Max and Clara were wearing coordinating sleepers a few weeks ago, so of course I had to capitalize on the opportunity and get some pictures! I love them so much.

Max: Dad! You are so funny! Tell me more!

Clara:  Bring it on. We'll see if this makes me laugh.

Max: That guy with the poofy black hair is kind of weird...

Clara: Really, dad?

Max: He's pretty funny, I guess. I like him.

Clara: He's STILL going!

Max: Ok, this guy is AWESOME! I'm so glad he's my Dad.

Clara: ....

Max: HAHAHA!! 

Clara: Ok, ok, he's got skills!

Max: I could watch him all night long. Seriously, keep going!

Clara: I've lost interest. Is there some milk around these parts?

Both: Can we help you, Mom? 

Both: Ok, you make our food. We'll give you some cute puppy dog eyes. 

January Has Been Busy

At the beginning of January my little brother got married! It was such a happy, happy day. I love seeing Jace so happy, and it doesn't hurt that the girl he married is awesome. Seriously, I couldn't be happier to have Bella as my new sister-in-law. 

A few days after the wedding the twins and I hopped in the car with my parents for a Pacific Northwest getaway. I loved growing up in Spokane, WA and it's always good to go back. I don't know if I'll ever live in Washington again, but it will always hold a special place in my heart. Russ was able to come up for about a week as well. We ended the trip with a short stint in Seattle. These twins of ours are now pretty well traveled for being a measly 3 months, but dang, Russ and I were humbled big-time in Seattle. Two screaming babies in a foreign city is no fun. Needless to say, a lot of Saturday night was spent in the hotel. Sigh. Sunday we went to Bellevue and gorgeous Lake Washington where Russ's dad grew up. It was the perfect end to my two-week stay in Washington. 

* I also got to spend some time with Rachel, who is one of those friends - you know, the kind you've known forever and makes your heart feel so good to see again? Every time we see each other (which sadly is every few years), it's like we pick up where we left off. Love you, Rach!

** And now I am done with travelogues for a while. You're welcome.

A Tropical Christmas

If I'm still within a month of the holiday, it's not too late to post about, is it?

This year my side of the family planned a trip to the Florida Keys for the week of Christmas. Coming from a place that usually has a white Christmas, we weren't quite sure what to make of it. Luckily it turns out that Christmas is just as magical in a tropical place! It was a bit crazy and hectic traveling across the country with 2 1/2 month-old twins, but I think I would have done just about anything for a change of scenery. After 3 weeks of bed rest and a few months of staying cooped up inside, I needed to get out. The weather was perfect and the company was even better. All in all, I quite enjoyed our tropical Christmas!

Max and Clara just looooooved relaxing on the dock :)

Christmas morning. I love this picture because it summarizes our crazy life and how crazy and disheveled we feel these days. And by disheveled I mostly mean exhausted.

Our Santa babies (Clara got her first doll for Christmas!)

We went for a quick outing on Christmas afternoon. It was windy as heck, but it sure was pretty.

Mister smiles! I just love that face.

The house we rented had some kayaks. Russ loved it.

We drove down to Key Largo (the most southern point of the United States) and watched the sunset. It was gorgeous!

This picture is too funny not to post. Walking through Key West.

My little family at the beach. 

The view from our deck

A snapshot in what our crazy crew looked like on the plane. Needless to say, whoever had to sit by us was less than thrilled. :)

12 Weeks {enter something witty here}

My babies are 12 weeks and will be 3 months this week! WHAT?!?! My first instinct is to say "wow, where has the time gone?" And then I stop and think that these last 3 months are a weird mix of time going incredibly fast... and incredibly slow. I think I've decided the days (and especially nights) are slow, but the weeks and months are fast. I'm not sure if that even makes sense, but it does in my mind.

I constantly battle with myself whether I am loving that they are growing older or that I am sad about it. I think the general consensus is that each new day and week brings a new discovery, ability, or expression that makes my heart melt and brings so much excitement and happiness. And let's be honest, it has been hard. I mean really, really hard. I am more grateful for Max and Clara than I can ever explain, but that doesn't mean having two newborns is any easier because of it.

There have been days that feeding myself deserves a pat on the back. I still haven't really cooked a meal (and I don't think Kraft Mac N' Cheese counts). I have spilt a bag of breast milk twice now, and both times has brought me to tears. Whoever said "don't cry over spilled milk" never pumped exclusively for twins. Goodness. We are still struggling to get sleep, and hence walk around like mega zombies (and NO! twins don't just magically get on the same schedule, since I seem to be asked that almost daily). Anyway, the point is, it's been rough, but it's also been so, so beautiful and wonderful. Max and Clara are my world. I know the future isn't going to get easier per se, but I am pretty confident more sleep can only help. :)

I just love how as these little guys squirm and kick around their little feet turn up like that. It makes me smile.

2013, You Were Great.

2013 was a year of growth - physically (for me at least), literally (we doubled our family!), and figuratively. I learned so much about myself, I grew closer to my Heavenly Father and His plan for me, I learned patience and compassion, and most of all I learned that miracles are real.

The year started with heartbreak and sadness as we had just had a failed IVF cycle (of which we found out the results on Christmas day) and ended in complete joy with our perfect Max and Clara.

Truly, what a difference a year makes. 2014 we are ready for you! I can only imagine the fun, hard, exhausting, amazing times to come!

January - Russ and I did everything in our power to stay positive despite our heartbreak of a failed IVF. We also traveled to Oregon to pay tribute to my amazing Uncle John who passed away from brain cancer. We managed to squeeze in some fun with snowmobiling and other winter activities. 

February - IVF #2!! Call me determined or impatient, either way I wasn't going to be stopped. Onward and forward! 

March - We found out I was pregnant on March 1st and that we were having twins on March 22nd. What a month! Don't worry, we threw in some house projects, including Russ's handmade kitchen island.

April - My first belly picture! Also took a fun trip to Newport beach with my sister and her family.

May - Natalie was married! Such a beautiful day.

June - Russ and I took a fun trip to New York City to see the National at the Barclays center and do some sight-seeing. This trip was pretty darn exhausting (for being 5 months pregnant with twins), but also a ton of fun. We also found out we were having a boy and a girl (beyond thrilled)!

July - Getting HUGE. It was a hot summer, and I mean HOT. I became increasingly less mobile as these twins rapidly grew inside of me.

August - By far the biggest highlight was meeting and getting a picture with Dave Matthews (definitely a lifelong dream). Our island was officially finished. We also had a fantastic vacation at Trinity Lake with my family.

September - I could barely walk by this month. I went into preterm labor at 33 weeks and was sent to strict bed rest to keep these babies inside!

October - Maxwell John and Clara Evelyn came into this world on the 15th. Best day of my life. (We also finished our laundry room, but who cares about that).

November - Lots of snuggles and sleepless nights with our babies. Couldn't have asked for anything more. So incredibly thankful.

December - We blessed Max and Clara at our church at the beginning of the month and spent Christmas in the Florida Keys (post to come)!

8 Weeks!

A miracle occurred as I went to take the twins' 8 week pictures -- they both fell asleep, Max laid his (not so) little head on Clara's shoulder, and he even gave me all sorts of smiles. I was melting and snapping the camera like crazy. These little guys make me so incredibly happy. We are all beyond exhausted and a little frazzled at times, but the joy they bring is irreplaceable.

Their 2 month appointment is in a few days, but I cannot wait to find out their stats. They have both chunked out like crazy. Max is definitely bigger than Clara, but they are both growing like weeds! Other fun advancements include coos and smiles, their ability to follow us (it always cracks me up when 4 little eyes follow me as I leave the room), and 4-5 hour stretches at night! Hallelujah! :)

And their feet. I just can't get enough of these 20 toes! :)

People Say Stupid Things, Pt. 2

I think this is one of my favorite videos right now. I've only been a mom to twins for 8 weeks and I think I've already experienced all of these questions and awkward situations. Just watch.

Before I was pregnant, I had already become more than aware that people say stupid things. It's just human nature. Battling with infertility was hard in itself, but being asked "why don't you have kids yet?" was just pouring salt in the wound. I think one of my favorite comments I had received during this time was "well at least you guys get to make money and buy furniture!" Yes, because furniture fills the void of infertility. Thank you for that. 

Now that I have twins I have experienced an entirely new set of awkward social encounters (as shown in the video above).  I understand that twins are unique and a foreign idea to most moms, but do people have to be so gosh darn NOSY?! Almost every single time I have been out with the twins I have been asked awkward, personal questions. The three below are my favorite.

"Do twins run in your family?" 

...aka "are they natural?" I have come to learn that this is a backwards way of asking whether or not I did infertility treatments to have these twins. Even though I have talked about my experiences a bit on this blog, it doesn't mean I want to re-hash this experience every day in the checkout line with a complete stranger. Infertility is incredibly personal! And so is how children are conceived! I can bet a lot of money that a woman with one baby does not get asked about the details of that child's conception. 

"Are you breastfeeding them?" 

First, why does it matter to you? My children are healthy, happy and fed. It should not matter if they are drinking breast milk or formula, especially since I don't even know your first name. Second, I'm not really wanting to talk about what I do with my boobs all day with you. Pumping? Breast feeding? None of the above? Not really your business, complete stranger.

"Did you deliver vaginally?"

It seems pretty obvious why this is an awkward topic for a dressing room attendant to ask me, but come on! I don't really want to talk about that part of my body right now. Moving on.

Now obviously if we have become friends or acquaintances and are having a sincere conversation these questions aren't so annoying! It's just the sheer nosiness that gets really old. I'm trying to figure out a way of responding to these questions and letting them know I feel uncomfortable without being rude. It's proving to be harder than one would hope. 

Anyway, thanks for indulging my rant. The moral of the story is that, well, people say stupid things. Life goes on! (and here's a picture of these cute little twins just for good measure)

Thankful

Yesterday was Max and Clara's blessing day, which was the perfect end to this Thanksgiving weekend. My heart is so full of gratitude! As we sat in church yesterday and blessed these perfect, pure little people I couldn't have been more grateful for this long road we have been on to get them here. Trials truly are a blessing, which is usually easier to realize after the fact. :) Everything happens for a reason, and I am grateful someone else is in control, as much as I try to fight it. 

I love my little twins more than anything in the world - I feel as though my heart has been split in three! These are my people, and I love them so, so much.

Clara wore a special Lewis family heirloom. It is a christening dress that has been in the family for about 150 years. It's absolutely gorgeous and so very delicate. She looked beautiful. 

Max was able to wear the same shoes my Dad was blessed in 55 years ago. He wore my brother's blessing outfit as well. I loved how both of them were able to pay tribute to different sides of each family. 

A lot of our family and close friends were able to help celebrate Max and Clara and were present for the blessing. Thank you to everyone who made the effort to come - it really meant a lot! We were also incredibly lucky to have gorgeous weather for December 1st in Utah. Who would have thought we could hang out on our patio at this time of year?! All in all it was a very special day and perfect end to a weekend full of "Thanks"!

6 Weeks

Max and Clara are 6 weeks old today! 

I cannot believe that much time has gone by. As cliche as it may sound, in some ways I feel like they have been with us forever, and in others I feel like it was just yesterday I was in labor. But either way, I need time to slow down! We are trying to soak up as many of these newborn snuggles as we possibly can. 

Fun facts at 6 weeks:

Both Max and Clara are getting some major rolls on their thighs, arms and chins. I love all of them!

Clara still wears newborn diapers (although that is probably almost over) while Max has been in size 1 for about a week. We go through about 16-20 diapers a day. (!)

Their skin tone is totally different! Clara obviously lucked out with the more olive complexion from Russ's Hispanic side. Lucky girl. 

Max is our little smiley baby, while Clara is an amazing sleeper.

Max loves classical music. It soothes him to sleep almost every time. We call him "music Max."

Both are great eaters. Mom's milk is taaaaasty!

By the way, I have totally been loving our Milestone Baby Cards that I learned about from my friend Sada. 

And also, it is nearly impossible to take a decent photo of two newborns! Getting them in the same state of being at the same time is pretty humorous. At one point Clara was sucking on Max's arm as she thought it was her pacifier. Good times had by all.

A Gender Neutral TWIN Nursery!

 the view from the hallway/door

I'm so excited to show the twins' nursery today! This room has turned into one of my favorites in the whole house. It took a while to come together, but I am in love with the finished product. 

When we found out we were having twins, the room that had been intended for a future nursery was going to be way too small. We had to overtake the guest bedroom, move out Russ's office, and do all sorts of rearranging. I was sad to change the guest bedroom -- I actually really loved it! But it all worked out. The room started like this:

I was way overwhelmed by the idea of decorating for two genders in one room! I wanted to do more than just "gender neutral" -- I wanted to give each twin their own area that was obviously theirs. I think I achieved my goal. It's clean, simple and calming with enough personality throughout.

I started by repainting the room Edgecomb Grey by Benjamin Moore. It's the perfect "greige." I knew I wanted modern cribs, but dang those can be pricey! And when you're buying two of everything... well, you know. Anyway, I found these perfect grey cribs at none other than Walmart (they've actually gone up in price since I bought them).

I knew I wanted the bedding to bring out the different genders. It took a (long) while to pick out all the fabrics and make sure they coordinate with each other yet allow boy vs. girl to shine through. My amazing mother sewed the bumpers and made the quilts. (although I must add that my sister and I helped hand quilt the blankets while we were on our houseboat trip this summer, so there, I did do something :)) I absolutely love them!

The fabric is from www.fabric.com, although I don't think any of those fabrics are on there anymore. I think you can find some of them on etsy or other fabric sites! Here is a list of a few of the fabrics I used:

Blue zig zag: Indie Chic Woven Blue by Riley Blake 

Coral circles: Pearl Bracelets Peach by Lizzy House

Yellow stripe: Glimma stripe in Dandelion Yellow by Lotta Jansdotter

Flowers: Glimma flower pods in gold/grey/white by Lotta Jansdotter

The art above each crib also was a fun way to show different genders. I found the coordinating woodland creatures here. I also bought two coordinating prints from CinnamonInk. I stamped their little footprints and simply glued the piece of paper into an embroidery hoop. The remaining prints were gathered from around the house (i.e.: old Snow & Graham calendars). I made the "I Am a Child of God" piece above Max's crib using the same method I did here.

 Clara's wall

Max's wall

I bought the rug from Rugs USA during some huge Labor Day weekend sale (I think it was like 80% off or something crazy). It is super soft and plush. It's still shedding a little bit, but I can tell each time I vacuum it gets better. I love how it ties the whole room together. 

And the dots! Oh, how I love the dots. I call it the "confetti wall." I bought the 2" vinyl decal dots from Walls Need Love - best idea ever! Covering an entire wall with this method is super affordable and fun. Using the image from the website as inspiration, I just kept the dots a little more condensed in the corner to make it look like the confetti was literally "exploding." I love, love the end result. 

That recliner/glider has been one of the best purchases (we found it at Babinski's Baby, a local store in Utah). I had been looking at some other gliders that were perhaps a bit more "stylish," and then my wise sister encouraged comfort over anything else. I ended up buying the exact chair she has. Best decision ever! I have spent so much time in that chair already, and these guys are only 4 weeks old! 

And how have I gone this whole time without talking about the beloved dresser?!? I had been eyeing this dresser from West Elm for years, and then one day I saw it at DownEast Home (a local discount home decor store). It was my very first nursery purchase, I was just barely pregnant. It was a total splurge, but with it being more than half off of what West Elm had it for, I haven't regretted it one bit. :) And plus, it can be used forever as it doesn't scream "baby!"

(oh, the fun owl lamp is from Target)

The bookshelves are just spice racks from Ikea that I spray painted a sage-y green. They have already been used a ton. I am sure once we continue to accumulate more books we will need to figure out a system with more capacity, but for now the racks are perfect.

So there ya go! That's the nursery! Aaaaaaand... If you are still reading this you deserve a prize. :)