OOPS!

Okay, guess I have not been keeping up with the blog ... if it's twins pics you're interested in, visit their blog -- http://www.keelingtwins.blogspot.com/
Greg and Heather are doing it all by themselves for the 3 weeks that Greg has a leave from work -- well, at least PART of a leave -- he still has to work but he can do it from home. We are just so proud of the way he has taken over the parenting role -- he's a hands-on Daddy from holding them to changing their diapers and being up with them whenever they are awake, not to mention most of the household duties. Heather is providing the only nourishment for the little ones, and she's providing it every couple of hours for each of them 24x7. By the time she is finished nursing one baby, it's time to the nurse the other. And still she finds the time and energy to keep us updated on the blog with pics -- these two are somehow managing to do all that on only a few hours of sleep a night. It seems the babies love sleeping in the daytime -- they even have to be gently nudged awake for their feedings, and then right back to sleep they go. BUT in the middle of the night it's a different story -- that's the time they have decided to keep Mom and Dad awake for some crying exercises. I guess we all know what that's like, right? But, hey, they are only 6 days old .
Chuck and I are about to venture to the east for a couple of weeks. I am flying to Loveland VERY late Wednesday night -- Gary has agreed to pick me up and take me home. Chuck is leaving the 5th to go to Des Moines for the annual family reunion on the 10th. Denise will fly to Loveland on the 6th to visit Mom (and Ron and Sue and me) and she and I will return to Seattle on the 10th. Chuck will return to Seattle on the 12th.
Yesterday Chuck and I helped Den and Rog get their motorhome ready for summertime travel. We have an RV weekend outing with them planned for mid-August. We managed to get everything running and the inside all cleaned and ready for loading. They still have to get the outside washed and get it registered for WA license plates.
I am not looking forward to the weather in Loveland. It's going to be in the 90's this week and I have become quite accustomed to the lower 70's here!

Twelve Hours Old

We went to meet our first-ever grandchildren this morning and took a few photos. Needless to say, there will be many many more to come(pictures, that is!) Magnolia has absolutely the sweetest face and the softest RED hair; we think Emmett looks much like Greg did when he was born. Magnolia seems much larger even though she weighed in at just 12 ounces more than Emmett. She came first at 8:23; Emmett followed at 8:43. We don't know the length of each of them yet, but they are certainly strong, and already nursing. Emmett managed a little grin for us and Magnolia is showing us her bright red hair.

THEY ARE HERE!

We have TWINS -- about 8:20 and 8:40 pm tonight (22nd). Magnolia came first at 8# 9 oz. Emmett came about 20 minutes later at 7# 14 oz. Both are doing well and so is Heather. They are so happy she didn't have to have a c-section. I didn't get any other details so after we go and see them in the morning, I will hopefully be able to update with photos.

Heather in the hospital

Heather's blog -- from the hospital!

Yes, she definitely gets extra special points for this one:

"the saga began yesterday evening......all day long i couldn't stop thinking about our 7 pm hospital appointment to prep for induction. we made some final preparations at the house, my parents arrived to take care of adeline, we had our "last" meal, and we were off! i couldn't help being a little sentimental during the car ride to the hospital, saying things like, "oh honey, next time we're in the car we'll have babies!" and such.we checked in at the labor and delivery triage, and got a nifty little room to hang out in. i got all hooked up to the monitors, and we were thinking that we were on our way! unfortunately, after spending a couple hours there we were informed that there were no labor and delivery rooms and we were sent home! kind of a bummer, but we were told we would hear from the nurse first thing in the morning about coming back in.this morning we returned to triage at 9am and shortly thereafter started on a medication that would prepare me for the induction to follow. and this time we were told that we wouldn't be leaving the hospital without babies! we spent the entire day in the stuffy little cubby of a room in triage with monitors on my belly tracking the babies heart beats and my contractions. things started picking up a bit in the late afternoon and we finally got moved into a nice big room around 5pm.now, we wait!the plan is for the next stage of induction to start first thing tomorrow morning. i am still holding out for babies by tomorrow night- we'll keep you posted!(and do I get extra blogger points for posting from my hospital bed?)"

FLICKERS

Just sitting at my computer and glanced out into the yard. There were the two flickers that have been visiting each afternoon. I've been trying to get a photo when both of their heads were UP -- mostly their heads are down in the ground, trying to find something to eat. One is a young one and he keeps wanting his Mom to find him something to eat. If I am lucky I may get a photo when that happens, but don't hold your breath. The blinds weren't up so I had to poke my camera through them to get this pic, and when I removed the camera, the aluminum shade snapped shut and they took off like I had scared them to death! But they came back in a few minutes.

Keep reading this blog. Maybe there will be a photo of TWINS on here some day.

More Pictures

Lavender Festival at Sequim

We are learning to pronounce some of the names in the great state of Washington. The above town which you may pronounce see-qwim is actually pronounced squim (like squid). Den and Rog took us out there Saturday for a day in the country. It's on the Olympic peninsula and the area is similar in climate to Provence, France. Fields and fields of lavender flowers are transformed into everything from hand lotion to food seasoning. We had nice cool weather so it was a lovely day to be visiting lavender farms. We saw this llama at the first farm we visited. There was a huge street fair in town and buses that took us out to the farms. There was also a good quilt show (Roger's first!) and we took the ferry on the way back home (leaves Bremerton and arrives downtown Seattle). Ferry takes about an hour -- beautiful evening to enjoy the views.

Tomorrow is the big day! Can't wait.

TWINS NEXT WEEK!

For those of you not reading Heather's blog -- she is scheduled to be induced next Monday - 21st. She has sent the twins an "Eviction Notice" so they may vacate before then, but if not, then she will force them out of their current living arrangements into their new nursery on Monday. We'll keep you posted.

Lake Washington Ship Canal and Locks

We decided to be tourists today so we went to Ballard, north of Seattle. This canal connects saltwater Puget Sound with freshwater Lakes Union and Washington. Fun to watch the boats making their way through the locks. They also have a salmon ladder to watch the fish. There's a botanical garden adjacent to the locks but we got a late start and I was hungry, so I opted for lunch instead. We will go back to see the gardens on another day.

Day at the Festival

Here in the NW the sun shines every day in the summer and the locals celebrate the season with all sorts of festivals, parades, craft fairs, farmers markets, bicycle races, craft fairs, art fairs, dog shows, the list goes on and on. So yesterday Den and Rog took us north to Mill Creek, where there was a festival that just happened to include a favorite for Chuck (we didn't know this before we got there!). So he spent his first hours there checking out all the Corvettes -- over 100 there. Loved the license plate on that maroon one -- that would definitely be the case if HE tried to purchase one. There were so many kids there I don't think many in the area missed this event. We had fun people-watching at this event. Today we are going to a farmers market here in West Seattle in a retail area called The Junction. We'll pick up some fresh veggies for the week.

TWINS UPDATE

Here's the latest news on the arrival of the twins -- straight from Heather's blog yesterday:

the latest from the docs
we had another appointment today because my blood pressure was a little higher than normal at our previous appointment on tuesday. while we were happy to hear that the BP is under control, i was hoping to find out i was further along and closer to delivery day! we also had another non stress test, and the babies are still doing great. and i found out i'm 2 cm dilated...so that's progress, i guess! it's also nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel (of sorts): we will be induced on monday 7/21 if i haven't gone into labor on my own by then. so...i know i only have 9 more days of pregnancy at the most, but if it were up to greg and i, we'd have some kids this weekend!
Posted by heather v keeling at Friday, July 11, 2008

BIG BABIES DO NOT APPEAR!

Heather reports that after her ultrasound today the technician estimated Magnolia weighs around 8# and Emmett about 7.5# But they don't seem in any hurry to make their entrance into this crazy world. So stay tuned. It may be next week before they decide it's time to meet the parents.

Bikes on a Saab

We talked Roger out of his bike rack rails that he wasn't currently using and he and Chuck mounted them on Greg's bike rack (on the car Greg loaned us while we are here). So this morning we put ouir bikes on the car and drove to a bike trail in Tukwila (Green River Trail). We rode a little over 25 miles today. Felt good. We are going to ride again tomorrow morning. The light and the background combined didn't make for a very clear photo. I'll try and get another one sometime. It works well -- although we do get quite a few stares at those seats riding down the road. No baby news today -- Heather has a doctor appointment tomorrow and an ultrasound. We'll get an update out when we hear the results.

4th of July

I wanted to go and watch a fireworks show but I couldn't convince anyone else to park blocks and blocks away and walk into a huge crowd of spectators, and then fight the traffic back home so I opted for an early night with a book. Actually it was probably a good choice, as I wanted to get up early to watch the first day of the Tour. The coverage starts at 5:30am here . However, I am accustomed to having the DVR at home, recording the Tour and then getting up later and watching it as I zip through all the commercials, that it's not nearly as much fun here! Okay, okay, so I am SPOILED! I admit it.

Yesterday Den and Rog came over to see our little apartment; Greg took Chuck to a Mariner's baseball game for Chuck's Father's Day present; Heather went to lunch with the rest of us; D&R and I took a little trip down to Alki Beach -- about 6 miles from our apartment --for a little sightseeing.

We stopped to take photos of these old fire trucks -- these folks were just out for a little ride yesterday. Bright shiny trucks!

The Twins Watch continues. Each day in the "bump" they get better prepared for their entrance into the world. Only THEY know when it's best to make the move, so why not let them decide -- okay, easy for me to say-ha! Heather has been counseling with them about making a move, but as Keelings -they "want it THEIR way" and of COURSE they know what's best!

Our Apartment Pics

Rained all morning, so everything is just beautiful! I spent the day putting away all our "stuff" and doing laundry, so we are pretty well settled. In addition to the kitchen/living room, we have a bedrom with a queen-size bed, dresser, night stand and large closet; large bathroom with storage space; laundry room with washer and dryer (shared with the homeowners furnace and water heater). We also have A/C, WiFi and cable with VERSUS so we can watch the Tour which starts Saturday. We have one parking space in the driveway. All the above+utilities included. The MoHo is renting a parking space in Public Storage in Auburn. Hard to find a storage space here during the summer -- Chuck says all the "snowbirds" are home for the summer and have to have a place to park. Most people in the city park on the street.

Deception Falls

On our way to Seattle we stopped in Wenatchee National Forest to see the falls. That water was crashing down over those rocks -- kind of scary, really.

NO BABIES YET ...UPDATE

For those of you not reading Heather's blog -- I went with her to the doctor's appointment yesterday and basically her Doc said "no babies this week." So stay tuned...

I'll put pics of our temporary housing on the blog tomorrow. We just moved in today and I'm ready to rest my head on the pillow!