Amber Fox Photographer » Stylish Portraits for Hip & Happy High School Seniors & Families in Orange County & Los Angeles, CA

I thought I would write a blog post this morning talking about how my pregnancy has been going, just for kicks and giggles. I think I really write this for myself, so I can look back at it years from now and laugh. Or maybe I write it for all the wonderful people who have supported me thus far. Or maybe for the random twin momma to be who is so excited, but also slightly terrified of what lays ahead of her, who just happens to find my post on the web.

I have been on bed rest since May, so if we count the months, that will be 3 months of LOTS of reading, watching old tv shows on Netflix and hanging out with girl friends almost every day. People feel bad for me that I have been housebound, but I actually really love my home and all the relaxation I have been able to get, since the Lord knows, I won’t find time to relax for a LONG time!

I spend most of my days reading some sort of twin or child rearing book, like I am researching or studying for a graduate school exam. I just want to be prepared and have a repertoire of knowledge to pull from. I do recognize however that I will most likely forget all the research when my twin boys are screaming and I have no idea how to remedy the problem. This new found type A personality of mine is very uncharacteristic, as I have never planned one of my travel journeys abroad and read about the country I am visiting on the plane ride over. But I guess this is my maternal instinct kicking in.

Most mothers nest and get their house ready for their baby. Well, I can’t really move much, since I gained 70+ pounds and my feet swell up to the size of footballs if I am on my feet for longer than 10 minutes. Thus I can’t organize, clean and do whatever sort of house stuff mommas to be typically do. John has just taken on so many responsibilities that he is now officially super husband.

But really, in the past three months, we…

• completed a bathroom remodel to our main bathroom (pictures to come), which was really grueling, being ginormous and all. Can you imagine a big pregnant lady waddling across the street, towel in hand, to use my neighbor’s shower…it was quite the site, I am sure.
• landscaped the front and backyard. We now have colorful flowers in front of our long porch!
• got the boys room all decorated and ready. I’m sure I’m missing stuff and I still have a list of things to get, but at least for the beginning I think we are ready.
• had a baby shower of a 100 people with a live blue grass band. This was one of my favorite days, next to my wedding. It was simply amazing to have all the people who love and support us all around us celebrating our little boys.
• bought a TV, which is a HUGE step for the Foxes, since we have never had one. But we figure, we won’t be going to the movies much anymore, so we need some form of entertainment that allows us be at home with our boys sleeping in the next room.
• watched tons of Creative Live, which has kept my identity in balance. There are just so many baby books I can read, so it’s nice to get educated even more in photography. Always learning!
• read tons of books on breastfeeding and sleeping. So many friends of mine assumed this sort of stuff would come naturally and learned the hard way, that it was much harder than they thought, so I studied up. And I figure with twins, I will have NO time to read!
• hung out with lots of friends. I am so thankful for all the girl friends who have to come to visit or called to check on me every day. I feel so supported and loved by my community! These boys have no idea how many people already love them!
• got more maternity photos done…woot

I am really excited to meet my boys! They are currently 6 pounds each, which means I am carrying 12 pounds of baby in me, plus two placentas and lots of fluid! Even though I am really uncomfortable, I still want the boys to incubate for another 2-3 weeks, so they can be 7 pounds. It has been an absolute joy to feel my boys kick and move around and watch my belly grow bigger every day. It truly has been an amazing experience, that I am so thankful I am able to have. I am scared of what lays ahead, but I take comfort that millions of moms who have done it before me and that I have lots of wonderful women in my life to turn to for advice.

Bring it on boys! Bring it!

And no post is complete with out a photo, so here is one of my awesome maternity photos, taken by the very talented Alt-Senior. This is my favorite shot from our day together! She too is a photographer of high school seniors, but more importantly, she too is a momma of twins. I am so thankful for Cheryl, for her support and believing I could make it this far. And by the way, this photo was taken almost a month ago, so my belly is actually a lot bigger now. Ha!