Hello, and welcome to my blog!

Hi all! This is my first attempt at blogging, so please bear with me. I have two VERY adventurous twin boys. So, for the time being, will frequently be called away to rescue one or the other from something they're climbing or getting into. That will lessen (hopefully) as they grow.

This week has been filled with reminiscing for me. I have been so blessed to be given the family that I have. For those who might not know, I have five children--three that are grown and twin 17 month old boys. My oldest, Trevor, is 22 and lives with some friends. He is school and works as a CNA. Lydia, my only daughter, is 21 and is married. She is currently in her first semester of nursing school. Her husband, Steve, is in the Navy. My next son, Logan, is 19 yrs. old and goes to community college full-time, works part-time, and volunteers at church and for various people. He stays very busy. I was able to be home with them for most of their growing up years, then I decided that I needed to go back to school so that I could help pay for their college years. I have now been an RN for almost 8 yrs. and work in critical care at a local hospital.

During the years that my older three were growing up, I longed and longed for another baby. We had stupidly (in my opinion) opted for permanent sterilization, and ended up trying three times to reverse this, all without success. Which leads me to what I've been reminiscing about....

My twins, Jacob and Micah, came to us via donated gametes. They don't look anything like us. They have blond hair and blue eyes. We have brown hair and brown eyes. Though neither one is genetically related to us, I was able carry them, give birth to them, and we love them just as much as our older children. They're very active, curious, and loving boys. They keep us on on toes at all times, but they also love on us. I've been thinking, this week, about when I found out that I was, indeed, pregnant with twins. I didn't really believe it until we saw both heartbeats. In fact, it was quite surreal throughout the entire pregnancy. To this day, I find myself saying to myself, "I have twins!" in attempts to make it more real in my mind. Twins were never something I longed to have. In fact, I always felt that people who wished for twins were crazy (still do). I wouldn't have it any other way, though. I can't imagine my life without either one of the twins.

Another thing I've been reminiscent about is the fact that Micah was born deaf. I'm thankful that, in the big picture, this is a very minor disability. I'm also thankful that we have options. We're pursuing cochlear implants for him. He will be implanted bilaterally on October 15. He won't come home and be able to hear us that day, though. This will be a long journey for all of us as we strive to help him hear and understand. We're also working on learning American Sign Language (ASL). We're investing in the Signing Time DVDs (we all just LOVE Rachel!), and plan to continue with the signing after he hears as a form of backup communication.

So, be prepared-- most of my ramblings will likely have to do with the twins or with Micah's hearing loss.

Welcome!