.they're here.

my boys. 

my sweet twin boys. 

my middle and my youngest children. 

they have arrived and we are enjoying them so damn much.

please let me introduce you to our theodore edward + axel arthur. born on october 5th, 2014, they are truly amazing.

photography || pinksugarphotography

.teaching a toddler.

one of my initial greatest fears while we spoke of adding to our family was making sure jack understood that he was always going to be as loved as he is now [if not more!] and just how special he was always going to be to us. that adding more kids to our family was not going to change our feelings for him in the slightest, but in fact add to our happiness. but how do you teach and explain that to a toddler just learning to talk himself?!

i have no direct answers to this question, but with jack's ever increasing interest in some of my friends newborn babies during playdates, i can't help but feel as though we must be doing something right for our family and in raising him. 

he is loving. he softly strokes their hair and chubby soft cheeks without being prompted. 

he is thoughtful. he brings books to the babies to read and tries to share his cheerios by putting them directly in their mouths [we obviously watch him closely, not too worry!]. 

he is kind. and sits by the babies as though he doesn't want them to be alone.

he is helpful. he brings blankets to cover them and tries to rock them in their bassinets.

and he is playful. sharing his toys and playing peek-a-boo constantly with them.

[note: all of these things above are true. i've witnessed them personally and it amazes me how a 23 month old child can be so loving and so perceptive to a smaller 'mini'. it just blows my mind]

so while it's an ongoing process with a toddler, explaining that very shortly we'll have two babies of our own to love and play with, we're actually having quite a fun time with it. so in case anyone is going through this situation as well, here are some books and activities we play on a regular basis in preparation for our little twins arrival this coming week.

books:
-following in the beautiful andrea's footsteps, i jumped on her weekly book club train and decided to share a few of our favourites to read recently....no surprise that with all the baby talk going on in this house, his fav's have all been these 'baby's' books.

rocker babies wear jeans by michelle sinclair colman
the boss baby by marla frazee
everywhere babies by susan meyers
snuggle the baby by sara gillingham [jack's fav!]
babies, babies, babies! by catherine and laurence anholt

games / activities:
-we took jack to ikea one weekend and discovered a large bin of babies for $9! we allowed him to pick out any two babies he wanted to love and take home. he of course choose, two identical boys that look exactly like himself which i found quite amusing and perhaps a sign for what's to come?! jack has loved those two babies immensely the past few weeks and it's been fun watching him put them to bed [in his crib], share his soothers and juice with them, and kiss them 'night night'.
-playdates with other babies! and lots of them! totally helps.
-where's momma's babies? jack loves to peek up my shirt at my ever growing belly and we alway make a fun game of it. it usually ends in plenty of belly kisses for his babies.
-before bed each night, pete and i will throw out a bunch of names and ask jack if he can repeat them and if he likes them. it's always cute hearing him muster through the different names in his little voice and then tell us he likes every single name we say!

and please share! what are you doing with your oldest in preparation for another?

.so incredibly loved.

dear my two youngest,

yes, it's true. i already love you both more than i knew i could. more than i knew was possible.

and i didn't want you to potentially look back and figure that the lack of posts about you both has anything to do with loving you less than the first time i went through this with your precious big brother.

yes, the majority of my time is spent playing and chasing after jack, and boy does he keep me busy, but i want you both to know that you two are always on my mind as well. it has truly surprised me in so many ways to discover how the same feelings i had the first time around have circled back completely.  and they have felt just as precious and just as special as they did then. all the little kicks and twirls and love jabs you both give me daily is a constant reminder that i have been given this amazing gift...the two of you.

to be honest, at first i was so worried that i couldn't love anyone as much as the love i have for your brother, but boy was i wrong. i feel inertly protective already. i feel that momma bear fierceness for you both. i feel blessed. i feel pleasure in knowing you both are mine. i feel so full of love that i fear i might burst some days.

so while i don't get to spend as much time counting the weeks & days left or verbally sharing the milestones of your growth, i did want you to know that i am privately getting to know you both intimately and quietly and it has been an absolute pleasure. i hope you can feel that, within the roundness of my belly and in the roundness of my full full heart. i hope you both know how much joy you've already brought your new family. your dada, your mama, and your older brother. seriously so much joy.

so there you have it. being the middle and youngest [wow! so neat to be able to say that] of my children, i sincerely don't want you to think you are any less loved or important. because kids, you are   so both.

so important and so damn loved.

xx
momma

.at 33 weeks, with the treb twins.

.at thirty three weeks.

::i officially look like i have two babies in there. sure, i am a little small for twins, but i take my shirt off and - whoa!
::the babies are lying in the worst possible positioning, breach + transverse. which basically means i'll be delivering via c-section if twin a doesn't turn around for me. not ideal.

::the heartburn, people! seriously, i've been put on a prescription for it. lying down, sitting up, walking, talking, breathing...it's always present.

:the twiners are chubby little monkeys. 3 weeks ago, they weighed in at 4lbs and 4.3 lbs [70th/80th weight percentile at the time!].

::i hardly wear pants anymore. be warned if you come to my house unexpectedly.

::i am craving caffeine of any sort. probably because i'm hardly sleeping at night, however.

::we bought an extra car seat, crib mattresses, cleaned out the bookshelf in the nursery and filled it with baby trinkets and have washed all of jack's newborn clothes. hurray!

::we also bought jack a "hello, brother" gift from the twins. it's this beautiful wooden pirate fort and i think he'll love it. everything is "piiir" [aka. jack's version of pirate] right now.

::my back feels like it's about to break in half some days. it's not great.
::and twin b loves to continually grind and roll into my ribs, which is something i never felt with jack. and....not great.
::my partner and i officially opened up our online children's boutique www.shoptheskinny.ca and it is going so awesome! such a happy and exciting time for us and i can't wait to see what the future holds!

::we just celebrated my sister and new brother-in-law wed. and it was beautiful. i even stayed till closing time!

::my pantry is about to get a cleaning.
::i basically only have 1 month left to go. whoo hoo!!
::i was lucky enough to spend one rainy & stormy night with the beautiful jessica from beautiful.simple.life.photography out at the lake. she's the one who captured all these gorgeous images [it's all her! i just showed up!] of me and my twin babies and i seriously have a little cry every time i look at them. i will cherish them forever. thank you so much, jessica xx

for those of you who don't think in terms of weeks...this means i'm now about 8.5 months pregnant!

.at 30 weeks, with the treb twins.

shop: dress || shoes || necklace

.at thirty weeks.

::i am definitely growing a big ol' bump.

::my heartburn has officially taken on it's own life form. no joke.

::the twins are growing like weeds. each are weighing in at the 60th-70th percentile for weight. which makes me so happy! keep growing, you chubby little babies.

::we are taking a drive to drumheller for a last little hurrah for jack. we figure it may be our last mini vacation as a family of three, so lets spoil the little guy rotten. 

::i am craving donuts.  especially after i spoiled myself with a dozen 'frickin delights' delivery. and then ate them all.

::my 'normal' shirts are getting way too short. belly shots are a regular appearance around here. and not by choice.

::the twins nursery is starting to actually resemble a nursery! yay!

::we completed jack's first round of swimming lessons [he passed!] however i think we'll have to wait till after these babies are born to re-enroll. momma just can't handle the workout! ha!

::the twins like to bump and roll. it's turned from flutter kicks to grinding and it's not my favourite.

::my nails are growing like weeds.

::i am beginning to nest like no-one's business.

for those of you who don't think in terms of weeks...this means i'm now 7.5 months pregnant!
shop the post ||

.at 27 weeks, with the treb twins.

.at twenty seven weeks.

::still haven't cracked that envelope, although i have a serious hunch!
::i am not really craving much of anything. just random food thoughts will hit me and i'll need to have it at that given second. then i'll eat it and it passes, so not really craving any one thing in particular. 
::tums, people. tums. every single bloody night.
::my back is getting pretty sore and beat-up. twin "b" apparently enjoys hanging out deep in my back, which kinda sucks. not gonna lie.
::i threw a bridal shower for my sister, and it went great. being pregnant with twins doesn't curb your lust for a good excuse to decorate and party plan. 
::we bought a new vehicle to fit our growing brood! so excited about this! and we definitely spoiled ourselves in the options department. yay! i am absolutely in love.

::twin 'a' is weighing 2lb 5oz, while twin 'b' is weighing in at 2lb 4 oz.! that's 1lb growth each for the little chubbers! grow babies, grow!!

::i've been sleeping terrible. the treb twins throw a mini party around 10 pm each night. and i love it just about as much as i love onions.
::so needless to say, i'm still tired. cue my 'mini violin'.
::we finally found ourselves a maid service. omg, no words.
::i've been documenting a whole lot more of these babies growth. i've been so busy in the previous stages of this pregnancy that i feel like i've neglected the little suckers compared to the first pregnancy round with jack. trying to remedy that for the baby books...

for those of you who don't think in terms of weeks...this means i'm now over 6.5 months pregnant!! [however, these pictures were taken a week ago or so!]

.at 24 weeks, with the treb twins.

shop: lace shirt, h&m [similar] || vest, target || maternity jeans, h&m || heels, zara || earrings, stella & dot

.at twenty four weeks.

::i am craving pickles, cheese and crackers....at 10 pm each night. 
::and i can't get enough of mint aero chocolate bars. i'm buying the costco pack, people!

::twin 'a' is weighing in around 1lb 5oz, while twin 'b' is weighing in around 1lb 3 oz.

::the twins nursery progress hasn't really moved since the last update. although, we did buy two new cribs and set them up! yay!
::we have a sealed envelope with each babies gender inside. it hasn't been opened...yet.
::my doctor has put me on medical leave. my body [and mind!] was really starting to feel the stresses of working full time, toddler duties, twin growing, and basically just life in general at this very moment. and it was much needed.
::the twinners are moving around like crazy. little jabs and kicks all over the place.
::daddy got to finally feel a kick too [well technically that was actually last week for documentation sake!].
::i am still beyond tired. and it is still not worth the energy to complain about.
::my house looks like a scene out of basically any disaster movie. i need a maid. stat.
::besides the few minor aches and pains, life is good.
::my maternity style is officially in full swing. leggings. maxi's. summer dresses and flat sandals are where it's at! well, besides being naked all the time. and sorry jeans, it's nothing personal.

for those of you who don't think in terms of weeks...this means i'm now 6 months pregnant!

.at 20 weeks, with the treb twins.

at twenty weeks:

::this heartburn doesn't seem to go away. i am thinking of taking out shares in tums chewable's.

::i have been getting that same pinched nerve in my back that i had periodically with jack. fun times. ugh.
::besides the two complaints above, i am feeling great. and still beyond excited for these two.

::we have made progress on the twins nursery. it might have just been cleaning it out, but hey! still progress from two weeks ago when you could't even walk in there.
::i am craving pickles. how cliche...
::i am definitely growing by the day. my belly has 'popped' and then some.
::we got to watch out babies play/kick each other in my belly. it was quite humorous and gave us an insight into our near future. sigh. i can already hear the 'MOM!'
::we also watched twin A plant it's butt directly in front of twin B's lips. again, sigh.
::i am beyond tired. its not even worth the energy to complain about it.
::jack is beginning to kiss my belly when we ask 'where's mommies babies?". it's kind of the cutest thing ever.
::i am still feeling so damn blessed.

for those of you who don't think in terms of weeks...this means i'm 5 months pregnant! and also marks the half way mark! [which i am completely mystified over?! how are we already 1/2 way?!?!] 

.at 17 weeks, with the treb twins.

at seventeen weeks:

::we have officially announced to the world that the treb family will soon go from 3 to 5!

::i am feeling pretty good considering i am currently brewing up two little nuggets in my belly. my only complaint is a few headaches and being extremely exhausted all the freaking time.

::i also realize that the above statement is a precursor to my soon-to-be-crazy life. so i'd better get used to it.

::my 'normal' pants no longer fit. yes, at just over four months pregnant, i have had to resort to maternity pants. sigh.

::the sun is finally shining and i am excited for all those flowing maternity dresses in my future.

::my husband dotes on me hand-and-foot, and i quite like it.

::i go to bed at 9:00 basically every night. 

::i am still working full-time, but seriously looking forward to the time at home. this go-round i definitely deserve it!! a toddler and twins, my gosh!
::i've apparently only gained 3lbs, however feel as though i've gained 30.

::i am craving anything that's bad for me. chocolate, sour candies, slurpees, chips. i'm not picky, i'll just take them all.

::i am however, trying to stick to fruit. and it's not really working.

::we're dreaming of our twins sexes. boy/boy; girl/girl; girl/boy. what are you little suckers?!

::the little flutter-butterfly kicks have started and are tickling me night and day.

::i am feeling so damn blessed. 

for those of you who don't think in terms of weeks...this works out to 4 months + 1 week pregnant!
**and full disclosure - i'm actually 18 weeks + 2 days [as of today] so this post is coming to you a week late. such is my life now.