The Upsherin/Birthday Party

Chana and Dovid had *so* much fun at the party today!! There was lots of food, friends and cake. Dovid got some of his hair snipped off, although we still need to take him for a "real" haircut. Both twins got lots of great presents, and it was so much fun mingling with our friends. Here are some pictures from the event and a video of opening presents. But first, I promised pictures of Chana lighting Shabbos candles for the first time, so here they are!

Here she is lighting her candle

Now mommy needs to put out the "match" flame (we used a Chanukkah candle instead of a match)

And Chana says the bracha!

Here are lots of pictures from the party

And this is the video of opening presents

Happy birthday twinners!!! I can't believe you're already 3 years old. It seems like yesterday you two were just babies, and now you're big kids. You talk in full sentences, you want to do everything for yourselves, and you even (sometimes) use the potty. It's been amazing watching you grow, and I look forward to continue watching you both for many years to come!

Candles and Tzitzes

The twins turned three today...well, it's their Hebrew birthday. So that means that Jewishly they are three. That's actually a REALLY big deal. It means that Dovid now gets to wear a kippa (aka yarmulke) and tzitzes, and Chana gets to light Shabbos candles every week. It also means that Chana only wears skirts/dresses now, just like her mommy! Here are some pictures from the big event.



We're going to take pictures of Chana lighting her Shabbos candles (before Shabbos actually starts, of course) so we'll post those later on, and the twins have a birthday parting on Sunday. At that birthday party, also called an upsherin for Dovid, Dovid will get his first haircut. Yikes!!! I love those curls and will miss them. :-(

Hippo Birdie Two Ewes...

Well, really Hippo Birdie Two Mees, but that's beside the point. Today's my birthday...YIKES! Another year has gone by, and I don't know where the time went. It's been a crazy year with having the baby and being in school, but I've still managed to keep my 4.0 average. :-) We can't celebrate my birthday today because the fast day of Tisha B'Av starts tonight, and for the past 8 days we've been in a type of mourning because of the upcoming fast day. So my present (and cake) will just have to wait. Although my hubby was sweet enough to bake brownies for Shabbos in honor of my upcoming birthday. :-D What a guy! Speaking of such guy, here's a picture of something I consider to be my birthday present...

Dude....

My hubby didn't get me *anything* for my birthday. Well, he got me a cute card... *sigh* Yes, it was Shabbos so we didn't get to do anything all day, but it didn't mean he couldn't buy me a gift, you know. Geeeesh! Maybe I'll guilt him into taking me to see Harry Potter once the au pair gets here next week. Honestly...you'd think someone who's been married for nearly 3 years would have more sense. He's just lucky I'm not my sister (who would make her hubby sleep on the porch for a year without a hammock or a blanket if he ever did something like this). :-D Maybe he thinks that he just can't beat my BFP from last year. Well, he couldn't, but it doesn't mean he couldn't have tried! He could have suggested we see Harry Potter as a birthday present. We did that for the last Harry Potter movie to come out (Order of the Phoenix) two years ago. Oh well, this is what I get for marrying someone I knew wasn't a romantic. lol He is, however, letting me get myself a new digital camera with our credit card rewards points. hehe Woooo!

We're off to NJ today for a wedding. A very good friend of ours is getting married, and we are sooooo excited. We also have a fun-filled two days set up. First we're going to have lunch with my most recent ex-boyfriend (prior to my hubby). He's a sweetie, and I can't wait for him to meet the twins. Then we're going to drop our things at Shmuel's brother's house (where we're staying). When everyone is all ready for the wedding, we're going to drive southeast...to visit our blogger friend Molly!!! After a short visit there, then we'll head to the wedding. Monday morning we're going to see a friend of ours who recently had her first baby, and then we're going to have a nice brunch with a friend of mine that I've known for about 16 years. It's going to be a blast, and I can't wait to blog all about it when we get back!!! I'll take lots of pictures to show everyone, of course.

Incidentally, I'm wearing a pre-pregnancy dress to the wedding. It fits just like it did before I got pregnant; it's not even the slightest bit tight!!! I was so excited when I tried it on and zipped it up just like old times. I guess I can finally put away my maternity wear. I'm also going to buy a Belly Bandit to get my stomach into shape. YEAHHHHH!!!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

That's right, folks. It's that time of the year again!!!! I am now 26 years old (eep). Last week I posted about my embryo retrieval & transfer that happened last year, so I'm going to review only my "two week wait" from last year, because it is quite amusing to look back (knowing that I was pregnant with twins).

The day of my transfer I talked, jokingly, with my best friend about registering my embryos to vote, and we came up with names for them. (I actually used the name Brocha for my daughter's middle name.)

Two days later, my mother sent over a ton of furniture with some movers. Something the mover said to me was completely bizarre, and you can read more about it here. Turns out he IS psychic. Weird!

The day before I got my BFP, I had all sorts of symptoms and speculated that they might be something...or nothing at all.

Then, my birthday. There was a rainbow in the sky, and a most wonderful birthday present for me when I got home.

I don't think anything can compare to last year's birthday present of a true and sticky BFP, but just *having* my twins is really the perfect gift. Although I must say that the thought of my au pair coming in just less than a week is a pretty amazing gift...WOOOO!!! Nah, doesn't compare. :-)

Birthday Tomorrow!

So, my 26th birthday is tomorrow, and I saw on facebook a really neat way for someone to give a gift when they're really not sure what to give or they weren't necessarily going to give something in the first place. :-) It's called a "Birthday Wish" and my wish is for people to donate to an organization called Bonei Olam, you can find out more by clicking here, but basically they are an organization that helps infertile couples to pay for their treatments. Give an infertile couple the chance to have a baby of their own!

Surprise Birthday Present

Well, I guess G-d really did want to give me a great birthday present...

Earlier in the week I had been testing using OPKs just to see if I could see a rise at any point--and I got the normal VERY light line on Aug 5, 6, and 7 (which is normal and not an indicator of anything...) This also helped to show me that the hCG from my shot was out of my system. Then, once I got home on Aug 8 (after seeing the rainbow), I tested again and got a much darker line (not + for an OPK, but dark). Oops, I had already thrown my pee into the toilet so I would have to wait to do an actual HPT, but knew what I'd see. :-) I waited about an hour and then took a HPT and sure enough, VERY light BFP!!! Could barely see it, but I knew it was there. Mind you I was only 10DPR (7DPT), it wasn't even FMU and I had just peed 1 hour prior.

Today I tested again, also not with FMU and after I had peed about a 1/2 hour earlier...another BFP! This one darker (OPK was definite + this time), so my levels must be going up!! I will test again in the morning just to see a darker line and I will also have my blood test tomorrow. I called the RE's office on Friday to request my BPT be moved up, so they moved it up to Monday (tomorrow) and will also do a progesterone level just to check it.

WOO HOO!!! We did it! Let's just hope this bean decides to stick around! Due date is 4/21/09 (for anyone who is wondering) and I REALLY want to find out the gender by ultrasound when I can!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

Yep, today is my birthday--and it just so happens that everyone is celebrating my birthday by starting the Olympics tonight and thinks it's awesome that it's 08/08/08. (I think it's pretty awesome too, to tell you the truth...especially since I have no memories of 8/8/88 as I was only 5). And since all of you just did the math (hmmm she was 5 in 1988, so she must be 25 today...) I can confirm that I am 25 today!!

Now, here's the cool thing of the day. Towards the beginning of the Hebrew Bible, we see the story of Noah and his ark. Towards the end of that story, G-d created a rainbow in the sky as a sign of His covenant with us and to show that He would never flood the earth again. Today, as I was leaving work, I saw that it was absolutely pouring outside; however, it was also bright and sunny. So I ran outside and was thinking, "Where's the rainbow? Where's the rainbow? AHHH There it is!!" Sure enough, G-d had presented me with a rainbow for my birthday. How do I know it was mine? Well, because it's my birthday and rainbows don't exactly happen every day (and I've had an experience like this before...if you're curious, I can put that in another post). I was in desparate need of this, too. I had almost forgotten that G-d is on my side, even when I'm depressed about my situation. G-d has not left me and now I know that He has remembered our covenant and will, in turn, remember me and help me to bear children. That is the best birthday present ever.