"Been a While" Update - Breakfast with the Twins

     This morning, Presleigh got her breakfast on before the twins. So, it was Jovi & Jezreel eating cereal together at the table, making their best effort at not turning their shirts all milk-chocolatey... Not so much. Having a moment to enjoy the moment, I just smiled, took a swig of coffee and watched as Jovi chased a rogue morsel across the table with her spoon. It never joined forces with the plasticware, so I did what any responsible dad would do: gave it one final push over the edge of the table, sending it to join the "sweep this up after breakfast" pile.

     These kids are so cute!

     Jezreel managed to clean every last piece of cereal out of the bowl, which means only one thing: chocolate milk time!!! But, spooning the yummy milk into his mouth one wee spoon at a time was taking far, too much time and was creating lots of overspill on his shirt. Thus, Papa introduces him to the concept of drinking the milk from the bowl. Two results: 1) faster and 2) even more milk on the shirt. Not sure how that happened, but I'll be running upstairs for new shirts.

     Since it's been forever since we've posted on the blog itself, I'll have to post some new photos of all of the toddlers later today. Most of the photos we've posted have been on Facebook, but I'm sure I've got a few blog exclusive shots, right? For now, here's our 4th of July first day at the pool in the new neighborhood.

     In a year+ since the last post, they've put on several inches in height, whoaboy pounds, moved from staggering to RUNNING, and gone from cooing and babbling to actual talk:

     "I want choo-choo train!" "I wuv Pesswee!" "Mow miwk peese!" A whole new world!

     What a long, strange trip it's been!

End of February Update

Miss Paula visits & poses with Jovi

     Here's and update of fewer words and more pictures to chronicle some Jovi & Jez'ness before February marches on out the door on us.

     It's always great when Miss Paula stops by. Grandma and Grammy live in opposite ends of the eastern seaboard, so they don't get as much grandmotherly love as they'd like to. Last week, Miss Paula stopped by and of course can't resist "squeezing those babies"! Well, with Jovi as cute as she is, who can resist, right?!

     Jezreel wasn't available for comment at the time, but he's gotten his fair share of shutter time. Promise. More Jez photos to come later in the post. For now, it's the Jovi Show!!!

Uncle Sal takes a break from classes and poses with Jovi

     Uncle Sal only lives one town away, but with all he has going on at work and in school, it's tough to make a breakaway. So, we're always grateful when he finds some time to sneak on by to see us.

     We're trying to discourage her from sitting in the laps of anyone wearing a hat for a particular team based in New York that rhymes with "stankies". But, for Uncle Sal, I guess we can make an exception. Go, SOX!

     What's with the "staring off to space" look? Oh, yeah, that's Jovi. She's our "deep thinker". Good thing, too - with Presleigh and Jezreel running around like gangbusters, it's good to know we have at least one child on the young side of the spectrum who can be entertained for hours with a book and a comfy chair, even at this age! Perhaps she'll take up her Uncle Sal's propensity for numbers, math, and accounting. She could be a world class bean-counter yet!

While we're at it, let's have Presleigh pose with Jovi, too!

      I'm hard pressed to decide whether to post this next picture on the twins' blog or Presleigh's - they're both equally cute in this photo!

     You can't see it from this angle, but Jovi's got two (very sharp!!!) bottom teeth and two big chompers on top. The bottoms are clear from here, but beware those cutie top teeth.

     Those cute, little "love nibbles" she used to give you on your chin, your nose, or fingertips? Don't even think about them anymore, unless you're prepared to lose a pound of flesh. Presleigh's been upgraded to "chief chomper" status for quite a long time now. Actually, been brushing her own teeth for a while now, too. (Let's not rush things with the twins, though...)

     Presleigh's still trying to figure out how to hold her brother and sister - they're small enough to be toys, but react very differently when thrown into the play stroller or picked up by her big Presleigh-bear hug around the waist. Jovi still just cracks up when her bigger sister tries to give her hugs and kisses. As witnessed here.

Samuel visits and takes a while to get acclimated to the bunch. He really did stop crying at some point.

     This photo already showed up on Facebook a few weeks ago. But, with highs in the 70s today, the last day of February, I couldn't resist reminiscing the great temps that made a walk in the triple-stroller possible. Wow. We LOVE Hot-lanta weather sometimes!\      To think that three weeks prior there was snow on the ground in this very spot and here they're enjoying low 60s. Awesome. Give that groundhog a cookie this year!

     We hope to outfit this cool stroller with some new tires so we can put a few thousand miles on it as the spring and summer weather allows. What a cool invention this thing is! Only two months before the community pool opens up! Fun in the sun is just around the corner!

Catching Up with the Twins

     Well, 8 months came and went... and, so did 9 months! You haven't heard about Jovi and Jezreel since before Christmas! They've been traveling all across the South Land. (Well, GA and the Carolinas, but that's quite a lot of riding around for these two!) They both got the two most iconic presents for Christmas (two front teeth and snow on the ground) and though they won't remember it, it's preserved right here on their blog so they can at least see what it looked like years from now. Gotta love Blogger!

     WOW! Hundreds of photos here in iPhoto... We've got a lot of catching up to do, don't we? Let's dive in...

     Christmas came twice this year at our home. Presleigh, Jovi, and Jezreel all got a chance to open presents here from Granma, Uncle Sal, Uncle Rudy, and Nana & RC (their great-grandparents) before we'd head off on our Christmas road trip. Side note - maybe we'll just do Christmas in Atlanta next year... Anyway, the twins went through half a present each before we decided that presents should not be opened with their cute, slobbering, two-front-teeth mouths. We passed that responsibility on to Presleigh, who was more than happy to play the Grand Pooh-Bah of gift giving.

Jez in the Jumpah vs. Inevitable Sleep

Timing is always an issue with the babies - you've got to plan events around their nap schedule. If you wait too long to do something (like open gifts, no matter how exciting it may be), they could either fall asleep on you or get really cranky before the next nap time. Blessing it was that they decided on the former this Christmas. In the video footage, you can see Jezreel falling asleep in the jumper (or the Jumpah-jumpah-jumpah! as we call it.) He's so steadfast, trying to hold out and keep jumping, but his little body was more tired than the will would allow. Classic Jez footage here.

     Jovi chose her nappy spot to be the swing. Oh, this wouldn't slow down progress, though. Not as far as Presleigh the Presentmeister was concerned. She gladly opened Jovi's' presents for her and was thoughtful enough to stack them on her little, sleeping sister so Jovi could wake up to Christmas dreams come true. (I was just having the most wonderful dream about a laughing dollie and an alphabet-singing train... and now they're here!!!)
     Toddlers can be so thoughtful, can't they? Jovi had a lovely nap and now can attest that dreams really do come true.

     A delightful Christmas-before-Christmas was had at the Pina household before the road-trip. I'm pleased to say the packing of the van went remarkably well and was surprisingly free from the typical angst one would expect pre-roadtrip. Perhaps it's because we were all so excited and filled with anticipation for the twins' first trip to North Carolina!

 ***INSERT "On The Road Again", by Willie Nelson, but NOT "Gone to Carolina in my Mind", because Mommy hates James Taylor!***

Jezreel, meet Jeremy. Uncle Jeremy, meet Jez!

     Grammy and Uncle Jeremy didn't get to meet the twins until they were already 8 months old. That's what happens when there's 1,000 miles between them and 8 months from their birthday to Christmas, right? Well, Pina Party of 6 loaded up the man-van and headed up to Aunt Shanua's in Charlotte to celebrate Christmas. Rumor had it, it would be the first white Christmas in Atlanta history since the late 1800's. I didn't want to miss it! Thankfully, the same snow that fell on Atlanta made its way up to Charlotte and gave us more than a wee dusting. Merry White Christmas, no?

     Well, Grammy and Uncle Jay were delighted to see the real live version of what they'd only witnessed in photo and on the phone. They were clearly enamored by the now 20 lb versions of Jovi and Jezreel. Lucky for them, we'd all decided it would be a "kids only" Christmas, so all of the kids got spoiled for the day. The fashion show was amazing - new feety pajamas for Jez, cuter than cute outfits for Jovi,

    Perhaps one of Mommy and Papa's favorite gifts were the two big boxes of diapers that Uncle Jeremy was so wise to procure on behalf of the wee babes. Here's a photo of Jovi, a bit confused about why everyone was so excited by the boxes, rather than the festive paper in which they were wrapped... She's either saying "I could poop through these in a New York minute." or "I don't get it... I've already got one of these at home..." We'll explain it to Jovi later. (P.S. We're over the 3,500 diaper mark at this stage. No, that doesn't include Presleigh. Wow. Twindom. Amazing. Praise God!

     More photos to come next week from our trip to South Carolina for New Year's weekend!

Crib Cam...

Presleigh was an early walker - we'll be happy with whenever these two start walking, but here's a couple of photos of the nearly 8 month old twins holding themselves up in their cribs. They've yet to pull themselves to a standing position on their own, but hey - one step at a time, right?

Observe and enjoy the cheesy smiles from these two.

Oh, and of course a cute shot of Jovi just being Jovi. Love the teeth. In case you didn't know, she's had those pearly whites there on the bottom for about a month or so now. Jezreel decided to take a more conservative approach to tooth bearing and popped his first two through the gums last week. Fortunately for us, that's all he's decided to pop them through.

Mommy decided to have some fun with the camera while Daddy and Presleigh were out this afternoon. Jovi and Jezreel were playing in their cribs, just being their cute little selves and we got some candid video of them while Presleigh and Papa arrive from the food run. Jovi is ridiculously cute with her "I'll laugh at the drop of a hat" philosophy. So, on top of some cute photos, here's a little video for the archives, too.

Papa

One of Those "Day We've Been Waiting For" Days

No, they're not walking yet. But, stay tuned - we could be looking at a pair of early walkers in another couple of months. Two more days, and they'll be 7 months! WOW.

Anyway, today's news is that it's an official "Day We've Been Waiting For". About two years ago, we saw this... this... kitchen gadget... power tool... VitaMix thing demo'd at a local wholesale club. When we saw all it could do and how it could be used to prepare healthier, simpler foods, we were all in... except for the biggie price tag. Now, you know us - you know we're not buyers of big ticket items. No fancy TVs, no ostentatious furniture or decor, etc.

Would this be an exception? Well, considering it was about a $350 item, we'd be certain to have to save up and put that sucker on layaway. And we did. Presleigh was born and didn't see it yet. It wasn't until this year's tax return came in that we were able to slap down some cash to get one of these crazy things. Literally, about 200 smoothies, pounds of ice, heads of purple cabbage, red grapes, apples, bananas, mangos, salsa ingredients, batches of tortilla soup, carrots, mint lemonade, frappucinos, marinara sauces, and batches of fluffy pancakes later, we FINALLY got around to making a few batches of baby food!

Today's experiment? Can we turn a batch of apples into bona fide baby food?

If you're anything like me, watch and smile.

Jovi and Jez did!

They're having a great time right now, napping in the swings. Earlier today, Jezreel showed off his "rock and roll" moves by rocking on his hands and knees in a not-too-far-from-the-real-thing attempt to crawl. Then, on realizing he wasn't making forward progress, elected to roll halfway across both the living room and dining rooms to get to nowhere in particular. Whoaboy, he's going to be another rough and tumble kid like Presleigh!

Jovi, in her joviality, simply rolls around and laughs at everything. What a ball of overflowing joy - aptly named!

How COOL is THAT?!

 As you know, Mommy and Papa work for a non-profit ministry called Seasons of Life Ministries. Why does that matter? Many reasons. But, it's relevant to the twins because of these cool photos you're looking at right now.

Papa had to order a batch of Seasons of Life shirts and Miss Kim from Vintage Wearables did such a great job with the first run last year, we didn't hesitate to call her again. This time, all we ordered was a small batch of shirts. But, what she gave us were the shirts PLUS some uber-cool onesies and leggings for the babies! (Heck, Presleigh even got a super cute Seasons of Life t-shirt!!!)

So, I'm not just posting these as an update on the twins, I'm giving a SHAMELESS plug for Kim and Vintage Wearables - our t-shirt (and baby gear) vendor of choice!

Hey, if you've got a baby,  babies, or friends who have or are about to have a baby or babies, or you just love cute, little baby clothes, get on over to www.vintagewearables.com and check out some great baby gear, will ya?

Check it out!!!

Papa

Closing in on Six Months!!!

WHA?! Who messed with my calendar? Weren't they just FIVE months old?!

Uh, yeah, that's because time flies.

What's amazing to us is that only 8 weeks ago, we were looking at two babies who could barely lift their own heads and now, we've got twins who lay on their bellies for almost an hour with their head up, looking around at all the amazing things in their little worlds. Jovi has officially popped two teeth up past the gums to be seen with the naked eye... that's if you can get her to move her tongue out of the way while she's smiling like a gigglemonkey!

Teeth, scooting, what in the world?!

Jezreel has begun to do something really cool - while he's just a day or two away from a reliable, legitimate scoot, he's actually begun getting on hands and knees and getting his pelvis off the floor. He could go from a scoot to a crawl pretty quickly at that rate. He may have a little catching up to do in the cutting teeth department, though. Drool city, gumming toys to their demise, but no teeth yet.

Coming soon - the tooth fairy? Prom?

SLOW DOWN!!!

1 Week Away

Presleigh's surgery is officially scheduled for next week - Wednesday, about noon. We're eternally grateful for everyone's prayers for her and also grateful for Aunt Shanua making the trip down from Charlotte to help out with the twins while Mommy and Papa are in the hospital for Presleigh's recovery.

You'd never know there was anything going on with her from the outside - running, jumping, climbing, shouting, singing, counting, watching TV, playing with the twins, giving kisses to Mommy, Papa, and the babies... Wow. She's growing up so quickly.

As Mommy and I watched "old" videos from earlier this year, we were amazed at how much she's matured, from the walking to the talking to the facial gestures. Words, words, and more words "Thanks, Mommy!" "My try it!" "Jovi's crying"... Let's hear it for toddler language acquisition and development skills, right?

We threw Presleigh a last minute party and only invited a handful of folks - sorry if you were left out - we realized with all the kids we now know, the house would be overrun with toddlers very quickly. We were right! Cake everywhere, kids all over the place, but a great party nonetheless. And, now, we present to you, Presleigh Pina - 2 year old. We officially no longer have 3 under 2. It's 3 under 3, but thank God for the strength He has given us thus far!


AP

5 Months Ago, Today

We were delivering Jovi and Jezreel. Today, they coo, roll onto their bellies, and scoot from one end of a blanket to the other! Well, Jovi's a little ahead in that department because she's shaped a little differently. Jezreel mostly kicks his legs like he's swimming and tries to move ahead.

It's remarkable to see how much they've both grown. To think I was actually worried Jezreel wouldn't put on any weight on his bones. Now, he's got healthy, chubby, baby legs that he can stand on (assisted, of course) and bear weight.

Both of the twins love the "jumpa" - our term for the circular toy with springs that babies jump up and down in. Yeah, I know it's got an official name, but around these parts, we just call it the jumpa, 'cuz that's what they do in it!

Here are some shots of these two cuties on the floor, doing something that months ago seemed impossible: lifting their heads up and smiling about it!

3 Months Strong

Tonight, Mommy and Papa got to have "date night" for the first time in a couple of weeks. Woo-hoo!!!

It's sort of odd to think ordering Chinese take out from our favorite strip-mall Chinese food place (Jumbo Chinese) and eating it at our kitchen table with Presleigh in her booster seat and two babies beside us is actually a "date", but we really enjoyed it. It is, as Cristine reminds me, just a season. We've got romance, we'll have more soon enough. In the meantime, we have three under two and they are a delight to us.

This week, the twins turned 3 months old. How the heck did that happen?

Today, they weigh in at almost 15 lbs each - two and a half times their birthweight. Jezreel is chunking UP!!! Jovi is trailing a dainty pound behind him and today chuckled for the first time. About two weeks ago, they both started gooing, cooing, and gurgling regularly. Jezreel is the more vocal of the pair, as we expected, but he laughs more than we had imagined. When doing certain activities, he'll throw his head back, open his mouth wiiiiide, and laugh a goofy, adorable laugh that cracks us all up.

Jovi chuckles a lot like her older sister, an infectious giggle you'd expect from a baby girl with a super cute smile.

While the count isn't exact, the math and empty boxes suggest we've just hit the 1,500 diaper mark - not that we're going for a record, just amazed that we've seen that many diapers go bye-bye at the whim of two teeny babes. At least now we're only using about 100 a week. That's great news when you consider the bigger the diapers get, the fewer come in a box for the same price, right?

God has provided marvelously. This week, Papa was asked to do an extra speaking gig and was paid enough to cover the diapers, his back X-ray at the chiropractor's, and buy some food for date night tonight. He supplies our needs, often before we know we need them.

These babies are amazing and we're still scratching our heads in wonder at the fact that they're here, they're ours, and they're so adorable. Thanks, to all of our wonderful visitors, by the way. We don't get out as much as we used to, but it's been great to fire up the grill for our friends and enjoy their company. We are so very blessed by the fellowship of such great people.

May God bless you and keep you.

Amen.

How DID we get this far?

It's really hard to believe that these two incredible blessings of ours are officially 8 weeks old!

After building up and building up, it looks like Jovi and Jezreel are now about 12 to 14 lbs. - that's twice their birth weight! In just 8 weeks? It just seems like this leap in size took so much longer with Presleigh. "Can't you just stay teeny for a couple more months?"

Nope. Time marches on!

Yet, if you interviewed either Cristine or I, you'd hear us tell a very different story: sleep... is... a... priceless... commodity!!! Sometimes, it seems like the feed-wake-change-sleep cycle never ends. Alright, it never really does end!

The count goes on - we're at roughly 950 diapers since birth. Yes, that's a LOT of diapers, right? With two, it's a totally different ballgame than with one. No, I don't just mean the diaper changing, but the feeding, waking, getting back to sleep, changing again ("didn't I just change your diaper?!")

Yet, it's far more than twice the blessing. I am amazed at the little nuances we both see in our twins. (Not to mention the ongoing advances that both Presleigh and Brianna continue to make.) Little changes to their faces, new coos and moves, bigger fingers than I think they had yesterday... Life unfolding - what an amazing witness to the glory of our sovereign God. "The heavens declare the glory of God..." yet, so do some of His smallest creations, no?

In no particular order, here are some recent photos of the babes, as promised. After getting Jezreel and Jovi a bit chunkier, we were able to really dig in to the Babywise techniques and I'm grateful to say, we're getting a bit more than 4 hours of sleep at a time, provided our bodies don't naturally wake us up at 3AM thinking we're about to miss a feeding.

Thank GOD we had a visit from an acquaintance turned new BFF - Lily. She and Cristine just got to know each other and it turns out they lived two towns apart back in New Jersey - how funny is THAT? Well, she and two of her 7 daughters (guh-WHAH?!) brought us an awesome Cuban dinner (Arroz y picadillo - NICE!) so, Papa got the night off from the cookin! Praise Christ, and thank you Lily & family!


Well, night-night for Mommy and Papa. Here's some pics, more to come.

Hey, if you're not already a supporter of Seasons of Life, would you consider it, even if only for a few bucks over the summer? As Papa begins to emerge from the fog, he'll be doing more fundraising. But, lately, we're back to praying, making the need known, and trusting God to provide. Actually, that's right where he's wanted us all along. Pray that we stay there and never move back into our own strength! So, you've read this - the need is now known. Click here to help out.

Peace & Go Celtics!

AP

Night-night, Jovi!

Night-night, Jezreel!

More Photos Coming

We've taken a little over a thousand photos of these two since they were born. Suffice it to say that with minimal sleep and lots of work, we've made little time to parse through all the snapshots.

Since the twins are sleeping a little longer at night, we're just about ready to barrage their blog with a TON of photos. So, sit tight, keep your eyes open, and click back here before the weekend's over and you'll get a look at what can happen to newborn twins in a mere 7 weeks!

Papa

The Funnest Babies Ever!!!

No, it's not my favorite thing in the world, to get up at 2 in the AM, especially when we just got back to bed at 11PM from the 10PM feeding, knowing we'll be up again at 5 or 6AM after getting to bed at 3... But, this is one of those things that's probably never meant to be fun, just worth it. I mean, look at them! How could this NOT be fun?!

Wow, Jovi and Jez continue to grow and change with each day! Unless you're watching, you'll miss something. "Look, his face is different... She's lifting her head, well, not really lifting, but trying... Did he just move his eyes in tandem? Didn't I just empty the diaper genie?"

There's so much to say about a newborn. Twice as much, when there are two, right? But, with little sleep for the blogger/Papa and much photo snapping, I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Playing on the Floor Mat

Stylin' with Jezreel

More photos to come tomorrow and a few on Presleigh's blog as well. Thanks, for all of y'all's prayers, meals, and other support!

AP

Les Photos...

We've been counseled to be selfish this first two weeks - not the "three pieces of cake for me and no cake for you" kind of selfish, but the "y'all just had twins and need to keep your priorities straight" kind of selfish. I think we've done a pretty good job of it. We're getting some good, two hour chunks of sleep in between feedings and a few friends have visited with meals and a box or two of diapers. All in all, it's one wild experience that we are thoroughly grateful for.

Hope you enjoy some of these first "official" photos from our collection!

AP & CP

Jezreel arrives!


Joyful Jovi!


Mommy & her only son



Sunrise, Day 3



Sunrise, Day 3



Cristine - Elastigirl... and the two new Incredibles!

He does this one sided "Harrison Ford half-smile" like Papa



"Don't make me come over there!"



Brie and the wee-ones

To All of Our Volunteers, Family & Friends

Thank you, thank you, thank God for you and all He's done!

Arrived home late Saturday night. Nice to start "settling in".
Photos coming up early in the week. Probably get a few out to close friends and fam before then. Now, sleep, feed, get babies on a schedule, stay unplugged when possible.

God is great. God is good. We wouldn't have it any other way.

Thank you to all of the volunteers and visitors who've been so vital to us. The meals, the diapers, the van, the everything. We are truly amazed at God's provision, your generosity, and obedience to Him.

Love from all to all.

in Christ,

AP

What Else Can You Say?

When you get a ringside seat to see God do something completely amazing, what more can you say but "Osssssssum"?! Awesome, awesome, awesome.

Jezreel Jaxton Pina arrived at about 5:47 PM, weighing in at 6 lbs. 4 oz., roughly 19 inches long. His sister joined the family about 12 minutes later - 6 lbs. 2 oz., 18 inches.

Mommy's tired, but she... did... awesome.

Resting, enjoying our two new additions and praising God for His faithfulness.

Photos up sometime in the next day or two. Family first.

in Christ,

Pina, Party of 6

What It Takes

If you're not 10 cm dilated, you ain't allowed to push. Right now, we're between 6 and 7 cm (alright, 45 minutes ago...). So, we're a far cry from where we were this AM when we showed up at Hotel Babyfactory. But, there's still 3 cm to go...

I've never been pregnant - (you noticed?), nor will I ever be, right? So, I've got a limited perspective on what it's like to have a baby (much less, two) inside your body for an extended period of time. What I do know, is Cristine is a champ for all she's endured and it's extensive. Exhaustion, back pain, belly pain, cervical pressure, muscle strains, and then a little more exhaustion on top, just for fun. She's got what it takes to have these babies, right?!



It's all good, though - thanks to our dear friend Dr. John. Dr. John has been an anesthesiologist for over 25 years. He strolled in with the coolest pack of stuff a laboring mother could ask for - specifically, that drinking straw sized needle known as an "epidural". Anyone who's ever had one knows it brings a strange smile to the face of the woman about to receive it - a smile of joy about the floating-on-fluffy-clouds feeling it's soon to bring, undergirded by wincing of pain required to deliver the happy clouds.

Cristine's had that happy feeling for a couple of hours now. So, we've had the privilege of telling her when her contractions are coming, since she can't really feel a whole lot. The contractions are great news, though, because they're doing the work of helping Jezreel make his trip down the slide and out the chute. We're estimating it'll only be a matter of a couple more hours to get the doorway wide enough for the Great Escape.

For now, pray for Cristine - once they do the epidural, you're not allowed to eat anything more than ice chips and she hasn't eaten since last night. Good LORD, give her strength, right? Mommy wants some yummy in her tummy!!!

Looking up.

Papa P

Ooops! Gotta run. Having babies!!!

30 Second Time Out

Water's broken and we're just waiting for the contractions to get so unbearable that Cristine stands up and screams "YOUUUUUUUUU did this to me!!!"

She just explained to me that having a contraction is like having someone grab all of your intestines and squeeze them. Okay. this is the point where I unplug from all social media and give her my undivided attention. You might hear from me in another couple hours. Or, you just might get some photos posted later tonight.

(Nice timing - the epidural lady just came in!!!)

Peace and chicken grease!

AP

What's for Lunch?

Cristine's all checked in, hooked up, and just waiting for lunch time to roll around. They've started the Pitocin drip to kick the labor into a higher gear and expect our doctor to come back pretty soon to break Jezreel's water.

Twins should be here in time for a late lunch...

Thanks, to all the well wishers, prayer warriors, housesitters, baby transporters, tween watchers, and unbelievable friends for all you're doing!

Babies soon!

AP

Paul Revere's ride...

You remember the cry of Paul Revere, right? "The British are coming, the British are coming!" I think if we were in olde Boston tonight, we'd be hoisting a lantern up at the Old North Church. Then, we could have old Paul ride through the streets to declare "The babies are coming, the babies are coming!"

We've been cordially invited to head to the hospital tomorrow to either go into labor naturally or be induced, whichever comes first. At 37-1/2 weeks, the docs agree - Jovi and Jezreel are ready for prime time, and with all the last minute preparations we've done today, we're ready for them to come on out!

Thank you, to everyone who's pitched in a hand, an hour, or a meal to sustain us this far. Thanks, also to a small handful of y'all who are considering joining Mommy and Papa's support team at Seasons of Life. Papa does most of the fundraising work (while we know God actually raises the support, ultimately), and he'll be giving full time to Mommy, the twins and the rest of the kids for the next two weeks while she recovers and the rest get settled into a "normal" schedule. Thank you for your prayers, all of y'all. It's wild watching the body of Christ at work. We're seriously honored.

So fired up for tomorrow - how cool are these two, right? They'll NEVER forget what day is tax day...

Papa's hoping to do some live blogging from the hospital if the world's slowest laptop gives him a little grace. Got the camera loaded up? Yeppers!

Yes, keep Mommy in your prayers as well as all the awesome volunteers who've come along side to help watch Brianna and Presleigh while Mommy and Papa are ushering in the twins! Sorry we'll miss you at church on Sunday, but remember we'll be there in Spirit (and online!) Hope to join you there at www.northpointonline.tv!

'Til morning...

AP & Fam