Craft Night

Headed here on Saturday.


October is my favorite month because it always brings cool weather, gorgeous color, and it starts the blissful holiday season. This year I will be adding one more reason to love October: the birth of my last child and baby girl! She will be my reward for surviving such a heinously hot summer.

Fall decorations are some of my favorite because they are largely nature based--leaves, gourds, pumpkins, mums, and the color palette is calming. I also like Halloween decorations and the little bit of thrill they bring home.

I have a few crafty craft things that I want to make this year so I thought it would be fun to invite friends to my house for an evening to create and visit together. What 37 week pregnant woman wouldn't do such a thing? I mean really.

Top on my list of 'crafts' is to cut out Happy Halloween letters in black card stock and hang them up around the orange chandelier in the kitchen. Cool or kitsch? We'll soon find out.

In the meantime, Asher, Soren and I will put up our existing Halloween decorations tomorrow and on Saturday we off to pick apples and pumpkins in the glorious Virginian countryside.

37 Weeks

Only THREE weeks to go!* Woo hoo!

I feel like this little gal could come any time but my suspicion is that she'll come on her due date--October 20th. Lots of people at work have asked me when I am going to stop working and I furrow my brows and reply, "I'll stop when she comes!" I wish I had the luxury of taking time off before she even arrives but I don't so I try not to think about it.

My body seems quite content with this pregnancy. My womb is spacious and with only one little gal swimming about--my discomfort has been minimal. When I sit for any period of time I get a stinging pain in my upper right back but it is easily remedied by quick walk. I had severe upper back pain with Asher and Soren for the final three months of that pregnancy and the pain made me cry--a lot.

I am huge and my face is super chubby but all is well. I field questions all day long about when I am due and I'll admit--it's pretty exciting to say, "22 days!" or now, "21 days!" That doesn't feel like a lot of time, right? Besides--there is a lot to enjoy during the next three weeks. The introduction of October, pumpkin picking, General Conference, craft night, putting up Halloween decorations, and finalizing the contents of my hospital bag! SO fun.

*Give or take a week or two, right?

Bedroom Flair

An print from the old room mingled with new colorful chevron stripes!


The vintage fans.


The gear prints: Asher's joy.


The lighting isn't the greatest in these photos but I am anti-flash and think grainy looks better than washed out!

I'm slowly adding a little somethin somethin to the walls in Asher and Soren's room. The gear prints are finally up! Asher is thrilled! The letters I bought last year at Urban Outfitters finally have a home. The vintage fans have been around for a while and they always make me happy. I like the mix of metal and wood--it seems to be warm enough for a toddler's room.

I have more prints to hang and hopefully we'll do that this weekend!

Crib Reunion

Back when they were in the SAME crib. It humors me that we kept the monitor in the crib with them!


Tangled up and cute.


Baby Soren!

Asher and Soren loved pretending to be babies sleeping in their old crib. They looked so grown up as their limbs stretched nearly the length of the crib and yet...they are still babies to me. There remains in my heart a deep space for them--created by their entrance into my life as preemie babies. My heart swells and often throbs with intense love for them. I wonder how I will be able to juggle three babies but I am excited for the great fortune to have that challenge.

The Nursery: NEARLY Ready!

Soren giving me his best smile--how cute is he in underwear? See ya diapers!


One of my favorite Ashley stars has found the perfect home in the baby babe's room.


I love the happy colors!


The nursery is coming to life.


Sigh. I love him.







I think we all have a new favorite room in the house: the baby babe's room. Asher and Soren love it because they think it is hilarious to be in a crib again--especially together. I marvel that they did share a crib for SIX months because those tiny, tiny baby babes are now such tall three-year-olds!

Jamie loves the room because the painting is DONE! He put a lot of sweat and labor into making it the serene space that it is. He painted FOUR different colors in that room: the walls, the trim, the door and closet door, and then the ceiling was yellow for a day or two but I was not happy with the color so he painted it back white. The project was spread over a two month period so when it felt quite epic pulling off the painter's tape and looking at a finished product.

I love the room because it is sweet, happy, and reminds me that we will soon have a new little baby babe entering and changing our lives. I am so excited to meet her and hold her and introduce her to Asher and Soren. I know we will be absolutely charmed by her and that we'll wonder how we ever lived without her!

The walls remain unadorned but we have plenty of frames ready to be hung. I'm excited to see it all come together. Yay!

My Baby Babes

I can't recall why Asher was crying when I took this photo. He's so amazingly cute even when he is crying dramatically. Contrary to the tears in this photo, Asher is one of the
happiest little guys I have ever met. He wakes up with a grin and starts his day usually exclaiming, "I'm happy!"

Tonight during dinner he sang, "Old McDonald had a forklift on his farm with a beep beep here and a beep beep there." So cute, right?

Last night Asher jumped on his bed and started kicking his legs exclaiming, "I'm doing exercises!" I love him.

36 Weeks

My rings still fit!




The nose barely fits.

This is the longest I have ever been pregnant in my life but not the MOST pregnant I have ever been. At 34 weeks pregnant with Asher and Soren my belly measured over 40 weeks! I am 36 weeks and so excited to be this far along in my pregnancy. I actually feel great! Pregnancy seems most obvious and uncomfortable at night--usually around 2am I have to switch sides and the heft of my bulk makes my back ache and then it takes about an hour to get back to sleep. I'm a lot of woman right now.

Baby babe entertains me all day with her bold movements and I am absolutely thrilled by her activity in my belly. I see Dr. Tchabo and have a non-stress test every week until this gal arrives. I like having those appointments to anticipate at the end of each week.

This labor and delivery business is such a mystery! She'll come when she's ready and I have no idea when that will be. I love it!

Baby's First Quilt!

This came in the mail today! My mom and I picked out the material for this quilt when she visited in June. I had no idea she had already finished it! What a joy to receive this today. I can't wait to wrap my baby girl in this sweet blanket made by her turbo grandmother.

The tape came off of the nursery walls yesterday--it is DONE. Now we have to assemble the crib, paint the drawers on the dresser, and put it all together. We've got work to do but we are so close!

Read Another One!

After Soren cried and cried for ONE more story I suggested that Jamie read a story by lamp light. It was kind of a big deal and super exciting.


It doesn't matter how many books we read before bed time because it is NEVER enough for Soren. Tears are shed at the conclusion of each day because Soren's book desire is never satiated. He eventually gets over it, he always does, but honestly, I love that he is so interested in the words and images of story books. Asher is equally as enamored with books and this end of the day routine is one of my favorites. Sadly, I am usually pretty exhausted at the end of the day so I have the energy and enthusiasm for about two dramatic readings and then I am done.

Potty training update:

Soren continues to be turbo when it comes to using the potty. Asher really just can't be bothered by this potty training business. He'll get it eventually so no rush, right? Saturday afternoon both boys wet the bed during their nap. When Soren woke up he cried and exclaimed, "Asher peed in my bed!" Oh man did I laugh! He acted as if it were unheard of that HE would do such a thing so surely it must have been Asher. Potty training is an adventure and it can be pretty amusing.

Baby Shower

I failed to take any 'before' photos but the spread was luxurious and delicious. Jennifer even gave me that bouquet of roses!







My sweet friend and former neighbor Jennifer asked to throw me a baby shower many months ago. Since this was my last pregnancy and I was having a girl I was grateful for the chance to celebrate this pregnancy and baby! Jennifer gave me a beautiful shower. I was moved by her kindness in being so generous with her time and creativity. She did it all by herself! She served two types of quiche, naan, two types of Indian dips, two types of sweet bread, a fruit tart, a mocha cake, great drinks, and a bag of chocolate treats as a party favor! It was a dashing party.

I loved spending time with an intimate group of friends talking of nothing more than pregnancy, labor, babies, children, potty training, and most new and exciting: celebrating the joy of baby girls! My friends were generous and gave me gorgeous clothes, hair bows, and books. I was stunned and grateful for all that I was given.

I am so excited to have this baby! Only one more month! I feel great despite my hefty size and I am not kidding when I say that I can't wait for contractions.

Three Year Olds

I cannot believe that these little baby babes are THREE.
They make every age my favorite.

Asher and Soren had their three year check up today and it went well...because they are awesome. Perfect health and perfect cuteness! They even got the nasal flu vaccine plus two shots each. The nurse had me hold them in a hug position and having them that close to my while they got their shots made all the difference. No tears and the tightest hugs for me!

Asher Banister
Weight: 28 lbs (12th percentile)
Height: 36.5 inches (20th percentile)
Asher finally broke free from the 5th percentile! Excellent!

Soren Carlton
Weight: 35 lbs (80th percentile)
Height: 39.75 inches (90th percentile)

I predicted that Asher would weigh 28 pounds and that Soren would weigh around 35 pounds and I was right! I laughed when it occurred to me that Soren really is SEVEN pounds heavier and over three inches taller than Asher. To have twin boys so marvelously different has been such a joy.

Potty Trained!

Piles of underwear!





When I got home from work on Monday I found two little men running around in pajama shorts with no diapers! Jang had ambitiously started the potty training process! I was completely shocked! We had talked for months about the boys using the potty when they turned three and well, since they were two days beyond their third birthday I guess Jang thought it was time to begin!

I am grateful for her initiative and VERY honored to say that by Wednesday, Soren was accident free and completely reliant on the potty. He had very few accidents the first few days and it has just been very easy for him to make this huge transition. Soren is a very determined and turbo little man so it suits his personality perfectly that he would so easily potty train. He did cry for his diaper the first day and on Tuesday morning as I was leaving for work he also cried for his diaper and I was heart broken to leave him in such a state. He survived, he always does, and is now a man with no diaper and dry pants. Amazing.

Asher is very good natured about the potty training process and true to his personality, is very cheerful, happy, and hardly bothered by wet pants. He's pretty much like, "What? It's cool to pee your pants." I love that he isn't stressed by the process and is training in his own style and at his own speed. Each day he has fewer accidents and more successes on the potty. When I got home from work on Wednesday he was sitting on the potty with the largest grin on his face--just the happiest little man on the planet. I know he'll have dry pants too and I am happy to let him set the pace for that day.

I am overwhelmed. Asher and Soren have grown up tremendously in the past few months--between big beds, turning THREE, and now potty training, they really do seem like such mature little guys. I am so proud of them and how happily they accept the changes around them. What a blessing to be their mom and to watch them handle the changes of life so eagerly and with so much joy.

Potty training...can you believe it?

How cute are little boys in tiny, tiny underwear? MEGA cute.

Birthday Blocks

My parents sent Asher and Soren a fabulous set of blocks for their birthday. This is a photo of their first creation with the lovely twig blocks and it may not be obvious at first--but the tower on the right is actually an elevator. Nice job boys.

The boys have been making lots of robots and fireplaces. Incidentally, Asher loves to cook his toys in the fireplaces he builds and he uses his new wrench to carefully put the toys in and out of the fireplace. Resourceful those THREE year olds!

The Rest of the Birthday Fun

The cakes!










I love how Asher is holding a fork and a spoon. He doesn't mess around when it comes to cake eating preparation.




A&S LOVED the wrapping paper that Jang so thoughtfully chose for them!


Jang bought them tools and a tool belt! Uncles Brent, Deric, and Joe would be so proud!

Cake. It is a kind of a big deal for the boys, especially Soren. We had been engaging in several rounds of cake discussions over the past month and I think they were happy with the end result because let's be honest--the cakes had M&Ms!

I am not good at frosting a cake. My cakes looked scrappy and cobbled together but the M&M border really looked cute and tightened up appearances. Soren was very clear that he wanted blue M&Ms and Asher didn't really care so I chose yellow for him because I love to hear him say yellow (lellow). We invited neighbors over to share cake with us and it was a fun little cake party. The kids picked M&Ms off of the cake then ran around playing with balloons. Good times for my good time cutie cutes.

Do your kids get to eat cake for breakfast the day after their birthday? Mine do.

p.s. You may be curious about the pile of fried rice--I foolishly thought the boys would eat real food before cake but seriously? Yeah right. We had rice several hours later.