutcracker. I dragged Trevor along by telling him that if he went, it would count as a Christmas present to me. It wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be...but I think that was because he sat with my niece, Gracie, on his lap. They entertained each other during the show. I thought the Nutcracker was beautiful though.



We also brought my grandparents to see our sons grave. It was such a sweet sight to show up and find that someone else had left a gift for them at their grave. Sweet enough to bring tears to my eyes. They have been in our thoughts non-stop. Their due date was Christmas Eve. What a blessing to know that our little family is loved so much! Trevor and I love to know that we have an eternal family.



We are still having a wonderful Christmas season. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Kyson and Timothy on Aug. 1, 2009

Trevor and I are proud and extremely privileged parents of Timothy Trevor Schow and Kyson Gary Schow. They were born on Aug. 1, 2009. Unfortunately they didn't have the ability to survive on their own, outside of the womb. They were born and passed away around 3:00 pm on Saturday. Trevor and I are experiencing the feelings of losing our little boys - but we are only saddened because we know we have to wait longer than a few months now to raise and hold our sons. We have to wait years, instead of months. We know for a surety that we will be able to do everything parents are privileged to do, only we will get to do them after we are resurrected with our sons. We know that they will be helping our family as it grows for years to come. Trevor and I feel extremely blessed to know them as we did. We felt their strong personalities early on in pregnancy and we have felt extremely close to them during and since these events have happened. We know that they have been put hard to work on an important mission together for our Heavenly Father. We are so proud that they are called to work in the greatest cause and are needed for the work and glory of our Heavenly Father. We love them with all our heart. It is amazing to realize how fast and automatic the feelings of parenthood come while we were able to hold our babies. The pride, the protection, the love is more than I can ever explain or have ever felt before. I expect that love and these feelings to grow stronger for them over the years and expand as our family eventually grows even more. The plan of salvation has never meant so much to our souls. Our testimony of that has grown tremendously. Thank you all for the support and love and prayers that we feel.

My Growth...

Okay, I have several pregnancy shots that need to be put on here. I am overwhelmed at how big I've gotten so fast. I know...there are two babies growing inside of me that are now about 6 inches long - so I should expect to feel large, to have to hold my breath whenever I bend over, to not be able to lift myself onto the bed or to roll over easily for that matter. I know that I knew this kind of stuff would come with a pregnancy. It just seems to have come on so fast. I'm afraid that I will soon be out of a cute pregnant belly phase and onto whale-ish looking. Oh well...Trevor tells me, "you asked for this", which I did. Actually doing it is a little different than talking though. No, we still couldn't be more excited to be planning for our little boys. Trevor laughs a lot at my daily realizations of things I have trouble doing or can't do at all. He loves to see that the boys are getting bigger. He rubs them and talks to them as if I can't hear anything he is saying to them. Hopefully those are the times I will remember about pregnancy and not the back pains. My cousin, Angie, has given me some maternity tops which have saved my life the last couple of weeks because I haven't brought myself to buy maternity clothes yet. I'm sure we'll be going out this weekend to get some - because I really don't have much I can fit in. My mother-in-law has spent hours picking out bedding with me and my mother is coming over several days out of the week to paint the nursery with me. We are so so so blessed to have family so close by. They are the biggest support to us with all of our decisions and I love to be able to go through these times of our lives with them. Alright the pictures...

These pictures are of me at about 14 weeks:




The funny thing is when Trevor took these pictures he thought I looked "more pregnant than I was" - we didn't put them on the blog at first because we thought the pictures made me look bigger than what was really there - little did we know...

These are me at about 16 1/2 weeks:




That is where I would have liked to stay for awhile longer, but here is me at 18 weeks (1 1/2 weeks later):



Maybe you don't see the largeness of the belly that I see, but nevertheless, it is expanding quickly. The nursery is still in progress, but here are a few photos of it in the process:





We love you all!

Trevor was right!

Just so that any followers of the blog will know. Trevor and I had the appointment with the doctor today to find out if we were having girls or boys. We saw two very cute boys bouncing around inside!!! Trevor had been talking to them as if they were boys for quite some time - and it turns out he was spot on! They were standing on their head, doing somersaults and were quite shy for a little bit. I will be putting up pictures in the next day or two and filling you in on the other things we've been up to. But that's the news for now...

4th of July Weekend!

Oh, Trevor and I were so reluctant to have this week start again. We had so much fun this last weekend. He knew he was going to have to do homework and study for a few tests he has this week. But there are just weeks left to summer semester and then he'll get a few off before fall semester starts again. I was just loving having him available to play with all weekend instead of waiting until all his homework is done.

Trevor had work off on Friday. We slept in and then went out in the backyard to help/watch his family build a major swing-set. We went to lunch with them and then had a pretty relaxing day spent outside and shopping around - mostly browsing around. On the 4th we woke up to have breakfast at my parent's ward. My dad and sister-in-law, Amber, ran in a 5k race right before it. It was fun to catch up and see old and familiar faces. We go every year and the breakfast seems to get more and more people coming to it every year. There are some wonderful chefs in that ward! Then we headed towards the Granite Stake Parade. My nieces, McKinley and Mollie rode their bikes in the parade. All of the other grandchildren had a hay-day trying to catch the candy that flew everywhere, while trying to stay clear of the water-fight going on next to us. After the parade, my side of the family joined us at the Schow's house for a bar-b-que (which Bob cooked up deliciously). The guys went to our apartment in the basement and held a ping-pong tournament. I'm still not sure if Paul or Bob is the champion of that...The kids played in the bounce-house (well the kids along with Trevor and Jamon). We took turns driving and riding in the go-cart. This go-cart is getting old, but it is still running. Trevor got it for his 10th or 11th birthday! Grandpa Schow made cotton candy that was massive. I'm sure we sent everyone home tired and on a sugar high. After taking a nap we got to go out to eat at Panda Express (the only place we could find that was open on the 4th of July) with Danny and Amelia Morgan. The four of us went to Murray park for the fireworks show. Before the show Trevor got to show off his pull-up abilities, we discovered how nasty the bathrooms at that park are, we talked about babies (because Amelia's Hannah is coming pretty soon!), tried to start up a game of soccer but that mostly failed, and we ate lots of chips when my family arrived. The show was awesome. The night was late and fun! But there's more...Sunday we woke up early to celebrate my dad's birthday, went to church and then went back to my parent's house for a bar-b-que. We all chipped in to get my dad a new grill. It has some new technology of cooking the meat and it worked. It was such a good texture and so tasty! I want my dad to grill us dinner more often. Yum! It was a fun, tiring, family filled weekend. Next year I think Trevor and I will want to get together with friends and put off our own fireworks show.

Trevor relaxing at the bar-b-que. The thought of that is making me hungry (but then again I'm always hungry these days.)


Eva's bright pink cotton candy - a mouthful!


Trevor enjoying the parade.


McKinley and Mollie in the parade with their bikes.


The original Bumblebee!


My parents relaxing at the breakfast, after the run.


Other updates...I'm having to wear my "belly band" more often now. My pants are digging into my stomach and making it really uncomfortable. So that stage of pregnancy has begun. And two weeks more until we find out if we are having girls or boys. Also, if you are looking for a good read, I would recommend Where the Wind Sings by Robyn M. Schow. Its the first book of a series and it is a very entertaining novel. It doesn't take a long time to read. I would highly encourage you to read it. You will love the main character. I love stories that have an element of fantasy and this one fits in perfectly. I can't wait for even more to be published by her! I've also been reading a series that begins with a book called Poison Study. The plot is really thick and it is well written, but it is pretty graphic throughout a lot of it...(rape, killing, etc...)I know I can be kind of sensitive to that stuff but anyhow, there's my opinion for you.

BIG Update

Ok, I thought that besides only talking about the babies I should fill you in with our daily lives as well.

I am at home a lot more than I am used to these days, since school got out. I clean, read, cook, visit people, get online and create projects to work on to keep myself busy. I'm working on organizing this next year's lesson plans for school...I figure that when school starts again is probably when I'll be getting tired and uncomfortable again, so why not do a lot of the work right now, when I have the time? During the school year I never want to work on school stuff at home, but during the summer I actually really enjoy it. It makes me excited to teach again. I've also been making 'my baby book'. I know...its overdoing it, but I just keep ideas I like or coupons in it so I'll remember to use them. Everyone is telling us to stock up on diapers and baby stuff right now because we'll constantly be buying them when the two babies are outside of my tummy and here for us to hold. It is a good idea, I just need to start doing it. But we actually get sent a lot of coupons for maternity and baby stores - its nice right now, I don't know how long that usually lasts! Well, if you have time and want to meet up, I've got the time right now...so don't hesitate to call.

Trevor is the busier one. He wakes up to go to the gym, studies, does homework, goes to class, goes to work, is trying to sell our car and does anything he can to please and make me comfortable. I know, he has a full plate to juggle around. He is enjoying the summer semester though. He really likes 'Information Systems' which is what he is going into. Every semester he gets deeper and deeper into what he really likes to do and he doesn't have to pay attention to those general classes anymore. He can see the light at the end of the tunnel. He'll graduate with his bachelors next May. That sounds like awhile but its only two semesters after this one is over. His plan is to go on another year to get his Master's Degree. I am definitely proud of him. He has a business law class that is a lot to study for, but he enjoys discussing it. I think he likes all of the history that is in it. His least favorite is a database class. Which is good to know so that he knows what direction in school he wants to go into with Info Sys.

And for the babies...we went to the doctor's today. Everything is great!!! That was a relief for both of us. After the last appointment we were really shocked and then really excited and then that was mixed with a little bit of worry. People started pointing out to us all the risks that are involved with twins. We wanted this appointment, at the end of the third trimester, to confirm that one of them didn't disappear or one wasn't taking all of the nutrients for itself or anything like that. They both look great. Baby B is laying on top of Baby A. Baby B was moving around a ton during the ultra-sound, so amazing!!!! I kept thinking that it was kicking the other baby around, but they are in their own sacks, they are totally protected. Baby A is laying with its head towards my belly and its feet towards my back right now. I figure that is what is causing my left back aches once in awhile. They are about three inches long and they look like real babies now. You can see in the picture of the ultra sound below a little human silhoute. Below the baby there is a round ball, that is the top of Baby A's head. That one was being stubborn and wouldn't move around for a good body shot. So that's all we get right now. I'm so excited that everything is going great! In 4 weeks we'll know if they are boys or girls. Trevor would like to think he saw some boy parts but I'm pretty sure it was just the umbilical cord because the doctor couldn't see anything. This is a long entry...but there you have it!



These other two photos are from the first ultrasound. This was them at 9 1/2 weeks. They were only an inch here. The two different pictures are the two seperate babies.

What Our Future Kids Will Look Like

Ok...tomorrow we go in for our doctor's appointment to see how the twins are doing. We are nervous and excited! We have some scary news though...we put our pictures together online to see what our children will look like...and now Trevor thinks we should never again have children...hahaha. No, they better not look like this but it should give you a laugh!

Well...news is getting around. Trevor and I are now expecting twins! We are completely shocked, overwhelmed, excited, blessed and have no idea what to expect! But we are still very excited. We don't know if they are boys or girls yet - but they are identical - so either two boys or two girls are coming on their way! Don't ask me what our plans are for the next year, because I really don't know - we are going to take it how it comes. I'm feeling pretty good, as long as I eat and sleep... Trevor is putting up with a lot and accepting a dirtier house for a little bit. I hope that the dirty house will change when school gets out in 2 days!!!!! He has been a huge help and is still squeezing in work and classes. We are both excited about the new car we bought yesterday (one of the many unexpected changes we need to accomodate for with 2 on the way). Anyways, the picture above is me at 10 1/2 weeks along. If we can figure out a way to put the ultra-sounds on here, we will. And maybe we'll get around to taking a picture of the SUV!

Not unless you are really interested...

So I realized that we still have a video that was made for our wedding, which was never actually shown at our wedding. It is a cheesy wedding video - so be warned, but enjoy if you want to watch it! It has no sound for some reason.

Opie

You needed to see a picture of our baby, for now...Opie - our chinchilla! (His actual name is Optimas Prime - but we shortened that to O.P.)

Well, not a whole lot to mention...but I promised myself I'd be better about updating this. This last week was a busy one. I think there might have been one night where Trevor wasn't studying until bed time. I am loving this weekend because Trevor hasn't studied at all and we've been able to play! Watching conference has been really relaxing.

I finished the 4th grade Science fair on Friday and this next week we have our big 4th grade pioneer program. Once we are done with that I am home free for my own spring break! During the break I need to figure out what Trevor and I will do for our anniversary coming up in May - 2 years!

I did do better this week at going to the gym, thanks to Jennie Schow motivating me! I could hardly walk yesterday after the legs work out and today I can't straighten my arms. I better see the pay off this next week after the gym. Man, I'm so bummed that I stopped working out for 3 months because I lost everything I had before!

One last piece of good news - Trevor has 14 more classes to take before he graduates with his bachelors degree! I might be counting down semesters more than he is...I dunno.