Our First Christmas with Grace and Hope

Merry Christmas 2008

For those of you that read this blog often, I tried to do a whole 12 Days of Christmas thing sharing life lessons I've learned from being home with the girls. If I've learned one lesson being on "Daddy Leave," it is probably this- taking care of twins is a lot of fun and a lot of work and the girls come first. Unfortunately, my fun idea quickly went the way of the dodo.

However, I couldn't help but posting some pictures of family fun from our first Christmas. I think the joy and love in the pics and videos speaks for itself and showcases how blessed we are, as a family, to have one another this holiday season.

Mommy and Hope open up a a gift from Uncle Steve and Aunt Cindy on Christmas morning.

Gracie thought the wrapping paper was tasty.

Gracie enjoys her new turtle toy.

Hope enjoys being tickled by Mommy.


Gracie Unwraps a Gift

Deck the Halls...

Gracie enjoys her hat with Mommy.
Hope and Daddy hang an ornament.














More holiday fun is on its way...

Hope and Grace's First Thanksgiving!

The girls are all dressed for dinner

Grandpa Bob enjoys playing with Hope


Needless to say, we have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving!

Double Digit Girls!

At our doctor's appointment this week we found that Hope is now 12 pounds, 6 ounces and Gracie is a whopping 10 pounds 7 ounces. The girls are growing, and also beginning to teeth.

Enjoy some photos and videos!


Hope tries squash for the first time (top left), Daddy feeds Hope (top right), Gracie has squash on her chin (bottom left)

Daddy Leave- Week #1

I have been blessed with the opportunity to take paternity leave and stay at home with the girlies to help them continue to get big and stay healthy before they go to daycare in January. To say this has been an eye-opening experience for me is an understatement. First off, to anyone who is a stay-at-home parent reading this, you have my utmost admiration and respect- dealing with young children all day is a challenge. That being said, I don't think I've ever done something where I've felt more of a sense of fulfillment at the end of the day or something where I've been able to literally see growth each day. Here are a few fun and humorous observations I've made.

Will's "Daddy Leave" Observations (Week 1):

-Daytime TV is not for me: I'm not a tv guy to begin with, and let's face it, The Price is Right with Drew Carey just isn't the same. Jeni seems to be more of a tv person than me and would tape shows like Friends and Law and Order and watch them while feeding the twins. I have tried Paris Hilton is My New BFF and I think I lasted through about 10 minutes of that dribble. I am not without my guilty pleasure, however, and did tape WWE Monday Night Raw to watch while feeding the girls (I used to be a huge wrestling fan in middle school and college), so I guess I shouldn't criticize those who enjoy the Paris Hilton show or soaps, as wrestling is probably on the same level if not worse than those (and psst, I do like The Office and Seinfeld and, as ashamed as I am to admit it, kinda like The Hills too- although Jeni hates that show).

In an effort to pass time while feeding, I decided to watch The Godfather this week with the girls. I guess that + the wrestling seem sorta manly when feeding babies in boppies. Why aren't there baseball games on or March Madness college hoops???


-Despite Your Best Intentions, Your To-Do List Piles Up:
Monday I awoke with positive ambition. Jeni and I made a "honey-do" list Sunday evening and Jeni just smiled and said, "Good luck" when we wrapped it up. "I'll show her," I thought to myself, "I am Mr. Organized at school, I can take down a to-do list with the best of 'em."

Of the items on the "To-do" list, what has actually been accomplished is the following: write thank you notes for baptism gifts, call Eric, our contractor buddy, to check out the insulation in the attic, bring up my sweaters from the basement, and wash the car. Let's just say that the list is two pages long... needless to say, not much gets done. The reality is the girls need my attention first and foremost. They are up more than they sleep (although they are sleeping about 8+ hours a night now which is AWESOME). Feeding time, story time, tummy time, playroom time (see Gracie above enjoying her time in the "Exersaucer") and settle down time take up most of the day. The simple fact of how quickly the time flies taking care of them is amazing to me. My mom, who lives a mile away, and Jeni have been very supportive of me getting out of the house a bit. An hour and a half of "Daddy time" at the gym is much needed!

Getting the Girls Out is a Challenge:
Jeni got very good at this, but I'll admit, after four days, I'm a rookie. Today I made plans to take the girls to my mom's house for lunch. They were fussy, and it took me nearly an hour to get them settled, into their warm clothes and in their car seats, ready to go. I have been told that this gets easier. Tomorrow we have shots at the pediatrician's office at 10:00, so perhaps I should start the "getting ready to go" around 8:45 if it is anything like today. Daycare in January will be a big challenge, especially since neither Jeni nor I are "morning people" and prefer to stay up later getting stuff done rather than rising and shining before the sun comes up.

The Girls Grow A Bit Each Day:
Out of everything I've witnessed over the past four days, this is by far the best part of "Daddy Leave" and the biggest blessing. Each day Hope is getting a bit better at sitting up. Gracie is enjoying the "Exersaucer" more and more as well. The little things you notice about how the girls are growing and developing make this whole experience one that I will never forget and something I will truly cherish.

Enjoy some more photos from the week!
Daddy gives Gracie a "fauxhawk" hairdo.
Hopester enjoys her "Jumparoo."
While we enjoy our time with Daddy, we all miss Mommy at home. Here Mommy and Hope play with her toy.
Grace is less than 10 pounds currently and is displaying signs of wanting to stand. She's one strong little girl!
Daddy is learning how to dress his daughters in cute, coordinating or matching outfits. It was only after our trip to Granny's house that I was informed that I put Hope's skirt on backwards!

Grace and Hope's Baptism Video

This is the video we're showing this afternoon at the reception after Grace and Hope's Baptism. It is such a blessing watching these girls grow!



FYI- Music "I'm Amazed" by My Morning Jacket and "Sons & Daughters" by The Decemberists

A year ago... the beginning of our adventure

I was supposed to participate in a web 2.0 study group on Skype with a group of my colleagues from my school who share the same passion for teaching with technology that I do. This fact, while seemingly mundane and perhaps a bit random, would prove somewhat critical in the events that happened one year ago.

It was a chilly November Wednesday in southeastern Wisconsin, and armed wearing my blue USM fleece, I left our home feeling a mixture of nervousness, excitement, giddiness, and skepticism all at the same time. Getting into my Pontiac Sunfire, I plugged in my iPod and selected my tunes for the morning. With my emotions scrambled like eggs in the skillet on a Sunday morning after church, I opted with an old stand-by for my "go-to-work-song," and turned up "What's the World Got in Store" by Wilco (one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands). As I passed the Residence Inn entering the 1-43 north ramp, I just knew something big was going to happen that day, and I couldn't wait to see how everything would play out.

I couldn't talk about it at all. That might jinx it, and worse yet, what if I wasn't right? I couldn't get my hopes up. Concentrate on driving. Listen to Wilco. Admire the gray on a chilly November morning. Park the car. Grab the travel coffee mug. Take a deep breath in and another one out and just settle as best you can. Yup, that was the way I'd have to go through the days, even though we both had determined earlier that morning that Jeni's schedule was, shall we say, "off by a bit." Can't get the hopes up, concentrate on work, teach about India, yes, that is what I needed to do.

As I entered school, my good friend Matt, who biked into work and was still in his biking garb, was excited to see me. "Pipes!" he yelled from the mutimedia lab as I ascended the stairs to the third floor, "Look forward to seeing you tonight on Skype. I'm totally psyched. This will be a great conversation about 21st century learning and using technology. Can't wait to hear your thoughts on all these cool new tools we can use, Pipes!"

Now, I must digress, I am a TERRIBLE liar. Jeni made me swear before I left the house that I was not to talk about the possibility of what might be with anyone, BUT, how could I lie to Matt after he was counting on me to be part of this dialog this evening. "Matt, I don't think I'll have time to go online tonight," I began, "I'm a bit swamped with grading before conferences and all."

"C'mon Pipes, we need you for this," Matt encouraged, and it was then that I knew I couldn't try to tell a fib at this point. I pulled Matt into his room and explained the situation, including the part about how Jeni told me not to talk to anyone about this, and swore Matt to secrecy.

That day went by ever so slowly. I taught my lesson on the British rule of India and showed portions of the Bollywood film Lagaan. I went about my day as usual, trying to keep my mind off of everything that could be going on. Jeni did likewise at her work. We decided that morning that we would "wait and see until Saturday," but I had a sneaking suspicion that this would not be the case. Not trying to get my hopes up, when the day concluded, I finished up my school stuff, planned my lessons, handled my dean's responsibilities and headed home around 5:30. I called Jeni to tell her that I was headed to the gym for a workout, when she asked if I could come home to eat dinner first, citing that she had a long day and was starving. "Ok," I thought, and to be honest, at that point, all thoughts of starting a family disappeared. "I bet she did decide to wait until the weekend, or else, perhaps our hunch was wrong, and I would be participating in that Skype chat later that evening."

When I arrived at home, I entered the house to our loving dog Maggie running towards me with her giant stuffed toy in mouth ready for her scratch behind the ears. Looking at the Lowe's portable kitchen island, I spied a blue bag with bright green tissue paper and a light blue card envelope protruding from the top. I think that my heart skipped a beat right then and there. I opened the card which read, "I can't wait to begin this journey with you. I love you with all my heart." and then looked in the bag. There was a positive pregnancy test and two pairs of socks, one green and one yellow. Jeni emerged from the living room with tears in her eyes, and we just simply hugged one another and cried. We later ate tortellini with French cut green beans, and unable to sit still after dinner, went to Starbucks for decaf coffee and then to Borders to purchase, "What to Expect When You're Expecting." Needless to say, I never made it to the gym, nor did I participate in the Skype conference with Matt.

Reflecting back on the events of that Wednesday night in November a year ago this week, I pause to smile. We never thought twins. I was convinced a year ago that in Jeni's tummy was a little boy (who would later become an All Star closer for the Brewers, of course). Was it foreshadowing, irony, or just a simple twist of fate that there were two pairs of socks in that blue bag, and now those very socks reside on the little feet of the greatest miracles I've ever seen.